The societies around us are affected according to several different things, which are mainly
related to the nature of the surrounding environment and the availability of basic factors in it, and
their impact may be either negative or positive on the level of the individual, the population and
the society as a whole. Some of these factors may be tangible material, such as housing, water,
electricity, etc., and others may be social factors that are not fundamentally tangible, such as
social class, customs, traditions, and others. Tangible physical factors are classified according to
the so-called built environment, while other factors are classified according to the so-called
social environment, each of which has a different impact on society, its behavior, health, and
others.
The built environment is all the things or structures that have been made or modified by man
to provide the basic needs of the members of society from places to live, work, and recreation,
and that requires the presence of appropriate materials and systems for that. The built
environment includes many important things in our lives, such as transportation systems.
including roads and bridges, as well as systems for distributing water and electricity within
neighborhoods, in addition to buildings, homes, and other tangible, man-made things (EPA, n.d.).
The social environment means those interactions, patterns, and social systems that occur between
individuals and groups and that give a general picture of society and it varies from one society to
another. The social environment also includes many factors such as lifestyle, habits, laws, and
interactions that occur in different environments such as relationships within work and home,
etc., which are often considered intangible factors (Yen & Syme, 1999)
Both the built and social environments have an impact on the individual and society in many
ways, including their impact on health. As for the built environment, it affects health when the
systems for water, electricity, and roads are not properly placed. For example, in my community.
there are not many roads that have been planned and designated for walking or cycling, and
therefore the absence of such roads or sidewalks will reduce the response of community
members to physical activity, which will affect their health and increase the presence of health
problems such as obesity (Hayward et al., 2015). The social environment affects health for
several reasons, such as unhealthy lifestyles and behaviors. For example, in my society, smoking
is widely spread among men, according to the belief that it increases virility, affects health, and
causes many diseases. Also, the presence of different classes within a single society affects the
extent of access to health care for some, which certainly affects health levels (Hayward et al..
2015).
My question for this discussion is: In your community, which do you think has a greater impact
on public health, the built environment or the social environment? And why?
References:
EPA. (n.d.). Basic Information about the Built Environment. United States Environmental
Protection Agency. https://www.epa.gov/smm/basic-information-about-built-environment
Hayward, E., Ibe, C., Young, J. H., Potti, K., Jones,