Sense of community and anxiety during a global pandemic: The role of world assumptions in couples.

The current study was designed to examine the role of sense of community at the outset of COVID-19 pandemic-related shutdowns as a longitudinal predictor of anxiety in couples. We also sought to investigate whether self-reported changes in perceived levels of benevolent world assumptions would serve as an indirect conveyor of this association. Data were collected at three time points during the first 6-months of pandemic shutdowns in the US and the current study utilized responses from 535 heterosexual cisgender couples. Mplus was used to path model lagged associations between sense of community at wave 1, world assumptions at waves 1 and 2 and anxiety symptoms at all three waves for both partners. Findings demonstrated direct effects within men and women with a stronger sense of community at wave 1 relating to lower anxiety at waves 2, and within women this effect extended to wave 3. Further, we found that a higher sense of community at wave 1 in men associated with perceived strengthening of benevolent world assumptions at the next wave for men and women. We noted that perceived strengthened benevolent world assumptions at wave 2 associated with lower anxiety at wave 3 within men. Indirect effects showed that a stronger sense of community at wave 1 associated with lower anxiety at wave 3 within men.

Systemic Obstacles to Addressing Research Misconduct in Higher Education: A Case Study.

Several widely publicized incidents of academic research misconduct, combined with the politicization of the role of science in public health and policy discourse (e.g., COVID, immunizations) threaten to undermine faith in the integrity of empirical research. Researchers often maintain that peer-review and study replication allow the field to self-police and self-correct; however, stark disparities between official reports of academic research misconduct and self-reports of academic researchers, specifically with regard to data fabrication, belie this argument. Further, systemic imperatives in academic settings often incentivize institutional responses that focus on minimizing reputational harm rather than the impact of fabricated data on the integrity of extant and future research.

A descriptive literature review of early research on COVID-19 and close relationships

This in-depth critical review investigates the impact of COVID-19 on personal relationships from the start of the pandemic in early 2020 to September 2021. Research examining six themes are identified and described in detail: the impact of COVID-19 on (1) family and intimate relationships;(2) LGBTQ+ relationships;(3) how COVID-19 is linked to technologically mediated communication and personal relationships;(4) potential shifts in sexual behaviors and desire;(5) potential shifts in relational conflict and intimate partner violence;and (6) constructive aspects of personal relationships, which is a broad theme that includes outcomes such as resilience, relational quality, coping, and social support. Findings for overarching patterns are offered to highlight implications for current research and identify future directions to consider when continuing to study personal relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic and similar future crises.

Provider perspectives on service delivery modifications to maintain access to HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis during the COVID-19 pandemic: qualitative results from a PrEP implementation project in Kenya.

INTRODUCTION: HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an essential prevention strategy being scaled up for priority populations in Kenya, including for HIV serodiscordant couples. The COVID-19 pandemic posed challenges to PrEP rollout. We conducted a qualitative study of PrEP providers to understand how clinics adjusted PrEP delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Since 2017, the Partners Scale-Up Project has integrated PrEP into 25 HIV clinics in Central and Western Kenya. We conducted qualitative interviews with 40 purposively sampled clinic personnel. We interviewed personnel once during the first pandemic wave (May-Aug 2020) and again after some decline in COVID-19 rates (Nov-Jan 2021). We analysed data using inductive memo-writing and summarized data by themes along the PrEP delivery cascade, guided by the Framework for Reporting Adaptation and Modifications (FRAME). RESULTS: We interviewed 27 clinical officers, five nurses, four health records and information officers, and four counsellors from Central (n = 20) and Western (n = 20) Kenya. About half (n = 19) were female, with a median age of 32 (IQR: 29-34) and 2.3 years of experience delivering PrEP (IQR: 2-3). All participants reported clinic changes in PrEP demand creation and service delivery during the pandemic. Modifications occurred during PrEP implementation and sustainment phases, were partly reactive to the pandemic and also facilitated by interim Ministry of Health guidance on PrEP delivery during COVID, and were made by PrEP delivery teams, clients and clinic managers. Commonly reported modifications included dispensing multiple-month PrEP refills, intensifying phone-based client engagement and collaborating with other HIV clinics to ensure that clients with prolonged stays in other regions could continue to access PrEP. Some clinics also adopted practices to streamline visits, such as within clinical-room PrEP dispensing, pre-packing PrEP and task-shifting. Most providers liked these changes and hoped they would continue after the pandemic subsides. CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 served as a catalyst for PrEP delivery innovations in Kenya. HIV clinics successfully and rapidly adapted their PrEP demand creation, refill and retention strategies to promote PrEP uptake and effective use. These modified implementation strategies highlight opportunities to streamline the delivery of PrEP, as well as other HIV and chronic care services, and strengthen engagement with populations post-pandemic.

