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Changes In New Hampshire’S Republican Party: Evolving Footprint In Presidential Politics, 1960-2008, Dante J. Scala Dec 2011

Changes In New Hampshire’S Republican Party: Evolving Footprint In Presidential Politics, 1960-2008, Dante J. Scala

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief describes a series of dramatic changes in New Hampshire's political landscape over the past four decades. Examining presidential elections from 1960 to 2008, author Dante Scala uncovers a series of significant shifts in New Hampshire's political geography at the county level. He reports that historically Republican counties Grafton and Merrimack have both tilted Democratic consistently in recent decades and that New Hampshire has become less Republican overall. All of these changes have impacted not just general elections in New Hampshire, but the Republican presidential primary as well.


Rates Of Public Health Insurance Coverage For Children Rise As Rates Of Private Coverage Decline, Michael J. Staley, Jessica A. Bean, Jessica D. Ulrich Dec 2011

Rates Of Public Health Insurance Coverage For Children Rise As Rates Of Private Coverage Decline, Michael J. Staley, Jessica A. Bean, Jessica D. Ulrich

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief uses data from the 2008, 2009, and 2010 American Community Survey to document changes in rates of children’s health insurance, between private and public. The authors report that, nationally, private health insurance for children decreased by just under 2 percentage points, while public health insurance increased by nearly 3 percentage points. Rural places and central cities witnessed significant declines in rates of private health insurance for children in nearly every region. Rates of public insurance coverage rose in every region and place type. Children’s health insurance coverage overall continued to rise in 2010, increasing by 0.6 of a …


Do You Believe The Climate Is Changing? Answers From New Survey Research, Lawrence C. Hamilton Dec 2011

Do You Believe The Climate Is Changing? Answers From New Survey Research, Lawrence C. Hamilton

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief explores how political views influence Americans’ understanding and perception of science. The research is based on a national version of the Community and Environment in Rural America survey called NCERA, and on New Hampshire’s statewide Granite State Poll. Author Lawrence Hamilton reports that most people on both surveys feel that they understand either a great deal or a moderate amount about global warming or climate change. However, deep partisan divisions affect both personal beliefs about climate change and perceptions of agreement among scientists. Democrats are much more likely to state they believe that climate change is happening, caused …


Youth Internet Safety Study (Yiss): Methodology Report., Kimberly J. Mitchell, Lisa M. Jones Dec 2011

Youth Internet Safety Study (Yiss): Methodology Report., Kimberly J. Mitchell, Lisa M. Jones

Crimes Against Children Research Center

The Youth Internet Safety Surveys (YISS‐1, YISS‐2, and YISS‐3) were conducted in order to quantify and detail youth experiences with unwanted or problematic Internet experiences including sexual solicitations, harassment, and unwanted exposure to pornography on the Internet. YISS‐3 collected additional information about youth produced sexual images (YPSI) or “sexting.” The YISS‐1, YISS‐2 and YISS‐3 studies were conducted in 2000, 2005 and 2010, respectively, providing important comparative information on changes in the numbers of youth reporting unwanted or problematic Internet experiences at 5‐year intervals since 2000. This is a critical timeframe for observation given the sharp rise in the use of …


Teen Stress And Substance Use Problems In Coös: Survey Shows Strong Community Attachment Can Offset Risk, Karen T. Van Gundy, Meghan L. Mills Nov 2011

Teen Stress And Substance Use Problems In Coös: Survey Shows Strong Community Attachment Can Offset Risk, Karen T. Van Gundy, Meghan L. Mills

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief explores how social stress and community attachment are related to problem alcohol and drug use for girls and boys in Coös County, New Hampshire. The brief uses survey data from the Coös Youth Study, which includes self-reported information from 564 Coös youth who were in seventh and eleventh grades in 2008, and who were surveyed again one year later (in 2009) when they were in eighth and twelfth grades. Nearly one-fourth of youth in Coös County (22 percent of boys and 23 percent of girls) reported at least one alcohol or drug use related problem. The authors note …


Reliance On Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Continued To Rise Post-Recession, Jessica A. Bean Nov 2011

Reliance On Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Continued To Rise Post-Recession, Jessica A. Bean

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief uses data from the 2007, 2009, and 2010 American Community Survey to provide an up-to-date look at changes in SNAP receipt over the course of the recession.


