Environmental-Economic Assessment Of Generation, Flow And Efficiency Of Use Of Production And Consumption Waste

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mikhailov, V. G.; Golofastova, N. N.; Galanina, T. V.; Koroleva, T. G.; Mikhailova, Ya S.

2017-01-01

The article deals with the issues of environmental and economic analysis of industrial and economic activities of an enterprise to assess the generation, flow and efficiency of production and consumption waste. The purpose of research is the analysis and the development of theoretical propositions for the functioning of the system of environmental and economic indicators for the effective management of production and consumption waste in the enterprise. The analysis of the existing systems of environmental and economic indicators taking into consideration the industry characteristics and the types of negative impacts is carried out. The main result of the study is the development of the system of environmental and economic indicators of production and consumption waste, adapted to the modern requirements. The results of the study can be recommended to support the effective management decision-making concerning waste management and the establishment of appropriate infrastructure.

Impact of the global economic crisis on metal levels in particulate matter (PM) at an urban area in the Cantabria Region (Northern Spain).

PubMed

Arruti, A; Fernández-Olmo, I; Irabien, A

2011-05-01

Air pollution by particulate matter is well linked with anthropogenic activities; the global economic crisis that broke out in the last year may be a proper indicator of this close relationship. Some economic indicators show the regional effects of the crisis on the Cantabria Region. The present work aims to evaluate the impact of the economic crisis on PM10 levels and composition at the major city of the region, Santander. Some metals linked to anthropogenic activities were measured at Santander and studied by Positive Matrix Factorization; this statistical analysis allowed to identify three main factors: urban background, industrial and molybdenum-related factor. The main results show that the temporal trend of the levels of the industrial tracers found in the present study are well agree with the evolution of the studied economic indicators; nevertheless, the urban background tracers and PM10 concentration levels are not well correlated with the studied economic indicators. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Coastal vulnerability assessment with the use of environmental and socio-economic indicators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alexandrakis, George; Petrakis, Stelios; Vousdoukas, Mixalis; Ghionis, George; Hatziyanni, Eleni; Kampanis, Nikolaos

2014-05-01

Climate change has significant repercussions on the natural environment, triggering obvious changes in the natural processes that have a severe socio-economic impact on the coastal zone; where a great number of human activities are concentrated. So far, the estimation of coastal vulnerability was based primarily on the natural processes and less on socio-economic variables, which would assist in the identification of vulnerable areas. The present investigation proposes a methodology to examine the vulnerability of a highly touristic area in the Island of Crete to an expected sea level rise of up to ~40 cm by the year 2100, according to the A1B scenario of IPCC 2007. The methodology includes the combination of socio-economic indicators into a GIS-based coastal vulnerability index for wave-induced erosion. This approach includes three sub-indices that contribute equally to the overall index. The sub-indices refer to coastal forcing, socio-economic and coastal characteristics. All variables are ranked on a 1-5 scale with 5 indicating higher vulnerability. The socio-economic sub-index includes, as indicators, the population of the study area, cultural heritage sites, transport networks, land use and protection measures. The coastal forcing sub-index includes the frequency of extreme events, while the Coastal Vulnerability Index includes the geological variables (coastal geomorphology, historical coastline changes, and regional coastal slope) and the variables representing the marine processes (relative sea level rise, mean significant wave height, and tidal range). The main difficulty for the estimation of the index lies in assessing and ranking the socio-economic indicators. The whole approach was tested and validated through field and desktop studies, using as a case study the Elouda bay, Crete Isl., an area of high cultural and economic value, which combines monuments from ancient and medieval times, with a very high touristic development since the 1970s.

Socio-economic dietary inequalities in UK adults: an updated picture of key food groups and nutrients from national surveillance data.

PubMed

Maguire, Eva R; Monsivais, Pablo

2015-01-14

Socio-economic differences in diet are a potential contributor to health inequalities. The present study provides an up-to-date picture of socio-economic differences in diet in the UK, focusing on the consumption of three food groups and two nutrients of public health concern: fruit and vegetables; red and processed meat; oily fish; saturated fats; non-milk extrinsic sugars (NMES). We analysed data for 1491 adults (age ≥ 19 years) from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2008-2011. Socio-economic indicators were household income, occupational social class and highest educational qualification. Covariate-adjusted estimates for intakes of fruit and vegetables, red and processed meat, and both nutrients were estimated using general linear models. Covariate-adjusted OR for oily fish consumption were derived with logistic regression models. We observed consistent socio-economic gradients in the consumption of the three food groups as estimated by all the three indicators. Contrasting highest and lowest levels of each socio-economic indicator, we observed significant differences in intakes for the three food groups and NMES. Depending on the socio-economic indicator, highest socio-economic groups consumed up to 128 g/d more fruit and vegetables, 26 g/d less red and processed meat, and 2·6% points less NMES (P< 0·05 for all). Relative to lowest socio-economic groups, highest socio-economic groups were 2·4 to 4·0 times more likely to eat oily fish. No significant patterns in saturated fat consumption were apparent. In conclusion, socio-economic differences were identified in the consumption of food groups and one nutrient of public health importance. Aligning dietary intakes with public health guidance may require interventions specifically designed to reduce health inequalities.

Economic hardships in adulthood and mental health in Sweden. The Swedish National Public Health Survey 2009.

PubMed

Ahnquist, Johanna; Wamala, Sarah P

2011-10-11

Possible accumulative effects of a combined economic hardship's measure, including both income and non-income related economic hardships measures, on mental health has not been well investigated. The aim of this paper was to investigate; (i) independent associations between multiple measures of economic hardships and mental health problems, and (ii) associations between a combined economic hardships measure and mental health problems. We analysed data from the 2009 Swedish National Survey of Public Health comprising a randomly selected representative national sample combined with a randomly selected supplementary sample from four county councils and three municipalities consisting of 23,153 men and 28,261 women aged 16-84 years. Mental health problems included; psychological distress (GHQ-12), severe anxiety and use of antidepressant medication. Economic hardship was measured by a combined economic hardships measure including low household income, inability to meet expenses and lacking cash reserves. The results from multivariate adjusted (age, country of birth, educational level, occupational status, employment status, family status and long term illness) logistic regression analysis indicate that self-reported current economic difficulties (inability to pay for ordinary bills and lack of cash reserves), were significantly associated with both women's and men's mental health problems (all indicators), while low income was not. In addition, we found a statistically significant graded association between mental health problems and levels of economic hardships. The findings indicate that indicators of self-reported current economic difficulties seem to be more strongly associated with poor mental health outcomes than the more conventional measure low income. Furthermore, the likelihood of mental health problems differed significantly in a graded fashion in relation to levels of economic hardships.

Implementing Economics Standards: A Pilot Transition Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cargill, Thomas F.; Jurosky, Jennifer; Wendel, Jeanne

2008-01-01

Most states have adopted high school economics standards, but implementation efforts face two hurdles: evidence indicates that five or six college-level economics courses are needed for high school economics teachers and that standalone high school economics classes are more effective than strategies that infuse economics into history or civics…

The Global Economic Prospect: New Sources of Economic Stress. Worldwatch Paper 20.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Lester R.

American economic analysts will better understand current economic trends if they investigate economic problems in light of the expanding global economy. Reasons for the failure of economists to explain the simultaneous existence of rapid inflation and high unemployment include preoccupation with economic indicators, short-term forecasts, and…

"Rekindle and Recapture the Love": Establishing System-Wide Indicators of Progress in Community Engagement and Economic Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Janke, Emily M.

2014-01-01

In May 2012, University of North Carolina (UNC) President Tom Ross simultaneously commissioned two task forces to develop indicators that all UNC campuses could use to measure "progress in community engagement and economic development." The charge to the Community Engagement Task Force and the Economic Development Task Force was to…

A Survey of the Impressions of Economics Departments of the Quantitative Courses Required of Economics Majors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Victoria E.; Nelson, C. Van

A survey of chairpersons of the Departments of Economics at 47 accredited U.S. colleges and universities collected data concerning required and recommended courses, departments in which students take the courses, satisfaction with the courses, and problems in those courses where respondents indicated dissatisfaction. Results indicated that: (1)…

How has the economic downturn affected communities and implementation of science-based prevention in the randomized trial of communities that care?

PubMed

Kuklinski, Margaret R; Hawkins, J David; Plotnick, Robert D; Abbott, Robert D; Reid, Carolina K

2013-06-01

This study examined implications of the economic downturn that began in December 2007 for the Community Youth Development Study (CYDS), a longitudinal randomized controlled trial of the Communities That Care (CTC) prevention system. The downturn had the potential to affect the internal validity of the CYDS research design and implementation of science-based prevention in study communities. We used archival economic indicators and community key leader reports of economic conditions to assess the extent of the economic downturn in CYDS communities and potential internal validity threats. We also examined whether stronger economic downturn effects were associated with a decline in science-based prevention implementation. Economic indicators suggested the downturn affected CYDS communities to different degrees. We found no evidence of systematic differences in downturn effects in CTC compared to control communities that would threaten internal validity of the randomized trial. The Community Economic Problems scale was a reliable measure of community economic conditions, and it showed criterion validity in relation to several objective economic indicators. CTC coalitions continued to implement science-based prevention to a significantly greater degree than control coalitions 2 years after the downturn began. However, CTC implementation levels declined to some extent as unemployment, the percentage of students qualifying for free lunch, and community economic problems worsened. Control coalition implementation levels were not related to economic conditions before or after the downturn, but mean implementation levels of science-based prevention were also relatively low in both periods.

How Has the Economic Downturn Affected Communities and Implementation of Science-Based Prevention in the Randomized Trial of Communities That Care?

PubMed Central

Kuklinski, Margaret R.; Hawkins, J. David; Plotnick, Robert D.; Abbott, Robert D.; Reid, Carolina K.

2013-01-01

This study examined implications of the economic downturn that began in December 2007 for the Community Youth Development Study (CYDS), a longitudinal randomized controlled trial of the Communities That Care (CTC) prevention system. The downturn had the potential to affect the internal validity of the CYDS research design and implementation of science-based prevention in study communities. We used archival economic indicators and community key leader reports of economic conditions to assess the extent of the economic downturn in CYDS communities and potential internal validity threats. We also examined whether stronger economic downturn effects were associated with a decline in science-based prevention implementation. Economic indicators suggested the downturn affected CYDS communities to different degrees. We found no evidence of systematic differences in downturn effects in CTC compared to control communities that would threaten internal validity of the randomized trial. The Community Economic Problems scale was a reliable measure of community economic conditions, and it showed criterion validity in relation to several objective economic indicators. CTC coalitions continued to implement science-based prevention to a significantly greater degree than control coalitions 2 years after the downturn began. However, CTC implementation levels declined to some extent as unemployment, the percentage of students qualifying for free lunch, and community economic problems worsened. Control coalition implementation levels were not related to economic conditions before or after the downturn, but mean implementation levels of science-based prevention were also relatively low in both periods. PMID:23054169

Evaluating Training by Four Economic Indices.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosentreter, Gary

1979-01-01

This study was intended to demonstrate the effectiveness of four selected economic indicators as criteria for evaluation of a manufacturing firm's management training program in communication skills. Though the results indicated that the program effected change only in employee turnover, the study supports the measurement of training by economic…

Mathematical model comparing of the multi-level economics systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brykalov, S. M.; Kryanev, A. V.

2017-12-01

The mathematical model (scheme) of a multi-level comparison of the economic system, characterized by the system of indices, is worked out. In the mathematical model of the multi-level comparison of the economic systems, the indicators of peer review and forecasting of the economic system under consideration can be used. The model can take into account the uncertainty in the estimated values of the parameters or expert estimations. The model uses the multi-criteria approach based on the Pareto solutions.

Indicators for Measuring Entrepreneurship: A Proposal for a Scoreboard

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leitao da Silva Martins, Susana Paula

2007-01-01

Indicators for measuring and comparing entrepreneurship in different regions are important tools for understanding economic and social development and formulating strategies to bring improvements to less developed areas. The existing indicators are not adequate for this purpose because they do not link the economic and social factors that…

Quality of clinical and economic evidence in dossier formulary submissions.

PubMed

Colmenero, Fernando; Sullivan, Sean D; Palmer, Jennifer A; Brauer, Carmen A; Bungay, Kathleen; Watkins, John; Neumann, Peter J

2007-07-01

To investigate the quality and completeness of clinical and economic data in dossiers submitted by drug companies to a health plan using Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy guidelines (the Format) for formulary submissions. We reviewed the quality of economic analyses in dossiers submitted to Premera Blue Cross Health Plan (Mountlake Terrace, Washington; enrollment 1.6 million) between January 2002 and September 2005. For dossiers submitted in 2003, we examined the clinical studies included. Dossiers were audited with a data collection form to judge the types of clinical studies used to support labeled and off-label indications, and the quality and transparency of economic analyses. We compared economic analyses for high-cost (30-day treatment cost > $1000) versus low-cost products, and for "innovative" versus "me-too" drugs. Evidence to support off-label indications often was included in 2003 dossiers, but the information was less extensive and of poorer quality than data for labeled indications. Of 115 dossiers submitted between 2002 and 2005, 53 (46%) included economic analyses. The economic analyses had low levels of compliance with standards: only 43% performed sensitivity analysis; 38% stated the study perspective; 37% discussed relevant treatment alternatives; 20% stated assumptions clearly; and 18% mentioned caveats to conclusions. Economic analyses of high-cost products and innovative products had higher compliance with recommended practices. Drug companies are submitting dossiers of evidence to formulary committees. Dossiers often included clinical data to support off-label indications, but concerns persist about their quality. About half of dossiers included economic analyses, but these analyses had relatively low levels of compliance with recommended practices.

Consistent Condom Use by Female Sex Workers in Kolkata, India: Testing Theories of Economic Insecurity, Behavior Change, Life Course Vulnerability and Empowerment.

PubMed

Fehrenbacher, Anne E; Chowdhury, Debasish; Ghose, Toorjo; Swendeman, Dallas

2016-10-01

Consistent condom use (CCU) is the primary HIV/STI prevention option available to sex workers globally but may be undermined by economic insecurity, life-course vulnerabilities, behavioral factors, disempowerment, or lack of effective interventions. This study examines predictors of CCU in a random household survey of brothel-based female sex workers (n = 200) in two neighborhoods served by Durbar (the Sonagachi Project) in Kolkata, India. Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that CCU was significantly associated with perceived HIV risk, community mobilization participation, working more days in sex work, and higher proportion of occasional clients to regular clients. Exploratory analyses stratifying by economic insecurity indicators (i.e., debt, savings, income, housing security) indicate that perceived HIV risk and community mobilization were only associated with CCU for economically secure FSW. Interventions with FSW must prioritize economic security and access to social protections as economic insecurity may undermine the efficacy of more direct condom use intervention strategies.

Socio-economic indicators are independently associated with intake of animal foods in French adults.

PubMed

Méjean, Caroline; Si Hassen, Wendy; Lecossais, Christelle; Allès, Benjamin; Péneau, Sandrine; Hercberg, Serge; Castetbon, Katia

2016-12-01

The specific role of major socio-economic indicators (education, occupation, income) in influencing consumer choice of animal foods (AF) intake could reveal distinct socio-economic facets, thus enabling elucidation of mechanisms leading to social inequalities in health. We investigated the independent association of each indicator with intake of different AF and their effect modification. Cross-sectional study. AF intake was estimated using three 24 h dietary records. Associations between socio-economic factors and AF intake and interactions between socio-economic indicators were assessed using ANCOVA adjusted for age and energy intake. Analyses were performed separately for men and women, since gender interactions were found. France. Adults (n 92 036) participating in the NutriNet-Santé Study. Low educated persons had higher intake of red meat (+9-12 g/d), processed meat (+6-9 g/d) and poultry (for men, +7 g/d) than those with a higher education level. Percentage of fish consumers was lower in individuals of the lowest income class compared with those in higher classes. Manual workers had a higher intake of cream desserts (for men, +14 g/d) than managerial staff. Few significant interactions were found. In stratified analyses, persons with the highest income consumed more yoghurt than those who had lower income, only in low educated individuals. Socio-economic disparities in AF intake varied according to the socio-economic indicator, suggesting the specific influence of each indicator on AF intake. In particular, lower education was associated with higher intake of red and processed meats and cream desserts, and had an effect modification on the relationship between income and AF intake.

Indicators of Children's Well-Being: Conference Papers. Child Health, Education, and Economic Security. Volume II. Special Report Series. Special Report Number 60b.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wisconsin Univ., Madison. Inst. for Research on Poverty.

This volume groups papers discussing indicators of children's well-being into three areas: child health, education, and economic security. Papers concerning child health include: (1) "Prenatal and Infant Health Indicators" (Paula Lantz and Melissa Partin); (2) "Health Indicators for Preschool Children (Ages 1-4)" (Barbara L.…

[Environmental health and inequalities: building indicators for sustainable development].

PubMed

Carneiro, Fernando Ferreira; Franco Netto, Guilherme; Corvalan, Carlos; de Freitas, Carlos Machado; Sales, Luiz Belino Ferreira

2012-06-01

Despite its progress in terms of socio-economic indicators, Brazil is still unequal, which is due to an unequal and exclusionary historical process. In this paper we selected the Human Development Index - HDI and other social, economic, environmental and health indicators to exemplify this situation. We selected the municipalities that had the lowest HDI in the country in 2000 comparing their evolution over time between 2000 and 2010 by means of indicators linked to the economic, environmental and social pillars of sustainable development. These municipalities have an HDI classified as low (<0.500), and correspond to countries such as Laos, Yemen, Haiti and Madagascar. At national level, data for the decade show a significant improvement in economic indicators (decrease from 23% to 8.9% of people living on less than a quarter of the minimum wage); social indicators (increase from 86.5% to 90.2% of literacy in women), and the environmental indicator associated with access to the water grid, which also improved to a lesser extent (increase from 81% to 85%). It was concluded that in order to achieve sustainable development with quality of life, the improvement of sanitation and education indicators should be a priority for Brazil.

Faces of poverty: sensitivity and specificity of economic classifications in rural Vietnam.

PubMed

Khe, Nguyen Duy; Eriksson, Bo; Phuong, Do Nguyen; Höjer, Bengt; Diwan, Vinod K

2003-01-01

Poverty concepts and measurements have occupied philosophers for centuries and are subject to debate by researchers. A wide range of possible measures have been developed and used. Most research is country specific and different methods produce different pictures of poverty. This study aimed to compare measures of poverty within an epidemiological field laboratory in Bavi District, northern Vietnam (FilaBavi) and specifically to find out whether the official economic classification made by the local authority matched other measurements of socioeconomic status. Structured questionnaires were used to collect socioeconomic information in 11,547 households. In addition, the official classification for individual households was recorded. Five economic indicators were constructed: income, expenditure, household assets, housing conditions, and local authority's estimation. Official economic classification and housing score were symmetrically distributed, while assets score and particularly income were highly skewed. Design effects were high because of high intra-cluster correlations. No indicator was closely correlated with any other. Sensitivity and positive predictive value for poverty were generally low for all indicators. The authors' findings do not suggest that any of the indicators used is substantially better than the other or better than the Official Economic Classification made by local authority. The results also show that no indicator is particularly useful to predict the values of any other indicator and different poverty indicators may classify different socioeconomic groups as poor.

Reintegration of child soldiers in Burundi: a tracer study

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Substantial attention and resources are aimed at the reintegration of child soldiers, yet rigorous evaluations are rare. Methods This tracer study was conducted among former child soldiers (N=452) and never-recruited peers (N=191) who participated in an economic support program in Burundi. Socio-economic outcome indicators were measured retrospectively for the period before receiving support (T1; 2005–06); immediately afterwards (T2; 2006–07); and at present (T3; 2010). Participants also rated present functional impairment and mental health indicators. Results Participants reported improvement on all indicators, especially economic opportunity and social integration. At present no difference existed between both groups on any of the outcome indicators. Socio-economic functioning was negatively related with depression- and, health complaints and positively with intervention satisfaction. Conclusion The present study demonstrates promising reintegration trajectories of former child soldiers after participating in a support program. PMID:23095403

The persisting effect of unemployment on health and social well-being in men early in working life.

PubMed

Wadsworth, M E; Montgomery, S M; Bartley, M J

1999-05-01

In our studies of the effects of unemployment in the early working life of men in a British national birth cohort we have shown elsewhere that this experience was part of a longer term accumulation of social and health disadvantage. This present study asks whether men's unemployment also inflicted potential longterm damage to future socio-economic chances and health. We therefore constructed indicators of socio-economic circumstances and health at 33 years from factors already shown to be associated with health in later life. For the socio-economic indicator we used a combination of income, occupational status and home ownership and described this as socio-economic capital. For the health indicator we combined scores of body mass index, leisure time exercise, frequency of eating fresh fruit and of smoking, and described this as health capital. After controlling for pre-labour market socio-economic and health factors, prolonged unemployment is shown here to reduce significantly both socio-economic and health capital by age 33 years. We conclude that the experience of prolonged unemployment early in the working life of this population of young men looks likely to have a persisting effect on their future health and socio-economic circumstances.

Relevant Indicators of Relative Expertise in Economic Problem Solving: A Factor Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

VanFossen, Phillip J.

This paper reports preliminary research into the nature of relative expertise in economic problem solving. Specifically, this report seeks to address the question of whether the presence of economic knowledge alone accounts for expertise in economic problem solving or whether both economic knowledge and the development and employment of economic…

The effect of economic downturn on the volume of surgical procedures: A systematic review.

PubMed

Fujihara, Nasa; Lark, Meghan E; Fujihara, Yuki; Chung, Kevin C

2017-08-01

Economic downturn can have a wide range of effects on medicine at both individual and national levels. We aim to describe these effects in relation to surgical volume to guide future planning for physician specialization, patient expectations in the face of economic crises, or estimating healthcare expenditure. We hypothesized that because of high out-of-pocket costs, cosmetic procedure volumes would be most affected by economic decline. A systematic review was conducted using MEDLINE, Embase, and ABI/INFORMS. The main search terms were "economic recession" and "surgical procedures, operative". Studies were included if surgical volumes were measured and economic indicators were used as predictors of economic conditions. Twelve studies were included, and the most common subject was cosmetic (n = 5), followed by orthopedic (n = 2) and cardiac surgeries (n = 2). The majority of studies found that in periods of economic downturn, surgical volume decreased. Among the eight studies using Pearson's correlation analysis, there were no significant differences between cosmetic procedures and other elective procedures, indicating that cosmetic procedures may display trends similar to those of non-cosmetic elective procedures in periods of economic downturn. Surgical volume generally decreased when economic indicators declined, observed for both elective and non-elective surgery fields. However, a few specific procedure volumes such as vasectomy and caesarean section for male babies increased during the economic downturn. Knowledge of these trends can be useful for future surgical planning and distribution of healthcare resources. Copyright © 2017 IJS Publishing Group Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Constructing and Validating a Multiple-Indicator Construct of Economic Hardship in a National Sample of Adolescents with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murray, Christopher; Doren, Bonnie; Gau, Jeff M.; Zvoch, Keith; Seeley, John R.

2015-01-01

The purpose of the current study was to develop a multi-indicator construct of economic hardship among adolescents with disabilities (N = 9,230) participating in the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2, the largest, most comprehensive investigation of adolescents with disabilities ever conducted. Five theoretically relevant indicators (i.e.,…

Understanding economic abuse in the lives of survivors.

PubMed

Postmus, Judy L; Plummer, Sara-Beth; McMahon, Sarah; Murshid, N Shaanta; Kim, Mi Sung

2012-02-01

Intimate partner violence (IPV) often includes economic abuse as one tactic commonly used by an abuser; unfortunately, there is a lack of empirical understanding of economic abuse. Additionally, research is limited on the predictors of economic self-sufficiency in the lives of women experiencing IPV. This paper furthers our knowledge about economic abuse and its relationship with economic self-sufficiency by presenting the results from an exploratory study with IPV survivors participating in a financial literacy program. Of the 120 individuals who participated in the first wave, 94% experienced some form of economic abuse, which also correlated highly with other forms of IPV. Seventy-nine percent experienced some form of economic control, 79% experienced economic exploitative behaviors, and 78% experienced employment sabotage. MANOVA results also indicated that economic control differed significantly based on education with those with a high school education experiencing higher rates than those with less than high school education or those with some college. Finally, results from the OLS regressions indicated that experiencing any form of economic abuse as well as economic control significantly predicted a decrease in economic self sufficiency. Implications suggest that advocates should assess for economic abuse when working with survivors and should be prepared to offer financial tools to increase survivors' economic self-sufficiency. Policymakers should understand the ramifications of economic abuse and create policies that support survivors and prohibit economic abuse. Finally, more research is needed to fully understand economic abuse and its impact on survivors and their economic self-sufficiency.

Neighbourhood Socio Economic Disadvantage Index’s Analysis of the Flood Disasters Area at East Jakarta in 1996 and 2016

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ranti Ristiani, Christina; Rokhmatuloh; Hernina, Revi

2017-12-01

Flood is one of natural disasters that have often happened in East Jakarta. Flood can give several negative impacts and it can affect all aspects of society lives such as economics, political, cultural, socials and others. East Jakarta is an urban area which continuously grows and establishes to become a rapid area. It can be seen from the highest population density in East Jakarta (BPS, 2016) and categorized into a region prone to flooding based on data Prone Flood Map in 1996 and 2016. The higher population exists in East Jakarta, the bigger possibility of the negative effects of disaster it gets. The negative impacts of flood disaster can affect societies especially with socio-economic disadvantage. One of the index to measure socio-economic disadvantage is NSDI (Neighbourhood socio-economic disadvantage index). However, to adjust indicators used in NSDI with Indonesia statistical data compatibility, it needs further assessment and evaluation. Therefore, this paper evaluates previous main indicators used in previous NSDI studies and improves with indicators which more suitable with statistical records in Indonesia. As a result, there will be improved 19 indicators to be used in NSDI, but the groups of indicators remain the same as previous namely; income, education, occupation, housing, and population.

On the Normative Foundations of Economic Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leming, James S.

1987-01-01

Reports research which indicates current economics curricula fail to significantly influence student commitment to the normative foundations of the free enterprise system. Demonstrates how schools have potential for teaching economic values to youth. Concludes economic education should include latent and manifest curricula to better develop…

New Economic and Financial Indicators of Sustainability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pittman, James; Wilhelm, Kevin

2007-01-01

Financial accounting methods fall short of fully accounting for the relative sustainability of college and university operations. Management of social, environmental, and economic performance will be aided by changes to and new developments in financial accounting practices to complement other indicators of sustainability.

Trends in key economic and social indicators for Pacific Northwest states and counties.

Treesearch

Terry L. Raettig

1999-01-01

Local (county) variations in key social and economic indicators are important in Oregon and Washington. Covered employment, wage and salary, unemployment, and population data for 1987 through 1997 showed regional trends in these indicators, which are compared with national trends. Future updates will be published in the “Production, Prices, Employment, and Trade in...

University of Wisconsin System Leaders' Perceptions of Economic Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eckmann, David A.

2017-01-01

This case study of one comprehensive university's economic-development engagement in its region was designed to better understand perceptions and actions by higher education leaders and economic development professionals. Findings indicated that one regional comprehensive university was an effective economic development partner because its leaders…

[Evaluation on the eco-economic benefits of small watershed in Beijing mountainous area: a case of Yanqi River watershed].

PubMed

Xiao, Hui-Jie; Wei, Zi-Gang; Wang, Qing; Zhu, Xiao-Bo

2012-12-01

Based on the theory of harmonious development of ecological economy, a total of 13 evaluation indices were selected from the ecological, economic, and social sub-systems of Yanqi River watershed in Huairou District of Beijing. The selected evaluation indices were normalized by using trapezoid functions, and the weights of the evaluation indices were determined by analytic hierarchy process. Then, the eco-economic benefits of the watershed were evaluated with weighted composite index method. From 2004 to 2011, the ecological, economic, and social benefits of Yanqi River watershed all had somewhat increase, among which, ecological benefit increased most, with the value changed from 0.210 in 2004 to 0.255 in 2011 and an increment of 21.5%. The eco-economic benefits of the watershed increased from 0.734 in 2004 to 0.840 in 2011, with an increment of 14.2%. At present, the watershed reached the stage of advanced ecosystem, being in beneficial circulation and harmonious development of ecology, economy, and society.

Fetal, Infant, and Maternal Mortality During Periods of Economic Instability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brenner, M. H.

1973-01-01

One of the most sensitive indicators of the general socioeconomic level of a nation is the infant mortality rate. Evidence indicates that economic recessions and upswings have played a significant role in fetal, infant, and maternal mortality in the last 45 years. (RJ)

Does national scale economic and environmental indicators spur logistics performance? Evidence from UK.

PubMed

Khan, Syed Abdul Rehman; Qianli, Dong

2017-12-01

The aim of this study is to examine the association between national economic and environmental indicators with green logistics performance in a time series data of UK since 1981 to 2016. The research used autoregressive distributed lag method to understand the long-run and short-run relationships of national scale economic (foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows, per capita income) and environmental indicators (total greenhouse gases, fossil fuel, and renewable energy) on green logistics. In the short run, the research findings indicate that the green logistics and renewable energy have positive relationship, while fossil fuel is negatively correlated with green logistics operations. On the other hand, in the long run, the results show that FDI inflows, renewable energy sources, and per capita income have statistically significant and positive association with green logistics activities, while foreign investments attracted by environmental friendly policies and practices adopted in global logistics operations, which not only increase the environmental sustainability but also enhance economic activities with greater export opportunities in the region.

Clarifying the Behavioral Economics of Social Anxiety Disorder: Effects of Interpersonal Problems and Symptom Severity on Generosity.

PubMed

Rodebaugh, Thomas L; Heimberg, Richard G; Taylor, Kristin P; Lenze, Eric J

2016-01-01

Social anxiety disorder is associated with lower interpersonal warmth, possibly explaining its associated interpersonal impairment. Across two samples, we attempted to replicate previous findings that the disorder's constraint of interpersonal warmth can be detected via behavioral economic tasks. We also tested the test-retest stability of task indices. Results indicated that factors associated with social anxiety disorder (and not the disorder itself), such as the severity of social anxiety and more extreme interpersonal problems, lead to less generous behavior on the economic task examined. Results were clearest regarding fine-grained indices derived from latent trajectories. Unexpectedly, the combination of generalized anxiety disorder and higher depression also restricted generosity. Two of three indices showed acceptable test-retest stability. Maladaptive giving behavior may be a treatment target to improve interpersonal functioning in psychiatric disorders; therefore, future work should more precisely characterize behavioral economic tasks, including basic psychometric work (i.e., tests of reliability and validity).

Clarifying the Behavioral Economics of Social Anxiety Disorder: Effects of Interpersonal Problems and Symptom Severity on Generosity

PubMed Central

Rodebaugh, Thomas L.; Heimberg, Richard G.; Taylor, Kristin P.; Lenze, Eric J.

2015-01-01

Social anxiety disorder is associated with lower interpersonal warmth, possibly explaining its associated interpersonal impairment. Across two samples, we attempted to replicate previous findings that the disorder’s constraint of interpersonal warmth can be detected via behavioral economic tasks. We also tested the test-retest stability of task indices. Results indicated that factors associated with social anxiety disorder (and not the disorder itself), such as the severity of social anxiety and more extreme interpersonal problems, lead to less generous behavior on the economic task examined. Results were clearest regarding fine-grained indices derived from latent trajectories. Unexpectedly, the combination of generalized anxiety disorder and higher depression also restricted generosity. Two of three indices showed acceptable test-retest stability. Maladaptive giving behavior may be a treatment target to improve interpersonal functioning in psychiatric disorders; therefore, future work should more precisely characterize behavioral economic tasks, including basic psychometric work (i.e., tests of reliability and validity). PMID:27034911

Effects of the 2008 Global Economic Crisis on National Health Indicators: Results from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

PubMed Central

Shin, Jung-Hyun; Lee, Gyeongsil; Kim, Jun-Suk; Oh, Hyung-Seok; Lee, Keun-Seung; Hur, Yong

2015-01-01

Background The relationship between economics and health has been of great interest throughout the years. The accumulated data is not sufficient enough to carry out long-term studies from the viewpoint of morbidity, although Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) was carried out yearly since 1998 in Korea. Thus, we investigated the effect of the 2008 global economic crisis on health indicators of Korea. Methods Health indicators were selected by paired t-test based on 2007 and 2009 KNHANES data. Age, gender, body mass index (BMI), smoking, drinking, exercise, education, income, working status, and stress were used as confounding factors, which were analyzed with logistic and probit analyses. Validation was done by comparing gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates and probit analyses results of 2007-2012 KNHANES data. Results Among several health indicators, the prevalence of hypertension and stress perception was higher after the economic crisis. Factors related with higher hypertension prevalence include older age, male gender, higher BMI, no current tobacco use, recent drinking, lower education levels, and stress perception. Factors related with more stress perception were younger age, female gender, current smoking, lower education levels, and lower income. GDP growth rates, a macroeconomic indicator, are inversely associated with hypertension prevalence with a one-year lag, and also inversely associated with stress perception without time lag. Conclusion The economic crisis increased the prevalence of hypertension and stress perception. In the case of GDP growth rate change, hypertension was an inversely lagging indicator and stress perception was an inversely-related coincident indicator. PMID:26217479

Effects of the 2008 Global Economic Crisis on National Health Indicators: Results from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

PubMed

Shin, Jung-Hyun; Lee, Gyeongsil; Kim, Jun-Suk; Oh, Hyung-Seok; Lee, Keun-Seung; Hur, Yong; Cho, Be-Long

2015-07-01

The relationship between economics and health has been of great interest throughout the years. The accumulated data is not sufficient enough to carry out long-term studies from the viewpoint of morbidity, although Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) was carried out yearly since 1998 in Korea. Thus, we investigated the effect of the 2008 global economic crisis on health indicators of Korea. Health indicators were selected by paired t-test based on 2007 and 2009 KNHANES data. Age, gender, body mass index (BMI), smoking, drinking, exercise, education, income, working status, and stress were used as confounding factors, which were analyzed with logistic and probit analyses. Validation was done by comparing gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates and probit analyses results of 2007-2012 KNHANES data. Among several health indicators, the prevalence of hypertension and stress perception was higher after the economic crisis. Factors related with higher hypertension prevalence include older age, male gender, higher BMI, no current tobacco use, recent drinking, lower education levels, and stress perception. Factors related with more stress perception were younger age, female gender, current smoking, lower education levels, and lower income. GDP growth rates, a macroeconomic indicator, are inversely associated with hypertension prevalence with a one-year lag, and also inversely associated with stress perception without time lag. The economic crisis increased the prevalence of hypertension and stress perception. In the case of GDP growth rate change, hypertension was an inversely lagging indicator and stress perception was an inversely-related coincident indicator.

How Do National Economic Competitiveness Indices View Human Capital?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sabadie, Jesus Alquezar; Johansen, Jens

2010-01-01

"Economic competitiveness" is at the top of national, regional and global political and economic agendas. Several countries in all regions of the world have established policies and institutions devoted to economic competitiveness, including in developing and transition countries. This leads to the question of how to define national economic…

Five years after the Hawai'i smoke-free law: tourism and hospitality economic indicators appear unharmed.

PubMed

Dobson Amato, Katharine A; Rivard, Cheryl; Lipsher, Julian; Hyland, Andrew

2013-10-01

Opponents of Hawai'i's smoke-free law argued that such a law would lead to a decrease in tourism. The purpose of this study is to determine if there is evidence of an adverse impact of Hawai'i's smoke-free law on tourism utilizing data obtained from Hawai'i's Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism website for tourists from the United States. Descriptive statistics were reported before and after the law and linear regression was used to assess the relationship between the implementation of the law and changes in indicators of tourism while adjusting for underlying economic factors. The most pronounced fluctuations observed with all tourism indicators occurred around the time the US entered the recession (December 2007), with steady increases following the end of the US recession. While controlling for economic and seasonal trends, the presence of the smoke-free law was associated with an increase in arrivals (β= 42847.9; 95% CI: 16303.3, 69392.5), accommodation employees (β= 969.0; 95% CI: 351.1, 1586.8) and food services & beverage places employees (β=3390.8; 95% CI: 2326.9, 4454.7). Fluctuations in tourism indicators are likely to be associated with greater economic forces, such as decreasing GDP and consumer confidence in the United States and greater global economic trends, rather than the smoke-free law.

Five Years After the Hawai‘i Smoke-free Law: Tourism and Hospitality Economic Indicators Appear Unharmed

PubMed Central

Rivard, Cheryl; Lipsher, Julian; Hyland, Andrew

2013-01-01

Opponents of Hawai‘i's smoke-free law argued that such a law would lead to a decrease in tourism. The purpose of this study is to determine if there is evidence of an adverse impact of Hawai‘i's smoke-free law on tourism utilizing data obtained from Hawai‘i's Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism website for tourists from the United States. Descriptive statistics were reported before and after the law and linear regression was used to assess the relationship between the implementation of the law and changes in indicators of tourism while adjusting for underlying economic factors. The most pronounced fluctuations observed with all tourism indicators occurred around the time the US entered the recession (December 2007), with steady increases following the end of the US recession. While controlling for economic and seasonal trends, the presence of the smoke-free law was associated with an increase in arrivals (β= 42847.9; 95% CI: 16303.3, 69392.5), accommodation employees (β= 969.0; 95% CI: 351.1, 1586.8) and food services & beverage places employees (β=3390.8; 95% CI: 2326.9, 4454.7). Fluctuations in tourism indicators are likely to be associated with greater economic forces, such as decreasing GDP and consumer confidence in the United States and greater global economic trends, rather than the smoke-free law. PMID:24167770

Simulation System for Making Political and Macroeconomical Decisions and Its Development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vnukov, A. A.; Blinov, A. E.

2018-01-01

Object of this research are macroeconomic indicators, which are important to descript economic situation in a country. Purpose of this work is to identify these indicators and to analyze how the state can affect these figures with available instruments. Here was constructed a model where the targets can be calculated from raw data - tools in the field of economic policy. Software code that implements all relations among the indicators and allows to analyze with high accuracy, sufficiently successful economic policies and with the help of some tools, you can achieve better results. This model can be used to forecast macroeconomic scenarios. The corresponding values of the objective (outcome) variables are set as a consequence of the configuration data of the previous period, subject to external influences and depend on the instrumental variables. The results may be useful in economical predictions. The results were successfully checked on real scenarios of Russian, European and Chinese economics. Moreover, the results can be applied in the field of education. Program is available to use as “economical game” the educational process of the University, in which you can virtually implement various macroeconomic scenarios, draw conclusions about their success.

7 CFR 3700.3 - Functions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) ECONOMIC RESEARCH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... support of a program of economic and social science research, analysis, and data dissemination. General... and economic indicators. (b) Director, Commercial Agriculture Division. The Director, Commercial...

7 CFR 3700.3 - Functions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) ECONOMIC RESEARCH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... support of a program of economic and social science research, analysis, and data dissemination. General... and economic indicators. (b) Director, Commercial Agriculture Division. The Director, Commercial...

7 CFR 3700.3 - Functions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) ECONOMIC RESEARCH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... support of a program of economic and social science research, analysis, and data dissemination. General... and economic indicators. (b) Director, Commercial Agriculture Division. The Director, Commercial...

7 CFR 3700.3 - Functions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) ECONOMIC RESEARCH SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE... support of a program of economic and social science research, analysis, and data dissemination. General... and economic indicators. (b) Director, Commercial Agriculture Division. The Director, Commercial...

Multirole cargo aircraft options and configurations. [economic analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Conner, D. W.; Vaughan, J. C., III

1979-01-01

A future requirements and advanced market evaluation study indicates derivatives of current wide-body aircraft, using 1980 advanced technology, would be economically attractive through 2008, but new dedicated airfreighters incorporating 1990 technology, would offer little or no economic incentive. They would be economically attractive for all payload sizes, however, if RD and T costs could be shared in a joint civil/military arrangement. For the 1994-2008 cargo market, option studies indicate Mach 0.7 propfans would be economically attractive in trip cost, aircraft price and airline ROI. Spanloaders would have an even lower price and higher ROI but would have a relatively high trip cost because of aerodynamic inefficiencies. Dedicated airfreighters using propfans at Mach 0.8 cruise, laminar flow control, or cryofuels, would not provide any great economic benefits. Air cushion landing gear configurations are identified as an option for avoiding runway constraints on airport requirements and/or operational constraints are noted.

Quantifying China's regional economic complexity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Jian; Zhou, Tao

2018-02-01

China has experienced an outstanding economic expansion during the past decades, however, literature on non-monetary metrics that reveal the status of China's regional economic development are still lacking. In this paper, we fill this gap by quantifying the economic complexity of China's provinces through analyzing 25 years' firm data. First, we estimate the regional economic complexity index (ECI), and show that the overall time evolution of provinces' ECI is relatively stable and slow. Then, after linking ECI to the economic development and the income inequality, we find that the explanatory power of ECI is positive for the former but negative for the latter. Next, we compare different measures of economic diversity and explore their relationships with monetary macroeconomic indicators. Results show that the ECI index and the non-linear iteration based Fitness index are comparative, and they both have stronger explanatory power than other benchmark measures. Further multivariate regressions suggest the robustness of our results after controlling other socioeconomic factors. Our work moves forward a step towards better understanding China's regional economic development and non-monetary macroeconomic indicators.

Do Non-Economic Quality of Life Factors Drive Immigration?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pacheco, Gail Anne; Rossouw, Stephanie; Lewer, Joshua

2013-01-01

This paper contributes to the immigration literature by generating two unique non-economic quality of life (QOL) indices and testing their role on recent migration patterns. Applying the generated QOL indices in conjunction with four independent welfare measures to an augmented gravity model of immigration, this paper finds an insignificant…

Social determinants of health--a question of social or economic capital? Interaction effects of socioeconomic factors on health outcomes.

PubMed

Ahnquist, Johanna; Wamala, Sarah P; Lindstrom, Martin

2012-03-01

Social structures and socioeconomic patterns are the major determinants of population health. However, very few previous studies have simultaneously analysed the "social" and the "economic" indicators when addressing social determinants of health. We focus on the relevance of economic and social capital as health determinants by analysing various indicators. The aim of this paper was to analyse independent associations, and interactions, of lack of economic capital (economic hardships) and social capital (social participation, interpersonal and political/institutional trust) on various health outcomes. Data was derived from the 2009 Swedish National Survey of Public Health, based on a randomly selected representative sample of 23,153 men and 28,261 women aged 16-84 year, with a participation rate of 53.8%. Economic hardships were measured by a combined economic hardships measure including low household income, inability to meet expenses and lacking cash reserves. Social capital was measured by social participation, interpersonal (horizontal) trust and political (vertical/institutional trust) trust in parliament. Health outcomes included; (i) self-rated health, (i) psychological distress (GHQ-12) and (iii) musculoskeletal disorders. Results from multivariate logistic regression show that both measures of economic capital and low social capital were significantly associated with poor health status, with only a few exceptions. Significant interactive effects measured as synergy index were observed between economic hardships and all various types of social capital. The synergy indices ranged from 1.4 to 2.3. The present study adds to the evidence that both economic hardships and social capital contribute to a range of different health outcomes. Furthermore, when combined they potentiate the risk of poor health. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Falling Behind again: White Myths of Black Economics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, Herbert

1978-01-01

Although the celebration of Black economic progress is becoming a national political ritual, two major indicators, poverty rates and unemployment data, reveal the deteriorating economic conditions of Blacks. Drastic measures may be necessary to avoid disaster. (Author/WI)

Economic Facts of Life Needed by Entrepreneurs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clow, John E.

1984-01-01

Discusses the need for entrepreneurs to understand basic economics principles. Indicates that business education has a role in preparing entrepreneurs in marketing, management, and accounting. Lists key economic generalizations that individuals should understand before assuming the role of entrepreneur. (JOW)

Economic Education in Malaysia: A Brief Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rao, C. A.

1978-01-01

This report provides a brief description of economic education in Malaysia and indicates interest, on the part of various Asian countries, i.e., Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines, in the establishment of economic education programs. (Editor/RK)

Information preferences for the evaluation of coastal development impacts on ecosystem services: A multi-criteria assessment in the Australian context.

PubMed

Marre, Jean-Baptiste; Pascoe, Sean; Thébaud, Olivier; Jennings, Sarah; Boncoeur, Jean; Coglan, Louisa

2016-05-15

Ecosystem based management requires the integration of various types of assessment indicators. Understanding stakeholders' information preferences is important, in selecting those indicators that best support management and policy. Both the preferences of decision-makers and the general public may matter, in democratic participatory management institutions. This paper presents a multi-criteria analysis aimed at quantifying the relative importance to these groups of economic, ecological and socio-economic indicators usually considered when managing ecosystem services in a coastal development context. The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is applied within two nationwide surveys in Australia, and preferences of both the general public and decision-makers for these indicators are elicited and compared. Results show that, on average across both groups, the priority in assessing a generic coastal development project is for the ecological assessment of its impacts on marine biodiversity. Ecological assessment indicators are globally preferred to both economic and socio-economic indicators regardless of the nature of the impacts studied. These results are observed for a significantly larger proportion of decision-maker than general public respondents, questioning the extent to which the general public's preferences are well reflected in decision-making processes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Economic Status and Adult Mortality in India: Is the Relationship Sensitive to Choice of Indicators?

PubMed

Barik, Debasis; Desai, Sonalde; Vanneman, Reeve

2018-03-01

Research on economic status and adult mortality is often stymied by the reciprocity of this relationship and lack of clarity on which aspect of economic status matters. While financial resources increase access to healthcare and nutrition and reduce mortality, sickness also reduces labor force participation, thereby reducing income. Without longitudinal data, it is difficult to study the linkage between economic status and mortality. Using data from a national sample of 132,116 Indian adults aged 15 years and above, this paper examines their likelihood of death between wave 1 of the India Human Development Survey (IHDS), conducted in 2004-2005 and wave 2, conducted in 2011-2012. The results show that mortality between the two waves is strongly linked to the economic status of the household at wave 1 regardless of the choice of indicator for economic status. However, negative relationship between economic status and mortality for individuals already suffering from cardiovascular and metabolic conditions varies between three markers of economic status - income, consumption and ownership of consumer durables - varies, reflecting two-way relationship between short and long term markers of economic status and morbidity.

Identification of Cost Indicators with Significant Economic Impact on the Total Treatment Costs of Chronic Heart Failure Patients - A Meta-Analysis.

PubMed

Hameed, Ahmed S; Modre-Osprian, Robert; Schreier, Günter

2017-01-01

Increasing treatment costs of HF patients affect the initiation of appropriate treatment method. Divergent approaches to measure the costs of treatment and the lack of common cost indicators impede the comparison of therapy settings. In the context of the present meta-analysis, key cost indicators from the perspective of healthcare providers are to be identified, described, analyzed and quantified. This review helps narrowing down the cost indicators, which have the most significant economic impact on the total treatment costs of HF patients. Telemedical services are to be compared to standard therapy methods. The identification process was based on several steps. For the quantitative synthesis, we used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement. An additional set of criteria was defined for the following qualitative analysis. 5 key cost indicators were identified with significant economic impact on the treatment costs of HF patients. 95% of the reported treatment costs could be captured based on the identified cost indicators.

Can Students Learn Economics and Personal Finance in a Specialized Elementary School?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Posnanski, Tracy J.; Schug, Mark C.; Schmitt, Thomas

2007-01-01

Statistics from a number of surveys indicate there is a high rate of economic and financial illiteracy in the United States. Several other studies have pointed out that problems related to the widespread lack of economic and financial understanding have serious consequences on the future economic well-being of many citizens. Financial and economic…

Atlas of social and economic conditions and change in southern California.

Treesearch

Terry L. Raettig; Dawn M. Elmer; Harriet H. Christensen

2001-01-01

This atlas illustrates the spatial and temporal dimensions of social and economic changes in the social-economic assessment region in the decade since 1987/1988. Maps, interpretive text, and accompanying tables and graphs portray conditions, trends, and changes in selected social, economic, and natural resource-related indicators for the 26 counties of the diverse...

Measuring Changes in Economic Well-Being. Changing Domestic Priorities Discussion Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moon, Marilyn

This paper examines the distribution of economic well-being from 1980 to 1984, and compares economic changes during that period with those of other periods. The following indicators of economic change are used: (1) money income consistent with a Census definition; (2) money income net of direct taxes--i.e., disposable income; and (3) disposable…

The Development Data Book: A Guide to Social and Economic Statistics. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheram, Katherine

This data book presents satistics on countries with populations of more than one million. The statistics relate to economic development and the changes it is bringing about in the world. These statistics are measures of social and economic conditions in developing and industrial countries. Five indicators of economic development are presented,…

The Relationship between Economic Growth and School Enrollment Rates: Time Series Evidence from Turkey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gumus, Sedat; Kayhan, Selim

2012-01-01

It has long been argued that there is a close relationship between education and economic development at both individual and societal levels. Economists have found that the level of educational infrastructure is an important indicator of economic development. Similarly, economic variables have been found to be strongly related to school enrollment…

Justifying the Ivory Tower: Higher Education and State Economic Growth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baldwin, J. Norman; McCracken, William A., III

2013-01-01

As the U.S. continues to embrace a comprehensive plan for economic recovery, this article investigates the validity of the claim that investing in higher education will help restore state economic growth and prosperity. It presents the findings from a study that indicates that the most consistent predictors of state economic growth related to…

Measuring socio-economic position in dietary research: is choice of socio-economic indicator important?

PubMed

Turrell, Gavin; Hewitt, Belinda; Patterson, Carla; Oldenburg, Brian

2003-04-01

To examine the association between socio-economic position (SEP) and diet, by assessing the unadjusted and simultaneously adjusted (independent) contributions of education, occupation and household income to food purchasing behaviour. The sample was randomly selected using a stratified two-stage cluster design, and the response rate was 66.4%. Data were collected by face-to-face interview. Food purchasing was examined on the basis of three composite indices that reflected a household's choice of grocery items (including meat and chicken), fruit and vegetables. Brisbane City, Australia, 2000. : Non-institutionalised residents of private dwellings located in 50 small areas (Census Collectors Districts). When shopping, respondents in lower socio-economic groups were less likely to purchase grocery foods that were high in fibre and low in fat, salt and sugar. Disadvantaged groups purchased fewer types of fresh fruits and vegetables, and less often, than their counterparts from more advantaged backgrounds. When the relationship between SEP and food purchasing was examined using each indicator separately, education and household income made an unadjusted contribution to purchasing behaviour for all three food indices; however, occupation was significantly related only with the purchase of grocery foods. When education and occupation were simultaneously adjusted for each other, the socio-economic patterning with food purchase remained largely unchanged, although the strength of the associations was attenuated. When household income was introduced into the analysis, the association between education, occupation and food purchasing behaviour was diminished or became non-significant; income, however, showed a strong, graded association with food choice. The food purchasing behaviours of socio-economically disadvantaged groups were least in accord with dietary guideline recommendations, and hence are more consistent with greater risk for the development of diet-related disease. The use of separate indicators for education, occupation and household income each adds something unique to our understanding of how socio-economic position is related to diet: each indicator reflects a different underlying social process and hence they are not interchangeable, and do not serve as adequate proxies for one another.

Index of Hispanic Economic Indicators.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Council of La Raza, Washington, DC.

One in 10 Americans is of Hispanic origin, and Census projections show that in about 10 years, Hispanics will constitute the largest minority group in the United States and, by 2035, 1 in 5 Americans will be Hispanic. This survey of leading and lagging indicators of economic well-being shows that on several measures, Hispanics have demonstrated…

Women's Formal Education and Economic Growth: The Case of the Philippines.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crawford, LouEllen; Sidener, Nancy L.

Research indicates that the education of Philippine women pays off in the economic growth of the country. Previous research which examined women's contribution to national income in six countries indicated that levels of educational attainment and levels of per capita national income were positively or moderately associated in five of the…

The Status of Women in the States. Politics, Economics, Health, Demographics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Institute for Women's Policy Research, Washington, DC.

This report presents information from a variety of sources (primarily government agencies) regarding the status of women in the United States. The report presents data for each state on 20 component indicators as well as on 4 composite indices: political participation; employment and earnings; economic autonomy; and reproductive rights. Discussed…

Statistical Bulletin: Annual Report On Economic Indicators, 1979.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Samoa Development Planning Office, Pago Pago.

Designed to serve as the basis for systematic collection of statistical information for government and the private sector, this bulletin presents a wide variety of economic indicators in tabular form. The data, selected to facilitate government and private planning efforts, are displayed in 25 tables and 27 graphs. Information is organized under…

Canary in a coal mine: does the plastic surgery market predict the american economy?

PubMed

Wong, Wendy W; Davis, Drew G; Son, Andrew K; Camp, Matthew C; Gupta, Subhas C

2010-08-01

Economic tools have been used in the past to predict the trends in plastic surgery procedures. Since 1992, U.S. cosmetic surgery volumes have increased overall, but the exact relationship between economic downturns and procedural volumes remains elusive. If an economic predicting role can be established from plastic surgery indicators, this could prove to be a very powerful tool. A rolling 3-month revenue average of an eight-plastic surgeon practice and various economic indicators were plotted and compared. An investigation of the U.S. procedural volumes was performed from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons statistics between 1996 and 2008. The correlations of different economic variables with plastic surgery volumes were evaluated. Lastly, search term frequencies were examined from 2004 to July of 2009 to study potential patient interest in major plastic surgery procedures. The self-payment revenue of the plastic surgery group consistently proved indicative of the market trends approximately 1 month in advance. The Standard and Poor's 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations, and Standard and Poor's Retail Index demonstrated a very close relationship with the income of our plastic surgery group. The frequency of Internet search terms showed a constant level of interest in the patient population despite economic downturns. The data demonstrate that examining plastic surgery revenue can be a useful tool to analyze and possibly predict trends, as it is driven by a market and shows a close correlation to many leading economic indicators. The persisting and increasing interest in plastic surgery suggests hope for a recovering and successful market in the near future.

The association of socio-economic position across the life course and age at menopause: the British Women's Heart and Health Study.

