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Sidloyi, Sinethemba Siyakholwa. "Survival strategies of elderly women in female-headed households." Diss., University of Pretoria, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/24560.
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This study is based on data from in-depth individual interviews carried out in a poor township, Ngangelizwe in Mthatha, South Africa. It discusses and describes the livelihoods and strategies of low–income households headed by elderly (>60years old) women. The study draws primarily on interviews with 15 elderly women who are receiving or not receiving State pension, selling goods or receiving or not receiving a Child Support Grant from the government for their grandchildren in order to meet the daily challenges they are faced with. It discusses the cultivation of social networks and how these networks in turn impact on the livelihoods, health, survival and social adjustment of the elderly women. This includes reports of these women’s perceptions of poverty, their incomes (the majority (thirteen) were receiving a State pension) as well as a professional pension. The study also reports on the strategies they used to try and avoid poverty through participation in income generating activities, having their grandchildren engaging in income-earning activities mostly after school or during holidays. The study underscores the reality of the adjustments and coping measures that the women have to adopt when faced with new challenges as a result of high morbidity and mortality among adults in the reproductive age groups. The findings of this study indicate that for most women, the inability to attain basic essentials of life leads to loss of self-dignity. Socio-economic factors such as low levels of education, unemployment, little or no income, poor access to resources, many dependants and looking after their children who suffer from HIV/AIDS among the women create a situation where they operate within the “little opportunities” circle. The evidence in this study suggests that social support groups, a pension grant, a child support grant and remittances from their children helped to mitigate some of the poverty experiences of the elderly women. The study also shows that there is a dire need for intensification of poverty reduction programmes at community levels. Women have to be supported with institutional credit to grow and expand their businesses. They need the support and assistance of government in taking care of their sick children and grandchildren due to HIV/AIDS.Dissertation (MSocSci)--University of Pretoria, 2010.
Sociology
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Owen, Catherine. "Women-headed households on Muna Island : income opportunities and time management /." Title page, contents and abstract only, 1997. http://web4.library.adelaide.edu.au/theses/09AR/09aro9675.pdf.
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Restrepo, R. Jannette. "Female-headed households and their homes : the case of Medellin, Colombia." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 1999. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk1/tape2/PQDD_0033/MQ64119.pdf.
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Russ, Katheryn Niles. "Pinpointing production constraints faced by female-headed households in rural Malawi." Thesis, This resource online, 1996. http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-10022008-063206/.
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Musekiwa, Pamela. "Livelihood strategies of female headed households in Zimbabwe: the case of Magaso Village, Mutoko District in Zimbabwe." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1005967.
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This research study explored livelihood strategies that female headed households adopt in Magaso village of Mutoko district in Zimbabwe. The study intended to achieve the following objectives: (i) examine the existing livelihood strategies of female headed households (ii) explore the various challenges faced by female headed households and (iii) establish the support mechanisms in place for female headed households to cope with life challenges .The literature reviewed in the study was drawn from several researchers, and the study was shaped by the strengths perspectives and the liberal feminism perspective. The study was qualitative in nature and used interviews to collect data from fifteen (15) female headed households. The data collection process used an interview guide. The research employed a qualitative research design in the form of a case study cum a phenomenological study design. Data was analysed qualitatively using the content thematic data analysis which used interpretive approaches and presentation is textual rather than statistical. The study findings were the following: engaging in subsistence farming was found to be the main livelihood activity of the female heads; engaging in home gardens; exchanging labour for food; involvement in business; reliance on temporary employment from different agencies; reliance on handouts from government and other bodies; and household heads sanctioning child labour that compromises school attendance. Moreover, these female heads faced numerous difficulties ranging from emotional, social to financial problems that resulted in worsening the condition of women, and hence validating feminization of poverty among them. Several support mechanisms were discovered to be available for the female heads but they fail to produce to fruitful results to the lives of the female heads. The study made the following recommendations: mainstreaming gender education from childhood stage; efforts aimed at job creation; financial empowerment through setting up of micro schemes for rural women amongst; seeking the services of agricultural extension services to the female head farmers; improving the social services delivery in Zimbabwe equitably across genders and strengthening informal strategies to improve women‘s social capital. Lastly, the study concluded that little is being done in terms of policy formulation to make the support structures responsive to the female headed households especially in rural areas, hence the need for sustainable development through empowerment.
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Brown, Brenda. "Where are the men? : an investigation into female-headed households in Rini, with reference to household structures, the dynamics of gender and strategies against poverty." Thesis, Rhodes University, 1996. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002660.
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An in-depth study is conducted into ten female-headed households in the township of Rini, an underprivileged section of Grahamstown in the Eastem Cape region of South Africa. The study provides information on the way in which such households function in conditions of poverty and underemployment. The meaning of the term 'household' is clearly defined. A household consists of a group of people, who may or may not be kin-related, but who usually live under the same roof, eat together and share resources. Household members may be absent for varying periods of time, but are still considered to have rights in the household to which they belong. The female-headed household usually contains a core of adult women who are often uterine kin. Men are frequently members of these households and are usually related to the women who form the core. Their status and roles in such households are defined and intra-household relations between household members are discussed. In this study, female headship is observed to occur in conditions of poverty when an elderly woman is widowed, receives a regular income in the form of and old age pension, and when her status as the senior member of the household is acknowledged. The presence of men in female-headed households has not been widely emphasised in other studies, either of the female-headed household itself, or in research done in this area of South Africa. An attempt is therefore made to illustrate the way in which men function in these households and the varying roles they play. An attempt is also made to describe other structures and practices which support the female-headed household in a rapidly changing urban environment. These include church membership, burial society membership, the informal economy, wider kinship networks and, in the case of the men, the rite of circumcision.
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Ally-Schmidt, Fadeela. "An exploration of care-giving resources available for chronically poor female-headed Ceres households." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2005. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&action=viewtitle&id=init_2246_1177498856.
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This thesis explored the resources available for care-giving in chronically poor female-headed households. It investigated the relationship between resources as enabling in the practice of care and the choices that women can consequently make in light of the multiple roles that they play as workers, as mothers and as significant people in female-headed households.
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Flatø, Martin, Raya Muttarak, and André Pelser. "Women, Weather, and Woes: The Triangular Dynamics of Female-Headed Households, Economic Vulnerability, and Climate Variability in South Africa." Elsevier, 2016. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2016.08.015.
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Existing gender inequality is believed to be heightened as a result of weather events and climate-related disasters that are likely to become more common in the future. We show that an already marginalized group-female-headed households in South Africa-is differentially affected by relatively modest levels of variation in rainfall, which households experience on a year-to-year basis. Data from three waves of the National Income Dynamics Survey in South Africa allow us to follow incomes of 4,162 households from 2006 to 2012. By observing how household income is affected by variation in rainfall relative to what is normally experienced during the rainy season in each district, our study employs a series of naturally occurring experiments that allow us to identify causal effects. We find that households where a single head can be identified based on residency or work status are more vulnerable to climate variability than households headed by two adults. Single male-headed households are more vulnerable because of lower initial earnings and, to a lesser extent, other household characteristics that contribute to economic disadvantages. However, this can only explain some of the differential vulnerability of female-headed households. This suggests that there are traits specific to female-headed households, such as limited access to protective social networks or other coping strategies, which makes this an important dimension of marginalization to consider for further research and policy in South Africa and other national contexts. Households headed by widows, never-married women, and women with a non-resident spouse (e.g., "left-behind" migrant households) are particularly vulnerable. We find vulnerable households only in districts where rainfall has a large effect on agricultural yields, and female-headed households remain vulnerable when accounting for dynamic impacts of rainfall on income.
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Solley, Suzanne. "'Rewriting widowhood' : intersectionality, well-being and agency amongst widowed women in Nepal." Thesis, Queen Mary, University of London, 2016. http://qmro.qmul.ac.uk/xmlui/handle/123456789/18122.
