RACIAL-DIFFERENCES IN FUNCTIONAL STATUS AMONG ELDERLY US MIGRANTS FROM THE SOUTH

This study describes patterns of functional status among older blacks and whites by their history of birth in and migration out of the South . We used multivariate regression to analyze data on functional status of US-born non Hispanic blacks (N = 1868) and whites (N = 13 469) age 60 years or above. In general, the functional status of blacks who we re born in the South and migrated was similar to that of blacks born o utside the South and better than those born in the South who did not m igrate. Whites who migrated from the South had functional status simil ar to those who did not migrate and worse than those born outside of t he South. Socioeconomic status did not explain differences by race and migration history. These results differ sharply from mortality studie s, which have found ii, consistent pattern of high mortality among bla ck migrants from the South. Differences among race groups by migration history vary across health measures. Selective migration and selectiv e survival may account for the complex patterns of racial differences in geographic distributions of function and health. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.