3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions

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    Train surfing: the Soweto pastime
    (2016-04-08) Moroke, Mapule Sheena
    Train surfing or staff riding has been a part of the South African working-class economic fabric since the initiation of segregation under apartheid. Now within contemporary society the activity has gained great media attention due to the fatalities that are so commonly associated with it. Despite it being a globally and locally longstanding activity it is still an area that is under-researched. The current study was aimed at exploring the growing phenomenon and how it is constructed by youth in Soweto. A total of 32 adolescent boys and girls between the ages of 18 and 21 were recruited from a public secondary school in Orlando West, Soweto, to take part in one of four focus groups. The participants’ responses from the focus group discussions were recorded then analysed using thematic content analysis. Emerging themes, including what it means to be an adolescent living in Soweto postapartheid, what adolescents now consider having fun, and what they consider to be risky behaviour, were explored in the data analysis. In addition, alternative growing phenomena within Soweto were identified, namely biking and drag-racing. Evident from the analysis was the pressure felt and experienced by adolescents, especially by male adolescents within society and the school environment to fit in to popular constructions of a growing adult and the constructions of hegemonic masculinity in contemporary South Africa. It was also found that the train surfing participants used the practice as a means to define their identity as young, black males living in South Africa. However, as much as some of the accounts of the reasons behind risky behaviours were in line with hegemonic constructions of masculinity, also revealed were the alternative and opposing voices which appeared to be tense with emotional, personal and social sacrifices. This fluidity of identity was explored through the various components of identity such as race, class and gender that all interact within the context of Soweto and results in differing adolescent identity constructions, such as, the ambitious and inspired, as well as the risk-taking train surfers who are described as being ‘in limbo’. The research concludes by shifting contemporary understanding of the phenomenon from one of thrill seeking to a performance of identity and masculinity that is influenced by race, class, and gender.
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    Izikhothane: Masculinity and class in Katlehong, a South African township
    (2016) Richards, James Grant
    ABSTRACT The following thesis explored a specific subculture called skhothane, or izikhothane in the plural, which has taken root amongst the male youth in South African townships. Izikhothane are primarily concerned with music, fashion, dance and linguistic prowess in relation to their counterparts. They performed against their counterparts in order to gain status, prestige, fame and renown. These in turn were exchanged in some instances for other desired outcomes such as access to women. This study explored the intersecting factors that have caused the rise and transformation of this subculture. The contextual factors can be understood as historical, economic, and social. Other factors such as masculinity, gender, race, ethnicity and class seem to be playing a role in the meanings that izikhothane make and the lenses through which the view themselves and their urban spaces. In addition to the above the izikhothane were looked at in relation to subcultures that were formed during apartheid, such as comrades, tsotsis, comtsotsis and pantsulas, for example. This has given an idea of the continuity associated with subcultures and the generational factors that lead to their formation. The frame work that was used, for the most part, to critically understand this practice was primarily taken from Foucault’s conception of space, Winnicott’s formulation of transitional spaces, Bourdieu’s ideas of capital, and Erikson’s work on youth identity.
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    Perceptions about different shades of skin colour and attitudes towards pigmentation in the 'black' African community
    (2016) Nkwadi, Palesa
    Variations and differences in skin colour has been a complex phenomenon around the world. Issues of colour and identity in a postcolonial and post-Apartheid context, is also a significant field of interest. Popular stereotypes portray darker skin pigmentation as undesirable and inferior to lighter pigmentation. The process of ‘lactification’ (Fanon, 1968) remains a question today as much as during earlier colonial times. These stereotypes also bring to the fore, essential questions about hierarchies of power and oppression, culture and identity and how these are shaped to fit popular dominant culture. This study explored peoples’ perceptions around different shades of skin colour and attitudes towards various shades of pigmentation. The study adopted a qualitative approach and explored perceptions around skin colour through in-depth interviews. Fifteen adult participants in Soweto, Gauteng were recruited for the study via purposive sampling. The data collected was analysed using thematic content analysis. The study found that the western idea of attractiveness is still highly regarded. Black women and men take various measures to conform to the western ideal simply to be acknowledged as attractive and stigma is attached to the dark complexion. Self-esteem is affected by the perception of beauty, high perception of attractiveness equals to the high self-esteem.
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    Development-induced displacement and resettlement : a narrative inquiry into the experiences of community members physically displaced from a farm to a town in Mpumalanga, South Africa.
