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. 2021 Sep:99:102593.
doi: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2021.102593. Epub 2021 Jun 3.

Black-White disparities in women's physical health: The role of socioeconomic status and racism-related stressors

Nicholas C Smith  1
Affiliations

Black-White disparities in women's physical health: The role of socioeconomic status and racism-related stressors

Nicholas C Smith. Soc Sci Res. 2021 Sep.

Abstract

Black women have elevated rates of multiple physical illnesses and conditions when compared to White women - disparities that are only partially explained by socioeconomic status (SES). Consequently, scholars have called for renewed attention to the significance of racism-related stress in explaining Black-White disparities in women's physical health. Drawing on the biopsychosocial model of racism as a stressor and the intersectionality perspective, this study examines the extent to which SES and racism-related stressors - i.e., discrimination, criminalization, and adverse neighborhood conditions - account for disparities in self-rated physical health and chronic health conditions between Black and White women. Results indicate that Black women have lower SES and report greater exposure to racism-related stressors across all domains. Moreover, I find that SES and racism-related stressors jointly account for more than 90% of the Black-White disparity in women's self-rated physical health and almost 50% of the Black-White disparity in chronic health conditions. Theoretical and policy implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords: Chronic health conditions; Racism-related stressors; Self-reported physical health; Socioeconomic status; Women.

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