Browsing by Author "Gwata, Feri"

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    Measuring risk aversion among asset poor small-scale farmers in the Western Cape, South Africa
    (2010) Gwata, Feri; Visser, Martine
    This paper presents an empirical analysis of the contentious issue regarding risk preferences of small-scale farmers in low-income countries. Resource-poor farmers have often been described as being inherently risk averse given their tendency to under-invest in risky yet profitable crop technologies. In contrast to this dominant view we argue that it is unlikely that these farmers have an inherent disposition towards risk aversion. We hypothesize that the observed under-investment in crop technologies is largely due to the financial constraints which these farmers face.
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    Traditional male circumcision: What is its socio-cultural significance among young Xhosa men?
    (2009) Gwata, Feri
    This paper explores the socio-cultural perceptions of Xhosa-speaking men on traditional male circumcision. Given that the ritual is painful and can result in 'botched circumcisions' (which get reported every year in the media), it is useful to explore the reasons young, urban men give for participating in it. Using the narratives of five young men from the Western Cape, four of whom have undergone circumcision, the study reveals that the ritual carries social and cultural significance and is understood primarily as an agent of socialization. The study affirms the findings of earlier studies that pressure from one's family is a major influencing factor in a Xhosa man's decision to undergo traditional circumcision. Respondents stress the importance of the ritual in 'becoming a man', but point more to the endurance of pain than to changing one's subsequent behavior as a marker of that transition.