Women’s status and fertility behaviour in Kenya:a case study of Nyamache division, Kisii District

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between women's status and fertility behaviour in the Gusii Community of Kenya. Although there are several dimensions by which women acquire their status,this study focuses mainly on the extent to which women's status as reflected in their educational levels, occupational roles, economic rank, and wife's position vis-a-vis her husband's, influence fertility behaviour. This study also attempts to identify the extent to which the fertility behaviour- of currently married women is influenced by socio-cultura1 values which relate their status to fertility performance. The interaction between women's status and fertility behaviour in this study is explained within the context of four theoretical perspectives. These perspectives are, namely, the economic, wealthflows, situational approach and cultural lag theories. Various techniques were engaged in the collection of the data used in this study. These techniques i ncluded the use of the standard questionnaire which was administer-ed to 156 randomly sampled respondents, focused group discussions, key informants, nonparticipant observation, participant observation, and documentary sources.Analysis of the data shows that nine or more years of formal schooling have significant negative effect on fertility behaviour.The results also indicate that women in the formal employment and self employment have low fertility than those in self help activities and agricultural activities. However , women's economic rank in terms of incomes reflects no consistent interaction with fertility behaviour. The analysis further shows the existence'of a consistent relationship between wife's position vis-a-vis her husband's. Women with higher positions reflect low fertility performance than their counterparts in lower positions.The findings also indicated that fertility behaviour is insignificantly influenced by socio-cultural values which relate women's status to their fertility performance. It was revealed that as educated women join formal employment to earn their own independent incomes, which serve as alternative sources of their status, they tend to become more assertive of new social norms,especially in changes related to fertility performance. As a result,the influence of socio-cultural values which related women's status to their fertility behaviour have assumed a declining trend in the deter-mination of fer-tility behaviour in the recent past. This trend,as shown by the results, has been further reinforced by the growing reversal in the direction and magnitude of the intergenerational flows of wealth and services between parents and their offsprings.Given the findings in this study, it is clear that the transformations taking place within the Gusii Community as a result of the current processes of modernization and westernization, the traditional setting of high fertility is gradually undergoing disorganization, redefinition and,hopefully, the small family ideal may subsequently follow