Gonzales Ernest, Shen Huei-Wern, Wang Yi, Martinez Linda Sprague, Norstrand Julie
a Center for Innovation in Social Work and Health , Boston University , Boston , Massachusetts , USA.
b University of Missouri-St. Louis , School of Social Work , St. Louis , Missouri , USA.
J Gerontol Soc Work. 2016 Jul;59(5):381-400. doi: 10.1080/01634372.2016.1224787. Epub 2016 Aug 16.
Although the historical impact of racial segregation and ongoing health and economic inequities between older Black and White adults is well documented, little is known about the relationships among race, individual- and neighborhood-resources, and formal volunteering in later life. This study explores this intersection. Individual-level data from 268 respondents aged 55+ were collected in the St. Louis metropolitan area through paper-based mail surveys. Objective neighborhood data were obtained at the zip code level from secondary sources and matched with respondents. Using exploratory factor analysis, we constructed a 14-item environmental scale with 3 neighborhood dimensions (economic, social, and built environment). Older Black adults had lower levels of education; had fewer financial assets; lived in neighborhoods with less economic resources and lower built environment scores; and fewer formally volunteered when compared to older White adults. Individual resources (financial assets, health) and neighborhood resources (social and built environment) were positively associated with formal volunteering among older Black adults. Only individual resources (age, marital status, financial assets, health) were associated with formal volunteering among older White adults. A coherent set of policies that bolsters individual and environmental capacities may increase the rate of volunteerism among older black adults.
尽管种族隔离的历史影响以及老年黑人和白人成年人之间持续存在的健康和经济不平等现象有充分的文献记载，但对于种族、个人和邻里资源以及晚年正式志愿服务之间的关系却知之甚少。本研究探讨了这一交叉点。通过纸质邮件调查，在圣路易斯都会区收集了268名55岁及以上受访者的个人层面数据。客观的邻里数据从二级来源获取，以邮政编码为单位，并与受访者进行匹配。我们使用探索性因素分析，构建了一个包含14个项目的环境量表，具有3个邻里维度（经济、社会和建筑环境）。与老年白人成年人相比，老年黑人成年人受教育程度较低；金融资产较少；居住在经济资源较少且建筑环境得分较低的社区；正式志愿服务的人数也较少。个人资源（金融资产、健康状况）和邻里资源（社会和建筑环境）与老年黑人成年人的正式志愿服务呈正相关。只有个人资源（年龄、婚姻状况、金融资产、健康状况）与老年白人成年人的正式志愿服务有关。一套连贯的增强个人和环境能力的政策可能会提高老年黑人成年人的志愿服务率。
