Household Structure Research Articles

“An instrument of grace”: Archaeological and ethnographic studies of homegardens in the American Neotropics

Homegardens are spaces where food, medicine, construction materials, and plants of aesthetic value are grown, both for household consumption, but also for sale in markets to supplement household income. Importantly, they are also spaces of cultural significance; gardens are spaces where many household activities are enacted, where household income is supplemented, where cultural memory is maintained. Archaeological explorations of garden spaces, particularly in the Neotropics, have successfully utilized soil chemical, archaeobotanical, and spatial analysis in identifying the location of cultivated spaces in relation to household structures. Having refined our ability to identify homegarden spaces, we can focus on anthropologically oriented questions regarding gender, status, political economy, and identity. In this special issue we are looking beyond gardens as simply utilitarian and functional spaces, and seeing them as places that have social, cultural, personal, and psychological importance. This introductory article will present some of the past and current research on homegardens and provide avenues for future archaeological research.

The Impact of Household Structure and Urban Agglomeration on Real Estate Prices in California

The purpose of this paper is to study the impact of regional economic and demographic factors on real estate prices and provide a theoretical basis for policy makers. The first section examines the economic traits of California in the 1990s and reveals a significant urbanization agglomeration impact. Through the use of linear regression, the data analysis model is further developed to examine the reasons for regional variances in home prices. The frequency of numerous families, small family sizes, and the concentration of big cities are proven to have a significant impact on housing costs.

COVID‐19 and consumer behavior: Food stockpiling in the U.S. market

AbstractThe emergence of the COVID‐19 pandemic has brought radical changes in consumer spending patterns. One aspect of this change is food stockpiling detected in several countries. Using a univariate probit model, this paper relies on the COVID‐19 Impact Survey (2020) for American households to assess the likelihood of consumers stockpiling food in response to the stringent lockdown measures imposed by the government's pandemic regulations. Our findings reveal a set of significant correlations between marital status, age, race, occupation, household structure, and the propensity of stockpiling food during the pandemic. Furthermore, the results show that residents in urban areas are more likely to engage in food stockpiling compared with residents in rural and suburban areas. The paper also examines the nexus between residence areas, lockdown measures, and the probability of stockpiling food. This research reveals a significant association between psychological factors and the likelihood of stockpiling food in response to the COVID‐19 pandemic [EconLit Citations: D12, H12, I18, P25].

Impact of Consumer Awareness and Behavior on Business Exits in the Hospitality, Tourism, Entertainment, and Culture Industries under the COVID-19 Pandemic

Empirical studies on small business survival and exits focus on endogenous firms and top manager characteristics, whereas few studies consider exogenous demand shocks and local consumer awareness and behavior, which are especially important for local hospitality industries. Therefore, this study addresses this research gap by targeting the COVID-19 pandemic and anti-contagion policies as a local demand shock for service industries. We empirically investigate the causal effects of changing local consumer awareness and behavior under COVID-19 on business exits at the prefecture-industry level. Based on a panel fixed-effect estimation using a longitudinal dataset of 32 service industries in 47 prefectures over 10 months in Japan, we demonstrate that an increase in consumers’ risk aversion and sympathy for self-restraint from going out, and a decrease in going out with family members, significantly increase the exit ratio in specific service industries in the same prefecture. Moreover, we find that these effects vary by consumer type depending on factors such as gender, age, income level, and household structure.

Using the Women Empowerment in Livestock Index (WELI) to Examine Linkages between Women Smallholder Livestock Farmers' Empowerment and Access to Livestock Vaccines in Machakos County of Kenya: Insights and Critiques.

