COMMUNITY-LEVEL SOCIOECONOMIC-STATUS EFFECTS ON ADULT HEALTH

Do the socioeconomic characteristics of a community affect one's healt h? This research examines whether the socioeconomic characteristics of communities are associated with the health of community residents, ov er and above the socioeconomic characteristics of individual residents and their families. This is the first study to examine the independen t associations between community-level socioeconomic status (SES) and individual-level health using a nationally representative sample of ad ults in the United States. Results indicate that a person's health is associated with SES characteristics of the community over and above on e's own income, education, and assets. However, individual-level and f amily-level SES indicators are stronger predictors of health than comm unity-level SES indicators. This research suggests that improving indi vidual-level and family-level socioeconomic circumstances may be the m ore direct way to improve the health of individuals, but that understa nding the community context in which a person lives may also ultimatel y, be important to improving health.