Philosophiae Doctor - PhD (Nursing) / The number of healthcare institutions that has embraced Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) as an effective and efficient method of neonatal care especially in Edo State, Nigeria has not multiplied even after more than a decade of its recommendation by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2003. Nigeria ranks seventh among the ten African countries where newborns have the highest risk of dying with over 700 newborn deaths per10, 000 live births. This is worrisome because Edo State is one of the 36 states in Nigeria that contribute about 6,700 neonatal deaths to the 255,500 mortality rate recorded in Nigeria annually. This has led to a concern about the knowledge and attitude of the key drivers in neonatal care of simplified methods aimed at reducing neonatal mortality despite previous training efforts. The development of a strategy to enhance the early implementation of the WHO KMC guidelines in all healthcare facilities across the state was therefore conceptualized. Strategies to increase implementation are considered important to the success of KMC because reducing neonatal mortality rate is contextual. This research aimed to explore and describe the application of the KMC guidelines by the nurses, administrators and parents of preterm infants in the care of premature babies and to develop strategies to enhance its early implementation in healthcare facilities in Edo State, Nigeria.

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.

Submitted by Cássia Santos (cassia.bcufg@gmail.com) on 2015-01-28T10:59:40Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação - Marcia Cristina Hizim Pela - 2014.pdf: 6663482 bytes, checksum: ec68f8c38b38b8a77d4e06a19077295c (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Luciana Ferreira (lucgeral@gmail.com) on 2015-01-30T14:43:00Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação - Marcia Cristina Hizim Pela - 2014.pdf: 6663482 bytes, checksum: ec68f8c38b38b8a77d4e06a19077295c (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-01-30T14:43:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação - Marcia Cristina Hizim Pela - 2014.pdf: 6663482 bytes, checksum: ec68f8c38b38b8a77d4e06a19077295c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-08-28 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / The main objective of this thesis is to analyze the spatialization process of not welcomed subjects in the planned capitals of Brazilian Cerrado. Goiânia, Brasília and Palmas. The proposition is that the dialectical relationship between the norm and the life, through work and social-cultural practices, promotes landslidings of meaning both in form and content of the urban spaces, thus, provoking a new (Dis)order in these cities. The term “not welcomed subjects” was coined by the author of this paper on her master’s degree dis sertation as a way of referring to the capital Goiânia builders, once that, despite these workers represented a bigger contingent on the city building process, there wasn’t even a reserved space for them on the original planning. This fact allowed the relationship assessment of what was once imputed to the workers, the time elapsed on the city building wasn’t counted as well as the right to live over the edifications they crafted. This phenomenon, that has also happened in the city building of Brasília and Palmas, goes on until today, revealing that the not welcomed subjects on cities planned spaces are not only the builders. Another huge contingent of workers is added to the “not welcomed” group forced out of their homes for numerous reasons like, expelling from the countryside, lack of work, housing and better life perspective, etc., these individuals migrated to Goiânia, Palmas and Brasília hoping to find better living conditions. Another important assessment is that these cities were built and managed wit hin the bounds of capitalist development. They are cities initially planned, as claimed by some authors and researchers, by and for the capital. However, despite agreeing with the socio -spatial analysis that come from these precepts and also understanding the hegemonic financier and market driven logic through the capital-cities urban spaces configuration, we believe that they are insufficient to comprehend the development of these cities urban areas, once that, the final product of the capital-work relationship is privileged, while the not welcomed subjects’ struggles for surviving and fixing themselves in the new city is ignored. Therefore, we add to the relationships studied here the symbolic, political and social meanings. There is a spatial living that cannot be ignored; it’s within it that the not welcomed subjects’ movement against the logic of hegemonic capital is acknowledged. It’s over this space that the dialectical contradictions are revealed: the dialectic between the conceived and perceived spac e and the lived one; between the historical time and the social one; between alienation and creation; between frustration and possibility; between domination and insurgency; demonstrating that human beings cannot be totally alienated, through struggles, creations, changes, they resist and (re) exist. When doing it, they break the established order and portray a new ( Dis)order, which, in one way or another, will be materialized in the urban areas and alter its form and contend. And it’s exactly within this movement that a transforming praxis can be glimpsed. / O objetivo principal dessa tese é analisar o processo de espacialização dos sujeitos não desejados nas cidades-capitais planejadas do Cerrado: Goiânia, Brasília e Palmas. A proposição é que a relação dialética entre a norma e vida, por meio do trabalho e das práticas socioculturais, promove deslizamentos de sentidos nas formas e nos conteúdos dos espaços urbanos provocando, assim, uma nova (Des)ordem nestas cidades. O termo 'sujeitos não desejados' foi cunhado pela autora em sua dissertação de mestrado para referir -se aos trabalhadores construtores da cidade de Goiânia, uma vez que, apesar de estes trabalhadores representarem o maior contingente envolvido no processo de construção de Goiânia, não havia sequer um espaço a eles reservados no plano original. Tal fato levou à constatação sobre a relação que se tentou imputar entre a temporalidade da construção destas cidades e o direito destes operários de nelas residirem, ou melhor, o direito de usufruírem de suas obras nas/das cidades que contribuíram para edificar. Este fenômeno, que também aconteceu no processo de construção de Brasília e Palmas, perdura até os dias de hoje, revelando, assim, que os sujeitos não desejados nos espaços planejados destas cidades hoje não são apenas os trabalhadores construtores. Acrescenta-se a este grupo um enorme contingente de trabalhadores que impulsionados por diversos fatores, como a expulsão do campo, a falta de trabalho, de moradia e de perspectiva de vida digna em suas cidades etc., migram para Goiânia, Palmas e Brasília na “esperança” da possibilidade da perspectiva de trabalho e de melhores condições de vida. Outra constatação importante é que estas cidades foram construídas e são geridas dentro da lógica do modo de produção capitalista. São cidades inicialmente planejadas, como anunciam alguns autores e pesquisadores, pelo e para o capital. Todavia, apesar de comungar com as análises socioespaciais que partem destes preceitos e compreender a hegemonia desta lógica financista e mercadológica no processo de configuração dos espaços urbanos, entendemos que eles são insuficientes para compreender a formação dos espaços urbanos dessas cidades-capitais, uma vez que ao privilegiar o produto final da relação capital-trabalho, ignoram a luta dos sujeitos não desejados para se fixarem nesta cidade. Deste modo é que acrescentamos as relações e os seus significados simbólicos, políticos e sociais. Há um espaço vivido que não pode ser desconsiderado. É nele que se percebe o movimento dos sujeitos não desejados contra a lógica hegemônica do capital. É nele que as contradições, consequentemente, a dialética, entre o espaço concebido, o espaço percebido e o espaço vivido; entre o tempo histórico e o tempo social, econômico; entre alienação e criação; entre frustração e possibilidade; entre dominação e insurgência irão revelar -se e demonstrar que o ser humano não é passível de alienação total. Ele, o ser humano, luta, cria, modifica, enfim, resiste e (Re)Existe. Ao fazer isso, rompe a ordem estabelecida e cria uma nova ( Des)ordem, (des)ordem esta que, de uma forma ou de outra, irá materializar -se nos espaços urbanos e alterar a sua forma e o seu conteúdo. É exatamente neste movimento que se pode vis lumbrar a possibilidade da práxis transformadora.

