india's medical diversity · folk remedies that are prepared at home, ayurvedic medication...
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India'sMedicalDiversity:
Hybridizationinpeople’suseofmedicineinAdhi,Punjab
BhavneetK.Anand
GEOG100:HonorsEssayinGeography,Spring2016
Advisor:Dr.KariJensen
Committee:Dr.ZilkiaJaner,Dr.VeronicaLippencott
HofstraUniversity,DepartmentofGlobalStudiesandGeography
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TableofContents
Acknowledgments…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..3
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...5
ImportanceofResearchTopicandPositionalityoftheResearcher……..…………………....……….7
BackgroundInformationontheResearchSiteanditsResidents…………………………….............12
LiteratureReview…………………………………………………………………………………………………………18
Methodology………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...27
QuantitativeDataAnalysis…………………………………………………………………………………………….35
QualitativeDataAnalysis………………………………………………………………………………………………62
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………70
References……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………73
Appendix1…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...76
Appendix2…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...77
Appendix3…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...79
Appendix4…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...81
Appendix5…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...83
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Acknowledgements
Aftertheyear-longprocessofdraftingaresearchtopic,proposingaviablestudy,
conductingthefieldworkinPunjab,andcompilingmyresultsintoacompletedthesis,I
haveseveralpeopleIwouldliketothank.Duringtheearlystagesofmyproject,Iworked
undertheguidanceofDr.JamesWiley.Wereitnotforhim,Iwouldnothaveeventhought
totakeonsuchagreattaskaswritinganhonorsdissertation.Itwashewhobelievedinme
andpushedmetonewacademiclimits.AfterhisretirementinSpring2015,Dr.KariJensen
assumedtheroleofmymentorandpreparedmeforthewondersofconductingresearchin
aforeigncountry.Fromthesummeruntilnow,Dr.Jenseneditedandreviewedcountless
draftsofeverysection,ensuredIwasstayingontopofmyworkandmeetingall
requirements,andtooktimeoutofherbusyscheduletomeetwithme.Icansaywithpure
confidencethatIwouldnothavebeenabletocompletemyprojectwithouther.Inthefinal
twomonthsoftheFall2015semesterwhenIlostmyhearingandbeganmyongoing
recovery,Dr.JensentooktheinitiativetomakesureIstillstayedontrackwithfinishingmy
thesisprojectandworkedcloselywithmetoestablishanewtimelineforitscompletion.
Shecoordinatedandscheduledanewdefensedate(setforSpringof2016)andmadethe
committeeawareoftheunpredictableandspecialcircumstancesofmysituation.Itwasa
trueprivilegeworkingwithher.InadditiontoDr.Jensen,Iwouldliketoextendmy
gratitudeDr.JanerandDr.Lippencottforservingasthetwoothermembersonmy
committee.Bothprofessorsalsotookthetimeoutoftheirbusyschedulestoreadsections
anddraftsofmythesis,givingmeprompt,constructive,andinsightfulfeedbackonseveral
occasions.IwouldalsoliketothankHarjeetNahalandherfamilyforhelpingmeconduct
myfieldworkandprovidingmeandmymotherwithfoodandhousingduringourstayin
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Adhi.Iwouldliketothankmymotherandfatherforallowingandfundingmytripand
transformingwhatwasjustaresearchproposalandproposedstudyintoareality.My
motherwasrecoveringfromsurgeryatthetimeandsheriskedherhealthandwellbeing
toaccompanyme.Additionally,I’dliketothankallmyfamilythathelpedmetranslatethe
namesofplantsfromPunjabitoEnglish.Finally,I’dliketoextendmyappreciationand
gratitudetoJerinUllah,astatisticianandformercolleagueofDr.Jensen’s,whotookthe
timetolookovermyquantitativeanalysisandprovidemewithadviceonwhatcouldbe
improvedorfixed.
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Introduction
DuetoongoinghybridizationofIndiancultureingeneral,evidenceofhybridization
canbeseeninmanysubdivisionsofculturesuchasfashion,music,food,sports,and
medicine.Forcenturies,useandknowledgeofmedicinehasdiffusedandbeencombined
fromvariousregionsoftheworldtoformthehybridanddiversehealthcareavailablein
Indiatoday.Westernmedicine,alsoknownasbiomedicineormodernmedicine,iswidely
availableinthecitiesofIndia;however,only30%ofIndiaisurbanized.Thus,themajority
ofthepopulationdoesnothavedirectaccesstowesternhealthcarefacilitiesandmust
traveltothenearestcitytoseeawesternhealthcareprofessional.Manystillpractice
herbalfolkmedicine,butaswesternizationcontinues,biomedicineisbecoming
increasinglyavailableeveninruralareas.Themorerecentdiffusionofwesternmedicineto
ruralvillageshasallowedvillagerstoadoptandrejectelementsoflocalmedicinalpractices
andbiomedicine,thusformingahybridmedicinalculture.
Therenownedpsychiatrist,philosopher,andauthorFrantzFanon,formedthe
conceptofthe“colonizationofthemind”withreferencetotheexploitationofcoloniesand
theindigenousandlocalpopulationsduringcolonialismandneocolonialism.Heproposed
thatEuropeanspsychologicallydehumanizednativepopulations,whichledthenativesto
believetheyweretrulyinferiortoEuropeans.Decadeslater,ex-coloniesoftenperceive
themselvesasinferiortowesternsocietyandcarrythenotionthattheymustadopt
westerncultureinordertobeconsideredequals.AsaformerBritishcolony,remnantsof
BritishcultureareevidentinIndia’sextremeloveforcricket,itsparliamentarydemocracy,
andtheadoptionofwesternfashion;however,toautomaticallydeducethatwhatweseeis
aresultofIndia’scolonialpastmaybetoosimplistic.Manypeopleindevelopingcountries
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todaywanttoemulatewhattheyseeindevelopedcountries,andalthoughFanonprovides
someinsightintothisphenomenon,itistoosimplistictoattributeallwesternizationtohis
theory.Fanon’stheoryandtheprevalenceofBritishcultureinpresentdayIndiahave
ratherinspiredmetoresearchthepresenceofwesternmedicineandhealthinfrastructure
inIndia.Thispaperservestoexploredifferentreasonsbehindtheadoptionofbiomedicine
inruralIndiaandwhethertheincreasingpopularityofbiomedicinehascausedadeclinein
thepractice,preparation,andknowledgeofherbalfolkmedicine.
Herbalremediesarepasseddownthroughgenerationsandrequireextensive
knowledgeofplantroots,plantextracts,herbs,spices,andothernaturalresources.This
ethnobotanicalknowledgeisgenerallypasseddownorallythroughgenerationswithin
families.Duetoadeclineofexperientiallearningandanincreaseininstitutionalized
westerneducation,somescholarsarguethatalossoflocalknowledgeoccurswhen
westernideologiesinfiltrateothercultures.Otherstudiesrevealoppositiontowestern
medicineandthecontinuedpracticeoffolkmedicinebyvillagers.Yetseveralscholarshave
ratherobservedthatpeoplepickandchoosemedicinaltreatmentsfromvariousregionsof
theworldbasedontheperceptionsofefficacyandefficiencyofremedies;thisintegration
ofdifferentformsofmedicineprovidesanexampleofthehybridizationparadigmof
culturalglobalization.HavingheardofincreasinguseofwesternmedicineinruralPunjab,I
decidedtotraveltheretocollectdataonthemedicinalpracticesinvillages.Usingthestate
ofPunjabasthedefinitionforparametersoflocal,Iproposethatadeclineinthepractice
andknowledgeoflocalherbalremediescouldbeoccurringwitheachsuccessive
generationinruralPunjabduetohybridizationofmedicineandanobservedtrendof
increaseduseofbiomedicine.Myquantitativeresearchwillfocusondeterminingwhether
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ornotalossoffolkmedicinalknowledgeisoccurring.Myqualitativeresearchwillnotonly
complementthequantitativedata,butalsofurtherexplorethereasonsbehindvillagers’
decisionstoacceptorrejectcertainelementsofhomeremediesandwesterntreatments.
InmyresearchIwillexploretherelationshipbetweenage,gender,education,
proximitytoahealthcarefacility,wealth,occupationandtheamountofknown
ethnobotanicalknowledge,aswellastheperceptionoffolkmedicineversusbiomedicine.
ImportanceoftheResearchTopicandPositionalityoftheResearcher
Globalizationhasledtohybridizationofculturesduetoflowsofinformation,
people,andcommoditiesworldwide.Informationonhybridizationofmedicineinseveral
regionsoftheworldiswidelyavailable;however,formyresearchIonlyconsulted
literaturewrittenintheEnglishlanguage.Mostofthisliteraturefocusesonmedical
pluralismandthecombinationofvariousmedicalpractices.Thereislittleresearch
regardingapossibledeclineintheuseoffolkmedicine.Furthermore,amongtheliterature
Iconsulted,therewasnoinformationonthediversityofmedicalpracticesinPunjab,India.
Afterdoingextensiveresearchofliteratureonthesurvivalorlossoffolkmedicine
inthelightofwesternization,Iobservedthatthemajorityofscholarlyworkfocuseson
ChinaandLatinAmerica,whilemuchoftheresearchoccurringinIndiaregardingherbal
medicineplacesanemphasisonrecordingthebiologicalcompositionoftheremediesused
andtheirpurposes.Theaimofmyresearchistogobeyondjustunderstandingthepractice
ofherbalfolkmedicineandinvestigatetheperceptionandquantifiableknowledgeoflocal
herbalremedies.
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AnimportantdistinctiontomakeisthedifferencebetweenAyurvedaandlocalfolk
remedies.AlthoughAyurvedictreatmentsandmedicineinvolvetheuseofnatural
ingredientsandaholisticmethodologysimilartofolkremedies,Ayurvedaisamillennia-
old,scientific,institutionalizedstudyofthehumanbodyandmedicine.Inordertopractice
Ayurveda,onemustgainaformaleducationandtrainingatanaccrediteduniversity.Unlike
folkremediesthatarepreparedathome,Ayurvedicmedicationcomesintheformof
manufacturedpillsortablets,availableatpharmacies,oralicensedAyurvedicphysician
directlyprovidesittopatients.Myaimwastoexploretowhichextentwesternmedicine
hascausedadiminisheduseoflocalherbalremedies,notAyurveda.
Thephenomenonof“biopiracy”shouldalsobeconsideredasevidenceofthemulti-
directionalflowofinformationandculture,especiallybetweenIndiaandtheWest.
WesternpharmaceuticalcompanieshavebeenappropriatingfolkandAyurvedic
knowledge,obtaininginternationalpatentsontheseformulasandingredients.This
meansthateventheterm“Western”itselfcanbeseenasinaccurate,asmanyingredients
in“Westernmedicine”arefromaroundtheworld. Furthermore,thereiscurrentlya
growinginterestinthewesterncountriesregardingherbal,natural,andtraditional
medicationsandtreatments.Forexample,AyurvedicproductsarenowavailableintheU.S.
invariousstores.Therefore,hybridizationmedicineisnotonlyspecifictodeveloping
nations.Theprocessinvolvestheconsciousadoptionandrejectionofcomponentsofboth
culturesbybothcultures.Informationisexchangedandpeoplehavetheautonomytopick
andchooseelementsofeitherculturetheyfindpracticalordesirable,thusforminganew
hybridculture.
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Iamafirstgeneration(bornintheUnitedStates)American-Punjabi.Theprimary
spokenlanguageinmyhouseholdwasPunjabi.IamalsoabletoreadandwritePunjabi.
DuetomybackgroundasaPunjabiandmyunderstandingofthePunjabiculture,Ifeltmost
inclinedtostudytheperceptionoffolkmedicineinruralPunjab.BeingaPunjabi-American,
IfeelasthoughIamaninsideraswellasanoutsiderinthisresearchproject.WhenIamin
theU.S.,IidentifyasbeingPunjabiandIactivelyincorporatethePunjabicultureinmy
dailylifethroughmusic,food,andspeakingthelanguage.WhenIaminPunjab,however,I
amoftenlabeledasanAmerican,whichhasanassociatednegativeconnotation.ItisasifI
amnotintunewithmycultureasmuchasnativePunjabisandIhavelostmycultureby
growingupintheU.S.Interestinglyenough,manyPunjabislivinginruralareashavethe
samenegativeviewsofthosewhohavemovedtothecitiesinPunjaborthosewhoare
educated.Manyopinionshavebeenexpressedinthemediaandsongshavebeensungby
PunjabisfromruralareasofthestateregardinglossofthePunjabicultureduetorural-to-
urbanmigrationorduetowesterneducation;however,theoppositeistrueaswell,many
songsdiscusswesternfashion,cars,andcitiesinaglorifiedmanner.
