Correlates of urban mortality: a social area analysis

A method of social area analysis developed by Shevky and Bell is used to analyze mortality among the census tracts of Des Moines, Iowa. "Social rank, urbanization, and segregation indices as well as age-standardized death rates were calculated for each census tract. All variables were treated as continuous, and correlation and regression procedures were used to analyze the data. The findings were consistent with those of previous studies and all relationships were as expected. Regression analysis revealed that segregation contributed little to the explanation of variation in age-standardized death rates, suggesting that segregation is not an important determinant of life styles affecting mortality independent of social rank. The results were interpreted in terms of social class differences in accessibility to medical assistance and assumption of the sick role."