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Since the end of the Cold War, the EU aims to advance to a relevant and autonomous actor in international politics—especially concerning security and defense politics. Scholars interested in whether the EU member states actually converge in their security and defense preferences often analyze strategy papers qualitatively, focusing on selected countries at specific points in time. In this article, we propose a dictionary approach for analyzing the development of security and defense preferences within the EU over the last three decades using quantitative text analysis. We make use of 163 strategy papers, published by all EU member states and the EU itself since 1994. The findings show that EU member states react similarly to international events, but do not converge substantially in their preferences. Furthermore, there is no substantial convergence to the position of the EU itself. We finally discuss usefulness and validity of quantitative text analysis in comparative research more broadly.

This IMR Dispatch engages with Ireland's White Paper to End Direct Provision (2021) - the Government of Ireland's most recent policy statement on the provision of settlement services for migrants seeking asylum in Ireland. The actions outlined in the White Paper promise to reorder the provision of accommodation and support for such migrants. A range of positive inputs are included, the most significant of which is the proposed discontinuation of Ireland's current system of dispersed ‘camp-like’ communal accommodations for International Protection applicants and its replacement with a new person-centered system of ‘own room’ and ‘own door’ accommodations in the community. A wide range of personal supports are envisaged as well. At first glance, this White Paper shows that the Government of Ireland has engaged with the concerns of organizations active in Ireland's social protection sector in general, and with the needs of applicants for international protection in particular, to provide a more humane system of International Protection. However, tensions are discernible, and we contend that there is ample evidence of the Government of Ireland's impulse to retain command and control of its migration management processes in the White Paper, even against the background of its new, more human-rights-based approach. We suggest that the spatialities inherent in the proposal point to a potential rearticulation of state control rather than to any diminution of same.

book review

The introduction to the 2022 Special Issue presents the 20 articles that discuss the demographic aspects and the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. It synthesises the main findings from the contributions, emphasising the demographic, social and economic characteristics that influenced the spread of infections and determined the number of deaths. We highlight the specific focus on measurement issues, often with a comparative framework across several countries, and at the regional level as well, both within and beyond Europe. We also summarise the impact of the measures imposed to contain the spread of the virus, such as lockdowns. Moreover, we explore the impact of the pandemic on the quality of relationships, the intention and the motivation to have children, and realised fertility. In addition, we present the authors’ broader reflections on the risks faced by different communities of individuals, and the potential consequences for their life trajectories, including in relation to other current risks that overlap with the pandemic (recent armed conflicts), and for the achievability of the Sustainable Development Goals themselves.

Refugees become asylum-seekers not only because the receiving country gives them the bureaucratic-legal status but also because they start to identify with the status. This article examines how refugees learn to be asylum-seekers even when they question asylum decisions. It uses Foucault's idea of governmentality to assess how governmental policies become translated into asylum-seekers’ collective and personal conducts as asylum-seekers, sometimes in ways that undermine the official policy. This article introduces the idea of papered governmentality, in which the production of papers is a governmental technology to manage not only populations but also personal identities and conducts. It investigates how asylum-seekers’ own role in papered governmentality as receivers, producers, and users of various papers in the asylum process transforms their conducts and identities in ways that reshape how they are governed. The empirical research site was an asylum-seekers’ protest in Finland where the first author conducted participant observation about how papers included in the asylum process were collected, read, discussed, circulated, and co-produced. The article finds that when migration control utilizes laws, bureaucratic documents, and other liberal governmental technologies designed to modify autonomous individuals’ own decisions to migrate, it produces not only control but also identification with the host country and some freedom to choose how to act with governmental decisions.

The American Name Society is issuing a call for papers for the Modern Language Association Convention 2023 which is scheduled to take place January 5-8, 2023 in San Francisco, California.

