The Affordable Care Act (ACA, or “Obamacare”) has had dramatic impacts on reducing the numbers of uninsured Americans. However, it explicitly left out one important segment of the population with a noticeable lack of access to health insurance and medical care: unauthorized immigrants. While the politics of that decision were understandable, the consequences are problematic in states like California where an important share of the population (roughly seven percent) is undocumented and where an even larger share of children (nearly a fifth) have at least one undocumented parent. Insurance matters, although the connection to health is sometimes tenuous and unclear. Still, most Americans would rather be with than without – and one clear connection that does promote individual well-being is the way in which medical insurance helps to reduce financial risk . . . .

This study explores the question of structural change and inclusive development in South Africa and Brazil. Using Census data from the two countries, the analysis combines a household level multidimensional indicator of well-being with the applications of growth incidence curves and a sectoral decomposition of change to provide insight into the relationship between the place of households in the economy as reflected by employment sector and geographical location, and the extent to which the residents of those households are sharing in the benefits from growth. The results here suggest that current patterns are in some ways contradictory to received models of development and distribution, and, further, that redistribution alone is insufficient in creating inclusive development if the patterns of structural change do not sufficiently involve people in the processes of growth, particularly through accessible and remunerative employment.

Using a nationally-representative dataset of adults 1830 years old in the United States, this study examined the relationship between hookah use and subjective well-being. Levels of sadness, happiness, tiredness, pain, and stress were compared between persons who have used hookah and those who have not. Data were merged from the Tobacco Use Supplement of the Current Population Survey, the American Time Use Survey, and the Subjective Well-being Supplement to the American Time Use Survey for the years 20102012 for persons 1830 years old (n = 1147). Wald tests were used to compare mean differences in subjective well-being between hookah users and non-users. Lastly, multivariable regression was used to determine whether there were significant differences in subjective well-being between hookah users and non-users, controlling for demographic factors, self-perceived health, and cigarette smoking. The lifetime prevalence rate of hookah use was 5.2% among 1830 year olds. Hookah users reported higher levels of stress and sadness than non-users. These relationships remained significant after controlling for demographic characteristics, self-perceived health, and cigarette use. The results were robust to the use of different statistical models, different age cut-offs, the inclusion of additional covariates (such as income and population density), and separate analyses by sex. Hookah use is an emerging public health issue associated with increased levels of stress and sadness. Similar to cigarette use, healthcare providers may consider expanding their screening tests to include hookah use. Public policy geared toward greater prevention and control of hookah use is also recommended.

This paper analyzes 24 African census samples from 13 countries available via the African Integrated Census MicroData website to illustrate how microdata may be used to assess development and pinpoint basic human needs at local administrative levels over time. We calculate a Human Development Index-like measure for small administrative areas, where much of the responsibility lies for executing policies related to health, education and general well-being. The methodological proposals introduced in this paper are particularly pertinent for the case of Africa. While it is true that data for much of Africa is not appropriate for economic growth rates or per-capita income estimates, the analysis in this paper demonstrates that they are good enough for many other purposes. Indeed, a major aggravating problem that contributes to the "African statistical tragedy" is the lack of accessibility to existing census microdata. This paper aims to illustrate the usefulness of census microdata-which are vastly under-utilized in Africa-and hopefully contribute to make them more transparent and freely accessible.

Owing to their colonial history and their historic integration with global markets, Indians have been migrating across the world for centuries. Today twenty million Indians live outside India (GOI 2000). They span the spectrum of class, profession, and history—ranging from construction workers in the Middle East and taxi drivers in New Jersey to bank managers in Latin America and information technology (IT) entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley. Given the magnitude and diversity of the Indian diaspora, it is surprising how litt le we know about their activities and their impact on the country of origin. This chapter, based on the Comparative Immigrant Organizations Project (CIOP), examines how Indian immigrants in the United States have infl uenced development in India. Development is defi ned broadly to include policies and practices that aim to improve well-being in the socioeconomic and political realms. Surveys have shown that nearly 95 percent of overseas Indians send money to their families or close friends to support education, health, or other personal concerns in the homeland (Sampradaan . . .

Efforts to evaluate the impact of programs designed to safeguard the well-being of older adults in the US are stymied by the absence of adequate tools to answer a key question: how much income is enough in later life? The purpose of this paper is to report on a new indicator of income adequacy designed to correct this measurement gap. The Elder Economic Security Standard Index (Elder Index) is a geographically specific measure of the cost of living independently for older adults aged 65 and over. This paper provides an overview of the development of the Elder Index, demonstrates the variability in Elder Index values both geographically and across different residential settings, and provides an illustration of how the Elder Index may be used in establishing differences in economic hardship across subgroups of older adults. The paper concludes with a discussion of the potential research and policy uses of this new measure.

