4. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - Faculties submissions

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    Early life factors associated with childhood trajectories of violence among the birth to twenty- plus cohort in Soweto, South Africa
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Muchai, Lilian Njeri; Kagura, Juliana; Naicker, Sara
    Introduction Violence against children has devastating and long-term negative consequences on individuals' and society's health, social and economic well-being. There is limited research on the life course experience of violence especially in Africa. This study aimed to identify sub-groups of physical & sexual violence victimization patterns separately in childhood, and evaluate early life factors predicting these violence trajectories. Methods This study used data from age 5 to 18 years from the ongoing prospective Birth to Twenty Plus cohort (Bt20+). Children within the Bt20+ cohort with data on physical and sexual violence in at least 2-time points between 5 and 18 years were included in the analyses. Group-based trajectory modelling was employed to identify groups of children with similar patterns of violence over time. Descriptive statistics was used to summarize study variables by violence trajectory group membership, while multivariable logistic regression was used to identify early life factors measured between birth and 5 years, associated with violence trajectory group membership. Results Two trajectory groups were identified for both physical and sexual violence victimization. For physical violence victimization, the majority of participants fell into the adolescent limited group (65.1%) and just over a third (34.9%) of the children were in the chronic increasing group. For sexual violence victimization, most participants fell into the adolescent limited group (74.1%, with a quarter in the late increasing (25.9%) group. Early life factors associated with a higher risk of chronic increasing physical violence victimization trajectory group membership, after adjusting for covariates, were being male (aOR 1.67, 95% CI 1.31; 2.10) and having a mother with at least secondary education compared to higher education (aOR 1.73, 95% CI 1.08; 2.76). In addition, residing in middle, compared to low, socioeconomic households (aOR 0.68, 95% CI 0.50; 0.92) was protective against membership in this group. Residing in high compared to low socioeconomic households, was the only early life factor with marginally significant (aOR 0.63, 95% CI 0.42; 0.95) association with membership in the late-increasing sexual violence victimization trajectory group, with those in better-off households less likely to experience sexual violence victimization with this pattern. Conclusion Children within the same community can follow different patterns of both physical and sexual violence victimization across childhood. Identification of early factors that predict membership to sub-groups of violence trajectories provides key violence prevention intervention points that can preempt or mitigate children’s exposure or experience of violence. Future research should explore a larger variety of early life factors proximal to the child as well as those more distal at the community and school levels
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    Femicide in South Africa: Ideal Victims, Visible Bodies, and Invisible Perpetrators
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023-05) Nyathi, Tebogo; Falkof, Nicky
    South Africa’s femicide rate is five times the global average (Statistics South Africa 2018). In recent years, we have seen increased scholarly attention examining media reporting of femicide. These studies have been critical the way South African media have and continue to cover femicide. This study seeks to add to this existing knowledge by exploring the media coverage of three sexual violence murders. This study explores the online news media coverage of three case studies. These case studies are the rape and murder of University of Cape Town student Uyinene Mrwetyana, the rape and murder of Lynette Volschenk, and the rape and murder of grade 7 pupil Janika Mallo. All these murders happened in Cape Town in August 2019 and received prominent media coverage. This study utilizes thematic analytic tools to explore dominant patterns in the data through the framework of representation and intersectionality. The study aims to do a close reading and identify discourses embedded in news media texts to highlight their functions, effects, and social and ideological implications for society. The findings reveal an increased focus on the visible bodily injuries of victims and media used spectacular language to present this. The focus on the bodily injuries resulted in making perpetrators invisible. The analysis confirmed that certain victims matter to media more than others. Furthermore, media represented femicide as a current crisis and ignored the historical structures that enable the prevalence of sexual violence. Although, this study is not comparative media analysis and does not provide media to show that some murders are under reported, because it is only looking at three cases the analysis does demonstrate that other murders matter more than others. The study concludes that the way media cover femicide does not present the ‘true reality’ of sexual violence in South Africa and we are still far from finding long lasting solutions to the rampant violence.
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    Perceptions and experiences of police officers and social workers within South African Police Service when assisting women who survived sexual violence in Mamelodi, Pretoria
    (University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023-05) Bahula, Ikageng Maphale; Nkala-Dlamini, Busisiwe
    Many women are often reluctant to disclose cases of sexual violence to healthcare workers, police officers, family members etc. mainly due to the stigma attached. Few studies have been conducted to explore the experiences and perceptions of different role players within South African Police Officers (SAPS) when assisting women who survived sexual violence. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the perceptions and experiences of police officers and social workers within SAPS when assisting women who survived sexual violence. This study adopted a qualitative research approach, specifically a multiple case study design. The feminist poststructuralist theory was employed to guide the study. Three different interview guides were used as the research instrument. Individual face-to-face semi-structured interviews were used as the method of data collection. The sample size comprised twenty-five (25) different role players within SAPS in Mamelodi, Pretoria; five (5) client service centre police officers who work at both Mamelodi east and west police stations; ten (10) police officers who work in the special unit addressing sexual violence (FCS) at Mamelodi and ten (10) social workers who assist the survivors of sexual violence at both Mamelodi east and west police stations. The data gathered from the research were analysed using thematic analysis. The perceptions around sexual violence differs. This is influenced by the roles they play, how they have been exposed sexual violence and the school of thoughts. It is important that the service providers are oriented towards the concept and the practice on what sexual violence is. The service providers experience different challenges in different ways. Some challenges can be tackled at the individual level, while other challenges are societal, systematic and structural. Knowledge, attitude and practice of service providers require attention in terms of understanding the legal policies, the protocols and the practices in the sector.