Wooten, StephenZiesenhene , Ellen2021-11-232021-11-232021-11-23https://hdl.handle.net/1794/26873This critical review analyzes the visibility of three aspects of culture in West African food security literature: livelihood and practice, social, and systems of meaning. It presents insights into these cultural applications within localized food studies. This review offers a critical lens into food security engagement that is necessary during a time of heightened food insecurity due to stressors, including political unrest, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic. To develop sustainable programming around food security, it is useful to audit previous studies to capture the best methodologies of measurement and localized definitions. Valuable insights from this review include an analysis of examples of engagement with all three aspects of culture, an emphasis on qualitative methodologies that capture personal narratives and perceptions of well-being, the presentation of gaps in the literature, and proposed pathways for future research and practitioners that wish to incorporate cultural studies into their research and programming framework.en-USAll Rights Reserved.CultureFood SecurityWell-beingWest AfricaElectronic Thesis or Dissertation