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With its headquarters campus in Santa Monica, the Los Angeles area is understandably the focal point of significant RAND interest. Research on Los Angeles and its surrounding communities spans a wide analytical range, from policing, airport and harbor security, and traffic congestion to education, child care, health, and demographic issues.

Commentary

L.A. Has the Nation's Highest Unemployment. For Some Groups, It's Even Worse Than That.

Aug 6, 2020

Los Angeles and its neighboring counties are among the areas hardest hit by the COVID-19 recession. The shockingly high average unemployment rates only tell part of the story, however. For the poor and some racial and ethnic groups, the jobs picture is far worse.
Commentary

Elevating Equity in Los Angeles Juvenile and Criminal Justice Reform

Aug 12, 2020

At age 13, Black children are placed in juvenile detention at nearly 3.5 times the rate of white children. By age 17, that ratio increases to 4.5 to 1. And the trend continues into adulthood. Without ongoing attention and deliberate policies and programs, injustices are likely to persist.

Explore Los Angeles

Commentary

Access to Mobile Technology Could Help with Homelessness

The vast majority of people experiencing homelessness have cell phones, which often serve as their lifelines. Providing technological supports, such as Wi-Fi access and opportunities to charge devices, could result in better access to social services and, ultimately, better quality of life and outcomes.

Sep 16, 2020
Report

Report

Data Use in Quality Rating and Improvement Systems: Lessons Learned from Quality Start Los Angeles

Through an evaluation of Quality Start Los Angeles, a quality rating and improvement system (QRIS) that supports early learning providers, the authors identified lessons learned that could benefit other QRISs as they create or expand data systems.

Sep 9, 2020
Blog

Voting in a Pandemic, the U.S. Postal Service, Defunding the Police: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on Americans' views about voting in the age of COVID-19, what makes the U.S. Postal Service so essential, why some in law enforcement may be open to “defunding the police,” and more.

Aug 28, 2020
Commentary

Industry Mix in L.A. Area Helps Explain Recent Record Unemployment Rates

The Los Angeles Combined Statistical Area reported more than 270,000 job cuts between March and early August. Considering which industries have cut jobs may provide a window into the area's unique labor market and help explain how the area currently has among the highest unemployment in the nation.

Aug 25, 2020
Report

How Social Service Providers in L.A. County Are Responding to COVID-19

Social service providers have adapted quickly to ensure continuity of care for their clients during the pandemic. Obstacles have included a lack of technology access among clients, reductions in revenue and workforce, difficulties having clients shelter in place, and other stressors on staff.

Aug 24, 2020
Blog

L.A.'s High Unemployment, RAND's New Research Center, Twitter: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on unemployment in the Los Angeles area, the new RAND Center to Advance Racial Equity Policy, food consumption in the UK, and more.

Aug 14, 2020
Report

How Smart Cities Could Improve Open Data Portals

Open data portals are accessible to residents of “smart” cities. How can city leaders make these portals more useful? Los Angeles's experience during the COVID-19 pandemic provides lessons.

Jul 27, 2020
Commentary

An Uncertain Future for Jail Reform in Los Angeles

There is momentum in Los Angeles County to do the difficult work of criminal justice reform. This will take considerable investments of time and resources, as well as a commitment to implementing new strategies and evaluating their effectiveness along the way.

Jul 21, 2020
Blog

Online Shopping, Living in a Riskier World, Stress in Communities: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on Americans' online shopping habits during the pandemic, living in a riskier world, how stress builds in communities, and more.

Jul 10, 2020
Blog

Preparing for a COVID Surge, Reducing Police Violence, Media Literacy in Schools: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on helping hospitals prepare for a surge in COVID-19 infections, an approach to reducing police violence, teachers' concerns about students' media literacy, and more.

Jul 2, 2020
Commentary

Preventing Homelessness Among Survivors of Domestic Abuse

Without assistance, domestic violence survivors are more likely to be forced into homelessness. Now could be the time to invest in programs that help victims—before a second wave of COVID-19 cases pushes more families into unsafe environments.

Jul 2, 2020
Commentary

Defund the LAPD? Garcetti Budget Proposal Takes a Step in That Direction

Calls to “defund the police” have grown common and urgent in the wake of police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and numerous other Black Americans. Research and community activists agree: Public safety can be improved by investing more public dollars in a social safety net, and less in policing and incarceration, in Los Angeles.

Jun 30, 2020
Report

Evaluation of Los Angeles County's 2019 "Spark the True You" Mental Health Campaign

Los Angeles County, in partnership with the Los Angeles Sparks basketball team, conducted a mental health campaign aimed at women veterans. It did not reach large numbers but provided new information about mental health among those it did reach.

Jun 25, 2020
Dissertation

Dissertation

Not All Housing Is Created Equal: A Mixed Methods Analysis of the Well-Being of Adults in Permanent Supportive Housing in Los Angeles County

Explores the relationship between living environment, subjective well-being and objective well-being outcomes, for a cohort of participants in the Housing for Health's Permanent Supportive Housing program in Los Angeles.

Jun 19, 2020
Report

Evaluating the WhyWeRise Mental Health Campaign

Interviews and a survey indicate that WhyWeRise, a community engagement mental health campaign, reached at least 30 percent of Los Angeles County youth and mobilized them to improve social support for those experiencing mental health challenges.

Apr 1, 2020
Report

Breaking Barriers: A Rapid Rehousing and Employment Pilot Program for Adults on Probation in Los Angeles County: Evaluation Report

This report presents early findings on the progress of the Breaking Barriers program, which provides Los Angeles County adults on probation with a time-limited housing subsidy, case management, and employment supports.

Mar 31, 2020
Journal Article

Journal Article

Locating Medical and Recreational Cannabis Outlets for Research Purposes: Online Methods and Observational Study

This paper describes the methods that build on previous efforts by providing a detailed methodology that can be replicated in large metropolitan areas that have legalized the sale of cannabis.

Mar 5, 2020
Report

Evaluation of Los Angeles County's 2019 Moral Injury Conference

RAND evaluated the reach and impact of a moral injury conference and its goals to deepen knowledge about moral injury and effective recovery strategies and to strengthen collaborative connections.

Mar 4, 2020

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