THE AMERICA I KNOW COULD USE A GOOD CRY - Impact of State and Civilian-Perpetrated Racial Violence on Cognitive Health

Sep 29, 2026

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The study applies a life course approach and the Weathering Hypothesis to examine how cumulative stress and fear-related experiences harm health and cognitive functioning. It builds on prior findings linking exposure to the U.S. criminal justice system among people racialized as Black to adverse cognitive outcomes. Using Health and Retirement Study (HRS) cognitive test scores from 2008–2020, it estimates associations between county histories of structural racism and cognitively impaired incidents, using binomial logistic regression.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Study approach and theoretical pathway

Research objective and exposures

Outcome definition and data source

Statistical modeling and key results

1024 Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 Abstract citation ID: igaf122.3450 THE AMERICA I KNOW COULD USE A GOOD CRY: IMPACT OF STATE AND CIVILIAN-PERPETRATED RACIAL VIOLENCE ON COGNITIVE HEALTH Muriel Taks Calle1, Betselot Wondimu1, Cailyn Clemons1, and Paris Adkins-Jackson2, 1. Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, New York, United States, 2. Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York, United States From a life course approach and relying on the Weathering Hypothesis as a primary pathway, this study acknowledges that cumulative stressful and fear-related experiences, whether endured directly or indirectly, have a detrimental impact on the individual’s health. Prior investigations show that exposure to the American criminal justice system experienced by individuals racialized as Black correlates with adverse cognitive effects. This analysis seeks to highlight not only the role of governmental and institutional bodies in perpetuating structural racism but also the contributions of civilian actors to racial terror which in turn, increases the chances of cognitive impairment among those racialized as Black. We estimate the association between living in a county with a history of structural racism and racially disproportionate incarceration rates (in the decade preceding the passing of the 1994 Crime Bill) and having at least one incident of cognitive impairment (2008-2020), based on cognitive test performance scores from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) . Binomial logistic regression results suggest that participants racialized as Black in counties with high structural racism (lynching history, and disproportionate deaths due to police violence) and disproportionate incarceration have 21.3 times higher odds (β = 3.059; 95%CI [0.242, 5.875]) of having at least one incident of cognitive impairment compared to those racializedas Black in counties with the same conditions except disproportionate incarceration.

FAQs

What theoretical framework guides the study?

The analysis uses a life course approach and the Weathering Hypothesis as the primary pathway linking cumulative stress and fear to health impacts.

What exposures and institutional contexts does the study focus on?

It highlights the role of governmental and institutional bodies perpetuating structural racism, and also the contributions of civilian actors to racial terror affecting cognitive impairment risk.

What data and outcome are used to assess cognitive impairment?

The study uses Health and Retirement Study (HRS) cognitive test performance scores and defines the outcome as having at least one incident of cognitive impairment from 2008 to 2020.

Sep 29, 2026

Upload by Aran