IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v316y2023ics0277953622005159.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The contribution of research to racial health equity? Blame and responsibility in navigating the status quo of anti-black systemic racism

Author

Listed:
  • Neighbors, Harold W.
  • Mattingly, Delvon T.
  • Johnson, Janay
  • Morse, Kayla

Abstract

Thirty-seven years ago, the Secretary's Task Force on Black and Minority Health called attention to a “national paradox” of persistent Black-White health disparities despite overall health improvements for the nation (HHS, 1985). Subsequent updates to the “Heckler Report” came to the same conclusion; Black Americans continued to exhibit poorer health in comparison to White Americans (Satcher et al., 2005). Current population health statistics demonstrate Black-White health disparities comparable to 1985 (AHRQ, 2018; Shiels et al., 2021; Wall et al., 2018). Although psychological, behavioral, social, and economic factors all contribute to Black-White differences in health, there is a noticeable increase in discussions about the importance of systemic racism in producing racial health disparities. This article addresses three questions relevant to research on racism and the health of Black Americans: (1) Why has academic public health research on racism failed to reduce racial health disparities? (2) What can academic public health scientists do differently to reduce the impact of systemic racism on inequities among Black and White Americans? (3) What can Black Americans do in the face of present-day anti-Black systemic racism? We argue that to convert the vision of health equity into a visible reality, health equity research scientists must move beyond discussion, observation, and description. We also argue that to demonstrate progress in reducing racial health disparities, health equity scientists will need to work much more directly on eradicating racism as a fundamental cause of health differences between Black and White Americans. As scientists, the challenge we face is how to accomplish this mission without leaving the realm of science. Racism is a social determinant of Black health and social determinants are political problems. Political problems require political solutions.

