What Knowledge Emerges When Women Organize? Insights From Social Movement Learning

Social movement learning provides a lens for understanding how adults learn informally and collectively within social movements. The purpose of this study is to explore the types of knowledge co-created by participants of the Women’s Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and also to understand the modalities of knowledge transmission within the group in the Tamale Metropolis of Ghana. The study employed a qualitative multiple-case study design grounded in social constructivism. Data were collected from three standalone women’s VSLA SHGs through semi-structured face-to-face interviews with 40 selected participants. Interviews were conducted in Dagbani, translated into English, and analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s reflexive thematic analysis. Data from the three cases showed that women in the VSLA SHGs co-constructed various forms of knowledge, including health and Financial Literacy, transformative learning, parenting, investment and trade, sanitation, and cleanliness. The studies also showed that the modalities of knowledge transmission include interactive, unorganized learning and formal/organized learning. The Women’s VSLA SHGs serve as a significant site for formal and informal education, enabling the co-creation of knowledge that supports community wellbeing, a healthier environment, and behavioural changes.