Abstract

Human life takes place as part of a global ecosystem, meaning that human mental health is at least partially tied to the health of the planet. Health experts who seek to promote psychological well-being should consider how changes to the broad ecological system may impact their efforts. Given the potential impact of the environment on human well-being, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the impact of air pollution on subjective well-being. The goal of this project was to outline the current state of the research on these constructs and provide a clear framework for what research is still needed. Nonsignificant relationships were found for six out of seven of the measured pollutants. Overall, these results appear to indicate a nonsignificant negative relationship between our constructs; however, our model had significant heterogeneity which may impact the validity of these findings. Attempts to reduce statistical heterogeneity demonstrated the importance of complex measurement and study design when studying the impact of ecological environments on well-being.

Degree

College and Department

Family, Home, and Social Sciences; Psychology

Rights

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