Food Pantries and the Populations They Serve: Strange Bedfellows or Strategic Partners?*

Although it is often assumed that food pantries are managed by middle‐class directors whose social background differs significantly from that of their target populations, no systematic empirical evidence concerning this issue exists to date. Moreover, scholarship has yet to explore the extent to which the presumably distinctive social positions of pantry directors and clients might result in the stigmatization of poverty, social welfare programs, and the poor by agency directors. Drawing on insights from attribution theory, this study seeks to shed light on demographic and attitudinal differences between pantry directors and food‐needy persons. The study begins by comparing the demographic characteristics of food pantry directors in a two‐state region of the South (Alabama‐Mississippi) with those of the food‐needy population in the region. It then moves on to contrast attitudinal disparities between these directors and food‐needy persons related to such issues as the causes of poverty, the effects of social welfare programs, and the character of those who utilize food assistance programs. Noteworthy differences in race, education, and religiosity emerge when comparing directors with the populations they serve; however, directors did not differ markedly from their potential clients in key social attitudes. When asked specifically about food pantry clients, directors responded with a mix of sympathy and suspicion. While a substantial portion of directors attribute poverty to structural causes, a significant number also characterize clients seeking food assistance as possibly having unsavory motivations for doing so. The study concludes with a discussion of the implications of these findings.     

Creating a community of practice among college campus food pantry directors in Michigan

There is increased awareness of hunger and food insecurity on college campuses. Recent estimates suggest that food insecurity affects as many as 4 out of 10 college students. As a result, over 650 US colleges have established campus food pantries. The College and University Pantries (CUP) research team at the University of Michigan–Dearborn has worked to create a community of practice in Michigan among campus pantry directors by hosting 2 summits designed around networking, problem-solving, and sharing best practices. This article describes the Michigan community of practice as an example for other regions doing similar work.     

Needs of families affected by mental illness

1. To obtain the best outcomes for clients with mental illnesses, the needs of their families must also be assessed and addressed. One basic need is information. 2. Nurses can effectively teach clients and families many skills, including problem solving, parenting, coping with daily living and personal and family stressors, and effective communication. 3. Referring families to appropriate outside resources can provide them with a means of continuing support.     

Government Capital,Intimate and Community Social Capital,and Food Security Status in Older Adults with Different Income Levels

Whether government‐based forms of food assistance such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), communal efforts including food pantries, aid from friends and family, or alternative means such as gardening are the appropriate means to reduce the prevalence of household food insecurity is a continuous source of policy contention. To inform this debate, we examine the relative importance of these forms of food assistance and acquisition to a sample of U.S. older adults from the 2010 Brazos Valley Health Assessment of central Texas households that have been stratified by income eligibility for SNAP, low‐income SNAP ineligibility, and above low income status. To identify how membership in these socioeconomic groups constrains household capacity to acquire sufficient food to maintain an adequate and healthy diet, we explore the varied associations of assets received from government; communal and intimate social networks; and alternative food sources such as gardening, hunting, and fishing with household food security across socioeconomic status, while examining the importance of place of residence on the use of capital assets. SNAP participation was the only specific capital asset associated with all levels of food insecurity for both SNAP‐eligible and ineligible low‐income groups, thus emphasizing the continued importance of food assistance among poverty‐level older adults.     

Natural Recovery from Substance Dependency

Abstract

The literature on cessation of drug and alcohol dependency without benefit of treatment or participation in self-help groups spans nearly forty years. While this literature is substantial and analyses of the processes of natural recovery well-developed, discussions directed at treatment providers around the value of these analyses for practice has been sparse. Drawing on our study as well as the research of others, this paper explores two dimensions of natural recovery that hold important implications for treatment providers who work with substance dependent clients. These include the common strategies used by remitters and the concept of recovery capital as a way to capture the embeddedness of these natural recovery strategies within a unique structural context of personal attributes and social environments.     

