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Latina women living in the USA experience disproportionately higher rates of psychological distress compared to their non-Latina White counterparts. Poor maternal mental health during pregnancy can contribute to intergenerational mental health disparities. Through this pathway, mothers experiences, environments, and exposures (henceforth exposures) during pregnancy become biologically embodied and can negatively affect the fetus and life-long developmental trajectories of her child. One of the exposures that can affect mother-offspring dyads is the neighborhood. With the goal of integrating anthropological and sociological theories to explain mental health disparities among pregnant Latina women, we explored how perceptions of neighbor attitudes may influence mental health during pregnancy. We analyzed self-reported responses from 239 pregnant Latina women in Southern California (131 foreign-born, 108 US-born) on their mental health and perceived attitudes of their neighbors using multiple linear regression models. Among foreign-born Latina women, living in neighborhoods with more favorable views of Latinos was associated with lower depression scores (pooled β =  - .70, SE = .29, p = .019) and lower pregnancy-related anxiety scores (pooled β =  - .11, SE = .05, p = .021), but greater state anxiety scores (pooled β = .09, SE = .04, p = .021). Among US-born women, there were no associations between neighbor attitudes and mental health. Overall, results suggest that social environments are correlated with mental health and that foreign-born and US-born Latinas have varied mental health experiences in the USA. Our findings highlight the importance of improving aspects of neighborhood cohesion as part of maternal-fetal care management.

Background: The built environments in which we work, live, and play can influence physical activity behaviors, and perceptions of these environments are associated with walking behavior. This study's objective is to compare national-level data on perceptions of the near-home walking environment from the 2015 and 2020 National Health Interview Survey. Methods: Adults in 2015 (n = 30,811) and 2020 (n = 29,636) reported perceptions of walkable supports (roads, sidewalks, paths, or trails; sidewalks on most streets), destinations (shops, stores, or markets; bus or transit stops; movies, libraries, or churches; places that help you relax, clear your mind, and reduce stress), and barriers to walking (traffic; crime; animals). Age-adjusted prevalence estimates, prevalence differences, and 95% confidence intervals were calculated overall and by demographic characteristics. Results: The reported prevalence of roads, sidewalks, paths, or trails for walking increased overall (85.3% in 2015 to 88.0% in 2020) and for many subgroups. Perceived places to walk to for relaxation, to clear your mind, and to reduce stress increased overall (72.1% in 2015 to 77.1% in 2020) and for all subgroups. Perceptions of crime as a barrier to walking decreased overall (12.5% in 2015 to 11.2% in 2020) and for some subgroups. From 2015 to 2020, the proportion of adults perceiving roads, sidewalks, paths, or trails; places to relax; and crime as a barrier to walking improved. Conclusions: Continuing to monitor perceptions of the walking environment could contribute to progress toward national walking and walkability goals in the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES: Research on links between social, geographic, and cultural determinants of health has been thwarted by inadequate measures of culture. The purpose of this study was to improve the measurement of community culture, defined as shared patterns of attitudes and behaviors among people within a neighborhood that distinguish it from others, and to examine dimensions of culture, independent of socioeconomic and demographic factors, and their relationships with health. STUDY DESIGN: A survey research design with correlational analyses was used. METHODS: A survey packet including the Community Culture Survey - Revised (CCS-R), demographic, health, and other individual-level measures was administered through convenience sampling across the United States (US) and to a sample in Thailand from 2016 to 2018. US county-level variables were obtained from zip codes. RESULTS: 1930 participants from 49 US states (n = 1592) and Thailand (n = 338) completed all CCS-R items, from which 12 subscales were derived: Social Support & Connectedness, Responsibility for Self & Others, Family Ties & Duties, Social Distress, Urban Diversity, Discontinuity, Church-Engaged, External Resource-Seeking, Locally Owned Business-Active, Power Deference, Next Generation Focus, and Self-Reliance. Neighborhood culture subscale scores varied more by geography than by participants demographics. All subscales predicted one or more health indicator, and some of these relationships were significant after adjusting for participant age and county-level socioeconomic variables. Most of the significant differences on subscales by race/ethnicity were no longer significant after adjusting for participants age and county-level socioeconomic variables. Most rural/urban and regional differences in culture within the US persisted after these adjustments. Based on correlational analyses, Social Support & Connectedness and Responsibility for Self & Others were the best predictors of participants overall health and quality of life, and Responsibility for Self & Others was the best predictor (inversely) of the CDCs measures of social vulnerability. CONCLUSIONS: Neighborhood culture is measurable, multi-dimensional, distinct from race/ethnicity, and related to health even after controlling for age and socioeconomic factors. The CCS-R is useful for advancing research and practice addressing the complex interactions between individuals, their neighborhood communities, and health outcomes.

