scholarly journals US adults’ preferences for race-based and place-based prioritisation for COVID-19 vaccines

2021 ◽  
pp. medethics-2021-107741
Author(s):  
Harald Schmidt ◽  
Sonia Jawaid Shaikh ◽  
Emiily Sadecki ◽  
Sarah Gollust
Keyword(s):  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Health Disparities ◽  
Racial Groups ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Us States ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Acceptability ◽  
Pandemic Planning ◽  
Nationally Representative

Implementing equity principles in resource allocation is challenging. In one approach, some US states implemented race-based prioritisation of COVID-19 vaccines in response to vast racial inequities in COVID-19 outcomes, while others used place-based allocation. In a nationally representative survey of n=2067 US residents, fielded in mid-April 2021 (before the entire US population became eligible for vaccines), we explored the public acceptability of race-based prioritisation compared with place-based prioritisation, by offering vaccines to harder hit zip codes before residents of other zip codes. We found that in general, a majority of respondents supported the place-based approach, and a substantial proportion supported the race-based plan. Support was higher among Democrats compared with Republicans. All US residents became eligible for vaccines on 19 April 2021 but as of this writing, equitable uptake of vaccines remains urgent not only for first doses for adults but also for boosters and for children. Our findings also provide a benchmark for future pandemic planning that racial and social justice in vaccine allocation are salient considerations for the public. The findings may furthermore be of interest to policy makers designing vaccine allocation frameworks in countries with comparable health disparities across social, ethnic and racial groups, and more broadly, for those exploring ways of promoting equity in resource allocation outside of a pandemic setting.

Exploring the differences in SPC convective outlook interpretation using categorical and numeric information

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Severe Weather ◽  
Correct Interpretation ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
Risk Levels ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Interpretation ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Numeric Information ◽  
The Given ◽  
Level 2

Abstract While previous work has shown the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) convective outlooks accurately capture meteorological outcomes, evidence suggests stakeholders and the public may misinterpret the categorical words currently used in the product. This work attempts to address this problem by investigating public reactions to alternative information formats that include numeric information: (1) numeric risk levels (i.e., “Level 2 of 5”) and (2) numeric probabilities (i.e., “a 5% chance”). In addition, it explores how different combinations of the categorical labels with numeric information may impact public reactions to the product. Survey data comes from the 2020 Severe Weather and Society Survey, a nationally representative survey of US adults. Participants were shown varying combinations of the information formats of interest, and then rated their concern about the weather and the likelihood of changing plans in response to the given information. Results indicate that providing numeric information (in the form of levels or probabilities) increases the likelihood of participants correctly interpreting the convective outlook information relative to categorical labels alone. Including the categorical labels increases misinterpretation, regardless of whether numeric information was included alongside the labels. Finally, findings indicate participants’ numeracy (or their ability to understand and work with numbers) had an impact on correct interpretation of the order of the outlook labels. Although there are many challenges to correctly interpreting the SPC convective outlook, using only numeric labels instead of the current categorical labels may be a relatively straightforward change that could improve public interpretation of the product.

Online job quality quizzes: are they of value?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Age Groups ◽  
Job Quality ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Random Probability ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
The Uk

Purpose The purpose of this study is to compare two methods of data collection on job quality – an online quiz and a random probability survey. Design/methodology/approach Data are from a nationally representative sample of workers in Britain aged 20–65 years. Participants in the survey are randomly selected whereas those completing the quiz are recruited using uncontrolled convenience sampling promoted through trade union websites, newsletters and advertising on social media platforms. The survey and quiz contain the same questions and data from both methods are collected within 14 months of each other. Findings The results show that the sample recruited for participation in the online quiz is skewed towards those working in the public sector, people in higher education and towards younger age groups and women whereas the random probability survey is more representative of the adult working population in the UK. Significant differences in the results obtained by the two collection methods are found which suggests that social desirability bias is having an effect on participant responses. Practical implications Therefore policy makers should consider the advantages and disadvantages when selecting methods to collect data for tracking changes in job quality. Originality/value This paper has an original approach by examining the procedures in different methods of gathering data on job quality and the effects of this on the data collected.

scholarly journals Challenging Evolution in Public Schools: Race, Religion, and Attitudes toward Teaching Creationism

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 237802311987037 ◽  
Author(s):  
Esmeralda Sánchez Salazar ◽  
Brandon Vaidyanathan ◽  
Elaine Howard Ecklund ◽  
Adriana Garcia
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Religious Affiliation ◽  
Racial Groups ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
Religion And Science ◽  
Latino Americans ◽  
Conservative Protestant ◽  
Attitudes Toward Teaching ◽  
Biblical Literalism ◽  
Nationally Representative

