Land, Ageing, Gender and Environment: Problems and Challenges from Different Disciplines

A special issue of Land (ISSN 2073-445X). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Contexts and Urban-Rural Interactions".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2022) | Viewed by 48192

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Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Institute of Bioengineering, Miguel Hernandez University, 03202 Elche, Spain
Interests: ageing and old age; gender; land; rural development; emerging technologies; climate change and emissions; health; social psychology and sociology
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Guest Editor
University Institute on Gender Studies and Department of Social Analysis, University Carlos III of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Interests: ageing and old age; land/environment; gender and feminism; habitat/rural spaces; evaluation of programmes; caring/work; climate/social change; health; technologies; social psychology and sociology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Biomedical Neuroengineering Research Group, Miguel Hernández University and CIBER BBN, 03202 Elche, ‎Spain
Interests: health in land; emerging technologies and interfaces related to rural development and land; ageing and old age in land; biomedical engineering; bioengineering and neuroscience
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Guest Editor
University Institute on Gender Studies, University Carlos III of Madrid and University Complutense of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Interests: ageing and old age; gender; evaluation of programmes; labour relations; employment in land; sociology

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Guest Editor
Department of Applied Economics, Autonomous University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Interests: environment and emissions; applied economics and public policies in land; circular economy; advanced statistics; business cycles in land; convergence and sustainability
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Guest Editor
Building Engineering Department, Basque Country University, Basque, Spain
Interests: environment and emisssions; circular economy; construction and building in land; forest certification; sustainability and climate change
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Recent studies argue that we are facing a silent and not so novel socio-environmental crisis. This proposal is based on the evidence and confirms the need to continue the evaluation and research in several key aspects of land, from different approaches and disciplines. I.e. there are some references linked to land and gender, but there are fewer researches about older people and green societies. Therefore, the main aim of this Special Issue - in the context of some Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - is to bring together researchers from different fields and open a dialogue regarding some gaps of the land, including ageing and gender relationships. The current Special Issue is open to submission of previously unpublished work on all aspects of the land, focused on the following:

  • Land and environment from sociological, health, psychological, political, technological, economic, communication and engineering sciences.
  • Active ageing and dependent old age, i.e. studies on older people role in relation to environment, accessibility and usability, social image and attitudes, with special reference to older women.
  • Gender studies regarding environmental issues, land; green economy impacts and different social-spatial habitats (rural-intermediate-urban and residential environment) which favor inclusion, and reflect from feminist and non-ageism perspective.
  • Differences or comparison of population, i.e. related to gender, feminisms (ecofeminism, etc.) and intergenerational approach, among others.
  • Evaluation of programs and initiatives at different levels (education, health, climate change and social climate action, technology, work, leisure, circular economy…), whose purpose is related with reducing ageism and the gap between the land and older people and/or to promote sustainable development and public policies.
  • Socio-health addressing land interactions and impacts on health (physical and psychosocial), circular economy and quality of life, from generational, gender perspective and/or in the current context of COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Images, stereotypes and attitudes from the different socio-political agents – population, education, employment, mass media, etc. – around any mentioned area, mainly the relationship between environment, land, ageing and gender.
  • New technologies and technological and economic approaches contribute to land, reduction of emissions/water consumption and the improvement of environmental management, sustainable construction and buildings, among others. This includes emerging technologies such as agriculture machinery, use of robots, vertical farming, culture meat, artificial brain and intelligence applied to land.

Dr. Vanessa Zorrilla-Muñoz
Prof. Dr. Maria Silveria Agulló-Tomás
Prof. Dr. Eduardo Fernandez
Dr. Blanca Criado Quesada
Prof. Dr. Sonia de Lucas Santos
Prof. Dr. Jesus Cuadrado Rojo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Land is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • land/environment/ecology
  • ageing/ageism/older people
  • gender/eco/feminisms
  • evaluation of programmes
  • health, social services and education
  • economic and public policies
  • work/employment and leisure/tourism
  • images/stereotypes
  • rural-urban spaces/frames
  • social and technical sciences
  • pandemic, psico-social crisis and climate change

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (16 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 14793 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Older People Digital Images: Representations from a Land, Gender and Anti-ageist Perspective
by Georgiana Livia Cruceanu, Susana Clemente-Belmonte, Rocío Herrero-Sanz, Alba Ayala, Vanessa Zorrilla-Muñoz, María Silveria Agulló-Tomás, Catalina Martínez-Miguelez and Gloria Fernández-Mayoralas
Land 2023, 12(1), 18; https://doi.org/10.3390/land12010018 - 21 Dec 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2326
Abstract
There are numerous sociological and psychosocial studies, both classic and current, that have analysed the images and representations of older people and aging. If gender, intersectional and land perspectives are added, the literature consulted is only a few years old, particularly in Spanish. [...] Read more.
