[Assisted living: possibilities, limits and architectural requirements--considerations from the viewpoint of an architect with ecopsychological orientation].

In Germany, existing experiences with "sheltered housing" are not sufficient in order to precisely define the role of this new type of housing the aged within the overall network of care for the elderly. First, this article provides an overview of how different the needs for help in old age can be, and which types of supportive environments and services fit to different situations. In this context the potential and the limits of the "sheltered home" concept are described. Second, based on some policy considerations, a program of seven design directives for the planning of sheltered homes is proposed that integrates selected theoretical approaches of environmental psychology and geropsychology. As an example for the implementation of some of the design directives, the floor-plan of a recent project is described. Finally, the resistance of architects to a design, which is also based on psychological considerations is discussed. It is argued that the architects' philosophy about the fit between architecture and users' needs has a certain similarity to the "complementary-similarity-model," developed by Carp and Carp (1984).