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The severity and type of morbidity largely define the health-seeking behavior of an individual, although the socioeconomic determinants also play an important role. In this paper, the health-seeking behavior of individuals from the “Below Poverty Line” is analyzed by using the individual-level data of the Indian Human Development Survey (IHDS)-II (2011–12). The trend and pattern of both major and short-term morbidity among the individuals from the “Below Poverty Line” are analyzed along with the comparison with individuals from the “Above Poverty Line.” Further, The logit regression model is used to determine the prominent socioeconomic factors of health-seeking behavior among individuals from “Below Poverty Line” and the decomposition analysis is conducted to determine the factor contributing to widening or narrowing the gap in getting treatment by individuals from both income groups. The result shows that individuals from the “Below Poverty Line” have a comparatively lower burden of major morbidity but also get lower treatments. The condition of women is more concerning. Socioeconomic factors such as “place of residence,” “education,” marital status, “age,” and “caste” are significant to the health-seeking behaviors of individuals from the “Below Poverty Line.” Further, “education” and “primary activity” are two major factors for both major and short-term morbidity that widen the gap in the health-seeking behavior of individuals from both income groups. However, factors such as “place of residence” and caste increase the gap in case of only short-term morbidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Poverty and economic insecurity are driving forces in entering sex work among women in low resource areas. This increases their risk for HIV by influencing the decision-making process for high-risk behaviors. Few studies have examined the financial behaviors and capacities of women engaged in sex work (WESW). This paper describes the methodology used in a financial diary study aimed at characterizing women's spending patterns within a larger prevention intervention trial among WESW in Uganda. From June 2019 to March 2020, a subsample of 150 women randomized to the combination HIV prevention and economic empowerment treatment was asked to complete financial diaries to monitor daily expenditures in real time. Two hundred and forty financial diaries were distributed to study participants during the financial literacy sessions at eight sites. A total of 26,919 expense entries were recorded over 6 months. Sex-work-related expenses comprised approximately 20.01% of the total. The process of obtaining quality and consistent data was challenging due to the transient and stigmatized nature of sex work coupled with women's varying levels of education. Frequent check-ins, using peer support, code word or visuals, and a shorter time frame would allow for a more accurate collection of high-frequency data. Moreover, the ability of women to complete the financial diaries despite numerous challenges speaks to their potential value as a data collection tool, and also as an organizing tool for finances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wellbeing is an increasingly prominent topic across academia, including analyses of the myriad factors that influence it. Of these, perhaps the most prominent is economics, with a relatively-well substantiated link, especially at lower levels of income. However, most work has been limited to select measures (usually life evaluation) and/or populations (usually Western nations). This paper offers an expansive approach, exploring associations between income and a selection of 31 items pertaining to wellbeing in the Gallup World Poll over 3 years (2020–2022), covering 386,654 people in 142 countries. Significantly, on every single variable, participants with higher incomes fare better than those with lower incomes. However, there are also many interesting nuances when filtering the results through various demographic considerations, including comparing participants in terms of global regions, sex, age, and level of education. Together, these nuances paint a complex picture of the impact of economics on wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on ethnography of one family's life with diabetes in a poor settlement in Delhi's suburbs, this paper examines the relationship between emotional structures of care and kinship in the face of chronic illness. While anthropologists have argued for a relational understanding of care and discussed how, in India, modernity and social transformations have resulted in crises of familial care, less attention has been paid to the emotional terrains of care and its difficulties as they unfold in concrete relationships over time. This paper demonstrates how emotional intensities define the possibilities, limits, and ambivalence of kin care for the chronically ill. Described as care without heart, this mode of attention implies a continuation of care labour that maintains kinship ties and holds the possibility of kin futures, but is disinvested emotionally and feels unsatisfactory. The analytic of care without heart expresses a particular mode of care by which persons navigate dominant moral regimes around gendered family responsibilities and imperatives of love in relationships, but without fully subscribing to them. Care without heart at once signifies an inadequate form of care, invokes North Indian normative moral regimes around family care responsibilities and emotions, and acknowledges the shortcomings of these regimes and norms of relatedness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are continued debates on whether social pensions should be universal or targeted. This paper investigates this issue from the perspectives of Thai older persons regarding the old-age allowance system. The paper uses data from the 2016 Population Change and Well-being in the Context of Aging Society Project with the final sample of 6,040 individuals aged 60 and older. The study employs probit regression analysis, where the dependent variable is whether the respondent thinks that the old-age allowance should be universal or targeted. Independent variables include individual, household, social, and economic characteristics. The paper finds that those with high or low education and those with high or low economic well-being tend to prefer the targeted system compared to the middle group. Family status, individual values, and social norms also influence the preferences. The two main mechanisms explaining the preferences of older persons are self-interest and altruism. The findings suggest that the old-age allowance system should continue to provide basic income security for all older persons. Separate poverty relief programs can be implemented to support individuals in need. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis of household wealth dynamic remains an important methodology in the identification of poverty traps. To overcome measurement issues in survey data, livelihoods-based approaches of the dynamics of poverty are typically examined using panel regressions of a livelihoods regression on household assets and other socio-economic factors over time. In this paper, we characterise the livelihoods regression as a 'livelihoods technology', and use a latent class-technology approach to account for heterogeneity in how households generate a livelihood. We use a detailed dataset from rural India covering 213 households across 2001–2014, and control for selection issues through a Heckman Selection model. Our results are the first in the wealth dynamics literature to show that substantial heterogeneity exists in the technologies with which households generate their livelihoods. Importantly, we show that accounting for heterogeneity in household livelihoods 'technologies' more readily identifies different equilibria in wealth levels and provides previously foregone information on who is poor and why they remain poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fifty years since Dr Tudor-Hart's publication of the 'Inverse Care Law', all-cause mortality rates and COVID-19 mortality rates are higher in more deprived areas. Part of the solution is to increase access and availability to healthcare in underserved and deprived areas. This paper examined how socio-economically representative the undergraduate general practice placements are in Northern Ireland (NI). A quantitative study of general practices involved in undergraduate medical placements through Queen's University Belfast, comparing practice lists by deprivation indices, examining both blanket deprivation and deprivation quintile trends for teaching and non-teaching practices. Deprivation data for 135 teaching practices were compared against the 323 NI practices. Teaching practices had fewer patients living in the most deprived quintiles compared with non-teaching practices. Fewer practices with blanket deprivation were involved in undergraduate medical education, 32% compared with 42% without blanket deprivation. Practices in areas of blanket deprivation were under-represented as teaching practices, 10%, compared to 14% of NI general practices that met this criterion. Practices with blanket deprivation were under-represented as teaching practices. Exposure to general practice in deprived areas is an essential step to improving future workforce recruitment and ultimately to closing the health inequalities gap. Ensuring practices in high-need areas are proportionately represented in undergraduate placements is one way to direct action in addressing the 'Inverse Care Law'. This study is limited to NI and further work is required to compare institutions across the UK and Ireland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses poverty in South Africa, using the GHS-data of 2018. STATSSA designates three poverty lines, the upper-bound poverty line is employed in the methodology, which makes the analysis more detailed and unique. The methodology uses descriptive statistics, multivariate analysis and inferential approaches specifically the binary-logistic regression model. The results of the model indicate that socioeconomic factors such as income, and household size, on the household level and head of household characteristics such as gender, marital status, age and population group were significant determinants of poverty. Policies that target girl education would go a long way in addressing poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current discussion explores the myriad of challenges facing African American males across the social, political, and economic landscape. As such, this paper examines the impact of such challenges on the life course trajectories and outcomes for this population group. Also discussed is the extent to which the impact of gendered cultural demands and expectations, combined with the adverse effects of gendered racism, may create for many African American males, a byzantine conundrum from which there is no respite. This is thought to create a tremendous psychological burden with serious ramifications for mental health and well-being. Lastly, it is argued that a more holistic approach to examining the issues, challenges, and dilemmas facing African American males is potentially more informative, and can support efforts to disrupt racial bias, create opportunity, and improve life course trajectories for African American males. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present the results of a qualitative study by a non-profit organisation implementing a community-based urban adolescent development programme. The study highlights the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) situation of marginalised young women in a developed state of India. Our findings, based on in-depth interviews with young women and frontline health providers, show that structural factors, such as economic and social stratifiers, gender norms and cultural beliefs, result in further marginalisation of young women. In turn, marginalisation adversely affects the realisation of SRHR through discriminatory practices around menstruation and lack of control in matters related to sexuality, contraception, pregnancy and safe abortion. Rights to the highest standards of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) care are compromised. Health system factors like providers' attitudes and knowledge, commodity supplies, and indifference to ensuring delivery of contraceptives and other services often result in unplanned pregnancies and affect the quality of young women's SRH care. Whatever information and support adolescents and young women get is from local community-based organisations. We conclude that structural determinants and violations of fundamental rights to education, equal opportunities and participation constitute a significant barrier to the enjoyment of SRHR by the marginalised young women in the study. Unless these are addressed, government policies and programmes to promote young people's SRHR will not benefit young women from disadvantaged communities. Partnership and complementarity between government programmes, adolescents and health rights civil society organisations are recommended to promote rights-based, equitable adolescent and youth-friendly services to this vulnerable population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the prevalence and socio-economic factors on child marriage in the Malda district of West Bengal using a mixed-methods approach: in-depth qualitative interviews of female victims of child marriage as well as quantitative data collected using structured interviews of women. Quantitative analysis reveals that educational attainment had an inverse relationship with girl-child marriage. This study also found that women who belonged to low-income families were more likely to married-off their daughter at an early age compared to high-income families. The qualitative information indicated multiple themes related to the causes of child marriage such as economic vulnerability due to land erosion, siblings as sisters, and comeliness of girls. The findings of the study suggest that child marriage could be prevented by increasing opportunities for girls' education and employment. The targeted approach should be made among rural and poor girls to combat the practice of child marriage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted all wakes of lives in many countries including Sri Lanka, an island nation in the South Asian region. Among severely hit community groups due to COVID-19 have been the persons with visual impairment and blindness, who represent the majority of disabled people. Taking into consideration that the persons with disabilities generally fall into poverty-stricken cluster of the population and Sri Lanka has been passing turbulent times even prior to COVID-19, this paper argues that the people with visual impairment and blindness have been pushed from bad to worse, due to the shocks of COVID-19 strike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]