The study of geometric properties within the subclass of analytic functions has garnered significant attention in recent years due to its complex and intricate interplay between geometric function theory and complex analysis. This area of study provides deep insights into both mathematical theory and its practical applications. The exploration of these properties is not only of theoretical interest but also offers valuable implications for various applications in mathematical and engineering disciplines. In particular, this paper focuses on a detailed examination of the inclusion, neighborhood, and partial sums properties within a broad and general subclass of analytic functions. This class of functions is defined through a generalized multiplier transformation operator, which adds a layer of complexity to their analysis. By investigating these specific properties, this study aims to validate and build upon many existing findings documented in the literature, offering new perspectives and contributing to a deeper understanding of the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Five-year survival for pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is < 10% but can vary by a patient's race, socioeconomic status (SES), and the factors related to the neighborhood where a patient lives (nSES). Prolonged time from diagnosis to first treatment (T2T) is another important disparity indicator. Here, we examined the effect of race, nSES, and patient-level clinical factors on T2T and survival in metastatic PDAC (mPDAC) patients. Methods: Patients with mPDAC treated at an academic cancer center between 2010 and 2018 (n = 334) were evaluated for nSES measures related to racial concentration, neighborhood deprivation, stability, immigration status, and transportation access from the US Census. We assessed and reported the effects of nSES and patient-level variables (age, race, gender, Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI), etc.) on T2T and survival using univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression, hazard ratios (HR), confidence intervals (CI). Results: 82.9% of the patients were White; 17.1% were Black. Median T2T was 26 days with no significant difference in T2T and survival by race. In multivariable models, no nSES variables were significantly associated with T2T. T2T did not significantly impact survival; however, receipt of chemotherapy (HR = 0.14 [95% CI = 0.06, 0.30]) was associated with better survival outcomes. Conclusion: Among patients with mPDAC, T2T was not associated with race/ethnic disparities or survival in a mostly White, high SES population treated at a comprehensive cancer center. Future investigations into pancreatic cancer disparities may be warranted in other hospital settings and in larger, more diverse study samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental context is an important predictor of health behavior. Understanding its effect on cannabis use among pregnant women is yet to be understood. The aim of the study is to assess the impact of perceived neighborhood environment on prenatal cannabis use and explore the mediating role of stress. Data are from the Life-Course Influences on Fetal Environments Study (LIFE), a retrospective cohort of postpartum African American women in Metropolitan Detroit, Michigan (2009–2011). Prenatal cannabis use was defined as self-reported ever use during pregnancy. Three perceived neighborhood scales were considered: social cohesion and trust, social disorder, and danger and safety. Out of 1,369 women, 151 (11.0%) self-reported using cannabis during pregnancy. After adjusting for age, marital status, income, years of education, and general social support scale, the odds of cannabis use significantly increased among the lowest quartiles of all the neighborhood scales suggesting higher cannabis use among women who perceived their neighborhoods to have the worst conditions. Compared to the highest quartile, the odds ratio (OR) for the lowest quartiles for social cohesion and trust, social disorder, and danger and safety were 1.77 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.04–3.03), 1.83 (95% CI: 1.15–2.91), and 1.93 (95% CI: 1.12–3.31) respectively. Evidence of mediation by perceived stress was only present between the association of perceived levels of safety and danger with cannabis use during pregnancy. Future prospective studies are warranted to understand the causal associations between individual correlates and social and physical environmental factors of prenatal cannabis use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are serious consequences of physical injuries. Stress associated with living in urban neighborhoods with socioecological disadvantages and the cumulative burdens of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can lead to poorer psychological outcomes. Limited research has explored how ACEs and socioecological environmental exposures in childhood and adulthood, together, impact post-injury outcomes. This study assessed the relative contributions of ACEs and neighborhood exposures during childhood and adulthood on post-injury outcomes among Black men in Philadelphia. We used data from a prospective cohort of 414 Black men from the Philadelphia region, aged ≥ 18 years, who sustained acute physical injuries requiring hospitalization. Primary outcomes were post-injury PTSD and depression. Secondary outcomes were sleep quality, self-reported health status, changes in substance use, and return to work. The study used perceived and objective measures of neighborhood characteristics and self-reported ACEs to model their relative impact on outcomes 3 months after hospital discharge. Higher levels of ACEs and higher perceived neighborhood disorder during childhood and adulthood were significant predictors of PTSD and depression symptom severity. Perceived neighborhood disorder contributed