Gender Relations and Subjective Family Well-being Among Farmer Families: a Comparative Study Between Uplands and Lowlands Areas in West Java Province, Indonesia

The objectives of this study are described as follows: (1) To examine the conditions ofsocial, economic and demographic characteristics of poor farmer families who live atuplands and lowlands areas, (2) to describe the social-cultural and agroecosystemconditions of poor farmer families who live at uplands and lowlands areas, (3) Toexplain type of gender relations of poor farmer families who live at uplands andlowlands areas, and (4) to analyze factors that influenced subjective family well-beingof poor farmer families who live at uplands and lowlands areas. The chosen researchsites were Nanggung Sub-district, Bogor District as an upland area, and West TelukJambe Sub-district, Karawang District, West Java Province as a lowland area. The totalof 189 farmer families was used for this study (n= 90 in uplands district areas, and n=99 in lowlands district areas). It was found that the conditions of social-cultural andagroecosystem differ between upland and lowland areas. In general, both upland andlowland areas gender roles on farming activities, in terms of access and control toagricultural resources, were dominated by men. Family well-being was directlyinfluenced by higher education of husband and wife, indirectly influenced by lesseconomic pressure of the family, directly influenced by higher gender relations betweenhusband and wife, and directly influenced by less or higher external support. Thus,wealthy farmer families were the family that had educated husband and wife, lesseconomic pressures, equal gender relations and partnerships, and less or more receiveexternal supports. It is recommended that the next study should add variables of familycoping strategies related to family economic pressure and gender roles between husbandand wife