How Does Urban Green Space Impact Residents’ Mental Health: A Literature Review of Mediators

Kaili Chen, Tianzheng Zhang, Fangyuan Liu, Yingjie Zhang and Yan Song
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Kaili Chen: School of Economics and Management, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
Tianzheng Zhang: School of Economics and Management, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
Fangyuan Liu: School of Economics and Management, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
Yingjie Zhang: School of Economics and Management, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
Yan Song: The Department of City and Regional Planning, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 22, 1-27

Abstract: In recent years, the interest in the relationship between urban green space and residents’ mental health has gradually risen. A number of researchers have investigated the causal relationship and possible mediators between the two, although few have summarized these mediators. For this reason, we searched for relevant studies and filtered them by criteria and quality score, and analyzed the mediators and paths of the impact of urban green space on residents’ mental health. The mediators can be divided into environmental factors, outdoor activity, and social cohesion. From the perspective of heterogeneity, both individual characteristics (e.g., age and gender) and group characteristics (e.g., level of urban development and urban density) of residents are considered to be the cause of various mediating effects. Types of urban green space tend to affect residents’ mental health through different paths. Furthermore, this review discusses the details of each part under the influence paths. Finally, the policy implications for urban green space planning from three mediator levels are put forward based on an analysis of the situation in different countries.

Keywords: greenery; urban forest; psychological relaxation; intermediary factors; influencing path (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

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