Unemployed Consumers Research Articles

MARKET SEGMENTATION IN HEALTHCARE

The share of healthcare expenditure in the first income decile in their income is higher in comparison with other deciles, however, their expenditure is the lowest. The main purpose of the research is to show the availability of healthcare in different income groups of households. Literature sources indicate that some specific household social classes face problems with access to healthcare because of low income. Firstly, public healthcare expenditure is evaluated. The low share of research and development expenditure in healthcare is alarming. Investigation continues in the accessibility of healthcare and medicines in households. The paper reveals segments of endangered low-income households with insufficient healthcare that decrease their living standard. The main data source for conducted analyses of household situations is primary data from Household Budget Survey and primary data from EU-Statistics on Income and Living Conditions survey in four years 2007, 2010, 2014 and 2016 in the Czech Republic. The paper presents the results of an analysis of households which showed that first low-income decile has the lowest healthcare payments in absolute expression but the relative number of healthcare expenditure confirms that low-income households spend the most of their income on healthcare in the comparison with other households. The first income decile is mainly composed of old-age pensioners and unemployed consumers. The structure of household healthcare expenditure according to expenditure categories shows that all consumers pay the most for non-prescription drugs followed by prescription drugs, orthopaedic and therapeutic aids, ambulatory dental care and ambulatory medical care. The research confirms that specific groups of households cannot afford appropriate healthcare. The constructed Health Poverty Index expresses that low-income households would need their income to be higher by at least 4.36 % to be able to afford average healthcare expenditure and appropriate healthcare.

Sociodemographic Variation in Consumption Patterns of Sustainable and Nutritious Seafood in Australia

National dietary guidelines (DGs) consistently recommend consuming seafood for health benefits, however, the sustainability of increasing seafood consumption is often challenged. Seafood products vary in environmental performance as well as health benefits, yet there is no information integrating the health and ecological impacts of different seafood choices. The first step in optimising improved health and environmental outcomes is to examine more closely the types of seafood being consumed at population and individual levels, to develop the means to increase the intake of seafood that is optimal for human health and the environment. The purpose of this analysis was to better understand the specific types and amounts of seafood consumed by the Australian population, and by socioeconomic subgroups within the population, to determine the relative nutritional content and sustainability of seafood consumed by these groups. Secondary analysis of the Australian Health Survey (AHS) (2011–2013), which reached 32,000 people (25,000 households) was undertaken. The majority of respondents (83%) did not consume any seafood on the day of the survey. Results indicated the proportion of seafood consumers was lowest among adults who were unemployed, had the least education and were the most socio-economically disadvantaged. Crustaceans and farmed fish with low omega 3-content, such as basa and tilapia, were identified as the least nutritious and least sustainable seafood categories. These two categories constituted a substantial amount of total seafood intake for the lowest socio-economic consumers, and over 50% for unemployed consumers. In contrast, consumers in the highest socio-demographic group consumed mainly high trophic level fish (moderate nutrition and sustainability) and farmed fish with high omega-3 content (high nutrition, moderate sustainability). Fewer than 1% of adults or children reported eating seafood identified as both more nutritious and less resource intensive, such as small pelagics or molluscs. Opportunities exist to increase seafood intakes to improve health outcomes by varying current seafood consumption patterns to maximise nutritional outcomes and minimise environmental impacts. Initiatives to promote the health and environmental benefits of seafood should be promoted at the population level, with targeted interventions for specific groups, and should encourage consumption of highly nutritious low resource intensive types of seafood.

Hedonic and Utilitarian Aspect of Traditional Retail Shopping

Consumption consists of quite different concepts compared to the recent past consumption patterns. Traditional retailing has been evolving into online shopping which is getting out of timing/placing limits in this process. This transformation force traditional retailers to present something more than a mere shopping. This research aims to investigate face-to-face shopping from traditional retailers in contexts of hedonism and utilitarianism. A total of 263 respondents participated in the survey. As a result, there were no significant difference between male and female consumers in traditional retail shopping on the utilitarian aspect, but the difference for hedonism were significant. Female customers tend to shop more hedonic. Marital status does not affect the hedonic or utilitarian aspect; but there was significant difference found between employed and unemployed consumers. Unemployed consumers were found to be more hedonic in traditional retail shopping behavior.

Vývoj životní úrovně spotřebitele v ČR v letech 2010-2013: aplikace teorie projevených preferencí v diskuzi s Engelovým zákonem

The paper analyses changes in consumer standard of living in the Czech Republic from 2010 to 2013 resulting from the Czech Statistical Office’s annual survey “Expenditures and Consumption of Households Included in Household Budgets”. Based on revealed preference theory and index theory (Paasche and Laspeyres price and quantitative indices), consumer standard of living is evaluated both in general and according to single economic activity categories, i.e. employees with higher and lower education, the self-employed, unemployed consumers and pensioners. The results are compared and discussed with conclusions ensuing from Engel’s law.

Home equity lines of credit and the unemployment rate: Have unemployed consumers borrowed themselves into the next financial crisis?

Some economists argue the recent recovery has been so meager because many consumers have lost their main source of income and maxed-out their home-equity borrowings. Further, banks that were able to make consumer loans did so with less security because home prices fell so dramatically. This paper argues that at least part of that recovery story is purely anecdotal and, in fact, incorrect. In spite of the precipitous decline in home prices, the original price increases were so large that many homeowners still have/had adequate equity in their homes to borrow. The paper presents evidence that the average quarterly increase in aggregate home equity line of credit (HELOC) lending after housing prices began their decline is, statistically, no different than the average quarterly increase in HELOC lending before housing prices began their downward trend. The evidence also suggests that increased HELOC lending during the recession is not correlated with higher unemployment.

Assessing the Underutilization of Supported Employment Services.

Supported Employment Services (SES) are evidence-based practices that appear to be underutilized. This study evaluated the level of SES underutilization at both urban and suburban agencies that served people with psychiatric disabilities. Two hundred sixty-nine unemployed consumers indicated their intentions to accept a referral to SES in the next 6 months. The 54 practitioners who served these consumers indicated their intentions to refer these consumers to SES during that time period. The concordance rate between the consumers' and practitioners' intentions was 55%. Urban and suburban agencies did not differ in concordance rate. Forty-nine percent of the consumers intended to accept a referral but their practitioners intended to refer 21%. An underutilization rate of 28% was found for the combined agencies. The factors contributing to the consumers' and practitioners' intentions were also investigated. The low concordance rate between these consumers and practitioners may have been due to their different perspectives about the importance of the consumers' felt need to work.

Increasing the Utilization of Supported Employment ServicesWith the Need for Change Scale

Increasing the Utilization of Supported Employment ServicesWith the Need for Change Scale

Consumers' Recommendations to Improve Satisfaction With Rehabilitation Services

Understanding consumers' concerns about vocational rehabilitation services is important because of the current emphasis on empowerment and consumer-directed services. This study focused on participants' responses to an open-ended survey question that asked them what they thought could be done to improve their satisfaction with a vocational rehabilitation program. Participants were employed and unemployed consumers of vocational rehabilitation services. The responses were analyzed using a form of qualitative content analysis. The analysis resulted in the development of four categories: concerns about general counseling skills, concerns about program-specific counseling skills, concerns about treatment outside of counseling sessions, and concerns about education and employment. The implications of the findings for program improvement and counselor training are also discussed.