Primary Submission Category: Place/Communities
Associations between use of renovated urban parks and perceptions of social cohesion in diverse New York City communities
Authors: Rachel Thompson, Justine Maffei, Katarzyna Wyka, Emma Tsui, Nevin Cohen, Terry Huang,
Presenting Author: Rachel Thompson*
Social cohesion supports urban community functioning and is an important protective factor against poor mental and physical health outcomes. Neighborhoods with well-maintained green spaces have the potential to enhance community social cohesion by fostering social connections among community members. The Community Parks Initiative (CPI) is an equity-focused initiative that led to the redesign and renovation of urban parks in low-income, diverse New York City neighborhoods. We analyzed population-representative survey data (n=2000) from eight neighborhoods with recently renovated parks to assess the relationship between self-reported park use frequency in the past month and social cohesion, measured by the Sense of Community Index (SCI-2) and the Social Cohesion and Trust (SCT) subscale of the Collective Efficacy Scale. Crude and covariate-adjusted linear regression models showed that frequent park use (≥once/week) was associated with higher SCI-2 (crude β = 7.17, 95% CI 4.74-9.61; adjusted β = 6.18, 95% CI 3.82-8.54) and SCT scores (crude β = 0.175, 95% CI 0.097-0.253; adjusted β = 0.181, 95% CI 0.104-0.258). Stratified analyses showed that the strongest associations were found in individuals with household incomes of $75,000-$150,000 and among Non-Latino Black and Latino participants. These findings highlight the potential of high-quality urban green spaces in promoting community social wellbeing, particularly in middle-income and minority communities.