Income Range Research Articles

Distress, Depression, and the Effect of ZIP Code in Pancreaticobiliary Cancer Patients and Their Significant Others.

Distress screening of cancer patients is mandated by the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer. Clinical implementation remains limited, particularly in surgical oncology settings in individuals with pancreaticobiliary cancers. This study evaluated differences in mean distress scores based on the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Distress Thermometer & Problem List for patients with pancreaticobiliary cancers, benign pancreatic conditions, and for their significant others (SOs). The distress screening was conducted at the first office visit and postoperatively in a subset of those who had surgery. Distress Thermometer (DT) scores were dichotomized at ≤5 vs >5 and at ≥7 and correlated with Problem List items. The US ZIP Code database was used to correlate income range, percent poverty, and unemployment in the patient's self-identified ZIP code. Regression models were fitted to identify independent predictors of distress. A total of 547 patients and 184 SOs were evaluated. Thirty percent of patients had DT scores >5, with pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients reporting the highest levels of distress. SOs of pancreatic adenocarcinoma patients reported even greater distress than the patients themselves. As the number of pre-existing medical problems increased; so did DT scores. Distress correlated with physical and emotional problems and worry about insurance coverage and transportation. Higher income level predicted higher DT scores, although poverty predicted lower DT scores. Depression was present in 12% of the patients. Distress improved in those undergoing surgery. Distress and depression in pancreaticobiliary cancer patients and SOs are prevalent. The findings of this study have multiple actionable implications and require diagnosis, treatment, and referral to supportive care resources.

Who are the Older Adults’ Users or Non-Users of the Internet before the Pandemic? Analysis of the Epifloripaageing Cohort Study (2009-2019)

Background: This ageing demographic transformation has been happening simultaneously with technological immersion, especially internet use in communication and health monitoring applications. Objective: This study’s primary aim was to characterize the Internet’s socioeconomic and demographic factors of internet users and non-users. The second aim was to analyze which factor, modifiable or not, influenced the incidence of older adults’ Internet use over time. Methods: This study was done with 722 EpiFloripa Ageing Cohort Study follow-up of older adults. The outcome is internet use according to waves 1 to 3, and the exposures are sociodemographic. It described the characteristics of internet users and non-users, and it used a longitudinal analysis model (Generalized Estimating Equations) to estimate Incidence Rate Ratios (IRR) with 95% confidence intervals. Results: Internet users were younger, with higher education and higher income than non-users over time. Most non-users of the Internet were women (54%) and white (93%), with an average of 66.4 years old and 14 years of study. Conclusion: The incidence of internet use was 11, 4% in Wave 2 and 23.0% in Wave 3 and was 80% lower in older adults 80 years and over compared to other age groups. Regarding schooling and family income, the internet use incidence was higher according to the increase in education levels and income range, except for older adults with more than 10 Brazilian minimum wages. Public policies are needed to reduce inequalities in access to the Internet and promote the digital inclusion of older adults.

Association between social determinants of health and olfactory dysfunction in older adults: A population-based analysis.

Social determinants of health (SDoH) are environmental conditions that influence health outcomes. As olfactory dysfunction (OD) in older individuals is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, we sought to investigate the impact of specific SDoH on olfactory function. A cross-sectional analysis of the Health, Aging and Body Composition Study, a US population-based epidemiologic cohort study, was performed. Olfactory function was assessed utilizing both a self-report and a psychophysical olfactory test (CC-SIT test). Multivariable logistic regressions were performed to examine associations between specific SDoH with self-reported anosmia (sOD) and objective anosmia (oOD) as assessed by psychophysical testing. Differences in sensitivity and specificity were evaluated with sample tests for equality of proportions. Of 2219 participants, 13% had oOD and 18% had objective hyposmia; only 10% had sOD. Individuals identifying as Black race had higher odds of oOD (odds ratio [OR]:1.41, 95% confidence interval [CI]:1.02-1.95), while females and those reporting family incomes ≥$50,000 had lower odds of oOD (OR: 0.46, CI:0.34-0.62; OR:0.52, CI:0.29-0.93), adjusting for covariates. No specific SDoH was significantly associated with sOD. The sensitivity and specificity of sOD for oOD was 23.1% and 92.0%, respectively. sOD had greater sensitivity in females than males (30.8%vs. 18.8%, p=0.030), while specificity varied significantly depending on family income (range: 90.0%-94.8%, p=0.033). Utilizing a large population-based study, we find disparities in the prevalence and self-recognition of OD among individuals of different gender, race, and income levels. Further effort is needed to evaluate factors propagating these disparities and to raise awareness of OD across all patient populations.

