2-018 - Neighborhood Methods and Developmental Science: Conversations on the State-of-the-Art

Session Type: Conversation Roundtable

Integrative Statement

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in examining the impact of neighborhood environments on developmental science. The local neighborhood is often the setting whereby many social, economic, and political policies have their impacts on youth and families (Sampson, 2012). Therefore, neighborhood environments often have a significant impact on health above and beyond the influence of the family and other contexts (Leventhal & Brooks-Gunn, 2000). The literature on neighborhoods and developmental science has grown considerably and many advances have been made, moving the field from asking “if” neighborhoods matter toward asking more nuanced questions regarding the mechanisms, populations, and developmental periods most impacted by neighborhood environments (Sharkey & Faber, 2014).

The present roundtable will offer a review of the current state-of-the-art of the measurement of neighborhood effects on youth. The panel is comprised of four leading experts from a variety of disciplines in the field of neighborhood research. The first presenter will focus on novel uses of ecological momentary assessments to improve how we measure exposure processes, and in particular, activity spaces. The second presenter will discuss how to measure the intersect of activity spaces and parenting, and the implications for behavioral and academic outcomes of ethnic minority youth. The third presenter will focus on integrating individual cultural development and neighborhood social efficacy models to better inform how both impact child development. The final presenter will discuss measurement of residential mobility and neighborhood changes, and the sensitive periods in development when these may be most impactful.

Sub Unit

• Race, Ethnicity, Culture, Context

Moderator

• William Martinez, UC - Berkeley

Panelists

• Christopher Browning, Ohio State University

• Dawn Paula Witherspoon, The Pennsylvania State University

• Rebecca M. B. White, Arizona State University

• Tama Leventhal, Tufts University