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Determinants of Residential Preferences Related to Built and Social Environments and Concordance between Neighborhood Characteristics and Preferences

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We explored associations between residential preferences and sociodemographic characteristics, the concordance between current neighborhood characteristics and residential preferences, and heterogeneity in concordance by income and race/ethnicity. Data came from a cross-sectional phone and mail survey of 3668 residents of New York City, Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles, St. Paul, and Winston Salem in 2011–12. Scales characterized residential preferences and neighborhood characteristics. Stronger preferences were associated with being older, female, non-White/non-Hispanic, and lower education. There was significant positive but weak concordance between current neighborhood characteristics and residential preferences (after controlling sociodemographic characteristics). Concordance was stronger for persons with higher income and for Whites, suggesting that residential self-selection effects are strongest for populations that are more advantaged.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute [grant numbers R01 HL 131610 and R01 HL071759] and NIH National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities [R01 MD012621].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Urban Health Collaborative, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, 3600 Market St. 7th Floor, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Jingjing Li, Amy H. Auchincloss, Kari A. Moore & Ana V. Diez Roux

  2. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Nesbitt Hall, 3215 Market St, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Amy H. Auchincloss, Ana V. Diez Roux & Brisa N. Sánchez

  3. Department of City & Regional Planning and Institute for Transportation Studies, University of California Berkeley, 230 Wurster Hall #1820, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA

    Daniel A. Rodriguez

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  1. Jingjing Li
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Li, J., Auchincloss, A.H., Rodriguez, D.A. et al. Determinants of Residential Preferences Related to Built and Social Environments and Concordance between Neighborhood Characteristics and Preferences. J Urban Health 97, 62–77 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-019-00397-7

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