Racial Differences in Neighborhood Disadvantage Among Childbearing Women in New York City

Abstract

An ecological framework is utilized in this study to explore the differential neighborhood environments that existed for Black and White childbearing women in New York City during the early 1990s. We examined ecological risk factors for different racial groups in a highly segregated metropolitan city and provide a framework from which we can address issues of oppression and social inequality. This study examines neighborhood conditions and determines the extent to which Black and White women, who gave birth during 1991 and 1992, occupy differing neighborhoods in New York City and in each of the boroughs that comprise New York City-Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens (excluding Staten Island).

High and persistent residential segregation of Blacks and Whites in NYC has put Black women at a clear and significant ecological disadvantage compared to White women regardless of the borough where they lived when they gave birth to their infant. This study found that, when compared to White women, Black women in New York City are at a vast disadvantage regardless of income. In Manhattan and Queens that disparity is the greatest with low income Black women much more likely than low income White women to live in a high poverty neighborhood. Overall, in NYC and across the four boroughs studied, low income Blacks were more likely than Whites to live in neighborhoods characterized by high poverty rates, substance abuse and inadequate health care.     

"I,Black woman,resist]" Katrina Payne talks to Alzira Rufino. Interview

In this interview, Alzira Rufino describes her involvement in the feminist movement and what caused her to found the Black Women's House of Culture in Brazil in 1990. Rufino located the center in Santos because it is a port city which sees a great deal of violence and is very sexist and racist. The center, which exists to assist all women, grew out of a Rufino's realization that Black women needed a group to support their rights. The name for the center came from the fact that women have been the keepers of African culture in Brazil. In Brazil, White men dominate the culture, even the cultural expressions produced by Black people such as the Carnival. The center has had to overcome the criticism directed at it because it was created for women and for Black women in particular, and Black feminists are beginning to understand that Black women make up 25% of the population of Brazil and must celebrate their heritage. Increasing the self-esteem of Black women can be instrumental in helping women undergo training for better jobs and to take the initiative to become entrepreneurs. Black women in Brazil are beginning to occupy positions formerly denied them and to denounce the racism and sexism directed toward them.     

Racial differences in infant mortality rates: United States, 1969

Using multiple regression analyses, we measured the effects of demographic, health, and socioeconomic variables on race-specific neonatal and postneonatal infant mortality rates. The racial difference in rates in 1969 is due to (1) effects of mean differences in black and white population characteristics, (2) differences in the impact of independent variables, and (3) differences from other causes. Higher black than white infant mortality is the result of unfavorable black means on birthweight, age of mothers at birth, education, and marital stability. Black mortality is also higher because mothers' age at birth, marital stability, and education have more favorable impact on mortality for whites than blacks.     

Low birthweight: Do unwed fathers help?

Previous studies have revealed that marital status is an important predictor of birth outcomes, with unmarried mothers having a higher probability than married mothers of delivering low birthweight babies. However, research on the impact of different mother-father relationships among unwed parents is virtually non-existent and little is known about whether and how father involvement affects birth outcomes. In this study, we use the sample of unwed parents in the 7-cities baseline Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing data to examine the effects of parents' relationship status and support provided by the baby's father during pregnancy on the likelihood of delivering a low birthweight baby, and to examine whether father involvement explains racial and ethnic disparities in low birthweight. We include several variables that past studies have suggested may be important in explaining birth outcomes but generally have not been able to include, such as mother's social support, her attitudes and values, and her religiosity. We find that having received monetary support from the baby's father has a negative effect on the likelihood of low birthweight and that mothers who are in a non-cohabiting romantic relationship with the father have significantly higher odds of low birthweight compared to mothers who cohabit with the father of their baby. Finally, racial ethnic differences in birth outcomes within this population appear to be invariant to the level of father involvement. A major contribution of the study is that it uses rich new data to examine birth outcomes in a population at high risk—unmarried mothers—and incorporates measures such as parents' relationship status and father's financial support, along with an extensive set of demographic, social, and behavioral risk factors.     

