Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2006, Agricultural Education

HIV/AIDS has affected women from sub-Saharan Africa in disproportionate numbers more than anywhere else in the world. Women are vulnerable to HIV/AIDS infection in Kenya as a result of powerful patriarchal influences that permeate women's lives leading to marginalization and disempowerment in social, cultural, and economic avenues. To address the research questions, secondary analysis of data from the 2003 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey was utilized. In this study, it was expected that the demographic variables of age, education, religion, ethnicity, region of residence, marital status, and employment were the independent variables that would influence HIV vulnerability among women. A dependent variable, HIV vulnerability was conceived of a larger concept comprised of powerlessness, AIDS-related knowledge, cultural practices, sexual behavior, and perception of HIV risk. A one-way analysis of variance, ANOVA was performed to test if significant relations existed between the independent variables and dependent variable. Between-subject effects were identified and multiple comparison tests (Bonferroni) were conducted for these variables; plots were also used to visually present the mean scores. The tests of between-subject effects showed that age (F = 78.848, p = .000), region of residence (F = 21.452, p = .000), education (F = 130.088, p = .000), ethnicity (F = 13.276, p = .000), marital status (F = 39.002, p = .000), and employment (F = 216.592, p = .000) were all statistically significant. However, religion (F = .730, p = .572) was not statistically significant. It had been hypothesized that religion would play a significant role in HIV vulnerability. However this was not the case, and was in contrast with the hypothesis. In this study, the data strongly suggest that women in Kenya are more vulnerable to HIV/AIDS when they are younger, have low levels of education, are from different ethnicities and from certain regions, are unmarried, and not employed. The (open full item for complete abstract)

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2014, History

Through the study of the Mungiki movement among the Kikuyu of Kenya, this dissertation examines how post-colonial Africans continue to use their cultural backgrounds to negotiate and re-center themselves in a changing world. Underlying this project is the assumption that if enslaved Africans in the New World could draw upon their cultural backgrounds despite the forcible removal from their cultural roots, they would do the same while on the continent. I argue that reactions to post-colonial socio-economic challenges can be better understood by exploring how Africans have used their specific cultural symbols, specifically religious concepts, to cope with the transformations within their societies as a result of their encounter with colonialism and globalization. A major point of cultural contact between many African communities and Europeans was the Christian Missions. The Kikuyu were no different. Having come into the closest and the longest contact with Christian missionaries compared to other ethnic groups in Kenya, Christianity became a significant part of Kikuyu identity. Nonetheless, rather than being a uniting force, this study points to the divisive effect of Christianity on the Kikuyu, which has become especially evident during times of intense socio-economic turmoil. Because pre-colonial Kikuyu society was significantly gerontocratic, there were inevitable latent tensions within the society that were magnified with the arrival of Christian missionaries in the late 19th century. The Kikuyus conversion to Christianity marked the beginning of a process of intense religious divisions that became a significant part of Kikuyu identity. This was due to two main factors: First, Christianity signified the possibility of an alternative source of power for the disenfranchised within the society. As such, the lower strata of the Kikuyu society made up the bulk of the first converts into Christianity. Secondly, the fluid and open nature of Kikuyu cultural worldview a (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2009, Geography (Arts and Sciences)

The 1980's and 1990's were characterized by considerable debate on decentralization in the developing world. While advocates argued that decentralization would bring government, and therefore delivery of services closer to users, opponents pointed to potential problems including ‘elite capture' of the decision making process, disparities in regional resource endowments and corruption. This thesis uses the decentralization framework to investigate the outcomes of health sector reforms in Kenya, especially allocation of HIV & AIDS mitigation resources. A desk review of relevant literature was employed, but the research was also augmented by limited primary data. Findings indicate that though the government embraced a diversity of policies, the broader objectives of reforms, to enhance quality and geographical coverage of health services, remain elusive.

Bachelor of Arts, Miami University, 2010, College of Arts and Sciences - Gerontology

The purpose of this project is to explore older Kenyan women's resilience and adaptive strategies as a function of rapid socioeconomic, urbanization, modernization and cultural changes that are happening in their country. Socio-cultural and public policies have evolved greatly throughout the last decade in Kenya and this has produced lifestyle shifts. Most significant for this project is the change in status for older African women in relation to other individuals in the rural communities in which most of them dwell. This project focuses on Kenya's older women living in the rural areas and draws heavily on the life styles of Kikuyu ethnic group for some specific examples of how public policies affect individuals in these rural settings. The general premise is that older women lose their status as societies become more industrialized. At the same time, demographic changes and medical advancements have seen women living longer and healthier than in any previous times in history. Because of this kind of longevity and changing family structures, both the older women and the society need to make some readjustments to accommodate these changes. To facilitate those readjustments, it is important to recognize the conflicting and often ageist ideas in Kenyan society about old age, and the self-concepts of older women, which tends to be more positive than the society's view of them. Therefore, it is in order that older women's voices should be featured in the debate about socio-cultural changes affecting their quality of life. Major theories of aging and feminism operate at both micro and macro-levels of the society. What they overlook is how older individuals, especially women, remain active and involved. Both sociologist and economists have established that women in the developing world are relegated to lower economic and social status. I suggest that in order overcome that lower status; Kenyan traditional customs and official policies need to change so that older women are (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2011, History

