From Tradition to Transformation: An Analytical Survey on Tribal Women’s Empowerment in Wayanad
The
empowerment of tribal women is a pivotal part of social development. It is not
just a matter of social justice, but also of improving the well-being and
development of the historically marginalized community. This research aims to
gain insights into female empowerment among tribal women in Wayanad districts
by looking at how their employment status, educational qualifications, and
marital status might make a difference in their empowerment. The participants
for the study were 122 tribal women, and data was collected using the Women
Empowerment Scale. The findings reveal that employment status and educational
qualifications play a significant role in empowering tribal women, highlighting
the major impact of employment opportunities and access to education on determining
their social or economic positions. On the contrary, marriage does not affect
their empowerment. This research highlights the significance of providing
educational and job pathways for tribal females in Wayanad, thus arguing that
these efforts can greatly promote their empowerment or well-being.
Keywords: Women empowerment, Tribal women, Marital status, Employment status, Educational qualification
Introduction
Across all over the
world, tribes face a lot of struggle to cope with the standards of society. It
is been proven from many studies that, the livelihood of the tribal peoples is
neither permanent nor fixed. Most of the tribes don’t have permanent sources of
income (Ramya, 2018). Women’s empowerment throughout history is a story of
struggle, endurance, and victory. It represents the journey of women gaining
autonomy over their lives, bodies, and decisions, overcoming societal,
economic, and political barriers. It also involves boosting the abilities and
choices of an individual or group to accomplish their goals. Being empowered
will help the women to live for themselves. Other than being a woman, tribal
women face additional obstacles because of their unique features such as socio
cultural positions and identities. These may include their limited access or
awareness of the importance of education, healthcare and economic opportunities.
In his study Manoj, (2020), revealed
that, despite Kerala's notable accomplishments in several development metrics,
including universal literacy and healthcare facilities, the state's tribal
communities still endure hardship and precarious health conditions Tribal women
are often more disadvantaged than others. Their family welfare depends on the
mental and physical health of the women. Facing discrimination, they struggle
with health problems that can lead to poverty and lack of food. Yet, they are
important protectors of their family, culture, and their economy. In their study, Mohandas et.al, (2019)
identified that, Paniya tribal women in Wayanad face nutritional and healthcare
challenges like malnutrition etc. Despite some obesity cases, factors like age
and the frequent use of tobacco contribute to undernutrition among them. The
inaccessibility of medical services underscores the need for targeted
healthcare policies and interventions to address their specific health conditions. In their study, Shrinivasa et al. (2014)
found a high prevalence of anaemia among tribal women, where the majority of
the tribal women are daily wagers, with a habit of chewing pan, and consume uncooked
rice daily. According to a study
conducted by Kuruvilla and Rajitha (2021) traditional
practices, like, restricting women during the menstruation period, from
entering public places, lead to the concept of impurity during this time, and
lower self-respect and self-esteem among tribal women. Tribal women tend to
accept differentiation as natural, emphasizing the need for creating awareness regarding
their worth, inner strength, capacities, and economic roles.
According to the
Report on Socio-economic Status 2013, the literacy rate of tribal females is
much lower than the national average for females. The following tables show the
literacy rate among females and males in the 5 scheduled tribe communities in
the Wayanad district.
Table
1 Literacy among the female population above the age of 5 years
|
Community |
Total
number of females |
Literates |
Literacy
Rate |
Total
number of male |
Literates |
Literacy
rate |
|
Paniyan |
42349
|
25392
|
59.96
|
39725
|
28138
|
70.83 |
|
Kuruman
|
9966
|
8003
|
80.30
|
9812
|
9098
|
92.72 |
|
Kurichiyan
|
16414
|
12886
|
78.51
|
16670
|
14852
|
89.09 |
|
Kattunaikar
|
8827
|
4991
|
56.54
|
8643
|
5389
|
62.35 |
|
Adiyan
|
5272
|
3215
|
60.98
|
4825
|
3487
|
72.27 |
Source: scheduled
tribes of Kerala, report on the socio-economic status 2013
Based on the data presented in the table, it can be concluded that
within each tribal group, the educational status of females is consistently
lower than that of their male counterparts. An article reported in The Indian Express (2021) that around 250
men, mostly from tribal communities, in Wayanad, Kerala, have been charged
under the POCSO Act for impregnating their minor wives, with cases involving
both minor boys and girls. Additionally,
some recent newspaper reports highlighted other concerning trends, such as a
rise in the number of unwed mothers and an increased rate of mortality among
newborns and mothers, particularly within the tribal populations of Wayanad. Upon examining various news
sources, it becomes clear that the sexual exploitation of Adivasi women by
individuals from non-tribal communities has been a persistent issue for many
generations. By analysing these critical
aspects, the researchers recognized the importance of focusing on empowering
tribal women and decided to conduct a
study to know the empowerment status of tribal women in Wayanad
Objectives of the study
The present study has the following objectives.
