Fisher Deborah A, Miller Ted R, Grube Joel W, Ringwalt Christopher L, Achoki Tom, Ngwato Tara Polzer, Shilakoe Lebogang, Mkhondo Penelope
Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, 4061 Powder Mill Road, Suite 350, Beltsville, MD 20705-3113 USA.
Curtin University School of Public Health, Curtin University, Kent St, Bentley, WA 400 Australia.
Glob Soc Welf. 2022 Aug 3:1-13. doi: 10.1007/s40609-022-00230-1.
Little research has examined how pandemics affect residents in under-resourced communities. This study investigated how COVID-19 and lockdown policies affected residents of Alexandra, one of Johannesburg, South Africa's lowest-income townships.
We conducted a telephone survey May 11-22, 2020, while the lockdown and alcohol ban were in effect, of a spatially stratified sample of 353 adult Alexandra residents drawn randomly from voter registration, credit card application, and prior studies' sampling frames. We examined economic consequences; health experiences, including COVID-19 exposure and mental health symptoms; alcohol use; and personal experiences with violence.
Respondents were aged 18 to 89 and 47% female. About 70% of those employed before the lockdown were no longer working. Over half of households lost at least one source of income. About 50% of respondents reported stockpiling food. A majority reported price rises and declines in availability of food. Smaller percentages reported such changes for other items. Over 80% reported stress or anxiety, or depression due to the pandemic. The prevalence of past-week alcohol use fell from over 50% before the lockdown to less than 10% during the lockdown. Self-reported physical violence victimization increased.
COVID-19 and the lockdown disrupted Alexandra residents' lives through unemployment, lost income, mental health problems, and increased violence. The differences between these outcomes and those in more advantaged communities deserve investigation. Research should also seek to identify tailored responses to effectively address the challenges of marginalized communities that often have limited resources to deal with pandemics and policies to contain them.
很少有研究探讨大流行病如何影响资源匮乏社区的居民。本研究调查了新冠疫情和封锁政策如何影响南非约翰内斯堡最贫困的城镇之一亚历山德拉的居民。
我们于2020年5月11日至22日进行了一项电话调查，当时封锁和禁酒令正在实施，从选民登记、信用卡申请和先前研究的抽样框架中随机抽取了353名成年亚历山德拉居民作为空间分层样本。我们研究了经济后果；健康经历，包括新冠病毒暴露和心理健康症状；酒精使用情况；以及暴力方面的个人经历。
受访者年龄在18岁至89岁之间，47%为女性。封锁前就业的人中约70%不再工作。超过一半的家庭失去了至少一项收入来源。约50%的受访者报告有囤积食物的情况。大多数人报告食品价格上涨和供应减少。较小比例的人报告其他物品有此类变化。超过80%的人报告因疫情感到压力、焦虑或抑郁。过去一周饮酒的比例从封锁前的超过50%降至封锁期间的不到10%。自我报告的身体暴力受害情况有所增加。
新冠疫情和封锁通过失业、收入损失、心理健康问题和暴力增加扰乱了亚历山德拉居民的生活。这些结果与更富裕社区的结果之间的差异值得研究。研究还应寻求确定有针对性的应对措施，以有效应对边缘化社区面临的挑战，这些社区往往资源有限，难以应对大流行病及其防控政策。