Ethnic and class factors affecting mental health clinic service

Service delivery by a mental health clinic to clients from an older suburban catchment area containing both lower and middle class blacks and whites was studied. The epidemiologic method was employed, relating service delivery to the characteristics of the various population groups within the catchment. The findings indicate that low service rates for blacks were not related to ethnicity alone, but to the combination of black ethnicity and low social status; however, middle class blacks and middle class whites who entered treatment received similar service. Poor blacks had higher admission rates than poor whites with similar need indicators. In continued treatment, poor blacks received lowest service rates while minority status poor whites living in a predominantly black area received highest service rates. Social class mediated black service utilization. Severity of illness, interacting with social class and minority status mediated white service utilization. Outreach is suggested not only for poor blacks but also for poor whites, especially those living in areas in which they represent an ethnic minority.     

Premature infant behavior: an ethological study in a special care nursery.

The Social and Sensory Environment Studies of very low birthweight infants have quantified the amount and quality of social interaction with staff and parents and described the sound environment in an incubator. The present study concerns preterm infant behavior and reactions to these stimuli with particular reference to approach and withdrawal and vocalization. Among the findings are that while intermittent vocalization increases, infant cry decreases over the first three weeks in the incubator. Approach activities take place with some consistency whereas withdrawal differs from child to child. The ethnographic focus on interactive components of the intensive care experience documents the process of intersubjective development for the purpose of locating and isolating points of vulnerability in language and cognitive skills of infants born at very low birthweight.     

A note on the status of women as a factor in population growth in less developed countries

The 1978 U.S. Bureau of the Census reported 4.3 billion as the world's population. 3.1 billion were living in the less developed areas where life is characterized by poverty and low levels of material well-being. In the develop countries the per capita income averaged $490, compared to $5,210 in developed areas. Little attention has been paid to the status of women in developing countries, where the impact of development often has a negative effect. As a measure of women's status, rates are given for male/female infant mortality. If the ratio is less than 1.14 the status of women is low. If the is 1.15-1.24 the status is medium. If the ratio is 1.25 and over, women enjoy high status. In countries where women have low status the population growth ra averages 3%. Where the status of women is medium, the growth rate is 2.5%. I countries of high status the population growth rate is 2.2. Further research is needed on correlations between population and economic growth, with particula emphasis on subtle factors behind population/economic development.     

Racial boundary formation at the dawn of Jim Crow: the determinants and effects of black/mulatto occupational differences in the United States, 1880

This article examines variation in the social position of mixed-race populations by exploiting county-level variation in the degree of occupational differentiation between blacks and mulattoes in the 1880 U.S. census. The role of the mixed-race category as either a "buffer class" or a status threat depended on the class composition of whites. Black/mulatto occupational differentiation was greatest where whites had high occupational prestige and thus little to fear from a mulatto group. Furthermore, differentiation increased the risk of lynching where whites had relatively low status and decreased the risk of lynching where whites had relatively high status.     

Characteristics of homeless alcohol and drug abusers identified through an assertive outreach program

Differences between substance abusers and non-abusers, and among abmers of alcohol, drugs, or both substances, were investigated for 1166 persons identified as homeless or at risk of homelessness by an assertive outreach program in a moderate size city. The 603 self-reported substance abusers included disproportionate numbers of male, Black, unmarried, and currently homeless persons with a history or symptoms of mental illness, who expressed a primary need for assistance dealing with the social service system. Type of abuse was associated with demographic characteristics, length of homelessness, mental illness status, and primary expressed needs. An accurate picture of subgroup differences can aid design and delivery of services for the homeless.     

Gender,Race, and Perceived Environmental Risk: The “White Male” Effect in Cancer Alley,LA

Research on risk perceptions are replete with race- and gender-specific hypotheses attempting to account for attitudinal variation. However, race and gender differences may mask more notable patterns across subgroups, patterns that lie at the intersection of race and gender. Recent national studies suggest that being a White male leads to lower risk perceptions and greater willingness to accept risks. This article extends this research by examining the “White male” effect in a chronically polluted context, an area where industrial pollution is palpable and well-documented. Data are drawn from a survey of a population living in “Cancer Alley,” a stretch of the Mississippi River from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. We find that women more than men and Blacks more than Whites perceive environmental risks as serious. Further, evidence suggests that these differences are mostly due to the relatively extreme perceptions of risk accepting White males and risk adverse Black females. After controlling for select variables in hierarchical multiple regression analyses, being a White male or Black female still has a statistically significant impact on risk perceptions.     

