Giving Compass' Take:
- Studies indicate that lack of upward mobility or increasing socioeconomic status can lead to increased mortality rates, especially among Black men.
- How does structural racism play a role in decreasing upward mobility for men of color? How can donors utilize this research to help them address inequity?
- Learn more about the challenges and outcomes for Black men in America.
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Upward mobility, the capacity to improve one’s socioeconomic status, is key to realizing the American dream of a long, prosperous, and happy life, researchers say.
In a new study, they found a strong relationship between the lack of upward mobility early in life and increased mortality rates in young adults, particularly among Black males.
The study in the journal Health & Place is the first to examine disparities across race and gender in the relationship between early-life intergenerational upward mobility and early-adulthood mortality at the county level in the United States.
The researchers compared four demographic groups: white males, Black males, white females, and Black females. They analyzed administrative data on upward mobility, including tax records, and mortality statistics from 3,030 US counties for people born between 1978 and 1983—covering more than 40 million people nationwide. The study tracked the cohort through 2017, when its oldest members were 39 years old.
With the exception of white males, limits to upward mobility early in life closely predict higher chances of death in early adulthood, with the strongest association occurring among Black males, the analysis reveals. Additional analyses that considered education levels attained and the kinds of places where people live showed that the relationship between upward mobility and early-adulthood mortality is strongest among Black males without college degrees and those who live in cities.
“Our work shows that a lack of upward mobility—consistently being cut off from achieving the American dream—has serious consequences on the life expectancy of Black males,” says lead author Emma Zang, assistant professor of sociology at Yale University.
“Structural racism has determined where many Black Americans grow up, affecting their chances of obtaining a college degree, getting a good job, and starting a family—all important elements of achieving the American dream,” Zang says.
Read the full article about upward mobility for Black men by Mike Cummings at Futurity.