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Child-Headed Households In Rural Zimbabwe: Perceptions Of Shona Orphaned Children, Eucharia Gomba

Theses & Dissertations

This qualitative ethnographic case study explored the phenomenon of Child- Headed Households (CHHs) in rural Zimbabwe from the perspectives of a Shona community. My intention was to gain an understanding on how these children access necessities like food, clothing, shelter, education, health care, and cope on a daily basis without parental care, or adult supervision. The perceptions of both the orphaned children and the adults in their community were investigated through the integrative lens of the Shona philosophy of unhu, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and Bronfenbrenner’s ideas of systems. The findings of this study show that children from child-headed …