Literacies, Masculinities and Agency Among Adult Male Literacy Learners: An Ethnographic Study in Afghanistan

Maleki, Mohammad Naeim (2026) Literacies, Masculinities and Agency Among Adult Male Literacy Learners: An Ethnographic Study in Afghanistan. Doctoral thesis, University of East Anglia.

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Abstract

Decades of conflict, regime change, economic hardship and the deliberate exclusion of girls from education prior to 2001 have significantly shaped the landscape of education in Afghanistan, with policies between 2001-2021 prioritising women and girls in literacy research and policymaking. This has meant the absence of literacy and learning spaces for men who also struggle with low literacy. In this context, male learners must navigate feminised literacy programmes while reconstructing their masculine identities in response.

This ethnographic study draws on classroom observations, workplace visits, interviews and informal discussions to examine which literacy practices are valued by adult male literacy learners and how these shape their identities, masculinities and agency across the domains of work, home, religion and classroom. The analysis is informed by an ideological perspective of literacy, Connell’s theory of masculinities, Kabeer’s conceptualisation of agency and Lukes’ dimensions of power.

Findings show that men value and strategically use a range of informal literacy practices, including religious and digital literacy practices, numeracy, calligraphy and good handwriting, as tools and resources to assert hegemonic masculinity and gain respect in their communities. Masculinity is performed through patterns such as provider, breadwinner, physically strong worker, generous carer and ‘jack of all trades.’ Identities such as ‘religious leader’, ‘elderly man’ and ‘educated man’ serve as markers of status and authority. However, within the classroom, these men often face infantilisation and deficit perspectives that undermine their established roles, producing tensions between their self-perception and their treatment as adult learners.

The thesis demonstrates that agency is exercised not only through overt decision-making but also in everyday acts of negotiation, resistance and adaptation, both within and beyond formal learning spaces. Male learners influence curricula, challenge facilitators and shape classroom rules, while also managing family and work decisions with moral and practical reasoning. The interplay of literacy, masculinity and agency reveals that men’s experiences of learning are neither uniform nor unidirectional, but are shaped by ongoing negotiation of power, status and cultural expectations. This study underscores the need to recognise men’s perspectives and informal practices in literacy education policy and theory, particularly in contexts marked by political instability and social transformation.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Social Sciences > School of Education and Lifelong Learning
Depositing User:	Chris White
Date Deposited:	20 Jul 2026 08:45
Last Modified:	20 Jul 2026 08:45
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/103919
DOI:

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