IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ehbiol/v37y2020ics1570677x19301571.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Drudgery reduction, physical activity and energy requirements in rural livelihoods

Author

Listed:
  • Srinivasan, C.S.
  • Zanello, Giacomo
  • Nkegbe, Paul
  • Cherukuri, Radhika
  • Picchioni, Fiorella
  • Gowdru, Nithya
  • Webb, Patrick

Abstract

Low and middle-income countries in Asia and Africa have been witnessing a process of rural transformation, characterised by rising agricultural productivity, commercialisation of agriculture, improved infrastructure and access to services, over several decades. However, there is little empirical evidence on how this transformation process has affected the patterns and intensity of physical activity and time use in rural livelihoods. The lack of empirical evidence can be attributed to the constraints in accurate measurement of physical activity and energy expenditure in the context of free-living populations. Using wearable accelerometry devices, we develop robust energy expenditure profiles for men and women in rural households for two case studies in India and Ghana. An innovative feature of this study is the integration of data on energy expenditure (derived from accelerometers) with data on time-use, which has hitherto not been feasible in observational studies of rural populations. Using the data on physical activity, energy expenditure and time use from the case studies, we examine the impact of drudgery reduction- the substitution of less intense for more intense activities – on energy requirements for men and women in rural households. Our results show that drudgery reduction can have large effects on human energy (calorie) requirements, with an hour of drudgery reduction reducing energy requirements by 11–22 % for men and 13–17 % for women in Ghana and India. There are significant gender differences in energy expenditure patterns and drudgery reduction effects vary by socio-demographic characteristics and endowments of households. Our results suggest that drudgery reduction can offer rural households an important route to improved nutritional status. At the same time, drudgery reduction can lead to increased incidence of overweight and obesity for some segments of the population. The design of development interventions needs to explicitly consider the effects on nutrition and well-being through the energy expenditure dimension.

