Educational Mobility Through Marriage and Risk of Cognitive Impairment in Late Life

Objectives Marriage represents a long-term intimate relationship involving high levels of interaction and shared resources. Education, as an inter-individual resource, may influence the health status of an individual and his/her spouse. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of educational mobility through marriage on the risk of cognitive impairment in older adults. Methods Data were derived from the 2014 wave of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. The final sample included 1,396 married men and 671 married women aged 65 years and older. Cognitive impairment was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE). The gender-specific effect of educational mobility on the risk of cognitive impairment was tested by logistic regression analyses. Results Older men who experienced downward educational mobility through marriage had a higher risk of cognitive impairment, when compared to their upwardly mobile counterparts. This association was not observed in women. Having more years of schooling protected both men and women from being cognitive impaired in late life. Discussion These findings provide further evidence that downward socioeconomic mobility through marriage is associated with adverse health outcomes. Yet, the impact of spousal education on health must be understood through the lens of gender. Potential mechanisms that may link spousal education to cognition over the life course were discussed, including health literacy, health behaviors, and household resources.

Support Quality Moderates the Impact of Total Household Occupancy on Self-Care Neglect in Informal Caregivers

Caregiver self-care may be impacted by the household environment. We evaluated the impact of support quality (e.g., ratings of quality of emotional support, information, material help, errands performed by others) and total household occupancy on a validated measure of self-care neglect in caregivers of patients with heart failure. Multivariate regression modeling was used to examine predictors of self-care neglect and we introduced an interaction term between support quality and household occupancy. The main effects model included terms for years of caregiving experience, hours caregiving daily, support quality, and total household occupancy (R2: 0.31; p <0.05). The interaction term between support quality and household occupancy contributed significantly (p < .05) to the respecified model (R2: 0.41; p <0.05). We suggest that the potential benefit of total household occupancy on caregiver self-care depends on perceived support quality. Clinicians should assess quality of household resources with caregivers during interactions.

Employment and the distribution of intra-household financial satisfaction

This study applies a methodology used by De Henau and Himmelweit (2013) to study resource allocation in Australian mixed-sex couple households. Using 18 waves of data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey and by means of fixed effects estimations, the study identifies how men’s and women’s contributions via paid and unpaid work influences their satisfaction with the financial situation (SWFS) within households. Employment status is used to proxy each partner’s contribution to household resources. The results reveal that paid contributions through full-time employment have a strong role in determining SWFS. This is a source of gender difference because Australian men are much more likely to be engaged in full-time employment than women. Most often, for both men and women, unpaid contributions to household resources (proxied by less than full-time employment) has a detrimental effect on their own SWFS, but smaller effects on their partner’s SWFS. These results imply that gender asymmetry in paid and unpaid contributions to household resources contributes to the reproduction of gender inequalities within Australian households. The results add external validity to the relevance of De Henau and Himmelweit’s (2013) analysis of these issues. JEL codes: B54, I31, E24

The social and administrative aspects of the sermons of the Prophet Mohammad historical study of the era of prophethood: الجوانب الاجتماعية والإدارية في خطب النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: دراسة تاريخية لعصر النبوّة

One of the greatest sermons that were delivered and whose effects remain to this day are the sermons of the Prophet, for the sermons of the Prophet were of great importance in depicting the life of the Prophet’s society and its way of life, hence we hope that this study will contribute to uncovering the social and administrative aspects of the Prophet’s society through the sermons that The Prophet delivered it in different seasons, as these signs can be monitored in the prophetic speeches to form the image of society in the Prophet’s era, through knowledge of social aspects such as customs, traditions, clothing, and adornment. As well as in the type of foods, the way they were eaten, and the tools used in preparing, eating and storing foods, and what this study means is to present another social picture of what the community of prophecy was, in terms of social solidarity, The way people live in homes, all of this by quoting from the sermons of the Prophet touched, and it is also of great importance to present the sermons of the Prophet which dealt with the role of women and the family in building civil society, and what the research will reveal is the subtle aspects of the prophetic society that permeated many of the prophetic speeches, such as Talking about the classes of society, and about fun, sports and tanning. On the other hand, this study provided an idea about the administrative and financial situation during the era of the prophethood, by extracting this information from the Prophet’s sermons, such as talking about the emirate over regions, organizing sergeants and captains, and also monitoring household resources and banks, as the sermons of the Prophet- ﷺ- showed something of the organizational aspects in State administration such as bureaus, post office, and calculator.

“Burnt by the scorching sun”: climate-induced livelihood transformations, reproductive health, and fertility trajectories in drought-affected communities of Zambia