Coos Teens’ View Of Family Economic Stress Is Tied To Quality Of Relationships At Home, Corinna J. Tucker, Genevieve R. Cox Oct 2011

Coos Teens’ View Of Family Economic Stress Is Tied To Quality Of Relationships At Home, Corinna J. Tucker, Genevieve R. Cox

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

Family economic hardship during adolescence affects family relationships and the social, emotional, and behavioral development of a substantial number of American youth. The authors of this brief use data from the Coos County Youth Study, conducted by the Carsey Institute, to explore adolescents’ perceptions of family economic pressure in 2008 and determine whether these views are linked to their family relationship experiences one year later. They report that one-third of adolescents in Coos County, New Hampshire, perceive that their family is experiencing significant economic pressure and that significant economic pressure is linked to negative parent-child and sibling relationships one year …


More Poor Kids In More Poor Places: Children Increasingly Live Where Poverty Persists, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Kenneth M. Johnson, Andrew P. Schaefer Oct 2011

More Poor Kids In More Poor Places: Children Increasingly Live Where Poverty Persists, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Kenneth M. Johnson, Andrew P. Schaefer

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

More poor kids in more poor places: children increasingly live where poverty persists


Stretching Ties: Social Capital In The Rebranding Of Coos County, New Hampshire, Michele Dillon Oct 2011

Stretching Ties: Social Capital In The Rebranding Of Coos County, New Hampshire, Michele Dillon

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

Place rebranding is gaining in popularity as cities and rural communities alike attempt to expand their revenue streams through innovative marketing strategies that seek to revitalize or create tourism destinations. These efforts tend to come about as part of an economic development strategy pursued by communities that have borne steep economic losses resulting from global economic restructuring and the decline in traditional manufacturing, agriculture, and natural-resource extraction. Author Michele Dillon explores the role of social capital in rural wealth generation by focusing on how it was used to advance place rebranding in Coos County in northern New Hampshire.


Polyvictimization: Children's Exposure To Multiple Types Of Violence, Crime, And Abuse., David Finkelhor, Heather Turner, Sherry L. Hamby, Richard Ormrod Oct 2011

Polyvictimization: Children's Exposure To Multiple Types Of Violence, Crime, And Abuse., David Finkelhor, Heather Turner, Sherry L. Hamby, Richard Ormrod

Crimes Against Children Research Center

Presents the findings of the National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV) regarding children's direct exposure to multiple types of violence, crime, and abuse, also known as polyvictimization. Children and youth who are exposed to multiple types of violence are at particularly high risk for lasting physical, mental, and emotional harm, even compared with children who experience repeated exposures to a single type of violence. Among the key findings: 8 percent of all youth in the nationally representative NatSCEV sample had seven or more different kinds of exposures to violence, crime, and abuse in the past year. These youth …


Poor Women With Sexually Transmitted Infections: Providers’ Perspectives On Diagnoses, Genevieve R. Cox Oct 2011

Poor Women With Sexually Transmitted Infections: Providers’ Perspectives On Diagnoses, Genevieve R. Cox

Sociology

This article presents results from a study of health care providers, mainly nurses and nurse practitioners, who routinely diagnose sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in rural low-income populations in West Virginia (WV). A qualitative analysis of eighteen semi-structured interviews reveals that providers who consistently work with low-income populations believe patients undergo a negative change in self-image in response to a chronic STD diagnosis. Providers express concerns about a number of issues related to low-income, rural women’s access to sexual health care and see the need for more sexuality education, more funding for free and reduced cost clinics, and more available health …


Children's Exposure To Intimate Partner Violence And Other Family Violence., Sherry L. Hamby, David Finkelhor, Heather Turner, Richard Ormrod Oct 2011

Children's Exposure To Intimate Partner Violence And Other Family Violence., Sherry L. Hamby, David Finkelhor, Heather Turner, Richard Ormrod

