Households In Serbia Research Articles

Assessment of Environmental Impacts from Different Perspectives-Case Study of Egg Value Chain System in Serbia.

The environmental performance of various aspects of animal origin food supply chains has been the focus of research in recent years, and has provided useful information. However, there were no studies that covered the entire egg supply chain from different perspectives. The aim of this study was to analyze the majority of environmental impacts in the table egg supply chain comprising of three subsystems: farms, retail outlets and households, with quantification of each individual subsystem and the entire supply chain. All data were gathered from 30 farms, 50 retail stores and 300 households in Serbia. In parallel, the perception and ranking of environmental impacts along the supply chain were also evaluated. Finally, the quality function deployment for the environment was used to determine the degree of correlation between the set of environmental requirements and the identified environmental impacts. Results revealed that the greatest environmental impacts come from the production of feed for laying hens and the use of natural resources, and they contribute the most to the pollution of each individual environmental indicator. Additionally, the results show the differences in the environmental impacts of each individual subsystem and identify opportunities to mitigate them through the optimization of animal feed, energy consumption and household food waste management. The overall perspective of the egg supply chain points to climate change effects as the most important. The differences in the perceptions of environmental impacts along the entire egg supply chain suggest the need for promotion of mitigation strategies to all stakeholders that would encourage them to achieve sustainable development goals.

Online booking accommodation in rural tourism: An UTAUT perspective

The paper investigates the most important factors that cause tourists to intend or to already use a website for booking accommodation in rural areas of the Republic of Serbia. On a sample of 212 respondents who had previously used websites to book accommodation in rural tourism, using a modified model of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT), the impact of four predictor variables (expected impact, expected effort, social impact and facilitation conditions) on the intention of tourists to use, and two independent variables (facilitating conditions and intentions of tourists) on the use of websites for booking accommodation in rural households in Serbia was examined. The SPSS software package was used for data analysis, using descriptive statistics and standard multiple regression. The conducted research indicates that the expected effect and facilitating conditions have a positive influence on the intention of tourists to use websites for booking accommodation, as well as that facilitating conditions and intentions of tourists have a positive impact on the use of websites when booking accommodation.

The Influence of Heating Degree Days on Fuelwood Consumption in Households in Selected Countries of Central and Southeastern Europe

Serbia is one of the few European countries that does not keep official statistics and does not have data on heating degree days. A heating degree day (HDD) represents a measure to quantify the energy needs for heating a building. In order to create a database, six meteorological stations in Serbia had been selected, for which the heating degree days were calculated for every year in the period 2010-2018. The months with the highest values of heating degree days were also determined for each year of the analyzed period. In addition to the annual level, heating degree days in the heating seasons over the analyzed period were calculated for the six selected stations, as well as the length and the average air temperature of each heating season. In Serbia, heating season officially lasts from October 15 to April 15. To determine the influence of the calculated annual heating degree days on fuelwood consumption in households in Serbia, over the period 2010-2018, multiple econometric models were formulated. The influence of the annual values of heating degree days on fuelwood consumption for household space heating in Slovenia and Croatia was analyzed, as well. The analysis of energy consumption in the households of the selected countries showed that wood fuels are mostly used for heating, primarily fuelwood. This is the reason why this type of fuel was selected for the research.

Inequality-Reducing Effects of Tobacco Tax Increase: Accounting for Behavioral Response of Low-, Middle-, and High-Income Households in Serbia.

While previous research has indicated that increasing tobacco excises is a crucial instrument for lowering tobacco demand, this policy has been criticized for its alleged regressive impact on the poor. However, this critique does not take into account the behavioral response, i.e., decrease in consumption that occurs after excises and prices increase. In this paper, we examine the effect of cigarettes’ price increase on tobacco consumption, household expenditures, and tax burdens in three income groups and provide empirical arguments on the regressivity/progressivity effects of tobacco tax increase. Estimated elasticities indicate that all groups decrease their cigarettes demand with increasing prices, with demand decrease stronger for low- than for middle- and high-income households. Results further suggest that increasing tobacco excises (1) decreases tobacco expenditure of low-income households, which increases their productive consumption, such as on food, clothes, etc., and (2) redistributes the tobacco tax burden from low- to high-income households. Therefore, excise increase policies do not have an adverse effect on the position of the low-income households; on the contrary, they lower their cigarettes expenditure and their tax burden, while lower cigarettes consumption has an additional, positive effect on their health, which attenuates future inequalities.

