Sociology Commons^™

Living Between The Lines: Economic Insecurity And Older Americans: Insecurity In The Massachusetts, 2025, Caitlin E. Coyle, Michelle Ward, Nidya Velasco Roldan, Ceara Somerville, Jan Mutchler

Center for Social and Demographic Research on Aging Publications

New estimates from the 2025 Elder Index^TM demonstrate that the cost of living in Massachusetts has increased substantially in recent years for older adults, especially for renters. The Elder Index measures the necessary costs faced by households made up of one or two older adults, calculated county by county for the entire United States. Estimated costs are higher in Massachusetts than in any other state in the nation. Within the Commonwealth, the Elder Index is lowest in Western Massachusetts, and highest in Metro Boston, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, with differences in the Elder Index across locations accounted for largely …

Latinos In Massachusetts: Puerto Ricans, Phillip Granberry, Florita Coto Tristán, Melissa Colón

Gastón Institute Publications

As part of the Gastón Institute’s 2025 Latinos in Massachusetts series, we present here a profile of Puerto Ricans, the largest Latino population in the state. This report analyzes Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) data from the 2023 American Community Survey (ACS), conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Our descriptive analysis uses both household- and individual-level data to estimate population size and percentages and to compare Puerto Ricans to Other Latinos and Non-Latinos in the state.

A New Tool For Handling Multiracial And Multi-Identity Data In Health Research, Gabriel J. Merrin

Population Health Research Brief Series

When surveys ask about race or ethnicity, a growing number of Americans select more than one category. The multiracial population now represents over 10% of the U.S. population and is the fastest growing racial group in the country. Yet researchers routinely collapse these individuals into an “other race” category for statistical analysis, rendering specific subgroups invisible. This brief introduces CATAcode, a free software tool that helps researchers systematically explore, document, and prepare check-all-that-apply demographic data for statistical modeling. In a demonstration with over 8,000 high school students, CATAcode revealed 85 distinct racial identity combinations from just eight response options. The …

Counter-Urbanization In China: A Systematic Review Toward A Comprehensive Typology, Chengxue Yang, Qian Forrest Zhang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Drawing on a systematic review of both international and Chinese-language scholarship on counter-urbanization in China, this article proposes a comprehensive typology of counter-urbanization migrations—consisting of eight types of new migrants—based on the diverse motivations driving such migration. We build a bilingual corpus of 273 research papers published between the 1970s and 2025. Integrating bibliometric mapping and qualitative synthesis, we conduct a systematic review to trace the temporal evolution and thematic diversification of counter-urbanization research. The review reveals persistent conceptual ambiguity surrounding counter-urbanization in the Chinese context, which this study addresses by conceptually distinguishing counter-urbanization from suburban expansion, population decentralization, and …

Typeface: Machine-Viewing Gentrification On Storefront Imagery In Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Alexander Mcquilkin

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Gentrification—broadly, the replacement of a less powerful group by a more powerful one in an urban context—is oft-discussed in the popular press, but its definition is much-debated in the urban planning literature. Furthermore, academic treatments of displacement understandably focus on measurable yet fairly abstract indicators like changes in rent or income, whereas neighborhood change is often registered by residents on the ground using visual, but difficult-to-quantify markers like retail turnover. This project uses image recognition technology on a set of storefront photos to index the visual streetscape of a neighborhood, as well as to track changes to that portrait over …

Kerentanan Kemiskinan Di Sulawesi Selatan: Analisis Vulnerability As Expected Poverty Dan Klaster Spasial, Nur Hilda Triany

Jurnal Ekonomi Kependudukan dan Keluarga

This study aims to analyze the determinants of poverty vulnerability in South Sulawesi by integrating spatial dimensions into risk estimation models. Using micro-data from the March 2024 National Socio-Economic Survey (Susenas) with individuals as the unit of analysis, this study applies the Vulnerability as Expected Poverty (VEP) and Local Indicator of Spatial Association (LISA) methods, estimated through an integrated logistic regression model. Empirical results indicate that while the average vulnerability is relatively low, risk distribution is highly concentrated in specific regional clusters. Key findings reveal that health insurance ownership and household assets are the dominant protective factors that drastically reduce …

Statute Meets Custom: Explaining Provincial Variation In Child Marriage After Indonesia’S 2019 Reform, I Made Yudisthira, Diahhadi Setyonaluri

