This article explores the perceptions that rural mayors have of social exclusion processes in their territories, and the ideological frames that underpin them. The study was conducted in Spain during ...the 2008-2014 crisis. It draws on evidence from qualitative interviews conducted with
rural mayors as part of two research projects on social exclusion in rural areas in the Castilla-La Mancha and Valencian autonomous communities. Our analysis shows significant differences between the objective descriptions of social exclusion in rural areas and how such exclusion was perceived.
Mayors held individuals' responsible for their own exclusion during the economic crisis, which mayors linked to the choices those individuals had made, while ignoring the community's responsibility for social integration. Based on their accounts, neoliberalism, patriarchy, and rural idyll
frames were identified as shaping and defining the perception of social exclusion processes in rural areas.
Digital literacy is important in many areas of life, such as remote working, using public services on the Internet, communication, buying goods and services, education, participation in political and ...cultural events, entertainment and leisure. Digital literacy enhances employability of young people in the global labour market. It can reduce financial insecurity and increase access to information, finding advice and support. Digital literacy is also important for the elderly, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups because it enables equal participation in society, independent living, working, and reduces the risk of social isolation. Some of the goals of the Digital Literacy Development Network and the key goal of the working group for Digital Citizenship are digital inclusion of individuals from all age groups, improved quality of life and empowerment through digital technologies. In this paper, initial chapters describe the benefits of digital technologies and the Internet for vulnerable groups. The paper continues with a presentation of the basic idea, implementation and work of the Digital Literacy Development Network as part of the Digitalna.hr project. In this paper, the emphasis is on the description and implementation of the activities of the working group for Digital Citizenship, which deals with public opinion polls and the needs of digital inclusion of vulnerable groups and areas. The paper ends with recommendations for creating guidelines for national, regional and local decision makers. Once created, these guidelines can be used in future strategic documents with the purpose of actively including a particular population group in the digital society.
Ethical issues are an essential part of research and need to be considered throughout the process and in its aftermath, especially when including vulnerable groups. This Field Notes revisits some ...ethical tensions that emerged during fieldwork with a ‘vulnerable population’—a group of waste-pickers and their families—and links these to specific avenues for further thinking within ethical frameworks. I reflect on mistakes, omissions, and blunders committed over 5 years working with this social group affected by many different forms of injustices, part of my 25 years of wider research into social inequalities and health disparities within marginalised communities. I remark upon three emerging ethical tensions relating to: the exclusion of certain narratives; the layers of vulnerabilities and danger of harm; and the risk of stereotyping vulnerable groups. I conclude that, more than just considering ethical issues within the context of our own work as researchers on moral solipsism, decisions in applied ethics must be integrated into broader models that offer a connected rationale for the infinite situations that can emerge from research. Alternative ethical models—such as anti-racist, feminist, communitarian, and transformative approaches—provide chances for collective decision making and promote social justice, equity, and democracy.
Long-term population loss and economic downturns have led to shrinking cities generally lacking social vitality and losing public spaces, such as green spaces. Previous studies have demonstrated the ...importance of green spaces for the social capital and health of residents, but the impacts of green space usage on health inequalities in the context of urban shrinkage have not been fully explored. In addition, residents who live in shrinking cities in northeastern China are more likely to suffer health problems due to their location in a severely cold region. Therefore, we selected 17 urban green spaces in Hegang, a typical shrinking city, as the research objects. We collected a total of 544 valid questionnaires through random distribution. These data were used to evaluate four green space usage characteristics of residents comprising transportation costs, usage frequency, usage duration, and participation in activities, as well as two social capital dimensions that are directly related to health comprising social networks and reciprocity and trust. We conducted correlation analysis, multivariate analysis of variance, and analysis of covariance to explore the impacts of green space usage on two categories of social capital for residents with different attributes and the consequences of health inequalities. The results showed that: (1) women, middle-aged and elderly people, and the low- and middle-income classes were less able to access social capital through the usage of green spaces; (2) the frequency of green space usage and intensity of participation in social activities were key dimensions that affected inequality; and (3) the usage of green spaces reinforced inequalities in the level of reciprocity and trust among residents. Based on our findings, we recommend that local governments in shrinking cities pay more attention to green spaces and squares in inner city areas to improve the accessibility and usability of these open spaces. Governments should focus on regenerating green spaces located near older neighborhoods to increase opportunities for residents to make new social connections and reduce inequalities in public services and health, especially for improving the social well-being of older populations with a lower socioeconomic status.
•Green space usage may exacerbate health inequalities among residents.•Women, middle-aged and elderly people, and the low- and middle-income classes were less likely to access social capital.•The usage frequency and intensity of social activities were key dimensions that contributed to health inequalities.•It is necessary to increase the attractiveness to different groups of people and the likelihood of social interaction.•Local governments should focus on regenerating green spaces around disadvantaged communities.