The Effects of Socioeconomic Status on Outcomes Following Total Ankle Arthroplasty

Category: Ankle; Ankle Arthritis Introduction/Purpose: There is limited literature on the effects of socioeconomic factors on outcomes after total ankle arthroplasty (TAA). In the setting of hip or knee arthroplasty, patients of a lower socioeconomic status demonstrate poorer post- operative satisfaction, longer lengths of stay, and larger functional limitations. It is important to ascertain whether this phenomenon is present in ankle arthritis patients. This is the first study to address the weight of potential socioeconomic factors in affecting various socioeconomic classes, in terms of how they benefit from ankle arthroplasty. Methods: This is retrospective cohort study of 447 patients who underwent a TAA. Primary outcomes included pre-operative and final follow-up AAOS pain, AAOS disability, and SF-36 scores. We then used postal codes to determine median household income using Canadian 2015 census data. Incomes were divided into quintiles based on equal amounts over the range of incomes. These income groups were then compared for differences in outcome measures. Statistical analysis was done using unpaired t- test. Results: A total of 447 patients were divided into quintiles by income. From lowest income to highest income, the groups had 54, 207, 86, 64, and 36 patients, respectively. The average time from surgery to final follow up was 85.6 months. Interestingly, we found that patients within the middle household income groups had significantly lower AAOS disability scores compared to the lowest income groups at final follow-up (26.41 vs 35.70, p=0.035). Furthermore, there was a trend towards middle income households and lower post-operative AAOS pain scores compared to the lowest income group (19.57 vs 26.65, p=0.063). There was also a trend toward poorer AAOS disability scores when comparing middle income groups to high income groups post- operatively (26.41 vs 32.27, p=0.058). Pre-operatively, patients within the middle-income group had more pain, compared to the lowest and the highest income groups. Conclusion: Patients from middle income groups who have undergone TAA demonstrate poorer function and possibly more pain, compared to lower and higher income groups. This suggests that TAA is a viable option for lower socioeconomic groups and should not be a source of discouragement for surgeons. In this circumstance there is no real disparity between the rich and the poor. Further investigation is needed to explore reasons for diminished performance in middle class patients.

Cutaneous melanoma diagnosis delay: socioeconomic and demographic factors influence.

Malignant cutaneous melanoma is the most aggressive type of skin cancer, and its early detection and prompt initiation of treatment play an important role in reducing disease-associated morbidity and mortality. Many factors influence the diagnosis of melanoma, and its recognition is essential for the development of strategies for its early detection. This study was carried out to Identify the main variables related to the delay in diagnosis of Malignant Cutaneous Melanoma and correlate them with the time interval for making the definitive diagnosis. Retrospective analysis of 103 patient records from January 2015 to December 2020 correlating social, economic, demographic, and cultural factors with the time elapsed between the onset of symptoms and the diagnosis of malignant cutaneous melanoma. The average time to seek medical services from the onset of symptoms was 29.54 months. The mean time for a referral from the primary to the referral service was 1.35 months, and the factors that contributed to a faster diagnosis were lesion Breslow (>1 mm), lesion growth, income range (≤1.5 minimum wages), lower phototypes (I and II), not having gone to the Basic Healthcare Units, profession (household), smoking, and type of housing. Our findings demonstrate that there is still a great delay in the recognition of signs and symptoms related to the diagnosis of malignant cutaneous melanoma in our country, influenced by several socioeconomic and demographic factors.

STAYCATION SEBAGAI WISATA ALTERNATIF MASA PANDEMI COVID-19

Restrictions on tourist mobility during the Covid-19 Pandemic led to a change in vacation trends, from Vacation to Staycation. The local community out of 255 respondents living in Badung Regency is familiar witho the word Staycation. 62.2% have done a staycation on both "one day trip" and "overnight" while 37.8% have never, but have the desire to do so in the near future. 56.4% are women and 30.2% age range 26- 30 years and 28.4% age range 40 - 50 years which is classified as productive age in work. 61.3% are private employees and 20.9% are entrepreneurs with an income range of Rp. 2,000,000 to Rp. 5,000,000 /month with a preference for staying in accommodation that has a swimming pool, a destination with a plantation atmosphere. The method of distributing an online survey is random aims to get characteristics and is supported by the results of interviews of each age. The data is further analyzed by bivariate methods to look at the relationship between characteristics and people's staycation desires which resulted in that age and income have a close relationship in deciding staycation wishes. The concept of staycation as alternative tourism has a positive impact on improving the economy of the local community through room occupancy rates in accommodation services as well as the level of visits to tourist destinations

