{"title":"Health Care Professionals and Family Perspectives of Youth's Trauma: Suggestions for Coaching and Self-Leadership","authors":"K. Jooste, Jeanette Elizabeth Maritz","doi":"10.2174/1874922401507010048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401507010048","url":null,"abstract":"Family forms the first and most important social institution in every society. Although traumatised families may be the root of much personal and social turmoil, a healthy community and family is the most vital way to deal with social change and challenges. In the light of increasing violence and trauma in South Africa, youths adverse exposures to violence and trauma have been identified as a distressing health care problem globally and for our communities and families at large. This study sought to explore and describe community and family perspectives of youth's trauma in order to propose a holistic support approach. A qualitative approach was followed and participants (health care professionals and parents) were purposefully selected. Data were gathered through interviews, a focus group and field notes. Data were analysed thematically. Health care professionals and parents shared similar experiences and concerns relating to their perceptions of youths' experiences of trauma. Parents however had a more negative regard of the youth and their capabilities to deal with trauma. The trauma experience was seldom contained to the individual but had a traumatising ripple effect on the parents, and community. This often left the entire system feeling helpless and depleted of resources to cope.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"754 1","pages":"48-57"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76879448","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Systematic Review of the Relationship Between Family Structure and Health Risk Behaviours Amongst Young People: An African Perspective","authors":"J. Frantz, Zinzisa Sixaba, Mario R. Smith","doi":"10.2174/1874922401507010003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401507010003","url":null,"abstract":"Objective: The aim of this study was to review the published literature on the relationship between family structure and engagement in health risk behaviour amongst youth in African countries. Methods: A systematic review was conducted between 2000 and 2014. Suitable titles were identified from database searches. Thereafter, abstracts were evaluated along specific inclusion criteria. Eleven full text articles were evaluated for methodological quality using a modified critical appraisal tool and six studies were included in the final review that satisfied the threshold criterion of 70%. A narrative synthesis was completed for all included records to provide a textual answer to the research question. Results: Findings indicated that there was a relationship between family structure and engagement in health risk behaviour, specifically risky sexual behaviour. The importance of family structure was evident, and the active involvement of parents in the activities of youth is cardinal. The review further underscores that there is lack of methodologically rigorous research that can provide empirical support for and insight into the relationship between family structure and engagement in health risk behaviour. Discussion: Risky sexual behaviour was the most prevalent outcome assessed across studies. Family structure impacted positively on delaying or reducing engagement in risky sexual behaviour. Diverse family structures were identified and orphans living with caregivers were identified as a particular structure that might be more prevalent in the African context. Parental involvement and investment in adolescent activities were more strongly identified as an important factor. There is a lack of and need for more methodologically rigorous research to gain empirical support for and insight into the relationship between family structure and health risk behaviours.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"379 1","pages":"3-11"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80633397","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Editorial: Community Development through Family Well-Being","authors":"Nicolette V Roman","doi":"10.2174/1874922401507010001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401507010001","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"1 1","pages":"1-2"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83638134","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Imprisoned Sex Offenders’ Chronic Denial and their Childhood Family Environment","authors":"O. Davids, M. Londt, Lizane Wilson","doi":"10.2174/1874922401507010042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401507010042","url":null,"abstract":"Statistics in South Africa shows that sex offences are among the crimes that invoke the most public concern as anywhere else in the world. The number of sentenced sex offenders is increasing and denial by the sex offender is regarded as a risk factor for re-offending. Sex offenders who chronically deny their offenses are not only perceived as having a greater likelihood of recidivism, but additional questions about their childhood experiences and their experiences in their families of origin are also raised. This study described the family environment of non-admitting sex offenders and explored whether any family characteristics influenced their denial of the sexual offence. Qualitative research was applied and ten (10) incarcerated, non-admitting sex offenders were purposively selected from a Correctional Facility in the Western Cape. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants and Social Learning Theory was used as a lens to understand the dynamics. The findings of this study highlighted that most participants were raised in single-parent households with absent father figures, which had implications for their masculine identities and roles. These families were characterized by challenges such as domestic violence, substance abuse, unsatisfactory support and compromised parenting styles.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"106 1","pages":"42-47"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90312634","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Early-Fatherhood in White City, Jabavu, Soweto: A Time-Bound, Contextual Construct","authors":"N. Selebano, G. Khunou","doi":"10.2174/1874922401406010024","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401406010024","url":null,"abstract":"While young mothers have enjoyed the interests of researchers and policy makers, young fathers' experiences have only been examined recently. Through a thematic content analysis of interviews with six black young fathers from White City, Jabavu in Soweto, this article argues that early fatherhood should be understood through an examination of how it is lived in the social, political, cultural and economic contexts of particular communities. The data from this study indicate that there are strong ties between the young men's experiences and the overall community values, history and culture where they experience fatherhood. The article concludes that for appropriate policies and strategies to be implemented where young fathers are concerned, more context specific research should be conducted.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"12 1","pages":"24-30"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90187729","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Young Women's Experiences Following Discovering a Biological Father in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa","authors":"Motlalepule Nathane-Taulela, M. Nduna","doi":"10.2174/1874922401406010062","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401406010062","url":null,"abstract":"In South Africa, it has been established that a high number and growing proportion of children are growing up without fathers in their lives. Research suggests that some children who grow up without their biological fathers seek to know them during adolescence. Some discover them whilst others never do. This paper aimed to investigate experiences of young women who discover their fathers during adolescence. We undertook a qualitative study in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa to understand experiences of children who grow up with absent fathers. We conducted face-to-face, gender-matched interviews with young women aged 15 to 26. Five case studies are presented here. We used Topical structural analysis to examine the narratives. Findings reveal that mother or someone else from the maternal family was instrumental in the disclosure of the father's identity. Four topics that cover the resultant experiences in relation to the father were; a weak or no relationship formed, a positive relationship was formed, the child was disinterested or the mother barred regular visits to the father. This study concludes that the maternal family context, reasons for father absence, how the disclosure happened influence experiences that follow discovering one's father. Forming a positive relationship with the father depended on the child and father's common interest.