to sleep disturbances and decline in post-injury health. Census/administrative objective measures of neighborhood disadvantage did not show consistent associations with post-injury outcomes. Findings suggest that both ACEs and subjective perception of neighborhood environments are critical factors influencing post-injury recovery in urban Black men. Interventions to improve post-injury outcomes should consider preventing ACEs and addressing the tangible conditions of neighborhoods and residents' perceptions of their surroundings to promote health equity and injury recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Tobacco retailer density and distance to tobacco retailers are understood to influence tobacco-related behaviors; however, there is no general agreement on how to best characterize or measure the tobacco retail environment (TRE). In this data-driven analysis, we examine similarities among neighborhood-level measures of the TRE and assess how the geographic resolution of the neighborhood units may affect them. Aims and Methods We used locations of likely tobacco retailers in the United States to calculate multiple retailer count, density, and distance measures. Measures were calculated at the Census block group, tract, and county (including county equivalents) levels of geographic aggregation. Spearman's correlation was used to evaluate the similarity among the TRE measures. Results At the block group and tract level, correlation among all TRE measures ranged from slightly negative (ρ = −0.03) to nearly perfect (ρ = 0.99). At both levels of aggregation, distance-based TRE measures were highly correlated (ρ > 0.76). At the block group level, the simple count of retailers was highly correlated with the density measures (ρ > 0.83), and at the tract level, simple count was moderately to highly correlated with the density measures (ρ > 0.5). Findings were generally similar at the county level; a notable deviation was that retailers per person were negatively correlated with all other TRE measures (range from ρ = −0.08 to ρ = −0.32). Conclusions Some common measures were not correlated, suggesting they capture different aspects of the TRE; similarity among the various measures also varied by level of geographic aggregation. Implications Because the TRE shapes people's tobacco-related behaviors, using appropriate measures to characterize it at a neighborhood level is paramount. Our work highlights both the similarities and differences among a set of common measures, thereby suggesting the measures may be capturing different aspects of the overall retail environment. Our findings regarding geographic level of aggregation underscore the importance of neighborhood definition in any TRE analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Environmental research on mental health primarily originates from high-income countries, while information about the rest of the world remains limited. Aims: This study examined: (1) the available published research evidence regarding the association between neighborhood-level deprivation and indicators of mental health and illness in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and (2) the gaps in the relevant research in LMIC settings that should be addressed in future studies. Method: First, we systematically searched for relevant primary studies in electronic databases (Ovid Medline, Scopus, Socindex, and PsycINFO) and citations in the reference lists. Then, a two-stage screening procedure was employed to select the relevant studies by screening the titles and abstracts and reviewing the selected full texts by independent researchers. After charting the data from the selected study reports, we collated, summarized, and discussed the results. Results: We retrieved 51 studies across 19 LMICs, with only one study originating from a low-income country. Most studies focused on adult mental health topics and few explored children's mental health. Notably, a significant majority of these studies (N = 37) reported a positive association between neighborhood deprivation and mental health/disorder. However, the research methods used varied significantly, and there were several methodological limitations. Conclusions: This review highlights the need for more original studies in LMICs on the association between neighborhood deprivation and mental health, employing stronger methodologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated associations between neighborhood walkability and physical activity using twins (5477 monozygotic and same-sex dizygotic pairs) as "quasi-experimental" controls of genetic and shared environment (familial) factors that would otherwise confound exposure-outcome associations. Walkability comprised intersection density, population density, and destination accessibility. Outcomes included self-reported weekly minutes of neighborhood walking and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and days per week using transit services (eg, bus, commuter rail). There was a positive association between walkability and walking, which remained significant after controlling for familial and demographic factors: a 1% increase in walkability was associated with a 0.42% increase in neighborhood walking. There was a positive association between walkability and MVPA, which was not significant after considering familial and demographic factors. In twins with at least 1 day of transit use, a 1-unit increase in log (walkability) was associated with a 6.7% increase in transit use days; this was not significant after considering familial and demographic factors. However, higher walkability reduced the probability of no transit use by 32%, considering familial and demographic factors. Using a twin design to improve causal inference, walkability was associated with walking, whereas walkability and both MVPA and absolute transit use were confounded by familial and demographic