HIV Prevention Programs in the Black Church: A Viable Health Promotion Resource for African American Women?

ABSTRACT

Nearly 40 million people worldwide are living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The Centers for Disease Control report that women account for more than 50% of the existing 40 million HIV/AIDS cases to date. Moreover, African-American women are infected with HIV/AIDS 25 times more often than white women and four times more often than Hispanic women, making HIV/AIDS the leading cause of death for black women ages 25–34. Given the increasing rate of transmission with this population, the purpose of this article was to review the existing literature to investigate the risk factors associated with African-American women with HIV/AIDS and identify an effective method of HIV prevention for them. A discussion of religion and African-Americans in terms of the Black church and its health promotion efforts was also included. The article concludes with a discussion of program elements of HIV prevention programs in the Black church and possible challenges faced for the programs.     

A Comparison of two analytic methods for the identification of neighborhoods as intervention and control sites for community-based programs

Study Objective: Interest in community as the focus of public health interventions is growing. However, choosing intervention and comparison neighborhoods when designing community based programs poses a challenge to program planners. Ideally, intervention neighborhoods should be chosen based upon risk profiles and demonstrated need for the program. Multiple sources of data that tap into neighborhood characteristics might be used to facilitate the selection of intervention and comparison neighborhoods for program implementation and evaluation.Design: We present and compare selected characteristics of two analytic methods that can be used to create perinatal risk profiles of neighborhoods within cities. For our example, we used information from several sources of routinely available data and used census tract level low birthweight as our intervention or outcome variable.Main Results: At the neighborhood level, we found average household wealth of the census tract, proportion of births to women with late or no prenatal care, proportion of teen births per census tract, per capita crime rates, proportion of housing violations, and number of community organizations as being important factors identifying neighborhoods at risk for high rates of low birthweight births. Advantages of both methods are discussed and risk profiles generated from either method can be used not only to identify high risk areas of the city for adverse perinatal outcomes but also for the identification of intervention and comparison neighborhoods for implementation of community based programs.     

Characteristics of Homeless Alcohol and Drug Abusers Identified Through an Assertive Outreach Program

Differences between substance abusers and non-abusers, and among abusers of alcohol, drugs, or both substances, were investigated for 1166 persons identified as homeless or at risk of homelessness by an assertive outreach program in a moderate size city. The 603 self-reported substance abusers included disproportionate numbers of male, Black, unmam'ed, and currently homeless persons with a history or symptoms of mental illness, who expressed a primary need for assistance dealing with the social seIVice system. Type of abuse was associated with demographic charaeten'stics, length of homelessness, mental illness status, and primary expressed needs. An accurate picture of subgroup differences can aid design and delivery of services for the homeless.     

Marital status and psychiatric disorders among blacks and whites.

This paper examines the association between marital status and psychiatric disorder for Blacks and explores the extent to which these patterns differ from those for Whites. Widowed and separated/divorced Black males and females have higher rates of disorder than the married; never-married Blacks do not have an elevated risk of psychiatric illness. The association between marital status and disorder for White males is similar and stronger than that observed for Blacks. For White women, the separated/divorced have a higher risk of disorder than the married, and unmarried White females have higher rates of the substance abuse disorders, but lower rates of the anxiety disorder than the married. Across all marital status groups, Black males and White males have higher rates of disorder (except for depression), than females. A complex pattern emerges when gender differences in the relative rates of disorder for unmarried Blacks compared to married Blacks are considered. Separated/divorced Black men, widowed Black women, and never-married Black men are worse off than their respective peers. Except for the separated/divorced, opposite patterns are evident for Whites. Directions for further research are outlined.     

