A Critical Look at Food Security in Social Work: Applying the Socio-ecological Lens

Authors

  • Elisabeth Ragan University of Calgary
  • Gina Dimitropoulos University of Calgary

Keywords:

food security, intervention, socioecological model

Abstract

One in six children under the age of 18 in Canada lives in a food insecure household.  This is deeply concerning as the presence of food insecurity can disrupt developmental trajectories potentially impacting the lifespan of a child.  However, when compared to other social problems, food security takes a backseat.  Twenty-four years ago, a call to action was issued to social workers to make food security a priority within their practice. The literature demonstrates a slow but encouraging rise in the number of social workers heeding that call. This paper provides a critical analysis of twenty-one articles investigating social work and food security interventions.  The articles were published in peer-reviewed, academic journals between 1993 and 2016.  The socio-ecological model was used to guide the review of the articles to help extrapolate how social workers can address food security at the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem level.  Forty-three interventions were identified. Most of the interventions considered the exosystem and macrosystem level of practice, which highlighted the importance of building strong communities and implementing policies for “food justice”.  The results also indicate that front-line social workers are well suited for food security interventions, but comprehensive research on how microsystem, mesosystem and chronosystem level strategies are best executed would help bring them to fruition.  Furthermore, implementing food security into social work curriculum and becoming food conscious themselves was highly recommended.

Author Biographies

Elisabeth Ragan, University of Calgary

Department of Social Work, BSW student

Gina Dimitropoulos, University of Calgary

Department of Social Work, Associate Professor, PhD, RSW

References

1. PROOF, “Food Insecurity Policy Research”. Toronto, ON. 2016. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from http://proof.utoronto.ca

2. V. Tarasuk, A. Mitchell, N. Dachner, “Household food insecurity in Canada, 2013”. Toronto, ON. 2015. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from http://proof.utoronto.ca/

3. B. Haughton, Fam Community Health. 29(1), 2006. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from http://www.nursingcenter.com/journalarticle?Article_ID=618782&Journal_ID=289834&Issue_ID=618779

4. U. Bronfenbrenner, in International Encyclopedia of Education, Vol 3, ed 2, 1994. Oxford: Elsevier. Reprinted in: M. Gauvain & M. Cole, Eds. Readings on the development of children, NY: Freeman, ed. 2, 1993, p.p. 37-43. Last retrieved from http://www.columbia.edu/cu/psychology/courses/3615/Readings/BronfenbrennerModelofDevelopment(short%20version).pdf

5. B. Berkman et. al, Soc Sci Med. 31(1), 1990. doi:10.1016/0277-9536(90)90005-D

6. C. Germain, Soc Work Health Care. 3(1), 1977.

7. C. Meyer, in Clinical Social Work in an Ecosystems Perspective, C. Meyer Ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 1983, p.p. 6-34.

8. M. Kaiser, J Community Pract. 19(1), 2011.

9. M. Kaiser, S. Himmelheber, S. Miller, R. Hayward, J Soc Work Educ, 34(5), 2015.

10. FAO. “The State of Food Insecurity in the World”, 2015. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4646e.pdf

11. R. Rose-Jacobs et. al, Pediatr. 121(1), 2008.

12. M. Reis. Health Econ. 21, 2012.

13. M. Hackett, H. Meglar-Quinonez, M. Alverez, Rev Panam Salud Public. 25(6), 2009.

14. E. Racine, K. Jemison, L. Huber, A. Arif, Public Health Nutr. 12(9), 2008.

15. R. Pérez-Escamilla et. al, J. Nutr. 129(11), 2009.

16. K. K. Schmeer, B. A. Piperata, Matern Child Nutr. 2016. doi: 10.1111/mcn.12301.

17. Metallonis-Katsaris, A. Must, K. Gorman, J. Acad. Nutr. Diet. 112(12), 2012.

18. M. Chilton, D. Rose, Am J Public Health. 99(7), 2009.

19. K. Alaimo, C. Olson, E. Frongillo, Pediatr. 44, 2001. Academic OneFile. Last retrieved July 7, 2016 from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA76601682&v=2.1&u=ucalgary&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=ea10aff375184648568662aea9c7e08

20. K. Saha, F. Tofail, E. Frongillo, J. Hamadani, Child Care Health Dev. 36(3), 2010.

21. S. Kirk et. al, Public Health Nutr. 18(16), 2014.

22. M. Kursmark, M. Weitzman, Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 12(3), 2009.

23. B. Fiese, C. Gunderson, B. Koester, B. Jones, Econ. Hum. Biol. 5(21), 2016.

24. P. Casey et. al, Pediatr. 2004. Health Reference Center Academic. Last retrieved July 7, 2016 from
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA113646330&v=2.1&u=ucalgary&it=r&p=HRCA&sw=w&asid=3d37868774c40b2f519d6f310f56d250

