Isabel Reyes
Pronouns: she/her
Research Mentor(s): Jacinta Beehner
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Psychology / LSA
Program:
Authors: Paloma Contreras
Session: Session 3: 11:00 am – 11: 50 am
Poster: 32
Abstract
Water is a natural resource now at the center of many environmental justice issues, yet access to clean water usable for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and other daily tasks isn’t available to everyone despite its necessity, particularly those of lower socioeconomic level. Water insecurity is a growing concern across the globe as it is predicted that about half the world will be living under water-stressed conditions by 2030 under current climate change projections (Wutich 2019). This is especially true in Mexico City where disparity in access to clean water varies greatly. Water perception is a multi-faceted and personal issue, and it depends on many factors including access to water, quality of water, emotions caused by water, and awareness of others’ water situations (Andrew et al. 2019). This study expands on previous studies that have found that Iztapalapa, the specific borough of Mexico City investigated in this study, has the highest perception of poor water quality (González-Villarreal et al. 2016). This study looks to expand on this data and investigate overall water perception outside of just water quality along SES. This relationship is analyzed through ethnographic surveys of women (n=369) ranging from 18-46 years old from water secure and water insecure households in Mexico City. The NSE-AMAI is used to categorize the study participants into different SES using the metrics that the Mexican Association of Marketing Research and Public Opinion Agencies (AMAI) has put out. Water perception is important in untangling political motivations of citizens in areas with less access to water or lower water quality.
