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Structural Intersectionality as a New Direction for Health Disparities Research.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Homan, P; Brown, TH; King, B
Published in: Journal of health and social behavior
September 2021

This article advances the field by integrating insights from intersectionality perspectives with the emerging literatures on structural racism and structural sexism-which point to promising new ways to measure systems of inequality at a macro level-to introduce a structural intersectionality approach to population health. We demonstrate an application of structural intersectionality using administrative data representing macrolevel structural racism, structural sexism, and income inequality in U.S. states linked to individual data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System to estimate multilevel models (N = 420,644 individuals nested in 76 state-years) investigating how intersecting dimensions of structural oppression shape health. Analyses show that these structural inequalities: (1) vary considerably across U.S. states, (2) intersect in numerous ways but do not strongly or positively covary, (3) individually and jointly shape health, and (4) are most consistently associated with poor health for black women. We conclude by outlining an agenda for future research on structural intersectionality and health.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Journal of health and social behavior

DOI

EISSN

2150-6000

ISSN

0022-1465

Publication Date

September 2021

Volume

62

Issue

3

Start / End Page

350 / 370

Related Subject Headings

  • Sexism
  • Racism
  • Public Health
  • Population Health
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Black or African American
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 4410 Sociology
  • 1701 Psychology
 

Citation

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Homan, P., Brown, T. H., & King, B. (2021). Structural Intersectionality as a New Direction for Health Disparities Research. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 62(3), 350–370. https://doi.org/10.1177/00221465211032947
Homan, Patricia, Tyson H. Brown, and Brittany King. “Structural Intersectionality as a New Direction for Health Disparities Research.Journal of Health and Social Behavior 62, no. 3 (September 2021): 350–70. https://doi.org/10.1177/00221465211032947.
Homan P, Brown TH, King B. Structural Intersectionality as a New Direction for Health Disparities Research. Journal of health and social behavior. 2021 Sep;62(3):350–70.
Homan, Patricia, et al. “Structural Intersectionality as a New Direction for Health Disparities Research.Journal of Health and Social Behavior, vol. 62, no. 3, Sept. 2021, pp. 350–70. Epmc, doi:10.1177/00221465211032947.
Homan P, Brown TH, King B. Structural Intersectionality as a New Direction for Health Disparities Research. Journal of health and social behavior. 2021 Sep;62(3):350–370.
Journal cover image

Published In

Journal of health and social behavior

DOI

EISSN

2150-6000

ISSN

0022-1465

Publication Date

September 2021

Volume

62

Issue

3

Start / End Page

350 / 370

Related Subject Headings

  • Sexism
  • Racism
  • Public Health
  • Population Health
  • Humans
  • Female
  • Black or African American
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 4410 Sociology
  • 1701 Psychology