    (2014-09-17) Smithen, Caitlin
    Although expected to be beneficial to society, development projects, such as dam construction and mining, often result in the physical displacement of marginalized groups. This is known as Development-Induced Displacement and Resettlement (DIDR) and often has far-reaching negative consequences for the affected peoples (APS). These include further marginalization, increased poverty, identity deprivation and socio-psychological stress. While decades of knowledge inform theory and practice on the mitigation of these consequences, the psycho-socio-cultural (PSC) impoverishment that may result from DIDR is often left unaddressed. Furthermore, qualitative knowledge of the experiences of people affected by DIDR is lacking. This research study aimed to produce an in-depth understanding of how DIDR affects the PSC well-being and identity construction of APS. The research took the form of a qualitative case study, whereby a social constructionist, narrative method of inquiry was used to analyse and gather data. This involved undertaking in-depth, individual interviews with a small sample of APS who had been resettled from a farm to a town in Mpumalanga by a mining house. Briefly, it was found that, contrary to the prevalent finding that DIDR causes further impoverishment, the resettlement actually resulted in development for the APS and as such enhanced their PSC well-being and contributed positively to their identity construction. However, the complexity inherent in resettlement was highlighted, as the participants revealed that the resettlement had not come without some socio-economic costs. It is believed that the findings from this study will complement existing knowledge on DIDR, and inform the design and implementation of Relocation Action Plans (RAPs) that better mitigate the negative PSC effects of DIDR.
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    Subjectivity and pedagogy in a context of social change.
    (2014-01-16) Ferreira, Ana Cristina
    This study is an exploration of the relationship between subjectivity and pedagogy in the secondary school English classroom in South Africa during a time that can be characterised as one of considerable social change. It examines the subject positions students take up in relation to a teaching intervention that invites them to historicise their identities. In so doing, it seeks to contribute to the growing body of education research on how to meaningfully engage young people in post-conflict societies with their recent past and their shifting present, with the primary aim being to understand how these students are positioning themselves in relation to the changing sociopolitical context. The research was conducted in two Grade 11 English classrooms, one a de(re)segregated former Model C school and the other an elite private school. The research design is a two-case case study, employing ethnographic tools to generate a multi-layered and multifaceted understanding of the students’ engagement in all its forms. Poststructuralist theories on discourse and subjectivity form the theoretical framework for this study, informing both the methodology and the data analysis. At the heart of this lies Foucault’s notion of the discursively constructed subject, extended through the work of Stuart Hall, Chris Weedon, Bronwyn Davies and others in ways that facilitate their application to individual subjectivity, particularly in relation to the classroom as a pedagogically structured discursive space. The data is subjected to poststructuralist discourse analysis, adjusted to suit the mode and type of data which includes, inter alia, the analysis of a multimodal artefact, analysis of performative classroom talk and moment-by-moment analysis of classroom interaction. The analysis shows that students’ subjectivities are not fixed but shift in ways that are contingent on the pedagogic context. Such shifts are particularly noticeable when there is a shift in the interactional situation; when students move between different semiotic modes; or when they are provided with the opportunity for extended conversational interaction around an issue. In addition, students’ participation in the section of work on South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) shows that engaging with the past in post-apartheid South African classrooms can have unpredictable results. Students’ resistance to engaging with recent history seems to be related to discomfort with the ways in which the grand narrative of the past works to position them in racialised ways. While there is evidence of students seeking to ‘unfix’ racialised subject positions, it is also clear that past discourses linger. Despite their desire to be rid of the past, students’ subject positions are frequently tied to their historically constructed locations in the sociopolitical and economic landscape of South Africa. These ambiguities and contradictions are viewed in part as a function of the complexity of the relationship between subjectivity and pedagogy, where what students are able to say and who they are able to be is shaped by the discursive structure of the classroom space. Ultimately it would seem that more serious consideration needs to be given to ways of developing a pedagogy that is able to tolerate contingency and heterogeneity and that would have relevance not only in post-conflict contexts but also beyond. Keywords: subjectivity, pedagogy, poststructuralist discourse analysis, positioning, identity, English classroom, TRC, multimodal artefact, classroom talk, South Africa
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    Identity constructions of black South African female students.
    (2013-07-25) Mophosho, Bonolo Onkgapile
    A viewpoint of the intersectional and complex nature of identity is seen to be integral to the understanding of the identities of black female students. ‘Identity constructions of black South African female students’ is an exploratory study with a view to understand the identities of black South African women in institutions of higher learning and education. The study investigated the experiences of 16 female South African black students; with a focus on their race category, gender as well as class subject positions. The study is placed within the context of the Historically White University (HWU) and was specifically conducted in a HWU situated in Johannesburg. The students’ articulations of their university experiences were explored qualitatively, within three focus group discussions through an open-ended interview guideline. Results show that their education is accounted for as a significant influence in their subjectivity given the social mobility it grants as the women’s experience of self shifts as does their position in society. Furthermore it was found that with the cultural capital attained through education, notions of class, racial and gender identities are affected and a multiplicity of identities exists as a result.
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    The development of elementary science teacher identity.
