Volume 11 - Article 2 | Pages 43–56  

Under-Five Mortality in Nigeria: Perception and Attitudes of the Yorubas Towards the Existence of "Abiku"

By Peter Olasupo Ogunjuyigbe

Abstract

The paper examines the perception and attitudes of the Yorubas about the existence of abiku (children from the spirit world) and the mode of treatment given to such children. The study elicited information from 1695 women of reproductive age in Ondo and Ekiti state of Southwest Nigeria.
The study shows (i) more than half of the respondents believe in the existence of abiku children; (ii) that abiku children can be identified from the evidence of past death, frequent indisposition, non-responsiveness of their illness to modern medical care as well as repeated death and verification from traditional healers; (iii) that causes of illness differ between abiku and non-abiku children; (iv) close to 71 percent of the respondents have faith in traditional methods of treatment for abiku children. The study, therefore, reiterate the need to integrate the people’s beliefs, attitudes and behavioural practices into health promotion programmes.

Author’s Affiliation

• Peter Olasupo Ogunjuyigbe - Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria EMAIL

Other articles by the same author/authors in Demographic Research

Women's sexual control within conjugal union: Implications for HIV/AIDS infection and control in a metropolitan city
Volume 12 - Article 2

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

Are highly educated partners really more gender egalitarian? A couple-level analysis of social class differentials in attitudes and behaviors
Volume 50 - Article 34    | Keywords: attitudes, couple analysis, education, educational level, gender, gender roles, housework, social class differentials

Embracing gender equality: Gender-role attitudes among second-generation immigrants in Norway
Volume 42 - Article 14    | Keywords: attitudes, gender equality, gender roles, immigration, second generation

Changes in gender role attitudes following couples' residential relocations
Volume 40 - Article 39    | Keywords: attitudes, fixed effects, gender roles, life course, residential mobility, United Kingdom

The sexual double standard and gender differences in attitudes toward casual sex among U.S. university students
Volume 30 - Article 46    | Keywords: attitudes, gender, sexuality, universities

Domestic gender equality and childbearing in Sweden
Volume 29 - Article 40    | Keywords: attitudes, childcare, fertility, gender, housework, parity, Sweden