IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i18p9829-d638131.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Measurement of Food Insecurity in High-Income Countries: A Scoping Review

Author

Listed:
  • Elena Carrillo-Álvarez

    (Global Research on Wellbeing (GRoW) Research Group, Blanquerna School of Health Science, Ramon Llull University, Padilla, 326-332, 08025 Barcelona, Spain)

  • Blanca Salinas-Roca

    (Global Research on Wellbeing (GRoW) Research Group, Blanquerna School of Health Science, Ramon Llull University, Padilla, 326-332, 08025 Barcelona, Spain
    Department of Nursing and Physiotherapy, University of Lleida, Montserrat Roig 2, 25198 Lleida, Spain)

  • Lluís Costa-Tutusaus

    (Global Research on Wellbeing (GRoW) Research Group, Blanquerna School of Health Science, Ramon Llull University, Padilla, 326-332, 08025 Barcelona, Spain)

  • Raimon Milà-Villarroel

    (Global Research on Wellbeing (GRoW) Research Group, Blanquerna School of Health Science, Ramon Llull University, Padilla, 326-332, 08025 Barcelona, Spain)

  • Nithya Shankar Krishnan

    (Global Research on Wellbeing (GRoW) Research Group, Blanquerna School of Health Science, Ramon Llull University, Padilla, 326-332, 08025 Barcelona, Spain)

Abstract

The measurement of food insecurity is essential to monitor the prevalence, risk factors, consequences and effects of food insecurity and the interventions and policies implemented to tackle it. Yet, how best to apply it remains an unsettled issue due to the multifaceted and context-dependent nature of food insecurity. We report a scoping review of measures of food insecurity at the individual and household level in high-income countries with the final purpose of facilitating a catalogue of instruments to be used by both researchers and practitioners. The scoping review was conducted following the methodological framework of Arksey and O’Malley and the Joanna Briggs Institute guidelines. We included all types of documents published between 2000–2020 using instruments that estimate food insecurity at both individual and household level in high-income countries, and with respondents including adolescents, adults, and elderly. We identified a total of 23 measurement strategies being used in 33 peer-reviewed publications and 114 documents from the grey literature. Our results show that most measures focus on the access dimension of food insecurity and that further research is required to develop measures that incorporate aspects of quality of dietary intake and relevant individual, household and social conditions related to food insecurity.

