Geocoding and Measurement of Neighborhood Socioeconomic Position: A U.S. Perspective

Abstract

Abstract This chapter focuses on conceptual and methodologic issues germane to public health monitoring in the United States. Many of the concepts, methods, and questions, however, are likely to be relevant to other countries as well as to etiologic studies of neighborhood effects on health and other aspects of well-being. It argues that data on the socioeconomic characteristics of neighborhoods—whether compositional or contextual—can be useful for describing and monitoring social inequalities in health.