Neighborhood Social Conditions Mediate the Association Between Physical Deterioration and Mental Health

Abstract

This study investigates how neighborhood deterioration is associated with stress and depressive symptoms and the mediating effects of perceived neighborhood social conditions. Data come from a community survey of 801 respondents geocoded and linked to a systematic on-site assessment of the physical characteristics of nearly all residential and commercial structures around respondents' homes. Structural equation models controlling for demographic effects indicate that the association between neighborhood deterioration and well-being appear to be mediated through social contact, social capital, and perceptions of crime, but not through neighborhood satisfaction. Specifically, residential deterioration was mediated by social contact, then, social capital and fear of crime. Commercial deterioration, on the other hand, was mediated only through fear of crime. Additionally, data indicate that the functional definition of a "neighborhood" depends on the characteristics measured. These findings suggest that upstream interventions designed to improve neighborhood conditions as well as proximal interventions focused on social relationships, may promote well-being.

Village characteristics and health of rural Chinese older adults: Examining the CHARLS Pilot Study of a rich and poor province

“…And, in Zhejiang physical limitations were increased by 37% if the respondent lived in a village where one or more households used coal (p < 0.001). Similar findings have been reported in previous studies examining the environment (e.g., Hunter, et al, 2011;Hart, 2006;Shaw, et al, 2002;Kruger, et al, 2007). The current findings suggest that rural Chinese village elderly are no different than elderly examined in earlier studies-their environment has clear links to their health.…”

“…Studies have shown that air and water pollution have negative effects on health. Similarly, a community's generation of toxic materials and waste and lack of sufficient energy for heating and cooling homes have been associated with poor health (Shaw, et al, 2002;Kruger, et al, 2007). Reported environmental health effects range from minor health concerns to communicable diseases to death (Martin & Preston, 1994;Hunter, et al, 2011).…”

Health-Promoting Home and Workplace Neighborhoods: Associations With Multiple Facets of Men’s Health

“…The model suggests that health-promoting home neighborhood characteristics might lead to more frequent healthy behaviors, which in turn might lead to more positive mental health and perceived health. This expands results from previous studies that had focused on specific health behaviors (Kruger et al, 2007;L. V. Moore, Diez Roux, Nettleton, Jacobs, & Franco, 2009).…”

A psychological perspective on vulnerability in the fear of crime

“…There is some psychological work on what 'fear' of crime means in the first place, and what is actually being measured (Farrall, Bannister, Ditton, & Gilchrist, 1997;Gray, Jackson, & Farrall, 2008a, 2008b; and on social desirability and suppression in the measurement of fear (Sutton & Farrall, 2005. And there is some psychological work on the impact of 'fear' on physical and psychological health (Chandola, 2001;Whitley & Prince, 2005;Stafford, Chandola, & Marmot, 2007;Kruger, Reischl, & Gee, 2007).…”