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Single‐Mother Families and Air Pollution: A National Study *
Author(s) -
Downey Liam,
Hawkins Brian
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
social science quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.482
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1540-6237
pISSN - 0038-4941
DOI - 10.1111/j.1540-6237.2008.00545.x
Subject(s) - census tract , census , demography , environmental health , geography , medicine , population , sociology
Objective. This study uses tract‐level demographic data and toxicity‐weighted air pollutant concentration estimates for the continental United States to determine whether (1) single‐mother families are overrepresented in environmentally hazardous Census tracts and (2) the percentage of single‐mother families in a Census tract is a significant predictor of tract‐level toxic concentration estimates. Methods. After calculating tract‐level toxic concentration estimates for the average female‐headed family, male‐headed family, and married‐couple family with and without children, we use fixed‐effects regression models to determine whether the percentage of single‐mother families in a tract is a significant predictor of tract‐level toxic concentration estimates. Results. Single‐mother families are overrepresented in environmentally hazardous Census tracts, and the percentage of single‐mother families in a tract remains a significant predictor of estimated toxic concentration levels even after controlling for many of the most commonly used variables in the literature. Conclusion. Environmental inequality researchers need to broaden their focus beyond race and income to include groups such as single‐mother families in their research.