About

Peace Mamle Yoko Tetteh is the Head, Department of Sociology, University of Ghana. She is an Associate Professor of Sociology with specialization in Gender and Global Childhoods Studies. Her fortes also include Advanced Research Methods, Ethics, Social Policy Studies, Community Impact Assessments and Migration. Her research in childhoods studies has focused on early childhood development and education (ECDE), child labor (especially domestic labor), children’s rights, child sexual abuse, children’s play cultures, child marriage, child rights monitoring, innovative methods in childhoods research and constructions of childhoods in contemporary society. 

She is a passionate educator, researcher, and advocate for gender equality and social justice. With more than two decades of experience in academia, she has dedicated her career to shaping the next generation of scholars, mentoring thousands of students, and conducting meaningful research on gender, childhood studies, and social policy. Prof. Tetteh’s work explores the real-world challenges people face, from cumulative impact and sustainability assessments, inequalities in mining and oil and gas industries, to reproductive health, child rights, and migration. 

She is a Commonwealth Scholar, who has collaborated with leading researchers from the UK, USA, Germany, and Switzerland, producing impactful studies on children’s education, child protection, social policies, makerspaces and how childhood is shaped in different cultures. 

Beyond academia, she has worked closely with organizations such as UNICEF, PLAN International, and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), providing expert guidance on gender, social protection, and community development. She has also trained government agencies, including the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and various local government bodies, on child rights monitoring and social governance. She is a consistent facilitator at the office of Research, Innovation and Development (RID) periodic training on Ethics at the University of Ghana 

She holds several high-level advisory positions, including serving as the Ethics Advisor for the EU-AU Partnership’s StEPPFoS Project, and Chair of the Ethics Advisory Board for the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Modern Marronage Project. She is also a member of the Institutional Ethics Review Board at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR). 

Currently, she serves as a member of the Board of GOIL-PLC. She is the Chair of the Subsidiary Board of Go-Bitumen, a member of the Audit Committee, and the Risk and Compliance Committee of the GOIL-PLC Board. Prof. Tetteh is deeply committed to good governance and social accountability. As the former Presiding Member of the Lower Manya Krobo Municipal Assembly, she led efforts to strengthen oversight and transparency, chairing both the Audit Review Committee and the Complaints Committee. 

She is a dynamic speaker and thought leader who frequently shares her expertise at international conferences and media platforms, advocating for policies that protect children and other vulnerable groups to promote social justice.

Research Interest

Teaching

Over the last 20+ years at the University of Ghana, Prof. Tetteh has been actively engaged in teaching more than 15 courses at the undergraduate level and 5 at the postgraduate levels, employing innovative pedagogies based on her teaching philosophy. She has supervised 12 PhD and 10 MPhil candidates and 100+ undergraduate students. She has also examined more than a dozen PhD and MPhil theses from the Universities of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and the University of Cape Coast.

Research Interest

• Sociology of Childhoods
• Gender Studies
• Sexual and Reproductive Health
• Advanced Qualitative Research
• Ethics
• Public Policy

Grants/Awards (in the last 5 years)

• Nartey, P., Tetteh, P.M. (2025-2026). Key Stakeholder Consultations to inform the adaptation of an Economic Empowerment Intervention among Adolescent Girls in Ghana (Funded by the Brown School Global Programs Office, Washington University in St Louis. USA, $2500)
• Nabunya, P., Iwelunmor, J., Tetteh, P.M., Nartey, P. (2025-2026). Prevalence and Predictors of Sexual Risk Behaviors in Ghanaian Adolescent Girls-Insights from Mother-Daughter Perspectives (Funded by the Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Research, Washington University in St Louis- $50,000)
• Wells, K., Tetteh, P. M., Alber, Erdmute (2019-2023). Development and Education in the Vernacular for Infants in rural villages in West Africa. (Funded by the British Academy- 281,055 GBP)
• Twum-Danso, A., Tetteh, P.M., Oduro, G.Y (2019-2020). Searching for the everyday on African Childhoods. (Funded by the British Academy Global Challenges Research Fund- 10,000 GBP).

