Racial Concentration Research Articles

Neighborhood Diversity Is Good for Your Health: An Example of Racial/Ethnic Integration and Preterm Birth in Texas.

Racial concentration of neighborhoods is often associated with the risk of preterm birth (PTB) for women. This study examined differences between racially diverse and racially concentrated neighborhoods when examining preterm birth. Individual-level data were obtained from Texas natality files for 2009-2011, and neighborhood-level (i.e., census tract) data were obtained from the decennial census in 2010 and the American Community Survey 2005-2009. We used multilevel modeling to assess the association between neighborhood racial diversity and odds of PTB, after controlling for individual characteristics, neighborhood poverty, and population density. We found that neighborhood racial diversity and concentration matter for PTB. Results suggest that systemic racism is still key to understanding PTB. Furthermore, findings support policies that prevent displacement from gentrification of diverse neighborhoods and promote equal access to health-related resources for women in predominantly Black, Hispanic, and/or immigrant neighborhoods.

Impact of Neighborhood Social Deprivation on Delays to Access for Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement: Wait-Times and Clinical Consequences.

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) has become the standard of care for severe aortic stenosis treatment. Exponential growth in demand has led to prolonged wait times and adverse patient outcomes. Social marginalization may contribute to adverse outcomes. Our objective was to examine the association between different measures of neighborhood-level marginalization and patient outcomes while on the TAVR waiting list. A secondary objective was to understand if sex modifies this relationship. We conducted a population-based retrospective cohort study of 11 077 patients in Ontario, Canada, referred to TAVR from April 1, 2018, to March 31, 2022. Primary outcomes were death or hospitalization while on the TAVR wait-list. Using cause-specific Cox proportional hazards models, we evaluated the relationship between neighborhood-level measures of dependency, residential instability, material deprivation, and ethnic and racial concentration with primary outcomes as well as the interaction with sex. After multivariable adjustment, we found a significant relationship between individuals living in the most ethnically and racially concentrated areas (quintile 4 and 5) and mortality (hazard ratio [HR], 0.64 [95% CI, 0.47-0.88] and HR, 0.73 [95% CI, 0.53-1.00], respectively). There was no significant association between material deprivation, dependency, or residential instability with mortality. Women in the highest ethnic or racial concentration quintiles (4 and 5) had significantly lower risks for mortality (HR values of 0.52 and 0.56, respectively) compared with quintile 1. Higher neighborhood ethnic or racial concentration was associated with decreased risk for mortality, particular for women on the TAVR waiting list. Further research is needed to understand the drivers of this relationship.

The effect of social determinants of health on utilization of surgical treatment for hepatocellular carcinoma patients

BackgroundA paucity of data exists on how social determinants of health (SDOH) influence treatment for Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We investigated associations between SDOH (healthcare access, education, social/community context, economic stability, and built/neighborhood environment) and receipt of surgery. MethodsThe Pennsylvania Liver Cancer Registry was linked with neighborhood SDOH from the American Community Survey. Multilevel logistic regression models with patient and neighborhood SDOH variables were developed. ResultsOf 9423 HCC patients, 2393 were stage I. Only 36.3% of stage I patients received surgery. Black patients had significantly lower odds of surgery vs Whites (OR = 0.73; p < 0.01), but not after adjustments for SDOH. All 5 SDOH domains were associated with odds of surgery overall; 2 domains were associated in Stage I patients, social context (e.g., racial concentration, p = 0.03) and insurance access (p < 0.01). ConclusionsSDOH impact utilization of surgery for HCC. Findings can guide healthcare professionals to create programs for populations at risk for poor liver cancer outcomes.

Racial concentration and dynamics of COVID-19 vaccination in the United States

This article considers how county-level concentrations of Asians, Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites are associated with COVID-19 vaccination differently. I argue that racially specific mechanisms-differential concentrations of social vulnerability and political ideology by race-are likely to create diverse associations between racial concentration and COVID-19 vaccination not only across racial groups but also within racial groups over time from early rollout to the time after COVID-19 vaccines became widely available. I test this argument by drawing on data from multiple sources that include county-level information on COVID-19 vaccination rates, racial population make-ups, and measures of political ideology and community vulnerability. Results show that the association between racial concentration and COVID-19 vaccination changes substantially across and within racial groups over time. Counties with higher percent of Asians and percent of Whites have higher vaccination rates at earlier time intervals whereas counties with higher percent of Latinos and percent of Blacks show lower vaccination rates. This trend flips at later dates for percent of Blacks, percent of Latinos, and percent of Whites. Results from multilevel regression models and mediation analysis controlling for vaccine hesitancy show that social vulnerability and political ideology are the underlying factors and their differential associations with diverse racial concentrations help create the racially specific and time-varying patterns.

