Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Purpose

This study investigates the relationship between urban green spaces (UGS) and residents’ mental health in Dhaka, Bangladesh, with a focus on the mediating roles of social cohesion and physical activity.

Design

Multilevel regression and mediation analysis with cross-sectional data were constructed.

Setting

10 UGS in Dhaka were selected based on spatial variation.

Sample

A total of 276 adult residents (response rate: 85.2%) were surveyed using quota sampling to ensure demographic diversity.

Measures

The Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS) was used for mental health assessment, validity scales for social cohesion and IPAQ-SF for physical activity. UGS accessibility and quality were evaluated using NDVI, GIS buffers, and on-site audits.

Analysis

Multilevel linear regression and Sobel tests were employed to examine direct and mediated effects of UGS on mental health.

Results

UGS-level factors explained 18% of the variance in mental health. UGS accessibility (β = 0.285***), safety (β = 0.212***), and amenities (β = 0.220***) were positively associated with mental health. Social cohesion (Z = 2.82***) and physical activity (Z = 2.15**) partially mediated these relationships.

Conclusion

UGS enhances mental health in dense urban environments through both direct and mediated pathways. Subgroup analysis reveals that high and medium-quality UGS have more substantial positive effects through physical activity and social cohesion on mental health. In contrast, the impact of low-quality UGS’s is minor and insignificant. Respondents with higher education and income benefit more from UGS on their mental health. Future research using longitudinal data or experimental designs could enhance the robustness of causation.

Keywords

urban green space mental health social cohesion physical activity Dhaka urban green spaces (UGS)multilevel modeling mediation analysis NDVI

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Mukherjee

Takara

. Urban green space as a countermeasure to increasing urban risk and the UGS-3CC resilience framework. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2018;28:854-861. doi:10.1016/J.IJDRR.2018.01.027

Ignatieva

Mofrad

. Understanding urban green spaces typology’s contribution to comprehensive green infrastructure planning: a study of Canberra, the national capital of Australia. Land. 2023;12(5):950. doi:10.3390/LAND12050950

Bressane

Galvão

ALdS

Loureiro

AIS

Ferreira

MEG

Monstans

Medeiros

LCdC

. Valuing urban green spaces for enhanced public health and sustainability: a study on public willingness-to-pay in an emerging economy. Urban For Urban Green. 2024;98:128386. doi:10.1016/J.UFUG.2024.128386

Krols

Aerts

Vanlessen

Dewaelheyns

Dujardin

Somers

. Residential green space, gardening, and subjective well-being: a cross-sectional study of garden owners in northern Belgium. Landsc Urban Plann. 2022;223:104414. doi:10.1016/J.LANDURBPLAN.2022.104414

Kaplan

. The Experience of Nature: A Psychological Perspective. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press; 1989. doi:10.1007/978-1-4613-3539-9_6

Ulrich

Simons

Losito

Fiorito

Miles

Zelson

. Stress recovery during exposure to natural and urban environments. J Environ Psychol. 1991;11(3):201-230. doi:10.1016/S0272-4944(05)80184-7

Ulrich

. Biophilia, biophobia, and natural landscapes. 1993. Available. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284655696. Accessed: Jun. 09, 2025.

Milliken

Kotzen

Walimbe

Coutts

Beatley

. Biophilic cities and health. Cities Health. 2023;7(2):175-188. doi:10.1080/23748834.2023.2176200

Huang

Dong

van den Bosch

. The contribution to stress recovery and attention restoration potential of exposure to urban green spaces in low-density residential areas. Int J Environ Res Publ Health. 2021;18(16):8713. doi:10.3390/IJERPH18168713

10.

Yusuf

Allen

Saitgalina

, et al. Considering equity in green infrastructure using an integrative planning framework for green infrastructure implementation. Publ Works Manag Pol. 2025;30:179-201. doi:10.1177/1087724X251314421

11.

Baró

Langemeyer

Łaszkiewicz

Kabisch

. Editorial to the special issue ‘advancing urban ecosystem service implementation and assessment considering different dimensions of environmental justice. Environ Sci Pol. 2021;115:43-46. doi:10.1016/J.ENVSCI.2020.10.008

12.

Alawadi

Anabtawi

Alshehhi

. The minute city: between theory and practicality in suburban landscapes. Sustain Sci Pract Pol. 2025;21(1):2444007. doi:10.1080/15487733.2024.2444007

13.

Zhang

Liu

Zhao

. Associations of green and blue spaces with visual acuity in youths from Shandong Province, China: a large population-based study. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf. 2025;292:117947. doi:10.1016/J.ECOENV.2025.117947

14.

McDonald

. Review of environmental monitoring methods: survey designs. Environ Monit Assess. 2003;85(3):277-292. doi:10.1023/A:1023954311636

15.

