Analyzing of regression model of environmental health quality of residential in slum areas.

Introduction

Any city has a population peak and the target in urban planning is to meet the needs of that population. Development of city population has gotten proportional order in developed countries. But this case is not organized well in the developing world because of irregular emigration (1).

After the Second World War, rapid and uncoordinated trend of urbanization has been one of the most important social problems of the developing countries. Such inefficient urbanization process and consequently creation and development of suburban living places as a result of excessive inter emigrations from village to city to form new types of living (e.g. residing in huts, shanty dweller, tins and etc.) which caused various socioeconomic and environmental problems (2). Article 25 - part 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines health right as it follows:

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

According to this case and review of theoretical texts and surveys in the health care field, emphasis of all researchers is on "organic" hypothesis as a suitable and sufficient approach in evaluation of environment health quality in residential places. A qualified living site is suggestion of welfare feeling of living level and satisfactory of settler's life quality through physical- social facilities (3). So, quality of environment sanitary, result from resultant of quality of components of a determined area. These components include: nature, open space, foundation and artificial environments that each has its specifications and quality (4). There are different approaches to study the qualities of living environment each of which originates from a specific scientific discipline such as: anthropology, architecture, economy, environmental design, geography, psychology, sociology, and environment health engineering (5). According to the studies in the field of urban pathology to identify the weakness of processes of growth and urban development, it is widely agreed that the health condition of living areas is a separate product of this part (6). Hence, finding remedy to utilize effective solutions for decreasing harmful effects of development of such environments has been one of the most important challenges to the urban managers and city programmers worldwide (especially in the developing countries) (7,8). The ability to comprehensively evaluate such settlements can help decision makers to come up with quality improvement plans for the environmental health of slum areas (9). But not much is known about the effectiveness of such plans, hence this study tries to tackle this gap looking at the three slum areas of the city of Sari, Iran, and measuring the environmental health quality of those places. Moreover, their environmental health quality has been determined according to the priority of unfair environmental component.

Method

This study was carried out using Hierarchical Multiple Regression Analysis (HMR) method. This type of analysis is an analytical technique for investigation and analysis of reciprocal connection between one criterion having dependent criteria and two or more antecedents with independent criteria. Also, The Multiple Regression Analysis was applied for measuring the deviation of the independent variable. Two special specifications of Multiple Regression Analysis include estimation of "regression weights" and measuring the "goodness of fit model" for analysis of quality. In this survey, the independent variables were given a weightage. So, their proportional share was estimated in independent variable. The assigning if weightage to each independent variable was done according to its effect on the dependent variable. These numerical values are called "regression weights" or coefficients. After standardizing these weights, coefficients and determination of [beta] coefficient and ranks of the dependent variables were compared with each other (10). The experimental model of the measuring of the residential places quality namely," value tree" has hierarchical structure that criteria, sub- criteria and effective criteria in process of measuring of the quality of the environmental health maintain different levels of the model (11). Also, amount of environment health quality which is proposed at minimum standard level is evaluated in two aspects of the environmental health quality of residential units and the environmental health quality. This model is described in four levels. In identifying the criteria/sub-criteria of the environmental health quality, different methods such as review of the related text/literature, primary identification of the studied area and obtaining the viewpoints of experts were used. Also, for arranging and developing the value tree of the environmental health, the "top to down" experimental approach was used. In this model, Quality of environmental health of residential places is placed at the first level of the tree. The second level is analyzed in two criteria of the environmental health quality of residential area and units. The third level is analyzed in six sub criteria, namely health of buildings and spaces, social cooperation and ties and place dependency, accessibility, physical-social facility, security, environment health variables and criteria of environmental health quality of the residential units analyzed in three sub criteria, maintains cost, outdoor facility and dwelling size and facility analyzed. Finally, the forth level of the model is divided into more sub- criteria of the third level that determined through the direct questionnaire method. Gathering of data at the level of 660 families of the three areas of sari (namely, Nowbonyad alley, Qaffari alley, and Tork mahaleh) was done in census method. For analysis of the data of residential places quality, the one-sample T-test and for comparing of the average score of the quality, the one-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test, and for ranking of criteria and sub-criteria of the quality of the settler's health, the multivariables regression analysis method were used.

Findings

According to the quantity results of the questionnaire and one- sample T- test , average of the quality of environmental health of dwellings got 1<1.92<5 that there was a significant relation among four levels of the model with quality variable (p < 0.03) (Figure 1).

To compare the mean score of the three places, the one-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test was used. Data distribution in mentioned groups was normal (P<0.04). It was observed that the quality in Tork mahaleh was lower than the other two slum places. Therefore, quality in second level (1<1.92<5) and third level (1<2.25<5) evaluated weak (Table1).

