Browsing by Author "Giroux, Stacey A."

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Agricultural decision making and climate uncertainty in developing countries
(Environmental Research Letters, 2020-11) Waldman, Kurt; Todd, Peter M.; Omar, Shahera; Blekking, Jordan P.; Giroux, Stacey A.; Attari, Shahzeen A.; Baylis, Kathy; Evans, Tom P.
In situations of uncertainty, people often make decisions with heuristic shortcuts or decision rules, rather than using computational or logical methods such as optimizing their behavior based on specific goals. The high level of uncertainty and complexity involved in adapting to climate change suggests that heuristics would be commonly used in this context rather than more structured decision methods. Through a systematic review of 137 articles, from 2007–2017 we explore the behavioral and cognitive assumptions used to examine agricultural decision-making related to climate change among farmers in developing countries. We find a strong orientation toward modeling behavior and decision making as a rational utility-maximizing process, despite decades of research demonstrating the prevalence of simpler heuristic choice when facing uncertainty and real-world constraints. Behavioral and cognitive approaches can increase our ability to predict or explain decisions being made in this realm, particularly in terms of how we understand decision making around information processing and risk assessment. In the following review, we highlight articles that have contributed to developing a more realistic decision-making framework for studying this problem on the ground. While there is a burgeoning literature using psychological insights to examine decision making under climate uncertainty, few studies consider the prevalence of simple heuristics, the presence of cognitive biases, and the salience of climate relative to other risk factors.
Navigating Food Insecurity as a Rural Older Adult: The Importance of Congregate Meal Sites, Social Networks and Transportation Services
(Taylor & Francis, Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition, 2021-10-30) Valliant, Julia C.D.; Burris, Mecca E.; Czebotar, Kamila; Stafford, Philip B.; Giroux, Stacey A.; Babb, Angela; Waldman, Kurt; Knudsen, Daniel C.
To explore how older adults in rural communities navigate food insecurity, ten focus groups were held in Indiana, USA with 65 discussants. Recordings underwent inductive qualitative data analysis. Driving and transport remain a barrier to rural food access. Living alone is another contributor to food insecurity, while older adults’ social networks are protective. Congregate meal sites are critical to maintaining nutrition and are underfunded; one-third of this region’s meal sites closed in 2019. These must be maintained and expanded. Transportation to food outlets is needed. Mechanisms that reinforce older adults’ social networks can build upon an existing asset.