MypositionalityasaresearcherinPunjabthereforebecomesconflicted.When
geographersconductresearchinsettingsthatareculturallydifferentthanthoseofthe
geographer,theyengageincross-culturalresearch.Thiscanposechallengesinmaking
connectionswithparticipantsandconstantlybattlinganinsidervs.outsiderposition,due
todifferencesinculturalpracticesandacceptedbehaviors.Skelton(2009)describesthe
insider-outsiderpositionalityasabinarybecauseresearchersoftenexperiencebeingan
insiderandanoutsidersimultaneously.Oftentimes,researchersarenotfullywelcomedor
acceptedintothesocietywheretheywishtoconductresearch.Inordertocreate
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connectionswithlocalinhabitantsandenrolltheminthestudy,sometimesanintermediate
figureisneeded,suchasatranslator,interpreter,orlocalresearchassistant(Skelton,
2009).Becauseofmyconflictedidentity,Ichosetoconductmystudyinanareawithwhich
Iamfamiliar:thevillageofAdhiinPunjab,India.Ihavedistantrelatives,HarjeetKaur
Nahalandherfamily,thatliveinAdhiwhocanactasintermediatefiguresbetweenother
villagersandme.IwaswellawarethatinPunjab,outsidersarenotwelcomedintovillages
unlesstheyhavefamilythatresidethereoronehasancestraltiestofarmlandand
residentialpropertyinthevillage.Ifacedthechallengeofneedingtodemonstrateand
proveIamjustasPunjabiasthevillagers.Iftheydidnotviewmeassimilartothem,Iknew
Iwouldnotbeabletobreakthebarrierofbeingaforeigner.ButwithHarjeet’shelp,Iwas
introducedtovillagersandpotentialstudyparticipantsandIwasabletoengageindaily
conversationandactivitieswiththem.Hence,afteraweekorso,Iestablishedconnections
oftrustandfamiliaritywithvillagers.
Thedualityofmyculturalidentity,aswellastheabove-mentionedfeelings
expressedinPunjabifolkmusicandinterviewsontelevision,inspiredmetoresearchhow
commonsuchanti-westernizationattitudesare.PerhapsPunjabicultureiserodingas
urbanizationandwesternizationareincreasinglyoccurringinIndia,includingthestateof
Punjab.Although,asaPunjabi-American,myidentityisdynamicandhardtoprecisely
define,residentsofPunjabexperiencethesamecomplexitybehindidentityaswestern
cultureisincreasinglyavailableandintegratedintotheirlivesandthePunjabiculture.
VillagersinPunjabhavetheagencytofreelypickandchooseelementsofbothcultures
theywishtoincorporateintotheirlivesbasedonpracticality,personallikesand
preferences,andavailability.
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IfPunjabiculture,includingfolkmedicine,isindeeddiminishingashybridization
continues,however,importantmedicalknowledgeandskillswillnotbepassedontofuture
generationsinthetraditionaloralfashionashasbeenthecaseforcenturies.Thereare
severalbenefitsofcontinuingthepreparationanduseoffolkremedies,including:thereare
noadversesideeffects,itiscosteffective,andtheingredientsarenatural,organicand
locallyavailable,thusmakinghomeremediesgoodforbothhealthandtheenvironment.
Also,forpeoplewhohavelimitedaccesstomeansoftransportation,immediatereliefand
treatmentcanbeprovidedathome.
ItissignificanttostudythepracticeoffolkmedicineinPunjabsothatthelocaland
ethnicknowledgecanbesustainedamidsttheincreasinglymodernizedpracticeofIndian
medicine.Diminishingknowledgecanhaveseriousimplicationsforaculture.Oral
traditionspasseddownthroughgenerationscouldbelostandthiscanhavenegative
implicationsforthepreservationofcertainaspectsofaculture.Justaselementsofa
culture,suchaslanguage,canbecomeextinct,Ibelievetheexperientialaspectofteaching
andlearningtopreparehomeremediesmaypotentiallybelostinthefuture,andthis
wouldbeunfortunateduetotheessentialroleitplaysintheproperpracticeoflocal
medicine.AcorepartofthePunjabicultureinvillagesistorelyonknowledgepasseddown
fromgenerationstomaintainindependency(farmingpractices,cooking,preparinghome
remedies,etc.).Evenashybridizationallowsforthebestofbothlocalandwestern
medicinalculturestosurvive,thetraditionofrelyingonone’sknowledgeandfamily
practicesmaydecline.
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BackgroundInformationontheResearchSiteandItsResidents
Inordertoconcludewhetherornotthereisadiminisheduseandpracticeoflocal
ethnobotanicalknowledgeoccurringinruralPunjab,ItraveledtoAdhi,asmallvillagein
thedistrictofJalandhar,duringthemonthofJuly2015.Accordingtothe2011Indian
Census,thereare274householdsinAdhi.Itstotalpopulationis1,474.Ofthe1,474people,
50percentaremalesand50percentarefemales.Adhiislocatedapproximately2kmfrom
theverysmallcityofUggiandapproximately3kmfromthesmallcityofKalaSanghian.
Villagers,especiallyfemales,expressedthattheyrarelytravelfarfromAdhi.Localpeople
oftenwalkorridebicycles,mopeds,ormotorcyclestoUggiandKalaSanghiantopurchase
dailyhouseholditemssuchasgroceries,soap,haircareproducts,toothbrushes,and
cleaningproducts.
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Fromobservations,casualconversations,andinformalinterviews,Ilearnedof
genderrolesandresponsibilitiesandexpectationsofthevariousgenerations.Education
wasnotseenasapriorityamongtheelderlyandmiddle-agedpopulation.Manyofthe
middle-agedmenarefarmers,whileothersworkpart-timejobs(photographer,driver,
domesticworker,etc.).Somemenalsoownlargeplotsoflandthattheyhaveleasedfor
farmingorliveoffofremittancessenthomefromfamilymembersabroad.Throughoutthe
day,especiallyduringlunchtimeandthenagainfromthehoursof3:00pmto6:00pm,I
observedthatmanyofthemalevillagersconvenedatalargetreenearanopenfieldused
forrecreation(volleyballandsoccer).Undertheshadeofthetreeonalargeflatcement
structure,themenwouldgambleandplaycardsforseveralhours.Thiswastheirdaily
routine.Theyoungermales(approximatelyages18to30)typicallyeitherjoinedtheolder
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meninloungingandchattingorformedtheirownsmallergroupsinthelateafternoon
afterreturningfromtheirparttimejobsorhighschool.OfthemalevillagersImet,none
hadcompletedorhadanyintentionsofcompletinganeducationbeyond“plustwo”(“plus
two”signifiesthefinaltwoyearsofhighschoolthatinvolveaspecializedpre-
undergraduatestudy,sometimescalledjuniorcollege,inwhichstudentswillonlytake
coursesrelatedtothemajortheywishtopursueintheirundergraduatestudies).Ididnot
observepressureorexpectationsfromparentsandfamilymembersfortheyoungmalesto
gainahighereducation.Thegeneralconsensusseemstobethatasmen,theywillbe
expectedtomakealivingonewayoranotherandeducationrequirestoomucheffortand
time.MostoftheyoungermenaspiredtoleavethecountryaltogetherandcometotheU.S.
afterseeingtherichesthatneighborsorextendedfamilycouldbuywithremittancemoney.
Manyofthelarge,new,fourstoryvillasinAdhiarelockedupandvacantorareonly
occupiedbyamatriarchfigurebecausefamiliesandespeciallysonsorhusbandshave
traveledabroadinhopestomakemoremoney.Iwastoldthatalltheexpansivehomesin
Adhiwereallrecentlyconstructedandtheywerebuiltusingremittancemoney.After
spendingseveralweeksinAdhi,Icouldseethecleardistinctionbetweenthelavishhomes
ofvillagerswithatleastonefamilymemberworkingabroadandthesmall,poorly
constructed,sometimeslackingproperplumbing,homesofthosemakingalivingwithout
remittances.
ThefemalepopulationofAdhiheldeducationtoahigherstandardthanthemale
population.Althoughilliteracywascommonamongtheelderlyandmiddle-agedwomen,
manyofthemexpressedthedesirefortheirchildrenorgrandchildrentobeeducatedand
goontocollege.Theonlystudentscurrentlyenrolledincollegeorhavingcompletedan
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educationbeyond“plustwo”werefemales.Furthermore,frommyinteractionswith
villagersofallagesandgenders,Inoticedthatthemalesdidnottakeeducationasseriously
asthefemales.Daughterswereexpectedbytheirownparents,aswellasbyfuturein-laws
tonotonlyknowhowtocookandmanageahousehold,buthaveagoodeducationaswell.
Nosuchemphasisoneducationseemedtobeplacedonsons,however.Despitethe
disparityinlevelandreverenceofeducationbetweenmenandwomen,Ididnotencounter
anywomenwithemploymentintheformalsectororskilled-work.Womenwereeitherfull-
timehomemakersordiddomesticworkpart-timeinthehomesoftheirneighborsand
fellowvillagersduringtheday.Iftheywerenotyetmarried,theywereeitherstillinschool,
ortheirparentswerelookingtomarrythemoffsoon,andthentheywillbeexpectedtobe
diligenthomemakers.Thesegenderrolesanddynamicviewsofeducationandemployment
areimportanttounderstand,astheyinfluencetheperspectivesmenandwomenhaveof
thepracticeandpreparationofethnobotanicalknowledgeandremedies.
Right:3-dayoldcalf
standingnearitsmother
belongingtooneofthe
villagersinAdhi
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Above:Photographofafour-storyvillainAdhi,whichistypicalforahigher-incomefamilyinruralPunjabBelow:Photographofatypicallow-incomefamilyhomeinruralPunjab
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Left:Photographofthemain(ofthree)SikhtempleinAdhi
Below:wildcannabisplantgrowingonthesideofoneofthethreemaindirtroadsinAdhi.Cannabiscanbeusedinavarietyofherbalremedies.
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LiteratureReview
TheWorldHealthOrganization(WHO)estimatesthat80%oftheworld’s
populationstillpracticestraditionalformsofmedicine,nativetovariouscultures.Folk
medicineislargelypracticedinthedevelopingcountries,andespeciallyintheruralareas;
however,preparation,use,orevensimplyhavingknowledgeoffolkmedicineandlocal
medicinalremediesseemtobedecliningfromthepreviousgenerationstothenext.
Westernizationisanongoingphenomenonaroundtheworld.Westernideologiesare
rapidlyspreadingtonon-westerncountriesandoftentimestheWest(theGlobalNorth)is
viewedasthestandardmodelfordevelopmentthatdevelopingnations(theGlobalSouth)
shouldfollowandadopt.Theprimaryforcesbehindthisphenomenonaretheformationof
aglobaleconomyduringcolonialism,aswellasthecurrentneocolonialism,andthe
increasingflowsofinformation,people,andgoodsworldwideduetoglobalization.Flowsof
informationareusuallyseenasoccurringfromtheGlobalNorthtotheGlobalSouth.
Additionally,WalterRostow’sModernizationTheorydefinesdevelopmentfromtraditional
societytomodernsocietyasafive-stepeconomicprocess:TraditionalSociety,Pre-
conditionstoTake-off,Take-off,DrivetoMaturity,andAgeofMassConsumption.Rostow
modeledtheprocessaftertheWesternEuropeanrealityinthe19thcenturydirectlyafter
theIndustrialRevolution.WithWesternEuropesetasthestandardtofollow,manynations
haveattemptedtoachievedevelopmentbyimitatingthefivestepsofEuropean
development.Althoughmany,includingmyself,donotsupportthisrigid,unidirectional
conceptofglobaldevelopment,thismindsethascertainlyimpactedlocalpopulationsin
developingnations.
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AccordingtoFrantzFanon(1968),theEuropeansnotonlyexploitedland,butalso
“colonizedtheminds”ofthenativepopulationsbydehumanizingthemandpsychologically
makingthembelievetheyareinferiortowesternsocietyandpractices.Thismentalityhas
continuedthroughoutsuccessivegenerations.Withtheformationofaninferioritycomplex,
nativepopulationsinex-coloniesareincreasinglyadoptingwesternideasandhavecometo
believeofthewestasthestandardforanytypeofdevelopment.Thetheorypresentedin
Fanon’sworkistoocomplex,however,andcannotentirelyaccountforthewesternization
andmodernizationtakingplaceinIndia.Thehomogenizationofculturearoundtheworld
andadoptionofwesterncultureindevelopingnationscanbeduetoreasonsotherthan
thosearguedbyFanon.Thetrendofdecreasedfocusonlocalmedicinalpracticescouldalso
happenwithouttheexperienceofcolonization.Forexample,Ethiopiawasnevercolonized,
yetmanyEthiopianshaveincorporatedelementsofwesterncultureintotheirlifestyles.
ThephenomenonofwesternizationandFanon’stheorysparkedmycuriosityand
influencedmydesiretoresearchcurrenttrendsinthepracticeoffolkmedicine.Formy
project,Ihaveconsultedbodiesofliteraturethatseektounderstandtheeffectsofthe
availabilityofwesternmedicineonthepracticeoffolkmedicineindevelopingnationsand
theoutcomes,aswellastheperceptionofbothformsofmedicineindevelopingregion
populations.
GoldandClapp’s(2011)journalarticle“Negotiatinghealthandidentity:layhealing,
medicinalplants,andindigenoushealthscapesinhighlandPeru,”shedslightonthe
influenceofwesternmedicineandmodernizationonasmallvillageinthehighlandsof
Perugiventhename“Anawi”.Theauthorsdiscusstheprinciplesbehindperceptionand
subsequentexerciseofvariousformsofmedicinebypeople,collectivelytermeda
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“healthscape”,andhowahealthscapeisformed.Thecomponentsofahealthscapeinclude
anindividual’sperceptionofmedicalresourcesandinstitutions,andtheassociatedcosts
andaccessibility.Theirstudydemonstratesacounteractiveresponsetobiomedicinesuch
thatarevitalizationoffolkmedicineisoccurringinthevillage.Theauthorsassertthat
therearesixreasonsforwhyvillagersusemedicinalplantsbeforegoingtoaclinic:
“Medicinalplantsaredescribedasstrongerandmoreeffectivethanpharmaceuticals,as
geographicallyaccessibleandaffordable,andastraditionalandnatural;thosethatuse
medicinalplantsareculturallyappropriate[…]andfinally,thosethatusethembelieve
plantstobemoreappropriateforcertainillnesses[…]”(Gold&Clapp,2011,p.98).
