Socioeconomic and Racial Health Disparities
Health disparities by both race and socioeconomic status have been well-documented for decades and are pressing social justice and public health concerns. Across many samples and many types of health outcomes, Black Americans fare worse than White Americans, and those of lower socioeconomic position (a term that encompasses both objective resources and/or perceived hierarchical rank) fare worse than those of higher socioeconomic position. Further, the epidemiological literature has shown that traditional indicators of risk such as access to health care, exposure to toxins, and health behaviors (diet, exercise) often explain less than 25% of the variance in outcomes by race or socioeconomic position (Braveman & Gottlieb, 2014; Pampel, Krueger, and Denny, 2010). The social context and stress exposures associated with race and SEP (e.g., discrimination) have been theorized to contribute to health disparities. Despite such theorizing, empirical evidence on the role of social stress exposures in racial and socioeconomic health disparities is limited in many ways and our lab seeks to contribute to knowledge in this area.
Interpersonal Processes and Health
