“You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa

dc.contributor.advisorKessi, Shose
dc.contributor.authorNdabane, Tshegofatso
dc.date.accessioned2025-09-16T07:15:57Z
dc.date.available2025-09-16T07:15:57Z
dc.date.issued2025
dc.date.updated2025-09-16T07:11:01Z
dc.description.abstractOver the last decade, there has been a rise in reports within mainstream media about Black women reclaiming their agency through rest. However, despite this recognized importance of rest as it relates to Black women, comparatively sparse research literature has examined this relationship. More specifically, the literature has failed to address Black women's constructions of rest in the context of the strong Black woman schema as a dominant feature of their gendered racial socialization experiences. The purpose of this study was to explore how a group of Black mothers and daughters construct their ideas and experiences of rest while navigating life within the South African context, as well as how these are negotiated from one generation to another. Drawing on a qualitative research design, four mother-daughter dyads participated in a series of eight individual interviews and four joint interviews. Black Feminist-Womanist Thought was the theoretical framework applied, and the thematic analysis by constant comparison analysis approach yielded four overarching themes: Participants' definitions of rest, how rest cannot be separated from the material and psychosocial realities of a post-apartheid South Africa, adultification of Black girls as a hidden feature of the strong Black woman schema which impacts articulations of rest, and intergenerational conversations as a site of affirmation, negotiation and education. The findings discussed within the identified themes ultimately advocate that we consider how the adultification of Black girls manifests itself into the strong Black women schema. Additionally, it serve as a foundation from which further discourse around rest and Black women in South Africa can be explored and produced.
dc.identifier.apacitationNdabane, T. (2025). <i>“You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa</i>. (). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41824en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationNdabane, Tshegofatso. <i>"“You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa."</i> ., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology, 2025. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41824en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationNdabane, T. 2025. “You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa. . University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41824en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Ndabane, Tshegofatso AB - Over the last decade, there has been a rise in reports within mainstream media about Black women reclaiming their agency through rest. However, despite this recognized importance of rest as it relates to Black women, comparatively sparse research literature has examined this relationship. More specifically, the literature has failed to address Black women's constructions of rest in the context of the strong Black woman schema as a dominant feature of their gendered racial socialization experiences. The purpose of this study was to explore how a group of Black mothers and daughters construct their ideas and experiences of rest while navigating life within the South African context, as well as how these are negotiated from one generation to another. Drawing on a qualitative research design, four mother-daughter dyads participated in a series of eight individual interviews and four joint interviews. Black Feminist-Womanist Thought was the theoretical framework applied, and the thematic analysis by constant comparison analysis approach yielded four overarching themes: Participants' definitions of rest, how rest cannot be separated from the material and psychosocial realities of a post-apartheid South Africa, adultification of Black girls as a hidden feature of the strong Black woman schema which impacts articulations of rest, and intergenerational conversations as a site of affirmation, negotiation and education. The findings discussed within the identified themes ultimately advocate that we consider how the adultification of Black girls manifests itself into the strong Black women schema. Additionally, it serve as a foundation from which further discourse around rest and Black women in South Africa can be explored and produced. DA - 2025 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town KW - Rest KW - mothers and daughters KW - Black women KW - intergenerational conversations LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2025 T1 - “You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa TI - “You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41824 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/41824
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationNdabane T. “You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa. []. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Psychology, 2025 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/41824en_ZA
dc.language.isoen
dc.language.rfc3066eng
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Psychology
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanities
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subjectRest
dc.subjectmothers and daughters
dc.subjectBlack women
dc.subjectintergenerational conversations
dc.title“You Rest, You Rust:” Intergenerational constructions of rest among Black women in Johannesburg, South Africa
dc.typeThesis / Dissertation
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationlevelMSc
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