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The Ties That Bind: Social Networks of Men and Women in a Kipsigis Community of Kenya
Author(s) -
Harkness Sara,
Super Charles M.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
ethos
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.783
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1548-1352
pISSN - 0091-2131
DOI - 10.1525/eth.2001.29.3.357
Subject(s) - clan , kinship , sociology , interpersonal ties , gender studies , rural community , social network (sociolinguistics) , focus group , social network analysis , focus (optics) , whiting , social psychology , psychology , social science , anthropology , social capital , demography , fish <actinopterygii> , political science , physics , optics , fishery , biology , law , social media
Beatrice Whiting's focus on cultural meanings implicit in everyday routines provided a focus for this study of men and women's social networks in a rural Kipsigis community of western Kenya. Using methods from social network analysis, the authors interviewed men and women of the community about the contexts of their encounters with other same‐sex community members. The data were analyzed using multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis in order to discern the bases of social interaction. Results indicate that mutual helping relationships, not kinship, clan, or age, are at the core of social life in this community.