Making cities mental health friendly for adolescents and young adults

Urban life significantly impacts the mental health of its inhabitants. While cities offer advantages in health, education, and economic opportunities, they can also negatively affect mental well-being, particularly among adolescents and young adults. This study, involving a global multidisciplinary group, used sequential surveys to identify and prioritize characteristics of a mental health-friendly city for young people. The ranked characteristics, grouped by personal, interpersonal, community, organizational, policy, and environmental domains, highlight the importance of life skills, acceptance of youth perspectives, safe public spaces, job security, youth involvement in urban planning, and addressing social determinants of health. The study also considers the impact of COVID-19 and proposes intersectoral, multilevel interventions for creating inclusive and equitable cities that support youth mental health.

Pamela Y. Collins, Moitreyee Sinha, Tessa Concepcion, George Patton, Thaisa Way, Layla McCay, Augustina Mensa-Kwao, Helen Herrman, Evelyne de Leeuw, Nalini Anand, Lukoye Atwoli, Nicole Bardikoff, Chantelle Booysen, Inés Bustamante, Yajun Chen, Kelly Davis, Tarun Dua, Nathaniel Foote, Matthew Hughsam, Damian Juma, Shisir Khanal, Manasi Kumar, Bina Lefkowitz, Peter McDermott, Modhurima Moitra, Yvonne Ochieng, Olayinka Omigbodun, Emily Queen, Jürgen Unützer, José Miguel Uribe-Restrepo, Miranda Wolpert, Lian Zeitz