Abstract
This research aims to investigate the role of non-government organizations (NGO) in regards to child vulnerability in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Haitian children are often the most vulnerable because they are still dependent on adult caretakers to provide for their basic needs. Using Paul Farmer’s theory of structural violence and Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, I strive to investigate whether the needs of Haitian children in the care of NGOs are being adequately met. What vulnerabilities do children face before they are taken into the care of NGOs? Do children gain agency after they are taken into NGO care? I explore these questions through participant observation and 12 interviews with Haitian NGO employees and Americans involved with the five NGOs observed. I found that although some NGOs may hinder Haitian children’s abilities to exhibit agency, NGOs observed strive to provide for their children because they believe children are the future of Haiti.
Advisor
Matsuzawa, Setsuko
Department
Sociology and Anthropology
Recommended Citation
Thorp, Taylor S., "“We don’t need her anymore”: An Ethnographic Analysis of the Relationship Between International Aid and Non-Government Organizations with Child Vulnerability in Port-au-Prince, Haiti" (2015). Senior Independent Study Theses. Paper 6828.
https://openworks.wooster.edu/independentstudy/6828
Disciplines
Social and Cultural Anthropology
Keywords
anthropology, child vulnerability, international aid, non-government organizations, Haiti
Publication Date
2015
Degree Granted
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type
Senior Independent Study Thesis
© Copyright 2015 Taylor S. Thorp