Lessons Learned from a Citywide Abandoned Housing Experiment.

Problem research strategy and findings: The negative impact of vacant and abandoned housing in city neighborhoods is extreme, affecting health and quality of life, promoting violence, and leading to further abandonment. One approach to addressing abandoned housing is to intervene with low-cost interventions that provide a visual sense of ownership. We tested whether a low-cost remediation of abandoned and vacant houses or a trash cleanup intervention would make a noticeable difference in the levels of nearby disrepair, disorder, and public safety. The abandoned housing remediation and trash cleanup interventions were a test of compliance with municipal ordinances. We used an experimental design to test the causal effects of the ordinances, and because the scale of abandonment was too large to provide treatment to all abandoned houses in the city. We used systematic social observation methods to rate changes in disrepair, disorder, and litter at housing sites and on the city blocks they were located, and police reported data on gun violence and illegal substance uses. Our experimental design allowed us to see if observed disrepair, disorder, and public safety improved after working windows and doors were installed on abandoned houses compared with a trash cleanup around properties or a no-intervention control condition. Our results showed significant changes in observed disrepair, disorder, and gun violence and illustrate the benefits of experimental evaluations of place-based changes to the built environment. Takeaway for practice: Improving compliance with ordinances to remediate abandoned housing can make a noticeable difference in disrepair in neighborhoods and contribute improved public safety. We illustrate how planners can use field experiments in partnership with city agencies, nonprofit community groups, and local universities to discover novel approaches to advance place-based changes to the built environment that can help economically disadvantaged communities abate problems of physical disorder.

Reciprocal Neighborhood Dynamics in Gun Violence Exposure, Community Health, and Concentrated Disadvantage in One Hundred US Cities.

Gun violence imparts a tremendous human and financial toll on local communities. Researchers have documented extensive mental and physical health consequences of generalized violence exposure but few studies have analyzed the particular impacts of gun violence on community well-being using nationally comprehensive data. We leverage a unique database of almost 16,000 neighborhoods in 100 US cities (2014-2019) to examine how year-over-year rates of gun violence correspond to overall neighborhood well-being and three aspects of community health: (1) health behaviors, (2) physical and mental health status, and (3) health prevention efforts. We simultaneously consider the reciprocal influence of neighborhood well-being on subsequent gun violence while accounting for concentrated disadvantage in communities. The results demonstrate that gun violence is associated with poorer community health in subsequent years, particularly health behaviors and mental/physical health status. Furthermore, we find substantial reciprocal effects for both gun violence and community health in their relationship to neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. These findings highlight the consequential role of gun violence in perpetuating cycles of harm in local communities.

Concentrated disadvantage and functional disability: a longitudinal neighbourhood analysis in 100 US cities.

BACKGROUND: Socioeconomic disadvantage related to poverty, unemployment and social disinvestment contributes to significant disparities in community health in the USA. Yet, there remains limited ecological research on the relationship between neighbourhood disadvantage and functional disability. Much of the work in this area has focused on elderly populations without attention to variation across age and sex groups. METHODS: Using a longitudinal dataset of almost 16 000 neighbourhoods, we examine the relationship between neighbourhood disadvantage and functional disability. Leveraging a series of cross-lagged panel models, we account for reciprocal dynamics and a range of pertinent covariates while assessing differences across age- and sex-specific groups. RESULTS: Accounting for reciprocal effects, we found that the association between concentrated disadvantage and functional disability varies across age and sex groups. Concentrated disadvantage is most consistently associated with increased functional disability among boys (5-17 years), young men (18-34 years) and middle-aged men (35-64 years). Similar associations are found among girls (5-17 years) and middle-aged women (35-64 years). CONCLUSION: Local neighbourhood economic conditions are significantly associated with functional disability among relatively young populations of males and females. Exposure to neighbourhood disadvantage and deprivation may accelerate disablement processes and shift the age curve of disability risk.

Neighborhood Conditions and Social Network Turnover among Older Adults.

Increasing research highlights heterogeneity in patterns of social network change, with growing evidence that these patterns are shaped in part by social structure. The role of social and structural neighborhood conditions in the addition and loss of kin and non-kin network members, however, has not been fully considered. In this paper, we argue that the residential neighborhood context can either facilitate or prevent the turnover of core network relationships in later life - a period of the life course characterized by heightened reliance on network ties and vulnerability to neighborhood conditions. Using longitudinal data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project linked with data from the American Community Survey, we find that higher levels of neighborhood concentrated disadvantage are associated with the loss of older adults' kin and non-kin network members over time. Higher levels of perceived neighborhood social interaction, however, are associated with higher rates of adding non-kin network members and lower rates of adding kin network members over time. We suggest that neighborhood conditions, including older adults' perceptions of neighborhood social life, represent an underexplored influence on kin and non-kin social network dynamics, which could have implications for access to social resources later in the life course.

