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Title: Education as "the Great Equalizer": Health Benefits for Black and White Adults

Citation Type: Journal Article

Publication Year: 2014

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Abstract: ObjectiveMany social policies and academic studies assume that education is the great equalizer that is capable of counteracting the unequal social resources of different demographic groups. This study aims to determine whether non-Hispanic whites and racial/ethnic minorities indeed experience comparable health benefits with greater educational attainment.MethodsData from the National Health Interview Survey 19972012 were used to conduct ordered logistic models comparing the self-rated health of 518,288 non-Hispanic whites and racial/ethnic minorities aged 3065 across the full spectrum of educational attainment.ResultsEducational attainment was found to affect the health of whites more than minorities, even with the inclusion of a wide range of potential sociodemographic, behavioral, and economic mediators.ConclusionWe discuss the possibility that unmeasured variables, such as childhood environment and other individual characteristics, are responsible for the stronger effect of education for whites than minorities, and what the implications are for future policy and research.

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Authors: Zajacova, Anna; Holmes, Christopher J.

Periodical (Full): Social Science Quarterly

Issue: 4

Volume: 95

Pages: 1064-1085

Data Collections: IPUMS Health Surveys - NHIS

Topics: Education, Health, Race and Ethnicity

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