Neighborhood-level cohesion and disorder: measurement and validation in two older adult urban populations.
OBJECTIVE
Drawing from collective efficacy and social disorganization theories, we developed and validated measures of neighborhood-level social processes.


METHODS
Data came from 2 large, population-based cohort studies of urban-dwelling older adults, the Chicago Neighborhood and Disability Study (CNDS, n = 3,882) and the Baltimore Memory Study (BMS, n = 1,140). Data on neighborhood social processes were collected from residents using a standardized instrument identical in the 2 studies. We used confirmatory factor analysis and descriptive statistics to explore reliability and validity of the neighborhood-level measures.


RESULTS
Confirmatory factor analysis indicated 2 latent factors: social cohesion and exchange (i.e., observations of and interactions with neighbors) and social and physical disorder (i.e., neighborhood problems and unsafe conditions). Neighborhood-level measures of cohesion and disorder showed moderate to high levels of internal consistency (alphas = .78 and .85 in CNDS and .60 and .88 in BMS). Inter-resident agreements were low (intra-neighborhood correlation coefficients = .08 and .11 in CNDS and .05 and .33 in BMS). Cohesion showed a modest, positive association with a composite measure of neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES). Disorder showed a strong, negative association with neighborhood SES.


CONCLUSIONS
Findings provide initial evidence of the reliability and construct validity of these neighborhood-level social process measures.
Cagney
Kathleen A
KA
Department of Health Studies, The University of Chicago, 5841 South Maryland Avenue, MC 2007, Chicago, IL 60637, USA. k-cagney@uchicago.edu
Glass
Thomas A
TA
Skarupski
Kimberly A
KA
Barnes
Lisa L
LL
Schwartz
Brian S
BS
Mendes de Leon
Carlos F
CF
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D000850:Anomie; D015142:Baltimore; D002641:Chicago; D003071:Cognition; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003625:Data Collection; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D008875:Middle Aged; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012307:Risk Factors; D012931:Social Environment; D012933:Social Identification; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014505:Urban Population