The influence of methane on the development of free radical during low-temperature oxidation of coal in gob

Methane dilutes the oxidation environment of coal in the gob, thus affecting the free radical reaction in low-temperature oxidation of coal. To investigate methane’s effects in this process, three coal samples (i.e., anthracite, coking coal, gas-fat coal) were non-isothermally oxidized to different temperatures in methane-containing environments and then analyzed in an electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectrometer. The experimental results demonstrate that the g-factor and free radical concentration were not only related to oxygen but also associated with methane in the oxidation environment. The g-factor grew with the rising methane and the oxidation temperature. With the rising methane, the free radicals of the anthracite changed from carbon-centred radicals to carbon-centred radicals with an adjacent oxygen atom. Besides, the free radical concentration was found to decrease with methane and increase with oxidation temperature. The rising methane restrains the increase of free racial concentration during coal spontaneous combustion. It is inferred that the influence of methane is related to the competitive adsorption of coal on different gases. The results of this study added to our understanding of the role that methane plays in the low-temperature oxidation of coal and can serve as a reference in coal spontaneous combustion prevention in working face gobs with methane emissions.

Racialized Homelessness: A Review of Historical and Contemporary Causes of Racial Disparities in Homelessness

People of color or mixed race account for more than half of all people experiencing homelessness, despite comprising less than a quarter of the total population in the United States. What are the primary drivers of this severe racial concentration of homelessness? Through a literature review of historical and contemporary research, this article highlights the extensive history of homelessness among Black, Latinx, and Native American communities and finds evidence for racialized pathways into homelessness. The literature points to three primary systems of stratification that drive racial disparities in homelessness: racial economic inequality, housing discrimination and residential segregation, and the homeless response system. These findings suggest that homelessness is tightly interwoven with institutions and social systems that maintain racial hierarchy. Structural policies that address socioeconomic and racial inequality are more likely than current approaches to make substantial progress in reducing racial disparities in homelessness.

Neighborhood Context and the Nativity Advantage in Preterm Birth among Black Women in California, USA.

Non-Hispanic Black women remain at increased risk for adverse birth outcomes, yet Black immigrant women are at lower risk than their US-born counterparts. This study examines whether neighborhood context contributes to the nativity advantage in preterm birth (PTB, < 37weeks) among Black women in California. A sample of live singleton births to non-Hispanic US-born (n = 83,169), African-born (n = 7151), and Caribbean-born (n = 943) Black women was drawn from 2007 to 2010 California birth records and geocoded to urban census tracts. We used 2010 American Community Survey data to measure tract-level Black immigrant density, Black racial concentration, and a neighborhood deprivation index. Risk ratios (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were estimated using log-binomial regression to assess whether neighborhood context partially explained nativity differences in PTB risk. Compared to US-born Black women, African-born Black women had lower PTB risk (RR = 0.65, 95%CI: 0.60-0.71). The difference in PTB risk between US- and Caribbean-born women did not reach statistical significance (RR = 0.87, 95%CI: 0.71-1.05). The nativity advantage in PTB risk was robust to neighborhood social conditions and maternal factors for African-born women (RR = 0.59, 95%CI: 0.51-0.67). This study is one of few that considers area-level explanations of the nativity advantage among Black immigrants and makes a significant contribution by showing that the neighborhood context does not explain the nativity advantage in PTB among Black women in California. This could be due to many factors that should be examined in future research.

Distributive Justice as a Means of Combating Systemic Racism in Healthcare

Distributive Justice as a Means of Combating Systemic Racism in Healthcare

Criminal Justice Article Review: Aggravated Assault

The study uses geographically weighted regression (WGR) and the emerging hot spot analysis (EHSA) methodologies to examine the impact of immigrant and ethnic and racial concentration on patterns of aggravated assault and larceny in Miami.

