Neighborhood affluence and cognitive decline: Moderation by race and ethnicity?

• In Event: 30860 - Section on Aging and the Life Course Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 1. Place-Based Studies of Health and Aging

Abstract

Prior research indicates that neighborhood affluence is associated with better cognitive function in later life, yet we are relatively unaware if this benefit extends equally to White, Black, and Hispanic adults. In the current study, I use three-level growth curve models and data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) geocoded to data from the National Neighborhood Data Archive (NANDA) to examine the relationship between neighborhood affluence, race and ethnicity, and changes in cognitive function over a decade. Findings indicate that neighborhood affluence is associated with higher baseline levels of cognitive function, and this relationship was more pronounced for Black adults. Neighborhood affluence, as well as its interaction with race and ethnicity, was not related to change in cognitive function.

Author

• Mallory Bell, Purdue University