Livestock diseases are a major barrier to productivity for both male and female livestock keepers in Africa. In Kenya, two of the most devastating livestock diseases are Newcastle Disease (ND) in poultry and Contagious Caprine Pleuropneumonia (CCPP) in goats. Female livestock keepers tend to own more small ruminants (goats, sheep, etc.) and poultry and their livelihoods are adversely affected if their herds are not vaccinated against these diseases. Livestock farming has gender specific challenges and opportunities, with implications for the empowerment of women smallholder farmers, their household well-being, food security, and livelihoods. There is a need to estimate the level to which women benefit personally, socially, and economically from keeping livestock, yet there are very few studies that can measure if livestock production does in fact empower women smallholder livestock farmers. This study was done to examine linkages between women's empowerment and access and control over livestock products and vaccines. The Women Empowerment in Livestock Index (WELI) tool, which was customized to include questions on livestock vaccine access, was used to capture baseline data on empowerment scores for women in Machakos county, Kenya, prior to implementation of animal health and vaccine test models. In total, 400 participants were surveyed in two wards of Machakos County, Kola and Kalama, which were purposively selected. Women's empowerment was mapped to three domains (3DE): intrinsic agency (power within), instrumental agency (power to), and collective agency (power with) measured against adequacy in 13 indicators. Our results indicate that the household structure (female headed or dual headed household), age of respondents and number of members in a household influence the adequacy score. Work balance was the most significant negative contributor to women's disempowerment. Women contributed the most to livestock productive activities and attained adequacy in this area compared to men, directly impacting the WELI score. Women smallholder livestock farmers report low CCPP and ND vaccination rates, minimal knowledge on livestock diseases, a lack of access to cold chain storage and rarely visited veterinarians. The WELI score was 0.81 indicating a high level of empowerment for women in this community compared to men leading us to conclude that the overall WELI score was not an accurate indicator of women's empowerment in Machakos County. However, the decomposability of the index allows us to disaggregate the drivers of change and to examine how individual indicators contribute to disempowerment.

Assessing Community Perceptions on Urban Flood Resilience in Sri Lanka

Urban communities’ perceptions about flood disasters can help better understand the resilience level of specific communities. This paper examines community-specific flood resilience by looking at Sri Lanka’s most flood-prone areas: the Kolonnawa and Kaduwela divisional secretariat divisions of Colombo. We conducted field surveys and a questionnaire survey among 120 community members. The collected questionnaire data were then analyzed partly by conducting multiple regression analyses. The results of our research identify varied perceptions about flood vulnerability and resilience by the community. Overall, our respondents regarded flood incidents as a high-risk disaster to their livelihoods, but some communities appeared to have higher coping strategies than others within the same administrative division. The respondents generally perceived that proximity to flood sources would increase flood vulnerability and frequency. Compared to other communities, Sedawatta community experienced most frequent floods, and 93% lived within 100 m from the river. The respondents had taken measures to mitigate floods mostly by elevating houses. Through multiple regression analyses, we found that education, income, household structure, distance to flood sources, and flood frequency had significant correlations with flood resilience and vulnerability in varying degrees by community. In conclusion, we argue that government flood management policies focus more on community-specific needs.

Work from home behaviors among U.S. urban and rural residents

Rates of working from home (WFH) have grown quickly over the last two decades, yet the option to do so varies by job sector and education level. Due to the advantages associated with WFH, equity concerns have arisen regarding the types of workers still required to commute. While previous studies have identified relationships between socioeconomic status and WFH access, few researchers have addressed the role of residential location. This paper uses pre-pandemic survey data to identify differences in WFH behaviors among U.S. rural and non-rural workers. To isolate the independent effect of residential location, this analysis uses binomial logistic and multinomial logistic regressions of 2017 travel data. Compared to urbanites, rural people prefer to work from home but less frequently can do so, all else equal. Findings on ethnicity, education, household structure, and professional employment also suggest distinct associations with WFH access by urban/rural residence. Understanding WFH behaviors among people facing accessibility disadvantages – including rural residents– remains a critical task for researchers. The decline of the commute may be the most remarkable emerging trend in travel behavior. This may disadvantage people who cannot WFH, and rural residents may thus face new employment challenges and travel burdens. Efforts to support rural workers should prioritize access to technology infrastructure and jobs that can be done virtually.