Investigating disparities: the effect of social environment on pancreatic cancer survival in metastatic patients

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PCA) incidence is higher in Black compared to White patients. Beyond race, neighborhood socioeconomic status (nSES) may also inform disparities. However, these effects on metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma (mPCA) are not well-studied. The aim of this study was to explore whether nSES influences survival in patients with mPCA. nSES measures were derived from U.S. census data at the census tract (CT) level. We correlated medical records of mPCA patients (diagnosed 2010-2016; n=370) to nSES measures retrospectively via a geocode derived from patient address. Multivariable cox proportional hazards models were used to identify patient-level (age, sex, race, marital status, treatment (radiation/chemo/surgery), PCA family history, stage, Jewish ancestry, tobacco use, BMI, diabetes, and statin use) and nSES measures (deprivation, racial concentration, stability, transportation access, immigration) associated with mPCA survival; P values <0.05 were significant. Eighty-two percent of patients were White; less than one-third of patients resided in highly deprived neighborhoods. Three hundred thirty-three mPCA patient deaths occurred, with a survival ranging from 7-9 months (median 8 months). Patient-level factors including younger age, receipt of chemotherapy or initial surgery and statin use, were associated with improved survival, whereas neighborhood stability (i.e., a higher % of residents still living in the same house as 1 year ago) was significantly associated with poor pancreatic survival. Our findings suggest nSES has limited effect on survival of mPCA patients as compared to clinical variables. This may be due to the aggressive nature of this cancer, however, additional studies with larger, more diverse cohorts are needed to better understand the effect of nSES on survival of patients with mPCA.

Impacts of Multiscale Racial Concentration on Neighborhood Foreclosure Risk in Immigrant Gateway Metropolitan Areas

Scholars define emerging gateway metropolitan areas in the United States as regions in which immigrant communities settled after the 1990s. Historically, immigrant and minority neighborhoods are characterized by exclusion from conventional sources of financial capital––factors which compound risks associated with residential instability and foreclosure. Yet, these new gateways may offer protection from foreclosure due to the relative affordability of housing and concentration of racial and ethnic and class advantages. We examine whether foreclosure risk is mediated through spatial processes, race, nativity, and class. We find that race and nativity play a major role in mediating risk across immigrant gateways. Neighborhoods with higher levels of Asian concentration presented lower risk, regardless of nativity and income. In contrast, Latino foreclosure risk varied by nativity, income, and gateway. Emerging gateways are also associated with higher foreclosure risk. Our findings inform resurgent ethnicity theory and how middle–class immigrant neighborhoods offer improved socioeconomic outcomes without relying on White areas as a standard for immigrant integration.

Chronic Disease, the Built Environment, and Unequal Health Risks in the 500 Largest U.S. Cities.

Health is increasingly subject to the complex interplay between the built environment, population composition, and the structured inequity in access to health-related resources across communities. The primary objective of this paper was to examine cardiometabolic disease (diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, stroke) markers and their prevalence across relatively small geographic units in the 500 largest cities in the United States. Using data from the American Community Survey and the 500 Cities Project, the current study examined cardiometabolic diseases across 27,000+ census tracts in the 500 largest cities in the United States. Earlier works clearly show cardiometabolic diseases are not randomly distributed across the geography of the U.S., but rather concentrated primarily in Southern and Eastern regions of the U.S. Our results confirm that chronic disease is correlated with social and built environment factors. Specifically, racial concentration (%, Black), age concentration (% 65+), housing stock age, median home value, structural inequality (Gini index), and weight status (% overweight/obese) were consistent correlates (p < 0.01) of cardiometabolic diseases in the sample of census tracts. The paper examines policy-related features of the built and social environment and how they might play a role in shaping the health and well-being of America’s metropolises.

Social segregation of ecosystem services delivery in the San Antonio region, Texas, through 2050

Inequality in access to ecosystem services is inextricably linked with environmental justice in socially heterogeneous urban settings. Historically, San Antonio has been the gateway to Mexico and is strategically located along the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) corridor. It is also characterized by some of the most distinct residential segregation among U.S. cities. However, little is understood about the ways in which historically institutionalized residential segregation initiated by the Home Owners' Loan Corporation (HOLC) and NAFTA have affected socio-ecological outcomes. Here, this paper presents a novel empirical study of racial residential segregation. The study utilizes quantitative and spatially explicit estimates of regulating ecosystem services and biodiversity, and links the supply of ecosystem services to the distribution of human well-being within a heterogeneous social-ecological system. Specifically, the paper employed 1930s HOLC redlining maps and applied the ceteris paribus approach for racial concentrations to reflect a historical legacy and path dependence by institutional inertia. The results point to the social-ecological divide in that Hispanic and African American minorities derive fewer ecosystem benefits and face greater health risks and socio-economic disadvantages (p < 0.01). Notably, NAFTA corridor-related health risks are the most significant for the Hispanic population (p < 0.01). These patterns are likely to persist and may be amplified by 2050 (adjusted R2 = 0.646). The findings highlight that institutional transformations are essential for the greater social-ecological equity in the San Antonio region under NAFTA and, potentially, new United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Additionally, by assessing the EJ implications of spatially heterogeneous distribution of ecosystem services supply, the paper provides methodology that enhances science-based planning and better environmental decision-making to avoid or mitigate social-ecological divides in rapidly urbanizing regions both in the U.S. and around the world.

