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Algadeeb J, Alramdan MJ, AlGadeeb RB, Almusawi KN. The Impact of COVID-19 on Patients With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in Gulf Countries: A Narrative Review. Cureus 2024; 16:e67381. [PMID: 39310546 PMCID: PMC11413977 DOI: 10.7759/cureus.67381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/19/2024] [Indexed: 09/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Gulf countries, like other parts of the world, were affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Along with its biological effects, the pandemic has had serious psychological and social effects. The pandemic-associated general stress and the increased efforts of handwashing and general hygiene might trigger obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The objective of this narrative review was to explore the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prevalence, severity of symptoms, and accessibility of treatment for OCD in Gulf countries. A comprehensive literature search was conducted to review and collect research and/or reports on the prevalence, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment adaptations and strategies of OCD during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in seven Arab Gulf countries. The search spanned from the onset of the crisis in 2020 to 2024. Peer-reviewed articles and reports were sourced from PubMed/Medline and Google Scholar, while abstracts presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) congresses were also included in the review. A total of four studies from Saudi Arabia, two from the United Arab Emirates, and two from Qatar were retrieved for analysis. These studies focused on investigating the impact of the pandemic on OCD. Studies from Kuwait, Oman, and Bahrain reported a negative impact of the pandemic on mental health, yet no specific data were provided. The studies highlighted an increased prevalence of OCD symptoms, both in terms of the incidence of new symptoms and the exacerbation of existing pre-pandemic manifestations. Furthermore, individuals with pre-existing psychological disorders or OCD were particularly susceptible to the negative impact of the pandemic. A review of local studies and reports from the Arab Gulf region reveals a striking paucity of research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on OCD. The pandemic has been associated with an increase in the prevalence of OCD, the onset of new symptoms, and the worsening and exacerbation of existing pre-pandemic obsessions and compulsions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihad Algadeeb
- Preventive Medicine Department, Al-Ahsa Health Cluster, Ministry of Health, Al-Ahsa, SAU
| | - Mohammed J Alramdan
- Community Wellness Department, Al-Ahsa Health Cluster, Ministry of Health, Al-Ahsa, SAU
| | - Rahma B AlGadeeb
- Preventive Medicine Department, Al-Ahsa Health Cluster, Ministry of Health, Al-Ahsa, SAU
| | - Kumail Naser Almusawi
- Pediatrics Department, King Faisal General Hospital, Al-Ahsa Health Cluster, Ministry of Health, Al-Ahsa, SAU
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Zhao F, Cui Z, Zhao X, Liu W. Did COVID-19 affect rural households' subjective well-being? A social survey from rural China. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DISASTER RISK REDUCTION : IJDRR 2023; 92:103736. [PMID: 37197331 PMCID: PMC10168195 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdrr.2023.103736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2022] [Revised: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 05/02/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Improving rural households' subjective well-being is an important element of economic and social revitalization in the post-epidemic period. Based on the survey data obtained from rural households in Hubei Province, the center of the outbreak in China, and its surrounding areas, this paper explores the impact mechanisms of the COVID-19 epidemic on subjective well-being from both economic and sociological perspectives with the help of structural equation modeling. The results show that COVID-19 significantly influenced rural households' subjective well-being in China. Furthermore, COVID-19 indirectly affected their subjective well-being by influencing optimism. The negative impact is moderated by government intervention and income resilience. Therefore, strengthening the emergency management capacity of local governments and encouraging the diversification of rural households' income sources are important strategies to effectively resolve epidemic shocks and improve the level of well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feifei Zhao
- School of Economics and Management, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, 443002, China
| | - Zhuo Cui
- School of Economics and Management, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, 443002, China
| | - Xu Zhao
- School of Economics and Management, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, 443002, China
| | - Wei Liu
- School of Economics and Management, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, 443002, China
- School of Public Administration, Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology, Xi'an, 710055, China
