How the Built Environment Affects Your Mood

This blog is republished with permission from the American Planning Association’s City Planning & Management Division. Read the original article.

We have all probably heard one of our friends say, “Moving to (insert random city name) will cure my depression!” Common sense tells us that this cannot be true, and to an extent we are right. Mental disorders such as depression have deeper causes that will not be resolved just by geographical relocation. I am sorry to disappoint, but no city possesses magical abilities to cure mental disorders — not even you, New York. However, the idea that your mood can change because of different surroundings is not far-fetched. Aspects of the built environment, such as urban design, green spaces, and density, can significantly affect our mental health.

According to Jane Jacobs, diversity is vital for a great city. Yet, it is also vital for our daily routines. Talking with different people, doing various tasks, and most importantly going to different places are all crucial to our lives. A recent example was the COVID-19 pandemic. From going out as usual to complete lockdown, we passed from daily connection to isolation, which caused us to hate staying at home. An article published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health highlights the issues of the isolation caused by the pandemic through a series of interviews. They showed that the pandemic was the catalyst of “exacerbated feelings of depression, anxiety, and loneliness amidst social isolation.”

Several individuals had community support systems that were highly dependent on human interaction; groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) were not as efficient via the online format, which then increased the use of substances among users. This forced isolation changed our everyday surroundings drastically, from several places to solely our homes — making our routines as monotone as possible. It made us appreciate the little things, like going to the supermarket, visiting friends and family, going for a walk, and other mundane but diverse tasks.

As discussed, the sole action of moving to a new area will not cure any “mental disorders.” Yet, mental health conditions such as depression can be dependent on external surroundings. A study conducted in New York City and published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health showed that “persons living in neighborhoods characterized by poorer features of the built environment were 29–58 percent more likely to report past six-month depression and 36–64 percent more likely to report lifetime depression than respondents living in neighborhoods characterized by better features of the built environment.” Objects such as clean sidewalks, building facades, and streets were significant in the analysis. They highlight the importance of maintaining neighborhood public amenities and how it relates to its residents’ mental well-being.

An essential and well-recognized feature that influences your mood is walkability. While it may seem cliché, the prominence of walkable cities in urban planning is well-deserved. An article published in the Journal of the American Planning Association shows the link between walkability and happiness. With a study sample of more than 1,000 adults, results showed that for adults aged 36-45 perceived walkability was directly linked to their happiness. For younger adults (18–35) “walkability was related to higher satisfaction with neighborhood appearance in this younger group, which in turn predicted their happiness levels,” and for older adults, walkability was influential to their overall happiness as it affected other facets of their lives such as community trust and their health. As the study mentions, these findings only add to a growing literature on the link between walkability and happiness, further enhancing the evidence of the benefits of walkability.

Now that we know of the negatives of the lack of diverse environments and walkability in the places we live, we can understand certain conditions more. According to a report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, in the last decade depression among American young adults (18-25) has virtually doubled, reaching 17 percent in 2020. This phenomenon is known as “post-grad depression” and while reasons for the condition vary from unemployment to no sense of purpose, it would not be far-fetched to say that the environment could be a significant factor as well. For several graduates — who were raised in suburban environments — college is the first experience of living somewhere different. Several college towns contain communal buildings such as student centers, libraries, and dining halls, which together create a good set of public amenities. They also contain student housing, where students live for the school year. This leads to a life where you live, study, and socialize in a relatively close area, some larger colleges even have a transit system, further enhancing the experience students get. This experience is similar to the one you would experience in a walkable city, one where you can have all your needs nearby.

It is not for nothing that older adults often regard college as “the best years of your life” because in some cases it truly is. College years serve as a gateway drug to all the amenities and benefits of urban-core living — until you graduate that is. Then you have to return to your parents’ suburban home (as many Americans do) and suddenly all the amenities you had disappear. Your newfound college friends might make up for the lack of a diverse built environment. Nope, they all have moved back to their sprawling neighborhoods too, probably dozens of miles if not hundreds of miles away from your town. You might get a new car to celebrate your graduation and your new 9 to 5 corporate job. Work will keep you busy! But you know what else? Driving. No more waking up 10 minutes before class and arriving just on time. You might now have to wake up a few hours early to drive to your job through rush hour morning traffic, and do it all again in the afternoon.

You might also gain weight — not because you are eating more, but because you are walking less. Various studies demonstrate the link between car usage and obesity, showing “greater levels of obesity in communities where the private automobile is the dominant means of transportation.”  And let’s not forget that obesity leads to other health issues such as diabetes and hypertension, among others. Mental health conditions such as depression are more prevalent in adults with obesity. Hence once college ends, graduates stop socializing, stop enjoying public amenities every day, start driving everywhere, stop walking and hence gain a little more weight in the process. Then it is no surprise that young graduates feel unfulfilled, and sometimes even depressed after college — for them, it feels they were robbed of an integral part of their new lives.

Our surroundings impact our mental and physical health. Living in neighborhoods with negative qualities can increase the risk of mental health conditions such as depression. At the same time, the pandemic made us appreciate diversity in our lives and what happens when we are deprived of it. Walkable cities are not “just a preference”; they develop happiness by fostering community trust, promoting physical activity, and offering nearby amenities. As learned, these spaces encourage healthy behaviors, reduce car dependency, and create opportunities for social interaction — all things that are crucial for our well-being.

While the sole action of relocating will not cure mental health issues, choosing an environment that enhances our quality of life can make a significant difference. Ultimately, wouldn't it be nice to live somewhere where our well-being is ingrained in its urban design?