Suggested Citation

  • Srinivasan, C.S. & Zanello, Giacomo & Nkegbe, Paul & Cherukuri, Radhika & Picchioni, Fiorella & Gowdru, Nithya & Webb, Patrick, 2020. "Drudgery reduction, physical activity and energy requirements in rural livelihoods," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ehbiol:v:37:y:2020:i:c:s1570677x19301571
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ehb.2019.100846
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1570677X19301571
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ehb.2019.100846?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. von Grebmer, Klaus & Bernstein, Jill & Prasai, Nilam & Yin, Sandra & Yohannes, Yisehac & Towey, Olive & Sonntag, Andrea & Neubauer, Larissa & de Waal, Alex, 2015. "2015 Global hunger index: Armed conflict and the challenge of hunger," IFPRI books, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), number 978-0-89629-964-1.
    2. Zanello, Giacomo & Srinivasan, C.S. & Nkegbe, Paul, 2017. "Piloting the use of accelerometry devices to capture energy expenditure in agricultural and rural livelihoods: Protocols and findings from northern Ghana," Development Engineering, Elsevier, vol. 2(C), pages 114-131.
    3. Gillespie, Stuart & Harris, Jody & Kadiyala, Suneetha, 2012. "The Agriculture-Nutrition Disconnect in India: What Do We Know?:," IFPRI discussion papers 1187, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    4. von Grebmer, Klaus & Bernstein, Jill & Prasai, Nilam & Yin, Sandra & Yohannes, Yisehac & Towey, Olive & Sonntag, Andrea & Neubauer, Larissa & de Waal, Alex, 2015. "Synopsis: 2015 Global hunger index: Armed conflict and the challenge of hunger," Issue briefs 978-0-89629-876-7, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    5. Johnston, Deborah & Stevano, Sara & Malapit, Hazel J. & Hull, Elizabeth & Kadiyala, Suneetha, 2018. "Review: Time Use as an Explanation for the Agri-Nutrition Disconnect: Evidence from Rural Areas in Low and Middle-Income Countries," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 8-18.
    6. Headey, Derek & Chiu, Alice & Kadiyala, Suneetha, 2011. "Agriculture's role in the Indian enigma: Help or hindrance to the undernutrition crisis?," IFPRI discussion papers 1085, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    7. International Food Policy Research Institute, 2015. "Global Nutrition Report Actions and Accountability to Advance Nutrition and Sustainable Development," Working Papers id:7543, eSocialSciences.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jed Friedman & Isis Gaddis & Talip Kilic & Antonio Martuscelli & Amparo Palacios-Lopez & Alberto Zezza, 2023. "The Distribution of Effort: Physical Activity, Gender Roles, and Bargaining Power in an Agrarian Setting," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 37(1), pages 93-111.
    2. Headey, Derek & Hirvonen, Kalle & Alderman, Harold, 2024. "Estimating the cost and affordability of healthy diets: How much do methods matter?," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    3. Afeni, Oluwatosin Temitope & Zanello, Giacomo & Srinivasan, Chittur S., 2022. "Feminization of agriculture and the trade-offs to human energy requirements: Evidence from rural India," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322132, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    4. Matthys, Marie-Luise & Acharya, Sushant & Khatri, Sanjaya, 2021. "“Before cardamom, we used to face hardship”: Analyzing agricultural commercialization effects in Nepal through a local concept of the Good Life," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    5. Rowland, Dominic & Zanello, Giacomo & Waliyo, Edy & Ickowitz, Amy, 2022. "Oil palm and gendered time use: A mixed-methods case study from West Kalimantan, Indonesia," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    6. Thomas Daum & Regina Birner, 2022. "The forgotten agriculture-nutrition link: farm technologies and human energy requirements," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(2), pages 395-409, April.
    7. Picchioni, Fiorella & Zanello, Giacomo & Srinivasan, C.S. & Wyatt, Amanda J. & Webb, Patrick, 2020. "Gender, time-use, and energy expenditures in rural communities in India and Nepal," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. von Grebmer, Klaus & Bernstein, Jill & Hossain, Naomi & Brown, Tracy & Prasai, Nilam & Yohannes, Yisehac & Patterson, Fraser & Sonntag, Andrea & Zimmerman, Sophia-Maria & Towey, Olive & Foley, Connell, 2017. "2017 Global Hunger Index: The inequalities of hunger," IFPRI books, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), number 978-0-89629-271-0.
    2. Marivoet, Wim, 2016. "Food markets and nutrition in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2004–2005):," IFPRI discussion papers 1566, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    3. Sauer, Christine M. & Mason, Nicole M. & Maredia, Mywish K. & Mofya-Mukaka, Rhoda, 2016. "Impact Of Legume Technologies On Food Security: Evidence From Zambia," Miscellaneous Publications 251853, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    4. Vandercasteelen, Joachim & Beyene, Seneshaw Tamru & Minten, Bart & Swinnen, Johan, 2018. "Cities and agricultural transformation in Africa: Evidence from Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 383-399.
    5. Thomas Daum & Regina Birner, 2022. "The forgotten agriculture-nutrition link: farm technologies and human energy requirements," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(2), pages 395-409, April.
    6. Picchioni, Fiorella & Zanello, Giacomo & Srinivasan, C.S. & Wyatt, Amanda J. & Webb, Patrick, 2020. "Gender, time-use, and energy expenditures in rural communities in India and Nepal," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    7. Komatsu, Hitomi & Malapit, Hazel Jean L. & Theis, Sophie, 2015. "How does women’s time in reproductive work and agriculture affect maternal and child nutrition? Evidence from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ghana, Mozambique, and Nepal:," IFPRI discussion papers 1486, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    8. Dury, S. & Alpha, A. & Bichard, A., 2014. "What risks do agricultural interventions entail for nutrition?," Working Papers MoISA 201403, UMR MoISA : Montpellier Interdisciplinary center on Sustainable Agri-food systems (social and nutritional sciences): CIHEAM-IAMM, CIRAD, INRAE, L'Institut Agro, Montpellier SupAgro, IRD - Montpellier, France.
    9. Mysbah Balagamwala & Haris Gazdar & Hussain Bux Mallah, 2015. "Synergy or Trade-Off between Agricultural Growth and Nutrition Women’s Work and Care," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 54(4), pages 897-913.
    10. Mofya-Mukuka, Rhoda & Kulhgatz, Christian H., "undated". "Child Malnutrition, Agricultural Diversification and Commercialization among Smallholder Farmers in Eastern Zambia," Food Security Collaborative Working Papers 198189, Michigan State University, Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics.
    11. Sauer, Christine M. & Mason, Nicole M. & Maredia, Mywish K. & Mofya-Mukukua, Rhoda, 2016. "The Role of Legume Technologies in the Agriculture-Nutrition-Food Security Nexus: Evidence from Zambia," 2016 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Boston, Massachusetts 236062, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    12. Peter Ekamper & Govert Bijwaard & Frans van Poppel & L. H. Lumey, 2017. "War-related excess mortality in The Netherlands, 1944–45: New estimates of famine- and non-famine-related deaths from national death records," Historical Methods: A Journal of Quantitative and Interdisciplinary History, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(2), pages 113-128, April.
    13. Sonia Akter & William Erskine & Luc Spyckerelle & Lucia Viana Branco & Julie Imron, 2020. "The impact of women’s access to agricultural extension on cropping practices in Timor-Leste," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 12(2), pages 449-463, April.
    14. Margolies, Amy & Colantuoni, Elizabeth & Morgan, Rosemary & Gelli, Aulo & Caulfield, Laura, 2023. "The burdens of participation: A mixed-methods study of the effects of a nutrition-sensitive agriculture program on women’s time use in Malawi," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    15. Diane Coffey & Ashwini Deshpande & Jeffrey Hammer & Dean Spears, 2019. "Local Social Inequality, Economic Inequality, and Disparities in Child Height in India," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 56(4), pages 1427-1452, August.
    16. Nichols, Carly, 2021. "Self-help groups as platforms for development: The role of social capital," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    17. Andaleeb Rahman & Sumit Mishra, 2020. "Does Non-farm Income Affect Food Security? Evidence from India," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(6), pages 1190-1209, June.
    18. van den Bold, Mara & Quisumbing, Agnes R. & Gillespie, Stuart, 2013. "Women’s empowerment and nutrition: An evidence review:," IFPRI discussion papers 1294, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    19. Peter R. Berti & Rachelle E. Desrochers & Hoi Pham Van & An Lê Văn & Tung Duc Ngo & Ky Hoang The & Nga Le Thi & Prasit Wangpakapattanawong, 2016. "The process of developing a nutrition-sensitive agriculture intervention: a multi-site experience," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 8(6), pages 1053-1068, December.
    20. Srinivas Goli & Anu Rammohan & Sri Priya Reddy, 2021. "The interaction of household agricultural landholding and Caste on food security in rural Uttar Pradesh, India," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 13(1), pages 219-237, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ehbiol:v:37:y:2020:i:c:s1570677x19301571. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/622964 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.