“It shows the Ubuntu that our community members have”: Using PhotoVoice to conceptualise a ‘good’ life with adults in Mahikeng, rural South Africa

“It shows the Ubuntu that our community members have”: Using PhotoVoice to conceptualise a ‘good’ life with adults in Mahikeng, rural South Africa | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article “It shows the Ubuntu that our community members have”: Using PhotoVoice to conceptualise a ‘good’ life with adults in Mahikeng, rural South Africa Gerard Joseph Abou Jaoude, Liesel Ebersöhn, Qing Gu, Patrick Callaghan, and 7 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7931454/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The capabilities approach, which defines a ‘good life’ as one where people are able to be and do what they value, has been widely used to inform multilateral and government policy globally. However, most capabilities studies have been carried out in high-income, urban settings. To explore the extent to which context and culture can affect perceptions of capabilities, we worked with adults in rural Mahikeng, South Africa. Participatory photography and group discussions were used to conceptualise a locally relevant ‘good life’. While our results largely support previous capability lists and measures we found that, in this context, personal capability cannot be considered in the absence of collective agency and responsibility, nor without access to nature and a healthy natural environment. This supports calls to incorporate collective and environmental values into capability measures to better align with Ubuntu values in African philosophy, such as interconnectedness and community, reflect the intrinsic value of environmental wellbeing, and address notions of intergenerational justice which are dependent on the environment and collective action. Earth and environmental sciences/Environmental social sciences Social science/Environmental studies Scientific community and society/Geography Social science/Geography Capability approach participatory research Photovoice communal wellbeing Ubuntu environmental wellbeing Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviews received at journal 16 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 26 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 23 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 23 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 21 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 21 Apr, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 21 Apr, 2026 Editor invited by journal 07 Apr, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 25 Nov, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 06 Nov, 2025 First submitted to journal 06 Nov, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7931454","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":629739136,"identity":"9696496a-6d6b-4e7f-b25e-683208e669c4","order_by":0,"name":"Gerard Joseph Abou 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