This paper examines the relationship between world crude oil markets following the introduction of Shanghai crude oil futures from the perspective of network connectedness based on the vector autoregressive model. The connectedness measurement method proposed by Diebold and Yilmaz (Econ J 119(534):158–171, 2009, Int J Forecast 28(1):57–66, 2012. 10.1016/j.ijforecast.2011.02.006, J Econom 182(1):119–134, 2014. 10.1016/j.jeconom.2014.04.012) is adopted to study a time-varying interdependence relationship. The empirical results show that the world crude oil markets exhibit a high degree of integration from both returns and volatility; however, the direction and magnitude contributed by each market varies significantly. Specifically, the West Texas Intermediate futures and Brent spot and futures markets were found to have the highest contributions to the world oil market over the entire sample period and take leading roles, whereas Dubai futures market was found to be the most important receiver, and has received the most spillover from other markets and passed it throughout the system. Shanghai crude oil futures is not yet highly connected with other markets. Moreover, heterogeneous changes in the direction, intensity, and persistence of the spillover were observed across markets after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. This study reveals the integration level of Shanghai crude oil futures and the dynamics of linkages between regional crude oil markets, which is of great significance for market participants, policymakers, and future researchers. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12076-021-00288-z.

Background Italy was one of the first countries to be heavily hit by the spread of the new Coronavirus. Longitudinal studies are needed to investigate the real effect of COVID-19 on adult mental health. The Italian Twin Registry carried out a study to investigate, over time, the course of depressive symptoms in the general population. Methods The study relies on data collected just before the beginning (February 2020) and the end (June 2020) of the first lockdown. Symptoms of depression were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire, and total scores or categorized depression scores were considered in the analyzes. Results A total of 1690 adult twins were recruited. The study showed a mean depression score of 1.11 immediately before lockdown and 1.20 immediately after, with an overall prevalence of depressive symptoms increasing from 33.6 to 38.9%. Depressive symptoms immediately after the restriction period were associated with Covid-19 symptoms affecting households, financial problems due to the pandemic and poor social support. Independently of the baseline risk of depressive symptoms, we observed an increased risk among younger and less educated people. Compared to the pre-lockdown period, women and middle-aged people also were found to be at greater risk of developing depressive symptoms. Limitations Possible participation bias and residual selection bias. Conclusions The study shows that the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with an increased depressive symptomatology and that, in such health emergency times, the most vulnerable persons are young adults, women, and those living in a socially, culturally, or economically disadvantaged environment.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a health problem with a significant social impact, accounting for 700,000 deaths a year globally. CRC survival rates are increasing as a result of early detection and improvements in society and labor conditions. Differences in CRC have been found depending on place of residence (urban or rural), socioeconomic situation and unemployment, although studies in this regard are limited. The aims of the present study were to determine whether differences exist in diagnostic delay according to place of residence, to analyze the association between socioeconomic level and colonoscopy results and to evaluate CRC risk according to place of residence, income level and unemployment. Retrospective, descriptive and observational study based on colonoscopies performed between May 2015 and November 2018, analyzing relationships between colonoscopy findings of a population screening program and various socioeconomic and demographic variables included in the study (sex, age, place of residence, average annual income, unemployment rate, etc.), and determining any association between such factors and related increases in adenocarcinoma risk. A total of 1422 patients were included in the study. The difference in participation according to sex was greater in rural population (63,4% men/36,6% women in rural areas, 58% men/42% women in urban areas). The mean delayed diagnosis was 59,26 days in both groups. Adenocarcinoma risk was 1.216 times higher in rural population. High-grade dysplasic lesions and adenocarcinoma were more common in municipalities with income 9000€. Adenocarcinoma risk was 1,088 times higher in municipalities with an unemployment rate of > 10%. Living in rural areas is not a barrier to access to health care, with no disadvantages identified regarding diagnosis and treatment, thanks to public health policies and the large number of small municipalities near the referral hospital in Cuenca.

