Neighborhoods and Adolescent Development

Researchers are increasingly interested in identifying specific aspects of adolescents' lives that are positively or adversely affected by their place of residence. This body of work suggests that it is important to consider neighborhoods when examining their 1) engagement in risk-related behaviors; 2) educational outcomes; 3) physical and mental health; and 4) their integration within social institutions. To date, however, no existing work has simultaneously considered the range of outcomes in which neighborhoods are believed to be important within and across these four domains. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, we examine the extent to which neighborhoods influence adolescent outcomes across 34 characteristics nested within these four areas. The findings suggest that for adolescents, residential area is equally important in terms of risk behaviors, educational outcomes, and their integration within their families, schools, and churches. However, we find no evidence that neighborhoods are associated with adolescents' physical health or emotional well-being.