Neighborhood Disorder, Social Support, and Self–Esteem: Evidence from a Sample of Low–income Women Living in Three Cities

Abstract

Although several studies show that self-esteem varies according to neighborhood context, few have directly examined potential mediators of this association. In this paper, we use longitudinal survey data from the Welfare, Children, and Families project (1999, 2001) to examine the association between perceived neighborhood disorder and self-esteem among low-income urban women with children in Boston, Chicago, and San Antonio, testing for city heterogeneity. Building on social disorganization theory and previous research, we examine the mediating influence of social support. Our longitudinal models show that higher levels of disorder at baseline are associated with lower levels of social support and self-esteem. We also observe that increases in disorder over the study period are associated with concurrent losses in social support and self-esteem. Our mediation analyses suggest that perceived neighborhood disorder may undermine self-esteem by limiting opportunities for social support. Reducing signs and perceptions of disorder by improving the social and physical landscapes of neighborhoods may uniquely contribute to self-worth of low-income urban women with children.

Suspicious minds: Can features of the local neighbourhood ease parents' fears about stranger danger?

“…Second, deprived neighbourhoods are often characterised by more physical disorder (e.g., litter, graffiti, vandalism) (Caughy, O'Campo, & Patterson, 2001;Foster, Giles-Corti, & Knuiman, 2011;Hill, Ross, & Angel, 2005;King, 2008;Lee, Booth, Reese- Regan, & Howard, 2005). While crime per se is often not visible, physical disorder provides a visual cue that signals the breakdown of social control (Skogan, 1990), which can inflame residents' fears and impede the formation of social ties (Ross & Jang, 2000;Sampson, Raudenbush, & Earls, 1997)and social support (Hill, Burdette, Jokinen-Gordon, & Brailsford, 2013). Further, disorder tends to cluster near nonresidential land-uses (e.g., shops, parks) (Perkins, Meeks, & Taylor, 1992), making these 'third places' less appealing destinations for local residents, and plausibly limiting their use for informal, opportunistic social interactions (Oldenburg & Brissett, 1982;Thompson & Kent, 2014) and social participation (Baum & Palmer, 2002;Wood, Giles-Corti, Zubrick, & Bulsara, 2013).…”

Neighborhood stressors and psychological distress among U.S. Latinos: Measuring the protective effects of social support from family and friends

“…This is important because a key proposition of the stress process literature (Grant et al, ) states that there is specificity in relations among stressors, coping resources, and mental health outcomes. For instance, Hill et al () examined self‐esteem as the outcome and found that neighborhood disorder limited opportunity for social support, which lowered self‐esteem. Second, we use cross‐sectional data, which does not allow us to assess causality.…”

“…Second, we use cross‐sectional data, which does not allow us to assess causality. Third, our national sample of Latinos differs substantially from other studies' samples; for example, Hill et al () focused on women with children in three U.S. cities and Kim () examined Illinois residents and focused on general social support versus family and friend support only.…”

“…Findings should be interpreted with the following limitations. First, cross‐sectional data do not permit analysis of causal order; however, longitudinal studies support the possibility that health is causally associated with social support (Hill et al, ; Yang, Schorpp, & Harris, ). Moreover, our measure of support focuses specifically on perceived emotional assistance, thus we cannot speak to how these effects may differ for other types of social support.…”

The Relational Experience of Poverty: Challenges for Family Planning and Autonomy in Rural Areas

“…Other researchers have found that place affects the mental health of the low-income in terms of their perception of collective efficacy and the presence of neighborhood problems (Brisson, Lopez, & Yoder, 2014), although it is not always clear how. Social support may be a mediating factor (Erdmans & Black, 2015;Hill, Burdette, Jokinen-Gordon, & Brailsford, 2013). Isolation and constrained networks may also allow for violence and abuse, and exacerbate the difficulty in escaping these circumstances throughout the life courses of many in poverty.…”