Women throughout the world are suffering the brunt of HIV/AIDS. They carry the unenviable tag of being the suffering group who are at risk. Women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS is a subject that has not received adequate attention to date. This empirical study examines the socio-cultural factors and practices that impede upon behavioural change of Zimbabwean women in an era of HIV/AIDS. Firstly, a sample of 1002 women respondents is purposefully drawn from the six major Zimbabwean ethnic groups to participate in this research study. A survey questionnaire is administered to respondents in the age group 18 to 59 years to quantify the levels and magnitude of the HIV/AIDS problem among women. Secondly, fifty in-depth interviews with key informants are conducted to assess the nature of the problem confronting and impeding upon women's quest to attain good reproductive health. Thirdly, six focus group discussions for each of the respective six ethnic groups are conducted with forty-eight mature women to understand broadly the concepts of the study. This study employs a combination of mainly qualitative and some quantitative methods of data collection and analysis, which is called triangulation. Underlying the methodology of this study is an overarching functionalist theoretical perspective, also referring to gender development theory which serves as the basis for data analyses. The main findings of this study include the view that power dynamics, gender roles and cultural practices have impacted negatively on women's quest to attain safe sexual behaviour. The problem of HIV/AIDS remains a complicated and awesome one among Zimbabwe's ethnic groups. For Zimbabwean women the HIV/AIDS problem begins with a total lack of control over sexual lives and behaviour of their husbands especially outside marriage. The women have noted that the majority stay faithful to their husbands and partners according to cultural prescriptions and roles, while their husbands do not comply. Women noted that cultural prescriptions in their various ethnic settings condone male infidelity but expect women to stay faithful to their partners. As a result it is found that women sometimes contract HIV/AIDS straight on their matrimonial beds. / SOCIOLOGY / Thesis (D. Phil. (Sociology))

