A call to engage: considering the role of gentrification in public health research

ABSTRACT

As interest in incorporating gentrification into public health research grows, so too does the need for developing conceptual models and methods for understanding the role of dynamic processes such as gentrification in assessing neighborhood effects on health. This requires public health researchers to engage in ongoing active debates within the social sciences on the definition, causes and consequences of gentrification, going beyond the simple application of measurements borrowed or adapted from the social sciences. Having a stance on gentrification informs measurement, the research question, study design and the role of gentrification in quantitative models employed by public health researchers.

KEYWORDS:

• Gentrification
• neighborhoods
• urban health
• cities

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the European Research Council under grant agreement [No 678034].

Notes on contributors

Helen V. S. Cole

Dr. Helen V. S. Cole is a postdoctoral researcher at BCNUEJ, ICTA-UAB, and IMIM and Co-Coordinator of the urban environment, health and equity research area of the Barcelona Lab for Urban Environmental Justice and Sustainability (BCNUEJ). Her research explores whether, and how, healthier cities may also be made equitable, placing urban health interventions in the context of the broader urban social and political environments. She holds a Doctorate in Public Health from the City University of New York Graduate Center/Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy and an MPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.