Researchers argue that white evangelical Christians are likely to support teaching creationism in public schools. Yet, less is known about the role religion may play in shaping attitudes toward evolution and teaching creationism among blacks and Latinos, who are overrepresented in U.S. conservative Protestant traditions. This study fills a gap in the literature by examining whether religious factors (e.g., religious affiliation and Biblical literalism) relate to differences in support for teaching creationism between blacks and Latinos compared to whites and other racial groups. Using a nationally representative survey (N = 9,425), we find that although black and Latino Americans support teaching creationism more than other groups, religion plays a stronger role among blacks in shaping support for teaching creationism instead of evolution. Results add an important racial dimension to scholarly discussions on religion and science and suggest further exploration of race alongside other factors that may contribute to support for teaching creationism.

scholarly journals Nudge and the Manipulation of Choice

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pelle Guldborg Hansen ◽  
Andreas Maaløe Jespersen
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Dual Process ◽  
Central Component ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Acceptability ◽  
Central Tenet ◽  
Cass Sunstein ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Behavioural Policy

In Nudge (2008) Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein suggested that public policy–makers arrange decision–making contexts in ways to promote behaviour change in the interest of individual citizens as well as that of society. However, in the public sphere and Academia alike widespread discussions have appeared concerning the public acceptability of nudgebased behavioural policy. Thaler and Sunstein's own position is that the anti–nudge position is a literal non–starter, because citizens are always influenced by the decision making context anyway, and nudging is liberty preserving and acceptable if guided by Libertarian Paternalism and Rawls’ publicity principle. A persistent and central tenet in the criticism disputing the acceptability of the approach is that nudging works by manipulating citizens’ choices. In this paper, we argue that both lines of argumentation are seriously flawed. We show how the anti–nudge position is not a literal non–starter due to the responsibilities that accrue on policy–makers by the intentional intervention in citizens’ life, how nudging is not essentially liberty preserving and why the approach is not necessarily acceptable even if satisfying Rawls’ publicity principle. We then use the psychological dual process theory underlying the approach as well as an epistemic transparency criterion identified by Thaler and Sunstein themselves to show that nudging is not necessarily about “manipulation”, nor necessarily about influencing “choice”. The result is a framework identifying four types of nudges that may be used to provide a central component for more nuanced normative considerations as well as a basis for policy recommendations.

The Education Iron Triangle

The Forum ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin R. West ◽  
Michael Henderson ◽  
Paul E. Peterson
Keyword(s):  
Education Reform ◽  
General Public ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
Education Policies ◽  
The Public ◽  
Reform School ◽  
Iron Triangle ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Democrats And Republicans

Do teachers and the public disagree on education reform? We use data from a nationally representative survey conducted in 2011 to identify the extent of the differences between the opinion of teachers and the general public on a wide range of education policies. The overall cleavage between teachers and the general public is wider than the cleavages between other relevant groups, including that between Democrats and Republicans. At least with respect to patterns of opinion on education reform, school politics is largely a conflict between producers within the system and consumers outside it – a classic iron triangle theme.

scholarly journals Public Acceptability of Low Emission Zones: The Case of “Madrid Central”

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 3251
Author(s):  
Javier Tarriño-Ortiz ◽  
Julio A. Soria-Lara ◽  
Juan Gómez ◽  
José Manuel Vassallo
Keyword(s):  
Political Ideology ◽  
Explanatory Power ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Public ◽  
Social Controversy ◽  
Public Acceptability ◽  
Low Emission ◽  
Personal Attitudes ◽  
The Impact

Cities have intensified the adoption of Low Emission Zones (LEZs) to improve urban livability. Despite the high social controversy caused by LEZs in many cities, the scientific literature has paid little attention to study their public acceptability. This paper conducts a modelling approach exploring the impact of four groups of variables on the public acceptability of LEZs: (i) socio-economic and demographic characteristics; (ii) personal attitudes; (iii) travel-related variables; and (iv) perceptions and mobility habits linked to LEZs. The city of Madrid, Spain, is a case study of great interest because a LEZ called “Madrid Central” has been recently implemented. A total of 799 individual questionnaires were used to calibrate an ordered logit model. Results indicate that socio-economic and demographic variables are weakly related to the level of public acceptability towards the LEZ. On the contrary, the political ideology of individuals, their environmental awareness, their primary transport mode, the use of shared mobility systems, and the frequency of access to “Madrid Central” have a higher explanatory power. The results may be useful for policy-makers to understand the factors that increase the public acceptability of LEZs.

scholarly journals Allocating scarce life-saving resources: the proper role of age