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In an expansive feminist literature on gender and development, scholarly research on widows and widowhood remains limited, particularly within the context of Nepal. While there are some important exceptions, existing work reinforces stereotypes of widows as old and poor victims, and widowhood as essentially a marginalised and vulnerable status. This thesis seeks to confront such homogenous views and to 'rewrite' widowhood. In particular, it explores the diverse experiences of widowhood through the adoption of an intersectional life-course lens, conceptualises well-being from the embedded perspective of widows and examines the complex ways in which widowed women assert agency. This thesis is born out of a longstanding academic engagement with Nepali widows. Based upon ethnographic qualitative research, the study involved two periods of intensive research in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal. The research was operationalised through a triangulation of qualitative methods resulting in a rich evidence base of eighty-one semi-structured interviews, eighteen oral histories, five focus groups and ten key informant interviews. This research shows that that widowhood is more complex than much of the scholarship to date suggests. Key findings include the particular salience of age, caste and the life course in shaping experiences of widowhood. It demonstrates that while widows' understandings of well-being can be categorised as material, perceptual and relational, relationships with children, family and the wider community in which they live underpin all of these. This research also uncovered widows' complicated and contradictory enactments of agency that can be placed on a 'resisting-conforming' continuum, and are shaped by gendered cultural norms, eschatological beliefs, temporality and intersectional identities. This thesis contributes to more nuanced empirical and theoretical understandings of widows and widowhood, intersectionality well-being and agency.
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Dubihlela, Dorah. "Socio-economic challenges and the survival mechanisms for the female-headed households in the Bophelong Township / Dorah Dubihlela." Thesis, North-West University, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10394/7175.
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This dissertation studies the socio-economic challenges and the survival mechanisms of female-headed households in Bophelong Township. The study focuses on three areas namely, female-headed households, their socio-economic challenges and survival strategies. The study followed a literature survey first, then an empirical study. The literature study was undertaken to provide a theoretical framework for the empirical work. The survey process was undertaken in two phases. In the first phase, a sample survey of the whole area of Bophelong was undertaken. This was the sample from which female-headed households were identified. In the second phase, a household survey on the female-headed households serving the purpose of this study was undertaken. The method used in the measure of poverty is the Household Subsistence Level (HSL). The HSL measures the minimum amount needed by a household to maintain subsistence. It takes account of the sex and ages of household members. According to the study outcome, poverty levels amongst female-headed households in Bophelong are high. About 77% of sampled female-headed households in Bophelong were poor. The poverty gap index in these households was 0.53; meaning that on average poor households needs 53% of their income to reach their poverty line. High unemployment rate has been found to be prevalent amongst female-headed households in Bophelong, where the rate of 65% was recorded. This high unemployment rate was possibly the cause of poverty in these households together with low educational qualifications among households members; only 2% were found to have a post graduate qualification. Female-headed households in Bophelong township are engaged in a daily struggling to survive. These households have devised various means for survival. These include the search for wild fruits in the nearby areas, immigration to another region and the benefit of school feeding schemes. When it comes to the sources of household income, government grants were found to play an important role in the sustenance of these households. The average household income was calculated at R1760 per month. The average dependency ratio, which measures the number of unemployed who depend on one income earner, was 5.5. Finally, the investigation recommends a more detailed and deeper study relating to the socio-economic challenges faced by the female-headed households. There is also a need to explore on their survival means so as to direct policy actions aimed at addressing socio-economic issues relating to female-headed households in general.Thesis (M.Com. (Economics))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2011
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Intumbo, Mariett Faustina Ferreira. "Monoparentalidade Feminina na Guiné-Bissau Rural: desafios das mulheres na gestão das suas famílias." Master's thesis, Instituto Superior de Ciências Sociais e Políticas, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/21709.
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Dissertação de Mestrado em Estudos AfricanosPesquisas empíricas indicam que nas zonas rurais da Guiné-Bissau, as mulheres têm conquistado relativa autonomia, nomeadamente nas questões da gestão dos seus agregados familiares. Contudo, existem ainda grandes desafios ao seu papel, notadamente o braço de ferro permanente entre a agenda feminista euro-americana, consolidada na ideologia de igualdade de género através da emancipação e independência da mulher sobre todos os aspetos da sua vida e corpo, contrariamente às circunstâncias africanas marcadas pela atualidade dos usos e costumes assentes na visão tradicional e patriarcal do papel do homem e da mulher na sociedade, que muitas vezes, aos nossos olhos, parece aliená-la da participação nos processos de tomada de decisão nos assuntos ligadas à sua comunidade, família e até mesmo da sua vida. Estas duas mundividências, tradicional e estrangeira/importada têm marcado a realidade das mulheres nas zonas rurais guineenses, particularmente das chefes-de-famílias, que apesar da relativa autonomia motivada pela ausência masculina em casa, o seu poder e espaço de ação permanecem limitados. A esta condição somam-se problemas como a pobreza e consequente marginalização no acesso aos direitos básicos. Para atenuar estes desafios, as organizações da sociedade civil têm levado a cabo vários projetos junto destas comunidades, com a finalidade de empoderar as mulheres, todavia, e apesar de alguns resultados positivos, têm surgido novos problemas, nomeadamente a criação de dependência face a estas ajudas. A efemeridade destes apoios, de modo geral não permite o desenvolvimento sustentável, o que demanda das mulheres diferentes estratégias e ações para a (sobre)vivência e manutenção dos seus agregados e criação de mudanças substantivas a nível socioeconómico perduráveis. Neste sentido, as mulheres chefes-de-família têm resistido através do mutualismo feminino; cultivo e comercialização de produtos; criação de fundos monetários para a escolarização dos filhos, aquisição de terras para cultivo e até mesmo construção de casas.
Empirical research indicates that in rural areas of Guinea Bissau, women have gained relative autonomy, particularly in matters of household management. However, there are still great challenges to their role, notably the permanent tug-of-war between the Euro-American feminist agenda, consolidated in the ideology of gender equality through women's emancipation and independence from all aspects of their lives and bodies, contrary to the African circumstances marked currently by the uses and customs based on the traditional and patriarchal vision of the role of men and women in society, which often, in our eyes, seems to alienate them from participating in decision-making processes in matters related to their community, family, and even their lives. These two worlds, traditional and foreign/imported, have marked the reality of women in rural Guinean areas, particularly these who are household heads, who despite the relative autonomy motivated by the absence of male authority at home, continue to feel their power and space for action limited. This condition is compounded by problems such as poverty and consequent marginalization in access to basic rights. To alleviate these challenges, civil society organizations have carried out several projects in this communities to empower women, although some positive results, new problems has arisen, namely the creation of dependence on these aids. The ephemeral nature of these assistances, in general, does not allow for sustainable development, which demands from women different strategies and actions for the subsistence and maintenance of their households and the creation of lasting substantive changes at the socioeconomic level. In this sense, women heads of households have resisted through female mutualism; cultivation and commercialization of these products; creation of monetary funds for the schooling of children, acquisition of land for cultivation and even construction of houses.
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Gribschaw, Victoria Marie. "Factors that affect economic mobility among single female heads of households with children /." The Ohio State University, 1985. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1487261919110592.
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Smith, Joel Vincent. "Studies on the effect of marital status change upon life-cycle well-being of women and children /." Full text (PDF) from UMI/Dissertation Abstracts International, 2000. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/utexas/fullcit?p9992914.
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L'Heureux, Marie Alice. "The ideology of gender and community : housing the woman-led family." Thesis, McGill University, 1993. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=69708.
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Housing typologies based on the traditional family no longer satisfy the needs of the majority of households. Woman-led families are impeded in their search for appropriate housing by their low wages and family responsibilities, compounded by the blindness of housing-policy makers to their existence. Historical models of collective dwellings are steeped in the ideology of the period and yield few direct practical solutions to the current dilemma. The richness of this housing, however, which evolved during a time of dramatic social change underscores the blandness of current housing solutions. Feminists insist that housing and urban design solutions should challenge the gender defined roles of "homemaker" and "childcare giver" and the restricted mobility of women in cities and suburbs. The endorsement of new housing typologies must be translated into their realisation and subsequent analysis.
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Fadaak, Talha H. "Social policies and programmes for the eradication of poverty among poor female-headed households in Saudi society (Jeddah City)." Thesis, University of Liverpool, 2011. http://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/7033/.
