Regional Factors Affecting Subjective Health and Wellbeing: Spatial Analysis for the Case of Seoul

Abstract

The implementation of urban planning policy should come about at the regional level with ecological perspectives based on the social need for promoting individuals’ subjective health and wellbeing. Recognizing the hierarchical relationship between the individual and the community, this study examined the regional factors that affect people’s subjective health and wellbeing. For our empirical analysis we used Ordered Logistic Multilevel model. The data used for this study are from the 2013 Seoul Survey (for the individual) and Seoul Statistics (for the regional). The results indicated that environmental amenities such as local parks, green spaces and green streetscape had a positive association with local residents’ subjective health and wellbeing. Therefore, the effect of environmental amenities are empirically supported, which further argues for the importance of developing local amenities in promoting the wellbeing of local residents. Consequently, planning policies such as 2030 Seoul Plan should consider the regional characteristics and their potential effect on the wellbeing and health of Seoul citizens.