Doctoral Dissertation Research: Skin Color, Culture, and Blood Pressure in Southeastern Puerto Rico

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Abstract 0078793 Bernard/GravleeThis project will investigate the factors responsible for higher than average blood pressures among populations of African descent. While it is commonly assumed that there is a racial-genetic predisposition for high blood pressure among these groups, this project will evaluate social and cultural factors that may promote high blood pressure. Darker skin color is often associated with lower social and economic status, factors that promote chronic stress and sustained high blood pressure. The researcher will isolate the effects of skin color as a phenotype and skin color as a criterion of social status in Puerto Rico where social ascriptions of "color" (and thus social status) do not necessarily coincide with phenotypic race. Methods include participant observation, intensive interviewing and structured elicitation techniques among samples of Puerto Ricans. The study will contribute to our understanding of "racial" and "cultural" differences in health.