Analyzing Association Between Public Green Space and Self-Esteem Linked to Social Acceptance for Elderly Population in Dhaka

Abstract

This study aims at assessing the association between the facilities of parks and social acceptance toward self-esteem for the elderly population (50 years and above) in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The facilities of parks include social services and infrastructural amenities. The study was carried out in a mixed-method technique, and data were collected from 203 elderly users of four parks selected by stratified random sampling. Participant observation was applied to support quantitative data. The participants were selected using exponential non-discriminative snowball sampling. Data were analyzed using multivariate regression analysis. The findings revealed: (a) Pleasant social services boost-up self-esteem for elderly users; (b) Elderly self-esteem linked to societal acceptance and social inclusion was enhanced by infrastructural facilities and safety measures. Dhaka conserves the need of increasing the number of age-friendly parks. Gerontologists, city governance, and urban planners extract information from the study to build age-friendly parks.