title: Individual and neighborhood-level socioeconomic characteristics in relation to smoking prevalence among black and white adults in the Southeastern United States: a cross-sectional study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Low individual-level socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with higher prevalence of cigarette smoking. Recent work has examined whether neighborhood-level SES may affect smoking behavior independently from individual-level measures. However, few comparisons of neighborhood-level effects on smoking by race and gender are available.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional data from adults age 40-79 enrolled in the Southern Community Cohort Study from 2002-2009 (19, 561 black males; 27, 412 black females; 6, 231 white males; 11, 756 white females) were used in Robust Poisson regression models to estimate prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for current smoking in relation to individual-level SES characteristics obtained via interview and neighborhood-level SES characteristics represented by demographic measures from US Census block groups matched to participant home addresses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Several neighborhood-level SES characteristics were modestly associated with increased smoking after adjustment for individual-level factors including lower percentage of adults with a college education and lower percentage of owner-occupied households among blacks but not whites; lower percentage of households with interest, dividends, or net rental income among white males; and lower percentage of employed adults among black females.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Lower neighborhood-level SES is associated with increased smoking suggesting that cessation programs may benefit from targeting higher-risk neighborhoods as well as individuals.
authors: International Epidemiology Institute, 1455 Research Blvd, Suite 550, Rockville, MD 20850, USA. sarah@iei.us
authors: Sarah S
authors: SS
authors: Cohen
authors: Jennifer S
authors: JS
authors: Sonderman
authors: Michael T
authors: MT
authors: Mumma
authors: Lisa B
authors: LB
authors: Signorello
authors: William J
authors: WJ
authors: Blot
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D000368:Aged; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011204:Poverty Areas; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology*; D012923:Social Class; D015144:Southeastern United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People