Investigating the Association between Environmental Quality Characteristics and Mental Well-Being in Public Open Spaces

Abstract

The issues related to the urban environment and mental well-being have become increasingly important in recent decades. Although this association has been mainly investigated in developed countries, there is limited knowledge on whether similar results can be acquired in the urban environments of developing countries like Iran. This study intends to present a new dynamic and active approach to determine the environmental quality characteristics that influence the mental well-being of urban residents and to engage people to healthy urban public environments. In this respect, the research is directed by both qualitative and quantitative surveys in the public open spaces of Kermanshah, Iran. Firstly, the data are collected by Grounded Theory (GT) to identify significant environmental quality characteristics related to mental well-being by applying 24 semi-structured interviews. Secondly, the questionnaire survey based on Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) is applied to examine the association between each characteristic of the developed conceptual framework. The results reveal that the environmental quality characteristics of public open spaces, directly and indirectly, relate to users’ mental well-being. It should be noted that the public open spaces with unique functional and intrinsic features seem to have different impacts on mental well-being.

Health Assessment of a 15-Minute Life Circle Around Rail Transit Based on the EWR-TOPSIS Method

“…Combining index refinement, the establishment of criteria, evaluation content, and element layers allows for a comprehensive assessment of the health status of the mid-level 15-minute living circle, encompassing healthy travel, healthy environment, and healthy living aspects.These indicators include public transportation, green spaces, health services, service diversity, urban transportation coverage, route intensity, and distribution of shared resources (Jina Mahmoudi, 2022; Parsa Arbab, 2020) [27][28] .Regarding healthy travel, this reflects the coverage of urban public transportation systems, the density of route networks, and the distribution of shared travel resources.Research indicates that habitual use of public transportation, cycling, or walking instead of cars/motorcycles can increase lifespan (Mueller N, 2020) [29] .Regarding the healthy environment, key health indicators include water consumption, quality, and air quality (Iolanda Grappasonni, 2018) [30] .A good green environment can provide more recreational spaces, improve mental health(Karimi,N,2022) [31] , help reduce concentrations of air pollutants, and protect residents' physical health.In healthy city construction, health pathways involve reducing air pollution, noise, heat, increasing green spaces, and promoting physical activities through transportation (Maria A. El Helou, 2019) [32] .Alleviating health burdens associated with car-centric urban planning (Mueller N, 2020) [29] ;Regarding healthy living, promoting health and well-being through healthy social determinants: crime and safety, education, employment and income, health and social services, housing, leisure and culture, local food and other goods, water and soil, public recreation areas, transportation, as well as social cohesion and local democracy (Badland H, 2014;…”

Assessing Neighbourhood Preference: An Evaluation of Environmental Features within Small-Scale Open Spaces

“…The proximity of these spaces to residential areas establishes them as integral components of daily life. They are closely associated with physical and leisure activities [7,8], and neighbourhood space usage has been shown to be related to health-promoting effects including both mental [9][10][11][12] and physical aspects [13][14][15][16].…”