Context and Nature of the Research
Violent attacks by the terrorist group Boko Haram have resulted in millions of human displacements to northeastern Nigeria. However, these displacements have not only taken place in the region, but Cameroon, Chad and Niger have become both transit and host countries for displaced Nigerians.
Research indicates that, as a result of the terrorist attacks, 3.7 million people have been displaced, of which 2.7 million are internally displaced in northeastern Nigeria (ACNUR, 2020).
Figure 1.
Displacement due to terrorist attacks in Nigeria
Given the need for intervention, this project is located in Northeastern Nigeria, specifically in Borno State. Borno State is characterized by the number of internally displaced persons that it hosts, in fact, it is estimated that since the beginning of the armed conflict, 2 million people have been displaced within Borno State (Médicos Sin Fronteras, 2017). The displacement of people has motivated the articulation of various refugee camps. In this case, the intervention will take place in the refugee camps located in the capital of Borno State, Maiduguri. There are currently 109 IDP camps in Maiduguri, which host more than 300,000 people.
Maiduguri is an ancient city built in 1907 as a military outpost by the British. Maiduguri is home to a diversity of ethnic groups, including the Bura, Fulani, Kanuri, Marghi and Shuwa, mostly Muslim, but with a large Christian population. The region was home to the Kanem-Borno Empire for centuries and is the main commercial center of northeastern Nigeria. The economy is largely agrarian, with 80% of the population depending on agriculture for their livelihood, growing both food and cash crops. Some of the main crops include soybeans, cotton, peanuts, rice, sesame, cashew, cassava, sweet potatoes, corn, wheat, guinea corn, millet, mangoes, gum Arabic, oranges, watermelons, and vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers and onions (Awodola & Oboshi, 2015).
Boko Haram was born in Maiduguri in 2002 and has since committed several terrorist attacks in the city, bombing schools, markets, mosques, police stations and barracks. As a result, the city is characterized by insecurity and daily fear faced by civilians. In 2014, the army drove Boko Haram out of Maiduguri, and they have since barricaded themselves in Sambisa Forest. However, they continue to threaten the city from there (Lopez, 2020).
Regarding the nature of research, it should be clarified that research is defined as a process of seeking information in order to learn about reality. This process is made up of a set of phases: the formulation and definition of problems, the formulation of hypotheses, the collection, systematization and elaboration of data, the formulation of deductions and general propositions and, finally, the analysis of the results or conclusions to observe whether or not the hypotheses formulated are confirmed and fit within the theoretical framework from which they were drawn (Ander-Egg et Aguilar, 1995). However, this does not mean that the phases cannot overlap.
To address the various stages of the research process, it is important to mention theory, hypotheses or research questions, data collection and generalizations.
Theory, in the words of Merton (1983), quoted by Parelló (2011), is “a group of logically interconnected propositions, from which empirical uniformities can be deduced.” In other words, the theory is the one that allows the deduction of subsequent hypotheses.
There are various definitions of hypotheses. In the words of Cea D'Ancona (1996), these “represent predictions or probable answers to the questions that the researcher -or the researcher- formulates, given previous knowledge, for empirical testing.”. In other words, they are the questions posed by the researcher based on a theory. In the case of the present investigation, a series of research questions will be formulated that aim to be answered through the analysis of the results extracted after the application of a qualitative data collection instrument to a selected sample.
Data collection is the process of grounding knowledge in reality. However, there are theories that argue that this process is influenced by the researcher. As García Fernando mentions, “data are neither collected nor produced, they are constructed from conveniently operationalized theoretical concepts” (García, 1986, p. 115). Finally, empirical generalizations or hypothesis testing is the process where hypotheses are confronted with theory.
With respect to the predominant paradigm in this research, there are currently four different paradigms: quantitative or positivist, qualitative or interpretative, sociocritical and complementary or mixed (Ticona et al. 2020). The research carried out, due to the social reality from which we start, the problematic object of study in the investigation and the objectives to be achieved, frames our research within the interpretive paradigm, with a clearly qualitative approach and using action research as a methodology to achieve our goals.
The backbone of the interpretive paradigm in the present project are the research questions formulated and the objectives established, which, after the analysis of the results obtained, will provide the necessary information to formulate a socioeducational intervention proposal, which is the ultimate goal of the present work. Thus, in the words of Úcar (2018) socioeducational intervention is a professional action developed by social educators, within the framework of a situation or a sociocultural problem, with the intention of generating scenarios that help the participating individuals, groups, or communities to empower themselves; that is, to equip themselves with the necessary learning and resources to improve their situation in the world.