scholarly journals Assessing the perceived changes in neighborhood physical and social environments and how they are associated with Chinese internal migrants’ mental health

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Yang ◽  
Julian Hagenauer ◽  
Martin Dijst ◽  
Marco Helbich
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
General Health Questionnaire ◽  
Variable Importance ◽  
Neighborhood Environment ◽  
Minor Role ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Reverse Causality ◽  
Registration System ◽  
Individual Level

Abstract Background Migrants experience substantial changes in their neighborhood physical and social environments along their migration journeys, but little is known about how perceived changes in their neighborhood environment pre- and post-migration correlate with their mental health. Our aim was to examine the associations between recalled changes in the perceived neighborhood physical and social environments and migrants’ mental health in the host city. Methods We used cross-sectional data on 591 migrants in Shenzhen, China. We assessed their risk of mental illness using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Neighborhood perceptions were collected retrospectively pre- and post-migration. We used random forests to analyze possibly non-linear associations between GHQ scores and changes in the neighborhood environment, variable importance, and for exploratory analysis of variable interactions. Results Perceived changes in neighborhood aesthetics, safety, and green space were non-linearly associated with migrants’ mental health: A decline in these characteristics was associated with poor mental health, while improvements in them were unrelated to mental health benefits. Variable importance showed that change in safety was the most influential neighborhood characteristic, although individual-level characteristics—such as self-reported physical health, personal income, and hukou (i.e., the Chinese household registration system)—appeared to be more important to explain GHQ scores and also strongly interacted with other variables. For physical health, we found different associations between changes in the neighborhood provoked by migration and mental health. Conclusion Our findings suggest that perceived degradations in the physical environment are related to poorer post-migration mental health. In addition, it seems that perceived changes in the neighborhood environment play a minor role compared to individual-level characteristics, in particular migrants’ physical health condition. Replication of our findings in longitudinal settings is needed to exclude reverse causality.

scholarly journals Pre-pandemic mental and physical health as predictors of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy: evidence from a UK-wide cohort study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
George David Batty ◽  
Ian Deary ◽  
Drew Altschul
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Cohort Study ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
General Health Questionnaire ◽  
Vaccine Hesitancy ◽  
Symptom Scale ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Successful Testing ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Mental And Physical Health

Importance: Although several predictors of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy have been identified, the role of physical health has not been well-examined, and the association with mental health is unknown. Objective: To examine the association of pre-pandemic mental health, physical health, and shielding with vaccine hesitancy after the announcement of the successful testing of the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine. Design, Setting, and Participants: We used individual-level data from a pandemic-focused investigation (COVID Survey), a prospective cohort study nested within the UK Understanding Society (Main Survey) project. In the week immediately following the announcement of successful testing of the first efficacious inoculation (November/December 2020), data on vaccine intentionality were collected in 12,035 individuals aged 16-95 years. Pre-pandemic, study members had responded to enquiries about diagnoses of mental and physical health, completed the 12-item General Health Questionnaire for symptoms of psychological distress (anxiety and depression), and indicated whether they or someone in their household was shielding. Main outcome measures: Self-reported intention to take up a vaccination for COVID-19. To summarise our results, we computed odds ratios with accompanying 95% confidence intervals for indices of health and shielding adjusted for selected covariates. Results: In an analytical sample of 11,955 people (6741 women), 15.4% indicated that they were vaccine hesitant. Relative to their disease-free counterparts, shielding was associated with a 24% lower risk of being hesitant (odds ratio; 95% confidence interval: 0.76; 0.59, 0.96), after adjustment for a range of covariates which included age, education, and ethnicity. Corresponding results for cardiometabolic disease were 22% (0.78; 0.64, 0.95), and for respiratory disease were 26% (0.74; 0.59, 0.93). Having a pre-pandemic diagnosis of anxiety or depression, or a high score on the distress symptom scale, were all unrelated to the willingness to take up a vaccine. Conclusions and relevance: People who have been prioritised for COVID-19 vaccination owing to a physical condition are more likely to take it up. These effects were not apparent for indices of mental health.