An Examination of Preterm Birth and Residential Social Context among Black Immigrant Women in California, 2007-2010.

The foreign-born black population contributes a considerable amount of heterogeneity to the US black population. In 2005, black immigrants accounted for 20% of the US black population. Compared to native-born black women, black immigrant women are at lower risk for adverse birth outcomes, including preterm birth. Some scholars posit that differential exposures to socioeconomic disadvantage and structural racism in the residential context may account for this advantage. However, to date, few studies offer comprehensive examinations of the black immigrant residential social context, particularly in settlement regions beyond predominantly black and historically segregated regions. Further, studies examining the black immigrant residential context typically use a single indicator, which limits discussion of the intersecting domains that simultaneously increase or decrease risk among black immigrants. We addressed these gaps by examining black immigrant neighborhoods in the state of California, where racial residential segregation of the black population is low. We operationalized the residential context of black immigrant women using three distinct attributes: immigrant co-ethnic density, black racial concentration, and neighborhood deprivation. We linked 2007-2010 California birth records of black immigrant women and 2010 census data on tract-level social attributes (N = 6930). OLS regression analyses showed that immigrant co-ethnic density, black racial concentration and neighborhood deprivation were not associated with preterm birth among black immigrants. Our findings indicate that in California, residential social context has little relation to black immigrant preterm birth-a finding that is unique compared to residential settings of other settlement contexts.

Heterogeneity in Income: Effects of Racial Concentration on Foreclosures in Los Angeles, California

ABSTRACTThe United States continues to be defined by racial concentration, where most racial/ethnic groups live apart from each other. For homeownership, neighborhoods with large proportions of racial minorities are often linked to negative outcomes for minority homeowners; this was particularly the case during the Great Recession. However, middle and upper income ethnic neighborhoods, or resurgent neighborhoods, have grown in numbers because of a concentration of immigrants, federal policies favoring professionals, ethnic-specific resources, and affluence. In 2007, about 37% of Los Angeles, California, Latino tracts were resurgent and 53% of Asian tracts were resurgent. This study finds that homeowners in resurgent neighborhoods had lower default/foreclosure rates and predicted probabilities than those in low-income neighborhoods. Asian resurgent neighborhoods had the lowest predicted probabilities of default or foreclosure, followed by Latino resurgent and White middle-class neighborhoods. There were also discrepancies among Asian neighborhoods based on nativity. Consequently, it is important to recognize that minority neighborhoods are heterogeneous, with differing impacts on homeownership opportunities when examined by class.

Dual-process theory of racial isolation, legal cynicism, and reported crime

Why is neighborhood racial composition linked so strongly to police-reported crime? Common explanations include over-policing and negative interactions with police, but police reports of crime are heavily dependent on resident 911 calls. Using Sampson's concept of legal cynicism and Vaisey's dual-process theory, we theorize that racial concentration and isolation consciously and nonconsciously influence neighborhood variation in 911 calls for protection and prevention. The data we analyze are consistent with this thesis. Independent of police reports of crime, we find that neighborhood racial segregation in 1990 and the legal cynicism about crime prevention and protection it engenders have lasting effects on 911 calls more than a decade later, in 2006-2008. Our theory explains this persistent predictive influence through continuity and change in intervening factors. A source of cumulative continuity, the intensification of neighborhood racial concentration and isolation between 1990 and 2000, predicts 911 calls. Likewise, sources of change-heightened neighborhood incarceration and home foreclosures during the financial crisis in 2006-2008-also predict these calls. Our findings are consistent with legal cynicism theory's focus on neighborhood disadvantage, racial isolation, and concerns about police protection and crime prevention; they correspond less with the emphasis of procedural justice theory on police legitimacy.

