Changing Socio-economic Context Research Articles

Neighborhood mobility and racial disparities in preterm birth: A sibling study in California

Recent work finds that upward neighborhood mobility—defined as reductions in neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage due to moving—may improve birth outcomes. Less work, however, explores whether changes in socioeconomic context differentially impact birth outcomes by maternal race and ethnicity. In the US, mothers of minoritized racial and ethnic identity often experience worse neighborhood conditions and pregnancy outcomes than White mothers. Using a sibling-linked dataset, we examined whether neighborhood mobility corresponds with changes in preterm birth risk among Asian (N = 130,079), Black (N = 50,149), Hispanic (N = 429,938), and White (N = 233,428) mothers who delivered multiple live births in California between 2005 and 2015. We linked residential addresses at each birth to census-derived indices of neighborhood disadvantage and defined levels of neighborhood mobility as moving-induced changes in disadvantage between pregnancies. We mapped neighborhood mobility patterns and fit conditional logistic regression models estimating the odds of preterm birth in the sibling delivered after moving, controlling for the risk of preterm birth in the sibling delivered before moving, by maternal race and ethnicity. Dot density maps highlight racialized patterns of neighborhood mobility and segregation between Black and White mothers. Regression results show that Black and, in some cases, Asian and Hispanic mothers who experienced upward mobility (moves away from neighborhood disadvantage) exhibited reduced odds of preterm birth in the second delivery. Upward mobility did not reduce the odds of preterm birth among White mothers. Findings suggest that policies and programs that enable opportunities for neighborhood mobility may reduce persistent racial and ethnic disparities in adverse birth outcomes.

Demographic pathways and intergenerational effects of changes in women's education: Evidence from China

Using data from the 2011 baseline China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, this study employs a simulation model developed by Mare and Maralani to investigate the intergenerational effects of changes in the distribution of women's education on the educational distribution of their offspring's generation in China. Different from the conventional retrospective studies of intergenerational mobility that have focused on associations between parents’ and children's socioeconomic attainment, the prospective approach adopted in this study examines the relative importance of both the demographic pathways, namely assortative mating and fertility differentials, and the social mobility pathway to the intergenerational transmission processes in a changing socioeconomic and policy context of China. First, I found a positive intergenerational effect across all three cohorts of women born between 1925 and 1965: an increase in women's education led to an improvement in their daughters’ educational attainment. Second, the two demographic pathways, marriage and fertility, and intergenerational transmission jointly affected the educational attainment of the next generation in a complex way. While assortative mating strengthened the intergenerational effects, educational differentials in fertility dampened the intergenerational effects, since improvement in women's education increased their chances of marrying better-educated husbands but reduced their fertility levels. Third, the intergenerational effects and the respective effects of two demographic pathways became smaller across cohorts, which could be attributed jointly to educational expansion at the national level and changing family planning policies experienced by different cohorts of women and their offspring. Fourth, rural/urban comparison further demonstrated the existing educational inequality in contemporary China.

Sustainable Livelihood Strategies of the Van Gujjars in Upper Yamuna River Basin

The nomadic pastoral community of the Van Gujjars in the Upper Yamuna River Basin presents a unique case study that illustrates the intricate relationship between human livelihoods and environmental dynamics. This abstract introduces a research endeavor that seeks to explore the sustainable livelihood strategies employed by the Van Gujjars to adapt to their changing socio-economic and environmental contexts. The Van Gujjars, a nomadic pastoral community with a rich history deeply intertwined with the forests and mountains of the Upper Yamuna River Basin, have developed distinctive livelihood strategies that harmonize their traditional practices with contemporary challenges. This research aims to uncover the multifaceted ways in which the Van Gujjars sustain their livelihoods while navigating the complexities of modern development and environmental conservation.

Exploring the Contributions of Nepalese Mathematicians in the Modern Era with a Specific Emphasis on Research Areas

This study explores the extensive realm of modern Mathematical research carried out by Nepalese Mathematicians, analyzing their substantial contributions across different Mathematical fields amid Nepal's changing socioeconomic context. Through comprehensive research, it elucidates the development of Mathematical concepts, the emergence of skilled Mathematicians, and the influence of their research on both local and international Mathematical communities. The paper aims to spotlight renowned Nepalese Mathematicians of the Modern era and their doctoral research endeavors, underscoring the pivotal role of Mathematics in shaping the country's path and progress.