A Dose–Response Analysis of Rice Yield to Agrochemical Use in Ghana

In recent years, Ghanaian agriculture has witnessed a surge in the use of agrochemicals, with the likely consequence that nonoptimal levels of application could cause environmental damage and economic losses. We identify the factors that affect the adoption of agrochemicals and the intensity of use in Ghanaian rice farming. We estimate the average treatment effects of chemical fertilizer and herbicide adoption using a Dose–Response Model (DRM). Our results show that a wide range of socioeconomic factors, including education, asset ownership, extension service, off-farm income, and land ownership affect adoption and use intensity of agrochemicals. On average, chemical fertilizer usage is associated with a 10% increase in the average treatment effect; low levels of chemical fertilizer have a negative impact on rice yield, and the result turns positive with more intensive use. Similarly, herbicide treatment generates a 7% increase in the average treatment effect, but higher herbicide levels will have negative causal effects on rice yield, and the result worsens with more herbicide treatment. Both agricultural technologies were designed to be used together, hence the appropriate mix of levels and intensity is crucial to achieve greater benefits. The DRM accounts for heterogeneity in the sample and is a useful tool to develop guidance on optimal levels of agrochemicals.

Effectiveness of current protein recommendations in adolescent athletes on a low-carbon diet.

Adolescent athletes require adequate energy and nutrient supply to support growth, development, and the demands associated with exercise and training. However, they are susceptible to nutritional inadequacies affecting their health and physical performance. Food choices with nutrient adequacy and environmental protection is crucial for a sustainable diet. Therefore, we aimed to assess the adequacy of low-carbon diets to meet the protein requirements of adolescent athletes. Therefore, a cross-sectional observational study was conducted with 91 adolescent athletes from sports clubs in Rio de Janeiro who underwent anthropometric and food consumption assessments. To estimate the environmental impact of anthropogenic activities, the sustainability indicators carbon footprint (CF) and water footprint (WF) were used. The CF of the athlete's diet was compared with the benchmark of 1,571 g CO2eq/cap/d estimated by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Protein recommendations according to the American Dietetic Association (ADA) for athletes and protein food groups according to the low-carbon EAT-Lancet reference diet were used as references. The results were stratified by sport modality, age, sex, and income range. The Mann-Whitney test was performed, followed by the Kruskal-Wallis test with Dunn's post-hoc test to assess the differences between groups using the statistical program GraphPad PRISM® version 8.0. CF and WF were directly associated with total energy intake, total protein intake, animal-origin protein intake, and the food groups of meat and eggs. Significant differences were observed in the environmental impact of diet based on sports groups and gender. The athletes' profile with higher environmental impact was male, middle-income class, and of any age group. The quartiles of CF of the overall diets were above the 1,571 g CO2eq/cap/d benchmark. Additionally, ADA's recommended range of daily protein consumption was met by most athletes, even in the lowest quartile of CF. Thus, a diet with a lower environmental impact can meet protein recommendations in adolescent athletes. The results found are of interest to the sports and food industries. It could help in designing a balanced diet for athletes as well as ensure less negative environmental impacts of food production and consumption.

Comparison of machine learning predictions of subjective poverty in rural China

PurposeDespite rising incomes and reduction of extreme poverty, the feeling of being poor remains widespread. Support programs can improve well-being, but they first require identifying who are the households that judge their income is insufficient to meet their basic needs, and what factors are associated with subjective poverty.Design/methodology/approachHouseholds report the income level they judge is sufficient to make ends meet. Then, they are classified as being subjectively poor if their own monetary income is inferior to the level they indicated. Second, the study compares the performance of three machine learning algorithms, the random forest, support vector machines and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression, applied to a set of socioeconomic variables to predict subjective poverty status.FindingsThe random forest generates 85.29% of correct predictions using a range of income and non-income predictors, closely followed by the other two techniques. For the middle-income group, the LASSO regression outperforms random forest. Subjective poverty is mostly associated with monetary income for low-income households. However, a combination of low income, low endowment (land, consumption assets) and unusual large expenditure (medical, gifts) constitutes the key predictors of feeling poor for the middle-income households.Practical implicationsTo reduce the feeling of poverty, policy intervention should continue to focus on increasing incomes. However, improvements in nonincome domains such as health expenditure, education and family demographics can also relieve the feeling of income inadequacy. Methodologically, better performance of either algorithm depends on the data at hand.Originality/valueFor the first time, the authors show that prediction techniques are reliable to identify subjective poverty prevalence, with example from rural China. The analysis offers specific attention to the modest-income households, who may feel poor but not be identified as such by objective poverty lines, and is relevant when policy-makers seek to address the “next step” after ending extreme poverty. Prediction performance and mechanisms for three machine learning algorithms are compared.