Professional Relationship Boundaries: A Social Work Teaching Module

Social workers are often challenged by the complex and ever‐changing dynamics within their relationships with clients, and struggle to find ethical responses within professional boundary grey zones where boundaries with clients can be difficult to identify, yet easy to cross. Social work educators attempt to prepare students for these complex situations, yet in the United States research reveals rates of social work boundary violations that lead one to question the efficacy of social work ethics education. This article describes the educational competencies and instructional strategies that comprise an adaptable course module which was developed in response to this challenge, and intended to increase students' self‐awareness, motivation and professional judgment‐making abilities related to their professional boundaries. The educational competencies for this course include the abilities to: identify boundary violations, apply critical thinking skills to complex professional relationship contexts, increase awareness of self and other, and initiate prevention strategies. In contrast to traditional approaches to education, this article describes instructional strategies that are based on adult‐learning principles, which have the purpose of effectively and creatively teaching topic areas in such a way as to produce behavioural change. These course topic areas include a ‘Professional Relationship Boundaries Continuum’ conceptual framework, boundary violation impacts, personal boundary vulnerabilities, blurring boundary indicators, and risk‐minimizing strategies.     

Solving the Problems of Iowa Food Deserts: Food Insecurity and Civic Structure*

Abstract Rural regions include places where food sources are not evenly distributed, leading to areas of concentration and food deserts—places where few or no grocery stores exist. Individuals are hypothesized to depend on personal connections and the civic structure of where they live to help them solve the problem of food insecurity. We find that residents living in poor rural counties with few grocery stores and perceptions of high civic structure are significantly less likely to be food insecure. A great deal of food giving and receiving is reported, but these personal connections do not decrease the odds of being food insecure. Lower incomes and being younger increase the odds of food insecurity. Our findings suggest that investments in strengthening the social structure of rural communities along with strategies that increase incomes can help households solve the problem of food insecurity.     

Organic food and the plural moralities of food provisioning

The aim of this paper is twofold. The first aim is to unfold the moral complexity of organic food consumption as part of household food provisioning. By acknowledging this complexity, and the difficulty of determining what is ‘good’ and ‘right’ in food provisioning, the idea is to allow for a better understanding of how organic food may, or may not, fit in with the various concerns of food provisioning. The second aim is to analyse how food provisioners handle this complexity so that food provisioning can proceed as an ordinary everyday activity.The paper analyses empirical material from a study of household food provisioning in Denmark. Theoretically, it draws on French pragmatic sociology as represented by the work of Boltanski and Thévenot on moral conventions and regimes of engagement. The analysis illustrates that food provisioning involves several competing sets of moral conventions and that the status of organic food in relation to these is often uncertain and contested. However, it also identifies among provisioners different strategies for handling this moral complexity in ordinary everyday life. The paper calls for some modesty in trying to change consumer behaviour in favour of organic products. Providing consumers with more information about organic food may not make it easier to determine what is ‘good’ and ‘right’ when buying food. It may only add to the complexity of food provisioning and thus to the need for compromise and pragmatism.     

Changes in financial status influencing level of satisfaction in households

This study explores the impact of changes in family financial status over a four year period on level of satisfaction with various aspects of household finances. Data were collected through personal interviews with 123 families in 1982 and 1986. Information was obtained on household income, assets, liabilities, and on the satisfaction of the money managers with seven aspects of household finances. Two-tail pairedt-tests were used to compare differences in financial and satisfaction variables between the two time periods. Regression analyses were applied to ascertain factors affecting the satisfaction of the money managers. The financial status of households improved during the 4 year period as reflected by net worth. The mean net worth, with and without real estate, increased significantly during this time period. In spite of this improvement, money managers are less satisfied with various aspects of their household finances.This research was supported by the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station Project No. 2773 (Journal Paper No. J-13098).Tahira K. Hira is a Professor and Alyce M. Fanslow is a Distinguished Professor in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences; Patricia Titus is an Instructor in the College of Education; all are at Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011-1120. Dr. Hira's research interests include consumer bankruptcies and various aspects of household economic well-being Dr. Fanslow's and Dr. Titus' research interests include competencies of household money managers.     

“It’s a generosity loop”: Religious and spiritual motivations of volunteers who glean produce to reduce food insecurity

Food insecurity is a common social issue and households look to assistance from food pantries, which often have difficulty supplying fresh or nutritious food. A substantial amount of produce is left in the fields, which can be collected through gleaning. In a focus group with volunteer gleaners at a faith-based nonprofit organization that attempts to fill the gaps of food insecurity, the motivations, challenges, and benefits of volunteering were examined. Volunteering in gleaning generated a sense of collective purpose and community; it addressed deeply held religious and spiritual impulses; and it puts volunteers directly in contact with nature.     