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Liang X, Rozelle S, Yi H. The impact of COVID-19 on employment and income of vocational graduates in China: Evidence from surveys in January and July 2020. CHINA ECONOMIC REVIEW 2022; 75:101832. [PMID: 35844486 PMCID: PMC9273291 DOI: 10.1016/j.chieco.2022.101832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2022] [Revised: 07/02/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic shocked the economy of China in early 2020. Strict lockdown measures were implemented nationwide to prevent the further spread of the virus. During the lockdown period, many economic activities were affected, which had repercussions for the nation's overall employment. Vocational graduates were among the most affected by the crisis. To estimate the causal effects of COVID-19 on the full-time employment of vocational high school graduates as well as their monthly income and hours worked by week, we exploit variations in the intensity of the pandemic in time and across space using survey data from vocational schools from six provinces in China. The results of the difference-in-differences (DID) estimates indicate that being located in counties with high pandemic intensity significantly reduced both the employment in full-time jobs of vocational graduates as well as their monthly income. Our study's analysis demonstrates that the effects of COVID-19 on the labor market can be attributed to the large-scale contraction of labor demand of the enterprises that were hiring vocational graduates. To cope with this situation, vocational graduates took various measures, including reducing consumption, drawing on their savings, searching for new jobs, taking on part-time jobs, borrowing money, and attending new training programs. In addition, the empirical analysis finds that there were heterogeneous effects with respect to gender, family social capital, the industry in which the vocational graduate was participating, and whether the individual was in a management position.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Liang
- School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Peking University, China
- China Center for Agricultural Policy, Peking University, China
| | - Scott Rozelle
- Center on China's Economy and Institutions, Stanford University, USA
| | - Hongmei Yi
- School of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Peking University, China
- China Center for Agricultural Policy, Peking University, China
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Jiang S, Qi L, Lin X. The Impacts of COVID-19 Shock on Intergenerational Income Mobility: Evidence from China. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:11546. [PMID: 36141819 PMCID: PMC9517413 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph191811546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 crisis has caused a huge negative shock to economic activities worldwide, leading to a reduction in income and changes in income distribution. Intergenerational mobility is an important indicator of sustainable social development. This paper explores the short-term impacts of the sudden COVID-19 pandemic on intergenerational income mobility and personal income in China. Using the variation in the number of confirmed cases across provinces, we construct a province-level pandemic intensity index and combine it with individual data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS). We apply a general difference-in-difference strategy to identify the causal effect of the pandemic on intergenerational income mobility. We find that personal income is positively related to parental income, and that the COVID-19 crisis has caused a decline in individual income and exacerbated intergenerational income persistence. A more intense COVID-19 pandemic shock is associated with a larger increase in intergenerational income elasticity and intergenerational income rank-rank slope. We found that with one standard deviation increase in local pandemic intensity, the intergenerational income elasticity increases by 0.315 and the intergenerational income rank-rank slope increases by 0.198 on average. The mechanism testing suggests that heterogeneous effects among different groups are the force underlying the results. Low-income, low-skilled, and low-parental-income individuals have suffered a more severe impact from the pandemic shock.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiqi Jiang
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Lingli Qi
- Energy Center, University of Auckland, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Xinyue Lin
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
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Gao Y, Lopez RA, Liao R, Liu X. Is no news bad news? The impact of disclosing COVID-19 tracing information on consumer dine out decisions. AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS (AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS) 2022; 53:811-825. [PMID: 35942187 PMCID: PMC9350169 DOI: 10.1111/agec.12723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2021] [Revised: 03/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Food markets around the world have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic via consumer behavior upended by fear of infection. In this article, we examine the impact of disclosing COVID-19 contact tracing information on food markets, using the restaurant industry in China as a case study. By analyzing transaction data at 87 restaurants across 10 cities, we estimate difference-in-difference (DID) models to ascertain the impact of COVID-19 infections and contact information tracing on economic activity as measured by a daily number of transactions. Empirical results show that while the overall number of new COVID-19 infections at the national level caused a dramatic drop in numbers of transactions in all restaurants, restaurants in cities that disclosed contact tracing information of COVID-19 infections experienced a 23%-35% higher number of transactions than the ones in cities that did not disclose such information during the recovery period. Ultimately, we show that in the absence of a shelter-in-place mandate, disclosing contract tracing information to mitigate consumers' uncertainties about risks of being infected can contribute to a faster recovery of food markets, in addition to reducing COVID-19 infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Gao
- School of Agricultural Economics and Rural DevelopmentRenmin University of ChinaBeijingChina
| | - Rigoberto A. Lopez
- Department of Agricultural and Resource EconomicsUniversity of ConnecticutStorrsConnecticutUSA
| | - Ruili Liao
- School of Public Policy and ManagementTsinghua UniversityBeijingChina
| | - Xiaoou Liu
- School of Agricultural Economics and Rural DevelopmentRenmin University of ChinaBeijingChina