Hui

Jim

. Unraveling visiting-activity patterns of heterogeneous communities for urban-park planning and design. Forests. 2022;13(6):841. doi:10.3390/F13060841

16.

Shah

Cader

Andrews

Wijesekera

Stewart-Brown

. Responsiveness of the Short Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale (SWEMWBS): evaluation a clinical sample. Health Qual Life Outcome. 2018;16(1):239. doi:10.1186/S12955-018-1060-2

17.

Mohamed

Sharkawy

Elkholy

Almokadem

. Physical activity and nutritional profile assessment in elderly rheumatoid arthritis patients. Egyptian Rheum Rehab. 2025;52(1):1–7. doi:10.1186/S43166-025-00317-5

18.

Tian

Ning

Chen

Zhu

Gao

. Relationship of social capital, community identity, and perceived safety resilience during public emergencies in Shanghai. Sci Rep. 2025;15(1):1–15. doi:10.1038/s41598-025-86990-0

19.

Maas

van Dillen

SME

Verheij

Groenewegen

. Social contacts as a possible mechanism behind the relation between green space and health. Health Place. 2009;15(2):586-595. doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2008.09.006

20.

Zhang

Lin

Tan

Waykool

. Assessment of visual landscape quality of urban green spaces using image-based metrics derived from perceived sensory dimensions. Environ Impact Assess Rev. 2023;102:107200. doi:10.1016/J.EIAR.2023.107200

21.

International Monetary Fund (IMF) . World economic outlook database: October 2024; 2024. Available. https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2024/October. Accessed: Jul. 17, 2025.

22.

Kabisch

Strohbach

Haase

Kronenberg

. Urban green space availability in European cities. Ecol Indic. 2016;70:586-596. doi:10.1016/J.ECOLIND.2016.02.029

23.

Bengtsson

Åshage

Grahn

. Designing urban green spaces supporting health and recovery. In: Creating Urban and Workplace Environments for Recovery and well-being: New Perspectives on Urban Design and Mental Health. Routledge; 2024:61-82. doi:10.4324/9781003435471-5

24.

Hussain

. Urban sprawl, infrastructure deficiency and economic inequalities in Karachi. In: Asia International conference–2015 Held on 5th -6th December, 2015 at (UTM), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2016, September 2015. Accessed: Aug. 15, 2025.Available. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316479240_URBAN_SPRAWL_INFRASTRUCTURE_DEFICIENCY_AND_ECONOMIC_INEQUALITIES_IN_KARACHI

25.

Hanna

White

Crossland

Serrao-Neumann

. Green or grey pandemic recovery? revealing the blue–green infrastructure influences in Aotearoa-New Zealand’s ‘Shovel Ready’ Covid-19 response. Urban Pol Res. 2023;41(1):38-54. doi:10.1080/08111146.2022.2103669

26.

Völker

Heiler

Pollmann

Claßen

Hornberg

Kistemann

. Do perceived walking distance to and use of urban blue spaces affect self-reported physical and mental health? Urban For Urban Green. 2018;29:1-9. doi:10.1016/J.UFUG.2017.10.014

27.

Ettema

van Lierop

. Role of the neighborhood environment in psychological resilience. Landsc Urban Plann. 2023;235:104761. doi:10.1016/J.LANDURBPLAN.2023.104761

28.

Cinderby

Archer

Mehta

, et al. Assessing inequalities in wellbeing at a neighbourhood scale in low-middle-income-country secondary cities and their implications for long-term livability. Front Sociol. 2021;6:729453. doi:10.3389/FSOC.2021.729453/BIBTEX

29.

Kühn

Schmalen

Beijers

Tyborowska

Roelofs

de Weerth

. Green is not the same as green: differentiating between the association of trees and open green spaces with children’s brain structure in the Netherlands. Environ Behav. 2023;55(5):311-334. doi:10.1177/00139165231183095

30.

Lovell

Taylor

. Supplying urban ecosystem services through multifunctional green infrastructure in the United States. Landsc Ecol. 2013;28(8):1447-1463. doi:10.1007/S10980-013-9912-Y/TABLES/2

31.

Sharmeen

Houston

. Spatial characteristics and activity space pattern analysis of Dhaka city, Bangladesh. Urban Sci. 2019;3(1):36. doi:10.3390/URBANSCI3010036

32.

Alam

Nur

SMS

Mitra

. Accessibility to public open space of a densely populated city: a case study of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Comput Urban Sci. 2025;5(1):1-22. doi:10.1007/S43762-025-00187-9/TABLES/6

Supplementary Material

Please find the following supplemental material available below.

For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.

For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.

0.00 MB

0.64 MB

Urban Green Space and Mental Health: Mediating Roles of Physical Activity and Social Cohesion