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What explains gender differences in food insecurity?

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  • Broussard, Nzinga H.

Abstract

There is a rich literature devoted to the role women play in ensuring the food security of the household and other household members. However, relatively little attention has been paid to their own food security situation. The challenge with investigating the food security of women is that most surveys collect food security data at the household level making inferences about individual-level food security difficult. Using a large international sample of individual-level data and the first global experiential measure of food insecurity, I show that women have a higher probability of being food insecure relative to men. The magnitude of the gender gap in food insecurity varies across regions and varies by the severity level of food insecurity. In the developed countries of the European Union, women are 4.7 percentage points more likely than men to experience some form of food insecurity. In the poor countries of South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, women are two percentage points more likely than men to be severely food insecure. Using a modification of the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition technique, I find that gender differences in household income, educational attainment, and social networks explain the majority of the gender gap in food insecurity. However, in some regions, namely South Asia and Australia/New Zealand, gender differences in observable characteristics fail to account for gender differences in food insecurity. This analysis suggests that policies that address gender inequality in employment opportunities and educational attainment may also impact food insecurity.

Suggested Citation

  • Broussard, Nzinga H., 2019. "What explains gender differences in food insecurity?," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 180-194.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:83:y:2019:i:c:p:180-194
    DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2019.01.003
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    13. Blanca Salinas-Roca & Laura Rubió-Piqué & Elena Carrillo-Álvarez & Gemma Franco-Alcaine, 2022. "Impact of Health and Social Factors on the Cardiometabolic Risk in People with Food Insecurity: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(21), pages 1-10, November.
    14. Alexandria J. Drake & Lora A. Phillips & Brajesh Karna & Shakthi Bharathi Murugesan & Lily K. Villa & Nathan A. Smith, 2023. "Food insecurity and disasters: predicting disparities in total and first-time food pantry visits during the COVID-19 pandemic," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(2), pages 493-504, April.
    15. Muhammad Sohail Amjad Makhdum & Rakhshanda Kousar, 2021. "Gender in agriculture: Determinants of female labor supply decisions among rural households in the context of market imperfections in Pakistan," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 52(2), pages 235-248, March.
    16. Hanna Dudek & Joanna Myszkowska-Ryciak, 2020. "The Prevalence and Socio-Demographic Correlates of Food Insecurity in Poland," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-16, August.
    17. Chukwuemeka E. Ogbu & Chisa O. Oparanma & Stella C. Ogbu & Otobo I. Ujah & Ndugba S. Chinenye & Chidera P. Ogbu & Russell S. Kirby, 2023. "Neighborhood Unsafety, Discrimination, and Food Insecurity among Nigerians Aged 15–49," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(17), pages 1-14, August.
    18. Qian Sun & Xiaoyun Li & Dil Bahadur Rahut, 2021. "Gender Differences in Nutritional Intake among Rural-Urban Migrants in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-17, September.
    19. Yeyoung Lee & Beliyou Haile & Greg Seymour & Carlo Azzarri, 2021. "The heat never bothered me anyway: Gender‐specific response of agricultural labor to climatic shocks in Tanzania," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 43(2), pages 732-749, June.
    20. Pedro Gerber Machado & Julia Tomei & Adam Hawkes & Celma de Oliveira Ribeiro, 2020. "A Simulator to Determine the Evolution of Disparities in Food Consumption between Socio-Economic Groups: A Brazilian Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-24, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Food insecurity; Gender inequality;

    JEL classification:

    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination

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