This thesis explores the roles played by the Mboya-Kennedy students' airlifts of 1959-1961 both domestically and internationally. While the students' airlifts contributed to the cultivation of good relations between the United States of America and Kenya, it helped determine the course of Kenyan domestic politics with lasting impact. The study revealed that the airlifts program contributed to the fall-out amongst the first crop of Kenyan politicians and consequently, ethnic rivalries between the Kikuyu and the Luo which persists today especially in the political arena. Newspaper articles, archival materials, autobiographies, memoirs, US State Department records and oral interviews were used. This study's contribution is two –fold. At the domestic level, it initiates a conversation on the effects the airlift program had on ethnic rivalries and Kenyan politics. At the international level, it advances the scholarly conversation on the change of US foreign policies in the early 1960s on the issue of race not only within the United States, but also internationally.

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2010, Speech Communication

There has not been a single study on the practice of public relations in Kenya despite the country attracting multinational corporations that are increasingly using public relations to build relationships with key publics. This pioneer quantitative study explores the public relations models that inform the practice of public relations in Kenya, the cultural values that influence such practice and the correlation between the public relations models and cultural values. Results show that two international models of public relations – personal influence and cultural interpreter – are the most used by practitioners in Kenya, while individualism and femininity are the most experienced cultural values in that order. Results of the correlation between the public relations models and cultural values show a strong positive relationship between the personal influence model and the femininity cultural value. This correlation points to the practitioners' strong desire for good interpersonal relationships with colleagues, supervisors, clients and key publics.

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2023, Economics

Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest rates of child marriage in the world today, despite laws and policies targeted at reducing these rates. The region also commonly participates in the traditional practice of bride price payments, a monetary or in kind transfer of gifts from the groom's family to the wife's family around the timing of marriage. Bride price practices incentivize families to make economic decisions about their daughter's marriage and affect the equilibrium of the marriage market. In this paper, I consider how an agricultural commodity price shock affects the probability of child marriage in East Africa using a differences-in-differences-style methodology. I find that a 1 percent increase in the global coffee price increases the rate of child marriage by .66 percentage points for girls in coffee regions compared to non-coffee regions. Mechanisms, including labor allocation within a household and the opportunity cost of paying a bride price during an income shock, are discussed in tandem with the results.

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2023, Geography (Arts and Sciences)

The interplay between climate risks, gender vulnerability, and economic activities is increasingly receiving attention from the scientific community, governments, and developmental agencies. These interlinkages are perceived differently by people thus affecting how they react and respond to the impacts. Therefore, this study investigates the linkages between gender and economic activities in determining people's vulnerability to climate risks in informal settlement. This research draws on Feminist Political Ecology (FPE) framework to understand the complexity of how flood events affect the economic activities of Kisumu Ndogo residents, how gender influences vulnerability to those flooding risks, and how they overcome and manage the effects of flood risks in their community. In-depth semi-structured interviews were used to engage with Kisumu Ndogo residents to construct a deeper understanding of their experiences with flooding risks. Results show that government negligence and lack of appropriate waste disposal are significant challenges Kisumu Ndogo residents continue to face as people living in low-income areas. Therefore, flooding results from extreme climatic events and a lack of municipal services compound the adverse effects of extreme weather events on the vulnerable group in Kisumu Ndogo.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2023, Communication Studies (Communication)

