Community-Based Participatory Research: How Residents of a Small Low-Income Racially Homogenous Disadvantaged Neighborhood Perceive the Effects of Poverty Stigma, Community Disorder, & Feelings of Unsafety on Health

Authors

Stan Korotchenko, University of Central Florida
Kim M. Anderson, University of Central Florida

Abstract

Although research indicates that social determinants impact minority health, there remains a dearth of knowledge on how economically disadvantaged communities perceive the effects of poverty stigmatization, community disorder, and feelings of unsafety on their health status. This qualitative study used community-based participatory research methods to explore how minority residents (n=23) from an urban neighborhood of concentrated poverty perceived the impact of residential and environmental factors on their health. Thematic analysis highlighted how the combination of high crime rates and community disorder negatively affected residents’ ability to maintain a healthy lifestyle due to increased levels of stress and decreased access to health resources. Additionally, perceptions of stigmatization and feelings of unsafety adversely impacted levels of community connectedness and collective efficacy and prevented efforts to improve their individual and neighborhood health conditions.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Korotchenko, Stan and Anderson, Kim M. (2020) "Community-Based Participatory Research: How Residents of a Small Low-Income Racially Homogenous Disadvantaged Neighborhood Perceive the Effects of Poverty Stigma, Community Disorder, & Feelings of Unsafety on Health," Qualitative Criminology (QC): Vol. 8: No. 4, Article 4.
Available at: https://dc.swosu.edu/qc/vol8/iss4/4