Culture and social environment

Just like any other African community, Kikuyu people follow tradition strictly, as they believe that when a person abandons the tradition and adopts that of the other community, they become a slave. Traditions are applied in everything that happens in the society. The tradition defines how people conduct certain activities. Since the community does not have any constitution, the traditions are used to judge someone or follow a specific way of conduct (LaRue, 2016). For example, when a young man feels that he is ready to marry, he could go to his father’s room called Thingira and inform him. The young man would mention the lady he has identified, and the father goes to consult the witch doctor. The marriage proposal is not discussed openly to avoid misfortunes in the whole process. Therefore, Kikuyu community strictly follows the traditions.

The culture of Kikuyu greatly differs from the Nigerian Yoruba in terms of the traditional religious beliefs. Whereas the Kikuyu community believes in one God, the Nigerian Yoruba people have several gods For instance, there is Ogun, Shango, and Esu. On the other hand, the Kikuyu trusted in one God called Ngai. He created Gikuyu, a man, and a woman called Mumbi, which means the potter. After God created Gikuyu and Mumbi, He placed them at place called Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga, and later, they had nine daughters who gave birth to children, as the family became bigger to be known as Kikuyu.

Prior to the interview, the interviewer knew that the Kikuyu community comprises industrious people. The researcher had learned from several people from Kenya who always argued that the Kikuyu community has hardworking people, and that is why they have businesses in all parts of the world. Apart from that, the researcher had some information that men from this ethnic community are prone to husband battering. Mr. Kinyua happened to be a client to the researcher. He had explained how he was finding it difficult to live with his wife, especially when he was broke. He had asked for assistance in marital matters that were personal. In this case, it was hard for the interviewer to navigate on some cultural issues, such as husband battering in the Kikuyu cultures. The client would be uncomfortable to reveal the truth, while the researcher was comfortable interviewing Kinyua since he was a close friend and neighbor. The two had shared a lot of social issues in the past. Therefore, it was fine to ask him questions about his culture. However, there were questions that made the interviewee uncomfortable owing to their nature. For instance, the questions on wife battering in the Kikuyu community seemed hard considering the fact that Kinyua was a client and belonged to this society.

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Through the research, the interviewer gained new insights about the culture of the Kinyua. Despite the many miles that Kinyua and his family had traveled, they still valued their traditions. Such people were industrious since it was wrong for a Kikuyu man to beg for assistance. Prior to the interview, the researcher did not know that traditionally, the Kikuyu community was matriarchal. As Mr. Kinyua argued, there was a legendary woman known as Wangu wa Makeri who used to oppress men. Men fought hard to make the society patriarchal. Therefore, they work day and night to ensure that women do not rule them anymore. In this case, the researcher gained new insights about some positive outcomes of an oppressive culture. The Kikuyu society is the most hardworking in East Africa since man must work extra hard to remain a head in their homes. The males do not want to have the power reversed, as it used to be in the past.

Social work theories try to explain behavior of human beings on the social level. One of the famous social work theories is Erickson’s psychosocial theory. One thing from the Kikuyu culture can be applied in social work theory, namely the reaction the men had to their social environment. The men were exposed to inferiority qualities, which forced them to start working so hard to defeat the women. Something that a person should take as challenge is about abandoning their own culture since he/she becomes a slave of the other culture he adopted. The Kikuyu men have been successful since they work together towards achieving their goals. The males trust in hard work as the only way to help them remain a patriarchal society.

In summary, it is clear from the interview that Kikuyu community belongs to a major group of Bantus, and they settled in area around Mount Kenya. Such people believe in one God who created their ancestor Gikuyu and Mumbi and gave them land at a place called Mukurwe wa Nyagathanga. Kikuyu uphold and value their culture, which defined their conduct in their day-to-day activities. The elders were the custodian of tradition, and they pass the roles from one generation to the other. The interview assisted the researcher learn a lot about the cultures of the Kikuyu community. It also helped him understand the practicability of Erickson’s psychosocial theory.