Using a novel panel survey of relatively poor urban Peruvian adolescents, we explore the link between educational aspirations and propensity to invest in the future. Aspirations comprise hope and agency. We find remarkably high educational aspirations, even among relatively poor individuals and adolescents who were exposed to negative shocks, suggesting high levels of resilience. We also find high occupational aspirations and aspirations to migrate. High-aspiration respondents were also more likely to invest in their education and avoid risky behaviors. These are associations as we do not have enough data to establish causality, although we were able to control for within-person traits. Aspirations are stable over time and positively associated with personality traits such as self-efficacy and life satisfaction, which help explain their persistence over time. Our findings complement those of other recent studies that highlight the role of personality traits in addition to cognitive skills in long-term educational, health, and socioeconomic outcomes.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disparities among vulnerable populations are of paramount concern that extend to vaccine administration. With recent uptick in infection rates, dominance of the delta variant, and authorization of a third booster shot, understanding the population-level vaccine coverage dynamics and underlying sociodemographic factors is critical for achieving equity in public health outcomes. This study aimed to characterize the scope of vaccine inequity in California counties through modeling the trends of vaccination using the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). Overall SVI, its four themes, and 9228 data points of daily vaccination numbers from December 15, 2020, to May 23, 2021, across all 58 California counties were used to model the growth velocity and anticipated maximum proportion of population vaccinated, defined as having received at least one dose of vaccine. Based on the overall SVI, the vaccination coverage velocity was lower in counties in the high vulnerability category (v = 0.0346, 95% CI 0.0334, 0.0358) compared to moderate (v = 0.0396, 95% CI 0.0385, 0.0408) and low (v = 0.0414, 95% CI 0.0403, 0.0425) vulnerability categories. SVI Theme 3 (minority status and language) yielded the largest disparity in coverage velocity between low and high-vulnerable counties (v = 0.0423 versus v = 0.035, P

In this population-based cohort study, billing data from German statutory health insurance (BARMER, 10% of population) are used to develop a prioritisation model for COVID-19 vaccinations based on cumulative underlying conditions. Using a morbidity-based classification system, prevalence and risks for COVID-19-related hospitalisations, ventilations and deaths are estimated. Trisomies, behavioural and developmental disorders (relative risk: 2.09), dementia and organic psychoorganic syndromes (POS) (2.23) and (metastasised) malignant neoplasms (1.99) were identified as the most important conditions for escalations of COVID-19 infection. Moreover, optimal vaccination priority schedules for participants are established on the basis of individual cumulative escalation risk and are compared to the prioritisation scheme chosen by the German Government. We estimate how many people would have already received a vaccination prior to escalation. Vaccination schedules based on individual cumulative risk are shown to be 85% faster than random schedules in preventing deaths, and as much as 57% faster than the German approach, which was based primarily on age and specific diseases. In terms of hospitalisation avoidance, the individual cumulative risk approach was 51% and 28% faster. On this basis, it is concluded that using individual cumulative risk-based vaccination schedules, healthcare systems can be relieved and escalations more optimally avoided. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10198-021-01408-8.

Solo and partnered sexual behaviors are relevant to health, well-being, and relationships. Recent research shows that sexual frequency has declined in the U.S. and in other countries; however, measurement has been imprecise. We used data from 14- to 49-year-old participants in the 2009 and 2018 waves of the National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior (NSSHB), a confidential U.S. nationally representative survey that is conducted online. We aimed to: (1) assess changes in frequency of past-year penile-vaginal intercourse and (2) examine combinations of past-year sexual behaviors for each of the two waves. We hypothesized that we would observe lower frequency of penile-vaginal intercourse (PVI) from 2009 to 2018 and that we would observe greater engagement in sexual repertoires involving non-coital partnered behaviors (e.g., partnered masturbation, oral sex) in 2018 as compared to 2009. Participants were 4155 individuals from the 2009 NSSHB (Adolescents: 406 females, 414 males; Adults: 1591 women, 1744 men) and 4547 individuals from the 2018 NSSHB (Adolescents: 416 females, 411 males; Adults: 2007 women, 1713 men). Compared to adult participants in the 2009 NSSHB, adults in the 2018 NSSHB were significantly more likely to report no PVI in the prior year (28% in 2018 vs. 24% in 2009). A similar difference in proportions reporting no PVI in the prior year was observed among 14–17-year-old adolescents (89% in 2018 vs. 79% in 2009). Additionally, for both adolescents and adults, we observed decreases in all modes of partnered sex queried and, for adolescents, decreases in solo masturbation. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10508-021-02125-2.