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Combating poverty in Saudi Arabia has become an important national target; this study researches poverty in Saudi Society and in particular, female poverty, focusing on poor female-headed households (FHHs) in Jeddah City. This is an exploratory study to highlight the social reality of the FHHs and their female heads, with a focus on the details of their everyday lives and their relationships with social support institutions, namely: the Social Security Department (SSD) and the Charitable Women’s Associations. The main aim of this study is to explore the social reality of these families and how, during their struggles to obtain or maintain a standard of living, they interact with these social support institutions. The study investigated a main sample of 112 FHHs represented by their female heads who were selected purposefully according to a matrix designed to ensure adequate representation across the main sample according to marital status, age group and place of residence (south or north) in Jeddah City. They were also selected by their marital status according to five sub-groups: widows’ families, divorced women’s families, abandoned women’s families, prisoners’ wives’ families and finally married women’s families. A further sample was 18 informants (called ‘elites’) who were selected purposefully from a range of experts, officials and decision makers from different governmental and non-governmental departments to explore and interpret issues raised during the women’s interviews. The interviews with the female heads were based on questions designed to achieve four main goals: 1- to study and identify the social, cultural and demographic characteristics of poor FHHs in Jeddah City. 2- to study and present the poor FHHs’ experiences and how they interacted with their social reality. 3- to study social policies in practice and highlight the relationship between the FHHs and the social support institutions. 4- to make recommendations for formulating an effective social policy for combating poverty among women and poor FHHs in Saudi society. The data and information was collected via different methods such as interviews, document searches, observations, field notes and digital recordings. The data was organized and analysed using a thematic approach to reduce the data, present it and provide conclusive statements. The main findings are organized in chapters 5, 6 and 7 and cover the study goals. The main findings are as follows: The typical poor FHHs were mostly large families and the male head tended to be missing from family life, thus the family was headed by the female. The women had suffered divorce, widowhood, imprisonment of their husbands, abandonment, or their husbands suffered sickness, old age or unemployment. These female heads were mostly uneducated or had a low or basic level of education. The families typically had no regular earned income because the head of the family was not in employment. The majority of the FHHs were tenants and lived in small flats. A significant number of FHHs was deprived of both official support from the SSD and from the women’s associations for various reasons. Some of the women were regarded legally and socially as minority groups because of their ethnicity, family backgrounds and/or nationality. These details provided an honest and clear picture of the lives of the poor FHHs and showed the inter-penetrated realms of these families and their heads that were: 1- public realms (society, culture, state, welfare systems and social support institutions); 2- private realms (women’s worlds, specific stories and experiences that had led the women to head their families such as divorce, widowhood, abandonment or the imprisonment of the head of the family). The details of everyday life showed how the sub-categories and their female heads had a similar experience in some aspects of the public realm but they experienced quite different private realms. The study concludes with some important strategic, public and specialized recommendations aimed at improving and reforming the current welfare system and social policies and suggests integrated social policies to eradicate poverty in general and among FHHs in particular.
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Hovorka, Alice J. (Alice Judith) Carleton University Dissertation Geography. "Searching for an alternative discourse to 'development'; women heads- of-households' access to adequate housing in Harare, Zimbabwe." Ottawa, 1996.
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Wood, Rebecca S. Jr. "Housing Market Choice Patterns of Single Women Homeowners." Diss., Virginia Tech, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/30657.
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Housing researchers are aware of the lower homeownership
rates and other housing problems of single women but there
is very little research focusing on single women
homeowners or the characteristics of the housing they buy.
Also, since a wide body of research can be found that
examines determinants of homeownership for various
population groups, the importance of this study was in its
focus on single women homeowners and the characteristics of
their housing rather than the determinants of ownership for
this group.
Using data from the 1993 American Housing Survey (AHS), the
study sample consisted of 639 women homeowners who were
either widowed, divorced, separated, or never-married, and
who did not own their previous residence. The study's
purpose was to construct a profile of single women home-
owners that included a description of their demographic and
housing characteristics, the means by which they acquired
their homes, and the changes made in their housing when
they became homeowners. Additionally, this study examined
which demographic and previous housing characteristics of
this group were related to the housing characteristics of
their present homes.
Descriptive results from this study suggested that single
women homeowners are primarily middle aged without young
children at home, earn moderate incomes, and that the
largest proportion of them live in the South and metropolitan
areas. When compared to homeowners in general, single women
homeowners' homes cost less and represented a higher proportion
of attached and mobile home units. The results also showed
that single women used low-down payment financing instruments
to a lesser degree than did all homeowners.
Results from statistical analyses suggested that significant
relationships exist between single women homeowners' housing
characteristics, and a) their demographic characteristics,
b) their previous housing characteristics, and c) their reasons
for moving and selecting their current homes and neighborhoods.
Another key finding was that single women homeowners of varying
marital status differed in their present and previous housing
characteristics and their reasons for selecting the current home.
The results of this study support suggestions made by other
researchers that examining differences not only by gender but
also by the variations in marital status will help to clarify
and add to the knowledge of housing and its relevance to
populations of varying social composition.Ph. D.
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Seo, Jiwon. "Overcoming Economic Hardship: The Effects of Human Capital and Social Capital." Connect to resource, 2005. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc%5Fnum=osu1111646600.
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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2005.Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xii, 175 p.; also includes graphics. Includes bibliographical references (p. 165-175). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center
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Rincon, de Munoz Betilde. "Determinants of female labor force participation in Venezuela : a cross-sectional analysis." [Tampa, Fla] : University of South Florida, 2007. http://purl.fcla.edu/usf/dc/et/SFE0001985.
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Bibars, Iman Mohamed Diaa El Din. "Women in difficult circumstances : an assessment of the impact of social policy and welfare programmes on female heads of households in low-income urban Egypt." Thesis, University of Sussex, 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.287158.
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Evans, Michelle Leigh. "Livelihood and coping strategy changes along rural-urban continua with an emphasis on natural resources." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1001958.
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Rapid urbanisation is one of the greatest challenges facing both developed and developing countries. Sub-Saharan Africa has historically been one of the least developed and least urbanised areas of the world. However, urbanisation is now occurring much more rapidly in countries that have lower levels of per capita income. Therefore, in the coming decades, urban population growth is expected to be more widespread in the developing countries of the world. Most research on the role of natural resources focuses on rural communities and little is known about the contribution these resources make along the rural-urban continuum in small and medium sized towns as well as the contribution to total livelihoods. This is because researchers and policy makers have often treated rural and urban areas and their residents as distinct entities that should be studied in isolation. This, however, is not a true reflection of household livelihoods which often include both rural and urban elements. This study therefore analysed the impact of urbanisation on livelihoods along a rural-urban continuum with an emphasis on natural resources in South Africa. The main characteristics as well as the livelihood portfolios of respondent households were investigated. Secondly, the coping strategies used by households along the rural-urban continuum were explored, and disaggregated according to the gender of the household head. Data were collected along the rural-urban continuum of two small towns, namely Queenstown, located in the Eastern Cape province and Phalaborwa, located in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Sampling covered the town, peri-urban areas, townships and adjacent rural households. A standardised survey instrument was used to capture household details and livelihood activities and a total of 272 interviews were conducted. The rural areas near both towns were poorer than the township and urban areas with regards to assets, access to employment and annual household income across all cash and non-cash income streams. The engagement in land-based activities increased towards the rural areas. The use of natural resources, as well as the number of resources collected, increased along the continuum towards the rural areas, with 12.0% to 49.0% of urban households, 30.0% to 88.0% of township households and between 80.0% and 100.0% of rural households engaging in the use and collection of natural resources. While natural resource use and collection was lowest in the urban areas, a significant amount of resources were still collected by urban households. Income portfolios for all households were calculated to determine the direct-use value of wild natural capital to livelihoods as well as the contribution made from land (arable and livestock farming), welfare grants and employment. Employment, barring one exception in the rural areas of Phalaborwa, was the largest contributor in terms of mean annual income along the continuum in both towns, followed by grants and pensions in the township and rural areas. In Phalaborwa, however, wild natural capital was found to be the largest contributor to local livelihoods, contributing 48.0% of the mean annual income. Household portfolios become more diversified in the poorer, rural areas as well as in households headed by females. The main shocks reported along the continuum in both Queenstown and Phalaborwa were death in the family, followed by a loss of employment, which was concentrated in male-headed households. Coping strategies resulting in the attainment of cash income fast, such as borrowing money from friends/relatives and cashing in retirements savings were favoured over longer term strategies such as finding local wage employment. Female-headed households were found to rely significantly on social groups or clubs as a coping strategy, highlighting the importance of social capital and social relations in female-headed households
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Menezes, Marília Rufino de. "Um estudo sobre as famílias monoparentais femininas em situação de vulnerabilidade social." Universidade Católica de Pernambuco, 2017. http://www.unicap.br/tede//tde_busca/arquivo.php?codArquivo=1301.
