Last and least findings on intra household undernutrition from participatory research in South Asia

Erin C Lentz (), Sudha Narayanan and Anuradha De
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Erin C Lentz: Lyndon B Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas
Anuradha De: Collaborative Research and Dissemination, Delhi

Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai Working Papers from Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai, India

Abstract: In this paper, we analyze intrahousehold mechanisms that rural South Asian women themselves identify as contributing to their inabilities to achieve adequate nutrition. The majority of our female respondents explain that, within their families, they are most likely to eat least and last and to seek lower quality healthcare later, both of which can lead to undernutrition. We consider the explanations that women provide for why they do so. In addition to norm abidance, we highlight two social factors: a partner's heavy alcohol use and intimate partner violence. Women report that these factors adversely impact their own health and food security status and potentially contribute to differential nutritional outcomes within the same household. The emic perspectives presented here show us: (1) many rural South Asian women report shouldering a relatively greater share of food and nutrition insecurity within their households, and (2) taking their perspectives seriously assists in identifying the underlying contributors to intrahousehold differences. These findings indicate the value a gendered perspective on both the drivers of and measurement of undernutrition. Attending to these intrahousehold factors in future quantitative research may provide important insights for understanding drivers of nutritional outcomes.

Keywords: Gender; intrahousehold; South Asia; nutrition; alcohol; intimate partner violence (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D13 I00 I3 J16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 30 pages
Date: 2019-02
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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Journal Article: Last and least: Findings on intrahousehold undernutrition from participatory research in South Asia (2019)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ind:igiwpp:2019-005

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