Thisarticleisimportantformyresearchbecausealthoughananti-globalization
movementisobservedamongthevillagers,a“lossofindigenousmedicalknowledge”(Gold
&Clapp,2011,p.103)isstillobserved.GoldandClapparguethateducation,proximityto
anurbancenter,andwealthhaveaninverserelationshipwiththeamountofindigenous
medicalknowledgeapersonhas,whileagesharesadirectrelationshipwiththeamountof
knownindigenousmedicine.Thus,IexploredsimilarcorrelationsinAdhi,Punjab.
Inhisarticle“Roleadaptation:TraditionalcurersundertheimpactofWestern
medicine,”Landy(1974)discussestheacculturationoftraditionalmedicalcurersandthe
roleadaptationthatconsequentlytranspires.Hearguesthattraditionalhealersmust
acceptwesterntechnologyandphilosophiesinordertokeeptheirroleinsocietyascurers,
therebycausingtheroleofthecurerinsocietytodiminishandanintegrationoflocaland
modernbeliefstooccur.
Landy(1974)referencesseveralstudiestosupporthistheoryofroleadaptation
andacculturationsuchasGould’sstudyofSherapur,avillageinNorthIndia,fromwhich
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Gouldreasonedthatvillagersperceivedwesternmedicineassuperiorduetothe
technologywithwhichitisassociated.Thevillagers,however,didnothavean
understandingofscientificmedicine,butratherfounditstechnologypractical.Gould
discusses“folkpragmatism”asthegoverningforcebehindtheshifttowardswestern
medicine.Commonamongmanyofhisstudies,Gouldalsoacknowledgestheagencyofthe
curersandlocalhealerswithinthecontextofhybridizationofmedicinalpractices:“…the
traditionalhealerisseennotmerelyas[a]passivereceptorofmodernscienceand
technology,butas[an]incorporatingtechnoculturalagentandascreatorofnew
technoculturalsyntheses.Thecuringroleisnotonlychanged,butresynthesized(108)”.A
studyoftheCherokeebyFogelson,however,showsthatwesternmedicinecanhavea
positiveeffectonthesurvivalofindigenousmedicine.AsassimilationofNativeAmericans
wassweepingacrosstheU.S.inthe19thcentury,thethreatofculturalextinctionpushed
theCherokeetousetheirlanguageas“aconservingforce[…]afford[ing]theconjurera
meansoftranscribingsacredformulasformerlytransmittedorally[…]”(Landy,1974,p.
109).Thus,thethreatofwesternizationproducedapreservationeffortamongthe
Cherokee.
Landy’sarticleishelpfulbecauseitremindedmetokeepanopenmind.Thereare
manypossibleoutcomesofmyresearch;Imayfindthatvillagerschoosewesternmedicine
overfolkmedicinebecauseofaperceivedcredibilityoftechnology,thatwesternmedicine
hascausedananti-globalizationmovementandreversiontotraditionalhealingmethods,
oravarietyofotherresults.
Pironetal.(2000),intheirarticle“Consumers’perceptionsofChinesevs.Western
medicine,”focusondiscerningtheperceptionsofTraditionalChineseMedicine(TCM)and
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westernmedicine,andexploringwhichofthetwoispreferred.Theauthorsdiscussthe
conceptof“dualutilization”ofbothformsofmedicineasaresultof“pragmatic
acculturation”,variationinaccessibilityofhealthcare,andtheindividual’sperceptionof
efficacy.
Ofthefourhypothesestestedduringtheauthors’researchinSingapore,twoare
relevanttomyresearchproject.Thefirsthypothesiswas:“olderconsumerswillrateTCM
physicians’expertisehigherthanwillyoungerconsumers”(Pironetal.,2000,p.128).The
secondhypothesiswas:“ConsumersbroughtupinaChineselanguagestreamofeducation
willdisplayamorepositiveperceptionofTCMphysicians’expertisethanconsumers
broughtupinanEnglishlanguagestreamofeducation”(Pironetal.,2000,p.128).Bothof
thesehypotheseswereacceptedbasedonstatisticalanalysisofthecollecteddata.
Thearticleissignificantformyresearchbecausethehypothesesaresimilartothe
anglesofwesternizationItestedinAdhithroughsurveys,inordertohaveastatistical
componenttomyresearch.Theseconfirmedhypothesesalsodemonstratetheimpactof
westernizationinotherrealmsofsociety,inthiscaseeducation,andhowthatcanimpact
thesurvivalofknowledgeoflocalherbalremedies.
InthefollowingarticlebyT.P.Lam(2001),“Strengthsandweaknessesof
TraditionalChineseMedicineandWesternMedicineintheeyesofsomeHongKong
Chinese,”attitudesofHongKongChinesetowardsTCMandbiomedicineareexplored.The
authorprovidesthatsupportforwesternmedicinestemsfromtheperiodofBritishsphere
ofinfluenceandfromgovernmentsupportandformalrecognitionofwesternmedicine;
thus,allowingforthegreaterdevelopmentofbiomedicinewithinHongKong.Thestudy
conductedbytheauthor,Lam(2001),suggeststhatwesternmedicineisfavoredoverTCM.
23
TCMhasbeenreducedtotreatmildillnessesandservesasasupplementtowestern
treatments.ManypatientsalsofindTCMtobeinconvenientbecauseofthetimerequiredto
prepareherbsandothernecessaryingredientsforthetraditionalremedies.Seenasan
opportunitycost,manyprefertousepre-manufacturedpillsprescribedbyphysicians.
Thisarticleisimportantformyresearchbecauseitdemonstratesthatgovernments
andpastimperialinfluencescanhaveagreateffectonthepracticeofmedicinewithina
region,aswellasbasicpracticality,similartotheconceptof“pragmaticacculturation”used
byPironetal.(2000).SincetheBritishcolonizedIndiaandthefederalgovernmentlargely
favorswesternmedicine,similareffectsmaybepresentinAdhi.
Traditionalhealing:Newscienceornewcolonialism?isabookcontaininga
compilationofessaysonthesubjectofthecritiqueofmedicalanthropologyunderthe
scopeofAfrica.WrittenbyMcClain(1979),theessay“TheimpactofcolonialismonAfrican
culturalheritagewithspecialreferencetothepracticeofherbalisminNigeria”discusses
theadverseimpactsoftheBritishimperialruleinNigeriaandofthecolonialpowersin
Africancountriesingeneral.Theauthoraccreditsthelossofcultureandthedecreasein
practiceoffolkmedicinetotheassimilativepoliciesoftheBritishcolonialadministration.
McClain(1979)arguesthatherbalmedicinewasseenasaunifyingaspectofAfrican
societies,soinanattempttodivideandconquerthecontinent,Europeanpowers
attemptedtoeradicatetheircoloniesoffolkmedicineandotherindigenousculture.
Christianmedicalmissionariescarriedoutthisprocessbyforcingwesternmedicineonto
theindigenouspopulations.McClain’scriticalessayisrelevanttomyresearchproject
becauseitdiscussesthedirectimpactofwesternizationandthelastingeffectsof
colonialism.TheBritishcolonizedIndiaaswellandglobalizationmanifesteditselfinthe
24
sameforcefulmanner.AlthoughIndiaisanindependentnation,itshistoryasacolony
couldbealargecomponentofadeclineorrevitalizationoflocalherbalmedicine.
Similarly,inchapter10ofBiomedicalhegemonyinthecontextofmedicalpluralism,
Baeretal.(2013)proposebiomedicineasaninstrumentusedbywesterncolonialpowers
“tomaintaincontrolofexploitedpopulations”(p.210).Theyarguethatbiomedicineisthe
dominantmedicalsystemintheworldandcontinuestoassertitsdominanceoverother
formsofmedicine;westernmedicineisbecomingthestandardoftheworld.Theauthors
datetheriseofbiomedicinebacktotheimperialisminAfricainthelate19thcentury.As
colonialfiguresbegantravelingandoccasionallysettlingintheAfricancolonies,medical
missionarieserectedclinicsforhealthcareprovisiontotheEuropeanpopulations;
however,soonthereaftercolonialpowersbegancontrollinghealthcareinentirecolonies,
buthealthcareserviceswerestilllimitedtoEuropeansandprivilegedAfricans.Itwasnot
untilthemid1900sthatwesternmedicineinfiltratedruralareasandviaindirectrule
(nativeindividualsappointedbycolonialpowertoruleoverpopulationsusingcolonial
idealsandpolicies),localindigenousleadersbeganreplacingfolkmedicinewith
biomedicine.
Baeretal.’schapterissignificantbecauseithighlightstheinteractionsbetween
Britainanditsex-colonies.TheBritishhaveinfluencedmanyIndianpoliciesandeven
broughttheParliamentaryDemocracypoliticalsystemtoIndia.TheirpresenceinIndia
maythereforehaveledtotheacceptanceofmodernmedicinebythegovernmentandmore
recentlybymanycitizensaswell.
IndigenousandWesternmedicineincolonialIndia,abookwrittenbyMadhuri
Sharma(2012),seekstounderstandthepracticeoffolkmedicineintheregionofBanaras
25
(a.k.a.Benares/Varanasi)duringcolonialismandhowthepracticeofmedicineshifted
towardsmodernmedicineunderBritishrule.InChapter1,“HealthandHealingPracticesin
Banaras:PatternsofPatronage”,Sharmaarguesthatadeclineinindigenousmedicine
occursduetoexposuretocolonialwesternmedicine.Shearguesthatduringthe19thand
20thcentury,manymunicipalities,politicalleaders,bureaucrats,andotherinfluential
peopleadvocatedfortheadoptionofmodernmedicine.Astateinitiativetospreadwestern
medicineacrossthecolonywasformed;scholarshipswereestablishedforeducationin
biomedicine,jobsinareasofinfrastructureandmanagementofclinicsandhospitalswere
created,andwomenworkinginfactoriesinUttarPradeshwereentitledtoafiverupee
bonusiftheyemployedservicesofaprofessionalmidwifeorhealthadvisor.
Sharma’schapterparticularlyresonateswithmyresearchbecauseitprovidesa
basisforthechangeinperceptionofmedicinethatledtothedeclineofthepracticeof
indigenousmedicine.Thepreferenceformodernmedicinebeganinthelate19thcentury
andhassignificantlyspreadsinceitsarrivalinIndia.
Inthearticle,“FolkherbalmedicinesfromtribalareaofRajasthan,India,”Katewaet
al.(2004)focusonthevariousplantsusedforherbalremediesbythetribesmenand
tribeswomenoftheMewarregion.Theauthorsconductedacasestudytocollectdataon
theplanttypesandtheiruses,whilealsocollectingdemographicdataonthecurrentuseof
folkmedicinebythevillagers.Thedatasuggeststhatvillagersabovetheageof60were
mostknowledgeableaboutherbalremedies,andtheresearchersattributethisto
modernizationandthetendencyofyoungergenerationstoswayawayfromtraditional
lifestyles.Anotherreasonisagrowingscarcityofplantsusedintheherbalmedicinedueto
environmentalissuessuchasovergrazing,deforestation,anddroughts.
26
Thisarticleisimportantformyresearchbecauseinadditiontoexploringapotential
decreaseddemonstrationofethnobotanicalknowledge,Icollecteddataonthefolk
medicinepracticedbythevillagersinAdhisimilartothedatacollectedinthisstudyby
Katewaetal.:Whatherbsandplantsarebeingused,andforwhatpurposes?Demographic
dataisalsocrucialformyresearchinordertoidentifyanydeclineinpossessionof
knowledgeamonggenerations.
Thearticle,“IndigenousknowledgeofmedicalplantsusedbySaperascommunityof
Khetawas,JhajjarDistrict,Haryana,India”isbasedonacasestudythataimstounderstand
whatplantsareusedbytheSaperasandwhy(Panghaletal.,2010).TheSaperasarean
indigenoussnakecharmercommunityandholdamultitudeofknowledgeonthetreatment
ofsnakebitesusingherbalremedies.Thestudyrevealedadecreaseinknowledgeofthe
folkmedicinewithsuccessivegenerations.Panghaletal.(2010,p.6),concludedthat
“knowledgeisdwindlingrapidlyduetochangestowardsamorewesternlifestyle,modern
agriculturalpractices,culturalchangeswithinthecommunity,rapidshifttowards
allopathicmedicine,housingcolonies,andmoderneducation”.Thisarticlefurther
highlightsthedemiseofherbalfolkmedicineinruralvillagesofIndia.Itisthusimportant
formythesisbecauseAdhiislikelytobefacingmanyoftheissuesraisedinthisarticlesuch
asarapidshifttowardsbiomedicineduetotherapidurbanizationanddevelopmentIndia
iscurrentlyundergoing.