Dealing with Resistance: Working with Involuntary Clients in Community-Based Drug Treatment Programs in China

ABSTRACT

This study explores strategies for dealing with client resistance that are commonly used by a group of selected counsellors who work closely with illicit drug users in the community-based compulsory treatment programs in China. Through semistructured in-depth interviews with 16 counsellors, this study finds that different forms of client resistance were experienced in their day-to-day practice, encompassing passive and active behaviours. Five typical strategies are used by Chinese counsellors in this study to deal with client resistance: showing respect and caring and expressing empathy; attending to the needs of the clients; making effective use of peer influence; altering clients’ unwillingness to change; and strategically enhancing clients’ self-determination. Considering these strategies can also be seen as general principles for dealing with involuntary clients in other fields of social work services, the findings of this study may have broader impact.

IMPLICATIONS

• Effective ways that can be used by counsellors for reducing illicit drug users’ resistance during treatment include: showing respect and caring, and expressing empathy; attending to the needs of the clients; making effective use of peer influence; altering clients’ unwillingness to change; and strategically enhancing clients’ self-determination.

• Professional social work training is urgently needed among community-based drug treatment social work practitioners in China, to achieve efficient practices and better outcomes.

     

Discretionary approaches to social workers’ personalisation of activation services for long-term welfare recipients

Contemporary social policies emphasise labour market inclusion of vulnerable groups through personalisation of activation services. This article investigates social workers’ decision-making when personalising activation measures to suit each client. Data consist of case files for 16 clients participating in a Norwegian activation scheme, and interviews with the clients’ designated social workers. Using Bakhtin’s theory of dialogism, the article examines what the social workers consider in their decision-making process and the pivotal factors in their conclusions. Findings show that social workers employ two distinct approaches to personalisation, which have significantly different implications for clients’ pathways towards labour market inclusion. The first approach concentrates on clients’ personal challenges, while the second focuses on feasible short-term employment strategies. The study demonstrates how institutional and political frameworks may lead to social workers’ posing activation requirements inconsistent with clients’ needs and capabilities. It suggests further research into these interrelations to improve social workers’ ability to adapt services to individual clients.     

Household Assets and Food Security: Evidence from the Survey of Program Dynamics

This study uses the Survey of Program Dynamics data to examine the independent role of household assets in food security. It further examines whether assets provide a buffer for low-income households to food insecurity in the face of income losses. Results of the Two-Part Model analyses show that household assets have a significant association with food security in both the full sample and the low-income sample. In the presence of household assets, income’s effect on food security decreases. In addition, the significant interaction terms of income loss and household assets indicate that assets provide resources to smooth food consumption. The findings of this study suggest a consideration of asset building strategies in asset related provisions of current food assistance policy.     

Scamming the Poor

Abstract

Because of the difficulty in securing traditional forms of credit, the poor are often driven into the fringe economy for check cashing, bill paying and short-term loans. These services involve high user fees and exorbitant interest rates that rival or even exceed those for illegal loan sharking. Fringe lending businesses function as a legal and virtually unregulated form of predatory loan-sharking. They neither offer nor promote savings-based financial products that build assets and increase household wealth. The predictable outcome is the depletion of the income and assets of low-income families and communities. Because many poor clients are vulnerable to fringe market lenders, social workers need to understand this market to better assist the poor in finding and developing alternative forms of borrowing. This article will explore the rapidly growing fringe economy and examine strategies to help curb the drain of income and assets from low-income communities.     

Bridging the gap: The impact of home visiting programs for orphans and vulnerable children on social grant uptake in South Africa

Cash transfer programs hold significant potential to mitigate the economic burdens resulting from the HIV epidemic and enhance the wellbeing of affected children. South Africa offers two cash transfers designed specifically to benefit children: the Child Support Grant, for low income families with children, and the Foster Child Grant, for children living outside of parental care. Given the high proportion of HIV-affected children who qualify for these grants, increasing grant access among eligible families is a natural objective for many programs targeting orphans and vulnerable children. We present results from a quasi-experimental study examining differences in grant uptake over a two year period among 1487 children enrolled in one of two types of supportive home visiting programming: volunteer-based or paraprofessional. The study also examined related outcomes including household food security and children's access to basic educational and material needs. Results show that programs staffed with trained paraprofessionals who received training, compensation and other support were significantly more effective at linking families to social grants for children. Controlling for important covariates, at follow-up participants in the paraprofessional model programs were nearly three times as likely as volunteer-based service recipients to have access to the highest grant they were eligible to receive. Grant receipt was also positively associated with household food security and children's obtainment of basic educational and material resources. Effective strategies for promoting social grant access among HIV-affected households therefore have the potential to yield significant improvements in wellbeing for orphans and vulnerable children.     

