RAND Social and Economic Well-Being Commentary

Commentary from RAND researchers on topics related to social and economic well-being.

Social and Emotional Learning
Online Doesn't Have to Mean Impersonal
Apr 2, 2020
Laura S. Hamilton @HamiltonLauraS, John F. Pane @JohnFPane, et al.
Children's needs extend beyond the purely academic. It is important that their social and emotional well-being is supported as instruction moves online during the COVID-19 pandemic. A whole-child view of what students need could benefit them now more than ever.
Medical Professionals
Amidst a Pandemic, a Mental Health Crisis May Be Looming
Apr 1, 2020
Sangeeta C. Ahluwalia, Carrie M. Farmer @carriefarmer, et al.
The consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on health care workers' mental health could be significant and could weaken the U.S. health care system's ability to resolve the current crisis and survive over the long term. Interventions to promote their psychological well-being should be implemented now.
Food Supply
Food Access: Challenges and Solutions Brought on by COVID-19
Mar 31, 2020
Sameer M. Siddiqi @Sameer_Siddiqi, Jonathan Cantor, et al.
For the 14.3 million American households already experiencing food insecurity before the pandemic, shutdowns and restrictions have created new layers of hardship. Tremendous efforts are already underway to help. But the weeks to come will surely demand more creative solutions from the public and private sectors.
Artificial Intelligence
Catholic Church and Tech Companies Join to Call for Transparency in AI
Mar 31, 2020
Patrick Roberts @RamblingRoberts
The Catholic Church joined with technology companies in February to release the “Rome Call for AI Ethics,” which it hopes will lend meaning if not governance frameworks for the use of artificial intelligence. Making sure that “everyone can benefit” from AI by making its discoveries widely available will be important. This is perhaps where the church can be most effective.
Beyond Bans: How Cannabis Policy Reform Can Reduce Vaping-Related Illnesses
Mar 27, 2020
Amanda Mauri, Rebecca Lee Haffajee
Policymakers can wield a multitude of tools to address vaping-related illness. Cannabis policy reform is one option. But policymakers may face challenges in balancing comprehensive regulatory design that promotes product safety with its potential to bolster the illegal and unregulated market.
Drug Policy and Trends
Want to Know If a New Drug Crisis Is Growing? Check the Wastewater
Mar 26, 2020
Bryce Pardo @brycepardo, Debra Knopman
Few people foresaw how quickly fentanyl would displace heroin, doubling or tripling opioid overdose deaths in some pockets of the United States from 2013 to 2017. But we could have been warned—if only we'd checked our wastewater.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
The Social Distancing Economy: Q&A with RAND Experts
Mar 18, 2020
Congress and the White House are weighing economic policies to help people acutely affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Here are insights from RAND experts on what might be effective in terms of fiscal policy, stimulus spending, and emergency relief to affected workers.
Sleep
Why Prioritizing Sleep in the Time of Coronavirus Is So Important
Mar 17, 2020
Wendy M. Troxel @wendytroxel
The coronavirus has required many people to drastically alter their daily schedules, which can wreak havoc on sleep. But there are simple strategies that can help support sleep—and well-being—during this trying time.
Mortality
Estimates of COVID-19's Fatality Rate Might Change. And Then Change Again.
Mar 11, 2020
Raffaele Vardavas, Courtney A. Gidengil @c_gidengil, et al.
With infections of the new coronavirus confirmed in countries around the world, people are following the daily tally of COVID-19 cases, wondering exactly how lethal this new disease is. The truth is, it's hard to know.
Displaced Persons
The Right Technology Can Help Refugees Stay Connected
Mar 11, 2020
Nearly 71 million people globally are displaced by conflict and persecution. There have been some real advances in technology to help them, but innovations have often been fragmented, without a larger vision. A more strategic approach to technology could better serve their needs.
Residential Housing
Supportive Housing Can Help Keep People with Mental Illness Out of Jail
Feb 27, 2020
Hundreds of thousands of people with serious mental illnesses cycle in and out of American jails every year. In Los Angeles, some of them are getting diverted into a supportive housing program where they can get the treatment they need. And the results are promising.
Politics and Government
State of the Union 2020: Insights from RAND
Feb 5, 2020
The final State of the Union address of President Trump's four-year term may be viewed through the lens of the unprecedented circumstances surrounding the evening. But the speech touched on a range of policy challenges that will remain, regardless of how politics play out in 2020.
Social Determinants of Health
Civic Engagement and Keeping the Public Engaged in Public Health
Feb 4, 2020
Christopher Nelson, Anita Chandra
Civic engagement—activities like voting and volunteering—is essential for the health of democracy. A turn at the ballot box might also improve physical and mental health.
Community Resilience
What Can FEMA Learn from the Historic 2017 Hurricane and Wildfire Seasons?
Feb 3, 2020
Jason Thomas Barnosky, Patrick Roberts @RamblingRoberts, et al.
When a hurricane comes ashore or a wildfire ignites, most of a community's vulnerability to disaster is already set. Emergency managers including FEMA, states, and localities could do much more to identify statewide risks and build community resilience before an event makes headlines.
Substance Abuse
Policies That Punish Pregnant Women for Substance Use Don't Help Mother or Baby
Jan 28, 2020
Laura J. Faherty @LauraFahertyMD
About half of all U.S. states now have policies that criminalize substance use during pregnancy, consider it grounds for civil commitment, or consider it child abuse or neglect. But research suggests that punitive policies aren't beneficial for infants or their mothers.
Wildfires
Australia's Fires: Respond Now, but Also Measure Toll on People for the Future
Jan 20, 2020
Melissa L. Finucane @MelissaFinucane
As an Australian, Melissa Finucane has watched with anguish as massive bushfires devastated wide swaths of her home country. As a researcher who studies community resilience, she can't help but think of how much blood, sweat, tears, and money will be required to recover.
Opioids
Fentanyl: The Most Dangerous Illegal Drug in America
Jan 13, 2020
America's fentanyl crisis is unlike previous drug epidemics and is likely to get worse. Deaths involving fentanyl and other synthetic opioids have surged from around 3,000 in 2013 to more than 30,000 in 2018. Solving the problem requires innovative approaches and unprecedented resources.