Navigating Labor Protection: A Comprehensive Study of Employment Laws in Pakistan

This research examines Pakistan's dynamic employment laws, a multifaceted legal framework that governs the complex employer-employee relationship while ensuring workers' rights. Employing a comprehensive literature review and rigorous methodology, the study analyzes the evolution of these laws, uncovers persistent challenges, and proposes visionary reforms. The historical backdrop underscores the pivotal role of the Labor Laws and Industrial Relations Ordinance as foundational pillars in Pakistan's employment regulations (Ahmad, 2018; Zubair, 2020). Tracing their development reveals a responsive approach to changing socioeconomic contexts but also exposes vulnerabilities. Interpretational ambiguities in legal language and inadequate enforcement mechanisms (Ali, 2019; Khan, 2021) signify enduring challenges. The study's insights inform transformative recommendations: bolstering enforcement, enhancing labor literacy, and addressing contemporary labor dynamics (Hassan, 2023; Nadeem, 2023). Emphasizing alignment with international labor standards (ILO, 2020), the research advocates harmonizing Pakistan's legal framework with global best practices. Beyond its confines, the study invites exploration of gender equity and technology's impact on labor. Culminating in a call for responsiveness, the research underscores the need to orchestrate a harmonious balance between evolving labor landscapes and equitable protections, echoing the aspirations of employers and employees.

Community forestry in a changing context: A perspective from Nepal’s mid-hill

Community forestry (CF) is one of the major forest management modalities in the world. A growing body of literature documents various outcomes and interactions of people with CF, but limited studies have assessed the mode of forest-people interaction considering changing socio-economic and environmental contexts by employing a broader theoretical framework. Our study employed Ostrom’s social-ecological system (SES) framework accompanied by a meta-synthesis of peer-reviewed literature (n = 74), review of policy documents and census reports (n = 28), interviews with four stakeholder groups (n = 47) and group discussions with district-level forest user groups (n = 20), to explore the changed context in Nepal’s mid-hills since 1990 s. The study revealed transformational changes in socio-economic and environmental contexts of Nepal’s mid-hills compared to the conditions in which the CF was developed during 1990 s. Changes in the forces (or factors) of SES, including demography, socio-economic development, government policy and environmental discourse are so pronounced that its feedback to the social-ecological system is discernible. For example, the evolving dynamics have changed the mode of forest-people interaction and their relationship by altering land use practices, resource use patterns, farm-forestry linkage, and pool of human resources, which is reflected in diminishing participation, social capital, collective action, and (voluntary) contribution to CF management. Such (emerging) dynamics in the social-ecological system could further jeopardise CF institutions and their deliberation, weaken the forest-food security nexus, augment leadership gaps in forest management, and impede the country’s efforts in achieving global climate and development goals. To revitalize CF in this changing context, we suggest that community forests should be managed in three different models: urban, protection and production by putting payment of ecosystem services in place. As Nepal is a global leader in CF and its policies are informing forest and land use policies around the world, the outcomes of our study could offer an insight to the decision-makers of other countries for recalibrating land use policies by considering evolving local and global dynamics and their feedback to SES.

Sailing the tide of over consumption: applying a business history approach to explore the rising demand of luxury yachts and travel since 1979

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to identify how the socio-economic trends caused by the economic deregulation of the last four decades have led to a high-net-worth strata of individuals and families that conspicuously consumes luxury items and are the main customers in the luxury yacht market.Design/methodology/approachA selected cross-section review and discussion of relevant publications and theories within the field of tourism, social sciences, business and economic history are synthesised with relevant data to outline the factors leading to socio-economic change and conspicuous consumption.FindingsThis paper advocates for the synthesis of scholarly techniques found within the discipline of Business History to illuminate the development of a luxury yachting industry over the past four decades. Using the varieties of capitalism approach this paper demonstrates that the local characteristics of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) in combination with the international globalisation and trade deregulation since 1980 has led to a new super wealthy class that engages in conspicuous consumption. Using a schema based on critical juncture theory, light has been shed on the specific factors underpinning the demand for luxury yachts as part of this conspicuous consumption.Originality/valueThis paper adds a new set of methodologies and theoretical tools to the student of luxury tourism that embed the practice within the context of socio-economic changes brought forth by economic globalisation since 1979, opening up new avenues of research.

Custom, modernity, and stability of land rights in Ghana: An empirico-legal review

Land in Ghana is mostly governed by customary tenure systems. The sole purpose is ensuring the egalitarian use of land resources to secure the welfare of customary families and individuals with common interest in land. However, a confluence of issues including obstinate national policies on land, globalization, and land grabbing, and changing socio-economic context, have synergistically altered the customary regimes with varied and complex consequences for rural land access and use rights. This paper through narrative literature review unpacks the legal regime for customary land governance on the one hand, and empirical studies on the other, to understand the extent of destabilization of the bundle of rights in Ghana’s property rights regime. This review shows the different bundles of rights examined have different levels of stability. Access and use rights remain the most stable, use, and withdrawal rights are under severe stress, while exclusion and alienation rights seek to strengthen chief authority over land. The trusteeship role of chiefs has been replaced by powers resembling absolute ownership, thereby tacitly supporting the alienability of land by chiefs, a development unintended by customary land governance relations.