Attitude of employees on the application and significance of HACCP system in rural tourist households in Serbia during Covid-19

Diseases caused by food consumed in restaurants during a pandemic, can cause enormous damage and lead to closure of rural households. The aim of the research was to determine the attitude of employees in rural households on the application and importance of doing business according to the HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point) food safety system in 47 rural tourist households in Serbia during the COVID-19 pandemic. A structured field survey questionnaire was conducted on a sample of 286 employees. The generated data were processed by the statistical program Statistica 14.0. The obtained results show that the application of HACCP food safety system during the pandemic was highly appreciated by the employees and that operating according good hygiene practice (GHP) and good manufacturing practice (GMP) fully meets all safety requirements and the extent to which employees in rural households must be aware of and be instructed in its application.

Determinante potrošnje domaćinstava u Srbiji - metodološki pristupi i empirijski rezultati

The subject of this paper is to quantify the impact of income (household income) which is a key economic variable that determines the framework for personal consumption of households. In addition to income, the influence of household regional affiliation, household size, socio-economic status of the household, gender, age and level of education of the household head -variables that independently affect consumption, increasing or decreasing the influence of income as the main explanatory variables, was examined. The aim of this paper is to provide insight into different methodological approaches to empirical / econometric research of determinants of consumer demand, on the example of empirical analysis of family budgets of households in Serbia. Based on the survey on the consumption of 6,354 house holds in Serbia, which was conducted in 2019, according to the unique methodology of the European Agency for Statistics, by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, the basic parameters of consumer demand were assessed. Two econometric approaches were applied: a model based on complete systems of regression equations and a model based on one regression equation. The obtained empirical results are in accordance with the findings of most econometricians of applied consumer demand analysis.

Ekonometrijsko ispitivanje uticaja prihoda na rashode domaćinstva

The subject of this paper is the econometric examination of the impact of income on expenditures, i.e. on the demand for package holidays of households in Serbia. The aim of this paper is to quantify the impact of income on household expenditures for package holidays in the country and abroad on the basis of alternative functional forms of Engel curves and elasticities derived from them. The starting research hypothesis is that with the increase in household income, the share of expenditures for tourist arrangements in total household expenditures in Serbia remains approximately unchanged. As sources of data, Household Budget Surveys in Serbia were used, which were conducted every year, starting from 2006 (until 2019). Based on the different functional forms of Engel curves, the parameters of the impact of income on expenditures for package arrangements were estimated, and then income elasticities were estimated. In addition to the impact of income, the impact of qualitative characteristics of households and especially household heads on expenditures for tourist arrangements was examined. With the help of appropriate statistical tests, the basic research hypothesis was proven and the influence of socio-economic and demographic characteristics of households on the demand for package holidays was quantified.

The Economic Position of Households in Serbia during the post-2000 Capitalist Consolidation

AbstractThe authors analyse the economic position of households in Serbia during the recent social transition towards a consolidated capitalist society. Of central importance here is a determination of the overall population’s economic position, with emphasis on the changes during the gradual consolidation of the capitalist order. The study is based on the analysis of statewide representative samples from three comparable research surveys conducted by the Institute for Sociological Research of the University of Belgrade – Faculty of Philosophy in 2003, 2012, and 2018. The analysis yielded results indicating that the economic position of households in Serbia, despite improvement during a recent period of capitalist consolidation (2018) when compared to an earlier period marked by a cyclical economic crisis (2012), is still lower than it had been during the first years of the country’s accelerated postsocialist transformation (2003).