The social context of U.S. built landscapes

In this paper, we present a quantified, GIS-based analysis of the relationship between urban morphological patterns and racial, ethnic, and household characteristics. We want to understand how the built landscapes of American cities differ in sociological terms—for example, are some more prone to racial concentration or prevalence of particular family types? Since many built landscape types are relatively recent and rapidly growing, this analysis can inform current debates about sprawl and inequality. We examined six diverse U.S. metropolitan regions: Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, Las Vegas, Portland, and Sacramento, joining census block data with built landscape patterns mapped in GIS through aerial imagery analysis. We find that a large portion of our six metropolitan regions consists of patterns that can be characterized as sprawl—patterns that are often manifestations of a desire for separation. This separation has significant equity implications because resources—services, amenities, schools, parks, tax base, etc.—are not evenly distributed. Further, two of our patterns (Rural Sprawl and Upscale Enclave), which are growing rapidly and most often occur on the urban fringe, have the least diverse demographics across all six metro areas. These landscapes are also by far the least dense, leading to a range of negative environmental impacts. Older built landscape types (Urban Grids, Rectangular Block Grids, and Degenerate Grids) are denser and relatively diverse. These have lower rates of occupancy in most urban areas, indicating an opportunity to house additional residents in relatively well-located, well-connected, and diverse central portions of metropolitan regions.

Structural inequalities drive late HIV diagnosis: The role of black racial concentration, income inequality, socioeconomic deprivation, and HIV testing

In the United States, research is limited on the mechanisms that link socioeconomic and structural factors to HIV diagnosis outcomes. We tested whether neighborhood income inequality, socioeconomic deprivation, and black racial concentration were associated with gender-specific rates of HIV in the advanced stages of AIDS (i.e., late HIV diagnosis). We then examined whether HIV testing prevalence and accessibility mediated any of the associations above. Neighborhoods with highest (relative to lowest) black racial concentration had higher relative risk of late HIV diagnosis among men (RR=1.86; 95%CI=1.15, 3.00) and women (RR=5.37; 95%CI=3.16, 10.43) independent of income inequality and socioeconomic deprivation. HIV testing prevalence and accessibility did not significantly mediate the associations above. Research should focus on mechanisms that link black racial concentration to HIV diagnosis outcomes.

The inequitable distribution of tobacco outlet density: the role of income in two Black Mid-Atlantic geopolitical areas

ObjectivesStudies have shown that communities with higher concentrations of low-income racial and ethnic minorities correlate with a greater presence of tobacco outlets. Community-level income has consistently been among the strongest predictors of tobacco outlet density. This study analyzes two Maryland geopolitical areas with similar racial concentrations yet differing income levels in an attempt to disentangle the race–income relationship with tobacco outlet density. Study designIn this cross-sectional examination of tobacco outlet and census tract-level sociodemographic data, Baltimore City, Maryland, and Prince George's County, Maryland, were geocoded to determine tobacco outlet density. MethodsTobacco outlet density was defined as the mean number of tobacco outlets per 1000 persons per census tract. Comparisons of tobacco outlet density and sociodemographic variables were analysed via two-sample t-tests, and the direct effect of sociodemographic variables on tobacco outlet density for each area was analysed via spatial lag regressions. ResultsPrince George's County, the area with the higher income level ($77,190 vs $43,571), has a significantly lower tobacco outlet density than Baltimore City (P < 0.001). Prince George's County has a 67.5% Black population and an average of 3.94 tobacco outlets per 1000 persons per tract. By contrast, Baltimore City has a 65.3% Black population and an average of 7.95 tobacco outlets per 1000 persons per tract. Spatial lag regression model results indicate an inverse relationship between income and tobacco outlet density in Baltimore City and Prince George's County (β = −0.03, P < 0.01 &β = −0.01, P = 0.02, respectively), and a significant interaction term indicating a greater magnitude in the relationship between income and tobacco outlet density in Baltimore City (β = −0.05, P < 0.01). ConclusionResults suggest that higher socio-economic status, even in primarily underrepresented racial and ethnic geopolitical areas, is linked to lower tobacco outlet density.

HISTORICAL RACIAL CONTEXTS AND CONTEMPORARY SPATIAL DIFFERENCES IN RACIAL INEQUALITY.

Research examining regional variation in the impact of racial concentration on black-white economic inequality assumes that the American South is distinct from the non-South because of its slavery history. However, slavery's influence on the relationship has not been directly examined nor has it been adequately theorized within the economic inequality literature. We assess whether the link between contemporary black concentration and poverty disparities is structured by historical racial context. We find that while there is contemporary racial inequality throughout the United States, inequality-generating processes vary spatially and in ways that are tied to the local historical racial context.