How neighbourhood social and built environments influence social interactions: differences between life stages

Neighbourhood social interaction and built environment are associated with people’s well-being and quality of life (QOL), with personal characteristics contributing to face-to-face social interaction. Most studies investigate the relationship between the built form in the urban environment and social interaction, using limited measures to study the social environment and social interaction separately, and focus on the amount of social interaction. A methodology is proposed combining subjective data from a community survey with objective quantitative built environment measures to predict face-to-face social interaction frequency and satisfaction in a study in Melbourne, Australia. Participant perceptions of social interaction, social environment and built environment attributes- including third places- are measured. Survey participants’ addresses are geocoded with aspects of the objective built environment measured using geographical information system (GIS) analysis. Mediation analysis is used to predict social interaction frequency and people’s satisfaction. The efficacy and implications of the methodology are discussed. The findings provide opportunities for government policymakers and planners, nongovernmental organisations and community groups for improving people’s social interaction, well-being and QOL.