Household adversity and food security: The case of youth in public housing neighborhoods.
Title
Household adversity and food security: The case of youth in public housing neighborhoods.
Author(s)
Margaret Lombe
; Von Eugene Nebbitt
; Yoosun Chu
; Leia Saltzman
; Taqi Tirmazi
Keyword
Public housing
; food hardship
; household adversity
; parental incarceration
; community cohesion
Publication Year
2017-02-14
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Citation
Journal of Children and Poverty, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 125 - 140
Abstract
This paper sets out to explore factors that may be associated with food hardship among young people who reside in public housing (N = 124). The study is guided by Family Stress Theory and uses data from a cross-sectional study of African–American adolescents living in a public housing neighborhood located in West Baltimore. Results suggest that food security (defined as availability, accessibility, and adequacy) was negatively related to mother’s incarceration, large households, household experiencing material hardships, and interpersonal conflict as well as violence. It was also linked to community disorganization. Program and policy implications are suggested.