A Case of Individual Actors: Peasant Farmers in Rural Kenya and their Rationale of Action

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit, you shall be able to:

• List the most important features of the example given (e.g. peasants in rural Kenya);
• Define the focal actors', i.e. peasant farmers', rationale of action;
• Describe the dimensions within the framework used to interpret the meaning of action that apply to the actors we are focussing on;
• Interpret the actors' daily attempts to secure their livelihoods by defining the meaning of their actions and strategies using the meta-theory.

Methodology

In order to fulfil the learning objectives of this unit, you will have to:

• Read passages from a text by Wiesmann (1998), in which he outlines the meta-theoretical foundations of his model;
• Link the meta-theoretical foundation of our livelihood approach with a real-life situation presented by watching and interpreting a film sequence. This exercise is performed as a group.