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Social microclimates and well-being
Andrea L Courtney1, Dean Baltiansky1, Wicia M Fang1
1Department of Psychology, Stanford University.
Emotion (Washington, D.C.)
|October 12, 2023
Summary
Community social factors significantly impact emotional well-being. Students in stable, connected social microclimates reported better mental health and life satisfaction, highlighting the importance of social surroundings.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Public Health
Background:
- Emotional well-being is linked to personal social connections.
- The influence of broader community social and emotional characteristics remains less understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of social microclimates on university students' emotional well-being.
- To quantify the influence of individual, social network, and microclimate factors on psychological distress and life satisfaction.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) regression.
- Analyzed data from first-year university students assigned to distinct social microclimates.
- Controlled for individual factors like personality and social network size.
Main Results:
- Emotional well-being is influenced by individual, social network, and microclimate factors.
- Students in emotionally stable and tightly-knit microclimates reported lower psychological distress and higher life satisfaction.
- Microclimate factors explained unique variance in well-being not captured by individual characteristics.
Conclusions:
- Social microclimates significantly affect emotional well-being, particularly during life transitions.
- These findings underscore the importance of considering community social dynamics in well-being research and policy.
- Further replication in diverse samples and contexts is recommended.
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