Pockets of Peace: A mixed methods, exploratory study of neighborhoods resilient to juvenile violence.

Social science research has focused on hot spots of adolescent violence in marginalized urban neighborhoods for nearly a century. In contrast, in this study, we explore under-resourced urban areas that do not experience high rates of adolescent violence: "pockets of peace." We use a mixed-method approach to identify the sociodemographic, geographic, and criminological commonalities and differences between pockets of peace and other areas of concentrated disadvantage dealing with high rates of adolescent violence in Indianapolis, IN. More than one out of every ten of Indianapolis' areas of concentrated disadvantage meet the criteria to be labeled "pockets of peace." Quantitative data indicate that these areas have fewer prosocial institutions and experience lower homeownership rates than comparison under-resourced areas, and qualitative data point toward rental stability and residential longevity as potentially salient social factors within these contexts. As an alternative to using statistics to control for the context of structural disadvantage, studying pockets of peace and other "cold-spots" of adolescent violence presents an opportunity to understand community-level resilience within the real, lived context of structural disadvantage.

Communities, Streets, and People: A Multi-level Study of the Correlates of Victimization.

The current study adds the context of the immediate microgeographic environment (measured as the street segment) to the study of individual victimization. Using residential survey and physical observation data collected on 449 street segments nested within 53 communities in Baltimore, MD, we employ multilevel logistic regression models to examine how individual risky lifestyles, the microgeographic context of the street, and community level measures influence self-reported property and violent crime victimization. Results confirm prior studies that show that risky lifestyles play a key role in understanding both property and violent crime victimization, and community indicators of disadvantage play a role in explaining violent crime victimization. At the same time, our models show that the street segment (micro-geographic) level adds significant explanation to our understanding of victimization, suggesting that three level models should be used in explaining individual victimization. The impact of the street segment is particularly salient for property crime.

Investigating the relationships between concentrated disadvantage, place connectivity, and COVID-19 fatality in the United States over time.

BACKGROUND: Concentrated disadvantaged areas have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 outbreak in the United States (US). Meanwhile, highly connected areas may contribute to higher human movement, leading to higher COVID-19 cases and deaths. This study examined the associations between concentrated disadvantage, place connectivity, and COVID-19 fatality in the US over time. METHODS: Concentrated disadvantage was assessed based on the spatial concentration of residents with low socioeconomic status. Place connectivity was defined as the normalized number of shared Twitter users between the county and all other counties in the contiguous US in a year (Y = 2019). COVID-19 fatality was measured as the cumulative COVID-19 deaths divided by the cumulative COVID-19 cases. Using county-level (N = 3,091) COVID-19 fatality over four time periods (up to October 31, 2021), we performed mixed-effect negative binomial regressions to examine the association between concentrated disadvantage, place connectivity, and COVID-19 fatality, considering potential state-level variations. The moderation effects of county-level place connectivity and concentrated disadvantage were analyzed. Spatially lagged variables of COVID-19 fatality were added to the models to control for the effect of spatial autocorrelations in COVID-19 fatality. RESULTS: Concentrated disadvantage was significantly associated with an increased COVID-19 fatality in four time periods (p < 0.01). More importantly, moderation analysis suggested that place connectivity significantly exacerbated the harmful effect of concentrated disadvantage on COVID-19 fatality in three periods (p < 0.01), and this significant moderation effect increased over time. The moderation effects were also significant when using place connectivity data from the previous year. CONCLUSIONS: Populations living in counties with both high concentrated disadvantage and high place connectivity may be at risk of a higher COVID-19 fatality. Greater COVID-19 fatality that occurs in concentrated disadvantaged counties may be partially due to higher human movement through place connectivity. In response to COVID-19 and other future infectious disease outbreaks, policymakers are encouraged to take advantage of historical disadvantage and place connectivity data in epidemic monitoring and surveillance of the disadvantaged areas that are highly connected, as well as targeting vulnerable populations and communities for additional intervention.

Income and Health Perceptions in an Economically Disadvantaged Community: A Qualitative Case Study from Central Florida.

