Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gvvz8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T05:29:55.412Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Satisfaction With Economic and Social Rights and Quality of Life in a Post-Disaster Zone in China: Evidence From Earthquake-Prone Sichuan

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 February 2015

Ying Liang
Ying Liang*
Affiliation:
Department of Social Work and Social Policy, School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Peoples Republic of China.
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to Ying Liang, Department of Social Work and Social Policy, School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023 Peoples Republic of China (e-mail: [email protected]).
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective

This study explored the influence of satisfaction with economic and social rights (ESR) on the quality of life (QOL) of people in post-disaster zones in Sichuan, China.

Methods

Data from a survey conducted in 2013 in the 5 hardest hit counties in the earthquake-prone area of Sichuan were used. QOL was measured by use of the brief version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF). Structural equation models were developed to determine the specific features of the influence of satisfaction with ESR on QOL.

Results

The mean values of both the WHOQOL-BREF scale and the ESR satisfaction scale were lower than the midpoint of the scales. Satisfaction with ESR had a significant effect on psychological health, social relationships, and environment, apart from physical health. Satisfaction with the right to food had the greatest effect on QOL, followed by the rights to education, work, health, social security, and housing.

Conclusions

Satisfaction with ESR had a significant positive influence on the QOL of people in a post-disaster zone, particularly satisfaction with the right to food. Policies on food and education guarantees and mental health intervention are highlighted. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2015;9:111-118)