For better or worse: Economic strain, furlough, and relationship quality during the Covid‐19 lockdown

Objective Background Method Results Conclusion and Implications This study evaluates the role of objective and subjective measures of economic uncertainty, as well as furlough schemes, on changes in couples' relationships during the first lockdown in the UK.Most theories of relationship quality argue that economic uncertainty strains intimate relationships, leading to a deterioration in relationship quality. Few studies capture such an intense period of economic uncertainty, and the role of government policy to mitigate the impact of the economic crisis.The study employs the UK Household Longitudinal Covid‐19 surveys conducted in April–June 2020. Using multinomial logit regression models (N = 5792), we examine how self‐reported change in relationship quality is associated with socioeconomic status, subjective financial uncertainty, and change in employment situation, especially for those furloughed through the UK government's Employment Protection Scheme.The study finds that 8% of individuals reported a decline in their couple relationship quality, but 19% reported improvements. Those with higher education and household earnings were more likely to experience improvements in relationship quality. Reduced work hours or job loss was not associated with changes in relationship, although expecting a worse future financial situation was. Furlough was strongly associated with improvements in relationships, and furloughed men were slightly more likely to report an improvement in their relationships than women.Although prior research has found that economic uncertainty is detrimental to relationships, employment protection schemes seem to have mitigated some of the worst effects on families. [ FROM AUTHOR]

Couples' division of household responsibilities during COVID-19, perceptions of fairness, and relationship functioning

As couples adapted to the stressful, pandemic-induced disruptions to daily life (e.g., closures of schools, working from home), many couples experienced changes to established divisions of paid and household labor. The present study investigates whether contributions to household responsibilities and perceptions of fairness in divisions of labor are associated with couple relationship satisfaction and disagreements. Gender, number of children in a family, and financial stress during the pandemic are included as moderators. Four hundred seventy-nine participants (52.8% women;ages 19-72, Mage = 34.54) in the United States completed an online survey as part of a larger study on couples coping with COVID-19. Linear mixed models showed that women, compared to men, reported doing more household responsibilities, with a widening gender gap based on the presence and number of children, and reported lower fairness. For women, the association between responsibilities and relationship disagreements increased with greater financial stress. Fairness was related to positive relationship outcomes;however, number of children moderated the strength of this association in different directions for women and men. Financial stress also increased the association between fairness and relationship functioning. Results underscore the importance of how couples manage their everyday household responsibilities and, especially, how their perceptions of fairness affect relationship outcomes. The extent to which these findings generalize beyond the pandemic to family life more generally remains to be determined, but the results suggest that the division of responsibilities and fairness, particularly during times of stress and upheaval, are putatively important and protective relationship elements. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) Impact Statement Approximately 1 year into the COVID-19 pandemic, perceived fairness in the division of household responsibilities had a protective role for couple relationship functioning, particularly for women, couples with children, and couples experiencing financial stress. Although it is yet unknown whether these results extend to other time periods, working toward a division of responsibilities perceived as fair can be a meaningful goal for couple and family therapists, and for couples themselves. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Depressive Symptoms and Conflict Behaviors: A Test of the Stress Generation Hypothesis in Romantic Couples during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Introduction: In early 2020, North American jurisdictions required households (e.g., romantic couples) to isolate together to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. This study provides a first look at the interplay of depressive symptoms and conflict behaviors among isolating couples, including tests of predictions of the stress generation hypothesis. Methods: Mixed-gender couples residing in Canada (N = 711) completed online measures across two waves. We used the actor-partner interdependence mediation model, with Wave 1 depressive symptoms as the predictor, Wave 1 conflict enactment as the mediator, and Wave 2 depressive symptoms as the outcome. Results: Depressive symptoms showed stability across Wave 1 and 2. Wave 1 depressive symptoms showed associations with Wave 1 conflict enactment. For men (but not women), Wave 1 conflict enactment was associated with their own and their partner's Wave 2 depressive symptoms. For both partners, Wave 1 conflict enacted by men mediated the association between Wave 1 depressive symptoms and Wave 2 depressive symptoms. Discussion: Our study confirms and extends the stress generation hypothesis to the pandemic context, showing that depressive symptoms may partially contribute to conflict for isolating couples and that conflict behaviors enacted by men toward their partner can exacerbate depressive symptoms in both partners.