Jurnal Ekonomi Kependudukan dan Keluarga

This study investigates whether Indonesia’s 2019 Marriage Law reform, which raised the minimum legal age of marriage to 19, has been associated with lower child marriage prevalence. Using province-level aggregates from the 2022 Indonesian National Socio-Economic Survey (SUSENAS, N = 1,237,946), we distinguish documented and undocumented unions and estimate Ordinary Least Squares models with controls for poverty, education, assets, rural residence, religious composition, and marriage dispensations. Descriptive maps show prevalence is highest in South Kalimantan (18%), East Java (17%), and West Java (17%), with undocumented unions concentrated in West Nusa Tenggara (7%), Banten (5%), Papua (5%), and West Sulawesi (5%). …

Bibliometric Analysis Of Research On Women’S Labor Force Participation And Household Economics, Muhamad Dupi, Inayat Ullah Baloch

Jurnal Ekonomi Kependudukan dan Keluarga

Studies of women labor participation (WLFP) and household economics have grown in size in the last two decades and more research and policy focus are given to gender equality, labor markets and household welfare. Nevertheless, the available literature is still in pieces by region, theme, and institutional settings and a complete bibliometric review of this area of study is yet to be done. The objective of the proposed study is to trace the world-wide literature on the topic of women participation in the labor force and household economics through the analysis of the patterns of publications, networks of cooperations, and …

Estimasi Proporsi Pekerja Anak Pulau Maluku & Papua: Pendekatan Small Area Estimation Hierarchical Bayes Distribusi Beta, Apriani Sofiana, Fauzana Afininnas, Fachrol Mochti, Angga Prayoga, Shafira Husna, Nofita Istiana

Jurnal Ekonomi Kependudukan dan Keluarga

Pekerja anak merupakan isu krusial yang memerlukan penanganan segera untuk mendukung pencapaian target pembangunan global. Pengentasan isu ini menuntut ketersediaan data yang akurat hingga wilayah kecil guna mendukung perumusan kebijakan yang tepat sasaran. Penelitian ini bertujuan menduga proporsi pekerja anak usia 5–17 tahun di kabupaten/kota Pulau Maluku dan Papua tahun 2024 menggunakan metode Small Area Estimation (SAE) Hierarchical Bayes (HB) distribusi Beta. Lima variabel penyerta dari PODES dan regsosek dipilih melalui stepwise regression dan dieksplorasi secara spasial. Hasil pemodelan HB Beta Pulau Maluku dan Papua menunjukkan sebagian besar wilayah masih memiliki RSE tinggi. Untuk meningkatkan presisi, dilakukan klasterisasi wilayah sebelum …

Bukan Hanya Tugas Istri: Pengaruh Penggunaan Kontrasepsi Suami Terhadap Kesehatan Mental Istri, Aldo Savira Adha Saputra, Elda L. Pardede

Jurnal Ekonomi Kependudukan dan Keluarga

Male participation in contraceptive use in Indonesia remains very low, while women continue to bear a disproportionate reproductive burden, including mental health impacts from contraceptive side effects. This study aims to examine the effect of husbands’ contraceptive use on wives’ mental health. The analysis utilizes data from the fifth wave of the Indonesia Family Life Survey conducted in 2014. Wives’ mental health is measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale - 10. The results of the binary logistic regression model indicate that husbands’ contraceptive use lowers the likelihood of wives experiencing depression. Additionally, being aged 25-49, having good …

Strengthening The Use Of Sexual And Reproductive Health And Rights Evidence In Refugee And Humanitarian Settings, Baobab Research Programme Consortium

Humanitarian Task Force

This guide offers practical, experience-based direction for strengthening the uptake of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) evidence in refugee and humanitarian settings. Drawing on five years of Baobab’s work in Uganda and Ethiopia, it outlines principles for effective research uptake, including embedded partnerships, rigorous locally owned methods, stakeholder engagement, capacity development, adaptive communication, and continuous learning. The guide illustrates how these approaches enabled pioneering evidence generation—such as the first Humanitarian Violence Against Children Survey (VACS)—and informed service innovations, national policy reforms, and cross-country learning. It provides a replicable framework for translating SRHR research into action and system level …

Nebraska Insights 2026, Josie Gatti Schafer, Morgan Vogel, Tara Grell, Michael Lee, Mahmuda Akhter Nishu, Meagan E. Paez, Ignacio Ruelas Avila

Publications

Nebraska Insights is a collaboration between the Nebraska Chamber Foundation and the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Center for Public Affairs Research. The series provides a curated set of indicators that benchmark Nebraska’s demographics, economy, and quality of life against all U.S. states. Each webinar explores selected indicators from the guide and offers guidance on how Nebraska stakeholders can effectively interpret and apply the data.