This paper serves as the backdrop for this edited volume by paying attention to domestic migration flows into and out of Vermont, a state with such a small population base (barely above 625,000) that its vitality could be threatened by sustained levels of out-migration. The state's very low birth rate, a rapidly aging population, and low gains from international migration make the "growth or decline" balance from interstate migration a perennial issue of concern. The state's very recent net population outflows are modest and are typical of the Northeast. Vermont attracts an unusually vigorous stream of in-migrants, enough to give the state a relatively high proportion of residents who were born in other states, yet the stream of out-migrants has recently exceeded the stream of in-migrants. The educational levels of the transplants are well above that of most states and well above that of native born Vermonters who remain in the state. Data from five statewide surveys on quality of life in Vermont conducted by the authors provide unique insights into the perceived well-being of in-migrants and identify areas of distinctiveness compared to the native born population. Given the higher levels of education and income of the in-migrants, the authors were not surprised to find many quality of life differences between the two groups, but when controlling for demographic difference in a multivariate context, statistical differences between natives and the new migrants weakened or disappeared. Among the differences that remained, in-migrants have more confidence in the state government, are less worried about population growth in the state, are less likely to feel that they need to focus on themselves and their families, and are more likely to find life "exciting" rather than dull. New migrants also tend to be more environmentally sensitive, and with their higher incomes, are more willing to pay increased taxes to support their public priorities.

The effects of the 2008 financial crisis extend beyond just the economy. Economic contraction and increased unemployment for extended periods of time have been shown to affect both positively and negatively mental health and health behaviors. Joblessness increases time available to devote to healthy behaviors, however the financial uncertainty also increases stress-related health concerns. Using data from the 2006 and 2012 National Health and Interview Survey, this study examines the effects of the Great Recession on individuals physical health and psychological well-being. Understanding better how economic conditions influence health will allow the creation of public policy that benefits the population.

This study explores the question of structural change and inclusive development in South Africa and Brazil. Using Census data from the two countries, the analysis combines a household level multidimensional indicator of well-being with the applications of growth incidence curves and a sectoral decomposition of change to provide insight into the relationship between the place of households in the economy as reflected by employment sector and geographical location, and the extent to which the residents of those households are sharing in the benefits from growth. The results here suggest that current patterns are in some ways contradictory to received models of development and distribution, and, further, that redistribution alone is insufficient in creating inclusive development if the patterns of structural change do not sufficiently involve people in the processes of growth, particularly through accessible and remunerative employment.

Executive Summary Policies and programs aimed at increasing educational and economic opportunities typically target either low-income children or their mothers, but not both, which limits their impact in fostering intergenerational mobility. This insight undergirds the development and implementation of dual-generation strategies, which focus simultaneously on both children and mothers to foster long-term learning and economic success for low-income families. The results in this report highlight the need for dual-generation strategies, based on the first-ever analysis of 13 economic, education, and health indicators for children whose mothers have not graduated from high school, compared to children whose mothers have higher levels of education. The enormous disparities in well-being identified here point toward the value and need for comprehensive dual-generation strategies that offer high-quality PreK-3 rd education for children, effective job training for parents that leads directly to well-paid work, and additional public services-such as health, nutrition, food, and housing-which enable low-income families to overcome barriers to success. There already exist a wide range of policies and programs that could be coordinated and integrated to create dual-generation strategies. But a major step forward will require more flexible, integrated, and supportive federal, state, and local policy structures. One in every eight children in the U.S. (12 percent) lives with a mother who has not graduated from high school. These children experience especially large disparities compared to children whose mothers have a bachelor degree. Key findings include the following: Family Economic Resources Disparities separating children whose (1) mothers had not graduated from high school, compared to those whose (2) mothers had a bachelor degree were, respectively: • 53 vs. 4 percent for the official federal poverty rate • 84 vs. 13 percent for the low-income rate (that is, family income below twice the official federal poverty threshold) • $25,000 vs. $106,500 for median family income • 48 vs. 11 percent for the rate of not having a securely employed parent in the home (that is, not having a parent who works full-time year-around)

The indicators section of the 2014 World Family Map report provides information on 16 indicators of family well-being in four areas—family structure, family socioeconomics, family process, and family culture—across 49 countries, representing a majority of the world’s population. The indicators section is an update to the 2013 World Family Map report. With the exception of two parent-child communication indicators in the family culture section, we used the same indicators as the 2013 report. This report is updated with new data, as available, and includes an additional four countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

