National Academies Press: OpenBook
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIFFERENCES IN HEALTH IN LATE LIFE

Norman B. Anderson, Rodolfo A. Bulatao, and Barney Cohen, Editors

Panel on Race, Ethnicity, and Health in Later Life

Committee on Population

Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington D.C.
www.nap.edu

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
500 Fifth Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20001

NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

This study was supported by Contract No. N01-OD-4-2139, TO #78 between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institute on Aging and a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Critical perspectives on racial and ethnic differences in health in late life / Norman B. Anderson, Rodolfo A. Bulatao, and Barney Cohen, editors ; Panel on Race, Ethnicity, and Health in Later Life, Committee on Population, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education.

p. ; cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 0-309-09211-6 (pbk.)

1. Minority older people—Health and hygiene—United States. 2. Older people—Health and hygiene—United States—Cross-cultural studies. 3. Discrimination in medical care—United States. 4. Health status indicators.

[DNLM: 1. Health Status—Aged. 2. Ethnic Groups. 3. Health Behavior—Aged. 4. Socioeconomic Factors. WB 141.4 C934 2004] I. Anderson, Norman B. II. Bulatao, Rodolfo A., 1944- III. Cohen, Barney, 1959- IV. National Research Council (U.S.). Panel on Race, Ethnicity, and Health in Later Life.

RA564.8.C75 2004

362.198’97’00973—dc22

2004017317

Additional copies of this report are available from the
National Academies Press,
500 Fifth Street, N.W., Lockbox 285, Washington, D.C. 20055; (800) 624-6242 or (202) 334-3313 (in the Washington metropolitan area); http://www.nap.edu.

Printed in the United States of America

Copyright 2004 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Suggested citation: National Research Council. (2004). Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. N.B. Anderson, R.A. Bulatao, and B. Cohen, Editors. Panel on Race, Ethnicity, and Health in Later Life. Committee on Population, Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES

Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine.

The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council.

www.national-academies.org

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

COMMITTEE ON POPULATION 2004

KENNETH W. WACHTER (Chair),

Department of Demography, University of California, Berkeley

ELLEN BRENNAN-GALVIN,

School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University

JANET CURRIE,

Department of Economics, University of California, Los Angeles

JOHN N. HOBCRAFT,

Department of Social Policy, London School of Economics

CHARLES B. KEELY,

Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University

DAVID I. KERTZER,

Department of Anthropology, Brown University

DAVID LAM,

Population Studies Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

CYNTHIA B. LLOYD,

Population Council, New York

DOUGLAS S. MASSEY,

Department of Sociology and Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University

RUBEN G. RUMBAUT,

Center for Research on Immigration, Population and Public Policy and Department of Sociology, University of California, Irvine

JAMES W. VAUPEL,

Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany

LINDA J. WAITE,

Department of Sociology, University of Chicago

ROBERT J. WILLIS,

Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

BARNEY COHEN, Director

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

PANEL ON RACE, ETHNICITY, AND HEALTH IN LATER LIFE

NORMAN B. ANDERSON (Chair),

American Psychological Association, Washington, DC

EILEEN M. CRIMMINS,

Andrus Gerontology Center, University of Southern California

ANGUS S. DEATON,*

Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University

DAVID V. ESPINO,

Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

JAMES S. HOUSE,

Institute of Gerontology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

JAMES S. JACKSON,

Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

CHRISTOPHER JENCKS,

John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

GERALD E. MCCLEARN,

Department of Biobehavioral Health, Pennsylvania State University

ALBERTO PALLONI,

Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

TERESA E. SEEMAN,

School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles

JAMES P. SMITH,

RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA

EUGENIA Y.-H. WANG,

School of Medicine, University of Louisville

DAVID R. WILLIAMS,

Department of Sociology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

RODOLFO A. BULATAO, Study Director

BARNEY COHEN, Director,

Committee on Population

BANGHWA LEE CASADO, Research Intern

CHRISTINE COVINGTON CHEN, Project Assistant

ANTHONY S. MANN, Senior Project Assistant

*  

Until October 2002.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

Contributors

MAUREEN R. BENJAMINS, School of Public Health, University of Illinois, Chicago

DEBBIE BRADSHAW, Burden of Disease Research Unit, Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, South Africa

MARY E. CAMPBELL, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

AMITABH CHANDRA, Department of Economics, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

RODNEY CLARK, Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI

BARNEY COHEN, The National Academies, Washington, DC

RICHARD S. COOPER, Department of Preventive Medicine and Epidemiology, Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, IL