There are numerous sociological and psychosocial studies, both classic and current, that have analysed the images and representations of older people and aging. If gender, intersectional and land perspectives are added, the literature consulted is only a few years old, particularly in Spanish. In addition, research based on fieldwork from virtual image banks is still scarce and recent. The objective of this paper is to evaluate the images from some free access image banks (like Freepik, Canva, Pixabay, or Storyblocks) of older people from a gender, intersectional and socio-spatial and land perspective. Methods: 150 images have been analysed following different selected criteria: 22 variables related to gender, activity, socio-spatial environment, natural space and land, among others, briefly describe the main methods or treatments applied. The key results show a stereotyped and barely diverse image of old age and aging around positive representations, with a notable absence of images related to loneliness as opposed to the presence of social relationships. A feminization has also been observed in the representations, with an imbalance in the activities that are carried out (care in the case of women and leisure in the case of men) and in the visible space (indoor among women and outdoor among men). Older people are still identified with a rural, traditional, and more defined territory and not with more diverse and ecological spaces, which are more frequently attributed to younger profiles. This evaluation contributes to linking this necessary connection of current issues and challenges to ageism, sexism and other exclusions derived from territory and socio-spatial aspects. However, more research is still needed, and, in fact, a second phase of the fieldwork is underway to broaden the sample and to expand further evaluations of images. Full article
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23 pages, 3903 KiB  
Article
Aging Industries in the Regional Economy: How to Support an Aging China?
by Fan Xu, Yongming Huang and Qiang Wang
Land 2022, 11(11), 2096; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11112096 - 20 Nov 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2270
Abstract
This study investigates the law, distribution characteristics, and changing trend of the coordinated development of China’s aging industry and regional economy, as well as the factors which influence the degree of coordination between the aging industry and economic development on the provincial level. [...] Read more.
This study investigates the law, distribution characteristics, and changing trend of the coordinated development of China’s aging industry and regional economy, as well as the factors which influence the degree of coordination between the aging industry and economic development on the provincial level. In doing so, we construct a comprehensive evaluation index system of the aging industry and regional economy development, introduce an entropy weight coupling model, and measure the coupling and coordinated development level of the two systems using data of 31 selected Chinese provinces (municipalities) from 2009 to 2019. The spatial Dubin model is then used to empirically analyze the influencing factors and spatial effect decomposition of the coordinated development of the aging industry and regional economy. We reach the following main results: (1) China’s aging industry is developing unevenly, with substantial regional differences, but these differences have narrowed in recent years. (2) China’s regional economic disparities have widened. The eastern regions have the highest level of development, while the northeast region’s growth rate of GDP has declined since 2014. (3) The coordinated development of the aging industry and regional economy in one region of China has a positive impact on its neighboring regions, and all Chinese regions exhibits high–high, low–low agglomeration characteristics in terms of their degree of coordination. (4) A variety of socioeconomic and demographic factors affect the coordinated development of the aging industry and regional economy. An important implication of these findings is that, China should improve population structure, population quality, and economic development quality in order to achieve a high-level coordinated development of the aging industry and regional economy. Full article
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23 pages, 893 KiB  
Article
Sustainability through STEM and STEAM Education Creating Links with the Land for the Improvement of the Rural World
by Elisa Gavari-Starkie, Patricia-Teresa Espinosa-Gutiérrez and Cristina Lucini-Baquero
Land 2022, 11(10), 1869; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11101869 - 21 Oct 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4720
Abstract
Rural environment is suffering from serious problems, as reflected in the term “Empty Spain”. One of these problems is the pronounced depopulation that rural areas suffer in our time, so creating links with the land thanks to education is of great interest for, [...] Read more.
