Towards an interdisciplinary approach to wellbeing: Life histories and Self-Determination Theory in rural Zambia

Social Science & Medicine
Sarah C White, Shreya Jha

Abstract

What are the prospects for a cross-cultural, interdisciplinary and methodologically plural approach to wellbeing? This question is addressed using Self-Determination Theory (SDT), a psychological theory based on quantitative empirical methods, to structure qualitative analysis of wellbeing in life history interviews in Chiawa, rural Zambia. Enquiry goes beyond simply reading across methods, disciplines and contexts, to consider fundamental differences in constructions of the human subject, and how these relate to understandings of wellbeing. Field research took place in two periods, August-November, 2010 and 2012. Analysis draws primarily on 46 individual case studies, conducted through open-ended interviews. These were identified through a survey with an average of 390 male and female household heads in each round, including 25% female headed households. As SDT predicts, the interviews confirm its key elements of autonomy, competence and relatedness as vital to wellbeing. However, these are expressed in ways that highlight material and relational, rather than psychological, factors. Key findings are: the mutual constitution of autonomy, competence and relatedness; the appreciation of autonomy as independence in action; the imp...Continue Reading

Citations

Jun 23, 2018·Topics in Cognitive Science·Ercenur Ünal, Anna Papafragou
Aug 28, 2020·Frontiers in Psychology·Annabella Osei-TutuBertjan Doosje
Jun 14, 2020·Social Science & Medicine·Sarah Atkinson

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