The University of Western Ontario, Department of Geography, London, ON, Canada.
Soc Sci Med. 2011 Jun;72(11):1864-72. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.03.023. Epub 2011 Apr 21.
Although the literature on housing and health is extensive, most research comes from developed countries. Relatively little work on the topic has been done in developing countries such as Ghana where socio-economic and cultural characteristics are generally different. This paper reports on primary research that investigates the relationship between housing and self reported general and mental health in Accra, Ghana. The study focused on how the social and economic dimensions of housing, specifically, demand, control and material attributes (affordability, dwelling type) influence individuals' attachment to their home as a refuge for daily living. A cross-sectional survey was administered to a randomly selected sample (n = 562) in three contrasting neighbourhoods. Overall, housing conditions, demand and control residents have to where they live, emerged as significant predictors of self reported general and mental health status. The influence of these variables superseded well known correlates of health status, income and educational attainment, attesting to their importance in a worsening housing environment. The findings point to the need for policy that recognizes that housing is not only a physical shelter but also an important health resource.
尽管关于住房和健康的文献很多，但大多数研究都来自发达国家。在加纳等发展中国家，相对较少有关于这个主题的工作，因为这些国家的社会经济和文化特征通常不同。本文报告了一项初步研究，该研究调查了加纳阿克拉住房与自我报告的一般健康和心理健康之间的关系。该研究侧重于住房的社会和经济层面，特别是需求、控制和物质属性（负担能力、住房类型）如何影响个人将其住所作为日常生活的避难所的依恋程度。在三个截然不同的社区中，对随机抽取的样本（n=562）进行了横断面调查。总体而言，住房条件、居民对居住地点的需求和控制，这些因素成为自我报告的一般健康和心理健康状况的重要预测因素。这些变量的影响超过了健康状况、收入和教育程度等众所周知的相关因素，证明了它们在住房环境恶化时的重要性。这些发现表明需要制定政策，认识到住房不仅是一个物质的庇护所，也是一个重要的健康资源。