Vapor recompression: An interesting option for vacuum columns?

The need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and decrease the use of fossil fuels will greatly change the design of process plants. Besides improved heat-integration, an obvious option to achieve more sustainable operations is to make use of highly efficient and therefore smart methods of electrification. Hence, heat pumps and vapor recompression systems effectively recirculating “waste” energy to the process may become economical in applications where experience had quickly eliminated them in the past. In this changing socio-economic context, process engineers will have to re-think, challenge and even un-learn many accepted design practices. One example is the use of vapor recompression in distillation. While applications in close-boiling high pressure systems have been reported in literature, the number of actual realizations is comparatively small. In vacuum systems, the practical hurdles are even higher, since large volumetric flowrates result in high compressor investment. In this paper, alternative designs are presented opening the way to electrification of a well-known vacuum system. Furthermore, the advantageous application to wide-boiling systems is demonstrated in two examples.

Whose Knowledge Counts? A Reflection on the Field Narratives of Indigenous Health Knowledge and Practices

Today's world is increasingly recognizing the value of indigenous knowledge and expressing concern over its erosion. The protection of indigenous knowledge has been a global policy priority. This paper draws from a qualitative study conducted in a village setting in South-West Nepal and aims to reflect on the local narratives of the erosion of indigenous health knowledge and practices (IHKPs). Data were collected from healers, patients, and key informants using interview and observation methods and analyzed thematically. The findings are organized in five broad themes: (i) The context of socio-economic change, (ii) Existing health knowledge and practices, (iii) A decline in herbal literacy and home remedy, (iv) Market influence, increased healthcare options, and the shrinking role of traditional healers, and (v) Value perceptions of indigenous knowledge. Though IHKPs remain an inseparable part of community life, the field narratives strongly indicate a decline in home and community-based health practices and an intergenerational loss of herbal knowledge. Taking insight from the critical medical anthropological perspective, this paper discusses the micro-experience and macro-influence and argues for recognizing the health knowledge of indigenous communities. The recognition of knowledge should be a political and policy decision in protecting and promoting IHKPs.

Time is money, but sometimes it costs more: an economic history perspective into nuclear projects’ pitfalls

The changing socio-economic context has a crucial impact in nuclear decisions and execution of the projects. The nuclear projects initiated over the past 20 years reduced their construction times relative to those initiated before. Of the over 600 the nuclear projects built over the past 70 years only 3% took longer than 15 years to complete. Analysing the lengthiest projects within their economic context, reveals that ‘when and where’, (i.e., the contextual risks) explains most the delays, thus questioning whether nuclear power plant projects are inherently examples of the megaproject ‘pathologies.’ The analysis of the lengthiest nuclear power projects makes evident that the failure to deliver nuclear plants on time and within budget was related to the historical period and/or the specific location more than to any inherent characteristics of nuclear power plants. Stakeholders of nuclear projects (and megaprojects in general) should be attentive to socio-economic changes and macro-economic impacts to avoid pitfalls.

Unravelling the Local Dynamics of Increasing Fires in Community Forests of Mid-hills of Nepal

Forest fire is a global phenomenon and is having unprecedented impacts across continents. Nepal is not an exception to the increasing impacts, where hundreds of acres of forests is lost, or damaged, to forest fire. The severity of forest fire is on the rise in recent decades, wherein community forests have witnessed effects of the calamity over the recent years. This paper investigates the local factors behind the increasing frequency and severity of forest fires in mid-hills of Nepal. The paper draws on three separate cases from the research sites, involving five years of ‘Enhancing Livelihoods from Improved Forest Management in Nepal (EnLiFT2)’ project's team observations in Bhumlu rural municipality and Chautara Sangachokgadhi municipality of Kavrepalanchok and Sindhupalchok district respectively. This is complemented by informant interviews taken with 25 individuals. The paper primarily examines forest-people-fire relationship to demonstrate the weakening collective actions among the community forest user groups (CFUGs) as an important factor for increasing forest fires in the mid-hills of Nepal. We found the changing forest-people relationship, weakening CFUG governance, and increasing regulatory impositions as important factors driving the alienation of users from the forest thus, undermining collective action in forest management. We argue that strengthening collective action on better forest management to prevent forest fire is crucial over adopting mitigation techniques. The alienation of forest user groups from their forest in the changing socio-economic and forest management context can be addressed to strengthening the collective action for better forest management and ultimately to forest fire prevention and management.

