Food insecurity and social capital during COVID-19: A cross-national qualitative study of communities from South Africa and the United States

Abstract

This study investigates the evolving ways in which social workers helped provide food assistance during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic in communities in South Africa and the United States. A cross-national qualitative methodology was used to collect data about the nutritional services social workers delivered, the types of social capital used to assist in these efforts, and the challenges they experienced. This study not only highlights differences in the approaches of these two countries but also how these different communities might be able to learn from one another in delivering food relief during times of emergency.