COVID‐19's Lockdown and Crime Victimization: The State of Emergency under the Abe Administration
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Shen Y
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8013736 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:This paper studies the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown on criminal activity in the City of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Following quarantine restrictions, we find a large, significant, robust, and immediate decline in property crime reported to official agencies, police arrests, and crime reported in victimization surveys. We observe no significant change in homicides, and a significant increase in arrests for "resistance to authorities". The decrease in criminal activity was greater in business and transportation areas, but still large in commercial and residential areas (including informal settlements). After the sharp and immediate fall, crime recovered but, by the end of 2020, it had not reached its initial levels. The arrest data additionally shows a reduction in the distance from the detainee's address to the crime location, and a fall in the number of detainees from outside the City of Buenos Aires. Crime became more local as mobility was restricted. We find no evidence that the reduction in the number of detainees from outside the City of Buenos Aires led to a displacement of crimeto suburban areas. This result aligns with the hypothesis that focalized place-based interventions have the potential to reduce overall crime rates. Moreover, the increase in arrests for "resistance to authorities" at the checkpoints set up during the lockdown shows that the enforcement of mobility restrictions can cause frictions between citizens and police, negatively affecting police's legitimacy. We also find that the increased government presence for the provision of health and social services in informal settlements during the pandemic led, as a positive externality, to an additional decrease in crime.
| S-EPMC8652575 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Globally, ambient air pollution claims ~9 million lives yearly, prompting researchers to investigate changes in air quality. Of special interest is the impact of COVID-19 lockdown. Many studies reported substantial improvements in air quality during lockdowns compared with pre-lockdown or as compared with baseline values. Since the lockdown period coincided with the onset of the rainy season in some tropical countries such as Nigeria, it is unclear if such improvements can be fully attributed to the lockdown. We investigate whether significant changes in air quality in Nigeria occurred primarily due to statewide COVID-19 lockdown. We applied a neural network approach to derive monthly average ground-level fine aerosol optical depth (AODf) across Nigeria from year 2001-2020, using the Multi-angle Implementation of Atmospheric Correction (MAIAC) AODs from Terra and Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellites, AERONET aerosol optical properties, meteorological and spatial parameters. During the year 2020, we found a 21% or 26% decline in average AODf level across Nigeria during lockdown (April) as compared to pre-lockdown (March), or during the easing phase-1 (May) as compared to lockdown, respectively. Throughout the 20-year period, AODf levels were highest in January and lowest in May or June, but not April. Comparison of AODf levels between 2020 and 2019 shows a small decline (1%) in pollution level in April of 2020 compare to 2019. Using a linear time-lag model to compare changes in AODf levels for similar months from 2002 to 2020, we found no significant difference (Levene's test and ANCOVA; α = 0.05) in the pollution levels by year, which indicates that the lockdown did not significantly improve air quality in Nigeria. Impact analysis using multiple linear regression revealed that favorable meteorological conditions due to seasonal change in temperature, relative humidity, planetary boundary layer height, wind speed and rainfall improved air quality during the lockdown.
| S-EPMC7825968 | biostudies-literature
Project description:AimTo describe the variation in volumes and types of paediatric presentations to a tertiary emergency department in New Zealand during the national level 4 lockdown for COVID-19.MethodsA retrospective, comparative cohort study in Christchurch Hospital Emergency Department, New Zealand.ResultsThere was a 37% reduction in all emergency presentations during the 33-day lockdown period. Paediatric presentations reduced significantly more than non-paediatric presentations (53% paediatric vs. 34% non-paediatric, P < 0.00001). The decrease in both overall and paediatric presentations was significantly different than similar periods in 2019 and 2018 (P < 0.00001). The proportion of New Zealand European paediatric presentations during lockdown increased by 6.09% (P = 0.01), while Pacific peoples decreased by 3.36% (P = 0.005). The proportion of <1-year-old presentations increased by 5.56% (P = 0.001), while 11-15 years decreased by 7.91% (P = 0.0001). Respiratory-related paediatric presentations decreased by 30% and proportional decreased by 4.92% (P = 0.001).ConclusionThis study has identified a significant reduction in paediatric presentations to a tertiary emergency department in New Zealand during the national Alert Level 4 Lockdown for COVID-19. The proportional increase in the <1-year-old group may suggest a greater need for community-based child health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mental health support services may also need to adapt and expand to provide adequate psychological support for children during this crisis. Recognising the needs of these vulnerable groups will be critical during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in addition to informing response plans for similar events in the future.
| S-EPMC8014123 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Motivated by COVID-19, we develop and analyze a simple stochastic model for the spread of disease in human population. We track how the number of infected and critically ill people develops over time in order to estimate the demand that is imposed on the hospital system. To keep this demand under control, we consider a class of simple policies for slowing down and reopening society and we compare their efficiency in mitigating the spread of the virus from several different points of view. We find that in order to avoid overwhelming of the hospital system, a policy must impose a harsh lockdown or it must react swiftly (or both). While reacting swiftly is universally beneficial, being harsh pays off only when the country is patient about reopening and when the neighboring countries coordinate their mitigation efforts. Our work highlights the importance of acting decisively when closing down and the importance of patience and coordination between neighboring countries when reopening.