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A chefia feminina, presente na atualidade, remete ao crescimento da ocupação da mulher em postos antes ocupados pelos homens, culminando com a sua entrada no mercado de trabalho. Entretanto, apesar de a mulher ter alcançado visibilidade social, percebe-se
ainda uma dificuldade da sociedade e da própria mulher detentora desses avanços incorporá-la ao universo feminino. Nessa perspectiva, a presente Dissertação teve como objetivo compreender o exercício da chefia materna em famílias monoparentais, que
vivem em situação de vulnerabilidade social. O termo vulnerabilidade social, por ser multifacetado, devido às inúmeras situações que podem atingir indivíduos, famílias ou coletividades, é utilizado no presente estudo no sentido de englobar várias dimensões, entre as quais: a dos bens materiais, a sociodemográfica, a ambiental e a afetivo-relacional
das famílias envolvidas. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida fazendo uso de uma metodologia qualitativa, com a participação de cinco mulheres, provindas de uma configuração familiar monoparental. Para a coleta dos dados, foram utilizados a entrevista semidirigida e o questionário sociodemográfico, aplicados individualmente. Os dados da entrevista
foram analisados de acordo com a técnica de análise temática, proposta por Minayo, enquanto o questionário foi analisado de forma a caracterizar o perfil das mães entrevistadas. Nesse contexto, observou-se a predominância da cor negra entre as entrevistadas e uma perpetuação da configuração familiar monoparental entre elas, bem como, a importância da rede de apoio na construção dessa chefia feminina e como elas dependem desses outros autores. Como aspecto de estudo, a vulnerabilidade social foi evidenciada e vimos que a dependência por uma complementação na renda, como o Bolsa
Família, fez-se presente nas cinco entrevistadas. Com isso, percebemos que as transformações ocorridas nas famílias trazem impactos significativos e que necessitam de estudos, sobretudo, junto a mulheres que têm assumido cada vez mais a chefia feminina,
a fim de proporcionar reflexões sobre os papéis de homens e mulheres, delimitados pelo patriarcado e perpetuados em diversos espaços.Female headship, currently presente, refers to the increase of women occupation in posts before occupied by men, culminated with their entrance in job market. However, dispite the woman has achieved social visibility. There is still a difficulty for society and for the woman herself - who holds these advances - to incorporate her into the feminine universe. In this perspective, this dissertation aimed to understand the exercise of maternal leadership in single-parent families, who live in situations of social vulnerability The term social vulnerability, because it is multifaceted, due to the innumerable situations that can reach individuals, families or collectivities, is used in the present study to encompass several dimensions, including: material goods, sociodemographic, environmental and Affective-relational relationship of the families involved. The research was developed using a qualitative methodology, with the participation of five women from a singleparent family configuration. To collect the data, the semi-directed interview and the sociodemographic questionnaire were used, applied individually. The interview data were analyzed according to the thematic analysis technique, proposed by Minayo, while the questionnaire was analyzed in order to characterize the profile of the mothers interviewed. In this context, we observed the predominance of the black color among the interviewees and a perpetuation of the single-parent family configuration among them, as well as the importance of the support network in the construction of this female leadership and how they depend on these other authors. As na aspect of study, social vulnerability was evidenced and we saw that the dependence for a complementation in income, such as Bolsa Família, was present in the five interviewees. With this, we realize that the transformations occurring in families bring significant impacts and that studies are required, especially, with women who have increasingly assumed the female leadership, in order to provide reflections on the roles of men and women, delimited by patriarchy and perpetuated in various spaces.
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Macêdo, Márcia dos Santos. "Na trama das interseccionalidades: mulheres chefes de família em Salvador." Programa de Pós- Graduação em Ciências Sociais da UFBA, 2008. http://www.repositorio.ufba.br/ri/handle/ri/10983.
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Nesta tese busco entender a realidade ainda pouco conhecida das mulheres chefes de família de classes médias em Salvador, visto que a grande maioria dos estudos sobre chefia feminina vem insistindo na homogeneidade desse grupo social e tem associado sua expansão à ampliação dos processos de pauperização, contemporaneamente sintetizado na idéia de uma feminização da pobreza. Assim, através de estudo qualitativo, me proponho a discutir as trajetórias e experiências de 32 mulheres soteropolitanas de classe média, face à condição de chefia dos seus núcleos doméstico-familiares, tentando entender a pluralidade de caminhos que levou essas mulheres – na condição de separada, viúva, solteira e mesmo de casada – a assumir a responsabilidade pela provisão econômica e exercício da autoridade junto às suas respectivas famílias. Assim, busco ainda refletir, nesse contexto, como esta experiência de chefia vem sendo conformada face à articulação interseccional dos pertencimentos sociais de classe, gênero, raça/etnia e idade/geração, dando ênfase, portanto, às possíveis interconexões entre sistemas de opressão. Nessa perspectiva, me proponho ao duplo desafio de discutir os significados dessa experiência intra-classe, a partir do entendimento da combinação dos múltiplos pertencimentos sociais e, ainda, comparativamente, buscarei entender, mesmo que em menor profundidade, na dimensão inter-classe, como essas experiências se afastam e se aproximam quando confrontadas com a realidade vivida pelas mulheres chefes de família de classes populares, a partir de pesquisa realizada anteriormente como dissertação de mestrado.
Salvador
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Santos, Yumi Garcia dos. "Mulheres chefes de família entre a autonomia e a dependência: um estudo comparativo entre Brasil, França e Japão." Universidade de São Paulo, 2008. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/8/8132/tde-18122008-104702/.
Full textAbstract:
Esta pesquisa revela, a partir de uma abordagem etnológica, o processo de construção de identidades sociais das mulheres chefes de família monoparental situadas na fronteira da autonomia e da dependência em três contextos socio-culturais distintos. As mães solteiras, separadas ou divorciadas em situação de precariedade socioeconômica no Brasil, na França e no Japão constituem o objeto do estudo. Tendo como fio condutor o modo de articulação entre família, trabalho e políticas públicas, esta pesquisa tem como objetivo comparar o efeito da monoparentalidade sobre o universo social constituído nos três países. Símbolo da família contemporânea, mas também historicamente alvo de discurso normalizante, as mulheres chefes de família monoparental formam público privilegiado das políticas públicas. A hipótese do maior grau de pauperização destas devido à ruptura familiar é o argumento amplamente compartilhado entre os agentes especializados hoje, desde as feministas até os agentes de decisão política. A investigação a partir da trajetória das mulheres dos três países, articuladas a seu turno entre as esferas privada e pública de atuação, revela, porém, que o efeito da monoparentalidade no sentido da pauperização e da dependência é minoritária. A experiência da autonomia é vivida por essas mulheres como um todo. A comparação por países mostra porém que no Japão, a autonomia é menos conhecida que no Brasil e na França, estando elas na fronteira da autonomia e da dependência. A especificidade de cada sociedade revela as diferenças do processo de construção de uma identidade social.Starting from an ethnological approach, this research reveals the development of social identities of women who head one-parent households located at the border of autonomy and dependence in three different socio-cultural contexts. This study focuses on mothers who are single, separated or divorced and in precarious socioeconomic situation in Brazil, in France, and in Japan. Having the mode of articulation among family, work and public policies as focal point, this research has the objective of comparing the effects of one-parenthood on the established social universe in these three countries. Women who head one-parent households, who have historically been the target of norm-establishing discourse, are a symbol of the contemporary family and they are target of public policies. The hypothesis of precariousness caused by family rupture amongst these women is widely shared by specialized agents, from feminists through to policy decision makers. However, the research based on the trajectory of these women in these three countries, articulated as they are between the public and private spheres of action, reveals that pauperism and dependence as consequence of one-parenthood is less prevalent than expected. The experience of autonomy is lived by these women as a whole through the combination between work and public and private networks. This cross-country comparison shows, however, that autonomy is felt less in Japan than in Brazil or in France. In the Japanese case, women who head one-parent households are closer to the border between autonomy and dependence than in the other two countries. Peculiarities of each society lead to differences in the process of construction of social identity.
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Kgatshe, Mamedupe Maggie. "Livelihood activities in female-headed households: Letlhakane village." Thesis, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10210/538.