PubMed

Lawlor, Debbie A; Ebrahim, Shah; Smith, George Davey

2003-12-01

To assess the association of indicators of adverse socio-economic position from across the life course with age at menopause. Cross sectional study as part of the British Women's Heart and Health Study. 23 British towns. Three thousand and five hundred and thirteen women aged 60-79 years from a total cohort of 4286. Women who underwent a hysterectomy or oophorectomy prior to their 'natural' menopause or who were taking hormone replacement therapy around the perimenopausal period and for whom a biological age at menopause could not be calculated were excluded from this study. Age at menopause. Most of the 10 indicators of adverse socio-economic position from childhood through to adulthood were linearly associated with a younger age at menopause. In age adjusted analyses, women from manual social classes in childhood began their menopause on average 0.68 years (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.11, 1.3) earlier than those from non-manual social classes. Those who lived in a house as a child without a bathroom began their menopause 0.47 years (95% CI 0.12, 0.82) earlier than those with a bathroom. Those who shared a bedroom began 0.36 years (95% CI 0.03, 0.70) earlier than those who had their own bedroom and finally those who lived in a household with no access to a car as a child began their menopause 0.47 years (95% CI 0.02, 0.95) earlier than those with access to a car. Adult indicators of adverse socio-economic position were similarly associated with earlier age at menopause. Age at completing full time education was not substantively associated with age at menopause. The inverse associations between each of the indicators of both childhood and adult socio-economic position and age at menopause were not importantly affected by adjustment for other reproductive factors but they attenuated by between 6% and 21% with adjustment for adult smoking and body mass index. The inverse associations between each of the childhood indicators of socio-economic position only and age at menopause attenuated markedly (between 12% and 70%) with adjustment for adult leg length. There was a cumulative effect of disadvantage across the life course demonstrated by a strong linear trend between a composite score of the 10 socio-economic indicators and young age at menopause. The age at onset of menopause for women who had 9 or 10 adverse socio-economic indicators was on average 1.70 years (95% CI 0.36, 3.0) younger than that of women with none or only one indicator. Adverse socio-economic circumstances in childhood, as well as in adulthood, are associated with an earlier age at menopause. The association between childhood deprivation and early menopause may at least in part be mediated via exposures, such as childhood diet, which affect both linear growth and age at menopause.

Taking an intersectional approach to define latent classes of socioeconomic status, ethnicity and migration status for psychiatric epidemiological research.

PubMed

Goodwin, L; Gazard, B; Aschan, L; MacCrimmon, S; Hotopf, M; Hatch, S L

2017-04-09

Inequalities in mental health are well documented using individual social statuses such as socioeconomic status (SES), ethnicity and migration status. However, few studies have taken an intersectional approach to investigate inequalities in mental health using latent class analysis (LCA). This study will examine the association between multiple indicator classes of social identity with common mental disorder (CMD). Data on CMD symptoms were assessed in a diverse inner London sample of 1052 participants in the second wave of the South East London Community Health study. LCA was used to define classes of social identity using multiple indicators of SES, ethnicity and migration status. Adjusted associations between CMD and both individual indicators and multiple indicators of social identity are presented. LCA identified six groups that were differentiated by varying levels of privilege and disadvantage based on multiple SES indicators. This intersectional approach highlighted nuanced differences in odds of CMD, with the economically inactive group with multiple levels of disadvantage most likely to have a CMD. Adding ethnicity and migration status further differentiated between groups. The migrant, economically inactive and White British, economically inactive classes both had increased odds of CMD. This is the first study to examine the intersections of SES, ethnicity and migration status with CMD using LCA. Results showed that both the migrant, economically inactive and the White British, economically inactive classes had a similarly high prevalence of CMD. Findings suggest that LCA is a useful methodology for investigating health inequalities by intersectional identities.

Unveiling consumer's privacy paradox behaviour in an economic exchange.

PubMed

Motiwalla, Luvai F; Li, Xiao-Bai

2016-01-01

Privacy paradox is of great interest to IS researchers and firms gathering personal information. It has been studied from social, behavioural, and economic perspectives independently. However, prior research has not examined the degrees of influence these perspectives contribute to the privacy paradox problem. We combine both economic and behavioural perspectives in our study of the privacy paradox with a price valuation of personal information through an economic experiment combined with a behavioural study on privacy paradox. Our goal is to reveal more insights on the privacy paradox through economic valuation on personal information. Results indicate that general privacy concerns or individual disclosure concerns do not have a significant influence on the price valuation of personal information. Instead, prior disclosure behaviour in specific scenario, like with healthcare providers or social networks, is a better indicator of consumer price valuations.

Unveiling consumer’s privacy paradox behaviour in an economic exchange

PubMed Central

Li, Xiao-Bai

2015-01-01

Privacy paradox is of great interest to IS researchers and firms gathering personal information. It has been studied from social, behavioural, and economic perspectives independently. However, prior research has not examined the degrees of influence these perspectives contribute to the privacy paradox problem. We combine both economic and behavioural perspectives in our study of the privacy paradox with a price valuation of personal information through an economic experiment combined with a behavioural study on privacy paradox. Our goal is to reveal more insights on the privacy paradox through economic valuation on personal information. Results indicate that general privacy concerns or individual disclosure concerns do not have a significant influence on the price valuation of personal information. Instead, prior disclosure behaviour in specific scenario, like with healthcare providers or social networks, is a better indicator of consumer price valuations. PMID:27708687

Household economic strategies and nutritional anthropometry of women in American Samoa and highland Bolivia.

PubMed

Bindon, James R; Vitzthum, Virginia J

2002-04-01

This study compares findings from research projects involving different genetic, environmental, and cultural contexts: a study of lifestyle and health from American Samoa (ASLS) and the Bolivian project. Reproduction and Ecology in Provincia Aroma (REPA). This paper presents analyses of varying economic strategies and their association with nutritional status indicators in each population. The ASLS sample includes 66 Samoan women and the REPA sample includes 210 Aymara women. Principle components analysis of household economic resources within each sample extracted two significant factors: one represents modernizing influences including education and occupational status, and the other represents ethnographically salient traditional economic behavior. The traditional pattern includes adding household members in Samoa and selling agricultural products in Bolivia. This analysis places each woman along two continua, traditional and modern, based on her household mobilization of economic resources, permitting an understanding of the patterns underlying household economic behavior that is not possible in univariate analyses of socioeconomic variables. For the Bolivian women the strategy involving more education and higher occupational status was associated with higher measures of several nutritional status indicators, including body mass index, arm muscle area, and peripheral skinfolds. But among the Samoan women, where substantial obesity was the norm, there were no significant differences in anthropometric measurements based on economic strategies. These data argue for the importance of directly measuring the potential consequences of variation in household economic strategies rather than merely inferring such, and of assessing ethnographically relevant aspects of household economic production rather than limiting analyses to non-context-specific economic indicators such as income. This focus on household strategy is likely to be fruitful especially where economic and nutritional conditions are marginal. The findings from Bolivia also support efforts in developing countries to improve girls' education, and thereby occupational prospects, as a means to improve their health status as women.

Pathways of economic inequalities in maternal and child health in urban India: a decomposition analysis.

PubMed

Goli, Srinivas; Doshi, Riddhi; Perianayagam, Arokiasamy

2013-01-01

Children and women comprise vulnerable populations in terms of health and are gravely affected by the impact of economic inequalities through multi-dimensional channels. Urban areas are believed to have better socioeconomic and maternal and child health indicators than rural areas. This perception leads to the implementation of health policies ignorant of intra-urban health inequalities. Therefore, the objective of this study is to explain the pathways of economic inequalities in maternal and child health indicators among the urban population of India. Using data from the third wave of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS, 2005-06), this study calculated relative contribution of socioeconomic factors to inequalities in key maternal and child health indicators such as antenatal check-ups (ANCs), institutional deliveries, proportion of children with complete immunization, proportion of underweight children, and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR). Along with regular CI estimates, this study applied widely used regression-based Inequality Decomposition model proposed by Wagstaff and colleagues. The CI estimates show considerable economic inequalities in women with less than 3 ANCs (CI = -0.3501), institutional delivery (CI = -0.3214), children without fully immunization (CI = -0.18340), underweight children (CI = -0.19420), and infant deaths (CI = -0.15596). Results of the decomposition model reveal that illiteracy among women and her partner, poor economic status, and mass media exposure are the critical factors contributing to economic inequalities in maternal and child health indicators. The residuals in all the decomposition models are very less; this implies that the above mentioned factors explained maximum inequalities in maternal and child health of urban population in India. Findings suggest that illiteracy among women and her partner, poor economic status, and mass media exposure are the critical pathways through which economic factors operate on inequalities in maternal and child health outcomes in urban India.

Pathways of Economic Inequalities in Maternal and Child Health in Urban India: A Decomposition Analysis

PubMed Central

Goli, Srinivas; Doshi, Riddhi; Perianayagam, Arokiasamy

2013-01-01

Background/Objective Children and women comprise vulnerable populations in terms of health and are gravely affected by the impact of economic inequalities through multi-dimensional channels. Urban areas are believed to have better socioeconomic and maternal and child health indicators than rural areas. This perception leads to the implementation of health policies ignorant of intra-urban health inequalities. Therefore, the objective of this study is to explain the pathways of economic inequalities in maternal and child health indicators among the urban population of India. Methods Using data from the third wave of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS, 2005–06), this study calculated relative contribution of socioeconomic factors to inequalities in key maternal and child health indicators such as antenatal check-ups (ANCs), institutional deliveries, proportion of children with complete immunization, proportion of underweight children, and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR). Along with regular CI estimates, this study applied widely used regression-based Inequality Decomposition model proposed by Wagstaff and colleagues. Results The CI estimates show considerable economic inequalities in women with less than 3 ANCs (CI  = −0.3501), institutional delivery (CI  = −0.3214), children without fully immunization (CI  = −0.18340), underweight children (CI  = −0.19420), and infant deaths (CI  = −0.15596). Results of the decomposition model reveal that illiteracy among women and her partner, poor economic status, and mass media exposure are the critical factors contributing to economic inequalities in maternal and child health indicators. The residuals in all the decomposition models are very less; this implies that the above mentioned factors explained maximum inequalities in maternal and child health of urban population in India. Conclusion Findings suggest that illiteracy among women and her partner, poor economic status, and mass media exposure are the critical pathways through which economic factors operate on inequalities in maternal and child health outcomes in urban India. PMID:23555587

Rethinking of Economic Growth and Life Satisfaction in Post-WWII Japan--A Fresh Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kusago, Takayoshi

2007-01-01

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has been utilized by academics and policy makers to indicate the economic well-being of the people. However, economic growth measures cannot capture fully the overall well-being of the people. This paper has tested quality of economic growth in Japan after World War II as to whether it has brought about positive…

The economic impact of remote sensing data as the source of nonpoint pollution monitoring and control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, W. L.

1974-01-01

Nonpoint pollution of streams with sediment as a result of runoff from alternative uses of land has become a socially unacceptable product of economic activity. This report describes a research approach to economically achieve correction of the nonpoint pollution problem. The research approach integrates the economic model with those data which may be obtainable from remotely sensed sources. The economic problem involves measurement of the direct benefits and costs associated with the changes in land management activities necessary to reduce the level of nonpoint pollution. Remotely sensed data from ERTS-1 may provide some of the information required for the economic model which indicates efficient solutions to the nonpoint pollution problem. Three classes of data (i.e., soil categories, vegetative cover, and water turbidity) have the potential to be measured by ERTS-1 systems. There is substantial research which indicates the ability of ERTS-1 to measure these classes of data under selected conditions.

Self-Regulation and Economic Stress in Children of Hispanic Immigrants and Their Peers: Better Regulation at a Cost?

PubMed Central

McFadyen-Ketchum, Lisa Schlueter; Hurwich-Reiss, Eliana; Stiles, Allison A.; Mendoza, Marina M.; Badanes, Lisa S.; Dmitrieva, Julia; Watamura, Sarah Enos

2017-01-01

Research Findings Although there is a well-established relationship between economic stress and children’s self-regulation, few studies have examined this relationship in children of Hispanic immigrants (COHIs), a rapidly growing population. In a sample of preschool children (N = 165), we examined whether economic stress predicted teacher evaluations of children’s self-regulation, whether economic stress predicted children’s physiological reactivity (via cortisol levels), and whether economic stress had a similar effect on self-regulation and children’s cortisol for COHI versus nonimmigrant children. Greater economic stress was associated with poorer child self-regulation and heightened physiological reactivity across a challenging classroom task for the sample as a whole. However, when we examined children by group, greater economic stress was associated with poorer teacher-reported self-regulation for nonimmigrant children only. In contrast, greater economic stress was related to greater cortisol reactivity across a challenge task for COHIs but not for nonimmigrants. Practice or Policy Results demonstrate the importance of considering physiological indices of self-regulation (heightened stress physiology), in addition to traditional external indices (teacher report), when assessing self-regulation or risk more generally among preschool samples that are diverse in terms of ethnicity, economic risk, and parents’ nativity. PMID:28943740

The role of amenities and quality of life in rural economic growth

Treesearch

Steven C. Deller; Tsung-Hsiu (Sue) Tsai; David W. Marcouiller; Donald B.K. English

2001-01-01

A structural model of regional economic growth is estimated using data for 2243 rural US. counties. Five indices designed to capture specific amenity and quality of life characteristics are constructed using 54 separate indicators. Results suggest that amenity characteristics can be organized into consistent and meaningful empirical measures that move beyond ad hoc...

West Virginia Kids Count Data Book: 1995 County Profiles of Child Well-Being.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

West Virginia Task Force on Children, Youth and Families, Charleston.

This Kids Count report presents data measuring the health and the economic, educational, and social well-being of children in West Virginia at the state and county levels. It measures 12 indicators of child and adolescent health, education, and economic status, but focuses on the following 10 indicators, called "Family Supports for At-Risk…

Kansas Kids Count Data Book, 1997. A Project of Kansas Action for Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kansas Action for Children, Inc., Topeka.

This Kids Count data book profiles the status of children in Kansas, based on 17 indicators of well being. The indicators are grouped into four areas: (1) economic well-being--births to single teens, children approved for free school meals, and children receiving economic assistance; (2) physical health and safety--child death rates, infant…

2006 Combat Vehicles Conference

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-10-25

stressed or worn out beyond economic repair due to combat operations by repairing, rebuilding, or procuring replacement equipment. These...lives Vehicle Hardening Logistics Solutions for the Warfighter • Unique and economical surge capability • Support in coordination with op tempo...Speed, • Diagnostics Indicators – DECU Health Check Indicator, Utility Bus Comm Failure, 1553 Bus Comm Failure; MPU Critical Failure, Cautions and

Socioeconomic Status (SES) and Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) Mortality

PubMed Central

Knoble, Naomi B.; Alderfer, Melissa A.; Hossain, Md Jobayer

2016-01-01

Socioeconomic status (SES) is a complex construct of multiple indicators, known to impact cancer outcomes, but has not been adequately examined among pediatric AML patients. This study aimed to identify the patterns of co-occurrence of multiple community-level SES indicators and to explore associations between various patterns of these indicators and pediatric AML mortality risk. A nationally representative US sample of 3,651 pediatric AML patients, aged 0–19 years at diagnosis was drawn from 17 Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database registries created between 1973 and 2012. Factor analysis, cluster analysis, stratified univariable and multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were used. Four SES factors accounting for 87% of the variance in SES indicators were identified: F1) economic/educational disadvantage, less immigration; F2) immigration-related features (foreign-born, language-isolation, crowding), less mobility F3) housing instability; and, F4) absence of moving. F1 and F3 showed elevated risk of mortality, adjusted hazards ratios (aHR) (95% CI): 1.07(1.02–1.12) and 1.05(1.00–1.10), respectively. Seven SES-defined cluster groups were identified. Cluster 1: (low economic/educational disadvantage, few immigration-related features, and residential-stability) showed the minimum risk of mortality. Compared to Cluster 1, Cluster 3: (high economic/educational disadvantage, high-mobility) and Cluster 6: (moderately-high economic/educational disadvantages, housing-instability and immigration-related features) exhibited substantially greater risk of mortality, aHR(95% CI) = 1.19(1.0–1.4) and 1.23 (1.1–1.5), respectively. Factors of correlated SES-indicators and their pattern-based groups demonstrated differential risks in the pediatric AML mortality indicating the need of special public-health attention in areas with economic-educational disadvantages, housing-instability and immigration-related features. PMID:27543948

Selection of Sustainable Processes using Sustainability ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Chemical products can be obtained by process pathways involving varying amounts and types of resources, utilities, and byproduct formation. When such competing process options such as six processes for making methanol as are considered in this study, it is necessary to identify the most sustainable option. Sustainability of a chemical process is generally evaluated with indicators that require process and chemical property data. These indicators individually reflect the impacts of the process on areas of sustainability, such as the environment or society. In order to choose among several alternative processes an overall comparative analysis is essential. Generally net profit will show the most economic process. A mixed integer optimization problem can also be solved to identify the most economic among competing processes. This method uses economic optimization and leaves aside the environmental and societal impacts. To make a decision on the most sustainable process, the method presented here rationally aggregates the sustainability indicators into a single index called sustainability footprint (De). Process flow and economic data were used to compute the indicator values. Results from sustainability footprint (De) are compared with those from solving a mixed integer optimization problem. In order to identify the rank order of importance of the indicators, a multivariate analysis is performed using partial least square variable importance in projection (PLS-VIP)

Understanding the natural and social factors behind regional longevity in Guangxi, China—Is centenarian ratio a good enough indicator for assessing the longevity level?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Q.; Wei, Y.; Zhao, Y.

2017-12-01

Despite a number of longevity indicators having been used in previous longevity studies, few studies have critically evaluated whether these indicators are suitable. In addition, an increasing number of studies have attempted to determine the influence of socio-economic and natural factors on regional longevity, but only certain factors were considered. The present study bridges this gap by determining the relationship between the seven longevity indicators and selecting 24 natural and socio-economic indicators in the 91 selected counties and districts in Guangxi, China. The seven longevity indicators here refer to Centenarian ratio, Longevity index, Longevity level, Aging tendency, 80+ ratio, 90+ ratio and 95+ ratio. Natural indicators in this study mainly refer to climatic ones. Socio-economic indicators can be categorized into those related to economic, education, local infrastructure, and health care facilities. These data were mainly drawn from the Meteorological Data Sharing Service System and Guangxi's sixth population census. Stepwise regression analysis has been used as the primary research method to determine the relationship between the longevity indicators and the natural, social, and economic indicators. The results show that the climate factors regarding atmospheric pressure, humidity, and rainfall are the most significant contributors to the longevity of the 60- to 90-year-old elderly in Guangxi, while the difference of mean annual temperature could have negative impacts. Also, the natural and socioeconomic factors that impact the extremely old population (those over 95 years old) in Guangxi are still not clear. This study reveals that the longevity index and longevity level are useful supplementary indexes to the centenarian ratio for assessing the regional longevity as they could help reflect the regional longevity regarding the proportion of young-old and old-old population and not just limit to those over 100 years old. The elderly (those from 60-90 years old) are more likely to be influenced by climate factors. It is, therefore, important to understand the risk of climate change for the elderly, which could provide insights for constructing a healthy aging society in the future.

Economic Education Experiences of Enterprising Teachers. Volume 21. A Report Developed by the Joint Council on Economic Education from the 1982-83 Entries in the International Paper Company Foundation Awards Program for the Teaching of Economics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nappi, Andrew T., Ed.; Suglia, Anthony F., Ed.

Designed for use in grades K-12, award winning teacher-developed projects and courses in economics are described. Descriptions indicate grade level, project background, time allotment, objectives, activities, and evaluation. Arranged into 5 chapters, chapter 1 suggests ways to teach economic concepts to grades K-3. Projects include a lesson on…

Economics, the Enterprise System, and Finance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New York State Education Dept., Albany.

The core curriculum for economics, the enterprise system, and finance supports the New York State Education Department's efforts to raise standards in social studies by focusing on Standard 4: Economics, in the "Learning Standards for Social Studies." This core curriculum reinforces the key ideas and performance indicators for this…

Toward the Development of a Cultural Economics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boulding, Kenneth E.

1972-01-01

The degree to which various economic specialties have incorporated or avoided cultural analyses is reviewed; problem areas where such studies might be most fruitful are suggested. It is indicated there now exists in embryo form an orientation deserving the name cultural economics''; its furture is speculated. (JB)

Support from spouse as mediator and moderator of the disruptive influence of economic strain on parenting.

PubMed

Simons, R L; Lorenz, F O; Conger, R D; Wu, C I

1992-10-01

A model is presented regarding associations between economic strain, support from spouse, and quality of parenting. The model was tested using a sample of 451 2-parent families, each of which included a seventh grader (age 12-13). Parent and adolescent reports, as well as observational ratings, were used as indicators of constructs. Analysis using structural equation modeling procedures indicated that level of spouse support was positively related to supportive parenting, whereas economic strain operated to undermine parental involvement. As posited, economic strain produced its effect through a direct relation with parenting and indirectly through its association with spouse support. These findings held for mothers and fathers, regardless of the gender of the child. Spouse support moderated the impact of economic strain on supportive parenting for mothers but not fathers. Possible explanations for this gender difference are presented.

Gender differences in economic support and well-being of older Asians.

PubMed

Ofstedal, Mary Beth; Reidy, Erin; Knodel, John

2004-09-01

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of gender differences in economic support and well-being in eight countries in Southern and Eastern Asia (Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, and Taiwan). We examine multiple economic indicators, including sources of income, receipt of financial and material support, income levels, ownership of assets, and subjective well-being. Results show substantial variation in gender differences across indicators and provide an important qualification to widely held views concerning the globally disadvantaged position of older women. Whereas men tend to report higher levels of income than women, there is generally little gender difference in housing characteristics, asset ownership, or reports of subjective economic well-being. Unmarried women are economically advantaged compared to unmarried men in some respects, in part because they are more likely to be embedded in multigenerational households and receive both direct and indirect forms of support from family members.

Economic sustainability assessment in semi-steppe rangelands.

PubMed

Mofidi Chelan, Morteza; Alijanpour, Ahmad; Barani, Hossein; Motamedi, Javad; Azadi, Hossein; Van Passel, Steven

2018-05-08

This study was conducted to determine indices and components of economic sustainability assessment in the pastoral units of Sahand summer rangelands. The method was based on descriptive-analytical survey (experts and researchers) with questionnaires. Analysis of variance showed that the mean values of economic components are significantly different from each other and the efficiency component has the highest mean value (0.57). The analysis of rangeland pastoral units with the technique for order-preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) indicated that from an economic sustainability standpoint, Garehgol (Ci = 0.519) and Badir Khan (Ci = 0.129), pastoral units ranked first and last, respectively. This study provides a clear understanding of existing resources and opportunities for policy makers that is crucial to approach economic sustainable development. Accordingly, this study can help better define sustainable development goals and monitor the progress of achieving them. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Indicators and Methods for Evaluating Economic, Ecosystem ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The U.S. Human Well-being Index (HWBI) is a composite measure that incorporates economic, environmental, and societal well-being elements through the eight domains of connection to nature, cultural fulfillment, education, health, leisure time, living standards, safety and security, and social cohesion (USEPA 2012a; Smith et al. 2013). Twenty-eight services, represented by a collection of indicators and metrics, have been identified as influencing these domains of human well-being. By taking an inventory of stocks or measuring the results of a service, a relationship function can be derived to understand how changes in the provisioning of that service can influence the HWBI. An extensive review of existing services was performed to identify current services, indicators and metrics in use. This report describes the indicators and methods we have selected to evaluate the provisioning of economic, ecosystem, and social services related to human well-being. Provide metadata and methods for calculating services provisioning scores for HWBI modeling framework

Beyond Money: Progress on an Economy of Well-Being.

PubMed

Diener, Ed; Seligman, Martin E P

2018-03-01

In our 2004 "Beyond Money" article, we argued that national accounts of psychological and subjective well-being should complement the economic indicators that frequently guide policy decisions. We claimed that economic indicators fail to reflect important aspects of quality of life that well-being indicators capture. Since the time of our article, progress has been made, and scores of nations have used some forms of well-being measures. The National Academy of Sciences of the United States and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development both issued reports on accounts of well-being. Researchers have pointed to policies that are supported by the findings, such as environmental and economic policies. The emergence of "big data" has opened major new pathways for measuring well-being in inexpensive, unobtrusive, and nonreactive fashion. Psychological researchers now need to create superordinate combinations of subjective and objective measures of well-being to study the impact of the policies they advocate. The accounts can serve as a lever for convincing policymakers to enact policies that increase human flourishing.

Economic assessment of the construction industry: A construction-economics nexus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barber, Herbert Marion, Jr.

The purpose of this study was to conduct an economic assessment of the construction industry. More specifically, this study addresses ambiguities within the literature that are associated with the construction-economics nexus. The researcher 1) investigated the relationships between economic indicators and stock prices of U.S. construction equipment manufacturers, 2) investigated the relationships between energy production, consumption, and corruption, and 3) determined the economic effect electricity generation and electricity consumption has on economies of scale. The researcher used descriptive and inferential statistics in this study and determined that economists, researchers, policy-makers, and others should have predicted the 2007-08 world economic collapse 5-6 years prior to realization of the event given that construction indices and GDP grossly regressed from statistically acceptable trends as early as 2002 and perhaps 2000. Substantiating this claim, the effect of the cost of construction materials and labor, i.e. construction index, on GDP was significant for years leading up to the collapse (1970-2007). Additionally, it was determined that energy production and consumption are predictors of governmental corruption in some countries. In the Republic of Botswana, for example, the researcher determined that energy production and consumption statistically jointly effected governmental corruption. In addition to determining statistical effect, a model for predicting governmental corruption was developed based on energy production and consumption volumes. Also, the researcher found that electricity generation in the 25 largest world economies had a statistically significant effect on GDP. Electricity consumption also had an effect on GDP, as well, but not on other economic indicators. More importantly than the quantitative findings, the researcher concluded that the construction-economics nexus is far more complex than most policy-makers realize. As such, infrastructure spending may, or may not, be an answer to the current world economic collapse, as much more research remains to be completed by researchers to address known ambiguities within various associated findings. Until a collective agreement can be reached among researchers as to the effect that construction spending has on economic output under known, specific parameters, policy-makers should exercise extreme caution when leveraging infrastructure spending as a solution for overcoming the world economic collapse.

Indicators for technological, environmental and economic sustainability of ozone contactors.

PubMed

Zhang, Jie; Tejada-Martinez, Andres E; Lei, Hongxia; Zhang, Qiong

2016-09-15

Various studies have attempted to improve disinfection efficiency as a way to improve the sustainability of ozone disinfection which is a critical unit process for water treatment. Baffling factor, CT10, and log-inactivation are commonly used indicators for quantifying disinfection credits. However the applicability of these indicators and the relationship between these indicators have not been investigated in depth. This study simulated flow, tracer transport, and chemical species transport in a full-scale ozone contactor operated by the City of Tampa Water Department and six other modified designs using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). Through analysis of the simulation results, we found that baffling factor and CT10 are not optimal indicators of disinfection performance. We also found that the relationship between effluent CT obtained from CT transport simulation and baffling factor depends on the location of ozone release. In addition, we analyzed the environmental and economic impacts of ozone contactor designs and upgrades and developed a composite indicator to quantify the sustainability in technological, environmental and economic dimensions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Drug and Alcohol Abuse in Booming and Depressed Communities. Services Research Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milkman, Raymond H.; And Others

Boom towns appear to have greater problems of substance abuse associated with economic change indicators than communities suffering from sudden economic declines. A study of 14 communities experiencing sudden economic dislocations revealed a lack of consistent trends, although some depressed communities experienced increases in alcohol abuse. In…

The State of Society: Measuring Economic Success and Human Well-Being

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Leon, Erwin; Boris, Elizabeth T.

2010-01-01

This report was commissioned by the Center for Partnership Studies (CPS) to explore progress toward national indicators that measure both human well-being and economic success. These two measurements are interconnected, particularly as society moves further into the postindustrial knowledge and information age where economic success heavily…

Pathways to Economic Security: Gender and Nonstandard Employment in Contemporary Japan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gottfried, Heidi

2008-01-01

Compiling data from several government surveys, this article identifies key social indicators of economic security associated with nonstandard employment in Japan. Empirical trends of nonstandard employment are contextualized in the development of Japanese coordinated capitalism from the economic boom during the 1960s through the recession of the…

Rural Tourism and Livelihood Strategies in Romania

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iorio, Monica; Corsale, Andrea

2010-01-01

Substantial changes in the Romanian countryside accompanied by the need for more robust economic activities have caused some families to turn to tourism as an economic diversification strategy. A qualitative study of selected rural tourism entrepreneurs indicates positive experiences, both economically and in other aspects of their lives. However,…

Macromod: Computer Simulation For Introductory Economics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ross, Thomas

1977-01-01

The Macroeconomic model (Macromod) is a computer assisted instruction simulation model designed for introductory economics courses. An evaluation of its utilization at a community college indicates that it yielded a 10 percent to 13 percent greater economic comprehension than lecture classes and that it met with high student approval. (DC)

Teaching American Popular Culture: History and Economic Reasoning Are Only the Beginning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kraig, Beth

1994-01-01

Argues that students seldom understand the history of U.S. popular culture, although such cultural attributes as shopping malls and advertising can be used to teach economic and historical understanding. Presents a model that indicates the interrelationship between U.S. popular culture and economic concepts. (CFR)

Interactions among energy consumption, economic development and greenhouse gas emissions in Japan after World War II

EPA Science Inventory

The long-term dynamic changes in the triad, energy consumption, economic development, and Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, in Japan after World War II were quantified, and the interactions among them were analyzed based on an integrated suite of energy, emergy and economic indices...

Economic investigations of short rotation intensively cultured hybrid poplars

Treesearch

David C. Lothner

1983-01-01

The history of the economic analyses is summarized for short rotation intensively cultured hybrid poplar at the North Central Forest Experiment Station. Early break-even analyses with limited data indicated that at a price of $25-30 per dry ton for fiber and low to medium production costs, several systems looked profitable. Later cash flow analyses indicated that two...

Measuring Cultural and Creative Activities in European Cities: Challenges and Practical Problems with Existing Indices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stano, Pawel M.; Weziak-Bialowolska, Dorota

2017-01-01

For decades, the focus of cultural, social, and economic policies has been shifting to cities. Cities with the highest concentration of creative employment have demonstrated the greatest resilience in the post-2008 economic recovery. Although, over the last few years, there has been an explosion of cultural or creative related indices for cities,…

The Russian Labor Market in the Statistics of the Crisis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gertsii, Iu. V.; Malyshev, M. L.

2012-01-01

The social and economic development of the country was subjected to serious trials in 2009. The world financial and economic crisis had a negative effect on the main basic indicators of the economy. This had an immediate impact on the social labor sphere. Many social indicators went downhill. In particular, that led to a decline in real wages and…

Some factors affecting the use of lighter than air systems. [economic and performance estimates for dirigibles and semi-buoyant hybrid vehicles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Havill, C. D.

1974-01-01

The uses of lighter-than-air vehicles are examined in the present day transportation environment. Conventional dirigibles were found to indicate an undesirable economic risk due to their low speeds and to uncertainties concerning their operational use. Semi-buoyant hybrid vehicles are suggested as an alternative which does not have many of the inferior characteristics of conventional dirigibles. Economic and performance estimates for hybrid vehicles indicate that they are competitive with other transportation systems in many applications, and unique in their ability to perform some highly desirable emergency missions.

Impacts of Considering Climate Variability on Investment Decisions in Ethiopia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strzepek, K.; Block, P.; Rosegrant, M.; Diao, X.

2005-12-01

In Ethiopia, climate extremes, inducing droughts or floods, are not unusual. Monitoring the effects of these extremes, and climate variability in general, is critical for economic prediction and assessment of the country's future welfare. The focus of this study involves adding climate variability to a deterministic, mean climate-driven agro-economic model, in an attempt to understand its effects and degree of influence on general economic prediction indicators for Ethiopia. Four simulations are examined, including a baseline simulation and three investment strategies: simulations of irrigation investment, roads investment, and a combination investment of both irrigation and roads. The deterministic model is transformed into a stochastic model by dynamically adding year-to-year climate variability through climate-yield factors. Nine sets of actual, historic, variable climate data are individually assembled and implemented into the 12-year stochastic model simulation, producing an ensemble of economic prediction indicators. This ensemble allows for a probabilistic approach to planning and policy making, allowing decision makers to consider risk. The economic indicators from the deterministic and stochastic approaches, including rates of return to investments, are significantly different. The predictions of the deterministic model appreciably overestimate the future welfare of Ethiopia; the predictions of the stochastic model, utilizing actual climate data, tend to give a better semblance of what may be expected. Inclusion of climate variability is vital for proper analysis of the predictor values from this agro-economic model.

Expansion of environmental impact assessment for eco-efficiency evaluation of China's economic sectors: An economic input-output based frontier approach.

PubMed

Xing, Zhencheng; Wang, Jigan; Zhang, Jie

2018-09-01

Due to the increasing environmental burdens caused by dramatic economic expansion, eco-efficiency indicating how efficient the economic activity is with respect to its environmental impacts has become a topic of considerable interest in China. In this context, Economic Input-output Life Cycle Assessment (EIO-LCA) and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) are combined to assess the environmental impacts and eco-efficiency of China's 26 economic sectors. The EIO-LCA results indicate that Electricity Production and Supply sector is the largest net exporter in energy usage, CO 2 emission and exhaust emission categories, while Construction sector is the largest net importer for five impact categories except for water withdrawal. Moreover, Construction sector is found to be the destination of the largest sector-to-sector environmental impact flows for the five impact categories and make the most contributions to the total environmental impacts. Another key finding is that Agriculture sector is both the largest net exporter and the greatest contributor for water withdrawal category. DEA results indicate that seven sectors are eco-efficient while over 70% of China's economic sectors are inefficient and require significant improvements. The average target improvements range between 23.30% and 35.06% depending on the impact category. Further sensitivity analysis reveals that the average sensitivity ratios vary from 7.7% to 15.7% among the six impact categories, which are found to be negatively correlated with their improvement potentials. Finally, several policy recommendations are made to mitigate environmental impacts of China's economic sectors and improve their eco-efficiency levels. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A survey of the economics of materials processing in space. [accenting biomedical materials

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, B. P.

1975-01-01

A survey of the economics of space materials processing has been performed with the objectives of identifying those areas of space materials processing that give preliminary indication of significant economic potential, and to identify possible approaches to quantify the economic potential. It is concluded that limited economic studies have been performed to date, primarily in the area of the processing of inorganic materials, but that the economics of space processing of biological material has not received adequate attention. Specific studies are recommended to evaluate the economic impact of human lymphocyte subgroup separation on organ transplantation, and on the separation and concentration of urokinase producing cells.

The Economic Impact of Smoke-Free Policies on Restaurants, Cafés, and Bars: Panel Data Estimates From European Countries.

PubMed

Pieroni, Luca; Salmasi, Luca

In this paper, we investigate the extent to which the economic outcomes of restaurants, bars, and cafés have been affected by the introduction of anti-smoking regulations in Europe. We use an unexploited panel database to collect a comprehensive set of information on financial indicators regarding the balance sheets of private and public companies in various economic sectors. The results show that smoke-free policies did not significantly affect the firms' economic performance, irrespective of the balance sheet indicators analyzed. Moreover, the results are robust to various econometric specifications and suggest that the recent enforcement of anti-smoking legislation in Europe has improved public health without a corresponding negative impact on revenues and employment in the hospitality industry.

Determinants of Wealth Fluctuation: Changes in Hard-To-Measure Economic Variables in a Panel Study

PubMed Central

Pfeffer, Fabian T.; Griffin, Jamie

2017-01-01

Measuring fluctuation in families’ economic conditions is the raison d’être of household panel studies. Accordingly, a particularly challenging critique is that extreme fluctuation in measured economic characteristics might indicate compounding measurement error rather than actual changes in families’ economic wellbeing. In this article, we address this claim by moving beyond the assumption that particularly large fluctuation in economic conditions might be too large to be realistic. Instead, we examine predictors of large fluctuation, capturing sources related to actual socio-economic changes as well as potential sources of measurement error. Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, we study between-wave changes in a dimension of economic wellbeing that is especially hard to measure, namely, net worth as an indicator of total family wealth. Our results demonstrate that even very large between-wave changes in net worth can be attributed to actual socio-economic and demographic processes. We do, however, also identify a potential source of measurement error that contributes to large wealth fluctuation, namely, the treatment of incomplete information, presenting a pervasive challenge for any longitudinal survey that includes questions on economic assets. Our results point to ways for improving wealth variables both in the data collection process (e.g., by measuring active savings) and in data processing (e.g., by improving imputation algorithms). PMID:28316752

Selling blood and gametes during tough economic times: insights from Google search.

PubMed

Wu, Jonathan A; Ngo, Tin C; Rothman, Cappy; Breyer, Benjamin N; Eisenberg, Michael L

2015-10-01

To use Google Insights search volume and publicly available economic indicators to test the hypothesis that sperm, egg, and blood donations increase during economic downturns and to demonstrate the feasibility of using Google search volume data to predict national trends in actual sperm, egg, and blood donations rates. Cross-correlation statistical analysis comparing Google search data for terms relating to blood, egg, and sperm donations with various economic indicators including the S&P 500 closing values, gross domestic product (GDP), the U.S. Index of Leading Indicators (U.S. Leading Index), gross savings rate, mortgage interest rates, unemployment rate, and consumer price index (CPI) from 2004-2011. A secondary analysis determined the Pearson correlation coefficient between Google search data with actual sperm, egg, and blood donation volume in the U.S. as measured by California Cryobank, the National Assisted Reproductive Technology Surveillance System, and the National Blood Collection and Utilization Survey, respectively. Significance of cross-correlation and Pearson correlation analysis as indicated by p value. There were several highly significant cross-correlation relationships between search volume and various economic indicators. Correlation between Google search volume for the term 'sperm donation,' 'egg donation,' and 'blood donation' with actual number of sperm, egg and blood donations in the United States demonstrated Pearson correlation coefficients of 0.2 (p > 0.10), -0.1 (p > 0.10), and 0.07 (p > 0.10), respectively. Temporal analysis showed an improved correlation coefficient of 0.9 (p < 0.05) for blood donation when shifted 12 months later relative to Google search volume. Google search volume data for search terms relating to sperm, egg, and blood donation increase during economic downturns. This finding suggests gamete and bodily fluid donations are influenced by market forces like other commodities. Google search may be useful for predicting blood donation trends but is more limited in predicting actual semen and oocyte donation patterns.

National economic development and disparities in body mass index: a cross-sectional study of data from 38 countries.

PubMed

Neuman, Melissa; Kawachi, Ichiro; Gortmaker, Steven; Subramanian, Sv

2014-01-01

Increases in body mass index (BMI) and the prevalence of overweight in low- and middle income countries (LMICs) are often ascribed to changes in global trade patterns or increases in national income. These changes are likely to affect populations within LMICs differently based on their place of residence or socioeconomic status (SES). Using nationally representative survey data from 38 countries and national economic indicators from the World Bank and other international organizations, we estimated ecological and multilevel models to assess the association between national levels of gross domestic product (GDP), foreign direct investment (FDI), and mean tariffs and BMI. We used linear regression to estimate the ecological association between average annual change in economic indicators and BMI, and multilevel linear or ordered multinomial models to estimate associations between national economic indicators and individual BMI or over- and underweight. We also included cross-level interaction terms to highlight differences in the association of BMI with national economic indicators by type of residence or socioeconomic status (SES). There was a positive but non-significant association of GDP and mean BMI. This positive association of GDP and BMI was greater among rural residents and the poor. There were no significant ecological associations between measures of trade openness and mean BMI, but FDI was positively associated with BMI among the poorest respondents and in rural areas and tariff levels were negatively associated with BMI among poor and rural respondents. Measures of national income and trade openness have different associations with the BMI across populations within developing countries. These divergent findings underscore the complexity of the effects of development on health and the importance of considering how the health effects of "globalizing" economic and cultural trends are modified by individual-level wealth and residence.

The Acceptance of the Social Market Economy in Germany

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schlösser, Hans Jürgen; Schuhen, Michael; Schürkmann, Susanne

2017-01-01

Germany's economic order is labelled "Social Market Economy" in order to indicate that the economic system has both an economic and a social dimension. Its purpose is to reconcile efficiency goals and social responsibility. The concept of the Social Market Economy is based on central values such as freedom or justice. Under the label…

Measuring the Determinants of Relative Economic Performance of Rural Areas

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Agarwal, Sheela; Rahman, Sanzidur; Errington, Andrew

2009-01-01

This paper examines the determinants of economic performance of 149 English rural Local Authority Districts (LADs). A Three Stage Least Square (3SLS) estimation procedure was employed to jointly determine the influence of a wide range of indicators representing economic, human, cultural and environmental capital, as well as less tangible or…

Students' Understanding of the Function-Derivative Relationship When Learning Economic Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ariza, Angel; Llinares, Salvador; Valls, Julia

2015-01-01

The aim of this study is to characterise students' understanding of the function-derivative relationship when learning economic concepts. To this end, we use a fuzzy metric (Chang 1968) to identify the development of economic concept understanding that is defined by the function-derivative relationship. The results indicate that the understanding…

Economic Hardship in the Family of Origin and Children's Psychological Well-Being in Adulthood

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sobolewski, Juliana M.; Amato, Paul R.

2005-01-01

Past research consistently indicates that poverty and economic hardship have negative consequences for children. Few studies, however, have examined whether these consequences persist into adulthood. This study addresses this gap by assessing whether economic resources in the family of origin have long-term effects on psychological well-being in…

Female Anxiety and Male Depression: Links between Economic Strain and Psychological Aggression in Argentinean Couples

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Falconier, Mariana K.

2010-01-01

A dyadic model of economic strain was applied to the study of anxiety and depression as mediating mechanisms in the economic strain-psychological aggression relation. Data came from self-report questionnaires completed by 143 Argentinean clinical couples. Structural equation modeling analysis indicated that anxiety and depression increased for…

Increasing Impact of Economic Conditions upon Higher Education Enrollments.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rusk, James J.; And Others

1982-01-01

To assess the impact of economic conditions on enrollment in higher education, researchers used time series analysis on national data for 1966-78 and on 1972-78 data from all eight regions of the country and the University of Arizona. The findings indicate enrollment has gone up during economic downturns. (Author/RW)

State Outlook: Fiscal and State Policy Issues Affecting Postsecondary Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Association of State Colleges and Universities, 2010

2010-01-01

This publication provides a compilation of the issues affecting postsecondary education in America. The contents of this issue include: (1) Overview of Economic and Fiscal Dynamics; (2) Global and Domestic Growth Prospects; (3) Snapshot of Economic Indicators--November 2010; (4) Labor Market Conditions and Post-Recession Economic Impacts; (5)…

Influence of Social-economic Activities on Air Pollutants in Beijing, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Xiaolu; Zheng, Wenfeng; Yin, Lirong; Yin, Zhengtong; Song, Lihong; Tian, Xia

2017-08-01

With the rapid economic development, the serious air pollution in Beijing attracts increasing attention in the last decade. Seen as one whole complex and grey system, the causal relationship between the social development and the air pollution in Beijing has been quantitatively analyzed in this paper. By using the grey relational model, the aim of this study is to explore how the socio-economic and human activities affect on the air pollution in the city of Beijing, China. Four air pollutants, as the particulate matter with size 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5), particulate matter with size 10 micrometers or less (PM10), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen dioxide (NOx), are selected as the indicators of air pollution. Additionally, fifteen socio-economic indicators are selected to account for the regional socio-economic characteristics (economy variables, energy consumption variables, pollution emissions variables, environment and construction activity variables). The results highlight that all variables are associated with the concentrations of the four selected air pollutants, but with notable differences between the air pollutants. Most of the socio-economic indicators, such as industrial output, total energy consumption are highly correlated with PM2.5, while PM10, SO2, and NOx present in general moderate correlations with most of the socio-economic variables. Contrary to other studies and reports this study reveals that vehicles and life energy do not have the strongest effect on air pollution in Beijing. This study provides useful information to reduce air pollution and support decision-making for sustainable development.

OptiPhy, a technical-economic optimisation model for improving the management of plant protection practices in agriculture: a decision-support tool for controlling the toxicity risks related to pesticides.

PubMed

Mghirbi, Oussama; LE Grusse, Philippe; Fabre, Jacques; Mandart, Elisabeth; Bord, Jean-Paul

2017-03-01

The health, environmental and socio-economic issues related to the massive use of plant protection products are a concern for all the stakeholders involved in the agricultural sector. These stakeholders, including farmers and territorial actors, have expressed a need for decision-support tools for the management of diffuse pollution related to plant protection practices and their impacts. To meet the needs expressed by the public authorities and the territorial actors for such decision-support tools, we have developed a technical-economic model "OptiPhy" for risk mitigation based on indicators of pesticide toxicity risk to applicator health (IRSA) and to the environment (IRTE), under the constraint of suitable economic outcomes. This technical-economic optimisation model is based on linear programming techniques and offers various scenarios to help the different actors in choosing plant protection products, depending on their different levels of constraints and aspirations. The health and environmental risk indicators can be broken down into sub-indicators so that management can be tailored to the context. This model for technical-economic optimisation and management of plant protection practices can analyse scenarios for the reduction of pesticide-related risks by proposing combinations of substitution PPPs, according to criteria of efficiency, economic performance and vulnerability of the natural environment. The results of the scenarios obtained on real ITKs in different cropping systems show that it is possible to reduce the PPP pressure (TFI) and reduce toxicity risks to applicator health (IRSA) and to the environment (IRTE) by up to approximately 50 %.

Water security for productive economies: Applying an assessment framework in southern Africa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holmatov, Bunyod; Lautze, Jonathan; Manthrithilake, Herath; Makin, Ian

2017-08-01

Achieving water security has emerged as a major objective in Africa, yet an analytical or diagnostic framework for assessing water security in African countries is not known to exist. This paper applies one key dimension of the 2016 Asian Development Bank's (ADB) Asian Water Development Outlook (AWDO) to assess levels of water security for productive economies in countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Economic aspects of water security cover four areas: economic activities in the broad sense, agriculture, electricity, and industry. Water security in each area is measured through application of a set of indicators; results of indicator application are then aggregated to determine economic water security at a country-level. Results show that economic water security in SADC is greatest in the Seychelles and South Africa, and lowest in Madagascar and Malawi. Opportunities for strengthening economic water security in the majority of SADC countries exist through improving agricultural water productivity, strengthening resilience, and expanding sustainable electricity generation. More profoundly, this paper suggests that there is clear potential and utility in applying approaches used elsewhere to assess economic water security in southern Africa.

Adaptive capacity indicators to assess sustainability of urban water systems - Current application.

PubMed

Spiller, Marc

2016-11-01

Sustainability is commonly assessed along environmental, societal, economic and technological dimensions. A crucial aspect of sustainability is that inter-generational equality must be ensured. This requires that sustainability is attained in the here and now as well as into the future. Therefore, what is perceived as 'sustainable' changes as a function of societal opinion and technological and scientific progress. A concept that describes the ability of systems to change is adaptive capacity. Literature suggests that the ability of systems to adapt is an integral part of sustainable development. This paper demonstrates that indicators measuring adaptive capacity are underrepresented in current urban water sustainability studies. Furthermore, it is discussed under which sustainability dimensions adaptive capacity indicators are lacking and why. Of the >90 indicators analysed, only nine are adaptive capacity indicators, of which six are socio-cultural, two technological, one economical and none environmental. This infrequent use of adaptive capacity indicators in sustainability assessments led to the conclusion that the challenge of dynamic and uncertain urban water systems is, with the exception of the socio-cultural dimension, not yet sufficiently reflected in the application of urban water sustainability indicators. This raises concerns about the progress towards urban water systems that can transform as a response variation and change. Therefore, research should focus on developing methods and indicators that can define, evaluate and quantify adaptive capacity under the economic, environmental and technical dimension of sustainability. Furthermore, it should be evaluated whether sustainability frameworks that focus on the control processes of urban water systems are more suitable for measuring adaptive capacity, than the assessments along environmental, economic, socio-cultural and technological dimensions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Development of Nanotechnologies and Advanced Materials Industry in Science and Entrepreneurship: Socioeconomic and Technical Indicators. A Case Study of Latvia (Part One)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geipele, I.; Geipele, S.; Staube, T.; Ciemleja, G.; Zeltins, N.

2016-08-01

The present scientific paper is the first part of two publications, where the authors obtain results from the scientific research presented in a series of works on the development of the nanotechnologies and advanced materials industry in science and entrepreneurship in Latvia. The study has a focus on finding proper socioeconomic and technical indicators. It provides resume on a scope of the study. The paper contains the developed structure of engineering economic indicator system, determined groups of indicators for assessment of the development of nanotechnologies and advanced materials industry in Latvia and results of the evaluation of the obtained statistics on the economic indicators.

Economic inequality, working-class power, social capital, and cause-specific mortality in wealthy countries.

PubMed

Muntaner, Carles; Lynch, John W; Hillemeier, Marianne; Lee, Ju Hee; David, Richard; Benach, Joan; Borrell, Carme

2002-01-01

This study tests two propositions from Navarro's critique of the social capital literature: that social capital's importance has been exaggerated and that class-related political factors, absent from social epidemiology and public health, might be key determinants of population health. The authors estimate cross-sectional associations between economic inequality, working-class power, and social capital and life expectancy, self-rated health, low birth weight, and age- and cause-specific mortality in 16 wealthy countries. Of all the health outcomes, the five variables related to birth and infant survival and nonintentional injuries had the most consistent association with economic inequality and working-class power (in particular with strength of the welfare state) and, less so, with social capital indicators. Rates of low birth weight and infant deaths from all causes were lower in countries with more "left" (e.g., socialist, social democratic, labor) votes, more left members of parliament, more years of social democratic government, more women in government, and various indicators of strength of the welfare state, as well as low economic inequality, as measured in a variety of ways. Similar associations were observed for injury mortality, underscoring the crucial role of unions and labor parties in promoting workplace safety. Overall, social capital shows weaker associations with population health indicators than do economic inequality and working-class power. The popularity of social capital and exclusion of class-related political and welfare state indicators does not seem to be justified on empirical grounds.

Assessment of the interactions between economic growth and industrial wastewater discharges using co-integration analysis: a case study for China's Hunan Province.

PubMed

Xiao, Qiang; Gao, Yang; Hu, Dan; Tan, Hong; Wang, Tianxiang

2011-07-01

We have investigated the interactions between economic growth and industrial wastewater discharge from 1978 to 2007 in China's Hunan Province using co-integration theory and an error-correction model. Two main economic growth indicators and four representative industrial wastewater pollutants were selected to demonstrate the interaction mechanism. We found a long-term equilibrium relationship between economic growth and the discharge of industrial pollutants in wastewater between 1978 and 2007 in Hunan Province. The error-correction mechanism prevented the variable expansion for long-term relationship at quantity and scale, and the size of the error-correction parameters reflected short-term adjustments that deviate from the long-term equilibrium. When economic growth changes within a short term, the discharge of pollutants will constrain growth because the values of the parameters in the short-term equation are smaller than those in the long-term co-integrated regression equation, indicating that a remarkable long-term influence of economic growth on the discharge of industrial wastewater pollutants and that increasing pollutant discharge constrained economic growth. Economic growth is the main driving factor that affects the discharge of industrial wastewater pollutants in Hunan Province. On the other hand, the discharge constrains economic growth by producing external pressure on growth, although this feedback mechanism has a lag effect. Economic growth plays an important role in explaining the predicted decomposition of the variance in the discharge of industrial wastewater pollutants, but this discharge contributes less to predictions of the variations in economic growth.

Assessment of the Interactions between Economic Growth and Industrial Wastewater Discharges Using Co-integration Analysis: A Case Study for China’s Hunan Province

PubMed Central

Xiao, Qiang; Gao, Yang; Hu, Dan; Tan, Hong; Wang, Tianxiang

2011-01-01

We have investigated the interactions between economic growth and industrial wastewater discharge from 1978 to 2007 in China’s Hunan Province using co-integration theory and an error-correction model. Two main economic growth indicators and four representative industrial wastewater pollutants were selected to demonstrate the interaction mechanism. We found a long-term equilibrium relationship between economic growth and the discharge of industrial pollutants in wastewater between 1978 and 2007 in Hunan Province. The error-correction mechanism prevented the variable expansion for long-term relationship at quantity and scale, and the size of the error-correction parameters reflected short-term adjustments that deviate from the long-term equilibrium. When economic growth changes within a short term, the discharge of pollutants will constrain growth because the values of the parameters in the short-term equation are smaller than those in the long-term co-integrated regression equation, indicating that a remarkable long-term influence of economic growth on the discharge of industrial wastewater pollutants and that increasing pollutant discharge constrained economic growth. Economic growth is the main driving factor that affects the discharge of industrial wastewater pollutants in Hunan Province. On the other hand, the discharge constrains economic growth by producing external pressure on growth, although this feedback mechanism has a lag effect. Economic growth plays an important role in explaining the predicted decomposition of the variance in the discharge of industrial wastewater pollutants, but this discharge contributes less to predictions of the variations in economic growth. PMID:21845167

Health expenditures spent for prevention, economic performance, and social welfare.

