Local hierarchies and distributor (non) compliance: a case study of community-based distribution in rural north India.

Community-based distribution of family planning services is particularly appropriate for South Asia, which has hard-to-reach rural populations. In Uttar Pradesh (UP), India, local status hierarchies of gender, caste, and generation shape the nature of relationships that community-based distributors (CBDs) create with their clients. In this case study of an "ideal" distributor, we uncover the conflicting expectations that many CBDs experience: to comply with project objectives without violating local social norms that limit interactions across status boundaries.