“Long-Term(Secular)changeofethnobotanicalknowledgeofusefulplants:
Separatingcohortandageeffects,”astudyoftheTsimaneofBolivianAmazoniabyGodoy
etal.(2009),focusesondistinguishingbetweeninadmissibleindigenousknowledgeand
thatwhichcanbeusedtocorrectlydetermineifalossofethnobotanicalindigenous
27
knowledgeisoccurringinacommunity.Thedifferenceemergesfromknowledgethatis
associatedwithvariousstagesoflife(motherhood,adolescence,etc.)andcannotbe
learnedduringearlierstages,knowncollectivelyastheageeffect,andknowledgethatcan
belearnedandutilizedatanystageoflife,whichisknownasthecohorteffect.While
earlierstudiesshowthatindigenousknowledgeisdecliningduetoeducation,occupation,
marketexposure,andacculturation,datacollectedforthosestudiesweretosomeextent
invalidbecausetheyfallundertheageeffectandcannotbetestedwithoutagebiasacross
generations.Thus,Godoyetal.(2009)conductedtheirstudyusingadisciplineof
knowledgecommontoallages:ethnobotanicalknowledge.Previousresearchsupportsthat
ethnobotanicalknowledgeisacquiredduringthelateteenageryearsandissustained
throughoutlifeifpopulationscontinuetopracticeit.
Thisarticleisimportantformyresearchbecauseitalertedmetoacommonerror
committedwhenconductingstudiesonthefadingofindigenousknowledge.Ibecame
awareIhadtoavoidhavinganytypeofageeffectsinmystudy.Thearticletherebyhelped
toensurethatmydataonthepracticeandknowledgeofherbalmedicinewouldbe
admissible.
Methodology
Iwillbeusingthetermslocalremedies,folkmedicine,herbalremedies,home
remedies,andethnobotanicalknowledgeinterchangeablyastheyaresynonymoustoone
anotherunderthecontextofmyresearch.Thetermethnobotanicalknowledge,usedby
Godoyetal.,isdefinedastheknowledgeoftheuseofplants(includingherbs,spices,roots,
extracts,andoils)specifictoaparticularculture.Measuringadecreaseindemonstrationof
28
culturalknowledgecanbesubjecttosystematicerrorduetonon-representativesamples.
Sucherrorstemsfromtheageeffect:knowledgethatcanonlybeacquiredduringvarious
stagesoflife(i.e.parenthood).Inordertoquantifythediminisheddemonstrationanduse
ofknowledge,thetypeofknowledgemeasuredmustbecommontoallages.
Ethnobotanicalknowledgefallsunderthecohorteffect,whichmeansitisknowledgethan
canbelearnedatanyageandretainedthroughoutalifetime.Iconsultedthestudyby
Godoyetal.,Long-Term(Secular)ChangeofEthnobotanicalKnowledgeofUsefulPlants:
SeparatingCohortandAgeEffects,duringmyresearchtofollowproperguidelinesfordata
collectionofethnobotanicalknowledge.
Datacollectionproceededintheformofacohortstudy,whichwasconductedwith
twoformalwrittensurveysandaninformalinterviewcomponent.Researchersmust
obtaininformedconsentofparticipantsbeforeenrollingthemintothestudyandthenames
andidentitiesofparticipantsmustremainanonymous(Dowling,2009).So,participants
wereenrolledinthestudyafterthepurposeofmyresearchandthetermsofenrollment
wereverballyexplainedtothemandinformedconsentwasgained.Participantswereonly
identifiedbythenumberonthesurveythatwasdistributedtothem.Datawerequalitative
andquantitative,whichallowedfordemographicsandstatisticalrelationships,aswellas
opinions,experiences,andbehaviorstobeexploredandusedtothoroughlyanswermy
researchquestion.Inmycohortstudy,Icomparedtherelationshipandcorrelation
betweenage,gender,levelofliteracy,andeducation,andtheamountofknowledgeof
herbalmedicinedemonstratedbythesamplepopulation.Triangulation,thecombinationof
variousresearchanddatacollectionmethods,allowedformulti-methodresearch,which
broadensthetypeofinformationgathered(McKendrick,2009).Inmulti-methodresearch,
29
eachmethod“generatesparticulardata,whichwhenbroughttogetherarecomplementary
andcanbroadentheunderstandingoftheissueathandbyenriching,expanding,clarifying,
orillustrating”(McKendrick,2009,p.130).Multi-methodresearchisoftenemployedby
geographers—afactthatinspiredmetoemployitinthisstudy.
Thesurveysandinterviewswereconductedwithparticipantsofeachagegroup
(seebelow)andgender.Theformalsurveys(seeAppendix2,3,and4)servedtocollect
demographicdata,aswellasamethodtocreateadatabaseofwell-knownusefulherbs,
plants,andspicesusedinthelocalfolkremedies.10elementswerechosenatrandomfrom
thisdatabaseofethnobotanicalknowledgetocreateasecondarysurveytotestthesame
populationontheirknowledgeofherbalremedies.Thissecondarysurveywasdesignedto
providequantitativedataforanalysisofthedeclineinpossessionanduseof
ethnobotanicalknowledge.Statisticalanalysesofthedatagatheredfromtheformal
surveyswereconductedusingtheSPSSstatisticssoftware.
Thesamplesizeis50people(n=50),50percentmale,50percentfemale,andthere
arebetween5-10peopleperagecohort.Ethnobotanicalknowledgeisgenerallyacquired
duringthelateteenageyears.Thus,subjectswereatleast18yearsofageinorderto
participateinthiscasestudy.Theageoftheoldestparticipantinmystudyis90years.Age
cohortsaredividedasfollows:Cohort1=18to25years,cohort2=26to41years,cohort
3=42to57years,cohort4=58to73years,andcohort5=74to90years.Duetothe
limitationofqualifyingparticipantsbasedonage,thestudydidnotallowforunbiasedand
randomsampling.Thesamplepopulationwasnotrepresentativeoftheentirevillage
becauseresidentsbelowtheageof18wereexcludedfromthestudy.Thus,Idistributed
surveysbygoingdoor-to-door(excludinghouseholdmembersthatdidnotmeetthe
30
minimumagerequirement);however,theroadsonwhichIwalkedfromhousetohouse
wereselectedbyHarjeet.Theyweretheroadsandhomesofpeoplewithwhomshewas
mostcomfortableinintroducingme.ThiswasabarrierIfacedduetomyresearchbeing
cross-cultural.SinceHarjeetwasmyintermediatefigureandlinktotherestofthevillagers,
Iwasexpectedtorespectherlevelofcomfortandallowhertoguidemethroughthevillage
asshepleased.Additionally,IwasonlyinAdhiforfourweeks,introducingatime-
constraintfactor.Icouldnotsampleeveryhouseholdinthevillagebecauseitwould
requiremorethanfourweekstoconductprimarysurveys,secondarysurveys,and
informalinterviewswithallqualifyingparticipants,henceIcollecteddatabasedon
conveniencesamplingandwasunabletosamplethepopulationrandomly.
Theinformalinterviewswerestructuredasasix-questionguidedconversation(see
Appendix1)thatweresupposedtobeconductedwithparticipantsandusedforqualitative
analysisofthepracticeoffolkmedicineinAdhi.Thistypeofinterviewisknownassemi-
structuredinterviews.Semi-structuredinterviewsarecommonlyusedbygeographersto
conductresearchbecauseunlikestructuredsurveysorinterviews,informationregarding
emotions,behaviors,experiences,andopinionscanbecollected(Longhurst,2009,p.583).
Semi-structuredinterviewsadditionallycreateaheightenedsenseofrespectfor
participantsbygivingthemadegreeofautonomyduringconversations.Thus,information
ontheperception,preference,andpracticeofherbalmedicineversuswesternmedicine
wasgatheredfromvillagersinAdhi.WhileinAdhi,however,theinformalinterviewsdid
nottakeshapeoftheguidedconversationIhadinmindwhendesigningtheinterview
questions.Iencounteredsomeproblemswithconductingtheinterviewsasplanned
becausemanyofthevillagerswouldextendorchangeconversationsorsimplynot
31
properlyanswermyquestions.Itwashardtofollowaguidedconversationbecauseeach
conversationtookadifferentroute.ThedataIcollected,however,aresufficienttoanswer
myresearchquestionandprovidedmuchinsightintotheperceptionsofthevillagers
regardinglocalherbalremediesandwesternmedicine.
Duringtheformalandinformalinterviews,Harjeetintroducedmetothevillagers,
andmadesuretherewasnomiscommunicationasIwasinteractingwiththesubjectsofmy
study.Interactionswiththelocalvillagerswasfairlyunchallenged;however,therewere
severalinstanceswhenthereweremisinterpretationsandmiscommunicationbetweenme
andthevillagersduetothedifferenceinspokendialectsandmeaningsofspecificwordsin
PunjabispokeninPunjabandthePunjabispokenintheUnitedStates.Duringthese
moments,IutilizedthehelpofHarjeettoclarifywhatIwasintendingtoaskthesubjectsof
thestudy.Shealsohelpeddistributetheformalsurveysandwhenweencountered
illiterateparticipants,sheorItranslatedthequestionsforthem.Harjeetalsoaidedmein
findingthesubjectsagainforwhenIconductedthesecondarysurveysandinformal
interviews.
UponmyreturnfromAdhi,Icreatedareferenceguidefortheethnobotanical
knowledgeIdocumentedduringmystayinAdhi.Withthehelpofmygrandparents,
NarendraandKanwaljeetSekhon,myparents,VikramjitandSweetieAnand,myauntand
uncle,OnkarandRanjitSekhon,andmycousinJaissySekhon,Iwasabletotranslatethe
namesoftheplantsandvariousingredientsfromPunjabitoEnglish.Myfamilygatheredon
bothendsofthephoneandthroughanextensivephoneconversationthatlastedseveral
hours,wewereabletocatalogthenamesofalltheingredientsfortheremediesIhad
learnedfromtheresidentsofAdhi(seeAppendix5).
32
ProcedureforQuantitativeAnalysis
SPSSisastatisticalanalysissoftwareprogramthatallowstheusertorunvarious
statisticalanalysesuponadatasetormultipledatasets.Duetomystatisticalbackground
beinglimitedtobasicknowledge,Iemployedtheuseofseveraltutorialvideosandarticles
toensuretheanalysesIconductedwereaccurateandrelevant.Thearticletitled
“DescriptiveStatsforOneNumericVariable(Explore)”(2016)availableontheKentState
Universitywebsitediscussesseveralstatisticaltestsforanalyzingandinterpretingsingle
numericvariables.Thearticledemonstratestheimportanceofrunningdescriptive
statisticsfunctionsonsuchdataandhowtointerprettheresultsincluding:boxplots,
normalitytestsandfactors,andkurtosis.Includedinthediscussionisthestep-by-step
tutorialforexecutingthedescriptivestatisticsanalysisinSPSS.
TheinformationKentStateUniversityhasprovidedontheirwebsiteisimportantto
myresearchprojectandtheanalysisIconducteduponthedataIgatheredinAdhi.I
referencedthisarticlewhileusingSPSStoensureIconductedthecorrecttestsand
analysesononenumericvariabledata.Furthermore,thearticleaidedmeinproperly
interpretingthecollecteddataformyresearch.
“WhentoUseaNonparametricTest”(2016)isanarticleavailableontheBoston
UniversitySchoolofPublicHealthwebsite.Thearticlediscusseswhentouseparametric
analysisversusnonparametricanalysiswhenconductingstatisticalanalysisofparticular
data.Accordingtothearticle,parametrictestsshouldbeusedwhendataexhibitnormal
distribution,whilenonparametrictestsshouldbeusedforordinaldataanddatathatare
notnormallydistributed.
33
Thisarticlewassignificantforthequantitativeanalysissectionofmyresearch
projectbecauseitenhancedmyunderstandingofthetypeofdataIcollectedandwhich
testsareappropriateforsubsequentdataanalysis.Iused“WhentoUseaNonparametric
Test”(2016)asaguidelineforchoosingthecorrecttypeofanalysis,parametricversus
nonparametric,foreachofthevariablesItested.Althoughthearticleonlyprovidesbasic
informationofnonparametrictests,itstillimprovedmyknowledgeandunderstandingof
nonparametricdataandanalysis.
ThefollowingvideofilecanbefoundontheOxfordAcademic(OxfordUniversity
Press)(2015)YouTubechannel:Nonparametrictests(SPSS).Thisvideoclipdemonstrates
howtoexecuteonesamplenonparametrictestsandanalysis.Thetutorialgoesindepth
aboutnonparametrictestingfornormalityofscalevariabledata.Furthermore,thenarrator
discusseshowtointerprettestresultsandhowtoapplyone’sfindingstodefinethedata.
TheOxfordAcademic(OxfordUniversityPress)(2015)videowashelpfulformy
researchbecauseitprovidedmewithinformationonadditionalandmoreadvancedtests
ofnormalityIcouldusetoestablishnormalityorlackthereofinmycollecteddata.
Althoughitwasnotessentialtoconductthesetestsonmydata,thevideoisahelpful
sourcetoreferenceshouldIneedtoprovidesupplementaryevidencetosupportnormality
testsIconducted.
AnotherresourcefulYouTubechannelhelpfultomyanalysisis:TheRMUoHP
BiostatisticsResourceChannel.RockyMountainUniversityBiostatisticsdepartment
createdthisYouTubechannel.Professorsofstatisticsuploadvideotutorialsandlecturesto
thechannelforstudentsaroundtheworldtowatchandgainabetterunderstandingof
variousstatisticalconceptsandanalyses.