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The study to investigates the livelihood activities of female-headed households in Letlhakane village. In its attempt to examine how these activities are organised, maintained and diversified, it analyses the challenges in carrying out the activities and the possible solutions to these challenges at the household level. The study concerns itself with the views of female heads on the livelihood activities done in their households. The main focus is on what these women and their household members were doing for the survival of the entire household in the remote rural village of Letlhakane between December 2004 and January 2005. For this study a qualitative methodology was vital to gather information on the livelihood activities and composition of households and the contribution of the members to the survival of the household. In-depth, follow-up interviews were used as the research method. The informants of the study were female heads from female-headed households. This was supplemented with observation by the researcher on the activities and the physical surroundings of the village. Photos were also taken in the village. This study reaches a number of conclusions. First, female-headed households in Letlhakane village are a diverse group in terms of the activities they embark on and the composition of their households. But they share a common aspect: their livelihood activities are not sufficient for the survival of their households. There were few or no activities for household survival, even for those households that have been female-headed for a long period of time. As compared to single household heads, female heads with partners were better off when judged by overall returns from the activities. The activities in the households studied were keeping goats, fowls and domestic animals such as dogs and subsistence agriculture in the form of growing maize, melons, cabbages, spinach, beans and fruit gardens. They also grew trees and plants for medicinal purposes such as aloes and lemons. Boyfriends were another source of income for some of the female-headed households. Most of the activities were geared towards immediate consumption, and could not stretch as far as investment. Lower returns from the activities affected children from these households in two ways. Firstly, they had to engage in activities to help provide for the household and secondly some had to drop out of school because of insufficient means to afford schooling. Women heads had the responsibilities of caring for and nurturing the family, raising children and providing food for their household in the households studied. The absence of opportunities for survival and insecure livelihood activities pose a threat to the continued survival of these households. The main obstacles to the livelihood activities were lack of resources such as sufficient land and water, cooperation between residents, skills and financial capital. A major difficulty for women especially, is that voices are only listened to in the village if they come from an adult male figure in the household. Positive aspects for livelihoods that came out from the study were the prevalence of social capital amongst neighbours and relatives.Carina van Rooyen
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Tanga, Pius Tangwe. "Social welfare policy towards female-headed households in Cameroon." Thesis, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/3482.
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The aim of this study was to explore social welfare policy towards female-headed households (FHHs) in Cameroon and to suggest ways of transforming the sector at policy and practical levels in order to ensure that the needs of members of FHHs are effectively met within a social development praxis. The methodology used in collecting data was semi-structured questionnaires, one for female household heads and the other for officials of the Ministry of Social Affairs (MINAS) and Ministry of Women's Affairs (MINCOF), supplemented by documentary sources. The target populations were made up of 85 officials and 14,535 female- households heads where a stratified random sample and
purposive sample of 25 and 335 respectively, were selected. Triangulation method was used in both the collection and analysis process. There were eight critical research questions postulated to guide the study, and the major
findings of the study included the following: Firstly, the economic conditions of FHHs were found to be fairly satisfactory. However, with the all-embracing responsibilities to themselves and their dependents, it was argued that this could offset their economic viability. Secondly, social services from various stakeholders were rated differently. From the National Social Insurance Fund (NSIF), social service delivery was rated to be below average, with corruption and long duration of processing of documents was perceived as factors causing inefficiency. Recurrent complaints and claims reported by
female household heads to MINAS included financial and other support though female-households heads rated their services to them as satisfactory, as complaints and claims reported were processed within a reasonable time. The main problems with MINAS were perceived to be a shortage of staff and poor working conditions. However, MINAS's empowering activities were found to be less than empowering. Also, those of women's empowerment centres (WECs) were not empowering, given the lack of befitting infrastructure and staff shortages. Thirdly, no form of social grant exists for members of FHHs, except occasional financial assistance to victims of calamities. Furthermore, the findings revealed that although most of the officials were acquainted with their ministerial objectives, which many held as relevant but unattainable and inapplicable. Many officials were not acquainted with current legislation on women. Ministerial objectives were perceived to be broad, compounded by staff shortages and low budgetary allocations. The findings also revealed that a majority of the staff of both ministries do participate differently in social welfare policy processes, especially due to their different professional orientations. Again, other basic social services such as healthcare and schools were provided in communities where members of FHHs live but were found to be expensive. The nonexistence of creches in most communities posed a huge problem to working female household heads who are forced to leave their children with others such as relatives, neighbours and other children putting them at risk. Others are forced to pay for babysitting from their meagre resources. Finally, female household heads suggested that to improve their lives, they need education and sensitisation on their rights and the initiation of special programmes for them as well as social grants , among other things. The above findings led to the following conclusions. Firstly, social welfare policy responses to the needs of women, especially members of FHHs, are narrowly based. Most of the few existing social welfare services are not accessible to many members of FHHs, especially given the fact that they have not been identified as needing special attention. Social welfare policy is based on the concept of gender equality without the recognition of the needs and aspirations of members of FHHs. Secondly, little legislation exists with regard to members of FHHs as a whole, except for some isolated pieces in favour of divorced and widowed women. Therefore, social welfare policy is not responsive to members of FHHs in Cameroon. Furthermore, social service delivery by social workers is limited in scope, as they are primarily engaged in curative rather than developmental social work, which is all-embracing. Similarly, the staff is not well acquainted with social welfare policy processes or other legislation pertaining to women whom they are serving. The factors, among others, responsible for this are the lack of a knowledge base and training deficiencies of the staff of these ministries. Finally, female household heads have utilised their ingenuity in the struggle against the current economic malaise through self-employment, full and
part-time/casual employment. However, the warding-off of poverty is an illusion given the diverse nature of their responsibilities. In the light of the above findings and conclusions, recommendations were made to various stakeholders. The need for social welfare policy to be responsive to women's
needs and aspirations, especially members of FHHs as well as the need to develop women-centred care was recommended. Also, policy makers were urged to institute social grants for members of FHHs and income security for children from FHHs. Furthermore, empowerment programmes such as job and skill training backed by low interest loans were also recommended in all divisions to strengthen capacity building. Again, basic quality affordable and accessible healthcare, childcare and education were recommended for female household heads and their children. Finally, recruitment and training of social workers as well as increased budgetary allocations and the institution of a gender perspective in the budgetary process were also put forward.
Social workers, it was recommended, need to practice all-embracing developmental social work. This could be enhanced through organising seminars and refresher courses for staff to keep them abreast of current theoretical and practical development in the profession. Also, social workers should undertake a re-appraisal of the profession's responses to the needs of needy and vulnerable groups such as FHHs and restructure the colonial social welfare policy that still dominates their actions. Finally, the curricula of the schools of social work need to be revised to give a sound knowledge base to social workers to enhance their engagement in social development praxis. The civil society, members of FHHs and the local communities were urged to be part of the social welfare policy processes. Finally, suggestions for further study were made.Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2004.
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Shin, Heeju 1973. "Female-headed households, living arrangements, and poverty in Mexico." 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/2152/17907.
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Given the growth of households headed by women, one of the biggest social concerns is the high poverty level within these households. Studies have shown that individuals living in female-headed households are more likely to be in poverty than those in other types of households due to women's disadvantaged position in the labor market. However, the disadvantage of women in the labor market does not necessarily lead to poverty within households headed by women. The livelihood of female-headed households is determined by contextual factors as well as the labor market condition, because the labor market, family and welfare policies all contribute to family well-being within a particular national context. Using both quantitative and qualitative method, I examine various components that are associated with social and family life of Mexican female heads and single mothers: living arrangements, household practices, the labor market, and welfare policy. Interview data with Mexican single mothers provide this research with basic research questions as well as evidences supporting the findings of quantitative analyses about the association between poverty and those women. Quantitative data analyses show that kinship network is important resources of welfare of female-headed or single-mother households in Mexico. First, the prevalence of female-headed households in Mexico is associated with gender-specific migration, increased economic opportunities for women, and marriage-market conditions. Second, Mexican female heads have household income relatively higher than or equivalent to that of male heads, and this peculiarity is attributed to the financial support to female-headed households provided by family networks, and to the selection process of single mothers. Third, extended family members residing with mothers affect their time allocation, and the effects vary by the gender of the extended family member and the mothers' marital status.text
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Gutsa, Ignatius. "Climate change and the livelihoods of elderly female headed households in Gutsa village Goromonzi district, Zimbabwe." Thesis, 2017. https://hdl.handle.net/10539/23858.
