How community physical, structural, and social stressors relate to mental health in the urban slums of Accra, Ghana.

Journal: Health & place

Volume: 33

Issue: 

Year of Publication: 2016

Affiliated Institutions:  Department of Sociology, Johns Hopkins University, N, Charles Street, Baltimore, MD , USA. Electronic address: Mgreif@jhu.edu. The Pennsylvania State University, Regional Institute for Population Studies, USA.

Abstract summary 

Urban health in developing counties is a major public health challenge. It has become increasingly evident that the dialog must expand to include mental health outcomes, and to shift focus to the facets of the urban environment that shape them. Population-based research is necessary, as empirical findings linking the urban environment and mental health have primarily derived from developed countries, and may not be generalizable to developing countries. Thus, the current study assesses the prevalence of mental health problems (i.e., depression, perceived powerlessness), as well as their community-based predictors (i.e., crime, disorder, poverty, poor sanitation, local social capital and cohesion), among a sample of 690 residents in three poor urban communities in Accra, Ghana. It uncovers that residents in poor urban communities in developing countries suffer from mental health problems as a result of local stressors, which include not only physical and structural factors but social ones. Social capital and social cohesion show complex, often unhealthy, relationships with mental health, suggesting considerable drawbacks in making social capital a key focus among policymakers.

Authors & Co-authors:  Greif Meredith J MJ Nii-Amoo Dodoo F F

Study Outcome 

Source Link: Visit source

Statistics
Citations : 
Authors :  2
Identifiers
Doi : 10.1016/j.healthplace.2015.02.002
SSN : 1873-2054
Study Population
Male,Female
Mesh Terms
Adult
Other Terms
Mental health;Social capital;Social cohesion;Urban poverty and disorder
Study Design
Cross Sectional Study
Study Approach
Country of Study
Ghana
Publication Country
England