Suggested Citation

  • Neighbors, Harold W. & Mattingly, Delvon T. & Johnson, Janay & Morse, Kayla, 2023. "The contribution of research to racial health equity? Blame and responsibility in navigating the status quo of anti-black systemic racism," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 316(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:316:y:2023:i:c:s0277953622005159
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115209
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953622005159
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115209?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. David R. Williams & Lisa A. Cooper, 2019. "Reducing Racial Inequities in Health: Using What We Already Know to Take Action," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(4), pages 1-26, February.
    2. Kwate, N.O.A. & Meyer, L.H., 2010. "The myth of meritocracy and African American health," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 100(10), pages 1831-1834.
    3. Nasreen S. Jessani & Akshara Valmeekanathan & Carly M. Babcock & Brenton Ling, 2020. "Academic incentives for enhancing faculty engagement with decision-makers—considerations and recommendations from one School of Public Health," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 7(1), pages 1-13, December.
    4. Yin Paradies & Jehonathan Ben & Nida Denson & Amanuel Elias & Naomi Priest & Alex Pieterse & Arpana Gupta & Margaret Kelaher & Gilbert Gee, 2015. "Racism as a Determinant of Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 10(9), pages 1-48, September.
    5. Erik Aarden & Luca Marelli & Alessandro Blasimme, 2021. "The translational lag narrative in policy discourse in the United States and the European Union: a comparative study," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 8(1), pages 1-9, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Malat, Jennifer & Mayorga-Gallo, Sarah & Williams, David R., 2018. "The effects of whiteness on the health of whites in the USA," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 148-156.
    2. Raj, Anita & Chatterji, Sangeeta & Johns, Nicole E. & Yore, Jennifer & Dey, Arnab K. & Williams, David R., 2023. "The associations of everyday and major discrimination exposure with violence and poor mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 318(C).
    3. Irizar, Patricia & Kapadia, Dharmi & Amele, Sarah & Bécares, Laia & Divall, Pip & Katikireddi, Srinivasa Vittal & Kibuchi, Eliud & Kneale, Dylan & McCabe, Ronan & Nazroo, James & Nellums, Laura B. & T, 2023. "Pathways to ethnic inequalities in COVID-19 health outcomes in the United Kingdom: A systematic map," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 329(C).
    4. Yuqi Wang & Laurent Reyes & Emily A. Greenfield & Sarah R. Allred, 2022. "Municipal Ethnic Composition and Disparities in COVID-19 Infections in New Jersey: A Blinder–Oaxaca Decomposition Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(21), pages 1-25, October.
    5. Lynn N. Ibekwe & Maria Eugenia Fernández-Esquer & Sandi L. Pruitt & Nalini Ranjit & Maria E. Fernández, 2021. "Racism and Cancer Screening among Low-Income, African American Women: A Multilevel, Longitudinal Analysis of 2-1-1 Texas Callers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-19, October.
    6. Caryn N. Bell & Jordan Kerr & Jessica L. Young, 2019. "Associations between Obesity, Obesogenic Environments, and Structural Racism Vary by County-Level Racial Composition," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-17, March.
    7. Ricci B Harris & James Stanley & Donna M Cormack, 2018. "Racism and health in New Zealand: Prevalence over time and associations between recent experience of racism and health and wellbeing measures using national survey data," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(5), pages 1-22, May.
    8. Villarreal-Otálora, Tatiana & Boyas, Javier F. & Alvarez-Hernandez, Luis R. & Fatehi, Mariam, 2020. "Ecological factors influencing suicidal ideation-to-action among Latinx adolescents: An exploration of sex differences," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    9. Farah N. Mawani & Patricia O’Campo & Peter Smith, 2022. "Opportunity Costs: Underemployment and Mental Health Inequities Between Immigrant and Canadian-Born Labour Force Participants: A Cross-Sectional Study," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 1443-1470, September.
    10. Nazan Ulusoy & Anja Schablon, 2020. "Discrimination in In-Patient Geriatric Care: A Qualitative Study on the Experiences of Employees with a Turkish Migration Background," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-14, March.
    11. Tara L Upshaw & Chloe Brown & Robert Smith & Melissa Perri & Carolyn Ziegler & Andrew D Pinto, 2021. "Social determinants of COVID-19 incidence and outcomes: A rapid review," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(3), pages 1-22, March.
    12. Christopher Chauncey Watson & Leo Wilton & Jonathan Paul Lucas & Lawrence Bryant & Gregory D. Victorianne & Kerry Aradhya & Sheldon D. Fields & Darrell P. Wheeler & on behalf of the HPTN Black Caucus, 2020. "Development of a Black Caucus within the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN): Representing the Perspectives of Black Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-16, February.
    13. Lubna Rashid & Silvia Cepeda-García, 2021. "Self-Categorising and Othering in Migrant Integration: The Case of Entrepreneurs in Berlin," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-14, February.
    14. Satrio Nindyo Istiko & Jo Durham & Lana Elliott, 2022. "(Not That) Essential: A Scoping Review of Migrant Workers’ Access to Health Services and Social Protection during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-13, March.
    15. Glasgow, LaShawn & Clayton, Megan & Honeycutt, Amanda & Bayer, Erin M. & Plescia, Marcus & Holtgrave, Peter L. & Hacker, Karen, 2023. "Key insights on multisector community partnerships from real-world efforts to address social determinants of health," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    16. Dudovitz, R.N. & Biely, C. & Barnert, E.S. & Coker, T.R. & Guerrero, A.D. & Jackson, N. & Schickedanz, A. & Szilagyi, P.G. & Iyer, S. & Chung, P.J., 2021. "Association between school racial/ethnic composition during adolescence and adult health," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 272(C).
    17. Uršula Lipovec Čebron, 2021. "Language as a Trigger for Racism: Language Barriers at Healthcare Institutions in Slovenia," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-17, March.
    18. D'Costa, Ieta & Truong, Mandy & Russell, Lynette & Adams, Karen, 2023. "Employee perceptions of race and racism in an Australian hospital," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 339(C).
    19. Bastos, João L. & Harnois, Catherine E. & Paradies, Yin C., 2018. "Health care barriers, racism, and intersectionality in Australia," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 209-218.
    20. Jill Furzer & Boriana Miloucheva, 2020. "The Long Arm of the Clean Air Act: Pollution Abatement and COVID-19 Racial Disparities," Working Papers tecipa-668, University of Toronto, Department of Economics.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:316:y:2023:i:c:s0277953622005159. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.