For ranking of criteria and sub criteria's of the components of environmental health quality of residential areas, the Hierarchical Multiple Regression Analysis method was used. In this method, to determine the quality of effective variables (criteria and component of quality) that influence the residential health criteria, "[beta] "quality" at the second level was [beta]= 0.3 and [beta]= 0.247, respectively. Also, among sub criteria's of environmental health quality, in mentioned places, the sub-criteria of "accessibility" with [beta] = 0.186 and among sub criteria's of environment quality of residential area, "size and outdoor facilities of residential unit" with [beta]= 0.265 had minimal importance (Table 2).

Conclusion

As the study result indicated, the environmental health quality of residential places in the three studied region is about weak range (1<2.03<5). Also in the second level, the environmental heath quality of residential units is lower (1<1.9<5) than the health quality of the residential area's environment (1<1.94<5). As for the subcriteria belonging to the two criteria of residential unit and residential area's health quality, the highest quality levels are observed for access to the facilities (1<2.72<5) and physical- social facilities (1<2.54<5); whereas the lowest quality levels are observed for the size and indoor facilities of residential units (1<1.03<5) and security and safety (1<1.71<5). Also the ranking of components happening in different levels implies the higher significance of residential unit's environment health quality criterion (P=0.360) in comparison with environmental health quality of residential area ([beta]=0.247). As for the sub criteria related to these two criteria, Size and outdoor facilities of residential unit with [beta]= 0.262 and Size and indoor facilities of residential unit with [beta]=0.224 are the highest ones; whereas the security and safety ([beta]=0.154) and social ties and place dependency with [beta]= 0.158 are the least significant ones.

So the size and indoor facilities of residential units and maintenance cost including: repairs, reconstruction, water, electricity & gas on environmental health quality residential units & also security & safety and social cooperation & place dependency on environmental health quality residential area are the most important components requiring serious intervention. The weak level of quality in all criteria & sub- criteria is significant and remarkable, therefore, the major actions to improve and promote the quality is necessary. As a result, planning to improve environmental conditions in a stable and holistic manner to increase health, security, hope, faith, and human generosity in the informal dwellings and to prevent the informal extension of such residential areas in future is of utmost importance; not to mention the importance of preparation for constructing suitable urban residences as well as providing conditions to benefit from urban advantages in line with an enriched urban culture to accommodate such dwellings along with their multilateral participation in making decisions & local actions.

Acknowledgment: This study was supported by Vice-Chancellor for research; Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences and the authors are deeply indebted to slum dwellers in this city that helped us.

Conflict of Interest: None to declare

References

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(8.) Moreno EL, Warah R. The state of the world's cities report: urban slum trends in the 21st century. 2006. UN Chronicle online edition. (http://www.un.org/Pubs/chronicle/2006/issue 2/0206p24.htm, accessed on 10 August 2008).

(9.) Islam N, Mahbub AQM, Nazem NI, Lance P, Angeles G. Slums of urban Bangladesh: mapping and census 2005. Dhaka: Centre for Urban Studies. 2006: p. 54.

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[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

Ghasem Abedi [1] *, Farideh Rostami [2], Behzad Nikpor [3]

[1] Health Sciences Research Center, Faculty of Health, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran

[2] Health Sciences Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran

[3] Health Sciences Research Center, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran

* Corresponding Author

Table 1: Environmental heath quality of
residential unit as criteria and sub-criteria

                                    Quality of
                                   environmental
                                      health
First level       Second level       1<mean<5

Quality of      environmental           1.9
environmental   heath quality of
health          residential unit

                environment            1.94
                health quality
                of the
                residential area

                                    Quality of
                                   environmental
                                      health
First level       Third level       (1<mean<5)

Quality of      Size and indoor        1.03
environmental   facilities of
health          residential unit

                Maintain cost          2.64

                Size and outdoor       2.36
                facilities of
                residential unit

                Accessibility          2.72

                Physical--Social       2.54
                facilities

                Socialties and         1.78
                interaction

                Security               1.71

                Environment            1.94
                variable

                Health of              1.81
                buildings

Table 2: [beta] Coefficient of the importance of criteria and
sub-criteria of environmental health quality of slums areas

0.212

                                 Beta([beta])
First level     Second level     coefficients

Quality of      environmental        0.3
environmental   heath quality
health          of residential
                unit

                environment          0.2
                health quality
                of the
                residential
                area

                                   Beta([beta])
First level     Third level        coefficients

Quality of      Size and indoor       0.224
environmental   facilities of
health          residential unit

                Maintenance cost      0.212

                Size and outdoor      0.262
                facilities of
                residential unit

                Accessibility         0.184

                Physical--Social      0.173
                facilities

                Social                0.158
                interaction
                and ties

                security              0.154

                Environment           0.165
                variable

                Health of             0.162
                buildings
                and spaces