Full textAbstract:
A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand,
Johannesburg, in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of
Philosophy
, April 2017This study examines the impact of climate change on the livelihoods of female elderly headed households in Gutsa village, Murape Ward, in Goromonzi District of Mashonaland East province in Zimbabwe. It is based on intensive ethnographic fieldwork that I undertook for close to nineteen months in Gutsa village. The key questions that I sought to answer in this thesis were: How is local knowledge about weather and climate change constructed? What is the nature of contestations surrounding this knowledge, and in particular surrounding the attribution of climate change to particular causes or events? How are livelihoods organized in response to the impact of climate change? I examined elderly women heads of households' perceptions and understandings of weather and climate change, issues of conflict and consensus regarding attribution and causality of weather and climate, the concepts that are used to refer to climate change, elderly women’s struggles to make sense of, and respond to climate change and to organize livelihood activities in response to the ongoing impact of climate change. In order to answer my research questions I adopted the use of Participatory Rural Appraisal, participant observation, archival research, life-history interviews, narrative research and in-depth interviews as data gathering approaches. I focused on the situated experiences of ten elderly women heads of households in Gutsa village existing in a wider community. In doing so this thesis explored these women’s complex understandings and interpretations of weather and climate dynamics as well as the relationship between climate change and their multiple and competing responsibilities. The thesis also analyses the implications of the Fast Track Land Reform Programme in the district, peri-urban development, resource commoditization and commercialization, rapidly shifting markets, changing property relations, social networks, livelihood opportunities, gender relations, changing household structure, the politics of local authority and governance and the dynamics of ecosystems and interspecies interaction. The thesis argues that there is a central vernacular climatological theory that is widely shared among the elderly as well as among other situated individuals in the village and the wider community.
MT2018
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Ngundu, Kudzai. "The impact of the informal economy on the social and economic development of women headed households in Chegutu Urban district in Zimbabwe." Diss., 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/27370.
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In the last decade Zimbabwe has faced serious political, social and economic challenges which have affected the ordinary citizen. Among the economic challenges is the rapid growth of the informal economy which has become the main employer for most people. This growth is attributable to the shrinking formal economy which has left many people jobless and fighting to survive. The alternative is the informal economy which is accommodating millions of Zimbabweans providing a source of income and form of livelihood. Women tend to be overrepresented in the informal economy and among them is a sub-group of women who head households. Women headed households are among the poorest people in the world. The aim of this study was to determine and explore how the informal economy impacts on social and economic development of women headed households. This aim was realised through contextualizing WHH within a social and economic development framework; determining the nature and extent of the informal economy in Zimbabwe; conducting an empirical study which explored and determined the impact made by the informal economy in the social and economic development of WHH in Chegutu urban area of Zimbabwe and research findings, conclusions and recommendations were made to support women involved in the informal economy. A qualitative approach was utilised in the study and the case study was used as the research design. Data was gathered by means of semi-structured interviews. The targeting and snowball sampling methods were used to identify respondents. Findings from the study indicated that women headed households in the informal economy benefit from the sector. They are self-employed, it is their main source of income, main form of livelihood which caters for all their household necessities, it brings in sustainable livelihood and it has enhanced their self-esteem and economic independence. The informal economy however, posits many challenges for women headed households. For instance it creates many health and economic hardships. The informal economy lacks security, organisation, recognition, social protection and legal representation. There is lack of government and institutional support and resources are inaccessible to most women headed households. The study concluded that integrated social and economic development is the key to the eradication of poverty. Opportunities for active participation in the economy combined with sound social policy are critical for the empowerment of women headed households. Based on the findings and conclusions, recommendations were made to the government, municipality and NGOs to be more supportive of women headed households. This can be done by forming partnerships that focus on skills development to enhance human capital, develop poverty eradication strategies that are informed by social development framework, creating awareness of resources through information centres, subsidising education, medical care and rentals and engaging financial institutions to offer capital and credit facilities.Dissertation (MSW)--University of Pretoria, 2012.
Social Work and Criminology
unrestricted
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Mkhondo, Penelope Sarona. "Exploring the impacts of climate variability on urban food security in female headed households in KwaZulu-Natal, a study of Durban South Africa." Thesis, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/10539/23487.
Full textAbstract:
A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Geography.
24 March 2017There is substantial evidence to show that the climate has been changing on various scales across the world. The change in climate conditions has had negative impacts for developing countries, particularly poorer communities who use climate-sensitive resources such as urban agriculture which is prone to extreme weather. It is evident that urban agriculture has become a major source of income for a lot of people and its contribution to household food security is significant and in many instances it is increasing. The MSc study investigated the implications of climate variability and change on food production focusing on urban agriculture. It was also of key interest to explore the different adaptive approaches that FHH employ in reducing the impacts thereof. The approach informing the study combined two approaches; firstly, the `bottom-up' participatory research undertaken in three communities namely Inanda, Ntuzuma and Kwamashu; secondly, a rapid appraisal of policies, programs and institutions. The results were then triangulated using a micro-action planning workshop and a consultation process. A total of 84 small scale farmers who are actively involved in subsistence farming participated in the research study. From the empirical findings it is evident that climate change has manifested itself in floods and droughts and has been ranked extremely prevalent and frequent by 75% and 86% of the overall responses from the three study sites. The combination of these two extreme events has had negative impacts on food production and food accessibility. However, it has been found that FHH use asset based adaptation to modify and adjust their livelihoods as a way of coping with established threats. The eThekwini municipality has developed the Municipal Climate Change Protection Programme (eTMCCPP) with the purpose to mainstream climate change adaptation in the general city planning and development framework as well as to harmonize local urban responses to climate variability. However, only 48% of the participants have received any form of assistance and support from the Municipality. More needs to be done to help build capacity at household level and improve livelihoods of the local community particularly of Female headed households.
MT 2017
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Mabelane, Winnie Keatlegile. "The experiences of adult children who grew up in female-headed families." Diss., 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/21866.
Full textAbstract:
Female-headed families have become a major component of society, globally and locally. South Africa has also witnessed an increase in the number of female-headed families. Children raised in female-headed families have been reported to be disadvantaged in several ways. Many are said to be performing poorly at school, having low self-esteem, experiencing early sexual activity, and displaying adverse behaviour. Hence, the views of adult children who grew up in female-headed families were explored to inform social work practice.
A qualitative, explorative, descriptive, and contextual study was undertaken with 12 participants whose ages ranged from 25 to 35 years. The goal of this study was to gain insight into the experiences of adult children who grew up in female-headed families. Data was gathered through semi-structured interviews and analysed following Tesch’s (in Creswell, 2009) framework. Data was verified using Lincoln and Guba’s model of trustworthiness.
The major findings highlighted first, a deep-seated need to understand reasons for being abandoned by their fathers. Second, the resources inherent within female-headed families, often overlooked, revealed the strengths that these families possess. Third, spirituality as the foundation of their resilience during difficult times dominated the participants’ accounts of being raised in female-headed families. Fourth, various support structures emerged as fundamental components, requisite for the optimal functioning of female-headed families. The implications for social work and recommendations for future research are presented.Social Work
M.A. (Social Work)
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Ngwenya, Cloris. "Female poverty in Diepsloot in South Africa." Diss., 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/19176.
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Text in EnglishThis study is focused on the topical issue of female poverty in South Africa. Specifically, the study is on how poverty has single mothers households in reception area of Diepsloot informal settlements and how they have been coping with poverty while at the same time trying to change their situation. The study is premised on a qualitative approach employing the use of snowball sampling to refer other single mothers resident in the reception area. Methodologically, the results are drawn primarily on interviews held with 30 women residing in the reception area of the informal settlements. The study selects 8 out of 30 case studies which stand out from the others in circumstances, challenges and livelihood assets; challenges and coping mechanisms. What emerges from the results of all the interviews is a complex range of factors influencing and exacerbating these households' vulnerability and resilience to chronic poverty.
Development Studies
M.A. (Development Studies)
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Dale, Beshir Butta. "Gender mainstreaming in agricultural value chains : the quest for gender equality, employment and women's empowerment in Arsi zone, Ethiopia." Thesis, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/26841.
