The overall goal of this study is to better understand how socioeconomic and racial disparities in health, well-being, and mortality are produced and maintained by both community and individual processes over the life course. This study uses multilevel data to examine the relationship between community socioeconomic context, racial segregation, and individual health, well-being, health change, and mortality.
The Specific Aims of this study are: 1) To examine how community socioeconomic context and racial segregation are jointly and independently associated with individual health, well-being, health change, and mortality. 2) To examine how community socioeconomic context and racial segregation are associated with individual health, well-being, health change, and mortality independent of individual/family SES, through individual/family SES, and to examine how these relationships are moderated by individual/family SES over the life course. 3) To examine how the relationships between community socioeconomic context, racial segregation, and health, well-being, health change, and mortality vary by age, race, and gender. 4) To create and test a conceptual model that (a) describes the complex pathways through which community context is related to individual health and well-being, including an emphasis on the subgroups for whom these relationships appear most salient, and (b) demonstrates specific pathways that appear to be dominant mediators and moderators of these relationships. This study uses three national studies of adults in the U.S. (Americans' Changing Lives Study--Waves 1, 2, 3, and 4, Midlife in the U.S. Study, and the National Survey of Families and Households--Waves 1 and 2) that each have information on individual and family SES, individual health, well-being, and mortality (2 of the 3 studies). Each also includes information on some of the individual-level pathways (health behaviors, social support, stress, access to health care, perceived neighborhood environment) that may link community context and individual socioeconomic status to health, well-being, health change, and mortality over the life course. Information from the census is matched for respondents in each study to measure the socioeconomic context (from census tracts or zip codes, and counties) and racial segregation (county level) of the communities in which respondents reside.
| Ruel, Erin; Robert, Stephanie A (2009) A Model of Racial Residential History and Its Association with Self-Rated Health and Mortality Among Black and White Adults in the United States. Sociol Spectr 29:443-466 |
| Weden, Margaret M; Carpiano, Richard M; Robert, Stephanie A (2008) Subjective and objective neighborhood characteristics and adult health. Soc Sci Med 66:1256-70 |
| Robert, Stephanie A; Ruel, Erin (2006) Racial segregation and health disparities between Black and White older adults. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 61:S203-11 |
| Robert, Stephanie A; Reither, Eric N (2004) A multilevel analysis of race, community disadvantage, and body mass index among adults in the US. Soc Sci Med 59:2421-34 |
