Neighborhood Features and Cognitive Function: Moderating Roles of Individual Socioeconomic Status

Tse-Chuan Yang; Seulki Kim; Seung-Won Emily Choi; Shannon Halloway; Uchechi A Mitchell; Benjamin A Shaw

doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2023.10.012

Neighborhood Features and Cognitive Function: Moderating Roles of Individual Socioeconomic Status

Am J Prev Med. 2024 Mar;66(3):454-462. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2023.10.012. Epub 2023 Oct 21.

Authors

Tse-Chuan Yang¹, Seulki Kim², Seung-Won Emily Choi³, Shannon Halloway⁴, Uchechi A Mitchell⁵, Benjamin A Shaw⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Sociology, University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany, New York. Electronic address: tyang3@albany.edu.
² Department of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska.
³ Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas.
⁴ Department of Biobehavioral Nursing Science, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
⁵ Division of Community Health Sciences, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.

PMID: 37871754
DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2023.10.012

Abstract

Introduction: There is an interest in exploring the associations between neighborhood characteristics and individual cognitive function; however, little is known about whether these relationships can be modified by individual socioeconomic status, such as educational attainment and income.

Methods: Drawing from the 2010-2018 Health and Retirement Study, this study analyzed 10,621 older respondents (aged 65+) with a total of 33,931 person-waves. These respondents did not have dementia in 2010 and stayed in the same neighborhood throughout the study period. Cognitive function was measured with a 27-point indicator biennially, and neighborhood characteristics (i.e., walkability, concentrated disadvantage, and social isolation) were assessed in 2010. All analyses were performed in 2023.

Results: Cognitive function is positively associated with neighborhood walkability and negatively related to concentrated disadvantage, suggesting that exposures to these neighborhood characteristics have long-lasting impacts on cognitive function. Furthermore, individual socioeconomic status modifies the relationship between neighborhood characteristics and cognitive function. Compared with those graduating from college, respondents without a bachelor's degree consistently have lower cognitive function but the educational gap in cognitive function narrows with increases in walkability (b= -0.152, SE=0.092), and widens when neighborhood concentrated disadvantage (b=0.212, SE=0.070) or social isolation (b=0.315, SE=0.125) rises. The income gap in cognitive function shrinks with increases in walkability (b= -0.063, SE=0.027).

Conclusions: The moderating role of socioeconomic status indicates that low-socioeconomic status older adults who also live in disadvantaged neighborhoods face a higher risk of poor cognitive function. Low-education and low-income aging adults may have the most to gain from investments to improve neighborhood characteristics.

MeSH terms

Aged
Cognition
Humans
Income*
Poverty
Residence Characteristics
Social Class*
Socioeconomic Factors