As an African woman who was born in Cameroon which is in Western Africa then grew up in Kenya, an East African country, I have heard stories of different cultural practices that African women in any of the African countries that I have lived in and/or visited, face. One such practice is female genital cutting (FGC), which refers to the surgical altering or complete removal of the female genitalia. This dissertation study seeks to understand the perspectives that FGC survivors in Kenya have towards FGC and their attitudes toward the practice. 15 to 20 women who have survived FGC were interviewed over a 6-week period. The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) estimates that about 4 million girls and women in Kenya have undergone one form or the other of Female Genital Cutting (FGC). This makes up 21% of the country's female population (UNICEF, 2020). Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is the official medical term given by Western scholarship and organizations, to the intentional deformation or complete removal of the female prepuce without any medical justification. However, there has been resistance to the use of the word mutilation when referring to FGC, as that falls under the patronizing nature of the West over traditional practices from the Global South and is perceived as offensive by people who come from FGC-practicing communities. Past studies also argue that most women who have undergone FGC do not consider themselves to be mutilated. In agreement with these arguments and as an act of decolonizing the FGC discourse as well as respecting all those who are affected by FGC, I choose to use the term FGC in this study instead of FGM. I also choose to refer to girls and women who have undergone FGC as survivors instead of victims. As Njambi (2004) argues, so long as we view FGC through the eyes of the West as a barbaric and savage practice where those who undergo it are being oppressed, then we take away their agency. By referring to (open full item for complete abstract)

Master of Science, Miami University, 2022, Kinesiology, Nutrition, and Health

Access to quality, affordable, and reliable healthcare has been a long-standing challenge in rural areas of developing countries. Rural households often incur high out-of-pocket expenditure for healthcare, resulting in a significant cost burden when seeking treatment for an illness. This study aimed to examine the cost structure of healthcare in a rural, underserved community in the Kaloleni Subcounty of Kilifi, Kenya. We measured the impact of direct healthcare costs on a sample of 37 households, along with the coping strategies and treatment-seeking behavior arising from these costs. Direct healthcare costs were grouped into 3 categories: consultation, diagnostic, and medicine fees. Results show that medicine was the highest direct healthcare cost, accounting for 64% of all expenses paid during an episode of illness. Direct healthcare costs also comprised over 12% of the monthly household expenditure in these households, with the lowest-earning homes being disproportionately affected. Malaria was the most common illness reported in the study area, accounting for 37% of all illness cases. Several strategies are proposed to ease the burden of direct healthcare costs. These include government subsidies for community-level healthcare facilities, increasing the availability of medicines, and improving the distribution/use of treated mosquito bed nets to prevent malaria transmission.

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2021, Mass Communication (Communication)

Despite high adoption rates of new communication technologies in Kenya, the role of emerging technologies in the Kenyan child trafficking market and the influence of online anti-child trafficking activists in combating child trafficking remain under-researched. In this study, I have used digital ethnographic approaches that included virtual interviews, online participant observation, and social media analytics to realize five main findings. First, emerging media technology has been used by criminals to traffic children, whereas it also provides opportunities to online activists to combat child trafficking. Second, there are different types of online claims-makers actively advocating against child trafficking. Third, the claims-makers framed the exploitation and risky situations that victims of child trafficking go through as sexual exploitation, organ harvesting, infant trafficking, child marriage, organized begging, terrorism, organized crime, and child labor. Fourth, the claims-makers used the 5P framework to diagnose and offer a prognosis of the child trafficking situation. Finally, the claims-makers were able to influence diverse sentiments among their target audience. This study has practical and theoretical recommendations for researching and designing social and behavior change interventions against child trafficking and other social challenges.

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2020, African Studies (International Studies)

Women play an important role in the fisheries and aquaculture sub-sector in Kenya. They constitute between 45% and 60% of the farmers in the broader agricultural sector. Through this paper I examine the role that small-scale women fish farmers play in ensuring self-reliance and socioeconomic growth. The research data were collected in the form of interviews, participatory observations, and archival materials as my method. The target population was Central and Western Kenya, specifically Kakamega, Kisii, Nairobi, Kiambu, and Nyeri counties. I argue that while women play a pivotal role in the fisheries and aquaculture sector, they are often neglected as participants in the decision-making process of the policies aimed at its development. Through the research, I found that women played a role in each aspect of the sector, but were more inclined to the value addition, processing, and marketing of fish, while men were more involved in production, particularly site selection, pond construction, and how capital would be used. Women's participation in the sector was limited by various factors, with limited land ownership and difficulties in accessing finance as the main factors affecting them. Likewise, I found that there exist gender biases when it comes to cultural, religious, dietary practice, and gender dynamics. Women in the research areas also integrated fish farming with diversified livelihood strategies in an attempt to increase their income and self-reliance. I make three policy recommendations: increased dialogue between the key stakeholders to influence policy reforms about gender bias and disparity; an equitable access to resources; and an increase in support from the government and other NGOs to AAK and other similar organizations that can help improve their capability.

