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The aim of this article is to present a new, simple applicable method of inferring and assessing residential construction quality at an industry‐wide level.

Construction quality is measured using ratios of structural materials to production levels. Cement and reinforcing bar per 1,000m² of residential floor space are the metrics, especially appropriate in Taiwan as new dwelling units (virtually all apartments and row houses) and all of reinforced concrete. Complementary measurements of quality for labour and non‐structural construction material inputs were also made.

The structural input and complementary measures indicate that the quality of Taiwanese residential construction declines dramatically and consistently at higher production levels. The implication is that dwelling units from the 1990s construction boom are especially at risk.

The methods cannot be used to identify specific buildings at risk. The methods are difficult to apply in situations where construction methods and residential types are heterogeneous.

Construction quality can be monitored on a regular basis so industry‐wide steps can be taken if quality declines appear. The evidence is consistent with Taiwan's sub‐contractor network enabling rapid expansions and contractions at the expense of hidden quality failure.

This paper provides information that could lead to much firmer regulatory systems, hence has the potential to help save lives and property.

Residential satisfaction can be viewed as a part of life satisfaction. There are many studies related to the relationship between residents’ satisfaction with their environments and the quality of those environments. The purpose of this paper is to examine how this satisfaction differs according to the type of residential environment.

It is based on empirical data on the quality of life in the different residential environments of the Istanbul Metropolitan Area. The primary source of information was a household survey.

In an attempt to find solutions to problems with the quality of residential environments, the data were analyzed through several variables related to the subjective perceptions of residential satisfaction. According to the results of the research, residents living in planned neighborhoods in the city are more satisfied than those living in unplanned neighborhoods. The residents who live in the planned sections of the city are satisfied with the attractiveness and accessibility of their neighborhoods, while those who live in unplanned sections of the city are satisfied with their level of attachment to their neighborhoods.

The study was designed to produce baseline data so that future changes in residential conditions as perceived by the residents of Istanbul could be monitored to support decisions for residential areas.

Comparative case studies, especially on planned vs unplanned environments, are relatively limited in number. Therefore, there is a need for new researches examining differences between different residential settings within cities. This study adds value to the field of comparative studies on residential environments.

As an important indicator of the quality of life of individuals, residential environments are continuing to evolve, due to the rapidly changing production–consumption relations. However, in this evolving process, the effect of the differentiated residential environments on the individuals' residential satisfaction remains unclear. This paper aims to measure the effects of the varying residential environments on the overall quality of urban life (QoUL) in Kayseri, one of the most developed cities in Central Anatolia.

It is based on empirical data on the quality of life in the different residential environments of Kayseri. The research method used stratified purposeful sampling, and the household survey data were analyzed using factor analysis, multiple regression and ANOVA statistical methods.

The most influential factors on the overall QoUL of individuals living in different Kayseri residential neighborhoods were satisfaction with neighborhood and city-level urban services, neighborhood relations and belonging factor groups. The critical finding obtained in this study is that residential satisfaction in low-rise and compact form housing areas in Kayseri is higher compared to residential satisfaction in high-rise neighborhoods. This result reveals that the high-rise building typology that is dominant in Turkey's big cities should be seriously questioned, and urban development policies should be re-evaluated.

The study was designed to produce baseline data so that future changes in residential conditions as perceived by the residents of Kayseri could be monitored to support decisions for residential areas.

Comparative case studies, particularly on low-rise versus high-rise environments, are scarce. As a result, this research contributes to the field of comparative studies on residential environments.

This research explores perceptions of knowledge management processes held by managers and employees in a service industry. To date, empirical research on knowledge management in the service industry is sparse. This research seeks to examine absorptive capacity and its four capabilities of acquisition, assimilation, transformation and exploitation and their impact on effective knowledge management. All of these capabilities are strategies that enable external knowledge to be recognized, imported and integrated into, and further developed within the organization effectively. The research tests the relationships between absorptive capacity and effective knowledge management through analysis of quantitative data (n = 549) drawn from managers and employees in 35 residential aged care organizations in Western Australia. Responses were analysed using Partial Least Square-based Structural Equation Modelling. Additional analysis was conducted to assess if the job role (of manager or employee) and three industry context variables of profit motive, size of business and length of time the organization has been in business, impacted on the hypothesized relationships.

Structural model analysis examines the relationships between variables as hypothesized in the research framework. Analysis found that absorptive capacity and the four capabilities correlated significantly with effective knowledge management, with absorptive capacity explaining 56% of the total variability for effective knowledge management. Findings from this research also show that absorptive capacity and the four capabilities provide a useful framework for examining knowledge management in the service industry. Additionally, there were no significant differences in the perceptions held between managers and employees, nor between respondents in for-profit and not-for-profit organizations. Furthermore, the size of the organization and length of time the organization has been in business did not impact on absorptive capacity, the four capabilities and effective knowledge management.

The research considers implications for business in light of these findings. The role of managers in providing leadership across the knowledge management process was confirmed, as well as the importance of guiding routines and knowledge sharing throughout the organization. Further, the results indicate that within the participating organizations there are discernible differences in the way that some organizations manage their knowledge, compared to others. To achieve effective knowledge management, managers need to provide a supportive workplace culture, facilitate strong employee relationships, encourage employees to seek out new knowledge, continually engage in two-way communication with employees and provide up-to-date policies and procedures that guide employees in doing their work. The implementation of knowledge management strategies has also been shown in this research to enhance the delivery and quality of residential aged care.

