Reading Lists

A synthesis of epidemiologic papers, some new, some old, which we feel cover particular topics creatively and well. We aim for this to be useful to introductory epidemiology readers, and interesting and helpful to those already in the field. All students and faculty are invited to submit ideas or candidate papers to the Population Health Methods team for inclusion here. The broader editorial calendar will dictate exact timing of publication but generally we want to post within 30 days of the publication of receiving a submission.

Core Concepts in Epidemiology	Age-Period-Cohort Effects
Complex Systems Approaches to Population Health	Why Do Socially Disadvantaged Populations Have Worse Health?
Measuring Geographically Patterned Hazards and Resources	The U.S. Disadvantage: Worse Health Compared to other High-Income Countries

Core Concepts in Epidemiology

Epidemiology is the core quantitative science of population health. The papers included here present issues that are frame setting for the field, laying the groundwork for further discussion of these topics and in subsequent papers.

1. A life course approach to chronic disease epidemiology: conceptual models, empirical challenges and interdisciplinary perspectives(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): Y Ben-Shlomo, D Kuh
Publication: International Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 2002

2. An argument for a consequentialist epidemiology(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): S Galea
Publication: American Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 2013

3. Epidemiology and the web of causation: has anyone seen the spider(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): N Krieger
Publication: Social Science and Medicine
Year published: 1994

4. Sick individuals and sick populations(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): G RosePublication: International Journal of Epidemiology

Year published: 1985

5. Causes(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): KJ Rothman
Publication: American Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 1976

6. Theorizing about causes at the individual level while estimating effects at the population level: implications for prevention(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): B Rockhill
Publication: Epidemiology
Year published: 2005

7. What is a cause and how do we know one? A grammar for pragmatic epidemiology(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): M Susser
Publication: American Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 1991

8. Choosing a future for epidemiology: I. Eras and paradigms(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): M Susser, E Susser
Publication: American Journal of Public Health
Year published: 1996

Complex Systems Approaches to Population Health

The integration of complex systems approaches to population health is a relatively new development in epidemiology. Several papers in the past 5 years, some conceptual, some empirical, have challenged the field to incorporate the methods of systems science.

1. A new tool for epidemiology: the usefulness of dynamic-agent models in understanding place effects on health(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): AH Auchincloss, AV Diez Roux
Publication: American Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 2008

2. Integrating social and biologic factors in health research: a systems view(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): AV Diez Roux
Publication: Annals of Epidemiology
Year published: 2007

3. Causal thinking and complex systems approaches in epidemiology(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): S Galea, M Riddle, GA Kaplan
Publication: International Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 2010

4. Social network analysis and agent-based modeling in social epidemiology(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): AM El-Sayed, P Scarborough, L Seeman, S Galea
Publication: Epidemiologic Perspectives and Innovation
Year published: 2012

5. The ecologic effects of individual exposures and nonlinear disease dynamics in populations(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): JS Koopman, IM Longini
Publication: American Journal of Public Health
Year published: 1994

6. Individual causal models and population system models in epidemiology(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): JS Koopman, JW Lynch
Publication: American Journal of Public Health
Year published: 1999

7. Causal systems modeling in chronic disease epidemiology: a proposal(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): RB Ness, JS Koopman, MS Roberts
Publication: Annals of Epidemiology
Year published: 2007

Measuring Geographically Patterned Hazards and Resources

Local contexts can undermine health, or provide opportunities to be well. Measuring spatially patterned exposures is necessary for understanding how they may affect health. Exciting recent directions include incorporation of longitudinal geographic data and attention to potential bias.

1. Measurement of the local food environment: a comparison of existing data sources(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): MD Bader, JA Ailshire, JD Morenoff, JS House
Publication: American Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 2010

2. The relationship between neighborhood poverty and alcohol use: estimation by marginal structural models(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): M Cerda, AV Diez Roux, ET Tchetgen, P Gordon-Larsen, C Kiefe
Publication: Epidemiology
Year published: 2010

3. Estimating neighborhood health effects: the challenges of causal inference in a complex world(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): AV Diez Roux
Publication: Social Science and Medicine
Year published: 2004

4. The influence of geographic life environments on cardiometabolic risk factors: a systematic review, a methodological assessment and a research agenda(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): C Leal, B Chaix
Publication: Obesity Reviews
Year published: 2011

5. Assessing the measurement properties of neighborhood scales: from psychometrics to ecometrics(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): MS Mujahid, AV Diez Roux, JD Morenoff, T Raghunathan
Publication: American Journal of Epidemiology
Year published: 2007

6. Using Google Street View to audit neighborhood environments(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): AG Rundle, MD Bader, CA Richards, KM Neckerman, JO Teitler
Publication: American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Year published: 2011

7. Geocoding in cancer research: a review(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): G Rushton, MP Armstrong, J GIttler, BR Greene, CE Pavlik, MM West, DL ZImmerman
Publication: American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Year published: 2006

Age-Period-Cohort Effects

Variation in disease prevalence over time and across the life-course reflects a combination of processes that vary by age, time period, and birth cohorts. Understanding the extent to which variation in disease rates reflect these processes help to guide hypotheses about etiologic mechanisms, and practically, guides researchers in the best practices for conducting and presenting surveillance. However, methods to assess age, period, and cohort effects have been controversial.