The associations of COVID-19 percent positivity rate, relationship quality, and season with daily anxiety and depression in couples living in NYC.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic changed nearly every aspect of daily life and had detrimental effects on mental health. Yet, impacts have been heterogeneous. We tested whether fluctuations in local COVID-19 percent positivity rates were associated with daily anxiety and depression in couples living in NYC, as well as whether these associations varied by relationship quality or season. We expected that adverse impacts of COVID-19 may be attenuated by high-quality relationships and during warmer months, or that people may habituate over time. Methods: Data on seven-day rolling average COVID-19 percent positive rate each day in NYC were merged with a 14-day dyadic diary study of cohabiting couples living in NYC between August 2020 through April 2021 (232 individuals from 116 couples; mean age 28.42 years, 52.59% female, 53.02% White). Dyadic multilevel models estimated the association COVID-19 positivity rate, season (sine and cosine of the calendar date), baseline relationship quality, and all two-and three-way interactions of these variables with daily anxiety and depression. Covariates included weekend and COVID-positive case within the couple. Results: Anxiety and depression mirrored COVID-19 positivity rates, and there was some evidence for habituation over time. Significant two-and three-way interactions suggested that being in a high-quality relationship buffered the association of COVID-19 positivity rate with both anxiety and depression during months when cases were low. Anxiety was elevated for individuals in high- (v. low-) quality relationships during the December-January surge. Conclusion: Seven-day rolling average COVID-19 percent positivity rate was associated with daily anxiety and depression among couples living in NYC. There was some evidence that individuals habituated to this stressor over time and that high-quality relationships were protective for mental well-being; however, there was some suggestion that couples in high-quality relationships may have engaged in processes such as co-rumination during surges, worsening their daily anxiety.

Web-Based Relationship Education and Pornography-Related Behaviors: A Single-Group Design During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Research surrounding pornography and its impact on individual and relationship functioning is a frequent and ongoing debate in the current literature. However, recent meta-analyses and aggregated studies suggest that relationship distress is associated with higher levels of general pornography use. This may be a reason why a significant number of men and women view pornography and seek help for their use. In the present study, we explored whether participation in the OurRelationship program, a web-based relationship education program that has been empirically shown to reduce relationship distress but is not tailored to reduce general pornography use, was associated with reliable changes in pornography-related behaviors. In a sample of low-income and diverse couples (N = 314 couples; 628 individuals), we observed high completion rates (64.3%) as well as reliable, small-sized decreases in the frequency and duration of pornography use for the average couple (d = 0.12-0.13). Furthermore, post hoc analyses found that individuals who began the program viewing pornography daily reported reliability-larger decreases in pornography-related behaviors (d = 0.32-0.90) than those who viewed pornography less frequently. However, we did not see reliable changes in couples' arguments about pornography use or perceptions of problematic use. The findings were generally not moderated by gender or lifestyle changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinicians struggling to reduce their client's general pornography use may consider including a focus on improving general romantic relationship functioning.