PubMed

Wang, Fuhmei; Wang, Jung-Der; Huang, Yu-Xiu

2016-12-01

Countries with limited resources in economic downturns often reduce government expenditures, of which spending on preventive healthcare with no apparent immediate health impact might be cut down first. This research aims to find the optimum share of preventive health expenditure to gross domestic product (GDP) and investigate the implications of preventive health services on economic performance and the population's wellbeing. We develop the economic growth model to undertake health-economic analyses and parameterize for Taiwan setting. Based on the US experiences over the period from 1975 to 2013, this research further examines the model's predictions on the relationship between preventive health expenditure and economic performance. Theoretical analysis and numerical simulations show that an inverse U-shaped relationship exists between the proportion of GDP spent on prevention and social welfare, as well as between the proportion spent on prevention and economic growth. Empirical analysis shows an under-investment in prevention in Taiwan. The spending of preventive healthcare in Taiwan government was 0.0027 GDP in 2014, while the optimization levels for economic development and social welfare would be 0 · 0119 and 0 · 0203, respectively. There is a statistically significant nonlinear relationship between health expenditure on prevention and the estimated real impact of economic performance from US experiences. The welfare-maximizing proportion of preventive expenditure is usually greater than the proportion maximizing economic growth, indicating a conflict between economic growth and welfare after a marginal share. Our findings indicate that it is worthwhile increasing investment on prevention up until an optimization level for economic development and social welfare. Such levels could also be estimated in other economies.

The Year 1990 and Beyond.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hopkins, Charles O.

1982-01-01

Outlines key indicators of the current economic recession and discusses these factors as they will affect the American Vocational Association. Asserts that vocational education has an integral role in economic recovery and growth. (SK)

Inverse Problems in Economic Measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shananin, A. A.

2018-02-01

The problem of economic measurements is discussed. The system of economic indices must reflect the economic relations and mechanisms existing in society. An achievement of the XX century is the development of a system of national accounts and the gross domestic product index. However, the gross domestic product index, which is related to the Hamilton-Pontryagin function in extensive economic growth models, turns out to be inadequate under the conditions of structural changes. New problems of integral geometry related to production models that take into account the substitution of production factors are considered.

The Concept of Resource Use Efficiency as a Theoretical Basis for Promising Coal Mining Technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mikhalchenko, Vadim

2017-11-01

The article is devoted to solving one of the most relevant problems of the coal mining industry - its high resource use efficiency, which results in high environmental and economic costs of operating enterprises. It is shown that it is the high resource use efficiency of traditional, historically developed coal production systems that generates a conflict between indicators of economic efficiency and indicators of resistance to uncertainty and variability of market environment parameters. The traditional technological paradigm of exploitation of coal deposits also predetermines high, technology-driven, economic risks. The solution is shown and a real example of the problem solution is considered.

Interactions between financial stress and economic activity for the U.S.: A time- and frequency-varying analysis using wavelets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferrer, Román; Jammazi, Rania; Bolós, Vicente J.; Benítez, Rafael

2018-02-01

This paper examines the interactions between the main U.S. financial stress indices and several measures of economic activity in the time-frequency domain using a number of continuous cross-wavelet tools, including the usual wavelet squared coherence and phase difference as well as two new summary wavelet-based measures. The empirical results show that the relationship between financial stress and the U.S. real economy varies considerably over time and depending on the time horizon considered. A significant adverse effect of financial stress on U.S. economic activity is observed since the onset of the subprime mortgage crisis in the summer of 2007, indicating that the impact of financial market stress on the real economy is particularly severe during periods of major financial turmoil. Furthermore, the significant linkage between financial stress and the economic environment is mostly concentrated at time horizons from one to four years, demonstrating that the effect of financial stress on economic activity is especially visible in the long-run.

Analysis of extreme values of the economic efficiency indicators of transport infrastructure projects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Korytárová, J.; Vaňková, L.

2017-10-01

Paper builds on previous research of the authors into the evaluation of economic efficiency of transport infrastructure projects evaluated by the economic efficiency ratio - NPV, IRR and BCR. Values of indicators and subsequent outputs of the sensitivity analysis show extremely favourable values in some cases. The authors dealt with the analysis of these indicators down to the level of the input variables and examined which inputs have a larger share of these extreme values. NCF for the calculation of above mentioned ratios is created by benefits that arise as the difference between zero and investment options of the project (savings in travel and operating costs, savings in travel time costs, reduction in accident costs and savings in exogenous costs) as well as total agency costs. Savings in travel time costs which contribute to the overall utility of projects by more than 70% appear to be the most important benefits in the long term horizon. This is the reason why this benefit emphasized. The outcome of the article has resulted how the particular basic variables contributed to the total robustness of economic efficiency of these project.

Analysis and forecast of railway coal transportation volume based on BP neural network combined forecasting model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Yongbin; Xie, Haihong; Wu, Liuyi

2018-05-01

The share of coal transportation in the total railway freight volume is about 50%. As is widely acknowledged, coal industry is vulnerable to the economic situation and national policies. Coal transportation volume fluctuates significantly under the new economic normal. Grasp the overall development trend of railway coal transportation market, have important reference and guidance significance to the railway and coal industry decision-making. By analyzing the economic indicators and policy implications, this paper expounds the trend of the coal transportation volume, and further combines the economic indicators with the high correlation with the coal transportation volume with the traditional traffic prediction model to establish a combined forecasting model based on the back propagation neural network. The error of the prediction results is tested, which proves that the method has higher accuracy and has practical application.

Books average previous decade of economic misery.

PubMed

Bentley, R Alexander; Acerbi, Alberto; Ormerod, Paul; Lampos, Vasileios

2014-01-01

For the 20(th) century since the Depression, we find a strong correlation between a 'literary misery index' derived from English language books and a moving average of the previous decade of the annual U.S. economic misery index, which is the sum of inflation and unemployment rates. We find a peak in the goodness of fit at 11 years for the moving average. The fit between the two misery indices holds when using different techniques to measure the literary misery index, and this fit is significantly better than other possible correlations with different emotion indices. To check the robustness of the results, we also analysed books written in German language and obtained very similar correlations with the German economic misery index. The results suggest that millions of books published every year average the authors' shared economic experiences over the past decade.

High Test Scores: The Wrong Road to National Economic Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Keith

2011-01-01

A widely held view is that good schools are essential to a nation's international economic success and that high test scores on international tests of academic skills and knowledge indicate how good a nation's schools are. The widespread belief that good schools are an important contributor to a nation's economic success in the world is supported…

Repartnering and (Re)employment: Strategies to Cope with the Economic Consequences of Partnership Dissolution

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jansen, Mieke; Mortelmans, Dimitri; Snoeckx, Laurent

2009-01-01

The economic consequences of a partnership dissolution have been described consistently in the research literature. For women all studies indicate severe financial losses, whereas men do not experience income decreases to the same extent. This article focuses on the 2 main strategies to cope with the economic consequences of a separation:…

Societal and Economic Engagement of Universities in Finland: An Evaluation Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ritsila, Jari; Nieminen, Mika; Sotarauta, Markku; Lahtonen, Jukka

2008-01-01

This paper is based on the work of an expert team invited by the Ministry of Education of Finland to develop criteria and an evaluation framework for societal and economic engagement for use in university performance management. The paper maps out possible indicators for the societal and economic engagement of universities in the light of national…

Teaching Economics: The Role of Cognitions on Teaching and Learning of Teachers and Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Achtenhagen, Frank

Studies in the field of economics education indicate that teachers prefer content and a subject-oriented curriculum, while students favor a more personal relationship with the teacher and recognition as unique individuals. Mastery of subject matter is not as important to economics students. As a result, the following problems may occur in the…

India's Social Development in a Decade of Reforms: 1990-91/1999-2000

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ray, Amal Kanti

2008-01-01

The economic reforms initiated in India in 1991 have brought about visible upliftment of economic conditions of the country. This paper examines if the economic process is associated with an enhancement of India's social development in equal measure in the reform decade of nineties. Ray (1989) considered thirteen social indicators of India and…

Skill Shortages in the Trades during Economic Downturns. Occasional Paper

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oliver, Damian

2011-01-01

During the recent economic downturn, media and industry reports of skill shortages in the trades continued to appear. The intent of this paper is to examine the evidence for skill shortages in the trades persisting during the economic downturns over the last 20 years, using various indicators. These include employment growth, vacancy rates,…

Economic Means for Human Needs: Social Indicators of Well-Being and Discontent.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strumpel, Burkhard, Ed.

This book is concerned with the human conflict between needs and means, between material wants and lack of resources to satisfy them. Looking at both individuals and some segments of society, the authors measure economic well-being and define its objective and psychological bases, its dimensions, and its relationship to economic incentives. In the…

"No Significant Distance" between Face-to-Face and Online Instruction: Evidence from Principles of Economics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coates, Dennis; Humphreys, Brad, R.; Kane, John; Vachris, Michelle, A.

2004-01-01

This paper describes an experiment focused on measuring and explaining differences in students learning between online and face-to-face modes of instruction in college level principles of economics courses. Our results indicate that students in face-to-face sections scored better on the Test of Understanding College Economics (TUCE) than students…

Towards the Year 2000: Demographic, Economic, Social, Political, and Educational Trends. OSISD Volume 5: Report Number 2. Special Report Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, May K. C.; And Others

Factors that are likely to affect higher education in New Jersey and the nation are identified. Statistical data and a brief narrative summary cover major demographic, economic, sociopolitical, and higher education trends. Comparative economic data indicate trends in production, occupational employment, the civilian labor force, and personal…

Sea/Lake Water Air Conditioning at Naval Facilities.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-05-01

ECONOMICS AT TWO FACILITIES ......... ................... 2 Facilities ........... .......................... 2 Computer Models...of an operational test at Naval Security Group Activity (NSGA) Winter Harbor, Me., and the economics of Navywide application. In FY76 an assessment of... economics of Navywide application of sea/lake water AC indicated that cost and energy savings at the sites of some Naval facilities are possible, depending

The Economic Crisis and Other Challenges in Accessing Science and Technological Information in Asia.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stueart, Robert D.

This paper discusses access to scientific and technical information in Asia. The first section considers the economic crisis, including the growth in information service as a major indicator of the success or failure of the economies of developing countries. Libraries' response to the economic crisis is addressed in the second section, including…

[Contextual indicators to assess social determinants of health and the Spanish economic recession].

PubMed

Cabrera-León, Andrés; Daponte Codina, Antonio; Mateo, Inmaculada; Arroyo-Borrell, Elena; Bartoll, Xavier; Bravo, María José; Domínguez-Berjón, María Felicitas; Renart, Gemma; Álvarez-Dardet, Carlos; Marí-Dell'Olmo, Marc; Bolívar Muñoz, Julia; Saez, Marc; Escribà-Agüir, Vicenta; Palència, Laia; López, María José; Saurina, Carme; Puig, Vanessa; Martín, Unai; Gotsens, Mercè; Borrell, Carme; Serra Saurina, Laura; Sordo, Luis; Bacigalupe, Amaia; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica; Pérez, Glòria; Espelt, Albert; Ruiz, Miguel; Bernal, Mariola

To provide indicators to assess the impact on health, its social determinants and health inequalities from a social context and the recent economic recession in Spain and its autonomous regions. Based on the Spanish conceptual framework for determinants of social inequalities in health, we identified indicators sequentially from key documents, Web of Science, and organisations with official statistics. The information collected resulted in a large directory of indicators which was reviewed by an expert panel. We then selected a set of these indicators according to geographical (availability of data according to autonomous regions) and temporal (from at least 2006 to 2012) criteria. We identified 203 contextual indicators related to social determinants of health and selected 96 (47%) based on the above criteria; 16% of the identified indicators did not satisfy the geographical criteria and 35% did not satisfy the temporal criteria. At least 80% of the indicators related to dependence and healthcare services were excluded. The final selection of indicators covered all areas for social determinants of health, and 62% of these were not available on the Internet. Around 40% of the indicators were extracted from sources related to the Spanish Statistics Institute. We have provided an extensive directory of contextual indicators on social determinants of health and a database to facilitate assessment of the impact of the economic recession on health and health inequalities in Spain and its autonomous regions. Copyright © 2016 SESPAS. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Measuring Value Added in Higher Education: A Proposed Methodology for Developing a Performance Indicator Based on the Economic Value Added to Graduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodgers, Timothy

2007-01-01

The 2003 UK higher education White Paper suggested that the sector needed to re-examine the potential of the value added concept. This paper describes a possible methodology for developing a performance indicator based on the economic value added to graduates. The paper examines how an entry-quality-adjusted measure of a graduate's…

Legal, Institutional, and Economic Indicators of Forest Conservation and Sustainable Management: Review of Information Available for the United States

Treesearch

Paul V. Ellefson; Calder M. Hibbard; Michael A. Kilgore; James E. Granskog

2005-01-01

This review looks at the Nation’s legal, institutional, and economic capacity to promote forest conservation and sustainable resource management. It focuses on 20 indicators of Criterion Seven of the so-called Montreal Process and involves an extensive search and synthesis of information from a variety of sources. It identifies ways to fill information gaps and improve...

A Profile of Oregon Counties: Human Resources, Educational, and Economic Indicators Associated with Young Children and Families.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oregon State Dept. of Education, Salem. Student Services Section.

This profile of counties in Oregon covers factors that may predispose youth to grow up at risk of dropping out of high school or not acquiring the skills needed for adult life. The profile presents data on human resources and educational and economic indicators that were collected from state agencies and organizations. For the state as a whole,…

Socioeconomic status (SES) and childhood acute myeloid leukemia (AML) mortality risk: Analysis of SEER data.

PubMed

Knoble, Naomi B; Alderfer, Melissa A; Hossain, Md Jobayer

2016-10-01

Socioeconomic status (SES) is a complex construct of multiple indicators, known to impact cancer outcomes, but has not been adequately examined among pediatric AML patients. This study aimed to identify the patterns of co-occurrence of multiple community-level SES indicators and to explore associations between various patterns of these indicators and pediatric AML mortality risk. A nationally representative US sample of 3651 pediatric AML patients, aged 0-19 years at diagnosis was drawn from 17 Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database registries created between 1973 and 2012. Factor analysis, cluster analysis, stratified univariable and multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were used. Four SES factors accounting for 87% of the variance in SES indicators were identified: F1) economic/educational disadvantage, less immigration; F2) immigration-related features (foreign-born, language-isolation, crowding), less mobility; F3) housing instability; and, F4) absence of moving. F1 and F3 showed elevated risk of mortality, adjusted hazards ratios (aHR) (95% CI): 1.07(1.02-1.12) and 1.05(1.00-1.10), respectively. Seven SES-defined cluster groups were identified. Cluster 1 (low economic/educational disadvantage, few immigration-related features, and residential-stability) showed the minimum risk of mortality. Compared to Cluster 1, Cluster 3 (high economic/educational disadvantage, high-mobility) and Cluster 6 (moderately-high economic/educational disadvantages, housing-instability and immigration-related features) exhibited substantially greater risk of mortality, aHR(95% CI)=1.19(1.0-1.4) and 1.23 (1.1-1.5), respectively. Factors of correlated SES-indicators and their pattern-based groups demonstrated differential risks in the pediatric AML mortality indicating the need of special public-health attention in areas with economic-educational disadvantages, housing-instability and immigration-related features. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Economic, ecological, and social performance of conventional and organic broiler production in the Netherlands.

PubMed

Bokkers, E A M; de Boer, I J M

2009-09-01

1. In this study, we compared a conventional broiler production system keeping fast growing broilers with an organic broiler production system keeping slow growing broilers in the Netherlands, both managed by one person working a full time year (Full Time Equivalent, FTE). This comparison was based on a quantification of economic, ecological and social indicators. Indicators were quantified using scientific literature and national data sets. 2. The organic system performed better for the economic indicator net farm income per FTE than the conventional system. 3. Regarding ecological indicators, calculations showed a higher on-farm emission of ammonia per kg live weight for the organic system. Moreover, an organic system includes a higher risk for eutrophication per ha due to outdoor access. Emission of green house gasses, use of fossil fuels and use of land required for the production of one kg of live weight is higher for an organic than for a conventional system. This is mainly due to a lower feed conversion in organic production and use of organic feed. 4. The organic system performed better than the conventional system for the social indicators related to animal welfare time spent on walking, footpad lesions, mortality, and sound legs. Regarding the social indicator food safety was found that meat from an organic system contained less antibiotic residues and Salmonella contaminations but more Campylobacter contaminations than meat from a conventional system. 5. Changing from a conventional to an organic broiler production system, therefore, not only affects animal welfare, but also affects economic, ecological and other social issues. In this study, we ran into the situation that some information needed was lacking in literature and quantifications had to be based upon several sources. Therefore, an integrated on-farm assessment is needed, which can be used to develop a broiler production system that is economically profitable, ecologically sound, and acceptable for society.

Socio-economic appraisal of fishing community in Pulicat lagoon, south east coast of India: case study.

PubMed

Devi, V Vandhana; Krishnaveni, M

2012-10-01

Assessment of socio-economic issues of fishing community is an important aspect in framing a strategy for the preservation of eco-systems which leads to sustainable lagoon management. The present investigation analyses the current potential socio-economic status of the fishing community of Pulicat lagoon, the second largest lagoon in India. The socio-economic indicators considered in the study include demography, economic aspects, social aspects and occupation details. The relevant details were collected from 300 fisher folk family by conducting field survey through a well prepared questionnaire in the villages around Pulicat lagoon. The data analysis was done using Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SPSS) to assess the adequacy and precision of the collected data. The important and encouraging socio-economic indicators identified from the field survey for effective lagoon management includes significant presence of younger generation in the region; affinity and self-belongingness of fisher folk towards the lake; better economic status and moderate education level; appreciable fishing income and affinity towards fishing profession. It is emphasized to motivate the fisher folk to improve their work attitude for betterment in economic status. The pertinent lagoon issues, comprising seasonal variation, local fishing issues, pollution from industries, water intake to thermal power plant which directly or indirectly affects the socio-economic status of fishing community, also need much emphasis while proposing sustainable lagoon management system. The information and observation from this study will be very helpful in formulating management policies on the conservation of the Pulicat lagoon ecosystem.

The Economic Burden of Malnutrition in Pregnant Women and Children under 5 Years of Age in Cambodia

PubMed Central

Moench-Pfanner, Regina; Silo, Sok; Laillou, Arnaud; Wieringa, Frank; Hong, Rathamony; Hong, Rathavuth; Poirot, Etienne; Bagriansky, Jack

2016-01-01

Malnutrition is locked in a vicious cycle of increased mortality, poor health, impaired cognitive development, slow physical growth, reduced learning capacity, inferior performance, and ultimately lower adult work performance and productivity. The consensus of global scientific evidence indicates that lowering the rates of malnutrition will be an indispensable component of any successful program to raise the quality of human capital and resources. This study used a “consequence model” to apply the coefficient risk-deficit on economic losses, established in the global scientific literature, to Cambodian health, demographic, and economic data to develop a national estimate of the value of economic losses due to malnutrition. The impact of the indicators of malnutrition analyzed represent a burden to the national economy of Cambodia estimated at 266 million USD annually (1.7% of GDP). Stunting is reducing the Cambodian economic output by more than 120 million USD, and iodine deficiency disorders alone by 57 million USD. This economic burden is too high in view of Cambodia’s efforts to drive economic development. The government should rapidly expand a range of low-cost effective nutrition interventions to break the current cycle of increased mortality, poor health and ultimately lower work performance, productivity, and earnings. PMID:27187462

Environmental and economic evaluation of the Massachusetts Smoke-Free Workplace Law.

PubMed

Alpert, Hillel R; Carpenter, Carrie M; Travers, Mark J; Connolly, Gregory N

2007-08-01

An environmental and economic evaluation of the smoke-free law in Massachusetts provides a broad appreciation of how a state-wide smoking ban affects the health of patrons and workers as well as the industries that are commonly concerned about the effects of smoking bans on business. The aim of this study is to evaluate environmental and economic effects of the statewide Massachusetts statewide Smoke-Free Workplace Law. Before and after the smoking ban, air quality testing was conducted in a sample (n = 27) of hospitality venues and state-wide economic changes were assessed. Compliance, in terms of patronage was measured by person-counts. Environmental outcomes were respirable suspended particles (RSP) less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5). Economic outcomes were meals tax collections, employment in the food services and drinking places and accommodations industries. On average, levels of respirable suspended particles (RSPs) less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5) decreased 93% in these venues after the Massachusetts Smoke-free Workplace Law went into effect. No statistically significant changes were observed among the economic indicators. This evaluation demonstrates that the state-wide Massachusetts law has effectively improved indoor air quality in a sample of Massachusetts venues and has not negatively affected several economic indicators.

[Cost of lost productivity in pharmacoeconomics analysis. Part II. Survey in the expert group].

PubMed

Wrona, Witold; Hermanowski, Tomasz; Jakubczyk, Michał; Golicki, Dominik; Czech, Marcin; Niewada, Maciej; Kolasa, Katarzyna

2011-01-01

The aim of the survey was to collect data on practice and preferences of decision-makers and experts in health economics concerning the role of indirect costs in Poland. The questionnaire contained 18 questions covering the need for indirect costs calculation in economic evaluations and measures used to calculate indirect cost. Fifty four respondents related to health economics returned completed questionnaires. Mean age of respondents was 33,3 years; mean experience in health economics 4.7 years; 43% (23/54) of responders had non-economic background; 30% each were users and doers of health technology assessment reports. All (excluding one) responders indicated that indirect costs should be calculated in pharmacoeconomic studies. Twenty three (i.e., 43%) responders indicated human capital approach as the best method to estimate costs from societal perspective; friction cost method came second best 11%; 42% respondents had no opinion. The doers of economics evaluations pointed to GDP per capita (61%, 11/18), average salary (61%, 11/18), and costs of sick pay or injury benefit (61%, 11/18) as measures which could be used to value production losses. Indirect costs are considered important component of economic evaluations of healthcare interventions in Poland. The lack of widely accepted methods for indirect cost evaluation support further research.

The Economic Burden of Malnutrition in Pregnant Women and Children under 5 Years of Age in Cambodia.

PubMed

Moench-Pfanner, Regina; Silo, Sok; Laillou, Arnaud; Wieringa, Frank; Hong, Rathamony; Hong, Rathavuth; Poirot, Etienne; Bagriansky, Jack

2016-05-14

Malnutrition is locked in a vicious cycle of increased mortality, poor health, impaired cognitive development, slow physical growth, reduced learning capacity, inferior performance, and ultimately lower adult work performance and productivity. The consensus of global scientific evidence indicates that lowering the rates of malnutrition will be an indispensable component of any successful program to raise the quality of human capital and resources. This study used a "consequence model" to apply the coefficient risk-deficit on economic losses, established in the global scientific literature, to Cambodian health, demographic, and economic data to develop a national estimate of the value of economic losses due to malnutrition. The impact of the indicators of malnutrition analyzed represent a burden to the national economy of Cambodia estimated at 266 million USD annually (1.7% of GDP). Stunting is reducing the Cambodian economic output by more than 120 million USD, and iodine deficiency disorders alone by 57 million USD. This economic burden is too high in view of Cambodia's efforts to drive economic development. The government should rapidly expand a range of low-cost effective nutrition interventions to break the current cycle of increased mortality, poor health and ultimately lower work performance, productivity, and earnings.

Assessment of the relationship between rural non-point source pollution and economic development in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area.

PubMed

Zhang, Tong; Ni, Jiupai; Xie, Deti

2016-04-01

This study investigates the relationship between rural non-point source (NPS) pollution and economic development in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area (TGRA) by using the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis for the first time. Five types of pollution indicators, namely, fertilizer input density (FD), pesticide input density (PD), agricultural film input density (AD), grain residues impact (GI), and livestock manure impact (MI), were selected as rural NPS pollutant variables. Rural net income per capita was used as the indicator of economic development. Pollution load was generated by agricultural inputs (consumption of fertilizer, pesticide, and agricultural film) and economic growth with invert U-shaped features. The predicted turning points for FD, PD, and AD were at rural net income per capita levels of 6167.64, 6205.02, and 4955.29 CNY, respectively, which were all surpassed. However, the features between agricultural waste outputs (grain residues and livestock manure) and economic growth were inconsistent with the EKC hypothesis, which reflected the current trends of agricultural economic structure in the TGRA. Given that several other factors aside from economic development level could influence the pollutant generation in rural NPS, a further examination with long-run data support should be performed to understand the relationship between rural NPS pollution and income level.

Accessibility and socio-economic development of human settlements.

PubMed

Hasan, Samiul; Wang, Xiaoming; Khoo, Yong Bing; Foliente, Greg

2017-01-01

Access to facilities, services and socio-economic opportunities plays a critical role in the growth and decline of cities and human settlements. Previous attempts to explain changes in socio-economic indicators by differences in accessibility have not been convincing as countries with highly developed transport infrastructure have only seen marginal benefits of infrastructure improvements. Australia offers an ideal case for investigating the effects of accessibility on development since it is seen as home to some of the most liveable cities in the world while, at the same time, it also has some of the most isolated settlements. We investigate herein the connectivity and accessibility of all 1814 human settlements (population centers exceeding 200 persons) in Australia, and how they relate to the socio-economic characteristics of, and opportunities in, each population center. Assuming population as a proxy indicator of available opportunities, we present a simple ranking metric for a settlement using the number of population and the distance required to access all other settlements (and the corresponding opportunities therein). We find a strikingly unequal distribution of access to opportunities in Australia, with a marked prominence of opportunities in capital cities in four of the eight states. The two largest cities of Sydney and Melbourne have a dominant position across all socio-economic indicators, compared to all the other cities. In general, we observe across all the settlements that a decrease in access to opportunities is associated with relatively greater socio-economic disadvantage including increased median age and unemployment rate and decreased median household income. Our methodology can be used to better understand the potential benefits of improved accessibility based on infrastructure development, especially for remote areas and for cities and towns with many socio-economically disadvantaged population.

Accessibility and socio-economic development of human settlements

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiaoming; Khoo, Yong Bing; Foliente, Greg

2017-01-01

Access to facilities, services and socio-economic opportunities plays a critical role in the growth and decline of cities and human settlements. Previous attempts to explain changes in socio-economic indicators by differences in accessibility have not been convincing as countries with highly developed transport infrastructure have only seen marginal benefits of infrastructure improvements. Australia offers an ideal case for investigating the effects of accessibility on development since it is seen as home to some of the most liveable cities in the world while, at the same time, it also has some of the most isolated settlements. We investigate herein the connectivity and accessibility of all 1814 human settlements (population centers exceeding 200 persons) in Australia, and how they relate to the socio-economic characteristics of, and opportunities in, each population center. Assuming population as a proxy indicator of available opportunities, we present a simple ranking metric for a settlement using the number of population and the distance required to access all other settlements (and the corresponding opportunities therein). We find a strikingly unequal distribution of access to opportunities in Australia, with a marked prominence of opportunities in capital cities in four of the eight states. The two largest cities of Sydney and Melbourne have a dominant position across all socio-economic indicators, compared to all the other cities. In general, we observe across all the settlements that a decrease in access to opportunities is associated with relatively greater socio-economic disadvantage including increased median age and unemployment rate and decreased median household income. Our methodology can be used to better understand the potential benefits of improved accessibility based on infrastructure development, especially for remote areas and for cities and towns with many socio-economically disadvantaged population. PMID:28636630

An economic approach to environmental indices

EPA Science Inventory

This study uses the directional output distance function from economic productivity theory as an alternative approach to environmental index construction. We use the directional output distance function to aggregate multiple environmental objectives into one measure of environme...

Methodological developments in US state-level Genuine Progress Indicators: toward GPI 2.0

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bagstad, Kenneth J.; Berik, Günseli; Gaddis, Erica J. Brown

2014-01-01

The Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) has emerged as an important monetary measure of economic well-being. Unlike mainstream economic indicators, primarily Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the GPI accounts for both the benefits and costs of economic production across diverse economic, social, and environmental domains in a more comprehensive manner. Recently, the GPI has gained traction in subnational policy in the United States, with GPI studies being conducted in a number of states and with their formal adoption by several state governments. As the GPI is applied in different locations, new methods are developed, different data sources are available, and new issues of policy relevance are addressed using its component indicators. This has led to a divergence in methods, reducing comparability between studies and yielding results that are of varying methodological sophistication. In this study, we review the “state of the art” in recent US state-level GPI studies, focusing on those from Hawaii, Maryland, Ohio, Utah, and Vermont. Through adoption of a consistent approach, these and future GPI studies could utilize a framework that supports more uniform, comparable, and accurate measurements of progress. We also identify longer-term issues, particularly related to treatment of nonrenewable resource depletion, government spending, income inequality, and ecosystem services. As these issues are successfully addressed and disseminated, a “GPI 2.0” will emerge that better measures economic well-being and has greater accuracy and policy relevance than past GPI measurements. As the GPI expands further into mainstream policy analysis, a more formal process by which methods could be updated, standardized, and applied is needed.

Defining Economic Success as It Pertains to Native American Owned Businesses Located on/or Adjacent to North Dakota Reservations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmitt, Barbara Elise

2013-01-01

Successful economic development is essential in building and sustaining a healthy community. The purpose of this study was to identify indicators of successful economic development as it pertained to Native American owned businesses located on/or adjacent to North Dakota reservations. More specifically this study sought to explore specific…

Economic analysis of new space transportation systems: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1971-01-01

An economic analysis of alternative space transportation systems is presented. Results indicate that the expendable systems represent modest investments, but the recurring costs of operation would remain high. The space shuttle and tug system requires a substantial investment, but would substantially reduce the recurring costs of operation. Economic benefits and costs of the different systems are also analyzed. Findings are summarized.

'SINAMI': a tool for the economic evaluation of forest fire management programs in Mediterranean ecosystems

Treesearch

Francisco Rodriguez y Silva; Armando Gonzalez-Caban

2010-01-01

Historically, in Spain and most European countries, forest fire budgets have never been subjected to an objective and rigorous economic analysis indicative of the returns on investments in fire management protection programs. Thus far we have witnessed expansive growth of costs without any investment planning. New economic realities and more focussed oversight by...

K-12 Education in the U.S. Economy: Its Impact on Economic Development, Earnings, and Housing Values. NEA Research Working Paper

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hungerford, Thomas L.; Wassmer, Robert W.

2004-01-01

This report introduces, analyzes, and summarizes for policymakers an extensive and diverse economics literature on the effects of public K-12 education spending on local, regional, and state economies. The effects of education spending appear in indicators ranging from economic development to employment rates, small business starts, personal…

Army Sustainability Report 2010

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-09-01

a vastly complex concept: it is an organizing principle that factors mission, environment, community and economic benefit into each of its...Report on a minimum of 10 performance indicators, including at least one from each of : economic , social and environmental Report on a minimum...FY09 in a partial performance baseline. It is based on a subset of the economic , environmental and social responsibility performance

A Quantitative and Qualitative Investigation of Variability and Contextual Sources Related to the Academic Engagement of Minority and Economically Disadvantaged Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schilling, Joan Carlin

2009-01-01

Research consistently has indicated that academic achievement outcomes for most minority students, and for students from economically impoverished backgrounds, are marginal as compared with the achievement of their Asian and Caucasian classmates and of individuals with higher socio-economic status (STS). Academic engagement has been linked to…

Social and Economic Wellbeing in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin: Building an Enlarged Human Development Indicator

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reig-Martinez, Ernest

2013-01-01

This paper calculates a human Wellbeing Composite Index (WCI) for 42 countries, belonging to the European Economic Space, North Africa and the Middle East, as an alternative to the shortcomings of other well-known measures of socio-economic development (i.e. Gross Domestic Product per head and Human Development Index). To attain this goal,…

The Economic Orientations of College Students: How They Are Shaped and Interconnected

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mogilchak, E. L.

2006-01-01

The objective of this study is to obtain information about how college students' economic orientations interact with one another as well as with indicators of the level of their satisfaction with their lives and social and economic factors. The assumption was that these orientations are formed by a number of latent variables and factors, and that…

Depression and poverty among African American women at risk for type 2 diabetes.

PubMed

de Groot, Mary; Auslander, Wendy; Williams, James Herbert; Sherraden, Michael; Haire-Joshu, Debra

2003-01-01

Poverty is associated with negative health outcomes, including depression. Little is known about the specific elements of poverty that contribute to depression, particularly among African American women at risk for type 2 diabetes. This study examined the relationships of economic and social resources to depression among African American women at high risk for the development of type 2 diabetes (N = 181) using the Conservation of Resources theory as a conceptual framework. Women were assessed at 3 time points in conjunction with a dietary change intervention. At baseline, 40% of women reported clinically significant depression, and 43.3% were below the poverty line. Depressed women reported fewer economic assets and greater economic distress than nondepressed peers. Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that nonwork status, lack of home ownership, low appraisal of one's economic situation, low self-esteem, and increased life events were significantly associated with depression at baseline. Longitudinal multivariate logistic regression models indicated that income, home ownership, future economic appraisal, life events, and self-esteem predicted depression trajectories at Time 3. These results speak to the multifaceted sources of stress in the lives of poor African American women. Interventions that address the economic and social factors associated with depression are needed.

Econometric comparisons of liquid rocket engines for dual-fuel advanced earth-to-orbit shuttles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martin, J. A.

1978-01-01

Econometric analyses of advanced Earth-to-orbit vehicles indicate that there are economic benefits from development of new vehicles beyond the space shuttle as traffic increases. Vehicle studies indicate the advantage of the dual-fuel propulsion in single-stage vehicles. This paper shows the economic effect of incorporating dual-fuel propulsion in advanced vehicles. Several dual-fuel propulsion systems are compared to a baseline hydrogen and oxygen system.

Analyzing of economic growth based on electricity consumption from different sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maksimović, Goran; Milosavljević, Valentina; Ćirković, Bratislav; Milošević, Božidar; Jović, Srđan; Alizamir, Meysam

2017-10-01

Economic growth could be influenced by different factors. In this study was analyzed the economic growth based on the electricity consumption form different sources. As economic growth indicator gross domestic product (GDP) was used. ANFIS (adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system) methodology was applied to determine the most important factors from the given set for the GDP growth prediction. Six inputs were used: electricity production from coal, hydroelectric, natural gas, nuclear, oil and renewable sources. Results shown that the electricity consumption from renewable sources has the highest impact on the economic or GDP growth prediction.

Associations of economic and gender inequality with global obesity prevalence: understanding the female excess.

PubMed

Wells, Jonathan C K; Marphatia, Akanksha A; Cole, Tim J; McCoy, David

2012-08-01

Obesity is widely assumed to be associated with economic affluence; it has therefore been assumed to become more common with economic development. However, obesity has also been associated with poverty. These contrary findings highlight the need for an examination of the contribution of social and economic factors to the global distribution of obesity. Males and females may be differently exposed to social and economic inequality, however few studies have considered possible gender differences in the association between socio-economic indices and obesity prevalence. We analysed between-country associations between obesity prevalence and three social or economic indices: per capita gross domestic product (GDP), the Gini index of national wealth inequality, and the gender inequality index (GII). We considered the genders separately, the gender average, and also the gender difference (female excess) in obesity prevalence. Across 68 countries listing sample size, there were 3 obese women for every 2 obese men. Within populations, obesity prevalence in males and females was strongly correlated (r = 0.74), however, only 17% of the female excess prevalence was accounted for by the gender-average prevalence. In both genders, there was a positive association between obesity prevalence and GDP that attenuated at higher GDP levels, with this association weaker in females than males. Adjusting for GDP, both the Gini index and GII were associated with excess female obesity. These analyses highlight significant gender differences in the global distribution of obesity, and a gender difference in the association of obesity prevalence with socio-economic factors. The magnitude of female excess obesity is not constant across populations, and is greater in countries characterised by gender inequality and lower GDP. These findings indicate that improving women's status may be a key area for addressing the global obesity epidemic over the long term, with potential benefits for the women themselves and for their offspring. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Economic modeling and energy policy planning. [technology transfer, market research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, R. G.; Schwartz, A., Jr.; Lievano, R. J.; Stone, J. C.

1974-01-01

A structural economic model is presented for estimating the demand functions for natural gas and crude oil in industry and in steam electric power generation. Extensions of the model to other commodities are indicated.

Productivity in physical and chemical science predicts the future economic growth of developing countries better than other popular indices.

PubMed

Jaffe, Klaus; Caicedo, Mario; Manzanares, Marcos; Gil, Mario; Rios, Alfredo; Florez, Astrid; Montoreano, Claudia; Davila, Vicente

2013-01-01

Scientific productivity of middle income countries correlates stronger with present and future wealth than indices reflecting its financial, social, economic or technological sophistication. We identify the contribution of the relative productivity of different scientific disciplines in predicting the future economic growth of a nation. Results show that rich and poor countries differ in the relative proportion of their scientific output in the different disciplines: countries with higher relative productivity in basic sciences such as physics and chemistry had the highest economic growth in the following five years compared to countries with a higher relative productivity in applied sciences such as medicine and pharmacy. Results suggest that the economies of middle income countries that focus their academic efforts in selected areas of applied knowledge grow slower than countries which invest in general basic sciences.

Afforestation or intense pasturing improve the ecological and economic value of abandoned tropical farmlands.

PubMed

Knoke, Thomas; Bendix, Jörg; Pohle, Perdita; Hamer, Ute; Hildebrandt, Patrick; Roos, Kristin; Gerique, Andrés; Sandoval, María L; Breuer, Lutz; Tischer, Alexander; Silva, Brenner; Calvas, Baltazar; Aguirre, Nikolay; Castro, Luz M; Windhorst, David; Weber, Michael; Stimm, Bernd; Günter, Sven; Palomeque, Ximena; Mora, Julio; Mosandl, Reinhard; Beck, Erwin

2014-11-26

Increasing demands for livelihood resources in tropical rural areas have led to progressive clearing of biodiverse natural forests. Restoration of abandoned farmlands could counter this process. However, as aims and modes of restoration differ in their ecological and socio-economic value, the assessment of achievable ecosystem functions and benefits requires holistic investigation. Here we combine the results from multidisciplinary research for a unique assessment based on a normalization of 23 ecological, economic and social indicators for four restoration options in the tropical Andes of Ecuador. A comparison of the outcomes among afforestation with native alder or exotic pine, pasture restoration with either low-input or intense management and the abandoned status quo shows that both variants of afforestation and intense pasture use improve the ecological value, but low-input pasture does not. Economic indicators favour either afforestation or intense pasturing. Both Mestizo and indigenous Saraguro settlers are more inclined to opt for afforestation.

Economics show CO2 EOR potential in central Kansas

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dubois, M.K.; Byrnes, A.P.; Pancake, R.E.; Willhite, G.P.; Schoeling, L.G.

2000-01-01

Carbon dioxide (CO2) enhanced oil recovery (EOR) may be the key to recovering hundreds of millions of bbl of trapped oil from the mature fields in central Kansas. Preliminary economic analysis indicates that CO2 EOR should provide an internal rate of return (IRR) greater than 20%, before income tax, assuming oil sells for \\$20/bbl, CO2 costs \\$1/Mcf, and gross utilization is 10 Mcf of CO2/bbl of oil recovered. If the CO2 cost is reduced to \\$0.75/Mcf, an oil price of $17/bbl yields an IRR of 20%. Reservoir and economic modeling indicates that IRR is most sensitive to oil price and CO2 cost. A project requires a minimum recovery of 1,500 net bbl/acre (about 1 million net bbl/1-mile section) under a best-case scenario. Less important variables to the economics are capital costs and non-CO2 related lease operating expenses.

Books Average Previous Decade of Economic Misery

PubMed Central

Bentley, R. Alexander; Acerbi, Alberto; Ormerod, Paul; Lampos, Vasileios

2014-01-01

For the 20th century since the Depression, we find a strong correlation between a ‘literary misery index’ derived from English language books and a moving average of the previous decade of the annual U.S. economic misery index, which is the sum of inflation and unemployment rates. We find a peak in the goodness of fit at 11 years for the moving average. The fit between the two misery indices holds when using different techniques to measure the literary misery index, and this fit is significantly better than other possible correlations with different emotion indices. To check the robustness of the results, we also analysed books written in German language and obtained very similar correlations with the German economic misery index. The results suggest that millions of books published every year average the authors' shared economic experiences over the past decade. PMID:24416159

Marital Biography, Social Security Receipt, and Poverty.

PubMed

Lin, I-Fen; Brown, Susan L; Hammersmith, Anna M

2017-01-01

Increasingly, older adults are unmarried, which could mean a larger share is at risk of economic disadvantage. Using data from the 2010 Health and Retirement Study, we chart the diverse range of marital biographies, capturing marital sequences and timing, of adults who are age eligible for Social Security and examine three indicators of economic well-being: Social Security receipt, Social Security benefit levels, and poverty status. Partnereds are disproportionately likely to receive Social Security and they enjoy relatively high Social Security benefits and very low poverty levels. Among singles, economic well-being varies by marital biography and gender. Gray divorced and never-married women face considerable economic insecurity. Their Social Security benefits are relatively low, and their poverty rates are quite high (over 25%), indicating Social Security alone is not sufficient to prevent these women from falling into poverty. By comparison, gray widoweds are the most advantaged singles.

Marital Biography, Social Security Receipt, and Poverty

PubMed Central

Lin, I-Fen; Brown, Susan L.; Hammersmith, Anna M.

2017-01-01

Increasingly, older adults are unmarried, which could mean a larger share is at risk of economic disadvantage. Using data from the 2010 Health and Retirement Study, we chart the diverse range of marital biographies, capturing marital sequences and timing, of adults who are age eligible for Social Security and examine three indicators of economic well-being: Social Security receipt, Social Security benefit levels, and poverty status. Partnereds are disproportionately likely to receive Social Security and they enjoy relatively high Social Security benefits and very low poverty levels. Among singles, economic well-being varies by marital biography and gender. Gray divorced and never-married women face considerable economic insecurity. Their Social Security benefits are relatively low, and their poverty rates are quite high (over 25%), indicating Social Security alone is not sufficient to prevent these women from falling into poverty. By comparison, gray widoweds are the most advantaged singles. PMID:28181867

Socio-economic determinants and inequities in coverage and timeliness of early childhood immunisation in rural Ghana.

PubMed

Gram, Lu; Soremekun, Seyi; ten Asbroek, Augustinus; Manu, Alexander; O'Leary, Maureen; Hill, Zelee; Danso, Samuel; Amenga-Etego, Seeba; Owusu-Agyei, Seth; Kirkwood, Betty R

2014-07-01

To assess the extent of socio-economic inequity in coverage and timeliness of key childhood immunisations in Ghana. Secondary analysis of vaccination card data collected from babies born between January 2008 and January 2010 who were registered in the surveillance system supporting the ObaapaVita and Newhints Trials was carried out. 20 251 babies had 6 weeks' follow-up, 16 652 had 26 weeks' follow-up, and 5568 had 1 year's follow-up. We performed a descriptive analysis of coverage and timeliness of vaccinations by indicators for urban/rural status, wealth and educational attainment. The association of coverage with socio-economic indicators was tested using a chi-square-test and the association with timeliness using Cox regression. Overall coverage at 1 year of age was high (>95%) for Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), all three pentavalent diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus-haemophilus influenzae B-hepatitis B (DPTHH) doses and all polio doses except polio at birth (63%). Coverage against measles and yellow fever was 85%. Median delay for BCG was 1.7 weeks. For polio at birth, the median delay was 5 days; all other vaccine doses had median delays of 2-4 weeks. We found substantial health inequity across all socio-economic indicators for all vaccines in terms of timeliness, but not coverage at 1 year. For example, for the last DPTHH dose, the proportion of children delayed more than 8 weeks were 27% for urban children and 31% for rural children (P < 0.001), 21% in the wealthiest quintile and 41% in the poorest quintile (P < 0.001), and 9% in the most educated group and 39% in the least educated group (P < 0.001). However, 1-year coverage of the same dose remained above 90% for all levels of all socio-economic indicators. Ghana has substantial health inequity across urban/rural, socio-economic and educational divides. While overall coverage was high, most vaccines suffered from poor timeliness. We suggest that countries achieving high coverage should include timeliness indicators in their surveillance systems. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Examining the impacts of oil price changes on economic indicators: A panel approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lim, Kah Boon; Sek, Siok Kun

2017-04-01

The impact of oil price on global economy is evident from many studies and research findings. In this study, we extend the research on examining the impact of oil price changes on economic indicators in terms of economic growth and inflation by comparing different groups of economies (high income versus low income countries and oil importing versus oil exporting countries). Our main objective is to reveal if such impact varies across country income level/ development and oil dependency. In addition, we also seek to compare the impacts of oil price relative to the other factors indicators (money supply, foreign direct investment, exchange rate, government expenditure, inflation and gross domestic product) on economy. For the purpose of this study, the co-integration regression (DOLS and FMOLS) techniques are applied to the panel dataset of four groups of economies which contain 10 countries in each panel dataset. The analysis results show that oil price is not the main determinant although it can have a significant impact on inflation and economic growth across all groups of economies. The three main determinants of economic growth are exchange rate, aggregate demand and government expenditure while the determinants of inflation are aggregate supply and exchange rate. Furthermore, our result also concludes that oil price has a positive impact in oil exporting economies but it shows a negative impact in oil importing economies due to the oil dependency factor.

Economic downturn results in tick-borne disease upsurge.

PubMed

Godfrey, Elinor R; Randolph, Sarah E

2011-03-15

The emergence of zoonoses is due both to changes in human activities and to changes in their natural wildlife cycles. One of the most significant vector-borne zoonoses in Europe, tick-borne encephalitis (TBE), doubled in incidence in 1993, largely as a consequence of the socio-economic transition from communism to capitalism and associated environmental changes. To test the effect of the current economic recession, unemployment in 2009 and various socio-economic indices were compared to weather indices (derived from principal component analyses) as predictors for the change in TBE case numbers in 2009 relative to 2004-08, for 14 European countries. Greatest increases in TBE incidence occurred in Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (91, 79 and 45%, respectively). The weather was rejected as an explanatory variable. Indicators of high background levels of poverty, e.g. percent of household expenditure on food, were significant predictors. The increase in unemployment in 2009 relative to 2008 together with 'in-work risk of poverty' is the only case in which a multivariate model has a second significant term. Background socio-economic conditions determine susceptibility to risk of TBE, while increased unemployment triggered a sudden increase in risk. Mechanisms behind this result may include reduced resistance to infection through stress; reduced uptake of costly vaccination; and more exposure of people to infected ticks in their forest habitat as they make greater use of wild forest foods, especially in those countries, Lithuania and Poland, with major marketing opportunities in such products. Recognition of these risk factors could allow more effective protection through education and a vaccination programme targeted at the economically most vulnerable.

An analysis of leading, lagging, and coincident economic indicators in the United States and its relationship to the volume of plastic surgery procedures performed.

PubMed

Hoppe, Ian C; Pastor, Craig J; Paik, Angie M

2012-10-01

In plastic surgery, 2 predominant practice environments exist, namely, the academic setting and private practice. These 2 groups cater their practice toward the needs and demands of 2 very different patient populations. The goal of this paper is to examine well-established economic indicators and delineate their relationship, if any, with the volume of different plastic surgical procedures performed in the United States. Information from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons' annual reports on plastic surgery statistics was collected from the year 2000 through 2010 and compared to readily available and established economic indicators. There was a significant positive relationship with total cosmetic procedures and gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, personal income, consumer price index (CPI) (all), and CPI (medical). There was a significant positive relationship between cosmetic surgical procedures and the issuance of new home permits and the average prime rate charged by banks. There was a significant positive relationship with cosmetic minimally invasive procedures and GDP, GDP per capita, personal income, CPI (all), and CPI (medical). There was a significant negative relationship between reconstructive procedures and GDP, GDP per capita, personal income, CPI (all), and CPI (medical). Cosmetic minimally invasive procedures seem to be decided on relatively quickly during good economic times. Cosmetic surgical procedures seem to be more planned and less related to the economic environment. The plastic surgeon may use this relationship to tailor the focus of his or her practice to be best situated for economic fluctuations.

Behavioral economic analysis of withdrawal- and cue-elicited craving for tobacco: an initial investigation.

PubMed

MacKillop, James; Brown, Courtney L; Stojek, Monika K; Murphy, Cara M; Sweet, Lawrence; Niaura, Ray S

2012-12-01

The role of craving in nicotine dependence remains controversial and may be a function of measurement challenges. The current study used behavioral economic approach to test the hypotheses that subjective craving from acute withdrawal and exposure to tobacco cues dynamically increases the relative value of cigarettes. Using a 2 (1-hr/12-hr deprivation) × 2 (neutral/tobacco cues) within-subjects design, 33 nicotine dependent adults completed 2 laboratory sessions. Assessment included subjective craving and behavioral economic indices of cigarette demand, namely Intensity (i.e., cigarette consumption at zero cost), O(max) (i.e., maximum total expenditure), Breakpoint (i.e., highest acceptable price for cigarettes), P(max) (i.e., price at which consumption becomes sensitive to price), and elasticity (i.e., price sensitivity). Behavioral economic indices were generated using a Cigarette Purchase Task in which participants selected between cigarettes for a subsequent 2-hr self-administration period and money. Main effects of deprivation and tobacco cues were present for subjective craving and multiple behavioral economic indices of cigarette demand. Interestingly, deprivation significantly increased Breakpoint (p ≤ .01) and P(max) (p ≤ .05) and had trend-level effects on Intensity and O(max) (p ≤ .10); whereas cues significantly reduced elasticity (p ≤ .01), reflecting lower sensitivity to increasing prices. Heterogeneous associations were evident among the motivational variables but with aggregations suggesting variably overlapping motivational channels. These findings further support a behavioral economic approach to craving and a multidimensional conception of acute motivation for addictive drugs. Methodological considerations, including potential order effects, and the need for further refinement of these findings are discussed.

Predicting the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association claim payout of commercial buildings from Hurricane Ike

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, J. M.; Woods, P. K.; Park, Y. J.; Son, K.

2013-08-01

Following growing public awareness of the danger from hurricanes and tremendous demands for analysis of loss, many researchers have conducted studies to develop hurricane damage analysis methods. Although researchers have identified the significant indicators, there currently is no comprehensive research for identifying the relationship among the vulnerabilities, natural disasters, and economic losses associated with individual buildings. To address this lack of research, this study will identify vulnerabilities and hurricane indicators, develop metrics to measure the influence of economic losses from hurricanes, and visualize the spatial distribution of vulnerability to evaluate overall hurricane damage. This paper has utilized the Geographic Information System to facilitate collecting and managing data, and has combined vulnerability factors to assess the financial losses suffered by Texas coastal counties. A multiple linear regression method has been applied to develop hurricane economic damage predicting models. To reflect the pecuniary loss, insured loss payment was used as the dependent variable to predict the actual financial damage. Geographical vulnerability indicators, built environment vulnerability indicators, and hurricane indicators were all used as independent variables. Accordingly, the models and findings may possibly provide vital references for government agencies, emergency planners, and insurance companies hoping to predict hurricane damage.

Framework for measuring sustainable development in catchment systems.

PubMed

Walmsley, Jay J

2002-02-01

Integrated catchment management represents an approach to managing the resources of a catchment by integrating environmental, economic, and social issues. It is aimed at deriving sustainable benefits for future generations, while protecting natural resources, particularly water, and minimizing possible adverse social, economic, and environmental consequences. Indicators of sustainable development, which summarize information for use in decision-making, are invaluable when trying to assess the diverse, interacting components of catchment processes and resource management actions. The Driving-Forces--Pressure--State--Impact--Response (DPSIR) indicator framework is useful for identifying and developing indicators of sustainable development for catchment management. Driving forces have been identified as the natural conditions occurring in a catchment and the level of development and economic activity. Pressures include the natural and anthropogenic supply of water, water demand, and water pollution. State indicators can be split into those of quantity and those of quality. Impacts include those that affect the ecosystems directly and those that impact the use value of the resource. It core indicators are identified within each of the categories given in the framework, most major catchment-based management issues can be evaluated. This framework is applied to identify key issues in catchment management in South Africa, and develop a set of indicators for evaluating catchments throughout the country.

Food insecurity is associated with past and present economic disadvantage and body mass index.

PubMed

Sarlio-Lähteenkorva, S; Lahelma, E

2001-11-01

Fears and experiences of food restriction influence eating behavior but the association between past and present economic disadvantage, food insecurity and body size is poorly understood. Therefore, we examined these associations in a nationwide, representative sample of 25- to 64-y-old Finnish men and women (n = 6506). The respondents were classified by their body mass index (BMI) into four groups: thin, normal, overweight and obese. Economic disadvantage was assessed by three indicators including low household income, unemployment during past 5 y and long-term economic problems in childhood. Food insecurity was assessed by five separate items concerning economic fears and experiences related to sufficient supply of food during the past 12 mo, and a combined scale in which those with affirmative responses to four to five items were classified as hungry. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted using both the BMI grouping and indicators of economic disadvantage as independent variables to predict food insecurity, controlling simultaneously for age, educational attainment and sex. The results showed that low household income, recent unemployment and economic problems in childhood were all predictors of food insecurity. Thin people were most likely to be hungry and showed most food insecurity in five separate items. In addition, obese people reported more buying cheaper food due to economic problems and fears or experiences of running out of money to buy food than did normal weight subjects. In conclusion, both past and present economic disadvantage is associated with various aspects of food insecurity. The association between food insecurity and BMI is curvilinear.

Health Economic Data in Reimbursement of New Medical Technologies: Importance of the Socio-Economic Burden as a Decision-Making Criterion.

PubMed

Iskrov, Georgi; Dermendzhiev, Svetlan; Miteva-Katrandzhieva, Tsonka; Stefanov, Rumen

2016-01-01

Assessment and appraisal of new medical technologies require a balance between the interests of different stakeholders. Final decision should take into account the societal value of new therapies. This perspective paper discusses the socio-economic burden of disease as a specific reimbursement decision-making criterion and calls for the inclusion of it as a counterbalance to the cost-effectiveness and budget impact criteria. Socio-economic burden is a decision-making criterion, accounting for diseases, for which the assessed medical technology is indicated. This indicator is usually researched through cost-of-illness studies that systematically quantify the socio-economic burden of diseases on the individual and on the society. This is a very important consideration as it illustrates direct budgetary consequences of diseases in the health system and indirect costs associated with patient or carer productivity losses. By measuring and comparing the socio-economic burden of different diseases to society, health authorities and payers could benefit in optimizing priority setting and resource allocation. New medical technologies, especially innovative therapies, present an excellent case study for the inclusion of socio-economic burden in reimbursement decision-making. Assessment and appraisal have been greatly concentrated so far on cost-effectiveness and budget impact, marginalizing all other considerations. In this context, data on disease burden and inclusion of explicit criterion of socio-economic burden in reimbursement decision-making may be highly beneficial. Realizing the magnitude of the lost socio-economic contribution resulting from diseases in question could be a reasonable way for policy makers to accept a higher valuation of innovative therapies.

