Ll. Belgrave et al., HEALTH, DOUBLE JEOPARDY, AND CULTURE - THE USE OF INSTITUTIONALIZATION BY AFRICAN-AMERICANS, The Gerontologist, 33(3), 1993, pp. 379-385
Elderly African-Americans are admitted to nursing homes at between hal
f and three-quarters of the rate of elderly whites. This review examin
es the theoretical approaches and the nature of the evidence typically
brought to bear in addressing this issue. The double jeopardy hypothe
sis effectively describes but does not explain apparent racial inequit
ies in the use of institutional care. Explanations based on the hypoth
esized African-American subculture will remain inadequate until they a
re grounded in data and take into account inequality.