ONGOING RESEARCH/ WORKS IN PROGRESS (WIPs):

• Makerspaces: Children Learning in West Africa, (with Karen Wells & Erdmute Alber). Routledge: Spaces of Childhoods and Youth Services. This book draws on a two-year research project, Development Education in the Vernacular for Infants, and children in West Africa (DEVI: the Ewe word for child) to show how young children (up to ten years old) develop embodied knowledge of mathematical and scientific concepts through the observation of proficient others and collaborating with other children and adults in the making of artefacts. This book is situated in a critique of the expansion of Early Childhood Development and Education models to the Global South that has arisen partly in reaction to the failure of Universal Primary Education to match learning outcomes to enrolment numbers, and partly by the grand claims of neuroscience about early brain development.

• Bullying Victimization in Basic Schools (BVIG). This research aims to provide evidence for action to end violence against children (VAC) and create safe, enabling, and anti-bullying school environments for children in Ghana, whilst providing practical support for survivors. The project seeks to provide evidence that is authentic, innovative, and impactful and aimed at ensuring the rights of children as espoused in key tenets of the UNCRC and in Ghana’s Children Act of 1998 (Act 560). The focus will also be to identify interventions - policy, programmes, and services that prevent violence and provide comprehensive access and support for survivors of bullying victimization. The focus is to explore effective ways of integrating these interventions into educational curricula, policy, monitoring, and evaluation in response to the SDG 3, 4 and 5.

Publications

Documentary:  Wells, K., Tetteh, P.M., Alber, E. (2022).

• ‘DEVI’: Weaving Knowledge-Development and Education in the Vernacular for Infants (DEVI) was a research project in West Africa that aimed to identify how families in rural communities support their children’s learning in the early years. The Project sought to identify how children’s cognitive development is accomplished and embedded in daily practices and interactions. The film tells the story of how children in villages where the DEVI research was conducted learn through making toys, transforming matter, weaving materials, and playing games. The documentary has since been screened in the UK, Ghana, Togo, and Senegal. The documentary was accepted into the Prestigious British Academy 2023 Summer showcase and was screened on loop for the three days of the showcase. It has since been screened in several places and featured in the documentary, ‘The Hexagonal Hive and a Mouse in a Maze’ by Tilda Swinton on learning.

Co-Editor-Special Issue:

• Searching for the Everyday in African Childhoods Journal of the British Academy, (2022). Afua Twum-Danso Imoh (University of Bristol, UK), Peace Mamle Tetteh (University of Ghana) & Georgina Yaa Oduro (University of Cape Coast, Ghana).

Book Review:

• Tetteh, P. M. (2021). Ethics and Research with Young Children-new Perspectives. By M. S. Christopher. Children & Society, 710-711.https://doi.org/10.1111/chso.12507

Book Chapters:

• Tetteh, P. M. (2023). ‘Children’s Play Cultures’ in the Handbook on Childhood and Global Development. (Eds.) Tatek Abebe, Anandini Dar & Karen Wells. Routledge, pp 557-568.
• Tetteh, P.M. (2023). ‘Social Groups and Organizations’ in Social Change in a Global Era: Introduction to Sociology in Ghana. (Eds). Korbla Puplampu & Akosua Darkwah. Sub- Saharan Publishers, pp 91-131.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2013). ‘Negotiating Access and Preventing Risk in Child Domestic Labour Research in Ghana’ In K. te Riele and R. Brooks (eds) Encountering Ethical Challenges in Youth Research, Routledge, New York, and London. (pp. 71-83).