Rural environment is suffering from serious problems, as reflected in the term “Empty Spain”. One of these problems is the pronounced depopulation that rural areas suffer in our time, so creating links with the land thanks to education is of great interest for, among other things, establishing population in rural areas. Interdisciplinary education becomes relevant today as the necessary education in our current world capable of providing answers and solutions to the social demands of our time. Interdisciplinary STEM education had the United States of America as its cradle in the 1990s; later it passed to the acronym STEAM when the Arts were later introduced, this is how you find a true interdisciplinary education. Since 2010, government policies have been developed in the USA, highlighting the Educate to Innovate program and in that same country the STEM4SD Education program, which develops education for sustainability by creating links with the local population. Precisely, this article will collect the educational policies that have been carried out in the USA for the development of this type of education. In this article and thanks to the analysis of certain programs, the importance of interdisciplinary STEM and STEAM education in our days will be exposed for the promotion of sustainability directed towards sustainable development, thereby creating more sustainable societies made up of more sustainable citizens, highlighting the importance of education for sustainability through STEM and STEAM education creating links with the land for the improvement of the rural world, which means establishing population, among other aspects. Full article
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11 pages, 279 KiB  
Article
Design and Application of a Citizen Participation Tool to Improve Public Management of Drought Situations
by Juan Francisco Casero-Cepeda, Dani Catalá-Pérez and Antonio Cano-Orellana
Land 2022, 11(10), 1802; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11101802 - 14 Oct 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1751
Abstract
The growing scarcity of water for human consumption in southern Europe is driving today’s public administrations to search for new ways of optimising its availability. Within this context, the purpose of this paper is to analyse whether citizen participation is an appropriate way [...] Read more.
The growing scarcity of water for human consumption in southern Europe is driving today’s public administrations to search for new ways of optimising its availability. Within this context, the purpose of this paper is to analyse whether citizen participation is an appropriate way of improving the management of available water, as several international organisations suggest. This study is part of a research project carried out by the University of Seville in Spain on behalf of the city of Seville’s metropolitan water supply company, hereinafter EMASESA. A qualitative method is applied in this research using pre-mortem testing techniques, enabling a specific participation tool to be designed, called the EMASESA Water Observatory, which this article describes in detail. The tool produced specific measures aimed at better addressing drought situations. In view of the practical application of this newly designed tool, we conclude that citizen participation is indeed useful in identifying solutions to improve public water policies and drought management. It is also concluded that the tool’s design calling for active participation is a positive factor in its application. Finally, the tool has also demonstrated that it generates knowledge that can be used to address other water-related issues and challenges, beyond those related to water availability. Full article
19 pages, 8844 KiB  
Article
Real-Time Environmental Monitoring Platform for Wellness and Preventive Care in a Smart and Sustainable City with an Urban Landscape Perspective: The Case of Developing Countries
by Victor Gonzalez, Manuel Peralta, Juan Faxas-Guzmán and Yokasta García Frómeta
Land 2022, 11(10), 1635; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11101635 - 23 Sep 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3083
Abstract
Smart and sustainable communities seek to ensure comfortable and sustainable quality of life for community residents, the environment and the landscape. Pollution is a key factor affecting quality of life within a community. This research provides a detailed insight into a successfully developed [...] Read more.
Smart and sustainable communities seek to ensure comfortable and sustainable quality of life for community residents, the environment and the landscape. Pollution is a key factor affecting quality of life within a community. This research provides a detailed insight into a successfully developed and deployed framework for an environmental monitoring platform for an urban study to monitor, in real time, the air quality and noise level of two cities of the Dominican Republic—Santo Domingo and Santiago de Los Caballeros. This urban platform is based on a technology range, allowing for the integration of multiple environmental variables related to landscape and providing open data access to urban study and the community. Two case studies are presented: The first highlights how the platform can be used to understand the impact a natural event, for example, how dust landscapes (such as the Sahara) impact a community and the actions that can be taken for wellness and preventive care. The second case focuses on understanding how policies taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 affect the air quality and noise level of the landscape and community. In the second case, the platform can be used to expand the view of decision makers in the urban landscape and communities that are affected. Full article
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19 pages, 1016 KiB  
Article
Urban Ageing, Gender and the Value of the Local Environment: The Experience of Older Women in a Central Neighbourhood of Madrid, Spain
by M. Victoria Gómez and Irene Lebrusán
Land 2022, 11(9), 1456; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11091456 - 1 Sep 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2452
Abstract
Urban ageing is an emerging domain that mixes two challenges of current societies: the ageing of the population and the increasing urbanisation. While ageing in place has demonstrated numerous benefits, some social sectors question whether the city is the right environment for ageing, [...] Read more.
