Women Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project

dc.contributor.advisorBoonzaier, Floretta
dc.contributor.authorMabaso, Karabo
dc.date.accessioned2023-03-20T10:23:34Z
dc.date.available2023-03-20T10:23:34Z
dc.date.issued2022
dc.date.updated2023-03-17T07:15:31Z
dc.description.abstractIntimate partner violence and more generally gender-based violence (GBV) are worldwide issues that threaten the health of the public and people's rights, and South Africa is no exception. In the context of South Africa, IPV is especially prevalent in contexts of high levels of violence against women, shaped by intersectional factors such as race, class, and culture, and various forms of power that perpetrate and perpetuate inequality and dominance over women. Understanding the contextual factors behind IPV from the viewpoint of women survivors is critical to obtaining a thorough understanding of the various contexts in which it occurs. This is crucial for understanding the identities implicated in violent experiences. The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of South African women in shelters who experienced violence. Using intersectionality theory as a lens, it examined how racial, cultural, and class-related identity markers influence and shape IPV. Participatory action research (PAR) methodologies and digital storytelling (DST) in visual and digital formats were used to explore the narratives and experiences of women exposed to IPV. Purposive sampling was used to recruit a sample of nine women residing at St Anne's Homes, a shelter for abused women and children situated in Cape Town. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with each participant. In addition, a half-day DST training workshop was conducted for the women where they were trained on DST. Thereafter, the women were asked to take images and videos that represented their narratives of violence. The interviews, images, and digital stories were transcribed and analysed through a thematic narrative analysis. Six themes around women's experiences of violence and the support received from the shelter were established. Themes covered: ‘narratives of loneliness and feeling stuck'; ‘narratives of control'; ‘drugs and alcohol: a cause and response to IPV'; ‘consequences of abuse'; ‘narratives of escaping'; and ‘shelter: refuge, empowerment, and independence'. A key contribution of this study was women's narration of the impact of structural inequalities on their experiences. Furthermore, the women constructed a variety of reasons for their experiences of abuse, notably with drug and alcohol abuse among them. Another key finding dealt with the women's identities as mothers and how this was central to their motivation to escape their abusive environments. By using DST to advance a social justice agenda, the method was able to create a space for particular narratives to emerge.
dc.identifier.apacitationMabaso, K. (2022). <i>Women Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project</i>. (). ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37505en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationMabaso, Karabo. <i>"Women Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project."</i> ., ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology, 2022. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37505en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationMabaso, K. 2022. Women Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project. . ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37505en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Master Thesis AU - Mabaso, Karabo AB - Intimate partner violence and more generally gender-based violence (GBV) are worldwide issues that threaten the health of the public and people's rights, and South Africa is no exception. In the context of South Africa, IPV is especially prevalent in contexts of high levels of violence against women, shaped by intersectional factors such as race, class, and culture, and various forms of power that perpetrate and perpetuate inequality and dominance over women. Understanding the contextual factors behind IPV from the viewpoint of women survivors is critical to obtaining a thorough understanding of the various contexts in which it occurs. This is crucial for understanding the identities implicated in violent experiences. The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of South African women in shelters who experienced violence. Using intersectionality theory as a lens, it examined how racial, cultural, and class-related identity markers influence and shape IPV. Participatory action research (PAR) methodologies and digital storytelling (DST) in visual and digital formats were used to explore the narratives and experiences of women exposed to IPV. Purposive sampling was used to recruit a sample of nine women residing at St Anne's Homes, a shelter for abused women and children situated in Cape Town. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with each participant. In addition, a half-day DST training workshop was conducted for the women where they were trained on DST. Thereafter, the women were asked to take images and videos that represented their narratives of violence. The interviews, images, and digital stories were transcribed and analysed through a thematic narrative analysis. Six themes around women's experiences of violence and the support received from the shelter were established. Themes covered: ‘narratives of loneliness and feeling stuck'; ‘narratives of control'; ‘drugs and alcohol: a cause and response to IPV'; ‘consequences of abuse'; ‘narratives of escaping'; and ‘shelter: refuge, empowerment, and independence'. A key contribution of this study was women's narration of the impact of structural inequalities on their experiences. Furthermore, the women constructed a variety of reasons for their experiences of abuse, notably with drug and alcohol abuse among them. Another key finding dealt with the women's identities as mothers and how this was central to their motivation to escape their abusive environments. By using DST to advance a social justice agenda, the method was able to create a space for particular narratives to emerge. DA - 2022_ DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town KW - intimate partner violence KW - narrative KW - shelter KW - intersectionality KW - digital storytelling LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PY - 2022 T1 - Women Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project TI - Women Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37505 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/37505
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationMabaso K. Women Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project. []. ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology, 2022 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37505en_ZA
dc.language.rfc3066eng
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Psychology
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanities
dc.subjectintimate partner violence
dc.subjectnarrative
dc.subjectshelter
dc.subjectintersectionality
dc.subjectdigital storytelling
dc.titleWomen Shelter Residents' Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence: A Digital Storytelling Project
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationlevelMSocSci
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