Peer-reviewed journal Articles:

• Tetteh, P. M., Hiadzi, R. A., & Boafo, I.M. (2023). ‘This is what we call delayed humiliation’: Negotiating socio-cultural challenges in the use of Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ARTs) by couples with infertility problems in Urban Ghana. Ghana Social Science Journal, 20(2),15–25.
• Boafo, I. M., Tetteh, P. M., & Hiadzi, R. A. (2023). Exploring prostate cancer screening among men in Accra using the health belief model. Ghana Medical Journal, 57(3), 226-233.http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/gmj.v57i3.10
• Imoh, A.T. D., Tetteh, P. M., Oduro, G.Y. (2022). Searching for the everyday in African childhoods:  Introduction.  Journal  of  the  British  Academy,  10(s2),  1–11. https://doi.org/10.5871/jba/010s2.001 Posted 01 June 2022.
• Markwei, U., Tetteh, P. M., & Osei-Hwedie, K. (2022). “Who am I to tell my husband the number of children we should have?”: Sexual and reproductive health experiences of victims of child marriage in Ghana. Ghana Social Science Journal, 19(1), 55-73. https://journals.ug.edu.gh/index.php/gssj/article/download/1908/1097
• Hiadzi, R. A., Boafo, I. M., & Tetteh, P. M. (2021). ‘God helps those who help themselves’… religion and Assisted Reproductive Technology usage amongst urban Ghanaians. Plos one, 16(12), e0260346. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0260346.
• Markwei, U., & Tetteh, P. M. (2022). A study of alternative measures in resolving cases of child sexual abuse among the Ga Community in Accra, Ghana. Child abuse review, 31(1), 27-39. https://doi.org/10.1002/car.2711
• Markwei, U & Tetteh, P. M. (2020). ‘To speak or not to speak’: exploring the reasons for (non) disclosure of child sexual abuse in the Ga Community in Ghana. Children and Youth Services Review, 121,105796. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105796
• Markwei, U., & Tetteh, P. M. (2021). Unpacking the ethics of access and safety of participants and researchers of child sexual abuse in Ghana. Children's Geographies, 19(4), 379-389. https://doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2020.1786500
• Boafo, I. M., & Tetteh, P. M (2020). Self-Efficacy and perceived barriers as Determinants of Breast Self-examination among female nonmedical students of the University of Ghana", International  Quarterly  of  Community  Health  Education,  40(4),  289-297. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272684X19885501
• Tetteh, P. M., & Markwei, U. (2018). Situating the Notion of “gbekɛfɔŋs” in the Discourse of Child Sexual Abuse Among the Ga in Accra, Ghana. Journal of child sexual abuse, 27(5), 510 522. https://doi.org/10.1080/10538712.2018.1477225
• Tetteh, P. M. (2014). Child domestic labour in Accra: A juxtaposition of the myths with the reality. Childhoods Today, 8(2), 2014. https://scholar.archive.org/work/phvxeubgqffdphxhe2ypd6w4gq/access/wayback/http://www.childhoodstoday.org/download.php?id=82
• Tetteh, P. M. (2013) ‘Me sumsum ni ha’-The Dislocation and Non-Belonging of Child Domestic Workers in Accra. Ghana Social Science Journal. Volume 8, Numbers 1 &2, (2011) 106-127.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2013). Understanding the Logic Underpinning the Recruitment of Children for Domestic Work in Accra. Sociology Reader, University of Ghana.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2011). ‘Child Domestic Labour in (Accra) Ghana: A Child and Gender Rights Issue?’ International Journal of Children’s Rights (IJCR) 19 (2011) 217-232.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2011). Child Domestic Labor in Accra: Opportunity and Empowerment or Perpetuation of Gender Inequality? Ghana Studies v. 14:163-189.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2010). ‘The American Baby Syndrome and the Migration of Ghanaian Women’. Journal of Management Practice and Policy (11)5: 145-154.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2005). We are Managing-Childcare Arrangements of Working Mothers in Accra. Legon Journal of Sociology, Vol. 2 No. 2, (81-98).

Technical Reports:

• Tetteh, P. M. (2018). Effects of teen motherhood on children born to teen mothers. Report to Child research and resource centre (CRRECENT) for Plan International, Ghana.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2009). Thematic Paper on impact of females' migration on households in Ghana: National profiles for strategic policy development. International Organisation for Migration (I.O.M) Ghana.
• Tetteh, P. M. (2008). Investment and entrepreneurship opportunities for women and migrants. International Organization for Migration (IOM) Ghana.

