A new World Bank Working Paper, Deciding Not to Decide: When Is There Power in Not Deciding? by Marya Hillesland, Cheryl R. Doss, Serena Masino, Martina Querejeta, Aletheia Amalia Donald, Greg Seymour, and Clare Clingain, challenges traditional ways of measuring empowerment. Drawing on unique mixed methods data with over 1,800 adults in rural Kenya, the study shows that focusing only on direct decision-making overlooks important expressions of agency.
The authors introduce the concept of effective power, which comes in two forms:
- By proxy: opting out of a decision because one trusts that their preferences will be respected, freeing time and energy for other priorities.
- Through influence or persuasion: shaping outcomes indirectly, often in response to norms or fears of backlash.
The results show that when not directly involved, men exerted effective power in 22% of decisions, compared to 13% for women. Household structure mattered: wives living with in-laws had less direct involvement but greater effective power, while wives in polygamous households had more direct involvement but less effective power. Young unmarried adults living with parents were least likely to be involved at all.
The takeaway is that traditional empowerment measures risk underestimating agency by failing to account for these indirect forms of power. The paper’s new blog post underscores this point, highlighting how “choosing not to decide,” reflecting others’ needs, and navigating complex household structures are all important dimensions of agency that should be better captured in surveys.
International Food Policy Research Institute