Binnadang as a Lived Moral and Cultural Practice: A Phenomenological-Thematic Study of Community Cooperation in an Indigenous Kankanaey Community

Abstract

Binnadang is an Indigenous communal practice deeply embedded in the everyday life of Kankanaey communities, reflecting shared labor, moral responsibility, and collective identity. This qualitative study explored how community members experience and sustain Binnadang in one of the Kankanaey Indigenous Community focusing on motivations for participation, contemporary challenges, contributions to community unity, and strategies that help sustain the practice. Guided by a phenomenological–thematic approach, the study involved in depth, face to face interviews with ten adult and elder community members who have actively participated in Binnadang. Data were collected using a semi structured interview guide, transcribed verbatim from Kankanaey, translated into English, and analyzed thematically through a Colaizzi informed process emphasizing participants lived meanings.