Food insufficiency and physical and mental health in a longitudinal survey of welfare recipients

Food insufficiency is a significant problem in the United States, and poor African American women with children are at especially high risk. An inadequate household food supply can potentially affect the well-being of household members, but it is difficult to distinguish the effects of food insufficiency from risk factors for poor health that are also common among the food insufficient, such as poverty. We examined food insufficiency and physical and mental health among African American and white women (n = 676) who were welfare recipients in 1997. Controlling for common risk factors, women who reported food insufficiency in both 1997 and 1998 were more likely to report fair or poor health at the later date. Food insufficiency in 1998 was significantly associated with meeting the diagnostic screening criteria for recent major depression. Food insufficiency at both times and in 1998 only was related to women's sense of mastery. These findings add to growing evidence that household food insufficiency is associated with poor physical and mental health.     

Self-rated health and mortality: does the relationship extend to a low income setting?

Although a relationship between poor self-reported health status and excess mortality risk has been well-established for industrialized countries, almost no research considers developing countries. We use data from Indonesia to show that in a low-income setting, as in more advantaged parts of the world, individuals who perceive their health to be poor are significantly more likely to die in subsequent follow-up periods than their counterparts who view their health as good. This result characterizes both men and women, holds for multiple time periods, and remains after inclusion of measures of nutritional status, physical functioning, symptoms of poor physical health and depression, and hypertension. We also consider the correlates of self-rated health. Symptoms and physical functioning are strong predictors of reporting poor rather than good health, but neither these indicators nor other covariates we consider distinguish between reports of excellent rather than good health.     

Structural Determinants of Infant Mortality in Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan America1

Abstract A conceptual model of the impact of structural advantage and disadvantage on infant mortality rates is developed and fitted to countylevel data. This model includes mediating endogenous constructs representing medical care availability, the incidence of teenage childbearing, and low birthweight rates and is estimated for three residence categories. Both direct and indirect effects of social structure and teenage childbearing on infant mortality vary significantly across the categories. Structural advantage exerts a significant and negative direct effect on infant mortality rates in urban areas, but in rural areas this effect is indirect, operating through teenage childbearing and low birthweight. Structural disadvantage significantly increases infant mortality in both rural and urban settings, but the effects operate directly in metropolitan areas and indirectly in rural areas. These results underscore the central role that social structure continues to play in determining infant mortality rates in the United States.     

Black women’s mental health matters: Theoretical perspectives and future directions

Despite recent sociological research exploring how stratification systems impinge on the health of socially disadvantaged populations, Black women’s mental health is rarely a topic of investigation among scholars of medical sociology, sociology of race and racism, or sociology of gender. In this review, we incorporate perspectives from sociology, social psychiatry, psychology, and social work to develop a transdisciplinary intersectional model of Black women’s mental health. We also present critical interventions in the extant literature. First, though stress exposure is generally associated with poor mental health, more research is necessary to ascertain the gendered-racialized stressors to which Black women are exposed, owing to their racial and gender oppression. Second, we admonish mental health scholars to incorporate other status dimensions (e.g., nativity, sexual orientation, age) to provide a more nuanced depiction of Black women’s psychological health. Third, the unique and enduring relationship between the U.S. punishment system and the mental health of Black women should be further explicated in future research. Last, we envision a body of work on Black women’s mental health that captures the ways in which they cope with societal level marginalization, as these forms of resilience and resistance may be mental health protective.     

The relationship between socioeconomic status and infant mortality in a metropolitan aggregate, 1989–1991

This paper presents the results of an ecological analysis of the relationship between infant mortality and economic status in a metropolitan aggregate comprised of seven of the larger cities in Ohio during the three years centering on the 1990 census. Using a summary income score derived for the census tract of mother's usual residence, the census tracts in the seven metropolitan centers were divided into broad income groupings and three-year average infant mortality rates were computed for each area, by age, sex, race, and selected causes of death. The most important conclusion to be drawn from the data is that in spite of some remarkable declines in overall levels of infant mortality during the past few decades, there continues to be a very clear and pronounced inverse association between income status and infant mortality. The general inverse association is observed for both sexes, for whites and nonwhites, and for all major causes of infant death. At the same time, the data reveal notable differences in the magnitude of the relationship by sex, and especially by age at death, race, and cause of death. Explanations of these differences are suggested, and a conclusion notes some of the difficulties encountered in developing programs aimed at closing the infant mortality gap between the richest and poorest segments of the society.This is an expanded version of a paper presented at the annual meetings of the Eastern Sociological Society in Baltimore, Maryland (March 17–20, 1994).