4. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - Faculties submissions
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Item Women and emancipatory politics in the former Lebowa bantustan of South Africa, 1940s to present(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Bruchhausen, Sarah Lynn; Nieftagodien, NoorThis thesis provides a gendered and subaltern historical perspective of women’s emancipatory politics in the former Lebowa bantustan of South Africa from the late-colonial period of segregation (1940s) to the post-apartheid present (2022). It begins with an examination of the popular uprisings during the period of the 1940s to the early-1960s in which black women championed radical insurgent struggles against colonial-cum-apartheid processes of land dispossession, enclosure of the commons, excessive taxation, and the criminalisation of women’s subsistence lifestyles. Attention then shifts to the intensely repressive period in the aftermath of these rural uprisings and the making of the Lebowa bantustan during the 1960s and 1970s. In this period, women’s emancipatory praxes were drastically constrained and their political resistance took on more diffused and less organised forms. A popular expression of emancipatory politics during this period was the creation of different local women-made grassroots organisations engaged in collective praxes of care- giving, mutual aid, and community development, aimed at creating life-affirming projects and dignified ways of living, under harsh socio-spatial and political constraints. These rural women’s grassroots organisations developed in response to the growing crisis of social reproduction in Lebowa’s villages during the 1970s and were eclipsed by more militant modes of resistance in the insurrectionary climate of the 1980s. A younger generation of women, involved as comrades in the youth and labour movements, came to the fore as protagonists of the popular struggle for freedom in Lebowa, and engaged in certain aspects of the longer history of black women’s struggles for self-determination and rights to the commons in rural South Africa. Lastly, this thesis considers the 1994 transition to democracy and the subsequent post-apartheid era in today’s Limpopo Province. Using the Makotse Women’s Club as a case study, it argues that grassroots women’s organisations presently engaged in the praxis of a radical politics of care in villages of the former Lebowa bantustan are the most recent expression of an emancipatory mode of politics in rural South Africa with a long and rich history that stretches back to the radical uprisings of the mid-twentieth century. Overall, the history presented in this thesis suggests that the creation of autonomous spaces of the common and the defence of subsistence lifestyles has been, and continues to be, a defining characteristic of rural women’s emancipatory politics in the former bantustans of South Africa.Item Critiquing TikTok as a stage: Investigating Confessional Performance on TikTok and its capacity to cultivate feelings of intimacy and communitas within a community of young adult users(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Buckland, Sarah; DaCosta, NekaThe presence of loneliness, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, is a persistent issue facing young adults in South Africa and abroad. Social media platforms, specifically TikTok, afford a sense of social interaction for those socially and geographically separated. One avenue for this interaction is through the production of increasingly confessional content on the social media platform. In this paper, I identify this presence of confessional content on TikTok and trace its roots to Confessional Performance traditions. I then interrogate the potential of Confessional Performance on TikTok to establish intimacy and elements of communitas. Irem Sot’s article entitled Fostering Intimacy on TikTok: A platform that listens and creates a safe space (2022) provides beneficial insight into the role TikTok’s algorithm has in establishing a sense of intimacy and community amongst its dedicated users and is used as a vital point of reference throughout the paper. Through the addition of an autoethnographic creative research approach, supported by thorough desktop research, I can outline the initiation of intimacy and community on TikTok, which begins with a moment of confession and continues when a second party validates this moment. Furthermore, I create and analyse my confessional TikTok series, ‘I want to talk to you, I want you to talk to me’, paying close attention to audience interaction experienced during this series as a means to a) reflect on the interpretation of intimacy and communitas through the lens of both a TikTok creator and viewer and b) determine the capacity of this kind of confessional performance on Tik Tok to successfully (or unsuccessfully) cultivate intimacy and communitas.Item Exploring Immersive Technology in Flight Training: Trainee Pilots’ Perceptions of Learning and Behavioural Outcomes(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Naidoo, Sarita; Naidoo, PrevenThe primary aim of this research was to examine the effectiveness of immersive technology on trainee pilots’ learning and behavioural outcomes. The first phase of the research included building a survey to measure trainees’ learning and behavioural outcomes. An initial sample of fifteen subject-matter experts assisted in creating the final survey. The second phase of the research involved distributing the survey to trainee pilots and consisted of twenty-seven participants. Spearman’s Rank Correlation and Kendall’s tau-b Correlation were run on the data. A Regularized Exploratory Factor Analysis (REFA) method was used to ensure the constructed survey measured trainee pilots’ perceptions of their learning and behavioural outcomes. The main results showed a significant relationship between the use of immersive flight simulation training and trainee pilots’ learning and behavioural outcomes. On the other hand, age, level of experience as a pilot, total flying time, and total flying time in modern flight decks had no significant association with trainee pilots’ perceptions of their learning and behavioural outcomes. The small sample size affected the findings of the research and should be considered a limitation of the study. The findings of the research have implications for the design of flight simulations.Item The Monster in Disney’s Closet: Critiquing Queer Representation and Narrative in Luca(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Wessels, Sasha Lyn Dominique; Wittstock, GillianQueer bodies in animation have been a topic for discussion in many academic papers – particularly in their portrayal in