| NSF Org: |
CBET Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | May 12, 2020 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | May 12, 2020 |
| Award Number: | 2031677 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Brandi Schottel
bschotte@nsf.gov (703)292-4798 CBET Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems ENG Directorate for Engineering |
| Start Date: | June 1, 2020 |
| End Date: | May 31, 2022 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $190,764.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $190,764.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
1400 TOWNSEND DR HOUGHTON MI US 49931-1200 (906)487-1885 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
1400 Townsend Drive Houghton MI US 49931-1295 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | Special Initiatives |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.041 |
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed household dynamics and dramatically changed food, energy, and water consumption within the home. Stay-at-home orders and social distancing has caused U.S. households to shift to working and schooling from home, curtail outside activities, and stop eating in restaurants. Furthermore, as many households face job loss and increasing home utility and grocery bills, U.S. residents are experiencing the economic impacts of the crisis, while at the same time assessing and responding to health risks. The project team has a unique opportunity to study these shifting household consumption and behavioral responses and quantify the associated economic and environmental impacts. The team will collect household food, energy, and water consumption data as well as survey response data from 180 participating households in one Midwestern county and compare it to data collected before the stay-at-home orders were put in place. Questions are being added to previously administered monthly surveys to study participants regarding their perceptions and behavioral responses to COVID-19, including changes in household consumption habits and travel behavior, information sources, and health risk perceptions and responses. With this data, the team will be able to produce timely research results that inform current and future response policies to ensure food, energy, and water security in times of public health crises.
This first-of-its-kind study will investigate how household behavior changes in response to sudden exogenous events like pandemics, the persistence of those changes over time, and the environmental impacts of changing consumption dynamics. Results will offer novel insights on longitudinal processes in household sense-making, risk response, behavior change under crisis, and persistence. Specifically, the data can provide insight into i) how the pandemic is shaping household consumption and COVID-19 related behavioral responses, and the persistence of these changes over time; ii) the environmental impacts of changing consumption patterns, and the implications if changes persist; iii) how behavioral responses vary based on socio- demographics, perceptions of risks, information networks, and institutional trust; and iv) how pandemic perceptions and responses correlate with those associated with other socio- environmental risks such as climate change. Outcomes from this study will improve understanding of how to identify and address the material and emotional risks U.S. residents are facing under this crisis. Identifying changes in household economics and challenges to provisioning food, energy, and water can improve the collective ability to aid households in responding to these ongoing challenges and mitigate future shocks to supply systems. In addition, empirical evidence of consumption changes that benefit the environment and that households can readily adapt into their routines may provide important insights on potential pathways towards sustainability.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
For many people, the COVID-19 pandemic had major impacts on daily life and drastically changed patterns of household travel and consumption. At the same time, people were assessing various sources of information, making decisions in response to perceived health risks, and in some cases dealing with new financial challenges. To gain insights into the different ways people responded to these challenges, we collected information from 180 participating households in Lake County, Illinois, from March 2020 to January 2021. On a monthly basis, participants responded to open-ended survey questions and submitted online journal entries to our research team. With more people staying at home, water and energy use naturally increased in most households, in some cases contributing to financial stress from higher utility bills. We also found significant changes in household food shopping over the course of the pandemic, with fewer households shopping in person and more relying on grocery delivery. Related to these changes in food shopping, many participants reported significant changes in eating habits, as well as greater awareness of food waste and packaging waste.
Along with the observed changes in consumption patterns, we gained a better understanding of some of the factors affecting those changes and a household’s ability to adapt in ways that maintained their physical, mental, and social well-being. While financial means was a significant factor in the ability to adapt, as might be expected, we found that there were other important factors, including personal demographic factors, household composition, and employment experiences. For example, participants with minor-aged children reported that they simply had less time and flexibility to adapt to the new restrictions and lifestyle changes being imposed on them, and some reported increased concern about their children’s and their own mental well-being. On a positive note, many households – both with and without children – reported that they engaged in new activities to boost their well-being, including activities such as spending more time outdoors, fishing, gardening, and raising chickens. The ability to work from home and participant age were other important factors in determining perceived flexibility and well-being.
Overall, this project provided insights into both the challenges and resilient social practices around household consumption that arose from the COVID-19 pandemic. The results can inform future policies and programs to ensure food, energy, and water security in times of public health crises or other emergencies. As supply systems change in response to infrastructure failures, increasing climatic extremes, and population shifts, some of these insights may also apply to an increasing number of contexts.
Last Modified: 09/29/2022
Modified by: David W Watkins
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