Smoking during pregnancy remains one of the most significant risk factors for poor birth outcomes. During 2012-2019, the Loma Linda University Health Comprehensive Tobacco Treatment Program (CTTP) used a multicomponent behavioral intervention for tobacco cessation for 1402 pregnant smokers with components of known efficacy (i.e., incentives, biomarker testing, feedback, and motivational interviewing). The CTTP cohort includes a multi-ethnic sample of pregnant women with a mean age of 27 years referred by collaborating community-based healthcare providers in San Bernardino county. Evaluation of program outcomes from 7 years of follow-up (2012-2019) creates a rich cohort dataset for implementation science research to examine the real-world effectiveness of the program. In this report, we provide a cohort profile, and 8-week prolonged abstinence (8-week PA) and relapse findings from the first year of follow-up (n = 233). We found: (1) 28.4% achieved 8-week PA, (2) At a median of 6.2 months of follow-up after achieving 8-week PA, 23.2% of enrolled subjects reported tobacco cessation, and (3) a high rate of loss to follow-up (44%). In addition, our modeling indicated that the odds of relapse/smoking after enrollment was significantly higher in young mothers, non-Hispanic mothers (White, Black/African-American), mothers in the first and third trimester, and rural mothers. Formative quantitative and qualitative research on the CTTP cohort will consider the effects of a range of implementation science (number of intervention sessions, addition of a mHealth component, distance to care) and individual (partner/household smoking, birth outcomes, NICU) outcome measures for the purpose of scaling up the CTTP model.

Associations between social determinants of health (SDOH), demographic factors including preferred language, and SARS-CoV-2 detection are not clear. We conducted a retrospective cohort study among those seeking testing for SARS-CoV-2 at a multi-site, urban community health center. Logistic regression and exact matching methods were used to identify independent predictors of SARS-CoV-2 detection among demographic, SDOH, and neighborhood-level variables. Of 1,361 included individuals, SARS-CoV-2 was detected among 266 (19.5%). Logistic regression demonstrated that SARS-CoV-2 detection was less likely in White participants relative to Hispanic participants (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.18, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.05-0.46). and more likely in patients who prefer Spanish relative to those that prefer English (aOR 2.04, 95% CI 1.43-2.96). No observed SDOH predicted SARS-CoV-2 detection in adjusted models. A robustness analysis using a matched subset of the study sample produced findings similar to those in the main analysis. Preferring to receive care in Spanish is an independent predictor of SARS-CoV-2 detection in a community health center cohort.

We examined the effects of culture and ethnicity on life history strategies in terms of sexual and reproductive behaviors. The sample included 500 adults, aged 25–50 years, from the five major ethnic groups in Suriname, i.e., the Maroons, Creoles, Hindustani, Javanese, and Mixed. First, there were strong gender differences: men reported to have had more sex partners and to have had their first sexual experience earlier than women, whereas women had their first child earlier and had more children than men. Second, in general, ethnicity affected life history substantially. The Maroons stood out by a relatively fast life history: they reported to have had more sexual partners, to have had their first sex and first child at an earlier age, and to have more children than all other groups. The Creoles were in general similar to the Maroons, whereas the Hindustani and the Javanese were characterized by a relatively slow life history: they reported to have had the lowest number of sexual partners, to have had their first sex and first child at the latest age, and to have had the lowest number of children. The differences between the ethnic groups were upheld when controlling for income, educational level, and father absence during childhood. A lower education was associated with reporting to have had one’s first sex as well as one’s first child at a younger age and children who grew up without a father reported to have had their first sex at a younger age.

