Understanding Persistent Food Insecurity: A Paradox of Place and Circumstance

Survey data from a U.S. Department of Agriculture funded multi-state longitudinal project revealed a paradox where rural low-income families from states considered prosperous were persistently more food insecure than similar families from less prosperous states. An examination of quantitative and qualitative data found that families in the food insecure states were more likely to experience greater material hardship and incur greater housing costs than families in the food secure states. Families in the food insecure states, however, did not have lower per capita median incomes or lower life satisfaction than those in the food secure states. A wide range of strategies to cope with food insecurity reported by families in both food insecure and food secure states was examined using the Family Ecological Systems Theory. Families in the food insecure states used several risky consumption reduction strategies such as curbing their appetite and using triage. Families in the food secure states, on the other hand, employed positive techniques involving their human capital.

Towards a European System of Social Indicators: Theoretical Framework and System Architecture

By developing a ``European System of Social Indicators'' the scientificcommunity as well as policy makers are being provided with a theoreticallywell-grounded as well as methodologically sound tool of social measurementto be used to continuously monitor and analyse the development of welfareas well as general trends of social change in European societies. Thearticle focuses on the development of a conceptual framework, to be usedto guide and justify the selection of measurement dimensions and indicators.Based on an extensive review of theoretical concepts of welfare and anexploration of political goals of societal development at the Europeanlevel, six major categories of goal dimensions, referring to the conceptsof quality of life, social cohesion and sustainability have been identifiedas the backbones of the conceptual framework. In addition, the articlepresents the main features of the architecture of the European System ofSocial Indicators and lays out its main structural elements and characteristics.     

Effect of COVID-19 on Household Food Insecurity and Poverty: Evidence from Ghana

Social Indicators Research - Following the outbreak of COVID-19 and its heavy toll on the global community and humanity, a fierce debate on the pandemic and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)...     

Adult and Child Food Insecurity Among Homeless and Precariously-Housed Families at the Close of the Twentieth Century

Population Research and Policy Review - No national studies have assessed adult and child food insecurity (AFI and CFI, respectively) among homeless and precariously-housed families and the...     

An Indicator for the Measurement of Political Participation: The Case of Italy

In the modern globalized world, political participation is of paramount importance for balanced socio-economic growth and for human development. The Indagine Multiscopo sulle famiglie, a survey by Italian public institutions (ISTAT and CNEL), provides a wide range of data to evaluate specific aspects of Italian life. This work uses a set of data from the Indagine to analyse political participation in Italy at a regional level, by means of a composite indicator using parametric (Pena’s distance) and non-parametric (Mazziotta–Pareto Index) techniques. We have obtained a ranking that shows the level of political participation in different territorial contexts. The aim is to analyse the relation between Italian regions and the political behaviour of their communities: political discussions, participation in political meetings and marches, voluntary activity or donations to political parties and so on. The ranking is not correlated to voter turnout. We can assume that the politically engaged minority are unable to convince and involve the rest. At the same time, these small groups do not alter the general mistrust in parties and, generally speaking, in politics, which is spreading across Italy and also Europe.     

Proposal for a Dynamic Composite Indicator: Application in a Comparative Analysis of Trends in the EU Member States Towards the Europe 2020 Strategy

This paper contributes, with a dynamic approach, to the research on the creation of comparable composite indicators by presenting a proposal for an exploratory factor analysis protocol to enable a comparative trend analysis. The originality of the study lies in the three dimensions of information for analysis: observations, variables and units of time. The proposal involves various stages of analysis with the ultimate, albeit not exclusive, aim of obtaining what is known as a Global Dynamic Indicator. The analysis process begins by structuring the data into a three-dimensional global matrix, thereby conditioning, while also, and primarily, enriching the later stages. A combination of multiple factor analysis and a clustering technique is the selected approach for successfully meeting the challenges involved. The appropriateness and versatility of the proposal are validated through the analysis of the trends of the EU member states towards the targets set by the 2020 Strategy. The study period runs from 2009 to 2018. The empirical work enables the visualisation and quantification of trend differences and similarities across member states collectively and individually, and across all the variables and years selected for analysis. The relevant findings will be quantified by means of a synthetic indicator for each unit of time and a global indicator for the period as a whole. Some of the conclusions reached by this paper are consistent with those already published by various authors.