children’s films. They are either considered problematic in their portrayal or made to be invisible to the eye by being pushed into the background (Tieszen 2017:2). In particular, queer characters are typically found in two situations in the history of Disney’s animated feature films: Either a character is queercoded and made the villain of the story – linking villainy to queer bodies, or is found in an interaction where same-sex desire is hinted at or shown, but is quickly shut down by a joke of disgust or awkwardness (Tieszen 2017:7). This dissertation will analyse to what extent the recent Disney Pixar film Luca (Enrico Casarosa: 2021) can be considered a progressive and/or regressive feature film regarding queer representation within the history of the Disney franchise. Since the release of Luca (Enrico Casarosa: 2021), there have been multiple discussions about how this film has been queercoded and is potentially queerbait – as noted by scholar Kodi Maier (2021). This dissertation will discuss firstly, how Luca (Enrico Casarosa: 2021) has improved the representation of the villain through not queercoding Ercole Visconti (the antagonist). Following this, how they portray male-on-male relationships and whether or not Luca (Enrico Casarosa: 2021) can be perceived as a step forward. Thirdly, I will dive deep into the narrative’s plot points, highlighting how Luca (Enrico Casarosa: 2021) has a clear underlying queer narrative, and how certain characters can be perceived as queer bodies, thus making it a queer film. Finally, I will discuss whether or not Luca (Enrico Casarosa: 2021) can be labelled as queerbait, and highlighting the outcry that came from Luca (Enrico Casarosa: 2021) and how it showed the need for more queer representation. This paper will make use of a multimodal qualitative analysis in order to achieve the aim of this paper due to its many unique components: a discourse analysis will be used to discuss the broader prospects of this paper such as the history and current socialization of imagery and narratives alongside its influence on the public, whilst a semiotic analysis will help dive deeper into characters and how they are projected and/or represented.Item Navigating Childhood Adversity: A Reflexive Thematic Analysis of Strategies, Influences, and Effects among Congolese & Burundian Migrant Youth(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Friedman, SeanAdverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s) have been reliably linked to a number of deleterious outcomes, with cascading effects through the life course. The children of migrants and refugees are particularly vulnerable to adversity, often living within xenophobic contexts and facing a multitude of economic and language pressures. Additionally, migrations into South Africa have frequently been initiated by traumatic experiences in migrants’ countries of origin. Yet despite multiple adversities, many of these children adapt, persevere, and find success. This interpretivist experiential study explored the influences, strategies, and effects related to childhood adversity among migrant children to South Africa. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted and analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis to explore common threads from an experiential critical stance. The constructed themes elucidated the environmental influences along multiple levels of the ecology, strategies that orientated, avoided, and made sense of difficulties, and a complex interplay of later effects. These were considered in light of Resilience and Post-traumatic Growth theories, as well as a decolonial psychological lens. Parallels and differences between xenophobia and racism were found and explored. Underlying discourses and collusions with these were interrogated. The study found resilient strategies were intimately connected to contextual influences, and had differential effects, with avoidant strategies likely impeding growth. Resolve, self-belief, and altruism were found to likely be ‘real’ effects, whereas gratitude was indicated to be a palliative coping strategy. The effects of xenophobia on participants was found to mimic those of systemic racism in multiple ways, though key differences remained. The study extends the existing literature on migrant youth in the South African context, and produces several possibilities for intervention that may foster resilience and growth.Item To What Extent Have Cyber Sabotage and Cyber Espionage Undermined the National Security of South Africa, Kenya and Ethiopia, 2016- 22(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Kinnes, Shaun; Mpofu-Walsh, SizweThe state of cyber security in Africa presents a diverse and evolving landscape, with the continent possessing pockets of resilience, instead of a common agreed upon and ratified framework. This research report aims to highlight the state of cyber security in Africa, delving into legislative frameworks, cyber protocols, and responses. The world is changing, and with this change comes disruption, and disruption ultimately needs planning, you’re either at the table or on the menu. The report utilises South Africa, Kenya, and Ethiopia as case study countries to drive analysis into the disruptions and threats posed to the cyber landscape. The sophistication of cyber threats, which include ransomware and fraud coupled with disparities in cyber security capabilities across sectors and countries persist across the continent. Cybercrimes and cyber sabotage in the case of South Africa draw upon the close correlation between macroeconomic stability and cyber security, while geo-political tensions such as in the case studies of Kenya and Ethiopia show how states have begun a flirtation with cyber tools with the objective of pursuing foreign policy objectives.Item Teachers’ Perceptions of Personal Wellbeing during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Exploration of Job Demands and Job Resources(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Ganasen, Shenay; Amod, ZaytoonTeachers are the frontline workers of the education system, and their wellbeing is important for several reasons. Firstly, it is a priority in and of itself. Secondly, it influences the wellbeing and learning of learners (Collie & Martin, 2020; Harding et al., 2019). Lastly, it contributes greatly to the quality of education delivered in schools and hence, the overall success of schools (Chen et al., 2020; Ozamiz-Etxebarria et al., 2021). Therefore, it is important to understand the way in which job characteristics of the teaching environment, such as job demands and job resources, influence teacher wellbeing. While previous literature has examined the influence of job demands and job resources on teacher