1TTo find out the levels of women empowerment
among tribal women of Wayanad district
2) To find out whether there is any significant
difference in women empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district based on
the subsample employment status, marital status and educational qualification
Hypothesis
1) There is no significant difference in women
empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district based on the subsample employment
status
2) There is no significant difference in women
empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district based on the subsample marital
status
3) There is no significant difference in women
empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district based on the subsample
educational qualification
Methodology
Method
Considering the
nature of the problem under investigation and the nature of the data required
for the study, the survey method was used
Sample
The present study consists
of 122 different categories of tribal women from the Wayanad district who were
selected based on a random sampling technique
Tools
The following tool
was used for the study
1) Women empowerment scale (Anjana & Bindhu,
2024)
Statistical
technique used
The
major statistical techniques used for the analysis and interpretation of the
data were the following
1. Percentage analysis
2. Test of significance of difference between
means (t)
3. One way ANOVA
Analysis
and Interpretation
Levels of women empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district
For analysing the first objective, to find out the levels of women
empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district, the subjects were grouped
into three levels- high, average and low. The mean and standard deviation of
the total score were calculated. Mean ± standard deviation was used. The details of levels of women empowerment among tribal
women of Wayanad district given in Table 2
Table
2
Result of percentage analysis of levels of women empowerment among
tribal women of Wayanad district for the total sample
|
Variable |
Level
of Women empowerment |
Number
of women |
Percentage |
|
Women
empowerment |
High |
20 |
16.39 |
|
Average |
88 |
72.13 |
|
|
Low |
14 |
13.13 |
Table 2 shows that 16.39 percent of responders have a high level of
women empowerment, 72.13 percent have an average level of women empowerment,
and 13.13 percent have a low level of women empowerment. Thus, by exploring the
level trend, it can be said that majority of the women are falling average
level of women empowerment.
Investigation of group
differences of women empowerment based
on the subsample employment status
For analysing the first
part of the second objective, to find out whether there is any significant
difference of mean in women empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district
based on the subsample employment status. Test of significance of difference
between means was calculated. The data and results are shown in Table 3.
Table
3
Data and result of the
tests of significance of difference between the mean scores of women
empowerment based on subsample employment status
|
Category |
Subgroups |
N |
Mean |
SD |
t-Value |
Level of significance |
|
Employment status |
Yes |
42 |
51.429 |
3.521 |
3.372 |
significant |
|
No |
80 |
48.888 |
4.161 |
From Table 3, it is evident that
there is a significant difference between women based on the subsample , employment status, “t” value is
significant at 0.05 levels. It might be because of women’s
self-esteem increases when they work, and this confidence is important for both
defending their rights as well as making informed decisions. Through
employment, the women develop social contacts and encounter new ideas that contradict
the traditional culture of gender responsiveness. Economic autonomy through employments
enables women to determine their lives and families’ lives independently. Similar
to this result, Mishra & Kumar (2019) examine how employment affects
women's empowerment, including aspects such as autonomy, economy, and gender
bias. The findings revealed a significant positive effect of employment on
women's empowerment.
