Covertness in Communication by the Elderly to the Young: a Case of Dholuo

Abstract

The study analyzed the impact of covertness in communication by the elderly to the young: a case study of Luo language in Nyakach District of Kisumu County, Kenya. Indirect communication can positively or negatively influence communication between the parties involved. In this study, use of riddles, proverbs and sayings acted as the major cause of covertness in communication. There are also other factors such as intermarriages, technology and environment and education that have resulted to covertness in communication between the elderly to the youth. The objectives of the study were to examine how intermarriage between the luo and other communities has resulted to covertness in communication, to investigate how generation changes and age gap has heightened covertness in communication by the elderly to the young and to examine the behavioural changes of the youth as a result of the use of covertness in communication. The objective helped the study to get an inner insight of the real cause of covertness in communication between the elderly to the youth. The study employed a survey research strategy. The data was collected from the council of elders of age sixty-five and above and the youth of age between fifteen and twenty nine from the rural part of Kisumu County using closed-ended and likert scaled questionnaires. Forty questionnaires were administered; twenty which were filled by elders with my assistance of direct interview and the other twenty were filled by the youth respondents. The collected data was displayed by use of pie charts, bar graphs and tables. The study found out that intermarriage, generation changes and age gap along with education have had an impact on covert use of language. In conclusion, the study noted that indirect communication can be of both positive and negative influence to communication.