Urban ageing is an emerging domain that mixes two challenges of current societies: the ageing of the population and the increasing urbanisation. While ageing in place has demonstrated numerous benefits, some social sectors question whether the city is the right environment for ageing, since cities are home to many of the social problems that characterise contemporary societies. Urban environments are widely described as rootless in most academic articles, with a focus on the impersonality, transience, and segmentation of links between city dwellers. However, this portrayal coexists with contrasting views of urban life that instead emphasise the importance of the local setting and other experiences of attachment to the place of residence. From the age and gender perspectives, in some urban areas, the neighbourhood plays a fundamental role in the lives of many older women, as a natural setting for interaction and an area conducive to collaborative relationships and practical and emotional support in times of need. This article analyses the role that the local space plays in the lives of older women, the value they attach to it and the meaning they attribute to neighbourhood relations in the local urban environment. In order to analyse this reality, the Universidad (Malasaña) neighbourhood, has been selected as a case study, a central area in Madrid (Spain) exposed to numerous processes of transformation, which shows the highest rate of residential mobility in the area. Despite this reality, in a context marked by new difficulties, the conclusion shows that elderly women have a strong attachment to their neighbourhood. This attachment is not necessarily characterised by deep friendships, but by the existence of a significant social network that responds in case of need. Full article
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22 pages, 326 KiB  
Article
Reconstructing the Social Image of Older Women and Ageing: The Transformative Power of the Narrative Set in the Local Context
by Paquita Sanvicen-Torné, Ieva Stončikaitė, Anna Soldevila-Benet and Fidel Molina-Luque
Land 2022, 11(7), 1057; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11071057 - 12 Jul 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1986
Abstract
This case study reveals that age-related areas are the least desirable professional future options for many university students in social work degree programmes. One of the possible causes is the negative social labelling of older age, especially pronounced in respect of older women. [...] Read more.
This case study reveals that age-related areas are the least desirable professional future options for many university students in social work degree programmes. One of the possible causes is the negative social labelling of older age, especially pronounced in respect of older women. Additionally, there is a poor and limited educational approach towards later life and growing older inside and outside the educational settings. This article focuses on the social construction of older age from gender and double theoretical perspectives. In particular, it centers on the pillars of education and profiguration. For educational and analytical purposes, these aspects are approached in the classroom setting from a critical perspective by using the in-depth reading of a book that is set in the local context, in particular, the city of Lleida (Spain). It presents the results of the content analysis and reflections written by 170 first-year university students taking a degree course in social work, and the outcomes of the subsequent classroom discussions with the author of the book. The study results show that better knowledge about the complexities of ageing and later life can lead to the reconstruction of the students’ viewpoints about older age, help foster critical thinking, and defy age-related stereotypes, beliefs, and prejudices. Full article
38 pages, 2194 KiB  
Article
The Digitization of Seniors: Analyzing the Multiple Confluence of Social and Spatial Divides
by Millán Arroyo-Menéndez, Noelia Gutiérrez-Láiz and Blanca Criado-Quesada
Land 2022, 11(6), 953; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11060953 - 20 Jun 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3267
Abstract
The lower digitization among seniors must be understood in the context of the coming together of multiple digital divides. In addition to the obvious generation divide (age is one of the factors most determining digital uses), others also have an influence, such as [...] Read more.
