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Abstract
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a federal program that
provides assistance to low- and no-income people in the United States. Its aim is to increase
individuals’ food-purchasing power and improve the nutritional content of their diet. We
employed recent advances in Bayesian spatial econometric modeling to determine the appropriate
model for drawing inferences about the percentage of SNAP recipients in Appalachia.
We found that there is significant spatial dependence justifying the use of spatial econometric
methods. We also examined how changes in an independent variable affect the dependent
variable for orders of neighbors over space.