Although financial stressors are implicated as risk factors for suicidal behavior, these associations might be confounded by other factors. Furthermore, a move toward high-risk subgroup definition is necessary. The authors used Swedish national registry data to examine the associations between receipt of social welfare, unemployment benefits, or early retirement (N = 627,745−2,260,753) with suicidal behavior in Cox proportional hazards models. They applied co-relative models to improve causal inference, and examined interactions with aggregate genetic risk for suicidality. All three exposures were associated with elevated suicidal behavior risk. Initial hazard ratios for suicide attempt ranged from 1.37−3.86, were similar for suicide death, and declined after controlling for psychopathology and time elapsed after exposure. Age at registration differentially impacted risk of suicidal behavior. Aggregate genetic liability for suicidality was associated with risk, but its effect was not moderated by financial stress. Financial stressors are associated with suicidal behavior risk even after controlling for psychopathology. Associations are attributable in part to familial confounding, though a potentially causal pathway was observed in most cases. Suicidality risk varied as a function of sex and age at exposure; these findings could be used to identify subgroups at high risk who warrant targeted prevention.

Understanding how youth perceive household economic hardship and how it relates to their behavior is vital given associations between hardship and behavioral development. Yet, most studies ignore youth’s own perceptions of economic hardship, instead relying solely on caregiver reports. Moreover, the literature has tended to treat economic hardship as a stable force over time, rather than a volatile one that varies month-to-month. This study addressed extant limitations by collecting monthly measures of economic hardship, specifically caregiver- and youth-reported material deprivation and youth-reported financial stress, and youth internalizing and externalizing problems from 104 youth–caregiver dyads (youth: 14–16 years, 55% female, 37% Black, 43% White) over nine months. We examined month-to-month variability of these constructs and how youth-reports of material deprivation and financial stress predicted their behavior problems, controlling for caregiver-reports of material deprivation. We found that hardship measures varied month-to-month (ICCs = 0.69–0.73), and youth-reported material deprivation positively predicted internalizing when examining both within- and between-individual variability (β = .19–.47). Youth-reported financial stress positively predicted within-individual variation in externalizing (β = .18), while youth reports of material deprivation predicted externalizing when looking between families (β = .41). Caregiver-reported material deprivation was unrelated to youth behavior when accounting for youth perceptions of economic hardship.

The recent global financial crisis and the subsequent recession have revitalized the discussion on causal interactions between financial and economic sectors. In this study, I apply the financial stress and the national activity indices–respectively developed by Federal Reserve Banks of Kansas City and Chicago–to investigate the impact of financial uncertainty on an overall economic performance. I examine nonlinear dynamics in a vector smooth transition autoregressive framework, and illustrate regime-dependent asymmetries in the financial and economic indices using the generalized impulse-response functions. The results reveal more amplified dynamics during the stressed conditions. I further evaluate benefits of nonlinear modeling in an out-of-sample setting. The forecasting exercise brings out the important advantages that nonlinear modeling provides in the identification of the causal effect of financial instability on overall economic performance.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the largest nutritional assistance program addressing food insecurity in the United States. Due to the program's reach, SNAP has been called upon to address other nutrition-related challenges facing low-income Americans, including childhood obesity. This study considers the effect of SNAP participation on child weight outcomes after controlling for household financial stress, an important determinant of child overweight status that disproportionately affects low-income households. Using data from the Survey of Household Finances and Childhood Obesity and instrumental variable methods, we find that SNAP participation is negatively associated with obesity among eligible children.

This article describes the properties of the Farm Financial Simulation Model (FFSM). FFSM is a tool for analyzing the financial consequences of various managerial strategies and policy options that may be implemented in responding to farm financial stress. Various farm types from different geographical regions having differing enterprises, financial structures, tenure arrangements, and consumption patterns can be analyzed. The emphasis of FFSM is placed on modeling a farm's profitability, liquidity, solvency, and financial position and the model produces a coordinated set of financial statements and an extensive set of financial ratios over a four-year period.

Suggested methods to reduce farm financial stress have included interest rate buy-downs and debt forgiveness. This study develops a method to estimate the proportion of individual farm financial stress attributable to an income problem, a leverage problem, and an interest rate problem. Of the Kansas Farm Management Association farms with a financial problem, 30 percent of the total financial problem is caused by an interest rate problem, 28 percent by a leverage problem, and 42 percent by an income problem. A reduction of leverage or interest rate to the level attained by the average nonstressed farms would make 31 percent and 32 percent of the stressed farms profitable, respectively. Therefore, in the short run, an interest rate buy-down or a debt reduction would be equally effective.

In Australia financial counselling has emerged as an important component of policy responses to assist low income households and individuals in financial stress. However, the evidence on its effectiveness in alleviating or resolving debt-related issues is patchy. This article contributes much-needed empirical evidence on its impact on low income households and presents the results of a recent national study of financial counselling clients in Australia. The research findings demonstrate the complex factors contributing to financial stress and the effectiveness of financial counselling in providing positive outcomes on a range of measures, including debt resolution, financial capability and health and wellbeing, and highlight the importance of early intervention. From a policy perspective, the study points to the importance of having a mix of strategies to address financial stress in low income earners that combine approaches based on individual responsibility and models based on social justice and advocacy.