Jiun-Hao Wang

Urban-rural disparity in physical fitness of elementary schoolchildren in Taiwan.

Childhood fitness is generally evaluated by a battery of health‐related estimators to assess pediatric health status. More so than the fitness level at any other stage of life, the level of physical fitness in childhood will have a marked effect on an individuals physical development and overall health in adolescence and adulthood. This paper contributes to this issue by investigating the differences in the distribution of the physical fitness of elementary schoolchildren aged 9–12 by gender, region and ethnicity.

Happiness and social exclusion of indigenous peoples in Taiwan--a social sustainability perspective.

Introduction Happiness and social inclusion are important indicators of social sustainability, as recommended in the Sustainable Development Goals; however, little is known about the social sustainable development of ethnic minorities. To fill this knowledge gap, special attention is paid to understanding the issues of social exclusion and happiness in relation to the indigenous peoples in Taiwan. Methods Data used were drawn from a nationwide representativeness survey of the Taiwanese Indigenous People in 2007; it included 2,200 respondents. This study employed binary logistic regression to examine the effects of different domains of social exclusion on the likelihood of perceiving happiness; other exogenous factors, were controlled. Results The results show that among the respondents, mountain indigenous peoples, females, the elderly and those who are healthier, wealthier, highly educated, possessing western beliefs, and are more likely to be happy, compared to their counterparts. As expected, the results reveal that the likelihood of being happy is higher for those who have received medical benefits, as well as those persons without housing problems or financial difficulties, compared to their excluded counterparts. However, no significant association is found between happiness and some social exclusion domains, such as child and youth benefits, and unemployment benefits. Conclusions The disengagement of the indigenous peoples in mainstream society, with respect to the accessibility of welfare provisions, is a crucial element in regard to social exclusion and happiness. Several policy implications for the social sustainability of indigenous peoples can be inferred from these findings. For example, providing a mobile clinical tour, on-site health counseling, or homecare service can contribute to the removal of institutional and geographic barriers to medical welfare provisions for the mountain indigenes. Moreover, the government may devote more welfare resources to assist indigenous families and tribal communities to develop their own social safety net, instead of the individual-oriented welfare provisions.

Personality traits, social capital, and entrepreneurial creativity: comparing green socioentrepreneurial intentions across Taiwan and Hong Kong

ABSTRACT Promoting green socioentrepreneurship is crucial for sustainable economic development in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in highly urbanised areas such as Taiwan and Hong Kong. However, little research has focused on this topic. Therefore, we conducted two studies to analyse how personality traits, entrepreneurial creativity, and social capital affect green socioentrepreneurial intentions among university students in Taiwan and Hong Kong. The results of Study 1 confirmed the factor structures of the four scales used in this study. The results of Study 2 revealed that though the effects of predictor variables on the outcome variable were varied, the mediation models of entrepreneurial creativity across contexts were partially supported. The major differences between Taiwan and Hong Kong lay in the effects resulting from usefulness, openness, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and bonding social capital.

Do farmers’ old age pension programs affect farm production? Empirical evidence of dairy farms in Taiwan

Although a considerable body of literature has examined the determinants of farm production, little is known about the role of the farmers’ pension program. Th is study contributes to this knowledge gap by assessing the impact of the farmers’ pension payments on farm production and the labour allocation using the Old Age Farmers’ Pension program in Taiwan as a case study. In particular, this study quantifi ed the eff ect of pension payments on the labour allocation of the farm operator and other family members, hired labourers, as well as on the farm production. A unique sample of 465 dairy farms was drawn from the Agricultural Census survey in Taiwan in 2010. Th e data set was compiled using the national administrative profi le of the pension program in Taiwan in order to access an objective pension status for all recipients of the payments. By estimating an endogenous treatment eff ect model, it was found that the pension payments decreased the amount of the on-farm work of the farm operator. In contrast, it increased the on-farm labour use of the family members. Moreover, the availability of the pension program decreased the size of farm operation and the farm productivity.

Recruiting Young Farmers to Join Small-Scale Farming in EU: A Structural Policy Perspective

The small-scale agricultural countries encounter severe structural problems, particularly the rapid ageing of the farmer population and the scarcity of young farmers entering the profession. Determining how to support young farmers is a political priority for the future agricultural policy regarding the small-holding farming world. Given that setting up young farmers has been at the centre of the common agricultural policy in the EU since the 1980s. This article takes the European experience as an example to systematically review current young farmers schemes (YFS). The main objective of this article is to propose a policy framework for recruiting young farmers by systematically reviewing the current supporting measures for young farmers. Result shows that the inheritance from an older family member is the most favorable and most feasible way to recruit young farmers among other entry channels to setting up farm business. Moreover, the installation aid for young farmers and the early retirement scheme are regarded as coupled instruments on promoting intergenerational farm transfer. However, successfully recruiting young farmers to join small-scale farming is necessary to further employ other supplementary measures, including farm improvement scheme, agricultural extension service, farm succession advice, tax reduction within installation period. Consequently, considering the limitation of farming returns in small holdings, diversifying rural economic activity in the form of supporting non-agricultural new businesses might be an alternative approach for setting up next generational entrepreneurs in the countryside.

Change in Weight Status and Academic Performance among Senior High School Students in Taiwan

INTRODUCTION This study examines how the changes in weight status across the spectrum of a senior high school study are associated with academic performance measured by the university entrance exam scores. MATERIALS AND METHODS A unique dataset which compiles a national health examination profile and the General Scholastic Ability Test data bank in Taiwan was constructed. The final sample comprised 149,240 senior high school students of which 70,662 were males and 78,578 were female students. The school-level fixed effect models were estimated. RESULTS Students who were either (a) not overweight in the first year but overweight in the third year of senior high school, (b) overweight in both the first and third year, or (c) overweight in the first year but not overweight in the third year, were more likely to score lower on the university entrance exam, compared with their never-overweight counterparts. The findings differ by gender and test subjects. DISCUSSIONS The change in weight status during senior high school period is associated with subsequent university entrance exam outcome. Students who start senior high school being overweight should be paid attention. School-based programs and practices need to be implemented to reduce the prevalence of overweight among students.

How important are climate characteristics to the estimation of rice production function

Considerable attention has been given to the impact of climate variability on farm production, and most of the researches have been provided by agronomists to identify the bio-physical relationship between climatic factors and crop production. Relatively, little attention has been given to this relationship from the standpoint of agricultural economists. This study aims to fill this void by assessing the potential cost of ignoring the impact of weather variability on the estimation of rice production function. Using nationwide representative farm-level data in Taiwan in 2008 and the Geographic Information System method, we merged the appropriate weather data with the existing farm data. Our results point to a biased estimation of the input elasticities if weather conditions are not considered. Moreover, the effects of temperature on rice production are more pronounced than the effects of rainfall.