This variable is available only MARS, AACore and LATC and participants self-identifying as Hispanic/Latino of MAP (sMAP). The Study Operations team determined the mPNES did not apply to the living situations of other MAP participants, most of whom live in large retirement communities.

The Ambient Surroundings subscale is a subscale of the mPNES (i.e., the modified Perceptions of Neighborhood Environments Scale) derived from a Principle Component Analysis of all mPNES items for all participants with at first valid mPNES. The variable is assessing using 2 self-report questions about noise and traffic associated with the neighborhood environment. Instructions for the mPNES defined a neighborhood as “the area within about a 20-min walk (or about a mile) from your house.” Participants are asked to respond to each question using a 5-point rating scale (see table below); a higher score indicates higher neighborhood perceptions. The total score ranges from 2 to 10 and is the average sum of the individual items; at least 1 items must be available to calculate this variable.

Participants are asked the following questions:

1. There is a lot of noise in my neighborhood.
2. My neighborhood has heavy traffic.

Note: In previous research, this subscale has been shown to have somewhat lower internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha of 0.57), which may reflect the small number of items or heterogeneity of environmental exposures captured by this construct.