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Investigating the Relationship Between Neighborhood Experiences and Psychiatric Distress for Individuals with Serious Mental Illness

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Abstract

The present study examined the relationships between how research participants experienced their neighborhood, their neighborhood social climate, and psychological well-being. Participants (n = 525) were residents of supported housing programs who used mental health services at one of 17 community mental health centers in South Carolina. Hierarchical regression and mediation analyses were employed to answer research questions. Results suggest that neighbor relations, perceptions of neighborhood safety, and neighborhood satisfaction were significantly associated with perceptions of neighborhood social climate; and neighborhood social climate accounted for a significant amount of the variance in psychiatric distress. Of particular interest, perceptions of neighborhood social climate fully mediated the relationship between the specific reported neighborhood experiences and psychiatric distress. These findings have implications for interventions and policy aimed at promoting integration of individuals with serious mental illness into community settings.

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Notes

  1. Refer to Table 1 for a correlation matrix of the measures under review in this study.

  2. Please note, the ‘sex’ variable consists of males and females, with females serving as the reference group for analyses. The ‘race’ variable is dummy-coded to include African Americans (50% of the sample) and non-African Americans (Whites, 43% of the sample, and Other race, 7% of the sample). The non-African American group is the reference group in analyses.

  3. Please note, although not reported in the table, each of the steps has controlled for the demographic and symptomatic covariates.

  4. Demographic variables (race, sex, age) and symptom variable (psychotic and paranoid) have been controlled for in each step but are not reported here in the interest of space and clarity.

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Acknowledgments

Preparation of this manuscript was supported by funding from the National Institute of Mental Health—K23-MH65439. Thanks are extended to the staff and consumers of the South Carolina Department of Mental Health, who made this research possible. We would also like to thank M. Lee Van Horn, Psychology Department, University of South Carolina, for his assistance with statistical analyses.

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  1. Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, 1512 Pendleton Street, Columbia, SC, 29208, USA

    Bret Kloos & Greg Townley

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  1. Bret Kloos
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Correspondence to Bret Kloos.

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Kloos, B., Townley, G. Investigating the Relationship Between Neighborhood Experiences and Psychiatric Distress for Individuals with Serious Mental Illness. Adm Policy Ment Health 38, 105–116 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10488-010-0307-y

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