This study investigates the effect of information about potential benefits of biotechnology on consumer acceptance of genetically modified (GM) foods. Consumer willingness to accept compensation to consume a GM food was elicited using an incentive compatible auction mechanism in three US states (California, Florida, and Texas) and in two European countries (England and France). Results indicate that information on environmental benefits, health benefits and benefits to the third world significantly decreased the amount of money consumers demanded to consume GM food; however, the effect of information varied by type of information and location. Consistent with prior research, we find that initial attitudes toward biotechnology have a significant effect on how individuals responded to new information.

Background: The number of food pantries on U.S. college campuses has increased in response to students’ food insecurity, but limited information is available to describe the impact of this resource. The objective of this cross-sectional investigation was to examine the relationship between food insecurity and food pantry awareness, use, and perceived barriers to use. Methods: Students attending the University of Florida in fall 2017 (n = 899) completed the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Adult Food Security Survey and responded to questions about food pantry awareness and use. Sociodemographic data were also collected and included in multivariate logistic regression models. Results: While most students (70%) were aware of the existing food pantry, nearly a third of respondents were classified as being food insecure. After adjusting for sociodemographic correlates, factors such as identifying as being food insecure, international status, and receiving a student loan or a need-based federal financial aid (Pell grant) increased the likelihood of utilizing the campus food pantry. Despite these predictors, only 38% of food insecure students reported food pantry use. Among students who provided qualitative insights, four main barriers to using the on-campus food pantry were identified: social stigma, insufficient information on pantry use policies, self-identity, and inconvenient hours. Conclusions: Food security interventions and administrative policy should consider a new model of the traditional campus food pantry that reduces concerns of social stigma and is supported by clear and ongoing communications of operational procedures tailored for the college student population.

Online survey methods and online access panels are commonly used in both academic and private industry research. However, many industry reviews indicate the presence of fraudulent and inattentive online panel participants who pose a threat to data validity, with estimates of 8–25 percent of the sample being impacted. Although these challenges are not unique to online surveying, the nature of online panels may offer possibilities to improve data quality through real-time filters, rather than in data analysis. In this study, we retain all panel respondents passing and failing common web-survey quarantining methods to directly analyze filtering results on data quality. Through a choice experiment, we build a mathematical model to measure respondent irrationality through the classic strong axiom of revealed preference (SARP), which serves as the primary data-quality metric to test the efficacy of quarantining methods. We show that inattentive respondents failing “trap” or “red herring” questions, as well as fraudulent respondents heavily selecting low-probability screening questions, have significantly lower data quality compared to passing respondents. Removing failing respondents significantly improves data quality when filters are strategically executed. We also simulate the data-quality benefits of real-time filtering techniques during web-data collection. We conclude by advocating the use of low-probability filters as qualifiers, as well as strategic placement of trap questions just before the most crucial sections of a survey.

While the Covid-19 pandemic has increased the number of food insecure households in the United States (US), it is unclear how it has affected college student food security status. College students are ineligible for many Covid-19-related economic relief programs and may find it even more difficult to cope during the pandemic. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to identify and describe the prevalence of food insecurity at a public university before and after the onset of Covid-19 as well as factors associated with any change in food security. Researchers administered a cross-sectional, non-probability survey to college students (n = 3206) that assessed food security status prior to and after the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as questions related to various sociodemographic characteristics. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Thirty-eight percent of students experienced a change in food security as a result of the pandemic, with 59.6% becoming less food secure, and 40.4% becoming more food secure. Characteristics that were associated with changes in food security included changes in housing and employment status as a result of the pandemic. These findings suggest that the pandemic led to changes in food security among college students, and that economic relief efforts should include college students, who are disproportionately affected by food insecurity.