The link between income and adverse health outcomes continues to be problematic among racially and economically segregated urban communities. Although the consequences of living in areas of concentrated disadvantage have been delineated, there is a dearth of knowledge on how citizens from such areas perceive the effects of neighborhood characteristics on their individual and community health. This qualitative study explored how minority residents ( N = 23) viewed the intersectionality of income and health within their urban neighborhoods of economic distress. Focus groups were conducted using semi-structured interviews to better understand health concerns, needs, and barriers for individuals and their community. The main finding highlighted how residents desired to be healthy, but economic barriers prevented them from maintaining a healthy lifestyle and diet. While residing in a concentrated disadvantaged community, lack of income and power contributed to stress and fear that forced residents to prioritize survival over their wellbeing. Implications for improving individual and community health include operating within a systems framework to affect collective efficacy and empowerment among residents of low-income neighborhoods.

Structural Inequalities Established the Architecture for COVID-19 Pandemic Among Native Americans in Arizona: a Geographically Weighted Regression Perspective.

Native Americans are disproportionately affected by COVID-19. The present study explores whether areas with high percentages of Native American residents are experiencing the equal risks of contracting COVID-19 by examining how the relationships between structural inequalities and confirmed COVID-19 cases spatially vary across Arizona using a geographically weighted regression (GWR). GWR helps with the identification of areas with high confirmed COVID-19 cases in Arizona and with understanding of which predictors of social inequalities are associated with confirmed COVID-19 cases at specific locations. We find that structural inequality indicators and presence of Native Americans are significantly associated with higher confirmed COVID-19 cases; and the relationships between structural inequalities and confirmed COVID-19 cases are significantly stronger in areas with high concentration of Native Americans, particular on Tribal lands. The findings highlight the negative effects that lack of infrastructure (i.e., housing with plumbing, transportation, and accessible health communication) may have on individual and population health, and, in this case, associated with the increase of confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Providing a safer passage: Perceptions about a neighborhood intervention program for disadvantaged youth.

"Safe Passage" is an after-school intervention program for disadvantaged youth in a medium-sized city in southern California. Led by local law enforcement, as well as the city's recreation and park department, the program's goal is to combine community policing with after-school care and tutoring to support children living in a large apartment complex with the highest rates of gang membership and crime in the city. This is an exploratory study that examines the perspectives of various stakeholders in the intervention program, including the community members, the local police, and Safe Passage staff members. Survey data from the community residents, program staff and law enforcement were collected. Findings indicate that there was some consensus across the various subpopulations on the challenges that have had the largest negative influence on youth in the community. The local police and the community members surveyed were also in agreement that police/community relations were largely positive. All stakeholders surveyed felt generally positive about the intervention program, but the community members were more skeptical of the program's ability to deter their children from trouble. Implications of our findings for the program and for future studies are discussed.

Spatial Concentration and Spillover: Eviction Dynamics in Neighborhoods of Los Angeles, California, 2005-2015.

The lack of sufficient affordable housing in Los Angeles, California burdens many renter households with the threat of an eviction. Research has identified individual- and neighborhood-level sociodemographic correlates of eviction, but the uneven distribution of sociodemographic characteristics and housing conditions across neighborhoods likely produces broader patterns of spatial clustering in eviction prevalence across local areas. We use spatial autoregressive models to explain the spatial concentration and spillover effects for two types of formal eviction filings-court-based and no-fault Ellis Act petitions-within and across census tracts in Los Angeles. Court-based filings show greater and more persistent spatial concentration, particularly in neighborhoods with higher percentages of Black residents. We find evidence of spatial correlation for both types of eviction, however, suggesting that identifying the spatial distribution of eviction prevalence across local areas is important to understanding how location shapes eviction risk in metropolitan areas.

Changes in Neighborhood-Level Concentrated Disadvantage and Social Networks Among Older Americans.

Close social networks provide older persons with resources, including social support, that maintain their well-being. While scholarship shows how networks change over time, a dearth of research investigates changing social contexts as causes of network dynamics. Using the first two waves of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project survey (N = 1,776), this study shows how rising neighborhood-level concentrated disadvantage through the Great Recession of 2007-2009 was associated with smaller close networks, largely due to fewer new close ties gained, among older Americans. Worsening neighborhood circumstances pose obstacles to older residents' acquisition of new close ties, including heightened fear, lower generalized trust, stress and depression, and declines in local institutions that attract both residents and nonresidents.