Agroforestry rubber networks and farmers groups in Phatthalung area in Southern Thailand: A potential for an innovation platform?

The study took place in southern Thailand, in Phatthalung province, and is part of “Heveadapt,” a Franco-Thai research project. The aim of this project was to show how smallholder rubber plantations can adapt and remain sustainable in the face of variable climatic conditions and deep changes in socio-economic context. Among the various types of cropping systems, agroforestry practices were identified as promising. Rubber agroforestry systems (AFS) are economically more productive than rubber monocrop plantations and give more flexibility to smallholders, in particular when rubber prices are low, which has been the case since 2013. However, adoption of AFS during the mature period of the plantations is very low in Thailand. The policy to boost rubber agroforestry practices still needs to be developed with all local stakeholders. The objectives of the study were to identify the possibilities and capacities to use current AFS dynamic networks as a basis to set up a rubber agroforestry innovation platform. The research team studied: i) farmers’ collective organizations, groups or networks with rubber AFS partially or entirely and ii) the social dynamic enabling the sharing of knowledge and know-how. An individual producer’s grid, with original farmers or strong knowledge with ease of sharing, was also studied. The role of local institutions involved in the promotion of rubber AFS was also analyzed. This allowed us to design an innovation platform and to define activities that suit the socio-economic context of Phatthalung province. The main aims of the platform are to promote cooperation among innovative producers and the transmission between them of knowledge and know-how about rubber AFS. This could an efficient tool that Thai rubber institutions could set up to encourage the adoption of rubber AFS by farmers.

The Jargon of Italian Travellers in Change: A New Social Scenario for Relexification

The present research paper explores the effects of relexification in the context of an in-group jargon variety. Specifically, it addresses the role of Romani as a supplier language in the process of lexical renewal that is ongoing in Dritto—the jargon of the Italian Travellers. Considered the most ancient descendant of the Italian historical jargon of the Roads, Dritto is a secret code which is still actively used within some socially marginalized service-provider communities, such as the families involved in the circus and the travelling show business. At the margins of the mainstream society, the families of Dritti entertainers share their living and economic spaces with the families of Italian Sinti, whose presence has been documented in Italy for centuries. As a consequence of this intense and prolonged cohabitation, Romani elements have always been documented in the corpora of Italian historical jargon. However, a considerably more significant contribution has recently been documented by researchers among the funfair workers in northern Italy. This work examines the driving factors behind this contact-induced shift by considering the changing socio-economic context faced by the travelling community in the last decades.

Are Environmental Regulations to Promote Eco-Innovation in the Wine Sector Effective? A Study of Spanish Wineries

In a changing socio-economic and ecological context, the agri-food industry, where the use of natural resources is very important, must pay more and more attention to green and eco-innovation. Public decision-makers have started to implement measures to encourage the adoption of sustainable practices by companies, which are also pressured by supply and demand factors. This article aims to determine the factors that drive eco-innovation in the wine sector in Spain, a mature and traditional sector characterized by its high fragmentation. In particular, we sought to determine the role environmental regulations play in promoting eco-innovation in the sector. To this end, an empirical study was developed using a structural equation model established using a partial least squares technique for a sample of 251 wineries from all over the country. The study shows that the current regulatory framework inhibits eco-innovation in Spanish wineries, who are more encouraged by positioning and external motivation factors.

Soil management practices in commercial vegetable farming in changing socioeconomic context in Makawanpur, Nepal

With the rapid urbanization and population growth, the demand for vegetables is increasing day by day resulting in increased cultivation area and production at the expenses of soil fertility. This study aims to assess soil management practices adopted by commercial vegetable farmers in changing socioeconomic contexts in Bhundrung village, Makawanpur. Participatory rural appraisal tools; Household Questionnaire survey, Focus group discussion, Key informant interview and expert consultation were used for data collection. Most farmers use farmyard manure (FYM) and chemical fertilizer (urea, potash and di-ammonium phosphate) for maintaining soil fertility. Application of farmyard manure is decreasing, due to large farm size but less number of livestock. It has resulted in the scenario of injudicious supply of chemical fertilizers with hope of increment in production. Lack of knowledge on dose, handling and disposal of fertilizer and pesticides threatened degradation of soil and water quality in and outside the farm. In the changing socioeconomic context, farmers practice joint decision making in laborious activities like nursery bed preparation, field preparation, manure mixing, intercultural operation whereas in technology and direct money related activities were decided by male members. This study recommends there is a need for effective extension services for sustainable soil fertility management, finance and market access for economic benefits and gender friendly environment and technology for commercial vegetable farming.