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Abstracts in English, Afrikaans and ZuluThis thesis investigates gender relations in agricultural value chains by examining gender differentials in terms of gender roles in agricultural production and marketing, gender division of labour within the household, gendered daily and seasonal activities in the household, decision-making power within the household, and access to productive resources and agricultural support services. The study also assessed historical, socio-cultural, and institutional factors constraining gender equality and women’s empowerment in agricultural value chains. Employing critical theory, the study used a qualitative research approach, specifically basic classical ethnographic methods - participant observation, field notes, in-depth interviews, semi-structured interviews, key informant interviews, focus group discussions and secondary documents. The study also used a time-use survey and seasonal calendar as its primary source of data. The study revealed that women are generally underrepresented in most profitable nodes of the value chains. However, agricultural value chain interventions have different outcomes for women in female-headed households (FHHs) and women in male-headed households (MHHs). The commercialization of agriculture, particularly in MHHs, has led women to lose control over the commodities they traditionally used to control, as these commodities have fallen into the hands of men. Therefore women in this category are either disempowered or at least not empowered by the value chain interventions. Nevertheless, for women of FHHs, gender mainstreaming in agricultural value chains has contributed to improving gender equality, employment, and women’s empowerment by boosting their economic, social, and personal empowerment levels, though they still lag behind the men in many aspects. The participation of women in managing and controlling high-value crops is constrained by unequal power relations within the household and society. This could be explained in terms of limited resources, low level of literacy, shortage of labour and time, limited access to productive inputs, technologies, market information and agricultural extension services, restriction of mobility, and other socio-cultural and institutional barriers.
Hierdie studie handel oor genderverhoudings in landbouwaardekettings deur genderkenmerke te ondersoek ten opsigte van genderrolle in landbouproduksie en -bemarking, die verdeling van take by die huis op grond van gender, daaglikse en seisoenale werksaamhede tuis volgens gender, besluitnemingsbevoegdheid in die huishouding, en toegang tot produktiewe hulpbronne en landbouhulpdienste. Die studie verreken ook die historiese, sosiaal-kulturele en institusionele faktore wat gendergelykheid en die bemagtiging van vroue in landbouwaardekettings belemmer. Genderverhoudings word deur die lens van die kritiese teorie bekyk. ʼn Kwalitatiewe navorsingsbenadering is gevolg en klassieke etnografiese metodes is toegepas, waaronder deelnemerwaarneming, veldaantekeninge, deurtastende en halfgestruktureerde onderhoude, onderhoude met sleutelinformante, fokusgroepbesprekings en sekondêre dokumente. ʼn Tydbenuttingsopname en seisoenale kalender was die primêre databronne. Uit die studie het geblyk dat vroue by die mees winsgewende skakels van die waardeketting grotendeels onderverteenwoordig is. Die uitkomste van landbouwaardekettingintervensies vir vrouehuishoudings (VH) (huishoudings waarin ʼn vrou die broodwinner is) verskil van dié vir mannehuishoudings (MH) (huishoudings waarin ʼn man die broodwinner is). Weens die kommersialisering van die landboubedryf, in veral MH’s, het beheer oor die kommoditeite van vroue se hande in dié van mans oorgegaan. Gevolglik word vroue in hierdie kategorie ontmagtig of ten minste nie deur die waarde van kettingintervensies bemagtig nie. Ofskoon ʼn groter genderbewustheid in die landbouwaardeketting gelyke indiensneming en die ekonomiese, maatskaplike en persoonlike bemagtiging van vroue bevorder het, het vroue steeds ʼn groot agterstand. Ongelyke magsverhoudings tuis en in die samelewing beperk vroue se bestuur van en beheer oor lonende gewasse. Die redes hiervoor is onder meer beperkte hulpbronne, ongeletterdheid, ʼn tekort aan arbeid en tyd, beperkte toegang tot produktiewe insette, tegnologieë, markinligting en landbouverlengingsdienste, beperkte mobiliteit en talle ander sosiaal-kulturele en institusionele struikelblokke.
Lolu cwaningo luphenya ubudlelwano kwezobulili kwezemisebenzi yokukhiqiza ngasemkhakheni wezolimo , lokhu kwenziwa ngokuthi kuhlolwe izimpawu ezahlukile kwezobulili, mayelana nezindima ezidlalwa ubulili emkhakheni wezemikhiqizo yezolimo kanye nokuthengiswa kwemikhiqizo, ukwehlukaniswa kwabasebenzi ngokobulili ngaphakathi kwekhaya kanye nokutholakala kwemithombo yokukhiqiza kanye nemisebenzi yokuxhasa ezolimo. Isifundo futhi sihlola izinto ezithinta umlando, inhlalakahle yabantu kwezolimo kanye nezimo/nezinto ezikumaziko ezidala ukungalingani kobulili kanye nokuhlonyiswa ngamandla kwabesimame emisebenzini yezokukhiqiza kwezolimo. Ukusebenzisa umqondo ogxekayo (critical theory), kusetshenziswe indlela yokucwaninga eyencike kwingxoxo, ikakhulukazi izindlela zokuqala ze-ethinogilafi, phecelezi (basic classical ethnographic methods) – ukubhekisisa izenzo zabadlalindima, ukuthatha amanothi wokwenzeka ezinkundleni zokusebenza ezingaphandle, ukwenza izinhlolo vo ezijulile, ukwenza izinhlolo vo ezimbaxambili, ukwenza izinhlolovo zomuntu onolwazi olunzulu, izingxoxo zeqembu eliqondiwe kanye nemibhalo yesigaba sesibili. Isaveyi yesikhathi ebizwa nge (time-use survey) kanye nekhalenda yenkathi (seasonal calendar ) zisetshenziswe njengemithombo yokuqala yedatha. Ucwaningo luveze ukuthi abesimame ngokwenjwayelo bamele inani elincane labesimame emikhakheni eminingi yezokukhiqiza, okuyimikhakha engenisa inzuzo eningi. Yize kunjalo, imizamo yokuxhasa imisebenzi yokukhiqiza kwezolimo inemiphumela eyehlukahlukene kwabesimame kumakhaya aphethwe abesimame (FHHs) futhi le mizamo inemiphumela eyehlukahlukene kwabesimame kumakhaya aphethwe ngabesilisa (MHHs). Ukufakwa kwemboni yezolimo kwibhizinisi, ikakhulukazi kwimizi ephathwe ngabesilisa (MHHs), sekuholele ekutheni abesimame balahlekelwe yilawulo kwimithombo yezomnotho ebebejwayele ukuyiphatha, njengoba le mithombo yezomnotho seyiwele ngaphansi kwezandla zabesilisa. Ngakho-ke abesimame kulo mkhakha mhlawumbe bephucwe amandla noma mhlawumbe abahlonyisiwe ngokwanele ngamandla ngamakhono okuxhasa imisebenzi yezokukhiqiza. Yize-kunjalo, ngasohlangothini lwabesimame abaphethe imizi FHHs, ukulinganisa amanani ngokobulili kwimisebenzi yezolimo sekube negalelo ekuthuthukiseni ukulingana ngokobulili, kwezemisebenzi kanye nokuhlomisa ngamandla kwabesimame ngokuxhasa amazinga abo ezomnotho, ukuhlonyiswa kwamazinga abantu kanye nomuntu ngamunye, yize abesimame basahamba emuva kwabesilisa emikhakheni eminingi. Ukubandakanyeka kwabesimame ekuphatheni kanye nasekulawuleni kwezitshalo zecophelo eliphezulu kukhinyabezwa ukungalingani ngamandla ngaphakathi kwekhaya kanye nomphakathi. Lokhu kungachazwa ngokwemithombo yomnotho emincane, ngokwamazinga aphansi emfundo, ngokusweleka kwabasebenzi kanye nesikhathi, ngokwamathuba amancane okufinyelela izinsiza zokukhiqiza, ngokwezixhobo zobuchwepheshengokuswela ulwazi lwezimakethe kanye nokwandiswa kwemisebenzi yezolimo, ngokwemigomo evimbezela ukuhamba kanye nezinye izihibe ezivimbela inhlalakahle yabantu kwezolimo kanye nezihibe zamaziko.
Development Studies
D. Phil. (Development Studies)
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Van, Driel Maria. "Social reproduction in single-black-woman-headed families in post-apartheid South Africa : a case study of Bophelong Township in Gauteng." Thesis, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10539/11255.
