1. Neighborhood characteristics and depressive symptoms in an older population.
- Author
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Ivey SL, Kealey M, Kurtovich E, Hunter RH, Prohaska TR, Bayles CM, and Satariano WA
- Subjects
- Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Humans, Male, United States epidemiology, Aging psychology, Depression epidemiology, Environment Design, Residence Characteristics, Social Environment
- Abstract
Objectives: We explored relationships between depressive symptoms and neighborhood environment measures including traffic safety, crime, social capital, and density of businesses in community-dwelling older adults from four different regions of the United States., Method: The Healthy Aging Research Network walking study is a cross-sectional study of 884 adults aged 65+, which included a 10-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale of depressive symptoms, demographics, self-reported neighborhood perceptions, and objective neighborhood data., Results: After adjusting for individual covariates, reports of neighborhood crime, unsafe traffic, and unwillingness of neighbors to help each other were significantly positively associated with depressive symptoms among participants., Conclusion: This research suggests an association between self-reported depressive symptoms and the social and built environment; examining causal association requires additional longitudinal research in diverse populations of older adults.
- Published
- 2015
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