Demography, Population, and Ecology Commons^™

Three Essays On Internal Migration And Risk Factors For Non-Communicable Diseases (Ncds) In Low- And Middle-Income Countries (Lmics), Weilong Li

Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations

Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have been experiencing extensive internal migration, which is closely associated with the increasing prevalence of risk factors for non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In this dissertation, I study the impact of internal migration on main NCD risk factors across three diverse LMIC contexts: China, Indonesia, and Malawi. In Chapter 1, I introduce the background, motivation, and research goals of this dissertation. In Chapter 2, I use data from the 2011 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) to examine the associations between rural-urban migration and three main NCD risk factors, hypertension, obesity, and abdominal obesity, among older …

Three Essays On Mental Health And Pain In The United States, Morgan Peele

Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations

This dissertation contains three chapters on adult mental health and pain in the contemporary United States, paying special attention to social inequalities therein. In the first chapter I use data from the 2002-2014 National Health Interview Survey Linked Mortality Files (NHIS-LMF) to explore sociodemographic differences in the intersection of physical and psychological pain (referred to as the “pain–distress nexus”) and its relationship to mortality among adults ages 25 to 64. I find the combination of both high distress and high pain is most prevalent and most strongly predictive of mortality among socioeconomically disadvantaged, non-Hispanic Whites. In the second chapter I …

Intended And Unintended Consequences Of Two Paradigms Of Urban Planning, And Their Social Justice And Human Health Impacts, In Portland, Oregon, Steve Kolmes

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article describes two contesting paradigms of urban planning employed successively in Portland, Oregon; (1) urban planning typical of the US in the first half of the 20th Century that was focused on traffic and infrastructure, and (2) progressive urban planning focused on neighborhood livability and connections. It gives a history of their implementation in Portland, focusing on issues of racial and socioeconomic justice in the Albina neighborhood. Recent knowledge about air pollution’s impacts on human health, and infant and childhood development, are integrated into the discussion of urban planning. It describes racially and socioeconomically disproportionate access to urban green …

“It’S Real”: Experiences Of Family Homelessness In Fort Worth, Texas, Bernd Scheffler, Dale Brooker Phd.

Pursue: Undergraduate Research Journal

Introduction: Despite the common public image of homelessness (read: a single “vagrant” person), families with children represent one-third of the homeless population—an especially-serious social problem since family homelessness has long-term negative impacts on two generations simultaneously. This interdisciplinary study examined the complexities of family homelessness in Fort Worth, Texas.

Methods: A literature review outlined pathways into family homelessness, shared experiences, and common intervention strategies. An original qualitative study followed, employing a phenomenological approach to interview families in a local rapid-rehousing program. Open-ended questions allowed free descriptions of personal realities. Audio-recorded responses were analyzed for relevant themes, commonalities, and variations.

Results: …

Litigation As Integration And Participation: The Role Of Lawsuits In The U.S. Environmental Justice Movement, Tomas Sebastian Forman

Senior Projects Spring 2022

What is, has been, and could be the role of litigation in the U.S. environmental justice movement? To what ends do Indigenous communities, federally-recognized tribes, and rural Black communities choose to engage with the U.S. legal system, an institution which has, over history, consistently subjugated and dispossessed them? How do these groups' particularistic relationships to natural and built environments, conceptions of justice and fairness, and understandings of what effective environmental regulation look like inform that choice? This paper draws from in-depth qualitative research to demonstrate the following things: (1) how environmental justice lawsuits differ from canonical environmental and civil rights …

Notes From The Editorial Office (Volume 36, Issue 2), John J. Green

Journal of Rural Social Sciences

With volume 36, issue 2 of the Journal of Rural Social Sciences (JRSS), we are pleased to share two recent Presidential Addresses from the Southern Rural Sociological Association (SRSA), originally presented at SRSA annual conferences held in 2020 and 2021. Dr. Jin Young Choi (Sam Houston State University) spoke at the February 2020 conference held in Lexington, Kentucky, and Dr. David Nii O. Tackie (Tuskegee University) presented during the February 2021 virtual conference.

