PREDICTING HEALTH AND SOCIAL-SERVICE UTILIZATION OF OLDER ADULTS

This study incorporated subjective and evaluative measures of the OARS methodology into the Andersen framework to predict health and social service utilization of older adults. One hundred and ninety-nine servi ce recipients from 21 agencies in Ohio served as respondents. A number of predisposing, enabling, and need characteristics were identified t hat successfully discriminated between those who entered the health ca re system and those who did not and between those who had above and be low average levels of social service usage. The efficacy of subjective vs. evaluative measures in prediction was examined. Conceptual and me thodological issues are discussed as well as implications for the futu re.