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2019, Agricultural and Extension Education

While there is no easy solution to food insecurity in Kenya, low-input agricultural products can make important contributions to household livelihoods. Village chicken (VC) production is one such activity, practiced widely across the country, that is advocated by scholars and development practitioners as a key tool to alleviate food insecurity and increase resiliency for resource-poor households. These small-scale flocks are raised on minimal inputs but offer crucial contributions towards household nutrition, livelihoods, and offer several social benefits. Further, women's role as the suggested owners of VC has propelled development initiatives seeking to “empower” women. Unfortunately, VC producers face challenges such as disease and low productivity, and lack access to support resources. Moreover, while women are touted as the “owners” of village chickens, the concept of ownership is ambiguous, and it is unclear what agency women have over these backyard flocks. Without an understanding of women's access within VC production systems, projects attempting to benefit women and other vulnerable populations fall short. This case study of VC production in Kitui and Embu counties of Kenya employed qualitative research methods to map access to the benefits of VC production, centering the experiences the women. Guided by a conceptual framework informed by Ribot & Peluso's (2003) theory of access and Kabeer's (2000) social exclusion framework, data was collected through focus group discussions with farmers and semi-structured interviews with veterinary health officers. Substantiating past scholarship, participants designated the benefits of VC production to three categories: household consumption, income-generation, and social benefits. However, findings reveal a complex and dynamic web of access mechanisms that women rely on to access these benefits. In addition, processes of social exclusion present barriers to accessing resources deemed important by veterinary health off (open full item for complete abstract)

BA, Oberlin College, 1996, Anthropology

In this thesis I contend that experiencing music is a fundamental activity in the realization of cultural identity. Music reinforces cultural identity by enacting significant forms and practices that embody meaning, meaning particular to the identity of a culture. When people hear music that is significant in their culture it excites certain feelings in them which reinforce and regenerate their identity with that culture. Participation in music is a condition that evokes a vivid impression in the participant like no other activity in social life. Functionally, this impression may reinforce themes impressed on actors in other ways; however, the way the impression is made and the way it is experienced is different in music. To take the baseball example, you can rally an audience around the home team with visual signals, such as a sign reading "go team," but it is the music that acts to really draw people's attention and inspire them.The musical event is a unique expression of culture in the form of sound. The practices and sounds of a musical activity can be placed within the framework of the culture that it is rooted in; at the same time, however, the culture itself can be placed within the framework of the musical practice. While music is always happening within the context of culture, culture is happening within the context of the music.

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2018, Popular Culture

The question of audience reception has been widely debated in popular culture, with scholars such as De Certeau and Stuart Hall arguing that more focus should be paid to everyday cultural elements and the “common” person. However, these works have not adequately addressed the issue of localization especially with film commentators who act as an intermediary between foreign films and local audiences. My thesis addresses the issue of localization specifically, in my project, I look at DJ Afro, to show how he uses Kiswahili, Sheng, and Gikuyu to translate Hollywood films. I discuss cultural differences between Kenyans and Americans and Dj Afro's choice of words while translating these differences. I argue that DJ Afro provides local access to Hollywood films among people who do not understand English and describe the language and cultural aspects that make Hollywood movies available and popular amongst the poor in Kenya. In conclusion, this thesis, by closely examining Dj Afro's “films” and through interviewing him, sheds new light on the rarely acknowledged issue of film interpretation thus localization of global cultural products, especially in the context of Africa (specifically Kenya). 

Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), Ohio University, 2018, Theater

This paper explores Theatre for Development (TfD) as a research and development tool through a case study conducted in the Mathare slum of Nairobi, Kenya. Mathare is densely populated, with over half-a-million people in one square kilometer. Sanitation and water systems are poorly constructed and often controlled by cartels. This leads to health and security issues that disproportionately affect women. Development initiatives that aim to address these issues often ignore the role that community members play in development. TfD, as I modify it for this project, is an adaptation of Augusto Boal's forum theatre that generates community-led solutions to specific development issues. Using TfD, I rely on stakeholder participation to pursue a holistic research methodology that informs initiatives aimed at improving sanitation challenges. My research seeks to answer two questions: What information surfaces as a result of creating a TfD workshop in Mathare? And how does TfD succeed and fail as a methodology applied in Mathare? I present the data collected through the process of developing the workshop, conducting the workshop, and participant feedback. The data show that the practice of TfD in Mathare generates nuanced information on limitations to sanitation, and illustrates how gendered limitations restrict women's ability to make choices about their own sanitation. The data also show that TfD is useful in empowering participants to guide community dialogue around issues and ways of addressing them, and clarifying areas of misinterpretation. However, challenges can arise with budgeting time and negotiating a language barrier. Overall, I will show that TfD is a research and development tool that empowers stakeholders in the process of information collection, and allows them to invest directly and specifically in the desired outcomes.

