Ethnic Trajectories of Aging

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Trajectories of health in old age: ethnic differences Aging research has been increasingly focused on examining the intersections between aging and social factors involved in determining physical health status. Much of the research is based on cross-sectional data. Further, existing longitiduinal analyses are mostly concerned with transitions between two points in time. This application analyzes trajectories of health status, consisiting of multiple tranisitions among White, African-American and Mexican-origin older Americans. It has three specific aims. First, I will examine trajectories of health status as measured by self-rated health, disability levels, and disease burden by ethnic group. Second, I will explore the role of nativity status on the trajectories of health for Mexican-Americans as they age. The effect of foreign-born, time spent in the U.S., time since migration and age at migration will be explored. Lastly, I will consider how early life socioeconomic exposures intersect with nativity status to partly determine trajectories of health later in life for Mexican-origin Latinos. To evaluate the research questions posed, hierarchical linear models will be used. In particular, changes in health trajectories within an older person by ethnic identity will be represented by growth curves. The data used for these proposed analyses will come two sources. The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) is an ongoing, nationally-representative public use panel study sampling individuals aged 51 and older. In addition, the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiological Study of the Elderly (H-EPESE) will be used to validate findings from the HRS, given its large sample of Mexican-Americans. PI: Qui¿ones, Ana R. Relavance of this research to public health: Understanding the trends of disability and decline in old age is of critical importance to health policymakers. In particular, identifying the challenges posed by an aging population with worse health outcomes for some groups relative to others is a necessary social planning instrument. This research proposes to examine the health trends of older White, African-American and Mexican-Americans to determine whether such differential patterns in aging are at play.