Influence of Livelihood Capital Level and Structure on Rural Households’ Payment Willingness for Rural Human Settlement Improvement: Evidence from Hubei Province, China

Rural human settlement improvement (RHSI) is the basis for enhancing rural households’ life quality and promoting their well-being. Studying the impact of the livelihood capital level and structure on rural households’ payment willingness for RHSI will help to clarify the effective focus for implementing a payment system for rural environmental governance, which is of great significance for improving rural human settlements and promoting comprehensive rural revitalization. This study reveals the influence mechanism of the livelihood capital level and structure on rural households’ willingness to pay (WTP) for RHSI. According to the survey data of rural households in Hubei Province, China, the level and structure of rural households’ livelihood capital and their WTP for RHSI are analyzed using the entropy value method and the contingent valuation method. The effects of the livelihood capital level and structure on rural households’ WTP for RHSI are tested using the Probit and Tobit models. The results show significant differences in the level and structure of rural households’ livelihood capital. More than half of the rural households have a payment inclination for RHSI, but the distribution of the willingness payment amounts shows a clear polarization, with the average payment amount ranging from CNY 14.48 to 28.32 per month. Both the total livelihood capital level and classification levels (natural capital, human capital, financial capital and social capital) significantly positively affect the rural households’ WTP. In the livelihood capital structure, both the natural-capital-dominant type and financial-capital-dominant type significantly positively affect the rural households’ WTP, and the human-capital-dominant type significantly positively affects the rural households’ willingness payment amount. Accordingly, this study proposes policy recommendations for the multi-dimensional improvement of rural households’ livelihood capital and the optimization of the livelihood capital structure allocation.

The impacts of demographic transition on embodied energy consumption and typology of residential buildings: the case study of Tehran’s Region 5

Changes in the structural characteristics of the population, such as age structure, household size, and number of households indicate shifts in the population age structure, moving from the younger towards the older populations and result in the reduction of household size. Former extended families have turned into a nuclear and even one-person household. Shifts in household status, both household composition, and household size lead to the formation of a new housing typology. It can affect the type, number, and floor area of ​​residential units as well as the amount of embodied energy used in the wet zones (kitchen, bathroom, and toilet), which are fixed, inflexible and costly areas of a residential unit. This study attempts to investigate the effect of demographic transition on the housing typology and embodied energy consumption of wet zones. The research is based on a case study: first, the changes in the population characteristics were examined by referring to the data published by the statistics Center of Iran. Then a field survey of residential buildings was started, to identify the number of floors, and the number of residential units. Then interviews with 15 developers have be conducted to investigate the significant changes in the housing typology and the common plan of the area. The common plan of residential units was then examined to assess the floor areas of wet zones and to compare their ratios to dry zones. In the next step, the amount of materials and embodied energy in each wet zone were calculated. The analysis of the reports by the statistics Center of Iran on the case study showed an age transition from the younger to the older, a decrease in the household size, and a change in the housing typology in the case study. The interview with developers and field survey on 831 land plots indicated three periods of changes in the housing typology in the case study between 1987 and 2018. During each period, in each plot of land, more residential units with fewer floor areas were built and the amount of embodied energy used by the wet zones increased.

The Impact of Financial Literacy on Household Consumption

In this paper, the relationship between financial literacy and household consumption is empirically analyzed by using The Chinese Family Micro Database (CHFS), and the consumption structure of Chinese households is subdivided into survival consumption, development consumption and enjoyment consumption, respectively, to study the impact of financial literacy on different consumption structures. The mediating effect of credit constraint factors is studied and the moderating effect of digital finance is explored. The results show that: financial literacy has a significant impact on household consumption behavior, and financial literacy has a significant positive impact on different structures of household consumption behavior. Credit constraint plays an obvious mediating role between financial literacy and household consumption. Digital finance has a direct mediating effect between financial literacy and credit constraint and between credit constraint and household consumption, and has a significant moderating effect on them. Therefore, it provides reference opinions for promoting consumption from the perspectives of improving the financial literacy of residents and increasing the development of digital finance.

