Seeking a sense of control or escapism? The role of video games in coping with unemployment

Unemployment can have devastating effects on people's psychological and social wellbeing. The effects of unemployment can be exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the lack of control over one's life and the loss of social connectedness. Through a survey of 480 unemployed workers, this study examined how emotion-focused coping using video game can affect the workers' wellbeing and reemployment. The findings showed that escapism was associated with decreased wellbeing, which reduced job-search efficacy and behaviors. However, when video game playing was viewed as a source of self-determination, it can support the unemployed workers' intrinsic needs of autonomy and relatedness, which improved their wellbeing, their job-search efficacy, and job-search behaviors. Further comparison of effects between gender, age, race, and income found that unemployed workers who made lower to medium income were more likely to seek escapism through games compared to female unemployed workers. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

COVID-19 and youth living in poverty: The ethical considerations of moving from in-person interviews to a photovoice using remote methods

COVID-19 hit and instantaneously research using in-person methods were paused. As feminist and critical social work scholars and researchers, we began to consider the implications of pausing our ongoing project exploring the provisioning and resilience of youth living in low-income, lone mother households. Reflexively, we wondered how the youth, families, and issues we were connected to would be impacted by the pandemic. We were pulled into both ethical and methodological questions. While the procedural ethics of maintaining safety were clear, what became less clear were the relational ethics. What was brought into question were our own social positions and our roles and responsibilities in our relationships with the youth. For both ethical and methodological reasons, we decided to expand the original research scope from in-person interviews to include a photovoice to be executed using online, remote methods. In this article, we discuss those ethical and methodological tensions. In the first part, we discuss the relational ethics that propelled us to commit to expanding our work, while in the second part, we discuss our move to combining photovoice and remote methods. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Primary care behavioral health in the time of COVID-19

People are commonly receiving mental health treatment from primary care providers rather than from behavioral health providers. To address this issue, the healthcare system has begun to integrate behavioral health providers into primary care clinics, known as integrated primary care (IPC). Research suggests that IPC can lead to a number of benefits, including increased likelihood of patients receiving the appropriate standard of care, as well as reduction in healthcare costs due to medical cost offset. While IPC is a promising method of healthcare delivery, additional research is needed to optimize this system. Additionally, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has drastically impacted the mental and physical health needs of the United States population, especially for low income and racial and ethnic minority populations. However, there is little research on how this has impacted the presenting problems seen in IPC, or how IPC utilization may have been impacted. This study will examine patient characteristics and IPC utilization of two clinics serving a low income and racial and ethnic minority population and assess how patient and provider characteristics are impacting the process of IPC. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Socially, Culturally and Spiritually Sensitive Public Health Palliative Care Models in the Lower-income Countries: An Integrative Literature Review.

The demand for palliative care (PC) is ever-increasing globally. The emergence of COVID-19 pandemic has further accelerated the need for PC. In the lower-income countries (LICs), where PC need is highest, PC, the most humane, appropriate and realistic approach to care for patients and families affected by life-limiting illness, is minimal or non-existent. Recognising the disparity between high, middle and LICs, the World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended public health strategies for PC within the socioeconomic, cultural and spiritual contexts of individual countries. This review aimed to: (i) identify PC models in the LICs utilising public health strategies and (ii) characterise how social, cultural and spiritual components were integrated into these models. This is an integrative literature review. Thirty-seven articles were included from a search of four electronic databases - Medline, Embase, Global Health and CINAHL. Literature, both empirical and theoretical literature, published in English from January 2000 to May 2021 that mentioned PC models/services/programmes integrating public health strategies in the LICs were included in the study. A number of LICs utilised public health strategies to deliver PC. One-third of the selected articles highlighted the importance of integrating sociocultural and spiritual components into PC. Two main themes - WHO-recommended public health framework and sociocultural and spiritual support in PC and five subthemes - (i) suitable policies; (ii) availability and accessibility of essential drugs; (iii) PC education for health professionals, policymakers and the public; (iv) implementation of PC at all levels of healthcare and (v) sociocultural and spiritual components, were derived. Despite embracing the public health approach, many LICs encountered several challenges in integrating all four strategies successfully.

