The Wheat Valley assisted living culture: rituals and rules.

This ethnographic study describes the cultural knowledge individuals use to organize their behaviors at one assisted living facility, Wheat Valley. Data were comprised of transcribed interviews with residents, family members, and staff; field notes of observations and informal interviews; and abstracted information from facility documents. The Wheat Valley culture is described as having six cultural categories, a single theme, a threat to the culture, and a conceptualization of resident decision-making. The cultural description provides the basis for a discussion of practice implications.