T&T Clark Handbook of Food in the Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel. Edited by Janling Fu, Cynthia Shafer-Elliott, and Carol Meyers

‘Nothing is more fundamental to human life than food’ (p. 1). The opening words of this volume set the scene for a far-reaching and detailed study of food in the Hebrew Bible which considers the topic more closely than has been achieved before. Food in the Hebrew Bible is ubiquitous but studied notably less than other topics. Though there have been a handful of excellent studies on the topic, this handbook provides a far-reaching exploration which is of great benefit to the field. The book is arranged in five parts. Part I, entitled ‘Environmental and Socioeconomic Context’, begins with ‘Environmental Features’ by George A. Pierce. This is followed by ‘Houses, Households, and Social Structure’ by James W. Hardin, which emphasizes the absolute centrality of food to the ability of any social group to survive, but considers this through the lens of the sociopolitical arrangement of ancient Israel. This section of the book ends with ‘Economy and Trade’ by Joshua Walton.

The Socio-Economic Dynamics of the Small-House Household Structure in Harare Metropolitan Province: A Gender Perspective

ABSTRACT The study interrogated the socio-economic dynamics of the small-house households. The small-house relationship is a secretive long-term relationship between a married man and another woman where both develop an emotional attachment. The study was conducted in Harare metropolitan province and adopted a gender perspective to illuminate the gender dynamics and socio-economic circumstances of children growing up in small-house households. The secretive nature and complexity of the small-house household structure render the nuances of economic support in such contexts worth exploring to add value to the Sociology of Families and Households. The qualitative research study employed in-depth interviews to collect data from 36 participants who were purposively sampled. The study findings reveal that the small-house household remains a problematic context for raising children. Disengaged fatherhood tends to expose such households to poverty as the breadwinning role is left to one partner. Reportedly, disengaged fatherhood in small-house households tends to affect financial resources for food, rentals, water and electricity bills and school fees. Problems experienced in small-house households are often exacerbated by the secretive nature of the relationship. The study also reveals that conflict between partners is mainly a result of constrained financial and material resources. The small-house households may inadvertently violate children’s rights, including opportunities to access education and social security. The study recommends the expansion of the Zimbabwe Marriage Act of 1997 to acknowledge variety of relationships and enforce financial obligations on the partners to take care of the children.

Factors influencing the implementation of agroecological practices: Lessons drawn from the Aba-Garima watershed, Ethiopia

The challenges to agroecological transitions are not the same for all farmers and implementation of agroecological practices in different locations could yield different results. With this consideration, this study was conducted in Aba-Garima watershed in northwestern Ethiopia to characterize the structure and activities of farming households and assess factors influencing the implementation and sustainability of agroecological practices. Data were collected from 218 households, 16 key informants, and 12 focus group discussions. The Multivariate Probit model and descriptive statistics were employed to analyze factors influencing farmers’ choices of different agroecological practices and describe the characteristics of farming households. The qualitative data analysis was processed through topic coding and building categories, themes, and patterns of relationships. Farmers realize the importance of both farm and landscape level agroecological practices to enhance income earning capacity, achieve food security and protect the environment. However, most of the agroecological practices are very difficult to start using for various constraining factors including limited access to water, and shortages of money, land and labor. The results suggest that depending on different socio-economic characteristics of farming households, agroecological practices that appear common practices can be very difficult to use for some farmers, while it would be possible for other farmers. The constraining factors are also differently associated with different practices, involving diverse perspectives of different socio-economic groups. The paper discussed the existing agroecological practices, the perspectives of different socio-economic groups on these practices and the factors influencing the implementation as well as the conditions that can facilitate the wider adoption of agroecological practices in the study area.

The influence of household structure and composition on the introduction of solid, semisolid and soft foods among children aged 6-8 months: An analysis based on Ethiopia Demographic and Health Surveys.