     

A Brute Indicator for a NEET Case: Genesis and Evolution of a Problematic Concept and Results from an Alternative Indicator

This article analyses the Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET ) concept and related indicators and its effects on both youth policies and the perception of young people. It is argued that a “weak version” of social exclusion is often used to explain the phenomenon. This leads both to defective policies (as a “victim blaming” approach tends to be developed instead of structural policies) and to the negative labelling of the NEET young people (as research and policies tend to focus on the individual’s deficits and thus associate them with negative values). An alternative indicator is proposed, aimed at reducing the heterogeneity of the situations the concept includes and focus on the core NEET group. This restricted concept centres on those individuals who do not seem to have any objective impediment to study or work. Figures are calculated for the Spanish region of Catalonia and results show a lower proportion of people in a NEET situation; that the NEET rates for young people and adults are similar; that the phenomenon is not new; and confirm that it is related to the risk of social exclusion. These results reinforce the need for an approach which is more sensitive to inequalities to improve our understanding of the NEET population and to avoid the stigmatisation of individuals, generations and countries.     

Educational Mismatch of Graduates: a Multidimensional and Fuzzy Indicator

In this paper we attempt to measure the educational mismatch, seen as a problem of overeducation, using a multidimensional and fuzzy methodology. Educational mismatch can be difficult to measure because many factors can converge to its definition and the traditional unidimensional indicators presented in literature can offer a restricted view of the problem. We discovered two dimensions that properly define overeducation. The first includes information regarding job satisfaction, the use of expertise and the coherence between study and work, but also the measure on which the traditional indicator is based and the second concern earning aspects. We then calculate a degree of membership to the set of overeducated workers using the defined dimensions. We believe that in this manner we can partially overcome the rigidity of the traditional measures. Our findings suggested that generally women have a degree of mismatch higher than men and the graduates in Pharmacy, Medicine and Engineering are the least overeducated in terms of the first dimension, even if in terms of the earnings dimension they have similar mismatches to the other fields of education. Self-employment and collaboration contracts reduce overeducation when the first dimension is considered; on the other hand, when the second dimension is taken into account graduates with collaboration contracts are the most mismatched out of those having a job. Additionally, university reform introduced in the academic year 2001–2002 in the Italian higher education system is shown as not contributing to a reduction of the overeducation phenomenon.     

Best Practice Principles for Community Indicator Systems and a Case Study Analysis: How Community Indicators Victoria is Creating Impact and Bridging Policy,Practice and Research

Numerous community indicator projects have been developed over the past 30 years and are now present in many countries including the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South America. However, creating influence and action using community indicators requires long-term effort strengthened by partnership, policy applications, training and research. This paper provides a reflective case study analysis that reviews the development of the community indicator system of Community Indicators Victoria in Australia. The analysis includes a review of best practice indicator principles guiding the development of current and future community indicator systems and describes how these factors influenced the development, establishment, and expansion of the Community Indicators Victoria system.     

Centrality and Dimensionality of 14 Indicators of Mental Well-Being in Four Countries: Developing an Integrative Framework to Guide Theorizing and Measurement

Social Indicators Research - The primary objective of this research is to develop an integrative framework for distinguishing and classifying well-being variables. Towards this end, rigorous...     

