PhD. thesis. University of the Witwatersrand, Wits School of Governance. 1st October 2015 / Two decades after South Africa’s transition to democracy, with a positive constitutional and legislative framework in place, a vast number of South African households continue to be subjected to serious inequalities and extreme poverty. The dual phenomenon of poverty and inequality are complex problems of such a magnitude that silo approaches and singular agency fixes are inadequate. South Africa has the potential to address such issues at a multi-actor multi-institutional level, involving both civil society organisations and government working together. This study investigates the manner in which various stakeholders come together to develop policy and implement strategies aimed at the alleviation of poverty, specifically focussing on childhood poverty and vulnerability. Using the policy network approach to illustrate the relationships that exist between actors, this study follows the policy process from formulation to implementation. The policy network approach is utilised as a lens through which the policy process is examined in two case studies — the succession planning and children’s act projects. These case studies share a common objective which is to equip service providers with the knowledge and skills to assist their clients in accessing their legal rights. Policy networks draw attention to the institutional arrangements needed for coordinating complex interactions between various actors involved in the policy process, with a specific interest on state-civil society relationships of policy cooperation. Hence, the main focus of the research is to ascertain the networking relationships that develop between government and civil society organisations and to explore the potential that policy networks offer in the future pursuit of social justice and children’s rights. / MB2016

This dissertation examines the factors leading to the opening of negotiations to majority rule in South Africa. It argues that changes to the socio-economic environment led to the growth of the strategic relevance of the black working class, and also created certain points of collision between the black working class and the policies of the state. These sectoral collisions engendered both the partial reforms of the Botha era as well as the rejection of these reforms by the black majority. The developments that emerged from the ensuing process of reform, resistance and repression in the 1980s weakened both the state and the black opposition sufficiently to allow for the emergence of a consensual solution to the political stalemate. / Dissertation submitted in accordance with the requirements of the University of Liverpool for the degree of Master of Arts

A PhD Thesis to the Anthropology Department, Faculty of Humanities: University of the Witwatersrand. / This study will argue that; (i) that the evolution of hip-hop arises out of the need by young people to give expression and meaning to their day-to-day socio-political and economic struggles and the harsh realities of urban life, and (ii) that hip-hop has become the audible and dominant voice of reason and a platform that allows youth to address their plight, as active citizens, and (iii) that, as a music expression, the hip-hop narrative can be used as an unsolicited yet resourceful civic perception survey to gauge the temperature and the mood of society at a point in time. My research question is premised on the argument that the youth looks at society and their immediate surroundings through the lens of rap music and the hip-hop culture. It presupposes that it is this hip-hop lens that has become the projector through which the youth views and analyses society and then invites the world to peep through, to confirm and be witnesses to what they see. It is not the purpose of this research to argue how much influence hip-hop has on young people, but instead to look at how youth is using hip-hop to express their discontent and what the various sites are where their relentless desire for a better life is being crafted and articulated. In my investigation, I have argued that it is at these social sites that open or discreet creative expressions are produced/created by the hip-hop generation as the subordinate group and directed to those perceived to be the gatekeepers to their aspirations and their rites of passage. In my investigation I have explored how, out of indignation and desire, the hip-hop generation has employed creative ways to highlight and vent their frustration at a system that seems to derail their aspirations. This is the story of hip-hop where Watkins (2005) argues that the youth have crafted "a vision of their world that is insightful, optimistic and tenaciously critical of the institutions and circumstances that restrict their ability to impact on the world around them" (p. 81) With regard to hip-hop in South Africa critical questions and a central thesis to this paper begin to emerge as to whether hip-hop, as an artistic expression and a seemingly dominant youth culture, has found long-hidden voices through which young people now engage with this art form to address and reflect on their socio-economic and political conditions as active citizens in search of a meaningful social contract. By investigating the triangular relationship between commerce, politics and hip-hop, this study looks at how creative, adaptive people with unrealised potential, who find themselves trapped by illusion and exploitation (realistic or perceived), always try to find a meaning to make sense of their worlds. / AC2018

Thesis (Ph.D. (Social Work)) -- University of Limpopo, 2018 / The scourge of substance abuse globally amongst the youth today is probably one of the most talked about risky health behaviours in history, and is increasing at an alarming rate. Socio-cultural practices contribute towards the use and abuse of substances by the youth in rural areas. The “Ke Moja” programme that dealt with youth substance abuse was rarely received in these areas. The researcher sought to study the impact of socio-cultural practices towards substance abuse amongst the youth to develop a school-based intervention programme. The researcher’s research methodology included a mixed methodological approach that is, exploratory-descriptive design. Stratified-systematic and purposive sampling methods were used to draw a sample from learners, educators, social workers and SGB members. The data collection methods employed was semi-structured interview schedule and questionnaires. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. The results reveal that alcohol and drugs serve as agents of socialisation in socio-cultural events. It was found that there are different types of traditional home-brewed beers that the youth abuse almost daily because they are cheap, easily accessible and available. The findings also reveal that socio-cultural events contribute towards substance abuse in rural areas. The study reveals that sociocultural events take place almost every weekend where the youth use substaces as agents of socialisation. The findings reveal that the need for socio-culturally appropriate substance abuse prevention programmes amongst the youth is important in rural areas. The programme is called “Hambanani” which literally means doing away with the use and abuse of substances. The researcher concludes that socio-cultural practices contribute towards the abuse of substances by the youth in rural areas. The researcher recommends that social workers implement a school-based intervention programme on the impact of socio-cultural practices towards substance abuse amongst the rural youth.