25. M. Zaslow et. al, Matern Child Health J. 13(1), 2009. doi:10.1007/s10995-008-0329-1

26. M. Knowles, J. Rabinowich, S. Ettinger de Cuba, D. Cutts, M. Chilton, Matern Child Health J. 20, 2016.

27. J. Mikkonen, D. Raphael, “Social determinants of health: the Canadian facts”. 2010. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from http://www.thecanadianfacts.org/the_canadian_facts.pdf.

28. V. Tarasuk et. al, CMAJ. 187(14), 2015.

29. I. Weiss-Gal, Int. J. Soc. Welf. 25, 2016. doi:10.1111/ijsw.12203

30. M. J. Pack, Int. Soc. Work. 56(5), 2013.

31. T. Apaitia-Vague, ANZASW. 23(3), 2011.

32. M. Kaiser, J. Hermsen, Fam Soc. 96(2), 2015. doi:10.1606/1044-3894.2015.96.16

33. M. Biggerstaff, P. Morris, A. Nichols-Casebolt, Social Work. 47(3), 2002.

34. C. Juby, E. Meyer, J. Soc. Work. 11(4), 2010.

35. R. Shor, Soc Work Educ. 29(6), 2010.

36. M. Martinez, E. Kawam, NASW. 59(4), 2014.

37. S. Himmelheber, JPHS. 25(2), 2014. doi: 10.1080/10428232.2014.898203

38. M. Lombe, V. Nebbitt, A. Sinha, A. Reynolds, Soc Work Health Care. 55(6), 2016. doi: 10.1080/00981389.2015.1133469

39. A. Deepak, Affilia. 29(2), 2014.

40. E. Kiehne, N. Mendoza, Soc Work Public Health. 30(5), 2015.

41. M. Jacobson, J Community Pract. 5(3), 2007.

42. R. Phillips, Int. Soc. Work. 52(4), 2009.

43. P. Conway, K. Lassiter, Arete. 32(2), 2011.

44. I. Lessa, C. Rocha, CASWE. 29(2), 2012.

45. F. Besthorn, Aust Soc Work. 66(2), 2013.

46. R. Shor, Soc Work Health Care. 49(4), 2010.

47. W. Hirai, in Social Work-Social Development: Global Social Transformation and Social Action: The Role of Social Workers: Social Work-Social Development Volume III. S. Hessle, Ed. Routledge, Farnham, GB, 2014, p.p. 47-50.

48. K. Libal, T. Tomczak, R. Spath, S. Harding, Social Work. 59(4), 2014.

49. W. Whitaker, Social Work. 38(4), 1993.

50. U. Gustafsson, A. Draper, J Hum Nutr Diet. 22(2), 2009.

51. M. Chilton, M. Knowles, J. Rabinowich, K. Arnold, Public Health Nutr. 18, 2015. doi:10.1017/S1368980014003036.

52. R. L. Hawkins, E. J. Kim, Clin Soc Work J. 40, 2012. doi:10.1007/s10615-011-0335-4

53. M. Carter, L. Dubois, M. Tremblay, Taljaard, M, BMC Public Health. 12, 2012. Last retrieved May 15, 2016 from http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/12/1038

54. M. Hamm, A. Bellows, J Nutr Educ Behav. [serial online]. 35(1), 2003. Last retrieved May 15, 2016 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12588679

55. P. Collins, E. Power, M. Little, Can J Public Health. 105(2), 2013.

56. G. Bellett, “Canada the only G8 Country without national school meal plan”. Vancouver Sun, 9 May 2016. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from: http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/canada-the-only-g8-country-without-national-school-meal-plan

57. M. McCain, “Canada can, and should, tackle domestic and global food insecurity”. Globe and Mail, 28 Dec. 2015. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/rob-commentary/canada-can-and-should-tackle-domestic-and-global-food-insecurity/article27941122/

58. Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), “Understanding Food Insecurity: Human
Rights and Social Work Implications”, 2016. Last retrieved December 30, 2016 from http://www.cswe.org/CentersInitiatives/KAKI/50754/77835.aspx

59. B. Sunguya et. al, Front Public Health. 1, 2013. doi:10.3389/fpubh.2013.00037

60. A. Papan, B. Clow, Gen Dev. 23(2), 2015. Last retrieved from http://www.ebrary.com

Downloads

Published

2017-07-24

Issue

Section

Review Articles