Neighbourhood characteristics associated with child pedestrian fatalities in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The present study investigated the relationship between neighbourhood characteristics and childhood pedestrian fatalities (2001-2010) in Johannesburg, South Africa. This cross-sectional study used negative binomial regression models. Results indicate that: areas with high concentrated disadvantage have elevated childhood pedestrian deaths, especially for those aged 5 to 9 years. Areas marked by residential mobility are associated with high pedestrian deaths among children 0 to 4 years. Black childhood pedestrian deaths are higher in areas marked by a high concentration of female-headed households. The analyses highlight the value of further exploring the effects of neighbourhood characteristics and suggest points of entry for interventions to reduce or prevent childhood pedestrian traffic mortality.

A Strategic Plan for Strengthening America's Families: A Brief from the Coalition of Behavioral Science Organizations.

Despite significant progress in research on the treatment and prevention of psychological, behavioral, and health problems, the translation of this knowledge into population-wide benefit remains limited. This paper reviews the state of America's children and families, highlighting the influence of stressful contextual and social conditions on child and family well-being and the concentration of disadvantage in numerous neighborhoods and communities throughout the nation. It then briefly reviews the progress that has been made in pinpointing policies that can reduce stressful contextual conditions such as poverty, discrimination, and the marketing of unhealthful foods and substances. It also describes numerous family and school interventions that have proven benefit in preventing psychological and behavioral problems as diverse as tobacco, alcohol, and other drug use; depression; antisocial behavior; academic failure; obesity prevention; and early childbearing. We argue that progress in translating existing knowledge into widespread benefit will require a nationwide effort to intervene comprehensively in neighborhoods and communities of concentrated disadvantage. We present a strategic plan for how such an effort could be organized. The first step in this organizing would be the creation of a broad and diverse coalition of organizations concerned with advancing public health and well-being. Such a coalition could increase public support both for the policies needed to focus on these disadvantaged areas and the research needed to incrementally improve our ability to help these areas.

Young Men's Attitudes and Neighborhood Risk Factors for Sexual Harassment Perpetration in the United States.

Sexual harassment is a pervasive problem predominantly perpetrated by men. Creating cultural shifts to prevent men's sexual harassment perpetration requires attention to community as well as individual factors. Study data were collected from a cohort of 768 youth and young adult males ages 10-18 at baseline (2013), with follow-up 3 years later. Multivariable regression was applied to assess the role of neighborhood characteristics, including crime rates, gender equality, and concentrated disadvantage, adjusting for individual sociodemographics and views on traditional gender stereotypes. The self-reported prevalence of sexual harassment perpetration was 8.8%. In neighborhoods characterized by greater concentrated disadvantage, the likelihood of male sexual harassment perpetration was significantly lower than in neighborhoods characterized by greater advantages. Relative neighborhood advantage was associated with sexual harassment perpetration even controlling for the significant positive association between espousing traditional gender stereotypes and perpetration of sexual harassment. The relative rates of neighborhood crime and gender equality did not predict young males' sexual harassment perpetration. In sum, young men's perpetration of sexual harassment behaviors is more common in more advantaged communities, underscoring the importance of awareness that, beyond individual attitudes, there is a collective social influence on individual behavior.

Neighborhood Social Determinants of Triple Negative Breast Cancer.

Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive, heterogeneous subtype of breast cancer, which is more frequently diagnosed in African American (AA) women than in European American (EA) women. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of social determinants in racial disparities in TNBC. Data on Louisiana TNBC patients diagnosed in 2010-2012 were collected and geocoded to census tract of residence at diagnosis by the Louisiana Tumor Registry. Using multilevel statistical models, we analyzed the role of neighborhood concentrated disadvantage index (CDI), a robust measure of physical and social environment, in racial disparities in TNBC incidence, stage at diagnosis, and stage-specific survival for the study population. Controlling for age, we found that AA women had a 2.21 times the incidence of TNBC incidence compared to EA women. Interestingly, the incidence of TNBC was independent of neighborhood CDI and adjusting for neighborhood environment did not impact the observed racial disparity. AA women were more likely to be diagnosed at later stages and CDI was associated with more advanced stages of TNBC at diagnosis. CDI was also significantly associated with poorer stage-specific survival. Overall, our results suggest that neighborhood disadvantage contributes to racial disparities in stage at diagnosis and survival among TNBC patients, but not to disparities in incidence of the disease. Further research is needed to determine the mechanisms through which social determinants affect the promotion and progression of this disease and guide efforts to improve overall survival.

Explaining variation in elevated blood lead levels among children in Minnesota using neighborhood socioeconomic variables.

