107159 research outputs found
Sort by
Dos ciclos de reproducción de la desigualdad en América Latina
No full textBasándose en las investigaciones de la Latin American and Caribbean Inequality Review (LACIR), Valentina Contreras y Francisco H. G. Ferreira presentan cuatro factores clave que definen la naturaleza única de la desigualdad en América Latina y discuten dos “ciclos” que, en conjunto, contribuyen a la reproducción continua de estas disparidades a lo largo del tiempo
The relationship between neighbourhood deprivation and mortality in a sepsis cohort in England: a retrospective observational study
No full textBackground: Worse health outcomes have been described for patients with sepsis from more deprived neighborhoods, but it is unclear if this disparity gap has narrowed. Moreover, the mechanisms by which neighborhood disadvantage influences sepsis outcomes are not understood fully. Research Question: What is the trajectory of mortality among patients with sepsis in England across varying levels of neighborhood deprivation, and to what extent do patterns of ICU admission and treatment explain observed differences? Study Design and Methods: This retrospective observational study using multivariable logistic regression included 519,789 patients older than 16 years admitted to the ICU with sepsis between April 1, 2009, and December 31, 2023, from 304 ICUs of 207 acute hospitals in England. The primary outcome was hospital mortality. The secondary outcomes were direct ICU admission from the emergency department; use of mechanical ventilation, renal replacement therapy, and vasopressor therapy; and decisions to limit life-sustaining therapy. Results: Mortality improved across all groups of neighborhood deprivation from the baseline period from 2009 through 2011, and was 4.5% lower from 2022 through 2023 in the most deprived and 4.4% lower in the least deprived quartile, with no significant narrowing of the disparity gap over time (P = .833). Direct ICU admission from the emergency department was similar for patients across groups of neighborhood deprivation at baseline and increased similarly over time with no significant between-group difference. The gap in mechanical ventilation, renal placement therapy, and vasopressor use narrowed over time. Mortality trends were driven primarily by within-hospital improvements in care, and only a minor component was attributable to shift of patients from lower-quality to higher-quality hospitals. Interpretation: Although sepsis mortality has improved across England, a persistent disparity associated with neighborhood deprivation exists. Further investigation is required to evaluate other potential contributory factors to help understand better how living in deprived areas contributes to the mortality gap
What 73 influencers want to change and what we’re changing in response
No full textThe 7th cohort of influencers have recently completed the LSE’s Advocacy, Campaigning and Grassroots Activism MA module. Course convenors, Tom Kirk overviews what he and Duncan Green learnt from them and how it will change the way they work with activists and organisations going forward
The cousin marriage tradition, colonial shocks, and the performance of informal firms in sub-Saharan Africa
No full textResearch Summary: The paper explores how the deep historical roots of informal institutions influence current informal businesses. It proposes that both pre‐colonial institutions—the tradition of cousin marriage—and the subsequent shocks of colonization still impact the performance of informal firms. We theorize on how the effects of historical family systems are moderated by the traumatic and spatially heterogeneous shocks of colonialism, in particular the cultural values of the colonizers (individualism) and their religious (missionary) activities. Our hypotheses are tested by regression analysis based on surveys of informal businesses in multiple regions of eight African countries. We find that the cousin marriage tradition is negatively associated with the performance of current informal businesses though this relationship is attenuated in places where colonizers were more individualistic. Managerial Summary: This paper explores how the pre‐colonial family institutions—the tradition of cousin marriage—and the subsequent shocks of colonization jointly impact the performance of contemporary informal firms in sub‐Saharan Africa. We propose that the historical tradition of cousin marriage has persistent and negative effects on the revenue and labor productivity of contemporary informal businesses. This is because informal entrepreneurs in ethnic areas with the cousin marriage tradition may prioritize social obligations over economic incentives. However, these relationships are attenuated in ethnic areas colonized by European countries with more individualistic cultural values. Our findings highlight the importance for business owners and managers to understand the deep historical roots of the social norms of the communities and groups with which they interact
When the rain comes, don’t stay at home! Regional innovation and FDI in the aftermath of the Great Recession
No full textGlobal connectivity is necessary for innovation to thrive. However, in response to external shocks, economies reduce external exposure and focus resources on internal markets. This closure is in contrast to the need for innovative solutions for recovery. We explore this paradox by looking at regional innovation in the United States in the aftermath of the Great Recession. We compare foreign direct investment (FDI) with similar domestic, inter-state investment to assess whether a ‘local innovation premium’ is associated with global connectivity vis-à-vis domestic linkages. We show that what matters for post-crisis innovation is active internationalisation through outward FDI and congruence in technological capabilities between connected territories
Threat-agnostic resilience: framing and applications