The lower digitization among seniors must be understood in the context of the coming together of multiple digital divides. In addition to the obvious generation divide (age is one of the factors most determining digital uses), others also have an influence, such as a lower education or income level, which is characteristic of this group and also strongly correlated with lower use of new technologies. We also find gender differences in the digital uses of seniors (more pronounced than in the population as a whole) and a significant geospatial inequality in several variables. The latter is important due to both the rapid aging of the rural population, greater than that seen in the urban population, and the fact that the geographical areas with a lower income level, where the aging population tends to be concentrated to a greater extent, are also the areas where digitization reaches the least, in terms of both infrastructures and uses. This article addresses the multiconfluence of the aforementioned “digital divides in older people” (or “seniors”), trying to determine the effects and degree of importance of each, identify the main groups at risk of digital exclusion, and to characterize the technological uses of seniors and their main segments. To do this, we have used the microdata from the “Survey on Equipment and Use of Information and Communication Technologies in homes”, produced by the Spanish Statistical Office (INE) for the year 2020. Full article
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17 pages, 908 KiB  
Article
A System of Indicators for Socio-Economic Evaluation and Monitoring of Global Change: An Approach Based on the Picos de Europa National Park
by Iván López, Rodrigo Suarez and Mercedes Pardo
Land 2022, 11(5), 741; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11050741 - 16 May 2022
Viewed by 2280
Abstract
National Parks are spaces that are of great interest for evaluating and monitoring global environmental change as these parks encompass natural, cultural, and rural features, along with ecological processes, which are subject to social or economic changes that are much more difficult to [...] Read more.
National Parks are spaces that are of great interest for evaluating and monitoring global environmental change as these parks encompass natural, cultural, and rural features, along with ecological processes, which are subject to social or economic changes that are much more difficult to track outside of these spaces. To do this, it is necessary to have a sufficient set of data and indicators to monitor the effects of global change in the short, mid, and long term. The majority of indicators have been developed to monitor the bio-geophysical environment; socio-economic indicators of global change for National Parks are much more limited. The aim of this paper is to present a system of indicators for socio-economic evaluation and monitoring of global change for the Picos de Europa National Park. This park has two unique features: it has one of the two systems of socio-economic indicators developed for the Spanish National Parks, and it is practically the only one of Spain’s 16 National Parks with human populations living within its boundaries. Many of the indicators specifically developed for this park can be used for other national parks that have similar characteristics. Full article
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13 pages, 330 KiB  
Article
Ageing Perception as a Key Predictor of Self-Rated Health by Rural Older People—A Study with Gender and Inclusive Perspectives
by Vanessa Zorrilla-Muñoz, María Silveria Agulló-Tomás, Carmen Rodríguez-Blázquez, Alba Ayala, Gloria Fernandez-Mayoralas and Maria João Forjaz
Land 2022, 11(3), 323; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11030323 - 23 Feb 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2740
Abstract
This paper investigates positive perceptions of ageing in rural people aged 65 and over as a key predictor of the self-assessment of one’s health. Method: The sample covers a total of 3389 people from the ‘Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement’ (SHARE), wave [...] Read more.
This paper investigates positive perceptions of ageing in rural people aged 65 and over as a key predictor of the self-assessment of one’s health. Method: The sample covers a total of 3389 people from the ‘Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement’ (SHARE), wave 6 (W6, 2015). This research analyses men and women who live in a rural environment. A linear regression model is proposed to consider the dependent variable ‘self-rated health’ and independent variables based on measures of quality of life in older adults. This study confirms that rural women perceive their health on the basis of factors different to those of their male contemporaries. The variable ‘How often do you feel/think that you can do the things that you want to do?’ is associated with women’s self-perceived health. In men, a high relationship (with p < 0.001) is obtained for the variables ‘How often do you feel/think look back on your life with a sense of happiness?’ and ‘How often do you feel/think that family responsibilities prevent you from doing what you want to do?’ Certain daily activities (e.g., leisure or care), along with a positive perception of life, influence one’s perceptions of one’s own health, especially in the case of women. In sum, rural older women make a positive evaluation of their own health and ageing, while rural older men relate self-rated health to passivity and reminiscing. There is a need for further research on psycho-social and socio-spatial issues from an intergenerational, technological and gender perspective for rural and territorial influences to attain better health and quality of life for rural older people in comparison to urban people. Full article
11 pages, 304 KiB  
Article
The Revised Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist for Nursing Homes: Validation among Different Spanish Territories
by Cristina Velasco, Javier López, Gema Pérez-Rojo, Cristina Noriega and José Ángel Martínez-Huertas
Land 2022, 11(2), 251; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11020251 - 8 Feb 2022
Viewed by 2019
Abstract
Memory and behavioral difficulties among older people living in nursing homes can cause burden and other consequences in professional caregivers. There is a lack of instruments that evaluate these behaviors and their influence in formal caregivers. The aim of this study is to [...] Read more.
