WIC Participants’ Perceptions of the Cash-Value Benefit Increase during the COVID-19 Pandemic

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Author(s)Halverson, McKenna M.
Author(s)Karpyn, Allison
Date Accessioned2023-09-28T15:21:27Z
Date Available2023-09-28T15:21:27Z
Publication Date2022-08-26
DescriptionThis article was originally published in Nutrients. The version of record is available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14173509. Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
AbstractRecent changes to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Cash-Value Benefit (CVB), which provides participants with money to spend on fruits and vegetables, have the potential to reduce disparities in healthy food access and food insecurity that were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, few studies have examined how the changes to the CVB allotment that occurred during the pandemic influenced WIC participants’ perceptions of the benefit or their fruit and vegetable purchasing and consumption. To address this gap, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 51 WIC participants in Wilmington, Delaware. Survey measures included demographic questions, the Hunger Vital Sign food insecurity screener, and open-ended questions regarding perceptions of the CVB increase and its influence on participants’ fruit and vegetable purchasing and consumption. Data were analyzed using a hybrid inductive and deductive coding approach. The results demonstrate that higher CVB allotments increased WIC participants’ purchasing and consumption of fruits and vegetables, increased the frequency of their shopping occasions, and enhanced their dietary variety. Our findings also suggest that WIC participants highly value the increased CVB. Consequently, maintaining the increased CVB allotment could improve the nutritional outcomes of low-income mothers, infants, and children participating in WIC.
SponsorThis [paper/research] was supported by Healthy Eating Research, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
CitationHalverson, McKenna M., and Allison Karpyn. 2022. "WIC Participants’ Perceptions of the Cash-Value Benefit Increase during the COVID-19 Pandemic" Nutrients 14, no. 17: 3509. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14173509
ISSN2072-6643
URLhttps://udspace.udel.edu/handle/19716/33336
Languageen_US
PublisherNutrients
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
KeywordsWIC
Keywordscash-value benefit
Keywordsfruits and vegetables
Keywordspurchasing
Keywordsconsumption
Keywordsdiet
Keywordsvariety
Keywordshealthy
Keywordszero hunger
TitleWIC Participants’ Perceptions of the Cash-Value Benefit Increase during the COVID-19 Pandemic
TypeArticle
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