Saville Christopher W N, Mann Robin
North Wales Clinical Psychology Programme, School of Human and Behavioural Sciences, Bangor University, Gwynedd, Wales, UK.
Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research Data and Method, Bangor University, Gwynedd, Wales, UK; School of History, Law and Social Sciences, Bangor University, Gwynedd, Wales, UK.
Soc Sci Med. 2022 Mar;296:114790. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114790. Epub 2022 Feb 8.
The ethnic density literature links mental health to ethnic minority status in one's neighbourhood. This design has also been applied to other identities, including sexual and political minorities, but surprisingly little attention has been paid to class-based identities. We use a Bourdieusian framework to examine whether a 'class density' association with mental health can be found for economic capital - people's material assets - and cultural capital - symbolic signifiers of class, such as tastes and interests.
Multi-level regression with post-stratification was used to make area-level estimates of cultural and economic capital for each middle super output area in Wales, using data from the National Survey for Wales 2017/18 (N = 11,381). These estimates were linked to independent individual-level data from the 2018/19 edition of the same survey (N = 4058) and mixed effects models containing individual-level capital, area-level capital, and their interaction were fitted, predicting whether respondents reported a mental health problem. Models were fitted unadjusted, adjusted for age and gender; for the other form of capital on the individual and area levels; and for the other capital's cross-level interaction. Multiple imputation was used to account for missing data.
For cultural capital, a cross-level interaction was found where area-level cultural capital was protective in respondents reporting higher levels of individual-level cultural capital, but a risk factor for mental health problems in those with low individual-level cultural capital (odds ratio = 0.83, CI = 0.75-0.93). No such relationship was found for economic capital (odds ratio = 0.96, CI = 0.88-1.06). These results remained robust in adjusted models.
The presence of a class density association with mental health for cultural capital but not economic capital suggests that symbolic signifiers of class, more than material aspects, activate class identities and drive group density phenomena. There are implications for planning policy, mental health, and political leadership.
种族密度文献将心理健康与个人所在社区的少数族裔身份联系起来。这种设计也已应用于其他身份，包括性少数群体和政治少数群体，但令人惊讶的是，基于阶级的身份却很少受到关注。我们使用布迪厄框架来研究是否能发现“阶级密度”与心理健康之间存在关联，这种关联涉及经济资本（人们的物质资产）和文化资本（阶级的象征性标志，如品味和兴趣）。
采用分层后多水平回归，利用2017/18年威尔士全国调查（N = 11381）的数据，对威尔士每个中等超级输出区的文化和经济资本进行区域层面的估计。这些估计值与同一调查2018/19版的独立个体层面数据（N = 4058）相关联，并拟合包含个体层面资本、区域层面资本及其相互作用的混合效应模型，预测受访者是否报告有心理健康问题。模型分别进行了未调整、调整年龄和性别、调整个体和区域层面的另一种资本形式以及调整另一种资本的跨层面相互作用的拟合。使用多重插补法处理缺失数据。
对于文化资本，发现了一种跨层面相互作用，即区域层面的文化资本对报告个体层面文化资本水平较高的受访者具有保护作用，但对个体层面文化资本水平较低的受访者来说是心理健康问题的一个风险因素（优势比 = 0.83，置信区间 = 0.75 - 0.93）。对于经济资本未发现这种关系（优势比 = 0.96，置信区间 = 0.88 - 1.06）。这些结果在调整后的模型中仍然稳健。
文化资本存在阶级密度与心理健康的关联，而经济资本不存在，这表明阶级的象征性标志比物质层面更能激活阶级身份并推动群体密度现象。这对规划政策、心理健康和政治领导力具有启示意义。
