scholarly journals Measuring the Impact of Public Understandings of Risk from Urban and Industrial Development on Community Psychosocial Well-Being: a Mixed Methods Strategy

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-82
Author(s):  
Cathy Baldwin ◽  
Ben Cave ◽  
Patrick Rawstorne

AbstractAs the science of well-being moves towards an understanding of the influence of social experiences shared by many on individual and group-level well-being (‘community well-being’), a new approach to measuring well-being is required. It needs to bridge the contextually-specific social experiences best uncovered by social research methods, and psychological diagnoses made using conventional psychometric scales and diagnostic interviews. We build on our previous work on a new psychosocial model of a major influence on contemporary community well-being, the process by which people form, maintain and change their understandings of risk from urban and industrial projects, and any subsequent effects on individual psychosocial well-being. We utilise this model, and propose a mixed qualitative and quantitative methodology to argue for; 1) the incorporation of the emic (subject’s) perspective in the conceptual underpinnings of measurement scales; and 2) the synthesis of quantitative and qualitative assessments of well-being. This gives validity and contextual precision to scales which measure experiences of well-being that are geographically and socio-culturally-located. The resulting data offers both context of scale, and depth of insight. Additionally, our proposition combines theories and methods from psychology, social anthropology, sociology, social epidemiology, public health and community development. This evinces the importance of drawing on broad ranging perspectives to develop tools which capture the complex and multi-dimension nature of well-being - where psychological responses are shaped by collective social experiences.

2022 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 882
Author(s):  
Hiroko Oe ◽  
Yasuyuki Yamaoka

Purpose—This study aims to demonstrate the antecedent factors of consumers’ cosmetics purchasing behaviour in the emerging market of Thailand from the perspective of sustainability. Specifically, the study aims to quantitatively analyse the impact of three hypothesised antecedents of consumer behaviour: product quality, communicating sustainability, and ethical business behaviour. Methodology—A quantitative methodology is applied in the study, which collects survey data from Thailand. This study focuses on two cosmetic brands in Thailand, a domestic brand and an international brand. The total 800-sample dataset was analysed using Structural Equation Modelling to validate a conceptual model with measurements of three antecedent factors: quality, ethical behaviour, and communication sustainability. Findings—It is found that ‘ethical behaviour of the producers had a non-significant impact for all samples and the ‘domestic brand’, whereas communicating sustainability had a significant impact in all sample cases. The proposed measurement scales present a practical and pioneering tool for assessing consumer responses and behaviour towards cosmetic brands. The set of scales will also help cosmetics marketers to appraise their strategic planning and monitor their progress toward creating and identifying consumer loyalty to cosmetics brands via producers’ ethical behaviour and CSR messaging. Originality—The global market and inter-stakeholder communications have greatly changed the way people perceive, behave towards, and react to business suppliers. The understanding of consumer brand loyalty in the cosmetics industry and the business strategies focused on the impact of communicating sustainability with ethical behaviour remain limited, especially in the context of the emerging market. This research contributes to filling this gap with empirical analyses.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 1368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhijuan Zhang ◽  
Marcin Lis

Industrial development of the economic system of any state is directly related to the use of energy potential. China’s industrial breakthrough is no exception. Today, China is one of the largest importers–consumers of oil, whose economy is extremely dependent on the energy market. The growing production and population, as well as climatic changes that directly determine the well-being of society, have become the causal basis for the development of alternative ways of generating energy. The aim of the study is to model the implementation of the sustainable development strategy in China through the production and use of biofuels. The simulation is made taking into account the following. The production capacities of Chinese licensed producers of fuel ethanol are calculated. The efficiency of bioethanol production from various types of biological raw materials is evaluated. An economic and mathematical model of bioethanol production is built. The article forecasts the profitability of bioethanol sales from various types of biological raw materials (sugar sorghum, corn) in Chinese and European markets. The study comprehensively reveals the features of the use of biofuels in an industrial country, taking into account geopolitical factors, social and market contexts, as well as technical analysis of the raw materials and production potential of Chinese companies. The article also interprets the economic processes associated with the introduction of biofuels in the ecological and economic systems of China. The article demonstrates other concepts regarding the consequences of the energy sector’s transition to the principles of energy production from biomass. The article shows the contradictory nature of the impact of biofuel production on the food market and the agricultural sector. The article analyzes possible social, resource and macroeconomic risks, and also indicates possible vectors for further research that might be aimed at diversifying the associated negative processes.


1988 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 635-645 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Leonard Syme

A major theme in virtually all of Bertil Gardell's work is that the social and work environment affects health and well-being. This concern with the social environment has been a major influence in the development of a new area of research referred to as social epidemiology. In this area of work, difficulties are increasingly being recognized in identifying specific social factors in the environment toward which intervention programs can be directed. An approach to this complex problem is to focus attention on the “mini-environment” of the workplace. Research here has yielded several interesting hypotheses that may have important implications for studies of the larger environment. These hypotheses involve the concepts of control and participation, concepts that are central to all of Garden's work.