Selected Conference/Workshop Proceedings (in the last decade)

• Tetteh, P. M (2024). Weaving Knowledge: Children’s Learning Cultures in West Africa. Department of Sociology Seminar.
• Tetteh, P.M. (2024). ‘Do you see what I see? Culture, Gender, and Sexuality among the Krobo.The Klo/Krobo Project Anthropos Special Issue Authors Workshop
• Tetteh, P. M. (2024) Child Rights Monitoring: Navigating past crises and building resilience. British Sociological Association (BSA) Annual Virtual Conference 2024.Theme: Crises, Continuity and Change.
• Tetteh, P. M (2023). ‘Understanding the meaning and content of Child Rights’ Monitoring; the H3Ws of Child Rights Monitoring’; Employing Indicators for Child Rights Monitoring’; Monitoring Children in emergency Contexts.’ UNICEF/CSPS Training on Child Rights Monitoring for CHRAJ Officials nationwide.
• Tetteh, P. M (2022). ‘Understanding the meaning and content of Child Rights’ Monitoring; the H3Ws of Child Rights Monitoring’; Employing Indicators for Child Rights Monitoring’; Monitoring Children in emergency Contexts.’ UNICEF/CSPS Training on Child Rights Monitoring for NGOS, CSOs and government MMDAs.
• Tetteh, P. M. (June 2022)., ‘The Development and Education in the Vernacular for Infants and Children (DEVI): learning cultures in rural villages in Africa. Poster Exhibition and Presentation. College-Level Celebration of the Day of Scientific Renaissance of Africa Celebration, College of Humanities, University of Ghana.
• Tetteh, P. M. (February 2022). Reimagining Childhoods in Low Resource Contexts: What has Childism got to do with it? Panel 1: Decolonial and Global South Perspectives. Childism and Feminism Colloquium: Transnational Colloquium Series. Childism Institute- Rutgers University, USA.
• Tetteh, P. M. (April 2021). Vernacularizing the sexual and reproductive health rights of children in Ghana. British Sociological Association (BSA) 70th Anniversary Virtual Annual Conference 2021: ‘Remaking the Future’. 70th Anniversary Virtual Conference. Session RIG 1 PS2.
• Tetteh, P. M. & Boafo, I. M. (April 2019). Factors influencing Prostate Cancer Screening among Ghanaian men-a health belief approach. 5th School of Social Science Conference, University of Ghana.
• Tetteh, P. M. & Torto, E.O. (April 2018). Exploring the Discursive Dynamics of youth engagement and inclusive development in Ghana. 4th School of Social Sciences International Conference, University of Ghana.
• Tetteh, P. M. (April 2016). ‘Researching the Hidden, Taboo and Sensitive Issues in an African Context. Panel Discussion Lead, School of Social Sciences International Conference, University of Ghana, Legon.
• Tetteh, P. M. (January 2015) Researching Children and Young people on Sensitive Issues: Ethical Considerations and Power Dynamics. Trainer of Fieldworkers- Impact of Sexual and Gender Identity Acquisition on Children and Young People’s Views and Understandings of Sexual Violence, Power, and Oppression in Ghana. Collaboration between the University of Sheffield, U.K & the University of Cape Coast, Ghana.
• Tetteh, P. M. (January 2015) Introduction to Creative and Participatory Child-Focused Research Methods. Trainer of Fieldworkers- Research Project on the Impact of Sexual and Gender Identity Acquisition on Children and Young People’s Views and Understandings of Sexual Violence, Power and Oppression in Ghana. Collaboration between the University of Sheffield, U.K & the University of Cape Coast, Ghana.

Journal Reviewer: Prof. Tetteh is an ad hoc reviewer for the:

• Bristol University Press
• Children and Youth Services Review
• Children’s Geographies
• Childhoods
• Ghana Medical Journal,
• International Journal of Sociology,
• Children and Society
• BMC Public Health.

