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Neighborhood settings, types of social capital and depression among immigrants in Toronto

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Abstract

Purpose

Few studies consider the associations between neighborhood social capital and immigrant’s mental health. We examined associations between bonding, bridging and linking social capital and depression among immigrants in Toronto neighborhoods.

Methods

We used data on immigrants from the neighborhood effects on health and well-being (NEHW) study, conducted in 47 randomly selected greater Toronto area neighborhoods (sample = 916), and a study of one low-income, immigrant receiving neighborhood (IRN) (sample = 600). We conducted logistic regression models for depression (Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, CES-D) and social capital types: bonding (social cohesion and informal social control), bridging (group membership) and linking (engagement in political activities), while adjusting for different covariates.

Results

The prevalence of depression was 22.9 % in IRN and 21.4 % in NEHW. The associations between social capital types and depression differed in each sample. Lower social cohesion (bonding) was associated with higher depression in NEHW only. Lower linking social capital (never participated in political activities) was associated with lower depression in IRN only. These associations were consistent after adjustment for different covariates.

Conclusions

Results suggest that social cohesion might have a protective effect from depression among immigrants in NEHW. In IRN, lower linking social capital associated with lower depression might reflect opposite direction association. Bridging social capital was not associated with depression in either sample, indicating that current community building might be insufficient to impact depression. Different pathways might explain how depression among immigrants is impacted by social capital types operating in different neighborhood settings; this could be examined in future longitudinal studies.

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Acknowledgments

The NEHW study was funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Grant #MOP-84439, and the Social Science and Health Research Council (SSHRC), Grant #410-2007-1499. IRN research reported in this paper was supported in part by the Wellesley Institute, through their Immigrant Health Project, and by the Canadian Institute for Health Research (CIHR) Grant # 192226 (2008–09). Thanks to all IRN interviewers and field coordinators. Thanks also to the Survey Research Unit at the Centre for Research on Inner City Health (CRICH) for data collection.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O. Box 653, 84015, Beer Sheva, Israel

    Nihaya Daoud

  2. Centre for Research on Inner City Health, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Nihaya Daoud, Rosane Nisenbaum & Patricia O’Campo

  3. Wellesley Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Nasim Haque & Meiyin Gao

  4. Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Rosane Nisenbaum, Carles Muntaner & Patricia O’Campo

  5. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Carles Muntaner

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  1. Nihaya Daoud
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Correspondence to Nihaya Daoud.

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Daoud, N., Haque, N., Gao, M. et al. Neighborhood settings, types of social capital and depression among immigrants in Toronto. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 51, 529–538 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-016-1173-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-016-1173-z

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