An Examination Of Poverty: Dimensions, Causes, And Solutions, David Nii O. Tackie

Journal of Rural Social Sciences

This article, based on the 2021 Southern Rural Sociological Association (SRSA) Presidential Address, assesses the dimensions, causes of, and solutions to poverty. It finds that the definition of poverty varies based on the criteria used, and even by which agency or institution is defining it. It also finds that poverty indices vary by state and by county. For instance, in selected SRSA states, Virginia has the lowest poverty rate and Mississippi has the highest poverty rate. There are several causes of poverty, some of which are lower levels of education, lower levels of health, unemployment, lack of livable wages, and …

Smallest U.S. Population Growth In History: More Deaths, Fewer Births, And Less Immigration, Kenneth M. Johnson

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

In this brief, author Kenneth Johnson reports that the U.S. population grew by just 393,000 between July of 2020 and July of 2021 according to new Census Bureau estimates—the lowest rate of annual population gain in history and the smallest numeric gain in more than 100 years. Diminished immigration from abroad contributed, but the driver of this minimal population gain was that there were only 148,000 more births than deaths. This is the smallest natural gain in more than 80 years. COVID-19 played a central role in this small population gain. In addition to 475,000 deaths directly attributable to COVID-19 …

Association Between Teenage Pregnancy And Family Factors: An Analysis Of The Philippine National Demographic And Health Survey 2017, Kozue Tabei, Erlinda Susana S. Cuisia-Cruz, Chris Smith, Xerxes Seposo

Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health Publications

Adolescence is a key developmental period in one’s life course; health-related behaviors of adolescents can be linked to lifelong consequences, which affect their future health. Previous studies highlight the role of family and its significant association with adolescents’ health. In East Asia and the Pacific, the Philippines is the only country that is showing an upward trend of teenage pregnancy while other countries in the region have declining teenage pregnancy rates. Against this backdrop, this study investigated the association between teenage pregnancy and family factors, specifically parent structure. Data for the study were extracted from the Philippine National Demographic and …

A Case Of Shifting Focus Friction: Extension Directors And State 4-H Program Leaders’ Perspectives On 4-H Lgbtq+ Inclusion, Jeremy Elliott-Engel, Donna Westfall-Rudd, Eric Kaufman, Megan Seibel, Rama Radhakrishna

The Journal of Extension

Contemporary Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning (LGBTQ+) youth are identifying and communicating their identities earlier in childhood than generations before as a result of more awareness and more acceptance of gender identity and sexual minorities by society. A qualitative study of U.S. 4-H program leaders and Extension directors generated an emergent theme around the importance of serving LGBT youth and the resulting implementation challenges. The administrators of 4-H, the largest youth serving organization in the country, recognize the presence of LGBTQ+ youth in 4-H and believe the organization must be inclusive. But challenges remain in ensuring youth experience inclusion at …

An Exploration Of Black Church Leaders' Intentions To Develop Critical Consciousness Among African-American Students, Taheesha Quarells

Dissertations

African-American students experience human capital opportunity and achievement gaps. Researchers have called for culturally relevant strategies to help close the gaps. The historic Black Church, a part of many African-American students’ culture and community, is a historic and current source of social capital for positive human capital development outcomes. Critical consciousness develops positive human capital outcomes, such as academic achievement, in African-American and other minority students. Much of the literature on critical consciousness is quantitative in nature and therefore does not include the intentions or the willingness of organizations to develop critical consciousness. Therefore, there is a need to understand …

Billions In Covid-19 Rental Assistance Fails To Reach Tenants, William Clay Fannin

Population Health Research Brief Series

COVID-19 exacerbated existing problems with housing affordability in the United States, particularly for Black and Hispanic renters. To curb these financial hardships, Congress created the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) program, but ERA rollout has been slow and inconsistent. This brief describes geographic differences in ERA spending across the U.S. and encourages states and localities to adopt policies that increase program eligibility and streamline fund disbursement.