factors. This article is part of a Special Collection on Environmental Epidemiology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined differences in middle-aged adults' preferred features of their current versus future residential environments and how these differences varied by health and social characteristics. A sample of 1,651 Korean middle-aged adults (aged 49–64) rated their preferences for each of 12 features (e.g., proximity to family/relatives, house price) regarding current and future residential environments, separately. Respondents considered "accessibility to health services" and "opportunity for leisure activities" more important for future residential environments than for current ones. Respondents with poorer health considered features that help them compensate for health decline more important, while those who contacted friends/neighbors more frequently and participated in more cultural activities considered features that help them maintain their social interactions more important for future residential environments than the past. Our findings identified middle-aged adults' various demands for residential features after retirement, which reflect their strategic reactions to future needs for successful adaptation in later years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Law enforcement's increased presence in U.S. public schools has significantly affected Black students' access to opportunities and their overall safety. Limited attention has been paid to the broader context in which school policing operates, extending beyond school buildings and embedded in larger neighborhood dynamics. We develop a theory of "spatial enclosures" to describe how policing manifests across schools, neighborhoods, and school police departments, shaping Black students' everyday experiences. Drawing on a dataset of 120 interviews with Black high school students in a large urban school district, we find that Black students fear their education being stolen by police officers' control over their time, school routines, and opportunities to learn. This shared concern is influenced by race and location, affecting how Black students interact with the police and develop strategies to navigate such encounters. Many Black students actively engage in social justice networks to protect their education. Prolonged involvement in these networks equips Black students with culturally sustaining knowledge and strategies to navigate the harms posed by spatial enclosures. These findings have important implications for understanding how school policing not only affects physical spaces but also profoundly influences students' perceptions and experiences of time and their equal access to educational opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article deals with the formation stages of Anahita neighborhood in Kermanshah metropolis. The theoretical approach of the article is based on Henri Lefebvre's views on the "production of space". The research method is ethnography and data collection techniques are observation and interview. The findings of the research show: As a result of the increase in the population of Kermanshah city in the ۵۰s and ۴۰s, the urban administration started to build settlements in the "Khorasu" plain. Anahita settlement was built by Akopal mass-building company for the army commanders in the northwestern tip of Kermanshah. With the start of the imposed war, the refugees of Qasre-Shirin city were resettled in this town. Over time, they turn to redistribution of residential units so that they can accommodate more people. Over time, people built empty lands around the town away from the supervision of the municipality. In 1994, the municipality took over the supervision of the neighborhood and prohibited the construction outside the limits and took over the naming of roads, branching of water, electricity and gas distribution. The ownership problem caused the municipality to not be able to supervise the construction of floors and did not have much activity in the field of green space, educational and health space. Finally, in such a situation, people built the low-income neighborhood of Anahita in its current form, which is considered a marginal settlement, in ways outside of urban planning standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study began from the assumption that community self-organization, characterized by independent action without external control, could be a suitable approach to developing green infrastructure and strengthening climate resilience in urban neighborhoods in Serbia. The study employed a mixed methods approach to verify this assumption, combining a technical case study and citizen survey analysis. Technical simulations demonstrated that self-organized community interventions on green infrastructure could contribute to climate resilience, even in neighborhoods with unfavorable conditions. However, the survey uncovered significant social constraints that cannot be resolved within the community, including a perceived lack of internal capacity; belief in the primacy of external actors; moderate cohesion level; lack of community platforms; limited understanding of the interconnections between resilience, climate change, and the role of green infrastructure; limited environmental literacy; and unclear collective action benefits. Based on these findings, the study proposed a multi-level and multi-phase model for improving neighborhood green infrastructure. The model emphasizes participatory citizen collaboration and applies to the current context of Serbian urban neighborhoods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractBackground: This study investigated relationships between low-income adolescent drinkers’ frequent alcohol use and five factors: social disorganization, social structural, social integration, mental health, and access to healthcare. Objective: A sample