Cynthia Colen CV [PDF]

I am a social demographer whose research broadly focuses on the ways in which racial/ethnic inequalities, operating on both the macro and micro levels, impact the physical and mental health of minority populations in the United States. Through my work, I seek to challenge prevailing assumptions regarding the underlying social conditions that give rise to an unequal distribution of health across race/ethnicity. I employ a life course approach as an overarching framework to guide my research efforts. This perspective highlights the importance of both childhood and adult factors, many of which stem from an individual’s place within the social hierarchy, in the production of health and wellbeing in later life. Thus, I not only consider how race/ethnicity shapes the distribution of population health outcomes across disparate subpopulations, I also examine how the patterning of these disparities changes as individuals move through successive life course stages.

My research agenda can be divided into four distinct subareas: (1) Racial disparities in fertility and reproductive health; I ask what underlying social conditions give rise to racial differences in fertility timing, maternal health behaviors, and key reproductive outcomes. (2) Socioeconomic trajectories, race, and health; this line of research strives to examine the dynamic and often fluid interplay between socioeconomic status and racial/ethnic identity as it shapes the social patterning of disease in the United States. (3) Discrimination and health; I seek to better understand how exposure to interpersonal discrimination and unfair treatment is associated with health deterioration and accelerated aging (“weathering”) both within and across generations. (4) Resiliency and resistance among marginalized populations; I am interested in how individuals belonging to disadvantage groups access and engage protective mechanisms to prevent their health from declining.