2021 ◽  
pp. medethics-2020-106792
Author(s):  
Govind Persad ◽  
Steven Joffe
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Health Disparities ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Younger Patients ◽  
The Public ◽  
Proper Role ◽  
Life Saving ◽  
Patients At Risk ◽  
Individual Perspective

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced clinicians, policy-makers and the public to wrestle with stark choices about who should receive potentially life-saving interventions such as ventilators, ICU beds and dialysis machines if demand overwhelms capacity. Many allocation schemes face the question of whether to consider age. We offer two underdiscussed arguments for prioritising younger patients in allocation policies, which are grounded in prudence and fairness rather than purely in maximising benefits: prioritising one’s younger self for lifesaving treatments is prudent from an individual perspective, and prioritising younger patients works to narrow health disparities by giving priority to patients at risk of dying earlier in life, who are more likely to be subject to systemic disadvantage. We then identify some confusions in recent arguments against considering age.

scholarly journals Preprint - The Subjective Inequality Scale

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita Schmalor ◽  
Steven Heine
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Divergent Validity ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Us States ◽  
The Public ◽  
Psychological Correlates ◽  
Confirmatory Factor ◽  
Convergent And Divergent Validity ◽  
Perceptions Of Inequality

Economic inequality has become a major concern for the public and policy makers alike. Measures of objective inequality have been associated with many social and health ills, but a less investigated question is whether perceptions of inequality are associated with these same problems. Toward this end, we developed and validated the Subjective Inequality Scale (SIS): a measure of perceived inequality and judgments of the (un)fairness of inequality. We generated and reduced an initial set of items, conducted an exploratory factor analysis, evaluated convergent and divergent validity and individual differences in subjective inequality (Study 1). We further conducted a confirmatory factor analysis, showed that the SIS is associated with psychological well-being and this relation is mediated by status anxiety and low trust; and showed that perceived inequality is associated with the Gini coefficient across different US states and countries (Studies 2 and 3). We also replicated some of the key findings with an international sample of six countries (Study 3), and showed that perceptions of inequality can be influenced by manipulations of inequality (Studies 4a and 4b). The SIS can serve as a useful tool for unpacking the psychological correlates of perceived inequality.

scholarly journals High economic inequality leads higher-income individuals to be less generous

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (52) ◽  
pp. 15838-15843 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stéphane Côté ◽  
Julian House ◽  
Robb Willer
Keyword(s):  
Social Class ◽  
Economic Inequality ◽  
Lower Income ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
Us States ◽  
Resource Distributions ◽  
Sense Of Entitlement ◽  
Nationally Representative

Research on social class and generosity suggests that higher-income individuals are less generous than poorer individuals. We propose that this pattern emerges only under conditions of high economic inequality, contexts that can foster a sense of entitlement among higher-income individuals that, in turn, reduces their generosity. Analyzing results of a unique nationally representative survey that included a real-stakes giving opportunity (n = 1,498), we found that in the most unequal US states, higher-income respondents were less generous than lower-income respondents. In the least unequal states, however, higher-income individuals were more generous. To better establish causality, we next conducted an experiment (n = 704) in which apparent levels of economic inequality in participants’ home states were portrayed as either relatively high or low. Participants were then presented with a giving opportunity. Higher-income participants were less generous than lower-income participants when inequality was portrayed as relatively high, but there was no association between income and generosity when inequality was portrayed as relatively low. This research finds that the tendency for higher-income individuals to be less generous pertains only when inequality is high, challenging the view that higher-income individuals are necessarily more selfish, and suggesting a previously undocumented way in which inequitable resource distributions undermine collective welfare.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Skepticism in Relation to Other Forms of Science Skepticism

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 237802312110498
Author(s):  
Christopher P. Scheitle ◽  
Katie E. Corcoran
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Ethnic Differences ◽  
Genetically Modified ◽  
Genetically Modified Foods ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
The Public ◽  
Scientific Issue ◽  
Political Conservatism ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Media Narratives

Efforts to address the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have encountered skepticism among the public, but COVID-19 is not the only medical or scientific issue that receives such skepticism. How does COVID-19 skepticism relate to other forms of science skepticism? Using new data from a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults, this study reveals that skepticism toward COVID-19 is similar to patterns of skepticism toward vaccines in general and, more interestingly, skepticism toward climate change. Patterns of skepticism toward evolution and genetically modified foods are more distinct from COVID-19 skepticism. Notably, even after accounting for other forms of science skepticism, political conservatism is significantly associated with greater skepticism toward COVID-19. Finally, contrary to some media narratives, the analysis reveals few racial or ethnic differences in skepticism toward COVID-19, and the differences that do exist indicate less skepticism among Black and Asian individuals relative to White individuals.

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