Year: 2021
Type: dissertation
Abstract: The topic of the dissertation is the life of women in a rural agricultural Northern Tanzanian context. Tanzania is a rapidly growing country in East Africa and the majority of the population lives in rural areas and relies on agriculture. Despite growth in the economy and agricultural production the rural population struggles with poverty. This implies that a better understanding of the life of rural women who do most of the farm work in Tanzania is significant since an improvement in their lives has an impact on the general improvement in poverty reduction in the studied context. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to examine the lives of Northern Tanzanian rural women, and to generate a substantive theory which explains their main concerns in their lives and how they resolve them. The study involving rural women farmers and men participants (the husbands and rural actors) (N= 62, 9) in Tanzania in the spring, 02/2011 and 04/2016, was carried out through workshops, open discussions, interviews, letters, and observations. The collected data was analysed, using classic grounded theory methodology. The main concern of the rural women when living within external expectations was self-justifying related to hope of self-dignity. As a result, an emergence of a substantive theory of self-justifying shows a basic social psychological strategy experienced by rural women through sinking, awakening, toughening, and conceding. Sinking links to questions regarding the meaning of oneself. Due to this, hopelessness, caused by realising that one’s existence is only for the benefit of others, poses emptiness. During sinking, believing in oneself, a resource for continuation towards self-justification, is reduced by leaving a sense of insecurity. Additionally, the pursuit of self-dignity has lost its meaning. Awakening of hope of continuing shifts emptiness to uncertainty. Awakening is manifested by uncertainty of how to continue. During awakening, believing in one’s own efforts, a resource for continuation towards self-justification, is diminished until willingness to overcome conditions brings meaning to the future. Additionally, hope of self-dignity begins to emerge as progress advances. Toughening relates to the willingness to overcome conditions, believing in one’s own efforts and oneself, taking responsibility, internal controlling, and isolating oneself. Accordingly, the sense of being an independent responsibility bearer is created. As the progress advances a state of being pure enables believing in oneself, a source of safety, and mental freedom when living within expectations, whilst the hope of self-dignity is intensified. In conceding, there is no need to justify oneself. Diminished need to justify oneself can be caused by prolonged despair, fear, or other factors which diminish believing in oneself and the continuation towards the fulfilment of needs. By maintaining limits, generated from the expectations of how to treat others, self-justification is achieved. Self-justifying within limits, by prioritising the needs of others, is related to the level of safety. As the optimal outcome is reached, eagerness to take on more responsibilities intensifies, whilst unused physical and mental resources bring about a feeling of frustration. This is due to a limited access to self-development through material and immaterial sources because of currently living within expectations related to participation rights. The substantive theory of the coping strategy of self-justifying gives a view of how the women in this study, who live in the rural area of Northern Tanzania, resolve the main concern in their lives. Through knowledge gained, improvement of the state of an individual whilst living within expectations can be reconsidered. Keywords: Self-justifying, expectations, limits, prioritising the needs of others, grounded theory, qualitative data
Source: Työväentutkimus Vuosikirja
Author: Riina Kaikkonen
Language: English
Subfield: Development
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Helsingin Yliopisto
OpenAlex ID: W3199405870