Quality of life and urban / rural living: preliminary results of a community survey in Italy

Background: The purpose of this population-based study is to examine the association between subjective quality of life and rural/urban residence in six Italian regions, including age and gender into the analysis. Methods: Study design: community survey. Study population: Samples stratified according to sex and age, drawn from municipal records. Sample size: 4999 people 18 years and older, from seven communities within six regions of Italy. Tools: Ad-hoc form to assess basic demographic data; SF-12. Interviewers were trained psychologists or medical doctors. Results: 3398 subjects were interviewed (68% of recruited sample). The mean score of SF-12 in the overall sample was 38.4±6.1, SF-12 was higher in men than in in women (38.4±6.1 vs 37.5±5.9 F=99.18, df 1, 3396, 3397, p