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Race Differences in the Effect of Subjective Social Status on Hostility and Depressive Symptoms Among 9- to 11-Year-Old Children

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Abstract

Purpose

Research shows that subjective social status (SSS) is a salient determinant of health. However, there is little research on SSS-related group differences on psychosocial outcomes among children. The purpose of the current study was to determine if associations between psychosocial functioning and SSS in children varied as a function of racial groups.

Methods

We used a series of regression models to examine associations between SSS and measures of hostility and depressive symptom severity in groups of Black and White children. All analyses controlled for objective markers of family- and neighborhood-level socioeconomic status. Participants included 291 school-age children in Syracuse, NY.

Results

Among Black children, SSS was negatively associated with hostility scores, R2 = 0.10, F(6, 160) = 3.34, p = 0.006, but not depressive symptom severity. Conversely, among White children, SSS was negatively associated with depressive symptom severity, R2 = 0.18, F(6, 117) = 4.37, p = 0.001, but not hostility.

Conclusion

These racial differences in SSS-associated psychosocial functioning could be explained by race-based differences in attributions of social mobility and socioeconomic inequalities. Findings provide support for investigating possible tailoring of behavioral interventions to assist children in developing high SSS or coping with low SSS.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Aylonna Whitney, Rachel Zajdel, and the lab members for their assistance in data collection. In addition, we are very grateful for the assistance of Barbara Samson and Jessica Flemming (phlebotomists) for their help with blood specimen collection. Materials, such as data and analysis code, can be requested from the authors.

Funding

This research was supported by Grant ES023252 from the National Institutes of Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health, Falk College, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, 13244, USA

    Ivan E. Castro, Bryce Hruska & Brooks B. Gump

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  1. Ivan E. Castro
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  2. Bryce Hruska
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Correspondence to Brooks B. Gump.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee (Syracuse University IRB 14-241) and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Castro, I.E., Hruska, B. & Gump, B.B. Race Differences in the Effect of Subjective Social Status on Hostility and Depressive Symptoms Among 9- to 11-Year-Old Children. J. Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities 7, 844–853 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40615-020-00707-9

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