Feeling that you belong in your community, and that you are welcome, appear to be significant boosters of mental health. Researchers who examine “place attachment” describe it as a combination of emotion, belief, action, and behavior. In a study in Japan, elderly women who felt attached to their neighborhood were more likely to be alive five years later than women who did not feel the same way. And people who remain in a community long-term appear in research to be much more social than those who move frequently, and to volunteer more regularly.