Residential Density and Psychological Health among Children in Low-Income Families

Abstract

The authors provide data on mental health sequelae of residential crowding among children, demonstrating significant associations between the number of persons per room and an index of psychological health. These relations are shown in two independent samples of urban and rural children living in poverty. The density–mental health link among the rural, low-income sample is qualified by a gender interaction indicating that boys are more vulnerable to negative outcomes. This interaction was not found among the smaller, inner-city sample. In both samples, children from higher density homes are less likely to persist in an achievement, problem-solving context. The authors did not find support for their hypothesis that learned helplessness would at least partially account for the relation between residential crowding and mental health among children.