Social capital and health status: Assessing whether the relationship varies between blacks and whites

Abstract

The current study tests whether the relationship between social capital and health status varies between Blacks and Whites. It then considers whether such variance is a function of income level. OLS regression analysis is conducted on data from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 2005, a national survey of 5586 adults conducted by the National Cancer Institute. Auxiliary friendship plays a more positive role in predicting health status than the other three social capital indicators: group membership, religious participation and discussion networks. There is one significant two-way interaction effect, with the association between auxiliary friendship and health status being more beneficial for Whites than Blacks. A significant three-way interaction effect signifies that the influence of ethnicity on the relationship between auxiliary friendship and health status is a function of income, with low-income Blacks benefiting much less from auxiliary friendship than high-income Blacks or, low- or high-income Whites. These findings are discussed in terms of health disparities in the United States, related practice and policy and the audience targeting of future health initiatives.

Keywords:

• social capital
• health status
• ethnicitysocial capital and health status