The gendered relationship between cumulative exposure to lower community attachment and adolescent health

Abstract

This study examines whether the longitudinal association between cumulative exposure to lower community attachment and adolescent health differs by gender. Using seven waves of the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey spanning 2010-2016, this study examines the association between cumulative exposure to lower community attachment and self-rated health among Korean adolescents. This study estimated fixed-effects models to account for unobserved confounders at the individual level. Fixed-effects estimates revealed that cumulative exposure to lower community attachment is associated with a decreased likelihood of reporting excellent health. Starting from the initial exposure, girls' self-rated health continued to deteriorate over time. In contrast, boys' self-rated health decreased for up to 3 years of persistent exposure, but has since returned to preexposure levels. The association between cumulative exposure to lower levels of community attachment and a decline in self-rated health is more pronounced among girls than boys. Gender-specific community-based interventions during adolescence may be required to promote adolescent health and well-being. K E Y W O R D S adolescent, community attachment, cumulative exposure, gender, self-rated health Highlights • Community attachment (CA) is an important predictor of adolescent self-rated health (SRH). • SRH declines for up to five consecutive years in girls persistently exposed to lower CA. • Boys' SRH begins to return to pre-exposure levels following three years of decline. • To promote the health of adolescents, gender-specific community-based interventions are necessary.

Cumulative Exposure to Social Isolation and Longitudinal Changes in Life Satisfaction among Older Adults

“… β k coefficients thus capture the within-person change (or differences) in life satisfaction associated with exposure to social isolation ( SI ) for k waves. The reference group consists of cases in which there was no social isolation in previous and concurrent waves (Bentley, Baker, and Mason 2012; Park and Kim 2022). In this setup, the changes reported in the analyses are relative to the individual’s level of life satisfaction prior to exposure to cumulative social isolation.…”

A mixed methods comparison of adolescents' and researchers' observations of neighborhood characteristics in Latinx neighborhoods

“…Ethnic–racial minoritized adolescents may tune into, perceive, and make meaning of the characteristics that are theoretically and empirically important according to researchers, or they may not. Moreover, adolescents' phenomenologies are important for their meaning‐making and have implications for their well‐being (Coll et al, 1996; Park & Kim, 2022; Spencer, 2007). However, without a better understanding of the overlapping and unique aspects of researchers' and adolescents' observations, it is difficult to make meaning across diverse findings.…”

“…Meaning making can lead to place attachment or the development of emotional bonds between adolescents and a particular place (Jack, 2010; Seamon, 2020), including place identity (affective and/or cognitive attachment to the neighborhood) and place dependence (functional ability of a neighborhood to provide for an individual's needs; Boley et al, 2021). Place attachment is expected to promote youth well‐being (Jack, 2010; Park & Kim, 2022). In a recent decade review of adolescent neighborhood effects, the authors concluded that neighborhood environmental features have shown mixed findings, sometimes promoting well‐being, sometimes inhibiting well‐being, and sometimes having null effects (White et al, 2020).…”