This study examines linkages between parental work arrangements and mothers subjective wellbeing, asking how mothers market work, the presence of a partner or spouse, and partners work patterns predict subjective well-being while caring for children. Further, it examines potential mediators of these linkages. In doing so, we contribute to the literature on parental employment and parenting by shedding light on contextual features that influence the moment-to-moment interactions between mothers and their children. We find that mothers long work hours are linked to more fatigue in time with children. Additionally, fathers non-employment and long work hours are associated with reductions in maternal well-being while parenting. Not having a partner was strongly associated with mothers subjective well-being in parenting; single mothers were consistently less happy and more sad and stressed in their time with children than were partnered mothers. Finally, looking at a broad range of activities with children, we find that the type of activity matters for subjective well-being in time with kids; playing and socializing are associated with improved well-being, while cleaning and market work are associated with reduced well-being. Most of the parenting activities we assessed, however, reveal the mixed bag of parentingit is meaningful but also stressful. These findings show the value of considering momentary assessments of well-being across a multidimensional set of indicators.

We show that psychological well-being in adulthood varies with circumstance in early life. Combining a time series of real producer prices of cocoa with a nationally representative household survey in Ghana, we find that a one standard deviation rise in the cocoa price in early life decreases the likelihood of severe mental distress in adulthood by 3 percentage points (half the mean prevalence) for cohorts born in cocoa-producing regions relative to those born in other regions. Impacts on related personality traits are consistent with this result. Maternal nutrition, reinforcing childhood investments, and adult circumstance are likely operative channels of impact.

To better evaluate the weight of economic versus cultural factors in determining individual attitudes toward open borders, this article reports on a survey experiment conducted over the course of the Great Recession. Over the course of the recession, we measured changes in attitudes on both immigration and trade policies, controlling for economic circumstance. Based on the data provided by respondents on both their current salaries as well as a subjective assessment of their economic well-being, we illustrate how both objective and subjective perceptions of the economy interact with cultural factors and influence attitudes on open borders. The panel provides a unique picture of the "stickness" of policy attitudes in hard economic times, and by extension, the level of commitment in the United States to globalization.

Abstract: The family is the core institution for child-rearing worldwide, and decades of research have shown that strong families promote positive child outcomes. For this reason the World Family Map Project monitors family well-being and investigates how family characteristics affect childrens healthy development around the globe. Families do not operate in a vacuum: their ability to provide for their children and supervise their development depends not only on parenting behaviors and attitudes but also on the social, economic, and policy environments that surround them. Yet efforts to strengthen families are often considered off-limits or of low priority for policy and programmatic interventions, especially in times of financial strain. With the indicators and analyses presented here, this project points individuals, families, communities, NGOs, and governments to some key factors affecting child and family well-being that policies and programs can shape in order to foster strong families and positive outcomes for children. The World Family Map Project monitors global changes in the areas of family structure, family socioeconomics, family processes, and family culture, focusing on 16 specific indicators selected by an expert group because of their known relationships to child outcomes in the research literature. Each annual report of the project provides the latest data on these indicators, as well as an original essay focusing on one aspect of the family and how it relates to child well-being in different parts of the world. In both the indicators and the essay, the highest quality data available are shared for countries that are representative of each region of the world. Scholars around the globe contribute to the project as advisors and analysts, stimulating a large community of researchers to improve data and research on families and children. The inaugural edition of the World Family Map provided indicators of family well-being worldwide and an essay focusing on family living arrangements and education outcomes. This second annual edition of the World Family Map, sponsored by Child Trends and a range of educational and nongovernmental institutions from across the globe, provides updated indicators and a new essay focusing on union stability and early childhood health in developing countries, as well as a brief analysis of psychological distress among 9- to 16-year-olds in the European Union.

