Bernice Lott (1930-2022).

This article memorializes Bernice Lott (1930-2022), professor emerita of psychology and women's studies at the University of Rhode Island and the first dean of the school's University College, a trailblazing social psychologist who redefined how we understand gender, ethnicity, and social class; a fierce feminist social justice pioneer and activist; and an extraordinary mentor and colleague. Highlights of Lott's career and professional contributions are noted. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

COVID-19-related stressors exacerbate food insecurity and depressive symptoms among graduate students receiving campus basic needs services: Cross-sectional findings from seven California public universities.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity and depression were growing public health concerns among graduate students. Yet, little is known about how COVID-19-related stressors exacerbated these health outcomes among graduate students. To address this research gap, this study examined two types of COVID-19-related stressors, anticipated concerns about remote learning and challenges interfering with academic and research responsibilities, in relation to food insecurity and depressive symptoms among public university graduate students. Between August and October 2020, 631 graduate students who utilised basic needs services from seven University of California campuses completed an online survey assessing the effects of COVID-19 on their academic experiences, mental health, and basic needs security. Regression analyses examined associations of COVID-19-related concerns and COVID-19-related challenges with food insecurity as well as COVID-19-related concerns and COVID-19-related challenges in relation to depressive symptoms. All four models were adjusted for age, sex, race and ethnicity, campus affiliation, and living with a partner. Models examining food security status as the dependent variable were adjusted for depressive symptoms and vice versa. Graduate students concerned about delayed graduation, post-graduate employment, isolation from faculty and not having access to healthcare reported higher counts of depressive symptoms. Challenges associated with higher counts of depressive symptoms included caring for family more than usual, spending more time on errands and not paying for utilities in full. Students concerned about accessing healthcare had higher odds of experiencing food insecurity. Challenges associated with food insecurity included spending more time on errands, being unable to afford housing and sending money to family members during the pandemic. Our findings illuminate the pandemic's deleterious consequences on graduate students' mental health and food security, underscoring the need for strong academic and basic needs programs and policies.

Psychology's contributions to understanding and alleviating poverty and economic inequality: Introduction to the special section.

In the United States and around the world, economic inequality is one of the greatest challenges of our time. Psychological research is crucial to illuminating and interrupting the damaging consequences of economic hardship and disparities, understanding interpersonal and institutional responses to poverty and economic inequality, and developing effective poverty alleviation programs and policies. The articles in this special section explore psychology's contributions to understanding and alleviating poverty and economic inequality, focusing on mitigating the effects of economic hardship on children and youth, how employment and work-related dynamics contribute to economic inequality, and psychology's presence in federal policymaking. Collectively, this body of work highlights the need for psychologists' engagement in a full spectrum of antipoverty and economic justice initiatives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Social class and policy preferences: implications for economic inequality and interclass relations.

Record-setting levels of income and wealth inequality are deepening social class divisions. The adoption of strong progressive redistributive policies is crucial to reducing class inequities, yet many barriers to doing so exist. This review examines class-based policy preferences, focusing on the effects of economic self-interest, system justification, and classist, racist, and sexist stereotypes on policy support. The impact of broader economic conditions is also considered. Collectively, this body of research makes clear that building stronger cross-class support for redistributive policies and programs will prove difficult without addressing both class-based power differences and beliefs that justify inequality. Reducing stereotypes and developing a shared sense of societal responsibility that cuts across class lines can help advance these goals. Social psychological research is vital to informing these efforts.

Intersections of ethnicity and social class in provider advice regarding reproductive health.

OBJECTIVES: We examined how ethnicity and social class influence women's perceptions of reproductive health care. Of primary interest was assessing whether health care providers are perceived as advising low-income women, particularly women of color, to limit their childbearing and to what extent they feel they are discouraged by providers from having future children. METHODS: Ethnically diverse, low-income (n=193) and middle-class women (n=146) completed a questionnaire about their pregnancy-related health care experiences. RESULTS: Logistic regression analyses revealed that low-income women of color experienced greater odds of being advised to limit their childbearing than did middle-class White women. A separate model demonstrated that low-income Latinas reported greater odds of being discouraged from having children than did middle-class White women. CONCLUSIONS: Low-income women of color were more likely to report being advised to limit their childbearing and were more likely to describe being discouraged from having children than were middle-class White women. More research is needed regarding how ethnicity and social class impact women's experiences with reproductive health care.

From the front lines of welfare reform: an analysis of social worker and welfare recipient attitudes.

Social workers and welfare recipients operate within the same institutional framework and share a working and/or lived knowledge of poverty, but they occupy different social and economic positions. To gain a better understanding of intergroup attitudes, the author compared how social workers and welfare recipients explain poverty and perceive the welfare system. The results highlight important similarities and differences between the two groups. Although the author did not find differences for individualistic attributions, welfare recipients regarded prejudice as playing a greater role in causing poverty than did social workers. Welfare recipients also expressed stronger support for increased welfare funding and progressive welfare policies than did social workers. The author discussed implications for strengthening interclass alliances, particularly the relationship between social service providers and welfare recipients.