The Investment Decision: Theory and Practice.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walton, Martin

1978-01-01

Investigates investment behavior of 42 British business firms to determine the degree to which firms are influenced by standard economic theory. Findings indicated that orthodox economic theories of investment and appraisal techniques have little influence on investment behavior. (Author/DB)

Role of self-sufficiency, productivity and diversification on the economic sustainability of farming systems with autochthonous sheep breeds in less favoured areas in Southern Europe.

PubMed

Ripoll-Bosch, R; Joy, M; Bernués, A

2014-08-01

Traditional mixed livestock cereal- and pasture-based sheep farming systems in Europe are threatened by intensification and specialisation processes. However, the intensification process does not always yield improved economic results or efficiency. This study involved a group of farmers that raised an autochthonous sheep breed (Ojinegra de Teruel) in an unfavourable area of North-East Spain. This study aimed to typify the farms and elucidate the existing links between economic performance and certain sustainability indicators (i.e. productivity, self-sufficiency and diversification). Information was obtained through direct interviews with 30 farms (73% of the farmers belonging to the breeders association). Interviews were conducted in 2009 and involved 32 indicators regarding farm structure, management and economic performance. With a principal component analysis, three factors were obtained explaining 77.9% of the original variance. This factors were named as inputs/self-sufficiency, which included the use of on-farm feeds, the amount of variable costs per ewe and economic performance; productivity, which included lamb productivity and economic autonomy; and productive orientation, which included the degree of specialisation in production. A cluster analysis identified the following four groups of farms: high-input intensive system; low-input self-sufficient system; specialised livestock system; and diversified crops-livestock system. In conclusion, despite the large variability between and within groups, the following factors that explain the economic profitability of farms were identified: (i) high feed self-sufficiency and low variable costs enhance the economic performance (per labour unit) of the farms; (ii) animal productivity reduces subsidy dependence, but does not necessarily imply better economic performance; and (iii) diversity of production enhances farm flexibility, but is not related to economic performance.

Individual and national level associations between economic deprivation and partner violence among college students in 31 national settings.

PubMed

Sabina, Chiara

2013-01-01

This study expands previous work by examining individual and national level effects of economic deprivation on partner violence among college students. Three main hypotheses were tested: (1) individual level economic deprivation (i.e., ability to meet daily needs and family income) is associated with partner violence, (2) gross national income is associated with the mean rates of partner violence across nations, and (3) the association between individual level economic deprivation and partner violence varies according to the economic national context as measured by gross national income. Data for 14,090 participants from 31 nations came from the International Dating Violence Study that queried university students about violence in their relationships and relevant risk factors. A series of overdispersed Poisson hierarchical linear regression models were specified to test the hypotheses. Ability to meet daily needs, but not family income, was associated with rates of partner violence. Gross national income was also associated with mean rates of partner violence across nations as well as the relationships between ability to meet daily and partner violence and between family income and partner violence. The findings show the importance of context, as indicated by national economic standing, on rates of partner violence. Not only do economically deprived individuals experience more partner violence, but those living in poorer nations experience more partner violence, regardless of individual economic deprivation. Limitations of the study include a non-random sample and substantial variation in the study sites beyond economic standing. Nonetheless, findings indicate efforts to confront partner violence must also call for cross-national economic development. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A booming economy means a bursting trauma system: association between hospital admission for major injury and indicators of economic activity in a large Canadian health region.

PubMed

Roberts, Derek J; Das, Debanjana; Mercado, Michelle; Vis, Christine; Kortbeek, John B; Kirkpatrick, Andrew W; Ball, Chad G

2014-05-01

Injury epidemiology fluctuates with economic activity in many countries. These relationships remain unclear in Canada. The annual risk of admission for major injury (Injury Severity Score ≥12) to a high-volume, level-1 Canadian trauma center was compared with indicators of economic activity over a 16-year period using linear regression. An increased risk of injured patient admissions was associated with rising mean gross domestic product (GDP [millions of chained 2002 dollars]) (.36 person increase per 100,000 population/$1,000 increase in GDP; P = .001) and annual gasoline prices (.47 person increase per 100,000 population/cent increase in gasoline price; P = .001). Recreation-related vehicle injuries were also associated with economic affluence. The risk of trauma patient mortality with increasing mean annual GDP (P = .72) and gasoline prices (P = .32) remained unchanged. Hospital admissions for major injury, but not trauma patient mortality, were associated with economic activity in a large Canadian health care region. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Alkaline-mechanical pretreatment process for enhanced anaerobic digestion of thickened waste activated sludge with a novel crushing device: Performance evaluation and economic analysis.

PubMed

Cho, Si-Kyung; Ju, Hyun-Jun; Lee, Jeong-Gyu; Kim, Sang-Hyoun

2014-08-01

Although various pretreatments have been widely investigated to enhance the anaerobic digestion (AD) of waste activated sludge (WAS), economic feasibility issues have limited real-world applications. The authors examined the performance and economic analysis of an alkaline-mechanical process with a novel mechanical crushing device for thickened WAS pretreatment. The pretreatment at 40gTS/L, pH 13, and 90min reaction time achieved 64% of solubilization efficiency and 8.3 times higher CH4 yield than the control. In addition, a synergistic CH4 yield enhancement was observed when the pretreated and raw WAS were used together as feedstock, and the greatest synergy was observed at a volumetric mixture ratio of 50:50. Economic estimates indicate that up to 22% of WAS treatment costs would be saved by the installation of the suggested process. The experimental results clearly indicate that the alkaline-mechanical process would be highly effective and economically feasible for the AD of thickened WAS. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

National Economic Development and Disparities in Body Mass Index: A Cross-Sectional Study of Data from 38 Countries

PubMed Central

Neuman, Melissa; Kawachi, Ichiro; Gortmaker, Steven; Subramanian, SV.

2014-01-01

Background Increases in body mass index (BMI) and the prevalence of overweight in low- and middle income countries (LMICs) are often ascribed to changes in global trade patterns or increases in national income. These changes are likely to affect populations within LMICs differently based on their place of residence or socioeconomic status (SES). Objective Using nationally representative survey data from 38 countries and national economic indicators from the World Bank and other international organizations, we estimated ecological and multilevel models to assess the association between national levels of gross domestic product (GDP), foreign direct investment (FDI), and mean tariffs and BMI. Design We used linear regression to estimate the ecological association between average annual change in economic indicators and BMI, and multilevel linear or ordered multinomial models to estimate associations between national economic indicators and individual BMI or over- and underweight. We also included cross-level interaction terms to highlight differences in the association of BMI with national economic indicators by type of residence or socioeconomic status (SES). Results There was a positive but non-significant association of GDP and mean BMI. This positive association of GDP and BMI was greater among rural residents and the poor. There were no significant ecological associations between measures of trade openness and mean BMI, but FDI was positively associated with BMI among the poorest respondents and in rural areas and tariff levels were negatively associated with BMI among poor and rural respondents. Conclusion Measures of national income and trade openness have different associations with the BMI across populations within developing countries. These divergent findings underscore the complexity of the effects of development on health and the importance of considering how the health effects of “globalizing” economic and cultural trends are modified by individual-level wealth and residence. PMID:24919199

A Longitudinal Study of the Effect of Integrated Literacy and Basic Education Programs on Women's Participation in Social and Economic Development in Nepal.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burchfield, Shirley; Hua, Haiyan; Baral, Dyuti; Rocha, Valeria

In Nepal, Girls' and Women's Education Initiative and the Girls' and Women's Education Policy Research Activity (GWE-PRA) investigated the impact of women's integrated literacy programs in the country's development by examining measures of socio-economic status, as well as indicators of women's social and economic development, including" (1)…

Generality in nanotechnologies and its relationship to economic performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomez Baquero, Fernando

In the history if economic analysis there is perhaps no more important question than the one of how economic development is achieved. For more than a century, economists have explored the role of technology in economic growth but there is still much to be learned about the effect that technologies, in particular emerging ones, have on economic growth and productivity. The objective of this research is to understand the relationship between nanotechnologies and economic growth and productivity, using the theory of General Purpose Technology (GPT)-driven economic growth. To do so, the Generality Index (calculated from patent data) was used to understand the relative pervasiveness of nanotechnologies. The analysis of trends and patterns of Generality Index, using the largest group of patents since the publication of the NBER Patent Database, indicates that nanotechnologies possess a higher average Generality than other technological groups. Next, the relationship between the Generality Index and Total Factor Productivity (TFP) was studied using econometric analysis. Model estimates indicate that the variation in Generality for the group of nanotechnologies can explain a large proportion of the variation in TFP. However, the explanatory power of the entire set of patents (not just nanotechnologies) is larger and corresponds better to the expected theoretical models. Additionally, there is a negative short-run relationship between Generality and TFP, conflicting with part of the theoretical GPT-models. Finally, the relationship between the Generality of nanotechnologies and policy-driven investment events, such as R&D investments and grant awards, was studied using econometric methods. The statistical evidence suggests that NSF awards are related to technologies with higher Generality, while NIH awards and NNI investments are related to a lower average Generality. Overall, results of this research work indicate that the introduction of pervasive technologies into an economic system sets in motion an interesting series of events that can both increase and decrease productivity and therefore economic growth. The metrics and methods developed in this work emphasize the importance of developing and using new metrics for strategic decision making, both in the private sector and in the public sector.

Behavioral Economic Measures of Alcohol Reward Value as Problem Severity Indicators in College Students

PubMed Central

Skidmore, Jessica R.; Murphy, James G.; Martens, Matthew P.

2014-01-01

The aims of the current study were to examine the associations among behavioral economic measures of alcohol value derived from three distinct measurement approaches, and to evaluate their respective relations with traditional indicators of alcohol problem severity in college drinkers. Five behavioral economic metrics were derived from hypothetical demand curves that quantify reward value by plotting consumption and expenditures as a function of price, another metric measured proportional behavioral allocation and enjoyment related to alcohol versus other activities, and a final metric measured relative discretionary expenditures on alcohol. The sample included 207 heavy drinking college students (53% female) who were recruited through an on-campus health center or university courses. Factor analysis revealed that the alcohol valuation construct comprises two factors: one factor that reflects participants’ levels of alcohol price sensitivity (demand persistence), and a second factor that reflects participants’ maximum consumption and monetary and behavioral allocation towards alcohol (amplitude of demand). The demand persistence and behavioral allocation metrics demonstrated the strongest and most consistent multivariate relations with alcohol-related problems, even when controlling for other well-established predictors. The results suggest that behavioral economic indices of reward value show meaningful relations with alcohol problem severity in young adults. Despite the presence of some gender differences, these measures appear to be useful problem indicators for men and women. PMID:24749779

Gender gap matters in maternal mortality in low and lower-middle-income countries: A study of the global Gender Gap Index.

PubMed

Choe, Seung-Ah; Cho, Sung-Il; Kim, Hongsoo

2017-09-01

Reducing maternal mortality has been a crucial part of the global development agenda. According to modernisation theory, the effect of gender equality on maternal health may differ depending on a country's economic development status. We explored the correlation between the Global Gender Gap Index (GGI) provided by the World Economic Forum and the maternal mortality ratio (MMR) obtained from the World Development Indicators database of the World Bank. The relationships between each score in the GGI, including its four sub-indices (measuring gender gaps in economic participation, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment), and the MMR were analysed. When the countries were stratified by gross national income per capita, the low and lower-middle-income countries had lower scores in the GGI, and lower scores in the economic participation, educational attainment, and political empowerment sub-indices than the high-income group. Among the four sub-indices, the educational attainment sub-index showed a significant inverse correlation with the MMR in low and lower-middle-income countries when controlling for the proportion of skilled birth attendance and public share of health expenditure. This finding suggests that strategic efforts to reduce the gender gap in educational attainment could lead to improvements in maternal health in low and lower-middle-income countries.

Assessment of UASB-DHS technology for sewage treatment: a comparative study from a sustainability perspective.

PubMed

Maharjan, Namita; Nomoto, Naoki; Tagawa, Tadashi; Okubo, Tsutomu; Uemura, Shigeki; Khalil, Nadeem; Hatamoto, Masashi; Yamaguchi, Takashi; Harada, Hideki

2018-04-06

This paper assesses the technical and economic sustainability of a combined system of an up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB)-down-flow hanging sponge (DHS) for sewage treatment. Additionally, this study compares UASB-DHS with current technologies in India like trickling filters (TF), sequencing batch reactor (SBR), moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR), and other combinations of UASB with post-treatment systems such as final polishing ponds (FPU) and extended aeration sludge process (EASP). The sustainability of the sewage treatment plants (STPs) was evaluated using a composite indicator, which incorporated environmental, societal, and economic dimensions. In case of the individual sustainability indicator study, the results showed that UASB-FPU was the most economically sustainable system with a score of 0.512 and aeration systems such as MBBR, EASP, and SBR were environmentally sustainable, whereas UASB-DHS system was socially sustainable. However, the overall comparative analysis indicated that the UASB-DHS system scored the highest value of 2.619 on the global sustainability indicator followed by EASP and MBBR with scores of 2.322 and 2.279, respectively. The highlight of this study was that the most environmentally sustainable treatment plants were not economically and socially sustainable. Moreover, sensitivity analysis showed that five out of the seven scenarios tested, the UASB-DHS system showed good results amongst the treatment system.

Environmental and socio-economic sustainability appraisal of contaminated land remediation strategies: A case study at a mega-site in China.

PubMed

Song, Yinan; Hou, Deyi; Zhang, Junli; O'Connor, David; Li, Guanghe; Gu, Qingbao; Li, Shupeng; Liu, Peng

2018-01-01

Green and sustainable remediation (GSR) has become a global trend in the contaminated land remediation field. Growing numbers of countries have adopted GSR procedures published in regulatory and/or technical guidance. China is fast becoming one of the largest remediation markets in the world, and is beginning to engage with GSR. Among other efforts, a taskforce is currently developing the first Chinese technical standard on GSR. This paper presents the context positioning and development of a sustainable remediation assessment indicator set for China. This sustainability indicator set was formed based on existing sustainable remediation guidelines and literature. LCA was used to evaluate environmental impacts, and the results combined with social and economic appraisal via MCA. The indicator set was applied to a remediation 'mega-site' in China. The results showed that compared to excavation and landfill, an alternative treatment strategy of soil washing, thermal desorption and S/S brought about relatively less waste generation, better worker safety, and preferable local impacts, leading to higher scores in the environmental and social-economic domains. However, the social-economic scores were limited by a lack of public engagement. The results of the case study have shown that the indicator set is valid, with lessons learnt and suggestions for improvement discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A methodological framework for coastal development assessment: A case study of Fujian Province, China.

PubMed

Tian, Haiyan; Lindenmayer, David B; Wong, Gabriel T W; Mao, Zhu; Huang, Yi; Xue, Xiongzhi

2018-02-15

Decision-makers often have to make trade-offs between economic growth and environmental conservation when developing and managing coastal environments. Coastal development and management need to be subject to rigorous assessments to determine if they are sustainable over time. We propose a methodological framework - the Coastal Development Index (CDI) for the assessment of the changes in sustainability of coastal development over time. CDI is a modified version of the Ocean Health Index (OHI) but with two new indicators - ecological and environmental indicators (EEI), and social and economic indicators (SEI), both of which comprise three sub-indicators (coastal protection, clean waters and species protection for EEI, and food provision, coastal livelihoods and economies and tourism and recreation for SEI). The six sub-indicators represent key aspects of coastal development and the level of exploitation of natural resources that have previously been missing in other conceptual frameworks. We demonstrate the value of CDI with a detailed case study of Fujian Province in China, 2000-2013. The scores of CDI decreased from 1.01 in 2000 to 0.42 in 2013 suggesting that the Fujian coastal zone has experienced unsustainable development in that time. Meanwhile, the scores of EEI decreased from 22.1 to 20.4 while the scores of SEI increased from 21.9 to 48.1 suggesting that environmental values have been eroded by economic growth. Analysis of the scores of sub-indicators reveals a need to integrate economic growth and social development with environmental conservation on Fujian coastal management. Our case study highlights the potential value of the CDI for improving the ecological sustainability of coastal zone management and development practices. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

[Coupling between ecological vulnerability and economic poverty in contiguous destitute areas, China: Empirical analysis of 714 poverty-stricken counties.

PubMed

Cao, Shi Song; Wang, Yan Hui; Duan, Fu Zhou; Zhao, Wen Ji; Wang, Zhi Heng; Fang, Na

2016-08-01

Maintaining the coordinated correlation between ecological environment and economic development is one of the important strategies in the new stage of poverty alleviation and development. Taking 714 poverty-stricken counties in contiguous destitute areas as study areas, this paper designed the ecological vulnerability evaluation indicator system based on the ecological sensitivity-resilience-pressure (SRP) conceptual model, as well as the comprehensive poverty evaluation indicators from the perspective of socioeconomic development, so as to build the coupling model to reveal the coupling between ecological vulnerability and economic poverty. The results showed that Hu-Line could act as a feasible partition label to depict the spatial distribution patterns of ecological vulnerability, economic poverty, as well as their coupling degree in contiguous destitute areas, which should be fully taken into consideration the influence of Hu-Line on the east-west pattern classification of national poverty reduction. In addition, there existed a symbiotic positive correlation between ecological vulnerability and economic poverty, therefore, the strategic significance of ecological and environment protection in poverty-stricken areas should be specifically emphasized to reduce economic poverty by synchronously protecting the ecological environment. Approximately half of the counties involved in the study area were in the coordinated type of recession disorders, where the ecological environment quality and the economic development could not be synchronized.

Social Indicators and Program Evaluation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elliott, Elizabeth

The paper examines the concept of social indicators as ways of evaluating macro level adult education programs. In general social indicators deal with social factors which affect the quality of life of the population. Social scientists are recognizing the need for both economic and social indicators. Even as the need for social indicators is…

Thermodynamic accounting of ecosystem contribution to economic sectors with application to 1992 U.S. economy.

PubMed

Ukidwe, Nandan U; Bakshi, Bhavik R

2004-09-15

Incorporation of ecological considerations in decision-making is essential for sustainable development, but is hindered by inadequate appreciation of the role of ecosystems, and lack of scientifically rigorous techniques for including their contribution. This paper develops a novel thermodynamic accounting framework for including the contribution of natural capital via thermodynamic input-output analysis. This framework is applied to the 1992 US economy comprising 91 industry sectors, resulting in delineation of the myriad ways in which sectors of the US economy rely on ecosystem products and services. The contribution of ecosystems is represented via the concept of ecological cumulative exergy consumption (ECEC), which is related to emergy analysis but avoids any of its controversial assumptions and claims. The use of thermodynamics permits representation of all kinds of inputs and outputs in consistent units, facilitating the definition of aggregate metrics. Total ECEC requirement indicates the extent to which each economic sector relies directly and indirectly on ecological inputs. The ECEC/money ratio indicates the relative monetary versus ecological throughputs in each sector, and indicates the relationship between the thermodynamic work needed to produce a product or service and the corresponding economic activity. This ratio is found to decrease along economic supply chains, indicating industries that are higher up in the economic food chain price ecosystem contribution more than the basic infrastructure industries such as mining and manufacturing. The ratio of CEC with and without inclusion of ecosystems indicates the extent to which conventional thermoeconomic analysis underestimates the contribution of ecosystems. Such ratios, made available for the first time, provide unique insight into the importance of natural capital, and are especially useful in hybrid thermodynamic life cycle analysis of industrial systems. The approach, data compiled in this work, and the resulting insight provide a more ecologically conscious tool for environmental decision-making, and has potential applications at micro as well as macro scales.

A Socio-Economic and Environmental Information Needs Knowledge Base (SEE-IN KB) in Support of SDG Implementation and Monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plag, H. P.; Jules-Plag, S.

2016-12-01

The UN Agenda 2030 has seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be reach by 2030, which are detailed in 170 Targets. A monitioring framework of 240 SDG Indicators provides the metrics to measure progress towards these targets. The SDG Indicators are report cards for the progress towards the targets and a measure to assess potential impacts of policies and other means in support of SDG implementation. The Socio-Economic and Environmental Information Needs Knowledge Base (SEE-IN KB) collects information on objects such as user types, applications, observational requirements, a number of needs, societal goals and targets, indicators and indices, models, services, and datasets, as well as the interconnections between these objects, including links to Essential Variables (EVs). This enables gap analyses, prioritizations of Earth observations, and discovery of products and services meeting the information needs. "What if?" questions supports knowledge creation supporting the development of policies and activities to make progress towards the SDGs. Increasingly, user types, applications and requirements are linked to actual persons, models and datasets, respectively, and this allows both the social networking of providers and users and the execution of business processes. A core function of the SEE-IN KB is to facilitate the linkage of societal goals, targets, and indicators to EVs that need to be monitored in order to measure progress towards the targets. Applying a goal-based approach used to identify the EVs to the SDG Indicators revealed that some SDG Indicators require traditional Earth observations for quantification, while many of the EVs are related to the built environment. For many of the SDG Indicators, integration of socio-economic statistical data with environmental data, including in situ observations, is of importance. The goal-based approach was also applied to the SDG Targets, and this analysis showed that many of the Targets would benefit from additional indicators that are directly related to the environment. Many of the more environmentally focused indicators would require in situ data for quantification. A revision of the monitoring framework could take these findings into account and account for the linkage of the socio-economic and environmental aspect reflected in the SDGs.

The Development of Nanotechnologies and Advanced Materials Industry in Science and Entrepreneurship: Scientific Indicators. A Case Study of Latvia (Part Three)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geipele, S.; Geipele, I.; Kauskale, L.; Zeltins, N.; Staube, T.; Pudzis, E.

2017-10-01

The present scientific paper is the third part and continuation of the indepth scientific study of the developed system of engineering economic indicators, where the authors obtain results from the scientific research presented in a series of works on the development of the nanotechnologies and advanced materials industry in science and entrepreneurship in Latvia. Part three determines the crucial scientific indicators of the development of nano-field at the macro, micro, and meso development levels of the economic environment in Latvia. The paper provides the interaction of new identified indicators of nanofield in terms of further scientific and practical activities. Latvia is analysed in comparison with other countries in the world.

[A system of introduction of the results of scientific research on hygiene into practical health care and national economics].

PubMed

Eksler, N D; Vishnevskaia, S S

1989-01-01

The country's socio-economic development necessitates further elaboration of new approaches to the introduction of hygienic research results into practice. The main criterion for choosing proper research techniques lies in their economy-type efficiency, both social, medical and economic. A new system of hygienic research introduction should be based on financial and economic stimuli, establishment of a network of inventive firms, as well as supported by an effective mechanisms of information feed-back with due account of health indices.

Relationship of suicide rates to economic variables in Europe: 2000-2011.

PubMed

Fountoulakis, Konstantinos N; Kawohl, Wolfram; Theodorakis, Pavlos N; Kerkhof, Ad J F M; Navickas, Alvydas; Höschl, Cyril; Lecic-Tosevski, Dusica; Sorel, Eliot; Rancans, Elmars; Palova, Eva; Juckel, Georg; Isacsson, Goran; Jagodic, Helena Korosec; Botezat-Antonescu, Ileana; Warnke, Ingeborg; Rybakowski, Janusz; Azorin, Jean Michel; Cookson, John; Waddington, John; Pregelj, Peter; Demyttenaere, Koen; Hranov, Luchezar G; Stevovic, Lidija Injac; Pezawas, Lucas; Adida, Marc; Figuera, Maria Luisa; Pompili, Maurizio; Jakovljević, Miro; Vichi, Monica; Perugi, Giulio; Andreassen, Ole; Andrasen, Ole; Vukovic, Olivera; Mavrogiorgou, Paraskevi; Varnik, Peeter; Bech, Per; Dome, Peter; Winkler, Petr; Salokangas, Raimo K R; From, Tiina; Danileviciute, Vita; Gonda, Xenia; Rihmer, Zoltan; Benhalima, Jonas Forsman; Grady, Anne; Leadholm, Anne Katrine Kloster; Soendergaard, Susan; Nordt, Carlos; Lopez-Ibor, Juan

2014-12-01

It is unclear whether there is a direct link between economic crises and changes in suicide rates. The Lopez-Ibor Foundation launched an initiative to study the possible impact of the economic crisis on European suicide rates. Data was gathered and analysed from 29 European countries and included the number of deaths by suicide in men and women, the unemployment rate, the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, the annual economic growth rate and inflation. There was a strong correlation between suicide rates and all economic indices except GPD per capita in men but only a correlation with unemployment in women. However, the increase in suicide rates occurred several months before the economic crisis emerged. Overall, this study confirms a general relationship between the economic environment and suicide rates; however, it does not support there being a clear causal relationship between the current economic crisis and an increase in the suicide rate. Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Optimizing Economic Indicators in the Case of Using Two Types of State-Subsidized Chemical Fertilizers for Agricultural Production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boldea, M.; Sala, F.

2010-09-01

We admit that the mathematical relation between agricultural production f(x, y) and the two types of fertilizers x and y is given by function (1). The coefficients that appear are determined by using the least squares method by comparison with the experimental data. We took into consideration the following economic indicators: absolute benefit, relative benefit, profitableness and cost price. These are maximized or minimized, thus obtaining the optimal solutions by annulling the partial derivatives.

Assessment of socio-economic status in the context of food insecurity: Implications for field research.

PubMed

Doocy, Shannon; Burnham, Gilbert

2006-01-01

Measures of socio-economic status (SES) were compared with a measure of physical well-being, mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), in the food insecure regions of Ethiopia. Income, housing conditions and education had the greatest correlation to MUAC, and significant differences in these measures were observed between malnourished and adequately nourished individuals. Findings indicate that in rural Ethiopia, income, education and housing quality may be better indicators of SES than wealth and measures encompassing home and landownership.

"At Any Given Time, There Is a Crisis Somewhere": Characteristics of Young People Under the Conditions of the Economic Slump

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luk'ianova, E. L.; Sabirova, G. A.

2013-01-01

Research shows the importance of methodological issues in the study of young Russians during the current economic slump. A critical analysis of the indicators of the social and economic situation of young people in Russia shows the need to include the concept of lifestyle and its influence of the choices made by young people and their parents.

Economic Education Experiences of Enterprising Teachers. Volume 19. A Report Developed from the 1980-81 Entries in the International Paper Company Foundation Awards Program for the Teaching of Economics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nappi, Andrew T., Ed.; Suglia, Anthony F., Ed.

Twenty-five award winning teacher developed projects and courses in economics are described. The projects are designed for use in primary, intermediate, junior high, and senior high schools. Descriptions indicate grade level, project background, time allotment, objectives, activities, and evaluation. The publication consists of five chapters.…

The economic benefit of treating subclinical Streptococcus agalactiae mastitis in lactating cows.

PubMed

Yamagata, M; Goodger, W J; Weaver, L; Franti, C

1987-12-15

The economic benefits of treating lactating cows for Streptococcus agalactiae mastitis were studied at a large (689 milking cows) central California dairy. Postcure milk production of case cows (infected, treated, and cured) was compared with production of paired control cows (uninfected) and was matched for yield, days in milk, days in gestation, and parity. A simulation was used to plot expected lactation curves for mastitic cows (infected, not treated) with characteristics similar to those of each control cow, and these curves were compared with actual case-cow lactation curves. The difference in actual and expected production was used to calculate net economic benefits of treatment. Comparison of expected with actual production indicated a net benefit from treatment of $396/cow for cows treated in early lactation and $237 for cows treated in midlactation, but a net loss of $55 for cows treated in late lactation. Lactation number did not have a significant impact on economic benefits of treatment. In contrast to other studies indicating no economic benefit from treating mastitis during lactation, this study's positive results may have been attributable to the high cure rate (98%) and the subclinical form of mastitis being treated. Streptococcus agalactiae mastitis treatment during early and midlactation would appear to be an economically justifiable option for dairy managers.

The Influence of Groundwater Depletion from Irrigated Agriculture on the Tradeoffs between Ecosystem Services and Economic Returns

PubMed Central

Kovacs, Kent; West, Grant

2016-01-01

An irrigated agricultural landscape experiencing groundwater overdraft generates economic returns and a suite of ecosystem services (in particular, groundwater supply, greenhouse gases reduction, and surface water quality). Alternative land cover choices indicate tradeoffs among the value of ecosystem services created and the economic returns. These tradeoffs are explored using efficiency frontiers that determine the least value in ecosystem services that must be given up to generate additional economic returns. Agricultural producers may switch to irrigation with surface water using on-farm reservoirs and tail water recovery systems in response to groundwater overdraft, and this has consequences for the bundle of ecosystem service values and economic returns achievable from the landscape. Planning that accounts for both ecosystem service value and economic returns can achieve more value for society, as does the adoption of reservoirs though lowering the costs of irrigation, increasing groundwater levels, and reducing fuel combustion and associated GHG emissions from groundwater pumping. Sensitivity analyses of per unit value of ecosystem services, crop prices, and the groundwater and water purification model parameters indicate tradeoff among ecosystems service values, such as the use of a high-end social cost of carbon ultimately lowers groundwater supply and water purification value by more than 15%. PMID:28033405

The Influence of Groundwater Depletion from Irrigated Agriculture on the Tradeoffs between Ecosystem Services and Economic Returns.

PubMed

Kovacs, Kent; West, Grant

2016-01-01

An irrigated agricultural landscape experiencing groundwater overdraft generates economic returns and a suite of ecosystem services (in particular, groundwater supply, greenhouse gases reduction, and surface water quality). Alternative land cover choices indicate tradeoffs among the value of ecosystem services created and the economic returns. These tradeoffs are explored using efficiency frontiers that determine the least value in ecosystem services that must be given up to generate additional economic returns. Agricultural producers may switch to irrigation with surface water using on-farm reservoirs and tail water recovery systems in response to groundwater overdraft, and this has consequences for the bundle of ecosystem service values and economic returns achievable from the landscape. Planning that accounts for both ecosystem service value and economic returns can achieve more value for society, as does the adoption of reservoirs though lowering the costs of irrigation, increasing groundwater levels, and reducing fuel combustion and associated GHG emissions from groundwater pumping. Sensitivity analyses of per unit value of ecosystem services, crop prices, and the groundwater and water purification model parameters indicate tradeoff among ecosystems service values, such as the use of a high-end social cost of carbon ultimately lowers groundwater supply and water purification value by more than 15%.

DCCA analysis of renewable and conventional energy prices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paiva, Aureliano Sancho Souza; Rivera-Castro, Miguel Angel; Andrade, Roberto Fernandes Silva

2018-01-01

Here we investigate the inter-influence of oil prices and renewable energy sources. The non-stationary time series are scrutinized within the Detrended Cross-Correlation Analysis (DCCA) framework, where the resulting DCCA coefficient provides a useful and reliable index to the evaluate the cross correlation between events at the same time instant as well as at a suitably chosen time lags. The analysis is based on the quotient of two successive daily closing oil prices and composite indices of renewable energy sources in USA and Europe in the period 2006-2015, which was subject to several social and economic driving forces, as the increase of social pressure in favor of the use of non-fossil energy sources and the worldwide economic crisis that started in 2008. The DCCA coefficient is evaluated for different window sizes, extracting information for short and long term correlation between the indices. Particularly, strong correlation between the behavior of the two distinct economic sectors are observed for large time intervals during the worst period of the economic crisis (2008-2012), hinting at a very cautious behavior of the economic agents. Before and after this period, the behavior of two economic sectors are overwhelmingly uncorrelated or very weakly correlated. The results reported here may be useful to select proper strategies in future similar scenarios.

A Qualitative Exploration of the Economic and Social Effects of Microcredit among People Living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda

PubMed Central

Wagner, Glenn; Rana, Yashodhara; Linnemayr, Sebastian; Balya, James; Buzaalirwa, Lydia

2012-01-01

HIV medical care, including antiretroviral therapy (ART), is often successful in restoring physical health and functioning. But in developing countries, HIV medical care is often insufficient to achieve social and economic health, and hence innovative economic support programs are much needed. We conducted semistructured interviews with 30 adults receiving ART and microcredit loans operated by Uganda Cares. Using content analysis, we explored the impact of the microcredit loans on the economic, social, and psychological well-being of respondents. Most respondents indicated that the microcredit loans played a positive role in their lives, helped them to keep their children in school and sustain their families, and improved their self-esteem and status in the community. In addition, we also found significant positive knowledge spill-over and network effects in the program with regard to business management and support. However, more than half of the participants indicated experiencing repayment problems either personally or with other group members due to unexpected emergencies and sickness. These findings highlight that microcredit programs have the potential of being an economic support system for HIV clients trying to reestablish their livelihoods, especially in resource-constrained settings, though more research is needed to determine the overall economic viability of such programs. PMID:22778923

A Qualitative Exploration of the Economic and Social Effects of Microcredit among People Living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda.

PubMed

Wagner, Glenn; Rana, Yashodhara; Linnemayr, Sebastian; Balya, James; Buzaalirwa, Lydia

2012-01-01

HIV medical care, including antiretroviral therapy (ART), is often successful in restoring physical health and functioning. But in developing countries, HIV medical care is often insufficient to achieve social and economic health, and hence innovative economic support programs are much needed. We conducted semistructured interviews with 30 adults receiving ART and microcredit loans operated by Uganda Cares. Using content analysis, we explored the impact of the microcredit loans on the economic, social, and psychological well-being of respondents. Most respondents indicated that the microcredit loans played a positive role in their lives, helped them to keep their children in school and sustain their families, and improved their self-esteem and status in the community. In addition, we also found significant positive knowledge spill-over and network effects in the program with regard to business management and support. However, more than half of the participants indicated experiencing repayment problems either personally or with other group members due to unexpected emergencies and sickness. These findings highlight that microcredit programs have the potential of being an economic support system for HIV clients trying to reestablish their livelihoods, especially in resource-constrained settings, though more research is needed to determine the overall economic viability of such programs.

Quantifying socio-economic indicators in developing countries from mobile phone communication data: applications to Côte d’Ivoire

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mao, Huina; Shuai, Xin; Ahn, Yong -Yeol

The widespread adoption of mobile devices that record the communications, social relations, and movements of billions of individuals in great detail presents unique opportunities for the study of social structures and human dynamics at very large scales. This is particularly the case for developing countries where social and economic data can be hard to obtain and is often too sparse for real-time analytics. In this paper, we leverage mobile call log data from Côte d’Ivoire to analyze the relations between its nation-wide communications network and the socio-economic dynamics of its regional economies. We introduce the CallRank indicator to quantify themore » relative importance of an area on the basis of call records, and show that a region’s ratio of in- and out-going calls can predict its income level. We detect a communication divide between rich and poor regions of Côte d’Ivoire, which corresponds to existing socio-economic data. Our results demonstrate the potential of mobile communication data to monitor the economic development and social dynamics of low-income developing countries in the absence of extensive econometric and social data. Finally, our work may support efforts to stimulate sustainable economic development and to reduce poverty and inequality.« less

Quantifying socio-economic indicators in developing countries from mobile phone communication data: applications to Côte d’Ivoire

DOE PAGES

Mao, Huina; Shuai, Xin; Ahn, Yong -Yeol; ...

2015-10-13

The widespread adoption of mobile devices that record the communications, social relations, and movements of billions of individuals in great detail presents unique opportunities for the study of social structures and human dynamics at very large scales. This is particularly the case for developing countries where social and economic data can be hard to obtain and is often too sparse for real-time analytics. In this paper, we leverage mobile call log data from Côte d’Ivoire to analyze the relations between its nation-wide communications network and the socio-economic dynamics of its regional economies. We introduce the CallRank indicator to quantify themore » relative importance of an area on the basis of call records, and show that a region’s ratio of in- and out-going calls can predict its income level. We detect a communication divide between rich and poor regions of Côte d’Ivoire, which corresponds to existing socio-economic data. Our results demonstrate the potential of mobile communication data to monitor the economic development and social dynamics of low-income developing countries in the absence of extensive econometric and social data. Finally, our work may support efforts to stimulate sustainable economic development and to reduce poverty and inequality.« less

Economic downturn results in tick-borne disease upsurge

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The emergence of zoonoses is due both to changes in human activities and to changes in their natural wildlife cycles. One of the most significant vector-borne zoonoses in Europe, tick-borne encephalitis (TBE), doubled in incidence in 1993, largely as a consequence of the socio-economic transition from communism to capitalism and associated environmental changes. Methods To test the effect of the current economic recession, unemployment in 2009 and various socio-economic indices were compared to weather indices (derived from principal component analyses) as predictors for the change in TBE case numbers in 2009 relative to 2004-08, for 14 European countries. Results Greatest increases in TBE incidence occurred in Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (91, 79 and 45%, respectively). The weather was rejected as an explanatory variable. Indicators of high background levels of poverty, e.g. percent of household expenditure on food, were significant predictors. The increase in unemployment in 2009 relative to 2008 together with 'in-work risk of poverty' is the only case in which a multivariate model has a second significant term. Conclusion Background socio-economic conditions determine susceptibility to risk of TBE, while increased unemployment triggered a sudden increase in risk. Mechanisms behind this result may include reduced resistance to infection through stress; reduced uptake of costly vaccination; and more exposure of people to infected ticks in their forest habitat as they make greater use of wild forest foods, especially in those countries, Lithuania and Poland, with major marketing opportunities in such products. Recognition of these risk factors could allow more effective protection through education and a vaccination programme targeted at the economically most vulnerable. PMID:21406086

Integrating uncertainties to the combined environmental and economic assessment of algal biorefineries: A Monte Carlo approach.

PubMed

Pérez-López, Paula; Montazeri, Mahdokht; Feijoo, Gumersindo; Moreira, María Teresa; Eckelman, Matthew J

2018-06-01

The economic and environmental performance of microalgal processes has been widely analyzed in recent years. However, few studies propose an integrated process-based approach to evaluate economic and environmental indicators simultaneously. Biodiesel is usually the single product and the effect of environmental benefits of co-products obtained in the process is rarely discussed. In addition, there is wide variation of the results due to inherent variability of some parameters as well as different assumptions in the models and limited knowledge about the processes. In this study, two standardized models were combined to provide an integrated simulation tool allowing the simultaneous estimation of economic and environmental indicators from a unique set of input parameters. First, a harmonized scenario was assessed to validate the joint environmental and techno-economic model. The findings were consistent with previous assessments. In a second stage, a Monte Carlo simulation was applied to evaluate the influence of variable and uncertain parameters in the model output, as well as the correlations between the different outputs. The simulation showed a high probability of achieving favorable environmental performance for the evaluated categories and a minimum selling price ranging from $11gal -1 to $106gal -1 . Greenhouse gas emissions and minimum selling price were found to have the strongest positive linear relationship, whereas eutrophication showed weak correlations with the other indicators (namely greenhouse gas emissions, cumulative energy demand and minimum selling price). Process parameters (especially biomass productivity and lipid content) were the main source of variation, whereas uncertainties linked to the characterization methods and economic parameters had limited effect on the results. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Environmental-Socio-Economic Monitoring as a Tool of Region’s Environmental-Economic System Management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galanina, T. V.; Baumgarten, M. I.; Mikhailov, V. G.; Koroleva, T. G.; Mikhailov, G. S.

2017-01-01

The paper deals with the region’s environmental-economic system management through a tool such as the environmental-socio-economic monitoring. The purpose of research - is analysis and development of theoretical assumptions of environmental-socio-economic monitoring system for the effective management of geographically distributed environmental-economic system. The main elements of environmental-socio-economic monitoring are identified, taking into account the characteristics of the studied area. The main result of the research is the development of multi-functional integrated monitoring system for the evaluation of the indicators "gross domestic product" and "gross national product", taking into account the influence of environmental factors. The results of the study conducted may be recommended to the regional and federal governments to support the effective, environment-friendly management decision-making consistent with the overall development concept.

Foreign direct investments and their impact on the economic development of Bosnia and Herzegovina

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Susic, I.; Stojanovic-Trivanovic, M.; Susic, M.

2017-05-01

From the perspective of macroeconomic indicators, investment is a significant determinant of economic development in general, as well as the development indicator of economic entities in the micro segment. Investments are an essential element of any economic policy, because their implementation provides a platform not only for economic development, but also are prerequisite for the stability of economic and social trends. Foreign direct investment plays an important role in the financing of the global economy, and it represents the most frequent feature in financing the national economies of developing countries and countries in transition. Demand for foreign investment in the global market is large, and thus the governments have been conducting many activities in order to create a more favorable environment to attract investors. In this paper, special attention was paid to direct investments in financing the economy on a global scale, their importance for the development of the global economy and the impact of foreign direct investment in the economic development of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The major activities, which are necessary to be done to attract investments in the highest possible volume, have been emphasized. With the use of statistical and quantitative analysis, the paper shows that the inflow of foreign capital is one of the basic prerequisite of economic growth acceleration and that the inflow of foreign capital has a positive impact on the economic development of Bosnia and Herzegovina. By monitoring and analyzing the various instruments of foreign capital inflow, with an emphasis on investment in the free zone and a joint venture with foreign investors, it has been clearly pointed out the fact that they have diverse, but proven positive impact on macroeconomic variables in the economy of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Outward foreign direct investments and home country's economic growth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ciesielska, Dorota; Kołtuniak, Marcin

2017-09-01

The study examines the time stability of the causality direction and cross-correlations between the home country's economic growth and pace of growth of its outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) stocks within the complex system of the Polish national economy. The research has been performed in order to verify, using both the time and frequency domains time series analyses, if economic agents' long term decisions on outward foreign direct investments, leading to cross-border value chains and production fragmentation processes, are of adaptive or predictive character. Consequently, the aim was to check if the home country's economic growth leads the internationalization processes of domestic enterprises, which stays in line with Dunning's Investment Development Path (IDP) paradigm, or if these complex processes, thanks to entrepreneurs' ability to formulate relevant rational expectations, precede the home country's economic growth, which would be supported with the introduction of the policy on reinforcing the internationalization processes of domestic enterprises. The presence of the unidirectional economic growth-led internationalization, consistent with the IDP concept's base assumptions, has been ascertained by the results of the short term Granger causality tests. Nevertheless, the results of the wavelet analyses, supported with the results of the econometric block exogeneity long term causality Wald tests, have revealed that in the long term the OFDI stocks' growth permanently precedes the home country's economic growth, which stays in the unequivocal contrast with the IDP paradigm's premises, as well as with the indicated above short term Granger causality tests' outcomes and indicates that economic agents' choices are not strictly of adaptive but also of predictive character, which influences the current state of knowledge on economic complex systems' characteristics. Such a result is of a great importance in the light of the existence of the significant and still unexploited internationalization potential of Polish enterprises.

Longitudinal relationship between economic development and occupational accidents in China.

PubMed

Song, Li; He, Xueqiu; Li, Chengwu

2011-01-01

The relativity between economic development and occupational accidents is a debated topic. Compared with the development courses of both economic development and occupational accidents in China during 1953-2008, this paper used statistic methods such as Granger causality test, cointegration test and impulse response function based on the vector autoregression model to investigate the relativity between economic development and occupational accidents in China from 1953 to 2008. Owing to fluctuation and growth scale characteristics of economic development, two dimensions including economic cycle and economic scale were divided. Results showed that there was no relationship between occupational accidents and economic scale during 1953-1978. Fatality rate per 10(5) workers was a conductive variable to gross domestic product per capita during 1979-2008. And economic cycle was an indicator to occupational accidents during 1979-2008. Variation of economic speed had important influence on occupational accidents in short term. Thus it is necessary to adjust Chinese occupational safety policy according to tempo variation of economic growth. Crown Copyright © 2010. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Behavioral economic analysis of cue-elicited craving for tobacco: a virtual reality study.

PubMed

Acker, John; MacKillop, James

2013-08-01

Subjective craving is a prominent construct in the study of tobacco motivation; yet, the precise measurement of tobacco craving poses several difficulties. A behavioral economic approach to understanding drug motivation imports concepts and methods from economics to improve the assessment of craving. Using an immersive virtual reality (VR) cue reactivity paradigm, this study tested the hypothesis that, compared with neutral cues, tobacco cues would result in significant increases in subjective craving and diverse aspects of demand for tobacco in a community sample of 47 regular smokers. In addition, the study examined these motivational indices in relation to a dual-component delay and cigarette consumption self-administration paradigm. In response to the VR tobacco cues, significant increases were observed for tobacco craving and the demand indices of Omax (i.e., maximum total expenditure toward cigarettes) and Breakpoint (i.e., price at which consumption is completely suppressed), whereas a significant decrease was observed for Elasticity (i.e., lower cigarette price sensitivity). Continuous analyses revealed trend-level inverse associations between Omax and Intensity in relation to delay duration and significant positive associations between subjective craving, Omax, and Elasticity in relation to the number of cigarettes purchased. The results from this study provide further evidence for the utility of behavioral economic concepts and methods in understanding smoking motivation. These data also reveal the incremental contribution of behavioral economic indices beyond subjective craving in predicting in vivo cigarette consumption. Relationships to previous studies and methodological considerations are discussed.

Paths to Change: Bio-Economic Factors, Geographical Gradients and the Land-Use Structure of Italy.

PubMed

Masini, Emanuela; Barbati, Anna; Bencardino, Massimiliano; Carlucci, Margherita; Corona, Piermaria; Salvati, Luca

2018-01-01

This study introduces a bio-economic approach to evaluate the influence of local socioeconomic contexts on complex processes of landscape transformation (urbanization, withdrawal of farming with woodland creation and loss in crop mosaics) in a sustainable development perspective. Land-use and socioeconomic indicators (including shares of agriculture, industry and services in total product, per-worker value added, productivity by economic sector, distance from central cities, latitude and elevation) at the local district scale in Italy have been considered together in an exploratory approach based on multivariate statistics. The combined use of land-use and socioeconomic indicators was preferred to more traditional approaches based on single-variable analysis and allows identifying latent factors of landscape transformation at the local scale. Our approach sheds light in the intimate relationship between regional economic structures and land-use change in districts with varying socio-environmental attributes across Italy. Urban-rural divides, coastal-inland dichotomy and the elevation gradient were relevant factors shaping urbanization-driven landscape transformations at the country scale. Indicators of economic structure (and especially industrial production and per-worker productivity of industry and services) were also documented to influence greatly entity and direction of change in the use of land. Discontinuous and dispersed urbanization has been demonstrated to be spatially-decoupled from consolidated (continuous and compact) urbanization, expanding into undeveloped rural areas progressively far away from central cities and being spatially associated with forest land.

Paths to Change: Bio-Economic Factors, Geographical Gradients and the Land-Use Structure of Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Masini, Emanuela; Barbati, Anna; Bencardino, Massimiliano; Carlucci, Margherita; Corona, Piermaria; Salvati, Luca

2018-01-01

This study introduces a bio-economic approach to evaluate the influence of local socioeconomic contexts on complex processes of landscape transformation (urbanization, withdrawal of farming with woodland creation and loss in crop mosaics) in a sustainable development perspective. Land-use and socioeconomic indicators (including shares of agriculture, industry and services in total product, per-worker value added, productivity by economic sector, distance from central cities, latitude and elevation) at the local district scale in Italy have been considered together in an exploratory approach based on multivariate statistics. The combined use of land-use and socioeconomic indicators was preferred to more traditional approaches based on single-variable analysis and allows identifying latent factors of landscape transformation at the local scale. Our approach sheds light in the intimate relationship between regional economic structures and land-use change in districts with varying socio-environmental attributes across Italy. Urban-rural divides, coastal-inland dichotomy and the elevation gradient were relevant factors shaping urbanization-driven landscape transformations at the country scale. Indicators of economic structure (and especially industrial production and per-worker productivity of industry and services) were also documented to influence greatly entity and direction of change in the use of land. Discontinuous and dispersed urbanization has been demonstrated to be spatially-decoupled from consolidated (continuous and compact) urbanization, expanding into undeveloped rural areas progressively far away from central cities and being spatially associated with forest land.

Behavioral Economic Analysis of Cue-Elicited Craving for Tobacco: A Virtual Reality Study

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Introduction: Subjective craving is a prominent construct in the study of tobacco motivation; yet, the precise measurement of tobacco craving poses several difficulties. A behavioral economic approach to understanding drug motivation imports concepts and methods from economics to improve the assessment of craving. Methods: Using an immersive virtual reality (VR) cue reactivity paradigm, this study tested the hypothesis that, compared with neutral cues, tobacco cues would result in significant increases in subjective craving and diverse aspects of demand for tobacco in a community sample of 47 regular smokers. In addition, the study examined these motivational indices in relation to a dual-component delay and cigarette consumption self-administration paradigm. Results: In response to the VR tobacco cues, significant increases were observed for tobacco craving and the demand indices of Omax (i.e., maximum total expenditure toward cigarettes) and Breakpoint (i.e., price at which consumption is completely suppressed), whereas a significant decrease was observed for Elasticity (i.e., lower cigarette price sensitivity). Continuous analyses revealed trend-level inverse associations between Omax and Intensity in relation to delay duration and significant positive associations between subjective craving, Omax, and Elasticity in relation to the number of cigarettes purchased. Conclusions: The results from this study provide further evidence for the utility of behavioral economic concepts and methods in understanding smoking motivation. These data also reveal the incremental contribution of behavioral economic indices beyond subjective craving in predicting in vivo cigarette consumption. Relationships to previous studies and methodological considerations are discussed. PMID:23322768

Neighborhood Economic Deprivation and Social Fragmentation: Associations With Children's Sleep.

PubMed

Bagley, Erika J; Fuller-Rowell, Thomas E; Saini, Ekjyot K; Philbrook, Lauren E; El-Sheikh, Mona

2016-12-09

A growing body of work indicates that experiences of neighborhood disadvantage place children at risk for poor sleep. This study aimed to examine how both neighborhood economic deprivation (a measure of poverty) and social fragmentation (an index of instability) are associated with objective measures of the length and quality of children's sleep. Participants were 210 children (54.3% boys) living predominantly in small towns and semirural communities in Alabama. On average children were 11.3 years old (SD = .63); 66.7% of the children were European American and 33.3% were African American. The sample was socioeconomically diverse with 67.9% of the participants living at or below the poverty line and 32.1% from lower-middle-class or middle-class families. Indicators of neighborhood characteristics were derived from the 2012 American Community Survey and composited to create two variables representing neighborhood economic deprivation and social fragmentation. Child sleep period, actual sleep minutes, and efficiency were examined using actigraphy. Higher levels of neighborhood economic deprivation were associated with fewer sleep minutes and poorer sleep efficiency. More neighborhood social fragmentation was also linked with poorer sleep efficiency. Analyses controlled for demographic characteristics, child health, and family socioeconomic status. Findings indicate that living in economically and socially disadvantaged neighborhoods predicts risk for shorter and lower-quality sleep in children. Examination of community context in addition to family and individual characteristics may provide a more comprehensive understanding of the factors shaping child sleep.

Socio-economic vulnerability to natural hazards - proposal for an indicator-based model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eidsvig, U.; McLean, A.; Vangelsten, B. V.; Kalsnes, B.; Ciurean, R. L.; Argyroudis, S.; Winter, M.; Corominas, J.; Mavrouli, O. C.; Fotopoulou, S.; Pitilakis, K.; Baills, A.; Malet, J. P.

2012-04-01

Vulnerability assessment, with respect to natural hazards, is a complex process that must consider multiple dimensions of vulnerability, including both physical and social factors. Physical vulnerability refers to conditions of physical assets, and may be modeled by the intensity and magnitude of the hazard, the degree of physical protection provided by the natural and built environment, and the physical robustness of the exposed elements. Social vulnerability refers to the underlying factors leading to the inability of people, organizations, and societies to withstand impacts from the natural hazards. Social vulnerability models can be used in combination with physical vulnerability models to estimate both direct losses, i.e. losses that occur during and immediately after the impact, as well as indirect losses, i.e. long-term effects of the event. Direct impact of a landslide typically includes casualties and damages to buildings and infrastructure while indirect losses may e.g. include business closures or limitations in public services. The direct losses are often assessed using physical vulnerability indicators (e.g. construction material, height of buildings), while indirect losses are mainly assessed using social indicators (e.g. economical resources, demographic conditions). Within the EC-FP7 SafeLand research project, an indicator-based method was proposed to assess relative socio-economic vulnerability to landslides. The indicators represent the underlying factors which influence a community's ability to prepare for, deal with, and recover from the damage associated with landslides. The proposed model includes indicators representing demographic, economic and social characteristics as well as indicators representing the degree of preparedness and recovery capacity. Although the model focuses primarily on the indirect losses, it could easily be extended to include more physical indicators which account for the direct losses. Each indicator is individually ranked from 1 (lowest vulnerability) to 5 (highest vulnerability) and weighted, based on its overall degree of influence. The indicator weights range from 1 (least influential) to 3 (most influential) and have been selected on the basis of expert judgment. The final vulnerability score is taken as the weighted average of the individual indicators. The method was applied for locations in Norway, Greece, France, Andorra and Romania. The purpose of the case studies was to compare vulnerability levels and to test and possibly improve the methodology. In the case studies, similar vulnerability scores were obtained for the locations in Norway, Andorra and France. A higher vulnerability score was obtained for the location in Greece, while the highest vulnerability score was obtained for the location in Romania. The higher score for the locations in Greece and Romania are mainly due to economic conditions and conditions regarding preparedness and recovery.

THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY INFLUENCE OF COMMON SUSTAINABILITY INDICES

EPA Science Inventory

Sustainability is often poorly defined and difficult to measure. We describe several concepts based in ecology, economics, and physics that have contributed to sustainability indices, and discuss their positive and negative aspects. Indices range from mostly ecological (such as e...

[Ecosystem services of Chongyi Hakka Terraces].

