Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Gender Studies and Sexuality
Year: 2024
DOI:
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A Gender and Diversity Lens into Citizens’ Lived Experiences in Nigeria
Segun Subair Awode,, Antonia Taiye Simbine, Folarin Gbadebo-Smith, Abubakar Oladeji, Adebukola Yewande Daramola, Temitayo Adeyemo
ABSTRACT:
This study examined the lived experiences of Nigerian citizens, probing how gender and other demographic factors influence perceptions, reactions, and encounters when dealing with public officials. The study adopts a phenomenological approach, with story collection conducted in 2022 using the SenseMaker® methodology, which enabled respondents to ‘signify’ their position within a response space, following their narration of a lived experience. A total of 2,560 stories were gathered from citizens across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones. The findings show that men are more frequently solicited for bribes, mainly in monetary terms, while women face demands for sex. Bribery emerged as the most common form of corruption nationwide, reported mostly in North-Central and South-South regions. Young adults (18-35 years) and those with tertiary education report higher exposure to corruption, likely due to their frequent interactions with public officials. Self-employed individuals also face a high incidence of corruption due to their dealings with regulatory bodies. The feelings provoked by these experiences also differ, with most men expressing anger and younger men feeling disgust while women mostly reported sadness and fear. The provoked outcomes again suggest different emotive footprints for men and women. Findings across all respondents suggest that the decision to act corruptly is motivated by the individual, however there are enablers for corrupt behaviour at the level of systems and groups. Behaviour change approaches targeting these different levels are thus required at the level of individuals, groups and systems to nudge behaviors towards acceptable modes required for nation building.
keywords: Behaviour, Corruption, Gender, Nigeria