Search

This study examined the associations between hearing loss and cognitive challenges among community-dwelling older adults and whether neighborhood characteristics (physical disorder and low social cohesion) moderated the associations. Cross-sectional national data from Round 11 of the National Health and Aging Trends Study were adopted (N = 2,515). Multinomial logistic regressions were used to examine associations among variables and interactive analyses were conducted to examine moderating effects. Results indicated significant relationships between the experience of hearing loss and possible dementia and between severe or profound hearing loss and probable dementia. Interactive models suggested that residing in neighborhoods with physical disorder and low social cohesion were negatively associated with possible dementia among older adults with moderate and severe or profound hearing loss, respectively, compared to those without hearing loss. Findings underscore the necessity of environmental and social interventions to enhance cognitive health among older adults with varying degrees of hearing challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study examined how a perceived neighborhood environment was associated with older adults' walking activity and the experience of positive affect. Study sample comprised 10,700 older adults, aged 65+, sampled from the Health and Retirement Study 2014–2015 in the United States. Results indicated that neighborhood social cohesion was significantly predicting older adults' walking and positive affect. It was also revealed that walking engagement significantly contributed to the measure of positive affect. However, perceived neighborhood physical disorder did not account for additional variance in walking and positive affect. Final structural model involved three latent factors—neighborhood social cohesion, walking, and positive affect—and the goodness-of-fit indices of the model indicated an acceptable fit to the sample data. Public health and physical activity intervention in the context of neighborhood environment should facilitate social integration and informal social support that the neighborhood creates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Racial and ethnic health disparities are fundamentally connected to neighborhood quality. For example, as a result of historical systemic inequities, racial and ethnic minorities are more likely to live in neighborhoods with signs of physical disorder (e.g., graffiti, vandalism), and physically disordered environments have been noted to associate with increased risk for chronic illness. Degree of exposure to neighborhood disorder may alter peoples' perception of their neighborhoods, however, with those most exposed (e.g., historically marginalized racial/ethnic groups) perhaps perceiving less threat from signs of neighborhood disorder. The purpose of the present study was to examine the complex interrelationships between people and place by investigating whether exposure to neighborhood physical disorder relates to residents' (1) perceptions of neighborhood safety and (2) perceptions of their health, and (3) examining whether these links vary by race/ethnicity. Using 2016–2018 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) data, a representative sample of US adults aged 51 years and older (n = 9,080, mean age 68 years), we conducted a series of weighted linear regressions to examine the role of neighborhood disorder in relation to both perceived neighborhood safety and self-rated health. Results indicated that greater neighborhood physical disorder was statistically significantly related to feeling less safe among non-Hispanic Whites and Hispanics, but not non-Hispanic Blacks. Regarding self-rated health, neighborhood physical disorder was statistically significantly related to poorer health among all racial/ethnic groups. These findings suggest that, despite differential interpretation of neighborhood disorder as a threat to safety, this modifiable aspect of peoples' environment is related to poor health regardless of one's race/ethnicity.

Background: Neighborhood environment for student residences has been linked to differences in academic outcomes. However, school neighborhood has not been studied as a potential additional environmental factor in academic outcomes. Objective: The goal of this study was to explore the association between school neighborhood disorder and academic outcomes. Method: School neighborhood physical disorder data were paired with school academic achievement and attendance data. Using regression analyses, we examined whether academic achievement and attendance were predicted using NIfETy neighborhood physical disorder scores for the 21 schools within the boundaries of Flint. Results: Neighborhood physical disorder was significantly negatively associated with mathematics scores (β = − 7.71707, p = 0.0430425), but not with English Language Arts (ELA) scores (β = − 4.35, p = 0.13). We found a significant curvilinear relationship between neighborhood physical disorder and attendance. Conclusions: This study supplements existing literature by focusing on neighborhood physical disorder at the school. We found evidence that school neighborhood may impact academic achievement. These findings complement previous research showing that neighborhood of residence factors, such as structural disadvantage, impact school performance. Students exposed to economically disadvantaged neighborhoods at school, regardless of where they live, may have poorer academic skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prescription drug spending and other financial factors (e.g., out-of-pocket costs) partially explain variation in cost-related medication nonadherence (CRN). Indicators of social capital such as neighborhood factors and social support may influence the health and well-being of older adults as they may rely on community resources and support from family and peers to manage conditions. Previous research on the relationship of social capital and CRN has limited evidence and contradictory findings. Hence, our objective is to assess the relationship of social capital indicators (neighborhood social cohesion, neighborhood physical disorder, positive social support, and negative social support) and CRN using a longitudinal design, 2006 to 2016, in a nationally representative sample of older adults in the United States (US). The Health and Retirement Study is a prospective panel study of US adults aged ≥ 50 years evaluated every two years. Data was pooled to create three waves and fitted using Generalized Estimating Equation modelling adjusting for both baseline and timevarying covariates (age, sex, education, race, total household income, and perceived health status). The three waves consisted of 11,791, 12,336, and 9,491 participants. Higher levels of neighborhood social cohesion and positive social support were related with lower CRN (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.88-0.95 and OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.70-0.84, p