Medication Use in the Community: Comparison between Urban and Rural Home Pharmacies

Objective: This study aimed to examine the contents of home pharmacies and medication use, as well as storage and disposal habits in urban and rural households in Serbia. Material and Methods: This prospective research was conducted within 70 households in Novi Sad (urban setting) and Laćarak (rural setting) from October 1, 2015 to January 15, 2016. The data were collected using a standardized questionnaire, as well as by direct examination of drugs stored in households. Results: The most common groups of drugs stored were cardiovascular drugs, drugs for the nervous system, antirheumatic products and antimicrobials. A high percentage of drugs for the alimentary tract were found stored in Laćarak, while drugs for the respiratory tract were discovered in Novi Sad. Prescription only medications (POMs) made up 69.7% of all medications in Laćarak and 60.6% in Novi Sad. POMs were purchased independently in high amounts (13.2% in Laćarak and 9.1% in Novi Sad). Presence of expired medications was higher in Laćarak (12.0%) than Novi Sad (5.8%). Over two-thirds of the households stored medications properly; however, only 10.0% of respondents reported the proper disposal of unused medications. Conclusion: The structures of home pharmacies in Novi Sad and Laćarak differ, which implies different healthcare needs. The practice of self-medicating was noted both in Novi Sad and Laćarak. While Laćarak residents rely more on the advice of friends and family, Novi Sad residents buy medicine mostly without any consultation. Medications in both environments are stored properly in the majority of households, but mostly disposed of improperly together with household waste.

Knowledge and Practices Related to Unused Medications in Households in Serbia

Knowledge and Practices Related to Unused Medications in Households in Serbia

Household projections by the headship rates method: The case of Serbia

Household projections by the headship rates method: The case of Serbia

Structure of agricultural distributions in the Republic of Serbia, by the surface of agricultural land

The authors give an overview and analysis of the state of agricultural holdings in the Republic of Serbia. The situation analysis was done on the basis of the last three censuses from 1991, 2002 and 2012. Based on the analysis of the data from the list, the authors point out that in the current conditions of the economy, the survival of agricultural holdings is threatened. The key problem is the ownership structure of farms located on small land areas. There is also a large fragmentation of the plot. The average size of individual households in Serbia is extremely small, with as much as 94.5% of households owning less than 10 ha. In such a small possession it is difficult to organize agricultural production. The results of the analysis point to the conclusion that it is necessary to carry out the procedure of land consolidation and land consolidation in order to consolidate the property, which would result in increased efficiency of agricultural production.

Water supply in households and conditions for tourism development in Serbia

The global structural change, together with "the green revolution", caused the economic growth to be based on the service sector today, instead on the traditional economic sectors. The main focus of this paper is on the factors that affect the decisions of households in Serbia to participate in the tourism industry in the context of the sustainable development. In particular, a significant portion of the analysis is devoted to the constraints that can be induced by inadequate drinking water supply and its quality in households. These factors can be considered the main limitations to those households that decide to provide accommodation and food services to the tourists in their local touristreceiver communities. The empirical analysis is based on survey data that describe conditions in the households, whereas the econometric framework is employed in order to determine structural relationships. The null hypothesis that drinking water supply and quality do not affect the likelihood of the household participating in the tourism industry is tested and accepted based on the probit model estimates. The difference between the public urban and local water supply systems that provide drinking water to the households is statistically confirmed, but it does not affect the likelihood of the household participating in the tourism industry.

Measuring the catastrophic and impoverishing effect of household health care spending in Serbia

Out-of-pocket patient payments can impose a catastrophic burden on households. This problem may not only affect poor but also wealthy households who need to use health care frequently. The available literature offers no consensus on how to measure poverty and how to measure the effects of out-of-pocket payments on household budgets. The objective of this paper is to contribute to current research in this area by comparing results across different approaches. In particular, the paper examines the catastrophic and impoverishing effects of health care spending in Serbia applying different types of thresholds used in previous research. The application of various approaches allows us to analyze the robustness and convergent validity of the results. We also include the subjective poverty approach in our examination.We use household data from the Serbian Living Standard Measurement Study (LSMS). The Serbian LSMS data were collected in 2007 and consists of 17,375 participants living in 5557 households (sample representative for Serbia). Our results indicate that irrespective of the approach applied, out-of-pocket patient payments have a catastrophic effect on poor households in Serbia. Moreover, households that are above the absolute, relative and subjective poverty lines respectively, after the subtraction of out-of-pocket payments fall below these poverty lines. The probability of catastrophic out-of-pocket patient payments is higher in rural areas, in larger households, and among chronically sick household members (namely, people with diabetes and mental diseases, as well as cardiology diseases in some instances). Perceived health status also appears to be a significant indicator. Policy in Serbia should aim to protect vulnerable groups, especially chronically sick patients and people from rural areas.

