QUALITY OF LIFE AND SENSE OF COMMUNITY. A STUDY ON HEALTH AND PLACE OF RESIDENCE

The aim of the study is to assess the predictive role of the affective link with the place of residence (place attachment) and the perception of one's own community of residence (sense of community) on health and quality of life. Other variables were considered: size of place of residence, income, level of education, marital status, age, and gender. Participants included 344 adult subjects living in Piedmont, Italy. The instruments used were the Italian Sense of Community Scale, the Residential Attachment Scale, and the Italian version of the WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. Data showed that (a) quality of life is affected by sense of community, but not by place attachment, and (b) living in a small town enhances the environmental, psychological, and relational quality of life.