PALESTINIAN SOCIETY - Fafo

mobility becomes clearerwhen the differentialeffects of education on
the refugee and non-refugee populations are examined (table 5.7).
As expected, UNRWA refugees are heavily over-represented in
the lowest wealth income category and even those with the highest
educational level remain somewhat over-represented in the lowest
category in relation to the general population. Except for those
refugees with no education, increased education seems to have only
limited impact on economic standing. The pattem for non-refugees is
of a different nature and there is a correlation between increasing
wealth and increasing education. While 58% of non-refugees with
advanced studies are in the highest income category, only 13% are in
the lowest. This correlation, however, should not be interpreted as a
straightforward causal relationship. Instead, the figures for both
refugees and non-refugees sugge st that the role of intact kinship
groups, and especially the links between these groups and property,
are more critical than education in deterrnining the household's
economic position. While refugees might retain large networks of
kinship relations, the connection between the se networks and property
was to a large extent severed in 1948.
These issues will be explored more fully in the chapters dealing
with household resources, employment and social stratification.
Education and Leisure
Another way of elucidating the impact of education is to exarnine the
relationship between education levels and the use ofleisure time. The
assumption is that the more varied and numerous leisure activities are,
the betterthe general quality oflife. The picture that emerges from the
survey data on leisure activities exarnined, by gender, is as shown in
table 5.8.
With regard to having hobbies, enjoying nature and, not surprisingly,
reading books, the pattem is the same. Education correlates with
increased activity and the net increase is statistically somewhatgreater
for men than for women. The same holds generally true for a wide
range of activities, such as taking educational courses, participation in
voluntary societies, sports and so forth. Increasedactivity forboth men
and women correlates with educational leve1, but participation differs
between men and women. In contrast to men, women's participation
in activities that take place outside the home remains more limited
regardless of education.
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