Qualitative and quantitative research on a relationship between food security and well-being among students in Almaty city

Abstract

The main aim of this paper is to examine the potential influence of collectivism on the well-being and food insecurity of university students in Almaty. 35 college students were selected for qualitative in-depth interview. The primary objective of this study is to examine the potential influence of collectivism on the well-being and food insecurity of university students in Almaty. To this end, a qualitative in-depth interview was conducted with 35 college students. In addition, a quantitative analysis was conducted with 244 undergraduate, graduate, and PhD students from 5 universities to check significant, validity and reliability in spring semester of 2023 for quantitative analysis. Authors used mixed method. Firstly, qualitative in-depth interview with based on a set of literature-derived questions. Then, the USDA 6-item food security module survey was used to measure food insecurity. The World Health Organization Five Factor Well-Being Index used to measure well-being of the students. To measure collectivism Communal Orientation Scale (COS) with 14-items were used. It was found that well-being positively effect on food security and their significance is high. While, collectivism has a negative impact on their relation with a high level of significance.