Development from Participation in Women’s Groups : Experiences from Bolivia

• Main Author: Börjesson, Johan
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Högskolan i Gävle, Akademin för hälsa och arbetsliv 2011
• Subjects: Women‘s groups; women‘s empowerment; human development; social inclusion; participation
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-10844

This report is the result of a field study conducted in urban Bolivia on women‘s group in which women are organised in order to work, get social support and personal capacity building under the responsibility of a licensed psychologist. The study sought to examine the groups by focusing on the experiences of the women in relation to the process of empowerment and the development of the community. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with half of the women participating in the group. Results showed that weekly capacity building workshops and social inclusion have positive effects on the women‘s development in terms of self-confidence and communication skills. The economic development has not been what the women expected and they showed great disappointment regarding that. The results were further analysed by the use of Bronfenbrenner‘s bioecological perspective, an analysis in which the main conclusion drawn was the positive effects of strong development from interaction between actors within the women‘s microsystems. A conclusive analysis has proposed more active participation from the women and more control over the progress of the groups to further promote the process of empowerment.