Adverse pregnancy outcomes increase infants' risk for mortality and future health problems. Neighborhood physical disorder may contribute to adverse pregnancy outcomes by increasing maternal chronic stress. Google Street View technology presents a novel method for assessing neighborhood physical disorder but has not been previously examined in the context of birth outcomes. In this cross-sectional study, trained raters used Google's Street View imagery to virtually audit a randomly sampled block within each Chicago census tract (n = 809) for nine indicators of physical disorder. We used an item-response theory model and spatial interpolation to calculate tract-level neighborhood physical disorder scores across Chicago. We linked these data with geocoded electronic health record data from a large, academic women's hospital in Chicago (2015-2017, n = 14,309 births). We used three-level hierarchical Poisson regression to estimate prevalence ratios for the associations of neighborhood physical disorder with preterm birth (overall and spontaneous), small for gestational age (SGA), and hypertensive disorder of pregnancy (HDP). After adjustment for maternal sociodemographics, multiparity, and season of birth, living in a neighborhood with high physical disorder was associated with higher prevalence of PTB, SGA, and HDP (prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals 1.21 (1.06, 1.39) for PTB, 1.13 (1.01, 1.37) for SGA, and 1.23 (1.07, 1.42) for HDP). Adjustment for neighborhood poverty and maternal health conditions (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, asthma, substance use) attenuated associations. Results suggest that an adverse neighborhood physical environment may contribute to adverse pregnancy outcomes. However, future work is needed to disentangle the unique contribution of physical disorder from other characteristics of disadvantaged neighborhoods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study examined the direct and indirect effects of neighborhood conditions on the health and development of children from socioeconomically disadvantaged families. Two waves of data were analyzed from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study and its subsample of 3,656 mothers and their young children at ages 3 and 5. The results show that social cohesion was directly and indirectly associated with children's behavioral problems and health status. Social control was found to have an indirect effect on children's behavioral problems and cognitive development transmitted through maternal parenting quality and parenting stress. There were significant direct effects of neighborhood physical disorder on children's behavioral problems and cognitive development. In terms of effect size, mothers' parenting stress and parenting quality, economic hardship, education level, and health care coverage were also prominent factors in determining the health and development of children. Implications for interventions and future research are discussed. Highlights: Social cohesion had direct and indirect effects on child behavioral problems and health status.Social control had indirect effects on children's behavior problems and cognitive development.Neighborhood physical disorder had direct effects on behavior problems and cognitive development.Mothers' parenting stress, parenting quality, and economic hardship were also prominent factors.Interventions should foster neighborhood processes and enhance social interaction and connectedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although research documents a link between neighborhood physical disorder and psychological distress, we know little about the extent to which this association varies by age. Utilizing the person–environment fit model and drawing on data from the fourth wave of the Americans’ Changing Lives Survey, we examine the extent to which age influences the association between perceptions of neighborhood physical disorder and psychological distress, as measured by depressive symptoms. We employ both continuous and categorical measures of age to test for a potential moderating effect. Overall findings based on linear regression analyses reveal that the mental distress resulting from the perception of physically deteriorating neighborhood declines with age. Stated otherwise, we find that the psychological distress associated with the perception of neighborhood physical disorder is far less pronounced for the young-old (60 years and above) and late-old (70 years and above) adults as compared with their young middle-aged (40–49 years) and late middle-aged (50–59 years) counterparts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neighborhood physical disorder-the visual indications of neighborhood deterioration-may inhibit outdoor physical activity, particularly among older adults. However, few previous studies of the association between neighborhood disorder and physical activity have focused on this sensitive population group, and most have been cross-sectional. We examined the relationship between neighborhood physical disorder and physical activity, measured using the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE), in a three-wave longitudinal study of 3497 New York City residents aged 65-75 at baseline weighted to be representative of the older adult population of New York City. We used longitudinal mixed linear regression controlling for a number of individual and neighborhood factors to estimate the association of disorder with PASE score at baseline and change in PASE score over 2 years. There were too few subjects to assess the effect of changes in disorder on activity levels. In multivariable mixed regression models accounting for individual and neighborhood factors; for missing data and for loss to follow-up, each standard deviation increase in neighborhood disorder was associated with an estimated 2.0 units (95% CI 0.3, 3.6) lower PASE score at baseline, or the equivalent of about 6 min of walking per day. However, physical disorder was not related to changes in PASE score over 2 years of follow-up. In this ethnically and socioeconomically diverse population of urban older adults, residents of more disordered neighborhoods were on average less active at baseline. Physical disorder was not associated with changes in overall physical activity over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To date, most studies have assessed individual exposure to neighborhood physical disorder (NPD) through the static residence-based approach, which ignores elements of human mobility and may lead to inaccurate estimates. This study assessed individual exposure to neighborhood physical disorder through the mobility-based approach using wearable cameras. The use of this approach allowed us to leverage