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Australian Households (australian + household)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Business, Economics, Finance and Accounting	87%

Selected Abstracts

Understanding the Drivers of Poverty Dynamics in Australian Households,

THE ECONOMIC RECORD, Issue 266 2008
HIELKE BUDDELMEYER
This paper contributes to the growing literature on poverty dynamics in Australian households. The results reveal that a range of life-changing events, household head, partner and demographic characteristics have an impact on both the likelihood of remaining poor and slipping into poverty. These findings have important implications for Australian policymakers: tertiary education and employment are key factors in keeping households out of poverty; having a disability or living in outer-regional or remote areas increases the probability of becoming poor and remaining in such a situation; and finally, life-changing events, especially becoming separated, can lead households into persistent poverty. [source]

Debt as a source of financial stress in Australian households

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 1 2006
Andrew C. Worthington
Abstract This paper examines the role of demographic, socio-economic and debt portfolio characteristics as contributors to financial stress in Australian households. The data are drawn from the most recent Household Expenditure Survey and relate to 3268 probability-weighted households. Financial stress is defined, among other things, in terms of financial reasons for being unable to have a holiday, to have meals with family and friends, to engage in hobbies and other leisure activities, and general money management. Characteristics examined include family structure and composition, source and level of household income, age, gender and marital status, ethnic background, housing value, debt repayment of various types and credit card usage. Binary logit models are used to identify the source and magnitude of factors associated with financial stress. The evidence provided suggests that financial stress is higher in families with more children and those from ethnic minorities, especially when reliant on government pensions and benefits, and lower in families with higher disposable incomes and housing values. There is weak evidence that Australia's historically high levels of household debt cause financial stress. [source]

Factors Influencing Housing Equity Withdrawal: Evidence from a Microeconomic Survey,

THE ECONOMIC RECORD, Issue 267 2008
CARL SCHWARTZ
The increase in housing equity withdrawal and coincident decline in aggregate savings rates in a number of countries in recent years is consistent with the consumption-smoothing model of housing equity withdrawal. However, there are a variety of other theoretical models that purport to explain why households withdraw and inject equity. To assess the relative importance of these various theories, we use a comprehensive survey of the equity withdrawal and injection decisions of Australian households. We find support for several theories. Life cycle considerations appear to be most important, with older households accounting for the bulk of equity withdrawn. Portfolio rebalancing considerations also appear important, with financial asset accumulation the primary use of withdrawn funds. Consumption-smoothing motives play an influential role, although primarily for smaller-value transactions. [source]

Understanding the Drivers of Poverty Dynamics in Australian Households,

Employment Polarisation in Australia,

THE ECONOMIC RECORD, Issue 255 2005
PETER DAWKINS
Although employment levels in Australia are healthy when compared to those 20 years ago, the distribution of work across households has become more unequal. The present paper measures any polarisation of employment that has taken place in Australian households between 1982 and 2000/01. We find that employment has indeed become polarised across Australian households with most of the polarisation within-household types and not entirely reflecting changes in household size. Particularly worrying is the polarisation found in households with children. This is likely to have consequences for the well-being of future generations. [source]

Consumption and Income Inequality in Australia

THE ECONOMIC RECORD, Issue 233 2000
GARRY F. BARRETT
Consumption may be a more appropriate measure of household well-being than income or earnings. Using four ABS Household Expenditures Surveys collected between 1975 and 1993, we compare trends in consumption and income inequality among Australian households. We find that consumption is much more equal than income. While there were significant increases in both income and consumption inequality, consumption inequality rose by much less. One interpretation of the results is that some income inequality in Australia reflects transitory fluctuations which households can smooth,,and that part of the growth in income inequality reflects an increase in these transitory fluctuations. [source]

Cannabis Use and Sexual Health

THE JOURNAL OF SEXUAL MEDICINE, Issue 2pt1 2010
Anthony M.A. Smith PhD
ABSTRACT Introduction., Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit substance worldwide. Despite this, its impact on sexual health is largely unknown. Aim., The aim of this article is to examine the association between cannabis use and a range of sexual health outcomes. Main Outcome Measures., The main outcome measures include the number of sexual partners in the past year, condom use at most recent vaginal or anal intercourse, diagnosis with a sexually transmissible infection in the previous year, and the occurrence of sexual problems. Methods., Method used in this article includes a computer-assisted telephone survey of 8,656 Australians aged 16,64 years resident in Australian households with a fixed telephone line. Results., Of the 8,650 who answered the questions about cannabis use, 754 (8.7%) reported cannabis use in the previous year with 126 (1.5%) reporting daily use, 126 reported (1.5%) weekly use, and 502 (5.8%) reported use less often than weekly. After adjusting for demographic factors, daily cannabis use compared with no use was associated with an increased likelihood of reporting two or more sexual partners in the previous year in both men (adjusted odds ratio 2.08, 95% confidence interval 1.11,3.89; P = 0.02) and women (2.58, 1.08,6.18; P = 0.03). Daily cannabis use was associated with reporting a diagnosis of a sexually transmissible infection in women but not men (7.19, 1.28,40.31; P = 0.02 and 1.45, 0.17,12.42; P = 0.74, respectively). Frequency of cannabis use was unrelated to sexual problems in women but daily use vs. no use was associated with increased reporting among men of an inability to reach orgasm (3.94, 1.71,9.07; P < 0.01), reaching orgasm too quickly (2.68, 1.41,5.08; P < 0.01), and too slowly (2.05, 1.02,4.12; P = 0.04). Conclusions., Frequent cannabis use is associated with higher numbers of sexual partners for both men and women, and difficulties in men's ability to orgasm as desired. Smith AMA, Ferris JA, Simpson JM, Shelley J, Pitts M, and Richters J. Cannabis use and sexual health. J Sex Med 2010;7:787,793. [source]