PubMed

Miao, Jian Qun; Wang, Zhi Qiang; Yang, Wen Ting; Sun, Song; Huang, Guo Qin

2017-05-18

An economic evaluation of the main ecosystem services of Chongyi Hakka Terraces can help to demonstrate the contributions of the terrace system to Hakka society, on the basis of which the protection of Hakka Terrace system could be undertaken by the local government. In view of the social and economic characteristics of Chongyi Hakka Terrace ecosystem and its location, an index system was established to evaluate the service function, and a qualitative analysis was conducted for these functions and their importance. Besides, based on the data collected in 2014, with a combination of physical quality and economic value, a quantitative analysis was carried out for its nine ser-vice indicators. The findings were as follows: firstly, among the nine evaluation indicators, the phy-sical quality and the economic value of soil conservation both ranked the highest, the former being 76457 kg·hm -2 and the latter 105033 yuan·hm -2 , accounting respectively for 72.2% and 30.0% of the total mass and total value of the Hakka Terrace ecosystem. Secondly, the unique service functions of Hakka Terrace ecosystem could be embodied in its cultural heritage and landscape, the corresponding economic values reaching up to 100000 yuan·hm -2 and 46333 yuan·hm -2 respectively, ranking the second and third highest among the nine indicators. Thirdly, the agricultural pro-ducts from the Hakka Terrace were vital welfare for the local residents, but their physical quality and the economic value only accounted for 6.1% and 10.4% of its total mass and total value respectively. As a result, the service functions of the Hakka Terrace ecosystem would be dramatically undervalued with respect to agricultural products only. These economic figures could reveal the huge contributions which the Hakka Terrace ecosystem had made to the society, not only raising awareness of the necessity to preserve the agricultural heritage by the administrators and the public, but also providing efficient data support for the government when making ecological compensation criteria for the Hakka Terrace system.

Constructing Indicators for Measuring Provincial Sustainable Development Index in Vietnam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Truong, Van Canh; Lisowski, Andrzej

2018-03-01

Sustainable development is zeitgeist of our age. It is one kind of development that in this trajectory humanity can create a stable and developed socio-economic foundations, conserve environment and therefore able to continue for a long time. Using indicators is one of the best ways to monitor and measure the progress toward sustainable development. In this paper we have proposed the way to create indicators for measuring provincial sustainable development index in Vietnam. We firstly made a framework of elements for economic, social and environmental component and compiled a list of indicators of 20 national and international agencies in the world. We then applied the SMART framework (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-related) to choose indicators which will be relevant for Vietnam and put them back to the elements. We then have 39 relevant indicators with 12 indicators for economy, 17 indicators for social and 10 indicators for environmental component. Finally, we have established the way to determine the worst and best value for each indicator from available data for countries in the world.

When does ecological sustainability ensure economic sustainability? An integrated analysis of thresholds in semi-arid western rangelands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cobourn, K. M.; Peckham, S. D.

2011-12-01

The vulnerability of agri-environmental systems to ecological threshold events depends on the combined influence of economic factors and natural drivers, such as climate and disturbance. This analysis builds an integrated ecologic-economic model to evaluate the behavioral response of agricultural producers to changing and uncertain natural conditions. The model explicitly reflects the effect of producer behavior on the likelihood of a threshold event that threatens the ecological and/or economic sustainability of the agri-environmental system. The foundation of the analysis is a threshold indicator that incorporates the population dynamics of a species that supports economic production and an episodic disturbance regime-in this case rangeland grass that is grazed by livestock and is subject to wildfire. This ecological indicator is integrated into an economic model in which producers choose grazing intensity given the state of the grass population and a set of economic parameters. We examine two model variants that characterize differing economic circumstances. The first characterizes the optimal grazing regime assuming that the system is managed by a single planner whose objective is to maximize the aggregate long-run returns of producers in the system. The second examines the case in which individual producers choose their own stocking rates in order to maximize their private economic benefit. The results from the first model variant illustrate the difference between an ecologic and an economic threshold. Failure to cross an ecological threshold does not necessarily ensure that the system remains economically viable: Economic sustainability, defined as the ability of the system to support optimal production into the infinite future, requires that the net growth rate of the supporting population exceeds the level required for ecological sustainability by an amount that depends on the market price of livestock and grazing efficiency. The results from the second model variant define the circumstances under which a system that is otherwise ecologically sustainable is driven over a threshold by the actions of economic agents. The difference between the two model solutions identifies bounds between which the viability of livestock production over the long-run is uncertain and depends upon the policy setting in which the agri-environmental system operates.

Responses to Austerity: European Experiences from Higher Education and School Improvement in the 1980s.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frey, Karl; Hameyer, Uwe

Terms such as "demographic and economic contraction,""decreasing resources,""no-growth," and "decline" indicate changes in educational resource allocations. While some experts from Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries complain about reduced education budgets, others assert…

Employment Discrimination and Organizational Efficiency.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salipante, Paul F., Jr.

Managers' claims that reducing employment discrimination will lead to higher costs and decreased personnel efficiency in organizations are not supported by theory or empirical evidence. Economic theories, in fact, indicate that discrimination does not have a rational economic basis and that reducing discrimination should lead to increased, rather…

The Demand for College Education in Postwar Japan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nakata, Yoshi-fumi; Mosk, Carl

1987-01-01

The authors evaluate the extent to which economic factors underlie the expansion of Japanese college applications. Findings indicate that "marginal investors" respond to shortrun economic factors--including direct costs, household liquidity, and probability of entering a large firm--that govern higher education. Educational quality has…

Computational Models of Consumer Confidence from Large-Scale Online Attention Data: Crowd-Sourcing Econometrics

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

Economies are instances of complex socio-technical systems that are shaped by the interactions of large numbers of individuals. The individual behavior and decision-making of consumer agents is determined by complex psychological dynamics that include their own assessment of present and future economic conditions as well as those of others, potentially leading to feedback loops that affect the macroscopic state of the economic system. We propose that the large-scale interactions of a nation's citizens with its online resources can reveal the complex dynamics of their collective psychology, including their assessment of future system states. Here we introduce a behavioral index of Chinese Consumer Confidence (C3I) that computationally relates large-scale online search behavior recorded by Google Trends data to the macroscopic variable of consumer confidence. Our results indicate that such computational indices may reveal the components and complex dynamics of consumer psychology as a collective socio-economic phenomenon, potentially leading to improved and more refined economic forecasting. PMID:25826692

Economic and cultural correlates of subjective wellbeing in countries using data from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD).

PubMed

Gaygisiz, Esma

2010-06-01

The correlations among indicators of objective well-being, cultural dimensions, and subjective well-being were investigated using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) data from 35 countries. The subjective well-being measures included life satisfaction as well as six positive and six negative indexes of experience. Positive and negative experience scores were subjected to principal component analysis, and two positive experience components (labeled as "positive experiences" and "time management") and two negative experience components (labeled as "pain, worry, and sadness" and "anger and boredom") were extracted. Objective well-being included economic indicators, education, and health. The cultural variables included Hofstede's and Schwartz's cultural dimensions, national Big Five personality scores, and national IQs. High life satisfaction was positively related to Gross Domestic Product, life expectancy, education, individualism, affective and intellectual autonomy, egalitarianism, and conscientiousness, whereas low life satisfaction was related to unemployment, unequal income distribution, power distance, masculinity uncertainty avoidance, embeddedness, hierarchy, and neuroticism.

Computational models of consumer confidence from large-scale online attention data: crowd-sourcing econometrics.

PubMed

Dong, Xianlei; Bollen, Johan

2015-01-01

Economies are instances of complex socio-technical systems that are shaped by the interactions of large numbers of individuals. The individual behavior and decision-making of consumer agents is determined by complex psychological dynamics that include their own assessment of present and future economic conditions as well as those of others, potentially leading to feedback loops that affect the macroscopic state of the economic system. We propose that the large-scale interactions of a nation's citizens with its online resources can reveal the complex dynamics of their collective psychology, including their assessment of future system states. Here we introduce a behavioral index of Chinese Consumer Confidence (C3I) that computationally relates large-scale online search behavior recorded by Google Trends data to the macroscopic variable of consumer confidence. Our results indicate that such computational indices may reveal the components and complex dynamics of consumer psychology as a collective socio-economic phenomenon, potentially leading to improved and more refined economic forecasting.

Integrating predictive information into an agro-economic model to guide agricultural management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Y.; Block, P.

2016-12-01

Skillful season-ahead climate predictions linked with responsive agricultural planning and management have the potential to reduce losses, if adopted by farmers, particularly for rainfed-dominated agriculture such as in Ethiopia. Precipitation predictions during the growing season in major agricultural regions of Ethiopia are used to generate predicted climate yield factors, which reflect the influence of precipitation amounts on crop yields and serve as inputs into an agro-economic model. The adapted model, originally developed by the International Food Policy Research Institute, produces outputs of economic indices (GDP, poverty rates, etc.) at zonal and national levels. Forecast-based approaches, in which farmers' actions are in response to forecasted conditions, are compared with no-forecast approaches in which farmers follow business as usual practices, expecting "average" climate conditions. The effects of farmer adoption rates, including the potential for reduced uptake due to poor predictions, and increasing forecast lead-time on economic outputs are also explored. Preliminary results indicate superior gains under forecast-based approaches.

Afforestation or intense pasturing improve the ecological and economic value of abandoned tropical farmlands

PubMed Central

Knoke, Thomas; Bendix, Jörg; Pohle, Perdita; Hamer, Ute; Hildebrandt, Patrick; Roos, Kristin; Gerique, Andrés; Sandoval, María L.; Breuer, Lutz; Tischer, Alexander; Silva, Brenner; Calvas, Baltazar; Aguirre, Nikolay; Castro, Luz M.; Windhorst, David; Weber, Michael; Stimm, Bernd; Günter, Sven; Palomeque, Ximena; Mora, Julio; Mosandl, Reinhard; Beck, Erwin

2014-01-01

Increasing demands for livelihood resources in tropical rural areas have led to progressive clearing of biodiverse natural forests. Restoration of abandoned farmlands could counter this process. However, as aims and modes of restoration differ in their ecological and socio-economic value, the assessment of achievable ecosystem functions and benefits requires holistic investigation. Here we combine the results from multidisciplinary research for a unique assessment based on a normalization of 23 ecological, economic and social indicators for four restoration options in the tropical Andes of Ecuador. A comparison of the outcomes among afforestation with native alder or exotic pine, pasture restoration with either low-input or intense management and the abandoned status quo shows that both variants of afforestation and intense pasture use improve the ecological value, but low-input pasture does not. Economic indicators favour either afforestation or intense pasturing. Both Mestizo and indigenous Saraguro settlers are more inclined to opt for afforestation. PMID:25425182

Measurement and simulation of the relatively competitive advantages and weaknesses between economies based on bipartite graph theory.

PubMed

Guan, Jun; Xu, Xiaoyu; Wu, Shan; Xing, Lizhi

2018-01-01

The input-output table is very comprehensive and detailed in describing the national economic systems with abundant economic relationships, which contain supply and demand information among various industrial sectors. The complex network, a theory, and method for measuring the structure of a complex system can depict the structural characteristics of the internal structure of the researched object by measuring the structural indicators of the social and economic systems, revealing the complex relationships between the inner hierarchies and the external economic functions. In this paper, functions of industrial sectors on the global value chain are to be distinguished with bipartite graph theory, and inter-sector competitive relationships are to be extracted through resource allocation process. Furthermore, quantitative analysis indices will be proposed under the perspective of a complex network, which will be used to bring about simulations on the variation tendencies of economies' status in different situations of commercial intercourses. Finally, a new econophysics analytical framework of international trade is to be established.

Can marine protected areas enhance both economic and biological situations?

PubMed

Ami, Dominique; Cartigny, Pierre; Rapaport, Alain

2005-04-01

This paper investigates impacts of the creation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), in both economic and biological perspectives. The economic indicator is defined as the sum of discounted benefits derived from exploitation of the resource in the fishery sector, assumed to be optimally managed. The biological indicator is taken as the stock density of the resource. The basic fishery model (C.W. Clark, Mathematical Bioeconomics: The Optimal Management of Renewable Resources, second ed., John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1990) will serve as a convenient benchmark in comparing results with those that are derived from a model of two patchy populations (cf. R. Hannesson, Marine reserves: what would they accomplish, Mar. Resour. Econ. 13 (1998) 159). In the latter, a crucial characteristic is the migration coefficient with describes biological linkages between protected and unprotected areas. A set of situations where both economic and biological criteria are enhanced, after introducing a MPA, is presented. These results are obtained with the help of numerical simulations.

Effect of the 2008 economic crisis on the cardiovascular mortality of the Irish population: an ecological 12-year study of a heart-broken Celtic Tiger.

PubMed

Osman, M; Osman, A

2017-08-08

Ireland has endured a substantial financial crisis in 2008 and we sought to explore the effect of economic recession on Irish cardiovascular mortality. We found an increase by 17.2% in CVA-deaths during the financial crisis years (95% CI 11.1% to 23.6%). In males, we found a notable rise in the annual IHD rate by 7.56% (95% CI 4.73% to 10.46%), in annual MI rate by 2.96% (95% CI 0.16% to 5.84%), and in annual CVA death rate by 20.07% (95% CI 16.13% to 24.14%). In females our findings indicated an increased rate of CVA-related deaths during the economic crisis by 15.54% (95% CI 6.67% to 25.16%). Irish CVA-related deaths increased during the economic crisis for males and females alike. Male IHD-related deaths have also risen indicating a potential differential effect for financial hardships on male gender mortality.

Measurement and simulation of the relatively competitive advantages and weaknesses between economies based on bipartite graph theory

PubMed Central

Guan, Jun; Xu, Xiaoyu; Wu, Shan

2018-01-01

The input-output table is very comprehensive and detailed in describing the national economic systems with abundant economic relationships, which contain supply and demand information among various industrial sectors. The complex network, a theory, and method for measuring the structure of a complex system can depict the structural characteristics of the internal structure of the researched object by measuring the structural indicators of the social and economic systems, revealing the complex relationships between the inner hierarchies and the external economic functions. In this paper, functions of industrial sectors on the global value chain are to be distinguished with bipartite graph theory, and inter-sector competitive relationships are to be extracted through resource allocation process. Furthermore, quantitative analysis indices will be proposed under the perspective of a complex network, which will be used to bring about simulations on the variation tendencies of economies’ status in different situations of commercial intercourses. Finally, a new econophysics analytical framework of international trade is to be established. PMID:29813083

Corruption, development and governance indicators predict invasive species risk from trade

PubMed Central

Brenton-Rule, Evan C.; Barbieri, Rafael F.; Lester, Philip J.

2016-01-01

Invasive species have an enormous global impact, with international trade being the leading pathway for their introduction. Current multinational trade deals under negotiation will dramatically change trading partnerships and pathways. These changes have considerable potential to influence biological invasions and global biodiversity. Using a database of 47 328 interceptions spanning 10 years, we demonstrate how development and governance socio-economic indicators of trading partners can predict exotic species interceptions. For import pathways associated with vegetable material, a significantly higher risk of exotic species interceptions was associated with countries that are poorly regulated, have more forest cover and have surprisingly low corruption. Corruption and indicators such as political stability or adherence to rule of law were important in vehicle or timber import pathways. These results will be of considerable value to policy makers, primarily by shifting quarantine procedures to focus on countries of high risk based on their socio-economic status. Further, using New Zealand as an example, we demonstrate how a ninefold reduction in incursions could be achieved if socio-economic indicators were used to select trade partners. International trade deals that ignore governance and development indicators may facilitate introductions and biodiversity loss. Development and governance within countries clearly have biodiversity implications beyond borders. PMID:27306055

Corruption, development and governance indicators predict invasive species risk from trade.

PubMed

Brenton-Rule, Evan C; Barbieri, Rafael F; Lester, Philip J

2016-06-15

Invasive species have an enormous global impact, with international trade being the leading pathway for their introduction. Current multinational trade deals under negotiation will dramatically change trading partnerships and pathways. These changes have considerable potential to influence biological invasions and global biodiversity. Using a database of 47 328 interceptions spanning 10 years, we demonstrate how development and governance socio-economic indicators of trading partners can predict exotic species interceptions. For import pathways associated with vegetable material, a significantly higher risk of exotic species interceptions was associated with countries that are poorly regulated, have more forest cover and have surprisingly low corruption. Corruption and indicators such as political stability or adherence to rule of law were important in vehicle or timber import pathways. These results will be of considerable value to policy makers, primarily by shifting quarantine procedures to focus on countries of high risk based on their socio-economic status. Further, using New Zealand as an example, we demonstrate how a ninefold reduction in incursions could be achieved if socio-economic indicators were used to select trade partners. International trade deals that ignore governance and development indicators may facilitate introductions and biodiversity loss. Development and governance within countries clearly have biodiversity implications beyond borders. © 2016 The Author(s).

The economic consequences of malnutrition in Cambodia, more than 400 million US dollar lost annually.

PubMed

Bagriansky, Jack; Champa, Ngy; Pak, Kimchoeun; Whitney, Sophie; Laillou, Arnaud

2014-01-01

Cambodia is among the 28 worst countries globally with the highest rates of childhood malnutrition. The aim of the assessment was to apply published evidence associating malnutrition and a variety of functional consequences to project economic implications of this high rate of childhood malnutrition. Such information is vital to advocate for appropriate programs and action plan to reduce malnutrition (from severe stunting to micronutrient deficiencies). This exercise used a "consequence model" to apply these "coefficients of loss" established in the global scientific literature to Cambodia health, demographic and economic data to develop a national estimation of the economic losses link to malnutrition. The impact of the indicators of malnutrition analysed represent a burden to the national economy of Cambodia estimated at more than $400 million annually -2.5% of GDP. Micronutrient deficiencies suggest deficits in the quality of the diet - representing a national burden of more than $200 million annually while breastfeeding behaviours account for 6% of the burden. 57% of the losses emerge from indicators measured in children, while 43% of losses are from indicators independent of childhood measurements - indicators of maternal behaviour along with maternal and adult nutrition. Given the low cost of interventions and the high baseline losses, investment in nutrition programs in Cambodia is likely to offer high returns and attractive benefit cost ratios. Since nearly half the losses are determined prior to the birth of the child, this has implications for targeting and timing of programs.

Multi-objective, multiple participant decision support for water management in the Andarax catchment, Almeria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Cauwenbergh, N.; Pinte, D.; Tilmant, A.; Frances, I.; Pulido-Bosch, A.; Vanclooster, M.

2008-04-01

Water management in the Andarax river basin (Almeria, Spain) is a multi-objective, multi-participant, long-term decision-making problem that faces several challenges. Adequate water allocation needs informed decisions to meet increasing socio-economic demands while respecting the environmental integrity of this basin. Key players in the Andarax water sector include the municipality of Almeria, the irrigators involved in the intensive greenhouse agricultural sector, and booming second residences. A decision support system (DSS) is developed to rank different sustainable planning and management alternatives according to their socio-economic and environmental performance. The DSS is intimately linked to sustainability indicators and is designed through a public participation process. Indicators are linked to criteria reflecting stakeholders concerns in the 2005 field survey, such as fulfilling water demand, water price, technical and economical efficiency, social and environmental impacts. Indicators can be partly quantified after simulating the operation of the groundwater reservoir over a 20-year planning period and partly through a parallel expert evaluation process. To predict the impact of future water demand in the catchment, several development scenarios are designed to be evaluated in the DSS. The successive multi-criteria analysis of the performance indicators permits the ranking of the different management alternatives according to the multiple objectives formulated by the different sectors/participants. This allows more informed and transparent decision-making processes for the Andarax river basin, recognizing both the socio-economic and environmental dimensions of water resources management.

China Report Economic Affairs No. 371 Chinese Statistical Abstract

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-08-12

Third Plenary Session of the 11th Party Central Committee. These statistical data essentially include the major indices of various sectors of the...1983 is used in • accordance with the practice at home and abroad in compiling economic data , although its contents are the statistical data of 1982...JPRS 84111 12 August 19 83 China Report ECONOMIC AFFAIRS No. 371 CHINESE STATISTICAL ABSTRACT OTIC 19980609 147 Q*AUTY r*a^Gr8Df

United States Air Force Statistical Digest, Fiscal Year 1997

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-04-01

PAYMENTS TO INDIVIDUALS (% OF GDP/GRAPH) DEFENSE OUTLAYS vs. PAYMENTS TO INDIVIDUALS (% OF FEDERAL OUTLAYS) B-1 8 B-2 9 B-3 10 B-4 11 B-5 12...rounding. (2) Includes purchases of federal, state, and local governments. SOURCE: Economic Indicators, January 1998, Monthly report prepared for...January 1998, Monthly report prepared for the Joint Economic Committee by the Council of Economic Advisers, Gross Domestic Product, p. 1. OPR: SAF/FMCEE

Satellite power system: Engineering and economic analysis summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1976-01-01

A system engineering and economic analysis was conducted to establish typical reference baselines for the photovoltaic, solar thermal, and nuclear satellite power systems. Tentative conclusions indicate that feasibility and economic viability are characteristic of the Satellite Power System. Anticipated technology related to manufacturing, construction, and maintenance operations is described. Fuel consumption, environmental effects, and orbital transfer are investigated. Space shuttles, local space transportation, and the heavy lift launch vehicle required are also discussed.

Racial Segregation, Economic Growth, and Resilience to Natural Disasters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fernandez, S.; Li, H.; Ganguly, A.

2008-05-01

Resilience to natural disasters is often defined as the ability of a community to recover from disaster disruption. Thus, resilience depends on various socioeconomic factors which influence the short- and long-term impacts of natural disasters as well as the resources that a community can bring to bear on the recovery process. One objective of this research is to tease out the determinants of resilience from a variety of possible indicators and data sources. A second objective is to test hypotheses which in turn are based on prior reports in the literature: Racial segregation has a negative impact, while economic growth has a positive impact, on resilience. We choose the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula, MS Metropolitan Area, and New Orleans Metropolitan Area, for our case studies. The study areas included nine counties and parishes that are located in the Hurricane Katrina impact area. The nine counties and parishes were Hancock County, Harrison County, and Jackson County in Mississippi, and Jefferson Parish, Orleans Parish, Plaquemines Parish, St. Bernard Parish, St. Charles Parish, and St. Tammany Parish in Louisiana. The three counties make up the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula, MS Metropolitan Area, and the six parishes are components of New Orleans Metropolitan Area. The determinants of resilience for this study were based on two considerations. First, we followed the political, military or security, economic, social, informational and infrastructural (PMESII) framework, which succinctly describes the resources available to a community. Second, we were pragmatically constrained by data availability. Five variables were selected as plausible determinants of resilience: (i) return of the original population, (ii) employment recovery, (iii) tax collected, (iv) building permit restoration, and (v) school re-opening information. The five variables were found to be highly correlated. We created three resilience indices, one by simple addition, another by addition of the normalized Z scores, and a third by principal component analysis. The indices were computed by bringing together the relevant PMESII dimensions. The three indices were found to be highly, and negatively, correlated with the social vulnerability index created by Cutter (2001). This is not surprising, since the Cutter indices themselves are created by dimensionality reduction techniques applied on plausible determinants of resilience. Our indices were negatively correlated with racial segregation, which confirmed one hypothesis. They also negatively correlated with economic growth rate. By examining the industrial structures of each county (or parish), we found a negative correlation between economic growth and natural disaster resilience indices reflects the economic constraints of the local governments rather than the recovery capability of the communities. Our findings provide new insights for resilience research. First, we find resilience indices may be developed by combining the relevant PMESII dimensions, even though the predictive power of such indices needs to be tested further. Second, to build a resilient community, a mixed housing policy and a place-based anti-poverty policy are suggested. The results are preliminary and the research needs to be strengthened in three areas. First, we have only examined the social and economic dimensions because of data availability. Data along other dimensions of the PMESII framework need to be collected ad utilized. Second, we collected data only for six county-level communities. Additional case studies can test the robustness of the insights.

Recovery of the local gravity field by spherical regularization wavelets approximation and its numerical implementation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shuler, Harrey Jeong

Information technology (IT) is becoming increasingly pervasive throughout society as more data is digitally processed, stored, and transferred. The infrastructure that supports IT activity is growing accordingly, and data center energy demands have increased by nearly a factor of four over the past decade. This dissertation investigates how building design and operation influence energy use and indoor air quality in data centers and provides strategies to improve both design goals simultaneously. As an initial step toward understanding data center air quality, measurements of particle concentrations were made at multiple operating northern California data centers. Ratios of measured particle concentrations in conventional data centers to the corresponding outside concentrations were significantly lower than those reported in the literature for office or residential buildings. Estimates using a material-balance model match well with empirical results, indicating that the dominant particle sources and losses---ventilation and filtration---have been characterized. Measurements taken at a data center using economizers show nearly an order of magnitude increase in particle concentration during economizer activity. However, even with the increase, the measured particle concentrations are still below concentration limits recommended in most industry standards. The research proceeds by exploring the feasibility of using economizers in data centers while simultaneously controlling particle concentrations with high-quality air filtration. Physical and chemical properties of indoor and outdoor particles were analyzed at a data center using economizers and varying levels of air filtration efficiency. Results show that when improved filtration is used in combination with an economizer, the indoor/outdoor concentration ratios for most measured particle types were similar to the measurements when using conventional filtration without economizers. An energy analysis of the data center reveals that, even during the summer months, chiller savings from economizer use greatly outweigh the increase in fan power associated with improved filtration. These findings indicate that economizer use combined with improved filtration could significantly reduce data center energy demand while providing a level of protection from particles of outdoor origin similar to that observed with conventional design. The emphasis of the dissertation then shifts to evaluate the energy benefits of economizer use in data centers under different design strategies. Economizer use with high ventilation rates is compared against an alternative, water-side economizer design that does not affect indoor particle concentrations. Building energy models are employed to estimate energy savings of both economizer designs for data centers in several climate zones in California. Results show that water-side economizers consistently provide less energy savings than air-side economizers, though the difference in savings varies by location. Model results also show that conventional limits on humidity levels in data centers can restrict the energy benefits of economizers. The modeling efforts are then extended to estimate national data center energy use. Different size data centers are modeled to represent the national variation in efficiency and operation of associated mechanical equipment. Results indicate increased energy efficiency opportunities with larger data centers and highlight the importance of temperature setpoints in maximizing economizer efficiency. A bottom-up modeling approach is used to estimate current (2008) United States data center energy use at nearly 62--70 billion kWh annually. The model indicates that more about 65--70% of this energy demand can be avoided through energy efficient IT and cooling infrastructure design, equivalent to an annual energy efficiency resource of approximately 40--50 billion kWh available at a national level. Within the context of greenhouse gas emissions, benefits can be significantly increased by incorporating site location into energy-efficient design strategies. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).

Endonomics: Looking Behind the Economic Curtain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidt, Artur P.; Rössler, Otto E.

An interface is presented that was not visible before we had developed the new software I-Matrix, which allows us to look behind the economic curtain. Forces that no economist can predict are found to be present. We studied economic developments from 1931 to 2007 with the Livermore Indicator solely, taking only the inflation rate into account. Relative price movements are the hidden forces responsible for the up and down turns in the economy. Even in a deflation, consumer prices can fall more slowly in relation to the economic downturn, which means there is an inflation even when the prices fall in absolute terms. We therefore propose that there is an "economic relativity theory" based on relative prices changes.

Isolating behavioural economic indices of demand in relation to nicotine dependence.

PubMed

Chase, Henry W; Mackillop, James; Hogarth, Lee

2013-03-01

Characterisation of drug dependence using principles from behavioural economics has provided a more detailed understanding of the disorder. Although questionnaires assessing economic demand for cigarettes have extended these principles to nicotine addiction, aspects of the reliability and selectivity of these questionnaires remain uncertain. Across two experiments, we attempted to reproduce significant associations of the cigarette purchase task with nicotine dependence in a young adult population of smokers and contrasted this measure with a novel chocolate purchase task. We also examined the association between these measures and performance on a preference task, measuring preference for cigarettes and chocolate. Questionnaire measures were used within a university setting. In experiment 1, we observed associations between nicotine dependence and measures of behavioural economic demand for cigarettes, particularly O (max). In experiment 2, we replicated these findings again and extended them to show that similar correlations between nicotine dependence and demand for chocolate were not observed. Moreover, the indices of demand and choices on a concurrent choice cigarette task were moderately associated with each other and independently associated with nicotine dependence. The two experiments clearly supported previous findings regarding the association between nicotine dependence and economic demand for cigarettes. We extend these observations by showing that the generalisation of economic demand across different commodities is relatively weak, but that generalisation across different procedures is strong. Our results therefore support behavioural economic models of nicotine addiction which emphasise a robust proximal role for the incentive value of cigarettes.

Lifestyle incongruity, stress and immune function in indigenous Siberians: the health impacts of rapid social and economic change.

PubMed

Sorensen, Mark V; Snodgrass, James J; Leonard, William R; McDade, Thomas W; Tarskaya, Larissa A; Ivanov, Kiundiul I; Krivoshapkin, Vadim G; Alekseev, Vladimir P

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of economic and cultural change on immune function and psychosocial stress in an indigenous Siberian population. We examined Epstein-Barr virus antibodies (EBV), an indirect biomarker of cell-mediated immune function, in venous whole blood samples collected from 143 Yakut (Sakha) herders (45 men and 98 women) in six communities using a cross-sectional study design. We modeled economic change through the analysis of lifestyle incongruity (LI), calculated as the disparity between socioeconomic status and material lifestyle, computed with two orthogonal scales: market and subsistence lifestyle. EBV antibody level was significantly negatively associated with both a market and a subsistence lifestyle, indicating higher cell-mediated immune function associated with higher material lifestyle scores. In contrast, LI was significantly positively associated with EBV antibodies indicating lower immune function, and suggesting higher psychosocial stress, among individuals with economic status in excess of material lifestyle. Individuals with lower incongruity scores (i.e., economic status at parity with material resources, or with material resources in excess of economic status) had significantly lower EBV antibodies. The findings suggest significant health impacts of changes in material well-being and shifting status and prestige markers on health during the transition to a market economy in Siberia. The findings also suggest that relative, as opposed to absolute, level of economic status or material wealth is more strongly related to stress in the Siberian context.

Economic summary of woody biomass direct combustion and gasification alternatives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1981-08-01

A base case analysis indicates that acceptable rates of return on investment are possible when utilizing wood as a commercial scale boiler fuel. Principal variables include the availability of cost competitive wood fuel over the term of the loan and overall installed cost for the system. In some cases the cost of coal at the point of end use will be comparable with wood. Hardware costs will determine system economics and applicable air quality standards, or lack thereof, will play an important role. The overall economics of using wood for fuel are extremely site specific. The additional 10 percent energy tax credit greatly enhances the economics of a wood fired system, although system economics are very attractive without this tax incentive. Cost of money does not seem to drastically affect overall system economics.

[The economic-financial sustainability of the Family Health Strategy in large municipalities].

PubMed

Portela, Gustavo Zoio; Ribeiro, José Mendes

2011-03-01

The universalization of basic care and commitment budget of the Ministry of Health with the Family Health Strategy (ESF) through new systematic financing incentives have been highlighted in the Brazilian health policy scenario. One of the great problems observed is the expansion of the strategy for large urban centres. This paper studies the economic-financial sustainability of ESF in Brazilian municipalities of more than 100 thousand inhabitants according to some selected indicators, considering the geographical region to which they belong, their population size and participation in Project for the Expansion and Consolidation Family Health (Proesf). Municipalities belonging to the Southeast region, more developed of the country, have on average better economic-financial performance, but lower average values of coverage of ESF. Municipalities from the North and Northeast, with the lowest average for economic-financial sustainability indicators, were the ones that made more effort to developments in the period. Thus, we observed the dynamics between bigger fiscal capacity and budgetary commitment with the Health Sector for biggest municipalities and in more economically developed regions, and greater vulnerability and dependence of federative transferences for municipalities with less people, in less developed areas.

Cultural investment and urban socio-economic development: a geosocial network approach.

PubMed

Zhou, Xiao; Hristova, Desislava; Noulas, Anastasios; Mascolo, Cecilia; Sklar, Max

2017-09-01

Being able to assess the impact of government-led investment onto socio-economic indicators in cities has long been an important target of urban planning. However, owing to the lack of large-scale data with a fine spatio-temporal resolution, there have been limitations in terms of how planners can track the impact and measure the effectiveness of cultural investment in small urban areas. Taking advantage of nearly 4 million transition records for 3 years in London from a popular location-based social network service, Foursquare, we study how the socio-economic impact of government cultural expenditure can be detected and predicted. Our analysis shows that network indicators such as average clustering coefficient or centrality can be exploited to estimate the likelihood of local growth in response to cultural investment. We subsequently integrate these features in supervised learning models to infer socio-economic deprivation changes for London's neighbourhoods. This research presents how geosocial and mobile services can be used as a proxy to track and predict socio-economic deprivation changes as government financial effort is put in developing urban areas and thus gives evidence and suggestions for further policymaking and investment optimization.

Inequality in prime-age adult deaths in a high AIDS mortality setting: does the measure of economic status matter?

PubMed

Opuni, Marjorie; Peterman, Amber; Bishai, David

2011-11-01

We analyze deaths among prime-aged men and women during a 13-year period in a high AIDS mortality setting and examine the distribution of deaths by the economic status of these individuals at baseline using the 1991-2004 Kagera Health and Development Survey (KHDS). We investigate whether the distribution of subsequent prime-age adult deaths as measured by concentration indices depends on the measure of living standards used. We compare the performance of three measures: (1) per capita expenditure; (2) a modern wealth asset index replicating the asset index included in the 2004 Tanzanian AIDS Indicator Survey data file; and (3) a traditional wealth asset index, which includes only measures of traditional wealth. We find no evidence that economic status is linked to prime-age adult deaths, for both men and women, regardless of the measure of economic status used. This finding suggests both that more generally the measure of economic status used does not appear to be crucial, and specifically that relationships using traditional measures of wealth do not seem to differ from those using conventional measures. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Cultural investment and urban socio-economic development: a geosocial network approach

PubMed Central

Hristova, Desislava; Noulas, Anastasios; Mascolo, Cecilia; Sklar, Max

2017-01-01

Being able to assess the impact of government-led investment onto socio-economic indicators in cities has long been an important target of urban planning. However, owing to the lack of large-scale data with a fine spatio-temporal resolution, there have been limitations in terms of how planners can track the impact and measure the effectiveness of cultural investment in small urban areas. Taking advantage of nearly 4 million transition records for 3 years in London from a popular location-based social network service, Foursquare, we study how the socio-economic impact of government cultural expenditure can be detected and predicted. Our analysis shows that network indicators such as average clustering coefficient or centrality can be exploited to estimate the likelihood of local growth in response to cultural investment. We subsequently integrate these features in supervised learning models to infer socio-economic deprivation changes for London’s neighbourhoods. This research presents how geosocial and mobile services can be used as a proxy to track and predict socio-economic deprivation changes as government financial effort is put in developing urban areas and thus gives evidence and suggestions for further policymaking and investment optimization. PMID:28989752

A first-approximation urban-air-quality indicator

Treesearch

David M. Paproski; Julian R. Walker

1977-01-01

Development of the first-approximation-urban-air-quality indicator was reported by the Economic Council of Canada. The indicator takes account of ambient concentrations of five pollutants: sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, and total oxidants. Epidemiological evidence indicating the potential impact of these pollutants on human...

Measuring Institutions: Indicators of Political and Property Rights in Malawi

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fedderke, Johannes; Garlick, Julia

2012-01-01

This paper constructs a new set of institutional indicators for Malawi. We develop indicators of political rights, of freehold, traditional (communitarian) and intellectual property rights, based on the Malawian legislative framework. In exploring the association between our rights measures and a range of indicators of socio-economic development,…

How to use composite indicator and linear programming model for determine sustainable tourism.

PubMed

Ziaabadi, Maryam; Malakootian, Mohammad; Zare Mehrjerdi, Mohammad Reza; Jalaee, Seied Abdolmajid; Mehrabi Boshrabadi, Hosein

2017-01-01

The tourism industry which is one of the most dynamic economic activities in today's world plays a significant role in the sustainable development. Therefore, in addition to paying attention to tourism, sustainable tourism must be taken into huge account; otherwise, the environment and its health will be damaged irreparably. To determine the level of sustainability in this study, indicators of sustainable tourism were first presented in three environmental health, economic and social aspects. Then, the levels of sustainable tourism and environmental sustainability were practically measured in different cities of Kerman Province using a composite indicator, a linear programming model, Delphi method and the questionnaire technique. Finally, the study cities (tourist attractions) were ranked. Result of this study showed that unfortunately the tourism opportunities were not used appropriately in these cities and tourist destinations, and that environmental aspect (health and environmental sustainability) had very bad situations compared to social and economic aspects. In other words, environmental health had the lowest levels of sustainability. The environment is a place for all human activities like tourism, social and economic issues; therefore, its stability and health is of great importance. Thus, it is necessary to pay more attention to sustainability of activities, management and environmental health in planning sustainable development in regional and national policy.

Global fishery development patterns are driven by profit but not trophic level.

PubMed

Sethi, Suresh A; Branch, Trevor A; Watson, Reg

2010-07-06

Successful ocean management needs to consider not only fishing impacts but drivers of harvest. Consolidating post-1950 global catch and economic data, we assess which attributes of fisheries are good indicators for fishery development. Surprisingly, year of development and economic value are not correlated with fishery trophic levels. Instead, patterns emerge of profit-driven fishing for attributes related to costs and revenues. Post-1950 fisheries initially developed on shallow ranging species with large catch, high price, and big body size, and then expanded to less desirable species. Revenues expected from developed fisheries declined 95% from 1951 to 1999, and few high catch or valuable fishing opportunities remain. These results highlight the importance of economic attributes of species as leading indicators for harvest-related impacts in ocean ecosystems.

Global fishery development patterns are driven by profit but not trophic level

PubMed Central

Sethi, Suresh A.; Branch, Trevor A.; Watson, Reg

2010-01-01

Successful ocean management needs to consider not only fishing impacts but drivers of harvest. Consolidating post-1950 global catch and economic data, we assess which attributes of fisheries are good indicators for fishery development. Surprisingly, year of development and economic value are not correlated with fishery trophic levels. Instead, patterns emerge of profit-driven fishing for attributes related to costs and revenues. Post-1950 fisheries initially developed on shallow ranging species with large catch, high price, and big body size, and then expanded to less desirable species. Revenues expected from developed fisheries declined 95% from 1951 to 1999, and few high catch or valuable fishing opportunities remain. These results highlight the importance of economic attributes of species as leading indicators for harvest-related impacts in ocean ecosystems. PMID:20566867

The Treatment of Entrepreneurship in Principles of Economics Textbooks.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kent, Calvin A.

1989-01-01

Identifies the 6 major elements of entrepreneurship, and examines the treatment of each element by 15 major introductory economics textbooks. Results indicate that entrepreneurship is not adequately covered, causing students to miss important understandings about the workings of the market economy. Recommends that teachers provide supplementary…

Commercial Education 1926-1928. Bulletin, 1929, No. 26

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Malott, J. O.

1929-01-01

The extremely rapid development of new and diverse industries, the equally rapid modification of older industries and business practices, the reshaping of domestic and foreign business relationships, and recent economic changes indicate emphatically the growing responsibility of education for economic and business leadership. A continuing, capable…

Research Productivity and Perceived Teaching Effectiveness: A Survey of Economics Faculty.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Noser, Thomas C.; And Others

1996-01-01

A national study of university economics faculty (n=343) examined the relationship between self-reported research output and teaching evaluation scores. Findings indicated a very weak relationship between research productivity and classroom performance, but institutional and individual characteristics seemed to explain some differences. Faculty…

Socio-Economic Development and Gender Inequality in India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Razvi, Meena; Roth, Gene L.

2004-01-01

Gender discrimination in India affects poor women's socio-economic development. This paper describes and interprets recurrent themes indicating that the Indian government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and other international human rights organizations show growing concerns regarding gender inequality in India. As it is not within the…

77 FR 2510 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Quarterly Financial Report

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-01-18

... scope of collection. The current collection includes the Manufacturing, Mining, Wholesale Trade, Retail... economic indicator that also provides financial data essential to the estimation of key Government measures of national economic performance. The importance of this data collection is reflected by the granting...

Research of Environmental and Economic Interactions of Coke And By-Product Process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mikhailov, Vladimir; Kiseleva, Tamara; Bugrova, Svetlana; Muromtseva, Alina; Mikhailova, Yana

2017-11-01

The issues of showing relations between environmental and economic indicators (further - environmental and economic interactions) of coke and by-product process are considered in the article. The purpose of the study is to reveal the regularities of the functioning of the local environmental and economic system on the basis of revealed spectrum of environmental and economic interactions. A simplified scheme of the environmental and economic system "coke and by-product process - the environment" was developed. The forms of the investigated environmental-economic interactions were visualized and the selective interpretation of the tightness of the established connection was made. The main result of the work is modeling system of environmental and economic interactions that allows increasing the efficiency of local ecological and economic system management and optimizing the "interests" of an industrial enterprise - the source of negative impact on the environment. The results of the survey can be recommended to government authorities and industrial enterprises with a wide range of negative impact forms to support the adoption of effective management decisions aimed at sustainable environmental and economic development of the region or individual municipalities.

Unintended consequences of expensive cancer therapeutics—the pursuit of marginal indications and a me-too mentality that stifles innovation and creativity: the John Conley Lecture.

PubMed

Fojo, Tito; Mailankody, Sham; Lo, Andrew

2014-12-01

Cancer is expected to continue as a major health and economic problem worldwide. Several factors are contributing to the increasing economic burden imposed by cancer, with the cost of cancer drugs an undeniably important variable. The use of expensive therapies with marginal benefits for their approved indications and for unproven indications is contributing to the rising cost of cancer care. We believe that expensive therapies are stifling progress by (1) encouraging enormous expenditures of time, money, and resources on marginal therapeutic indications and (2) promoting a me-too mentality that is stifling innovation and creativity. The modest gains of Food and Drug Administration-approved therapies and the limited progress against major cancers is evidence of a lowering of the efficacy bar that, together with high drug prices, has inadvertently incentivized the pursuit of marginal outcomes and a me-too mentality evidenced by the duplication of effort and redundant pharmaceutical pipelines. We discuss the economic realities that are driving this process and provide suggestions for radical changes to reengineer our collective cancer ecosystem to achieve better outcomes for society.

Relevance of gender-sensitive policies and general health indicators to compare the status of South Asian women's health.

PubMed

Gill, Roopan; Stewart, Donna E

2011-01-01

despite goals for gender equity in South Asia, the relationship between gender-sensitive policies and the empowerment of women is complex and requires an analysis of how policies align with a broad set of social, cultural, political, and economic indicators that relate to women's health. through a review of four documents under the umbrella of the World Health Organization and the United Nations, a list of 17 gender-sensitive policy and 17 general health indicators was generated with a focus on health, education, economic, and political empowerment and violence against women. A series of policy documents and international and national databases that are accessible in the public domain were the major tools used to find supporting documentation to address women's health outcomes in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. all five South Asian countries had several gender-sensitive policies that were measurable by indicators that contribute to health. Examination of political and economic status, birth sex ratios, human trafficking, illiteracy rates, maternal mortality rates, contraception prevalence, fertility rates, knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention, access to skilled birth attendants, and microfinance show that large gender inequities still prevail despite the presence of gender-sensitive policies. in many cases, the presence of gender-sensitive policies did not reflect the realization of gender equity over a wide range of indicators. Although the economic, political, social, and cultural climates of the five countries may differ, the integration of women's needs into the formulation, implementation, and monitoring of policies is a universal necessity to achieve positive outcomes. 2011 Jacobs Institute of Women's Health. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Environmental management on the basis of Complex Regional Indicators Concept: case of the Murmansk region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kozlov, A.; Gutman, S.; Zaychenko, I.; Rytova, E.; Nijinskaya, P.

2015-09-01

The article presents an approach to sustainable environmental development of the Murmansk region of the Russian Federation based on the complex regional indicators as a transformation of a balance scorecard method. The peculiarities of Murmansk region connected with sustainable environmental development are described. The complex regional indicators approach allows to elaborate the general concept of complex regional development taking into consideration economic and non-economic factors with the focus on environmental aspects, accumulated environmental damage in particular. General strategic chart of sustainable environmental development of the Murmansk region worked out on the basis of complex regional indicators concept is composed. The key target indicators of sustainable ecological development of the Murmansk region are presented for the following strategic chart components: regional finance; society and market; industry and entrepreneurship; training, development and innovations. These charts are to be integrated with international environmental monitoring systems.

Education in States and Nations: Indicators Comparing U.S. States with the OECD Countries in 1988.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salganik, Laura Hersh; And Others

This report is based on the first international education indicators produced by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The 16 indicators were chosen to take advantage of data available in "Education at a Glance," the most up-to-date set of international educational indicators. Indicators are grouped into…

Widening economic & social disparities: implications for India.

PubMed

Kurian, N J

2007-10-01

India is often characterized as an emerging economic super power. The huge demographic dividend, the high quality engineering and management talent, the powerful Indian diaspora and the emerging Indian transnational--kneeling the optimism. In contrast, there is another profile of India which is rather gloomy. This is the country with the largest number of the poor, illiterates and unemployed in the world. High infant mortality, morbidity and widespread anaemia among women and children continue. India suffers from acute economic and social disparities. This article addresses four dimensions of such disparities, viz. regional, rural-urban, social, and gender. There is empirical evidence to indicate that during the last two decades all these disparities have been increasing. As a result of economic reforms, the southern and western States experienced accelerated economic and social development as compared to northern and eastern States. This has led to widening gap in income, poverty and other indicators of development between the two regions. Rural-urban divide also widened in the wake of reforms. While large and medium cities experience unprecedented economic prosperity, the rural areas experience economic stagnation. As a result, there is widespread agrarian distress which results in farmers' suicide and rural unrest. Socially backward sections, especially scheduled castes and tribes (SCs and STs) have gained little from the new prosperity which rewards disproportionately those with assets, skills and higher education. STs have often been victims of development as a result of displacement. The gender gap in social and economic status, traditionally more in India as compared to other societies; has further widened by the economic reforms and globalization. The approach paper to the Eleventh Plan stresses the importance of more inclusive economic growth. It emphasizes the need for bridging the divides discussed in this article. Unless these are achieved in a time-bound manner, there could be serious adverse implications for the Indian economy, society and politics.

Effects of economic downturns on mortality of wild African elephants.

PubMed

Wittemyer, George

2011-10-01

Declines in economic activity and associated changes in human livelihood strategies can increase threats of species overexploitation. This is exemplified by the effects of economic crises, which often drive intensification of subsistence poaching and greater reliance on natural resources. Whereas development theory links natural resource use to social-economic conditions, few empirical studies of the effect of economic downturns on wild animal species have been conducted. I assessed the relations between African elephant (Loxodonta africana) mortality and human-caused wounds in Samburu, Kenya and (1) livestock and maize prices (measures of local economic conditions), (2) change in national and regional gross domestic product (GDP) (measures of macroeconomic conditions), and (3) the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) (a correlate of primary productivity). In addition, I analyzed household survey data to determine the attitudes of local people toward protected areas and wild animals in the area. When cattle prices in the pastoralist study region were low, human-caused wounds to and adult mortality of elephants increased. The NDVI was negatively correlated with juvenile mortality, but not correlated with adult mortality. Changes in Kenyan and East Asian (primary market for ivory) GDP did not explain significant variation in mortality. Increased human wounding of elephants and elephant mortality during periods of low livestock prices (local economic downturns) likely reflect an economically driven increase in ivory poaching. Local but not macroeconomic indices explained significant variation in mortality, likely due to the dominance of the subsistence economy in the study area and its political and economic isolation. My results suggest economic metrics can serve as effective indicators of changes in human use of and resulting effects on natural resources. Such information can help focus management approaches (e.g., antipoaching effort or proffering of alternative occupational opportunities) that address variation in local activities that threaten plant and animal populations. ©2011 Society for Conservation Biology.

Economic Inequality in Presenting Vision in Shahroud, Iran: Two Decomposition Methods

PubMed Central

Mansouri, Asieh; Emamian, Mohammad Hassan; Zeraati, Hojjat; Hashemi, Hasan; Fotouhi, Akbar

2018-01-01

Background: Visual acuity, like many other health-related problems, does not have an equal distribution in terms of socio-economic factors. We conducted this study to estimate and decompose economic inequality in presenting visual acuity using two methods and to compare their results in a population aged 40-64 years in Shahroud, Iran. Methods: The data of 5188 participants in the first phase of the Shahroud Cohort Eye Study, performed in 2009, were used for this study. Our outcome variable was presenting vision acuity (PVA) that was measured using LogMAR (logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution). The living standard variable used for estimation of inequality was the economic status and was constructed by principal component analysis on home assets. Inequality indices were concentration index and the gap between low and high economic groups. We decomposed these indices by the concentration index and BlinderOaxaca decomposition approaches respectively and compared the results. Results: The concentration index of PVA was -0.245 (95% CI: -0.278, -0.212). The PVA gap between groups with a high and low economic status was 0.0705 and was in favor of the high economic group. Education, economic status, and age were the most important contributors of inequality in both concentration index and Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition. Percent contribution of these three factors in the concentration index and Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition was 41.1% vs. 43.4%, 25.4% vs. 19.1% and 15.2% vs. 16.2%, respectively. Other factors including gender, marital status, employment status and diabetes had minor contributions. Conclusion: This study showed that individuals with poorer visual acuity were more concentrated among people with a lower economic status. The main contributors of this inequality were similar in concentration index and Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition. So, it can be concluded that setting appropriate interventions to promote the literacy and income level in people with low economic status, formulating policies to address economic problems in the elderly, and paying more attention to their vision problems can help to alleviate economic inequality in visual acuity. PMID:29325403

A Predictive Statistical Model of Navy Career Enlisted Retention Behavior Utilizing Economic Variables.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-12-01

career retention rates , and to predict future career retention rates in the Navy. The statistical model utilizes economic variables as predictors...The model developed r has a high correlation with Navy career retention rates . The problem of Navy career retention has not been adequately studied, 0D...findings indicate Navy policymakers must be cognizant of the relationships of economic factors to Navy career retention rates . Accrzsiofl ’or NTIS GRA&I

State-building at the Community Level: Evaluating the Impact of Colombia’s Consolidation Program

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-10-31

municipalities. 2 These indicator covered mea ure of govemm nt phy ical control, as well as local bureaucratic capacity, social and economic integration...with the re t of Colombia, and local economic conditions. Outcomes were organized along three key dimensions of tate-building from both scholarly...territory (phy ical economic , and political). The P CRT reflected an effort to improve the GoC aero all of these dimensions in the targeted

Current economic and sensitivity analysis for ID slicing of 4 inch and 6 inch diameter silicon ingots for photovoltaic applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roberts, E. G.; Johnson, C. M.

1982-01-01

The economics and sensitivities of slicing large diameter silicon ingots for photovoltaic applications were examined. Current economics and slicing add on cost sensitivities are calculated using variable parameters for blade life, slicing yield, and slice cutting speed. It is indicated that cutting speed has the biggest impact on slicing add on cost, followed by slicing yield, and by blade life as the blade life increases.

Changes in Occupational Safety and Health Indices After the Korean Economic Crisis: Analysis of a National Sample, 1991–2007

PubMed Central

Min, Kyoung-Bok; Min, Jin-Young; Park, Jae-Beom; Park, Shin-Goo

2010-01-01

We examined how the deregulation of South Korea's labor laws during the country's 1997 to 1998 economic crisis affected occupational safety and health. Although the economic index improved after the reforms, the total injury rate declined slowly and the incidence of occupational disease increased. The withdrawal of support for occupational safety and health is likely to have a sustained effect on public health. PMID:20339078

Large scale hydro-economic modelling for policy support

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Roo, Ad; Burek, Peter; Bouraoui, Faycal; Reynaud, Arnaud; Udias, Angel; Pistocchi, Alberto; Lanzanova, Denis; Trichakis, Ioannis; Beck, Hylke; Bernhard, Jeroen

2014-05-01

To support European Union water policy making and policy monitoring, a hydro-economic modelling environment has been developed to assess optimum combinations of water retention measures, water savings measures, and nutrient reduction measures for continental Europe. This modelling environment consists of linking the agricultural CAPRI model, the LUMP land use model, the LISFLOOD water quantity model, the EPIC water quality model, the LISQUAL combined water quantity, quality and hydro-economic model, and a multi-criteria optimisation routine. With this modelling environment, river basin scale simulations are carried out to assess the effects of water-retention measures, water-saving measures, and nutrient-reduction measures on several hydro-chemical indicators, such as the Water Exploitation Index (WEI), Nitrate and Phosphate concentrations in rivers, the 50-year return period river discharge as an indicator for flooding, and economic losses due to water scarcity for the agricultural sector, the manufacturing-industry sector, the energy-production sector and the domestic sector, as well as the economic loss due to flood damage. Recently, this model environment is being extended with a groundwater model to evaluate the effects of measures on the average groundwater table and available resources. Also, water allocation rules are addressed, while having environmental flow included as a minimum requirement for the environment. Economic functions are currently being updated as well. Recent development and examples will be shown and discussed, as well as open challenges.

Estimating health and economic benefits of reductions in air pollution from agriculture.

PubMed

Giannadaki, Despina; Giannakis, Elias; Pozzer, Andrea; Lelieveld, Jos

2018-05-01

Agricultural ammonia emissions strongly contribute to fine particulate air pollution (PM 2.5 ) with significant impacts on human health, contributing to mortality. We used model calculated emission scenarios to examine the health and economic benefits accrued by reducing agricultural emissions. We applied the "value of statistical life" metric to monetize the associated health outcomes. Our analysis indicates that a 50% reduction in agricultural emissions could prevent >200 thousand deaths per year in the 59 countries included in our study, notably in Europe, Russia, Turkey, the US, Canada and China, accompanied with economic benefits of many billions US$. In the European Union (EU) mortality could be reduced by 18% with an annual economic benefit of 89 billion US$. A theoretical complete phase-out of agricultural emissions could lead to a reduction in PM 2.5 related mortality of >50% plus associated economic costs in 42 out of the 59 countries studied. Within the EU, 140 thousand deaths could be prevented per year with an associated economic benefit of about 407billionUS$/year. A cost-benefit assessment of ammonia emission abatement options for the EU indicates that the reduction of agricultural emissions generates net financial and social benefits. The monetization of the health benefits of air pollution abatement policies and the costs of implementation can help devise cost-effective air quality management strategies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Socio-economic circumstances and food habits in Eastern, Central and Western European populations.