Financial measures Serbia should offer for solar water heating systems

Hot water consumption is an important segment in the energy consumption in households in Serbia, where majority of households heat water with electric resistance storage water heaters. A more appropriate alternative is installation of solar water heating (SWH) systems in households. The current number of installed SWH systems in Serbia is negligibly small – only about 0.1% of all households. Serbia has recently adopted feed-in tariffs for generating electricity from renewable energy sources (RES), but it did not provide any incentive for SWH installations. It is generally accepted that best form of SWH incentive is a direct subsidy to reduce high upfront costs. The aim of this work is to suggest the level of the subsidy which Serbian government should offer in order to reach the level of SWH deployment comparable to that of more developed countries. After financial analysis of SWH installation in six Serbian cities, followed by contingent valuation survey among household owners in Serbia, it is concluded that 20% subsidy is justified already by CO2 mitigation potential of SWH systems, while 50% subsidy, which lowers equity payback period to 5.5–6 years, generates most interest among household owners.

Why Should Internet Utilization in Travel Industry ReallyMatter? Case of Serbia

 Abstract—In today's world, leisure time is supposed to be a happy, satisfactory time when one fulfills their needs. Traveling is an especially significant aspect of leisure time. The aim of this study is to identify the basic ways of spending leisure time of Serbian residents, with a focus on their traveling habits, on a sample of 257 respondents. The task of the study is to examine the level of Internet utilization when inquiring about tourist destination, tourist organizations and accommodation capacities and to determine the significance of Internet in making decisions when traveling. The research results have shown that lack of funds is the limiting factor in satisfying the need for traveling for Serbian residents. The Republic of Serbia is a country rich with natural and anthropogenic resources and tourism development in Serbia would enhance spending leisure time and satisfying people's needs to travel. Considering the research results which show that Internet content and the tourist, travel organizers' and accommodation capacity offer affect choosing a specific tourist offer. In order to advertise its tourism in the future, The Republic of Serbia should improve its offer by using the advantages of the information technology, primarily Internet. Index Terms—Internet, leisure time, Serbia, travel habits. Serbia? Since the official advent of Internet in Serbia in 1996, the number of Internet users increases every day. According to data from the Statistical office from 2010, 41.2% households in Serbia in connected to Internet, and 44.4% have users have used Internet during last year, and 31% of households use Internet every day. With the expansion of Internet utilization in Serbia, there has been an increase in the significance of Internet for the purpose of tourism, which would provide access to useful and current tourist information and facilitate it to them. The study will determine o what extent Serbian residents use Internet when choosing travel destinations or assessing the quality of the tourist product and services.

Consumption of wood fuels in households in Serbia: Present state and possible contribution to the climate change mitigation

The paper presents results of the research in wood fuels consumption for house-hold needs in Serbia. Research was performed during the period from October 2010 until April 2011, i. e. in the period of heating season in order to get the actual situation regarding the presence of certain fuel types in the consumption of households with special highlight on types and amounts of wood fuels. For this purpose, an adequate methodological concept was defined with the aim to primarily get relevant and reliable data on wood fuels consumption and afterwards, by using FAO WISDOM methodology and adequate GIS software packages to perform their analysis, mapping, and graphic representation. One of the most significant elements of the adopted methodological concept was field research-questionnaire of households which was conducted on the sample of 36.946 households out of which 20.725 urban and 16.221 rural in 22 municipalities in Serbia, which was 1.46% of the total number of households in Serbia. Results of the survey showed that 23.2% of the total number of households in Serbia used district heating system (based on conventional fossil fuels as dominant), 25.3% used electricity, and 10.6% used gas for heating purposes. Most households (40.9%) used solid fuels such as fuelwood, coal, briquettes, pellets, agricultural residues and combinations of solid and other fuels.

