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Life Course Theory
These articles provide the background and science of life course theory.
- Halfon N, Larson K, Lu M, Tullis E, Russ, S, “Lifecourse Health Development: Past, Present and Future,” in Maternal and Child Health Journal. 2014; 18(2): 344-65.
- Lu MC, Halfon N, “Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Birth Outcomes: A Life-Course Perspective,” Maternal and Child Health Journal, Vol. 7, No. 1, March 2003, pp: 13-30.
Childhood Roots of Health Disparities
These articles discuss the evidence linking early life experiences and environments with later life health and health disparities.
- Shonkoff JP, Boyce WT, McEwen BS, “Neuroscience, Molecular Biology, and the Childhood Roots of Health Disparities: Building a New Framework for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention.” JAMA. 2009; 301 (21):2252-2259.
- Boyce, DT. “The Lifelong Effects of Early Childhood Adversity and Toxic Stress.” Pediatrics. 2014;36(2):102-8.
- Tough, P, “The Poverty Clinic.” New Yorker. 2011; March 21:24-32.
Place and Health
This issue brief explores the impacts of neighborhood conditions on health.
- Braveman P, Egerter S, An J, William D. “Neighborhoods and Health,” Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Exploring the Social Determinants of Health Series, Issue Brief 8, May 2011, 1-11.
Racism and Health
These articles examine the impact of race on health over a lifetime and through generations, and one organization’s approach to implementing an anti-racist framework.
- Geronimus AT, “Understanding and Eliminating Racial Inequalities in Women’s Health in the U.S.: The Role of the Weathering Conceptual Framework,” Journal of the American Medical Women’s Association, 2001, No. 56, pp. 133-136.
- Jones CP, “Levels of Racism: A Theoretic Framework and a Gardener’s Tale,” AJPH, August 2000, Vol. 90, NO. 8, pp. 1212-1215.
- Pender Green M. “Beyond Diversity and Multiculturalism: Toward the Development of Anti-Racist Institutions and Leaders” Journal For Nonprofit Management, 2007, 9-17.
Community as Partners
These articles reference power in communities, and highlight the need for approaches that include community capacity building that acknowledges that solutions to addressing social determinants of health are in communities themselves.
- Iton, Anthony.” Tackling the Root Causes of Health Disparities Through Community Capacity Building,” in Tackling Health Inequities Through Public Health Practice, A Handbook for Action, National Association of County and City Health Officials and The Ingham County Health Department, 2008.
- “Through a Different Lens: The War on Poverty and a New Vision for the Future,” Family Independence Initiative, 2014.
- Syme SL. “Social Determinants of Health: The Community as an Empowered Partner,” Paper presented to the Communities in Control Conference,Moonee Valley Racing Club, Melbourne, April 7-8, 2003.
Taking Theory to Practice
These articles describe projects that translate life course theory to practice.
- Shrimali B, Luginbuhl J, Malin C, Flournoy R, Siegel A, “The Building Blocks Collaborative: Advancing a Life Course Approach to Health Equity Through Multi-Sector Collaboration,” Maternal and Child Health Journal, 2014 Feb;18(2):373-9.
- Parthasarathy P, Dailey DE, Young ME, Lam C, Pies C, “Building Economic Security Today: Making the Health-Wealth Connection in Contra Costa’s Maternal and Child Health Programs,” in Maternal and Child Health Journal, 2014 Feb; 18(2):396-404.
Innovation
These resources provide information on design thinking and one application of it in public health to plan projects addressing social determinants of health.
- HCD Connect, a project of IDEO
- Jess Vechakul’s Design Sprint evaluation
Organizational Change
This guide provides a framework for service organizations to values and practices into their work that address underlying systemic problems that result in inequalities.
- “Social Service and Social Change, A Process Guide.” Building Movement Project, 2006.
Local Data
This link contains reports that provide an in-depth look at health inequities and underlying social inequities in Alameda County: