Rural Community Residents’ Perceptions and Adaptations to Climate Change Impacts on Heritage and Nature-Based Tourism Resources

BackgroundThe Coronavirus Infectious Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has continuously affected human life with several devastating effects. Currently, there are effective vaccines to protect people from COVID‐19 and the World Health Organization (WHO) has highlighted strategies to influence COVID-19 vaccine uptake in hard-to-reach communities in Ghana. However, prior studies on COVID-19 vaccine acceptability in Ghana are online surveys targeting the literates and those in urban areas, leaving residents in far-flung communities. We assessed knowledge, attitude and acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine among residents in rural communities in Ghana.MethodsThis study was a community-based cross-sectional study and was conducted at three selected regions in Ghana (Northern, Ashanti and Western North) from May to November, 2021. This study included residents 15–81 years, living in the selected rural communities for more than 1 year. Study participants were recruited and questionnaires administered to collect data on knowledge, attitude and acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine. Statistical analyses were performed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26.0 and GraphPad Prism Version 8.0 software.ResultsOf the 764 participants included in this study, more than half had inadequate knowledge (55.0%), poor attitudes (59.4%) and bad perception about COVID-19 vaccine (55.4%). The acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine in this study was 41.9%. The acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine in Ashanti, Northern and Western North regions were 32.5%, 26.2% and 29.6% respectively. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, receiving recent or previous vaccine such as HBV vaccine [aOR = 1.57, 95% CI (1.23–3.29), p = 0.002], having good attitude towards COVID-19 vaccine [aOR = 61.47, 95% CI (29.55–127.86), p < 0.0001] and having good perception about the COVID-19 vaccine [aOR = 3.87, 95% CI (1.40–10.72), p < 0.0001] were independently associated with higher odds of accepting COVID-19 vaccine.ConclusionMore than half of residents in Ghanaian rural communities have inadequate knowledge, poor attitudes and bad perception about COVID-19 vaccine. The acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine is generally low among rural residents in Ashanti, Northern and Western North regions of Ghana. Residents living in hard-to-reach communities must be educated about the benefits of COVID-19 vaccine to achieve effective vaccination program.

According to the constructed rural community residents’ health information literacy evaluation system, this paper proposes a rural community residents’ health information literacy evaluation method based on intuitionistic fuzzy sets. Based on the intuitionistic fuzzy set, the multistage interactive group evaluation method whose data form is a point set has been expanded, and the intuitionistic fuzzy set that expresses objective things more delicately and truly is used to reflect the evaluator’s preference, which can well simulate the human decision-making psychology and improve the applicability of the interactive group evaluation method. How to accurately measure the value information of relevant intuitionistic fuzzy numbers in uncertain environment has become a difficult problem. Therefore, it is very important to excavate important information in intuitionistic fuzzy numbers, deal with intuitionistic fuzzy numbers, and study the theory and method of multicriteria decision-making under fuzzy information. In this paper, we conducted a research on the health information literacy evaluation model of rural community residents based on intuitionistic fuzzy sets and multicriteria, and found that the formation rate of health behaviors of manual workers is relatively low, and the formation rate of healthy behaviors of female, elderly, and highly educated people is relatively high. A high level of education is conducive to improving the level of residents’ health knowledge.

Abstract: People’s knowledge of birds and the opinions and perceptions about specific issues related to the conservation of birds were quantified in rural and urban communities in northeastern Puerto Rico. Data were collected using questionnaires in interviews with 131 citizens haphazardly selected within the study site. Our results indicate that urban residents had a significantly higher level of education and were more knowledgeable about the bird species in their neighborhoods than residents of rural communities. However, the knowledge of exotic bird species was similar between residents of both communities, with psittacids and finches (Passeridae, Plociedae, Estrildidae) identified as the most common exotics in their neighborhoods. Rural and urban residents also differed in what they considered important threats to birds in their communities. Rural residents mentioned deforestation (44%), urban sprawl (31%), and hunting (25%), whereas urban residents mentioned urban sprawl (48%) and deforestation (44%) as important environmental problems that affect birds. Only 5% of the urban residents mentioned hunting as a factor affecting bird populations. The interviewees also differed significantly in their perception of the effectiveness of conservation laws and regulations. About 58% of rural residents said that laws and regulations were adequate, in contrast to 45% of urban residents who believed that the laws were adequate. Overall, this study showed that the people living in rural and urban communities in northeastern Puerto Rico have little knowledge of birds and had contrasting attitudes and opinions about important issues that affect birds in their communities. Keywords: bird conservation, citizens’ opinions, conservation knowledge, Puerto Rico, urban gradient Resumen: Diferencias en el conocimiento sobre las aves y su conservación entre los residentes de zona rural y urbana de Puerto Rico- El conocimiento del público sobre las aves y sus opiniones y percepciones sobre asuntos específicos relacionados a la conservación de estas fue cuantificado en comunidades rurales y urbanas del noreste de Puerto Rico. Los datos fueron obtenidos utilizando cuestionarios administrados a 131 personas entrevistadas según fueron encontradas en las áreas de estudio. Nuestros resultados indican que los residentes de áreas urbanas tienen un nivel de educación más alto y fueron más conocedores de las aves en sus vecindarios comparados con residentes de áreas rurales. Sin embargo, los residentes de comunidades rurales y urbanas mostraron conocimiento similar de las aves exóticas e identificaron a psitácidos y gorriones (Passeridae, Plociedae, Estrildidae) como los exóticos más comunes en sus vecindarios. Los residentes de áreas rurales y urbanas difirieron en lo que consideran amenazas a las aves en sus comunidades. Residentes de áreas rurales mencionaron la deforestación (44 %), desparrame urbano (31 %), y cacería (25 %), mientras que los residentes urbanos mencionaron el desparrame urbano (48 %) y la deforestación (44 %) como problemas ambientales importantes que afectan a las aves. Sólo el 5 % de los residentes urbanos mencionó la cacería como un factor importante que afecta a las poblaciones de aves. Los entrevistados también difirieron de manera significativa en sus percepciones de la efectividad de las leyes y regulaciones de conservación. El 58 % de los residentes rurales indicó que las leyes y regulaciones actuales son adecuadas, mientras que 45 % de los residentes urbanos creen que son inadecuadas. En general, este estudio mostró que la gente de comunidades urbanas y rurales en el noreste de Puerto Rico tiene poco conocimiento de las aves y contrastan en actitudes y opiniones sobre asuntos importantes que afectan a las aves en sus comunidades. Palabras clave: conservación de aves, conocimiento de conservación, gradiente urbano, opiniones de ciudadanos, Puerto Rico Résumé: Connaissance des oiseaux et de leur conservation : differences entre les populations rurales ou urbaines de Porto Rico- La connaissance des oiseaux, les opinions et perceptions des sujets spécifiquement liés à la conservation de l’avifaune ont été quantifiées dans des communautés rurales et urbaines au nord-est de Porto Rico. Les données ont été collectées grâce à des questionnaires lors d’entretiens auprès de 131 personnes choisies au hasard au sein de la zone d’étude. Nos résultats montrent que, comparativement aux habitants des communautés rurales, les populations urbaines ont un niveau d’éducation significativement plus haut et de meilleures connaissances des espèces d’oiseaux de leur environnement proche. Toutefois, les connaissances des espèces exotiques étaient comparables dans les deux communautés, les psittacidés et certains passereaux (Passeridae, Plociedae, Estrildidae) étant identifiés comme les oiseaux exotiques plus communs de leur entourage. Les habitants des zones urbaines et rurales diffèrent également dans ce qu’ils considèrent comme étant les plus fortes menaces pesant sur les oiseaux dans leurs communautés. Les habitants des zones rurales ont mentionné la déforestation (44%), l’extension urbaine (31%) et la chasse (25%), alors que les habitants des zones rurales ont mentionné l’extension urbaine (48%) et la déforestation (44%) comme des problèmes environnementaux importants affectant les oiseaux. Seuls 5% des habitants en zone urbaine ont mentionné la chasse comme un facteur affectant les populations d’oiseaux. Les personnes interviewées différaient significativement dans leur perception de l’efficacité des lois relatives à la conservation et les réglementations. Environ 58% des habitants des zones rurales estiment que les lois et les réglementations étaient suffisantes, contre 45% pour les habitants de zones urbaines. Dans l’ensemble, l’étude a montré que les populations des zones rurales et urbaines du nord-est de Porto Rico ont peu de connaissances des oiseaux et présentent des positions et opinions contrastées sur les principaux problèmes affectant les oiseaux dans leurs communautés. Mots clés: conservation des oiseaux, connaissance de la conservation, gradient urbain-rural, opinion publique, Porto Rico

Harmonious coexistence between human beings and nature is a priority for the sustainable development of rural communities in the global South, and the cultivation of pro-environmental behaviors in communities based on service design for green village construction is undoubtedly one of the most important initiatives. Starting from the perspective of service design identity of rural community residents, based on the research data of 380 rural community residents in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian Provinces, the structural equation method and hierarchical regression method were used to explore the factors influencing the pro-environmental behaviors of rural community residents and reveal the mechanism of cultivating pro-environmental behaviors of rural community residents. The results show that: design philosophy identity and design space identity have a significant positive effect on the pro-environmental behavior of rural community residents; Risk identity has a significant negative effect on the pro-environmental behavior of rural community residents; Value perception plays a mediating role in the influence of design philosophy identity, design space identity and risk identity on the pro-environmental behavior of rural community residents, and community interaction plays a moderating role in the influence process. Strengthening the value perception of pro-environmental behaviors among rural community residents is the key to fostering pro-environmental behaviors. This will contribute to the building of green villages where humans and nature coexist in harmony.

Objective: To investigate the drug-resistant gene characteristics and core genome characteristics of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacter cloacae (CR-ECL) in rural residents of Weifang City, Shandong Province. Methods: Fecal samples were collected from rural community residents in Weifang City, Shandong Province in 2017. Drug-resistant strains were screened using a carbapenem-resistant enterobacter chromogenic medium. CR-ECL positive strains were acquired via Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry(MALDI-TOFMS) analysis. The antibiotic resistance phenotype of CR-ECL was determined using a microbroth dilution assay. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) and analysis were conducted, along with an examination of the immediate vicinity of the blaNDM gene and phylogenetic analysis of the strains. Results: A total of 628 fecal samples were collected and tested, of which 6 were CR-ECL positive (detection rate 0.96%), all exhibiting multiple drug resistance (MDR) phenotypes. Six CR-ECL strains had four MLST genotypes (ST), all of which carried multiple drug resistance genes (blaNDM-1, blaNDM-5, etc.) and virulence genes (acrA, acrB, entB, fepC, etc.). There were mobile genetic elements ISAba125, TN3-IS3000, TN3 and IS5 in the genetic environment surrounding the blaNDM gene. The phylogenetic tree showed that the multi-locus sequence typing of the core genome (cgMLST) was consistent with the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) results. The cgMLST results showed that the allele differences between strains 2BC0101B and 2BC0251B, 2BG0561B and 2BI0221B were 2 and 1, respectively. The SNPs results showed that the above two pairs of bacteria also clustered together. It was found that the strains of chicken fecal samples in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database were located in the center of the evolutionary tree, and the local sequences could be traced back to American human sequences. Conclusion: Multidrug-resistant CR-ECL is detected in rural community residents in Weifang City, Shandong Province.

A Band-Aid fix to a problem that's going to be persistent”: The influence of social place attachment on rural residents' perceptions of natural hazard relief efforts

Background: The success of any COVID-19 vaccination programme will depend on public willingness to receive the vaccination. This is important to tailor public health messaging appropriately. This study aimed to determine and compare COVID-19 vaccine acceptability and factors influencing it among rural and urban community members in Ogun State.Methods: The study was a comparative cross-sectional study. Multistage sampling technique was utilized to select 404 and 396 adult residents from the urban and rural communities, respectively. Data collection was by structured interviewer-administered questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics were done. Level of significance was set at p&lt;5%.Results: More respondents in urban area 186 (46.0%) were willing to accept COVID-19 vaccine compared to rural respondents 90 (22.7%) (p&lt;0.001). Acceptance that COVID-19 is real (AOR=2.98; 95%CI=1.61-5.51 p&lt;0.001) versus (AOR=2.17; 95CI=1.06- 4.44 p=0.035) predicted acceptability in both urban and rural areas, respectively. In urban area, being a male (AOR=1.58; 95%CI=1.02-2.44 p=0.041) while in rural area, completion of immunization (AOR=3.47; 95%CI=1.79-6.72 p&lt;0.001) and fair perceived risk of contracting COVID-19 (AOR=3.05; 95CI:1.55-6.01 p= 0.001) were predictors of acceptability.Conclusion: The study showed there was overall poor acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine among urban and rural residents. Urban residents were more likely to accept the vaccines compared to rural residents. Therefore, government should do more in terms of health education and promotion for a right attitude to COVID-19 vaccination.

Local place identity: A comparison between residents of rural and urban communities

Energy is an essential topic owing to the severe environmental problems faced worldwide, especially in underdeveloped rural areas. Energy literacy is closely related to energy consumption and conservation behaviors in daily life. Although the energy attitudes and behaviors of communities can determine the sustainable development of rural tourism, less attention has been paid to the energy literacy of rural communities. This study adopted a measurable scale to compare the energy literacy levels between 188 questionnaires from rural residents in tourism communities and 195 questionnaires from non-tourism communities both in the Jizhou District, China. A theoretical model was constructed to investigate the relationships between the variables. Additionally, this study verified the influence of rural tourism activities on communities’ energy literacy by comparing different villages. The results showed that rural communities have high levels of energy literacy in the knowledge, attitude, and behavioral sectors. Positive relationships between knowledge and attitude and between attitudes and behaviors were estimated. However, the positive impact of knowledge on behavior was inconspicuous. The most important theoretical contribution of this study is the confirmation of the significant differences in energy literacy between traditional and rural tourism destination communities, thus proving the improvement in communities’ energy literacy induced by tourism development. Finally, this study presents practical implications for policymakers.