For analysing the second part of the second objective, to find out
whether there is any significant difference of mean in women empowerment among
tribal women of Wayanad district based on the subsample marital status. Test of
significance of difference between means was calculated. The data and results are
shown in Table 4
.Table 4
Data and results of
the tests of significance of difference between the mean scores of women
empowerment based on subsample marital status
|
Category |
Subgroups |
N |
Mean |
SD |
t-Value |
Level of significance |
|
Marital status |
Yes |
65 |
49.892 |
4.287 |
.371 |
Not significant |
|
No |
57 |
49.614 |
3.954 |
From table 4, it is evident that
there is no significant difference between tribal women of Wayanad district
based on the subsample marital status as “t” value is significant at 0.05
levels. This might be because marital status doesn’t make any negative or
positive impact on their life. Contrary
to this result, in their study, Biswas & Mukhopadhyay (2018). highlighted that married women are
highly empowered than others, like unmarried, widows, divorcee, and separated
ANOVA
of educational qualification of tribal women of Wayanad district
For analysing the
third part of the second objective, to find out whether there is any significant
difference of mean in women empowerment among tribal women of Wayanad district
based on the subsample educational qualification. For analysing this, one way ANOVA was employed. To find out if there exists
any significant difference in tribal women of Wayanad district based on their
educational qualification, one-way
ANOVA was employed. The result was shown in the table 5
Table
5
Result
of one way ANOVA women empowerment of tribal
women of Wayanad district based on the educational
qualification
|
Source of variance |
Sum of squares |
df |
Mean square |
F |
Sig |
|
Between Groups |
271.73 |
2 |
135.86 |
9.071 |
.00 |
|
Within Groups |
1782.38 |
119 |
14.98 |
|
|
|
Total |
2054.11 |
121 |
|
|
|
The ‘F’ value obtained for educational
qualification of tribal women is 9.07 and the significant value of it is .00,
which is lesser than the p value .05. It means that there exists a significant
difference between the educational qualifications of tribal women. It may
be because by learning, women can create supportive networks that lead to the
rethinking of gendered norms. Education provides opportunities for access to information
concerning human rights, health issues, and career advancement which are
important in creating an informed society. Also, education helps one get good employment
placements which offer economic independence hence elevating social status and
thus becoming empowered individuals. Similarly, a study conducted in
Karnataka, India, found that higher education plays a crucial role in the
overall empowerment of women, influencing various aspects such as social,
psychological, economic, political, and educational empowerment (Kulal et al., 2023)
To identify the existing significant
difference between each category of educational qualification Post hoc (Tukey) test was employed.
Table
6
Result
of Post hoc (Tukey) test for the comparison of significance of each category of
educational qualification of parents
|
Edu. qualification |
Comparison group |
Mean difference |
Std. Error |
Sig. |
|
Upto +2 |
Degree |
-.65 |
1.54 |
.907 |
|
Above degree |
-3.64 |
1.57 |
.057 |
|
|
Degree |
Upto +2 |
.65 |
1.54 |
.907 |
|
Above degree |
-2.99 |
.73 |
.000 |
|
|
Above degree |
Upto +2 |
3.64 |
1.57 |
.057 |
|
Degree |
2.99 |
.7 |
.000 |
Table 6 revealed that there exists a
significant difference between tribal women who have a qualification of degree
and above degree qualification. This difference between degree
holders and those who have qualifications higher than a degree may be because
higher education typically enhances awareness of rights and gender equality
issues, fosters economic independence through improved employment opportunities,
and builds confidence and self-efficacy.
Conclusion
Employment and education have a
major impact on women's empowerment. Having a job can make a woman feel more
capable and empowered. When a woman has a job, her perspective on the world is
expanded and she feels more capable of making important decisions for her
family and herself. Getting higher education can make these benefits even
stronger by making women more aware of their rights, giving them better
employment chances, and empowering them to stand up against unfair treatment. Education
also plays a crucial role in enhancing women's lives it helps them to connect
with like-minded individuals, who want to change old ideas about men's and
women's roles. This also gives them important information about rights, health,
and finding good employment. This, in turn, cultivates a more informed
and enlightened society. Assisting Wayanad's tribal women is particularly
crucial because they deal with issues that mainstream programs don't address.
As these women often invest in their children's futures, ensure their voices
are heard in society and politics, and for making sure women and men have equal
opportunities and rights, special efforts to help them can improve their
employment prospects, health, and education. In short, supporting tribal women
helps not just their community but also makes society fairer and more equal.
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