No full textCritical infrastructure is not indestructible. Interdependencies between infrastructure systems and the environment compound consequences at vulnerable locations but can be harnessed to maximize operational efficiency, recovery capability, and long-term sustainability. Threats, both emergent and systemic, have propagated beyond historical norms, exposing the limitations of hazard-specific resilience approaches. These approaches, by their nature, rely on predefined scenarios that fail to capture the full complexity of cascading failures, novel threat combinations, and the dynamic evolution of risks over time, especially in the cases where environment is affected. This leaves critical gaps in planning, response, and recovery, as systems designed around specific hazards are often unable to adapt to disruptions that fall outside their narrowly defined parameters, resulting in unanticipated vulnerabilities and slower recovery trajectories. We propose a paradigm shift toward threat-agnostic resilience, emphasizing adaptability to unforeseen hazards through modularity, distributedness, diversity, and plasticity. These principles foster system-wide robustness by enabling critical functions to persist despite unpredictable challenges. This framework also accounts for the interdependencies between resilience strategies and environmental outcomes, ensuring that adaptability to unforeseen hazards is balanced with sustainability goals. Resilience characteristics, such as modular design and distributed systems, shape patterns of resource use, energy efficiency, and ecological impacts across systems. By identifying methods to assess and optimize these trade-offs, we provide actionable insights for designing infrastructure that simultaneously enhances resilience and minimizes environmental burdens. Challenges exist in developing methodological foundations for these principles within practical applications to prevent sunk cost and over-constraining operational procedures
Synthesis of evaluation studies of media literacy and digital skills interventions
No full textThis report details the REMEDIS findings for Media Literacy and Digital Skills (ML&DS) interventions, where before and after measures were available. In general, the interventions increased participants’ digital literacy and internet use. However, the impact of interventions on increased benefits of use (i.e. outcomes) was not as clear.1 Most interventions reported significant changes in digital literacy levels. Improvements were greater when participants reported higher digital literacy levels before the intervention. However, digital literacy improvements were not consistently related to breadth of or the outcomes achieved from ICT use before the intervention. All interventions showed significant changes in ICT use post-intervention, mostly these were increases. Larger increases in ICT use post-intervention were related to higher digital literacy levels. Increases tended to be smaller for interventions where participants used ICTs more broadly before the intervention, suggesting ceiling effects. There was substantially less evidence that ML&DS interventions increased beneficial outcomes of ICT use. In most evaluations, interventions had no (short-term) impact on the benefits participants achieved from ICT use. Also, digital literacy levels and ICT use preintervention did not appear to be related to whether a person received more satisfactory outcomes post-intervention. In comparison to those with better ICT access, those with lower quality access to ICT were more likely to improve their digital literacy skills and broaden their ICT use, but were not more likely to improve the outcomes achieved from ICT use. Two main conclusions can be drawn about who benefits most from interventions: 1) Improvements in digital literacy, uses and outcomes were more consistent for interventions aimed at participants with more socio-economic resources. 2) Interventions aimed at educators or carers were the ones that reported improvements in outcomes, interventions with vulnerable groups as beneficiaries showed fewer improvements in outcomes
(My) life in a community of friends
No full textTaking up Jacques Derrida’s conception of all people’s singularity and working through Bernard Williams’s approach to the idea of all people’s equality, the essay explores a significant changeover underway in our understanding of democracy. Two aspects of this changeover are highlighted. The first concerns a shift from a distinctively modern conception of democracy as having an ideal telos to a variation in which democracy is conceived without a telos at all. The second concerns a shift from a distinctively modern conception of democratic citizenship that affirms the likeness of each citizen to a variation that, paradoxically, stresses unlikeness. These shifts are not conceived as simple departures from previous conceptions of democratic politics but as belonging to a faithful recollection of the very experience that calls for democratic politics in the first place: the experience of the friend. Attempting to develop a compelling conception of life in a community of friends that can do justice to both the singularity of each and the equality of all, the essay explores an outlook on democratic politics that promises a future for democracy beyond its increasingly exhausted modern condition
Colonial armies and the World Wars
No full textThis chapter offers a comparative view of the development of colonial armed forces in Asia and Africa, their contributions to World War I and World War II, and the impact of the wars on colonial societies and economies. As the chapter shows, it is impossible to tell one story about either the structure of colonial armed forces or their role in global conflict. In both regions, colonial armies were shaped by local economic and political dynamics during the relevant period of imperial expansion. The chapter brings together literatures from military and economic history that do not frequently speak to each other, illustrating the importance of the broader challenges of imperial finances to the structure and impact of colonial armies. It concludes by considering the role of these interactions in the process of decolonization