INTRODUCTION This study examines the health status of long-haul truck drivers (LHTDs) and more specifically smoking and obesity, in France. METHODS A total of 373 French and other LHTDs were randomly interviewed at six highway rest stops. Variables recorded were self-reported sociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, marital status, and nationality), behavioral variables (consumption of sodas, daily exercise, smoking status), weight and height. Body mass index (BMI) was also calculated. Statistical analysis was conducted using chi-squared analysis and multiple logistic ordinal regression models (MLR) were developed. RESULTS The mean age was 43.4 and the largest proportion (41.2%) of respondents were aged 40–50 years. Most respondents were French (70.3%), married (73.8%) and did not report having an active exercise routine (66.0%). Almost two-thirds of the drivers consumed daily 1–2 sodas (34.2%) or 3–4 sodas (33.2%). Based on the BMI, respondents were divided into normal (34.3%), overweight (39.8%), obese (19.5%) or morbidly obese (9.4%) categories. The mean BMI was 27.9 kg/m2 and 51.1% of LHTDs were current or active smokers. MLR analysis revealed that French LHTDs were more likely (OR=3.04; 95% CI: 1.62–5.69) to have a normal BMI compared to other drivers. Smokers were significantly more likely than non-smokers (OR=2.12; 95% CI: 1.26–3.58) to have an above normal BMI. CONCLUSIONS These results confirm that French and other LHTDs are at high risk of non-communicable diseases. They also highlight the need to address the health risks associated with smoking and obesity among LHTDs using multifaceted strategies.

During May and June 2015, an outbreak of the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) occurred in Korea, which raised the fear of contagion throughout society and suppressed the use of public transportation systems. Exploring daily ridership data of the Seoul bus transportation system, along with the number of infected patients and search volume in web portals, we observe that ridership decreased abruptly while attention was heavily focused online. Then this temporal reduction recovered exponentially with a characteristic time of 3 weeks when newly confirmed cases began to decrease. We also find with the data of ranked keywords of web portals that areas with severely reduced ridership tended to cluster and spatiotemporal variations of such clusters were highly associated with general hospitals where MERS patients were treated. On the other hand, the spatial reduction in ridership relaxed algebraically with the distance from a general hospital while the outbreak was severe. We further probe the influence of the epidemic outbreak in the framework of linear response theory, which relates the responses to the epidemic outbreak (“perturbation”) with correlations in the absence of the perturbation. Indeed, the spatial correlation function of the ridership changes is observed to follow a power law, sharing the same exponent as the spatial relaxation of the response function. This new theoretical approach offers a useful tool for understanding responses of public transportation system to epidemic or accidental disasters.

The three sustainability pillars of social, environment and economy were initially introduced by the United Nations in 2002, addressing major global sustainability issues including economic problems, income inequality, environmental pollution and social shortcomings. Comparing East Asia & Pacific with North America, there is a growing concern over economic, political and even social competition as a result of recent development and industrialization that is taking place in Asian countries. This might lead to an unhealthy conflict that favors regional independency as opposed to the current globalization and trade facilitation trend. As a result, this study aims to assess the effects of development in three main pillars of sustainability (social, environment and economy) in the East Asia and Pacific on that of North America and vice versa. To estimate this interactive or spillover effects of sustainable development (or sustainability elasticities), our research employs Econometric methodologies including Simultaneous Equations System, Vector AutoRegressive (VAR) and Granger Causality approaches during 1971-2016. The results show that most of the sustainability elasticities are positive between and inside the two regions, supporting the synergetic character of the sustainability spillover effects and confirming constructive role of globalization and openness in the sustainability progress. Based on the results, this research suggests policy-makers to follow cooperative and flow-based governance rather than the placed-based or regional independent thinking that supports integrated sustainable development benefiting not only the two parties but also the overall global sustainability.