Neighborhood Effects on the Health of Chinese Older Adults: Beyond the Rural and Urban Dichotomy

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuekang Li ◽  
Yi Wang ◽  
Nancy Morrow-Howell
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Neighborhood Effects ◽  
Neighborhood Environment ◽  
Moderating Effects ◽  
Physical Frailty ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Neighborhood Level

Abstract Background and Objectives The associations between physical frailty and depressive symptoms among older individuals were established in the existing literature. Taking the person–environment perspective, we argue that neighborhood environment could either buffer the stress derived from being physically vulnerable or worsen it by adding another layer of stressors in the environmental context when physical health declined. The objectives of this study were to explore to what extent the neighborhood-level characteristics moderate the relationship between physical frailty and depressive symptoms. Research Design and Methods Using the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study 2011 wave, 6,245 individuals aged 60 years and older were included for analyses. Multilevel mixed-effects models were fitted to examine the moderating effects of urbanicity and neighborhood-level socioeconomic status (SES) on the relationship between frailty and depressive symptoms among older adults, controlling for individual-level characteristics. Results Results showed a stronger relationship between deterioration in physical health and depressive symptoms in rural neighborhoods and neighborhoods with lower SES, after controlling for individual-level SES. Also, the moderating effects of the neighborhood-level socioeconomic factors remained after controlling for urbanicity, indicating that neighborhood SES works beyond the rural–urban contexts. Discussion and Implications Findings from this study demonstrate the important roles of neighborhood socioeconomic characteristics in reshaping, and the need to redefine, China’s rural–urban dichotomy. The findings also identified neighborhoods with low SES as potential targets for policy and practice to reduce the stress associated with health decline.

scholarly journals NEIGHBORHOOD AND HEALTH AMONG CHINESE ADULTS: BEYOND THE URBAN AND RURAL DICHOTOMY

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S78-S78
Author(s):  
Yuekang Li ◽  
Yi Wang
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Neighborhood Environment ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Moderating Effects ◽  
Physical Frailty ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Neighborhood Level

Abstract The associations between physical frailty and depressive symptoms among older individuals were established in existing literature. Taking the person-environment perspective, we argue that neighborhood environment could either buffer the stress derived from being physically vulnerable or worsen it by adding another layer of stressors in the environmental context when physical health declined. The objectives of this study are to explore 1) to what extent the neighborhood-level characteristics moderate the relationship between physical frailty and depressive symptoms, 2) if there were rural-urban differences in the moderation effects, and 3) whether some of the environmental factors worked beyond the contextual influences of the rural-urban scope. Using the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study 2011 wave, 6,246 individuals ages 60 years and older were included for analyses. Multilevel mixed-effects models were fitted to examine the moderating effects of urbanicity and neighborhood-level socio-economic status (SES) on the relationship between frailty and depressive symptoms among older adults, controlling for individual-level characteristics. Results showed a stronger relationship between deterioration in physical health and depressive symptoms in rural neighborhoods and neighborhoods with lower SES, after controlling for individual-level SES. Also, the moderating effects of the neighborhood-level socioeconomic factors remained after controlling for urbanicity, indicating that neighborhood SES works beyond the rural-urban contexts. Findings from this study demonstrate the important roles of neighborhood socioeconomic characteristics in reshaping and the need to redefining China’s rural-urban dichotomy. The findings also identified neighborhoods with low SES as potential targets for policy and practice to reduce the stress associated with health decline.

scholarly journals Is it the Way You Live or the Job You Have? Health Effects of Lifestyles and Working Conditions

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Cottini ◽  
Paolo Ghinetti
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Working Conditions ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Minor Role ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Physical Hazards ◽  
Alternative Systems ◽  
A Minor ◽  
Self Assessed Health

AbstractThis paper investigates the role of lifestyles (smoking, drinking and obesity) and working conditions (physical hazards, no support from colleagues, job worries and repetitive work) on health. Three alternative systems of simultaneous multivariate probit equations are estimated, one for each health measure: an indicator of self-assessed health, an indicator of physical health, and an indicator of work-related mental health problems, using Danish data for 2000 and 2005. We find that while lifestyles are significant determinants of self-assessed health, they play a minor role for our indicators of physical health and mental health. The effect of lifestyles seems to be dominated by the effect of adverse working conditions, which significantly worsen health. This result is robust for all health dimensions considered.

scholarly journals In the Subtropical Monsoon Climate High-Density City, What Features of the Neighborhood Environment Matter Most for Public Health?