of 1,256 low-income adolescent drinkers and caregivers were extracted from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study. Results: Logistic regression yielded results showing adolescent drinkers’ weekly drinking to be associated positively with Hispanic adolescents, drinking peers, adolescents’ depression/anxiety, and caregiver’s daily drinking. Adolescent drinkers’ weekly drinking was associated negatively with caregiver’s age, family income below 100% of federal poverty level, caregiver supervision, and having usual place for health care. Conclusions/Importance: Implications included support of adolescents’ selection of desirable peers, promotion of caregiver supervision (especially among Hispanic adolescents), provision of assistance to families in poverty, provision of substance use treatment for caregivers and adolescents, and provision of mental health services to adolescents with depression or anxiety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unlike what happens in several Global North countries, Community Social Work is still relevant in Latin American countries. In the case of Chile, most of the SW programs include courses about community, and they frequently incorporate the concept of territory. In this context, this study aimed to answer how community is addressed in SW education in Chile, and what are the implications of the incorporation of the term territory in the curriculum. The method consisted of the analysis of the courses’ programs that explicitly refer to community and territory. After identifying the total number of courses in all universities of the country, the course programs were requested by e-mail to the program heads. 76% of the universities sent their course programs. The analysis was qualitative, and organized in three subsets: courses that in their titles refer only to the community (n = 27), only to the territory (n = 18) and to both (n = 6). The findings show that territory is a concept frequently used in association with community issues, but this does not necessarily mean new perspectives on Community Social Work. The mainstream approaches separate theory from practice, and conceive territory as a mere contextual factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The decomposition-based multi-objective optimization algorithm MOEA/D (multi-objective evolutionary algorithm based on decomposition) introduces the concept of neighborhood, where each sub-problem requires optimization through solutions within its neighborhood. Due to the comparison being only with solutions in the neighborhood, the obtained set of solutions is not sufficiently diverse, leading to poorer convergence properties. In order to adequately acquire a high-quality set of solutions, this algorithm requires a large number of population iterations, which in turn results in relatively low computational efficiency. To address this issue, this paper proposes an algorithm termed MOEA/D-NRD, which is based on neighborhood region domination in the MOEA/D framework. In the improved algorithm, domination relationships are determined by comparing offspring solutions against neighborhood ideal points and neighborhood worst points. By selecting appropriate solution sets within these comparison regions, the solution sets can approach the ideal points more and faster, thereby accelerating population convergence and enhancing the computational efficiency of the algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identify environmental features of multi-family housing (MFH) and their surrounding neighborhoods that influence residents' physical activity (PA). Data Source: Articles published between January 2000 and September 2023 were identified from major social science, medical, health, behavioral science, and urban studies databases. Study Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria: Studies were included if they (a) were empirical studies published in peer-reviewed journals and written in English; (b) focused on the MFH environment or the surrounding neighborhood; and (c) had at least one PA outcome. Data Extraction: Data was extracted regarding the study objective, location, study sample, research design, results related to MFH and neighborhood environment, and limitations. Data Synthesis: Descriptive summary of study characteristics and analysis to identify emerging themes at three spatial scales (i.e., building, site, and neighborhood). Results: Findings from 35 identified articles revealed factors influencing MFH residents' PA. On the building level, typology (apartment, townhouse) and tenure (public, market rent) showed contrasting correlations with PA in different age groups. On the site level, the presence of PA facilities and safe, walking-friendly environments promoted PA. On the neighborhood level, safety, quality of PA and pedestrian infrastructure, upkeep, air quality, aesthetics, neighborhood satisfaction, street connectivity, walkability, land use mix, density, and public transport promoted PA. Conclusion: Study findings highlight the importance of the MFH environments in promoting PA, especially in older adults and young children. With increasing housing demand, understanding diverse MFH typologies and the impact of interventions on multi-spatial scales can help promote healthy and activity-friendly communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While conventional literature on intergenerational mobility emphasizes parental investment as the main driver of children's human capital, recent studies highlight the role of neighborhood effects. This paper aims to characterize neighborhood human capital (the average educational levels within neighborhoods) to clarify its impact on intergenerational educational mobility. Using data from China's 1% population survey, we uncover a positive and statistically significant correlation between neighborhood human capital and rank-based