How Did the Great Recession Affect Different Types of Workers? Evidence from 17 Middle-Income Countries

Abstract Background The 2008 Great Recession significantly impacted economies and individuals globally, with potential impacts on food systems and dietary intake. We systematically reviewed evidence on the impact of the Great Recession on individuals’ dietary intake globally and whether disadvantaged individuals were disproportionately affected. Methods We searched seven databases and relevant grey literature through June 2020. Longitudinal quantitative studies with the 2008 recession as the exposure and any measure of dietary intake (energy intake, dietary quality, and food/macronutrient consumption) as the outcome were eligible for inclusion. Eligibility was independently assessed by two reviewers. The Newcastle Ottawa Scale was used for quality and risk of bias assessment. We undertook a random effects meta-analysis for changes in energy intake. Harvest plots were used to display and summarise study results for other outcomes. The study was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42019135864). Results Forty-one studies including 2.6 million people met our inclusion criteria and were heterogenous in both methods and results. Ten studies reported energy intake, 11 dietary quality, 34 food intake, and 13 macronutrient consumption. The Great Recession was associated with a mean reduction of 103.0 cal per adult equivalent per day (95% Confidence Interval: − 132.1, − 73.9) in high-income countries (5 studies) and an increase of 105.5 cal per adult per day (95% Confidence Interval: 72.8, 138.2) in middle-income countries (2 studies) following random effects meta-analysis. We found reductions in fruit and vegetable intake. We also found reductions in intake of fast food, sugary products, and soft drinks. Impacts on macronutrients and dietary quality were inconclusive, though suggestive of a decrease in dietary quality. The Great Recession had greater impacts on dietary intake for disadvantaged individuals. Conclusions The 2008 recession was associated with diverse impacts on diets. Calorie intake decreased in high income countries but increased in middle income countries. Fruit and vegetable consumption reduced, especially for more disadvantaged individuals, which may negatively affect health. Fast food, sugary products, and soft drink consumption also decreased which may confer health benefits. Implementing effective policies to mitigate adverse nutritional changes and encourage positive changes during the COVID-19 pandemic and other major economic shocks should be prioritised.

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Poverty Measurement

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199914050.013.3 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Timothy M. Smeeding

Keyword(s):

Great Recession ◽

Current Practice ◽

Developing Nations ◽

Poverty Measurement ◽

Absolute Poverty ◽

Social Scientists ◽

Middle Income ◽

The Great Recession ◽

Middle Income Countries ◽

Empirical Estimates

This article focuses on the complexities and idiosyncrasies of poverty measurement, from its origins to current practice. It first considers various concepts of poverty and their measurement and how economists, social statisticians, public policy scholars, sociologists, and other social scientists have contributed to this literature. It then discusses a few empirical estimates of poverty across and within nations, drawing primarily on data from the Luxembourg Income Study and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to highlight levels and trends in overall poverty, while also referring to the World Bank’s measures of global absolute poverty. In the empirical examinations, the article takes a look at rich and middle-income countries and some developing nations. It compares trends in relative poverty over different time periods and in relative and anchored poverty across the Great Recession.

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Maternal multimorbidity during pregnancy and after childbirth in women in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic literature review

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth ◽

10.1186/s12884-020-03303-1 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Mary McCauley ◽

Shamsa Zafar ◽

Nynke van den Broek

Keyword(s):

Narrative Analysis ◽

Limited Data ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Middle Income ◽

Middle Income Countries ◽

Health And Wellbeing ◽

Different Types ◽

Registration Number ◽

Laboratory Investigations ◽

Low And Middle Income

Abstract Background For every maternal death, 20 to 30 women are estimated to have morbidities related to pregnancy or childbirth. Much of this burden of disease is in women in low- and middle-income countries. Maternal multimorbidity can include physical, psychological and social ill-health. Limited data exist about the associations between these morbidities. In order to address all health needs that women may have when attending for maternity care, it is important to be able to identify all types of morbidities and understand how each morbidity influences other aspects of women’s health and wellbeing during pregnancy and after childbirth. Methods We systematically reviewed published literature in English, describing measurement of two or more types of maternal morbidity and/or associations between morbidities during pregnancy or after childbirth for women in low- and middle-income countries. CINAHL plus, Global Health, Medline and Web of Science databases were searched from 2007 to 2018. Outcomes were descriptions, occurrence of all maternal morbidities and associations between these morbidities. Narrative analysis was conducted. Results Included were 38 papers reporting about 36 studies (71,229 women; 60,911 during pregnancy and 10,318 after childbirth in 17 countries). Most studies (26/36) were cross-sectional surveys. Self-reported physical ill-health was documented in 26 studies, but no standardised data collection tools were used. In total, physical morbidities were included in 28 studies, psychological morbidities in 32 studies and social morbidities in 27 studies with three studies assessing associations between all three types of morbidity and 30 studies assessing associations between two types of morbidity. In four studies, clinical examination and/or basic laboratory investigations were also conducted. Associations between physical and psychological morbidities were reported in four studies and between psychological and social morbidities in six. Domestic violence increased risks of physical ill-health in two studies. Conclusions There is a lack of standardised, comprehensive and routine measurements and tools to assess the burden of maternal multimorbidity in women during pregnancy and after childbirth. Emerging data suggest significant associations between the different types of morbidity. Systematic review registration number PROSPERO CRD42018079526.