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Li J, Zhao N, Zhang H, Yang H, Yang J. Roles and Challenges for Village Doctors in COVID-19 Pandemic Prevention and Control in Rural Beijing, China: A Qualitative Study. Front Public Health 2022; 10:888374. [PMID: 35844871 PMCID: PMC9277090 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.888374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives Rural areas in China are more vulnerable to COVID-19 pandemic than urban areas, due to their far fewer health care resources. Village doctors, as rural grassroots health workers in China, have been actively engaged in the pandemic prevention and control. This study aims to describe the roles of village doctors in rural China, and the challenges they have faced during the prevention and control of the COVID-19 pandemic. Setting This study was conducted in three towns in Huairou District, Beijing, China. Design We carried out semi-structured interviews with 75 key informants. All the interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. We employed thematic analysis to define themes and sub-themes from the qualitative data. Results We reported four themes. First, the village doctor guided the village committee to carry out decontamination, monitored home-isolated residents, and disseminated knowledge on prevention of the COVID-19 pandemic during the rural pandemic prevention and control. Second, they took pandemic prevention measures in village clinics, distributed pandemic prevention materials, and undertook pre-screening triage. Third, village doctors provided basic medical care, including treatment of common diseases as well as the purchase and delivery of medicines to villagers. Fourth, village doctors faced difficulties and challenges, such as inadequate medical skills, aging staff structure, and lack of pandemic prevention materials. Conclusions Despite many difficulties and challenges, village doctors have actively participated in rural pandemic prevention and control, and made outstanding contributions to curbing spread of COVID-19 pandemic in rural areas. Village doctors provide basic health care while participating in various non-medical tasks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin Li
- School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Ning Zhao
- School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Haiyan Zhang
- Department of Health Education, Beijing Huairou Hospital of University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Hui Yang
- Beijing Key Laboratory for Pediatric Diseases of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Jia Yang
- School of Public Health, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Jia Yang
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Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Rural Residents of Japan and Their Interactions with the Outside World. SUSTAINABILITY 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/su14042465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/10/2022]
Abstract
In this study, we clarified the impact of the pandemic on the daily lives of rural Japanese residents who experienced the pandemic and on their attitudes toward relationships with people in the broader world. From July to August 2021, an anonymous questionnaire survey was conducted in three rural and fishing community districts (Oshio, Sugane, and Ozushima) in Shunan City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan, among the residents of each district. We found that the survey respondents had decreased their frequency of engaging in activities that were not essential to daily life. During the pandemic, people consciously avoided visitors from outside their districts, but after the pandemic restrictions were lifted, many people welcomed visitors the same way they had before the pandemic; indeed, people welcomed migrants who would increase their populations. As long as COVID-19 infections are under control, residents of the three districts have one thing in common: they want to interact with people outside their districts. It is necessary to consider how to continue community activities under the pandemic so that rural Japanese citizens can maintain interactions with the outside world after the pandemic.
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Zhang Q, Zhang X, Cui Q, Cao W, He L, Zhou Y, Li X, Fan Y. The Unequal Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Labour Market and Income Inequality in China: A Multisectoral CGE Model Analysis Coupled with a Micro-Simulation Approach. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:1320. [PMID: 35162343 PMCID: PMC8835274 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19031320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Revised: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic had an unequal impact on the employment and earnings of different labourers, consequently affecting households' per capita income and income inequality. Combining a multisector computable general equilibrium model of China with a micro-simulation approach, this study aims to analyse the unequal effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on China's labour market and income inequality. The results confirm the unequal impact of the pandemic on the employment and earnings of different labourer types. Labourers who are female, live in urban areas, and have relatively low education levels would suffer greater losses in employment and earnings. The pandemic would reduce household per capita income by 8.75% for rural residents and 6.13% for urban residents. While the pandemic would have a larger negative impact on the employment and earnings of urban labourers, it would have a greater negative impact on the household per capita income of rural residents. Moreover, the per capita income of low-income households is more vulnerable to the pandemic, and the number of residents living below the poverty line would increase significantly. Thus, the pandemic would aggravate income inequality in China and threaten the livelihoods of poor families. This study could inform researchers exploring the distributional effect of the COVID-19 pandemic in developing countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Zhang
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; (Q.Z.); (X.Z.); (W.C.); (L.H.); (X.L.)
