Human-built environment interactions: the relationship between subjective well-being and perceived neighborhood environment characteristics

Abstract

The neighborhood is one of the most fundamental urban elements and acts as the intermediary link between the city and citizens to enhance the quality of life. The present study examined the significance of the relationship between the subjective well-being of citizens and perceived neighborhood environment characteristics in urban historical fabrics for creating healthy neighborhoods. To this end, a survey research method was employed, and the data were collected via questionnaires. The population consisted of all the citizens of the historical neighborhood of Sange Siah in Shiraz, Iran, who lived or worked in the neighborhood and used the neighborhood spaces daily. A Nonparametric Spearman correlation coefficient was run to assess the correlation between the variables. The results showed that the component of social inclusion from among the six components of subjective well-being had a significant positive correlation with perceived neighborhood environment characteristics (r = 0.712). In the following, the components of satisfaction with life (0.614), mental well-being (0.569), positive and negative effect (0.526), and feeling of happiness (0.468) had a moderate positive correlation; and the component of physical and mental health also had a weak positive correlation with perceived neighborhood environment characteristics (0.230). In addition, the concept of subjective well-being with a correlation coefficient of 0.579 had a moderate positive correlation with perceived neighborhood environment characteristics, which indicates that the structural characteristics of the neighborhood have a significant relationship with the subjective well-being of the people living in the neighborhood.