Negative Mood and Urban Versus Rural Residence: Using Proximity to Metropolitan Statistical Areas as an Alternative Measure of Residence

Advance Data 281.  A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) describes the distribution of reported negative mood by place of residence. The analyses focus on residences in proximity to metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) as an alternative to the traditional urban vs. rural residence variable. Data for this report were collected as part of NCHS' National Health Interview Survey, a household survey that has gathered information on the health of the U.S. resident population since 1957. Self-reporting of negative mood comes from the negative affect items of the Bradburn Affect Balance scale that is categorized as high and low presence.

Results from the report indicate an estimated 11.5 million persons experienced high negative mood in 1991. Negative affect prevalence was higher for females, blacks, respondents with less than a high school education, and among persons between 25 and 44 years of age. Data from the report also state that negative affect prevalence was higher for urban (8.1 percent) vs. rural (7.0 percent) places.

Keywords: negative mood, Bradburn Affect Balance Scale, place of residence, Urban, Rural, Metropolitan Statistical Areas

This page last reviewed January 11, 2007