title: Assessment of neighborhood context in a nationally representative study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This paper introduces new measures of neighborhood context that are included in the second wave of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP). We describe the use of field interviewer ratings of respondents' neighborhood conditions, as well as the adaptation of existing measures for the assessment of neighborhood social context among urban and nonurban older adults.
  
  
  METHODS
  We construct scales of neighborhood problems, neighborhood social cohesion, neighborhood social ties, and perceived neighborhood danger, and assess their reliability and validity. We then calculate descriptive statistics for measures of neighborhood context across respondent age, gender, and racial/ethnic background, and across low-, moderate-, and high-density residential blocks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We find that older women report greater neighborhood cohesion and more neighborhood ties than older men, but women also perceive more neighborhood danger. Black and Hispanic older adults reside in neighborhoods with more problems, lower cohesion, fewer social ties, and greater perceived danger. Neighborhood characteristics also vary across residential densities. Neighborhood problems and perceived danger increase with block-level density, but neighborhood social cohesion and social ties were lowest among residents of moderate-density blocks.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The inclusion of neighborhood context measures in the second wave of NSHAP provides a unique opportunity to explore associations among neighborhood context, social connectedness, and indicators of health and function among older adults. We discuss limitations of the measures and provide recommendations for their use.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. eyc46@cornell.edu.
authors.forename: Erin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: York Cornwell
authors.affiliation: Departments of Sociology and Health Studies, University of Chicago, Illinois.
authors.forename: Kathleen A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Cagney
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006798:Housing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011156:Population Density; D044469:Racial Groups / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012111:Residence Characteristics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012449:Safety / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012737:Sex Factors; D012924:Social Conditions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012944:Social Support; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: Aging; Environment; Fear; Neighborhood context; Neighborhood disorder.