Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots

Gender and social inclusion efforts in agricultural development are focused on making uptake of agricultural technologies more equitable. Yet research looking at how gender relations influence technology uptake often assumes that men and women within a household make farm management decisions as ind...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Voss, Rachel C., Gitonga, Zachary M., Donovan, Jason A., Garcia-Medina, Mariana, Muindi, Pauline
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Springer 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131553
_version_ 1855523564211404800
author Voss, Rachel C.
Gitonga, Zachary M.
Donovan, Jason A.
Garcia-Medina, Mariana
Muindi, Pauline
author_browse Donovan, Jason A.
Garcia-Medina, Mariana
Gitonga, Zachary M.
Muindi, Pauline
Voss, Rachel C.
author_facet Voss, Rachel C.
Gitonga, Zachary M.
Donovan, Jason A.
Garcia-Medina, Mariana
Muindi, Pauline
author_sort Voss, Rachel C.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Gender and social inclusion efforts in agricultural development are focused on making uptake of agricultural technologies more equitable. Yet research looking at how gender relations influence technology uptake often assumes that men and women within a household make farm management decisions as individuals. Relatively little is understood about the dynamics of agricultural decision-making within dual-adult households where individuals’ management choices are likely influenced by others in the household. This study used vignettes to examine decision-making related to maize plot management in 698 dual-adult households in rural Kenya. The results indicated a high degree of joint management of maize plots (55%), although some management decisions—notably those related to purchased inputs—were slightly more likely to be controlled by men, while other decisions—including those related to hiring of labor and maize end uses—were more likely to be made by women. The prevalence of joint decision-making underscores the importance of ensuring that both men’s and women’s priorities and needs are reflected in design and marketing of interventions to support maize production, including those related to seed systems, farmer capacity building, and input delivery.
format Journal Article
id CGSpace131553
institution CGIAR Consortium
language Inglés
publishDate 2024
publishDateRange 2024
publishDateSort 2024
publisher Springer
publisherStr Springer
record_format dspace
spelling CGSpace1315532025-11-06T13:05:15Z Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots Voss, Rachel C. Gitonga, Zachary M. Donovan, Jason A. Garcia-Medina, Mariana Muindi, Pauline gender households maize seed systems decision making Gender and social inclusion efforts in agricultural development are focused on making uptake of agricultural technologies more equitable. Yet research looking at how gender relations influence technology uptake often assumes that men and women within a household make farm management decisions as individuals. Relatively little is understood about the dynamics of agricultural decision-making within dual-adult households where individuals’ management choices are likely influenced by others in the household. This study used vignettes to examine decision-making related to maize plot management in 698 dual-adult households in rural Kenya. The results indicated a high degree of joint management of maize plots (55%), although some management decisions—notably those related to purchased inputs—were slightly more likely to be controlled by men, while other decisions—including those related to hiring of labor and maize end uses—were more likely to be made by women. The prevalence of joint decision-making underscores the importance of ensuring that both men’s and women’s priorities and needs are reflected in design and marketing of interventions to support maize production, including those related to seed systems, farmer capacity building, and input delivery. 2024-03 2023-08-14T17:03:46Z 2023-08-14T17:03:46Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131553 en Open Access application/pdf Springer Voss, R. C., Gitonga, Z. M., Donovan, J., Garcia-Medina, M., & Muindi, P. (2023). Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots. Agriculture and Human Values, 41(1), 205–224. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-023-10484-w
spellingShingle gender
households
maize
seed systems
decision making
Voss, Rachel C.
Gitonga, Zachary M.
Donovan, Jason A.
Garcia-Medina, Mariana
Muindi, Pauline
Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots
title Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots
title_full Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots
title_fullStr Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots
title_full_unstemmed Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots
title_short Can I speak to the manager? The gender dynamics of decision-making in Kenyan maize plots
title_sort can i speak to the manager the gender dynamics of decision making in kenyan maize plots
topic gender
households
maize
seed systems
decision making
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/131553
work_keys_str_mv AT vossrachelc canispeaktothemanagerthegenderdynamicsofdecisionmakinginkenyanmaizeplots
AT gitongazacharym canispeaktothemanagerthegenderdynamicsofdecisionmakinginkenyanmaizeplots
AT donovanjasona canispeaktothemanagerthegenderdynamicsofdecisionmakinginkenyanmaizeplots
AT garciamedinamariana canispeaktothemanagerthegenderdynamicsofdecisionmakinginkenyanmaizeplots
AT muindipauline canispeaktothemanagerthegenderdynamicsofdecisionmakinginkenyanmaizeplots