The Impact of COVID-19 on Experiences of Food Insecurity Across Place: A Qualitative Research Protocol

Bowen, Sarah; Hardison-Moody, Annie; Eshleman, Kim; Hossfeld, Cassius; Maaita, Marah; Muhammad, Najma; Shisler, Rebecca C.; Solórzano, Geomara Karinel Patiño Briones ro Navarrete

doi:10.1177/16094069211062416

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 47 publications

(41 reference statements)

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“…Lastly, a robust sociological literature provides evidence that female caregivers disproportionately bear responsibility for feeding families, with potentially significant consequences for their physical and mental health (Elliott & Bowen 2018, Fielding-Singh 2021, Martin & Lippert 2012. As such, a sociologically informed accounting of the effects of recent policy changes must consider what factors make it more or less possible for individuals and families to leverage new resources as they become available; how the intended beneficiaries of new policies and programs perceive and experience them in practice, especially in regard to valued food cultures and identities; what meanings people attribute to food assistance programs and the food they provide (and how this affects uptake); how the histories of food environments (at different scales) shape new practices of food provisioning; and how intersectional inequalities may continue to shape experiences of food insecurity even as policies change over time, and with what consequences, especially for female caregivers (Bowen et al 2021b, Elliott et al 2021, Shannon et al 2021. At the same time, the emergence of new ways of framing the relationships between food and health (e.g., "food is medicine") and the increasing integration of food and nutrition programs, such as "produce prescriptions" and "farmacies," into healthcare delivery systems (Downer et al 2020) offer intriguing sites for sociological analyses.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Food and Inequality

Shostak

2023

Annu. Rev. Sociol.

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The production, consumption, materiality, and meanings of food are critical topics for sociological research on inequality, although they have not always been recognized as such. This article describes how food is implicated in the production of inequalities across scales and sites. It begins by considering how the global food system is inextricably imbricated with structures of power that create and sustain patterns of inequality, especially in regard to land and labor. It then reviews the literature on food access and food insecurity, not only as determinants of health but as lived experiences shaped by local food environments, intersectional identities, and the social meanings of food. Lastly, it considers how the food justice and food sovereignty movements challenge the inequalities and injustices engendered by the global industrial food system. The conclusions highlight how sociological research on food and inequality is essential to understanding the contexts and consequences of contemporary policy initiatives. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Sociology, Volume 49 is July 2023. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Food and Inequality

Shostak

2023

Annu. Rev. Sociol.

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“…Finally, while we add to a limited body of research examining contextual correlates of food insecurity, we acknowledge the work of researchers who emphasize that congruence also matters. That is, place matters, but the characteristics of place may matter differently for different individuals, households, or families [ 15 ]. While our own supplemental analyses (not shown, available upon request) found no statistically significant cross-level interactions or random slopes in our multi-level models, we recommend that as researchers continue to investigate the role that place plays in shaping food insecurity during the pandemic that considers the importance of congruence.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most efforts to understand disproportionate experiences with food insecurity focus on individual and social vulnerabilities (e.g., personal resources, family type, employment) [ 7 , 10 , 11 , 12 ]. A smaller body of the literature has begun to highlight the role of place-level or contextual factors related to food insecurity [ 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ]. Place is a basic component of lived experience and, as such, it is often taken for granted.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Place Still Matters: Social Vulnerabilities, Place-Level Disadvantage, and Food Insecurity during COVID-19

et al. 2023

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COVID-19 variants continue to create public health danger impacting mortality and morbidity across the United States. The spillover effects of COVID-19 on the economy and social institutions pose a significant threat to broader wellbeing, including the food security of millions across the country. We aim to explore whether the context of place matters above and beyond individual and social vulnerabilities for food insecurity. To do so, we employ a multi-level framework using data from a survey of over 10,000 U.S. adults from March 2020 with American Community Survey (ACS) and John Hopkins COVID Dashboard county-level data. We find nearly two in five respondents were food insecure by March of 2020 with disparities across race, nativity, the presence of children in the home, unemployment, and age. Furthermore, we note that individuals living in more disadvantaged communities were more likely to report food insecurity above and beyond individual and social vulnerabilities. Overall, food insecurity is driven by complex, multi-level dynamics that remain a pressing public health concern for the current—but also future—public health crisis.

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“…Low‐income and Black mothers are particularly at risk of being deemed “bad” mothers and labeled as negligent or irresponsible feeders. Indeed, while higher‐income, white mothers—those who fit the societal definition of a “good mother”—may be granted leniency in their food choices, low‐income and minoritized mothers are especially susceptible to scrutiny, surveillance, and accusations over their food practices, including not being able to feed their children enough (Bowen et al., 2021; Cairns et al., 2018; Elliott & Bowen, 2018; Nettles‐Barcelon et al., 2015). Low‐income mothers' economic precarity and participation in social assistance programs, coupled with widespread (mis)perceptions that the poor eat disproportionate amounts of convenience and fast foods (Zagorsky & Smith, 2017), drive assumptions that these mothers are less concerned with children's health, lack knowledge about healthy eating, or have “deficient” dietary values.…”

Section: Food Meanings In the Context Of Gendered Classed And Raciali...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Unequal foodwork: Situating the sociology of feeding within diet and nutrition disparities

Fielding‐Singh

Oleschuk

2023

Sociology Compass

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Widespread inequities in diet and nutrition present a pressing public health problem. Sociologists working to illuminate the causes and contours of these inequities often center the role of family foodwork, or the multifaceted domestic labor that supports eating, including planning and preparing meals. Mounting sociological scholarship on foodwork considers how food's meanings are socially patterned to reflect broader social structures, ideologies and institutions that influence their manifestation and families' resources to enact them. Here, we present three core contributions from the sociology of foodwork that can advance essential transdisciplinary conversations around nutrition disparities as well as efforts to tackle these disparities. We lay out how (1) family foodwork is historically rooted in broader structures of capitalist exploitation and women's subordination, and today remains gendered through normative discourses equating “good” feeding with “good” mothering; (2) the moralization of foodwork is buttressed by an ideological context idealizing homecooked meals and lamenting foodwork's decline, and; (3) foodwork—and societal evaluations of it—are shaped and stratified by intersecting gendered, classed, and racial inequalities. After reviewing each contribution and its importance for addressing nutrition inequities, we conclude by advocating for a closer conversation across disciplines and highlighting important future directions for sociologists.

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The Impact of COVID-19 on Experiences of Food Insecurity Across Place: A Qualitative Research Protocol

Cited by 4 publications

References 47 publications

Food and Inequality

Food and Inequality

Place Still Matters: Social Vulnerabilities, Place-Level Disadvantage, and Food Insecurity during COVID-19

Unequal foodwork: Situating the sociology of feeding within diet and nutrition disparities

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