This project seeks to determine, to what extent the culture of early Israel (1250-1000 BC) is similar to African cultures, more specifically, to that of the Lemba. However, a comparison between the cultures of early Israel and those of certain African tribes is not the primary objective in this case. This project is neither an anthropological study nor does it intend to mainly focus on the Lemba as such -though this may appear to be the case. This endeavour primarily fits into the ambit of Old Testament Studies. The investigation into the Lemba is meant to be subsidiary to the point of contingence between their culture and Old Testament customs and traditions, and how this information affects the interpretation of the Old Testament and its teaching in Africa. A number of comparisons between the early Israelite religion as reflected in the Old Testament and the Lemba are drawn. Though the qualitative research (inductive approach) is employed in the field work, the greatest part of the data on religious perspectives and practices is mediated by the theory of a phenomenological approach as advocated by Ninian Smart on matters of experience, mythology, ritual, and ethical/judicial dimensions. Therefore, the approach is also deductive. The Lemba is a very specific group with claims about Israelite/Judaic origins. Their early departure from Israel (according to them ca 586 BC) can mean that there are remnants of a very ancient type oflsraelite religion, now valuable when juxtaposed to that of early Israel. This study takes Lemba traditions seriously, but finally does not verify or falsify Lemba claims - but the outcomes in this thesis may take this debate a step further. Their claims make them special and extremely interesting to study from the point of view of oral cultures. Their oral culture is constitutive of their world-view and self-understanding or identity. It incorporates the role of oral traditions, history and historiography and parallels are drawn between orality in early Israelite and Lemba religions. The reciprocity between orality and inscripturation of traditions, yielding valuable information on what may have happened in the developent of traditions in Israel, are also attended to in this project. Nevertheless, this project is primarily a search for the understanding and relevance of the Old Testament in Afiica and is, therefore, a selective and not an exhaustive comparison between the Lemba and early Israel. And so, taking cognisance of the hermeneutic of contextualisation in Africa in particular, a teaching module syllabus for Old Testament Studies is developed, of which the very strands of religion among the Lemba and early Israel are constitutive for teaching Old Testament Studies in present-day African cultures (and perhaps elsewhere). / Biblical and Ancient Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Biblical Studies)

Women throughout the world are suffering the brunt of HIV/AIDS. They carry the unenviable tag of being the suffering group who are at risk. Women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS is a subject that has not received adequate attention to date. This empirical study examines the socio-cultural factors and practices that impede upon behavioural change of Zimbabwean women in an era of HIV/AIDS. Firstly, a sample of 1002 women respondents is purposefully drawn from the six major Zimbabwean ethnic groups to participate in this research study. A survey questionnaire is administered to respondents in the age group 18 to 59 years to quantify the levels and magnitude of the HIV/AIDS problem among women. Secondly, fifty in-depth interviews with key informants are conducted to assess the nature of the problem confronting and impeding upon women's quest to attain good reproductive health. Thirdly, six focus group discussions for each of the respective six ethnic groups are conducted with forty-eight mature women to understand broadly the concepts of the study. This study employs a combination of mainly qualitative and some quantitative methods of data collection and analysis, which is called triangulation. Underlying the methodology of this study is an overarching functionalist theoretical perspective, also referring to gender development theory which serves as the basis for data analyses. The main findings of this study include the view that power dynamics, gender roles and cultural practices have impacted negatively on women's quest to attain safe sexual behaviour. The problem of HIV/AIDS remains a complicated and awesome one among Zimbabwe's ethnic groups. For Zimbabwean women the HIV/AIDS problem begins with a total lack of control over sexual lives and behaviour of their husbands especially outside marriage. The women have noted that the majority stay faithful to their husbands and partners according to cultural prescriptions and roles, while their husbands do not comply. Women noted that cultural prescriptions in their various ethnic settings condone male infidelity but expect women to stay faithful to their partners. As a result it is found that women sometimes contract HIV/AIDS straight on their matrimonial beds. / SOCIOLOGY / Thesis (D. Phil. (Sociology))

This project seeks to determine, to what extent the culture of early Israel (1250-1000 BC) is similar to African cultures, more specifically, to that of the Lemba. However, a comparison between the cultures of early Israel and those of certain African tribes is not the primary objective in this case. This project is neither an anthropological study nor does it intend to mainly focus on the Lemba as such -though this may appear to be the case. This endeavour primarily fits into the ambit of Old Testament Studies. The investigation into the Lemba is meant to be subsidiary to the point of contingence between their culture and Old Testament customs and traditions, and how this information affects the interpretation of the Old Testament and its teaching in Africa. A number of comparisons between the early Israelite religion as reflected in the Old Testament and the Lemba are drawn. Though the qualitative research (inductive approach) is employed in the field work, the greatest part of the data on religious perspectives and practices is mediated by the theory of a phenomenological approach as advocated by Ninian Smart on matters of experience, mythology, ritual, and ethical/judicial dimensions. Therefore, the approach is also deductive. The Lemba is a very specific group with claims about Israelite/Judaic origins. Their early departure from Israel (according to them ca 586 BC) can mean that there are remnants of a very ancient type oflsraelite religion, now valuable when juxtaposed to that of early Israel. This study takes Lemba traditions seriously, but finally does not verify or falsify Lemba claims - but the outcomes in this thesis may take this debate a step further. Their claims make them special and extremely interesting to study from the point of view of oral cultures. Their oral culture is constitutive of their world-view and self-understanding or identity. It incorporates the role of oral traditions, history and historiography and parallels are drawn between orality in early Israelite and Lemba religions. The reciprocity between orality and inscripturation of traditions, yielding valuable information on what may have happened in the developent of traditions in Israel, are also attended to in this project. Nevertheless, this project is primarily a search for the understanding and relevance of the Old Testament in Afiica and is, therefore, a selective and not an exhaustive comparison between the Lemba and early Israel. And so, taking cognisance of the hermeneutic of contextualisation in Africa in particular, a teaching module syllabus for Old Testament Studies is developed, of which the very strands of religion among the Lemba and early Israel are constitutive for teaching Old Testament Studies in present-day African cultures (and perhaps elsewhere). / Biblical and Ancient Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Biblical Studies)