PubMed

Boylan, Sinéad; Lallukka, Tea; Lahelma, Eero; Pikhart, Hynek; Malyutina, Sofia; Pajak, Andrzej; Kubinova, Ruzena; Bragina, Oksana; Stepaniak, Urszula; Gillis-Januszewska, Aleksandra; Simonova, Galina; Peasey, Anne; Bobak, Martin

2011-04-01

To assess the relationship between several socio-economic indicators and frequency of consumption of seven predefined healthy foods (consumption of fruit, vegetables, wholegrain bread, vegetable-fat spread, vegetable cooking fat, low-fat milk and low-fat cheese) in populations from Eastern, Central and Western Europe. Analysis of baseline data collected in two cross-sectional cohort studies between 2000 and 2005: the Health, Alcohol and Psychosocial factors In Eastern Europe (HAPIEE) study and the Finnish Helsinki Health Study (HHS). Urban populations in the Czech Republic, Russia, Poland and Finland. In the HAPIEE study, random samples of men and women aged 45-69 years were drawn from population registers and electoral lists of selected cities. In the HHS, men and women aged 40-60 years employed by the City of Helsinki were recruited. Data on 21,326 working subjects from both cohorts were analysed. Healthy food habits were, in general, positively associated with higher education, occupational position and fewer economic difficulties, but there were differences in the strength of the gradient by food and country. Fruit consumption showed the most consistent gradients, especially in relation to socio-economic status among men (country-specific relative index of inequality (RII)=2.02-5.17) and women (RII=2.09-3.57). The associations between socio-economic indicators and healthy food habits showed heterogeneity between countries. Future studies of dietary behaviours should consider multiple measures of socio-economic position.

[Coupling coordination evaluation method between eco-environment quality and economic development level in contiguous special poverty-stricken areas of China].

PubMed

Wang, Yan-hui; Li, Jing-yi

2015-05-01

It is one of the important strategies in the new period of national poverty alleviation and development to maintain the basic balance between the ecological environment and economic development, and to promote the coordinated sustainable development of economy and ecological environment. Taking six contiguous special poverty-stricken areas as the study areas, a coupling coordination evaluation method between eco-environment quality and economic development level in contiguous special poverty-stricken areas was explored in this paper. The region' s ecological poverty index system was proposed based on the natural attribute of ecological environment, and the ecological environment quality evaluation method was built up by using AHP weighting method, followed by the design of the coupling coordination evaluation method between the ecological environment indices and the county economic poverty comprehensive indices. The coupling coordination degrees were calculated and their spatial representation differentiations were analyzed respectively at district, province, city, and county scales. Results showed that approximately half of the counties in the study areas achieved the harmoniously coordinated development. However, the ecological environmental quality and the economic development in most counties could not be synchronized, where mountains, rivers and other geographic features existed roughly as a dividing line of the coordinated development types. The phenomena of dislocation between the ecological environment and economic development in state-level poor counties were more serious than those of local poor counties.

The Economic Cost of Homosexuality: Multilevel Analyses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baumle, Amanda K.; Poston, Dudley, Jr.

2011-01-01

This article builds on earlier studies that have examined "the economic cost of homosexuality," by using data from the 2000 U.S. Census and by employing multilevel analyses. Our findings indicate that partnered gay men experience a 12.5 percent earnings penalty compared to married heterosexual men, and a statistically insignificant earnings…

World Development Report 1985. International Capital and Economic Development. World Development Indicators.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Washington, DC.

Focusing on the contribution that international capital makes to economic development, this report shows how countries at different stages of development have used external finance productively; how the institutional and policy environment affects the volume and composition of financial flows to developing countries; and how the international…

Elementary Students' Scientific Epistemological Beliefs in Relation to Socio-Economic Status and Gender

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozkal, Kudret; Tekkaya, Ceren; Sungur, Semra; Cakiroglu, Jale; Cakiroglu, Erdinc

2010-01-01

This study investigated students' scientific epistemological beliefs in relation to socio-economic status (SES) and gender. Data were obtained from 1,152 eight grade Turkish elementary school students using Scientific Epistemological Beliefs instrument. Canonical correlation analysis indicated that students with a working mother and educated…

Examinations of Home Economics Textbooks for Sex Bias.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weis, Susan F.

1979-01-01

Four analyses were conducted on a sample of 100 randomly selected, secondary home economics textbooks published between 1964 and 1974. Results indicated that the contents presented sex bias in language usage, in pictures portraying male and female role environments, and in role behaviors and expectations emphasized. (Author/JH)

Using System Dynamics Analysis for Evaluating Neighborhood Economic Outcomes from Transportation and Land Use Decisions

EPA Science Inventory

Proposed Title: Using System Dynamics Analysis for Evaluating Neighborhood Economic Outcomes from Transportation and Land Use Decisions Topic (must choose one item from a drop-down list): Community Indicators Learning Objectives (must list 2): • What are the benefits and l...

Shortfall of US Citizen Science and Engineering Specialists in Defense Industry

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-06-23

lower until equilibrium is restored. *e.g.,see Ch 1 & 4, Labor Economics , Cahuc & Zylberberg, MIT Press, 2004 Neoclassical Indicators: Increased...and balls concept Cobb-Douglas – hires as a function of job seekers and vacancies. *e.g.,see Ch 9, Labor Economics , Cahuc & Zylberberg, MIT Press

Managing the HRD Function. Symposium 32. [AHRD Conference, 2001].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

2001

This document contains three papers on managing the human resource development (HRD) function. "The Relationship between Factors Impacted by the Current Economic Crisis and Human Resource Development Roles and Functions in Thailand" (Chiraprapha Tan Akaraborworn, Gary N. McLean) presents data indicating that the current economic crisis…

Socioeconomic Status, Economic Problems, and Delinquency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Agnew, Robert; Matthews, Shelley Keith; Bucher, Jacob; Welcher, Adria N.; Keyes, Corey

2008-01-01

Research indicates that the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and delinquency is not as strong as suggested by the leading crime theories. This article argues that such theories do not predict that SES in and of itself causes delinquency but rather that the economic problems associated with SES cause delinquency. Such problems…

Indicators and Methods for Evaluating Economic, Ecosystem and Social Services Provisioning: A Human Well-being Index (HWBI) Research Product

EPA Science Inventory

The U.S. Human Well-being Index (HWBI) is a composite measure that incorporates economic, environmental, and societal well-being elements through the eight domains of connection to nature, cultural fulfillment, education, health, leisure time, living standards, safety and securit...

Factors Affecting Students' Grades in Principles of Economics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kara, Orhan; Bagheri, Fathollah; Tolin, Thomas

2009-01-01

Factors affecting students' grades in principles of microeconomics and macroeconomics students are analyzed from the data collected in two public universities. Results indicate that gender, number of hours worked, SAT scores, number of missed classes, recommending the course to a friend, instructors, being a junior, number of economics courses…

Economic Well-Being and Marital Stability: Implications for Income Maintenance Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galligan, Richard J.; Bahr, Stephen J.

1978-01-01

Examined effects of economic well-being on marital stability using longitudinal data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Labor Market Experience, 1,349 married females interviewed annually over a five year period. Data indicated that income by itself had little effect on marital dissolution. (Author)

Economic Yearbook from Georgia Trend Magazine, 1996.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamilton, John

Based on information from "Georgia Trend" magazine examining economic conditions across Georgia, Gainesville College (GC) is expected to experience an expanding base of students over the next 5 years. With respect to Hall County and the nine contiguous counties that make up GC's service area, data indicate a population growth in the…

The relationship between socio-economic inequalities, intimate partner violence and economic abuse: a national study of women in the Philippines.

PubMed

Antai, Diddy; Antai, Justina; Anthony, David Steven

2014-01-01

Economic abuse against women has for too long remained a relatively 'unseen' part of interpersonal violence, in spite of intimate partner violence (IPV) being a public health problem. Most studies on economic abuse derive especially from the USA and amongst women in shelters, and their findings are not easily generalisable to low-middle-income countries. Socio-economic inequalities render women vulnerable to control and risk of abuse. We investigated the role of socio-economic inequalities in the association between IPV and economic abuse. Logistic regression analyses were performed on cross-sectional data from a nationally representative sample of 8478 women aged 15-49 years in the 2008 Philippines Demographic and Health Surveys. Results indicated strong positive associations between both physical IPV and emotional IPV and all four forms of economic abuse. Measures of socio-economic inequalities and other covariates such as no education, primary education, unemployment and justifying wife beating were also statistically significant. Findings suggest the increased need for health care practitioners to include economic abuse during the assessment of and response to IPV, the implementation of a multidimensional approach to providing tangible support and women-centred responses in reported cases of economic abuse, as well as measures that enhance socio-economic equality and increase economic opportunities for women.

[Sustainable development of the three economic patterns in China: The application of genuine progress indicator in the sustainability assessment of six typical cities.

PubMed

Li, Jing; Huang, Lu; Yan, Li Jiao

2016-06-01

Three economic patterns, i.e., Zhujiang Model, Wenzhou Model and Sunan Model, were all generated in the developed areas of China. Sustainability assessment of those areas plays an important role in guiding future development of the economy of China. Genuine progress indicator (GPI) was adopted in this study to evaluate the sustainability of 6 typical cities (Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Wenzhou, Suzhou, Wuxi, and Changzhou) of the three economic patterns from 1995 to 2012. During the study period, the values of GDP for the six cities had experienced exponential growth, while the values of GPI started to increase since 2005 after a relatively constant period between 1995 and 2005. The gap between GPI and GDP had been widening from a historical perspective. Zhujiang Model made great progress in economic growth, however, the economic, social, and environmental costs were evident. It should tackle income inequality, traffic jam, and environmental pollution to reach sustainability. The development of Wenzhou Model slowed down in the late pe-riod, with inadequate potential to develop. Its income inequality was tough, social and economic development was slow, and the economic development pattern needed to be urgently changed. Sunan Model had a higher value of GPI and the potential to reach sustainability, with remarkable growth of economy, median level of the GPI costs, and steady improvement of social development, although its natural resources were depleted. Three economic patterns should focus on the three dimensions of sustainability (economy, environment, and society), and Zhujiang Model and Wenzhou Model needed to be more active to search for transition of their development.

Relating economic conditions to vasectomy and vasectomy reversal frequencies: a multi-institutional study.

PubMed

Sharma, Vidit; Zargaroff, Sherwin; Sheth, Kunj R; Le, Brian V; Dupree, James M; Sandlow, Jay I; Polackwich, A Scott; Hedges, Jason C; Fuchs, Eugene F; Goldstein, Marc; Brannigan, Robert E

2014-06-01

It was theorized that the use of permanent contraceptive methods may vary with economic conditions. We evaluated the relationship between vasectomy/vasectomy reversal frequencies at several large referral centers and national economic indicators during 2 recessions spanning 2001 to 2011. We performed an institutional review board approved, retrospective chart review to identify the number of vasectomies/vasectomy reversals per month at several large referral centers from January 2001 to July 2011. The rates of these procedures were pooled, correlated with national economic data and analyzed in a multivariate linear regression model. A total of 4,599 vasectomies and 1,549 vasectomy reversals were performed at our institutions during the study period. The number of vasectomies per month positively correlated with the unemployment rate (r=0.556, p<0.001) and personal income per capita (r=0.276, p=0.002). The number of reversals per month negatively correlated with the unemployment rate (r=-0.399, p<0.001) and personal income per capita (r=-0.305, p<0.001). Neither vasectomy nor vasectomy reversal frequency significantly correlated with the inflation rate or the S&P 500®. Regression models confirmed that the unemployment rate explained more of the variance in vasectomy/vasectomy reversal frequencies than other indicators. We noted a correlation between the number of vasectomies/vasectomy reversals performed at our institutions and national economic indicators. The strongest association was with the unemployment rate. This points to the importance of financial pressure on family planning decisions. Copyright © 2014 American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Decline of the Mediterranean diet at a time of economic crisis. Results from the Moli-sani study.

PubMed

Bonaccio, M; Di Castelnuovo, A; Bonanni, A; Costanzo, S; De Lucia, F; Persichillo, M; Zito, F; Donati, M B; de Gaetano, G; Iacoviello, L

2014-08-01

Adherence to Mediterranean diet (MD) is reportedly declining in the last decades. We aimed to investigate the adherence to MD over the period 2005-2010 and exploring the possible role of the global economic crisis in accounting for the changing in the dietary habits in Italy. Cross-sectional analysis in a population-based cohort study which randomly recruited 21,001 southern Italian citizens enrolled within the Moli-sani study. Food intake was determined by the Italian EPIC food frequency questionnaire. Adherence to MD was appraised by the Italian Mediterranean Index (IMI). A wealth score was derived to evaluate the economic position and used together with other socioeconomic indicators. Highest prevalence of adherence to MD was observed during the years 2005-2006 (31.3%) while the prevalence dramatically fell down in the years 2007-2010 (18.3%; P<0.0001). The decrease was stronger in the elderly, less affluent groups, and among those living in urban areas. Accordingly, we observed that in 2007-2010 socioeconomic indicators were strongly associated with higher adherence to MD, whereas no association was detected in the years before the economic crisis began; both wealth score and education were major determinants of high adherence to MD with 31% (95%CI: 18-46%) higher adherence to this pattern within the wealthier group compared to the less affluent category. Adherence to MD has considerably decreased over the last few years. In 2007-2010 socioeconomic indicators have become major determinants of adherence to MD, a fact likely linked to the economic downturn. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of trade influence on economic growth rate by computational intelligence approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sokolov-Mladenović, Svetlana; Milovančević, Milos; Mladenović, Igor

2017-01-01

In this study was analyzed the influence of trade parameters on the economic growth forecasting accuracy. Computational intelligence method was used for the analyzing since the method can handle highly nonlinear data. It is known that the economic growth could be modeled based on the different trade parameters. In this study five input parameters were considered. These input parameters were: trade in services, exports of goods and services, imports of goods and services, trade and merchandise trade. All these parameters were calculated as added percentages in gross domestic product (GDP). The main goal was to select which parameters are the most impactful on the economic growth percentage. GDP was used as economic growth indicator. Results show that the imports of goods and services has the highest influence on the economic growth forecasting accuracy.

Civil commitment law, mental health services, and US homicide rates.

PubMed

Segal, Steven P

2012-09-01

The study considers whether involuntary civil comment (ICC) statute provisions are associated with homicide rates. Do statutes based solely upon dangerousness criteria versus broader ICC-criteria-i.e. "need for treatment," "protection of health and safety," and family protection-have differential associations related to their goal of reducing the frequency of homicide? State-level data were obtained from online data bases and key-informant surveys. Ordinary-least-squares and Poisson regression were used to evaluate the association between statute characteristics, mental health system characteristics, and 2004 Homicide Rates after controlling for firearm-control-law restrictiveness and social-economic-demographic-geographic-and-political indicators historically related to homicide rate variation. Poisson and OLS models, respectively, were significant: likelihood ratio χ(2) = 108.47, df = 10; p < 0.000 and Adj. R (2) = 0.72; df = 10, 25; F = 10.21; p < 0.000. Poisson results indicate that social-economic-demographic-geographic-and-political-indicators had the strongest association with state homicide rates (p < 0.000). Lower rates were associated with: broader ICC-criteria (p ≤ 0.01), fewer inpatient-bed access problems (p ≤ 0.03), and better mental health system ratings (p ≤ 0.04). OLS results indicate that social-economic-demographic-geographic-and-political indicators accounted for 25% of homicide rate variation. Broader ICC-criteria were associated with 1.42 less homicides per 100,000. Less access to psychiatric inpatient-beds and more poorly rated mental health systems were associated with increases in the homicide rates of 1.08 and 0.26 per 100,000, respectively. While social-economic-demographic-geographic-and-political indicators show the strongest association with homicide rate variation, the results show the importance and potentially preventive utility of broader ICC criteria, increased psychiatric inpatient-bed access, and better performing mental health systems as factors contributing to homicide rate variation.

The relationship between venture capital investment and macro economic variables via statistical computation method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aygunes, Gunes

2017-07-01

The objective of this paper is to survey and determine the macroeconomic factors affecting the level of venture capital (VC) investments in a country. The literary depends on venture capitalists' quality and countries' venture capital investments. The aim of this paper is to give relationship between venture capital investment and macro economic variables via statistical computation method. We investigate the countries and macro economic variables. By using statistical computation method, we derive correlation between venture capital investments and macro economic variables. According to method of logistic regression model (logit regression or logit model), macro economic variables are correlated with each other in three group. Venture capitalists regard correlations as a indicator. Finally, we give correlation matrix of our results.

Techno-Economic Analysis of Solar Water Heating Systems inTurkey.

PubMed

Ertekin, Can; Kulcu, Recep; Evrendilek, Fatih

2008-02-25

In this study, solar water heater was investigated using meteorological and geographical data of 129 sites over Turkey. Three different collector types were compared in terms of absorber material (copper, galvanized sheet and selective absorber). Energy requirement for water heating, collector performances, and economical indicators were calculated with formulations using observed data. Results showed that selective absorbers were most appropriate in terms of coverage rate of energy requirement for water-heating all over Turkey. The prices of selective, copper and galvanized absorber type's heating systems in Turkey were 740.49, 615.69 and 490.89 USD, respectively. While payback periods (PBPs) of the galvanized absorber were lower, net present values (NPVs) of the selective absorber were higher than the rest. Copper absorber type collectors did not appear to be appropriate based on economical indicators.

Techno-Economic Analysis of Solar Water Heating Systems in Turkey

PubMed Central

Ertekin, Can; Kulcu, Recep; Evrendilek, Fatih

2008-01-01

In this study, solar water heater was investigated using meteorological and geographical data of 129 sites over Turkey. Three different collector types were compared in terms of absorber material (copper, galvanized sheet and selective absorber). Energy requirement for water heating, collector performances, and economical indicators were calculated with formulations using observed data. Results showed that selective absorbers were most appropriate in terms of coverage rate of energy requirement for water-heating all over Turkey. The prices of selective, copper and galvanized absorber type's heating systems in Turkey were 740.49, 615.69 and 490.89 USD, respectively. While payback periods (PBPs) of the galvanized absorber were lower, net present values (NPVs) of the selective absorber were higher than the rest. Copper absorber type collectors did not appear to be appropriate based on economical indicators. PMID:27879764

Adult outcomes as a function of an early childhood educational program: an Abecedarian Project follow-up.

PubMed

Campbell, Frances A; Pungello, Elizabeth P; Burchinal, Margaret; Kainz, Kirsten; Pan, Yi; Wasik, Barbara H; Barbarin, Oscar A; Sparling, Joseph J; Ramey, Craig T

2012-07-01

Adult (age 30) educational, economic, and social-emotional adjustment outcomes were investigated for participants in the Abecedarian Project, a randomized controlled trial of early childhood education for children from low-income families. Of the original 111 infants enrolled (98% African American), 101 took part in the age 30 follow-up. Primary indicators of educational level, economic status, and social adjustment were examined as a function of early childhood treatment. Treated individuals attained significantly more years of education, but income-to-needs ratios and criminal involvement did not vary significantly as a function of early treatment. A number of other indicators were described for each domain. Overall, the findings provide strong evidence for educational benefits, mixed evidence for economic benefits, and little evidence for treatment-related social adjustment outcomes. Implications for public policy are discussed.

Dataset for analysing the relationships among economic growth, fossil fuel and non-fossil fuel consumption.

PubMed

Asafu-Adjaye, John; Byrne, Dominic; Alvarez, Maximiliano

2017-02-01

The data presented in this article are related to the research article entitled 'Economic Growth, Fossil Fuel and Non-Fossil Consumption: A Pooled Mean Group Analysis using Proxies for Capital' (J. Asafu-Adjaye, D. Byrne, M. Alvarez, 2016) [1]. This article describes data modified from three publicly available data sources: the World Bank׳s World Development Indicators (http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=world-development-indicators), the U.S. Energy Information Administration׳s International Energy Statistics (http://www.eia.gov/cfapps/ipdbproject/IEDIndex3.cfm?tid=44&pid=44&aid=2) and the Barro-Lee Educational Attainment Dataset (http://www.barrolee.com). These data can be used to examine the relationships between economic growth and different forms of energy consumption. The dataset is made publicly available to promote further analyses.

Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics

MedlinePlus

... online. During 2017 - 2018, other infographics will be developed around indicators covered in the Older Americans Chartbook. ... Indicators are categorized into six broad groups: Population, Economics, Health Status, Health Risks and Behaviors, Health Care, ...

Exogenous determinants of early-life conditions, and mortality later in life.

PubMed

van den Berg, Gerard J; Doblhammer, Gabriele; Christensen, Kaare

2009-05-01

We analyze causal effects of conditions early in life on the individual mortality rate later in life. Conditions early in life are captured by transitory features of the macro-environment around birth, notably the state of the business cycle around birth, but also food price deviations, weather indicators, and demographic indicators. We argue that these features can only affect high-age mortality by way of the individual early-life conditions. Moreover, they are exogenous from the individual point of view, which is a methodological advantage compared to the use of unique characteristics of the newborn individual or his or her family or household as early-life indicators. We collected national annual time-series data on the above-mentioned indicators, and we combine these to the individual data records from the Danish Twin Registry covering births in 1873-1906. The empirical analyses (mostly based on the estimation of duration models) indicate a significant negative causal effect of economic conditions early in life on individual mortality rates at higher ages. If the national economic performance in the year of birth exceeds its trend value (i.e., if the business cycle is favorable) then the mortality rate later in life is lower. The implied effect on the median lifetime of those who survive until age 35 is about 10 months. A systematic empirical exploration of all macro-indicators reveals that economic conditions in the first years after birth also affect mortality rates later in life.

Method and algorithm of ranking boiler plants at block electric power stations by the criterion of operation reliability and profitability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farhadzadeh, E. M.; Muradaliyev, A. Z.; Farzaliyev, Y. Z.

2015-10-01

A method and an algorithm of ranking of boiler installations based on their technical and economic indicators are proposed. One of the basic conditions for ranking is the independence of technical and economic indicators. The assessment of their interrelation was carried out with respect to the correlation rate. The analysis of calculation data has shown that the interrelation stability with respect to the value and sign persists only for those indicators that have an evident relationship between each other. One of the calculation steps is the normalization of quantitative estimates of technical and economic indicators, which makes it possible to eliminate differences in dimensions and indicator units. The analysis of the known methods of normalization has allowed one to recommend the relative deviation from the average value as a normalized value and to use the arithmetic mean of the normalized values of independent indicators of each boiler installation as an integrated index of performance reliability and profitability. The fundamental differences from the existing approach to assess the "weak components" of a boiler installation and the quality of monitoring of its operating regimes are that the given approach takes into account the reliability and profitability of the operation of all other analogous boiler installations of an electric power station; it also implements competing elements with respect to the quality of control among the operating personnel of separate boiler installations and is aimed at encouraging an increased quality of maintenance and repairs.

Does Rapid and Sustained Economic Growth Lead to Convergence in Health Resources: The Case of China From 1980 to 2010.

PubMed

Liang, Di; Zhang, Donglan; Huang, Jiayan; Schweitzer, Stuart

2016-01-01

China's rapid and sustained economic growth offers an opportunity to ask whether the advantages of growth diffuse throughout an economy, or remain localized in areas where the growth has been the greatest. A critical policy area in China has been the health system, and health inequality has become an issue that has led the government to broaden national health insurance programs. This study investigates whether health system resources and performance have converged over the past 30 years across China's 31 provinces. To examine geographic variation of health system resources and performance at the provincial level, we measure the degree of sigma convergence and beta convergence in indicators of health system resources (structure), health services utilization (process), and outcome. All data are from officially published sources: the China Health Statistics Year Book and the China Statistics Year Book. Sigma convergence is found for resource indicators, whereas it is not observed for either process or outcome indicators, indicating that disparities only narrowed in health system resources. Beta convergence is found in most indicators, except for 2 procedure indicators, reflecting that provinces with poorer resources were catching up. Convergence found in this study probably reflects the mixed outcome of government input, and market forces. Thus, left alone, the equitable distribution of health care resources may not occur naturally during a period of economic growth. Governmental and societal efforts are needed to reduce geographic health variation and promote health equity. © The Author(s) 2016.

Have we left some behind? Trends in socio-economic inequalities in breastfeeding initiation: a population-based epidemiological surveillance study.

PubMed

Nickel, Nathan C; Martens, Patricia J; Chateau, Dan; Brownell, Marni D; Sarkar, Joykrishna; Goh, Chun Yan; Burland, Elaine; Taylor, Carole; Katz, Alan

2014-07-31

Breastfeeding is associated with improved health. Surveillance data show that breastfeeding initiation rates have increased; however, limited work has examined trends in socio-economic inequalities in initiation. The study's research question was whether socio-economic inequalities in breastfeeding initiation have changed over the past 20 years. This population-based study is a project within PATHS Equity for Children. Analyses used hospital discharge data for Manitoba mother-infant dyads with live births, 1988-2011 (n=316,027). Income quintiles were created, each with ~20% of dyads. Three-year, overall and by-quintile breastfeeding initiation rates were estimated for Manitoba and two hospitals. Age-adjusted rates were estimated for Manitoba. Rates were modelled using generalized linear models. Three measures, rate ratios (RRs), rate differences (RDs) and concentration indices, assessed inequality at each time point. We also compared concentration indices with Gini coefficients to assess breastfeeding inequality vis-à-vis income inequality. Trend analyses tested for changes over time. Manitoba and Hospital A initiation rates increased; Hospital B rates did not change. Significant inequalities existed in nearly every period, across all three measures: RRs, RDs and concentration indices. RRs and concentration indices suggested little to no change in inequality from 1988 to 2011. RDs for Manitoba (comparing initiation in the highest to lowest income quintiles) did not change significantly over time. RDs decreased for Hospital A, suggesting decreasing socio-economic inequalities in breastfeeding; RDs increased for Hospital B. Income inequality increased significantly in Manitoba during the study period. Overall breastfeeding initiation rates can improve while inequality persists or worsens.

Interpretive Structural Model of Key Performance Indicators for Sustainable Maintenance Evaluatian in Rubber Industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amrina, E.; Yulianto, A.

2018-03-01

Sustainable maintenance is a new challenge for manufacturing companies to realize sustainable development. In this paper, an interpretive structural model is developed to evaluate sustainable maintenance in the rubber industry. The initial key performance indicators (KPIs) is identified and derived from literature and then validated by academic and industry experts. As a result, three factors of economic, social, and environmental dividing into a total of thirteen indicators are proposed as the KPIs for sustainable maintenance evaluation in rubber industry. Interpretive structural modeling (ISM) methodology is applied to develop a network structure model of the KPIs consisting of three levels. The results show the economic factor is regarded as the basic factor, the social factor as the intermediate factor, while the environmental factor indicated to be the leading factor. Two indicators of social factor i.e. labor relationship, and training and education have both high driver and dependence power, thus categorized as the unstable indicators which need further attention. All the indicators of environmental factor and one indicator of social factor are indicated as the most influencing indicator. The interpretive structural model hoped can aid the rubber companies in evaluating sustainable maintenance performance.

Economical crisis detected from space: Trends in air quality of Athens in Greece

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vrekoussis, Mihalis; Richter, Andreas; Hilboll, Andreas; Burrows, John P.; Zerefos, Christos; Gerasopoulos, Evangelos; Lelieveld, Jos; Barrie, Leonard; Mihalopoulos, Nikos

2013-04-01

Data from three satellite spectrometers (SCIAMACHY, GOME2 and OMI) have been analyzed together with a number of economic metrics to investigate the impact of the economic crisis (from 2008 onward) on air quality over Greece, and Athens in particular. Athens is a heavily polluted city due to the extensive number of registered vehicles, the presence of industrial regions close to the city, the complex topography of the area favouring pollutant accumulation, the intense photochemical processes favoured by high temperature and insolation and the reception of transboundary pollution. The multiannual analysis shows a significant 30-40% reduction of primary gaseous pollutants in the form of NO2 tropospheric columnar densities observed over Athens, during the economic recession period, indicating large reductions in pollutant emissions. This decline is further supported by surface measurements of atmospheric NO2 mixing ratios. Additionally, the declining local concentrations of NO, CO, SO2 are associated with an increase in ozone due to reduced titration by NO. In particular, regression analysis revealed that the reduction of NO2 (0.3±0.2 ppbv y-1) and SO2 (0.2±0.1ppbv y-1) during the period 2000-2007, significantly accelerated during the economic crisis period (from 2008 onward), reaching 2.3±0.2 ppbv y-1 and 0.7±0.1 ppbv y-1, respectively. The strong correlations between pollutant concentrations and economic indicators show that economic recession has resulted in proportionally lower levels of pollutants not only in Athens but also in large parts of Greece.

Actions to alleviate the mental health impact of the economic crisis

PubMed Central

WAHLBECK, KRISTIAN; MCDAID, DAVID

2012-01-01

The current global economic crisis is expected to produce adverse mental health effects that may increase suicide and alcohol-related death rates in affected countries. In nations with greater social safety nets, the health impacts of the economic downturn may be less pronounced. Research indicates that the mental health impact of the economic crisis can be offset by various policy measures. This paper aims to outline how countries can safeguard and support mental health in times of economic downturn. It indicates that good mental health cannot be achieved by the health sector alone. The determinants of mental health often lie outside of the remits of the health system, and all sectors of society have to be involved in the promotion of mental health. Accessible and responsive primary care services support people at risk and can prevent mental health consequences. Any austerity measures imposed on mental health services need to be geared to support the modernization of mental health care provision. Social welfare supports and active labour market programmes aiming at helping people retain or re-gain jobs can counteract the mental health effects of the economic crisis. Family support programmes can also make a difference. Alcohol pricing and restrictions of alcohol availability reduce alcohol harms and save lives. Support to tackle unmanageable debt will also help to reduce the mental health impact of the crisis. While the current economic crisis may have a major impact on mental health and increase mortality due to suicides and alcohol-related disorders, it is also a window of opportunity to reform mental health care and promote a mentally healthy lifestyle. PMID:23024664

The role of gender in the association of social capital, social support, and economic security with self-rated health among older adults in deprived communities in Beirut.

PubMed

Chemaitelly, Hiam; Kanaan, Caroline; Beydoun, Hind; Chaaya, Monique; Kanaan, Mona; Sibai, Abla M

2013-08-01

To examine gender variations in the association of self-rated health (SRH) with social capital, social support, and economic security among older adults from three deprived communities in the suburbs of metropolitan Beirut. A population-based cross-sectional study using the Older Adult Component of the Urban Health Survey. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 328 older men and 412 older women aged 60 years and above. SRH was assessed by a single question and treated as a dichotomous outcome, and several indicators of social capital, social support, and economic security were examined as independent variables. Women were significantly more likely to report poor SRH compared to men (37.2 vs. 25.9 %, respectively). Better social capital indicators decreased significantly the odds of poor SRH among both men (OR = 0.76, 95 % CI: 0.65-0.89) and women (OR = 0.71, 95 % CI: 0.62-0.82). Social support was strongly associated with SRH among women (OR = 0.56), but not among men (OR = 0.94). The reverse situation was observed for economic security (OR = 0.57 among men, OR = 0.80 among women). In these deprived neighborhoods, social and economic factors may have gender-specific effects on the promotion of well-being among older adults, with social support being more salient to women's SRH and economic security being more salient to men's SRH. In health studies among older people, SRH captures not only social and physical health but also broader economic well-being.

The Use of Fuzzy Cognitive Modelling to Manage Information Security Audit of Information Portals of Regional Executive Authorities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rytov, M. Yu; Leksikov, E. V.; Sakalo, V. I.; Kovalev, P. A.

2017-01-01

At the moment the domestic policy of the Russian Federation is being formed in difficult conditions of a foreign policy situation. The regional policy is built on the platform of alignment of social and economic development indices. To maintain the activity of regional social and economic systems is important for the management system of executive authorities (EA), including regional ones. To ensure feasibility of public administration, it is necessary to have vitally active social and economic systems.

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS FOR THE GROUND WATER RULE ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The Ground Water Rule Economic Analysis provides a description of the need for the rule, consideration of regulatory alternatives, baseline analysis including national ground water system profile and an estimate of pathogen and indicator occurrence (Chapter 4), a risk assessment and benefits analysis (Chapter 5), and a cost analysis ( Chapter 6). Chapters 4, 5 and 6, selected appendices and sections of other chapters will be peer reviewed. The objective of the Economic Analysis Document is to support the final Ground Water Rule.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Parish, Esther S.; Dale, Virginia H.; English, Burton C.

This paper connects the science of sustainability theory with applied aspects of sustainability deployment. A suite of 35 sustainability indicators spanning six environmental, three economic, and three social categories has been proposed for comparing the sustainability of bioenergy production systems across different feedstock types and locations. A recent demonstration-scale switchgrass-to-ethanol production system located in East Tennessee is used to assess the availability of sustainability indicator data and associated measurements for the feedstock production and logistics portions of the biofuel supply chain. Knowledge pertaining to the available indicators is distributed within a hierarchical decision tree framework to generate an assessment ofmore » the overall sustainability of this no-till switchgrass production system relative to two alternative business-as-usual scenarios of unmanaged pasture and tilled corn production. The relative contributions of the social, economic and environmental information are determined for the overall trajectory of this bioenergy system s sustainability under each scenario. Within this East Tennessee context, switchgrass production shows potential for improving environmental and social sustainability trajectories without adverse economic impacts, thereby leading to potential for overall enhancement in sustainability within this local agricultural system. Given the early stages of cellulosic ethanol production, it is currently difficult to determine quantitative values for all 35 sustainability indicators across the entire biofuel supply chain. This case study demonstrates that integration of qualitative sustainability indicator ratings may increase holistic understanding of a bioenergy system in the absence of complete information.« less

Clusters of poverty and disease emerge from feedbacks on an epidemiological network.

PubMed

Pluciński, Mateusz M; Ngonghala, Calistus N; Getz, Wayne M; Bonds, Matthew H

2013-03-06

The distribution of health conditions is characterized by extreme inequality. These disparities have been alternately attributed to disease ecology and the economics of poverty. Here, we provide a novel framework that integrates epidemiological and economic growth theory on an individual-based hierarchically structured network. Our model indicates that, under certain parameter regimes, feedbacks between disease ecology and economics create clusters of low income and high disease that can stably persist in populations that become otherwise predominantly rich and free of disease. Surprisingly, unlike traditional poverty trap models, these localized disease-driven poverty traps can arise despite homogeneity of parameters and evenly distributed initial economic conditions.

[Population models of mental health in the Russian population: assessment of an impact of living conditions and psychiatric care resources].

PubMed

Mitikhin, V G; Yastrebov, V S; Mitikhina, I A

ОBJECTIVE: The development and use of population models of mental health in the Russian population to analyze the relationship between indicators of mental disorders, psychiatric care resources taking into account medical/demographic and socio-economic factors in the period of 1992-2015. The sources of information were: 1) the data of the Russian medical statistics on the main indicators of mental health of the Russian population and psychiatric care resources; 2) government statistics on the demographic and socio-economic situation of the population of Russia during this period. The study used system data analysis, correlation and regression analyses. Linear and nonlinear models with a high level of significance were obtained to assess the impact of socio-economic, health and demographic (population, life expectancy, migration, mortality) factors and resources of the service (primarily, manpower) on the dynamics of the main indicators (prevalence, incidence) of mental health of the population. In recent years, a decline in the prevalence and incidence of the Russian population is a consequence of the scarcity of mental health services, in particular, personnel resources.

Effects of socio-economic and behavioural factors on childhood malnutrition in Yemen.

PubMed

Sunil, T S

2009-07-01

This study examined the effects of socio-economic and behavioural factors on childhood malnutrition in Yemen. The three anthropometric indicators such as height-for-age, weight-for-height and weight-for-age are used to examine the nutritional status of children aged less 5 years in Yemen. The independent variables include background characteristics, behavioural risk factors and illness characteristics. Data for the study come the most recent Yemen Demographic and Health Survey, a nationally representative sample, conducted in Yemen in 1997. Logistic regression analysis is used to estimate the odds of being malnourished. The three anthropometric indicators show high to very high levels of child malnutrition in Yemen. The prevalence of stunting and underweight is so widespread that almost every other child under the age of 5 is either stunted or underweight. Social, economic and behavioural factors show very significant association with childhood malnutrition. The study results indicate the importance of social and behavioural factors in describing childhood malnutrition in Yemen. The study results will help develop nutritional and health promotion policies in order to improve childhood malnutrition in this country.

Perceived Income Adequacy Among Older Adults in 12 Countries: Findings From the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe

PubMed Central

Litwin, Howard; Sapir, Eliyahu V.

2009-01-01

Purpose: To validate a survey research measure of subjective income, as measured by perceived income adequacy, in an international context. Design and Methods: The study population comprised persons aged 50 years and older in 12 countries from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (n = 28,939). Perceived difficulty in making ends meet was regressed on sociodemographic variables, economic indicators, health status measures, and expectations regarding one's financial future. Country differences were also controlled. Results: The findings confirm a multidimensional explanation of perceived income adequacy but also point to the primacy of objective economic indicators in predicting household financial distress. Respondents aged 80 years and older report less financial difficulty. Poor health status and pessimistic financial expectations also predict greater household financial distress but to a lesser degree. Implications: Self-rated economic status is a robust indicator of financial capacity in older age and can be used by practitioners to gain meaningful information. However, practitioners should keep in mind that the oldest-old may underestimate financial difficulties. PMID:19386829

Better or Worse Off? Anchorage Households in 1988.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frazier, Rosyland; Leask, Linda

1989-01-01

This journal issue reports the results of a survey of Anchorage residents' own assessments of how they were doing economically in October 1988. A total of 407 randomly selected households were called and asked about finances, employment, plans to move, interest in buying homes, housing costs, and other economic indicators. Results were compared…

The economic potential of CT scanners for hardwood sawmills

Treesearch

Donald G. Hodges; Walter C. Anderson; Charles W. McMillin

1990-01-01

Research has demonstrated that a knowledge of internal log defects prior to sawing could improve lumber value yields significantly. This study evaluated the potential economic returns from investments in computerized tomographic (CT) scanners to detect internal defects in hardwood logs at southern sawmills. The results indicate that such investments would be profitable...

Statistical analysis of large wildfires

Treesearch

Thomas P. Holmes; Robert J. Jr. Huggett; Anthony L. Westerling

2008-01-01

Large, infrequent wildfires cause dramatic ecological and economic impacts. Consequently, they deserve special attention and analysis. The economic significance of large fires is indicated by the fact that approximately 94 percent of fire suppression costs on U.S. Forest Service land during the period 1980-2002 resulted from a mere 1.4 percent of the fires (Strategic...

Schooling Achievement among Rural Zimbabwean Children during a Period of Economic Turmoil

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Larochelle, Catherine; Alwang, Jeffrey; Taruvinga, Nelson

2016-01-01

Zimbabwe suffered severe economic crisis in the decade before 2009, and anecdotal evidence indicates that public education suffered due to uncertainty about salary payments and inflation. As the country recovers, it is important to understand how this crisis affected schooling participation before and during the crisis. This study focuses on the…

The Impact of Economic Crisis on Happiness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gudmundsdottir, Dora Gudrun

2013-01-01

There is a common belief that economic crisis will lead to a decrease in subjective wellbeing. Previous studies indicate that income is correlated with happiness and unemployment with unhappiness. The relationship between increased income and happiness is well documented while the impact of decreased income has been less explored. The aim of this…

Rural America at a Glance. Rural Development Research Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Economic Research Service (USDA), Washington, DC.

This report highlights the most recent indicators of social and economic conditions in rural areas for use in developing rural policies and programs. The economic expansion of the 1990s greatly benefited rural economies. Rural areas attracted both urban residents and immigrants. Hispanics accounted for over 25 percent of nonmetropolitan population…

The Role of Personality Temperament and Student Learning in Principles of Economics: Further Evidence.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ziegert, Andrea L.

2000-01-01

Explores the relationship between student personality types and measures of student performance in principles of microeconomics using the Keirsey Sorter, a 70-question Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI); results from the Test of Understanding of College Economics (TUCE); and course grades. Suggests that personality types do affect student…

Institutional Domination in the Economics Profession: The Case of Textbook Writers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bungum, John L.

1980-01-01

Examines educational backgrounds of authors of 87 international economics textbooks published from 1945 to 1974. About 80 percent of the authors received graduate training at American universities; all but one held a doctoral degree. Those trained at Harvard or Columbia comprised 38 percent of the total, an indication of institutional domination…

The Cost-Income Compenent of Program Evaluation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miner, Norris

Cost-income studies are designed to serve two functions in instructional program evaluation. First, they act as the indicator of the economic value of a program. This economic value in conjunction with the other educational values needed in program evaluation allow for the most realistic appraisal of program worth. Second, if the studies show a…

An Institutional Model of Organizational Practice: Financial Reporting at the Fortune 200.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mezias, Stephen J.

1990-01-01

Compares applied economic models and an institutional model in an empirical study of financial reporting practice at the Fortune 200 between 1962 and 1984. Findings indicate that the institutional model adds significant explanatory power over and above the models currently dominating the applied economics literature. Includes 47 references. (MLH)

The Relationship between Socio-Economic Status and Lexical Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Black, Esther; Peppe, Sue; Gibbon, Fiona

2008-01-01

The British Picture Vocabulary Scale, second edition (BPVS-II), a measure of receptive vocabulary, is widely used by speech and language therapists and researchers into speech and language disorders, as an indicator of language delay, but it has frequently been suggested that receptive vocabulary may be more associated with socio-economic status.…

Response to alternative genetic-economic indices for Holsteins across 2 generations

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Four U.S. genetic-economic indexes for dairy cattle were retrofitted to demonstrate the progress that could have been made for currently evaluated traits if selection had been based on those indexes across 2 generations. Holstein AI bulls (106,471) were categorized by quintile for each index, and 25...

Scientific and Technical Information in Canada, Part II, Chapter 7: Economics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Science Council of Canada, Ottawa (Ontario).

In this report the various economic indicators of the extent and value of scientific and technical information transfer in Canada in government, industry, and education are described and expressed in quantitative terms derived from available statistical figures. The main thesis of the report is that the transfer of scientific and technical…

Patterns of Economic Attainment of Foreign-Born Male Workers in the United States.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Poston, Dudley L., Jr.

1994-01-01

Examines economic-attainment patterns of foreign-born male workers in the U.S. in 1980 to determine the influence of individual-level factors such as educational attainment, labor market experience, etc. Results indicate that, although microlevel characteristics are not complete answers, they are important for most foreign-born populations in…

Landscape assessment of a stable aspen community in southern Utah, USA

Treesearch

Paul C. Rogers; A. Joshua Leffler; Ronald J. Ryel

2010-01-01

Recent reports of rapid die-off of aspen (Populus tremuloides), coupled with vigorous debate over longterm reduction of aspen cover in western North America, has prompted considerable research given the importance of this forest type for economic and non-economic interests. Despite this interest, indicators of aspen conditions are...

Economic Indicators of the Farm Sector. Costs of Production, 1985.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Economic Research Service (USDA), Washington, DC.

This report presents the Economic Research Service's estimates of the costs of producing wheat, feed grains, cotton, and dairy commodities. It includes costs for other farm products that compete with the required commodities, namely rice, peanuts, soybeans, flax, sunflowers, fed cattle, hogs, sheep, and sugar. The report begins by assessing costs…

Incorporating Values in a Bottom-Line Ecological Economy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Daly, Herman E.

2009-01-01

The search for a social goodness function in economic systems is reviewed, especially in light of the fact that the economy is a subsystem of a biosphere that has its own rules for determining success, or at least for limiting feasibility. The frequent perversity of reductionist quantitative success indicators in economics (profit, quotas, GDP) is…

The economic importance of Vermont's sawtimber

Treesearch

Joseph A. Michaels; M. Brian Stone; Paul E. Sendak; Paul E. Sendak

1986-01-01

This paper concentrates on the potential economic importance of Vermont's sawtimber. The timber industry employed over 9,000 workers in 1980, and the value of stumpage cut that year was worth approximately $459 million to the State's economy. Preliminary resurvey data indicate that sawtimber inventory now exceeds 14 billion board feet. Yet, sawtimber removals...

Trends in economic scarcity of U.S. timber commodities

Treesearch

K. E. Skog; C. D. Risbrudt

Prompted by continuing concern that timber-based commodities are becoming increasingly scarce, this paper presents information on changes in real prices (prices deflated by the general producer price index) of timber commodities as potential indicators of economic scarcity. Data updating previous studies are shown for sawlog stumpage, delivered sawlogs, and lumber;...

Phenomenological Characteristics, Social Problems, and the Economic Impact Associated with Chronic Skin Picking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flessner, Christopher A.; Woods, Douglas W.

2006-01-01

In this study, the authors collected data on the demographic characteristics, phenomenology, and social and economic impact of skin picking. A total of 92 participants completed an anonymous, Internet-based survey through a link to the Trichotillomania Learning Center's home page. Results indicated that skin pickers experienced social,…

The Role of Vocational Education in Economic Development in Malaysia: Educators' and Employers' Perspectives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mustapha, Ramlee B.; Greenan, James P.

2002-01-01

Responses from 276 of 300 vocational educators and 53 of 120 employers in Malaysia indicated that both groups believed vocational education contributes to economic development and vocational graduates had good technical skills but needed better employability skills. They wanted more government collaboration with the private sector. (Contains 26…

Extracts from: Analysis of Selected Economic Factors Influencing Franco-Albertan Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liguori, George T.

1978-01-01

An examination of selected economic factors most likely to influence the income level of Francophones in Alberta. It focuses on occupation, education level, sex, geographical areas, income and source of income. Evidence indicates that educational level and slow rate of urbanization are major obstacles to more equitable distribution of wealth. (AMH)

An Economic Wellbeing Index for the Spanish Provinces: A Data Envelopment Analysis Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murias, Pilar; Martinez, Fidel; De Miguel, Carlos

2006-01-01

This article presents the estimation of a synthetic economic wellbeing index using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The DEA is a multidimensional technique that has its origins in efficiency analysis, but its usage within the social indicators context is particularly appropriate. It allows the researcher to take advantage of the inherent…

78 FR 22202 - Marketing Order Regulating the Handling of Spearmint Oil Produced in the Far West; Salable...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-04-15

... avoiding extreme fluctuations in supplies and prices to help maintain stability in the spearmint oil market... experiencing higher than average returns. Lastly, improving global economic conditions have led to increased... improving economic indicators for the Far West Scotch spearmint oil industry outlined above, the Committee...

Economic impacts of hurricanes on forest owners

Treesearch

Jeffrey P. Prestemon; Thomas P. Holmes

2010-01-01

We present a conceptual model of the economic impacts of hurricanes on timber producers and consumers, offer a framework indicating how welfare impacts can be estimated using econometric estimates of timber price dynamics, and illustrate the advantages of using a welfare theoretic model, which includes (1) welfare estimates that are consistent with neo-classical...

Education in Thailand: When Economic Growth Is No Longer Enough

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Michel, Sandrine

2015-01-01

After fifty years of almost continuous economic growth in Thailand, it is now possible to reevaluate the developmental process of the education system. Until now, the structural indicators of education development that have been mainly used are the level and pace of the increases in public expenditure on education, the effect of increasing…

The State of the South, 2002: Shadows in the Sunbelt Revisited.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MDC, Inc., Chapel Hill, NC.

This report assesses conditions in the South since the original 1986 report "Shadows in the Sunbelt." Findings indicate that economic change is moving even more rapidly than in 1986. However, although several metropolitan areas have burgeoned and some rural communities have made a successful economic transition, many Southern places…

Black Women, Crime and Crime Prevention.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Elsie L.

Several factors indicate that there is a relationship between economic conditions and crime among black women. Crime statistics show that outside of the misdemeanors of drunkenness and disorderly conduct, black women tend to be arrested for larceny and prostitution, both economic crimes. The fact that black women are at the bottom of the economic…

Techno-economic and uncertainty analysis of in situ and ex situ fast pyrolysis for biofuel production

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Boyan; Ou, Longwen; Dang, Qi

This study evaluates the techno-economic uncertainty in cost estimates for two emerging biorefinery technologies for biofuel production: in situ and ex situ catalytic pyrolysis. Stochastic simulations based on process and economic parameter distributions are applied to calculate biorefinery performance and production costs. The probability distributions for the minimum fuel-selling price (MFSP) indicate that in situ catalytic pyrolysis has an expected MFSP of $4.20 per gallon with a standard deviation of 1.15, while the ex situ catalytic pyrolysis has a similar MFSP with a smaller deviation ($4.27 per gallon and 0.79 respectively). These results suggest that a biorefinery based on exmore » situ catalytic pyrolysis could have a lower techno-economic risk than in situ pyrolysis despite a slightly higher MFSP cost estimate. Analysis of how each parameter affects the NPV indicates that internal rate of return, feedstock price, total project investment, electricity price, biochar yield and bio-oil yield are significant parameters which have substantial impact on the MFSP for both in situ and ex situ catalytic pyrolysis.« less

Limiting pumping from the Edwards Aquifer: An economic investigation of proposals, water markets, and spring flow guarantees

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCarl, Bruce A.; Dillon, Carl R.; Keplinger, Keith O.; Williams, R. Lynn

1999-04-01

The Edwards Aquifer, near San Antonio, Texas, is an important water source for both pumping and spring flow, which in turn provides water for recreation and habitat for several endangered species. A management authority is charged with aquifer management and is mandated to reduce pumping, facilitate water markets, protect agricultural rights, and protect the species habitat. This paper examines the economic dimensions of authority duties. A combined hydrologic-economic model is used in the investigation. The results indicate that proposed pumping limits are shown to have large consequences for agricultural usage and to decrease the welfare of current aquifer pumping users. However, the spring flow habitat is found to be protected, and the gains from that protection would have to exceed pumping user losses in order for the protection measures to increase regional economic welfare. Agricultural guarantees are shown to cause use value differences, indicating the opportunity for emergence of an active water market. Fixed quantity pumping limits are found to be an expensive way of insuring adequate spring flow.

Analysis of inter-country input-output table based on bibliographic coupling network: How industrial sectors on the GVC compete for production resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guan, Jun; Xu, Xiaoyu; Xing, Lizhi

2018-03-01

The input-output table is comprehensive and detailed in describing national economic systems with abundance of economic relationships depicting information of supply and demand among industrial sectors. This paper focuses on how to quantify the degree of competition on the global value chain (GVC) from the perspective of econophysics. Global Industrial Strongest Relevant Network models are established by extracting the strongest and most immediate industrial relevance in the global economic system with inter-country input-output (ICIO) tables and then have them transformed into Global Industrial Resource Competition Network models to analyze the competitive relationships based on bibliographic coupling approach. Three indicators well suited for the weighted and undirected networks with self-loops are introduced here, including unit weight for competitive power, disparity in the weight for competitive amplitude and weighted clustering coefficient for competitive intensity. Finally, these models and indicators were further applied empirically to analyze the function of industrial sectors on the basis of the latest World Input-Output Database (WIOD) in order to reveal inter-sector competitive status during the economic globalization.

Environmental and economic performance of plasma gasification in Enhanced Landfill Mining.

PubMed

Danthurebandara, Maheshi; Van Passel, Steven; Vanderreydt, Ive; Van Acker, Karel

2015-11-01

This paper describes an environmental and economic assessment of plasma gasification, one of the viable candidates for the valorisation of refuse derived fuel from Enhanced Landfill Mining. The study is based on life cycle assessment and life cycle costing. Plasma gasification is benchmarked against conventional incineration, and the study indicates that the process could have significant impact on climate change, human toxicity, particulate matter formation, metal depletion and fossil depletion. Flue gas emission, oxygen usage and disposal of residues (plasmastone) are the major environmental burdens, while electricity production and metal recovery represent the major benefits. Reductions in burdens and improvements in benefits are found when the plasmastone is valorised in building materials instead of landfilling. The study indicates that the overall environmental performance of plasma gasification is better than incineration. The study confirms a trade-off between the environmental and economic performance of the discussed scenarios. Net electrical efficiency and investment cost of the plasma gasification process and the selling price of the products are the major economic drivers. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bioeconomic model and selection indices in Aberdeen Angus cattle.

PubMed

Campos, G S; Braccini Neto, J; Oaigen, R P; Cardoso, F F; Cobuci, J A; Kern, E L; Campos, L T; Bertoli, C D; McManus, C M

2014-08-01

A bioeconomic model was developed to calculate economic values for biological traits in full-cycle production systems and propose selection indices based on selection criteria used in the Brazilian Aberdeen Angus genetic breeding programme (PROMEBO). To assess the impact of changes in the performance of the traits on the profit of the production system, the initial values ​​of the traits were increased by 1%. The economic values for number of calves weaned (NCW) and slaughter weight (SW) were, respectively, R$ 6.65 and R$ 1.43/cow/year. The selection index at weaning showed a 44.77% emphasis on body weight, 14.24% for conformation, 30.36% for early maturing and 10.63% for muscle development. The eighteen-month index showed emphasis of 77.61% for body weight, 4.99% for conformation, 11.09% for early maturing, 6.10% for muscle development and 0.22% for scrotal circumference. NCW showed highest economic impact, and SW had important positive effect on the economics of the production system. The selection index proposed can be used by breeders and should contribute to greater profitability. © 2014 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

The influence of family context on life, educational and occupational ideal among middle school students in China.

