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Peace in the Household: Gender, Agency, and Villagers' Measures of Marital Quality in Bangladesh

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  • Fauzia Erfan Ahmed

Abstract

Although development studies have emphasized quality of life, the quality of marriage remains uninvestigated. This study challenges the bargaining model by arguing that theories of marital quality, derived from women's voices and subaltern knowledge, should be integral to feminist economic theories of marriage and intrahousehold gender relations. Findings from a longitudinal (1999–2009) ethnographic study of microcredit loanee families in rural Bangladesh reveal that Muslim women believe high marital quality or togetherness leads to peace in the household. This local model of marriage is central to the moral economy of social life. The study identifies eight local measures of marital quality that define what low-income women think a good Muslim husband should be like. The study concludes that the peace-in-the-household model emphasizes the transformation of masculinity as a program strategy that should be implemented in microcredit households in various parts of the world.

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  • Fauzia Erfan Ahmed, 2014. "Peace in the Household: Gender, Agency, and Villagers' Measures of Marital Quality in Bangladesh," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(4), pages 187-211, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:femeco:v:20:y:2014:i:4:p:187-211
    DOI: 10.1080/13545701.2014.963635
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    Cited by:

    1. Rao, Nitya, 2017. "Assets, Agency and Legitimacy: Towards a Relational Understanding of Gender Equality Policy and Practice," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 43-54.
    2. Rai, Shirin M. & Brown, Benjamin D. & Ruwanpura, Kanchana N., 2019. "SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth – A gendered analysis," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 368-380.

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