innovative tools to accurately assess exposure to NPD in individuals' activities in space-time. We assessed the volunteers' exposure to neighborhood physical disorder by manually auditing pictures taken by wearable cameras on an online browser-based assessment platform. The results illustrated that wearable cameras can clearly capture the exposure while volunteers were engaged in travel behaviors. We also compared the proposed approach (mobility-based, using wearable cameras to take photos) with other approaches (with consideration of travel behaviors to varying degrees, using street view images) to demonstrate that wearable cameras can record individual exposure to neighborhood physical disorder accurately and conveniently, and the assessment results might be significantly different from those obtained by other approaches. Thus, the proposed approach is of great significance. • We proposed a mobility-based approach to assessing individuals' exposure to neighborhood physical disorder. • Assessing exposure by mobility-based approach produce different results than by static residence-based approach. • Wearable cameras can be used to assess individuals' exposure to neighborhood physical disorder accurately and conveniently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Racial and ethnic health disparities are fundamentally connected to neighborhood quality. For example, as a result of historical systemic inequities, racial and ethnic minorities are more likely to live in neighborhoods with signs of physical disorder (e.g., graffiti, vandalism), and physically disordered environments have been noted to associate with increased risk for chronic illness. Degree of exposure to neighborhood disorder may alter peoples' perception of their neighborhoods, however, with those most exposed (e.g., historically marginalized racial/ethnic groups) perhaps perceiving less threat from signs of neighborhood disorder. The purpose of the present study was to examine the complex interrelationships between people and place by investigating whether exposure to neighborhood physical disorder relates to residents' (1) perceptions of neighborhood safety and (2) perceptions of their health, and (3) examining whether these links vary by race/ethnicity. Using 2016-2018 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) data, a representative sample of US adults aged 51 years and older ( n = 9,080, mean age 68 years), we conducted a series of weighted linear regressions to examine the role of neighborhood disorder in relation to both perceived neighborhood safety and self-rated health. Results indicated that greater neighborhood physical disorder was statistically significantly related to feeling less safe among non-Hispanic Whites and Hispanics, but not non-Hispanic Blacks. Regarding self-rated health, neighborhood physical disorder was statistically significantly related to poorer health among all racial/ethnic groups. These findings suggest that, despite differential interpretation of neighborhood disorder as a threat to safety, this modifiable aspect of peoples' environment is related to poor health regardless of one's race/ethnicity., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Velasquez, Douglas, Guo and Robinette.)

Abstract: Introduction: Exposure to child maltreatment is associated with elevated risk for behavioral disorders in adulthood. One explanation for this life-course association is that child maltreatment increases vulnerability to the effects of subsequent stressors; however, the extent to which maltreatment increases sensitivity to social context has never been examined. We evaluated whether the association between neighborhood physical disorder and binge drinking was modified by child maltreatment exposure. Methods: Data were drawn from the Detroit Neighborhood Health Study, a prospective representative sample of predominately African Americans in the Detroit population. Neighborhood physical disorder was measured via systematic neighborhood assessment. Child maltreatment indicators included self-reported physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. Incident binge drinking was defined as at least one episode of ≥5 drinks (men) or ≥4 drinks (women) in the past 30-day period among those with no binge drinking at baseline (N =1013). Results: Child maltreatment and neighborhood physical disorder interacted to predict incident binge drinking (B =0.16, p =0.02) and maximum number of past 30-day drinks (B =0.15, p =0.04), such that neighborhood physical disorder predicted problematic alcohol use only among individuals with high exposure to child maltreatment. Conclusion: The results add to the growing literature that African Americans in the US are exposed to an array of stressors that have pernicious consequences for problematic alcohol use. Our results document the need for increased attention to the potential for at-risk alcohol use among populations with a high degree of stress exposure. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Prescription drug spending and other financial factors (e.g., out-of-pocket costs) partially explain variation in cost-related medication nonadherence (CRN). Indicators of social capital such as neighborhood factors and social support may influence the health and well-being of older adults as they may rely on community resources and support from family and peers to manage conditions. Previous research on the relationship of social capital and CRN has limited evidence and contradictory findings. Hence, our objective is to assess the relationship of social capital indicators (neighborhood social cohesion, neighborhood physical disorder, positive social support, and negative social support) and CRN using a longitudinal design, 2006 to 2016, in a nationally representative sample of older adults in the United States (US). The Health and Retirement Study is a prospective panel study of US adults aged ≥ 50 years evaluated every two years. Data was pooled to create three waves and fitted using Generalized Estimating Equation modelling adjusting for both baseline and timevarying covariates (age, sex, education, race, total household income, and perceived health status). The three waves consisted of 11,791, 12,336, and 9,491 participants. Higher levels of neighborhood social cohesion and positive social support were related with lower CRN (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.88-0.95 and OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.70-0.84, p<0.01). In contrast, higher levels of neighborhood physical disorder and negative social support were related to higher CRN (OR 1.07, 95% CI 1.03-1.11 and OR 1.46, 95% CI 1.32-1.62, p<0.01). Interventions targeting social capital are needed, reinforcing positive social support and neighborhood social cohesion and diminishing neighborhood physical disorder and negative social support for older adults., Competing Interests: None., (© 2020 The Authors.)