34
TwovideosinparticularthatIfoundhelpfulweretitled“HowtoUseSPSS:Choosing
theAppropriateStatisticalTest”(TheRMUoHPBiostatisticsResourceChannel,2013)and
“HowToUseSPSS-SpearmanCorrelationCoefficient”(TheRMUoHPBiostatisticsResource
Channel,2012).Thesetutorialsprovideviewerswithinformationandknowledgeof
functionsavailabletoaresearcherwithinSPSSandhowtousethem.Thevideo,“Howto
UseSPSS:ChoosingtheAppropriateStatisticalTest”(TheRMUoHPBiostatisticsResource
Channel,2012),presentsguidelinesforpreparingandexecutingaresearchproject,and
conductingappropriateanalysisofdataisdiscussed.Thesecondvideo,“HowToUseSPSS-
SpearmanCorrelationCoefficient”(TheRMUoHPBiostatisticsResourceChannel,2012),
brieflydiscussestheimportanceofthenonparametricSpearmancorrelationtestand
providesastep-by-steptutorialofhowtorunaSpearmancorrelationonnonparametric
data.
Bothofthesevideoswereextremelyhelpfulforthequantitativeanalysisofmy
researchdata.Ireferencedbothvideosandfollowedtheguidelinesandstepsoutlinedin
eachvideoinordertothoroughlyunderstandwhattypesofdataIhadcollectedandhowto
analyzethem,andonceIdifferentiatedbetweenparametricandnonparametricdata,how
torunSpearmancorrelationtestsandinterpretthem.
Inordertovalidatethefindingsofmyresearch,Iplantoaddalongitudinal
componenttoit:IwillreturntoAdhiin2025andconductthisstudyagain.Iwillnotuseall
thesameparticipantsformysamplebecausethepopulationthatwasundertheageof18
in2015willbeeligibletoparticipateinmystudyin2025.Iwillneedtoincludethisnewly
agedpopulationinordertocomparedifferencesintheamountofethnobotanical
35
knowledgeknownamongthenewlyagedgroupwiththeknowledgeofallotherage
cohortssampledin2025aswellasthesameagecohortsampledin2015.
Afterspending4weeksinAdhi,IfeltIhadcompletedallfieldworknecessaryto
writeanhonorsthesisregardingmyhypothesis.Inthisthesis,Iwilldiscusstheresultsof
myquantitativeandqualitativeresearchandthesignificancetheyholdwithregardsto
rejectingoracceptingthenullhypothesis.Thenullhypothesisis:thereisnodeclineinthe
use,practice,andpreparationofethnobotanicalknowledgeandremediesoccurringinthe
villageofAdhi.
QuantitativeDataAnalysis
Quantitativedataforthisstudywasgatheredusingtwoformalsurveyinstruments.
EachsurveywasprintedinPunjabi.Manyparticipantswereilliterate.Forthesevillagers,
HarjeetNahalorIreadthequestionsaloudandfilledoutthesurveysaccordingtotheir
answers.Literateparticipantsfilledoutsurveysontheirownandreturnedthecompleted
formstome.Theprimarysurveyinstrumentincluded10questions.Thefirsteight
questionsservedtocollectdemographicdataofthepopulationsuchasgender,age,
literacy,typeandlevelofeducation,occupation,yearlyincome,anddistancefromnearest
doctorandhospital.Thefinaltwoquestionsaskedparticipantstoratetheeffectivenessof
westernmedicationsversusfolkremediesandtoprovidealistoftheknownusesofas
manyplants,spices,andherbsaspossibleinregardstohumanhealthandwellbeing.The
followingquestionfromtheprimarysurveywasnotusedindataanalysis:Ifyouattended
school,whattypeofschoolwasit?(PunjabiMedium,HindiMedium,orEnglishMedium).
Participantswhoattendedaschool(atanypointduringtheirlifetime)allanswered
36
“PunjabiMedium”tothisquestion.Thedatacollectedfromthisquestionwereintendedto
exploreapossiblecorrelationbetweenlanguageofeducationanddemonstrationof
ethnobotanicalknowledge.Duetotheanswersbeingthesameamongparticipantsthat
attendedschool,thequestionnolongerservedanysignificantstatisticalpurposeinmy
study.
Thesecondarysurveyinstrumentconsistedof10multiplechoicequestions
regardingthefunctionofspecificplants,spices,andherbs.Thequestionswereconstructed
usingtheethnobotanicalknowledgeprovidedintheprimarysurvey.10remediesofthe54
listedbythevillagerswereselectedatrandom,inordertoeliminatedifficultybias,assome
remedieswerecommonlyknown,whileotherswereonlyrecordedbysingleparticipants.
Scoresrepresenttheamountoflocalmedicinalknowledgeknownbyparticipants.
Thetotalnumberofparticipantsinthestudyis53,comprisedof28femalesand25
males.Sampleswerecollectedbywalkingdoortodooraroundthevillageandasking
residentsiftheywouldliketoparticipateinmystudy.Residentsfromvariousblocks,
alleys,androadsofthevillagewereincluded;however,duetothecross-culturalsettings,I
wasexpectedtoonlyconductthestudyontheroadsandinalliesinwhichHarjeetfelt
comfortabletakingmeandintroducingmetotheresidents.Inadditiontothecross-
culturalrestrictionsonsamplingpopulationIfacedduringdatacollection,anintrinsic
exclusioncriterioninthisstudyisthatparticipantshadtobe18yearsofageorolderin
ordertobeenrolledinthestudyduetotheCohortEffectdiscussedearlier.Thetarget
samplesizewasn=50,thus,onceIhadsuccessfullydistributedapproximately50surveys,
Istoppedsamplingthepopulation.Datacollectionfollowedaconveniencesamplingmodel,
ratherthanrandomsampling.Sincerandomsamplingdidnotoccur,theproceeding
37
analysescannotbegeneralizedtotheentirevillage;statisticalanalysesareonly
representativeofthesamplepopulation(n,wheren=peopleenrolledinthestudy)and
onlyprovideinformationonpatternsandtrendsamongthesamplepopulation.Forthis
reason,statisticalanalyseswereconductedassumingn=N,wherethesamplepopulation
(n)isequaltothewholepopulation(N).Additionally,
Thedatacollectedfromparticipants#3,#9,and#20arenotusedinthestatistical
analysisduetoinvalidityofthesecondarysurveys.Quantitativedatafromparticipant#3
wereinvalidduetoherinvolvementinthestudyasanaidandguideinAdhi.Although
duringtheinitialphaseofthestudy,inwhichtheprimarysurveysweredistributed,
participant#3wasaviablecandidate,sheaidedintranslationsandtranscriptionsofother
participants’answersforquestion10ofsurvey1,allowinghertogainaccessto
ethnobotanicalknowledgeshemaynothavehadpriortothestudy.Quantitativedatafrom
participant#9wereunsoundbecausehedidnotfollowdirectionsproperlythatmandated
hecannotdiscussthequestionsofthesecondarysurveywithotherparticipantsduringthe
study.Hisresponsestothesecondarysurveywereidenticaltothoseofhiselderbrother,
whohadpreviouslycompletedthesurvey.Participant#20’ssecondarysurveywas
incompleteassherefusedtoanswerallofthequestions.
ThetotalpopulationofAdhiis1,474people:737malesand737females.The
compositionoftheparticipantdatausedinthestatisticalanalysisissuch:n=50with26
females,24males,agesrangingfrom18yearsto90years,educationlevelrangingfrom
nonetoBachelorofArtsdegree,andestimatedyearlyincomesrangingfrom5,000Rs.to
500,000Rs.Althoughthesamplesizeisgreaterthan30,duetoconveniencesamplingand
selectionbias,thesamplepopulationisnotstatisticallyrepresentativeofthewholevillage.
38
Regardlessofthedatabeingnon-representativeoftheentirevillage,myprojectstill
focusesoncontributingtoacademicdiscourseonthetopicofadeclineinthe
demonstrationandpracticeoffolkknowledge.Myresearchcanserveasaprototypestudy
andmodelforscholarstouseinconductingsimilarstudies.
Originally,Iusedthesurveyinstrumentstoalsoexploretherelationshipbetween
proximitytoalicensedphysicianandhospitalandpossessionofethnobotanical
knowledge;however,allparticipantsansweredthesamefortherespectivequestion:
villagerstraveledtotheclosestcity,Nakodar,locatedapproximately17kmSouthwestof
Adhi,tovisitalicensedphysicianandthenearesthospitalislocatedapproximately24km
NortheastofAdhiinthemajordistrictcityofJalandhar.Thus,thereisnoanalyticalvalueor
relationshipbetweentheamountsofknownfolkremediesbyasinglepersonandthe
proximitytohealthcareandIhaveeliminatedthisfactorfrommystudy.Althoughthereis
noquantitativeevidenceinmydatathatgeographicproximitytodoctorsandhospitalscan
affectthepracticeoffolkmedicine,proximitydoesnotequatetoaccessibility.Asdiscussed
laterinthequalitativeanalysisoftheperspectivesofthevillagersregardinghome
remediesandbiomedicine,accessibilitytohealthcareoftenbecomesthedecidingfactorin
whethertouseethnobotanicalremediesorwesterntreatments.Suchfactorsinclude
meansoftransportation,severityoftheillness,andpersonalviewsoftheefficacyofeither
formofmedicine.
Inconjunctionwithmyresearchquestiononwhetherornotthereisadiminished
demonstrationofethnobotanicalknowledgeacrossgenerations,thequantitativeanalysis
focuseslargelyonthecorrelationbetweenscoreachievedonthesecondarysurveyandthe
ageoftheparticipant,keepinginmindallstatisticalanalysesonlyholdtrueunderthe
39
assumptionthatn=N.Subsequentcorrelationalandcomparativeanalysisbetweenscores
andGender,scoresandEducation(highestcompletedlevel),andscoresandIncome
(yearly)servestoreflectpossiblereasonsforthedeclineinlocalmedicinalknowledgewith
eachsuccessivegeneration.Parametricandnonparametricstatisticalanalysissuggeststhat
thereisadownwardtrendintheknowledgeofherbalhomeremediesfromolder
generationsto
youngergenerations.
BeforeIcouldmakeanyconclusionsorinferencesbasedondataanalyses,I
conductednormalitytestsonallthedata.Thefollowingindependentvariablesweretested
fornormality:Age(years),AgeCohorts,Gender,Education,andIncome.
Age Years Case Processing Summary
Cases
Valid Missing Total
N Percent N Percent N Percent
Age Years 50 100.0% 0 0.0% 50 100.0%
Descriptives
Statistic Std. Error
Age Years Mean 46.56 2.563
95% Confidence Interval for
Mean
Lower Bound 41.41 Upper Bound 51.71
5% Trimmed Mean 46.01 Median 45.00 Variance 328.456 Std. Deviation 18.123 Minimum 18 Maximum 90 Range 72 Interquartile Range 26 Skewness .380 .337
Kurtosis -.486 .662
40
Tests of Normality
Kolmogorov-Smirnova Shapiro-Wilk
Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.
Age Years .081 50 .200* .967 50 .180
*. This is a lower bound of the true significance.
a. Lilliefors Significance Correction
HO=ThedataforAgeYearsareNOTnormallydistributed.
HA=ThedataforAgeYearsarenormallydistributed.
41
Age Cohorts Case Processing Summary
Cases
Valid Missing Total
N Percent N Percent N Percent
Age Cohorts 50 100.0% 0 0.0% 50 100.0%
Descriptives
Statistic Std. Error
Age Cohorts Mean 2.80 .171
95% Confidence Interval for
Mean
Lower Bound 2.46
Upper Bound 3.14
5% Trimmed Mean 2.78
Median 3.00
Variance 1.469
Std. Deviation 1.212
Minimum 1
Maximum 5
Range 4
Interquartile Range 2
Skewness .258 .337
Kurtosis -.865 .662
Tests of Normality
Kolmogorov-Smirnova Shapiro-Wilk
Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.
Age Cohorts .205 50 .000 .908 50 .001
a. Lilliefors Significance Correction
HO=ThedataforAgeCohortsareNOTnormallydistributed.
HA=ThedataforAgeCohortsarenormallydistributed.
42
Gender Case Processing Summary
Gender
Cases Valid Missing Total N Percent N Percent N Percent
Score Female 26 100.0% 0 0.0% 26 100.0%
Male 24 100.0% 0 0.0% 24 100.0%
43
Descriptives Gender Statistic Std. Error
Score Female Mean 5.73 .406
95% Confidence Interval for
Mean
Lower Bound 4.89 Upper Bound 6.57
5% Trimmed Mean 5.70 Median 5.50 Variance 4.285 Std. Deviation 2.070 Minimum 2 Maximum 10 Range 8 Interquartile Range 3 Skewness .391 .456
Kurtosis -.458 .887
Male Mean 4.50 .335
95% Confidence Interval for
Mean
Lower Bound 3.81 Upper Bound 5.19
5% Trimmed Mean 4.59 Median 5.00 Variance 2.696 Std. Deviation 1.642 Minimum 0 Maximum 7 Range 7 Interquartile Range 2 Skewness -.707 .472
Kurtosis 1.208 .918
Tests of Normality
Gender
Kolmogorov-Smirnova Shapiro-Wilk Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.
Score Female .141 26 .200* .955 26 .311
Male .203 24 .012 .922 24 .064
*. This is a lower bound of the true significance.
44
a. Lilliefors Significance Correction
HO=ThedataforGenderareNOTnormallydistributed.
HA=ThedataforGenderarenormallydistributed.
45
Test of Homogeneity of Variances
Score Levene Statistic df1 df2 Sig.
