Childhood Residential and Neighborhood Trajectories and the Physical and Behavioral Health Outcomes of Low-Income Minoritized Youth

Poor housing quality and residential instability have been found to be consistent predictors of poor physical and behavioral health for low-income children and youth in the United States. Expanding access to quality housing and housing stability are seen as the means for promoting improved health outcomes for disadvantaged children. However, we know surprisingly little about the long-term effects of housing and neighborhood trajectories on the health of vulnerable children. Nor do we know much about children residing in subsidized housing and how such housing might serve as a vehicle for improving children’s health.

In this study, we employ longitudinal data from a sample of low-income Latino and African American children (N=850) whose families were quasi randomly assigned to subsidized housing units in neighborhoods with varying degrees of racial, ethnic and social mix. Using sequence analysis, we assess how variations in housing and neighborhood trajectories of children in subsidized housing affect the health of children over the course of childhood. Further, we examine the comparative health of children assigned to project-based housing and those assigned to tenant-based or other housing types as well as degrees of social mix. Finally, we assess the extent to which these exposures to housing and neighborhoods vary by ethnicity and gender.

We find significant variations in childhood health outcomes by gender, ethnicity, subsidized housing types and social mix as well as the temporality of exposure. Improved physical and behavioral health during childhood was found among children whose housing and neighborhood trajectories were characterized by residential stability and neighborhood safety. Implications for housing policy and practice are discussed.