The Mediating role of perceived discrimination and stress in the associations between neighborhood social environment and TV Viewing among Jackson Heart Study participants.

Abstract Objectives The aim of this study was to test the mediating role of perceived discrimination and stress on associations between perceived neighborhood social environment (PNSE) and TV viewing. Methods Baseline data were used for 4,716 participants (mean age=55.1y; 63.4% female) in the Jackson Heart Study (JHS), a large prospective cohort study of African Americans in Jackson, Mississippi. One binary TV viewing outcome was created: ≥4 hours/day versus Results Neighborhood violence, problems, and social cohesion were indirectly associated with TV viewing through lifetime discrimination (OR=1.03, 95%BC CI=1.00, 1.07; OR=1.03, 95%BC CI=0.99, 1.06 [marginal]; OR=0.98, 95%BC CI=0.94, 0.99, respectively) and chronic stress (OR=0.95, 95%BC CI=0.90, 0.99; OR=0.96, 95%BC CI=0.92, 0.99; OR=1.05, 95%BC CI=1.01, 1.10, respectively). Daily discrimination was neither directly nor indirectly associated with TV viewing. Conclusions Each PNSE variable was indirectly associated with TV viewing via lifetime discrimination and perceived stress, but not with daily discrimination among JHS participants. Unexpected directionality of mediating effects of lifetime discrimination and chronic stress should be replicated in future studies. Further research is also needed to pinpoint effective community efforts and physical environmental policies (e.g., installing bright street lights, community policing) to reduce adverse neighborhood conditions and psychosocial factors, and decrease TV viewing and subsequent cardiovascular disease risk.