Suggested Citation

  • Elena Carrillo-Álvarez & Blanca Salinas-Roca & Lluís Costa-Tutusaus & Raimon Milà-Villarroel & Nithya Shankar Krishnan, 2021. "The Measurement of Food Insecurity in High-Income Countries: A Scoping Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-57, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:18:p:9829-:d:638131
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/18/9829/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/18/9829/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nord, Mark & Hopwood, Heather, 2008. "A Comparison of Household Food Security in Canada and the United States," Economic Research Report 56488, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    2. Nord, Mark & Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Andrews, Margaret & Carlson, Steven, 2010. "Household Food Security in the United States, 2009," Economic Research Report 262246, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    3. Broussard, Nzinga H., 2019. "What explains gender differences in food insecurity?," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 180-194.
    4. Gregory, Christian A. & Coleman-Jensen, Alisha, 2017. "Food Insecurity, Chronic Disease, and Health Among Working-Age Adults," Economic Research Report 261813, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    5. Fiona H. McKay & Bronte C. Haines & Matthew Dunn, 2019. "Measuring and Understanding Food Insecurity in Australia: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-27, February.
    6. Penne, Tess & Goedemé, Tim, 2021. "Can low-income households afford a healthy diet? Insufficient income as a driver of food insecurity in Europe," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    7. Craig Gundersen & David Ribar, 2011. "Food Insecurity And Insufficiency At Low Levels Of Food Expenditures," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 57(4), pages 704-726, December.
    8. Nord, Mark & Golla, Anne Marie, 2009. "Does SNAP Decrease Food Insecurity? Untangling the Self-Selection Effect," Economic Research Report 55955, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    9. Amanda Lee & Meron Lewis, 2018. "Testing the Price of Healthy and Current Diets in Remote Aboriginal Communities to Improve Food Security: Development of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Healthy Diets ASAP (Australian Standa," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-15, December.
    10. Jae Yeon Park & Arlette Saint Ville & Timothy Schwinghamer & Hugo Melgar-Quiñonez, 2019. "Heterogeneous factors predict food insecurity among the elderly in developed countries: insights from a multi-national analysis of 48 countries," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 11(3), pages 541-552, June.
    11. Christopher M. Bacon & Gregory A. Baker, 2017. "The rise of food banks and the challenge of matching food assistance with potential need: towards a spatially specific, rapid assessment approach," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 34(4), pages 899-919, December.
    12. Merryn Maynard & Lesley Andrade & Sara Packull-McCormick & Christopher M. Perlman & Cesar Leos-Toro & Sharon I. Kirkpatrick, 2018. "Food Insecurity and Mental Health among Females in High-Income Countries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-36, July.
    13. Elena Grimaccia & Alessia Naccarato, 2020. "Confirmatory factor analysis to validate a new measure of food insecurity: perceived and actual constructs," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 54(4), pages 1211-1232, August.
    14. Nord, Mark & Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Gregory, Christian, 2014. "Prevalence of U.S. Food Insecurity Is Related to Changes in Unemployment, Inflation, and the Price of Food," Economic Research Report 262213, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    15. Craig Gundersen & Monica Hake & Adam Dewey & Emily Engelhard, 2021. "Food Insecurity during COVID‐19," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 43(1), pages 153-161, March.
    16. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Rabbitt, Matthew P. & Gregory, Christian A. & Singh, Anita, 2017. "Statistical Supplement to Household Food Security in the United States in 2016," Administrative Publications 292099, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    17. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Rabbitt, Matthew P. & Gregory, Christian A. & Singh, Anita, 2019. "Statistical Supplement to Household Food Security in the United States in 2018," Administrative Publications 320791, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    18. Nord, Mark, 2007. "Characteristics of Low-Income Households With Very Low Food Security: An Analysis of the USDA GPRA Food Security Indicator," Economic Information Bulletin 6387, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    19. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Nord, Mark, 2013. "Food Insecurity Among Households With Working-Age Adults With Disabilities," Economic Research Report 142955, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    20. Keumseok Koh & Michelle L. Kaiser & Glennon Sweeney & Karima Samadi & Ayaz Hyder, 2020. "Explaining Racial Inequality in Food Security in Columbus, Ohio: A Blinder–Oaxaca Decomposition Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(15), pages 1-15, July.
    21. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Rabbitt, Matthew P. & Gregory, Christian A. & Singh, Anita, 2019. "Household Food Security in the United States in 2018," Economic Research Report 301167, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Stefano Marchetti & Luca Secondi, 2022. "The Economic Perspective of Food Poverty and (In)security: An Analytical Approach to Measuring and Estimation in Italy," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 162(3), pages 995-1020, August.
    2. Audrey J. Murrell & Ray Jones & Sam Rose & Alex Firestine & Joe Bute, 2022. "Food Security as Ethics and Social Responsibility: An Application of the Food Abundance Index in an Urban Setting," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-13, August.
