The effects of cohousing model on people’s health and wellbeing: a scoping review

Abstract

Background Housing is a social determinant of health. Extensive research has highlighted its adverse effects on health. However, less is known about the effects of cohousing typology on health, which has the potential to create lively social networks and healthy communities and environments. We report the findings of a scoping study designed to gather and synthesise all known evidence on the relationship between cohousing and wellbeing and health. Method Using the scoping review method, we conducted a literature review in PubMed, ProQuest, Scopus, Web of Science, Science Direct and JSTOR in May 2019 and selected articles published from 1960 onwards, with no geographical limit and no design restrictions. Retrieved articles underwent three sequential screening phases. The results were described through a narrative synthesis of the evidence. Results Of the 2560 articles identified, we selected 25 full-text articles analysing 77 experiences. All of them were conducted in high-income countries. Ten studies analysed the impact of cohousing on physical and mental health or quality of life and wellbeing. Eight of the 10 studies found a positive association. In addition, 22 studies analysed one or more psychosocial determinants of health (such as social support, sense of community and physical, emotional and economic security) and most found a positive association. Through these determinants, quality of life, wellbeing and health could be improved. However, the quality of the evidence was low. Discussion The cohousing model could enhance health and wellbeing mediated by psychosocial determinants of health. However, extreme caution should be exercised in drawing any conclusions due to the dearth of data identified and the designs used in the included studies, with most being cross-sectional or qualitative studies, which precluded causal-based interpretations. Because housing is a major social determinant of health, more evidence is needed on the impact of this model on health through both psychosocial and material pathways.

Housing, Living Arrangements and Mental Health of Young Adults in Independent Living

“…Finally, does the association between housing problems and the mental health of single-person households differ from that of non-single-person households? The literature suggests that living with someone else is conducive to seniors’ mental health [ 43 , 44 ], but little is known about how it affects young adults.…”

A multi-scalar perspective on health and urban housing: an umbrella review

“…The green buildings studies assessed a range of health outcomes, including communicable disease (associated with water systems, vector-borne disease), allergens and air quality (Allen et al 2015;Houghton & Castillo-Salgado 2017, 2019. The building type studies Impacts of exposure on thermal control in the elderly and those with respiratory conditions (Jevons et al 2016); cardio-respiratory, paediatric, maternal outcomes and mortality (Lee et al 2020a;Katoto et al 2019) Interventions to reduce exposure and general health benefits to children and adults (Quansah et al 2017;Bailey et al 2019) Environmental equity (Bailey et al 2019); air pollution (PM) (Katoto et al 2019;Quansah et al 2017 Impacts of conditions on: social wellbeing, QoL and mental health (Barros et al 2019;Carrere et al 2020;Cho et al 2016;Garin et al 2014); sedentary lifestyles (Chastin et al 2015); falls and mortality (Cho et al 2016); infectious diseases and maternal outcomes (Heijnen et al 2014) Efficient use of resources (Barros et al 2019) Outdoor space (e.g. gardens, outdoor equipment)…”

“…Interventions to improve the physical activity of children (Carlin et al 2017 reported on physical space and mental health and wellbeing (Barros et al 2019;Garin et al 2014), the impact of accessible design on falls and mental health (Cho et al 2016), and how design can minimise risks of injury, particularly later in life (Garin et al 2014); sedentary lifestyles associated with apartment or duplex living (Chastin et al 2015); physical and mental health, and wellbeing (Carrere et al 2020); and shared sanitation's impact on communicable disease (Heijnen et al 2014). Two studies looked at health impacts associated with a dwelling's outdoor space, including one on the physical activity benefits of gardens and outdoor equipment for children (Carlin et al 2017), and one on stress and time spent gardening (Kondo et al 2018b).…”

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“…While there are exceptions (for instance [17]) in which the authors find greater levels of social capital in community-led co-operatives in comparison with that found in housing developments created and managed by others,-a note of caution should be sounded on the definition of different models. In one scoping review, [26] the authors note that there remains no consensus on definitions, in part a reflection of the complexity of different models and terms in use across different countries. These definitional issues are discussed below.…”

“…These definitional issues are discussed below. Notwithstanding this, the primary finding of both the research noted above [26] and another similar scoping review [27] was that there remains a dearth of empirical data beyond individual case studies, in particular those making comparisons with non-cohousing samples, or larger-scale quantitative studies.…”