Background Climate-induced disruptions like drought can destabilize household and community livelihoods, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This qualitative study explores the impact of severe and prolonged droughts on gendered livelihood transitions, women’s social and financial wellbeing, and sexual and reproductive health (SRH) outcomes in two Zambian provinces. Methods In September 2020, in-depth interviews (n = 20) and focus group discussions (n = 16) with 165 adult women and men in five drought-affected districts, as well as key informant interviews (n = 16) with civic leaders and healthcare providers, were conducted. A team-based thematic analysis approach, guided by the Framework Method, was used to code transcript text segments, facilitating identification and interpretation of salient thematic patterns. Results Across districts, participants emphasized the toll drought had taken on their livelihoods and communities, leaving farming households with reduced income and food, with many turning to alternative income sources. Female-headed households were perceived as particularly vulnerable to drought, as women’s breadwinning and caregiving responsibilities increased, especially in households where women’s partners out-migrated in search of employment prospects. As household incomes declined, women and girls’ vulnerabilities increased: young children increasingly entered the workforce, and young girls were married when families could not afford school fees and struggled to support them financially. With less income due to drought, many participants could not afford travel to health facilities or would resort to purchasing health commodities, including family planning, from private retail pharmacies when unavailable from government facilities. Most participants described changes in fertility intentions motivated by drought: women, in particular, expressed desires for smaller families, fearing drought would constrain their capacity to support larger families. While participants cited some ongoing activities in their communities to support climate change adaptation, most acknowledged current interventions were insufficient. Conclusions Drought highlighted persistent and unaddressed vulnerabilities in women, increasing demand for health services while shrinking household resources to access those services. Policy solutions are proposed to mitigate drought-induced challenges meaningfully and sustainably, and foster climate resilience.

Linkages Between Agriculture and Nutrition in Bihar

Despite high growth, nutritional deficiencies remain a critical problem, affecting infants, children, men and women in Bihar. Although, there is an improvement in the situation of malnutrition in the state, the agenda remains incomplete. Studies show that agriculture plays an important role in the improvement of nutritional levels. Though the state government has initiated schemes related to agriculture development in the region, the prevalence of malnutrition among children, the high infant mortality rate and the higher percentage of men and women with low body mass index (BMI) continues to raise serious questions about the connection between agriculture and nutrition in Bihar. Against this background, the present study seeks to identify linkages between agriculture and nutritional status in the state. The findings of this study is based on a correlation analysis and factor analysis, using cross-section data collected from secondary sources. The analysis indicates that a diversification in agriculture, an improvement in women’s literacy and women’s access to household resources have had a significant impact on the nutritional situation in Bihar.

Bridging the Knowledge Gap in Bangladesh for Effective Locally Driven Conditional Cash Transfer in Multisectoral Nutrition Programming

Objectives The USAID's Strengthening Multisectoral Nutrition Programming through Implementation Science Activity (MSNP) in Bangladesh gathered local knowledge to augment national data to ensure nutrition programming delivery was appropriately targeted. Such knowledge allowed MSNP's social protection conditional cash transfer (CCT) activity to reach most at-risk individuals. Methods Using structured field observation forms, six trained staff documented nutrition programming decision-making processes and MSNP project activities regarding appropriate beneficiary targeting in six districts. Numerous project documents were reviewed and site visits conducted to evaluate CCT implementation in action. Data were coded into three aspects of learning (challenges and methods to alleviate them, successes, and recommendations for future programming) and analyzed according to themes identified in research utilization literature. Results CCT, an incentive-based delivery mechanism targeting women based on locally collected data, positively influenced household decision-makers, including women, to provide effective health and nutrition care for themselves and their children. CCT, received upon completion of antenatal care visits and participation in nutrition education sessions, effectively supported the uptake of MSNP community workers’ nutrition advice led to improve water, sanitation, and hygiene practices in remote areas. Requiring CCT beneficiaries to open bKash accounts to ensure financial transparency and that funds reached the intended participants helped establish women as nutrition decision makers, improving financial inclusion for extreme-poor women. Conclusions CCT stimulates use of nutrition and health services, increasing household resources for nutrition-related behaviors and allowing women to exercise financial freedom. To improve evidence utilization in nutrition programming, national indicators must be complemented with local knowledge gathering processes, with local stakeholders and beneficiaries involved to ensure appropriate targeting and to transform knowledge into practice. Funding Sources United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Charitable Giving in Married Couples: Untangling the Effects of Education and Income on Spouses’ Giving

This research note looks beyond the unitary household model and analyzes the influence of household resources by gender on charitable giving. We investigate the intrahousehold variables of income and education and their effects on giving behaviors in married couples. We use data from the longitudinal Philanthropy Panel Study (2005–2017) to examine how spouses’ income and educational differences affect charitable giving behaviors and introduce fixed effects to control for unobserved heterogeneity. Initially, we find a positive relationship between both the husband’s and wife’s earned and unearned incomes and the likelihood and amount of giving by married couples. However, when fixed effects are used, we find women’s earned income to be significantly associated with all forms of giving, showing that women’s labor market earnings disproportionately influence giving behavior. Education is less of a factor in whether couples give and influences giving only when the husband has more education than the wife.

Risk and protective factors of college students’ psychological well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic: emotional stability, mental health, and household resources

Colleges and universities have increasingly worried in recent decades about college students’ wellbeing, with the COVID-19 pandemic aggravating these concerns. Our study provides empirical evidence of changes to undergraduate emotional sentiments and psychological wellbeing from before to after the onset of the pandemic. In addition, we explore whether certain risk factors (i.e., prior mental health impairments, trait emotional stability) and protective factors (i.e., subjective socioeconomic status, parental education, household resources) predicted students’ emotions and their intra-individual changes due to the pandemic onset. We compared experience sampling method data from 120 students from before and after the pandemic onset, examining intra-individual trajectories.There was only little change in students’ emotions. Prior mental health impairment and trait emotional stability predicted students’ emotions, averaged across time points, but not emotion changes. Few associations with emotions were found for subjective socioeconomic status and parental education, but study-related household-resources predicted levels and changes in emotions.