The role of daily mobility in mental health inequalities: the interactive influence of activity space and neighbourhood of residence on depression
The literature reports an association between neighbourhood deprivation and
individual depression after adjustment for individual factors. The present
paper investigates whether vulnerability to neighbourhood features is
influenced by individual “activity space” (i.e., the space within which people
move about or travel in the course of their daily activities). It can be
assumed that a deprived residential environment can exert a stronger influence
on the mental health of people whose activity space is limited to their
neighbourhood of residence, since their exposure to their neighbourhood would
be greater. Moreover, we studied the relationship between activity space size
and depression. A limited activity space could indeed reflect spatial and
social confinement and thus be associated with a higher risk of being
depressed, or, conversely, it could be linked to a deep attachment to the
neighbourhood of residence and thus be associated with a lower risk of being
depressed.
Multilevel logistic regression analyses of a representative sample consisting
of 3011 inhabitants surveyed in 2005 in the Paris, France metropolitan area
and nested within 50 census blocks showed, after adjusting for individual-
level variables, that people living in deprived neighbourhoods were
significantly more depressed that those living in more advantaged
neighbourhoods. We also observed a statistically significant cross-level
interaction between activity space and neighbourhood deprivation, as they
relate to depression. Living in a deprived neighbourhood had a stronger and
statistically significant effect on depression in people whose activity space
was limited to their neighbourhood than in those whose daily travels extended
beyond it. In addition, a limited activity space appeared to be a protective
factor with regard to depression for people living in advantaged
neighbourhoods and a risk factor for those living in deprived neighbourhoods.
It could therefore be useful to take activity space into consideration more
often when studying the social and spatial determinants of depression.
ER - End of Reference
1133-1144
http://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/docs/00/62/76/45/PDF/Vallee_et_al_Activity_space_and_DepressionHAL.pdf
73
8
2011
Social Science & Medicine
JulieVallée
Emmanuelle
Cadot
Christelle
Roustit
Isabelle
Parizot
PierreChauvin