First Advisor

Richard Dozal-Lockwood

Date of Award

11-22-2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Health Studies: Community Health Education and University Honors

Department

Health Studies

Language

English

Subjects

Land use, Urban -- Psychological aspects, Environmental justice, Public health

DOI

10.15760/honors.836

Abstract

Using existing literature as a basis for initial review, this paper seeks to explore the relationship between urban land use and socioeconomic status as both pertain to the prevalence of psychological health diagnoses among neighborhood residents. The purpose of this analysis is to investigate the combined literature from multiple areas of research in order to gain a more holistic, up-to-date scope of knowledge regarding how discriminatory neighborhood land use may result in poorer psychological health outcomes for urban populations. By utilizing an interdisciplinary approach, some of the locally relevant, long-term impacts of uneven development and environmental injustice are examined based on how they synergistically contribute to psychological health outcomes. Frameworks of health ecology, urban political ecology, environmental justice, and social epidemiology provide a theoretical lens of assessment for impacts of various indicators on neighborhood health. The quality and quantity of accessible neighborhood green space is found to relate to differences in psychological well-being between neighborhoods of varying SES, with the prevalence of high-quality urban forests corresponding to a decline in negative outcomes and complaints regarding mental health. This suggests that urban greening may be an effective means of combating the growing problem of global psychological distress, as well as improving urban biodiversity. An essential guiding question of this review relates to how these frameworks may be applied in ways that support more equitable neighborhood health outcomes in cities like Portland, OR.

Rights

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Persistent Identifier

https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/32540

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