Evaluating the impact of a locality based social policy intervention on mental health: Conceptual and methodological issues

Urban regeneration initiatives provide an opportunity for examining the imp act of changes in socio-economic circumstances on the mental health of diff erent groups and individuals within localities. This paper sets out the con ceptual and methodological bases for evaluating the impact of a population based social policy intervention on mental health. We suggest the need to i ntegrate a range of disciplinary and methodological developments in researc h on health inequalities in exploring the impact of urban regeneration on m ental health. A combination of multi-level modelling, subjective indicators and narrative accounts of individuals about mental health in the context o f locality and personal changes are central for developing theories and met hods appropriate for exploring the action and interaction of effects operat ing between structural and individual/agency levels.