# Understanding the Aging Process of Urban African Americans Across the Life Course: Identifying Early Risk and Protection for Cognition and Health in Midlife

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIV OF MARYLAND, COLLEGE PARK · 2022 · $586,486

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Black Americans experience disproportionate poor aging outcomes, including pronounced disparities in brain
health (e.g., Alzheimer’s Disease), significant social isolation, and nearly twice the mortality rate compared to
Whites. Although it is purported that these adverse health outcomes are due to a combination of greater
adversity over the life course and unhealthy coping behaviors, few studies have prospectively examined these
aspects of the lives of Blacks from childhood into the 60s. This developmental epidemiological study focuses
on life course pathways to successful aging in a large community cohort of urban Blacks first studied at age 6,
then in adolescence, and at ages 32 and 42. The proposed fifth round of data collection at age 60 is crucial for
examining individual and contextual life course trajectories affecting the aging experience. The specific aims
are to: (1) identify the array of aging experiences for the Woodlawn cohort of Blacks at age 60 using indicators
of cognitive, physical, functional, social, and mental health, (2) determine specific stressors across the life
course that influence aging, and (3) identify specific and malleable protective factors across the life course that
promote physical, mental, cognitive and social well-being for urban Blacks. This comprehensive study has
followed nearly all children entering first grade in 1966 in Woodlawn, a poor Chicago community (N=1242). We
have collected information from mothers, teachers, and official school, criminal, and death records as well as
data from cohort members themselves and now have an invaluable opportunity to examine well being
comprehensively over the life course for an underinvestigated population. This one-of-a-kind study spanning
more than 50 years will allow in-depth exploration of both normative development and deviance, challenging
assumptions of Black homogeneity and reframing the current deficit conceptualization, to focus instead on
pathways to successful aging, cognitive functioning, and health. Guided by the life course perspective and
stress theory, the experienced, uniquely qualified research team will employ advanced locating technology and
sophisticated analytical approaches tailored to longitudinal research. This research will contribute to
understanding life course influences on aging in urban Blacks. Our long-term goal is to inform intervention
development and policy making by identifying critical pivotal influences along the life course that alter aging
trajectories and improve health outcomes. In addition, this study will produce a dataset that can be used by us
and others for many years to identify complex patterns, subgroup differences, indirect pathways and targets for
early intervention that are critical to reduce health disparities and improve health outcomes for at-risk urban
Blacks. This work aligns with NIA’s strategic direction, which aims to (1) better understand the effects of
personal, interpersonal, an...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10460949
- **Project number:** 5R01AG057673-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF MARYLAND, COLLEGE PARK
- **Principal Investigator:** Kerry M Green
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $586,486
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-08-15 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10460949

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10460949, Understanding the Aging Process of Urban African Americans Across the Life Course: Identifying Early Risk and Protection for Cognition and Health in Midlife (5R01AG057673-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10460949. Licensed CC0.

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