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Inequality, Leverage, and Crises

The American Economic Review ◽

10.1257/aer.20110683 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 105 (3) ◽

pp. 1217-1245 ◽

Cited By ~ 192

Author(s):

Michael Kumhof ◽

Romain Rancière ◽

Pablo Winant

Keyword(s):

Theoretical Model ◽

Income Distribution ◽

Great Recession ◽

High Income ◽

Middle Income ◽

Income Share ◽

The Great Recession ◽

Income Ratio ◽

Low And Middle Income

The paper studies how high household leverage and crises can be caused by changes in the income distribution. Empirically, the periods 1920–1929 and 1983–2008 both exhibited a large increase in the income share of high-income households, a large increase in debt leverage of low- and middle-income households, and an eventual financial and real crisis. The paper presents a theoretical model where higher leverage and crises are the endogenous result of a growing income share of high-income households. The model matches the profiles of the income distribution, the debt-to-income ratio and crisis risk for the three decades preceding the Great Recession. (JEL D14, D31, D33, E32, E44, G01, N22)

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Maternal Multimorbidity During Pregnancy and After Childbirth in Women in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Literature Review

10.21203/rs.3.rs-15773/v2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Mary McCauley ◽

Shamsa Zafar ◽

Nynke van den Broek

Keyword(s):

Narrative Analysis ◽

Psychological Morbidity ◽

Limited Data ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Middle Income ◽

Middle Income Countries ◽

Health And Wellbeing ◽

Different Types ◽

Laboratory Investigations ◽

Low And Middle Income

Abstract Background For every maternal death, 20 to 30 women are estimated to have morbidity related to pregnancy or childbirth. Much of this burden of disease is in women in low- and middle-income countries. Maternal multimorbidity can include physical, psychological, and social ill-health. Limited data exist about the associations between these morbidities. In order to address all health needs that women may have when attending maternity care, it is important to be able to identify all types of morbidities and understand how each morbidity influences other aspects of women’s health and wellbeing during pregnancy and after childbirth.Methods We systematically reviewed published literature, in English, describing measurement of two or more types of maternal morbidity, and/or associations between morbidities, during pregnancy or after childbirth for women in low- and middle-income countries. CINAHL plus, Global Health, Medline and Web of Science databases were searched from 2007-2018. Outcomes were descriptions, occurrence of all maternal morbidities, and associations between these morbidities. Narrative analysis was conducted. Results 38 papers reporting about 36 studies were included (71,229 women; 60,911 during and 10,318 after pregnancy from 17 countries). Most studies (26/36) were cross-sectional surveys. Self-reported physical ill-health was documented in 26 studies, but no standardised data collection tools were used. In total, physical morbidity was included in 28 studies; psychological morbidity in 32 studies and social morbidity in 27 studies; with three studies assessing associations between all three types of morbidity and 30 studies assessing associations between two types of morbidity. In four studies, clinical examination and/or basic laboratory investigations were also conducted. Associations between physical and psychological morbidity were reported in four studies and between psychological and social morbidity in six. Domestic violence increased risks of physical ill-health in two studies. Conclusions Lack of standardised, comprehensive and routine measurements and tools exist to assess the burden of maternal multimorbidity in women during pregnancy and after childbirth. Emerging data suggest significant associations between the different types of morbidity.

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Resilience, Agency and Coping with Hardship: Evidence from Europe during the Great Recession

Journal of Social Policy ◽

10.1017/s0047279418000624 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 48 (03) ◽

pp. 547-567 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

HULYA DAGDEVIREN ◽

MATTHEW DONOGHUE

Keyword(s):

Great Recession ◽

Coping Mechanisms ◽

European Countries ◽

Primary Data ◽

Structural Constraints ◽

The Great Recession ◽

Key Informant ◽

Different Types ◽

And Coping ◽

Household Responses

AbstractThis paper aims to contribute to the growing literature on resilience by focusing on coping with hardship during the Great Recession, drawing upon primary data gathered through household and key informant interviews in nine European countries. As the resilience approach highlights agency, the paper examines the nature of household responses to hardship during this period on the basis of the ‘structure-agency problem’. An important contribution of this paper is to identify different forms of agency and discuss their implications. More specifically, we conceptualise three different types of agency in coping with hardship: absorptive, adaptive and transformative. Analysis of the findings indicates that structural constraints remain prominent. Most coping mechanisms fall under the category of absorptive and adaptive agency characterised here as burden-bearing actions that ‘conform’ to changing circumstances rather than shaping those circumstances.

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