Crimes Against Children Research Center

Explores in depth the survey results from the National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence (NatSCEV) regarding exposure to family violence among children in the United States, including exposure to intimate partner violence, assaults by parents on siblings of children surveyed, and other assaults involving teen and adult household members. These results confirm that children are exposed to unacceptable rates of violence in the home. The bulletin presents information regarding the types of exposure to family violence, the gender of the perpetrator, the relationship of the child witness to the perpetrator, and youth's reactions to the incident. It also discusses …


Jobs, Natural Resources, And Community Resilience: A Survey Of Southeast Alaskans About Social And Environmental Change, Thomas G. Safford, Megan M. Henly, Jessica D. Ulrich Sep 2011

Jobs, Natural Resources, And Community Resilience: A Survey Of Southeast Alaskans About Social And Environmental Change, Thomas G. Safford, Megan M. Henly, Jessica D. Ulrich

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

As part of the Community and Environment in Rural America (CERA) project, researchers at the Carsey Institute surveyed 1,541 residents of the ten boroughs and unincorporated census areas in Southeast Alaska to better understand social and environmental change in the region and their implications for Alaskan community and families. The authors of this brief report that social problems in the extremely isolated region of Southeast Alaska such as crime and drug use are closely related to economic distress, particularly in small outlying communities.


One Million Additional Children In Poverty Since 2009: 2010 Data Reveal Nearly One In Four Southern Children Now Live In Poverty, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Jessica A. Bean, Andrew P. Schaefer Sep 2011

One Million Additional Children In Poverty Since 2009: 2010 Data Reveal Nearly One In Four Southern Children Now Live In Poverty, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Jessica A. Bean, Andrew P. Schaefer

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

In this brief, the authors use the ACS data released on September 22 to focus on child poverty. The authors report that between 2009 and 2010 an additional one million children joined the ranks of those in poverty. This brings the total to an estimated 15.7 million poor children in 2010, an increase of 2.6 million since the Great Recession began in 2007.


Tanf In Rural America: Informing Re-Authorization, Leif Jensen, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Jessica A. Bean Sep 2011

Tanf In Rural America: Informing Re-Authorization, Leif Jensen, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Jessica A. Bean

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

In 1996 welfare reform ushered in a new era in which cash assistance for poor parents became both temporary and conditional on activities to promote economic independence through work. Cash assistance from TANF relieves, but does not eliminate, poverty because benefit levels are far too low to lift families above the poverty threshold. These ameliorative effects are weaker in rural than urban areas. Over time, the positive impacts of TANF receipt have continued to decline. The authors assert that the necessity of re-authorizing TANF gives us an opportunity to reflect on its strengths and limitations.


Southeastern Kentuckians Remain Optimistic Through Great Recession: Growing Concerns About Sprawl, Housing, And Recreational Opportunities, Jessica D. Ulrich Sep 2011

Southeastern Kentuckians Remain Optimistic Through Great Recession: Growing Concerns About Sprawl, Housing, And Recreational Opportunities, Jessica D. Ulrich

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

In May and June of 2007, Carsey Institute researchers surveyed 1,000 randomly selected respondents from Kentucky’s Harlan and Letcher counties, and between November 2010 and January 2011, they returned to survey 1,020 different randomly selected respondents from the same counties. These two Kentucky counties provide a snapshot of perceptions of community and environmental change in a chronically poor rural place. This brief focuses on the questions asked in both surveys to identify area wide (Harlan and Letcher counties combined) changes since the Great Recession. The surveys reveal that the recession has exacerbated concern about many community-level problems including poverty, affordable …


Unemployment In The Great Recession: Single Parents And Men Hit Hard, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Kristin Smith, Jessica A. Bean Aug 2011

Unemployment In The Great Recession: Single Parents And Men Hit Hard, Marybeth J. Mattingly, Kristin Smith, Jessica A. Bean

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief discusses the sweeping impact the Great Recession has had on Americans, particularly men, single parents, young adults, and people with less education. Using data from the 2007 and 2010 Annual Social and Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey, the authors report that unemployment is highest among men and among unmarried adults, regardless of place or parenting status. Although this was also true before the recession, gaps between men and women, and the unmarried and married, have widened considerably during the recession. Also during the Great Recession, unemployment rose more in central cities and suburban places than in …