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (24) ◽  
pp. 9566 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Gao ◽  
Ruoxiang Tu ◽  
Hao Li ◽  
Yongli Fang ◽  
Qingmin Que
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Neighborhood Environment ◽  
City Development ◽  
Physical And Mental Health ◽  
Monsoon Climate ◽  
Physiological Functions ◽  
Subtropical Monsoon Climate

Urbanization and climate change have been rapidly occurring globally. Evidence-based healthy city development is required to improve living quality and mitigate the adverse impact of the outdoor neighborhood environment on public health. Taking Guangzhou as an example to explore the association of neighborhood environment and public health and preferably to offer some implications for better future city development, we measured ten environmental factors (temperature (T), wind-chill index (WCI), thermal stress index (HSI), relative humidity (RH), average wind speed (AWS), negative oxygen ions (NOI), PM2.5, luminous flux (LF), and illuminance (I)) in four seasons in four typical neighborhoods, and the SF-36 health scale was employed to assess the physical and mental health of neighborhood residents in nine subscales (health transition(HT), physiological functions (PF), general health status (GH), physical pain (BP), physiological functions (RP), energy vitality (VT), mental health (MH), social function (SF), and emotional functions (RE)). The linear mixed model was used in an analysis of variance. We ranked the different environmental factors in relation to aspects of health and weighted them accordingly. Generally, the thermal environment had the greatest impact on both physical and mental health and the atmospheric environment and wind environment had the least impact on physical health and mental health, respectively. In addition, the physical health of the resident was more greatly affected by the environment than mental health. According to the results, we make a number of strategic suggestions for the renewal of the outdoor neighborhood environment in subtropical monsoon climate high-density cities and provide a theoretical basis for improving public health through landscape architecture at the neighborhood scale.

scholarly journals “This Pandemic Is Making Me More Anxious about My Welfare and the Welfare of Others:” COVID-19 Stressors and Mental Health

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (11) ◽  
pp. 5680
Author(s):  
Ramey Moore ◽  
Melissa J. Zielinski ◽  
Ronald G. Thompson ◽  
Don E. Willis ◽  
Rachel S. Purvis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Ecological Model ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Social Phenomena ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual

COVID-19 and subsequent social distancing guidelines have changed many aspects of people’s daily lives including the way that they interact within their social environment. Pandemics are inherently social phenomena, and public health measures intended to curtail transmission of COVID-19 (e.g., quarantine and social distancing) have consequences for individuals with anxiety and depression. Using qualitative methods, respondents with previously diagnosed anxiety or depression identified ways in which COVID-19 affected their symptoms at multiple levels of the social ecological model (SEM). Key themes reported were organized following the SEM. Emergent themes at the individual level are isolation/loneliness, fear of contracting COVID-19, and uncertainty about the future. Themes at the interpersonal level are: fears of family contracting COVID-19, separation from family members, and domestic relationships. Themes at the level of community and societal stressors are: employment, community and societal systems, media, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings demonstrate the ways that mental health, physical health/safety, and social environments are interrelated in the experience of COVID-19 for individuals diagnosed with anxiety or depression. These findings make a significant contribution to the literature as this is the first article to document mental health stressors related to the COVID-19 pandemic among individuals with diagnosed anxiety and depressive disorders.

scholarly journals Neighborhood Environment and Self-Rated Health among Adults in Southern Sri Lanka

2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (8) ◽  
pp. 2102-2112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bilesha Perera ◽  
Truls Østbye ◽  
Chandramali Jayawardana
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Representative Sample ◽  
Drug Users ◽  
Drainage System ◽  
Environmental Stressors ◽  
Neighborhood Environment ◽  
Self Rated Health ◽  
Stray Dog

The prevalenceof different neighborhood environmental stressors and associations between the stressors and self-rated health are described in a representative sample of 2,077 individuals, aged 18-85 years, in southern Sri Lanka. Mosquito menace (69.4%), stray dog problems (26.8%), nuisance from neighbors (20.3%), and nuisance from drug users (18.7%) were found to be the most prevalent environmental stressors. None of the stressors investigated were associated with self-rated physical health, but nuisance from neighbors, nuisance from drug users, shortage of water and having poor water/ sewage drainage system were associated with self-rated mental health among the respondents.

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