Childrearing beliefs and practices for learning as determined in the context of shared caregiving among Chinese heritage families with low-income in the US

This dissertation explored shared caregiving practices and culturally salient decisions Chinese heritage, low-income families have in nurturing preschool-aged children's home learning routines. Chinese caregivers raising young children in the US have childrearing beliefs and practices informed by their heritage and family background, experiences living in the US, and individual parenting beliefs. Additionally, the routine care and nurturing of learning experiences for their young children often involve multiple individuals such as mothers, fathers, and grandparents. Yet, Chinese heritage caregivers' intentional and complex childrearing considerations continue to be misunderstood by the dominant US child development frameworks as overly academically focused, controlling, and strict. This predominantly narrow view and the established association between family dynamics and young children's learning necessitates research that adopts a culturally- and contextually-grounded, shared caregiving perspective when exploring low-income, Chinese immigrant families' childrearing beliefs and practices. Twenty-seven primary caregivers (12 dyads and three individuals) representing 15 families were interviewed. Multiperspectival interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to explore caregivers' meaning-making processes related to cultural orientations, childrearing routines and approaches, relationships with the co-parent, and children's early learning. Findings suggested three superordinate themes relevant to Chinese heritage caregivers raising young children in the US: (1) the adaptive nature of low-income, Chinese immigrant families' shared caregiving, (2) caregivers' agency in selecting contextualized and child-oriented learning goals, and (3) a multidimensional understanding of learning success. Findings illustrated the culturally and contextually grounded approaches that Chinese heritage caregivers adopt in supporting children's development of life-long learning skills and provided a strength-based lens through which to view normative family functioning. Importantly, caregivers' narratives elucidated how Chinese immigrants continued to modify their childrearing beliefs and practices as a family to overcome the new and unexpected challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and anti-Asian racism. These findings have direct relevance to the home-school partnership with immigrant families by contributing a new framework for educators, researchers, and policymakers to understand the broader contextual influences (e.g., shared caregiving, cultural backgrounds, Chinese childrearing beliefs) on young children's early learning and development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

COVID-19: Threat and vulnerability among Latina immigrants

As has been documented in public health data, infections and deaths from COVID-19 have been inequitably distributed in the United States, producing adverse health outcomes among vulnerable populations including Latina immigrants. Using a critical feminist theoretical perspective, this discussion examines the mechanisms informing these outcomes including lack of access to health insurance and health care and work in low-waged jobs with high potential exposure to the virus. In addition, we examine related risks to this population, including domestic violence during stay-at-home orders. We argue that social workers can join forces with immigrant-led organizations to support advocacy to reverse government policies that limit immigrants' access to health care as well as ensuring that Latina women workers earn adequate wages for essential jobs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

The social divide of social distancing: Shelter-in-place behavior in Santiago during the Covid-19 pandemic

Voluntary shelter-in-place directives and lockdowns are the main nonpharmaceutical interventions that governments around the globe have used to contain the Covid-19 pandemic. In this paper, we study the impact of such interventions in the capital of a developing country, Santiago, Chile, that exhibits large socioeconomic inequality. A distinctive feature of our study is that we use granular geolocated mobile phone data to construct mobility measures that capture (1) shelter-in-place behavior and (2) trips within the city to destinations with potentially different risk profiles. Using panel data linear regression models, we first show that the impact of social distancing measures and lockdowns on mobility is highly heterogeneous and dependent on socioeconomic levels. More specifically, our estimates indicate that, although zones of high socioeconomic levels can exhibit reductions in mobility of around 50%-90% depending on the specific mobility metric used, these reductions are only 20%-50% for lower income communities. The large reductions in higher income communities are significantly driven by voluntary shelter-in-place behavior. Second, also using panel data methods, we show that our mobility measures are important predictors of infections: roughly, a 10% increase in mobility correlates with a 5% increase in the rate of infection. Our results suggest that mobility is an important factor explaining differences in infection rates between high- and low-incomes areas within the city. Further, they confirm the challenges of reducing mobility in lower income communities, where people generate their income from their daily work. To be effective, shelter-in-place restrictions in municipalities of low socioeconomic levels may need to be complemented by other supporting measures that enable their inhabitants to increase compliance. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

