Impact of ethnic enclaves on life-space mobility for the oldest Mexican-Americans

Objective: Life-space assessment (LSA) is an important tool used to assess mobility in older adults. A high concentration of poverty is negatively associated with life-space mobility (LSM), but little is known about the role of ethnic enclaves in LSM. This study examines the role of ethnic enclaves in the relationship between poverty and LSM, defined as the capacity and patterns of functional mobility, among older Mexican Americans aged 79 years and older. Methods: The data come from wave 7 (2010-2011) of the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly (H-EPESE) (n = 1078) linked with 2010 census tract characteristics. LSM is measured using the LSA score, and ethnic enclaves are determined using the tract percentage of Mexican Americans. We use ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analysis to assess the relationship between poverty and LSA score, controlling for the tract percentage of Mexican American, sociodemographic, and health characteristics. Results: The mean age of participants was 85.8 years (SD = 4.0), 65% were female, and the mean score of LSA was 38.3 (SD = 23.0). The average percentage of poverty for the census tract was 28.8% (SD = 11.8%), and the average percentage of the Mexican American population for the census tract was 64.3% (SD = 18.3%). Poverty was negatively associated with LSA, and this relationship maintained statistical significance when controlling for sociodemographic characteristics. Adding the tract percentage of Mexican Americans as a control reduced the level of association between poverty and LSA, and the relationship between poverty and LSA became non significant. Conclusion: Higher poverty levels are associated with lower LSA scores, but the relationship between LSA and poverty is mitigated by the presence of ethnic enclaves. Future research should examine environmental and financial influences on LSM that may improve resilience with reference to physical decline and social isolation.