- China Institute for Poverty Reduction, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
- China Rural Revitalization and Development Research Center, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai 519087, China
| | - Xinxin Zhang
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; (Q.Z.); (X.Z.); (W.C.); (L.H.); (X.L.)
- China Institute for Poverty Reduction, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
- China Rural Revitalization and Development Research Center, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai 519087, China
| | - Qi Cui
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; (Q.Z.); (X.Z.); (W.C.); (L.H.); (X.L.)
- Beijing Key Lab of Study on Sci-Tech Strategy for Urban Green Development, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Weining Cao
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; (Q.Z.); (X.Z.); (W.C.); (L.H.); (X.L.)
- China Institute for Poverty Reduction, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
- China Rural Revitalization and Development Research Center, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai 519087, China
| | - Ling He
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; (Q.Z.); (X.Z.); (W.C.); (L.H.); (X.L.)
- Beijing Key Lab of Study on Sci-Tech Strategy for Urban Green Development, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Yexin Zhou
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; (Q.Z.); (X.Z.); (W.C.); (L.H.); (X.L.)
- Center for Innovation and Development Studies, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai 519087, China
| | - Xiaofan Li
- School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; (Q.Z.); (X.Z.); (W.C.); (L.H.); (X.L.)
- Beijing Key Lab of Study on Sci-Tech Strategy for Urban Green Development, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Yunpeng Fan
- Institute of Finance & Banking, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing 100710, China;
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Swinnen J, Vos R. COVID-19 and impacts on global food systems and household welfare: Introduction to a special issue. AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS (AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS) 2021; 52:365-374. [PMID: 34149127 PMCID: PMC8206861 DOI: 10.1111/agec.12623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2021] [Revised: 02/01/2021] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
The food system, and those who depend on it, have been strongly but unevenly affected by COVID-19. Overall, the impacts on food systems, poverty, and nutrition have been caused by a combination of a generalized economic recession and disruptions in agri-food supply chains. This paper provides an overview of the contributions to this Special Issue of Agricultural Economics. The papers in this volume confirm that both income shocks and supply disruptions have affected food security and livelihoods the most where supply chains were more poorly integrated, and poverty and market informality had greater presence before COVID-19. Yet, as the pandemic still has societies worldwide in a stranglehold, outcomes remain uncertain and reliable data are still sparsely available. This Special Issue of Agricultural Economics provides new insights of the pandemics impact on food systems, household welfare, and food security, building on both model-based scenario analysis and new survey data. These methods have proven helpful in providing these insights amidst the unprecedented shock that the pandemic has caused to production systems and livelihoods worldwide. However, they also suffer from obvious limitations identified in this editorial overview paper and require substantial improvement in order to understand the changes in economic behavior and functioning of food supply chains induced by the pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johan Swinnen
- International Food Policy Research InstituteWashingtonDistrict of ColumbiaUSA
| | - Rob Vos
- International Food Policy Research InstituteWashingtonDistrict of ColumbiaUSA
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Long W, Zeng J, Sun T. Who Lost Most Wages and Household Income during the COVID‐19 Pandemic in Poor Rural China? CHINA & WORLD ECONOMY 2021; 29:95-116. [PMCID: PMC9011859 DOI: 10.1111/cwe.12396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
China managed to eliminate all extreme poverty in rural areas in 2020. Poor households, however, may risk falling back into poverty due to the COVID‐19. This paper examines the impacts of the pandemic on wages and household incomes among different groups in poor areas of rural China. Using a unique dataset from five poverty‐stricken counties, we found that the pandemic has had large negative effects on wage income for migrant workers and workers in manufacturing, the private sector, and small enterprises. Compared with households relying on wage income, households relying on small businesses have suffered much more from the pandemic, whereas households depending on farming or transfer payments have been less affected. Although poor and ethnic minority households lost significant amounts of wage income due to the pandemic, they did not lose more household income than nonpoor and nonminority households. We conclude that support from the government has kept vulnerable households from suffering more than other households from the effects of COVID‐19. Our findings suggest that the government can play a strong role in alleviating the negative impacts of the COVID‐19.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjin Long
- Assistant Professor, College of Economics and ManagementChina Agricultural UniversityChina
| | - Junxia Zeng
- Assistant Research Fellow, Institute of Rural DevelopmentChinese Academy of Social SciencesChina
| | - Tongquan Sun
- Research Fellow, Institute of Rural DevelopmentChinese Academy of Social SciencesChina
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