A mixed-methods study on the social networks and loneliness of low-income diverse older volunteers

Although the health benefits of volunteering among older adults were well established in gerontological research, older migrants' abilities and interests in social participation have hardly been recognized. To address this gap, a convergent mixed-method design was used to understand the volunteering experiences, social networks, and feelings of loneliness among low-income Russian, Khmer, Somali, Nepali, and English-speaking older volunteers in the Senior Companions Program (SCP) in Columbus, Ohio (N=41). The first aim of the study was to identify the social network structures among the SCP volunteers. The second aim was to understand how the social network contributed to volunteers' experiences with loneliness. Data were collected through focus groups and surveys during the SCP monthly in-service training in October 2022. A grounded theory approach informed the qualitative analysis. Five major themes emerged from the focus groups: (1) Expanding and strengthening social networks through volunteering;(2) Experiencing and coping with loneliness;(3) Experiencing and managing the social impact of COVID;(4) Exploring and loving the program;(5) Social connections outside of the program. Participants also completed a demographic survey, a friendship nomination form, and the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale. Exponential Random Graph Modeling (ERGM) was utilized to identify statistically significant structural features in the volunteers' network. Graphs and ERGM results demonstrated that participants tended to form homophily-based relationships with other volunteers of the same gender (beta=3.27, p<0.001), from the same country (beta=2.89, p<0.001), with the same education level (beta=0.71, p<0.001), and from the same site station (beta=2.77, p<0.001). However, transitive ties (beta= -1.01, p<0.001) and total meetings (beta= -8.8, p<0.001) had a negative contribution to tie formation. Furthermore, the linear network autocorrelation model (LNAM) results suggested that the average level of dependency was negative within the network (beta= -0.06, p<0.05). That is to say, less lonely volunteers were inclined to socialize with those experiencing higher levels of loneliness. According to the mixed-method results, all the qualitative findings confirmed or expanded the quantitative results for both aims. One exception was that the qualitative results were incongruent with the negative statistical significance of transitive ties to relationship formation in the first aim. The methodological explanations behind the above discordant results are provided in the discussion section of this dissertation. Findings imply that: (1) cross-cultural relationships among volunteers within formal volunteering programs require intentional facilitation, resources, and organizational commitment. Addressing language barriers and promoting collaboration among site stations can facilitate cross-cultural friendships. (2) The less lonely volunteers have connected with lonelier volunteers in this network possibly out of altruism. Thus, practitioners can consider intentionally encouraging altruism to prevent the spread of loneliness among older volunteers. Moreover, loneliness interventions need to account for the correlation among network members' loneliness. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

School reintegration after COVID-19: The impact of COVID-19 related-anxiety on high school learners

This study investigated the impact of COVID-19 related-anxiety on academics and absenteeism pre- and post-pandemic school years. The aim of this research was to investigate if anxiety impacted at-risk youths' (ethnically diverse high school students living in low-income areas) mental health during an important transitional stage of their lives following quarantine due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) (COVID-19) pandemic. The sudden changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including pivoting to online learning, social distancing from peers, and a seemingly endless quarantine, increased students' uncertainties, and anxiety (Besser et al., 2020). This study further investigated gender differences in youths' anxiety response to COVID-19 as prior research indicates that females tend to be at higher risk for anxiety following trauma. This researcher recruited 99 high school students (grades 10-12) from a local, low-income suburban/rural high school with an ethnically diverse population. Findings indicated that COVID-19 related-anxiety impacted female students significantly more than male students upon returning to in-person learning (p = .05). In addition, COVID-19 related-anxiety had a positive correlation with State-Trait Anxiety scores. Results did not indicate significant changes due to COVID-19 related-anxiety on absenteeism, GPA or ELA grades upon returning to in-person learning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Consuming in a crisis: pandemic consumption across consumer segments and implications for brands