Together in times of COVID-19: The couple's relationship experience in Puerto Rico

(Spanish) La pandemia del coronavirus (COVID-19) ha tenido un efecto en el funcionamiento y en el bienestar psicologico de las parejas. Se realizo un estudio cualitativo de tipo fenomenologico para conocer la experiencia vivida desde la optica de una de las personas integrantes de una diada. Se realizo un analisis de las narrativas de seis participantes (3 femeninos, 3 masculinos). Por medio del analisis de tipo fenomenologico, se identificaron cambios significativos en la cotidianidad de la pareja;(1) el uso de los espacios en el hogar, (2) nuevas practicas en la convivencia, (3) invisibilidad entre lo publico y lo privado, (4) aislamiento social y (5) nuevas conductas para prevenir el virus. Otro tema identificado fue la relacion de pareja y los cambios en las dinamicas en la relacion de pareja debido a las transformaciones del hogar (p ej. limitaciones de socializar, tareas adicionales en el hogar). Por medio de las narrativas se pudo constatar que la experiencia del COVID-19 ha sido un evento que ha provocado cambios significativos en la cotidianidad de la pareja y en sus dinamicas en la relacion como una forma de adaptarse a los cambios repentinos que surgieron a raiz de la pandemia y los protocolos gubernamentales. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Changes in couples sexual behavior during the lockdown due to COVID-19 in Puerto Rico

(Spanish) La pandemia por coronavirus (COVID-19) trajo secuelas adversas en varias areas del funcionamiento de las personas, entre ellas economicas, laborales, familiares y academicas. Un area que no se ha investigado en Puerto Rico es el efecto de los encierros en la conducta sexual de las parejas. Los objetivos del presente estudio fueron: (1) analizar si existen diferencias estadisticamente significativas entre la satisfaccion sexual de las personas participantes antes y durante la cuarentena;(2) examinar si se han producido cambios significativos en la calidad de las relaciones de pareja durante la cuarentena;y (3) evaluar si la ansiedad y la ansiedad por COVID-19 predicen la satisfaccion sexual de las personas participantes durante la cuarentena. La muestra consistio de 392 personas adultas en su mayoria mujeres (87.5%). Los resultados reflejaron una disminucion en la calidad de la relacion de pareja y en la satisfaccion sexual durante la cuarentena. La relacion entre ansiedad por COVID-19 y satisfaccion sexual durante la cuarentena fue significativa, baja y negativa. A pesar que algunas diferencias resultaron ser estadisticamente significativas, una mirada a dichas diferencias resalta que a nivel practico y clinico las diferencias fueron minimas. Se discuten recomendaciones e implicaciones para la clinica y consejeria. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Moderation Analysis of a couple-based HIV/STI Intervention Among Heterosexual Couples in the Criminal Legal System Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence: Results from a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, intimate partner violence (IPV) rates have increased in the United States. Although accumulating research has documented the effectiveness of couple-based interventions in reducing HIV/STIs, it remains unclear whether they are effective and safe for couples experiencing IPV. We used moderation analysis from a randomized clinical trial to evaluate whether a couples-based HIV/STI intervention may have differential effectiveness in reducing HIV/STI risks among couples where one or both partners reported experiencing IPV compared to couples without such IPV among a sample of 230 men at risk for HIV/STIs who reported using drugs and were mandated to community supervision settings in New York City and their main female sexual partners. The findings of this study suggest that the effectiveness of this evidence-based couple HIV intervention in reducing condomless sex and other HIV/STI risks did not differ between couples with IPV compared to couples without IPV. Intimate partners who use drugs and are involved in the criminal legal system are disproportionately impacted by both HIV/STIs and IPV, underscoring the importance of couple-level interventions that may be scaled up to address the dyadic HIV risks and IPV together in community supervision settings.

British Cinema in a Divided Nation: JOHN WHITE, 2022 Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press pp. 264, bibliography, $110 (hardback)

In this monograph, John White (Anglia Ruskin University) assesses the precarious "state of the nation" as explored by contemporary British cinema, and as informed by two extended crises - Brexit and the Covid-19 - that embody the divisions that he otherwise sees in his case study films. While some of the films explored in the book are "about" Brexit in symbolic ways, these two frames are not directly the subject matter of the films investigated. In his words, the book aims to explore 'film in relation to history and politics, examining film representations in relation to the major axes of socio-economic division within contemporary society' (p. 226). [Extracted from the article]

Contributions of Work-to-Family Enrichment to Parental Food Monitoring and Satisfaction with Food-Related Life during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Dual-Earner Parents and Their Adolescent Children.

