Childhood Socioeconomic Status and Physical Activity in Later Life: The Role of Perceived Neighborhood Cohesion and Wealth in Adulthood

The literature indicates that perceived neighborhood social cohesion is related to later life physical activity. However, there is no research that examines the role of childhood socioeconomic status (SES) in shaping this relationship. We use data from the Health and Retirement Study (2006-2016; N = 8,754) and a structural equation modeling approach to examine whether perceived neighborhood social cohesion and adulthood wealth mediate the relationship between childhood SES and physical activity. Perceived neighborhood social cohesion and adulthood wealth have small but statistically significant mediational effects in the relationship between childhood SES and physical activity. Research on the relationship between health and place should consider the potential impact of childhood circumstances on the neighborhood one lives in during adulthood.