EILEEN M. CRIMMINS, Andrus Gerontology Center, University of Southern California

CATHERINE CUBBIN, Stanford Prevention Research Center, Stanford University School of Medicine

DAVID M. CUTLER, Department of Economics, Harvard University

JENNIFER L. EGGERLING-BOECK, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

DOUGLAS EWBANK, Sociology Department, University of Pennsylvania

BRUCE H. FRIEDMAN, Department of Psychology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

THOMAS A. GLASS, Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

MARK D. HAYWARD, Department of Sociology, Pennsylvania State University

CLYDE HERTZMAN, Center for Health Services and Policy Research, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

ROBERT A. HUMMER, Population Research Center and Department of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin

WEI-CHIN HWANG, Department of Psychology, University of Utah

GUILLERMINA JASSO, Department of Sociology, New York University

RIA LAUBSCHER, Burden of Disease Research Unit, Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, South Africa

JOHN W. LYNCH, Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan

JENNIFER J. MANLY, GH Sergievsky Center and Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University

DOUGLAS S. MASSEY, Department of Sociology and Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University

RICHARD MAYEUX, GH Sergievsky Center and Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University

NOLWAZI MBANANGA, Burden of Disease Research Unit, Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, South Africa

CARLOS F. MENDES DE LEON, Department of Internal Medicine, Rush Presbyterian St. Luke’s Medical Center, Chicago, IL

JEFFREY D. MORENOFF, Department of Sociology, University of Michigan

HECTOR F. MYERS, Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles

JAMES Y. NAZROO, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, England

ROSANA NORMAN, Burden of Disease Research Unit, Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, South Africa

ALBERTO PALLONI, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

RICHARD G. ROGERS, Population Program and Department of Sociology, University of Colorado at Boulder

MARK R. ROSENZWEIG, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

GARY D. SANDEFUR, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

MICHELLE SCHNEIDER, Burden of Disease Research Unit, Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, South Africa

TERESA E. SEEMAN, School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles

JONATHAN S. SKINNER, Department of Economics, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH

JAMES P. SMITH, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA

KRISELA STEYN, Burden of Disease Research Unit, Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, South Africa

JULIAN F. THAYER, Gerontology Research Center, National Institute on Aging, Baltimore, MD

MARILYN A. WINKLEBY, Stanford Prevention Research Center, Stanford University School of Medicine

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

Preface

The Panel on Race, Ethnicity, and Health in Later Life was established in 2001 under the auspices of the Committee on Population of the National Research Council. The panel’s task was to inform the National Institute on Aging about recent research findings on racial and ethnic differences in health in late life and to help in developing a future research agenda for reducing them. This project was a follow-up to a 1994 Committee on Population workshop, which resulted in a volume of papers published by the National Academy Press, Racial and Ethnic Differences in the Health of Older Americans.

The panel was asked to organize a 2-day workshop, bringing together leading researchers from a variety of disciplines and professional orientations to summarize current research and to identify research priorities. That workshop was held in March 2002 in Washington, D.C. The panel also was asked to produce a summary of the state of knowledge incorporating this information and to provide recommendations for further work. The initial plan called for the papers and the panel report to be published in a single volume, but it was decided to publish the papers and the panel report separately. The papers are presented in this volume. The panel’s final report is available in a companion volume, Understanding Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life: A Research Agenda.

The papers in this volume have been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the Report Review Committee of the National Research Council. The purpose of this independent review is

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published volume as sound as possible and to ensure that the volume meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the charge. The review comments remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process.