1.615 1 48 .210
ANOVA
Score Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
Between Groups 18.905 1 18.905 5.366 .025
Within Groups 169.115 48 3.523 Total 188.020 49
HO=ThedataforGenderdoNOTdisplayequalvariance.
HA=ThedataforGenderdisplayequalvariance.
46
Education Case Processing Summary
Cases
Valid Missing Total
N Percent N Percent N Percent
Education 50 100.0% 0 0.0% 50 100.0%
Descriptives
Statistic Std. Error
Education Mean 5.98 .736
95% Confidence Interval for
Mean
Lower Bound 4.50
Upper Bound 7.46
5% Trimmed Mean 5.89
Median 8.00
Variance 27.081
Std. Deviation 5.204
Minimum 0
Maximum 16
Range 16
Interquartile Range 10
Skewness -.036 .337
Kurtosis -1.618 .662
Tests of Normality
Kolmogorov-Smirnova Shapiro-Wilk
Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.
Education .255 50 .000 .824 50 .000
a. Lilliefors Significance Correction
HO=ThedataforEducationareNOTnormallydistributed.
HA=ThedataforEducationarenormallydistributed.
47
Income
Case Processing Summary
Cases
Valid Missing Total
N Percent N Percent N Percent
Income 50 100.0% 0 0.0% 50 100.0%
48
Descriptives
Statistic Std. Error
Income Mean 81960.00 15648.850
95% Confidence Interval for
Mean
Lower Bound 50512.46 Upper Bound 113407.54
5% Trimmed Mean 67455.56 Median 25000.00 Variance 12244324897.95
9
Std. Deviation 110654.078
Minimum 5000
Maximum 500000
Range 495000
Interquartile Range 86250
Skewness 2.089 .337
Kurtosis 4.313 .662
Tests of Normality
Kolmogorov-Smirnova Shapiro-Wilk
Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.
Income .243 50 .000 .704 50 .000
a. Lilliefors Significance Correction
HO=ThedataforIncomeareNOTnormallydistributed.
HA=ThedataforIncomearenormallydistributed.
49
AccordingtotheproceduresoutlinedfornormalitytestingintheKentStateUniversity
article,“DescriptiveStatsforOneNumericVariable(Explore)”(2016),theseShapiro-Wilk
statistictestsofnormalityexhibitthatonlyAgeYearsandGenderdemonstratednormal
datadistribution.AgeCohorts,Education,andIncomedidnotpresentnormaldistributions.
ThesignificancevalueofShapiro-WilkstatistictestsforAgeYearsandforGender(forboth
femaleandmaledata)isgreaterthan0.01,rejectingthenullhypothesisandconfirming
thatthedatafollowanormaldistribution.Inadditiontonormaldistribution,theLevene
testandone-wayAnalysisofVariance(ANOVA)ofGenderdatarevealedequalvarianceof
scoresforKnowledgebetweenfemalesandmalesbecausep>0.01fortheLevenestatistic
50
andp<0.05fortheF-Value.ThesignificancevaluesoftheShapiro-Wilkstatistictestfor
AgeCohorts,Education,andIncomearelessthan0.01;thenullhypothesisisaccepted,
suggestingthatthedatafromthesethreevariablesdonotfollowanormaldistribution.
Thus,parametricmethods(PearsoncorrelationtestandRegressionanalysis)were
performedusingAge(years)andKnowledge,aswellasGenderandKnowledge
(Independentt-test).RelationshipsbetweenAgeCohorts,Education,Income,and
Knowledgemustbetestedusingnonparametrictechniques(Spearmancorrelationtest).
Knowledge(scores)isthedependentvariableinthisstudy.Beforeexaminingwhich
independentvariablesmayormaynothaveaffectedtheresults,somedescriptivestatistics
werepreparedtoobservegeneraltrendsinthescoresofthevillagersonthesecondary
surveys:
Knowledge
Statistics
Score N Valid 50
Missing 0
Mean 5.14
Median 5.00
Mode 5
Std. Deviation 1.959
Variance 3.837
Skewness .237
Std. Error of Skewness .337
Kurtosis .567
Std. Error of Kurtosis .662
Minimum 0
Maximum 10
Percentiles 25 4.00
50 5.00
75 6.00
51
Score
Frequency Percent Valid Percent
Cumulative
Percent
Valid 0 1 2.0 2.0 2.0
2 2 4.0 4.0 6.0
3 6 12.0 12.0 18.0
4 9 18.0 18.0 36.0
5 14 28.0 28.0 64.0
6 7 14.0 14.0 78.0
7 6 12.0 12.0 90.0
8 1 2.0 2.0 92.0
9 3 6.0 6.0 98.0
10 1 2.0 2.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0
Themeanscorefordemonstrationofethnobotanicalknowledgeamongtheentiresample
population(n=50)was5.14.Themostfrequentscorewasa5/10,with14villagersgetting
5outof10answerscorrectonthesecondarysurvey.Onlyonepersonscoredaperfect
10/10andonlyonepersonscored0/10.Closeranalysisoftheindependentvariables(Age
Years,AgeCohorts,Gender,Education,andIncome)providesorrejectspossible
explanationsfortheoutcomeofscores.
52
ThefollowingiscorrelationalandregressiondataforKnowledgevs.AgeYears:
Correlations
Age Years Score
Age Years Pearson Correlation 1 .790**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000
N 50 50
Score Pearson Correlation .790** 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000
N 50 50
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
53
Regression Descriptive Statistics
Mean Std. Deviation N
Score 5.14 1.959 50
Age Years 46.56 18.123 50
Variables Entered/Removeda
Model
Variables
Entered
Variables
Removed Method
1 Age Yearsb . Enter
a. Dependent Variable: Score
b. All requested variables entered.
Model Summary
Mode
l R
R
Square
Adjusted R
Square
Std. Error of
the Estimate
Change Statistics
R Square
Change
F
Change df1
1 .790a .625 .617 1.212 .625 79.951 1
Model Summary
Model
Change Statistics
df2 Sig. F Change
1 48 .000
a. Predictors: (Constant), Age Years
Correlationalanalysiswasdoneinordertorejectoracceptthenullhypothesis:
HO=Thereisnosignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandage.
Thealternativehypothesisbecomes:
HA=Thereisasignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandage.
Inthecorrelationdataforknowledgevs.ageofparticipants,thePearsoncorrelationfactor
is0.790andp<0.01,sothecorrelationissignificant.Thus,thenullhypothesisisrejected
andthealternativehypothesisisaccepted.Thescatterplotsuggeststhatageandscoresare
54
directlyproportionaltooneanother.Furthermore,aregressionofthedatarevealswhether
acorrelationrepresentsatruerelationshipandhowmuchofthevarianceinscoresof
knowledgecanbeattributedtoage.
Thenullhypothesisis:
HO=Thereisnosupportedpredictablerelationshipbetweenageandpossessionofethnobotanical
knowledge.
Thealternativehypothesisis:
HA=Thereisasupportedpredictablerelationshipbetweenageandpossessionofethnobotanical
knowledge.
Theregressiondatafurtherconfirmthecorrelationbetweenageandscoresandalso
suggestthatatruecausalrelationshipexistsbetweenthem.TheR-squaredvalueis0.625
andtheadjustedR-squaredvalueis0.617.Therefore,approximately62%ofthevariancein
scorescanbeattributedtotheageoftheparticipants.ThisisasignificantR-squaredvalue
andp<0.01.Thereisasupportedrelationshipbetweenpossessionofethnobotanical
knowledgeandageofparticipants;thenullhypothesis(HO=Thereisnopredictable
correlativerelationshipbetweenageandscores)isrejectedandthealternativehypothesis
(HA=Thereisapredictablecorrelativerelationshipbetweenageandscores)isaccepted.
55
Thefollowingis(nonparametric)correlationalanalysisofKnowledgevs.Age
Cohorts:
Nonparametric Correlations
Correlations
Score Age Cohorts
Spearman's rho Score Correlation Coefficient 1.000 .757**
Sig. (2-tailed) . .000
N 50 50
Age Cohorts Correlation Coefficient .757** 1.000
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .
N 50 50
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
56
Theageofparticipantsaregroupedintofivecohortsandeachcohortiscodedusing
numbers1-5,where1=18to25years,2=26to41years,3=42to57years,4=58to73,
5=74to90years.Accordingtothegraphoftheagecohorts,adistinctgroupingpattern
emergesunderthestructureofthreebiologicalgenerations.Theparentgeneration(P)is
cohorts4and5,theiroffspring(G1)arecohorts2and3,andtheoffspringofG1iscohort1
(G2).Amongthethreegenerations,Pscoresrangedfrom50%to100%correctanswers.G1
scoredfrom30%to70%correct.G2generatedscoresrangingfrom0%to40%correct.The
overalltrendamongthecohortsstillsuggestsadeclineintheamountofknowledge
demonstratedbyeachgeneration.Forcorrelationdata,thenullhypothesisis:
HO=Thereisnosignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandage
cohorts.
Thealternativehypothesisis:
HA=Thereisasignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandagecohorts.
TheSpearmancorrelationfactoris0.757andp<0.01,sothenullhypothesisisrejected.
Thedataaresignificantandacorrelationexists.
ThefollowingaredescriptivestatisticsforscoresbasedonGenderandcomparative
testresultsbetweenfemalesandmalesforKnowledgevs.Gender:
Statistics
Gender = 1
(FILTER) Score
N Valid 26 26
Missing 0 0
Mean 1.00 5.73
Median 1.00 5.50
Mode 1 4a
57
Statistics
Gender = 2
(FILTER) Score
N Valid 50 50
Missing 0 0
Mean .48 5.14
Median .00 5.00
Mode 0 5
Group Statistics Gender N Mean Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean
Score Female 26 5.73 2.070 .406
Male 24 4.50 1.642 .335
Independent Samples Test
Levene's Test for
Equality of Variances t-test for Equality of Means
F Sig. t df
Sig. (2-
tailed) Mean Difference
Std. Error
Difference
95% Confidence
Interval of the
Difference
Lower Upper
Score Equal variances
assumed 1.615 .210 2.316 48 .025 1.231 .531 .162 2.299
Equal variances
not assumed 2.338 46.974 .024 1.231 .526 .172 2.290
Thedataforgenderwerecodedasfollows:1=female,2=male.Datarevealthatthe
averagescoresoffemaleswerehigherthanthoseofmales,suggestingthatlocalmedicinal
knowledgeisslightlymorecommonlyknownamongthefemalepopulationversusthemale
population.Althoughtheindependentt-testrevealsthatthereisnostatisticallysignificant
differencebetweenthemeanvalueofscoreforfemalesandmales,theaveragescoreof
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knowledgeforfemaleswas5.73andtheaveragescoreformaleswas4.5.Thesmall
discrepancycanbeaccreditedtoculturalgenderrolesofmenandwomeninAdhi;thiswill
befurtherexploredinthequalitativedatagatheredfrominformalinterviews.
Thefollowingisa(nonparametric)correlationdataanalysisforKnowledgevs.
Education:
Nonparametric Correlations
Correlations
Score Education
Spearman's rho Score Correlation Coefficient 1.000 -.606**
Sig. (2-tailed) . .000
N 50 50
Education Correlation Coefficient -.606** 1.000
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .
N 50 50
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
59
Thenullhypothesisis:
HO=Thereisnosignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandeducation.
Thealternativehypothesisis:
HA=Thereisasignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandeducation.
Correlationdataforknowledgeandhighestlevelofeducationcompletedbytheparticipant
showastatisticallysignificantSpearmancorrelationof-0.606withap-valueoflessthan
0.01andthealternativehypothesisisaccepted.Thecorrelationisnegative,however,which
indicatesthatthehigherthecompletedlevelofeducationofaparticipant,thelessthey
knowaboutherbalremedies.
60
Thefollowingisa(nonparametric)correlationaldataanalysisofKnowledgevs.
Income:
Nonparametric Correlations
Correlations
Score Income
Spearman's rho Score Correlation Coefficient 1.000 .090
Sig. (2-tailed) . .535
N 50 50
Income Correlation Coefficient .090 1.000
Sig. (2-tailed) .535 .
N 50 50
61
Thenullhypothesisis:
HO=Thereisnosignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandincome.
Thealternativehypothesisis:
HA=Thereisasignificantcorrelationbetweenpossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeandincome.
Asthedatashow,theSpearmancorrelationfactoris0.090andp>0.01.Thereisno
significantcorrelationbetweenannualincomeandpossessionofethnobotanical
knowledge;thenullhypothesisisretained.Thepurposeofexaminingthisrelationshipwas
todeterminewhetherearningmoremoneycouldmakewesternmedicinemoreaffordable
andpossiblymorepreferred;however,statisticalanalysisdemonstratesthattheannual
incomeofthevillagersisnotafactorinthedecreasedpossessionoflocalmedicinal
knowledge.
Overall(withtheassumptionthatn=N),statisticalanalysisofthequantitativedata
revealsadecreaseinthepossesionofethnobotanicalknowledgewitheachsuccessive
generationamongthesampledpopulationinAdhi,Punjab.Majorityofthediminished
demonstrationofknowledgecanbeattributedtotheageoftheparticipantandasignificant
cofactoriseducation;thehigherthelevelofeducation,thelesstheknowledgeofhome
remediesisdemonstratedbyaparticipant,suggestingthatethnobotanicalknowledgeis
notbeingpasseddowngenerationsasfrequently.Femalesexhibitedaslightlyhigher
amountofknowledgethanmales;however,itcanbeexplainedbygenderrolesinthe
village.Incomehasnosignificantcorrelationtothedeclineofethnobotanicalknowledge.
