Maintaining the ability to live independently is critical for older people who desire to do so for long as possible. This Grounded Theory study explored the experiences and perceptions of independent living among older German women living alone. Twenty-four women, aged 68 to 88, living in three cities in Germany were interviewed. Findings include three dimensions that characterize the perceptions of independence: 'being able to be' -- the internal and mental factors that support independence; 'being able to do' - the physical or 'external' factors in the women's environment, and individual background factors and current states of well-being. Findings support the assumption that independent living is a multi-layered concept. In contrast to the published literature which emphasizes physical functioning, it was clear that 'being able to be' was more important to older German women than 'being able to do.' In addition, many facilitating factors and constraining factors , as well as coping strategies, were identified, several of which have not been discussed in the literature to date.