Evidence shows that numerous family-related variables influence parents' use of different food parenting practices (FPP), but less is known about the influence of parents' work-related variables on their use of FPP, and their own and their children's outcomes in the food domain. To fill this gap, the present study explored intra-individual and inter-individual effects between work-to-family enrichment (WtoFE), parents' monitoring practices, the adolescent's perception of their parents' monitoring practices, and the three family members' satisfaction with food-related life (SWFoL), in different-sex dual-earner parents with adolescent children. The mediating role of monitoring between WtoFE and SWFoL was also tested. A sample of 430 different-sex dual-earner parents and one of their adolescent children (average age 13.0 years, 53.7% female) were recruited in Rancagua, Chile, during March and June 2020. The three family members answered the monitoring dimension of the Compressive Feeding Practices Questionnaire and the Satisfaction with Food-Related Life Scale. Parents answered a measure of WtoFE based on the Work-Home Interaction Survey. Analyses were conducted using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model and structural equation modelling. Results showed a positive association between WtoFE and SWFoL, directly (p < 0.001) and through monitoring in fathers (95% confidence interval [0.010, 0.097], actor effect). The father's (p = 0.042) and mother's (p = 0.006) WtoFE was positively associated with their adolescent's SWFoL (partner effects). The father's (p = 0.002) and mother's (p = 0.036) WtoFE were positively associated with their own monitoring (actor effect), while only the father's WtoFE (p = 0.014) was positively associated with the adolescent's perception of their parents' monitoring (partner effect). The father's (p = 0.018) and mother's (p = 0.003) monitoring, as well as the adolescents' perception of their parents' monitoring (p = 0.033), were positively associated with their own SWFoL (actor effects), while the mother's monitoring (p = 0.043) was also associated with the father's SWFoL (partner effects). Findings suggest that both parents' WtoFE improved their monitoring practices, which, in turn, improved their own SWFoL and their adolescent child's SWFoL. Policymakers and organizations must aim to promote the WtoFE of working parents.

Changes in Couples' Relationships and Their Differences in Type during the COVID-19 Pandemic in China.

PURPOSE: This study explores changes in couples' relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic, and analyzes the differences in the changes across three types: positive communication, criticism/defense, and demand/withdrawal. METHOD: A total of 600 (567 valid) Chinese respondents participated in this study, and a questionnaire was utilized to determine changes in their overall relationship, verbal and nonverbal communication, emotion, and activities with their spouses. RESULTS: The average score of items related to positive communication is higher, compared with that of negative communication. Compared with the other two types of relationships, respondents with positive communication scored highest on all items related to positive communication and lowest on all items related to negative communication. Significant differences were noted between the positive communication types and the others. CONCLUSIONS: Results show that the relationships of couples included in this study have improved during the current pandemic. Therefore, improved consistency in the type of intimacy can lead to improved quality of couples' relationships during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Interface between gender and the COVID-19 induced work-from-home policy: evidence from a Zimbabwe University

The current study interrogated the interface between gender and the COVID-19 induced work-from-home policy as it identified manifestations of gender inequalities in the policy. The study was an instrumental case study of nine heterosexual lecturer-couples at a university in Zimbabwe. The couples, who were purposively sampled, were identified though snowballing. Telephone interviews were used to solicit data from the participants. Data was thematically analysed. A gender divide was registered in issues to do with work load while working from home and this, resultantly, led to a further divide on work productivity and satisfaction. Thus, the gender inequality and inequity in the policy contributed to the overall discrimination against female lecturers among other existing socio inequalities. The university was urged to make periodic check-ins on its female lecturers working from home just as a social support mechanism that may reduce burn out.

