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Economic models and having children: some evidence from Kwahu, Ghana

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 December 2011

Christine Oppong  and
Wolf Bleek
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Extract

This paper is concerned with aspects of reproduction and fertility among the Kwahu of southern Ghana, an Akan sub-group, and more particularly among the members of a lineage in one rural town characterised by profound socio-economic change and differentiation. Fragments of the field data presented are taken from a larger corpus of materials focusing on family life, sexuality and birth control collected during the early 1970s.

The data discussed here pertain to people's decisions whether or not to practise contraception, to have abortions, to carry pregnancies to full term – in short, whether or not to regulate their fertility by traditional and modern chemical and mechanical methods. We note as we proceed why some individuals will terminate a pregnancy at all costs, even risking life and health to do so, and why others have a fatalistic or casual approach to the results of their activities and the outcome of their pregnancy. These materials are presented within the context of a brief account of some current problems encountered in micro-economic demographic modelling exercises based on rational decision-making premisses, and of recent attempts to build bridges between ethnographers and economists.

Résumé

Modéles économiques et décisions relatives à la fertilité: évidence en provenance de Kwahu, Ghana

Cet article traite des aspects de la reproduction et de la fertilité parmi les Kwahu du Ghana-Sud, un sous-groupe Akan, et plus particulïerement des membres dérisée par de profonds changements et différentiation socio-économiques. Des extraits du data de recherche présentés sont tirés d'un plus grand ensemble de matériaux se concentrant sur la vie de famille, la sexualité et le contrôle des naissances, amassés au cours des premières années soixante-dix.

Le data discuté ici considère les décisions des gens en ce qui concerne l'utilisation de la contraception ou non, l'avortement, la décision de mener à terme les grossesses, en bref de contrôler ou non leur fertilité selon des méthodes traditionnelles et des méthodes modernes chimiques et mécaniques, notant au fur et à mesure pourquoi certains individus termineront à tout prix une grossesse, risquant par là même la vie et la santé de l'intéressée, et pourquoi d'autres adoptent une attitude fataliste et apathique voir désinvolte à l'égard des résultats de leurs activites hétérosexuelles et des grossesses qui s'en suivent. Ces matériaux sont préséntes dans le contexte d'un bref exposé des problèmes courants rencontrés dans des exercices de modèles démographiques en micro-économie bases sur des hypothèses de prises de décisions rationnelles et dans le contexte de récentes tentatives d'établir des liens de communications entre les ethnographes, les économistes et autres. Le concept central en cours de révision est le coût et les coûts relatifs au fait d'être parents. Le data de Kwahu est utilisé pour indiquer quelques uns des facteurs à considérer. Au cours de la discussion on se rapporte à un certain nombre d'études micro-démographiques en provenance du Ghana, embrassant une période de presqu'une moitié de siècle, études qui placent fermement la fertilité et les décisions qui s'y rattachent dans le concept de mariage, paternité, du fait d'élever les enfants et de parenté.

Type
Sex, marriage, children and divorce
Information
Africa , Volume 52 , Issue 4 , October 1982 , pp. 15 - 33
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 1982

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