All Six New England States Gain Population, But Demographic Basis Of Gain Varies, Kenneth M. Johnson

Carsey Publications

In this brief, author Kenneth Johnson reports that New England’s population grew by 310,000 between the 2020 Census in April 2020 and July 2025 and now stands at 15,432,000, according to new Census Bureau estimates. International immigration accounted for the entire population gain, offsetting an excess of deaths over births and an outflow of domestic migrants to other U.S. destinations from New England.

All six New England states have gained population since 2020, but the source of growth varied. Maine and New Hampshire had the largest population gains in the region. Most of their gains were due to an influx …

Where Do Latinos Live In The New York City Metropolitan Area? Changing Settlement Patterns, 2000 - 2024, Laird W. Bergad

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

This report shows that between 2000 and 2024, the Latino population of the New York metropolitan area increased by 48% from 3,592,542 to 5,316,472 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Along with population expansion, there was a decisive change in settlement patterns among all Latinos, which, in fact, began before 2000. This was the decline of New York City as the major area of the Latino population concentration, although there were differentiations by nationality.

In 2000, 60% of all Latinos in the region lived in the City. By 2024, this had declined to 46%. And while the City’s Latino population …

The Environmental Justice Implications Of Industry Consolidation: Evidence From U.S. Landfills, Hui Zhou, Shan Zhang, Matthew D. Gordon

Economics Faculty Publications

Over the past three decades, the number of U.S. landfills has fallen by 41%, while average capacity has risen by 130%. This paper studies the distributional consequences of this consolidation. We show these changes coincide with waste disposal shifting toward locations with lower population density and higher shares of low-income, Black, and Hispanic residents. Event studies of landfill openings rule out large effects on migration, though new landfills are sited in places with fast-changing demographics. Using a novel measure of regulation built from large-language-model classifications of state statutes, we show evidence that increased state regulations may contribute to increasing disparities.

Dorchester Food Co-Op: Member Survey: Examining Food Insecurity And Grocery Shopping Frequency, Amrith Fernandes Prabhu, Weichun Yan, Beimnet Kebede, Hina Khurshid, Susan R. Crandall

Center for Social Policy Publications

This report presents selected highlights of the membership survey findings for the Dorchester Food Cooperative’s (the Co-op) first year. The Co-op is a community-owned grocery store that aims to increase access to healthy food, provide opportunities for employment, and reinvest in the local economy. To assess progress towards increasing food access during the Co-op’s first year of operation, the member survey examined access to high quality and nutritious food and member perceptions of their shopping experience.

Sociocultural Outsidership In Entrepreneurship: Rethinking The Double-Edged Role In Marginalisation, Robert J. Pidduck, Susana C. Santos, Eric W. Liguori, Reginald Tucker, Alexander Newman

Management Faculty Publications

This editorial introduces the special issue on marginalisation and entrepreneurship. While entrepreneurship research has long examined the impact of economic deprivation and structural barriers, far less attention has been given to sociocultural elements of outsidership – such as status incongruence, class-based identity conflict or cultural misalignment, among other related facets. We bring these dynamics to the fore, offering a conceptually rich yet ideologically neutral lens through which to understand how outsider dynamics can shape entrepreneurial cognition, legitimacy and venture development. Further, by synthesising emerging work across fragmented literatures, we propose a research agenda that explores sociocultural outsidership not only as …

Cohabitation And Child Educational Outcomes: An Examination Of Family Stability And Transition In Australia, Shana Pribesh, Emily E. Pulsipher, Mikaela J. Dufur, Jonathan A. Jarvis, Ashley Weisman, Yuanyuan Yue

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Cohabitation has become an increasingly common context for childrearing, yet children living with cohabiting parents often exhibit poorer academic outcomes than peers with married parents. This study examines whether these disparities stem from cohabitation itself, subsequent family transitions, or underlying mechanisms related to resources, stress, or selectivity. Using data from the Growing Up in Australia: Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC), we follow 920 children born to cohabiting parents and track family structure changes alongside teacher-rated literacy and mathematics performance from ages 6 to 11 years. Generalized estimating equation models show that, although children whose parents transitioned to single-parent or …

Examining The Results Of Revolutions In The Third World: A Case Study Of The Iranian, Libyan, And Nicaraguan Revolutions, Noah A. Mohammedelamien

