Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs: Research Funding Opportunities

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Maternal Employment and Children's Nutrition Outcomes
Nancy Burstein
Abt Associates, Inc. Cambridge, MA

This project will explore the implications of mothers' employment status for children's nutrition outcomes. Outcomes of interest include participation in various food and nutrition assistance programs, food- and nutrient-based measures of dietary intake, food security, and obesity. The primary data sources will be the 1994-96, 1998 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII) and the Diet and Health Knowledge Survey (DHKS), supplemented by data from the Early Childhood and Child Care Study for children participating in USDA's Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).
Assistance Type Cooperative Agreement: $ 206,904

Food Stamp Program Entry and Exit: Economic and Policy Influences on Participation Decisions
Scott Cody
Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. Washington, DC

This study will examine how changes in economic conditions and welfare policies affect entry into and exit from the Food Stamp Program (FSP) for the aggregate caseload and various subgroups. Longitudinal data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) will be used to examine the extent to which caseload trends are due to decreases in the entry rate versus increases in the exit rate. The SIPP data will be combined with information on State FSP and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) policies to develop models of individual FSP entry and exit and employment decisions. These models will then be used to simulate changes in FSP entry and exit rates resulting from changes in economic conditions or state FSP and TANF policies.
Assistance Type Cooperative Agreement: $200,341

Understanding Program Participation Decisions of the Working Poor
Robert Goerge
The University of Chicago. Chicago, IL

Using the Illinois Families Survey (IFS), this study will examine why some poor working families with children do not participate in the Food Stamp Program (FSP) even when eligible to do so. The study will also explore the feasibility and strengths of using linked administrative data to monitor nonparticipation on an ongoing basis, and to assess whether accurate program nonparticipation information can be developed using the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) application information maintained by schools, modified by wage reporting data.
Assistance Type Cooperative Agreement: $98,452

Employment Factors Influencing Food Stamp Program Participation Among the Working Poor
Signe-Mary McKernan
The Urban Institute. Washington, DC

Working poor households in which the adults change jobs frequently, work for more than one employer, or work part-time or non-traditional hours may have higher costs of participating in the FSP. This study will use longitudinal data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) to describe the employment characteristics of working food stamp recipients and estimate the effect of these employment characteristics on FSP participation decisions in the pre- and post-welfare reform periods. The analysis will include static and dynamic participation models as well as a fixed effect model controlling for the endogeneity of employment status.
Grants: $149,996

The Effect of EITC on Food Stamp Program Participation Among the Working Poor
Kelly Mikelson
The Urban Institute. Washington, DC

Earned Income Tax Credits (EITC) are a unique benefit that adds to household disposable income without reducing food stamp benefits. Receipt of EITC by low-income families has been increasing in recent years while Food Stamp Program (FSP) participation levels have declined. This study will use Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and National Survey of America's Families (NSAF) survey data to examine trends and seasonality in the receipt of EITC and food stamp benefits among the working poor. Multivariate analyses will be used to determine whether some of the unexplained portion of recent declines in FSP participation can be attributed to increases in EITC receipt and whether seasonal variation in FSP participation across States is related to Federal and/or State EITC receipt.
Assistance Type Cooperative Agreement: $ 139,849

Food Stamp Certification Periods and Payment Accuracy: State Experience During 1996-2000
Gregory Mills
Abt Associates, Inc. Cambridge, MA

Recent efforts by States to reduce their food stamp payment error rates have increasingly focused on recertification requirements and reporting procedures. This study will estimate an econometric model using data from the national Food Stamp Quality Control data files to determine the extent to which State-level payment error rates are due to inaccuracy in initial certifications as opposed to inaccurate payment levels for ongoing cases. The relationship between shortened certification periods, payment accuracy, FSP participation and administrative costs will be examined through case studies in three states.
Assistance Type Cooperative Agreement: $159,463

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Evaluating the Impact of School Breakfast and Lunch
Steven Haider
RAND. Santa Monica, CA

This project will use data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) to investigate effects of the School Breakfast Program (SBP) and National School Lunch Program (NSLP) on participants' food security and nutrition outcomes. The project will make use of clinical as well as interview data, and will rely on a transparent identification strategy to obtain causal estimates.
Assistance Type Cooperative Agreement: $ 150,000

Effects of WIC and Food Stamp Program Participation on Child Outcomes

This study uses a unique State-level longitudinal database linking administrative datasets on WIC and Food Stamp Program (FSP) participation, Medicaid enrollment and claims, and child abuse and neglect reports in Illinois. This study will examine the individual effects of WIC and FSP participation as well as their combined multiple participation effects on a wide range of child health and well-being outcomes. In addition, the study will correct for the potential selection bias using several statistical approaches such as sibling fixed effects models, Heckman two-step procedure, and random effects models.
Assistant Type Cooperative Agreement: $134,949

The Complementary Roles of Public and Private Assistance
Jane Mosley
University of Kansas Medical Center. Kansas City, KS

This project will examine the interactions in low-income families' receipt of private and public assistance. Data from a unique regional database on individuals accessing services from emergency assistance providers in the Kansas City metropolitan area will be linked with administrative records from the Missouri Department of Social Services on Food Stamp Program (FSP) benefit receipt. The data will be used to describe trends over time and to compare the individual characteristics associated with different patterns of use. Bivariate and multivariate models will be estimated to further characterize usage patterns and event history analysis will be employed to determine which factors are associated with receipt of each type of service.
Cooperative Research Agreement: $110,000

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Assessing the Nutrient Intakes of High-Needs Subgroups Using the Dietary Reference Intakes
Barbara Devaney
Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. Princeton, NJ

The Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) are a new set of dietary reference standards that reflect increased knowledge of nutrient requirements. They replace the old Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs). This study will use the DRIs for a comprehensive assessment of the nutrient adequacy of the diets of high-needs subgroups: teenage females, elderly people, overweight and obese children and adults, individuals living in food-insecure households, low-income individuals, and individuals participating in food and nutrition assistance programs. Using various datasets, the study will adjust observed intake data to obtain usual intake distributions for each subgroup, analyze the characteristics of the usual intake distributions to estimate the proportions with inadequate intake levels and the proportions at risk of excessive intake levels, determine if day-to-day variation in nutrient intakes vary across subgroups, and estimate the nutrient density of usual intakes.
Assistance Type Cooperative Agreement: $ 247,976

The Ecological Predictors and Developmental Outcomes of Persistent Childhood Obesity

This project will use data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K), a nationally representative, longitudinal study of more than 20,000 children that begins in kindergarten and follows them through grade 5. It will (1) identify the school, family, parent, and child predictors of persistent childhood obesity, and (2) assess the health, social, emotional, and academic outcomes of persistent childhood obesity. Multilevel random coefficient models will be used to analyze data gathered at the child-family level and at the school level.
Grant: $ 181,485

Diet Quality and Its Relationship to Obesity in Rural Alabama African American Children

This project will examine various aspects of diet quality, eating patterns, physical activity, and various other activities related to lifestyle in 9- to 11-year-olds in four rural counties in Alabama to identify diet and lifestyle characteristics that increase the risk of developing obesity. Data on diet quality, eating patterns, level of physical activity, and height and weight will be gathered from surveys administered to the children at two separate times (near the start and the end of the school year). Statistical models will be constructed to determine which factors best explain variations in body mass index (BMI) in this population. The insights obtained from the analysis will be useful in the development of educational programs and/or intervention strategies aimed at reducing the incidence of obesity.
Assistant Type Cooperative Agreement: $149,670

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