A Phenomenological Study of Perpetrator–Survivor Accounts of Intimate Partner Violence among University Students in South Africa

Toks Dele Oyedemi; Linah  Rabothata

doi:10.25159/2708-9355/9432

Authors

Toks Dele Oyedemi University of Limpopo https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7060-203X
Linah Rabothata University of Limpopo https://orcid.org/0009-0006-1484-1507

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25159/2708-9355/9432

Keywords:

femicide, masculinity, South Africa, students, intimate partner violence (IPV), survivors

Abstract

South Africa has one of the highest rates of intimate partner violence and femicide in the world. Studies have indicated that poverty and illiteracy contribute to intimate partner violence, and that higher levels of education reduce the rate of intimate partner violence. Considering the role of illiteracy and higher education in the occurrence of intimate partner violence, the aim of this study is to examine why youths at a university perpetrate intimate partner violence and to explore the experiences of survivors of intimate partner violence at a specific institution. Through a phenomenological design influenced by a narrative communication paradigm, in the study, we used face-to-face interviews to explore the opinions and experiences of university students who were perpetrators and survivors of intimate partner violence. The findings indicate that educated youths are not extraneous to a culture of normalisation of violence as a result of male cultural socialisation, expectation of dominance of power, women’s vulnerability and acquiescence. These often result in fatal consequences that describe the prevalence of intimate partner violence in South Africa. We recommend social literacy about violence, gender equality, women’s right and effective legal recourse.

Metrics

Metrics Loading ...

Author Biographies

Toks Dele Oyedemi, University of Limpopo

Assistant Professor,
Department of Communication, Media and Information Studies

Linah Rabothata, University of Limpopo

Department of Communication, Media and Information Studies

References

Abrahams, N. R., L. L. Jewkes, S. Martin, L. Mathews, L. Vetten, and C. Lombard. 2009. “Mortality of Women from Intimate Partner Violence in South Africa: A National Epidemiological Study.” Violence and Victims 24 (4): 546–56. https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.24.4.546. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6708.24.4.546

Abrahams, N., S. Mathews, L. J. Martin, C. Lombard, and R. Jewkes. 2013. “Intimate Partner Femicide in South Africa in 1999 and 2009.” PLOS Medicine 10 (4): 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001412. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001412

Africa Check. 2017. “Femicide in South Africa: Three Numbers about the Murdering of Women Investigated.” Accessed 30 August 2019. https://africacheck.org/reports/femicide-sa-3-numbers-murdering-women-investigated/.

Coker, A. L., P. H. Smith, L. Bethea, M. R. King, and R. E. McKeown. 2000. “Physical Health Consequences of Physical and Psychological Intimate Partner Violence.” Archives of Family Medicine 9 (5): 451. https://doi.org/10.1001/archfami.9.5.451. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1001/archfami.9.5.451

Connell, R. W., and J. W. Messerschmidt. 2005. “Hegemonic Masculinity: Rethinking the Concept.” Gender and Society 9 (6): 829–59. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243205278639. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243205278639

Corradi, C., C. Marcuello-Servos, S. Boira, and S. Weil. 2016. “Theories of Femicide and Their Significance for Social Research.” Current Sociology 64 (7): 975–95. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011392115622256. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0011392115622256

Deyessa, N., Y. Berhane, M. Ellsberg, M. Emmelin, G. Kullgren, and U. Högberg. 2010. “Violence Against Women in Relation to Literacy and Area of Residence in Ethiopia.” Global Health Action, 3 (1). https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v3i0.2070. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v3i0.2070

Fisher, W. R. 1987. Human Communication as Narration: Toward a Philosophy of Reason, Value, and Action. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press.

Gender Links. 2015. “Findings of the Gender-Based Violence Prevalence Study in Gauteng, Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo Provinces of South Africa.” Accessed 1 August 2019. https://genderlinks.org.za/wp-content/uploads/imported/articles/attachments/21537_the_war@home_4prov2014.pdf.

Gibbs, A., B. Carpenter, T. Crankshaw, J. Hannass-Hancock, J. Smit, M. Tomlison, and L. Butler. 2017. “Prevalence and Factors Associated with Recent Intimate Partner Violence and Relationships Between Disability and Depression in Post-Partum Women in One Clinic in eThekwini Municipality, South Africa.” PLoS ONE 12 (7): 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181236. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181236

Gibbs, A., Y. Sikweyiya, and R. Jewkes. 2014. “Men Value Their Dignity: Securing Respect and Identity Construction in Urban Informal Settlements in South Africa.” Global Health Action 7 (1): 23676. https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v7.23676. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3402/gha.v7.23676

Gordon, C. 2016. “Intimate Partner Violence is Everyone’s Problem, but How Should We Approach it in a Clinical Setting?” South African Medical Journal 106 (10): 962–65. https://doi.org/10.7196/SAMJ.2016.v106i10.11408. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7196/SAMJ.2016.v106i10.11408

Hinyard, L. J., and M. W. Kreuter. 2007. “Using Narrative Communication as a Tool for Health Behavior Change: A Conceptual, Theoretical, and Empirical Overview.” Health Education & Behavior 34 (5): 777–92. https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198106291963. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198106291963

Hunter, M. 2010. Love in the Time of AIDS: Inequality, Gender, and Rights in South Africa. Durban: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press.

