25
perceptions of full-time versus part-time residents. Information was gathered regarding the number of days per month that respondents reside in Mahahual. The
average number of days per month that respondents live in Mahahual is 27. However, this average is high because many cooperative members typically part-time residents
were either not present or busy with preparations and unavailable to interview.
6.4 Material Style of Life
According to Pollnac et al. 1997, Material Style of Life MSL can be an indicator of relative wealth or social status in a community. MSL is a method of
measuring wealth based on the presence or absence of household possessions. To determine culturally appropriate indicators of wealth, key informants were asked to
describe the house of a rich person and the house of a poor person. A list of 24 items was developed including items such as a television, VCR, satellite antenna, gas stove,
wood stove, electrical generator, vehicle, type of bathroom septic system or pit latrine and the type of walls, roof, and floor. Table 6.2 shows a distribution of these
items within the community.
Table 6.2. Distribution of Material Wealth Material Possessions Distribution
Material Possessions Distribution
Walls Sanitary Facilities
Cement 13
Septic System 48
Wood 51
Pit Latrine 34
WoodCement 11
No Sewage 17
Carton 19
Miscellaneous
Other 6
Generator 14
Floors
Antenna 8
Cement 54
TV 19
Sand 35
Stereo 8
CementSand 8
VCR 8
Roofs Gas Stove
73 Cement
3 Wood Stove inside
8 Zinc
5 Wood Stove outside
21 Thatch
16 Second House
43 Carton
76
To provide a clear picture of the distribution of material wealth within the community, a scale can be constructed based on the interrelationship between these
items Pollnac et al., 1997. These items were factor analyzed using the principal component method and varimax rotation, resulting in two material style of wealth
factors that explained 45 of the variance table 6.3. Factor 1 explained 24 of the variance and factor 2 explained 21. Nine items did not have significant loading on
either factor and were discarded from the analysis.
Table 6.3.Principal component analysis of material style of life Item
Factor 1 Factor 2
Item Factor 1
Factor 2
TV .823
.097 Septic System
.355 .702
26 VCR
.764
.215 Gas Stove
.223
.688
Antenna
.743
-.023 Second House
.188
.639
Cement Floor .677
.411 Latrine
-.079 -.611
Sand Floor
-.617
-.225 Wood Stove
-.102
-.572
Generator .521
.395 Vehicle
-.202 .494
Cement Walls
.467
.350 Carton Walls
-.328
-.442
No Sewage
-.371
-.162 bold denotes high factor loading
As indicated by table 6.3, the items that have the highest positive loading on the first component are TVs, VCRs, satellite antennas, cement floors, generators, and
cement walls. Items with high negative loading on the first factor include sand floors, and the lack of sewage facilities. Thus, factor one subsequently called “wealth factor
one” is comprised of accessories and floor structure.
Items with high positive loading on the second factor include septic systems, gas stoves, possession of a second house, and a vehicle. Items with high negative
loading on the second factor include latrines, wood stoves, and carton walls. The second factor subsequently called “wealth factor two” is comprised of household
structure, amenities, and luxury items.
The items on wealth factor one suggests that households with high loading on this factor are more settled in Mahahual. Items such as TVs, generators, VCRs, and
satellite antennas could be stolen if a watchful eye were not kept on the items. Wealth factor two indicates a different type of wealth than wealth factor one. Due to the high
positive loading of both a second house and vehicle, the second wealth factor represents a high degree of mobility. One would expect that a members of households
with a high wealth factor two loading come to the coast to engage in productive activities and have families in another location. However, since structural and
accessory items are present on both factors, distinctions between these two items are not clear cut. Thus, these wealth factors should be viewed in tandem rather than as
independent wealth indicators.
A score on the component scale is calculated for each household based on the presence or absence of items in their household. Pollnac 1997 states “the factor or
component scores are the sum of the component coefficient times the sample standardized value.” Thus, each item has a contribution to the factor score based on
its loading in table 6.3. Items with high positive loading have a stronger contribution than those with low or negative values. Factor one scores in the community range
from –1.049 to 3.053. Factor two scores range from -1.848 to 1.638. Scores are standardized, and have a mean of zero and a standard deviation of one.
6.5 Ethnicity and Religion
