Thesis (Ph.D.)--Brown University, 2008. / Vita. Advisor: Mark M. Pitt. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 81-85).

The consequences of the African AIDS epidemic are growing--not just in size--but in complexity. These consequences are no longer just biological; increasingly, they are also social, cultural, economic, and psychological. In this dissertation, I consider one overlooked consequence of the epidemic by asking how HIV infection affects the desire to have children in a context where reproduction is so highly valued. Taking advantage of a unique situation in rural Malawi, where no one knew their HIV status prior to testing being introduced as part of an ongoing longitudinal survey, I use a quasiexperimental design and in‐depth interviews to examine the evidence for an intentional relationship between HIV/AIDS and fertility. Rural Malawians adjust their childbearing desires in response to information about their HIV status. The relationship--both in magnitude and in motivation--is highly gendered. HIV positive women fear that a pregnancy will worsen their disease. Despite this widely shared belief, there remains a lot of ambivalence: women who are positive, or who fear they are positive, want to live normal lives. For some, that means avoiding childbearing as a strategy to delay the symptoms of HIV. For others, it means having children as they would have had despite what they think it might mean for their health. Male fertility preferences are more volatile to information about HIV status. Men see childbearing as futile if they are HIV positive because they anticipate their own death and the death of their future offspring. However, men may be less likely to translate their preferences into action because--after learning they are infected--they are less motivated to stop having children than they are unmotivated to have children. This dissertation shows that rural Malawians adapt their childbearing preferences to information about their HIV status. There are strategies in these adaptations, as well as hope for a future where the conditions of childbearing in an AIDS epidemic might have changed. I conclude by discussing what the findings mean for fertility, fertility theory, and policy. / text

The study examined correlates of HIV perceived risks and protective strategies among adolescents in rural Malawi i.e. whether there was an association between socio demographic characteristics of adolescents and subsequent HIV perceived risks and protective strategies. Age at sexual debut is a variable of interest in this study. The objectives were to investigate whether age at first sexual intercourse does influence adolescents’ individual’s risk perceptions of HIV and protective strategies, i.e. does age at first sex set a precedence in the thinking of adolescentswith regards HIV risks and protective strategies such as condom use. Data: This study uses cross sectional data from Wave 3 of a wider study, the Malawi Diffusion and Ideational Change Project (MDICP).The MDICP is a joint collaboration between researchers from the Population Studies Centre at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Malawi‘s College of Medicine and Chancellor College. In this study, a multiple regression analysis on the cross sectional data from the 2004 wave 3of the Malawi Diffusion and Ideational Change Project was done. The focus of this study is on the relationship between age at first sexual intercourse and the individual‘s perception of risk of HIV/AIDS and protective strategies, it examines if there is an association between the two factors. Descriptive analysis: Descriptive statistics to obtain the frequencies of the main variables of interest such as the background characteristics of respondents (gender, marital status, mean age at sexual debut, education, economic status of household) were computed in order to better understand the population under study. Multivariate Analysis: Three separate models were employed; two multinomial regression analysis measuring worry and likelihood of infection against socio demographic variables and a binary logistic regression measuring condom use and the socio demographic variables. Relative Risk Ratios were used to interpret the multinomial logistic regression output while odds ratios were used to interpret the logistic output. Results: Consistent with existing literature, results indicate that early age at first sex is a predictor of HIV risk perceptions and protective strategies. Age at first sex does set a precedence in the future thinking of adolescents with regards to how they perceive HIV risks, as well as how they perceive protective strategies against HIV-particularly condom use. This study confirms that age at first sex alongside with other socio demographic variables are significantly associated with HIV risk perceptions HIV and condom use, while other factors may matter, such as gender, region, HIV knowledge, religion or educational level. Limitations: The information on age at first sexual encounter was based exclusively on respondent’s self–reports. This data collection method often has limitations that are attributed to the tendency for people to under-report socially unacceptable behaviours (e.g. having multiple sex partners) and to over-report socially acceptable behavior. The other limitation is that the study lacks longitudinal data to allow a more in-depth analysis of trends in HIV/AIDS-related indicators. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.Th.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 1997.

Literature has shown that the involvement of men in gender and health programmes remains unclear on the ground (Esplen, 2006:1; Rivers and Aggleton, 1999:2-3). This has been happening in the midst of claims to have moved from the Women in Development to the Gender and Development framework which calls for the involvement of men in gender and development work. Furthermore, it has been argued that where literature exists, the work is generally based on studies done in developed countries and the relevance of such findings to the developing world still remains unclear (Abraham, Jewkes, Hoffman and Laubsher, 2004:330; Connell, 1987:235-236). This study therefore attempts to fill this gap by looking at the work of the Malawi Human Rights Resource Center, one of the non-governmental organisations working on gender and health programmes in Malawi. A qualitative approach was used. Six project staff and eighteen project beneficiaries were interviewed to assess their perceptions and experiences. The study found out that men involvement continues to be minimal and unclear in gender and health programmes. Although there is awareness of the importance of men’s involvement this was not implemented effectively. The few men that were involved continue to be intimidated and humiliated by both men and women. The issues of masculinities and patriarchal also continue to shape gender inequalities in the area under study. All these discourage most men from active participation in such work. Furthermore, the few that are involved meet a number of barriers which deter them from greater involvement. Such barriers according to this study include, among other things, cultural barriers, lack of men’s own space where they can discuss their own gender related issues, the view held by some gender activists that gender is equal to women’s issues and men resistance to change considering the benefits accrued by being men. All these have impacted on the way people, especially men, view gender and health programmes. The study further found that although men are regarded as the main perpetrators of violence, not all men are as such, some do acknowledge the effects of the practise. Furthermore, some men also do experience violence. According to the study findings, this is an area which has also continued to be overlooked by most developmental agencies. In Malawi, this is also exacerbated by the fact that there are no specific programmes that target men’s welfare. Nevertheless, the study argues that men’s involvement is crucial in gender and health work. In areas where men were involved positive indicators were noted and reported. The indicators include improved communication within most families, peaceful family coexistence, happy families and changes in sexual behaviour. All these give hope regarding the reduction of HIV/AIDS and development as a whole. This suggests that where gender equality is to be achieved, men need to be actively involved, both as partners and victim of gender and health related violence. When implementing such programme, there is also need to acknowledge that not all men are violent, some are actually willing to join the fight against the malpractice. / Thesis (M.Dev.Studies)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

<p>This study explored the problem of poor performance in science among students who are provided secondary school places on merit in Malawi. Existing studies of the problem are inconsistent suggesting that these studies may have shed light on some parts of a complex problem. Questionnaires, interviews and analysis of documents were used to obtain information concerning students&rsquo / conceptions of science, science learning and events that eventuated into the problem in the past. The population for this study was 89 government and governmentassisted secondary schools. From that population eighteen schools were randomly selected from each of the six education divisions in the country. One thousand five hundred secondary class 3 students drawn from randomly selected schools participated. The participating students completed a 31item learning beliefs and practices&nbsp / questionnaire with items drawn from the science education literature and adapted to the local situation and a selfefficacy and attribution of failure questionnaire. Forty students were interviewed about their concepts of science and science learning. Relevant documents found in the Malawi National Archives were analyzed to determine the origin of the problem.</p>

Thesis (D. Th.)--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Malawi, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [137]-144) and index.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Malawi, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [137]-144) and index.

Zugl.: Bonn, University, Diss., 2008.