Keywords

natural disastersearthquakessecurity measurespublic healthhealth care facilitiesmanpowerand services
Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 9 , Issue 2 , April 2015 , pp. 111 - 118
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. 2015 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Green, R, Miles, S. Social impacts of the 12 January 2010 Haiti earthquake. Earthquake Spectra. 2011;27(S1):S447-S462.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
2. Lewis, B, Maguire, R, Stringer, H. Addressing vulnerability and human rights in disaster response mechanisms in Oceania. In: Kelly R, Juan T, eds. Crime, Justice and Social Democracy Conference; July 8-11, 2013; Queensland University of Technology Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.Google Scholar
3. Economic and Social Rights. National Economic & Social Rights Initiative website. http://www.nesri.org/human-rights/economic-and-social-rights. Accessed February 5, 2015.Google Scholar
4. China's State Council Public Information Office. National Human Rights Action Plan (2009 to 2010) [in Chinese]. http://www.gov.cn/jrzg/2011-07/14/content_1906151.htm. Published July 2011. Accessed February 5, 2015.Google Scholar
5. Drew, N, Funk, M, Tang, S, et al. Human rights violations of people with mental and psychosocial disabilities: an unresolved global crisis. Lancet. 2011;378(9803):1664-1675.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6. Tol, WA, Barbui, C, Galappatti, A, et al. Mental health and psychosocial support in humanitarian settings: linking practice and research. Lancet. 2011;378(9802):1581-1591.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7. Burrell, J. In and out of rights: security, migration, and human rights talk in postwar Guatemala. J Lat Am Caribb Anthropol. 2010;15(1):90-115.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8. Liebling-Kalifani, H, Marshall, A, Ojiambo-Ochieng, R, et al. Experiences of women war-torture survivors in Uganda: implications for health and human rights. J Int Womens Stud. 2013;8(4):1-17.Google Scholar
9. Priebe, S, Bogic, M, Ashcroft, R, et al. Experience of human rights violations and subsequent mental disorders–A study following the war in the Balkans. Soc Sci Med. 2010;71(12):2170-2177.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10. Todres, J. A child rights-based approach to reconstruction in Haiti. Intercult HumRights Law Rev. 2011;6:43-85.Google Scholar
11. Phillips, N, Bergin, K, Goldsmith, J, et al. Enforcing remedies from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights: forced evictions and post-earthquake Haiti. Hum Rights Brief. 2011;19(1):3.Google Scholar
12. Kumar, CR. Human rights and human security implications of disasters: critical perspectives on law and governance. J Natl Hum Rights Commission India. 2012;11:129-148.Google Scholar
13. Ferris, E. Earthquakes and Floods: Comparing Haiti and Pakistan. The Brookings Institution. http://reliefweb.int/report/haiti/earthquakes-and-floods-comparing-haiti-and-pakistan. Published 26 August 2010. Accessed February 5, 2015.Google Scholar
14. Schalock, RL, Brown, I, Brown, R, et al. Conceptualization, measurement, and application of quality of life for persons with intellectual disabilities: report of an international panel of experts. J Inf. 2002;40(6):457-470.Google ScholarPubMed
15. Liang, Y, Chu, P, Wang, X. Health-related quality of life of Chinese earthquake survivors: a case study of five hard-hit disaster counties in Sichuan. Soc Indic Res. 2014;119:943-966.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16. Chou, FHC, Chou, P, Su, TTP, et al. Quality of life and related risk factors in a Taiwanese village population 21 months after an earthquake. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 2004;38(5):358-364.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
17. Liang, Y, Cao, R. Is the health status of female victims poorer than males in the post-disaster reconstruction in China: a comparative study of data on male victims in the first survey and double tracking survey data. BMC Womens Health. 2014;14:18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
18. Ardalan, A, Mazaheri, M, Vanrooyen, M, et al. Post-disaster quality of life among older survivors five years after the Bam earthquake: implications for recovery policy. Ageing Soc. 2011;31(2):179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
19. Zhao, C, Wu, Z, Xu, J. The association between post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms and the quality of life among Wenchuan earthquake survivors: the role of social support as a moderator. Qual Life Res. 2013;22:733-743.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
20. Priebe, S, Marchi, F, Bini, L, et al. Mental disorders, psychological symptoms and quality of life 8 years after an earthquake: findings from a community sample in Italy. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2011;46(7):615-621.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21. Ke, X, Liu, C, Li, N. Social support and quality of life: a cross-sectional study on survivors eight months after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. BMC Public Health. 2010;10(1):573.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
22. Liang, Y, Wang, X. Developing a new perspective to study the health of survivors of Sichuan earthquakes in China: a study on the effect of post-earthquake rescue policies on survivors’ health-related quality of life. Health Res Policy Syst. 2013;11:41.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
23. Liang, Y, Cao, R. Employment assistance policies of Chinese government play positive roles! The impact of post-earthquake employment assistance policies on the health-related quality of life of Chinese earthquake populations. Soc Indic Res. 2015;120:835-857.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
24. Lawry, L, Burkle, FM. Measuring the true human cost of natural disasters. Disaster Med Public Health Prep. 2008;2(04):208-210.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
25. Lin, MR, Huang, W, Huang, C, et al. The impact of the Chi-Chi earthquake on quality of life among elderly survivors in Taiwan–a before and after study. Qual Life Res. 2002;11(4):379-388.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
26. Ceyhan, E, Ceyhan, AA. Earthquake survivors' quality of life and academic achievement six years after the earthquakes in Marmara, Turkey. Disasters. 2007;31(4):516-529.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
27. WHOQoL Group. Development of the World Health Organization WHOQOL-BREF quality of life assessment. Psychol Med. 1998;28(03):551-558.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
28. Liang, Y, Li, S. Landless female peasants living in resettlement residential areas in China have poorer quality of life than males: results from a household study in the Yangtze River Delta region. Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2014;12:17.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
29. Kolbe, AR, Hutson, RA, Shannon, H, et al. Mortality, crime and access to basic needs before and after the Haiti earthquake: a random survey of Port-au-Prince households. Med Confl Surviv. 2010;26(4):281-297.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
30. Barber, R. Protecting the right to housing in the aftermath of natural disaster: standards in international human rights law. Int J Refugee Law. 2008;20(3):432-468.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
31. Liang, Y, Zhang, S. Construction of a service mode of school social work in post-disaster areas in China: a case study on the project of disaster relief schools after the Sichuan earthquake. Int Social Work. 2014:1-18. doi: 10.1177/0020872814531303 Google Scholar
32. Mathbor, GM. Enhancement of community preparedness for natural disasters the role of social work in building social capital for sustainable disaster relief and management. Int Social Work. 2007;50(3):357-369.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
33. Liu, W, Shi, B, Jiang, L, Tang, X. The impact of health education or health of the victims of the earthquake in disaster area. 2nd International Conference on Advances in Social Science, Humanities, and Management (ASSHM 2014). 2014:21-23.Google ScholarPubMed
34. Zhou, Y, Zhou, L, Fu, C, Wang, Y, et al. Socio-economic factors related with the subjective well-being of the rural elderly people living independently in China. Int J Equity Health. 2015;14:5. doi:10.1186/s12939-015-0136-4 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed