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- Creators: Eakin, Hallie
- Resource Type: Text
Description
Community Supported Agriculture programs (CSAs) have become a viable local source of fresh agricultural goods and represent a potentially new way to improve fruit and vegetable consumption among individuals and families. Studies concerning CSAs have focused mainly on characteristics of the typical CSA member and motivations and barriers to join a CSA program. The purpose of this study was to examine whether behavior and attitudinal differences existed between current CSA members and a nonmember control group. Specifically, ecological attitudes, eating out behaviors, composting frequency, and family participation in food preparation were assessed. This study utilized an online survey comprising items from previous survey research as well as newly created items. A total of 115 CSA member and 233 control survey responses were collected. CSA members were more likely to be older, have more education, and have a higher income than the control group. The majority of CSA members surveyed were female, identified as non-Hispanic and Caucasian, earned a higher income, and reported being the primary food shopper and preparer. The majority of members also noted that the amount and variety of fruits and vegetables they ate and served their family increased as a result of joining a CSA. CSA members were more ecologically minded compared to the control group. Frequency of eating out was not significantly different between groups. However, eating out behaviors were different between income categories. CSA members spent significantly more money at each meal eaten away from home and spent significantly more money on eating out each week. In both cases, controlling for income attenuated differences between groups. CSA members composted at a significantly higher rate and took part in other eco-friendly behaviors more often than the control group. Finally, no significant difference was evident between the two groups when analyzing family involvement in food preparation and meal decision-making. Overall, some significant attitudinal and behavioral differences existed between CSA members and non-CSA members. Further research is necessary to examine other distinctions between the two groups and whether these differences occur as a result of CSA membership.
ContributorsMacMillan Uribe, Alexandra L (Author) / Wharton, Christopher (Christopher Mack), 1977- (Thesis advisor) / Winham, Donna (Committee member) / Eakin, Hallie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Community gardens have wide-reaching potential for addressing public health issues. However, of the thousands of gardens located in the United States, many lack rigorous planning and encounter crippling obstacles, like disinterest from community members, soon after implementation. This study created a processual typology to summarize steps in the implementation process for existing gardens described within peer-reviewed, academic journals and offers recommendations for more sustainably planning future garden projects up to ten years in advance. A systematic review was conducted to identify descriptions of community gardens in peer-reviewed, academic literature. A general logic model was used as a basic structure and themes for each step (inputs, activities, outputs, short/long term outcomes, impacts, and methods of evaluation) were summarized from the included studies to construct a processual typology for evaluating community garden implementation in the United States. This typology was then used to assess a case study of a garden in Des Moines, Iowa, which generated the author's interest in conducting this research after assisting with that space through an AmeriCorps community health program. Results showed that existing gardens shared common attributes and could be categorized according to one of two speeds of implementation ("regular" or "accelerated") and according to one of three types of organizational structure ("grassroots," "externally-organized," or "externally-managed"). The typology was assessed for limitations from having been based on a systematic review of only peer-reviewed, academic articles and, referring to its themes, was used to construct a logic model for a hypothetical community garden project. The processual typology developed in this study is limited in its power to summarize all existing community gardens but offers a first step toward informing the creation of logic models for future projects in order to improve sustainability and attain more funding.
ContributorsOlivas, Elijah Taylor (Author) / Magaña, Lisa (Thesis director) / MartÃÂnez, AirÃÂn (Committee member) / School of Human Evolution and Social Change (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05