BACKGROUND: Childhood lead exposure is linked to numerous adverse health effects and exposure in the United States is highest among people living in substandard housing, which is disproportionately inhabited by socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals. In this paper, we compared the Vox lead exposure risk score and concentrated disadvantage based on principal component analysis (PCA) to weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression to determine which method was best able to explain variation in elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs). METHODS: We constructed indices for census tracts in Minnesota and used them in Poisson regression models to identify the best socioeconomic measure for explaining EBLL risk. RESULTS: All indices had a significant association with EBLL in separate models. The WQS index had the best goodness-of-fit, followed next by the Vox index, and then the concentrated disadvantage index. Among the most important variables in the WQS index were percent of houses built before 1940, percent renter occupied housing, percent unemployed, and percent African American population. CONCLUSIONS: The WQS approach was best able to explain variation in EBLL risk and identify census tracts where targeted interventions should be focused to reduce lead exposure.

Increased Risk of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Associated With Neighborhood Concentrated Disadvantage.

Purpose: Over the past three decades, Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) is one of few cancers for which incidence has increased in the United States (US). It is likely social determinants at the population level are driving this increase. We designed a population-based study to explore whether social determinants at the neighborhood level are geographically associated with HCC incidence in Louisiana by examining the association of HCC incidence with neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. Methods: Primary HCC cases diagnosed from 2008 to 2012 identified from the Louisiana Tumor Registry were geocoded to census tract of residence at the time of diagnosis. Neighborhood concentrated disadvantage index (CDI) for each census tract was calculated according to the PhenX Toolkit data protocol based on population and socioeconomic measures from the US Census. The incidence of HCC was modeled using multilevel binomial regression with individuals nested within neighborhoods. Results: The study included 1,418 HCC cases. Incidence of HCC was greater among males than females and among black than white. In multilevel models controlling for age, race, and sex, neighborhood CDI was positively associated with the incidence of HCC. A one standard deviation increase in CDI was associated with a 22% increase in HCC risk [Risk Ratio (RR) = 1.22; 95% CI (1.15, 1.31)]. Adjusting for contextual effects of an individual's neighborhood reduced the disparity in HCC incidence. Conclusion: Neighborhood concentrated disadvantage, a robust measure of an adverse social environment, was found to be a geographically associated with HCC incidence. Differential exposure to neighborhoods characterized by concentrated disadvantage partially explained the racial disparity in HCC for Louisiana. Our results suggest that increasing rates of HCC, and existing racial disparities for the disease, are partially explained by measures of an adverse social environment.

Neighborhood disadvantage and racial disparities in colorectal cancer incidence: a population-based study in Louisiana.

PURPOSE: Colorectal cancer (CRC) continues to demonstrate racial disparities in incidence and survival in the United States. This study investigates the role of neighborhood concentrated disadvantage in racial disparities in CRC incidence in Louisiana. METHODS: Louisiana Tumor Registry and U.S. Census data were used to assess the incidence of CRC diagnosed in individuals 35 years and older between 2008 and 2012. Neighborhood concentrated disadvantage index (CDI) was calculated based on the PhenX Toolkit protocol. The incidence of CRC was modeled using multilevel binomial regression with individuals nested within neighborhoods. RESULTS: Our study included 10,198 cases of CRC. Adjusting for age and sex, CRC risk was 28% higher for blacks than whites (risk ratio [RR] = 1.28; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.22-1.33). One SD increase in CDI was associated with 14% increase in risk for whites (RR = 1.14; 95% CI = 1.10-1.18) and 5% increase for blacks (RR = 1.05; 95% CI = 1.02-1.09). After controlling for differential effects of CDI by race, racial disparities were not observed in disadvantaged areas. CONCLUSION: CRC incidence increased with neighborhood disadvantage and racial disparities diminished with mounting disadvantage. Our results suggest additional dimensions to racial disparities in CRC outside of neighborhood disadvantage that warrants further research.

Understanding the density of nonprofit organizations across Los Angeles neighborhoods: Does concentrated disadvantage and violent crime matter?

Although some urban sociology perspectives suggest how certain sociodeomgraphic characteristics influence nonprofit development, there is a dearth of empirical research to assess neighborhood differences in nonprofit organizations. The goal of the current study is to build upon the extant literature by examining how both concentrated disadvantage and violent crime impact nonprofit density across neighborhoods. Using data from Los Angeles census tracts from 2010 to 2012, I test for linear and nonlinear influences that these two neighborhood factors might exert on nonprofit density. Poisson regression models show that concentrated disadvantage has a nonlinear (U-shaped) effect on all forms of nonprofit density, whereas violent crime has a linear and deleterious effect on all forms of nonprofit density. These results provide important new insights for urban sociology and policy; most importantly, the extent to which neighborhoods with ongoing social problems can later respond to such problems via access to nonprofit organizations.