Cited by 410Health disparities and outcomesUrban Transport and AccessibilityUrban Green Space and Health

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Urban built environment and depression: a multilevel analysis

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Galea, Sandro, Ahern, Jennifer, Rudenstine, Sasha, Wallace, Zachary, Vlahov, David·2005·Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health

DOI 10.1136/jech.2005.033084PMC PMC1732922

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Abstract

Study objective: To assess the relations between characteristics of the neighbourhood internal and external built environment and past six month and lifetime depression. Design and setting: Depression and sociodemographic information were assessed in a cross sectional survey of residents of New York City (NYC). All respondents were geocoded to neighbourhood of residence. Data on the quality of the built environment in 59 NYC neighbourhoods were collected from the United Status census, the New York City housing and vacancy survey, and the fiscal 2002 New York City mayor’s management report. Main results: Among 1355 respondents, residence in neighbourhoods characterised by a poor quality built environment was associated with greater individual likelihood of past six month and lifetime depression in multilevel models adjusting for individual age, race/ethnicity, sex, and income and for neighbourhood level income. In adjusted models, persons living in neighbourhoods characterised by poorer features of the built environment were 29%–58% more likely to report past six month depression and 36%–64% more likely to report lifetime depression than respondents living in neighbourhoods characterised by better features of the built environment. Conclusions: Living in neighbourhoods characterised by a poor quality built environment is associated with a greater likelihood of depression. Future prospective work designed to assess potential mechanisms underlying these associations may guide public health and urban planning efforts aimed at improving population mental health.

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Background
Physical characteristics of the environment and BMI of young urban children and their mothers☆☆☆
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Background
High-risk fertility behaviours among women of reproductive ages in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Prevalence, correlates, and spatial distribution
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“be associated with depression (Galea et al. 2005) as well as physical health outcomes such as”
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BackgroundMethodInfluential
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Chung, R., Lowe, G. A., Lipps, G. E., & Gibson, R. C. (2020) · Health Psychology Open · doi:10.1177/2055102920904724 · Cited by 11
“In keeping with international research (Galea et al., 2005), our study found children who perceived their neighbourhoods to be of poorer quality reported higher levels of depressive symptoms.”
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Discovery of the Environmental Factors Affecting Urban Dwellers’ Mental Health: A Data-Driven Approach
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Assessing the Relationship Between the Perceived Shelter Environment and Mental Health Among Homeless Caregivers
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Background
Are area-level and individual-level socioeconomic factors associated with self-rated health in adult urban citizens? Evidence from Slovak and Dutch cities
Behanová, M., Reijneveld, S. A., Nagyová, I., Katreniaková, Z., van Ameijden, E. J. C., Dijkshoorn, H., & van Dijk, J. P. (2015) · European Journal of Public Health · doi:10.1093/eurpub/ckv095 · Cited by 11
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Background
Publisher’s Note
Smit, W., Lannoy, A. D., Dover, R. V. H., Lambert, E. V., Levitt, N. S., & Watson, V. (2015) · Health & Place · doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2015.06.006 · Cited by 11
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Background
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Background
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Muñoz‐Laboy, M., Worthington, N., Perry, A. M., Guilamo‐Ramos, V., Cabassa, L. J., Lee, J. J.-H., & Severson, N. (2013) · Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health · doi:10.1007/s10903-013-9814-8 · Cited by 9
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Background
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Background
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Background
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Background
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Background
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Background
Monitoring noise level in cities: A step towards urban environmental quality management in Nigeria
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Background
Validating a comprehensive plan scoring system for healthy community design in League City, Texas
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Background
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Method
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“Poor-quality urban environments, with deteriorating infrastructure and unkept streets and sidewalks, have been associated with increased odds of experiencing depression, and it has been posited that densely populated areas may amplify stressors (Galea et al. 2005; Eaton 1980).”
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“…in a poor quality built environment (measured in terms of internal and external built environment indicators: e.g. percentage of housing units needing additional heating in winter as an internal indicator and percentage of acceptably clean sidewalks as an external indicator) (Galea et al. 2005).”
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“Poor-quality built environments will also cause high levels of stress and increase the risk of depression, as an unfavorable environment will challenge social interactions within the community [10].”
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Authors: Galea, S., Ahern, J., Rudenstine, S., Wallace, Z., & Vlahov, D.
Affiliations: New York Academy of Medicine (US)
Corresponding author: Galea, Sandro
ORCID: Galea, Sandro
Ahern, Jennifer
Rudenstine, Sasha
Wallace, Zachary
Venue: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
Publisher: BMJ
Published: 2005-09-15
Volume: 59
Issue: 10
Pages: 822-827
ISSN: 0141-7681 (ISSN-L)
0143-005X
1470-2738
DOI: 10.1136/jech.2005.033084
PMC: PMC1732922
OpenAlex: W2092950181
Cited by: 409
References: 49
Citations by year: 2026: 16 · 2025: 18 · 2024: 28 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 23 · 2021: 33 · 2020: 26 · 2019: 22 · 2018: 15 · 2017: 20 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 34 · 2014: 21 · 2013: 16 · 2012: 21
FWCI: 11.13
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: bronze
doi.org
Locations: Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health (publishedVersion)
PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Deep Blue (University of Michigan) (submittedVersion)
Funders: National Institutes of Health (1r01mh066081-01)
National Institute of Mental Health (MH66081, R01MH066391, MH66391)
National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA013146, DA 13146-S2, DA 018061, R01DA017642, R01DA018061)
Topics: Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
Social Sciences › Transportation › Urban Transport and Accessibility
Social Sciences › Urban Studies › Urban Green Space and Health
Keywords: urban built environment, depression, neighborhood characteristics, built environment quality, neighborhood income, housing conditions, vacant properties, urban planning, population mental health, New York City
MeSH terms: Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Cross-Sectional Studies, Depressive Disorder, Environment, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, New York City, Residence Characteristics, Risk Factors, Socioeconomic Factors, Urban Health, Logistic Models

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Urban built environment and depression: a multilevel analysis

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