Domestic violence, analysis of the violent bond in the test of confinement

Aim: The aim of this article is to present the preliminary results of a multidisciplinary research project, which focuses on the potential effects of lock-down on intra-family and domestic violence. More specifically, it is a question of considering the effects of confinement on the precipitation of the violent marital bond, in order to consider the difficulties and levers identified by the perpetrators as well as the victims to get out of the violent circularity. Method: Questionnaires were widely distributed on social networks. Some are intended for perpetrators, others for victims. All question the evolution of the marital bond in the test of lock-down and the way in which the subject positions himself in the couple relationship. Interview grids have also been developed. Perpetrators and victims of domestic violence were therefore able to be met in the context of semi-structured interviews aimed at evaluating the impact of confinement on the dynamics of the violent bond between the two partners. Results: The first trends indicate a magnifying effect on the effects of influence in the couple, increasing the expression of violence, whether pre-existing to the lock-down, or revealed by them. The hold in the relationship and the attempt to master the other are, it would seem, to be read from the angle of a counterbalancing of the experience of passivity linked to the fact of feeling "locked in", subject to constraints. imposed spaces. The resources to get out of this violent circle and the process of constraint, do not seem to be able to be mobilized, as if lock-down removed any possibility of seizing the levers likely to stop the violent process. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms among partners during COVID-19 lockdown

OBJECTIVE Τo investigate the psychological impact of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) quarantine measures on people who were experiencing conflict in their relationships with their co-habiting partners in Greece. METHOD A total of 2,998 participants completed four questionnaires: the Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7), the Brief Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory (PDI), and the Post-Τraumatic Stress Disorder-8 items (PTSD-8). The quality of the bond between partners before and during the lockdown was assessed with two items exploring relationship quality. RESULTS A subsample of 145 respondents (4.8%) reported that the quality of their intimate relationship worsened during the lockdown. Roughly 5% of the subsample reported being in true danger, and 85% reported moderate to severe anxiety symptoms, and 50% moderate to severe depressive symptoms, while 17.6% met the criteria for probable post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). CONCLUSIONS In addition to the psychological burden attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and the related restriction measures, this study underscores the importance of investigating additional psychosocial factors affecting individuals, and couples, during lockdown. © Athens Medical Society.

Work-family interface in doctoral level occupations: A qualitative study of understanding the experiences of dual-earner families

The work-family interface continues to change as modern family dynamics shift and diversity in the workforce increases. Dual-earner couples with children are just one example of the complexities affecting families that are increasingly present in the workplace. This qualitative study examined several factors that are under addressed in the current work-family literature, focusing on dual-earner couples with children, same-sex dual-earner couples, and families where at least one partner has a doctoral level occupation. The current study included both heterosexual and sexual minority (i.e., same-sex) couples to reflect families in current American society, and to contribute to the limited body of research on same-sex couples in the work-family interface. The objectives of this study were to understand more about the work-family interface among dual-earner couples in doctoral level occupations, to understand how couple relationships and parenting are influenced by navigating both work and home domains, and to understand the role of occupational and organizational factors such as family-friendly policies in supporting one's home and family life. A semi-structured qualitative interview with couples was used to gather data, which was analyzed using generic qualitative inquiry and thematic analysis. The overall findings of this study were that participants experience a variety of negative and positive impacts due to the factors of spillover, being a working parent, being in a doctoral level occupation, the family-friendly policies at their workplaces, COVID-19, being a dual-earner couple, the influence of gender roles, and sexual orientation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Moderating effects of A Health Consciousness on Consumer behavior towards Rte Foods

With growing environmentalism and health concerns, people have become more conscious of the type of food they consume and the way they are processed. The principle of the present research paper is to explore behavior of consumers towards RTE foods and the moderating role of health consciousness. The rationale behind the present study is to find the factors that influence consumption of RTE foods such as longer shelf life, taste, convenience both in terms of time and availability, and dual income families. The key purpose of the study is to explore the influence of health consciousness of consumers in moderating consumer attitude towards their behavior in context of RTE food products. The results suggest that consumption of RTE foods is more in case of dual income families and those who are less concerned about their health. The findings suggest that, the marketer should revolve advertisement and marketing strategies around the factors that they can be transported long distances as they have an increased resistance to spoilage with better shelf life and offer convenience both in terms of time and efforts.