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This study investigates the nature of social reproduction in single-black-womanheaded
families in post-apartheid South Africa, through an ethnographic case study in
Bophelong Township in Gauteng. The study focuses on the two coterminous aspects
of social reproduction: the physical reproduction of labour power and the
reproduction of social relations of the mode of production as such, in this case
capitalism. The study included a socio-economic survey, participatory observation
and in-depth interviews with woman-heads over a period of four years. After a
preliminary analysis, the data concerning the woman-headed family form was
organised into three generations, the Grandmothers, the Mothers and the Daughters.
The conclusions are however tentative given that this was a qualitative study based on
a particular type of woman-headed family, one sample in one township in South
Africa. The internal variations within this family form expressed the woman-heads’
concrete lived experience, biography and social agency; and are moments of a single
totality. While black women’s location is informed by many social determinations
that intersect and deepen their oppression as woman-heads, they are cast into
leadership roles and directly mediate relations within their families, with males, with
family kin, with communities and society. The woman-heads find themselves in
contradictory positions within patriarchal society, given their own socialization, the
daily struggle to reproduce children physically and the need to transcend traditional
patriarchal social relations, including the challenge to appropriate egalitarian forms of
leadership and avoid becoming proxies for patriarchy. Despite daily struggles for
survival, woman-headed families are important social spaces for struggles for
egalitarian family arrangements, including those concerning sons and traditional
culture, historically the domain of men. However, it is necessary that the struggles
within the family are anchored and supported by the struggles for egalitarianism
within society as a whole. In particular this means struggles anchored and supported
by a radical, grassroots and dynamic women’s movement.
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Nyathi, Abigail Nkazimulo. "Exploring socio-economic challenges faced by female headed households in rural districts: The case of Manama village, Matebeleland South Province in Zimbabwe." Diss., 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/11602/1125.
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MGSInstitute of Gender and Youth Studies
In most developing countries, poverty is concentrated in female headed households especially in rural areas. Notably, these rural areas are fast becoming female spaces, as most men migrate to urban areas and neighbouring countries. The critical role of rural women in eradicating poverty through agricultural labour force, subsistence farming and rural development in sub-Saharan Africa, has been recognised by scholars yet they are the poorest and their contribution has not been fully acknowledged by the community or governments. To understand this phenomenon this study investigated the socio-economic challenges faced by female headed households, causes of high vulnerability and their coping strategies in Manama village, Matabeleland South province, Zimbabwe. This study was informed by feminist theoretical approaches of conducting research as it employed several qualitative research methods, namely key participant individual in-depth interviews; Focus group discussions; field participatory observation and documentary reviews to collect data. The findings of the study were that, due to the country’s economic situation, constrained mobility and lack of collateral security to secure credit, women have a double burden of responsibility with numerous challenges such as unequal wages in hired labourer work, inadequate food for the family, financial burdens. However they have their own coping strategies such as voluntary community networks. This study concludes by making recommendations, for gender mainstreaming in policy, agricultural extension services for Female headed households, creation of markets, counselling and psychosocial support. This research contends that although these women find themselves in a patriarchal frame they have decided to outgrow it and be autonomous as they fight the socio-economic challenges they face. They have numerous socio-economic challenges but the participants themselves are self-asserted. They are not stopped by patriarchy and are exemplary as they work hard and venture outside the domestic space to engage in honest work to take care of their households.
NRF
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Rogan, Michael J. "The feminisation of poverty and female headship in post-apartheid South Africa, 1997-2006." Thesis, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10413/6434.
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A large and growing body of scholarship has suggested that income poverty has recently decreased in post-apartheid South Africa. Evidence for an overall drop in poverty rates notwithstanding, there has been very little work which has examined the gendered nature of poverty. There have, however, been important changes over the period which might suggest that poverty trends have been gendered. On the one hand, for example, the post-apartheid period has seen the expansion of several grants to support the care-givers of children and the elderly as well as employment growth for women. On the other hand, this same period has been characterised by declining marital rates, rising rates of female unemployment, and women increasingly overrepresented in low-wage work, changes which would be expected to have negative implications for women's economic well-being. This thesis uses nationally representative household survey data from the October Household Surveys (1997 and 1999) and the General Household Surveys (2004 and 2006) to investigate gendered trends in income poverty in several different ways. It examines first, whether females are more likely to live in poor households than males, and whether this has changed over time; and second, how poverty has changed among female- and male-headed households. The thesis also considers why females and female-headed households are more vulnerable to poverty and why the poverty differential between males and females (and female- and male-headed households) may have widened over time. Given the criticism of headship based analyses of income poverty, the thesis also investigates poverty and female headship in greater detail by adopting several alternative definitions of female headship that are commonly used in the literature.Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.
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Grieb, Bettina-Christiane. "Influence of marital status on socioeconomic and food production variables in rural Paraguay." 1985. http://hdl.handle.net/2097/27449.
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Mohono-Nyabela, Mosebatho. "If a man is a head of the household what is a woman? The impact of rural women's engagement in the textile industries of Lesotho on gendered relations in their households: a case study in Mafeteng, Lesotho." Thesis, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10539/7294.
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ABSTRACT__________________________________________________________
This study examines the gender aspects of household dynamics in rural households in
Mafeteng, Lesotho. It was inspired by the impact of changes resulting from the major
retrenchment of Basotho men from South African mines which has coincides with the
employment of a large number of women in relatively newly established textile
industry. Snowball sampling was used to elicit data from ten women employed in the
textile industries. Moreover, in order to establish the significance of employment on
gendered household dynamics, purposive sampling was used to elicit data from ten
unemployed women. This study reveals how decision-making is done in rural
households of employed women. Among things that influence decision-making is
economic status. Furthermore, it exposes the gender aspects of household labour
within the employed women’s households. It also reveals the influence that women’s
employment has on marital conflict between spouses.
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Kirk, Else. "Gender relations and the beneficiary: an impact study of the resource mobilisation initiative of Nyimba District Farmers Association as supported by MS Zambia." Diss., 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/1824.
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The central objective of this dissertation is to gain an understanding of the effect by the market within the household on a specific developmental initiative whose aim was poverty reduction. This dissertation analyses how individuals gain access to resources, and how they enforce their entitlements during the on-going implicit and explicit negotiations inherent in daily rural life.
The research tested the suitability of several concepts previously untested in the southern African context. The concept of hearth-holds, proved valuable as a unit of analysis which recognizes the importance of female-directed social units. The relevance of the fall-back position in terms of locality of kin, as well as perceptions of legitimacy, were crucial in affecting how far they were willing to go and what they felt they could demand in everyday household bargaining situations. The deficiency of using romantic ideas of conjugal relations and equal opportunities to explain practice was apparent.
Spouses strategise within the terms of their conjugal contracts, at times adhering to the dominant patriarchal bargain, at times covertly defying or overtly challenging it, and following another bargain.
Placing women as the custodians of morality, works to the relative advantage of men by isolating women from accessing certain opportunities. Female heads of households, manage to legitimise their access to resources by virtue of being custodians of their children. Custodianship of cash funds, and the dominant decision making model used for resource related decisions in the household, clearly impacted on the relevance of different strategies in the bargaining process. The strategic entry points in this process of reduced transparency and violence were relevant in most households studied. The latter was effective in reinforcing and shaping the conjugal contract, despite in effect breaking it. Drinking facilitated this process by creating a temporary suspension of the rules.
Concrete recommendations for developmental practitioners involve incorporating the hearth-hold concept and promoting the communal planning, budgeting and monitoring approach, as well as to specifically target individuals who need their intra-household bargaining power boosted. A clear policy on affirmative action in gate keeper roles, as well as gender disaggregated documentation of beneficiaries, should be institutionalised.Development Studies
M.A. (Development Studies)
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Myers, Alexandra Ann. "Single parent families after divorce : a discussion of the causes and possible legal solutions to the 'feminisation of poverty'." 1999. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/17551.
Full textAbstract:
In recent times, the incidence of single-parent families has increased rapidly with the
principle cause being the rising divorce rate. The vast majority of these single-parent
families are headed by women and a predominantly common factor in these
households is the extent to which they are financially impoverished after divorce. This
situation has given rise to the phenomenon known as the feminisation of poverty,
where women are seen to make up the majority of the poor. This study examines the
many varied factors contributing to this phenomenon and discusses some of the
general solutions offered world-wide to address these poverty-stricken households.
An assessment is then made of those legal solutions most appropriate for South AfricaLaw
LL.M.