Inequality and Environmental Impact – Can the Two Be Reduced Jointly?

Deterioration of the natural environment and economic inequality are profound concerns in many societies. To avoid adverse environmental side effects when implementing policies to reduce inequality, an understanding of potential conflicts of objectives is required.Different theoretical considerations suggest reducing effects of inequality on environmental impact, but also increasing ones. This paper provides empirical evidence on the environmental impact of inequality through a panel data set of 116 countries over 55 years. The multidimensionality of environmental impact is accounted for by relying on the six subindices of the Ecological Footprint.Results are discussed based on an innovative, graphical approach that allows for the assessment of effects of inequality on environmental impact based on a country's initial location within the entire observed inequality and income range. They suggest that reducing inequality levels increases carbon footprints. For surface sealing and the use of forest land, a conflict of objectives exists only in relatively rich and egalitarian countries, while there is room for jointly reducing environmental impacts and inequality in relatively poor and initially unequal countries. All results are highly robust to the estimation procedure.We conclude that, especially in richer countries, policy measures to reduce inequality need to be accompanied by policies that limit harmful environmental impacts of income redistribution in order to reduce inequality and environmental impact jointly.

P-068: SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF SICKLE CELL DISEASE CASES IN ODISHA, INDIA

Purpose: Occurrence of sickle cell gene in Odisha state is known since 1952. It is very widespread among the people of western districts of the state. A great deal of literature on distribution, clinical presentation and haematological parameters of sickle cell disease cases have been documented. Due to varied morbidities the sickle cell disorder patients regularly visit the health centres frequently. The gene frequencies in certain caste groups have been reported to be very high and probably due to various social and traditional beliefs. Further most of the patients were from low income groups and rigid cultural tradition. Keeping in view this study was performed to explore some of the socio-economic aspects of such debilitating health problem in the state. Materials and methods: The various haemoglobinopathy cases including sickle cell disorder cases reporting to Government Medical college hospitals (Burla and Berhampur) and district headquarters hospital, Balasore, Sishu Bavan hospital, Bhubaneswar, representing the different part of the state were taken for the study. Relevant data pertaining to the study were collected by applying questionnaire method from either of the parents of 100 haemoglobinopathy cases from Balasore, 98 cases from Bhubaneswar, 100 cases from Burla and 90 cases from Berhampur. Results: Majority of sickle cell disorder cases were from western and southern districts of the state. However such cases were also reported from the eastern and northern districts of the state also. Nineteen percent (19%) of parents of Beta thalassaemia patients had consanguineous marriage, where as it was 10% among the parent of sickle cell patients. Because of the disease a good number of children were not attending school (Beta Thalassaemia-24%, Sickle cell disease-28%) and school dropouts were 3% and 5% respectively. Forty two (42%) percentage of sickle cell patients were having blood group O+ and the blood groups O+ and B+ were equally (38%) present among the studied thalassaemia patients. More than eighty percent of parents’ income of sickle cell disorder patients was less than Rs.4000/- per month and only 2% of such parents’ income exceeds the income range of above Rs.10000/- per month. Father’s of the studied sickle cell patients were not well educated, 34% ware illiterate and 45% received primary education. Similarly Forty percent (40%) mothers were illiterate and 43% were having primary level of education. Conclusion: The sickle cell disease patients were reported from all the regions of the Odisha state and majority were from western part of the state. Contrary to the belief very few numbers of consanguineous marriages were observed among the parents of sickle cell disease cases. The parents of sickle cell disease cases were facing heavy financial burden for proper clinical management. The literacy levels of the parents were also very inadequate. The need of blood transfusion particularly of the B+ and O+ blood groups is also very high. It is highly desirable to initiate social intervention and economic support for these patients and their parents by the government as well as non government organisations of the state. The authors do not declare any conflict of interest

Peran Pemberdayaan Ekonomi Digital Difa City Tour (Ojek Difa) Terhadap Kesejahteraan Penyandang Disabilitas Di Yogyakarta

