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THE PERCEPTION of CHILD POVERTY AMONG CAMEROONIAN FAMILIES Children´S Capabilities in Cameroonian Households in Berlin

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THE PERCEPTION of CHILD POVERTY AMONG CAMEROONIAN FAMILIES Children´S Capabilities in Cameroonian Households in Berlin THE PERCEPTION OF CHILD POVERTY AMONG CAMEROONIAN FAMILIES Children´s Capabilities in Cameroonian households in Berlin Doctoral Thesis Submitted in fulfilment for the degree of Doctor Philosophiae (Dr. Phil.) At the Micro-sociology Institute of the Philosophical Faculty III, Humboldt University to Berlin / Germany By Diane Flora Brahms, born Nsong Supervisors: 1st: Mr Professor Doctor Hans Bertram 2nd: Mrs Professor Doctor sec. Karin Lohr President of the Humboldt University to Berlin: Mr Prof. Dr. Jan-Hendrick Olbertz (2012) Dean of the Philosophical faculty at the Humboldt University in Berlin: Mrs Prof. Dr. Julia von Blumenthal (2012) Berlin / Germany, October 2015 Date of the oral exam: October 16th 2015 ABSTRACT Why should the perception of child poverty in Cameroonian families in Germany be analysed? This is a question we had to deal with all through this research phase. Why does it matter to take time trying to understand how Cameroonian people perceive child poverty and how it can impacts the Capabilities of their children in the German setting? Although the concept of poverty may seem obvious, experiencing it is a different story because of the way people perceive it. An interesting point in Cameroonian families in Berlin is that the concept of child poverty does not exist in their cultural background based on their languages. This is because children are viewed as their wealth. This study is an investigation of the Cameroonian perception of child poverty in Berlin and the application of the Capability Approach on it. The aim is to find out according to this, the future life opportunities of children with Cameroonian background in Germany. The concern in this study is to give this particular migrant group in Berlin the opportunity to express themselves on their opinion of child poverty in connection to opportunities their children are likely to have for their future in Germany. The choice of the perception of child poverty in Cameroonian households in Berlin is guided by several factors. First of all, Cameroonian migrants in Berlin leave their home country for the long term to a better life in Germany. It is therefore interesting to analyse their perception of child poverty in the new life setting. The second step is to analyse and establish if their particular perception of child poverty impacts their children´s capabilities. Thirdly, the German population is ageing and reproducing less children than before, meaning that children with migrant background will play a central role in the future German society. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND DEDICATION I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisors, Professor Doctor Hans Bertram for always motivating and having confidence in me. Without him this work would not have been possible; I gratefully acknowledge the invaluable support of my second supervisor the Professor Doctor sc. oec. Karin Lohr for pushing me up, and patiently going through all the drafts of this research work. Throughout this project, I was privileged to receive comments, suggestions and critics from a large number of people. All of which have been very useful in carrying out this work. I am particularly grateful to Dr. Tchikangong D., Dr. Boukomsi P., and Dr. Tsikuku E. for their invaluable comments and suggestions. Last but not least, I would very much like to thank the Cameroonian families in Berlin who participated enthusiastically and respond to the research questionary and interviews, for their collaboration and contribution to this work. In short, they are the subject matter of this work. Finally, this work is dedicated to the African child. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND DEDICATION ........................................................... iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................. v LIST OF PICTURES ........................................................................................................ x LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................... xi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ....................................................... xii i. Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 i. a. Backdrop and purpose of the research ................................................................... 1 i.b. Scientific contribution of the research .................................................................... 9 i.c. Research problem and questioning ....................................................................... 14 i.d. Structure of this research ...................................................................................... 16 1. Child poverty and the Capability Approach ............................................................... 16 1. 1. The child concept ................................................................................................ 16 1. 2. What is poverty for children? ............................................................................. 20 1. 2. 1. The relativity of poverty ............................................................................. 26 1. 2. 2. The material dimension of poverty ............................................................. 29 1. 3. Child poverty and the Capability Approach ....................................................... 31 1. 3. 1. Children and the Capability Approach ....................................................... 31 1. 3. 2. Child poverty and the basic Capabilities .................................................... 38 1. 4. Children´s Rights and Capabilities ..................................................................... 41 2. Situation of children at risk of poverty in Germany ................................................... 48 2. 1. Children with migrant background are at risk of poverty in Germany............... 48 2. 2. Children in very large families are at risk of poverty in Germany ..................... 51 2. 3. Children in households living on social transfers are at risk of poverty in Germany ..................................................................................................................... 53 2. 4. Children in single-parent households are at risk of poverty ............................... 57 3. Children are the wealth for Cameroonian households ............................................... 58 3. 1. A child in the Cameroonian family .................................................................... 60 3. 2. To understand the Concept of family in some Cameroonian languages ............. 74 v 3. 3. Life in Cameroonian households in Berlin ......................................................... 78 3. 4. Partial conclusion................................................................................................ 90 4. Research Methodology ............................................................................................... 96 4. 1. Qualitative method of data collection in this work ............................................. 96 4. 2. The two mixed interview forms for this research ............................................. 101 I. Standardized Interviews Section ....................................................................... 101 II. The narrative approach of interviews ............................................................... 103 4. 3. Backstage behaviour during interviews ............................................................ 105 4. 4. Data interpretation in this research .................................................................. 108 i. Qualitative content analysis according to Mayring ........................................... 111 ii. Qualitative technique of data analysis .............................................................. 115 iii. Plan of the qualitative technique of analysis of interviews ............................. 121 5. Findings and analysis ............................................................................................... 122 5. 1. Solidarty among family members: Analysis of interviews with family Atangana .................................................................................................................................. 123 5. 1. 1.Analysis of the interview with A1 son of family Atangana A1 ................. 125 I. Perception of child poverty of A1 ................................................................. 127 1) Material dimension of poverty for A1 ...................................................... 127 2) Wellbeing and happiness as basic capabilities for A1 .............................. 128 II. Socialisation of A1 in Berlin ........................................................................ 130 1) A1 hybrid identity ..................................................................................... 130 a) Impact of the cultural values on A1 ...................................................... 133 b) A1’s life in the German cultural setting ................................................ 137 2) Break of A1 with his cultural background in Berlin ................................. 141 III. The future capabilities of A1 in Berlin ....................................................... 144 1) The outstanding German language skills of A1 .......................................
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