Memory and behavioral difficulties among older people living in nursing homes can cause burden and other consequences in professional caregivers. There is a lack of instruments that evaluate these behaviors and their influence in formal caregivers. The aim of this study is to develop and psychometrically test—the Revised Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist for Nursing Homes (RMBPC-NH). A cross-sectional study was carried out. The sample was made up of 312 formal caregivers working in nursing homes from different territories in Spain, 87.5% were women and 12.5% were men. The average age of participants was 39 years (SD = 12.2). The sample was recruited from January 2019 to March 2020. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire, which included sociodemographic information, and assessed quality of technical equipment, level of training, experience of working with older people, job satisfaction, professional quality of life, burnout, and conception of negative stereotypes held towards aging. The four-factor structure of the RMBPC-NH showed a good fit, namely in relation to memory, functional, and emotional factors, and other problems. It has shown adequate psychometric properties, internal consistency, and validity (correlations with professional quality of life, job satisfaction, burnout, and negative stereotypes). The RMBPC-NH is a useful instrument to evaluate the frequency of older people’s memory and behavior problems and professional caregivers’ burden. The practical application in nursing homes is discussed. Full article
18 pages, 740 KiB  
Article
Anti-Ageism Social Actions: Lights and Shadows
by Macarena Sánchez-Izquierdo, Rodrigo García-Sánchez and Rocío Fernández-Ballesteros
Land 2022, 11(2), 195; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11020195 - 26 Jan 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4051
Abstract
Ageism refers to the stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination towards others or oneself due to age, and it is the most prevalent type of social disadvantage, even more so than those due to gender and race, with negative effects worldwide. Ageism is an evidently [...] Read more.
Ageism refers to the stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination towards others or oneself due to age, and it is the most prevalent type of social disadvantage, even more so than those due to gender and race, with negative effects worldwide. Ageism is an evidently real social problem that needs to be addressed and fought. Our study has two main objectives: firstly, to study to what extent programmes, projects or actions have been developed to combat ageism around the world; and secondly, to what extent they have been evaluated via the positive outcomes registered by the participants. Two different information sources were used: (a) a literature review of ageism programmes or interventions; and (b) an online questionnaire sent to international and national institutions surveying their policies or programmes against ageism. Our results show a relatively high number of actions combating ageism but a lack of a systematic evaluation of the outcomes of those actions. In conclusion, first, it is necessary to develop programmes and actions combating ageism, and the evaluation of these programmes is urgently needed in order to identify strategies that truly and effectively tackle ageism. There is a need to urge institutions to perform external evaluations of their anti-ageism social policies and to encourage scientists to conduct randomized and controlled studies. Full article
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18 pages, 919 KiB  
Article
Territorial and Gender Differences in the Home Care of Family Members with Dementia
by Sagrario Anaut-Bravo and María Cristina Lopes-Dos-Santos
Land 2022, 11(1), 113; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11010113 - 10 Jan 2022
Viewed by 2410
Abstract
The increasing prevalence of dementia is threatening the capacity of health and social service systems to provide long-term care support at the territorial level. In both rural and urban areas, specific family members (gendered care) are responsible for the daily care of their [...] Read more.
The increasing prevalence of dementia is threatening the capacity of health and social service systems to provide long-term care support at the territorial level. In both rural and urban areas, specific family members (gendered care) are responsible for the daily care of their relatives. The aim of this work is to explore gender and territorial implications in the provision of in-home care by family members. To this end, family caregivers in Navarre, Spain, were administered the Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale (PAIS-SR) and a semi-structured interview. The results show the good psychosocial adjustment of caregivers of relatives with dementia but the negative impacts of caregiving in the domestic, relational, and psychological domains. Moreover, the feminization of psychological distress was found to predominate in rural areas since mainly women are responsible for instrumental and care tasks, while men seek other complementary forms of support. Place of residence (rural vs. urban) was found to exert a strong effect on the respondents’ conception, life experience, and provision of care. Consequently, territorial and gender differences in coping with and adjusting to care require the design of contextualized actions adapted to caregivers’ needs. Full article
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14 pages, 1063 KiB  
Article
Gender Differences in Environmental Correlates of Cycling Activity among Older Urban Adults
by Lanjing Wang, Xiayidan Xiaohelaiti, Yi Zhang, Xiaofei Liu, Xumei Chen, Chaoyang Li, Tao Wang and Jiani Wu
Land 2022, 11(1), 52; https://doi.org/10.3390/land11010052 - 30 Dec 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2262
Abstract
Cycling is a form of active transport that can improve the level of health among the elderly population. However, little is known about the environmental correlates of bicycle use among older adults. This study investigated the relationship between the built and social environment [...] Read more.
