{"id":21669,"date":"2015-11-23T11:35:08","date_gmt":"2015-11-23T11:35:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.arcc-network.org.uk\/?p=21669"},"modified":"2015-11-23T11:35:08","modified_gmt":"2015-11-23T11:35:08","slug":"mental-health-has-become-the-cinderella-of-urban-design-so-lets-take-her-to-the-ball","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.arcc-network.org.uk\/mental-health-has-become-the-cinderella-of-urban-design-so-lets-take-her-to-the-ball\/","title":{"rendered":"Mental health has become the Cinderella of urban design \u2013 so let\u2019s take her to the ball"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr Layla McCay, Director of the Centre for Urban Design and Mental Health<\/a>, reflects on the first of our feeling good in public spaces dialogues, Human physiology, psychology & place-making<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It is unusual to attend an event that is specifically focused on the nexus of urban design and mental health. All too often in discussions about how urban design can improve health and well-being, the focus is on physical health, specifically on active cities. Of course physical activity can have a great impact on mental health, but when it comes to a specific focus on mental health opportunities, in the words of one urban planner, \u2018we haven\u2019t a clue\u2019.<\/p>\n

It was therefore particularly interesting that the UK Climate Impacts Programme<\/a> chose to host the first in a series of discussions focused on that very question, with the inaugural event kicking off at the Wellcome Trust in London on 18th November 2015. An audience that included designers, planners, developers, academics, and health professionals gathered for a fascinating and diverse series of talks.<\/p>\n

Georgina Hosang from Goldsmiths, University of London summarised the links between urban life and mental health<\/a>, highlighting the differences in prevalence of various mental illnesses in urban versus rural areas in the UK, highlighting increased urban rates of depression, alcohol and substance dependence, and schizophrenia. In particular, she highlighted the need for urban designers and planners to help create spaces in the city that increase social capital<\/a> (pdf, 74 KB), a key factor that reduces the risk of developing mental disorders. She highlighted the London Mood Project<\/a>, using mobile phones to map people\u2019s mood in different geographical locations in London. If you\u2019re in London, why not download the app and get involved.<\/p>\n

Rhiannon Corcoran from the University of Liverpool started the discussion of how to measure and understand<\/a> the implicit and explicit effects of urban places on peoples\u2019 feelings, thoughts and behaviour. She showcased the Prosocial Space Programme<\/a> and introduced research that measured people\u2019s responses to photographs of different types of urban spaces, anticipation of threat as they walked through various areas of a city, and surveys of what people felt made a positive place to live. A different method of measuring the effect of people\u2019s interactions with the urban environment on their mental state was discussed by Panos Mavros from the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, UCL, who has interestingly been using portable EEG machines to measure people\u2019s brainwaves<\/a> as they walk around urban streets.<\/p>\n

Antonio Caperna from the International Society for Biourbanism talked us through evolutionary theories for biourbanism<\/a>. His theories of why humans respond positively to nature are based on the brain\u2019s affinity to the viewing of fractal patterns (naturally occurring, complex patterns found in nature), and he argued that architecture should reflect this inherent affinity. He argued that throughout history, the body has evolved itself to its environment, and current adaptations to urban life include stress, fear, anxiety and aggression, and that we can employ principles of biophilia in urban design to enhance human interaction with the built environment.<\/p>\n

From the perspective of the Centre for Urban Design and Mental Health<\/a>, my focus was on why mental health has been sidelined in urban design discussions, prioritisation and investment. In my view (summarised in this New Statesman op-ed<\/a>) a combination of stigma, concerns about the complexity of the causative factors of mental illnesses, and a vicious cycle of non-prioritisation have led to mental health becoming the Cinderella of urban design and health integration. I highlighted key areas that we believe hold particular potential for urban design in improving mental health and would benefit from further research (more details<\/a>):<\/p>\n