ABSTRACT Objective: to assess elderly people’s quality of life, understanding the social representations of falls. Methods: a convergent mixed methods research carried out at homes, with a sample of 134 elderly people. A structured questionnaire was used, covering sociodemographic variables and factors that indicated frailty and risk of falling. For quality of life assessment, Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form 36 and Theory of Social Representations, Abric’s structural approach were used, with data treated by dictionary of equivalent terms, processed in Evoc 2000, converging analytically according to Neuman. Results: quality of life impairment was identified in terms of physical, emotional and functional capacity. The elements of the possible central nucleus were fall, fear, and bruised-broken-bone. Final considerations: quality of life impairment can contribute to increase the number of falls, which has been shown to be an event present in elderly people’s lives through evocations. Understanding elderly people’s individual demands allows planning actions.