Environment Degradation And Security, Rasha El Gohary

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Latinos In Massachusetts: Springfield, Phillip Granberry, Vishakha Agarwal

Gastón Institute Publications

Springfield, the third largest city in Massachusetts, has 69,301 Latinos according to the 2015-2019 American Community Survey. They represent 45% of the city's population. Whites are the second largest ethno-racial group (31%), while Blacks (19%) and Asians (3%) are the other ethno-racial group with a sizable presence. The Latino share in Springfield is also larger than Latinos' statewide share, which is 11%.

Latinos In Massachusetts: Chelsea, Phillip Granberry, Vishakha Agarwal

Gastón Institute Publications

Chelsea is home to an estimated 26,794 Latinos according to the 2015-2019 American Community Survey. They represent two-thirds (67%) of the city’s population. Only Lawrence, which is 81% Latino, has a larger share of its population Latino than Chelsea does. Whites are the next largest ethno-racial group with 21% of the population. Blacks and Asians each make up less than 5% of city’s population. The Latino share in Chelsea is also larger than Latinos' statewide share, which is 11%.

Latinos In Massachusetts: Lawrence, Phillip Granberry, Vishakha Agarwal

Gastón Institute Publications

Lawrence, Massachusetts is a city of 79,942 residents, of whom 64,463 or 81% are Latino according to the 2015-2019 American Community Survey. While Boston has a larger Latino population, Lawrence has the largest share of Latino residents of any city or town in Massachusetts. The second largest group in the city is Non-Latino Whites, who make up 15% of the population. Blacks and Asians account for 2% each, while the “other” group makes up 1% of the city’s population. The Latino share in Lawrence is significantly larger than Latinos' statewide share, which is 11%.

Latinos In Massachusetts: Lynn, Phillip Granberry, Vishakha Agarwal

Gastón Institute Publications

As the largest city in Essex County, Lynn’s population in the 2015-2019 American Community Survey is 93,743. The city is home to an estimated 40,095 Latinos, who are the largest ethno-racial group and make up 43% of the city’s population. Whites are the second largest population (36%), while the city has smaller Black (11%), Asian (7%), and Other (3%) populations.

Latinos In Massachusetts: Worcester, Phillip Granberry, Vishakha Agarwal

Gastón Institute Publications

Worcester, the second largest city in Massachusetts, is home to an estimated 40,510 Latinos, who make up 22% of the city’s population. Whites constitute the largest ethno-racial group (55%), while Blacks (12%) and Asians (7%) are the other ethno-racial group in the city. The Latino share in Worcester is larger than Latinos' statewide share, which is 11%.

Latinos In Massachusetts: Lowell, Phillip Granberry, Vishakha Agarwal

Gastón Institute Publications

Lowell is a city of 111,306 residents, who include 20,132 Latinos, or 18% of the city’s population. (Across the state, Latino residents make up only 11% of the population.) Lowell has a larger non-Latino White (49%) and Asian (23%) populations, while Blacks and “other” groups compose 7% and 3%, respectively.

Livelihood And Happiness In A Resource (Natural And Cultural)-Rich Rural Municipality In The Philippines, Rosalina Palanca-Tan, Sheila Bayog

Economics Department Faculty Publications

This paper looks at the economic and welfare conditions of residents in Lake Sebu, a largely rural but natural and cultural resource-rich municipality in Southern Mindanao in the Philippines. Two notions of welfare are used in the study: economic welfare, measured in terms of household income and vulnerability to hunger; and social welfare, measured in terms of self-reported happiness. The study uses primary data collected through a household survey and analyzed with statistical and econometric procedures (tests of difference between sub-populations; and ordinary least squares, binary probit, and ordered logistic regressions). The results suggest mixed implications of abundant natural and …