Bride-Price Reconsidered [and Comments]

Kressel, Gideon M.; Al-Nouri, Qais N.; Aswad, Barbara C.; Divale, William; Guindi, Fadwa El; Joseph, Roger; Kongar, Emre; Nakhleh, Khalil; Oppenheimer, Jonathan; Pitt-Rivers, Julián; Sansom, Basil

doi:10.1086/201926

Cited by 15 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Scholars have long held divergent views on the relationship between bride price and marital stability. Kressel et al (1977) argue that bride-price is not a means of stabilizing marriage since it does not guarantee future co-operative behaviour on the part of the bride. Indeed, there are those who have claimed that it is the other way around -that it is marital stability that permits bride-price to be exacted (Gluckman 1950).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bride Price and the State of Marriage in North-West Ghana

Forkuor

Kanwetuu

Ganee

et al. 2018

IJSSS

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This paper sought to examine the role of bride price on the state of marriage among the Dagara of North-West Ghana. In the face of increasing scarcity of the items used in marriage in the study area, getting bride price has become a daunting task for many young men preparing to marry or already in marriage with consequences on the legitimacy and stability of families. Through purposive sampling, 5 FGDs and 9 personal interviews were conducted to obtain experiential information on bride price and state of marriage. The study revealed that the role of families, payback norms and incorporation (as part of bride price payment) are clear structures that have positive consequences for the stability of marriage; weakening potentially destabilising factors such as spousal abuse and the extra-marital sexual activities of men. Interestingly, the type and amount of items used for bride price have so much social and cultural significance that formal education and modernity has so far failed to completely change this practice among the people. The preceding allows us to conclude that the Dagara of Buo community are an epainogamous people, with societally supported marital norms and systems leading to marital stability. We recognise however that stability and longevity of marriage does not necessarily mean that spouses are ‘happy and content’ with their marriage. This is a relevant question that our current study did not explore. Thus, we recommend that a future quantitative study examine the relationship between marital stability and spousal ‘happiness and contentment.’

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bride Price and the State of Marriage in North-West Ghana

Forkuor

Kanwetuu

Ganee

et al. 2018

IJSSS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, these reactions seem to have been motivated by moral opposition to the tradition rather than by financial pressures (Ferraro, 1976). There are also references to increasing brideprices in Palestine between the early 1960s and 1980s, though again price and wealth levels are not controlled for (Moors, 1994;Kressel, 1977). The 1950 Chinese Marriage Law prohibited the transfer of money or gifts in connection with marriage and was aimed at limiting brideprice.…”

Section: When Marriage Payments Have Soaredmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Economics of Dowry and Brideprice

Anderson

2007

Journal of Economic Perspectives

342

233

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Payments between families at the time of marriage have existed throughout the history of most developed countries and are currently pervasive in many areas of the developing world. These payments can be substantial enough to affect the welfare of women and a society's distribution of wealth. Recent estimates document transfers per marriage amounting to four to six times annual household income. This paper first establishes some basic facts about the prevalence and magnitude of marriage payments. It then discusses how such patterns vary across countries depending upon economic conditions, societal structures, institutions, and family characteristics. Marriage payments have evolved within societies over time: in some periods, payments have risen sharply; in some cases, payments have shifted from the grooms' side to the brides', and vice versa; sometimes, property rights over such payments shift between marrying partners and parental generations. The second part of this paper discusses the economic literature devoted to explaining these facts.

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“…There has also been an effort to create towns for the Bedouin. Much work is now being done by anthropologists to help the Bedouin protect their way of life and culture (see Kressel 1977and Abu-Rabia 1993and 1994.…”

Section: R E C E N T T R E N D Smentioning

confidence: 99%

Applied Anthropology in Israel: Between Infancy and Maturity

Kalifon¹,

Shabtay²

2006

NAPA Bulletin

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At first glance, applied anthropology in Israel appears underdeveloped and underappreciated. There are no independent anthropology departments and the single attempt to create a training program in applied anthropology ceased to exit after four years. However, such a strict interpretation would not be fair to our applied and academic colleagues in Israel for much important applied anthropology has been and is being done in Israel. In fact, Israel has a long and impressive history of applied anthropological work, though not always labeled as such. In particular, important work has been done in the fields of immigrant integration and the medical problems of these new immigrants. This chapter will review the achivements of applied anthropology in Israel and its potential for the future. In particular, it will analyze the growing recognition of the need for applied anthropology within the departments of anthropology, the government and nongovernmental organizations. Finally, this chapter will critique the shortcomings of applied anthropology in Israel and examine the areas where more work needs to be done.

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Bride-Price Reconsidered [and Comments]

Cited by 15 publications

References 11 publications

Bride Price and the State of Marriage in North-West Ghana

Bride Price and the State of Marriage in North-West Ghana

The Economics of Dowry and Brideprice

Applied Anthropology in Israel: Between Infancy and Maturity

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