“Doctors” and “Professors” Conceptualization of Social Problems in Kenya; Evidence from the Streets of three Kenyan Cities and its Policy Implications

Abstract

Streets of the three Kenyan cities (Nakuru, Nairobi and Kisumu) are decorated with posters advertising a “Dr”, “Mganga” and more recently “Professor” who are proving solutions to a host of social problems that supposedly the Kenyan society in general and the three cities to be specific face. There is commonality of social problems as conceptualized by the “doctors” and “professors”. It is not clear the basis of the determination of the social problems, their nature of as advertised by the “doctors” and “professors”. This study sought to examine how the “Dr” and “Professors” conceptualize social problems, the nature of the social problems and the policy implications of this conceptualization. The study was anchored on social constructionism theory; an ontological belief that social reality is built upon the perceptions and actions of the social actors (Bryman 2012). The study was conducted in the three Kenyan cities namely; Nakuru, Nairobi and Kisumu. The study used qualitative content analysis (QCA) analyze data that was collected through observation. QCA is a method of describing and interpreting qualitative data or material to arrive at meaning (Schreier, 2012) The findings of the study show that the social problems as conceptualized by the “doctors” and “professors” can broadly be categorized as; Security, family/marital related, human resource, male sexual performance, business performance, love and predicting once future. The study notes that these conceptualization of social problems by the “Drs” and “Professors” will not only delay but also compromise the achievement of national, regional and international policies. The policies whose achievements are compromised include but not limited to Vision 2030, African Union Agenda 2063 and Sustainable Development Goals.