intergenerational mobility in education. Moreover, by exploiting the address code to identify varying scales of neighborhoods, from the narrowest communities to the broadest provinces, we construct a comprehensive understanding of neighborhood human capital. Specifically, we find that neighborhood human capital at the community level has the greatest impact on mobility, followed by the street, district, county, and province levels, respectively. Our results are robust to a series of concerns such as endogeneity issues and sample selection problems. Further investigations confirm that residential segregation may distort the relationship between neighborhood human capital and intergenerational mobility. Specifically, stratified neighborhoods are likely to persist and reinforce disparities in educational attainment and intergenerational mobility. While acknowledging its significance at narrower scales, this study suggests that policymakers focus more on neighborhood capital's spillover effects at broader levels. Such a focus has the potential to promote greater equity in access to high-quality public education, alleviate the adverse effects of residential segregation, and improve intergenerational mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Convenience stores are essential facilities for older people living in cities, but there is a lack of discussion about the relation thereof to care for older people. An emerging phenomenon in Japan, one of the countries with the most rapidly aging population, is that convenience stores are also becoming a form of care infrastructure. In this article, I focus on this phenomenon in a time of care crisis by examining convenience stores in Tokyo, Japan, through the framework of care infrastructure. I combine descriptive statistics, government and corporate reports with interviews with 15 older adults in Tokyo to assess the potential and challenges of convenience stores as entities that contribute to their care. The findings of my study indicate that convenience stores may contribute to the care of older people because of their proximity, multifunctionality, sociality and sheltering nature, while challenges relate to affordability, equity and fairness. In the conclusion, I offer some suggestions regarding opportunities for and challenges to expanding care in aging cities by rethinking the potential of convenience stores as social and physical infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bell distribution is a major and helpful model that may be applied to a wide variety of real-world situations and problems. Bell distributions play a significant role in geometric function theory, particularly in the study of univalent functions and their properties. The importance of Bell distributions in geometric function theory lies in their ability to provide a combinatorial framework for analyzing the properties and behaviors of univalent functions. By leveraging these distributions, mathematicians can gain deeper insights into the geometric and analytic aspects of complex functions, enhancing both theoretical understanding and practical applications. The main purpose of this paper is to introduce a new subclass of analytic functions involving Bell distribution series and obtain coefficient inequalities, distortion theorem, convex linear combination, convolution and neighborhood result for this class. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intersection of mixed methods and community-based participatory research (MMCBPR) provides a promising approach to address health inequities. Drawing from strengths of mixed methods (which provides multiple channels for individuals to share experiences) and community-based participatory research methods (which center and empower marginalized communities in research), MMCBPR allows for the development of impactful and relevant research. This article contributes to the field of mixed methods research by illustrating a novel application of MMCBPR to a pilot research study aimed at understanding community resources and needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. We demonstrate feasibility for MMCBPR methods assessing multilevel structural and social determinants of health during times of social, political, and economic uncertainty and highlight challenges experienced in adopting this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polar ice melt contributes to sea level rise. To understand this contribution, we need to examine the anomalous behaviors leading to significant snowmelts in polar regions, including the Greenland ice sheet. These regions are complex systems where various phenomena are represented by different sets of spatiotemporal data. Such data possess unique characteristics like spatial autocorrelation, heterogeneity, temporal nonstationarity, and multiple scales and resolutions. In this article, we provide a framework to analyze disparate datasets by forming spatial neighborhoods to capture local behaviors. We then perform graph deviation network-based anomaly detection for multivariate datasets within these neighborhoods. Although this study focuses on spatiotemporal data from Greenland as an example, the methodology is intended to be adaptable and relevant to other regions with similar data properties. Specifically, using spatiotemporal data from Greenland, we, first, integrate all subdomain data, including both spatial and temporal data. Second, create neighborhoods to preserve the spatial autocorrelation and heterogeneity present in the data. Third, apply graph deviation networks, a variant of graph neural networks, to locate anomalous regions with respect to snowmelt. We outline our findings in the Greenland region, evaluating anomalous patterns and validating them with ground truth findings from polar science domain experts. Our methodology allows for performing localized analysis on a Greenland-wide scale.