Concerns about quality and standards of care in the nursing and residential home sector have exercised policymakers, managers and practitioners in both Australia and the UK for some years. While Australia is a relatively young country, demographically speaking, it has in place a coherent ‘aged care’ policy. The UK on the other hand, with its rapidly ageing profile, has only recently made a serious policy commitment to the health and social care agenda for older people. Australia therefore has several years of experience to be shared with the UK when it comes to policy and practice of quality improvement. In particular, there are valuable lessons to be learnt from Australia's national outcome standards and monitoring system for care homes, and its more recent introduction of a care homes accreditation system. Apart from identifying any issues associated with the implementation of such approaches to quality improvement, it is important to establish whether they have an impact on the quality of care and life of older residents. As the UK moves to implementing national minimum standards in 2002, lessons from Australia are timely and may help inform best practice and policy in long‐term care in the future.

This paper examines residential satisfaction in welfare housing facilities exclusively built for low-income single-mother households in South Korea. The main objective is to identify predictors from among various domains such as sociodemographic and psychological characteristics of residents, as well as objective and subjective characteristics of their residential environment.

A mixed-method field study evaluates data obtained via structured questionnaires administered to 233 low-income single mothers in 23 residential welfare facilities across South Korea, supplemented by facility observations and interviews with housing staff from 16 facilities.

Residential satisfaction was found to be a multidimensional construct predicted by a number of variables, with psychological characteristics being dominant. Significant predictors were also identified among physical and sociospatial environmental characteristics, such as plan type, management and service and personal space.

The results of this study highlight the significance of the human aspects of management and the sociospatial quality of housing unit spaces to provide a sense of protection and privacy for the residents, which emphasizes the importance of management, design and policy improvements to increase satisfaction in welfare facility residents.

Currently, data for special housing conditions of female-headed households in unstable housing affordability are relatively few and outdated. A critical examination of the physical and sociospatial quality of short-term subsidized public housing for low-income single-mother households in South Korea expands the current knowledge in this field to various sociodemographic and cultural contexts.

This article describes a research study conducted in Brisbane, Australia, that sought to establish older people's views on what contributes to their quality of life in residential settings. Focus group interviews were used to explore the key aspects of residential life that equated with a high‐quality experience. A number of key themes were identified, particularly relating to issues about autonomy, control and staff‐resident interactions. The article concludes with recommendations for those working in, or providing, residential care.

The purpose of this paper is to identify, confirm and validate a model appropriate to capture the interrelationships between different variables to develop and improve social housing quality, adequacy, provision and residents’ quality of life (RQOL).

This research adopted a quantitative approach to examine the research objectives of this study. The proposed conceptual framework was tested using primary data collected from a survey of 418 residents of the new urban center of Hamla. The data were analyzed using descriptive analysis and exploratory factor analysis through SPSS. In addition, confirmatory factor analysis was performed using AMOS before validating the measurement model and testing the hypotheses through structural equation modeling (SEM).

The results of SEM indicated acceptable high goodness-of-fit indices. The results revealed that three out of six hypotheses were supported. Consequently, residential quality and housing adequacy appeared to have a vital role in the conceptual framework, as it influenced social housing provision and RQOL and was influenced by socio-economic characteristics.

The present study illustrates the interrelationships between the proposed variables using SEM analysis. In addition, by understanding the direct relationships between the selected variables, the findings would be useful for the concerned authorities to ameliorate and upgrade the social housing quality and adequacy along with surpassing the current shortage, which would enhance and contribute to the amelioration of the RQOL and throughout Algeria.

This paper aims to establish, examine, validate the relationships and develop a conceptual framework in the context of Algerian social housing that contributes to the assessment and amelioration of social housing.

Explores the relationships between the perceived quality of physical education lessons, the perceived quality of opportunities for physical activity in a residential area, and the physical fitness and health of pupils attending Grades 5 and 9 in Germany. The data were collected from 300 pupils in a community in Saxony, using a standardized questionnaire and a standard test of sporting ability. Results indicated that girls evaluated the opportunities for physical activity in the residential area more critically than boys. Multivariate analysis showed that the subjective health status of pupils was associated with good physical fitness and a good perception of opportunities for physical activity in the residential area, but not with the perceived quality of physical education lessons. These results provide evidence that a relationship between the urban environment and physical activity exists, and that the promotion of physical activity for pupils can benefit from intersectoral approaches.

The purpose of this paper is to study the appropriateness of applying “manufacturing sector” quality management strategies to residential care homes sector and to analyze its influence on the quality of care.

Observation and in‐depth interviews were conducted with 41 Spanish care home top and middle managers, consultants and employees.

The quality management paradigm based on ISO 9001 has certain shortcomings in the elderly residential care home sector. There is a need to fit general quality management models to the sector's specific characteristics and to integrate generic quality management with specialized models.

Research findings should be noted by different agents involved in the process of improving services.

Useful, up‐to‐date conceptual overview for different agents interested in the sector (managers, consultants, academics, etc.) as well as interesting evidence for reflection.