2022 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 357-362
Author(s):  
A. Yu. Astrakhantseva ◽  
V. V. Garmyshev

The article aims to study statistical data on the consequences of fires in the Republic of Buryatia from 2009 to 2020 using the methods of social and mathematical statistics. The study is relevant due to the current situation with fires and integral fire risk indicators in the municipalities. Man-made fires have been a source of increased danger to health and lives of the population, causing great material damage. Fires are a direct threat to the demographic situation in the region since they cause premature mortality. For households, fires undermine social status, destroy social units, cause moral harm aggravating stress, which provokes illnesses. From the technical point of view, man-made fires create risks for dilapidated houses and facilities that do not meet the fire safety requirements. The Republic of Buryatia is a region with a weak degree of industrial development and a vast territory with a low distribution of settlements, i.e. considerable remoteness from the regional centers. The impact of fires (which make up 99% of all types of emergency situation) on the social well-being of the population is studied. Based on the methodology and calculations of fire risks by the number of fires, injured and killed, material damage and destroyed buildings, it was established that the level of protection of residents of Buryatia from fire risks is insufficient. The indicators should encourage the government to develop and implement effective safety measures.


1980 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 563-579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elliott D. Sclar

This paper presents a model of the community economic development process with an emphasis on its implications for individual well-being. It is intended as a social epidemiology which can help explain empirical findings demonstrating a connection between indicators of individual and social dysfunction and indicators of economic change. The model is one of economic development in a market-oriented, profit-maximizing society. The underlying hypothesis is that changes in economic activity brought about by increases in the size of firms and scale of production place new demands upon local resources and labor markets. In response, families and social networks begin to change the ways they relate to individual members, changes that cause individuals to become more directly vulnerable to the stresses and strains generated by economic activity. The result is that dysfunction, as manifest in the incidence and prevalence of various pathologies, increases with both ups and downs in the economy. The paper discusses the ways in which these changes become manifest in the statistical series used for purposes of empirical analysis and suggests the limits of this approach to social research. It ends by presenting a policy prescription for economic development which places emphasis on social cost minimization rather than output maximization.


GeroPsych ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 171-179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence M. Solberg ◽  
Lauren B. Solberg ◽  
Emily N. Peterson

Stress in caregivers may affect the healthcare recipients receive. We examined the impact of stress experienced by 45 adult caregivers of their elderly demented parents. The participants completed a 32-item questionnaire about the impact of experienced stress. The questionnaire also asked about interventions that might help to reduce the impact of stress. After exploratory factor analysis, we reduced the 32-item questionnaire to 13 items. Results indicated that caregivers experienced stress, anxiety, and sadness. Also, emotional, but not financial or professional, well-being was significantly impacted. There was no significant difference between the impact of caregiver stress on members from the sandwich generation and those from the nonsandwich generation. Meeting with a social worker for resource availability was identified most frequently as a potentially helpful intervention for coping with the impact of stress.


Crisis ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 78-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Reisch ◽  
Petra Schlatter ◽  
Wolfgang Tschacher

This study assesses the efficacy of the treatment approach implemented in the Bern Crisis Intervention Program, where particular emphasis is placed on the remediation of suicide ideation and suicidal behavior, and depression, fear, and phobia are generally considered to be contributing factors. Four questionnaires addressing psychopathology, emotional well-being, social anxiety, and personality were administered prior to and after the treatment of 51 patients over a period of 2 to 3 weeks. The reduction of symptoms contributing to suicidal ideation and behavior was interpreted as indirect evidence of an antisuicidal effect of the program. Significant improvements were found in the psychopathology ratings, with depression and anxiety showing the largest reductions. The impact on personality and social phobia, however, was only moderate, and on average patients still exhibited symptoms after attending the program. This residual symptomatology points to the necessity of introducing a two-step therapy approach of intensive intervention targeted at the precipitating causes of the crisis, augmented by long-term therapy to treat underlying problems.


Crisis ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Friedrich Martin Wurst ◽  
Isabella Kunz ◽  
Gregory Skipper ◽  
Manfred Wolfersdorf ◽  
Karl H. Beine ◽  
...  

Background: A substantial proportion of therapists experience the loss of a patient to suicide at some point during their professional life. Aims: To assess (1) the impact of a patient’s suicide on therapists distress and well-being over time, (2) which factors contribute to the reaction, and (3) which subgroup might need special interventions in the aftermath of suicide. Methods: A 63-item questionnaire was sent to all 185 Psychiatric Clinics at General Hospitals in Germany. The emotional reaction of therapists to patient’s suicide was measured immediately, after 2 weeks, and after 6 months. Results: Three out of ten therapists suffer from severe distress after a patients’ suicide. The item “overall distress” immediately after the suicide predicts emotional reactions and changes in behavior. The emotional responses immediately after the suicide explained 43.5% of the variance of total distress in a regression analysis. Limitations: The retrospective nature of the study is its primary limitation. Conclusions: Our data suggest that identifying the severely distressed subgroup could be done using a visual analog scale for overall distress. As a consequence, more specific and intensified help could be provided to these professionals.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document