wellbeing within the South African context, studies concerning the role of the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to teacher wellbeing are scarce. Therefore, this research aimed to explore teachers’ perceptions of wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic and the influence that job demands and job resources had on such perceptions. Interviews were conducted with eight teachers in the Johannesburg area to explore their perceptions and experiences of wellbeing, job demands and job resources during the pandemic. The findings of this research suggested that the teachers in this study perceived their wellbeing as compromised during the pandemic. Most of the participants found their job resources to be inadequate in meeting their job demands which seemed to bring about challenges with health, job performance and job satisfaction. The findings were supported by the JD-R Theory which shows the way in which a negative imbalance between job demands and job resources impacts health, satisfaction and hence, overall employee wellbeing. The implications and limitations of the study are discussed and recommendations for future research are made.Item Giving voice: An analysis of the media’s reporting on the failed insurrection, looting and arson in July 2021 in South Africa.(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Masiza, SimphiweThis dissertation explores what the dominant voices in the media coverage of the failed insurrection of July 2021 revealed about the ideologies at play? The research further probed what discourse and ideologies were revealed regarding the way the failed insurrection, looting, and arson that took place in July 2021 were covered. The dissertation provides a background discussion of the media landscape. It then discusses the relevant literature review focusing on issues of media voices, absence, representation, and underrepresentation of certain groups in the media. The research employed qualitative discourse analysis on forty (40) online articles. Furthermore, it tested the findings using a radical democratic, symbolic annihilation and a political economy of the media theoretical framework. The limitations of the research surfaced due to the reliance on daily publications such as the Daily Sun, Sowetan as well and the Independent Online articles (IOL) mainly because weekend publications such as the Sunday Times provided limited data as they reported on the events outside the focal dates. Dependence on mainstream data rather than a balance between community and national was a further limitation. The analysis pointed to media content that is classed and ideologically mediated, it also indicated that the plurality of voices encouraged by the main theoretical framework of radical democracy is highly compromised and some groups are more visible than others. As guided by the research questions the dissertation revealed various ideologies and discourses and concluded that those that were preferred by the media were mainly dominated by the elite or privileged members of society.Item Perceptions of Mental Health in low-middle- income South Africa(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Ndlazi, Simphiwe; Harvey, ClareMental health is an important contributing factor to well-being. Understanding mental health is crucial in influencing an individual’s help-seeking behaviour. This study aimed to explore and discover perceptions of mental health in Low-Middle income (LMI) communities in the South African context, as well as gain an in-depth understanding of what informs the perceptions of mental health. Furthermore, the aim was to establish information on the role of perceptions of mental health. Finally, the aim was to contribute to the current scope of knowledge on perceptions of mental health and improve the academic research attention given to perceptions of mental health in the South African context. The study employed a qualitative approach and used one-on-one, semi-structured interviews as a method of data collection. Seven individuals above the age of eighteen years were invited to be participants. Based on the findings, mental health is recognised in LMI communities however, it is also stigmatised. It has been discovered that financial strain and joblessness are major contributors to mental health issues among LMI communities. Additionally, individuals have reported insufficient mental health resources and care within these communities, including a shortage of qualified professionals in public clinics. This study has the potential to improve the awareness on the prevalent perspectives and stigma surrounding mental health and other significant mental health issues in LMI communities, such as resource allocation. The study also highlights the urgency of developing effective policies and tailored interventions that are context-sensitive to address the disparities in quality mental health care in LMI communities.Item Towards a theatre of the fabulous - informed by a performative queer autoethnography on the stage of an all-boys’ school(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024) Kotze, SophoclesAs a queer teacher who felt discomfort in the homogeneousness of a traditional heteronormative space of an all-boys’ school, in this research, I explore the extent to which a performative queer autoethnography can inform the creation of a Theatre of the Fabulous (an embodied queer pedagogy), what it could look like and how it could be used as a queer pedagogical tool in the classroom through which to identify heteronormative practices and, ultimately, move towards a space which is safe for queerness. My strategy was to draw on queer theory and thinking about queer pedagogical writing. I hypothesised that heteronormativity, patriarchal and colonial practices are evident in all- boys’ schools (Connell, 2000; Pollack, 2006; Sullivan, 1995) and that, as a queer teacher, my movements are made queer. I used performance as research (PaR) as a methodology, with performative writing, in this work. Deeply exploring the personal, theoretical and practitioner’s journey, and understanding the narration itself as performance as research, this research is structured through six acts and different scenes rather than the traditional chapters and sections. As a Dramatic Arts teacher, I am programmed to see “all the [world as] a stage, and all the men and women [sic] merely players”3 and my queer reality as a linear theatre text filled with plot and intrigue. This format allowed me to express myself, stylistically and typographically, through not only academic/scholarly reading and writing, but also through the inclusion of interesting quotes I came across in my journey towards a Theatre of the Fabulous, musings and asides about my