The impact of land use and environmental stressors upon mental health, criminology and other social factors : a spatio-temporal approach

Abstract

Why use crime as a surrogate for mental health? It is an ‘activity’ that impinges on an individual’s actions on the societal fabric and vice versa. Irrespective of theme, the activities of the individual are somehow linked to a point in space. Criminology deals mainly with the basic issue of one’s rights and obligations. This includes the linked process of harm caused to: i) victims and to ii) social consensus and includes also iii) official societal response. The methodology used in understanding the above can be transposed to the study of Mental Health. This study should investigate mental health epidemiology in the islands; taking into account the incidence-reporting bias posited by the demographic, socio-economic, affluence and insularity factors. The intention is to map variables such as diagnosis and historical parameters in correlation with the already established social factors, so as to identify bio-psych correlation strengths with the social variables. The research would attempt to run parallel island-area comparative studies.