Respectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Town

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorBoonzaier, Florettaen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorVan Niekerk, Taryn Jillen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2015-12-01T09:24:03Z
dc.date.available2015-12-01T09:24:03Z
dc.date.issued2015en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical referencesen_ZA
dc.description.abstractThis study examined the social representations of intimate partner violence (IPV) that emerged amongst violent men, their social networks and within the media, and framed within social representations theory and feminist poststructuralism. In-depth individual interviews were conducted with 11 men, recruited from two men's programmes at an NGO, and seven focus group discussions were conducted with the men's social networks. A total of 11 3 reports on violence against women were collected from two newspapers that draw the largest readership in the Cape Town area. A thematic decomposition analysis - emphasising language, power and subjectivity - revealed how participants' representations of respectability, morality, and reputation served to maintain patriarchy, and make violence permissible. The findings also shed light on the polarity of human thought, demonstrating how 'non-valid' victims of IPV are blamed and 'othered' for the violence perpetrated against them; yet in contrast, men who perpetrate violence are protected and defended. Understanding violence as an intersectional experience - defined by race, class, gender and sexuality in the context of post-apartheid South Africa - is central to the analysis. This study employed an integrated and unique methodology to sample men, their networks and printed media reports, which involved an analysis of violence as a social act. To my knowledge, it is the first study to have asked questions about what social representations of intimate partner violence emerge in men and their social networks' narratives and how these resonate in South African media's discourses. Suggestions for prevention and community-based programmes, interventions for perpetrators and victims of intimate partner violence, and practical recommendations for improved journalistic practice are provided. The community, relationships and individuals are shown to be inseparable spheres, and the contextualised analyses of power and oppression are shown to open possibilities for social change.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationVan Niekerk, T. J. (2015). <i>Respectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Town</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15490en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationVan Niekerk, Taryn Jill. <i>"Respectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Town."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15490en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationVan Niekerk, T. 2015. Respectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Town. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Van Niekerk, Taryn Jill AB - This study examined the social representations of intimate partner violence (IPV) that emerged amongst violent men, their social networks and within the media, and framed within social representations theory and feminist poststructuralism. In-depth individual interviews were conducted with 11 men, recruited from two men's programmes at an NGO, and seven focus group discussions were conducted with the men's social networks. A total of 11 3 reports on violence against women were collected from two newspapers that draw the largest readership in the Cape Town area. A thematic decomposition analysis - emphasising language, power and subjectivity - revealed how participants' representations of respectability, morality, and reputation served to maintain patriarchy, and make violence permissible. The findings also shed light on the polarity of human thought, demonstrating how 'non-valid' victims of IPV are blamed and 'othered' for the violence perpetrated against them; yet in contrast, men who perpetrate violence are protected and defended. Understanding violence as an intersectional experience - defined by race, class, gender and sexuality in the context of post-apartheid South Africa - is central to the analysis. This study employed an integrated and unique methodology to sample men, their networks and printed media reports, which involved an analysis of violence as a social act. To my knowledge, it is the first study to have asked questions about what social representations of intimate partner violence emerge in men and their social networks' narratives and how these resonate in South African media's discourses. Suggestions for prevention and community-based programmes, interventions for perpetrators and victims of intimate partner violence, and practical recommendations for improved journalistic practice are provided. The community, relationships and individuals are shown to be inseparable spheres, and the contextualised analyses of power and oppression are shown to open possibilities for social change. DA - 2015 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2015 T1 - Respectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Town TI - Respectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Town UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15490 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/15490
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationVan Niekerk TJ. Respectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Town. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology, 2015 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15490en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Psychologyen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanitiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherPsychologyen_ZA
dc.subject.otherIntimate Partner Violenceen_ZA
dc.subject.otheren_ZA
dc.titleRespectability, morality and reputation: social representations of intimate partner violence against women in Cape Townen_ZA
dc.typeDoctoral Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelDoctoral
dc.type.qualificationnamePhDen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
thesis_hum_2015_vnktar003-thesis.pdf
Size:
2.5 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
Collections
PhD / Doctoral