Cycling is a form of active transport that can improve the level of health among the elderly population. However, little is known about the environmental correlates of bicycle use among older adults. This study investigated the relationship between the built and social environment and the gender differences in cycling frequency among older urban adults in China. The data were derived from a household travel survey in 2012 and covered thirty-three urban neighborhoods in Zhongshan. The results suggest that denser intersections are negatively related to cycling trips among both older men and women. Reverse associations for either gender, however, are observed between the average income in a neighborhood and cycling frequency. For older women, living far from a bus stop is positively correlated to an increase in daily cycling trips. For older men, social environment, including the proportions of employed or elderly people in a neighborhood, is significantly associated with cycling activity. The findings facilitate the understanding of the gender gap in cycling activity among older urban adults, and help towards designing effective planning strategies as health interventions. Full article
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12 pages, 1619 KiB  
Article
Short-Run Links in Ecological Footprint: A Dynamic Factor Analysis for the EU
by María Jesús Delgado-Rodríguez, Sonia de Lucas-Santos and Alfredo Cabezas-Ares
Land 2021, 10(12), 1372; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10121372 - 11 Dec 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2348
Abstract
The Ecological Footprint (EFP) is a useful indicator for assessing the progress of environmental performance and offers a solid basis for sustainability studies. In this paper, we contribute to the broadening of its possibilities of investigation by measuring the cross-country links in the [...] Read more.
The Ecological Footprint (EFP) is a useful indicator for assessing the progress of environmental performance and offers a solid basis for sustainability studies. In this paper, we contribute to the broadening of its possibilities of investigation by measuring the cross-country links in the EFP in global hectares per capita. The modeling framework is based on the dynamic factor analysis to estimate, in the parametric form, an index that provides information about the short-run dynamics of the EFP in the EU. Following this approach, we identify different patterns in the EFP behavior of the European countries during the period of 1962–2017. The results show stronger links across the EFP of the main European countries: France, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Denmark and the U.K. The proposed analysis gives a better understanding of the links behind environmental degradation in the EU and is applicable for the implementation and design of environmental policies. Full article
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14 pages, 1346 KiB  
Article
The Effect of Ageing, Gender and Environmental Problems in Subjective Well-Being
by Manuela Ortega-Gil, Antonio Mata García and Chaima ElHichou-Ahmed
Land 2021, 10(12), 1314; https://doi.org/10.3390/land10121314 - 28 Nov 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2442
Abstract
This paper studies the relationship of factors such as ageing, gender and environmental problems included in the quality of life (QoL) with the subjective well-being represented by the life satisfaction (LS) indicator of the citizens of 33 European countries. To do so, it [...] Read more.
This paper studies the relationship of factors such as ageing, gender and environmental problems included in the quality of life (QoL) with the subjective well-being represented by the life satisfaction (LS) indicator of the citizens of 33 European countries. To do so, it uses the LS of a country’s citizens as the dependent variable; ageing, gender and environmental variables as independent variables; and other factors included in the QoL indicators and macroeconomic factors as control variables. Analysis uses data from the World Values Survey (WVS) and the European Values Study (EVS) for LS, from Eurostat for QoL indicators and World Bank for macroeconomic indicators. The values of LS have been treated based on the individual data from WVS and EVS in percentages according to their levels by country, and we present four robust models (two logit model and two OLS model). The results show that arrears of people aged 65 and over are a relation of positive significative in models with low levels of LS. The opposite is true for the income of people aged 65 and over. On the other hand, pollution, grime or other environmental problems and inequality show an inverse relationship with life satisfaction in models with high levels of satisfaction and a positive relationship in models with low levels of satisfaction. Nonetheless, the study has also shown contradictions in the gender gap and poverty indicators that should be studied further. Full article
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