PubMed

Yao, Benxian; Zhang, Ling; Zhen, Rui; Zhou, Xiao

2016-06-01

This study examined the relationship between family context of middle school students on their educational and occupational ideals. Middle school students (N = 2000) responded to questions assessing family location, family structure, parental educational level and family economic status, as well as to the Middle School Students' Ideals Questionnaire. Multivariate analysis of variance indicated that life, educational and occupational ideals of female students and students in lower grades were higher than that of male students and students in higher grades. Regression analysis indicated that paternal education level have a positive association with educational and occupational ideals, but not life ideals, and family economic status have a positive relation to life ideals, but not educational and occupational ideals. Moreover, the interaction between family economic status and family location has a negative association with students' life, educational and occupational ideals. These results suggest that different factors predicted different ideals of adolescents, and that family economic status had a negative moderating effect on the relationship between family location and ideals of students. © 2015 International Union of Psychological Science.

The Society-Deciders Model and Fairness in Nations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flomenbom, Ophir

2015-05-01

Modeling the dynamics in nations from economical and sociological perspectives is a central theme in economics and sociology. Accurate models can predict and therefore help all the world's citizens. Yet, recent years have show that the current models are missing. Here, we develop a dynamical society-deciders model that can explain the stability in a nation, based on concepts from dynamics, ecology and socio-econo-physics; a nation has two groups that interconnect, the deciders and the society. We show that a nation is either stable or it collapses. This depends on just two coefficients that we relate with sociological and economical indicators. We define a new socio-economic indicator, fairness. Fairness can measure the stability in a nation and how probable a change favoring the society is. We compute fairness among all the world's nations. Interestingly, in comparison with other indicators, fairness shows that the USA loses its rank among Western democracies, India is the best among the 15 most populated nations, and Egypt, Libya and Tunisia have significantly improved their rankings as a result of recent revolutions, further increasing the probability of additional positive changes. Within the model, long lasting crises are solved rather than with increasing governmental spending or cuts with regulations that reduce the stability of the deciders, namely, increasing fairness, while, for example, shifting wealth in the direction of the people, and therefore increasing further opportunities.

On the Study of Pre-Pregnancy Body Mass Index (BMI) and Weight Gain as Indicators of Nutritional Status of Pregnant Women Belonging to Low Socio-Economic Category: A Study from Assam.

PubMed

Mahanta, Lipi B; Choudhury, Manisha; Devi, Arundhuti; Bhattacharya, Arunima

2015-01-01

Women, particularly pregnant women, are the most vulnerable population of the society and their health status is one of the major indicators of development. There were enough studies on pre pregnancy body mass index (IPBMI) and inadequate weight gain during pregnancy (IWGP) of women in other part of the world and India, but none in Assam. In Assam a large number of population are in the category of low socio-economic group, a group most vulnerable to under nutrition. Thus this study was framed with the said indicators to throw light on the factors affecting the health status of pregnant women to accordingly address the situation. A cross sectional study using multistage sampling design with probability proportional to size was made comprising of 461 pregnant women belonging to low socio-economic status. Responses regarding their socio-economic, socio-cultural, health, diet and environmental background were collected and coded. The study revealed that although IPBMI (34.06%) was slightly lower than the reported state, national and global percentage the revealed IWGP (82%) was an astounding figure. The blood samples analyzed showed a high degree of inadequacy in almost all micronutrients (iron 63.1%, calcium 49.5% and copper 39.9%) studied in our survey.

The importance of economic, social and cultural capital in understanding health inequalities: using a Bourdieu-based approach in research on physical and mental health perceptions.

PubMed

Pinxten, Wouter; Lievens, John

2014-09-01

In this article we adopt a Bourdieu-based approach to study social inequalities in perceptions of mental and physical health. Most research takes into account the impact of economic or social capital on health inequalities. Bourdieu, however, distinguishes between three forms of capital that can determine peoples' social position: economic, social and cultural capital. Health research examining the effects of cultural capital is scarce. By simultaneously considering and modelling indicators of each of Bourdieu's forms of capital, we further the understanding of the dynamics of health inequalities. Using data from a large-scale representative survey (N = 1825) in Flanders, Belgium, we find that each of the forms of capital has a net effect on perceptions of physical and mental health, which persists after controlling for the other forms of capital and for the effects of other correlates of perceived health. The only exception is that the cultural capital indicators are not related to mental health. These results confirm the value of a Bourdieu-based approach and indicate the need to consider economic, social and cultural capital to obtain a better understanding of social inequality in health. © 2014 The Authors. Sociology of Health & Illness © 2014 Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness/John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

European health inequality through the 'Great Recession': social policy matters.

PubMed

van der Wel, Kjetil A; Saltkjel, Therese; Chen, Wen-Hao; Dahl, Espen; Halvorsen, Knut

2018-05-01

This paper investigates the association between the Great Recession and educational inequalities in self-rated general health in 25 European countries. We investigate four different indicators related to economic recession: GDP; unemployment; austerity and a 'crisis' indicator signifying severe simultaneous drops in GDP and welfare generosity. We also assess the extent to which health inequality changes can be attributed to changes in the economic conditions and social capital in the European populations. The paper uses data from the European Social Survey (2002-2014). The analyses include both cross-sectional and lagged associations using multilevel linear regression models with country fixed effects. This approach allows us to identify health inequality changes net of all time-invariant differences between countries. GDP drops and increasing unemployment were associated with decreasing health inequalities. Austerity, however, was related to increasing health inequalities, an association that grew stronger with time. The strongest increase in health inequality was found for the more robust 'crisis' indicator. Changes in trust, social relationships and in the experience of economic hardship of the populations accounted for much of the increase in health inequality. The paper concludes that social policy has an important role in the development of health inequalities, particularly during times of economic crisis. © 2018 The Authors. Sociology of Health & Illness published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Foundation for SHIL.

Socio-economic differences in self-esteem of adolescents influenced by personality, mental health and social support.

PubMed

Veselska, Zuzana; Madarasova Geckova, Andrea; Gajdosova, Beata; Orosova, Olga; van Dijk, Jitse P; Reijneveld, Sijmen A

2010-12-01

Previous studies indicate that self-esteem is lower among adolescents of low socio-economic status and is associated with a number of intrapersonal, interpersonal and socio-cultural factors. Evidence on the mechanisms by which these factors contribute to the connection between socio-economic status and developing self-esteem is incomplete, however. The purpose of this cross-sectional study is to assess whether personality, mental health and social support contribute to the relationship between socio-economic status and self-esteem. A sample of 3694 elementary-school students from Slovakia (mean age = 14.3 years, 49% boys) filled out the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, the Family Affluence Scale, the Ten-Item Personality Inventory, the 12-item General Health Questionnaire and the Perceived Social Support Scale. Hierarchical linear regression showed family affluence, personality dimensions of extroversion, emotional stability and openness to experience, as well as mental health subscales and social support from family and significant others to be associated with self-esteem. Results indicate that personality dimensions and mental health subscales contribute to the association between family affluence and self-esteem. The contribution of personality and mental problems in the relation between socio-economic status and self-esteem may have important implications for the design of promotional programs aimed at enhancing self-esteem.

Analysis of caries status development in relation to socio-economic variables using a case-based system.

PubMed

Swedberg, Y; Norén, J G

2001-01-01

The aim of this study was to detect, using case-based reasoning (CBR) induction methods in time series analysis, how measurable socio-economical adjustments were related to the caries status development. The study concerned the year classes leaving the organised dental care for the time period 1987-95, and had received dental care at the Public Dental Service of Göteborg. The results, as presented by a caries incidence index, indicated that at least one socioeconomical factor, individuals seeking employment, was of importance for the caries status development, a factor with an increase of considerable proportions since 1990. The findings indicated that the other socio-economic variables used did not have the same importance for the caries status development. One feasible explanation is that these factors reflect more upon the social family situation than the economical. If the caries status reflects the social situation of the individual more than the economical, this argument will elucidate the reasoning. Using CBR for the analysis of relationships between oral disease and parameters possibly influencing health development has proven to be a valuable tool and complement to more traditional statistical methods. The analysis can make relationships explicit through the hierarchic knowledge trees and also show redundant information, attributes not appearing in the trees.

Economics of United States tuberculosis airline contact investigation policies: a return on investment analysis.

PubMed

Coleman, Margaret S; Marienau, Karen J; Marano, Nina; Marks, Suzanne M; Cetron, Martin S

2014-01-01

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention modified its 2008 protocol for flight-related tuberculosis contact investigation initiation. The 2011 Modified protocol was implemented and replaced the 2008 CDC protocol based on comparative epidemiologic and economic analyses; this publication reports the economic analysis results. A return on investment model compared relative changes in tuberculosis disease treatment costs resulting from expenditures on tuberculosis contact investigations and latent tuberculosis infection treatment for the 2008 CDC and Modified protocols. At moderate/high rates of latent tuberculosis infection and tuberculosis disease, positive returns on investment indicated each $1.00 spent on tuberculosis contact investigations and latent tuberculosis treatment resulted in more than $1.00 of savings from reduced tuberculosis disease treatment costs. Low rates of latent tuberculosis infection and tuberculosis disease resulted in negative returns on investment, indicating economic losses from tuberculosis disease treatment costs. There were smaller economic losses at low latent tuberculosis infection and tuberculosis disease rates with the Modified protocol in comparison to the 2008 CDC protocol, while both identified comparable numbers of persons at risk for tuberculosis. The Modified protocol for conducting flight-related tuberculosis contact investigations represents a better use of resources and protects public health. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Integrating indigenous livelihood and lifestyle objectives in managing a natural resource

PubMed Central

Plagányi, Éva Elizabeth; van Putten, Ingrid; Hutton, Trevor; Deng, Roy A.; Dennis, Darren; Pascoe, Sean; Skewes, Tim; Campbell, Robert A.

2013-01-01

Evaluating the success of natural resource management approaches requires methods to measure performance against biological, economic, social, and governance objectives. In fisheries, most research has focused on industrial sectors, with the contributions to global resource use by small-scale and indigenous hunters and fishers undervalued. Globally, the small-scale fisheries sector alone employs some 38 million people who share common challenges in balancing livelihood and lifestyle choices. We used as a case study a fishery with both traditional indigenous and commercial sectors to develop a framework to bridge the gap between quantitative bio-economic models and more qualitative social analyses. For many indigenous communities, communalism rather than capitalism underlies fishers’ perspectives and aspirations, and we find there are complicated and often unanticipated trade-offs between economic and social objectives. Our results highlight that market-based management options might score highly in a capitalistic society, but have negative repercussions on community coherence and equity in societies with a strong communal ethic. There are complex trade-offs between economic indicators, such as profit, and social indicators, such as lifestyle preferences. Our approach makes explicit the “triple bottom line” sustainability objectives involving trade-offs between economic, social, and biological performance, and is thus directly applicable to most natural resource management decision-making situations. PMID:23401546

Economics of United States tuberculosis airline contact investigation policies: A return on investment analysis

PubMed Central

Coleman, Margaret S.; Marienau, Karen J.; Marano, Nina; Marks, Suzanne M.; Cetron, Martin S.

2017-01-01

Summary Background In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention modified its 2008 protocol for flight-related tuberculosis contact investigation initiation. The 2011 Modified protocol was implemented and replaced the 2008 CDC protocol based on comparative epidemiologic and economic analyses; this publication reports the economic analysis results. Methods A return on investment model compared relative changes in tuberculosis disease treatment costs resulting from expenditures on tuberculosis contact investigations and latent tuberculosis infection treatment for the 2008 CDC and Modified protocols. Results At moderate/high rates of latent tuberculosis infection and tuberculosis disease, positive returns on investment indicated each $1.00 spent on tuberculosis contact investigations and latent tuberculosis treatment resulted in more than $1.00 of savings from reduced tuberculosis disease treatment costs. Low rates of latent tuberculosis infection and tuberculosis disease resulted in negative returns on investment, indicating economic losses from tuberculosis disease treatment costs. There were smaller economic losses at low latent tuberculosis infection and tuberculosis disease rates with the Modified protocol in comparison to the 2008 CDC protocol, while both identified comparable numbers of persons at risk for tuberculosis. Conclusion The Modified protocol for conducting flight-related tuberculosis contact investigations represents a better use of resources and protects public health. PMID:24262643

Integrating indigenous livelihood and lifestyle objectives in managing a natural resource.

PubMed

Plagányi, Éva Elizabeth; van Putten, Ingrid; Hutton, Trevor; Deng, Roy A; Dennis, Darren; Pascoe, Sean; Skewes, Tim; Campbell, Robert A

2013-02-26

Evaluating the success of natural resource management approaches requires methods to measure performance against biological, economic, social, and governance objectives. In fisheries, most research has focused on industrial sectors, with the contributions to global resource use by small-scale and indigenous hunters and fishers undervalued. Globally, the small-scale fisheries sector alone employs some 38 million people who share common challenges in balancing livelihood and lifestyle choices. We used as a case study a fishery with both traditional indigenous and commercial sectors to develop a framework to bridge the gap between quantitative bio-economic models and more qualitative social analyses. For many indigenous communities, communalism rather than capitalism underlies fishers' perspectives and aspirations, and we find there are complicated and often unanticipated trade-offs between economic and social objectives. Our results highlight that market-based management options might score highly in a capitalistic society, but have negative repercussions on community coherence and equity in societies with a strong communal ethic. There are complex trade-offs between economic indicators, such as profit, and social indicators, such as lifestyle preferences. Our approach makes explicit the "triple bottom line" sustainability objectives involving trade-offs between economic, social, and biological performance, and is thus directly applicable to most natural resource management decision-making situations.

Indicators: Wetland Vegetation (Introduced Species)

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Introduced plants are indicators of the ecological integrity of waters and evidence of increased human-caused disturbance in the watershed. Introduced species that cause economic or environmental harm, or harm to human health, are called invasive species.

An analysis of leading, lagging, and coincident economic indicators in the United States and its relationship to the volume of plastic surgery procedures performed: an update for 2012.

PubMed

Paik, Angie M; Hoppe, Ian C; Pastor, Craig J

2013-09-01

As physician compensation and reimbursement tightens throughout the United States, it is important for physicians to be aware of the influence that the economic environment has on the unique medical field of plastic and reconstructive surgery. This study will attempt to determine a relationship between the volume of different plastic surgical procedures and various economic indicators. Information from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons' annual reports on plastic surgery statistics available on the Internet (http://www.plasticsurgery.org/Media/Statistics.html) was collected from the years 2000 through 2011. Yearly economic indicators were collected from readily available Web sites. In terms of the total number of plastic surgery procedures performed, there was a significant positive relationship with GDP, GDP per capita, personal income, consumer price index (CPI) (all), and CPI (medical), and a significant negative relationship with the issuance of new home permits. There was a significant positive relationship with total cosmetic procedures and GDP, GDP per capita, personal income, CPI (all), and CPI (medical), and a significant negative relationship with the issuance of new home permits. There was a significant positive relationship between cosmetic surgical procedures and the issuance of new home permits and the average prime rate charged by banks. There was a significant positive relationship with cosmetic minimally invasive procedures and GDP, GDP per capita, personal income, CPI (all), and CPI (medical), and a significant negative relationship with the issuance of new home permits. There was a significant negative relationship between reconstructive procedures and GDP, GDP per capita, personal income, CPI (all), and CPI (medical). Cosmetic minimally invasive procedures involve less downtime, are generally less expensive than surgical options, and are widely available, making it easier for patients to decide on them quickly during good economic times. Furthermore, it is apparent that plastic surgeons must be proficient at performing minimally invasive cosmetic procedures to maintain a clientele and offer patients a more affordable option during tough economic times. This may lead to further business growth during more favorable economic times.

Are differential consumption patterns in health-related behaviours an explanation for persistent and widening social inequalities in health in England?

PubMed

Stait, Emma; Calnan, Michael

2016-10-18

During the last two decades, differential consumption patterns in health-related behaviours have increasingly been highlighted as playing an important role in explaining persistent and widening health inequalities. This period has also seen government public health policies in England place a greater emphasis on changing 'lifestyle' behaviours, in an attempt to tackle social inequalities in health. The aim of this study was to empirically examine the variation in health-related behaviour in relation to socio-economic position, in the English adult population, to determine the nature of this relationship and whether it has changed over time. The study population was derived from the Health Survey for England between 2001 and 2012 (n = 56,468). The relationships between health-related behaviour (smoking, fruit and vegetable intake, alcohol consumption and physical activity) and three socioeconomic indicators (educational level, occupational social class and equivilised household income) were analysed using log bi-nomial regression. The study found that each of the three socio-economic indicators were statistically related to smoking, fruit and vegetable consumption and alcohol intake, with the strongest relationship found for smoking. For physical activity, no relationship was found in 2003 by education or income and in 2008 by occupation. Statistical analysis showed that the difference between those at the highest and lowest end of the socio-economic indicators had widened in relation to smoking, as measured by educational level, occupation and household income. A similar trend was also found for physical activity as measured by educational level and household income. However, for fruit and vegetable intake and alcohol consumption, the relationship between health-related behaviour and socio-economic position had narrowed over time as measured by education and income. The findings provided only partial support for the thesis that socio-economic variations in health-related behaviours may be significant in explaining widening health inequalities. The significance of socio-economic variations in health-related behaviours might reflect both materialist and cultural explanations for socio-economic inequalities although it was not possible to separate and estimate the relative importance of these effects.

Economic accounting of water: The Botswana experience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Setlhogile, T.; Arntzen, J.; Pule, O. B.

2017-08-01

Water accounts aim to capture the value of water resources and their use within the economy. The accounts complement the National Accounts as the latter's main indicator (GDP) does not reflect changes in natural capital. Botswana developed water accounts for the period 2010/11-2014/15 using the UN's standard System of Environmental Economic Accounting for water (SEEA-water). The article focuses both on the construction of physical flow accounts as well as on the policy implications for development planning and water resource management through the use of policy indicators. It also shows long-term trends in water abstraction and water use efficiency linking the SEEA water accounts with results of earlier (non-SEEA) water accounting projects in Botswana. The water accounts results show that water abstraction and consumption have been largely stable since 2010/11 despite population (1.9% p.a.) and economic growth (around 5% p.a.) likely due to a combination of water sector reforms and drought conditions in south eastern Botswana; the latter led to the drying up of several dams and the imposition of severe water restrictions. While public attention focuses mostly on water service providers, self-providers (mines and the agricultural sector) account for more than 50% of total water abstracted from the environment of water, demonstrating the need to pay more attention to self-providers in IWRM implementation. Water consumption is highest for the agricultural sector (70.2 Mm3) followed by households and mines at 41.2 and 39 Mm3 respectively in 2014/15. In terms of water use efficiency, value added per m3 has increased in time, showing (some) decoupling of water consumption and economic growth. This positive trend needs to be enhanced in the pursuit of economic diversification, which should focus on growth of water-efficient economic sectors. Finally, per capita water consumption has decreased over time; while this may indicate that people conserve water, it may also point at delivery problems associated with water sector reforms. This requires further analysis.

An economic analysis of the electricity generation potential from biogas resources in the state of Indiana

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giraldo, Juan S.

Anaerobic digestion is a process that is a common part of organic waste management systems and is used in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), and municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills. The process produces biogas, which contains methane, and it can be burned to generate electricity. Previous reports have indicated that based on the availability of feedstocks there is a large potential for biogas production and use for electricity generation in the state of Indiana. However, these reports varied in their consideration of important factors that affect the technical and economic feasibility of being able to develop the resources available. The goal of this thesis is to make a more targeted assessment of the electricity generation potential from biogas resources at CAFOs, WWTPs, and MSW landfills in Indiana. A capital budgeting model is used to estimate the net present value (NPV) of biogas electricity projects at facilities that are identified as technically suitable. A statewide estimate of the potential generation capacity is made by estimating the number of facilities that could profitably undertake a biogas electricity project. In addition this thesis explored the impact that different incentive policies would have on the economic viability of these projects. The results indicated that the electricity generation potential is much smaller when technical and economic factors are taken into account in addition to feedstock availability. In particular it was found that projects at hog farms are unlikely to be economically feasible in the present even when financial incentives are considered. In total, 47.94 MW of potential generating capacity is estimated from biogas production at CAFOs, WWTPs, and MSW landfills. Though results indicated that 37.10 MW of capacity are economically feasible under current operating conditions, sensitivity analysis reveals that these projects are very sensitive to capital cost assumptions and incentives are likely needed to encourage investment.

EAO consensus conference: economic evaluation of implant-supported prostheses.

PubMed

Beikler, Thomas; Flemmig, Thomas F

2015-09-01

There are various alternatives for the management of oral conditions that may lead to or already have lead to partial or full edentulism. Economic evaluations measure the efficiency of alternative healthcare interventions and provide useful information for decision-making and the allocation of scarce resources. The current English literature dealing with "cost-effectiveness" of dental implant therapy versus different alternative treatment modalities, that is, complete and fixed partial dentures, root canal, and periodontal treatment, has been included in this narrative review. Due to the high heterogeneity within the literature, a meta-analysis could not be conducted. The available evidence from economic evaluations indicated that for the treatment of central incisors with irreversible pulpitis and coronal lesions, root canal treatments were most cost-effective initial treatment options. When initial root canal treatments failed, orthograde retreatments were most cost-effective. When root canal retreatments failed, extractions and replacement with single implant-supported crowns were more cost-effective compared to fixed or removable partial dentures. In the treatment of periodontitis in molars with Class I furcation invasion, non-surgical periodontal therapy was more effective and costed less than implant-supported single crowns. For the replacement of single missing teeth, two evaluations indicated that implant-supported single crowns provided better outcomes in terms of greater quality-adjusted tooth years or survival rates at lower costs compared to fixed partial prostheses. Another economic evaluation found that implant-supported crowns costed more, but provided greater survival rates compared to fixed partial dentures. For the restoration of edentulous mandibles, two evaluations indicated that overdentures retained by two or four implants improved oral health-related quality of life outcomes, but costed more than complete dentures. To better assess the efficiency of implant-supported prostheses in various clinical conditions, more economic evaluations are needed that follow well-established methodologies in health economics. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Ups and downs of economics and econophysics — Facebook forecast

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gajic, Nenad; Budinski-Petkovic, Ljuba

2013-01-01

What is econophysics and its relationship with economics? What is the state of economics after the global economic crisis, and is there a future for the paradigm of market equilibrium, with imaginary perfect competition and rational agents? Can the next paradigm of economics adopt important assumptions derived from econophysics models: that markets are chaotic systems, striving to extremes as bubbles and crashes show, with psychologically motivated, statistically predictable individual behaviors? Is the future of econophysics, as predicted here, to disappear and become a part of economics? A good test of the current state of econophysics and its methods is the valuation of Facebook immediately after the initial public offering - this forecast indicates that Facebook is highly overvalued, and its IPO valuation of 104 billion dollars is mostly the new financial bubble based on the expectations of unlimited growth, although it’s easy to prove that Facebook is close to the upper limit of its users.

Economic effects of ocean acidification: Publication patterns and directions for future research.

PubMed

Falkenberg, Laura J; Tubb, Adeline

2017-09-01

Human societies derive economic benefit from marine systems, yet these benefits may be modified as humans drive environmental change. Here, we conducted the first systematic review of literature on the potential economic effects of ocean acidification. We identified that while there is a growing literature discussing this topic, assessments of the direction and magnitude of anticipated economic change remain limited. The few assessments which have been conducted indicate largely negative economic effects of ocean acidification. Insights are, however, limited as the scope of the studies remains restricted. We propose that understanding of this topic will benefit from using standard approaches (e.g. timescales and emissions scenarios) to consider an increasing range of species/habitats and ecosystem services over a range of spatial scales. The resulting understanding could inform decisions such that we maintain, or enhance, economic services obtained from future marine environments.

Management of local economic and ecological system of coal processing company

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiseleva, T. V.; Mikhailov, V. G.; Karasev, V. A.

2016-10-01

The management issues of local ecological and economic system of coal processing company - coal processing plant - are considered in the article. The objectives of the research are the identification and the analysis of local ecological and economic system (coal processing company) performance and the proposals for improving the mechanism to support the management decision aimed at improving its environmental safety. The data on the structure of run-of-mine coal processing products are shown. The analysis of main ecological and economic indicators of coal processing enterprises, characterizing the state of its environmental safety, is done. The main result of the study is the development of proposals to improve the efficiency of local enterprise ecological and economic system management, including technical, technological and business measures. The results of the study can be recommended to industrial enterprises to improve their ecological and economic efficiency.

Insecticide Resistance and Malaria Vector Control: The Importance of Fitness Cost Mechanisms in Determining Economically Optimal Control Trajectories

PubMed Central

Brown, Zachary S.; Dickinson, Katherine L.; Kramer, Randall A.

2014-01-01

The evolutionary dynamics of insecticide resistance in harmful arthropods has economic implications, not only for the control of agricultural pests (as has been well studied), but also for the control of disease vectors, such as malaria-transmitting Anopheles mosquitoes. Previous economic work on insecticide resistance illustrates the policy relevance of knowing whether insecticide resistance mutations involve fitness costs. Using a theoretical model, this article investigates economically optimal strategies for controlling malaria-transmitting mosquitoes when there is the potential for mosquitoes to evolve resistance to insecticides. Consistent with previous literature, we find that fitness costs are a key element in the computation of economically optimal resistance management strategies. Additionally, our models indicate that different biological mechanisms underlying these fitness costs (e.g., increased adult mortality and/or decreased fecundity) can significantly alter economically optimal resistance management strategies. PMID:23448053

Firm size diversity, functional richness, and resilience

USGS Publications Warehouse

Garmestani, A.S.; Allen, Craig R.; Mittelstaedt, J.D.; Stow, C.A.; Ward, W.A.

2006-01-01

This paper applies recent advances in ecology to our understanding of firm development, sustainability, and economic development. The ecological literature indicates that the greater the functional richness of species in a system, the greater its resilience - that is, its ability to persist in the face of substantial changes in the environment. This paper focuses on the effects of functional richness across firm size on the ability of industries to survive in the face of economic change. Our results indicate that industries with a richness of industrial functions are more resilient to employment volatility. ?? 2006 Cambridge University Press.

Globalization and economic growth: empirical evidence on the role of complementarities.

PubMed

Samimi, Parisa; Jenatabadi, Hashem Salarzadeh

2014-01-01

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of economic globalization on economic growth in OIC countries. Furthermore, the study examined the effect of complementary policies on the growth effect of globalization. It also investigated whether the growth effect of globalization depends on the income level of countries. Utilizing the generalized method of moments (GMM) estimator within the framework of a dynamic panel data approach, we provide evidence which suggests that economic globalization has statistically significant impact on economic growth in OIC countries. The results indicate that this positive effect is increased in the countries with better-educated workers and well-developed financial systems. Our finding shows that the effect of economic globalization also depends on the country's level of income. High and middle-income countries benefit from globalization whereas low-income countries do not gain from it. In fact, the countries should receive the appropriate income level to be benefited from globalization. Economic globalization not only directly promotes growth but also indirectly does so via complementary reforms.

Globalization and Economic Growth: Empirical Evidence on the Role of Complementarities

PubMed Central

Samimi, Parisa; Jenatabadi, Hashem Salarzadeh

2014-01-01

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of economic globalization on economic growth in OIC countries. Furthermore, the study examined the effect of complementary policies on the growth effect of globalization. It also investigated whether the growth effect of globalization depends on the income level of countries. Utilizing the generalized method of moments (GMM) estimator within the framework of a dynamic panel data approach, we provide evidence which suggests that economic globalization has statistically significant impact on economic growth in OIC countries. The results indicate that this positive effect is increased in the countries with better-educated workers and well-developed financial systems. Our finding shows that the effect of economic globalization also depends on the country’s level of income. High and middle-income countries benefit from globalization whereas low-income countries do not gain from it. In fact, the countries should receive the appropriate income level to be benefited from globalization. Economic globalization not only directly promotes growth but also indirectly does so via complementary reforms. PMID:24721896

A soft pillow for hard times? Economic insecurity, food intake and body weight in Russia.

PubMed

Staudigel, Matthias

2016-12-01

This study investigates causal effects of economic insecurity on subjective anxiety, food intake, and weight outcomes. A review of psychological and nutrition studies highlights the complexity of processes at work on each stage of this causal chain. Econometric analyses trace the effects along the hypothesized pathway using detailed household panel data from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey from 1994 to 2005. Economic insecurity measures serve as key explanatory variables in regressions and are instrumented by exogenous regional indicators. Results support a causal chain from economic insecurity to weight outcomes for some population subgroups. In contrast to the leading hypothesis that economic insecurity increases body weight, I find strong evidence of a decreasing effect among women. Results suggest further that consumption of foods rich in sugar responds strongly to higher levels of economic insecurity. Heterogeneous impacts of economic insecurity on body weight call for individual-level interventions rather than large-scale action. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Physical growth of children and adolescents in China over the past 35 years

PubMed Central

Zong, Xin-Nan

2014-01-01

Abstract Objective To examine if economic development in China correlates with physical growth among Chinese children and adolescents. Methods The height, body weight and physical activity level of children and adolescents aged 18 years and under, as well as dietary data, were obtained from seven large surveys conducted in China between 1975 and 2010. Chinese economic development indicators were obtained from the World Bank. Trends in body weight, height, economic data and diet were examined. Tests were conducted to check for correlations between height at 17 years of age and three indicators of economic development: gross domestic product, urbanization and infant mortality rate. Regional differences in physical growth were assessed. Findings Between 1975 and 2010, the growth of children and adolescents improved in tandem with economic development. The largest increment in height was observed during the period of puberty. Regional inequalities in nutritional status were correlated with disparities in economic development among regions. Over the past two decades, undernutrition declined among children less than 5 years of age, but in 2010 underweight and stunting were still common in poor rural areas. A large increase in obesity was observed in both urban and rural areas, but especially in large cities and, more recently, in small and medium-sized cities and affluent rural areas. Conclusion The average weight of children and adolescents has been increasing progressively since the 1970s. Current strategies to combat both child undernutrition and obesity need to be improved, especially in poor rural areas. PMID:25177070

Economic analysis of alternative nutritional management of dual-purpose cow herds in central coastal Veracruz, Mexico.

PubMed

Absalón-Medina, Victor Antonio; Nicholson, Charles F; Blake, Robert W; Fox, Danny Gene; Juárez-Lagunes, Francisco I; Canudas-Lara, Eduardo G; Rueda-Maldonado, Bertha L

2012-08-01

Market information was combined with predicted input-output relationships in an economic analysis of alternative nutritional management for dual-purpose member herds of the Genesis farmer organization of central coastal Veracruz, Mexico. Cow productivity outcomes for typical management and alternative feeding scenarios were obtained from structured sets of simulations in a companion study of productivity limitations and potentials using the Cornell Net Carbohydrate and Protein System model (Version 6.0). Partial budgeting methods and sensitivity analysis were used to identify economically viable alternatives based on expected change in milk income over feed cost (change in revenues from milk sales less change in feed costs). Herd owners in coastal Veracruz have large economic incentives, from $584 to $1,131 in predicted net margin, to increase milk sales by up to 74% across a three-lactation cow lifetime by improving diets based on good quality grass and legume forages. This increment is equal to, or exceeds, in value the total yield from at least one additional lactation per cow lifetime. Furthermore, marginal rates of return (change in milk income over feed costs divided by change in variable costs when alternative practices are used) of 3.3 ± 0.8 indicate clear economic incentives to remove fundamental productivity vulnerabilities due to chronic energy deficits and impeded growth of immature cows under typical management. Sensitivity analyses indicate that the economic outcomes are robust for a variety of market conditions.

Self-interest and the theory of action.

PubMed

Barbalet, Jack

2012-09-01

The concept of self-interest remains underdeveloped in sociology although central to economics. Recent methodological and social trends render sociological indifference to the concept untenable. The term has enjoyed historical predominance in the West since the sixteenth century. While it is seen in modern economics as a singular motivating force, Adam Smith regarded self-interest in economic action as necessarily moderated by sympathy. In addition to its problematic economic conceptualization self-interest has an experiential basis in unequal power relations. An alternative to the concept of self-interest is presented by Amartya Sen in his account of commitment; its inconsistencies, however, render Sen's statement unsatisfactory. Differences between present and future interests indicate that the distinction between self-interested and other-interested action is not sustainable. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2012.

Economic Cognitions Among Older Adults: Parental Socialization Predicts Financial Planning for Retirement

PubMed Central

Palaci, Francisco; Jiménez, Irene; Topa, Gabriela

2017-01-01

Drawing on the model on financial planning for retirement (FPR), the aim of this work is to explore how parental economic socialization both directly and indirectly affects FPR through the mediation of financial literacy, financial planning decisions and financial management. Data from a sample of 280 participants aged between 45 and 63 years were used. The results show that parental economic socialization directly and indirectly influences FPR. Moreover, parental economic behavior acts as a positive model for the development of financial literacy and skills and for decisions about FPR. All the variables increased the explained variance of FPR. Lastly, we discuss the process by which parental economic socialization is positively related to financial literacy and skills that impact on FPR, indicating some implications and future lines of research. PMID:29209198

Economic Cognitions Among Older Adults: Parental Socialization Predicts Financial Planning for Retirement.

PubMed

Palaci, Francisco; Jiménez, Irene; Topa, Gabriela

2017-01-01

Drawing on the model on financial planning for retirement (FPR), the aim of this work is to explore how parental economic socialization both directly and indirectly affects FPR through the mediation of financial literacy, financial planning decisions and financial management. Data from a sample of 280 participants aged between 45 and 63 years were used. The results show that parental economic socialization directly and indirectly influences FPR. Moreover, parental economic behavior acts as a positive model for the development of financial literacy and skills and for decisions about FPR. All the variables increased the explained variance of FPR. Lastly, we discuss the process by which parental economic socialization is positively related to financial literacy and skills that impact on FPR, indicating some implications and future lines of research.

Family economic hardship and Chinese adolescents' sleep quality: A moderated mediation model involving perceived economic discrimination and coping strategy.

PubMed

Bao, Zhenzhou; Chen, Chuansheng; Zhang, Wei; Zhu, Jianjun; Jiang, Yanping; Lai, Xuefen

2016-07-01

The association between family economic hardship and adolescent adjustment outcomes, including sleep quality, is well-established. Few studies, however, have examined the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying the relation between family economic hardship and adolescents' sleep quality. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of family economic hardship on Chinese adolescents' sleep quality, as well as the role of perceived economic discrimination as a mediator and the role of coping strategy as a moderator. Survey data from a cross-sectional sample of 997 Chinese adolescents (45% male, mean age = 15.04 years) were analyzed using path analysis in Mplus 7.0. The results of this study indicated that family economic hardship was significantly associated with adolescents' sleep quality. This association was mediated by adolescents' perceived economic discrimination. In addition, adolescents' coping strategy significantly moderated the path from perceived economic discrimination to sleep quality, with the "shift" coping strategy as a protective factor. The present study contributes to our understanding of key mechanisms underlying the association between family economic hardship and adolescent sleep quality and highlights the importance of improving sleep quality for adolescents exposed to economic hardship. Copyright © 2016 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. All rights reserved.

Subjective measures of socio-economic position and the wealth index: a comparative analysis.

PubMed

Howe, Laura D; Hargreaves, James R; Ploubidis, George B; De Stavola, Bianca L; Huttly, Sharon R A

2011-05-01

The wealth index is a commonly-used measure of socio-economic position (SEP) in low- and middle-income settings, but there is concern that it is strongly influenced by community-level as well as household-level factors. Subjective SEP indicators are infrequently used in health research. We use data from 11 280 households included in the Malawi Integrated Household Survey 2004/5. We compare the wealth index with four subjective measures of SEP: perceived food consumption adequacy, perceived overall consumption adequacy, an economic ladder question, and perceived income sufficiency. The wealth index is compared with each subjective SEP measure in terms of: (i) agreement of classification of households, (ii) targeting accuracy with respect to US$1-a-day poverty based on consumption expenditure, and (iii) the socio-economic processes (household- and community-level) giving rise to the SEP scores. Each subjective SEP indicator resulted in considerable differential classification of households compared with the wealth index. Three measures of subjective SEP (perceived food consumption adequacy, economic ladder question, and perceived income sufficiency) identified a higher proportion of dollar-a-day poor households as poor than the wealth index. The wealth index was strongly influenced by community infrastructure, but all subjective SEP indicators were free from strong community-level influence. The strengths and limitations of any measure of SEP depend on the context and purpose for which it is being used. In these data, the wealth index was strongly influenced by community infrastructure, whereas the subjective SEP measures were not, perhaps allowing analyses using them to disentangle household and community influences. Several subjective measures also corresponded to dollar-a-day poverty more strongly than the wealth index. Subjective measures may therefore be preferable to the wealth index in some circumstances, although they have their own set of potential biases.

Modelling Common Agricultural Policy-Water Framework Directive interactions and cost-effectiveness of measures to reduce nitrogen pollution.

PubMed

Mouratiadou, Ioanna; Russell, Graham; Topp, Cairistiona; Louhichi, Kamel; Moran, Dominic

2010-01-01

Selecting cost-effective measures to regulate agricultural water pollution to conform to the Water Framework Directive presents multiple challenges. A bio-economic modelling approach is presented that has been used to explore the water quality and economic effects of the 2003 Common Agricultural Policy Reform and to assess the cost-effectiveness of input quotas and emission standards against nitrate leaching, in a representative case study catchment in Scotland. The approach combines a biophysical model (NDICEA) with a mathematical programming model (FSSIM-MP). The results indicate only small changes due to the Reform, with the main changes in farmers' decision making and the associated economic and water quality indicators depending on crop price changes, and suggest the use of target fertilisation in relation to crop and soil requirements, as opposed to measures targeting farm total or average nitrogen use.

An Evaluation of Clinical Economics and Cases of Cost-effectiveness.

PubMed

Takura, Tomoyuki

2018-05-01

In order to maintain and develop a universal health insurance system, it is crucial to utilize limited medical resources effectively. In this context, considerations are underway to introduce health technology assessments (HTAs), such as cost-effectiveness analyses (CEAs), into the medical treatment fee system. CEAs, which is the general term for these methods, are classified into four categories, such as cost-effectiveness analyses based on performance indicators, and in the comparison of health technologies, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) is also applied. When I comprehensively consider several Japanese studies based on these concepts, I find that, in the results of the analysis of the economic performance of healthcare systems, Japan shows the most promising trend in the world. In addition, there is research indicating the superior cost-effectiveness of Rituximab against refractory nephrotic syndrome, and it is expected that health economics will be actively applied to the valuation of technical innovations such as drug discovery.

Economic Efficiency On Overseeding Grasslands From Preajba - Gorj County In 2014

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dragoş Mihai, Medelete; Radu Lucian, Pânzaru

2015-09-01

This study was achieved using the support of strategic project "Support Scholarships University in Romania by the European Doctoral and Post-doctoral (SCHOLARSHIPS DOC-POSTDOC)", ID 133255. The paper emphasizes the importance of meadows and hayfields production, considering that their value can be increased using over-seeding and organic-mineral fertilizers. Experience is located in the Experimental Center for Meadows Culture -Preajba, Gorj County, on natural meadow of Agrostis capillaris, over-seeded with Red clover. The production have increase with fertilizer dose, but maximum economic efficiency was found on variant that use only organically fertilizer. It should be noted that organic fertilizers are used in the first year only partially by plants. The indicators of economic efficiency used are: raw product, variable costs, fixed costs, production costs, and the indices: total expenditure rate of profit, income taxes, net profit and net profit rate.

The Dow is Killing Me: Risky Health Behaviors and the Stock Market.

PubMed

Cotti, Chad; Dunn, Richard A; Tefft, Nathan

2015-07-01

We investigate how risky health behaviors and self-reported health vary with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and during stock market crashes. Because stock market indices are leading indicators of economic performance, this research contributes to our understanding of the macroeconomic determinants of health. Existing studies typically rely on the unemployment rate to proxy for economic performance, but this measure captures only one of many channels through which the economic environment may influence individual health decisions. We find that large, negative monthly DJIA returns, decreases in the level of the DJIA, and stock market crashes are widely associated with worsening self-reported mental health and more cigarette smoking, binge drinking, and fatal car accidents involving alcohol. These results are consistent with predictions from rational addiction models and have implications for research on the association between consumption and stock prices. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sustainable energy, economic growth and public health.

PubMed

Haines, A

2001-01-01

Dramatic economic growth over the last 50 years has been accompanied by widening inequalities world-wide in wealth and energy consumption, diminished life expectancy in some countries, and deteriorating indices of environmental sustainability including loss of bio-diversity. Raised output of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases due to increased economic and industrial activity is causing progressive climate change, leading in turn to direct and indirect adverse effects on health. Emissions of greenhouse gases can be lowered by increased use of renewable energy sources, for example, wind power in the United Kingdom (UK), greater energy efficiency and other measures to promote sustainability. The experience of some developing countries shows that favourable indicators of health and development can accompany a low output of greenhouse gases. It is unclear whether contemporary political and social systems can deliver improved human development without increased use of fossil fuels and other resources.

The Research Focus of Nations: Economic vs. Altruistic Motivations.

PubMed

Klavans, Richard; Boyack, Kevin W

2017-01-01

What motivates the research strategies of nations and institutions? We suggest that research primarily serves two masters-altruism and economic growth. Some nations focus more research in altruistic (or non-economic) fields while others focus more research in fields associated with economic growth. What causes this difference? Are there characteristics that would suggest why a nation is more aligned with altruism or economic growth? To answer this question, we have identified nine major fields of research by analyzing the publication activity of 4429 institutions using Scopus data. Two fields of research are clearly altruistic (there is relatively little involvement by industry) and two fields are clearly aligned with economic growth. The altruistic vs. economic nature of nations based on their publication profiles across these fields is correlated with national indicators on wealth, education, capitalism, individualism, power, religion, and language. While previous research has suggested that national research strategy is aligned with national wealth, our analysis shows that national wealth is not highly correlated with the tradeoff between altruistic and economic motives. Instead, the tradeoff is largely captured by a culture of individualism. Accordingly, implications for national research strategies are discussed.

Cognitive Capitalism: Economic Freedom Moderates the Effects of Intellectual and Average Classes on Economic Productivity.

PubMed

Coyle, Thomas R; Rindermann, Heiner; Hancock, Dale

2016-10-01

Cognitive ability stimulates economic productivity. However, the effects of cognitive ability may be stronger in free and open economies, where competition rewards merit and achievement. To test this hypothesis, ability levels of intellectual classes (top 5%) and average classes (country averages) were estimated using international student assessments (Programme for International Student Assessment; Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study; and Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) (N = 99 countries). The ability levels were correlated with indicators of economic freedom (Fraser Institute), scientific achievement (patent rates), innovation (Global Innovation Index), competitiveness (Global Competitiveness Index), and wealth (gross domestic product). Ability levels of intellectual and average classes strongly predicted all economic criteria. In addition, economic freedom moderated the effects of cognitive ability (for both classes), with stronger effects at higher levels of freedom. Effects were particularly robust for scientific achievements when the full range of freedom was analyzed. The results support cognitive capitalism theory: cognitive ability stimulates economic productivity, and its effects are enhanced by economic freedom. © The Author(s) 2016.

Spatiotemporal Evolution of the Imbalanced Regional Development in Mainland China Using Dmsp-Ols Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, K.; Jia, T.

2017-09-01

The Defense Meteorological Satellite Programs Operational Linescan System (DMSP-OLS) nighttime lights imagery has been widely used to monitor economic activities and regional development in recent decades. In this paper, we firstly processed the nighttime light imageries of the Mainland China from 1992 to 2013 due to the radiation or geometric errors. Secondly, by dividing the Mainland China into seven regions, we found high correlation between the sum light values and GDP of each region. Thirdly, we extracted the economic centers of each region based on their nighttime light images. Through the analysis, we found the distribution of these economic centers was relatively concentrated and the migration of these economic centers showed certain directional trend or circuitous changes, which suggested the imbalanced socio-economic development of each region. Then, we calculated the Regional Development Gini of each region using the nighttime light data, which indicated that social-economic development in South China presents great imbalance while it is relatively balanced in Southwest China. This study would benefit the macroeconomic control to regional economic development and the introduction of appropriate economic policies from the national level.

Economic Inequality in Presenting Vision in Shahroud, Iran: Two Decomposition Methods.

PubMed

Mansouri, Asieh; Emamian, Mohammad Hassan; Zeraati, Hojjat; Hashemi, Hasan; Fotouhi, Akbar

2017-04-22

Visual acuity, like many other health-related problems, does not have an equal distribution in terms of socio-economic factors. We conducted this study to estimate and decompose economic inequality in presenting visual acuity using two methods and to compare their results in a population aged 40-64 years in Shahroud, Iran. The data of 5188 participants in the first phase of the Shahroud Cohort Eye Study, performed in 2009, were used for this study. Our outcome variable was presenting vision acuity (PVA) that was measured using LogMAR (logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution). The living standard variable used for estimation of inequality was the economic status and was constructed by principal component analysis on home assets. Inequality indices were concentration index and the gap between low and high economic groups. We decomposed these indices by the concentration index and BlinderOaxaca decomposition approaches respectively and compared the results. The concentration index of PVA was -0.245 (95% CI: -0.278, -0.212). The PVA gap between groups with a high and low economic status was 0.0705 and was in favor of the high economic group. Education, economic status, and age were the most important contributors of inequality in both concentration index and Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition. Percent contribution of these three factors in the concentration index and Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition was 41.1% vs. 43.4%, 25.4% vs. 19.1% and 15.2% vs. 16.2%, respectively. Other factors including gender, marital status, employment status and diabetes had minor contributions. This study showed that individuals with poorer visual acuity were more concentrated among people with a lower economic status. The main contributors of this inequality were similar in concentration index and Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition. So, it can be concluded that setting appropriate interventions to promote the literacy and income level in people with low economic status, formulating policies to address economic problems in the elderly, and paying more attention to their vision problems can help to alleviate economic inequality in visual acuity. © 2018 The Author(s); Published by Kerman University of Medical Sciences. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited

Impact of product mix and markets on the economic feasibility of hardwood thinning

Treesearch

John E. Baumgras; Chris B. LeDoux

1989-01-01

Results demonstrate how the economic feasibility of commercial hardwood thinning is impacted by tree diameter, product mix, and primary product markets. These results indicate that multiproduct harvesting can increase revenues by $0.01/ft³ to $0.32/ft³; and that small shifts in price levels or haul distance can postpone commercial thinning...

The Environmental Data Book: A Guide to Statistics on the Environment and Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheram, Katherine

This book presents statistics on countries with populations of more than 1 million related to the quality of the environment, economic development, and how each is affected by the other. Sometimes called indicators, the statistics are measures of environmental, economic, and social conditions in developing and industrial countries. The book is…

Trajectory of Life Satisfaction and Its Relationship with Subjective Economic Status and Successful Aging

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsu, Hui-Chuan

2010-01-01

The aim of the study was to explore the relationship between subjective economic status and indicators of successful aging to life satisfaction trajectories among the elderly in Taiwan. Data were from the four waves of "Survey of Health and Living Status of the Elderly in Taiwan". Hierarchical linear modeling was conducted. Subjective…

Economic Shocks and Children's Dropout from Primary School: Implications for Education Policy in Ethiopia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woldehanna, Tassew; Hagos, Adiam

2015-01-01

This paper investigates the impact of idiosyncratic and covariate economic shocks, on the likelihood of children dropping out of primary school. In this endeavour, an Accelerated Failure Time Hazard model was estimated using data from the Young Lives study of childhood poverty. The estimated results indicate that both idiosyncratic shocks and…

International Students' Perceptions of Race and Socio-Economic Status in an American Higher Education Landscape

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ritter, Zachary S.

2016-01-01

International students add a great deal of cultural and intellectual diversity to college campuses, but they also bring racial stereotypes and socio-economic status hierarchies that can affect campus climate. Forty-seven interviews with Chinese, Japanese, and South Korean international students were conducted. Results indicated that a majority of…

Scarcity and Survival in El Salvador. Grades Six to Twelve.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stanford Univ., CA. Stanford Program on International and Cross Cultural Education.

This unit, designed for use with students in grades 6-12, has two purposes: (1) to inform teachers and students about social and economic conditions in rural El Salvador; and (2) to teach students how to analyze the indicators of such social and economic conditions. The six included lessons incorporate reading, graphing, and critical thinking…

30 CFR 203.4 - How do the provisions in this part apply to different types of leases and projects?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... justification report (prescribed format) X (3) Economic viability and relief justification report (Royalty Suspension Viability Program (RSVP) model inputs justified with Geological and Geophysical (G&G), Engineering... template) (6) Determined to be economic only with relief X X X (d) The following table indicates by an X...

30 CFR 203.4 - How do the provisions in this part apply to different types of leases and projects?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... justification report (prescribed format) X (3) Economic viability and relief justification report (Royalty Suspension Viability Program (RSVP) model inputs justified with Geological and Geophysical (G&G), Engineering...) (6) Determined to be economic only with relief X X X (d) The following table indicates by an X, and...

30 CFR 203.4 - How do the provisions in this part apply to different types of leases and projects?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... justification report (prescribed format) X (3) Economic viability and relief justification report (Royalty Suspension Viability Program (RSVP) model inputs justified with Geological and Geophysical (G&G), Engineering...) (6) Determined to be economic only with relief X X X (d) The following table indicates by an X, and...

30 CFR 203.4 - How do the provisions in this part apply to different types of leases and projects?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... report (prescribed format) X (3) Economic viability and relief justification report (Royalty Suspension Viability Program (RSVP) model inputs justified with Geological and Geophysical (G&G), Engineering... template) (6) Determined to be economic only with relief X X X (d) The following table indicates by an X...

30 CFR 203.4 - How do the provisions in this part apply to different types of leases and projects?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... justification report (prescribed format) X (3) Economic viability and relief justification report (Royalty Suspension Viability Program (RSVP) model inputs justified with Geological and Geophysical (G&G), Engineering...) (6) Determined to be economic only with relief X X X (d) The following table indicates by an X, and...

Communication Indicators. II. 100 Years of Mass Communication in Germany. Communication and Society 4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galli, Anton; Vogler, Kurt

This report summarizes the findings of a Unesco-sponsored study designed to identify quantitative relationships between mass communication and economic growth in the Federal Republic of Germany. The first and second sections of the report outline the most important economic and social lines of development in Germany from the end of the nineteenth…

Anaerobically digested bovine biofiber as a source of fiber for particleboard manufacturing : an economic analysis

Treesearch

Henry Spelter; Jerrold Winandy; Timothy Zauche

2008-01-01

This paper explores the physical and economic potential to substitute anaerobically digested bovine biofiber (ADBF) for wood in the making of particleboard. Laboratory tests indicated that replacement of one-half the wood in particleboard with ADBF produced panels that compared favorably to the requirements for commercial particleboard performance (specified by ANSI...

How Does Childhood Economic Disadvantage Lead to Crime?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fergusson, David; Swain-Campbell, Nicola; Horwood, John

2004-01-01

Background: This study sought to examine the associations between indices of socio-economic deprivation in childhood and later involvement in crime. Method: Data were gathered as part of the Christchurch Health and Development Study. In this project a cohort of 1,265 children born in Christchurch in 1977 have been studied from birth to age 21…

Economic and Racial Segregation in Greater Miami's Elementary Schools: Trends Shaping Metropolitan Growth.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Orfield, Myron; Discher, Anne; Luce, Tom

This report highlights the social changes underway in Miami-area schools, discussing their implications for metropolitan growth policies. It focuses on changes in the racial and economic composition of elementary schools between 1993-2002. Data come from the Common Core of Data of the National Center for Education Statistics. Results indicate that…

Community College Administrators' and Local Stakeholders' Perceptions Concerning the Economic Development Strategies Used by North Carolina Community Colleges.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boone, John Bower; Gillett-Karam, Rosemary

1996-01-01

Describes a study comparing the perceptions of community college and community leaders regarding economic development strategies utilized by North Carolina community colleges. Indicates that the level of satisfaction with strategies was related to respondents' perceived level of use of strategies, position held, and institution size. (17…

Socio-Economic Indexes in Surveys for Comparisons between Countries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Batista-Foguet, J. M.; Fortiana, J.; Currie, C.; Villalbi, J. R.

2004-01-01

The study of socio-economic inequalities from a cross-national perspective has been hampered by the lack of adequate common indices of socioeconomic status that can be used in a self-report survey instrument. This paper examines the construction and the properties of global social indexes in general, and of the Family Affluence Scale (henceforth…

Economic Adjustment/Conversion

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-07-01

55 11. State and Local Economic Development Process ...................... 61 PART IV: ECNOMIC AND SOCIAL SERVICE ASSISTANCE TO PERSONS 12. Special...defense production which occurs in plants essentially ded- icated to that purpose. Although a major weapon system is usually budgeted as a single entity...and cuait; of life are essential to attracting new firms and especially important to retaining existing businesses. Research indicates that

Measuring the Economic Well-Being of Families and Children, 1999.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coffin, Linda

This Kids Count report assembles some of the indicators that describe the economic environment of Minnesota children and families. The report is intended to serve as a resource for policymakers at the city, county, and state levels, as well as community advocates, parents, and those who work with children. Section 1 of the report presents…

Increasing Social and Economic Inequalities among Suburban Schools: A Study in Educational Administration and Finance. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hickrod, G. Alan; Sabulao, Cesar M.

This study of five metropolitan areas indicates increasing social and economic inequalities among suburban schools. In addition, the metropolitan areas seemed to be developing contiguous sectors of "advantaged" school districts and "disadvantaged" school districts. Financial differences are at the base of the inequalities, with high income/low tax…

Family Inequality, School Inequalities, and Mathematics Achievement in 65 Countries: Microeconomic Mechanisms of Rent Seeking and Diminishing Marginal Returns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chiu, Ming Ming

2015-01-01

Background/Context: While many studies show that greater economic inequality widens the achievement gap between rich and poor students, recent studies indicate that countries with greater economic inequality have lower overall student achievement. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study: This study explores whether family inequalities…

Education in the World System: The Demand for Language and International Proficiencies in Economic Development and National Security.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoegl, Juergen K.

1986-01-01

Discusses the role of second-language proficiency from international, national, and state perspectives, including consideration of the need for such proficiency in science, technology, and research for economic development. Trends indicate that a more internationalized curricula in higher education and a greater demand for second-language…

Family Economic Pressure and Adolescent Suicidal Ideation: Application of the Family Stress Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yoder, Kevin A.; Hoyt, Dan R.