Socioekonomske i higijenske karakteristike stanovanja u Srbiji

The man spent in the apartment / house over half of life, and children even more. Apartment is the center of the complex family and social functions closely associated with health, both directly and indirectly. The aim of this paper is to review the housing conditions of hygiene and socio-economic aspects. The realization of the objectives of the survey method was used to research, ie. Data were analyzed by large-scale survey research of the Institute of Public Health of Serbia 'Dr Milan Jovanović Batut'. The results showed that the apartments / houses in Serbia were technically very well equipped. Almost 100% of flats / houses were connected to electricity and drinking water to 95.2%. With a total sanitation was 85.2% flats / houses. Waste materials in a hygienic manner took the 76.4% of households in Serbia, in Belgrade 94.7%. Toilets is owned 96.2% of households and mainly on irrigation. The population with drinking water supplying mainly from municipal and local water supply, then from the wells and public drinking fountains. Households are the owners of flats / houses in 79.5% of cases. Own apartment / house had a 83.9% urban and 77% of rural households, and the difference was statistically significant (χ² = 55.134, df = 5, p <0.001). The largest number of households had an apartment / house with two rooms (37.7%), and a room about 12% of households, as much as four or five or more rooms. In Belgrade, a significantly higher proportion of one bedroom apartments, and a small er proportion of flats / houses with four or five or more rooms than in Serbia. These differences were statistically significant, and also a statistically significant difference in the number of rooms in apartments / houses in urban and rural areas: 21% of households in rural areas had five or more rooms, in urban areas 6.6%. The reverse was compared to a single room: had them 16% of households in urban areas, and 6% in rural areas (χ² = 493.504, df = 4, p <0.001). The largest number of apartments with the area was in the range from 51 to 75m2 (35.6%), and then to the surface at intervals of 25 to 50m2 and 76 to 100m2. Belgrade was 39.4% of dwellings with an area of 51 to 75m2, and then 30% of dwellings with an area of 25 to 50m2. These differences were statistically significant (χ² = 157.551, df = 8, p <0.001). Likewise, a statistically significant difference in the surface area of flats / houses in urban and rural areas (χ² = 508.827, df = 4, p <0.001). Maximum floor area per household in Serbia was over 25m2 (in 35.6% of cases), and then at intervals of 16 to 25m2 (34%) and less than 16m2 (30.4%). Belgrade was the other way around, and this difference was statistically significant, as well as between urban and rural settlements. The floors were mostly of the parquet and ceramic tiles (60.6%) and flooring or concrete (37.3%), more pronounced in Belgrade, as well as in urban areas compared to rural settlements. It was the same in terms of bathrooms.

Aging of the population of the Republic of Serbia and Belgrade through the prism of the relation of the age structure of the population and the age structure of household members

The most important age structure represents an age structure of population. The results of census which was held on territory of the Republic of Serbia show that the Republic of Serbia is considered to be among the countries with the oldest population. In the last fifty year's time there was registered a constant decrease in number of young people, and constant increase in number of old people. During the period of the 80s, a number of young people from 0-14 years old was twice larger than the number of people older than 65, on the republic and the city of Belgrade's level, in the last census held in 2002 for the first time there was noticed a higher amount of people older than 65 related to population in an age from 0-14. An average old age of people in the Republic has grown from 35.8 to 40.3, and in Belgrade, which was always considered as a city of youth, it is noticed an increase in average old age from 34.9 to 40.4 years of age. Index of aging increased from 0.51 in the Republic of Serbia, 0.41 in Belgrade, to 1.01 or 1.07. In the Republic of Serbia and the city of Belgrade, for more than 50 years, the average size of household became smaller for more than one member, a number of single man households has increased for 5.5%, and participation of some old age groups in a structure of household members in a specific way shows a difficult demographic situation in Serbia and the city of Belgrade. Almost 83% of households in Central Serbia don't have even one pre-school child, and among households which have children at the age of 7, one child households form the majority. In the same period the number of households with members older than 65 has increased, so households like this in 2002 formed about 39%. Out of 435491 households in Serbia, every fifth household is named as OLD AGE HOUSEHOLD and SINGLE MAN HOUSEHOLD. .

Families and social capital in Serbia: Some issues in research and policy

Based on several recent studies on families and households in Serbia, the paper examines the heuristic and methodological validity of the concept of social capital as applied in studying families in post-socialist transformation. After discussing conceptual issues and problems related to social capital and study of contemporary families, the findings from the studies related to social capital are summarized. It is argued that in a post socialist society in transformation, such as Serbia, there are two sides to social capital, that consequences of strong "bonding" social capital are twofold, and that this has complex effects on different societal levels. In the concluding part, some methodological and policy issues that emerged from the evidence are pointed out.