Racial Disparities in Mental Health: A Data-Driven Learning Guide

Dataset

Detroit Area Study, 1995: Social Influence on Health: Stress, Racism, and Health Protective Resources

Data for this exercise come from the Detroit Area Study, 1995: Social Influence on Health. Researchers at the University of Michigan conducted the survey of adults aged 18 and older residing in households located in the Michigan counties of Oakland, Macomb, and Wayne.

The Detroit Area Study was conducted nearly every year from 1951 through 2005. The 1995 survey explored the ways in which social influences such as stress and racism affected respondents' health and outlook on life. Respondents were asked about their physical and mental health status and the effects these had on daily activities. Respondents were also asked about their experiences with employment, crime, discrimination, alcohol and drug use, fears and phobias, and medical treatment. A final set of questions gathered demographic information such as highest level of education completed and total family income in 1994.

This exercise will use the following variables:

• Frequency of feeling sad (V226)
• Self-reported race (V118)
• Highest grade of school completed (V1001)
• Marital status (V107)
• Ever treated unfairly because of race or ethnicity (V125)

Goal & Concept - Dataset - Application - Interpretation & Summary - Bibliography