The digital economy has become an online platform for all social economic activities especially Indoneisa. Platform online have become a necessity for every individual’s life. The existence of the digital economy is a business opportunity as a digital tools to improve business performance and interact with consumers. In addition, the digital economy provides open access for everyone including for people with disabilities. Ojek Difa is one of the digital-based innovatiions pioneered by people with disabilities as inclusive-based online transportation services. Ojek Difa is expected to be able to improve the social and economic welfare of ppeople with disabilities. The method used in this research is descriptive qualitative by in-depth interview. The results of the study indicate that Ojek Difabel has a major influence on increasing the economic degree of the income of workers (with disabilities). The results showed an increase in the percentage of 27.3% in income more than Rp. 1,000,000 and 45.5% in the range of income from more than Rp. 500,000 to Rp. 1,000,000 after the presence of Ojek Difa.

Analysis Of Eligibility, Contribution And Behavior Of Cloves Market In North Kulisusu District, North Buton Regency, Southeast Sulawesi

This research was conducted in Wa Ode Buri Village, North Kulisusu District, and North Buton Regency. The location determination was determined purposively. The objectives of this research are 1) to find out how much income farmers get from farming, which is obtained by farmers from clove farming in Wa Ode Buri Village, North Kulisusu District, and North Buton Regency. 2) To find out how much contribution farmers get from clove farming in Wa Ode Buri Village, North Kulisusu District, North Buton Regency. 3) To find out how much feasibility value is obtained by farmers from clove farming in Wa Ode Buri Village, North Kulisusu District, and North Buton Regency. 4) How is the behavior of the clove market in North Kulisusu District. The sampling technique used is a simple random sampling technique. The results showed that 1) the average income received by respondent farmers from clove farming was IDR 15,258,026 with an income range of IDR 7,098,750 – IDR 29,798,750. 2) The value of the feasibility of farming is obtained by a value of 2.3, which means that the clove farming carried out by the respondent farmers is feasible to be cultivated and developed. 3) The contribution of clove farming income to the total income of farmers is 68.04%, which means that clove farming income is categorized as high.

Household income and maternal education in early childhood and activity-limiting chronic health conditions in late childhood: findings from birth cohort studies from six countries

BackgroundWe examined absolute and relative relationships between household income and maternal education during early childhood (<5 years) with activity-limiting chronic health conditions (ALCHC) during later childhood in six longitudinal, prospective...

658 Clinical and histopathologic risk factors for early-stage melanoma recurrence

Emerging data suggest that the majority of patients who die from melanoma experience recurrence of disease that is early-stage (Stage I or II) at the time of diagnosis. Therefore, we aim to understand the clinical (demographics, medical history, surgical margins) and histopathologic (synoptic features) characteristics that influence early-stage melanoma recurrence utilizing a multi-institutional database comprising of 1,244 patients with 1,342 early-stage primary cutaneous melanomas from 2000-2020. A multivariable Cox proportional hazards model with clustering adjustment was used to analyze the risk for melanoma recurrence. Harrell C’s concordance index was used to assess the goodness of fit. 331 (24.7%) of melanomas recurred within the study period. Among the recurrent melanomas, 52% of patients progressed to develop metastatic disease and 39.9% were deceased at end of follow-up. In univariate modeling for risk of melanoma recurrence, Breslow depth, AJCC stage, and tumor mitotic rate had the highest Harrell’s C (0.8, 0.77, and 0.77 respectively) and were at significantly higher risk of melanoma recurrence. Multivariate modeling demonstrated that individuals who are older at diagnosis (HR 1.02, p<0.001), in the second quartile of income range of $77,484-$99,677 (HR 1.36, p=0.046), Clark’s level above 4, melanoma stage above 2A, with the presence of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (HR 1.51, p=0.02), and presence of mitoses (HR 2.09, p=0.001) were at higher risk of melanoma recurrence. The risk factors identified above, particularly mitotic rate, can guide clinicians in risk stratifying patients with early-stage melanoma for increased surveillance to detect recurrence.

