Social connectedness is associated with food security among peri-urban Peruvian Amazonian communities

Gwenyth O Lee,Pamela J Surkan,Jon Zelner,Maribel Paredes Olórtegui,Pablo Peñataro Yori,Ramya Ambikapathi,Laura E Caulfield,Robert H Gilman,Margaret N Kosek

doi:10.1016/j.ssmph.2018.02.004

Gwenyth O Lee, Pamela J Surkan + Show 7 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2018.02.004

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Abstract

BackgroundFood insecurity is a major global public health issue. Social capital has been identified as central to maintaining food security across a wide range of low- and middle-income country contexts, but few studies have examined this relationship through sociocentric network analysis. ObjectiveWe investigated relationships between household- and community-level social connectedness, household food security, and household income; and tested the hypothesis that social connectedness modified the relationship between income and food security. MethodsA cross-sectional census with an embedded questionnaire to capture social relationships was conducted among eleven peri-urban communities. Community connectedness was related to study outcomes of food security and per-capita income through regression models. ResultsOf 1520 households identified, 1383 were interviewed (91.0%) and 1272 (83.9%) provided complete data. Households in the youngest communities had the most total contacts, and the highest proportion of contacts outside of the community. Household income was also associated with more outside-community contacts (0.05 more contacts per standard deviation increase in income, p<0.001).Less food secure households reported more contacts nearby (0.24 increase in household food insecurity access scale (HFIAS) for each additional contact, p<0.001). After adjusting for household-level socioeconomic status, membership in an older, larger, and better-connected community, with a greater proportion of residents engaged in rural livelihood strategies, was associated with greater food security (-0.92 decrease in HFIAS for each one-unit increase in community mean degree, p=0.008). There was no evidence that social connectedness modified the relationship between income and food security such that lower-income households benefited more from community membership than higher-income households. ConclusionsAlthough households reported networks that spanned rural villages and urban centers, contacts within the community, with whom food was regularly shared, were most important to maintaining food security. Interventions that build within-community connectedness in peri-urban settings may increase food security.

Highlights

The role of social connectedness in protecting food security is of multi-disciplinary interest, spanning the fields of nutrition, public health, anthropology, sociology, and international development
While many studies have considered the impact of social support on health outcomes and food security in low and middle-income countries (Becquey et al, 2012; Kaschula, 2011), relatively few have employed sociocentric sampling designs (Perkins, Subramanian & Christakis, 2015) that allow connections amongst individuals or households to be mapped
Sociocentric studies of food-sharing networks have been reported in Indonesia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Brazil and Arctic Canada (Collings, Marten, Pearce & Young, 2015; Koster & Leckie, 2014; Nolin, 2012, 2010; Trostle et al, 2007), the final two of which examined impacts on food security (Collings et al, 2015; Mertens et al, 2015)

Summary

Introduction

The role of social connectedness in protecting food security is of multi-disciplinary interest, spanning the fields of nutrition, public health, anthropology, sociology, and international development. Food sharing is a deeply ingrained social activity, and food-sharing networks have been studied for their role in building and maintaining cultural identity and social bonds (Koster & Leckie, 2014; Nolin, 2010; Trostle et al, 2007) These reciprocal relations and interactions may increase household and community-level resilience by helping to maintain food security during periods of seasonal scarcity or following climatic or economic shocks (Adger, 2003; Hadley, Mulder & Fitzherbert, 2007; Sherman, Ford, Llanos-Cuentas & Valdivia, 2016). Many studies have reported that social support and social capital are central to promoting household-level food security in low and middleincome countries (Diaz, Drumm, Ramirez-Johnson & Oidjarv, 2002; Martin, Rogers, Cook & Joseph, 2004) In these reports, social support and capital are often characterized through egocentric or proxy measures of support (for example, by asking a respondent to describe contacts who might provide them with support or membership in social organizations). Household income was associated with more outside-community contacts (0.05 more contacts per standard deviation increase in income, p < 0.001)

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