Continuity And Change In Coos County: Results From The 2010 North Country Cera Survey, Chris R. Colocousis, Justin R. Young Aug 2011

Continuity And Change In Coos County: Results From The 2010 North Country Cera Survey, Chris R. Colocousis, Justin R. Young

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief from Chris Colocousis and Justin Young uses the most recent North Country CERA survey to focus on change and continuity in Coos County between 2007 and 2010, and then makes comparisons of the present conditions across the three study counties. The authors examine such topics as community problems, environmental and economic concerns, and community cohesion and confidence in the local government. They report that Coos County residents remain highly concerned about the lack of economic opportunities in the region, and their concern about population decline has increased in recent years. Coos residents see the economic future of their …


Total Children Covered By Health Insurance Increased In 2009, Jessica A. Bean, Michael J. Staley Jul 2011

Total Children Covered By Health Insurance Increased In 2009, Jessica A. Bean, Michael J. Staley

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief uses data collected in 2008 and 2009 from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) to examine changes in overall insurance coverage rates, as well as changes in types of coverage, and differences by region, state, and place type. The data show that together with new and more inclusive parameters for children's health insurance coverage, rates of children's health insurance have grown during the final year of the recession. Authors Jessica Bean and Michael Staley of the Carsey Institute discuss the complex factors contributing to the shift from private to public health insurance among children. The authors …


Rural And Central City Residents With Multiple Children Likely To Be Hardest Hit By Proposed Wic Cuts, Jessica A. Bean Jul 2011

Rural And Central City Residents With Multiple Children Likely To Be Hardest Hit By Proposed Wic Cuts, Jessica A. Bean

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief uses data from the 2007 and 2010 Current Population Survey’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement to describe the distribution of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) receipt across the population and to detail place-based differences in receipt. WIC is a nutrition program that serves pregnant or postpartum women, infants, and children up to age 5 (who meet certain criteria) by providing them with nutrition education and checks or vouchers for food purchases. The proposed fiscal year 2012 funding is $733 million less for WIC than fiscal year 2011 levels, and far less than …


Rural Workers Have Less Access To Paid Sick Days, Kristin Smith, Andrew P. Schaefer Jul 2011

Rural Workers Have Less Access To Paid Sick Days, Kristin Smith, Andrew P. Schaefer

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief, using data from the 2008 National Study of the Changing Workforce (NSCW) survey, analyzes paid sick time rates of workers by place and type of work. Paid sick days provide job protection to workers and a steady paycheck when they need to care for themselves or family members. Paid sick days also help workers with more limited resources who cannot otherwise afford to take a day off. Authors Kristin Smith and Andrew Schaefer report that a greater proportion of rural workers than urban workers (both suburban and central-city) lack access to at least five paid sick days per …


The Implications Of Demographic Change For Resource Management In The Northern Forest, Kenneth M. Johnson, Susan I. Stewart Jul 2011

The Implications Of Demographic Change For Resource Management In The Northern Forest, Kenneth M. Johnson, Susan I. Stewart

Sociology

No abstract provided.


Long-Term Foster Care: Different Needs, Different Outcomes, Wendy A. Walsh, Marybeth J. Mattingly Jun 2011

Long-Term Foster Care: Different Needs, Different Outcomes, Wendy A. Walsh, Marybeth J. Mattingly

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief examines where foster children are living four years after removal from their homes and the characteristics of these children and their placements. Understanding whether child characteristics such as age or emotional or behavioral problems are associated with a longer stay in out-of-home care can help identify children who are least likely to find permanence and may benefit from specialized services. The authors conclude that children in long-term foster care suffer from behavioral and emotional problems at alarming rates. Better identifying and assisting children with, or at risk of developing such problems upon entry to foster care and throughout …


Natural Decrease In America: More Coffins Than Cradles, Kenneth M. Johnson Jun 2011