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Researcher Spotlight

Jordan R. Fischbach

Codirector, RAND Climate Resilience Center

Jordan R. Fischbach is a senior policy researcher at the RAND Corporation, codirector of RAND's Climate Resilience Center, quality assurance manager for the Homeland Security Operational Analysis Center (HSOAC), and an affiliate faculty member at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. Fischbach leads…

Deborah A. Cohen

Senior Physician Policy Researcher

Deborah Cohen is a senior physician policy researcher at the RAND Corporation. She is the author of A Big Fat Crisis: The Hidden Influences Behind the Obesity Epidemic—and How We Can End It.

Laura Fraade-Blanar

Associate Policy Researcher

Laura Fraade-Blanar is an associate policy researcher at the RAND Corporation. Her work sits at the intersection of health, technology, and transportation. She focuses on safety and risk, applying her background in public health and injury epidemiology to questions around measuring the safety of…

Robert J. Lempert

Director, Frederick S. Pardee Center for Longer Range Global Policy and the Future Human Condition

Robert Lempert is a principal researcher at the RAND Corporation and Director of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for Longer Range Global Policy and the Future Human Condition. His research focuses on risk management and decision-making under conditions of deep uncertainty. Lempert’s work aims to…

New Tool Can Help Health Officials Plan for COVID-19 Patient Surge

Promising Strategies for Creating Critical Care Capacity in U.S. Hospitals

Should the Federal Workforce Stay Remote? Planning for After the Crisis

Maximizing Bargaining Leverage with Beijing: Developing Missiles as Bargaining Chips

The Coronavirus Pandemic's Effect on Sleep

The Policy Currents Podcast

Measuring Wellbeing to Help Communities Thrive

Managing Escalation in Crisis and War

Assessing and Articulating the Wider Benefits of Research

Reducing Poverty Among Mexico's Elderly

RAND Social and Economic Well-Being Commentary

Online Doesn't Have to Mean Impersonal

Amidst a Pandemic, a Mental Health Crisis May Be Looming

Food Access: Challenges and Solutions Brought on by COVID-19

Catholic Church and Tech Companies Join to Call for Transparency in AI

Beyond Bans: How Cannabis Policy Reform Can Reduce Vaping-Related Illnesses

Want to Know If a New Drug Crisis Is Growing? Check the Wastewater

The Social Distancing Economy: Q&A with RAND Experts

Why Prioritizing Sleep in the Time of Coronavirus Is So Important

Estimates of COVID-19's Fatality Rate Might Change. And Then Change Again.

The Right Technology Can Help Refugees Stay Connected

Supportive Housing Can Help Keep People with Mental Illness Out of Jail

State of the Union 2020: Insights from RAND

Civic Engagement and Keeping the Public Engaged in Public Health

What Can FEMA Learn from the Historic 2017 Hurricane and Wildfire Seasons?

Policies That Punish Pregnant Women for Substance Use Don't Help Mother or Baby

Australia's Fires: Respond Now, but Also Measure Toll on People for the Future

Fentanyl: The Most Dangerous Illegal Drug in America

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