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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Yvonne Michael, ScD, School of Community Health, Portland State University, PO Bo 751, Portland, OR 97207, 503-725-5108, michaely@pdx.edu, Matthew G. Schirmer, BA, Graduate School of Social Work, Portland State University, PO Box 751, Portland, OR 97207, and Jay Magaziner, PhD, Department of Medicine, University of Maryland, Howard Hall, 660 Redwood Street, Baltimore, MD 21201.
Objectives: Social capital, a commonly examined characteristic of the social environment, may be particularly important to the health of vulnerable populations, such as older persons. In this study, we utilized a unique study sample to (1) describe the level of social capital within 18 contiguous urban neighborhoods in Baltimore, MD, and (2) describe the individual and census tract characteristics associated with high levels of social capital. Methods: We geo-coded cross-sectional data from an interviewer-administered survey on health and participation conducted in 1984 in order to link the records to 1990 US Census data. We operationalized census tract level social capital as per capita group membership in voluntary clubs, organizations and/or groups. Results: Respondents living in census tracts with high social capital were significantly less likely to report limitations of physical and instrumental activities, and significantly more likely to report excellent health status. In addition, high social capital tracts were more likely to be neighborhoods with larger proportions of non-white individuals. However, there was no association between level of social capital and neighborhood poverty level or level of age segregation. Conclusions: This study extends the current research on the relationship between social capital and individual health, socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. In addition, geo-coding previously collected survey data provided a number of insights, a method that could be utilized to examine social capital and change in health status in longitudinal studies.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Aging, Geocoding
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.