THE SOCIAL CLASS MYTH OF COLLECTIVISM: A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL CLASS ON FAMILIES MEAL INTERACTION BEHAVIOUR

Sheku Kakay,University Of Hertfordshire, United Kingdom

doi:10.21474/ijar01/13079

Abstract

The class distinction in the Sierra Leonean society is the primary determinant of families access to a balanced diet as well as the level of social interaction at mealtimes. The income earned by families, their status in society, level of education and the type of job they do, significantly determines the type of food they consume. This implies that, social class can act as the arbiter to families access not only to adequate, but quality food. It also influences the food variety available at mealtimes. The study shows that, many Sierra Leonean families experience the problem of daily food affordability challenges, which limits social interaction at the dinner table at mealtimes. Nevertheless, the findings also show that, irrespective of the social standing of families, table etiquette are important to the different social classes, as it provides the foundation for training and socialising children into becoming responsible adults.

Highlights

The class distinction in the Sierra Leonean society is the primary determinant of families’ access to a balanced diet as well as the level of social interaction at mealtimes
The findings show that, irrespective of the social standing of families, table etiquette are important to the different social classes, as it provides the foundation for training and socialising children into becoming responsible adults
Triandis (2018), Li et al (2019), and De Mooij (2019) conclude that there is little or no empirical evidence, models, or frameworks to explain the influence of social class on the meal social interaction behaviour of collectivist families.As a result, the purpose of this study is to collect empirical data that demonstrates the conceptualization of social class and its corresponding influence on family meal social interaction behaviour in Sierra Leone

Summary

Introduction

The class distinction in the Sierra Leonean society is the primary determinant of families’ access to a balanced diet as well as the level of social interaction at mealtimes. The accumulation of high social status in Sierra Leonean society results in the use of Western lifestyles or values at mealtimes (Abraham et al, 2013; and Mfum-Mensah, 2018).In Sierra Leone, the ethnic group known as creoles, who are emancipated slaves from the United States and/or the United Kingdom, has a strong social class differentiation at mealtimes (Kakay, 2017).They have more individualistic and British or American thinking during mealtimes than normal Sierra Leonean families from other ethnic groups(Bulte et al, 2018; Ireson, 2018; and Kelly, 2019).This is due to the fact that they are becoming more self-reliant, autonomous, and independent than the average Sierra Leonean from other ethnic backgrounds (Abraham et al, 2013; and Mfum-Mensah, 2018).This is in line with the findings of Glennerster et al (2013), McFerson (2013), and Allen & McDermott (2018), who found that creole families are more independent at mealtimes than normal Sierra Leonean families, and that they are heavily impacted by British and American traditions.In conclusion, upper-income households, creoles, and elites are more likely to practise individualism; either because of their educational attainment or the influence of locations they have travelled/visited and/or lived(Kakay, 2017).He reiterated that in such cases, they are likely to absorb the individualistic culture of the places they have lived/visited. During the semi-structured interviews, the researcher established a theme and let the conversation flow naturally based on what respondents said about their families’ meal social interaction behaviour

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Results