Purpose: This paper aims to understand how the Covid-19 pandemic has changed consumers' perceptions of outdoor consumption categories, such as retail shopping, eating out, public events and travel and how these perceptions may impact businesses in these domains in the long term. Further, this research aims to understand demographic effects on outdoor consumption inhibition during the current pandemic and discuss how businesses can use these insights to rebrand their offerings and evolve after the pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: Data collected by CivicScience, a survey-based consumer intelligence research platform, during April–July 2020 forms the basis of the preliminary analysis, where the chi-square test has been used to examine significant differences in consumer attitudes between different age groups, income groups and genders. Further, a social media analysis of conversations around outdoor consumption activities is undertaken to understand the rationale behind these demographics-based attitude differences. Findings: Results lend varying degrees of support to the hypothesized consumer attitudes toward outdoor consumption activities during the Covid-19 pandemic. As the pandemic wore on, older (vs younger), female (vs male) consumers and lower (vs higher) income-group consumers had reportedly higher inhibition toward different outdoor activities. Older individuals were significantly less likely to shop, dine and attend public events than younger individuals. Lower-income consumers were significantly less likely to dine and travel than higher-income consumer consumers. Female consumers were significantly less likely to shop and travel than male consumers. Social media scan of conversations suggests that differences in perceived health and financial risks may have resulted in demographics-based differences in outdoor consumption activities. Research limitations/implications: This study contributes to the literature by understanding demographic differences in consumer participation in outdoor activities. One limitation is that due to the time-sensitive nature of the pandemic research, further studies could not be conducted to understand the implications of other variables, beyond demographics that influence consumer behavior during a crisis. A future research direction is to understand how other psychological variables or traits, influence health and financial risk-taking behavior during a similar crisis. Originality/value: The principal contribution of the present research is that it tests the risk-taking theory in the context of outdoor consumption during the Covid-19 pandemic. The present research has implications for businesses as they continue to evolve during and post Covid-19. © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Food insecurity and the role of food assistance programs in supporting diet quality during the COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts.

Background: Economic and supply chain shocks resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 led to substantial increases in the numbers of individuals experiencing food-related hardship in the US, with programs aimed at addressing food insecurity like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and food pantries seeing significant upticks in utilization. While these programs have improved food access overall, the extent to which diet quality changed, and whether they helped mitigate diet quality disruptions, is not well understood. Objective: To evaluate food insecurity, food pantry and/or SNAP participation associations with both diet quality as well as perceived disruptions in diet during the COVID-19 pandemic among Massachusetts adults with lower incomes. Methods: We analyzed complete-case data from 1,256 individuals with complete data from a cross-sectional online survey of adults (ages 18 years and above) living in Massachusetts who responded to "The MA Statewide Food Access Survey" between October 2020 through January 2021. Study recruitment and survey administration were performed by The Greater Boston Food Bank. We excluded respondents who reported participation in assistance programs but were ineligible (n = 168), those who provided straightlined responses to the food frequency questionnaire component of the survey (n = 34), those with incomes above 300% of the federal poverty level (n = 1,427), those who completed the survey in 2021 (n = 8), and those who reported improved food insecurity (n = 55). Current dietary intake was assessed via food frequency questionnaire. Using Bayesian regression models, we examined associations between pandemic food insecurity, perceived disruption in diet, diet quality, and intakes of individual foods among those who completed a survey in 2020. We assessed interactions by pantry and SNAP participation to determine whether participation moderated these relationships. Results: Individuals experiencing food insecurity reported greater disruption in diet during the pandemic and reduced consumption of healthy/unhealthy foods. Pantry participation attenuated significant associations between food insecurity and lower consumption of unhealthy (b = -1.13 [95% CI -1.97 to -0.31]) and healthy foods (b = -1.07 [-1.82 to -0.34]) to null (unhealthy foods: -0.70 [-2.24 to 0.84]; healthy foods: 0.30 [-1.17 to 1.74]), whereas SNAP participation attenuated associations for healthy foods alone (from -1.07 [-1.82 to -0.34] to -0.75 [-1.83 to 0.32]). Results were robust to choice of prior as well as to alternative modeling specifications. Conclusion: Among adults with lower incomes, those experiencing food insecurity consumed less food, regardless of healthfulness, compared to individuals not experiencing food insecurity. Participation in safety-net programs, including SNAP and pantry participation, buffered this phenomenon. Continued support of SNAP and the food bank network and a focus on access to affordable healthy foods may simultaneously alleviate hunger while improving nutrition security.

