More than one-quarter of all Hispanic households in the U.S. are food insecure. Hispanic families in the U.S. comprise 30 percent of households with food insecurity at the child level. This article analyzes inter-rater agreement of food security among a sample of Mexican-origin children ages 6 to 11 and their mothers living in Texas border colonias. Researchers found differences in food insecurity reporting between mothers and children. The prevalence of mother-reported household food insecurity (80%) surpassed children’s reports of food insecurity (64%), indicating only slight inter-rater agreement. The prevalence of mother-reported child food insecurity (56%) was less than the prevalence of child food insecurity as reported by the children themselves (64%). Authors conclude that the poor agreement between mothers and children may be attributable to parental buffering, social desirability in responses, and or the age of the children included in the study.
Children’s Reporting of Food Insecurity in Predominately Food Insecure Households in Texas Border Colonias
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