Background: This study adds to the current literature by using a novel device-based method to explore where preschool children are physically active outside of home and childcare settings. This study combined accelerometry with geospatial data to explore the influence of the environment on preschool children's physical activity by objectively identifying the locations where preschool children engage in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) within and outside of their neighborhood. Methods: Accelerometry, Global Positioning System, and Geographic Information Systems data from 168 preschool children aged 2–5 years were processed in ArcGIS Pro to identify locations (per 25 × 25-m fishnet cell) with high MVPA counts. Locations with high MVPA counts were defined as those with the top 20% of MVPA counts per fishnet cell. The land use for high MVPA count location was determined for 3 domains: <500 m from home, 500 to 1600 m from home, and >1600 m from home. Results: Locations with high MVPA counts <500 m from home were playgrounds (66.6%), schools (16.7%), and parks (16.7%). Locations with high MVPA counts 500 to 1600 m from home included playgrounds (33.3%), nonhome residential (29.6%), childcare centers (11.1%), and parks (3.7%). Locations with high MVPA counts >1600 m from home included nonhome residential (54.7%), sports and recreation centers (11.1%), playgrounds (6.8%), and parks (5.3%). Conclusions: Our findings highlight that local parks and playgrounds provide physical activity opportunities for preschool children, yet beyond the local neighborhood, the homes of others are important locations for preschool children to accumulate MVPA. These findings can be used to inform the design of current and future neighborhood places to better accommodate preschool children's MVPA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Physical characteristics and perceptions of an environment can have enduring effects on one’s mental health. The present study aimed to determine whether a set of measures of neighborhood safety – independent built environment features, parents’ perception of neighborhood safety and community cohesion, and children’s perception of neighborhood safety – best related to symptoms of depression in young boys and girls from Montréal, Québec. Methods Data were from the Quebec Adipose and Lifestyle Investigation in Youth (QUALITY) cohort. Participants were aged 8 to 10 years (M = 9.5) at baseline (2005). Measures included: child symptoms of depression, neighborhood perception (child and parentally reported), and independent rater assessed visible disorder/neighborhood safety issues and road safety features. Multiple linear regressions were used to examine the relation between neighborhood safety measures and symptoms of depression for boys (n = 262) and girls (n = 212) at baseline and at follow-up time approximately 2 years later in 2008 after adjusting for baseline sex, age, body mass index, pubertal status, physical activity, family income, parent education, population density, and land-use mix. Analyses were sex stratified. Results Greater child perceived safety was associated with lower symptoms of depression in boys at both baseline and follow-up, and greater community cohesion was associated with lower symptoms of depression in girls at baseline. These results were not maintained after adjusting for multiple testing. Conclusion Future research should elucidate the more precise pathways linking neighborhood safety to symptoms of depression among children and consider differences across sexes.

Abstract Background Preterm birth (PTB) is associated with adverse short- and long-term health. There are known racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic inequities in PTB. Because of historical de jure and modern-day de facto segregation and neighborhood divestment, neighborhoods are a source of structural racism and disenfranchisement and a potential target for policies and interventions to reduce PTB inequity. However, the role of neighborhoods on PTB, specifically among high-risk birthing people, is largely unexplored. Methods The Boston Birth Cohort is a longitudinal birth cohort of birthing people-infant dyads at a safety-net hospital in Boston, MA between 2000 and 2018. The primary outcome was preterm birth at 35 weeks or prior. The primary predictor was neighborhood defined by census tract. We used generalized linear mixed effects models to test our hypothesis that neighborhood accounts for a signficiant proportion of PTB risk among socially at-risk birthing people. Results In multilevel models, neighborhoods were a significant predictor of preterm birth, yet accounted for only 3% of the variability in outcome. In models stratified by race, individual-level factors such as prior preterm birth, nativity status, and advanced birthing person age were significant predictors of PTB. Conclusions Neighborhood is a significant, though small, predictor of preterm birth in a high-risk birthing population. These findings suggest that individual-level interventions, rather than neighborhood-level policies, may be more effective in reducing preterm birth among high-risk birthing populations.