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This thesis examines the post-revolutionary trajectories of Libya, Iran, and Nicaragua to explain why some Third World revolutionary projects preserve and use elements of their founding ideology while others fragment, personalize, or diffuse over time. Rather than focusing on the causes of revolution alone, it analyzes the durability of religious-socialist ideological continuity after revolutionary upheaval. Using a (MDSD) comparative historical and institutional approach grounded in primary and secondary sources, the study evaluates five key dimensions across the cases: religious-socialist ideological fusion, religious elite loyalty, popular religious mobilization, institutional embedding of ideology, and external pressure. The findings suggest ideological continuity is …

“Black Students Matter”: A Phenomenological Study Of Black Student Experiences At A Predominately White Institution In Appalachia During The Dual Pandemic Of Covid-19 And Systemic Anti-Black Racism, Toni Owens

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

As the spread of COVID-19 escalated into a global pandemic in 2020, simultaneously, the nationwide media in the United States (U.S.) highlighted coverage of the country’s ongoing incidents of longstanding systemic anti-Black racism in America, another pandemic. In the Summer of 2020, a collective of Black students at West Virginia University (WVU) signed and publicly submitted a petition to the university’s leadership with a list of demands to address their needs as they were further exacerbated by the dual pandemic. This study is guided by the question, “What are the lived experiences of Black Students at West Virginia University during …

The Asymmetric Effect Of Social Connection And The Cumulative Damage Of Comorbidities On Physical And Mental Health Of Older Virginians, Newton Ochoki, Lynn Wiles, Peijia Zha, Vince Falco, Carielle Joy Rio, Jonathan Romero, Leorey N. Saligan

Ellmer School of Nursing Faculty Publications

Objectives

This study explored relationships of social connection with physical and mental health in older adults, specifically examining the effects of comorbidities on these relationships and the influence of sociodemographic variables on the strength of these associations.

Methods

This cross-sectional study enrolled 174 community-dwelling adults aged 60 years and older residing in Hampton Roads, Virginia, USA. Data were collected from April to August 2025. Hierarchical linear regression analyses examined the associations of social connection with physical and mental health. Moderated mediation analysis examined if comorbidities mediated these relationships and whether sociodemographic factors moderate the strengths of these associations.

Results

In …

Impact Of Social Determinants Of Health On Perioperative And Interstage Outcomes In Congenital Heart Surgery A Systematic Review, Sara Sakowitz, Jennifer S. Nelson, Justin Robinson, Camilla S. Rossi, David M. Shahian, David T. Cooke, Jeffrey P. Jacobs, Shelby Aughtman, Megan Schultz, Meena Nathan, Claude Beaty, Michal Shafer, Deborah Kozik, Glenn J. Pelletier

Department Surgery Faculty Publications

Importance: Social determinants of health (SDoH)- conditions in which patients live, grow, and age, - are increasingly recognized to influence the health of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD).

Objective: To explore the impact of SDoH on short-term mortality and morbidity, interstage outcomes, and resource utilization, among patients following congenital heart surgery.

Evidence Review: A systematic review was completed according to PRISMA guidelines. Relevant studies evaluating the association of SDoH with surgical outcomes of pediatric and adult CHD patients were identified from five databases queried including PubMed, SCOPUS, CINAHL, PYSCINFO, and Cochrane between January 1999 and February 2024. Inclusion criteria …

Reviving Southern Divides: Multilevel Explorations Of Gentrification’S Role In School Resegregation In Tallahassee, Florida From 1999 – 2015, Ola U. Kalu

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

This dissertation examines whether neighborhood gentrification in Tallahassee reshaped Title I elementary schools by improving academic outcomes, changing who enrolled, or both, from 1999 to 2015. Using Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Model as a conceptual scaffold, the study situates schools within their neighborhood and district contexts across three nested analytical levels. A two-wave panel design using 2010 and 2015 school-year observations is linked to a 2000 Census baseline to connect school data with spatially weighted neighborhood change indicators. Mixed-effects multilevel models and fixed-effects robustness checks estimate the associations between neighborhood change indicators and two continuous dependent variables: standardized ELA achievement and …

A Scoping Review To Conceptualize Social Privilege For Studying Patients' Health Outcomes And Health Disparities, Elizabeth A. Brown, Priyanka Patel, Esther May B. Sarino, Vladimir Markovic, Carles Muntaner

Health Behavior, Policy & Management Faculty Publications

Background

The continued reliance on single-category self-reported demographic data (e.g., race/ethnicity) reflects conceptual limitations that hinder the study and understanding of health outcomes research. There is a pressing need for more precise measures of social privilege that conceptualize privilege and oppression while enabling the examination of their effects on health outcomes in the United States (US) healthcare system.