Alice Hamilton, Grace Abbott, and Frederic C. Howe were members of a well-educated, white middle-class that burgeoned around the turn-of-the-century in the United States, and they embraced Progressivism and pacifism. In the flow of people, ideas, and culture that criss-crossed the North Atlantic, creating the intricate networks that formed an international consciousness, Hamilton, Abbott, and Howe were also deeply involved.In Chicago and Cleveland, however, their encounters with European culture were informed by shifting conventions of gender. At Hull-House in Chicago, Hamilton and Abbottobserved the social transformations induced by mass immigration, and were forced to admit their education was not directly relevant. Drawing upon pragmatism and feminism, they learned to emphasize the subjectivity of experience, to view culture as a cooperative balance of diverse values, and to conceive of identity and knowledge as products of social and historic circumstances rather than innate racial or ethnic categories. By using these principles, they came to perceive American and European domestic spaces as two parts of an inclusive community.In Cleveland, corruption and chaotic growth convinced Howe that reform must be initiated by public-spirited men who privileged collective well-being, were familiar withcivilized European cities, and experimented with reform. Mayor Tom L. Johnson, who tried to reclaim local democracy with tent meetings, three cent fares, public (municipal) ownership of key utilities, amongst other reforms, commissioned architect Daniel H. Burnham to develop theGroup Plan (1903), which drew heavily upon Beaux-Arts traditions, before rebuilding downtown. Inspired, Howe returned to Europe to study male civic leadership. The purpose of an international community, as he perceived it, was the unlimited exchange of information between public-spirited men.Internationalism was therefore gendered. This dissertation argues this happened within American cities where Hamilton, Abbott, and Howe had novel experiences and encounteredEuropean people, ideas, and architectural traditions as they were integrated within Chicago and Cleveland during an intense period of trans-Atlantic sharing. By using collective biography to examine the effects of domesticgendered experience on perceptions of internationalism, thisdissertation reveals how local and global traditions converged in ways that altered definitions of power, culture, and community at local, national, and international levels.

By capturing the actual costs associated with meeting basic needs, a new tool can measure the economic security of grandparents raising grandchildren. In 2011, 7 million U.S. grandparent heads of households had a grandchild living with them. Approximately 3 million had primary responsibility for meeting their grandchildren's basic needs. In New England alone, 237,000 grandparents had grandchildren living with them, and 77,000 were the primary caregivers.[1] But grandparents over 65 often face financial challenges supporting an additional dependent on a retirement income without financial help from the child's parents. Financial hardships can have an impact on the emotional, mental, and physical well-being of both grandparent and grandchildren.[2] Nationally, more than one in four grandparent caregivers lives in overcrowded conditions, more than one in six pays over half their income in rent, and 60 percent who qualify for rent subsidies do not receive any.[3] As for the grandchildren, although 48 percent of those living with grandparents experience some food insecurity, only about 43 percent receive food stamps.

Globally, the twenty-fi rst century has witnessed tremendous progress in the application of demographic methods to the study of labor force dynamics. Changes in population structure have also led to changes in labor force trends, sizes, and compositions both in the African continent and in the other regions of the world. Ruzicka (1973) wrote that the growth in the labor force sizes, together with changes in labor force age-sex structure, is closely linked with the demographic characteristics of population in any country. Changing dynamics and patterns of labor force participation in Africa, including changing demographic structures, are a source of concern for the present and future sizes and structures of the labor force in the continent. Population characteristics such as age structure, age-sex composition, population’s socioeconomic characteristics-educational attainments, population well-being, nutritional status, and so on-have enormous infl uence on labor force sizes, structures, and levels. Other important issues, such as changes relating to transition to prime age, quantum and proportion, female labor force, women as primary breadwinners, underage labor, elderly labor, and disruptions to prime ages (because of HIV/AIDS and migration), have great implications for the labor force sizes and structures.

The negative outcomes of the Great Recession have been multifaceted, affecting many areas of family economic well-being. The U.S. economy lost 8.7 million jobs between December 2007 and January 2010. Although the recession officially ended in June 2009, the national unemployment rate remains approximately 1.5 percentage points higher than the pre-recession rate, even though the total number of of jobs lost during the recession has been recovered. Similarly, long-term unemployment is prevalent, with length of unemployment averaging 37.1 weeks. Furthermore, involuntary part-time work increased during the recession and has remained relatively constant. These statistics translate into continued hardship for many Americans, exemplified in the decline in median household income since the onset of the Great Recession.

No therapies are known to substantially alter the course of dementia and associated treatment costs. However, enhanced support services for caregivers of people with dementia have been shown to improve caregivers’ capabilities and well-being and delay patients’ institutionalization. Using a model that simulated disease progression, place of residence, and direct costs of care, we estimated the potential savings to Minnesota from offering the New York University Caregiver Intervention, a program of enhanced support services for spouse and adult child caregivers of community-dwelling people with dementia, to all eligible people in the state from 2010 to 2025. Results indicate that approximately 5 percent more people with dementia would remain in the community from year 3 (2013) on and that 19.3 percent fewer people with dementia would die in institutions over fifteen years. During those years Minnesota could save $996 million in direct care costs (with a range of nearly $100 million to $2.64 billion under worst- and best-case scenarios, respectively). These findings suggest that broader access to enhanced caregiver supports could produce a positive return on investment or be cost-effective—assuming widespread implementation, reasonable program costs, and substantial caregiver participation.