| S-EPMC8795434 | biostudies-literature
Project description:PURPOSE:In February 2020, the federal state of Tyrol in Austria has become one of the epicenters of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tyrol is known for numerous skiing areas. Thus, winter sport resorts became a starting point for COVID-19 infections spreading towards the rest of the state, Austria and other countries, leading to a mandatory quarantine for almost a million people, who were placed under a curfew and restrictions in daily life. Additionally, all ski resorts and hotels were closed. We aimed to analyze the influence of the COVID-19 quarantine on traumatic brain injury (TBI) cases in Tyrol. METHODS:We retrospectively compared demographical and injury characteristics from all TBI patients within the 2020 strict quarantine period with the respective time periods from 2016 to 2019. As our department is the only neurosurgical unit in Tyrol, all patients with moderate or severe TBI are transferred to our hospital. RESULTS:During 3 weeks of the full quarantine period, the weekly TBI cases load decreased significantly in comparison to the same time periods in the years 2016-2019. Furthermore, concomitant skull fractures decreased significantly (p?<?0.016), probably reflecting different causative mechanisms. The other demographical and injury characteristics and particularly falls at home stayed relatively unchanged. CONCLUSION:TBI remained an important contributor to the neurosurgical workflow during the COVID-19 pandemic. Strategies to ensure neurosurgical care also under pandemic-induced lockdown are important.
| S-EPMC7374069 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has changed the lives of children and parents, raising concerns about child maltreatment.ObjectiveWe examined the prevalence of abusive parenting behavior during the pandemic of the COVID-19 and its relations with physical, psychological, and social factors and positive parenting behavior.Participants and settingAn online survey was performed during the COVID-19 state of emergency in Japan. Participants were 5344 parents of children aged 0-17 years.MethodsWe conducted an anonymous online survey using multiple platforms, including websites of child-related organizations and social networking services (SNS). Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with abusive behavior.ResultsOne-fifth of parents reported abusive behaviors, whereas over 80% of parents reported positive parenting behaviors (e.g., empathizing with a child). Abusive parenting behaviors were associated with longer screen time (6+ hours per day: OR, 1.44; 95%CI, 1.05-1.98), poor maternal mental health (K6 = 13+: OR, 2.23; 95%CI, 1.71-2.89), and the occurrence of domestic violence (OR, 4.54; 95%CI, 3.47-5.95). Positive parenting behaviors, especially showing empathy, were associated with lower risks of abusive behaviors (OR, 0.51: 95%CI, 0.39-0.66).ConclusionsPositive parenting behavior is essential to the prevention of child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic.
| S-EPMC8609455 | biostudies-literature
Project description:India enforced stringent lockdown measures on March 24, 2020 to mitigate the spread of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronovirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). Here, we examined the impact of lockdown on the air quality index (AQI) [including ambient particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), carbon monoxide (CO), ozone (O3), and ammonia (NH3)] and tropospheric NO2 and O3 densities through Sentinel-5 satellite data approximately 1 d post-lockdown and one month pre-lockdown and post-lockdown. Our findings revealed a marked reduction in the ambient AQI (estimated mean reduction of 17.75% and 20.70%, respectively), tropospheric NO2 density, and land surface temperature (LST) during post-lockdown compared with the pre-lockdown period or corresponding months in 2019, except for a few sites with substantial coal mining and active power plants. We observed a modest increase in the O3 density post-lockdown, thereby indicating improved tropospheric air quality. As a favorable outcome of the COVID-19 lockdown, road accident-related mortalities declined by 72-folds. Cities with poor air quality correlate with higher COVID-19 cases and deaths (r = 0.504 and r = 0.590 for NO2; r = 0.744 and r = 0.435 for AQI). Conversely, low mortality was reported in cities with better air quality. These results show a correlation between the COVID-19 vulnerable regions and AQI hotspots, thereby suggesting that air pollution may exacerbate clinical manifestations of the disease. However, a prolonged lockdown may nullify the beneficial environmental outcomes by adversely affecting socioeconomic and health aspects.
| S-EPMC7590817 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC7194992 | biostudies-literature
Project description:This research note sheds light on the first three months of the COVID-19 outbreak in South Africa, where the virus has spread faster than anywhere else in the region. At the same time, South Africa has been recognized globally for its swift and efficient early response. We consider the impact of this response on different segments of the population, looking at changes in mobility by province to highlight variation in the willingness and ability of different subsets of the population to comply with lockdown orders. Using anonymized mobile phone data, we show that South Africans in all provinces reduced their mobility substantially in response to the government's lockdown orders. Statistical regression analysis shows that such mobility reductions are significantly and negatively associated with COVID-19 growth rates two weeks later. These findings add an important perspective to the emerging literature on the efficacy of shelter-in-place orders, which to date is dominated by studies of the United States. We show that people were particularly willing and able to act in the provinces hit hardest by the pandemic in its initial stages. At the same time, compliance with lockdown orders presented a greater challenge among rural populations and others with more precarious livelihoods. By reflecting on South Africa's inequality profile and results of a recent survey, we demonstrate how the country's response may deepen preexisting divides. This cautionary tale is relevant beyond South Africa, as much of the continent - and the world - grapples with similar tradeoffs. Along with measures to contain the spread of disease, governments and other development focused organizations should seriously consider how to offset the costs faced by already marginalized populations.
| S-EPMC7455114 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In response to the pandemic in early 2020, cities implemented states of emergency and stay at home orders to reduce virus spread. Changes in social dynamics due to local restrictions impacted human behavior and led to a shift in crime dynamics. We analyze shifts in crime types by comparing crimes before the implementation of stay at home orders and the time period shortly after these orders were put in place across three cities. We find consistent changes across Chicago, Baltimore, and Baton Rouge with significant declines in total crimes during the time period immediately following stay at home orders. The starkest differences occurred in Chicago, but in all three cities the crime types contributing to these declines were related to property crime and statutory crime rather than interpersonal crimes.
| S-EPMC8016314 | biostudies-literature