Persistence and Change in the Food Security of Families With Children, 1997-99

by Sandra L. Hofferth and Parke E. Wilde

This report uses data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics to examine the prevalence of and changes in food security between 1997 and 1999 among individual families with children younger than 13. About half of the families that were food insecure in 1997 became food secure by 1999, with the rest remaining food insecure. Meanwhile, about 7 percent of the families who were food secure in 1997 became food insecure in 1999. Although the food security status for individual families changed substantially, the prevalence of food insecurity was relatively stable: In both years, about 1 family in 10 was food insecure. The report also examines families' characteristics, income, and Food Stamp Program participation.

Keywords: food security, food insecurity, hunger, hungry, food assistance, food spending, well-being, Food Stamp Program, income dynamics, poverty dynamics, Panel Study of Income Dynamics, FANRP

In this publication...

• Entire Report
• Abstract, Acknowledgments, Contents, Summary
• Introduction
• Data and Measurement
• Results
• Summary and Conclusions
• References
• Appendix