Inappropriate antibiotic use may lead to antibiotic resistance, which has become a serious global crisis. Addressing suboptimal antibiotic use in the general population can play a significant role in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. This study aims to describe antibiotic use and sources of acquisition, and to identify factors influencing antibiotic access among rural community residents in Eastern China. A cross-sectional survey was conducted from July to August 2020, and 1494 participants from two villages in Eastern China were enrolled. Information was obtained using face-to-face interviews with a structured electronic questionnaire. Chi-squared and multinominal logistic regression analysis were used to explore possible determinants. In total, 1379 participants were eligible for the analysis. In the past 12 months, nearly half the respondents had taken any antibiotic (48.4%), and this proportion varied across marital status and age group. Two thirds of them (59.9%) obtained antibiotics from medical facilities with a prescription when they last took antibiotics, while 17.7% and 22.4% chose retail pharmacies and other sources, respectively. Multinominal analysis found that a higher proportion obtained antibiotics outside medical facilities among those aged 15 to 44 years, unmarried, non-white collar workers, with more years of education, lower annual household income per capita and lower levels of antibiotic knowledge. The antibiotic use behavior of rural community residents in Eastern China remains suboptimal. Antibiotic use and access behaviors need to be further addressed. Effective antibiotic stewardship in non-medical facility sources and training programs targeted for rural Chinese is warranted in future.

Objective To understand the knowledge of rural residents′ disaster response in Hunan Province and the need of disaster response knowledge and skills training. Methods A cluster sampling method used to randomly select 10 rural communities in Hunan Province. Residents of rural communities were selected as research objects. A total of 350 people were interviewed anonymously and face-to-face and were analyzed by SPSS18.0 statistical software. Results The overall disaster response knowledge correct rate 33.12% (102/308) in rural community residents of Hunan Province, the highest score for resuscitation emergency resuscitation measures should be immediately implemented 89.61%(276/308), the lowest score was rescue of residents in the disaster area of prime time only 10.06%(31/308), the average score 10.16 ± 2.91. Conclusions Rural residents should improve the correctness of disaster response knowledge, strengthen the popularization of disaster response knowledge, and meet the skills training of the rural residents disaster response. Key words: Rural; Community; Disaster; Knowledge; Skill

The status of perceived community resilience in transitional rural society: An empirical study from central China

To participate, or not to participate – That is the question. (Non-)participation of older residents in rural communities

ObjectivesTo explore the prevalence, discomfort, and self-relief behaviours of painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN) among rural community residents with type 2 diabetes.DesignA community-based, cross-sectional study.SettingThis study was part of a longitudinal cohort study of a nurse-led health promotion programme for preventing foot ulceration in Chiayi County, Taiwan.ParticipantsSix hundred and twenty-eight community adults with type 2 diabetes participated in this study.Outcome measuresParameters assessed included peripheral neuropathy, peripheral vasculopathy, glycaemic control and metabolic biomarkers. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics and a multivariate logistic regression model.ResultsAbout 30.6% of participants (192/628) had PDN. Factors associated with PDN included an abnormal ankle brachial index (ABI; OR=3.4; 95% CI 1.9 to 6.2; p<0.001), Michigan neuropathy screening index (OR=1.69; 95% CI 1.0 to 2.6; p=0.021), triglyceride level (OR=1.61; 95% CI 1.0 to 2.4; p=0.036) and being female (OR=1.68; 95% CI 1.1 to 2.4; p=0.022). PDN was characterised by uncomfortable feelings of prickling, stinging or burning pain and inexplicable dullness around the base or dorsal areas of the feet, but received little attention or treatment from primary healthcare providers.ConclusionsA high prevalence of PDN was found in rural community residents with type 2 diabetes and the healthcare workers provided little attention to, or treatment of, discomfort. It is important to identify high-risk groups with PDN early in order to prevent foot ulceration and reduce the incidence of amputation of the extremities. It is also urgent to develop appropriate treatment and self-relief behaviours to halt or reverse the progression of PDN for this population living in rural areas.

This study aims to reveal elements that encourage non-residents, who are not residents’ family members, to maintain collaboration with residents in rural communities, by focusing on the case of Kumadani, Echizen Town, Fukui Prefecture. Three non-residents were interviewed. Our research revealed that the following elements generate positive emotions in non-residents: Residents or people involved in a community: 1) create an opportunity for non-residents to learn, 2) provide support to expand non-residents’ networks and develop relationships in a community, 3) recognize non-residents individually, 4) create an environment for non-residents to try and exercise their abilities, 5) develop non-residents’ sense of belonging to a community, 6) develop non-residents’ sense of gaining confidence or credibility, and 7) develop non-residents’ independence to be involved in a community. From these elements, 1), 3), 5), and 7) encourage non-residents to maintain collaboration.