Objective

The purpose of this scoping review was to review the literature, determine how researchers have measured aspects of privilege and oppression, and develop a conceptual framework to study patients' social privilege in the US healthcare system and public health research.

Methods …

Tooth Ablation And The Jōmon - Yayoi Transition In Japan, Laura R. Erickson

Theses and Dissertations

The Jōmon – Yayoi period transition in Japan is marked by many migrants coming through the Korean Peninsula into Kyushu, sparking changes such as the introduction of wet-rice agriculture to the native hunter-gatherer-fisher Jōmon population and decreases in tooth ablation patterns and percentages. Ritual tooth ablation, or the removal of healthy front teeth, is typically seen as a coming-of-age practice, with the Jōmon having a diverse amount of ablation patterns. In this study, I explored how the rates and variation of tooth ablation changed throughout Japan after the arrival of Yayoi migrants from the continent. After calculating ablation rates per …

Linking Women’S Empowerment And Community Contexts To Intimate Partner Violence: Evidence From Ten West African Countries, Winfred A. Avogo

Faculty Publications – Sociology and Anthropology

Abstract Purpose Intimate partner violence (IPV) is experienced by over one-third of women in sub-Saharan Africa, yet evidence on the associations between women’s empowerment, community contexts, and IPV risk remains limited and inconsistent. This study examines the association between individual empowerment and community socioeconomic conditions and different forms of IPV across West Africa, using the Survey-based Women’s Empowerment Index. Method Demographic and Health Survey data (2018–2022) from ten West African countries were pooled, yielding a sample of 38,434 ever-married or cohabiting women who completed the domestic violence module. Multilevel binary logistic regression models estimated associations between empowerment dimensions, community characteristics, …

Determinants Of Patient Satisfaction In An Academic Primary Care Setting: A Cross-Sectional Study Of The Postpandemic Era, Alvin Maliakal, Rajita Kanapareddy, Zooha Altaf, Janani Anbazhagan, Kristin Olson, Cynthia Avila, Rehan Qayyum

Department of Medicine Faculty Publications

Background

Patient satisfaction, a key indicator of healthcare quality, is associated with improved adherence, continuity, and outcomes. However, limited evidence describes determinants of patient satisfaction in contemporary primary care settings reflecting the postpandemic era, when care delivery models and patient expectations have evolved substantially.

Objective

To evaluate the sociodemographic and clinical factors associated with patient satisfaction in an academic primary care setting following the postpandemic era.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional survey of adult patients (≥18 years) attending a primary care clinic. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire including the Visit-Specific Satisfaction Questionnaire (VSQ-9) and measures of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. …

The Cost Of Getting To “No”: Cultural Evolution Of Community Psychology In Two Indiana Communities, Catherine Cullen, Megan Peek

The Journal of Purdue Undergraduate Research

No abstract provided.

Latino Economic Inequality In New York City: Income And Snap Recipiency, 2013–2023, Oswaldo A. Mena Aguilar

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

This Latino Data Project Report analyzes trends in the economic well-being of Latino households in New York City between 2013 and 2023, focusing on household income and participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The findings reveal a paradoxical pattern: although median Latino household income increased over the decade, economic inequality within the Latino community widened substantially. Income gains were unevenly distributed, with higher-income households pulling further ahead while the lowest-income households experienced stagnation or decline. Over the same period, Latino households fell further behind all other racial and ethnic groups in the city. Additionally, Latinos consistently exhibited the …

South Dakota Newcomers Survey Report, Weiwei Zhang, Kara Harders

Center for Rural Vitality and Community Well-being Project Reports

Project Overview:
 While more populous states typically attract larger numerical influxes from other states and abroad, South Dakota has nevertheless experienced growth in immigrants, both from other states and internationally. In 2024, South Dakota State University Extension launched a state-wide Newcomer Survey to gain a better understanding of the newcomer population. Following prior work in Minnesota and Montana, the South Dakota Newcomers Survey was developed to collect data about the motivations that drive people to move to South Dakota, what they enjoy once moved, what they want more or less of, and ultimately what makes them want to, or not …