Selected Extension Services

• Prof. Tetteh is a Life Member of the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International (FGBMFI), a global Fellowship of Christian Professionals. She is a member of the national Executives of the Ladies of the Fellowship (LoTF). She is the current National Team Lead of the Basic and Junior Schools Ministry, having previously served as the Lead for the Hospital Ministry.
• As Lead of the Basic school ministry, she has authored 3 Teaching and Learning Manuals to be used for outreaches in Basic schools across the county. She has also co-authored Religious and Moral Education (RME) Textbooks for Basic Schools (Year 1-9).
• Prof Tetteh has been a co-developer of the module and Facilitator of the FGBMFI Daniel Leadership Development Programne (DLDP), designed to train emerging leaders, since its inception in 2022. She is currently the Patron of the Emerging Leaders Chapter of the Fellowship at the University of Ghana, and a member of the FGBMFI Schools and Colleges Project (SCP) Outreach Team. Prof Tetteh served as a member of the Board of Governors -Anum Presbyterian Senior High School (2008-2014), and President of the Ansec Old Students Association (AOSA) (2008-2012).

Speaking Engagements:

• Speaker (May 2025). Navigating Work, Home and Faith. FGBMFI-LoTF Coordinators Training
• Guest Lecturer (June 2024). Child rights and Protection Concerns in Ghana. Lecture to students and Faculty of the James Madison University on visit to Ghana.
• Keynote Speaker (September 2024). Abuse of Office: Understanding the Incidence and need to avoid it as a Christian Professional. Pentecost International Worship Centre (PIWC) Workers Guild
• Co Panelist- WAUPSA Business Administration Department-UPSA. Panel Discussion on Work-Life Balance (April 2023). Presentation made on ‘Self-Care’.
• Speaker, Office of Research, and Innovation. Human and Animal Ethics Services (HARES). Enhancing Ethical Research in the College of Basic and Applied Sciences (ECBAS), 13, 20, and 27 August 2020. Presentation on the topic ‘the Ethics Clearance Process: A necessity or a Hindrance’.
• Speaker, Office of Research, and Innovation. Human and Animal Ethics Services (HARES). Enhancing Ethical Research in the College of Humanities (COH), 26th February 2020. Presentation on the topic ‘the Ethics Clearance Process: A necessity or a Hindrance’.
• Co-Panelist: Women in Politics Forum, 27th November 2019. Presentation: ‘Balancing Politics and Family’ as part of the general panel Discussion on ‘Beyond Rhetoric: Navigating the Cultural and Structural Barriers against Women at the Decision-making table.
• Keynote Speaker: Atana Women’s Conference 2019. June 22nd, 2019, at the Kama Conference Centre, Accra. Presented a Lecture on ‘Breaking the Glass Ceiling- The challenge of Work-Life Balance’.
• Guest Lecturer: Aya Centre for Cultural Awareness and Development. 2nd May 2019. Presented a Lecture on ‘the influence of NGOs and Christian Evangelical Movements on Sexuality and Gender in Ghana’ to students and Faculty from The New School, New York (USA).
• Guest Lecturer: August 2018. Presented a Paper on ‘The role of Women in National Development’ to Students and Faculty from Marymount University, USA. Hosted by the Centre for International Educational Exchange (CIEE).
• Guest Lecturer: May 2018. Presented a lecture on ‘the Situation of Girls Education and Health in Ghana’ to students and Faculty from Spelman College, USA. Hosted by the Centre for International Educational Exchange (CIEE).
• Content Developer/Speaker- Ethics and Values for High Schools and Colleges- I have developed and made presentations on Ethics and Values at more than 12 Senior High schools (SHS) and tertiary institutions in Ghana.
• Main Speaker: Made over 30 Seminar presentations at about 15 FGBMFI Chapters on various topics ranging from Leadership, Emotional Intelligence, Teamwork and Service, marriage, and parenting.

MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL BODIES

• International Sociological Association (ISA) Research Committee 53-Sociology of Childhoods
• British Sociological Association (BSA)
• Ghana Sociological and Anthropological Association (GSAA)
• International Academy of African Business Development (IAABD)