Achieving high vaccination rates is important for overcoming an epidemic. This study investigates the association between religious faith and intentions to become vaccinated against COVID-19 in Israel and Japan. Most of Israel’s population is monotheistic, whereas most Japanese are unaffiliated with any religion. Therefore, our findings might be applicable to various countries that differ in their religions and levels of religiosity. We conducted almost identical large-scale surveys four times in Israel and five times in Japan from March to June 2020 to obtain panel data. We found that intentions of getting vaccinated depend on people’s level of religiosity in a non-linear way. Those who have strong religious beliefs are less likely to become vaccinated than those who say they are less religious. Two other factors that play a role in this relationship are religious denomination in Israel and identifying with a religion in Japan. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10198-021-01389-8.

BackgroundImmigration is a determinant of tuberculosis (TB) epidemiology. The US-Mexican border state of Tamaulipas serves as a migration waypoint for further immigration to the US, and has the second highest incidence of TB in Mexico. Here, we determined the contribution and characteristics of immigrants to the TB burden in Tamaulipas.MethodsTB surveillance data from Tamaulipas (2006-2013) was used to conduct a cross-sectional characterization of TB immigrants (born outside Tamaulipas) and identify their association with TB treatment outcomes.ResultsImmigrants comprised 30.8% of the TB patients, with >99% originating from internal Mexican migration. Most migration was from South to North, with cities adjacent to the US border as destinations. Immigrants had higher odds of risk factors for TB [older age (≥ 65 yr old, OR 2.4, 95% CI 2.1, 2.8), low education (OR 1.3, 95% CI 1.2, 1.4), diabetes (OR 1.2, 95% CI 1.1, 1.4)], or abandoning TB treatment (adjusted OR 1.2, 95% CI 1.0, 1.5).ConclusionsThe US port of entry of Tamaulipas has a predominant south to north migration, positively impacting TB prevalence in this region. There is a need to identify strategies to prevent and manage TB more effectively in this Mexican migration waypoint.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, there has been a surge of discrimination against Asians across the globe. However, there is a knowledge gap of COVID-19 related racial discrimination against Asians in smaller Asian populations. A total of 221 adults living in Florida completed an online survey between June-July 2020. Adjusted logistic regression assessed associations between sociodemographic factors and experienced discrimination, hypervigilance of safety, nervousness in public, and anticipated discrimination. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS. Asian respondents were more likely than non-Asians to experience discrimination during COVID-19 (AOR = 12.58; 95% CI 4.74, 33.38; p ≤ 0.001). Asians were more likely to anticipate discrimination after the pandemic ends (AOR = 4.35, 95% CI 1.33, 14.17; p

Objectives EQ-5D-Y-3L health states are valued by adults taking the perspective of a 10-year-old child. Compared to valuation of adult EQ-5D instruments, this entails two changes to the perspective: (i) child health states are valued instead of adult health states and: (ii) health states are valued for someone else instead of for oneself. Although earlier work has shown that these combined changes yield different values for child and adult health states that are otherwise equal, it currently remains unclear why. Hence, we aimed to disentangle the effects of both changes. Methods A sample of 205 students (mean age: 19.48) was surveyed. Each respondent completed visual analogue scale (VAS) and time trade-off (TTO) tasks for five EQ-5D-Y-3L states, using four randomly ordered perspectives: (i) self-adult (themselves), (ii) other-adult (someone their age), (iii) self-child (themselves as a 10-year-old), (iv) other-child (a child of 10 years old). We compared how each perspective impacted outcomes, precision and quality of EQ-5D-Y-3L valuation. Results Overall, differences between perspectives were consistent, with their direction being dependent on the health states and respondents. For VAS, the effect on outcomes of valuation depended on severity, but variance was higher in valuation with child perspectives. For TTO, we observed that EQ-5D-Y-3L states valued on behalf of others (i.e., children or adults) received higher valuations, but lower variances. Conclusion The use of a different perspective appears to yield systematic differences in EQ-5D-Y-3L valuation, with considerable heterogeneity between health states and respondents. This may explain mixed findings in earlier work.

