• Tse-Chuan Yang, Seulki Kim, ChoiSeung-Won EmilySEDepartment of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas., Shannon Halloway, Uchechi A Mitchell, and Benjamin A Shaw.
• Department of Sociology, University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany, New York. Electronic address: tyang3@albany.edu.
• Am J Prev Med. 2024 Mar 1; 66 (3): 454462454-462.

IntroductionThere is an interest in exploring the associations between neighborhood characteristics and individual cognitive function; however, little is known about whether these relationships can be modified by individual socioeconomic status, such as educational attainment and income.MethodsDrawing from the 2010-2018 Health and Retirement Study, this study analyzed 10,621 older respondents (aged 65+) with a total of 33,931 person-waves. These respondents did not have dementia in 2010 and stayed in the same neighborhood throughout the study period. Cognitive function was measured with a 27-point indicator biennially, and neighborhood characteristics (i.e., walkability, concentrated disadvantage, and social isolation) were assessed in 2010. All analyses were performed in 2023.ResultsCognitive function is positively associated with neighborhood walkability and negatively related to concentrated disadvantage, suggesting that exposures to these neighborhood characteristics have long-lasting impacts on cognitive function. Furthermore, individual socioeconomic status modifies the relationship between neighborhood characteristics and cognitive function. Compared with those graduating from college, respondents without a bachelor's degree consistently have lower cognitive function but the educational gap in cognitive function narrows with increases in walkability (b= -0.152, SE=0.092), and widens when neighborhood concentrated disadvantage (b=0.212, SE=0.070) or social isolation (b=0.315, SE=0.125) rises. The income gap in cognitive function shrinks with increases in walkability (b= -0.063, SE=0.027).ConclusionsThe moderating role of socioeconomic status indicates that low-socioeconomic status older adults who also live in disadvantaged neighborhoods face a higher risk of poor cognitive function. Low-education and low-income aging adults may have the most to gain from investments to improve neighborhood characteristics.Copyright © 2023 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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