Objective and Perceived Community Factors: Exploring Responses to Context

Objectives: To study the neighborhood context, researchers typically use (objective) archival measures and (subjective) self-reported data of neighborhood conditions. The current study compared these measures and explored whether internalizing symptoms influences how individuals perceive their neighborhoods. Methods: The sample was 112 African American young adults living in 27 neighborhoods. Objective indicators of neighborhoods were assessed via census data and compared to self-reported data of neighborhood conditions. Results: Findings revealed that individuals with higher levels of anxiety and depression are more sensitive to objective indicators of neighborhood poverty. Conclusions: Results suggest that there are systematic differences in how people perceive their surroundings. Implications of study findings are discussed in terms of improving models of adjustment.