Natural Decrease In America: More Coffins Than Cradles, Kenneth M. Johnson

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief summarizes recent regional patterns of natural decrease in the United States. Natural decrease occurs when more deaths than births occur in an area in a given year. The growing incidence of natural decrease has gone largely unnoticed, yet natural decrease is no longer an isolated phenomenon occurring in a few remote corners of the country. Last year, 24 percent of all U.S. counties experienced natural decrease. And, for the first time in U.S. history, deaths now exceed births in an entire state. Author Ken Johnson discusses the implications of natural decrease, as well as the impact of the …


Community Strength And Economic Challenge: Civic Attitudes And Community Involvement In Rural America, Michele Dillon, Justin R. Young Jun 2011

Community Strength And Economic Challenge: Civic Attitudes And Community Involvement In Rural America, Michele Dillon, Justin R. Young

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

Residents in rural areas that are rich in amenities report a positive outlook about their community strength and civic engagement, with nine out of ten saying they would work together to solve a community problem. However, residents in chronically poor rural communities are less likely to trust, get along with, and help their neighbors.


Reading Levels Of Rural And Urban Third Graders Lag Behind Their Suburban Peers, Suzanne E. Graham, Christine Teague May 2011

Reading Levels Of Rural And Urban Third Graders Lag Behind Their Suburban Peers, Suzanne E. Graham, Christine Teague

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief examines the complex interplay of family, school, and place factors in the reading achievement levels of third grade students. Third grade reading achievement is critical to later academic and occupational success. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, the authors report that suburban children realize greater gains in reading achievement from kindergarten to Grade 3 than their rural or urban counterparts. Rural students who were struggling readers at the beginning of kindergarten have lower average reading achievement in third grade than both urban and suburban students when children of the same socioeconomic status are compared. The differences …


Household Reports Of Energy Assistance Receipt Increased 48 Percent During Recession: Proposed Cuts Threaten Vulnerable Families, Jessica A. Bean May 2011

Household Reports Of Energy Assistance Receipt Increased 48 Percent During Recession: Proposed Cuts Threaten Vulnerable Families, Jessica A. Bean

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

This brief examines heating assistance usage and the implications of President Obama's 2012 budget proposal to cut $2.5 billion from the $5.1 billion energy assistance fund for low-income families at a time when families are struggling with higher energy costs amid a difficult economy. The federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) assists vulnerable families in paying their home heating and cooling bills. Nationwide, from the winter of 2006/2007 to the winter of 2009/2010, there was a 48 percent increase in households receiving energy assistance. This growth appears to have accelerated with the recession, particularly in the rural Northeast and …


Social Impact Of The Gulf Oil Disaster: Diverging Views From Communities In Florida And Louisiana, Jessica D. Ulrich Apr 2011

Social Impact Of The Gulf Oil Disaster: Diverging Views From Communities In Florida And Louisiana, Jessica D. Ulrich

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

Carsey researchers surveyed over two thousand residents of the Gulf Coast following the BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion in 2010 to analyze their perception of the spill. Nearly one-half of all Gulf Coast residents perceived damage to the environment and wildlife as the most serious result of the oil spill. Perceptions regarding the impact of the spill reflect the different relationships to the oil economy in the two states--”Floridians are most concerned about effects on tourism and Louisianans on the fishing and oil industries. Louisianans were more than twice as likely as Floridians to think that their state and …


Coming To America: The Social And Economic Mobility Of African Immigrants In The United States, Tobi E. Afolayan Apr 2011

Coming To America: The Social And Economic Mobility Of African Immigrants In The United States, Tobi E. Afolayan

Inquiry Journal 2011

No abstract provided.


Education In Chronically Poor Rural Areas Lags Across Generations, Jessica D. Ulrich Mar 2011

Education In Chronically Poor Rural Areas Lags Across Generations, Jessica D. Ulrich

The Carsey School of Public Policy at the Scholars' Repository

As part of the Community and Environment in Rural America (CERA) initiative, the Carsey Institute has been investigating broad trends between rural community types, including the education level of residents and their parents. Since 2007, Carsey researchers have conducted over 17,000 telephone surveys with randomly selected adult Americans from twelve diverse rural locations to ask about both their own and their parents’ educational attainment, as well as their perceptions of school quality in their communities. Survey results conclude that educational achievement varies significantly by type of place in rural America. In chronically poor rural areas, 45 percent of residents have …