    3. Gibb, James K. & Williams, Sarah & Mikelsteins, Kaspars & Charles, Jada & McKinnon, Leela & Beach, Laura & McKerracher, Luseadra & Fields, Jessica, 2024. "Queering food security research: A critical analysis of 2SLGBTQ+ People's experiences of food insecurity in Toronto during the COVID-19 pandemic," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 345(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Rabbitt, Matthew P & Gregory, Christian A & Singh, Anita, 2020. "Household Food Security in the United States in 2019," Economic Research Report 327207, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    2. Suttles, Shellye & Babb, Angela & Knudsen, Daniel C., 2024. "Submitted and Denied: Understanding variation in case status across Supplemental Nutrition assistance program (SNAP) applications," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    3. Helms, Veronica E & Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Gray, Regina & Brucker, Debra L, 2020. "Household Food Insecurity and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Federal Housing Assistance," Economic Research Report 327205, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    4. Amber Bastian & Courtney Parks & Fiona H. McKay & Paige van der Pligt & Amy Yaroch & Sarah A. McNaughton & Rebecca Lindberg, 2022. "Development of a Comprehensive Household Food Security Tool for Families with Young Children and/or Pregnant Women in High Income Countries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(17), pages 1-17, August.
    5. Otto Lenhart, 2021. "The effects of paid family leave on food insecurity—evidence from California," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 19(3), pages 615-639, September.
    6. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Rabbitt, Matthew & Gregory, Christian & Singh, Anita, 2022. "Household Food Security in the United States in 2021," Amber Waves:The Economics of Food, Farming, Natural Resources, and Rural America, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, vol. 2022(Economic ), September.
    7. Yingru Li & Dapeng Li & Christian King, 2022. "Food Insufficiency among Job-Loss Households during the Pandemic: The Role of Food Assistance Programs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-14, November.
    8. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Rabbitt, Matthew & Gregory, Christian & Singh, Anita, 2022. "Household Food Security in the United States in 2021," Amber Waves:The Economics of Food, Farming, Natural Resources, and Rural America, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, vol. 2022(Economic ), September.
    9. Jong Eun Park & So Young Kim & Se Hee Kim & Eun Ju Jeoung & Jong Hyock Park, 2020. "Household Food Insecurity: Comparison between Families with and without Members with Disabilities," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(17), pages 1-16, August.
    10. Denney, Justin T. & Brewer, Mackenzie & Kimbro, Rachel Tolbert, 2020. "Food insecurity in households with young children: A test of contextual congruence," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 263(C).
    11. Rabbitt, Matthew P. & Smith, Michael D., 2021. "Food Insecurity Among Working-Age Veterans," USDA Miscellaneous 311332, United States Department of Agriculture.
    12. Amier Haidar & Christine Markham & Allison Marshall & Ru-Jye Chuang & Meredith Spence & Jennifer Boone & Mike Pomeroy & Rich Dachman & Jaimie N. Davis & Shreela V. Sharma, 2021. "Innovative Partnerships to Address Food Insecurity during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Brighter Bites Produce Voucher Program," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-10, August.
    13. Anita Rizvi & Madeleine Kearns & Michael Dignam & Alison Coates & Melissa K. Sharp & Olivia Magwood & Patrick R. Labelle & Nour Elmestekawy & Sydney Rossiter & Ali A. A. Al‐Zubaidi & Omar Dewidar & Le, 2024. "Effects of guaranteed basic income interventions on poverty‐related outcomes in high‐income countries: A systematic review and meta‐analysis," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 20(2), June.
    14. Zhongqi Fan & Amy M. Yang & Marcus Lehr & Ana B. Ronan & Ryan B. Simpson & Kimberly H. Nguyen & Elena N. Naumova & Naglaa H. El-Abbadi, 2024. "Food Insecurity across Age Groups in the United States during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(8), pages 1-19, August.
    15. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Rabbitt, Matthew P & Gregory, Christian A & Singh, Anita, 2021. "Household Food Security in the United States in 2020," Economic Research Report 327186, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    16. repec:ags:aaea22:335676 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Haniyeh Shariatmadary & Sabine O’Hara & Rebecca Graham & Marian Stuiver, 2023. "Are Food Hubs Sustainable? An Analysis of Social and Environmental Objectives of U.S. Food Hubs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-19, January.
    18. Kevin M. Fitzpatrick & Don E. Willis & Matthew L. Spialek & Emily English, 2020. "Food Insecurity in the Post-Hurricane Harvey Setting: Risks and Resources in the Midst of Uncertainty," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(22), pages 1-16, November.
    19. Nord, Mark & Prell, Mark, 2011. "Food Security Improved Following the 2009 ARRA Increase in SNAP Benefits," Economic Research Report 262242, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    20. Joshua Berning & Caroline Norris & Rebecca Cleary, 2023. "Food insecurity among immigrant populations in the United States," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 15(1), pages 41-57, February.
    21. repec:ags:aaea22:335700 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. Cäzilia Loibl & Wändi Bruine de Bruin & Barbara Summers & Simon McNair & Pieter Verhallen, 2022. "Which financial stressors are linked to food insecurity among older adults in the United Kingdom, Germany, and the Netherlands? An exploratory study," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(2), pages 533-556, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:18:p:9829-:d:638131. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.