scholarly journals Financial vulnerability and the impact of COVID-19 on American households

PLoS ONE ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. e0262301
Author(s):  
Carol Bruce ◽  
Maeve E. Gearing ◽  
Jill DeMatteis ◽  
Kerry Levin ◽  
Timothy Mulcahy ◽  
...  

In May 2020, Westat, in partnership with Stanford University School of Medicine, conducted a nationally-representative household survey of American attitudes and behaviors regarding COVID-19. In this article, we examine what the Coronavirus Attitudes and Behaviors Survey tells us about the impact of COVID-19 on financial status and how this impact varies by demographic characteristics, the presence of health risk factors, and financial status (including employment factors). The survey reveals significant inequality in financial impact, as those who were most financially vulnerable prior to the pandemic found themselves under greater financial strain, while those who were more financially secure have experienced a neutral or even positive impact of the pandemic on household finances. These findings have important implications for public policy as policymakers seek to target aid to those who need it most.

Crisis ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bonnie Klimes-Dougan ◽  
David A. Klingbeil ◽  
Sarah J. Meller

Background: While the ultimate goal of adolescent suicide-prevention efforts is to decrease the incidence of death by suicide, a critical intermediary goal is directing youths toward effective sources of assistance. Aim: To comprehensively review the universal prevention literature and examine the effects of universal prevention programs on student’s attitudes and behaviors related to help-seeking. Method: We systematically reviewed studies that assessed help-seeking outcomes including prevention efforts utilizing (1) psychoeducational curricula, (2) gatekeeper training, and (3) public service messaging directed at youths. Of the studies reviewed, 17 studies evaluated the help-seeking outcomes. These studies were identified through a range of sources (e.g., searching online databases, examining references of published articles on suicide prevention). Results: The results of this review suggest that suicide-prevention programming has a limited impact on help-seeking behavior. Although there was some evidence that suicide-prevention programs had a positive impact on students’ help-seeking attitudes and behaviors, there was also evidence of no effects or iatrogenic effects. Sex and risk status were moderators of program effects on students help-seeking. Conclusions: Caution is warranted when considering which suicidal prevention interventions best optimize the intended goals. The impact on adolescents’ help-seeking behavior is a key concern for educators and mental-health professionals.


2021 ◽  
pp. jech-2020-216030
Author(s):  
Benjamin J Gray ◽  
Richard G Kyle ◽  
Jiao Song ◽  
Alisha R Davies

BackgroundThe public health response to the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a detrimental impact on employment and there are concerns the impact may be greatest among the most vulnerable. We examined the characteristics of those who experienced changes in employment status during the early months of the pandemic.MethodsData were collected from a cross-sectional, nationally representative household survey of the working age population (18–64 years) in Wales in May/June 2020 (n=1379). We looked at changes in employment and being placed on furlough since February 2020 across demographics, contract type, job skill level, health status and household factors. χ2 or Fisher’s exact test and multinomial logistic regression models examined associations between demographics, subgroups and employment outcomes.ResultsOf our respondents, 91.0% remained in the same job in May/June 2020 as they were in February 2020, 5.7% were now in a new job and 3.3% experienced unemployment. In addition, 24% of our respondents reported being placed on furlough. Non-permanent contract types, individuals who reported low mental well-being and household financial difficulties were all significant factors in experiencing unemployment. Being placed on ‘furlough’ was more likely in younger (18–29 years) and older (60–64 years) workers, those in lower skilled jobs and from households with less financial security.ConclusionA number of vulnerable population groups were observed to experience detrimental employment outcomes during the initial stage of the COVID-19 pandemic. Targeted support is needed to mitigate against both the direct impacts on employment, and indirect impacts on financial insecurity and health.


Author(s):  
Liz Jackson ◽  
Ming Fai Pang ◽  
Emma Brown ◽  
Sean Cain ◽  
Caroline Dingle ◽  
...  

Purpose – Although researchers have identified correlations between specific attitudes and particular behaviors in the pro-environmental domain, the general relationship between young people’s development of environmental knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors is not well understood. Past research indicates that geographic context can play a role, while social factors such as age and gender can have a more significant impact on predicting attitudes and behaviors than formal education. Few studies have systematically examined the relationships between education and environmental attitudes and behaviors among youth in Hong Kong. The purpose of this paper is to report the findings of a study comparing secondary school students’ environmental attitudes and behaviors with age and related factors in two international schools and two government schools in Hong Kong. Students’ attitudes and behaviors were compared based on school type (curriculum), while the authors additionally compared the significance of social factors and attitudes on students’ behaviors. Design/methodology/approach – Attitudes were measured using the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) and the NEP for Children (NEPC), the most commonly used, internationally standardized tools for investigating environmental attitudes and values of adults and young people for comparative purposes. The authors compared NEP/NEPC scores and student self-reported environmental behaviors using a short questionnaire. Findings – No significant differences were found in attitudes or behaviors based on school type. However the authors did observe a significant effect of gender and age on students’ attitudes, and a significant correlation of student attitudes in the NEP with students’ self-reports regarding air conditioning consumption. Originality/value – This study builds a foundation for cross-national studies and for evaluating the impact of curricula over time.


