The Power of Wellbeing Discourses among Indigenous and Non-Indigenous People in Mexico

Bibliographic Data

ID5799586
AuthorsJuan Jaime Loera González (0000-0002-2101-7835, University of Sussex, corresponding author), Juan Jaime Loera-Gonzalez (Anthropologist with a PhD in Development Studies at IDS, University of Sussex.)
Year2014
Volume45
Issue2-3
Pages29-42
Publication date2014-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueIDS Bulletin (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0265-5012 • E-ISSN: 1759-5436
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/1759-5436.12081
OpenAlexW2046077222
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited22

This article focuses on local perceptions of wellbeing, their underlying social and power relations and the resulting cultural resistance by Raramuri indigenous people in the Tarahumara region, Mexico. It is based on findings from doctoral research that argues that understandings of wellbeing must be analysed in conjunction with its sociocultural and political context and in relation to ethnic differences. In this sense, the article presents evidence that shows how Raramuri people hold discursive understandings of wellbeing which evoke differentiated ways of living compared to those accounts described both in mainstream development thinking and those which occur in Mexico's wider society. Similarly, the article considers the value of ethnography, semi-structured interviews and participant observation as a tool in documenting notions of wellbeing and what Raramuri people value, as well as exploring reflections, fieldwork experiences, and methodological challenges encountered while doing fieldwork research

OpenAccess · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Poverty, Education, and Child Welfare

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