Financial strain among adult African American/Black cannabis users

African American/Black persons belong to the second largest racial/ethnic minority group in the United States. This group evinces significant disparities related to cannabis use problems. Social determinants of health may be potentially relevant to better understand cannabis use problems among African American/Black adults. As such, the current study sought to provide an initial test of the role of financial strain, a prominent social determinant of health, in cannabis use problems and perceived barriers for cannabis cessation among African American/Black adults. Participants were 76 (32.9% female, Mage = 38.64, SD = 10.82) African American/Black adult, current cannabis users. Hierarchical regression results indicated that greater financial strain was associated with more cannabis use problems and greater perceived barriers for cannabis cessation; such effects were evident above and beyond the variance explained by a range of relevant covariates, including age, sex, income, education, and depressive symptoms. These findings suggest addressing financial strain (e.g., financial planning, psychoeducation about the handling financial stress) may be a useful therapeutic tactic in the larger landscape of treatment programming when targeting cannabis use behaviors and beliefs among African American/Black adult cannabis users.

Fishing practices of the small scale fisheries in the selected coastal barangays of Malita, Davao Occidental

Small scale fishery is very important in many regions especially in developing countries. Their catches mostly contributed to the food being served in the table of middle to low income family. This study was conducted to identify the different fishing practices, catch composition and volume, fishing gears and the perception of the fishers in certain government restrictions implemented in the municipal waters of Malita, Davao Occidental. The researcher interviewed a total of 60 fishers in two fishing communities of the municipality barangay Tubalan and barangay Fishing Village. Based on the result of the study, majority of the fishers were male at the age bracket of 41-50 years old (Tubalan) and 31-40 years old (Fishing Village) with fishing experience of 1-10 years for Tubalan fishers and 11-20 years for Fishing Village Fishers. Most of the fishing family annual income range from 30,000 to 69,000.00 pesos. Fishers in both barangay spend their time fishing in the municipal waters of Malita and sometimes venture outside the municipal waters but within the Davao Gulf. Fishing practices were mostly passive (line fishing) with mist catch comprising pelagic fish species (scads, Tunas and squids). Fishers in both barangay agree that fishing restriction must be implemented to maintain fish catch and to sustain fish production in the area, fishing practices like blast and cyanide fishing were strongly supported by the fishers to be restricted and they know that implementation of fishing restriction in specific fishing practices is beneficial to them.

Socio-economic condition of Muslim women

The research was conducted in Kalburgi district of Klayna Karnataka during the year 2020-21 with the sample size of 150 respondents. Will be selected the bases of random sampling method. To study the socio-economic conditions of Muslim women find out their awareness about health care and immunization to their children the monthly income of the respondent’s family in the three categories and indicates that 23.33 per cent of respondents family belongs to first category i.e., income range below Rs. 5000/- and the majority constituting 65 per cent of sample households from second category had monthly income Rs. 5000- Rs. 10000/-. 59.33 per cent sample households had the monthly income above Rs. 10000/-. If we added together the first and second category of monthly income it was found that majority of sample household belongs to the monthly income upto the level of Rs. 10000/-. It indicates a condition in which a person fails to maintain a living standard adequate for his physical and mental efficiency in present day situation.

Nanostructured photosensitive layer for Tamm-plasmon-polariton-based organic solar cells.

The influence of the volume fraction of plasmonic nanoparticles on the efficiency of the Tamm-plasmon-polariton-based organic solar cell is investigated in the framework of temporal coupled mode theory and confirmed by the transfer matrix method. It is shown that, unlike a conventional plasmonic solar cell, in which the efficiency is directly proportional to the volume fraction of nanoparticles in the photosensitive layer, the efficiency of the proposed solar cell reaches the highest value at low volume fractions. This effect is explained by the fact that at these volume fractions, the critical coupling condition of the incident field with the Tamm plasmon polariton is fulfilled. Thus, for the incoming radiation range of 350 to 500 nm, a maximal cell efficiency of 28% is achieved with a volume fraction of nanoparticles equal to 10%. Additionally, the optical properties of the photosensitive layer are compared for the cases of determining its complex refractive index by effective medium theory and the S-parameter retrieval method. A good agreement between the results is demonstrated, which encourages the use of the effective medium theory for preliminary calculations.

Could the environment be a normal good for you and an inferior good for me? A theory of context-dependent substitutability and needs

Theoretical models often assume the environment to be a normal good, irrespective of one’s income. However, a priori, nothing prohibits an environmental good from being normal for some individuals and inferior for others. We develop a conceptual framework in which private consumption and an environmental public good act as substitutes or complements for satisfying different needs. Subsequently, the environment can switch between normal and inferior depending on one’s income and environment and corresponding prevalent needs. If the environment is inferior for some range of income, then the willingness to pay for environmental preservation becomes non-monotonic with respect to income. We discuss the relevance of our framework in the context of (income-adjusted) unit benefit transfers, dual-rate discounting and the Environmental Kuznets curve.