Jane M. Mosley

A Critical Review of Rural Poverty Literature: Is There Truly a Rural Effect?

Poverty rates are highest in the most urban and most rural areas of the United States and are higher in nonmetropolitan than metropolitan areas. Yet perhaps because only one-fifth of the nations 35 million poor people live in nonmetro areas, rural poverty has received less attention than urban poverty from both policy makers and researchers. The authors provide a critical review of literature that examines the factors affecting poverty in rural areas. The authors focus on studies that explore whether there is a rural effect, that is, whether there is something about rural places above and beyond demographic characteristics and local economic context that makes poverty more likely in those places. The authors identify methodological concerns (such as endogenous membership and omitted variables) that may limit the validity of conclusions from existing studies that there is a rural effect. The authors conclude with suggestions for research that would address these concerns and explore the processes and institutions in urban and rural areas that determine poverty, outcomes, and policy impacts.

The Food Safety Net after Welfare Reform: Use of Private and Public Food Assistance in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area

This study documents reliance on the private and public food safety net in the Kansas City metropolitan area. While the use of food pantries is widespread, the frequency of food pantry use is low compared to food stamp use. However, almost 60 percent of food pantry recipients also received food stamps at some time during the studied period. Between 1998 and 2001, just over one‐third of food stamp clients also visited a pantry. The data suggest that households are not substituting one form of assistance for the other but rather are accessing multiple types of assistance when necessary.