1. Some methodological issues in cohort analysis of archival data(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): KO Mason, WM Mason, HH Winsborough, K Poole
Publication: American Sociological Review
Year published: 1973

2. Models for temporal variation in cancer rates. II: Age-period-cohort models(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): D Clayton, E Schifflers
Publication: Statistical Medicine
Year published: 1987

3. Understanding the effects of age, period, and cohort on incidence and mortality rates(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): TR Holford
Publication: Annual Review of Public Health
Year published: 1991

4. A Mechanism-Based Approach to the Identification of Age-Period-Cohort Models(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): C Winship, DJ Harding
Publication: Sociological Methods & Research
Year published: 2008

5. What is a cohort effect? Comparison of three statistical methods for modeling cohort effects in obesity prevalence in the United States, 1971-2006(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): KM Keyes, RL Utz, W Robinson, G Li
Publication: Social Science and Medicine
Year published: 2010

Why Do Socially Disadvantaged Populations Have Worse Health?

A striking and recurrent pattern in the epidemiologic literature is the link between social status and health status. Yet variations and exceptions have also been noted which may inform our understanding of which public health actions would ameliorate or exacerbate health disparities.

1. Socioeconomic disparities in health: pathways and policies(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): NE Adler, K Newman
Publication: Health Affairs
Year published: 2002

2. Socioeconomic status in health research: one size does not fit all(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): PA Braveman, C Cubbin, S Egerter, S Chideya, KS Marchi, M Metzler, S Posner
Publication: Journal of the American Medical Association
Year published: 2005

3. Race/ethnicity, gender, and monitoring socioeconomic gradients in health: a comparison of area-based socioeconomic measures--the public health disparities geocoding project(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): N Krieger, JT Chen, PD Waterman, DH Rehkopf, SV Subramanian
Publication: American Journal of Public Health
Year published: 2003

4. Deprivation amplification revisited; or, is it always true that poorer places have poorer access to resources for healthy diets and physical activity?(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): S Macintyre
Publication: International Journal of Nutrition and Physical Activity
Year published: 2007

5. Tackling socioeconomic inequalities in health: analysis of European experiences(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): JP Mackenbach, MJ Bakker
Publication: The Lancet
Year published: 2003

6. Social determinants of health inequalities(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): M Marmot
Publication: The Lancet
Year published: 2005

7. “Fundamental causes" of social inequalities in mortality: a test of the theory(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): JC Phelan, BG Link, A Diez Roux, I Kiwachi, B Levin
Publication: Journal of Health and Social Behavior
Year published: 2004

8. Racial residential segregation: a fundamental cause of racial disparities in health(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): DR Williams, C Collins
Publication: Public Health Reports
Year published: 2001

The U.S. Disadvantage: Worse Health Compared to Other High-Income Countries

The United States currently lags behind many other high-income countries with regard to life expectancy and other important health indicators. The health disadvantage for Americans has steadily grown since its emergence during the second half of the twentieth century. The papers included here highlight the health disadvantage as well as discuss potential explanations.

1. Why Do Americans Have Shorter Life Expectancy and Worse Health Than People in Other High-Income Countries?(link is external and opens in a new window)
Author(s): M Avendano, I Kawachi
Publication: Rev Public Health
Year published: 2014

2. Do Americans Have Higher Mortality Than Europeans at All Levels of the Education Distribution?: A Comparison of the United States and 14 European Countries(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): M Avendano, R Kok, M Glymour, L Berkman, I Kawachi, A Kunst, J Mackenbach
Publication: Understanding Divergent Trends in Longevity in High-Income Countries
Year published: 2010

3. Mortality under age 50 accounts for much of the fact that US life expectancy lags that of other high-income countries(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): JY Ho
Publication: Health Affairs
Year published: 2012

4. Health at advanced age: social inequality and other factors potentially impacting longevity in nine high-income countries(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): JA Granados
Publication: Maturitas
Year published: 2013

5. Cancer survival in five continents: a worldwide population-based study (CONCORD)(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): MP Coleman, M Quaresma, F Berrino, JM Lutz, R De Angelis, R Capocaccia, et al.
Publication: Lancet Oncol
Year published: 2008

6. Estimating Smoking–Attributable Mortality in the United States(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): A Fenelon, SH Preston
Publication: Demography
Year published: 2012

7. Contribution of obesity to international differences in life expectancy(link is external and opens in a new window)

Author(s): SH Preston, A Stokes
Publication: Am J Public Health
Year published: 2011

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