Spatial Inequality in Access to Food Assistance in Indiana

This project is an analysis of the spatial inequality that exists between rural and urban areas in access to food assistance agencies. I gathered the population of all food pantries and soup kitchens in 24 sample counties in Indiana and mapped the location of these agencies using geographic information system analysis. Using the population center of the census block group, I measured the distance from the population center to the nearest food assistance agency. If the closest agency was more than a mile away, the census block group was considered a food assistance desert, a concept I created that draws on the food desert measurement. I found that rural high‐poverty counties in my sample are the most likely to contain census block groups that are food assistance deserts, and urban high‐poverty counties are the least likely to contain food assistance deserts. From these findings, I determine that access to assistance agencies needs to be increased in rural areas, especially rural areas with high‐poverty rates.     

Emancipation and Self-determination of People with Learning Disabilities and Down-sizing Institutional Care

In Arduin, an organisation for services to people with learning disabilities in the Netherlands, the emancipation and self-determination of people with learning disabilities has been positively adopted as fundamental in order to secure the best possible quality of life of the clients. The client is being encouraged in several ways in a development from a position of dependence towards self-determination. The services provided by the organisation had to be adjusted accordingly and are also going through a transition from 'providing a total care service' towards 'offering the support that the client desires'. In this article the background and developments in perception are being outlined, and those dimensions in quality of life are elaborated that are seen as most essential in the innovation: inclusion, self-determination and personal development. The choices that were made as a consequence in Arduin and most fundamental the choice to dismantle the institution are described.     

Mindfulness in financial literacy

ABSTRACT

Financial education is becoming imperative in a society that has pitfalls for unwary consumers. To ensure effectiveness, educational strategies must take into consideration the readiness of consumers to learn the curriculum. Behavioral economics highlights the obstacles that educators face in promoting financial efficacy. Such obstacles include envy, fear, greed, and other all too familiar human failings. One innovative model, mindfulness, provides insight into the human dynamics of personal financial behaviors. This article ties together financial education, mindfulness techniques, and transtheoretical stages of readiness. The impact of gradually introduced educational tasks is presented with an eye toward clients’ stages of readiness, and mindfulness addresses the emotional burdens of altering a financially profligate lifestyle.     

Time-management strategies used by households with home-based work

A sample of 899 households in which at least one member is engaged in home-based work is used to analyze two time-management strategies used to respond to the demands of home-based work. Analyses reveal that, first, personal time is reallocated more than additional help is obtained for either the home-based work or household production and, second, that different strategies are used depending on whether the household manager is also the home-based worker. Respondents holding both roles report reallocating personal time more often than respondents who are not home-based workers; the reverse holds for obtaining additional help. The results suggest that households generating higher incomes in which home-based work is a full-time occupation are more likely to use time-management strategies than those in which incomes are lower and the home-based work is part-time.Journal Paper Number J-14861 Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station, Project Number 2857. This article reports results from the Cooperative Regional Research Project, NE-167, entitled, At-Home Income Generation: Impact on Management, Productivity and Stability in Rural and Urban Families, partially supported by the Cooperative States Research Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture, and the Experiment Stations at the University of Hawaii, Iowa State University, Lincoln University (Missouri), Michigan State University, Cornell University (New York), The Ohio State University, The Pennsylvania State University, Utah State University, and the University of Vermont. This article was accepted in 1992 under the editorship of Charles B. Hennon.Her current research work includes an analysis of family resource management in Mexico and of housing conditions in rural areas. She is also involved in the study of household members who work at home for pay and their associated management practices and coping strategies. She received her Ph.D. from The Pennsylvania State University in 1970.She received her M.S. from Iowa State University in May 1992. This paper is based on her M.S. thesis.Her current research interests include household asset and debt formation, working families and employers' benefits, and home-based employment. She received her Ph.D. from Purdue University in 1978.Her current research work includes such topics as divorce settlements, at-home income generation, and management practices of households engaged in home-based employment. Her Ph.D. degree was received from Cornell University in 1978.