We thank the following individuals for their review of one or more papers in this volume: Dolores Acevedo-Garcia, Department of Society, Human Development, and Health, Harvard School of Public Health; Norman B. Anderson, American Psychological Association, Washington, DC; Eileen M. Crimmins, Andrus Gerontology Center, University of Southern California; Angus S. Deaton, Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University; Troy Duster, Department of Sociology, University of California at Berkeley; Irma T. Elo, Department of Sociology, University of Pennsylvania; David V. Espino, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio; Maria Evandrou, Age Concern Institute of Gerontology, King’s College London, England; W. Reynolds Farley, Population Studies Center, University of Michigan; Vicki A. Freedman, Polisher Research Institute, Abramson Center for Jewish Life, North Wales, PA; W. Parker Frisbie, Population Research Center, University of Texas at Austin; Lucy Gilson, Centre for Health Policy, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Jules Harrell, Psychology Department, Howard University; James S. House, Institute of Gerontology, University of Michigan; James S. Jackson, Research Centre for Group Dynamics, University of Michigan; John Jemmott, Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania; Christopher Jencks, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; Elizabeth A. Klonoff, Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, California; Neal M. Krause, Institute of Gerontology, University of Michigan; Diana J. L. Kuh, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, England; Nancy S. Landale, Department of Sociology, Pennsylvania State University; Gerald E. McClearn, Department of Biobehavioral Health, Pennsylvania State University; Alberto Palloni, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Lynda Powell, Department of Preventive Medicine, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL; Thomas C. Ricketts, III, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Teresa E. Seeman, School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles; James P. Smith, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA; Keith E. Whitfield, Department of Health and Human Development, Pennsylvania State University; and David R. Williams, Department of Sociology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of any of

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
×

the papers nor did they see the final version of any paper before this publication. The review of this volume was overseen by Charles B. Keely, Georgetown University. Appointed by the National Research Council, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of the papers was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this volume rests entirely with the authors.

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7

 

Immigrant Health: Selectivity and Acculturation
Guillermina Jasso, Douglas S. Massey, Mark R. Rosenzweig, and James P. Smith

 

227

SECTION III:   THE SEARCH FOR CAUSAL PATHWAYS

 

 

 

 

GENETIC FACTORS

 

 

8

 

Genetic Factors in Ethnic Disparities in Health
Richard S. Cooper

 

269

 

 

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RISK FACTORS

 

 

9

 

Race/Ethnicity, Socioeconomic Status, and Health
Eileen M. Crimmins, Mark D. Hayward, and Teresa E. Seeman

 

310

10

 

The Role of Social and Personal Resources in Ethnic Disparities in Late-Life Health
Carlos F. Mendes de Leon and Thomas A. Glass

 

353

11

 

What Makes a Place Healthy? Neighborhood Influences on Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Health over the Life Course
Jeffrey D. Morenoff and John W. Lynch

 

406

 

 

BEHAVIORAL RISK FACTORS

 

 

12

 

Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Health Behaviors: A Challenge to Current Assumptions
Marilyn A. Winkleby and Catherine Cubbin

 

450

 

 

BIOBEHAVIORAL FACTORS

 

 

13

 

Cumulative Psychosocial Risks and Resilience: A Conceptual Perspective on Ethnic Health Disparities in Late Life
Hector F. Myers and Wei-Chin Hwang

 

492

14

 

Significance of Perceived Racism: Toward Understanding Ethnic Group Disparities in Health, the Later Years
Rodney Clark

 

540

15

 

A Neurovisceral Integration Model of Health Disparities in Aging
Julian F. Thayer and Bruce H. Friedman

 

567

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Research Council. 2004. Critical Perspectives on Racial and Ethnic Differences in Health in Late Life. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/11086.
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ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE

 

 

16

 

Geography and Racial Health Disparities
Amitabh Chandra and Jonathan S. Skinner

 

604

SECTION IV:   THE CHALLENGE OF IDENTIFYING EFFECTIVE INTERVENTIONS

 

 

17

 

Behavioral Health Interventions: What Works and Why?
David M. Cutler

 

643

SECTION V:   TWO INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS

 

 

18

 

Ethnic Disparities in Aging Health: What Can We Learn from the United Kingdom?
James Y. Nazroo

 

677

19

 

An Exploratory Investigation into Racial Disparities in the Health of Older South Africans
Debbie Bradshaw, Rosana Norman, Ria Laubscher, Michelle Schneider, Nolwazi Mbananga, and Krisela Steyn

 

703

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In their later years, Americans of different racial and ethnic backgrounds are not in equally good--or equally poor--health. There is wide variation, but on average older Whites are healthier than older Blacks and tend to outlive them. But Whites tend to be in poorer health than Hispanics and Asian Americans. This volume documents the differentials and considers possible explanations.

Selection processes play a role: selective migration, for instance, or selective survival to advanced ages. Health differentials originate early in life, possibly even before birth, and are affected by events and experiences throughout the life course. Differences in socioeconomic status, risk behavior, social relations, and health care all play a role. Separate chapters consider the contribution of such factors and the biopsychosocial mechanisms that link them to health. This volume provides the empirical evidence for the research agenda provided in the separate report of the Panel on Race, Ethnicity, and Health in Later Life.

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