Effect of urban design on mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, Mahabad, Iran

ABSTRACT

Each individual’s experiences and perspectives influence how they interact with the environment. An environmental psychologist examines the environment as a multidimensional concept. This includes not only geographical information, but also social and cultural aspects, physical properties, symbols, places, times, and even biological entities. During the COVID-19 outbreak, a study looked at how the environment and buildings in Mahabad affected people’s mental health. According to the study, mental health is affected by urban design. A questionnaire with 24 items and a base coefficient of 0.812 was used to survey 384 Mahabad residents. R was used to analyze the data. The study adds to the growing body of evidence that well-designed towns can benefit mental health. People’s beliefs and ideas about the environment affect how they act in the environment, and environmental facts help people make decisions. Environmental psychologists look at the environment from a social, cultural, physical, symbolic, geographical, historical, and biological point of view. This study hypothesizes that ‘urban space design contributes to mental health.’

KEYWORDS:

• Urban design
• urban health
• mental health
• pandemic
• COVID-19
• Mahabad

Acknowledgements

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all the individuals who participated in this research study. We would also like to express our appreciation to the outreach scholars and community partners whose invaluable support made this research possible. Additionally, we would like to extend a special thanks to photographer Shamal Shakibayi for granting us permission to utilize their captivating documentary photograph in this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethical approval statement

Authors should include a statement confirming that the study has been approved (or exempted) by the appropriate institutional and national research ethics committees at the Iran University of Science and Technology and that the study has been done according to the ethical standards set out in the Declaration of Helsinki of 1964, its later amendments, or similar standards.

Data availability statement

You can get the datasets used and/or analyzed in this study from the corresponding author if you make a reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

The authors received no funding for this research.

Notes on contributors

Mohammad Anvar Adibhesami

Mohammad Anvar Adibhesami is passionate about promoting health through design and creating a healthier world. He believes that the design of our built environment can have a positive impact on our health and well-being.

Hirou Karimi

Hirou Karimi has published several works related to architecture and health, indoor environment and health, HVAC, thermal energy storage, and energy systems.

Borhan Sepehri

Borhan Sepehri is affiliated with the Department of Urban Planning & Design at Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran. His research is mainly focused on urban design and public spaces.

Ayyoob Sharifi

Ayyoob Sharifi is a Professor at the IDEC Institute, Hiroshima University. His research is mainly at the interface of urbanism and climate change mitigation and adaptation. He has served as a lead author for the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

Masoumeh Nazarian

Masoumeh Nazarian is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment, Nottingham Trent University. Her research interests include architecture, healthcare, hospital design, circulation, and productivity.