    (2012-09-20) Thorne, Barbara
    Although the literature reveals that primary school teachers in general are reluctant to teach science, little research has been conducted into the histories and identities of such primary school teachers, particularly in South Africa. South African society at present is in the process of great socio-political change; therefore the study has particular relevance to science education in the country. This study uses a socio-historical-cultural framework to investigate the science learning and teaching identities of a small group of pre service primary school teachers. The study is situated in science methods courses at a South African university where students from a wide variety of social and cultural clusters are registered. I argue that primary school student teachers belong to a community of practice and that primary science student teachers form part of that community. Therefore, I use Wenger’s (1998) model of practice in a community. The model relies on i.a. the concepts of participation and non-participation within the community. With reference to these concepts, the changing and contested nature of student teacher identities within the primary science teaching community of practice forms the focus of this study. A mixed methods approach to obtaining and analysing data was employed where case studies provided much of the information obtained. Study findings suggest that a number of factors contribute to science teacher identities. These include primary and secondary school experiences with particular reference to critical incidents; the ‘race’ and gender of the students in question; students’ cultural and family backgrounds as well as the personal relationships with which the students engage. For historical reasons, ‘race’ is of particular significance in South Africa, therefore at this critical conjuncture, this aspect of students’ identities was examined. The study also refers to the dialectical interplay between agency and structure. Findings suggest that although students are bound to some extent by power structures, agency or subjectivity comes into play to various degrees in terms both of participating in the community and not participating therein. I suggest that methods courses, such as those which provided the empirical field for this study, could also provide sites for transformation of science identities in terms of content knowledge, self efficacy or confidence and pedagogy. Student teachers and their mentors are in ideal positions to act as agents of change in a transforming society. Their roles as positive significant narrators enable them to provide alternative trajectories which were once unimaginable. Such transformation resonates with Wenger’s (ibid) notions of identity as being and becoming.
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    Male ballet dancers' gender identity construction : sexuality and body.
    (2012-09-03) Reeves, Megan Moya
    Male ballet dancers are often constructed as being feminine or homosexual (Bailey & Obershneider, 1997; Phillips, 2008), attributes that do not conform to the broader social ideas of what it means to be a masculine male in South Africa. Therefore, the space occupied by male ballet dancers in South Africa is one that contradicts the patriarchal ideas of masculinity and provides further insights into constructions of masculinity that do not conform to essentialist understandings. Therefore, the aim of this research report was to investigate the ways in which male ballet dancers construct their gender identities, sexualities and bodies within this contradictory space. A purposeful sample of four classically trained male ballet dancers over the age of 18 from Johannesburg, South Africa, was invited to participate in the study by means of snowball sampling. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and were examined using narrative analysis. It was found that male ballet dancers construct their gender identities through their bodies by virtue of their performances. They believe that by linking ballet to other masculine activities, such as sport, they can better negotiate their gender identities in a context where their profession is viewed as inferior, feminine and homosexual. The findings of this research have contributed to a better understanding of gender in an alternative domain, where the ways in which male ballet dancers construct their gender identities are challenged.
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    Building cohesion among Bakgatla male adolescents: a performance as research approach
    (2012-08-01) Paya, Tefo Omphile
    This practice led research explores masculine identity construction among young Bakgatla men. The research consists of a process-orientated performance intervention and a written component. I worked with a small group of young men of the Bakgatla tribe in the village of Mochudi, Botswana. Together we explored Masculine Identity, rites of passage and what it means to be a man within their community. This report begins within an introduction that frames the study. Then it proceeds in episodes until the overall conclusion. The first episode gives further context of the study by explaining the problem statement and rationale. Then the second episode goes on to give the aims of the study and how it was originally planned before commencement. In the third episode I discuss the theory relevant to my field of study. The following episode then goes into the pragmatics of the research and the analysis of key findings. The last episode I foreground my findings and the limitations of my study and suggest a possible way forward. The method of research used is practise-based research and the problemsthe study addresses are those of ethics versus aesthetics when applying theatre to a community setting and also the issue of the young men of the Bakgatla tribe being marginalised when it comes to dealing with issues about them. The practice led research demonstrated how a facilitator can use heightened performance effectively as a way of mirroring and deepening community-based interventions. Evidence was found that such a method could be more effective in finding a balance between ethics and aesthetics, resolving an on-going problem in other applied theatre methods that use performance processes of personal narratives to assist individuals and groups. This study also foregrounds knowledge about young men of the Bakgatla tribe and conclude that they should be given a space, similar to the kgotla, to confront and dialogue problems that face men in a contemporary Botswana.
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    Relating identity processing styles and self-efficacy to academic achievement in first-year university students.
    (2012-03-08) Leader, Samantha
    The purpose of the current study was to investigate the relationship between identity processing styles and self-efficacy to academic achievement in first-year university students. The sample included one hundred and twenty-seven first-year university students (n=127). Non-probability purposive sampling was used to select the participants on the basis of their status as first-year university students. Participants completed a Demographic Questionnaire, Identity Style Inventory Revised (ISI3) and General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE). The research findings indicated a non-significant relationship between the normative and diffuse-avoidant identity processing styles to academic achievement. However, a significant relationship was found between the informational identity processing style and academic achievement. More specifically, a weak, negative correlation between the informational identity processing style and academic achievement was noted. With regard to General Self-Efficacy, a significant relationship between identity processing styles and General Self-Efficacy was indicated. With reference to previous research studies, the results of the current research study are discussed.
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