Association Between Natural/Built Campus Environment and Depression Among Chinese Undergraduates: Multiscale Evidence for the Moderating Role of Socioeconomic Factors After Controlling for Residential Self-Selection

Abstract

AimEvidence on the association between natural-built environments and depression is largely derived from the general population and prone to residential self-selection bias because of the nature of cross-sectional research design. Despite emerging adulthood, which includes the university years, is a critical stage for forming life-long health habits, studies on this topic focusing on undergraduate students are limited. The current study aims to illustrate the underlying mechanisms for how the campus-based environments affect depression in undergraduate students.MethodsBased on a nationwide representative analytical sample of 22,009 Chinese undergraduates in 2018, we examined participants' reports of depression and campus-centered natural/built environments within multiple buffer sizes including 0.5, 1.0, and 2.5 km. After disentangling residential self-selection, we explored the moderating role of the socioeconomic attributes of undergraduates. The depression outcome was measured by the nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ9). Indicators of exposure to green and blue space, transportation infrastructure, and food environments were objectively assessed using different circular buffers around each campus address.ResultsModeling results indicated that campus neighborhoods with more scattered trees (0.5 km), water (0.5, 1.0, and 2.5 km), and street intersections (1.0 and 2.5 km) were protective against depression. In contrast, those living near denser distributions of outlets serving take-away sweets and fast food (0.5, 1.0, and 2.5 km) were susceptible to depression. These associations were modified by undergraduates' socioeconomic attributes (e.g., grade, Hukou status, and ethnicity) and varied according to geographical scales and exposure metrics.ConclusionTo deliver effective environmental interventions to curb the prevalence of depression among undergraduate students, further planning policies should focus on the careful conception of the campus-based environment, especially regarding different spatial scales.

Beyond Blue and Green Spaces: Identifying and Characterizing Restorative Environments on Sichuan Technology and Business University Campus

“…The main findings were that in addition to blue and green spaces, gray, living, and study spaces were all restorative. According to previous studies, green space can reduce mental stress and relieve anxiety [ 14 , 15 , 16 ], and blue space is believed to contribute to recovery from mental illness and mental fatigue [ 19 , 20 ]. Overall, studies have shown that greater exposure to nature positively affects attentional recovery and stress reduction.…”

“…Blue spaces (a natural environment dominated by water bodies, which correspond to green spaces, e.g., wetlands, rivers, lakes, and ponds) are considered to have the best restoration potential among outdoor campus spaces [ 8 , 18 ]. In a campus-centered landscape study, Yang et al found a positive correlation between depression prevention and increased water coverage [ 19 ]. Natural elements can influence the resilience of an indoor space.…”

Multiple-trait subsampling for optimized ancestral trait reconstruction

“…Even though we here offer a detailed approach to reduce inherent biases and further optimize ancestral trait reconstruction by subsampling large datasets, there are other procedures to account for issues with sampling, including careful research and surveillance design, simulations, and weighted methods based on metrics such as prevalence (10,(54)(55)(56)(57)(58). New methodological developments enable phylogeographic inferences that are not as affected by sampling bias ( 14), but currently do not scale well with the increasing number of sequences and locations, and hence make analysis of large data sets computationally challenging.…”

Associations between neighborhood environment and sense of community belonging in urban China: Examining mediation effects of neighborly interactions and community satisfaction

“…Then, previous studies disproportionately center on the association of objective neighborhoods environment on SCB ( 24 ), whereas the effects of the subjectively measured neighborhood environment have been largely ignored, except for a few exceptions ( 4 , 11 ). According to Guo et al ( 11 ), subjectively measured neighborhood environments may contribute to SCB given that people would feel a greater connection to their community when they have a better perception and feeling of their living circumstances.…”