Jewkes, R., and R. Morrell. 2012. “Sexuality and the Limits of Agency Among South African Teenage Women: Theorising Femininities and Their Connections to HIV Risk Practices.” Social Science & Medicine 74 (11): 1729–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.05.020. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.05.020

Jewkes, R., R. Morrell, J. Hearn, E. Lundqvist, D. Blackbeard, G. Lindegger, M. Quayle, Y. Sikweyiya, and L. Gottzén. 2015. “Hegemonic Masculinity: Combining Theory and Practice in Gender Interventions.” Culture, Health & Sexuality 17 (2): 96–111. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2015.1085094. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2015.1085094

Kellas, J. K. 2008. “Narrative Theories: Making Sense of Interpersonal Communication.” In Engaging Theories in Interpersonal Communication: Multiple Perspectives, edited by L. A. Baxter and D. O. Braithwaite. Thousand Oaks: Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483329529.n18. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483329529.n18

Kishor, S., and E. K. Bradley. 2012. “Women’s and Men’s Experience of Spousal Violence in Two African Countries: Does Gender Matter?” DHS Analytical Studies 27. Calverton: ICF International. https://www.dhsprogram.com/pubs/pdf/AS27/AS27.pdf.

Ludici, A., A. Antonello, and G. Turchi. 2019. “Intimate Partner Violence Against Disabled Persons: Clinical and Health Impact, Intersections, Issues and Intervention Strategies.” Sexuality & Culture 23 (2): 684–704. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-018-9570-y. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-018-9570-y

Mashego, A. 2017, 21 May. “Violence Against Women and Kids on the Rise.” News24. www.news24.comSouthAfrica/News/violence-against- women-and-kids-on-the-rise-20170520.

Mathews, S., and N. Abrahams. 2015. “’So Now I’m the Man’: Intimate Partner Femicide and Its Interconnections with Expressions of Masculinities in South Africa.” British Journal of Criminology 55 (1): 107–24. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azu076. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azu076

Messerschmidt, J. W. 2018. Hegemonic Masculinity: Formulation, Reformulation, and Amplification. London: Rowman & Littlefield.

Mthembu, J., M. Mabaso, S. Reis, K. Zuma, and N. Zungu. 2021. “Prevalence and Factors Associated with Intimate Partner Violence Among the Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa: Findings of the 2017 Population Based Cross-Sectional Survey.” BMC Public Health 21: 1160. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-11183-z. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-11183-z

Naundorf, K. 2021, 2 December. “Argentina Recorded More Than 250 Femicides in 2020, One Every 35 Hours.” The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/photography/2021/12/02/argentina-suffered-more-than-250-femicides-2020-one-every-35-hours/.

NCADV (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence). 2020. “Domestic Violence.” https://assets.speakcdn.com/assets/2497/domestic_violence-2020080709350855.pdf?1596811079991.

Ross, C., J. G. Smith, T. Manenzhe, R. Netshiongolwe, T. Johnson, A. Caldwell, A. Maphula, and K. S. Ingersoll. 2021. “South African University Women’s Perspectives on Intimate Partner Violence: A Qualitative Study of Reactions to a Tailored Vignette.” Culture, Health & Sexuality. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2021.1970813. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2021.1970813

Seager, J. 2018. “Keeping Women in Their Place.” New Internationalist 516: 63–65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.denabs.2017.11.002. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.denabs.2017.11.002

Sere, Y., N. V. Roman, and R. A. C. Ruiter. 2021. “Coping with the Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence among South African Women: Systematic Review and Meta-Synthesis.” Frontiers Psychiatry 12: 655130. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.655130. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.655130

Sibanda-Moyo, N., E. Khonje, and M. K. Brobbey. 2017. “Violence Against Women in South Africa: A Country in Crisis.” Johannesburg: Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation. Accessed 17 October 2022. https://www.csvr.org.za/pdf/CSVR-Violence-Against-Women-in-SA.pdf.

Spencer, K., M. Haffejee, G. Candy, and E. Kaseke. 2016. “Intimate Partner Violence at a Tertiary Institution.” South African Medical Journal 106 (11): 1129–33. https://doi.org/10.7196/SAMJ.2016.v106i11.12013. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7196/SAMJ.2016.v106i11.12013

Statistics South Africa. 2017. “South Africa Demographic and Health Survey. 2016.” Accessed 5 August 2019. http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/Report%2003-00-09/Report%2003-00-092016.pdf.

UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime). 2019. Global Study on Homicide: Gender-Related Killing of Women and Girls. Vienna: United Nations.

Uthman, O. A., S. Lawoko, and T. Moradi. 2009. “Factors Associated with Attitudes Towards Intimate Partner Violence Against Women: A Comparative Analysis of 17 Sub-Saharan Countries.” BMC International Health and Human Rights 9: 14. https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-698X-9-14. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-698X-9-14

Vetten, L. 2014, 13 November. “Domestic Violence in South Africa.” Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/research/policy-brief/domestic-violence-in-south-africa.