ABSTRACT Toddlers and pregnant women are a group that is vulnerable to contracting malaria because their immune systems are lower than healthy people. A cross-sectional study was conducted to ...identify the relationship of demographic and environmental characteristics factors to the incidence of malaria in vulnerable groups in Indonesia in 2018. A total of 2915 samples of vulnerable groups were collected at Riskesdas 2018, consisting of 2391 samples of toddlers and 524 samples of pregnant women. Toddlers 0.84% (20/2391) and pregnant women 0.38% (2/524) were positive for malaria based on examination with RDT. Factors related to malaria incidence in children under five are gender, while in pregnant women are age, wastewater disposal, use of mosquito nets, use of electric mosquito repellent, and mosquito netting (p-value <0.05). Using Personal Protective Equipment against mosquito bites is necessary to protect infants and pregnant women from contracting malaria. ABSTRAK Balita dan ibu hamil merupakan kelompok rentan tertular malaria karena sistem kekebalan tubuh yang lebih rendah dibandingkan orang sehat. Studi cross sectional dilakukan untuk mengidentifikasi hubungan faktor karakteristik demografi dan lingkungan terhadap kejadian malaria pada kelompok rentan di Indonesia tahun 2018. Sebanyak 2915 sampel kelompok rentan dikumpulkan pada Riskesdas 2018 terdiri dari balita 2391 sampel dan ibu hamil 524 sampel. Balita 0,84% (20/2391) dan ibu hamil 0,38% (2/524) positif malaria berdasarkan pemeriksaan dengan RDT. Faktor yang berhubungan dengan kejadian malaria pada balita yaitu jenis kelamin, sedangkan pada ibu hamil yaitu umur, pembungan air limbah, penggunaan kelambu, penggunaan obat nyamuk elektrik dan kasa nyamuk (p-value < 0,05). Perlunya memproteksi balita dan ibu hamil agar tidak terular malaria melalui penggunaan Alat Pelindung Diri (APD) dari gigitan nyamuk.
Mitigating the adverse physical health risks associated with COVID-19 has been a priority of public health incentives. Less attention has been placed on understanding the psychological factors ...related to the global pandemic, especially among vulnerable populations. This qualitative study sought to understand the experiences of children and adolescents during COVID-19. This study interviewed 48 families during the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, and a national lockdown, to understand its impacts. The study used an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) methodology. Parents and children discussed the negative impact of the restrictions on young people's wellbeing. Children and adolescents experienced adverse mental health effects, including feelings of social isolation, depression, anxiety, and increases in maladaptive behaviour. Families with children with Autism Spectrum Disorders reported increased mental health difficulties during this period mostly due to changes to routine. The findings highlight the impact of severe restrictions on vulnerable populations' wellbeing and mental health outcomes, including children, adolescents, and those with Autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Heat risk assessment is important due to serious health problems caused by heat waves. The complexity and diversity of socio-ecological characteristics in urban areas that lead to heat risk are more ...serious in heat-exposed areas, while risk assessments and determinant based on individuals in heat-exposed areas have been neglected in previous studies. This study pursues a new idea of combining questionnaire surveys and remote sensing analysis to identify urban heat-exposed areas and assess heat risk in heat-exposed areas of Beijing, China. Morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA) was used to identify large and continuous hotspot regions as urban heat-exposed areas based on summer surface temperature from 2011 to 2017. A total of 1484 valid questionnaires were completed by residents of heat-exposed areas. The majority of respondents (96.4%) indicated that they perceived heat risk. Moreover, the residents without a local “hukou” were a potentially vulnerable group (note: hukou refers to the population registration management system.). This study further analysed the diversity of community types within the heat-exposed areas. There were significant differences in heat risk among the different community types of multi-story residential districts, Hutong (a traditional architectural form) residential districts and city villages. In particular, the degree of heat risk perceived by residents living in these the community types was determined by whether they had pre-existing medical conditions; however, age only played a decisive role in city villages. This study not only enriches the current understanding of health risks affected by heat waves but also explores the determinants contributing to the severity of heat risk. The output provides important information for future development of heat mitigation and adaptation strategies.
Display omitted
•This paper focused on the heat risk perceived by residents in heat-exposed areas.•There was a significant difference in heat risk among different community types.•Sensitivity factors and adaptive factors were significant determinants of heat risk.•The determinants of heat risk in each community types were different.•Non-local hukou of residents were a potentially vulnerable group in the city.
Improvements of the happiness of the rural population are an essential sign of the effectiveness of relative poverty governance. In the context of today's digital economy, assessing the relationship ...between digital literacy and the subjective happiness of rural low-income groups is of great practicality. Based on data from China Family Panel Studies, the effect of digital literacy on the subjective well-being of rural low-income groups was empirically tested. A significant happiness effect of digital literacy on rural low-income groups was found. Digital literacy promotes the subjective happiness of rural low-income groups through income increase and consumption growth effects. The observed happiness effect is heterogeneous among different characteristic groups, and digital literacy significantly positively impacts the subjective happiness of rural low-income groups. Decomposition of subjective happiness into life satisfaction and job satisfaction shows that digital literacy significantly positively affects the job and life satisfaction of rural low-income groups. This paper demonstrates that digital literacy induces a practical happiness effect. To further strengthen the subjective welfare effect of digital literacy in the construction of digital villages, the government should focus on cultivating digital literacy among low-income groups from the demand side. The construction of digital infrastructure should be actively promoted from the supply side.
Objective: The present study aimed to identify pesticide poisoning symptoms and related protective habits to effectively prevent pesticide poisoning among farmworkers in Kratie, Cambodia, where ...pesticide poisoning is an urgent public health problem.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study based on a questionnaire survey analyzing social demographics, number of symptoms, and protective behavior regarding pesticide application was conducted in Kratie Province from January 25 to 31, 2021. In total, 210 farmworkers completed the survey. The effects of social demographics and pesticide-protective behavioral scores on the number of symptoms were investigated using multivariable regression analysis.Results: The observed number of symptoms was 1.16 times higher among women (P=0.004), increased with the duration of work, and decreased with age. In addition, we identified five significant pesticide-protective behaviors: 1) preparing using gloves, 2) using protective equipment, 3) avoiding wiping sweat, 4) avoiding leaking, and 5) resting when feeling ill. Pesticide-protective behaviors tended to decrease with the duration of working years in the low-education group (B=−0.04, SE=0.01), whereas no association was observed in the high-education group (B=0.01, SE=0.01).Conclusion: Pesticide-protective behaviors significantly correlated with fewer symptoms. The female and aging groups required continuous special education or instructions for implementing pesticide-protective actions, especially the aforementioned five protective actions.
PDF
