US disparities in affluence by household structure, 1959 to 2017

Background: This study examines trends in affluence ‒ as indicated by high household income ‒ by household structure over the 1959 to 2017 period. I contrast the experiences of married-couple households, whose share of all households declined substantially over time, with those of single-parent households, cohabiting couples, individuals living alone, and people living with nonrelatives. Methods: I use data from multiple censuses and the American Community Survey and logistic regression. Results: Levels of absolute affluence rose substantially for all household types, reflecting rising living standards. Married-couple households were the most likely to be affluent and single-parent households were the least. Moreover, the affluence gap between married-couple households and all others widened. Married couples fared better because they experienced larger increases in wages and other important sources of income, such as from investments and retirement. Conclusions: The findings suggest that married-couple households benefit from a collective work strategy and economies of scale that increase their likelihood of affluence. Positive selectivity into marriage may also have increased over time. Contribution: This study provides timely new information on changing gaps in affluence by household structure during a period of substantial change in household living arrangements and economic well-being

COVID-19-related mental health burdens: Impact of educational level and relationship status Among low-Income earners of Western Uganda

Objective: The study aimed to investigate the relationship between mental health with the level of education, relationship status, and awareness on mental health among low-income earners in Western Uganda. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study carried out among 253 participants. Anxiety, anger, and depression were assessed using a modified generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7), Spielberger\u27s State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory-2, and Beck Depression Inventory item tools, respectively. Results: The majority of our respondents were male (n = 150/253, 59.3), had a secondary level of education (104/253, 41.1), and were single (137/253, 54.2). No formal education and primary education (r2 = 47.4% and 6.4%, respectively) had a negative correlation with awareness of mental health care. In addition, no formal education had a positive correlation with anger and depression (r2 = 1.9% and 0.3%, respectively). Singleness in this study had a negative correlation with awareness of mental health care, anger, and depression (r2 = 1.9, 0.8, and 0.3%, respectively), and a positive correlation with anxiety (r2 = 3.9%). Conclusion: It is evident that education and relationship status influenced awareness on mental health care and mental health state among low-income earners in Western Uganda during the first COVID-19 lockdown. Therefore, policymakers should strengthen social transformation through the proper engagement of low-income earners in this COVID-19 era

Poverty in America: a handbook

Poverty may have always been with us, but it hasn't always been the same. In an in-depth look at trends, patterns, and causes of poverty in the United States, John Iceland combines the latest statistical information, historical data, and social scientific theory to provide a comprehensive picture of poverty in America - a picture that shows how poverty is measured and understood and how this has changed over time, as well as how public policies have grappled with poverty as a political issue and an economic reality. Why does poverty remain so pervasive? Is it unavoidable? Are people from particular racial or ethnic backgrounds or family types inevitably more likely to be poor? What can we expect over the next few years? What are the limits of policy? These are just a few of the questions this book addresses. In a remarkably concise, readable, and accessible format, Iceland explores what the statistics and the historical record, along with most of the major works on poverty, tell us. At the same time, he advances arguments about the relative nature and structural causes of poverty - arguments that eloquently contest conventional wisdom about the links between individual failure, family breakdown, and poverty in America. At a time when the personal, political, social, and broader economic consequences of poverty are ever clearer and more pressing, the depth and breadth of understanding offered by this handbook should make it an essential resource and reference for all scholars, politicians, policymakers, and people of conscience in America

Housing inequality in urban China: the heritage of socialist institutional arrangements

Abstract With the development of the market economy in China, does the effect of the original socialist institutional arrangements on social inequality fade? We examine this issue by considering the effect of people’s positions in the work unit system and their socioeconomic status on patterns of housing inequality in urban China. Using individual-level data from the 2007 Household Survey on the Housing Conditions of Urban Residents in Nanjing, China, we find that although people’s socioeconomic status (measured by household income and householder’s education) has become very important in shaping people’s housing outcomes in urban China, housing inequality is also determined to some extent by their position in the work unit system—such as being employed in various units within the state sector—before and during the housing reform process. The pattern of housing inequality in urban China indicates that the impact of socialist institutional arrangements on social inequality can still be found in market transition societies even years after the market transition has occurred