Minoritized students' experiences with pandemic-era remote learning inform ways of expanding access

COVID-19 increased problems of access for students, particularly for students who experience diverse dimensions of minoritization in the university (e.g., first generation [FG] to college, students of color, low-income). Here, access refers to institutional policies and practices that offer equitable learning and educational opportunities. To date, limited research has focused on how minoritized students grappled with challenges of access during their day-to-day experiences of pandemic-era remote learning. The present study fills this gap by documenting how minoritized undergraduate students navigated challenges related to access and how, in community with others, they leveraged strengths to expand opportunities for access. Fifteen undergraduate seniors-the majority of whom identified as FG, low-income, and/or students of color-participated in in-depth interviews during their first term of pandemic-era remote learning. The results illustrated how remote learning both limited and broadened four areas of access: learning space, learning materials, course participation, and social connections and community. We documented how flexible and collaborative practices with instructors, peers, and family provided a powerful approach to strengthening access to learning across all four areas. The results provide critical insights, as shared by students themselves, on how institutions of higher education can reduce longstanding and new inequities and invest in strategies for expanding access. Such insights are timely for continued learning in remote instruction and for consideration of long-term practices as we shift back to forms of in-person learning. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Parenting stress and low-income preschool family well-being during COVID-19

The present study examines the associations between COVID-19-related stressors and family functioning 6 months into the COVID-19 pandemic among a sample of low-income caregivers and their preschool-aged children. It is hypothesized that COVID-19-related stressors, family illness, job loss, and difficulties accessing resources will be positively correlated with parenting stress, parent psychological distress, and child behavior problems. 42 caregivers (aged 16-70 yrs), recruited from a Head Start preschool program, completed an online survey about personal or family COVID-19 illness, job loss, resource loss, psychological distress, child behavior problems, and parenting stress. 14% of caregivers reported experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, and 5% reported they had received a COVID-19 diagnosis at the time of study completion. The majority of caregivers, 60%, indicated they had a family member diagnosed with COVID-19. Most caregivers reported they had consistent employment during the COVID-19 pandemic (69%), while 31% reported losing their job. Over a third of caregivers reported "extremely" to difficulties in financial loss, paying rent or bills, and accessing childcare. Results suggest that COVID-19 diagnoses and higher levels of family resource loss are correlated with parenting stress, caregiver psychological distress, and child behavior problems. Only parenting stress was associated with child behavior problems after controlling for COVID-19 diagnoses and resource loss. The present findings also suggest that resource loss may be important to consider in policies designed to aid families with young children. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Healthcare concerns of older adults during the COVID-19 outbreak in low- and middle- income countries: Lessons for health policy and social work