Thesis (MPA.) --University of Limpopo, 2002 / Refer to the document

Due to the rapid onset of westernization, there is a remarkable change in the life styles and the family structure of the black South African population in favour of smaller and economically manageable families. There is also an increase in political as well as family violence in black communities. children, adolescents and young adults are subject to these rapid changes. Family structures and life styles are also affected by these changes. The present study seeks to investigate the relationship between family structures and styles of coping with stressful life events. Hypotheses concerning this relationship are that adolescents from nuclear and extended family structures differ in handling stressful life events. Questions relating to family relations, stressful life events and ways of coping.were administered to 100 standard. 9 and ' 1 0 students, of which 80 were females and 20 were males. The level of stress was assessed by Moos' "Family Environment Scale" and coping efforts were assessed by Folkman and Lazarus' s "Ways of Coping Checklist". All these instruments were translated into zulu to avoid second language problems. A statistical analysis of the results was undertaken. The results did not show significant differences between coping styles of adolescent members of the two family structures. There were, however, some overlaps between the nuclear and the extended family structures concerning the way stressful life events were perceived. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1996.

South African black children have been exposed to extremely high levels of violence, especially in the townships. This study was initiated in ,order to explore the effects of violence on the self-concept of the black child in South Africa. In addition the applicability of current self-concept theories and psychometric measures to this population was investigated. This study is therefore mainly exploratory. Sixty individuals of both sexes between the ages of 8 and 10 years were sampled from two schools. Thirty from one in a high violence and the other thirty from one in a low violence area. However, after finding that the experimental and control groups did not differ signifficantly these groups were reassigned according to exposure to violence rather than geographically. Direct and indirect exposure to violence as well as family and other stressors were measured with the aid of the Life Events Questionnaire (Mason and Killian, 1993). In order to determine the effect of exposure to violence on selfconcept these two groups were compared using one quantitative and two qualitative selfconcept measures. The quantitative measure was the Piers-Harris Children's SelfConcept Scale and the qualitative measures were the Human Figure Drawing Test and an Incomplete Sentences Test. Results were analysed by multivariate statistical procedures. This study concluded that violence has no significant effect.on self-concept in black children (p,>O.05). The Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale was found to be a reliable measure of self-concept in black children. Recommendations include broadening self-concept theories for black children by incorporating theories from disciplines other than psychology. The power of the present study would have been increased by using larger samples. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1996.

Transport forms an essential element of people's lives. It is transport which determines how people access important resources and it influences the mobility of people. Transport availability improves access to resources and hence fights isolation, which derives from lack of access to resources. This case study examines the influence of transport on access to state grants and health services. The study was based on sample of 170 recipients of state grants and was carried out in September 2000. A quantitative survey through face-to-face interviews of pensioners and other recipients of state grants at two remote rural points was carried out. The results of the study showed that poor road and path infrastructure impacts negatively on old people's access to pension payout points and health services. As a result of poor road infrastructure, people have limited access to alternative means of transport and hence have to pay too much for transport to reach services essential to their livelihoods. In addition to the transport cost these elderly have to pay, they also have an extra burden of having to care for the orphans and unemployed adults staying with them. This puts an enormous pressure on their limited resources and hence deepens the cycle of poverty. The majority of people interviewed were positive about the quality of health service they are receiving and the attitude of health workers. There was no correlation between the quality of services received and the demand for using them. Amongst other things, it has been suggested that locating basic services particularly welfare services and health services nearer rural communities will improve the quality of life and minimize the cost of reaching such services. Furthermore infra structural intervention will impact positively on rural communities by providing them with a wider choice of transport and promoting intermediate means of transport. This will have a positive impact on rural communities by increasing the accessibility of services and improving mobility. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2001.

Thesis (M.Tech.: Marketing)-Dept. of Marketing, Durban University of Technology, 2007 x, 164 leaves / According to postpurchase behaviour theory, there is a tendency for individuals to seek consistency among their cognitions (i.e., beliefs, opinions). When an inconsistency between attitudes or behaviours (dissonance) occurs, some change must be made in order to eliminate this behaviour. In the case of a discrepancy between attitudes and behaviour, it is most likely that the attitude will change to accommodate the behaviour. The objective of this study is to determine the extent of post purchase behaviour amongst tertiary students, with specific reference to the Durban University of Technology.

In South Africa the left-wing is currently in an ascendant mode. Yet it is not an unproblematic ascendancy. For one thing, because Marxism has been interwoven with so much of the South African struggle, the South African Left are now unable to disentangle themselves from the contemporary 'collapse of the Marxist dream'. And this translates into a South African socio-political issue because as the Left accumulates influence and power in South Africa so the problems and limitations of historical materialism acquire a wider social significance. This thesis will argue that a key problem with the historical materialist paradigm has been its limitations when dealing with communication and the media. However, there have been historical materialists (usually those who consciously stepped outside 'mainstream Marxist' discourse) who made considerable advances in attempting to develop historical materialism's capacity for dealing with communication, the media and the subjective. This thesis will examine some of the work which has attempted to 'reconstruct' historical materialism away from a narrow materialism. The aim will be to give some direction to the development of a New Left approach to communication. Such a reconstruction is seen as a precondition if the Left-wing is to find a formula for dealing with Information Age relations of production. A New Left communicology able to deal with the 'superstructuralism' of the Information Age offers a specific perspective on how to construct a development strategy for South Africa. This will be discussed, and the thesis will attempt to tie together the notions of communication, development and democracy. The relationship between communication and democracy will be especially important for the New Left approach that will be favoured in this thesis. So an important theme in the thesis will be the question of developing a left-hegemony based upon a democratic-pluralism. This will entail examining the role that media and an institutionalised social-dialogue can play in building a left-wing democracy. The extent to which the left-wing media in South Africa have contributed to a democratic dialogue is discussed. This will then be extended into a discussion of how media can contribute to the reconstruction, development and democratization of a leftist post-apartheid South Africa. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1991.