Assessing Disparity Using Measures of Racial and Educational Isolation.

Mercedes A Bravo,Man Chong Leong,Marie Lynn Miranda,Alan E Gelfand

doi:10.3390/ijerph18179384

Abstract

We develop a local, spatial measure of educational isolation (EI) and characterize the relationship between EI and our previously developed measure of racial isolation (RI). EI measures the extent to which non-college educated individuals are exposed primarily to other non-college educated individuals. To characterize how the RI-EI relationship varies across space, we propose a novel measure of local correlation. Using birth records from the State of Michigan (2005–2012), we estimate associations between RI, EI, and birth outcomes. EI was lower in urban communities and higher in rural communities, while RI was highest in urban areas and parts of the southeastern United States (US). We observed greater heterogeneity in EI in low RI tracts, especially in non-urban tracts; residents of high RI tracts are likely to be both educationally and racially isolated. Associations were also observed between RI, EI, and gestational length (weeks) and preterm birth (PTB). For example, moving from the lowest to the highest quintile of RI was associated with a 1.11 (1.07, 1.15) and 1.16 (1.10, 1.22) increase in odds of PTB among NHB and NHW women, respectively. Moving from the lowest to the highest quintile of EI was associated with a 1.07 (1.02, 1.12) and 1.03 (1.00, 1.05) increase in odds of PTB among NHB and NHW women, respectively. This work provides three tools (RI, EI, and the local correlation measure) to researchers and policymakers interested in how residential isolation shapes disparate outcomes.

Highlights

Using the same methodological approach as that used for racial isolation (RI), we develop a measure of educational isolation (EI) that evaluates to what extent individuals without a college degree are exposed only to other individuals without a college degree
An RI value of 0 indicates that the neighborhood environment is entirely composed of non-non-Hispanic Black (NHB) individuals, i.e., there is complete isolation of non-NHB persons from NHB
Based on the local correlation coefficient between RI and EI, we find that the coefficients are positive in most census tracts in the continental United States (US)

Summary

Introduction

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Health disparities research often focuses on race, which is non-modifiable, as a driver of differential outcomes. We attempt to shift the conversation to the experience of racial minorities, which is modifiable, as a key driver of health outcomes, and provide tools to other public health researchers and policymakers. Our particular focus within the experience of racial minorities is on their relative racial and educational isolation

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