This reprinted chapter originally appeared in Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 2020, 63[6-7], 717-723. (The following of the original article appeared in record 2021-00510-034.) Older people have been identified to be one of the most vulnerable population groups to the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). At the same time, more health workers in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) including Ghana are contracting COVID-19. This poses healthcare utilization concerns for older adults. As a result, many older adults are changing their health-seeking behavior by staying at home and resorting to informal healthcare such as the use of traditional therapies and over-the-counter medicines for self-treatment or to boost their immune system. This commentary calls for social workers to collaborate with health authorities and community pharmacists to develop social and health programs to increase older adults' access to healthcare during the COVID-19 crisis. Policies are also required to deal with the pandemic and its impact on health systems in LMICs for both short and long term. We have suggested in this commentary how governments, health institutions, and local authorities in LMICs can address the healthcare concerns of older adults during this and any future pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Detroit's efforts to meet the needs of seniors: Macro responses to a crisis

This reprinted chapter originally appeared in Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 2020, 63[6-7], 706-708. (The following of the original article appeared in record 2021-00510-031.) The Senior Housing Preservation-Detroit Coalition (SHP-D), a volunteer organization without paid staff, organized to protect low income senior housing in the urban core and promote development of naturally occurring affordable housing. But as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in the city, the coalition found itself asking who should look after the seniors in these buildings. Social workers with training in gerontology have great opportunity to participate in coalitions like SHP-D as ways to use their backgrounds and training to be part of concrete solutions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Food deserts and perceptions of food access in urban low-income areas

The study looks at participants' knowledge and perceptions about nutrition and healthy food availability in urban low-income areas in Southern California by using Albert Bandura's (1998) social cognitive theory as it relates to health promotion. Exploratory analyses of this study indicate that majority of participants presented to have knowledge of nutrition and its importance to health and prevention of chronic illnesses. Majority of the participants' perceptions of healthy food access, regardless of income level, were that fresh produce and foods are costly and require a time commitment to prepare. Individuals in the lower income brackets tend to purchase food based on what they can afford, and which items are on sale. When it comes to effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on food consumption, many participants' included aspects of mental health, changed eating habits from pandemic induced stress and less grocery trips resulting in increased purchasing of nonperishable foods. This study highlights how food consumption may be affected by the increasing socioeconomic gap and contributes to social equality through nutrition. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Pandemics and precarious work: Translating research to practice for marginalized workers

The disruptive impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been felt by workers around the world, and decidedly even more so for precarious, low-wage, and nontraditional workers. Challenges for these workers including low wage rates, a lack of access to benefits and resources, and job insecurity were all pressing issues before COVID-19, but the pandemic has exacerbated existing disparities, while other novel challenges have emerged, further impacting the safety and wellbeing of these workers. Historically, research in the fields of organizational behavior and industrial-organizational psychology has overwhelmingly focused on "white-collar" workers with a corresponding underrepresentation of hourly wage workers, contract workers, and others with nontraditional work arrangements (e.g., gig workers). Not only do people belonging to marginalized groups face a disproportionate share of illness and death associated with crises such as COVID-19, but they also tend to be disproportionately represented in these jobs, many of which were deemed essential during the pandemic. Using an intersectional lens, the present scientific commentary and review highlights research related to these issues and serves as a call to action for research examining the experiences of these underrepresented workers. We argue that the pandemic has necessitated a change in our traditional understanding of precarious work and suggest we leverage existing theoretical frameworks to explore our understanding of the effects of worker status on experiences and outcomes during pandemics. Finally, we provide research-informed recommendations for organizations seeking to improve working conditions and uplift workers of all backgrounds. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) Impact Statement This scientific review calls attention to the need to consider the experiences of underrepresented workers as it relates to the psychology of pandemics and work more broadly. We discuss how different marginalized identities face complex challenges during crises such as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and offer research-informed recommendations to help organizations and their workers prosper. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Impacts of COVID-19 outbreaks on the lower-income groups and attainments of SDGs: a study of the fast-growing commercial capital city, Chittagong, Bangladesh