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2017, Geography

The goal of this study was to examine environmental change at Lake Nakuru National Park (LNNP) and surrounds in the Central Rift Valley region of Kenya. The study was conducted using multi-temporal Landsat TM/OLI data for the period 1987 – 2016. The three objectives associated with this goal were to (1) Identify the most effective techniques for mapping detailed vegetation types in the study area, (2) Map land use/land cover (LULC) changes, and (3) Identify variables that can explain observed LULC in the area. The Random Forest classifier resulted in a LULC map with the highest classification accuracy (85.5%) when Landsat bands were combined with a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) and slope. The largest LULC changes observed outside LNNP involved the conversion of grassland to agriculture and occurred throughout the study area. The other major change occurred in the southwestern, northern and northeastern edges of the study area and involved conversion of forest to agriculture. Within the boundary of the LNNP, the major LULC change observed was 51% increase in area covered by lake water that resulted in the destruction of shoreline vegetation types and infrastructure. There was also a complete destruction of Euphorbia forest following a fire, and an overall decline in Acacia Woodlands. These changes are likely negatively impacting the quality of wildlife habitat in LNNP and threatening continued survival of wildlife species and habitats.

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2017, Geography

Geographic research at the intersection between development critiques and political ecology questions a potential disconnect between extra-local development initiatives and local livelihoods. Kenya, under its Vision 2030 for sustainable development, is expanding the national electric grid to many rural areas, potentially introducing electricity as a process and effect on local livelihoods. I assess the introduction of electricity to Mt. Kasigau, a rural area in southeast Kenya, focusing on how the development intervention is perceived and acted upon by local communities and individual residents. Working with community residents in three villages the research employed a mixed methods approach, including participatory GIS (PGIS) to map and analyze the electric grid, and semi-structured interviews to gain local perspectives on the processes of community and household-level electrification. The study mapped eight electrical transformers, 164 connected buildings and 11,607 meters of power lines, indicating about 18% serviced area and 38-71% service population among the three villages. Respondents highlight distinctions among availability, accessibility, and reliability for homes and in the community and distinctive contributions to diversification. Local perceptions on introduction of electricity are clearly positive at Mt. Kasigau and shows benefits to sustainable livelihoods.

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2017, Popular Culture

Kenya boasts of its high production of popular culture materials. Music, TV shows, movies, popular fiction and now, in this social media age, memes, GIFs and short video clips. All these are tailored to respond to the prevailing social, economic and political conditions in the country. While they are mostly humorous and entertaining, the primary goal of many of these popular culture artefacts is to critique contemporary Kenya. Despite its consumption though, popular culture has remained highly undervalued and unappreciated as a tool for cultural, social and political transformation. Many Kenyans consume popular culture texts solely for entertainment purposes. Popular fiction, since it is studied and examined in Kenya's exam-oriented schools, is arguably the only form of popular culture that is seen as a means to an end – passing one's exams. This end however, is hardly what authors usually have in mind when they produce the texts, considering their contents. This thesis examines Kidagaa Kimemwozea, a Swahili novel by Ken Walibora, as a representation and critique of postcolonial Kenya's social, cultural and political situation. Exploring the political leadership of postcolonial Kenya, class dynamics and relations as well as gender issues, I argue that Walibora's novel does not only expose the Kenyan bourgeoisie's cunningness in their oppression of the proletarians and the male ruse to dominate their female counterparts, but it also proposes excellent paths of emancipation for the proletarians and women, and should thus be given scholarly attention.

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2017, Leadership and Change

The purpose of this study is to examine the lived experiences of 18 African American women who went to Kenya, East Africa as part of a Cultural Reconnection delegation. A qualitative narrative inquiry method was used for data collection. This was an optimal approach to honoring the authentic voices of African American women. Eighteen African American women shared their stories, revelations, feelings and thoughts on reconnecting in their ancestral homeland of Africa. The literature discussed includes diasporic returns as a subject of study, barriers to the return including the causes of historic trauma, and how Black women as culture bearers have practiced overcoming these barriers by returning to the ancestral homeland. The data revealed that Cultural Reconnection delegations created an enhanced sense of purpose and a greater understanding of their roots and themselves. Participants further experienced a need to give back, participated in womanism, and gained a greater spiritual connection to their ancestors. Stereotypes and myths were dispelled. Leadership skills were improved. Participants gained a clear vision of the next step in their personal lives, an overall greater understanding of themselves. This dissertation offers significant insights into the nature and benefit of ancestral returns, and the cultural components of leadership and change, especially for diasporas who were involuntarily stolen from their native lands. The electronic version of this dissertation is available in open access at AURA, Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioch.edu/ , and OhioLINK ETD Center, http://etd.ohiolink.edu