2005-01-01

This study used a sample of 501 families from the Mississippi Delta region to examine the feasibility of the Family Stress Model for understanding adolescent suicidal ideation. The results indicated that family economic pressure was related to parental depressive symptoms, which, in turn, was related to parental hostile behavior and physical…

The impact of the economic downturn and health care reform on treatment decisions for haemophilia A: patient, caregiver and health care provider perspectives.

PubMed

Tarantino, M D; Ye, X; Bergstrom, F; Skorija, K; Luo, M P

2013-01-01

Little is known about the impact of the recent US economic downturn and health care reform on patient, caregiver and health care provider (HCP) decision-making for haemophilia A. To explore the impact of the recent economic downturn and perceived impact of health care reform on haemophilia A treatment decisions from patient, caregiver and HCP perspectives. Patients/caregivers and HCPs completed a self-administered survey in 2011. Survey participants were asked about demographics, the impact of the recent economic downturn and health care reform provisions on their treatment decisions. Seventy three of the 134 (54%) patients/caregivers and 39 of 48 (81%) HCPs indicated that the economic downturn negatively impacted haemophilia care. Seventy of the 73 negatively impacted patients made financially related treatment modifications, including delaying/cancelling routine health care visit, skipping doses and/or skipping filling prescription. Treatment modifications made by HCPs included delaying elective surgery, switching from higher to lower priced product, switching from recombinant to plasma-derived products and delaying prophylaxis. Health care reform was generally perceived as positive. Due to the elimination of lifetime caps, 30 of 134 patients (22%) and 28 of 48 HCPs (58%) indicated that they will make treatment modifications by initiating prophylaxis or scheduling routine appointment/surgery sooner. Both patients/caregivers and HCPs reported that the economic downturn had a negative impact on haemophilia A treatment. Suboptimal treatment modifications were made due to the economic downturn. Health care reform, especially the elimination of lifetime caps, was perceived as positive for haemophilia A treatment and as a potential avenue for contributing to more optimal treatment behaviours. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

FDA actions against health economic promotions, 2002-2011.

PubMed

Neumann, Peter J; Bliss, Sarah K

2012-01-01

To investigate Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory actions against drug companies' health economic promotions from 2002 through 2011 to understand how frequently and in what circumstances the agency has considered such promotions false or misleading. We reviewed all warning letters and notices of violation ("untitled letters") issued by the FDA's Division of Drug Marketing, Advertising and Communications (DDMAC) to pharmaceutical companies from January 2002 through December 2011. We analyzed letters containing a violation related to "health economic promotion," defined according to one of several categories (e.g., implied claims of cost savings due to work productivity or economic claims containing unsupported statements about effectiveness or safety). We also collected information on factors such as the indication and type of media involved and whether the letter referenced Section 114 of the Food and Drug Administration Modernization Act. Of 291 DDMAC letters sent to pharmaceutical companies during the study period, 35 (12%) cited a health economic violation. The most common type of violation cited was an implied claim of cost savings due to work productivity or functioning (found in 20 letters) and economic claims containing unsubstantiated comparative claims of effectiveness, safety, or interchangeability (7 letters). The violations covered various indications, mostly commonly psychiatric disorders (6 letters) and pain (6 letters). No DDMAC letter pertained to Food and Drug Administration Modernization Act Section 114. The FDA has cited inappropriate health economic promotions in roughly 12% of the letters issued by the DDMAC. The letters highlight drug companies' interest in promoting the value of their products and the FDA's concerns in certain cases about the lack of supporting evidence. Copyright © 2012 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Economic costs of extratropical storms under climate change: An application of FUND

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Narita, D.; Tol, R.; Anthoff, D.

2009-12-01

Extratropical cyclones have attracted some attention in climate policy circles as a possible significant damage factor of climate change. This study conducts an assessment of economic impacts of increased storm activities under climate change with the integrated assessment model FUND 3.5. FUND is a model that calculates damages of climate change for 16 regions by making use of exogenous scenarios of socioeconomic variables (for details of our estimation approach, see our working paper whose URL is indicated below). Our estimation shows that in the base case, the direct economic damage of enhanced storms due to climate change amounts to $2.8 billion globally (approximately 38% of the total economic loss of storms at present) at the year 2100, while the ratio to the world GDP is 0.0009%. The regional results (Figure 1) indicate that the economic effect of extratropical storms with climate change would have relatively minor importance for the US (USA): The enhanced extratropical storm damage (less than 0.001% of GDP for the base case) is one order of magnitude lower than the tropical cyclone damage (roughly 0.01% GDP) calculated by the same version of FUND. In the regions without strong tropical cyclone influence, such as Western Europe (WEU) and Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), the extratropical storms might have some more significance as a possible damage factor of climate change. Especially for the latter, the direct economic damage could amount to more than 0.006% of GDP. Still, the impact is small relative to the income growth expected in these regions. Figure 1. Increased direct economic loss at the year 2100 for selected regions (results are shown for the three different baselines: the years 1986-2005, 1976-2005, and 1996-2005). US - USA; Canada - CAN; Western Europe - WEU; Australia and New Zealand - ANZ.

Economic costs due to workers' sick leave at wastewater treatment plants in Bulgaria.

PubMed

Toseva, Elka Ilieva; Stoyanova, Rumyana; Turnovska, Tanya

2018-03-09

The compensatory mechanisms of social security include expenses for sick leave. The aim of the study is to determine the economic cost due to sick leave among workers in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), comparing with the same economic indicators of the National Social Security Institute (NSSI) in Bulgaria. The sick leave of 111 workers at 3 WWTPs was studied in the period 2012-2014 on the grounds of registered absences from work due to temporary incapacity for work. The economic indicators of the NSSI, the gross salary at WWTPs, payable social security contributions and compensatory payments for sick leave have been used for economic cost calculation for temporary incapacity of the workers. The frequency of cases and the frequency of lost days due to temporary incapacity were increased in the observed period at WWTPs and in Bulgaria, and it is significantly higher for the employed at WWTPs. The percentage share of workers equivalent to 1.66% at WWTPs have not worked for an entire year as a result of temporary incapacity in 2012, 2.76% - in 2013, and 4.61% - in 2014. The economic burden due to sick leave at WWTPs was raised from EUR 4913.02 in 2012 to EUR 16 895.80 for 2014 for employers and the NSSI. The frequency of cases and the frequency of lost days due to temporary incapacity were increased in the observed period at WWTPs and in Bulgaria, and it is significantly higher for the employed at WWTPs. The economic burden was equally distributed between employers and the NSSI. Med Pr 2018;69(2):129-141. This work is available in Open Access model and licensed under a CC BY-NC 3.0 PL license.

Economic and social dimensions of environmental behavior: balancing conservation and development in Bhutan.

PubMed

Brooks, Jeremy S

2010-12-01

One of the primary approaches to environmental conservation emphasizes economic development. This conservation-and-development approach often ignores how development affects sociocultural characteristics that may motivate environmental behaviors (actions that actively benefit or limit one's negative impacts on the environment). Evolutionary anthropologists espouse a theoretical perspective that supports the conservation-and-development approach. Others believe sociocultural factors are the foundation of environmental behavior and worry that development will erode the values and norms that may shape such behavior. My research assistants and I surveyed 170 individuals from eight villages in two communities in Bhutan to explore whether economic (wealth, market integration) or social (religious behaviors, environmental values, social capital) factors are better indicators of environmental behavior. I used multilevel modeling to analyze use of fuelwood, use of agricultural chemicals, and tree planting, and to determine whether social norms were associated with these behaviors. Although economic factors were more often associated with these behaviors than social factors, local conditions and control variables were the best indicators of behaviors. Furthermore, economic factors were not always associated with positive environmental outcomes. Instead, farmers attempted to make the best economic decisions given their circumstances rather than seeking to conserve resources. Although religion was not a strong predictor of any of the behaviors I examined, I found evidence that the understanding of Buddhist philosophy is growing, which suggests that social factors may play a more prominent role as Bhutan's development progresses. My results highlight the need for conservation planners to be aware of local conditions when planning and implementing policies aimed at motivating environmental behaviors and that economic and social motivations for conservation may not be mutually exclusive. © 2010 Society for Conservation Biology.

GDP Spatialization and Economic Differences in South China Based on NPP-VIIRS Nighttime Light Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, M.

2017-12-01

Accurate data on gross domestic product (GDP) at pixel level are needed to understand the dynamics of regional economies. GDP spatialization is the basis of quantitative analysis on economic diversities of different administrative divisions and areas with different natural or humanistic attributes. Data from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS), carried by the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (NPP) satellite, are capable of estimating GDP, but few studies have been conducted for mapping GDP at pixel level and further pattern analysis of economic differences in different regions using the VIIRS data. This paper produced a pixel-level (500 m × 500 m) GDP map for South China in 2014 and quantitatively analyzed economic differences among diverse geomorphological types. Based on a regression analysis, the total nighttime light (TNL) of corrected VIIRS data were found to exhibit R2 values of 0.8935 and 0.9243 for prefecture GDP and county GDP, respectively. This demonstrated that TNL showed a more significant capability in reflecting economic status (R2 > 0.88) than other nighttime light indices (R2 < 0.52), and showed quadratic polynomial relationships with GDP rather than simple linear correlations at both prefecture and county levels. The corrected NPP-VIIRS data showed a better fit than the original data, and the estimation at the county level was better than at the prefecture level. The pixel-level GDP map indicated that: (a) economic development in coastal areas was higher than that in inland areas; (b) low altitude plains were the most developed areas, followed by low altitude platforms and low altitude hills; and (c) economic development in middle altitude areas, and low altitude hills and mountains remained to be strengthened.

[Public health in major socio-economic crisis].

PubMed

Cosmacini, G

2014-01-01

The term "crisis" in different cultures (such as ancient Greece or China) can have a positive meaning, since it indicates a time of growth, change and opportunity. Over the centuries there have been times of severe economic and social crisis that led to the implementation of major reforms and improved population health. Nowadays, despite the new economic crisis which has also affected health care for its rising costs, health economics does not hesitate to affirm the importance of key objectives such as prevention and medical assistance. Prevention is not prediction. Prevention means "going upstream" and fixing a problem at the source; the goal is to reduce diseases' effects, causes and risk factors, thereby reducing the prevalence of costly medical conditions.

Capital projects: Economic and financial analyses of nine capital projects in Egypt. Technical report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hanrahan, M.; Walker, J.

1994-03-01

Over the period 1977-92, the US Agency for International Development (A.I.D.) funded nine capital projects in Egypt, which collectively increased electric power generation, introduced a modern telephone system in Cairo and Alexandria, and rehabilitated a water and sewer system that served 23 million people. This study presents detailed ex post facto analyses of the projects` economic and financial internal rates of return. The methodology, assumptions, and data are examined and described. Results indicate a mixed performance, with generally low to medium financial and economic rates of return. In large measure, the poor performance was due to the Egyptian Government`s poormore » economic policies.« less

Associations between economic loss, financial strain and the psychological status of Wenchuan earthquake survivors.

PubMed

Huang, Yunong; Wong, Hung; Tan, Ngoh Tiong

2015-10-01

This study examines the effects of economic loss on the life satisfaction and mental health of Wenchuan earthquake survivors. Economic loss is measured by earthquake impacts on the income and houses of the survivors. The correlation analysis shows that earthquake impact on income is significantly correlated with life satisfaction and depression. The regression analyses indicate that earthquake impact on income is indirectly associated with life satisfaction and depression through its effect on financial strain. The research highlights the importance of coping strategies in maintaining a balance between economic status and living demands for disaster survivors. © 2015 The Author(s). Disasters © Overseas Development Institute, 2015.

Regional and national differences in stressful life events: The role of cultural factors, economic development, and gender.

PubMed

Vázquez, José Juan; Panadero, Sonia; Martín, Rosa M

2015-07-01

The study analyzed differences in the risk of experiencing stressful life events (SLE) according to cultural factors, the level of economic development of the region inhabited, and gender. Information was gathered on the number and nature of SLE experienced by a sample of 604 undergraduates from 3 regions with very different levels of economic development: Madrid (Spain), León (Nicaragua), and Bilwi (Nicaragua). The results indicated a greater risk of experiencing SLE among undergraduates from Nicaragua, but few differences attributed to the undergraduates' gender or the level of economic development in the region they inhabit within the same country. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Initial Development of a Brief Behavioral Economic Assessment of Alcohol Demand

PubMed Central

Owens, Max M.; Murphy, Cara M.; MacKillop, James

2015-01-01

Due to difficulties with definition and measurement, the role of conscious craving in substance use disorders remains contentious. To address this, behavioral economics is increasingly being used to quantify aspects of an individual’s acute motivation to use a substance. Doing so typically involves the use of a purchase task, in which participants make choices about consuming alcohol or other substances at various prices and multiple indices of alcohol demand are generated. However, purchase tasks can be limited by the time required to administer and score them. In the current study, a brief 3-item measure, designed to capture three important indices of demand that are derived from demand curve modeling (intensity, Omax, and breakpoint), was investigated in a group of 84 heavy drinkers. Participants underwent a cue-reactivity paradigm that is established to increase both conscious craving and alcohol demand on traditional purchase tasks. All three indices of demand for alcohol measured using the abbreviated measure increased significantly in response to alcohol cues, analogous to what has been observed using a traditional purchase task. Additionally, the correlations between these indices and subjective craving were modest-to-moderate, as has been found in studies comparing craving to the indices derived from purchase tasks. These findings suggest that this abbreviated measure may be a useful and efficient way to capture important and distinct aspects of motivation for alcohol. If these results are confirmed, this measure may be able to help increase the portability of behavioral economic indices of demand into novel research and clinical contexts. PMID:27135038

A cost-benefit analysis of landfill mining and material recycling in China

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Zhou, Chuanbin, E-mail: cbzhou@rcees.ac.cn; Gong, Zhe; Hu, Junsong

Highlights: • Assessing the economic feasibility of landfill mining. • We applied a cost-benefit analysis model for landfill mining. • Four material cycling and energy recovery scenarios were designed. • We used net present value to evaluate the cost-benefit efficiency. - Abstract: Landfill mining is an environmentally-friendly technology that combines the concepts of material recycling and sustainable waste management, and it has received a great deal of worldwide attention because of its significant environmental and economic potential in material recycling, energy recovery, land reclamation and pollution prevention. This work applied a cost-benefit analysis model for assessing the economic feasibility, whichmore » is important for promoting landfill mining. The model includes eight indicators of costs and nine indicators of benefits. Four landfill mining scenarios were designed and analyzed based on field data. The economic feasibility of landfill mining was then evaluated by the indicator of net present value (NPV). According to our case study of a typical old landfill mining project in China (Yingchun landfill), rental of excavation and hauling equipment, waste processing and material transportation were the top three costs of landfill mining, accounting for 88.2% of the total cost, and the average cost per unit of stored waste was 12.7 USD ton{sup −1}. The top three benefits of landfill mining were electricity generation by incineration, land reclamation and recycling soil-like materials. The NPV analysis of the four different scenarios indicated that the Yingchun landfill mining project could obtain a net positive benefit varying from 1.92 million USD to 16.63 million USD. However, the NPV was sensitive to the mode of land reuse, the availability of energy recovery facilities and the possibility of obtaining financial support by avoiding post-closure care.« less

Economic Recession, Alcohol, and Suicide Rates: Comparative Effects of Poverty, Foreclosure, and Job Loss.

PubMed

Kerr, William C; Kaplan, Mark S; Huguet, Nathalie; Caetano, Raul; Giesbrecht, Norman; McFarland, Bentson H

2017-04-01

Suicide rates and the proportion of alcohol-involved suicides rose during the 2008-2009 recession. Associations between county-level poverty, foreclosures, and unemployment and suicide rates and proportion of alcohol-involved suicides were investigated. In 2015, National Violent Death Reporting System data from 16 states in 2005-2011 were utilized to calculate suicide rates and a measure of alcohol involvement in suicides at the county level. Panel models with year and state fixed effects included county-level measures of unemployment, foreclosure, and poverty rates. Poverty rates were strongly associated with suicide rates for both genders and all age groups, were positively associated with alcohol involvement in suicides for men aged 45-64 years, and negatively associated for men aged 20-44 years. Foreclosure rates were negatively associated with suicide rates for women and those aged ≥65 years but positively related for those aged 45-64 years. Unemployment rate effects on suicide rates were mediated by poverty rates in all groups. Population risk of suicide was most clearly associated with county-level poverty rates, indicating that programs addressing area poverty should be targeted for reducing suicide risk. Poverty rates were also associated with increased alcohol involvement for men aged 45-64 years, indicating a role for alcohol in suicide for this working-aged group. However, negative associations between economic indicators and alcohol involvement were found for four groups, suggesting that non-economic factors or more general economic effects not captured by these indicators may have played a larger role in alcohol-related suicide increases. Copyright © 2016 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Transnational Terrorism’s Affect on the U.S. Economy

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-03-19

economic stability is still visible; however the research in this paper indicates the U.S. economy is very resilient and that it would take a great deal of domestic and external pressure to generate a long-term and lasting economic affect. This paper analyzes the impact terrorism has had on the U.S. economy and seeks to determine how well the U.S. economy will stand to future terrorist attacks on U.S. soil that match magnitude of economic affect caused by the attacks of September 11 2001. To the

An Analysis of the Effect of Marital and Family Status on Retention, Promotion, and On-the-Job Productivity of Male Marine Corps Officers

DTIC Science & Technology

2005-03-01

workers earn more than single male co-workers is well established in labor economics literature. Studies indicate that a marriage earnings premium exists in...determination, which are valued in both the labor and marriage markets. The explanation of the marriage wage premium is an important subject in labor economics because...subject in labor economics . Of all the examined determinants, marital status has been found to be one of the most robust ones. Kol and Ryu (2002), in their

A Research on Performance Measurement Based on Economic Valued-Added Comprehensive Scorecard

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Qin; Zhang, Xiaomei

With the development of economic, the traditional performance mainly rely on financial indicators could not satisfy the need of work. In order to make the performance measurement taking the best services for business goals, this paper proposed Economic Valued-Added Comprehensive Scorecard based on research of shortages and advantages of EVA and BSC .We used Analytic Hierarchy Process to build matrix to solve the weighting of EVA Comprehensive Scorecard. At last we could find the most influence factors for enterprise value forming the weighting.

Economic policy optimization based on both one stochastic model and the parametric control theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ashimov, Abdykappar; Borovskiy, Yuriy; Onalbekov, Mukhit

2016-06-01

A nonlinear dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model with financial frictions is developed to describe two interacting national economies in the environment of the rest of the world. Parameters of nonlinear model are estimated based on its log-linearization by the Bayesian approach. The nonlinear model is verified by retroprognosis, estimation of stability indicators of mappings specified by the model, and estimation the degree of coincidence for results of internal and external shocks' effects on macroeconomic indicators on the basis of the estimated nonlinear model and its log-linearization. On the base of the nonlinear model, the parametric control problems of economic growth and volatility of macroeconomic indicators of Kazakhstan are formulated and solved for two exchange rate regimes (free floating and managed floating exchange rates)

Health Care Indicators for the United States

PubMed Central

Donham, Carolyn S.; Maple, Brenda T.; Levit, Katharine R.

1992-01-01

Contained in this regular feature of the journal is a section on each of the following four topics community hospital statistics; employment, hours, and earnings in the private health sector; health care prices; and national economic indicators. PMID:10122005

School Performance: A Matter of Health or Socio-Economic Background? Findings from the PIAMA Birth Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Ruijsbroek, Annemarie; Wijga, Alet H.; Gehring, Ulrike; Kerkhof, Marjan; Droomers, Mariël

2015-01-01

Background Performance in primary school is a determinant of children’s educational attainment and their socio-economic position and health inequalities in adulthood. We examined the relationship between five common childhood health conditions (asthma symptoms, eczema, general health, frequent respiratory infections, and overweight), health related school absence and family socio-economic status on children’s school performance. Methods We used data from 1,865 children in the Dutch PIAMA birth cohort study. School performance was measured as the teacher’s assessment of a suitable secondary school level for the child, and the child’s score on a standardized achievement test (Cito Test). Both school performance indicators were standardised using Z-scores. Childhood health was indicated by eczema, asthma symptoms, general health, frequent respiratory infections, overweight, and health related school absence. Children’s health conditions were reported repeatedly between the age of one to eleven. School absenteeism was reported at age eleven. Highest attained educational level of the mother and father indicated family socio-economic status. We used linear regression models with heteroskedasticity-robust standard errors for our analyses with adjustment for sex of the child. Results The health indicators used in our study were not associated with children’s school performance, independently from parental educational level, with the exception of asthma symptoms (-0.03 z-score / -0.04 z-score with Cito Test score after adjusting for respectively maternal and paternal education) and missing more than 5 schooldays due to illness (-0.18 z-score with Cito Test score and -0.17 z-score with school level assessment after adjustment for paternal education). The effect estimates for these health indicators were much smaller though than the effect estimates for parental education, which was strongly associated with children’s school performance. Conclusion Children’s school performance was affected only slightly by a number of common childhood health problems, but was strongly associated with parental education. PMID:26247468

School Performance: A Matter of Health or Socio-Economic Background? Findings from the PIAMA Birth Cohort Study.

PubMed

Ruijsbroek, Annemarie; Wijga, Alet H; Gehring, Ulrike; Kerkhof, Marjan; Droomers, Mariël

2015-01-01

Performance in primary school is a determinant of children's educational attainment and their socio-economic position and health inequalities in adulthood. We examined the relationship between five common childhood health conditions (asthma symptoms, eczema, general health, frequent respiratory infections, and overweight), health related school absence and family socio-economic status on children's school performance. We used data from 1,865 children in the Dutch PIAMA birth cohort study. School performance was measured as the teacher's assessment of a suitable secondary school level for the child, and the child's score on a standardized achievement test (Cito Test). Both school performance indicators were standardised using Z-scores. Childhood health was indicated by eczema, asthma symptoms, general health, frequent respiratory infections, overweight, and health related school absence. Children's health conditions were reported repeatedly between the age of one to eleven. School absenteeism was reported at age eleven. Highest attained educational level of the mother and father indicated family socio-economic status. We used linear regression models with heteroskedasticity-robust standard errors for our analyses with adjustment for sex of the child. The health indicators used in our study were not associated with children's school performance, independently from parental educational level, with the exception of asthma symptoms (-0.03 z-score / -0.04 z-score with Cito Test score after adjusting for respectively maternal and paternal education) and missing more than 5 schooldays due to illness (-0.18 z-score with Cito Test score and -0.17 z-score with school level assessment after adjustment for paternal education). The effect estimates for these health indicators were much smaller though than the effect estimates for parental education, which was strongly associated with children's school performance. Children's school performance was affected only slightly by a number of common childhood health problems, but was strongly associated with parental education.

Environmental Indicators. A Preliminary Set = Indicateurs d'environnement. Une etude pilote.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, Paris (France).

This document provides a preliminary set of environmental indicators by which to measure environmental performance. The indicators are patterned on the outline of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) "Report on the State of the Environment," a companion volume published in the same year. This volume is…

Kids Count Data Book: State Profiles of Child Well-Being.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for the Study of Social Policy, Washington, DC.

This book presents state-by-state information on 10 indicators of child and adolescent health, education, and social and economic well-being. Indicators were chosen because they represented measures generally comparable across states and widely regarded as reliable. Indicators were: (1) percentage of births with no early prenatal care; (2) infant…

WHAT INFORMATION DO WE HAVE TO IDENTIFY AND EVALUATE ECOLOGICAL METRICS AND INDICATORS THAT DIRECTLY MATTER TO PEOPLE?

EPA Science Inventory

The use of ecological metrics and indicators that matter directly to people makes ecological information more useful. By more useful we mean in communication with people and for social and economic analysis. While the need to specify these metrics and indicators is a view widely ...

Education and Employment. Indicators of Education Systems = Formation et Emploi. Indicateurs des Systemes d'Enseignement.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bucht, Bertil; Harnqvist, Kjell

This book contains 11 reports describing the conceptual, methodological, and policy problems encountered during development of the international indicators known as Network B, which were developed as part of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's Project on International Indicators of Education Systems to serve as…

Telephone Communication for the Deaf: Speech Indicator Manual.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Ray L.

The instructional manual is designed to accompany the Speech Indicator, a small, portable, economical ($15) device for deaf persons for telephone communication (available from Leadership Training Program in the Area of the Deaf, San Fernando State College). The device indicates when the other party speaks, not what he says. A topic outline and…

Assessing multimetric aspects of sustainability: Application to a bioenergy crop production system in East Tennessee

DOE PAGES

Parish, Esther S.; Dale, Virginia H.; English, Burton C.; ...

2016-02-26

This paper connects the science of sustainability theory with applied aspects of sustainability deployment. A suite of 35 sustainability indicators spanning six environmental, three economic, and three social categories has been proposed for comparing the sustainability of bioenergy production systems across different feedstock types and locations. A recent demonstration-scale switchgrass-to-ethanol production system located in East Tennessee is used to assess the availability of sustainability indicator data and associated measurements for the feedstock production and logistics portions of the biofuel supply chain. Knowledge pertaining to the available indicators is distributed within a hierarchical decision tree framework to generate an assessment ofmore » the overall sustainability of this no-till switchgrass production system relative to two alternative business-as-usual scenarios of unmanaged pasture and tilled corn production. The relative contributions of the social, economic and environmental information are determined for the overall trajectory of this bioenergy system s sustainability under each scenario. Within this East Tennessee context, switchgrass production shows potential for improving environmental and social sustainability trajectories without adverse economic impacts, thereby leading to potential for overall enhancement in sustainability within this local agricultural system. Given the early stages of cellulosic ethanol production, it is currently difficult to determine quantitative values for all 35 sustainability indicators across the entire biofuel supply chain. This case study demonstrates that integration of qualitative sustainability indicator ratings may increase holistic understanding of a bioenergy system in the absence of complete information.« less

[Application of land economic ecological niche in landscape pattern analysis at county level: A case study of Jinghe County in Xinjiang, China].

PubMed

Yu, Hai-yang; Zhang, Fei; Wang, Juan; Zhou, Mei

2015-12-01

The theory of land economic ecological niche was used to analyze the regional landscape pattern in this article, with an aim to provide a new method for the characterization and representation of landscape pattern. The Jinghe County region, which is ecologically fragile, was selected as an example for the study, and the Landsat images of 1990, 1998, 2011 and 2013 were selected as remote sensing data. The land economic ecological niche of land use types calculated by ecostate-ecorole theory, combined with landscape ecology theory, was discussed in application of land economic ecological niche in county landscape pattern analysis. The results showed that, during the study period, the correlations between land economic ecological niche of farmland, construction land, and grassland with the parameters, including landscape patch number (NP), aggregated index (AI), fragmented index (FN) and fractal dimension (FD), were significant. Regional landscape was driven by the changes of land economic ecological niche, and the trend of economic development could be represented by land economic ecological niche change in Jinghe County. Land economic ecological niche was closely related with the land use types which could yield direct economic benefits, which could well explain the landscape pattern characteristics in Jinghe County when combined with the landscape indices.

Economics of global burden of road traffic injuries and their relationship with health system variables.

PubMed

Dalal, Koustuv; Lin, Zhiquin; Gifford, Mervyn; Svanström, Leif

2013-12-01

To estimate the economic loss due to road traffic injuries (RTIs) of the World Health Organization (WHO) member countries and to explore the relationship between the economic loss and relevant health system factors. Data from the World Bank and the WHO were applied to set up the databases. Disability-adjusted life year (DALY) and gross domestic product per capita were used to estimate the economic loss relating to RTIs. Regression analysis was used. Data were analyzed by IBM SPSS Statistics, Versions 20.0. In 2005, the total economic loss of RTIs was estimated to be 167,752.4 million United States Dollars. High income countries (HIC) showed the greatest economic losses. The majority (96%) of the top 25 countries with the greatest DALY losses are low and middle income countries while 48% of the top 25 countries with the highest economic losses are HIC. The linear regression model indicates an inverse relationship between nurse density in the health system and economic loss due to RTI. RTIs cause enormous death and DALYs loss in low-middle income countries and enormous economic loss in HIC. More road traffic prevention programs should be promoted in these areas to reduce both incidence and economic burden of RTIs.

Economic analysis of the health impacts of housing improvement studies: a systematic review.

PubMed

Fenwick, Elisabeth; Macdonald, Catriona; Thomson, Hilary

2013-10-01

Economic evaluation of public policies has been advocated but rarely performed. Studies from a systematic review of the health impacts of housing improvement included data on costs and some economic analysis. Examination of these data provides an opportunity to explore the difficulties and the potential for economic evaluation of housing. Data were extracted from all studies included in the systematic review of housing improvement which had reported costs and economic analysis (n=29/45). The reported data were assessed for their suitability to economic evaluation. Where an economic analysis was reported the analysis was described according to pre-set definitions of various types of economic analysis used in the field of health economics. 25 studies reported cost data on the intervention and/or benefits to the recipients. Of these, 11 studies reported data which was considered amenable to economic evaluation. A further four studies reported conducting an economic evaluation. Three of these studies presented a hybrid 'balance sheet' approach and indicated a net economic benefit associated with the intervention. One cost-effectiveness evaluation was identified but the data were unclearly reported; the cost-effectiveness plane suggested that the intervention was more costly and less effective than the status quo. Future studies planning an economic evaluation need to (i) make best use of available data and (ii) ensure that all relevant data are collected. To facilitate this, economic evaluations should be planned alongside the intervention with input from health economists from the outset of the study. When undertaken appropriately, economic evaluation provides the potential to make significant contributions to housing policy.

Adding insult to injury

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Friebele, Elaine

New predictions and observations suggest that global warming will exact the highest costs on developing countries. A recent economic analysis of global climate change indicates that developed countries, the primary emitters of carbon dioxide, would benefit by $82 billion per year from a 2°C increase in global mean temperature, while underdeveloped countries would lose $40 billion per year.For the economic analysis, global climate predictions were combined with economic data (for agriculture, forestry, coastal resources, energy, and tourism), but natural climate variability, including frosts, droughts, or severe thunderstorms, was not included. Countries predicted to suffer the greatest economic losses from global warming are island nations, said Michael Schlesinger, a University of Illinois atmospheric scientist who performed the economic analysis with colleagues from Yale University and Middlebury College. “These countries have long coast lines, sensitive tourism industries, and small, undeveloped economies.”

Residential Segregation,Spatial Mismatch and Economic Growth across US Metropolitan Area

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Campbell, Dr Harrison; Li, Huiping

2013-01-01

Numerous studies have demonstrated the detrimental influence of residential segregation on poor inner-city residents. This study examines the impact of residential segregation on the welfare of populations in US metropolitan areas using economic growth as the indicator. Panel data of US metropolitan areas spanning 25 years, 1980 2005, are used to analyze the effect of segregation on economic growth. The results show that both racial and skill segregation have a negative impact on short and long-term economic growth, which have increased over time. Further, the negative impact of the variables associated with spatial mismatch is also revealed. The results clearlymore » point to the need for mobility policies that favor non-White households and comprehensive strategies that promote economic opportunities in low-resource communities in the US.« less

The economic support index evaluation study on the pig breeding scale of the six provinces in central China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leng, Bi-Bin; Le, Xi-lin; Yuan, Gang; Ji, Xue-Qiang

2017-11-01

Shanxi province, Anhui province, Jiangxi province, Henan province, Hubei province and Hunan province are located in the central part of China. They are playing an essential role in China’s economic and social development. In this article, we use analytic hierarchy process(AHP), on the basis of the statistical yearbook data of 2016, conduct an appraisal research about the economic support index of the pig breeding scale in the six provinces of central China. The evaluation shows that Hubei tops all of the provinces on the economic support index, followed by Hunan, Anhui, Henan, Jiangxi. The lowest index is in Shanxi province. It indicates the economic conditions in Hubei province is the most capable for it to support the pig breeding scale, Shanxi province is the opposite.

The RTOG Outcomes Model: economic end points and measures.

PubMed

Konski, Andre; Watkins-Bruner, Deborah

2004-03-01

Recognising the value added by economic evaluations of clinical trials and the interaction of clinical, humanistic and economic end points, the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) has developed an Outcomes Model that guides the comprehensive assessment of this triad of end points. This paper will focus on the economic component of the model. The Economic Impact Committee was founded in 1994 to study the economic impact of clinical trials of cancer care. A steep learning curve ensued with considerable time initially spent understanding the methodology of economic analysis. Since then, economic analyses have been performed on RTOG clinical trials involving treatments for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, locally-advanced head and neck cancer and prostate cancer. As the care of cancer patients evolves with time, so has the economic analyses performed by the Economic Impact Committee. This paper documents the evolution of the cost-effectiveness analyses of RTOG from performing average cost-utility analysis to more technically sophisticated Monte Carlo simulation of Markov models, to incorporating prospective economic analyses as an initial end point. Briefly, results indicated that, accounting for quality-adjusted survival, concurrent chemotherapy and radiation for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer, more aggressive radiation fractionation schedules for head and neck cancer and the addition of hormone therapy to radiation for prostate cancer are within the range of economically acceptable recommendations. The RTOG economic analyses have provided information that can further inform clinicians and policy makers of the value added of new or improved treatments.

How an aging society affects the economic costs of inactivity in Germany: empirical evidence and projections.

PubMed

Dallmeyer, Sören; Wicker, Pamela; Breuer, Christoph

2017-01-01

Aging societies represent a major challenge for health care systems all over the world. As older people tend to be more physically inactive, economic costs of inactivity are likely to increase notably. The present study aims to investigate this relationship between an aging society and economic costs of inactivity using the example of Germany. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel, this study applied the comparative risk assessment method developed by the WHO to estimate the direct costs of inactivity for the period 2001-2013 differentiated by gender-specific age-groups (15-29; 30-44; 45-64; 65+). Based on population statistics predicting the aging of the German population for the years 2014-2060, this research projects the development of future costs of inactivity and potential effects of interventions promoting physical activity among the German population. The results reveal an increase in the level of physical activity during the observed period (2001-2013) which compensated the negative effect of aging and resulted in a decline of inactivity costs. The projections for the years 2014-2060 indicate a constant increase in direct per capita costs until 2060 because of an aging society. Scenarios indicating how a short-term reduction of physical inactivity impacts costs of inactivity reveal the crucial role of the oldest age-group in this context. The findings indicate that the aging of the German population demands further actions and initiatives to promote physical activity, especially for the oldest age-group.

Blue water scarcity and the economic impacts of future agricultural trade and demand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitz, Christoph; Lotze-Campen, Hermann; Gerten, Dieter; Dietrich, Jan Philipp; Bodirsky, Benjamin; Biewald, Anne; Popp, Alexander

2013-06-01

An increasing demand for agricultural goods affects the pressure on global water resources over the coming decades. In order to quantify these effects, we have developed a new agroeconomic water scarcity indicator, considering explicitly economic processes in the agricultural system. The indicator is based on the water shadow price generated by an economic land use model linked to a global vegetation-hydrology model. Irrigation efficiency is implemented as a dynamic input depending on the level of economic development. We are able to simulate the heterogeneous distribution of water supply and agricultural water demand for irrigation through the spatially explicit representation of agricultural production. This allows in identifying regional hot spots of blue water scarcity and explicit shadow prices for water. We generate scenarios based on moderate policies regarding future trade liberalization and the control of livestock-based consumption, dependent on different population and gross domestic product (GDP) projections. Results indicate increased water scarcity in the future, especially in South Asia, the Middle East, and north Africa. In general, water shadow prices decrease with increasing liberalization, foremost in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Policies to reduce livestock consumption in developed countries not only lower the domestic pressure on water but also alleviate water scarcity to a large extent in developing countries. It is shown that one of the two policy options would be insufficient for most regions to retain water scarcity in 2045 on levels comparable to 2005.

Measuring Poverty in Southern India: A Comparison of Socio-Economic Scales Evaluated against Childhood Stunting.

PubMed

Kattula, Deepthi; Venugopal, Srinivasan; Velusamy, Vasanthakumar; Sarkar, Rajiv; Jiang, Victoria; S, Mahasampath Gowri; Henry, Ankita; Deosaran, Jordanna Devi; Muliyil, Jayaprakash; Kang, Gagandeep

2016-01-01

Socioeconomic status (SES) scales measure poverty, wealth and economic inequality in a population to guide appropriate economic and public health policies. Measurement of poverty and comparison of material deprivation across nations is a challenge. This study compared four SES scales which have been used locally and internationally and evaluated them against childhood stunting, used as an indicator of chronic deprivation, in urban southern India. A door-to-door survey collected information on socio-demographic indicators such as education, occupation, assets, income and living conditions in a semi-urban slum area in Vellore, Tamil Nadu in southern India. A total of 7925 households were categorized by four SES scales-Kuppuswamy scale, Below Poverty Line scale (BPL), the modified Kuppuswamy scale, and the multidimensional poverty index (MDPI) and the level of agreement compared between scales. Logistic regression was used to test the association of SES scales with stunting. The Kuppuswamy, BPL, MDPI and modified Kuppuswamy scales classified 7.1%, 1%, 5.5%, and 55.3% of families as low SES respectively, indicating conservative estimation of low SES by the BPL and MDPI scales in comparison with the modified Kuppuswamy scale, which had the highest sensitivity (89%). Children from low SES classified by all scales had higher odds of stunting, but the level of agreement between scales was very poor ranging from 1%-15%. There is great non-uniformity between existing SES scales and cautious interpretation of SES scales is needed in the context of social, cultural, and economic realities.

Investigating impacts of economic growth on the environment using remote sensing tools: A case study of gross domestic product and net primary production in China from 2001 to 2007

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Naizhuo

Pursuing sustainable co-development of economy and environment has been established as a basic national policy by the present Chinese government. However, studies regarding actual outcomes of the co-development policy at the whole Chinese scale are still limited. Detecting China's economic growth and changes of environmental quality will not only contribute to evaluation of outcomes of the co-development policy but more importantly is an opportunity to examine the suitability of the IPAT model and improve our understanding of human-environment interactions. The core of the IPAT theory is an equation where I=PxAxT that models human impact on the environment as a function of changes to population (P), affluence ( A), and technology (T). The IPAT theory emphasizes that economic growth will inevitably produce negative impacts on the environment. Thus, if China's environmental quality declined while economic growth occurred, then the IPAT theory will be substantiated. Otherwise, the suitability of the IPAT theory will be called into question and its tenets must be reconsidered. In this dissertation research I selected gross domestic product (GDP) and net primary production (NPP) as indicators to evaluate production of social and ecological systems respectively. The main study objectives are (1) to develop a methodology to facilitate integration of the two indicators derived from demographic data sources and satellite imagery at different geographic scales, (2) to jointly explore changing patterns of China's economic and ecological production (i.e., spatially and temporally coincident patterns of change in GDP and NPP) across different spatial scales, (3) to analyze whether economic growth has produced negative impacts on ecosystem production and whether the impacts correlate to the economic growth, and finally (4) to discuss whether the IPAT theory is suitable for explaining the joint changes of GDP and NPP in China or if it is in need of modification. To fulfill the study objectives, nighttime light images and LandScan gridded population data were used to disaggregate demographic GDP data reported at the province level to the pixel level. The disaggregated GDP data were integrated with MODIS annual NPP data to map joint changes of GDP and NPP from 2001 to 2007. Economic development and environmental change can lead to land cover change, and the land cover change can, in turn, determine the changes of NPP. Thus, a change detection matrix with basic land cover elements was produced from MODIS land cover type products to augment the analyses of changing patterns of GDP and NPP in China. To safely discern that the changes of NPP are mainly affected by anthropogenic factors and not natural forces, the extents of undeveloped, established developed (existing before 2001), and newly developed (emerging after 2001) areas were delimited from the nighttime light images. Results show that most Chinese developed areas experienced coupled increases in GDP and NPP between 2001 and 2007 across different geographic scales, but no significant correlations exist between the total changes (or percentage changes) in GDP and NPP at the province, the city, or the pixel level. Despite large increases in GDP, the decreases in vegetated land expected according to IPAT theory did not occur in developed areas. Instead, barren land markedly decreased and built-up land slightly decreased in extent. These changing patterns suggest that China's economic growth produced some positive impacts on its ecosystem production as measured using NPP. In light of these findings a reexamination of the IPAT theory is necessary. I propose a revision to the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) concept to fully illustrate the relationship between economic growth and ecosystem production as an indicator of environmental quality. According to the EKC, at relatively low levels of economic output, economic growth produces negative impacts on environmental quality. The negative impacts tend to reach a maximum at high levels of economic output and then decline at sustained levels of high economic output. My findings indicate that at sustained levels of high economic output some negative impacts may be reduced, but that some positive impacts may simultaneously emerge.

Does a Change Over All Equal a Change in All? Testing for Polarized Alcohol Use Within and Across Socio-Economic Groups in Germany.

PubMed

Gomes de Matos, Elena; Kraus, Ludwig; Pabst, Alexander; Piontek, Daniela

2015-11-01

This study aimed at testing whether drinking volume and episodic heavy drinking (EHD) frequency in Germany are polarizing between consumption levels over time. Polarization is defined as a reduction in alcohol use among the majority of the population, while a subpopulation with a high intake level maintains or increases its drinking or its EHD frequency. The polarization hypothesis was tested across and within socio-economic subgroups. Analyses were based on seven cross-sectional waves of the Epidemiological Survey of Substance Abuse (ESA) conducted between 1995 and 2012 (n = 7833-9084). Overall polarization was estimated based on regression models with time by consumption level interactions; the three-way interaction with socio-economic status (SES) was consecutively introduced to test the stability of effects over socio-economic strata. Interactions were interpreted by graphical inspection. For both alcohol use indicators, declines over time were largest in the highest consumption level. This was found within all SES groups, but was most pronounced at low and least pronounced at medium SES. The results indicate no polarization but convergence between consumption levels. Socio-economic status groups differ in the magnitude of convergence which was lowest in medium SES. The overall decline was strongest for the highest consumption level of low SES. © The Author 2015. Medical Council on Alcohol and Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.

Global industrial impact coefficient based on random walk process and inter-country input-output table

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xing, Lizhi; Dong, Xianlei; Guan, Jun

2017-04-01

Input-output table is very comprehensive and detailed in describing the national economic system with lots of economic relationships, which contains supply and demand information among industrial sectors. The complex network, a theory and method for measuring the structure of complex system, can describe the structural characteristics of the internal structure of the research object by measuring the structural indicators of the social and economic system, revealing the complex relationship between the inner hierarchy and the external economic function. This paper builds up GIVCN-WIOT models based on World Input-Output Database in order to depict the topological structure of Global Value Chain (GVC), and assumes the competitive advantage of nations is equal to the overall performance of its domestic sectors' impact on the GVC. Under the perspective of econophysics, Global Industrial Impact Coefficient (GIIC) is proposed to measure the national competitiveness in gaining information superiority and intermediate interests. Analysis of GIVCN-WIOT models yields several insights including the following: (1) sectors with higher Random Walk Centrality contribute more to transmitting value streams within the global economic system; (2) Half-Value Ratio can be used to measure robustness of open-economy macroeconomics in the process of globalization; (3) the positive correlation between GIIC and GDP indicates that one country's global industrial impact could reveal its international competitive advantage.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Aabakken, J.

This report, prepared by NREL's Strategic Energy Analysis Center, includes up-to-date information on power technologies, including complete technology profiles. The data book also contains charts on electricity restructuring, power technology forecasts, electricity supply, electricity capability, electricity generation, electricity demand, prices, economic indicators, environmental indicators, and conversion factors.

Analysis of the methods for assessing socio-economic development level of urban areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Popova, Olga; Bogacheva, Elena

2017-01-01

The present paper provides a targeted analysis of current approaches (ratings) in the assessment of socio-economic development of urban areas. The survey focuses on identifying standardized methodologies to area assessment techniques formation that will result in developing the system of intelligent monitoring, dispatching, building management, scheduling and effective management of an administrative-territorial unit. This system is characterized by complex hierarchical structure, including tangible and intangible properties (parameters, attributes). Investigating the abovementioned methods should increase the administrative-territorial unit's attractiveness for investors and residence. The research aims at studying methods for evaluating socio-economic development level of the Russian Federation territories. Experimental and theoretical territory estimating methods were revealed. Complex analysis of the characteristics of the areas was carried out and evaluation parameters were determined. Integral indicators (resulting rating criteria values) as well as the overall rankings (parameters, characteristics) were analyzed. The inventory of the most widely used partial indicators (parameters, characteristics) of urban areas was revealed. The resulting criteria of rating values homogeneity were verified and confirmed by determining the root mean square deviation, i.e. divergence of indices. The principal shortcomings of assessment methodologies were revealed. The assessment methods with enhanced effectiveness and homogeneity were proposed.

Outcomes research in cancer clinical trial cooperative groups: the RTOG model.

PubMed

Bruner, D W; Movsas, B; Konski, A; Roach, M; Bondy, M; Scarintino, C; Scott, C; Curran, W

2004-08-01

The Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG), a National Cancer Institute sponsored cancer clinical trials research cooperative, has recently formed an Outcomes Committee to assess a comprehensive array of clinical trial endpoints and factors impacting the net effect of therapy. To study outcomes in a consistent, comprehensive and coordinated manner, the RTOG Outcomes Committee developed a model to assess clinical, humanistic, and economic outcomes important in clinical trials. This paper reviews how the RTOG incorporates outcomes research into cancer clinical trials, and demonstrates utilization of the RTOG Outcomes Model to test hypotheses related to non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this example, the clinical component of the model indicates that the addition of chemotherapy to radiotherapy (RT) improves survival but increases the risk of toxicity. The humanistic component indicates that esophagitis is the symptom impacting quality of life the greatest and may outweigh the benefits in elderly (> or =70 years) patients. The economic component of the model indicates that accounting for quality-adjusted survival, concurrent chemoRT for the treatment of NSCLC is within the range of economically acceptable recommendations. The RTOG Outcomes Model guides a comprehensive program of research that systematically measures a triad of endpoints considered important to clinical trials research.

Community-level characteristics associated with variation in rates of homelessness among families and single adults.

PubMed

Fargo, Jamison D; Munley, Ellen A; Byrne, Thomas H; Montgomery, Ann Elizabeth; Culhane, Dennis P

2013-12-01

We modeled rates of family and single-adult homelessness in the United States in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan regions and as a function of community-level demographic, behavioral, health, economic, and safety net characteristics. We entered community-level characteristics and US Department of Housing and Urban Development point-in-time counts for a single night in January 2009 into separate mixed-effects statistical analyses that modeled homelessness rates for 4 subpopulations: families and single adults in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan regions. Community-level factors accounted for 25% to 50% of the variance in homelessness rates across models. In metropolitan regions, alcohol consumption, social support, and several economic indicators were uniquely associated with family homelessness, and drug use and homicide were uniquely associated with single-adult homelessness. In nonmetropolitan regions, life expectancy, religious adherence, unemployment, and rent burden were uniquely associated with family homelessness, and health care access, crime, several economic indicators, and receipt of Supplemental Security Income were uniquely associated with single-adult homelessness. Considering homeless families and single adults separately enabled more precise modeling of associations between homelessness rates and community-level characteristics, indicating targets for interventions to reduce homelessness among these subpopulations.

The analysis of factors of management of safety of critical information infrastructure with use of dynamic models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trostyansky, S. N.; Kalach, A. V.; Lavlinsky, V. V.; Lankin, O. V.

2018-03-01

Based on the analysis of the dynamic model of panel data by region, including fire statistics for surveillance sites and statistics of a set of regional socio-economic indicators, as well as the time of rapid response of the state fire service to fires, the probability of fires in the surveillance sites and the risk of human death in The result of such fires from the values of the corresponding indicators for the previous year, a set of regional social-economics factors, as well as regional indicators time rapid response of the state fire service in the fire. The results obtained are consistent with the results of the application to the fire risks of the model of a rational offender. Estimation of the economic equivalent of human life from data on surveillance objects for Russia, calculated on the basis of the analysis of the presented dynamic model of fire risks, correctly agrees with the known literary data. The results obtained on the basis of the econometric approach to fire risks allow us to forecast fire risks at the supervisory sites in the regions of Russia and to develop management solutions to minimize such risks.

Community-Level Characteristics Associated With Variation in Rates of Homelessness Among Families and Single Adults

PubMed Central

Fargo, Jamison D.; Munley, Ellen A.; Byrne, Thomas H.; Montgomery, Ann Elizabeth; Culhane, Dennis P.

2013-01-01

Objectives. We modeled rates of family and single-adult homelessness in the United States in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan regions and as a function of community-level demographic, behavioral, health, economic, and safety net characteristics. Methods. We entered community-level characteristics and US Department of Housing and Urban Development point-in-time counts for a single night in January 2009 into separate mixed-effects statistical analyses that modeled homelessness rates for 4 subpopulations: families and single adults in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan regions. Results. Community-level factors accounted for 25% to 50% of the variance in homelessness rates across models. In metropolitan regions, alcohol consumption, social support, and several economic indicators were uniquely associated with family homelessness, and drug use and homicide were uniquely associated with single-adult homelessness. In nonmetropolitan regions, life expectancy, religious adherence, unemployment, and rent burden were uniquely associated with family homelessness, and health care access, crime, several economic indicators, and receipt of Supplemental Security Income were uniquely associated with single-adult homelessness. Conclusions. Considering homeless families and single adults separately enabled more precise modeling of associations between homelessness rates and community-level characteristics, indicating targets for interventions to reduce homelessness among these subpopulations. PMID:24148057

Do economic evaluation studies inform effective healthcare resource allocation in Iran? A critical review of the literature.

PubMed

Haghparast-Bidgoli, Hassan; Kiadaliri, Aliasghar Ahmad; Skordis-Worrall, Jolene

2014-01-01

To aid informed health sector decision-making, data from sufficient high quality economic evaluations must be available to policy makers. To date, no known study has analysed the quantity and quality of available Iranian economic evaluation studies. This study aimed to assess the quantity, quality and targeting of economic evaluation studies conducted in the Iranian context. The study systematically reviewed full economic evaluation studies (n = 30) published between 1999 and 2012 in international and local journals. The findings of the review indicate that although the literature on economic evaluation in Iran is growing, these evaluations were of poor quality and suffer from several major methodological flaws. Furthermore, the review reveals that economic evaluation studies have not addressed the major health problems in Iran. While the availability of evidence is no guarantee that it will be used to aid decision-making, the absence of evidence will certainly preclude its use. Considering the deficiencies in the data identified by this review, current economic evaluations cannot be a useful source of information for decision makers in Iran. To improve the quality and overall usefulness of economic evaluations we would recommend; 1) developing clear national guidelines for the conduct of economic evaluations, 2) highlighting priority areas where information from such studies would be most useful and 3) training researchers and policy makers in the calculation and use of economic evaluation data.

[Evaluation of economic forest ecosystem services in China].

PubMed

Wang, Bing; Lu, Shao-Wei

2009-02-01

This paper quantitatively evaluated the economic forest ecosystem services in the provinces of China in 2003, based on the long-term and continuous observations of economic forest ecosystems in this country, the sixth China national forest resources inventory data, and the price parameter data from the authorities in the world, and by applying the law of market value, the method of substitution of the expenses, and the law of the shadow project. The results showed that in 2003, the total value of economic forest ecosystem services in China was 11763.39 x 10(8) yuan, and the total value of the products from economic forests occupied 19.3% of the total ecosystem services value, which indicated that the economic forests not only provided society direct products, but also exhibited enormous eco-economic value. The service value of the functions of economic forests was in the order of water storage > C fixation and O2 release > biodiversity conservation > erosion control > air quality purification > nutrient cycle. The spatial pattern of economic forest ecosystem services in the provinces of China had the same trend with the spatial distribution of water and heat resources and biodiversity. To understand the differences of economic forest ecosystem services in the provinces of China was of significance in alternating the irrational arrangement of our present forestry production, diminishing the abuses of forest management, and establishing high grade, high efficient, and modernized economic forests.

Do economic evaluation studies inform effective healthcare resource allocation in Iran? A critical review of the literature

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

To aid informed health sector decision-making, data from sufficient high quality economic evaluations must be available to policy makers. To date, no known study has analysed the quantity and quality of available Iranian economic evaluation studies. This study aimed to assess the quantity, quality and targeting of economic evaluation studies conducted in the Iranian context. The study systematically reviewed full economic evaluation studies (n = 30) published between 1999 and 2012 in international and local journals. The findings of the review indicate that although the literature on economic evaluation in Iran is growing, these evaluations were of poor quality and suffer from several major methodological flaws. Furthermore, the review reveals that economic evaluation studies have not addressed the major health problems in Iran. While the availability of evidence is no guarantee that it will be used to aid decision-making, the absence of evidence will certainly preclude its use. Considering the deficiencies in the data identified by this review, current economic evaluations cannot be a useful source of information for decision makers in Iran. To improve the quality and overall usefulness of economic evaluations we would recommend; 1) developing clear national guidelines for the conduct of economic evaluations, 2) highlighting priority areas where information from such studies would be most useful and 3) training researchers and policy makers in the calculation and use of economic evaluation data. PMID:25050084

Criterion V: Legal, institutional, and economic framework for rangeland conservation and sustainable management [Chapter 6

Treesearch

Jonn E. Mitchell; Stan Hamiliton; Thomas Lustig; Kenneth Nelson; Tom Roberts; Brian Czech

2010-01-01

Laws, institutions, and economic policies play a large role in determining the sustainability of rangelands. They provide the basic framework from which many lasting decisions about rangeland management are made. The SRR has identified 10 primary indicators to assess how this framework influences the long-term health and productivity of rangeland in this country. The...

Ecological and economic impacts of forest policies: interactions across forestry and agriculture.

Treesearch

R.J. Alig; D.M. Adams; B.A. McCarl

1998-01-01

A linked model of the US forest and agriculture sectors was used to examine the economic and ecological impacts of two forest policies: a minimum harvest age limitation and a reduced public harvest policy. Simulated private responses to both policies indicate that landowners could undertake a range of adjustments to minimize their welfare impacts, but imposition of...