Determinants of Health:

Luisa Franzini, Ph.D., assistant professor of management, policy and community health,
School of Public Health

Where you live and your family’s income affect your health. Franzini’s research uses sophisticated statistical methods to understand the role of social and economic factors in affecting health.

Luisa Franzini, Ph.D.

“Health depends not only on genetics and health care, but also in large part on the socioeconomic environment people live in,” Franzini said. “So, for example, individuals with more education or with higher income have better health and longer life expectancy.

“Why is that so? Partly because better off individuals have more economic and social resources to draw on. More money allows them to live in better and safer neighborhoods and to afford a healthier diet and better quality housing. More education leads to better knowledge of what is a healthy lifestyle and to the ability to maintain healthy habits,” she said.

“On the other hand, disadvantaged people tend to have less material resources, less control over their lives, and more stress,” she said. “These conditions negatively affect health through unhealthy lifestyles and chronic stress.”

Franzini’s interest in socioeconomic determinants of health began early in her public health career. “I was investigating the costs of treating breast cancer patients,” she said, “when I noticed that survival varied significantly in the different racial groups. I was intrigued by this result and decided to investigate.”