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Jennifer F. Culhane, PhD, MPH, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Drexel University College of Medicine, 245 North 15th St. MS#495, 17th Floor New College Building, Philadelphia, PA 19102, 215-762-2013, jfc92@Drexel.edu and Irma T. Elo, MPA, PhD, Department of Sociology, University of Pennsylvania, 3718 Locust Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
Racial differences in rates of preterm birth and other adverse health outcomes are among the most widely recognized and least well-understood phenomena in the study of reproductive health. In past studies individual-level characteristics have failed to account for these differentials. Recently researchers have begun to argue compellingly that health in general and reproductive outcomes specifically are rooted in social inequalities and that the broad social and residential context may be a key to understanding race/ethnic differences in reproductive health. One area of such inequality is residential segregation and the associated race/ethnic differences in exposure to adverse neighborhood conditions. In this paper, we review the major challenges researchers face when trying to incorporate neighborhood-level variables into studies of health outcomes. Specifically we address the limitations associated with the use of derived variables to assess neighborhood quality, the analytic problem caused by the high correlations among numerous community-level constructs, and the limitations imposed by the use of administrative spatial units such as census tract or block group (aggregation or zone effect as well as scale effect).
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Statistics, Maternal and Child Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.