The early and late introduction of complementary food, both prevalent in Ethiopia, are associated with morbidities, growth falteringand developmental risks in children. The interhousehold network around the primary caregiver's intrahousehold network is critical in influencing the age of introducing complementary foods. This study examined the influence of household composition and structures on complementary food introduction. This is a secondary data analysis of four Ethiopian Demographic and Health Surveysconducted between 2000 and 2016. The household structure and composition variables were calculated from household members' kinship status and attribute, respectively. The introduction of solid, semisolid or soft foods was dichotomised as whether the children within 6 to 8 months have been given complementary foods. Multivariable logistic regression with adjustment for the primary caregiver and household characteristics was run to examine the associations between household structure and composition variables and the introduction of complementary foods. The marginal effects (ME) were calculated to facilitate the practical interpretation of the study findings. Large households (>3 nonredundant contacts) with extended family or unrelated people (high effective size, ME = 6.01%, 95% confidence interval [CI]: -8.53, -3.49) lowered the proportion of children starting food within the recommended 6-8 months. Households with close kins (high constraint) (ME = 7.22%, 95% CI: -13.65, 28.09) and greater age diversity (ME = 0.65%, 95% CI: 0.15, 1.15) increased the proportion of children receiving complementary food at an appropriate age. This study revealed that interhousehold structure and composition influence the age of introduction of complementary foods. These factors, therefore, need to be considered in designing interventions to improve age at the introduction of complementary foods.

Capturing Household Structure and Mobility within and between Remote Aboriginal Communities in Northern Australia Using Longitudinal Data: A Pilot Study.

Cultural practices and development level can influence a population’s household structures and mixing patterns. Within some populations, households can be organized across multiple dwellings. This likely affects the spread of infectious disease through these communities; however, current demographic data collection tools do not record these data. Methods: Between June and October 2018, the Contact And Mobility Patterns in remote Aboriginal Australian communities (CAMP-remote) pilot study recruited Aboriginal mothers with infants in a remote northern Australian community to complete a monthly iPad-based contact survey. Results: Thirteen mother–infant pairs (participants) completed 69 study visits between recruitment and the end of May 2019. Participants reported they and their other children slept in 28 dwellings during the study. The median dwelling occupancy, defined as people sleeping in the same dwelling on the previous night, was ten (range: 3.5–25). Participants who completed at least three responses (n = 8) slept in a median of three dwellings (range: 2–9). Each month, a median of 28% (range: 0–63%) of the participants travelled out of the community. Including these data in disease transmission models amplified estimates of infectious disease spread in the study community, compared to models parameterized using census data. Conclusions: The lack of data on mixing patterns in populations where households can be organized across dwellings may impact the accuracy of infectious disease models for these communities and the efficacy of public health actions they inform.

Gendered predictors of the impact of COVID-19 on cross-border fish trade in Zambia and Malawi

PurposeWhile the literature has highlighted the impacts of COVID-19, there is limited evidence on the gendered determinants of the impact of COVID-19 among small-scale rural traders in developing and emerging economies.Design/methodology/approachCross-border fish traders who had operated before and during the COVID-19 pandemic were interviewed in a survey conducted in Zambia and Malawi. Logistic regressions among male and female traders were employed to assess the gendered predictors.FindingsHeterogeneous effects in geographical location, skills, and knowledge were reported among male cross-border traders. Effects of household structure and composition significantly influenced the impact of COVID-19 among female traders. Surprisingly, membership in trade associations was associated with the high impact of COVID-19.Research limitations/implicationsDue to the COVID-19 pandemic and the migratory nature of cross-border fish traders, the population of cross-border fish traders at the time of the study was unknown and difficult to establish, cross-border fish traders (CBFT) at the landing sites and market areas were targeted for the survey without bias.Originality/valueThis paper addresses a gap in the literature on understanding gendered predictors of the impacts of COVID-19 among small-scale cross-border traders.

