Introduction: This study examined how neighborhood ethnic composition influences colorectal cancer (CRC) screening behavior in Asian Americans and explored whether the associations between psychosocial predictors including knowledge, self-efficacy, and barriers with CRC screening behavior varied by the level of neighborhood ethnic composition. Methods: A total of 1,057 Filipino, Korean, and Vietnamese Americans aged 50 and older were included in the study. Psychosocial factors associated with CRC screening, CRC screening behavior, and socio-demographics were extracted from participants’ survey data. Neighborhood ethnic composition was characterized as the census-tract level percentage of Asian residents. Participant’s addresses were geocoded to the census tract level to determine whether they resided in an ethnically dense neighborhood. Results: The mixed-effects logistic regression model 1 illustrated that residing in an ethnically dense neighborhood was associated with lower odds of CRC screening (OR=0.65, 95% CI=0.49, 0.77; p=0.019) after controlling for age, gender, education, and ethnic group. Furthermore, greater perceived barriers to CRC screening (OR= 0.62; 95% CI=0.55, 0.90; p<0.001) resulted in a lower odds of obtaining a CRC screening, while higher self-efficacy (OR=1.17, 95% CI=1.11, 1.23, p<0.001) was associated with greater odds of CRC screening. In model 2, among those residing in a high ethnically dense neighborhood, greater barriers to screening was associated with lower odds of having obtained a CRC screening (OR=0.51; 95% CI=0.28, 0.93; p=0.028). Conclusion: The study findings revealed that residing in an ethnically dense neighborhood led to a lower likelihood of having obtained a CRC screening. Future studies should examine disparities in built environment, socioeconomic, and cultural factors that are characteristic of ethnically dense neighborhoods and their impact on CRC screening participation.

Citation Format: Aisha Bhimla, Ming-Chin Yeh, Tyrell Mann-Barnes, Phuong Do, Chul Kim, Hemi Park, Grace X. Ma. The effects of neighborhood ethnic density and psychosocial factors on colorectal cancer screening behavior among Asian American adults [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: Thirteenth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2020 Oct 2-4. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2020;29(12 Suppl):Abstract nr PO-166.