Do Labour Migrants Bring Well-Being to the Households? Revisit the Pathway from Neoclassical to Pluralism

Aim of this review is to review literature on the impact of international labour migration and remittances on household well-being and present a theoretical and a conceptual framework to facilitate empirical studies. Study found that, migration literature comprises diversified views which has been changed in different era with the changing socio-economic contexts of emigrating and immigrating countries. Present view, which is highly dominated by pluralists, provides theoretical foundation to link migration and remittances to household well-being. Theoretical and conceptual frameworks developed in this review provides a strong foundation for empirical analysis.

Perlmutter revisited: Revealing the anomic mindset

The assortment of issues that arise in situations where there is a divergence between managers’ prevailing mindsets and the demands of their complex operating environment have yet to be fully revealed. Engaging critically with Perlmutter’s framework and the broader global mindset literature, and drawing on insights curated from a 2-year field study, we reveal the existence of the anomic mindset among a cohort of international managers. We conceptualize this mindset as a stock of knowledge, cognitive and psychological attributes that results in these managers returning to and entrenching themselves in an outdated, most probably idealized, world view of business in opposition to a changing socio-economic context. Its presence sees them resisting rather than adapting to the globalization that surrounds them, and leads them to engage in detours from the pathway toward the development of a global mindset. Unlike the ethnocentric mindset which describes ex ante managerial thinking in organizations moving toward internationalization, the anomic mindset results from the ex post responses of managers following a protracted period of involvement in international business. Its existence opens up a significant debate on progress in, and the prospects for, globalization and the development of global mindsets, along with their preservation in the face of this persistent anomie.

Professional training of doctors: opinions of experts on problems of the educational process (part 2)

Among the key goals of the National Project «Healthcare» is provision of state (municipal) medical organizations with qualified medical personnel. This issue has become especially acute in the context of the unfolding fight against the new coronavirus infection. The achievement of the targets set in the National Project largely depends on the quality of training of medical personnel. Meanwhile, noticeable changes have been taking place in the system of medical education in recent years: in the regulatory and legal framework of medical and educational activities, technical equipment and conditions of economic activity of universities, etc. The changing socio-economic context leaves an imprint both on those entering universities, their motivation, and those who train future doctors. The second part of the article continues the presentation of the results of the study «Development of human resources in the capital's health care» carried out in 2019, which concerns both the quantitative aspects of the staffing of medical organizations subordinate to the city, and the quality of medical personnel related to their professional training. Information about the quality of graduates of medical universities and the factors determining it was obtained through a series of in-depth structured interviews with experts, who were representatives of the capital's medical universities and chief doctors of medical institutions. During the survey, the experts expressed their opinion on the organization and content of the educational process, as well as on the problems related to introduction of professional standards, changes in educational programs, emergence of new academic disciplines, technical equipment (including simulators) of educational institutions. Analysis of the expert opinions testifies to the ambiguity of the situation in Russian medical education. It reveals the need for additional study of the issues of expediency of availability, volume (in hours) and distribution of academic disciplines by stages of the educational cycle in medical universities. A serious negative aspect, highlighted by the experts, is still the low level of practical experience, the lack of which sharply reduces the quality of medical education in general.

Changing Rural Livelihoods and Forest Use Transition in the Middle Hills of Nepal

In recent decades, out-migration has become a key livelihood strategy for many rural households in the middle hills region of Nepal. In this region, rural communities are key actors in the management of local resources such as community forests. Analysis of the link between community forests and out-migration is largely missing in the literature, even though the demographic changes associated with out-migration affect forest resource use and management. This article discusses how rural communities and traditional landscapes in the middle hills are changing following out-migration and how this process has changed the management by rural communities of local forests (including community forests). Overall, the research found a reduced dependency by households on forest products (e.g. firewood, fodder and timber) sourced from community forests. Also, the reduced demand is being supplied increasingly from trees/forests grown on private farmland, including natural regenerated forests and trees planted on abandoned farmland. The declining need for forest products and the lack of an economic incentive for active forest management coupled with a decreasing sense of community has reduced the interest in community forests, leading to less intensive and infrequent forest management. Given the prevalence of out-migration and the changing socio-economic context in the middle hills, it appears time to reconsider the management of community forests beyond a narrow range of uses to enable greater commercialization and encourage ecosystem services to be harnessed so community forests better align with contemporary rural livelihoods and landscapes.