2013 ◽  
Vol 18 (11) ◽  
pp. 1384-1396 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela K. Cupp ◽  
Katharine A. Atwood ◽  
Hilary F. Byrnes ◽  
Brenda A. Miller ◽  
Warunee Fongkaew ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 439-452 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kara Anne E. Rodenhizer ◽  
Katie M. Edwards

Dating violence (DV) and sexual violence (SV) are widespread problems among adolescents and emerging adults. A growing body of literature demonstrates that exposure to sexually explicit media (SEM) and sexually violent media (SVM) may be risk factors for DV and SV. The purpose of this article is to provide a systematic and comprehensive literature review on the impact of exposure to SEM and SVM on DV and SV attitudes and behaviors. A total of 43 studies utilizing adolescent and emerging adult samples were reviewed, and collectively the findings suggest that (1) exposure to SEM and SVM is positively related to DV and SV myths and more accepting attitudes toward DV and SV; (2) exposure to SEM and SVM is positively related to actual and anticipated DV and SV victimization, perpetration, and bystander nonintervention; (3) SEM and SVM more strongly impact men’s DV and SV attitudes and behaviors than women’s DV and SV attitudes and behaviors; and (4) preexisting attitudes related to DV and SV and media preferences moderate the relationship between SEM and SVM exposure and DV and SV attitudes and behaviors. Future studies should strive to employ longitudinal and experimental designs, more closely examine the mediators and moderators of SEM and SVM exposure on DV and SV outcomes, focus on the impacts of SEM and SVM that extend beyond men’s use of violence against women, and examine the extent to which media literacy programs could be used independently or in conjunction with existing DV and SV prevention programs to enhance effectiveness of these programming efforts.


2017 ◽  
Vol 49 (5S) ◽  
pp. 878
Author(s):  
Elise C. Brown ◽  
Duncan S. Buchan ◽  
Frank B. Wyatt ◽  
Lon Kilgore ◽  
Jonathan Cavana ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Thomas M. Keck ◽  
Logan Strother

Scholars have long been interested in judicial impact—the ability of courts to meaningfully alter policy or politics—because judicial decisions shape law, have the potential to affect many people, and may even implicate democracy in a fundamental sense. Classic studies in this tradition concern the degree to which actors outside the court comply with judicial decrees, such as whether or not (or to what extent) schools desegregated in the wake of Brown v. Board of Education. However, scholars working in a variety of other traditions have likewise examined the impact of judicial decisions, though they have not always used those terms. For example, advocates of interbranch analysis have situated courts within broader ongoing policy processes, and in so doing have documented repeated instances in which policy outcomes were altered by the actions of lawyers and judges. Likewise, students of legal mobilization have documented the sometimes constitutive effects of legal ideas on a wide range of political identities, attitudes, and behaviors. In short, the concept of impact includes a variety of ways in which courts influence politics, and the field of judicial impact studies will continue to benefit from a vital diversity of methods of inquiry, subjects of analysis, and conceptions of law.


2019 ◽  
pp. 106591291986650
Author(s):  
James M. Glaser ◽  
Jeffrey M. Berry ◽  
Deborah J. Schildkraut

“Education,” notes Philip Converse, “is everywhere the universal solvent.” Whatever the ill of the body politic, many believe that greater education improves the condition. Much scholarship explores the impact of education on political attitudes and behaviors, but scholars have not examined the relationship of education to support for political compromise. This is especially topical, as compromise between parties seems harder than ever to achieve, yet compromise is necessary for democratic governance. We examine whether higher levels of education lead to support for compromise and find that education does matter, but the relationship is conditional. For liberals and moderates, more education promotes greater support for compromise. For conservatives, those with more education are not more likely to support compromise than those with less education. We argue that for conservatives, education matters for compromise support, but it also leads to better understanding of bedrock ideological principles that inhibit approval of compromise.


2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
pp. 747-775
Author(s):  
Ivanka Pjesivac ◽  
Marlit A. Hayslett ◽  
Matthew T. Binford

This study examined the framing of genetically modified organisms in two American newspapers, The New York Times and the Washington Post (2000-2016) and tested the impact of risk and opportunity framing on attitudes and behaviors regarding genetically modified organisms. The content analysis ( N = 165) showed that the two newspapers did not have a dominant frame type in their coverage. A randomized three-condition experiment ( N = 182) showed that the type of framing significantly affected individuals’ attitudes and was able to change them. The type of framing affected individuals’ behavioral intentions through postexposure attitudes but was not able to significantly affect actual behavior.


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