During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal spending on government safety net programs in the United States increased dramatically. Despite this unparalleled spending, government safety nets were widely critiqued for failing to fully meet many households' needs. Disaster research suggests that informal modes of social support often emerge during times of disruption, such as the first year of the pandemic. However, use of formal government programs and informal support are rarely examined relative to each other, resulting in an incomplete picture of how households navigate disaster impacts and financial shocks. This study compares estimates of informal social support to formal government program use in the rural U.S. West, drawing on data from a rapid response survey fielded during the summer of 2020 and the 2021 Annual Social and Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey (CPS-ASEC). We find that informal social support systems were, on aggregate, used almost as extensively as long-standing government programs. Our findings highlight the critical role of person-to-person assistance, such as sharing financial resources, among rural households during a disruptive disaster period. Routine and standardized data collection on these informal support behaviors could improve future disaster research and policy responses, especially among rural populations.

中文翻译：

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COVID-19 大流行期间美国西部农村居民的非正式社会支持模式☆


在 COVID-19 大流行的第一年，美国政府安全网计划的联邦支出急剧增加。尽管支出空前，但政府安全网因未能完全满足许多家庭的需求而受到广泛批评。灾难研究表明，非正式的社会支持模式往往出现在动荡时期，例如大流行的第一年。然而，正式政府计划和非正式支持的使用很少被相对地研究，导致家庭如何应对灾害影响和财务冲击的情况不完整。本研究利用 2020 年夏季进行的快速响应调查和 2021 年当前人口调查 （CPS-ASEC） 年度社会和经济补充的数据，将美国西部农村地区非正式社会支持的估计值与正式政府计划的使用情况进行了比较。我们发现，非正式社会支持系统的总体使用范围几乎与长期存在的政府计划一样广泛。我们的研究结果强调了在破坏性灾难时期，个人对个人援助的关键作用，例如在农村家庭之间共享财务资源。对这些非正式支持行为的常规和标准化数据收集可以改善未来的灾害研究和政策应对，尤其是在农村人口中。