Althoughquantitativedataarehelpfulinprovidingnumericalevidenceofthedecreased
demonstrationoflocalmedicinalknowledgeandpossiblefactorsforthistrend,itcannot
deliverproofofthevillagersshiftingfromuseofherbalhomeremediestowestern
62
medicine.Qualitativedatabetterservestogiveinsightintotheperspectivesandattitudes
ofthevillagerstowardswesternmedicineandfolkmedicine.
QualitativeDataAnalysis
Followingthefirstpartofthestudy,inwhichtwoformalsurveyinstrumentswere
employedtocollectquantitativedata,thesecondpartofthestudyfocusedonthecollection
ofqualitativedata.Informalinterviewsandconversationswereconductedwith
approximatelyhalfoftheoriginalsamplepopulation(27participants).The27villagers
thatpartookinthequalitativedatacollectionvariedinageandgender:15females,12
malesandagesrangingfrom18to90yearsold.Theinformalsurveywasaguided
conversationcomprisedof6questions.Thequestionssoughttogaininsightonthe
perspectivesofthevillagersontheuseandefficacyofwesternmedicineversustraditional
indigenousmedicine.Adistinctionmustbemade,however,betweentheuseoffolk
medicineasopposedtotheknowledgeoffolkmedicine.Usingindigenousremediestotreat
ailmentsdoesnotdenotetohavingethnobotanicalknowledge.Manyvillagerscontinueto
useherbalmedicine,buttheydonotpreparetheremediesthemselves,ratherafemaleof
thehouseholdwillprepareitforthesickfamilymember.
Qualitativeanalysiswillprovideagreaterunderstandingofifandwhyadeclinein
thepossessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeisoccurring,includingtheuseandpreparation
ofhomeremedies.Theinterviewsdidnotentirelyfollowthepre-plannedguided
conversationstructure;however,theprincipalgoalsweremetandIwasabletogainan
understandingoftheviewpointsofthevillagersregardingbothformsofmedicine—
westernandtraditional.
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Analysisofthequalitativedatarevealsseveraltrendsamongthe27participants,
trendswhichcanfurtherbecategorizedbythefollowingfactors:ageandgender.There
wereseveralspecialcaseswhereparticipantviewpointswerefurtherspecifictoacertain
agegroupandgender,namelyelderlyfemaleparticipantsandyoungmaleparticipants.
Theinterviewsrevealedseveralcommonviewpointsoftheuseandefficacyof
westernmedicineandindigenousmedicine.Whenaskedwhichformofmedicinetheyuse
moreoften,almostimmediatelyalltheparticipantsansweredthattheirfirstchoiceis
westernmedicine.Butwhenaskedfurtherabouttreatingvariousdiseases,illnesses,and
symptoms,thevillagersfeltasthoughthetypeofillnessmandatedthetypeoftreatment.
Thedecidingfactoriswhethertheailmentisacuteorchronic.Ingeneral,thevillagers
resortedtoherbalhomeremediesfirstforsymptomswithasudden(acute)onsetsuchas
fevers,achesandpains,coughs,diarrhea,constipation,vomiting,etc.Forchronic
conditionssuchasdiabetes,hypertension,andcancer,villagersoptedtovisitalicensed
physicianandreceivewesterntreatments.Asidefromacutevs.chronicillnesses,therewas
ageneralconsensusonusinghomeethnobotanicalremediesformildsymptomsor
sicknessesandusingwesternmedicationsformoreseriousconcerns.Forexample,the
villagerssaidtheywouldseekwesternhealthcareforanyseriousorfatalillness,inthis
caseacuteorchronic,suchasmalaria,denguefever,cancers,cardiovasculardisease,and
liverdisease.Incontrast,theparticipantsortheirfamilymemberspreferredtousehome
remediesforsimpleailmentssuchascolds,migraines,hairloss,andgastrointestinal
disturbances.Villagersagreedthatoccasionallyhomeremediescanbeunreliabledueto
thelackofconsistencyindurationanddosage.Forsomepeople,aremedymayneedtobe
continuedlongerortakenmorefrequentlythanforothers.Thus,westernmedicineis
64
deemedmorereliableandgivenpriorityformoresevereillnesses.Therewereseveral
exceptions,however,whenvillagershadoptedtouselocalremediesforchronicorsevere
ailments.Forexample,afewvillagershadtakenanherbalhomeremedypreparedwith
tulsileavestotreatTyphoid(seeAppendix5).Somevillagershadmentionedusinghome
remediestotreatandpossiblycurediabetes(seeAppendix5),astheyhadheardandknew
ofsuccessstoriesfromothers.Anotherfactorthatinfluencedthevillagers’choiceof
treatmentwasaccesstotransportation.Someparticipantsmentionedthatitiseasiertouse
homeremediesforacuteandmildailmentsbecausetransportationisoftenanissuefor
them.Someofthemdonothaveenoughmoneytoowncarsandtheyhavetowalkthree
kilometerstothenearestbusstoportheymustaskforaridefromneighborsinorderto
visitahospitalorlicensedphysician.Itisalsoimportanttonotethattheyounger
participants(ages18-22)didnotactivelychoosetousethehomeremedies,rathertheir
mothersorgrandmotherspreparedtheherbalremediesandgavethemtothese
participants.Duringmystudy,Ididnotfurtherexaminetheissuesoftransportationand
accessibilitytoahealthcarefacility;however,thequestionariseswhetherornotlackof
transportationplaysasignificantroleintheuseofwesternmedicineversusfolkmedicine.
Thisshouldbefurtherresearched.
Withinthecategoryofage,twodistinctperspectiveswereobservedbetweenthe
youngversustheelderly.Participantsfromtheagesof18to28yearssaidtheyhadbeen
exposedtoherbalremedieswithintheirhouseholds,buttheyhadneverpreparedthem,
andtheyhadlearnedlittletononeethnobotanicalknowledgefromtheirelders.Theytold
methatitwastheirmothersandgrandmothersthatpreparedandgavethemtheherbal
therapies.Theyoungparticipantsalsoexpressedastrongpreferenceforwesternmedicine,
65
astheybelievedittobemoreeffective.Awoman,age45describedtheattitudeofher
daughtertowardsherbalremedies,“Iusedtoprepareafacialmaskformydaughtermade
fromgrahamflour,milk,and“karaati”forheracne.Sheappliediteverynightandletitsit
for10minutesandthenshewashedherface.Butshedoesn’tdoitanymore.Shedoesn’t
listentome.Shesaysit’snotworkingandittakestoomuchtime,butIsawadifference,her
skinwassoniceandsoft.Shejustdoesn’tlisten”(translatedfromPunjabi).WhenIasked
an18-year-oldmanabouthisuseandpreferenceforeithertypeofmedicine,hejokingly
responded,“TheonlyhomeremedyIuseishomebrewedalcohol”(translatedfrom
Punjabi).Hewentontoexplainthatalthoughhismothersometimesmakesherbal
remediesathome,heisreluctanttousetheherbalremediesbecauseheconsidersthemto
be“useless”andawasteoftime.Wheneverheisfeelingmalaise,hesimplyvisitsthevillage
doctortogetwesternmedicationtorelievehissymptoms.Thereluctancetousefolk
remediesamongtheyoungercrowdissimilartothefindingsofKatewaetal.(2004),who
suggestyoungergenerationshaveatendencytodivergefromtraditionallifestylesdueto
modernization.Theelderlyparticipantssaidthattheyusedherbalremediesfrequentlyas
kids.Thereasonforthiswasoftenexplainedinsimilartermsasinthisstatementfroma
80-year-oldwoman:“Westernmedicinewasnotwidelyavailableand[herbalremedies]
wasthecommonformofmedicineinmosthouseholds”.Now,however,theelderlyhave
switchedusetowesternmedication.WhenIaskedtheelderlyparticipantswhytheyrely
onwesternmedicationmoreoftenthanhomeremedies,onewomananswered,“Thatis
justwhatweusenow.Thatiswhateveryoneusesnow.We[theelderly]justtake
whicheverpillsthedoctortellsustotakeorwhateverourchildrenbringbackfrom[the
villagedoctor]”(translatedfromPunjabi,nameofdoctorisomittedandreplacedwith‘the
66
villagedoctor’toprovideconfidentiality).ItbecameapparentfromtheconversationsIhad
withtheelderlyvillagersthatwesternmedicinewasthestandard,andthegeneral
expectationwasthatitshouldprovidefastandeffectivetreatmentbecauseitis“advanced”
andusesnewtechnology.WithsimilarfindingsinstudiesconductedbyPironetal.(2000)
andGould(Landy,1974),theshifttowardsbiomedicinecanpartiallybeexplainedbythe
phenomenaof“folkpragmatism”and“pragmaticacculturation.”Folkpragmatismand
pragmaticacculturationaredefinedastheprocessbywhichlocalpopulationsadopt
characteristicsofnon-nativeculturesduetopracticalbenefitsoruses.InSingaporeand
Sherapur,India,theadoptionofwesternmedicinewasduetothetechnologyassociated
withit,whichwasabsentfromTraditionalChineseMedicine(TCM)andlocalfolkpractices
(Pironetal.,2000;Landy,1974).SomeseniorcitizensinAdhialsoexpressedthatitis
relativelyeasiertotakewesternpillsbecausetheycomepre-packagedanddonotrequire
anypreparation,furtherprovidingsupportforthepossibilityofpragmaticacculturation
occurringbasedonperceivedpracticalityofbiomedicine.Apartfromthecontrastingviews
betweentheyouthandtheelderly,thegeneraltrendwasstillpresent:Westernmedicineis
usedmorefrequently,regardlessofstatedpreference.
Analysisofqualitativedatabasedongenderprovidedseveralnewinsightsonthe
practiceofandperspectivesaboutindigenousmedicine.Bothmalesandfemalessharedthe
sameviewpoint.Themaleparticipantsarticulatedthebeliefthatethnobotanical
knowledgeandmorespecificallythepreparationoftherapiesarereservedtothewomen
only.Theysaidtheyhavelittleornoexperiencewithpreparingthem.Itistheirmothers
andwivesthatmakeandgivethemtheremedies.Thefemalesexpressedsimilarviews.
TherewereseveralinstanceswhenIaskedfemaleparticipantsiftheirhusbands,sons,or
67
fatherswerehomeoravailabletoparticipateinthestudyandtheyrepliedchucklingand
sayingthatmenknownothingaboutherbalmedicineandthattheyhaveneverstepped
footinthekitchenormadeanythingforthemselves.Theymadeitclearthatsuchactivities
fallundertheresponsibilitiesofwomen.Thisisaresultofthecommonlyacceptedgender
rolesinsociety.Iencounteredmanyelderlymaleswhowerefamiliarwiththeingredients,
formulas,andpreparationofremedies;however,theyhadneveractuallypreparedthe
treatmentsthemselvesbecausebothmenandwomenbelievethatfemalesareresponsible
fordomesticresponsibilities(i.e.preparingfoodorhomeremedies).Althoughgenderroles
stillexistandhavepreventedmenfrommakingthetreatmentsthemselves,manystill
possessedtheknowledgeofhowtopreparethem,andthereforemalesstillneedtobe
includedinthisstudy.Furthermore,genderrolesdonotautomaticallyimplythatonly
femalesinruralIndiawilldemonstrateanduseethnobotanicalknowledge.Infact,inthe
studyconductedbyPanghaletal.(2010),bytradition,onlythemalesintheSaperas
communityofasmallvillageinthestateofHaryanawereallowedtopracticeandpasson
knowledgeofherbalremedies.Theformulaswerekeptsecretwithinfamiliesandonly
passedonfromfathertoson.
Theinformalinterviewswiththe27participantsrevealedacharacteristicgender
differenceinpossessionanduseofethnobotanicalknowledgeinAdhi.Thisqualitative
informationsupportsthequantitativedatathatrevealedaslightlyhigheraverageforthe
possessionofethnobotanicalknowledgeamongfemales,butthequalitativedatahavea
muchstrongergenderdifference.Inotherwords,theperceivedgenderdifferencemaybe
largerthantheactualgenderdifferenceinknowledgeaboutethnobotanicalremedies.
