The Embeddness of Peasant Strategies of Action

A flaw was noted when assessing the peasant rationale of action in the lesson "Actor-Orientation: The Individual Level":

Peasant households are not single, "utility-optimising" units!

On the contrary: we have to consider the way they relate to and are bound by the values, rules and practices of their societies - and only then can we address peasant strategies of action within a specific context.

The strategies of action are thereby not only embedded in the societal context but are also related to environmental concerns. This is especially important for an actor-oriented perspective on regional development.

We shall therefore attempt an idealised characterisation of peasant societies by exploring the relationship between socio-cultural and socio-economic aspects and their land-use system.

Download and read the .pdf on the right-hand column that presents this idealised characterisation of peasant societies:

The conclusion that Wiesmann (1998) comes to is that peasant strategies cannot be understood without considering the regulating and decisive aspects of the systems in which they are embedded.

There can be said to be two structural components of the social and cultural system in African smallholder societies:

1. Within ethnic groups, it is the kinship systems (clans and lineages) that constitute elements of social organisation and families consisting of (spatially disparate) households and sub-households.
2. Classes of age and gender are the second social structure.

This social and cultural system of smallholder societies must harmonise and optimise individual strategies in order to ensure social security and balance.

On this basis, we can consider and define the four following areas of the socio-economic and socio-cultural system in peasant societies:

1. Ensuring access to resources
2. Optimising producer-consumer ratio
3. Implementing risk-reactive measures
4. Safeguarding indigenous knowledge