Publisher Correction to: The Indicator of a Happy,Long and Sustainable Life

Social Indicators Research -     

Towards a Typology of European Welfare Production: Summary and Discussion

Social Indicators Research -     

Monitoring Indicators of Children’s Victimization in School: Linking National-, Regional-, and Site-Level Indicators

The paper presents a conceptual framework and methodology developed by the authors to create systematic empirical basis to monitor important social indicators. The focus here is on ways to employ indicators of victimization in school in order to inform a range of constituencies interested in the well being of school children. The paper outlines the importance of developing a wide range of indicators based on a theoretical model of social context of schools, as perceived from multiple perspectives (students, staff, parents, the general public). The importance of linking national-, regional-, and site-level indicators is emphasized and demonstrated. The paper presents examples of analyses and reports that can inform practice, policy making and evaluation in the area of school safety. Finally, monitoring indicators of victimization on all levels is described as a democratic youth empowering process.     

Wellbeing and Society: Towards Quantification of the Co-benefits of Wellbeing

Social Indicators Research - The objectives of this paper are twofold. First, it reviews the empirical evidence showing the existence of linkage between wellbeing and possible co-benefits,...     

DEA-Like Model and Common Weights Approach for the Construction of a Subjective Community Well-Being Indicator

A growing literature assesses the quality of life and well-being in geographically and/or politically divided areas. The paper proposes a new subjective well being (SWB) indicator based on residents’ satisfaction with environment and community, personal life and leisure activities. Our approach is a novel construction and new application of the well-being index, specifically, a DEA-like model with common weights under the benefit of the doubt (BoD) approach. This approach is very interesting in the SWB framework, allowing us to differentiate efficient individuals or estimate the relative importance of each domain in the SWB indicator. The results state that Personal life is the domain that most profoundly affects SWB index; it also differs in groups of individuals and geographic spaces.     

Considerations of family structure and gender composition: the lesbian and gay stepfamily

Lesbian and gay stepfamilies are unique family forms which must be investigated as such. This paper explores the similarities and dissimilarities between heterosexual stepfamilies and lesbian/gay stepfamilies, arguing that similarity of structure is impacted by gender composition. Utilizing face-to-face and telephone interviews with biological and stepparents in 23 lesbian and gay stepfamilies, the results show that while lesbian and gay stepfamilies share some challenges and strengths with heterosexual stepfamilies, they also evidence a unique and flexible adaptation to becoming a family. The paper is aimed at delineating future areas for lesbian and gay stepfamily research.     

An Assessment of Social Welfare in Spain: Territorial Analysis Using a Synthetic Welfare Indicator

The aim of this paper is measure social welfare in Spanish provinces. To achieve this, we use the distance method P₂ to compose a synthetic indicator of welfare for 2007, the last year for which data are available. The index comprises information on different social indicators from various life domains and enables a classification of Spanish provinces, as well as a study of the impact of each individual indicator in order to determine provincial disparities in social welfare levels.     

Connecting Knowledge and Policy: The Promise of Community Indicators in the United States

There are over 200 identified community based indicator projects in the United States. This paper reviews the factors that contribute to the success and failure of community indicator projects and discusses the types of desired outcomes that communities are trying to achieve. Both organizational and political factors contributing to the success of community indicators projects are discussed. Appendices include information on many of the community indicator projects in the United States. Advice for communities seeking to launch an indicator project are outlined.     

时期生育水平指标的回顾与分析

本文应用TFR′指标与TFR指标比较 ,在中国历年生育数据和计划生育文献回顾的基础上对以往的生育史和计划生育史联系起来进行分析。结果反映出 :70年代的计划生育使时期TFR持续大幅度下降 ,但逐步积累了很大的由生育推迟所形成的生育势能。 80年代初TFR上升的主要原因是 70年代积累的生育势能的释放 ,而由新婚姻法公布所产生部分早婚早育只是次要原因。80年代尽管存在多次生育政策变化 ,计划生育并没有出现大的失控。其间的TFR波动与政策多变和工作状况不稳定有关。 90年代开始新一轮TFR持续下降 ,但同时也在积累新的生育势能。这一分析量化地揭示了常规TFR的一些缺陷 ,TFR′指标则能够较好地提供生育变化趋势的信息 ,而两者的比较则有助于更好地理解当前的生育状况