Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(2), 340; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15020340
Relationships between Characteristics of Urban Green Land Cover and Mental Health in U.S. Metropolitan Areas
Wei-Lun Tsai 1, Melissa R. McHale 2, Viniece Jennings 3, Oriol Marquet 1,4, J. Aaron Hipp 1,4
, Yu-Fai Leung 1,4 and Myron F. Floyd 1,*
, Yu-Fai Leung 1,4 and Myron F. Floyd 1,*
1
Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management, North Carolina State University, Box 8004, Raleigh, NC 27695-8004, USA
2
Natural Resource Ecology Lab, Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, 1499 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1499, USA
3
US Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Athens, GA 30602, USA
4
Center for Geospatial Analytics, North Carolina State University, Box 7106, Raleigh, NC 27695-7106, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 9 November 2017 / Revised: 5 February 2018 / Accepted: 12 February 2018 / Published: 14 February 2018
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Natural Environment and Health: The Effect of Socio-Cultural Context on Health Effects of Natural Environments)
Abstract
Urbanization increases risk for depression and other mental disorders. A growing body of research indicates the natural environment confers numerous psychological benefits including alleviation of mental distress. This study examined land cover types and landscape metrics in relation to mental health for 276 U.S. counties within metropolitan areas having a population of 1 million or more. County Health Rankings and Behavioral Risk and Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) provided a measure of mental health. The 2011 National Land Cover Database (NLCD) provided data on green land cover types, from which seven landscape metrics were generated to characterize landscape patterns. Spearman’s rho correlation and stepwise logistic regression models, respectively, were employed to examine bivariate and multivariate relationships. Models were adjusted for county population and housing density, region, race, and income to account for potential confounding. Overall, individual measures of landscape patterns showed stronger associations with mental health than percent total cover alone. Greater edge contrast was associated with 3.81% lower odds of Frequent Mental Distress (FMD) (Adjusted Odd’s Ratio (AOR) = 0.9619, 95% CI = 0.9371, 0.9860). Shrubland cohesion was associated with greater odds of FMD (AOR = 1.0751, 95% CI = 1.0196, 1.1379). In addition, distance between shrubland cover was associated with greater odds of FMD (AOR = 1.0027, 95% CI = 1.0016, 1.0041). Although effect sizes were small, findings suggest different types of landscape characteristics may have different roles in improving mental health. View Full-TextKeywords:
green land cover; urban forests; urbanization; landscape
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Tsai, W.-L.; McHale, M.R.; Jennings, V.; Marquet, O.; Hipp, J.A.; Leung, Y.-F.; Floyd, M.F. Relationships between Characteristics of Urban Green Land Cover and Mental Health in U.S. Metropolitan Areas. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15, 340.
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