PARENTAL AWARENESS TOWARDS CHILD HEALTH: A STUDY ON THE PARENTS OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AT KHULNA CITY CORPORATION IN BANGLADESH

Parents’ awareness regarding child health has a significant influence on physical and psychological issues. This study aims to explore the implication of parents’ behavior and attitude on the mental and physical health status of secondary education level children. A total of 130 respondents (either father or mother) is selected using the snowball sampling technique from Khulna City Corporation (KCC), Bangladesh. This study has applied Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Ordinary Least Square (OLS) techniques for analyzing data. Results reveal that household structure (joint or nuclear) have significant implications in shaping the physical and mental health status of children. A poor level of parental awareness and care may lead children into depression and impede their mental growth. However, regression results postulate that parents’ awareness and spending more time with children is significantly related to the physical and mental fitness of their children which in turn keeps them on the right track. This study has predominantly explored to what extent parents' awareness matters for improving child physical and mental health status. Thus, parents’ awareness regarding child healthcare issues is indispensable.

Regional incidence risk of heat stroke in elderly individuals considering population, household structure, and local industrial sector

This study aims to clarify the regional characteristics of heat stroke incidence patterns inside and outside residences among the elderly from the perspective of working and living conditions. The study area comprised 41 municipalities belonging to Hyogo Prefecture in Japan. Based on information on heat stroke emergency medical evacuees in each municipality from 2011 to 2020, the regional differences in the incidence risk of heat stroke were analyzed. The results revealed that the number of cases and the proportion of males and females among them were related to the demographic structure of each municipality. A grouping analysis was conducted to classify the characteristics of each municipality based on the relationship between the incidence risk of heat stroke and the industrial structure. A factor analysis and binomial logistic regression analysis were also conducted to investigate the effect of demographic structure on the incidence risk of heat stroke. The results indicate that the incidence risk of heat stroke is correlated with industrial and demographic structures, and the risk is likely to vary regionally.

Explaining trends in adult height in China: 1950 to 1990

This paper explores the changing trend of adult height in China for cohorts born in 1950–90. We use information on household structure and local economic conditions during the individual’s childhood to explain the trend. We find that during the 40-year period, the growth rate of adult height increased, with the most substantial increase occurring in the 1980s. One important contributing factor to the growth of adult height is the continued increase in government per capita spending on health and education. The impressive growth in the 1980s was mainly due to the introduction of market-oriented economic reforms, rather than the advent of the One-Child Policy. We find that the positive effect of economic reforms was larger for urban dwellers than for their rural counterparts and within the rural areas the benefit was far greater for men than for women.

A computational framework for modelling infectious disease policy based on age and household structure with applications to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The widespread, and in many countries unprecedented, use of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) during the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for mathematical models which can estimate the impact of these measures while accounting for the highly heterogeneous risk profile of COVID-19. Models accounting either for age structure or the household structure necessary to explicitly model many NPIs are commonly used in infectious disease modelling, but models incorporating both levels of structure present substantial computational and mathematical challenges due to their high dimensionality. Here we present a modelling framework for the spread of an epidemic that includes explicit representation of age structure and household structure. Our model is formulated in terms of tractable systems of ordinary differential equations for which we provide an open-source Python implementation. Such tractability leads to significant benefits for model calibration, exhaustive evaluation of possible parameter values, and interpretability of results. We demonstrate the flexibility of our model through four policy case studies, where we quantify the likely benefits of the following measures which were either considered or implemented in the UK during the current COVID-19 pandemic: control of within- and between-household mixing through NPIs; formation of support bubbles during lockdown periods; out-of-household isolation (OOHI); and temporary relaxation of NPIs during holiday periods. Our ordinary differential equation formulation and associated analysis demonstrate that multiple dimensions of risk stratification and social structure can be incorporated into infectious disease models without sacrificing mathematical tractability. This model and its software implementation expand the range of tools available to infectious disease policy analysts.