As China’s economy is rapidly changing from a planned to a capitalist economy, many families find themselves financially struggling. In some cases, conflicting values and attitudes may contribute to mental health challenges such as depression that would lead to further feelings of helplessness and immobilization. Using a random sample of 1006 low-income households from Pudong District of Shanghai, China, this study aims to examine the relationships between household assets, beliefs about government as the primary way to improve economic circumstances and self-reported depressive symptoms. In addition, this study investigates the mediation effects of beliefs that government is the best change agent for improved life circumstances on the relationship between household assets and depression. We found those who indicated that government was the main means for attaining a better life had significantly higher depression levels whereas higher numbers of household assets were associated with lower depression levels. We also found that viewing government as the most important change agent only partially mediated the relationship between household assets and depression (p?<?.001). Findings from this study support anti-poverty policies and social work related practice initiatives aimed at assisting low income families in China, in particular the need to address psychological as well as economic needs.
We explored variations in inorganic soil nitrogen (N) concentrations across metropolitan Phoenix, Arizona, and the surrounding
desert using a probability-based synoptic survey. Data were examined using spatial statistics on the entire region, as well
as for the desert and urban sites separately. Concentrations of both NO3-N and NH4-N were markedly higher and more heterogeneous amongst urban compared to desert soils. Regional variation in soil NO3-N concentration was best explained by latitude, land use history, population density, along with percent cover of impervious
surfaces and lawn, whereas soil NH4-N concentrations were related to only latitude and population density. Within the urban area, patterns in both soil NO3-N and NH4-N were best predicted by elevation, population density and type of irrigation in the surrounding neighborhood. Spatial autocorrelation
of soil NO3-N concentrations explained 49% of variation among desert sites but was absent between urban sites. We suggest that inorganic
soil N concentrations are controlled by a number of ‘local’ or ‘neighborhood’ human-related drivers in the city, rather than
factors related to an urban-rural gradient. 相似文献