An analysis of effects of Socio-Cultural factors on productivity of rural households in Nandi County, Kenya

Abstract

The aim of this study was to establish the socio-culturalfactors that influence the productivity of rural households in Nandi County,Kenya. Rural households' productive capacity in this region has largely been influenced by many factors. Socio-cultural factors embody the jinx that rural households are perpetually poor, complacent, and conservative when compared to those in other counties in the Rift valley region despite being endowed with agricultural resources.However,there is little information existing on rural household's attitude and motivations towards work in some regions in the county. An insight into social and cultural perspectives of residents of Kipkaren division towards work unravels a connection to their dismal productivity. The study objectives were to;establish and examine the socio-cultural factors an how it influences productivity of rural households in Nandi County, assess the challenges associated with culture one economic productivity of rural people in the county,explore cultural issues influencing rural household's social productivity in Nandi County. This research was founded on the theory of culture of Poverty by Oscar Lewis which opines that the burden of poverty was so systemic that it leads to the formation of an autonomous subculture. This was a case study approach of Kipkaren Division, Nandi County, Kenya. A sample size of 330respondents and 15 interview schedules were administered to households and assistant chiefs respectively using multistage and cluster sampling methods. The results from the study showed that socio-culturalfactors;cultural competencies,labor market, social solidarity, human resource and attitude to work influenced rural productivity in Kipkaren division. The results were generalized to Nandi County and obtained that socio-cultural factors still impede productivity of rural farmers. The remedial measures learned from the study can help integrate socio-cultural issues into innovative poverty reduction programs because they present enormous potential for bottom-up approaches to the county rural lpoverty alleviation.