Mental well-being of migrants in urban center of India: Analyzing the role of social environment

BACKGROUND: Rural to urban migration has become a salient feature of the country. However, there is a dearth of study highlighting impact of this movement on mental health of the migrant people. AIMS: The main objective of the present study was to examine the relationship between specific components of social environment and psychological well-being of migrants in an urban center. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: The National Capital Territory of Delhi was selected for intensive study and has an exploratory design supported by cross-sectional primary data. METHODOLOGY: A standardized questionnaire was used to obtain data about the socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents. For measuring the mental well-being, the World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO5) was used. The required information was procured through interview method from 1230 sampled respondents. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Influence of socioeconomic variables on mental well-being of the people was estimated through multivariate logistic regression methods. For different combinations of risk factors, five models were developed based on unstandardized likelihood coefficients. RESULTS: Poor mental health was significantly higher among single/widow/divorced/separated (odds ratio [OR] =0.76, P < 0.01), unskilled (OR = 2.26, P < 0.01), daily wager (OR = 2.57, P < 0.01), and illiterate (OR = 2.55, P < 0.01). Longer year of immigration, younger age, and higher income level (P < 0.001) were positively related to mental health. Poor housing conditions (P < 0.001), adjustment problem (P < 0.001), and feeling insecure (P < 0.01) were independent predictors of poor mental health. CONCLUSION: Socioeconomic and environmental problem caused by the migrants and faced by the migrants is required in-depth study to formulate comprehensive policies.