Purpose>The emergence of COVID-19 and its spread led to severe social, economic and livelihood impacts around the world. This study documented the socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19 outbreaks and lockdown on the lower-income groups. Also illustrated the impacts on the attainment of SDGs in the context of the slums of Chittagong City.Design/methodology/approach>Both qualitative and quantitative data have been collected from the 150 respondents through questionnaire surveys in the slums.Findings>The lockdown led to the decrease of 90% of the respondents' income level and affected the livelihoods of 97.33% of the respondents, with an overall score of 3.22 ± 0.67 on a four-point Likert-type scale. About 96.67% of respondents' psychological conditions have been affected high to extreme, with an overall score of 3.19 ± 0.68. The pandemic affected 74.67% of respondents' food habits, 95.33% of respondents' child education, increased domestic violence and deteriorated social security, basic service facilities and hygiene practices among the slum dwellers. The severity of COVID-19 outbreaks on the lower-income people makes it critical for the government to attain the SDG 1, SDG 2, SDG 3, SDG 4, SDG 5 (Target 5.1, 5.2) SDG 6 and SDG 16.Originality/value>The findings of the study will help governments, policymakers, international organizations to adopt measures to mitigate the effects of the outbreaks.

Depressive and anxiety symptoms and COVID-19-related factors among men and women in Nigeria

Despite the greater adverse economic impacts in low and middle-income (LAMI) compared to high-income countries, fewer studies have investigated the associations between COVID-19-related stressor and mental health in LAMI countries. The objectives of this study were to determine the associations between COVID-19-related stressors and anxiety and depressive symptoms while controlling for known risk and protective factors and to investigate any sex differences. An online survey was carried out to assess sociodemographic, psychosocial (previous mental health conditions, sexual orientation, intimate partner violence and perceived social support) and COVID-19-related variables. Hierarchical linear regression was carried out with anxiety and depressive symptoms as separate out- comes. Of the COVID-19-related factors, testing positive for COVID-19 infection, having COVID-19 symptoms, having other medical conditions, self-isolating due to COVID-19 symptoms, worry about infection, perception of the pandemic as a threat to income and isolation during the lockdown were significantly associated with higher anxiety and depressive symptoms. Of these, worry about infection, isolation during lockdown and disruption due to the pandemic retained independent associations with both outcomes. The variance in anxiety and depressive symptoms explained by COVID-19-related factors was larger in women (11.8%) compared to men (6.1% and 0.8% respectively). COVID-19-related stressors are associated with higher anxiety and depressive symptoms, with these effects being larger in men compared to women. Enhancing social support can be an affordable strategy to mitigate this risk but this needs to be investigated using appropriate designs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Assessment scores of remote and in-person learning for grades three - six students in an East Tennessee school district

The purpose of this comparative, quantitative study was to explore the relationship of interim test scores among remote and in-person learners, low-income students, and students with disabilities. In March 2020, a portion of students enrolled in a K-12 school in Northeast Tennessee was moved into remote learning until the end of the school year in May 2020. In July 2020, parents were given the option for their child to attend remote or in-person learning. While some chose in-person learning, giving reasons such as child-care, work obligations, or personal preference, others chose for their children to continue to receive online learning due to health concerns brought on by the pandemic. Since these decisions were made, some parents that originally opted for online learning chose to send their child back to school due to perceived obstacles faced within the online environment.This study was conducted to determine the efficacy of online learning in comparison to in-person learning for students grades three - six separated into the following categories: general population, students with disabilities, and low-income students. Comparison of both mathematics and literacy interim third quarter checkpoint data were analyzed using SPSS software to conduct a series of independent t-tests. Data were analyzed at the 0.05 level of significance. Twelve research questions were addressed testing corresponding null hypotheses. Results included third grade online literacy scores significantly exceeding the scores of in-person. Mean literacy and math scores were approximately equal for online and in-person learners. Overall, scores for students with disabilities and low socio-economic students were approximately equal whether the learners were online or in-person. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)