A plethora of research shows that income is an important factor in adult’s life satisfaction, but research ascertaining its importance for children’s life satisfaction is scant. Using a largescale nationally representative longitudinal survey with children aged 10–15, we estimate comprehensive life satisfaction models that account for heterogeneity in exogenous circumstances in children’s lives, focussing on family income and material deprivation. We find empirical support for the hypothesis that children are more satisfied with their lives, the more income their family has and the less material deprivation they experience throughout their teens. There are, however, differences across age groups with children aged 12–15 experiencing greater life satisfaction losses on account of lower family material wellbeing than younger children. Overall, income effects for older children are small but statistically significant when accounting for unobserved individual differences.

Perceptions of HIV acquisition risk and prevalence shape sexual behavior in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We used data from the Health and Aging in Africa: A Longitudinal Study of an INDEPTH Community in South Africa baseline survey. Data were collected through home-based interviews of 5059 people ≥ 40 years old. We elicited information on perceived risk of HIV acquisition and HIV prevalence among adults ≥ 15 and ≥ 50 years old. We first describe these perceptions in key subgroups and then compared them to actual estimates for this cohort. We then evaluated the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and accurate perceptions of prevalence in regression models. Finally, we explored differences in behavioral characteristics among those who overestimated risk compared to those who underestimated or accurately estimated risk. Compared to the actual HIV acquisition risk of

Asian Americans have experienced compounding stressors during the pandemic as a result of racial discrimination. We aim of to investigate the prevalence of depression symptoms among Asian Americans before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and examine differences based on socio-demographic factors. Data are from a cross-sectional study (N = 636) among Chinese and South Asian adults in Chicago collected between February and May 2020. One cohort of participants were surveyed from each ethnic group before the pandemic and a second cohort of participants were surveyed during the pandemic. Depression symptoms increased more than two-fold, from 9% pre-pandemic to 21% during the COVID-19 pandemic. We found an increase in depression symptoms during the pandemic for South Asians, men and adults older than 30 years. These findings call for public health education that effectively addresses anti-Asian harassment and violence and ensure that culturally competent mental health services are provided to Asian Americans from diverse ethnic backgrounds.

Introduction The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential impact of the changes in the national legislation on tobacco consumption and the impact of the implementation of the National Tobacco Control Program on ninth-grade students in Chisinau, Moldova, during 2015 and 2018, as well as tobacco consumption behavior and exposure to pro- and anti-tobacco messages. Methods The study sample consisted of the ninth-grade students from 132 schools in Chisinau, Moldova. It included 20 randomly selected schools (3 gymnasiums and 17 high schools). Data were collected using a validated self-completed questionnaire, once in October–December 2015 (n=368) and repeated in February–April 2018 (n=819). The chi-squared test was applied to compare categorical variables between the 2015 and 2018 groups. Results The student participants had mean age of 14.8 ± 0.49 years (2015) and 14.9 ± 0.53 years (2018), and, by coincidence, both groups had 51.9% boys and 48.1% girls. However, despite the rather strict regulations on tobacco in Moldova, adolescents still report a significant increase in the prevalence of cigarette consumption in the last 30 days in the period from 2015 to 2018. In this period, anti-smoking messages increased significantly and were seen by students in shopping malls, supermarkets (35.1% in 2015 and 60.0% in 2018), cinemas (11.7% in 2015 and 36.5% in 2018), magazines and newspapers (19.3% in 2015 and 37.6% in 2018) (p