Gender Disparities In Perceived Life Satisfaction Within Food Insecure Populations

Download or read book Gender Disparities in Perceived Life Satisfaction Within Food Insecure Populations written by Elizabeth Graham and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Food insecurity plagues individuals worldwide, even in those countries with a surplus in food supplies. Numerous studies show females are over-represented among the global food insecure population; a 2009 estimate reported 60% of undernourished people worldwide are women or girls. By asking individuals whether they are satisfied with their lives, underlying crises or hidden strengths can be understood. The primary objective of this study is to analyse whether gender is a global risk factor for experiencing food insecurity. The secondary objective is to explore the relationship between food insecurity and reported life satisfaction, and how that relationship may be more pronounced by gender. Through a collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, this study utilized data collected through the 2014 Gallup World Poll® (GWP) which included the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). The GWP is a nationally representative survey conducted annually in over 150 countries. Responses to the FIES (8 questions) comprised the food insecurity variable, with 0 affirmative responses denoting food security, and 1-8 affirmative responses denoting food insecurity. A single well-being question (adapted from Hadley Cantril's Self-Anchoring Striving Scale) comprised the life satisfaction variable, with possible answers ranged 0-10. Responses 4 or lower denoted "worse off" or low life satisfaction, versus 5-10 categorized "better off". Analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics 22, using the complex sample module. Descriptive and bivariate analyses were employed to understand which independent variables are related to life satisfaction, considering intensity and direction. Two multivariate logistic regression models were created; one to examine the likelihood of being food insecure based on gender, and another to examine the likelihood of reporting higher life satisfaction based on food security status and gender. Both models adjusted for age, marital status, income, education level, and country of residence. Cross-sectional data from 142 countries shows that, globally, 47.7% of population was food insecure, with nearly a third of the total sample (32.4%) categorized as "worse off" for life satisfaction. Women had higher odds for food insecurity than men in both unadjusted (OR: 1.14, 95% CI= 1.11-1.16), as well as adjusted models (OR: 1.04, 95% CI= 1.01-1.07). Food insecurity and life satisfaction were found significantly correlated, with those who were food insecure having significantly higher odds of perceiving low life satisfaction (OR: 3.25, 95% CI= 3.14-3.36). Furthermore, this analysis revealed for the first time on a global scale, that men are consistently less likely to report higher life satisfaction than their female counterparts (OR: 0.83, 95% CI= 0.81-0.86) when controlling for food insecurity, among other variables. Adjusting for independent variables, food insecure men, food insecure women, and food secure men had, respectively, 3.89, 3.31, and 1.24 times higher odds to report "worse off" life satisfaction when compared to food secure women. This research provides evidence of differing reports of overall life satisfaction between men and women who experience the same food (in)security status. This reinforces the need for re-structuring typical food-security programs (and other public services) and to measure individual well-being consequences which often precede physical consequences of food insecurity. This study supports implementing well-being and food insecurity assessments in unison, to understand how food insecurity in specific economic and social contexts varies. Continued research is necessary to explore why life satisfaction is viewed differently by men and women, what the consequences are then for those food insecure populations and what implications exist for policies aimed at improving food security." --