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Subjective Social Status and Self-Reported Health Among US-born and Immigrant Latinos

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Abstract

Subjective social status is associated with a range of health outcomes. Few studies have tested the relevance of subjective social status among Latinos in the U.S.; those that have yielded mixed results. Data come from the Latino subsample of the 2003 National Latino and Asian American Study (N = 2554). Regression models adjusted for socioeconomic and demographic factors. Stratified analyses tested whether nativity status modifies the effect of subjective social status on health. Subjective social status was associated with better health. Income and education mattered more for health than subjective social status among U.S.-born Latinos. However, the picture was mixed among immigrant Latinos, with subjective social status more strongly predictive than income but less so than education. Subjective social status may tap into stressful immigrant experiences that affect one’s perceived self-worth and capture psychosocial consequences and social disadvantage left out by conventional socioeconomic measures.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Policy and Management, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, 650 Charles E. Young Drive South, Box 951772, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1772, USA

    Jeremiah R. Garza, Ninez A. Ponce & Frederick J. Zimmerman

  2. Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Beth A. Glenn & Ninez A. Ponce

  3. Department of Education, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Rashmita S. Mistry

Authors
  1. Jeremiah R. Garza
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  2. Beth A. Glenn
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  4. Ninez A. Ponce
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Correspondence to Jeremiah R. Garza.

Appendix: Estimated effect of community subjective social status on health outcomes

Appendix: Estimated effect of community subjective social status on health outcomes

Variable

Poor self-rated physical health

Poor self-rated mental health

Odds ratio

95 % CI

Odds ratio

95 % CI

Full Latino sample (N = 2554)

 Community subjective social status

.78***

.71, .85

.89

.75, 1.05

 R 2

.19

 

.17

 
  1. * p < .05; ** p < .01; *** p < .001. Regressions adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, income, education, occupation, marital status, nativity status, and years in the US

Variable

Poor self-rated physical health

Poor self-rated mental health

Odds ratio

95 % CI

Odds ratio

95 % CI

Latino native-born sample (N = 924)

 Community subjective social status

.83*

.69, .98

.86

.64, 1.16

 R 2

.20

 

.27

 
  1. * p < .05; ** p < .01; *** p < .001. Regressions adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, income, education, occupation, and marital status

Variable

Poor self-rated physical health

Poor self-rated mental health

Odds ratio

95 % CI

Odds ratio

95 % CI

Latino immigrant sample (N = 1629)

 Community subjective social status

.79**

.68, .91

.90

.71, 1.14

 R 2

.23

 

.18

 
  1. * p < .05; ** p < .01; *** p < .001. Regressions adjusted for age, sex, ethnicity, income, education, occupation, marital status, years in the US, and English proficiency

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Garza, J.R., Glenn, B.A., Mistry, R.S. et al. Subjective Social Status and Self-Reported Health Among US-born and Immigrant Latinos. J Immigrant Minority Health 19, 108–119 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-016-0346-x

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