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"23 1","pages":"62-68"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89933592","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Growing Up Without a Father and a Pursuit for the Right Surname","authors":"M. Nduna","doi":"10.2174/1874922401406010031","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401406010031","url":null,"abstract":"Young people who grew up without their biological fathers may or may not use their surnames. This paper contributes to an understanding of young people's views of the relevance of a biological paternal surname. We conducted gender-matched in-depth interviews with 73 volunteers aged 14-39 in two South African provinces and transcribed and translated audio-recorded home language interviews into English. The findings indicate that the pursuit for using a biological father's surname was motivated by seeking ancestral protection, seeking one's father so that he could play an overseeing role in rituals, and citizenship rights; some participants believed that the use of a biological father's surname was essential for registration for an identity document, passport, marriage and death certificate. However, there was no agreement in the data about the importance and usefulness of using a biological father's surname. In conclusion, the article maintains that the father's surname is important for some children who grew up without their fathers.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"54 1","pages":"31-38"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75708700","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Editorial Father Connections","authors":"M. Nduna, G. Khunou","doi":"10.2174/1874922401406010017","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401406010017","url":null,"abstract":"South Africa celebrated twenty years of democracy in 2014 following more than 100 years of colonization and institutionalized discrimination through Apartheid. A 'broken' family structure is one of the pathetic legacies left by political instability in post-colonial and post war countries globally. This phenomenon of broken families is evident in South Africa following the period of discrimination against Black people and the systematic migrant labor system that was sponsored by and for the Apartheid government. The migrant labor system separated fathers from their families and men left their families in the rural communities to work in the burgeoning mines and factories in urban areas. The current democratic State has a responsibility to strengthen broken families through policies and intervention informed by research evidence. There is an emerging body of research on Father Connections in post-war and post-colonial settings. This special issue brings together eight articles on Father Connections in South Africa. The articles present data from diverse but interesting research; for example the piece by Nduna M and Taulela M focuses on the experiences of 'discovering' biological fathers for youth who grew up with absent and unknown fathers. The participants that the article draws from are young women from a small town, in Mpumalanga. Through narrative analysis, the article explores how young people deal with finding out who their biological fathers are. In the article by Selebano N and Khunou G, the experiences of young fathers from Soweto are explored.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"63 4 1","pages":"17-17"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88222226","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Constraining Constructions: Low-Income Fathers' Perceptions of Fathering their Adolescent Daughters","authors":"E. Lesch, Adiela Ismail","doi":"10.2174/1874922401406010039","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401406010039","url":null,"abstract":"Fathers have the potential to play an important role in the development of their daughters. Paternal involvement has been shown to significantly affect the emotional well-being of daughters during their adolescent and young adult years. However, internationally and nationally, research is limited in terms of the number of studies on the relationship between fathers and adolescent daughters. It is also mostly based on daughter's reports and often does not include father's perspectives. We interviewed low-income fathers who lived in a Cape Winelands community in South Africa about being fathers to daughters. A social constructionist approach to fatherhood informed this explorative and community-specific study. We used a qualitative design with semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis. Similar to other fatherhood studies, our participants' constructions of fatherhood revolved around the roles of disciplinarian, provider, protector and head of the household. Traditional roles emerged not only for the fathers but also in their constructions of their wives and daughters. Father-daughter relationships are important gender construction sites that influence daughters' future interactions and relationships with men and it is crucial that the reproduction of such traditional gender roles in homes should be addressed to empower women. Our findings also suggest that fathers tend to minimize physical demonstrations of affection towards their daughters and may need guidelines for appropriate interactions in this regard.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"350 1","pages":"39-46"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82595827","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Male attitudes towards children, fatherhood, and childrearing: a descriptive profile from South African Social Attitudes Survey (SASAS)","authors":"A. Franklin, M. Makiwane, T. Makusha","doi":"10.2174/1874922401406010047","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2174/1874922401406010047","url":null,"abstract":"South African male attitudes towards children, fatherhood and childrearing remain an important topic for research and policy development given concerns about men's engagement with children and the family. This study utilizes a subsample of males from the national South African Social Attitudes Survey to profile attitudes of males cross analyzed by survey designated racial groups. Results show that males in general, have a positive attitude towards having children and feel that they are not a burden. A greater number of Black African males than the other racial groups believe children are a financial burden and restrict employment choices. Most males believe that men want to have a loving relationship with children and perform best as fathers if married to the mother. The majority of them believe that it is a crisis in the country that many fathers do not co-reside with their children. Consistent across racial groups, most males are split about discipline with half believing in spanking, and that it teaches children right from wrong. Most males believe that it is better to talk to children than spank them. In examining responses to survey questions, Black African males trended away from the prevalent attitudes more than Colored, Asian Indian, and White males. Family service providers can utilize these attitudes of men in planning intervention programs and policy development.","PeriodicalId":75160,"journal":{"name":"The open family studies journal","volume":"98 1","pages":"47-55"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2015-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80548032","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}