68
Severalspecialcaseswerealsoobservedinwhichbothageandgenderwere
commonfactors:youngmaleparticipantsandelderlyfemaleparticipants.Through
conversationtheyoungmalessharedthefactthattheyhadnofamiliaritywithknowledge
ofherbalremedies.Theonlyexposuretheyhadeverhadtolocalmedicinecamefrom
remediestheirmothersorgrandmothershadadministeredtothem,forwhichtheycould
notrecallwhatingredientswereused.Andunlikeanyothercombinationofagegroupand
gender,theyoungmenexhibitedasenseofreluctanceinusinghomeremedies.Theyfelt
morecomfortabletakingwesternmedicationsandbelievedthemtobemoreeffective.The
specialcaseofelderlywomenrevealedthatbasedonperceivedefficacyoftreatments,
therewasalackofpreferenceforeithermedicine.Forthesewomen,thechoicetouse
westernmedicationsmorefrequentlyratherstemmedfromanefficiencyfactor.They
choosetotakewesterntreatmentsbecauseoftheconvenienceofingestingpre-packaged
pillsasopposedtopreparingremediesathome.Oneelderlyfemaleremarked,“Ihave
diabetes.Thereareseveralherbaltreatmentsforit,likecrushingJamunseedsandmaking
apowderoutofthem.Thenmixingthepowderintowateranddrinkingit.ButIjusttake
westernpillseverydaytotreatmydiabetes.Itiseasier,thereisnopreparationrequiredto
keepmybloodsugarlevelmaintained”(translatedfromPunjabi).Thepreparationof
variousremediescanbetimeconsuming,requiringmanysteps(i.e.boiling,drying,
soaking)andingredients.Similaropinionswereexpressedbyparticipantsinastudyof
perceptionsofTraditionalChineseMedicine(TCM)inHongKong(Lam,2001).Lam(2001)
observedthatmanyHongKongresidentspreferredtotakewesternmedicationasopposed
toTCMtreatments;theyfeltinconveniencedbythetimeitwouldrequiretoprepare
traditionaltreatments.FortheyoungmalesinAdhi,astrongpreferenceforwestern
69
medicinewasobservedcenteredontheirassessmentofperceivedeffectiveness,whilea
lackofpreferenceexistedamongtheelderlywomen;theydidnotbelieveonetypeof
medicinetobemoreeffectivethantheother,rathertheyestablishedtheirchoiceof
treatmentoneffortandtimeefficiency.
Basedontheviewpointsdrawnfromthegeneralpopulation,theelderlyandthe
youth,andmalesandfemales,thereissupportiveevidenceofthediminishinguseof
ethnobotanicalremedies.Theinformalinterviewsrevealedwesternmedicinetobemore
frequentlyusedbyparticipants.Allparticipantsviewitasthestandardinmedicine,
especiallyforchronicorsevereillnesses,andfindwesterntreatmentstobemore
convenientthanfolkmedicine.Theyoungergenerationslackknowledgeofandfamiliarity
withpreparationoftheremediesandtheyoungmalesbelievewesternmedicationstobe
moreeffectivethanhomeremedies.Theelderlypopulationhasbeenexposedtobothforms
ofmedicine;however,theydonotbelieveonetobesignificantlybetterthantheother.The
elderlywomenspecifically,maketheirchoicebasedontheconvenienceoftakingwestern
pills.Bothgendersbelieveitistheresponsibilityoffemalestopracticeandpreparelocal
herbaltreatments,reinforcingthegenderrolesofmenandwomeninthevillage.
Additionally,thereseemstobealesseninginthepassingdownofethnobotanical
knowledge.Thisisalarmingduetothefactthatyoungergenerationsareincreasingly
losingtheoptiontopracticeandpreparehomeremedies.Theagencyofthevillagermay
thereforebecomecompromisedandjeopardizedwitheachsuccessivegeneration.The
abilitytochoosewhichtreatmentstouseisvanishingamongtheyoungergenerations
becausetheyarenotbeingtaughttheknowledgeand/orpreparationoffolkremedies.
70
Thequalitativedataservetoprovideinformationonthepreferenceofpracticing
folkmedicineversusthepreferencefortheuseofwesternmedicine.Itdoesnotprovide
properevidencefortheamountofethnobotanicalknowledgepresentamongparticipants
whendividedintoagecohortsandgendercategories.However,thequalitativedatacanbe
usedtosupportthequantitativetrenddemonstratingadecreaseinpossessionof
ethnobotanicalknowledge.
Conclusion
Forcenturiesnow,information,people,andtechnologyhavebeenflowingaround
theglobe,spreadingandexpandingoutwardsfromculturalhearths.Asdiscussedby
MadhuriSharma(2012),westernmedicinespreadtootherregionsoftheworldasaresult
ofcolonialismandwasintroducedtoIndiabytheBritishinthe19thCentury.Accordingto
FrantzFanoncolonialismhasimpactedthewayinwhichcolonizedpeople—andtheir
descendants—viewthemselves.Colonialpowerscreatedaninferioritycomplexinthe
mindsofthelocalpopulationleavingalastingimpactofadistortedviewofthewestas
moreadvanced,intellectuallysuperior,andthestandardmodeltofollowonthepathto
development.AlthoughFanon’sworkinspiredmetoexplorethepresenceofwestern
ideologyandinstitutionsinmoderndayIndia,Idiscoveredthatthe“colonizationofthe
mind”phenomenoncouldnotbeappliedtothehybridizedpracticeofmedicineinrural
Punjabandmydatadonotsupporthistheory.Ratherthanthevillagersbeingvictimsof
colonizationandhavinglimitedagencyasaresult,Ifoundthatthevillagersindeedhave
agencyandtheabilitytomakedecisionsforthemselvesregardinghealthcare.Theissueis
ratherthatfuturegenerationsmayhavefeweroptionsfromwhichtochoose.
71
Ihypothesizedthatduetotheincreasedflowandavailabilityofmedical
information,technology,andinfrastructuretotheruralpopulationsofIndiaunderthe
contextofhybridizationofglobalcultures,thereisadeclineintheuseandpossessionof
ethnobotanicalknowledgeinthevillageofAdhiinPunjab.MyresearchinAdhiservedto
validatemyhypothesisandfurthermoreexplorepossibleexplanationsforthe
westernizationofhealthcareinruralPunjab.Usingquantitativeandqualitativemethods,I
haveconfirmedadownwardtrendintheamountofknowledgeofherbalfolkmedicine
demonstratedbyeachsuccessivegenerationofvillagersinAdhi,aswellasadeclineinthe
practiceandpreparationoffolkremedies.Thereisasignificantcorrelationbetween
amountofethnobotanicalknowledgedemonstratedandtheageofparticipants,onceagain
suggestingdiminisheduseandknowledgeacrossgenerations.ThequalitativedataI
collectedfrominformalinterviewswithparticipantsalsosupportsthisconclusion;the
perception,preference,anduseofwesternmedicineisgenerallyhigherthanthatofherbal
homeremedies,notablyamongtheyoungerpopulation,whiletheelderlypopulation
showednostatedpreferenceforeitherbasedonefficacy.Theystillusedbiomedicinemore
frequentlythanhomeremedies,becausebiomedicinewasoftenseenasmoreefficient.
Otherfactorsthatmayaffectthepossessionandretentionofethnobotanicalknowledge
includegenderandincome;however,thereisnostatisticallysignificantevidenceto
supportcausalrelationships.Theexistinggenderroles,however,reinforcethepatternof
greaterdemonstrationofknowledgeoffolkmedicineamongfemales.
Althoughtheresultsofmycasestudycannotbegeneralizedtothetotalpopulation
ofthevillageofAdhi,thestateofPunjabortheentirenationofIndia,theresearchIhave
conductedinAdhicanprovideafoundationforfutureandsimilarstudiesregardingthe
72
declineinuseanddemonstrationoflocalmedicinalknowledgeinruralareasofIndiaand
otherdevelopingnations.Thedecreasedtraditionofpassingonethnobotanicalknowledge
andpreparinghomeremediesthatisoccurringinAdhimaybeoccurringelsewhere.
Traditionally,theremediesareorallypasseddownthroughgenerations;however,withthe
increasingshiftinpreferenceforandpracticeofwesternmedicine,thetransmissionof
knowledgeislessening.Ifthistrendcontinues,itcouldresultinthelossofPunjabi
ethnobotanicalknowledge.WhileIwasinPunjab,Idiscoveredthatherbalremedieshave
beendocumentedandbooks(inPunjabi)withtreatmentsforvariousillnessesand
conditionsareavailableinlargecities.Thesebooks,however,arenotsoldoutsideoflarge
citiesandareonlyusefultothosewhoareliterate,haveaccesstotransportation,andare
activelyseekingtolearnandprepareherbalremedies.Additionally,booksarenotalwaysa
reliablesourceforethnobotanicalknowledgebecausesomebooksonlylistingredients
necessaryforaremedy,butdonotprovideinstructionsonhowtopreparearemedyorthe
properproportionsandquantitiesofingredients.Henceitisimportanttocontinuepassing
onethnobotanicalknowledge,asitisfundamentaltotheactualpracticeoflocalmedicine.
Elementsofauthenticitymaybegintolackandremediesmaynotbepreparedcorrectly;
learningandusingethnobotanicalknowledgeandhomeremediesexperientiallyand
firsthandreducestheserisks.Bycommittingittomemory,peoplearemorelikelyto
continuetheuseofhomeremediesinthefutureandforgenerationstocome,thereby
maintainingasenseofindependenceandautonomyoverhealthcare,insteadofcreatinga
relianceonbiomedicineandwesternhealthcareconsultants.Aslongastheknowledge
continuestocirculateandpassdowngenerations,villagershavetheoptiontoacceptand
rejectaspectsofbothformsofmedicineattheirownwill.Butwithadeclineinthepassing
73
downofethnobotanicalknowledge,youngergenerationsarelosingthechoiceoffolk
remediesasaviableandlegitimateformofmedicine.Usefulknowledgeforhumanityis
beinglostinthisprocess;thus,Ibelieveitisessentialthattheoraltraditionoflearningand
passingonethnobotanicalknowledgeiskeptaliveinruralPunjab.
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Appendix1
InformalInterviewGuide:
• Haveyoueverusedherbalorhomeremediestotreatorcureanillness?
o Fromwhereorwhomdidyoulearnabouttheseremedies?
• Haveyoueverseenawesterndoctorortakenprescriptionmedicationtotreator
cureanillness?
• Doyouhaveapreferenceforeitherherbalremediesorwesternmedicine?
o Why?/Whynot?
o Doyouuseonetypeofmedicinemorethantheother?
o Aretheresituationsforwhichyoubelieveonewillbemoreeffectivethanthe
other?Ifso,pleaseelaborate.
• Whatareyourthoughtsaboutherbalmedicinewithregardstoeffectiveness,short-
termtreatment,long-termtreatment,mildillnesses,andsevereillnesses?
• Whatareyourthoughtsaboutwesternmedicinewithregardstoeffectiveness,
short-termtreatment,long-termtreatment,mildillnesses,andsevereillnesses?
77
Appendix2
FormalPrimarySurvey(inbothEnglishandPunjabi):
SurveyNo._________
1. Whatisyourgender?
☐ Male ☐ Female
2. Whatisyourage?________
3. Doyouknowhowtoreadand/orwriteinthefollowinglanguages?
Punjabi ☐ ReadOnly ☐ WriteOnly ☐ Both
Hindi ☐ ReadOnly ☐ WriteOnly ☐ Both
English ☐ ReadOnly ☐ WriteOnly ☐ Both
4. Whatisthehighestlevelofschoolingyouhavecompleted?
___________________________________________________________________
5. Ifyouattendedschool,whattypeofschoolwasit?
☐ EnglishMedium
☐ HindiMedium
☐ PunjabiMedium
6. Whatisyouroccupation?
___________________________________________________________________
7. Whatisyourapproximateyearlyincomeorsalary?
___________________________________________________________________
78
8. Howcloseisthenearesthealthcarefacilitytoyou?
___________________________________________________________________
9. Howdoyouratetheeffectivenessofherbalmedicineorhomeremediesvs.western
medicineandprescribedmedication?
HerbalMedicine WesternMedicine
☐ Excellent ☐ Excellent
☐ Good ☐ Good
☐ Average ☐ Average
☐ Poor ☐ Poor
☐ VeryPoor ☐ VeryPoor
10. Canyoulistalltheusefulplants,herbs,andspicesyouknowandwhattheyareused
for?
83
Appendix5
Listofcommonplants,roots,spices,extracts,andmineralsusedinPunjabiethnobotanical
remediesandtheiruses:
Plant,Root,Spice,Extract,
Mineral(Punjabi)
Plant,Root,Spice,Extract,
Mineral(English)
UsedFor
Adarak Ginger Cough,Sorethroat,
Phlegm/mucusbuildup
Ajvain Caraway Digestion
Auleh IndianGooseberry,
Phyllanthusemblica
Digestion
BorhdaDudh MilkofBanyanTreeLeaves Coldsymptoms,Blemishes
anddarkspotsonface
BhuriyanMirchan(pees
keh)
BrownPeppers(ground) Styeoneyelid
ChotiLachi GreenCardamom Digestion
GaramMasala Blendofgroundspices
including-black
peppercorn,mace,
cinnamon,cloves,brown
cardamom,green
cardamom,cumin,nutmeg,
andbayleaves
Hypotension
84
Ghayo ClarifiedButter Preventscold(ifappliedin
nostrilsregularly)
Haldi Turmeric(powder) Bruises,Pain
Jaffal(pateh) NutmegTree(leaves) Constipation
Jamun(gitak) JavaPlum(pit) Hyperglycemia
Kalaunji NigellaSeeds Knee(joint)pain/stiffness
KalaLoon PinkSalt Digestion
KaliJeeri Cumin Hyperglycemia
KhasKhas PoppySeeds Hyperglycemia
Laung Cloves Toothache
Malatthi Liquorice Cough,Cold
Nimbu Lemon Hypertension
Phatkari Alum Toothache,Bruises
SarondaTehl MustardOil Aches,Bruises,Jointpain
Saunf FennelSeeds Digestion
SayiKarela BabyBitterGourd Hyperglycemia
Seviyan(garam) Vermicelli(warmed) Cold,Sorethroat
Shaihd Honey Cough,Sorethroat,
Phlegm/mucusbuildup
Sindoor VermillionPowder Styeoneyelid
Sund DriedGingerPowder Digestion
Tulsi HolyBasil Typhoid,Fever