Trajectories of depressive symptoms among older African Americans: the influence of neighborhood characteristics and gender

Abstract

Objectives Focusing on older African Americans, this study aims to (1) identify 9-year trajectories of depressive symptoms, (2) examine the association between baseline neighborhood characteristics (i.e., social cohesion and physical disadvantage) and trajectories of depressive symptoms, and (3) test whether the effects of neighborhood characteristics on depressive symptoms trajectories differ by gender. Methods Data came from the National Health and Aging Trend Study. Older African Americans at baseline were selected (N = 1662) and followed up for eight rounds. Depressive symptom trajectories were estimated using group-based trajectory modeling. Weighted multinomial logistic regressions were conducted. Results Three trajectories of depressive symptoms were identified: “persistently low,” “moderate and increasing,” and “high and decreasing” (Objective 1). Objective 2 and 3 were partially supported. Specifically, high perceived neighborhood social cohesion was associated with a lower relative risk of being on the “moderate and increasing” versus the “persistently low” trajectory (RRR = 0.64, p < 0.01). The association between neighborhood physical disadvantage and depressive symptom trajectories was stronger among older African American men compared to women. Conclusions High levels of neighborhood social cohesion may protect against increasing depressive symptoms in older African Americans. Compared to women, older African American men may be more vulnerable to negative mental health effects of neighborhood physical disadvantage.