This study aimed to use the Transtheoretical Model of behaviour change (Prochaska and DiClemente, 1983) to investigate the process of smoking initiation in a cross-section of high school adolescents in urban KwaZulu-Natal. This aim was informed by the increase in incidence of smoking among adolescents, who represent a particularly vulnerable population to smoking (Orlandi and Dalton, 1998). The Transtheoretical Model has proved successful in changing problem health behaviours (prochaska and DiClemente, 1983) and lends itself to be a suitable framework for investigating smoking acquisition in adolescents (Werch and DiClemente, 1994). An extensive review of the causes and correlates of smoking uptake and past intervention evaluations suggests that the core constructs of the TTM (Decisional Balance, Temptation and Stage of Acquisition) can be complemented by other another variable, Perceived Social Norms (informed by the Theory of Planned Behaviour, Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975, as cited in Pitts, 1996), to provide a more holistic explanation of smoking acquisition. Alcohol use, parental smoking and certain demographic factors are also found to be salient factors in this process. Findings showed that the perceived cons of smoking were constant across stages and seemed to have no effect on stage membership. Stage differences were explained almost entirely in terms of pros, which increased drastically with later stages. Perceived social norms increased with a later stage, confirming a tentative theoretical relationship between the Transtheoretical Model and Theory of Planned Behaviour. Lack of expressed intention to smoke by participants questions the validity of using the rational decision-making Transtheoretical Model to investigate a process not informed by decision-making. European language speakers were found to be a particularly vulnerable group to smoking, while African language speaking girls show very low rates of smoking. High religiosity was found to be a protective factor, while alcohol use was strongly associated with smoking. Maternal smoking was strongly associated with smoking, but only in girls. No difference in stage was found between schools and grades. The study should be replicated using a longitudinal design to determine the causal relationship between factors and smoking and to further investigate the applicability of the Transtheoretical Model in smoking acquisition. / Thesis (M.A.)- University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2004

This case study investigates sense of place of youth amidst a background of change in postapartheid South Africa. As used in this study, sense of place refers to the attachments made to both physical and social places, and the social and cultural interactions and meanings associated with such places. The research was conducted with a group of 13 young adults at Mary Waters Senior Secondary School in Grahamstown. The literature suggests that the changes that occur in the lives of the participants at school-leaving age such as new opportunities to identify with global aspirations, tend to influence their sense of place in local contexts. Social change that occurs due to globalising forces such as access to new technologies and improved personal mobility, also influences sense of place in this context. Another integral factor is the structural influence of changing cultural and educational norms. These notions form part of the backdrop of this study. The research project was developed in response to calls for learning approaches that are situated more in local contexts and which include the youth as intrinsic participants informing environmental education approaches. This research draws attention to the significance of finding sustainable ways that enhance opportunities for agency on the part of the youth in future local and global environmental care-taking. The study took place over a period of 15 months in which time the participants undertook place-based activities in their communities around self-identified environmental concerns. The study was intentionally generative in approach as this allowed the voices of the participants and their environmental perspectives to be considered in developing methods and activities that were suitable to their particular contexts and interests. The study highlights the relevance of particular social contexts, through the perspectives of people and in this case learners, as key to environmental education enquiries. The combination of approaches that consider: a) knowledge about social context, b) the educational intervention (place-based activities) and, c) the situated social capital of the participants, all form the basis of meaningful pedagogical engagements and serve to address my research question: How is learners' sense of place developed and articulated through place-based activities, and what are the implications for environmental education amidst a contemporary landscape of change in South Africa?

Years of political unrest, forced removals, migrant labour and overly rapid urbanisation have had a negative effect on the lives of many South Africans and poverty, unemployment and the HIV/AIDS pandemic have increased the challenges facing young people in South Africa. With 54 per cent of South Africa’s population younger than 24 years and two-thirds of South Africans between the ages of 18 and 35 years unemployed, youth development is an urgent and critical social investment. Current research stresses the importance of an integrated and developmental approach that recognises young people’s optimism and resilience and builds on their strengths. Of the various youth developmental interventions being implemented in African countries, including South Africa, an initiative that is being used increasingly, is the international broad-base programme known as the Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP). Using an experiential approach honed by over 35 years’ of working mostly in prisons in more than 35 countries, AVP teaches the attitudes and strategies (such as self-awareness, empathy and community-building) needed to transform conflict nonviolently and addresses the important psychological need for intimate connection with others. This study investigates how the experience of an AVP workshop can influence so-called ‘at-risk’1 young South African adults’ perceptions of personally-experienced conflict situations. The study was conducted in partnership with a local youth development project and used a narrative analysis approach to explore the pre- and post-AVP workshop conflict narratives of a group of Xhosa-speakers from the Eastern Cape. To support the analysis of the conflict narratives, focus groups were conducted three months later and again after six months with a selected sample of volunteers. Participation in the study was wholly voluntary and by informed consent.

Thesis ( M.A.( Social Work)) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / This study presents qualitative findings on lived experiences of migrant female youth in Musina, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Studies reveal that young females, more especially those from the African continent, migrate to foreign countries in large numbers for better livelihoods. A growing number of women, African women in particular, migrate more than ever to meet their own or their families’ economic needs. Some, of course, flee from wars and mostly migrate for better living conditions. Several studies show that many of these women migrate to South Africa. This is because South Africa is amongst the continent’s most popular destinations for Africa’s female migrants. Upon their arrival in South Africa, studies reveal that migrant female youth are faced with a vast number of challenges such as poverty and exclusion from accessing basic services. It is from this background that this study sought to explore lived experiences of migrant female youth in Musina. Nine female migrant youth accommodated by a church shelter in Musina were purposively and conveniently selected to participate in the study. Semi-structured face to face interviews were used to purposefully collect data that saturated at participant number 9. Thematic data analysis was used with the assistance of the Nvivo software to manage and organise data. The narrative theory was used in the study as it allowed the researcher insight and understanding when migrant female youth narrated their experiences and challenges they encounter as migrants in a foreign country. Findings reveal that many female migrant youths illegally migrate to South Africa in search of better livelihoods that are unavailable in their countries of origin. Furthermore, findings indicated that migrant female youth find themselves living in extreme poverty in the host country. However, the female youth employ various coping strategies for their sustainable livelihoods. They also experience exclusion from accessing healthcare services and face blatant xenophobia in the hands of local South Africans. It can therefore be concluded that migrant female youth face a number of challenges in their everyday lives as migrants in South Africa. It could also be helpful to integrate South Africa’s basic service delivery to include services for female migrant youth. / National Research Foundation (NRF)

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.

The Community Agency for Social Enquiry (CASE) was commissioned by the Joint Enrichment Project (JEP) to undertake research for the National Youth Development Conference. The research programme had three components:the compilation of a computerised and annotated youth database, comprising domestic research into youth, and the extraction of five policy papers covering the areas of education, employment-creation, AIDS, violence and social context, and historical context. an international comparative component, which focused on the youth brigades in Botswana, and the whole range of youth development initiatives taking place in Kenya and Uganda, covered in an additional two position papers. a national baseline and attitudinal survey into youth in South Africa. The results of all three components of the research project will be published in book form later this year. The summary reports of the local and international comparative policy papers are available in a separate booklet. This is the report of the national survey into youth in South Africa. Aims of the survey The survey has four main aims: demographic: to accurately describe how many youth are in the different parts of South Africa, how many are in or out of school or work, and so on. attitudinal: to allow youth to express their views on a range of social, economic, political and personal issues.to analyse youth marginalisation: to scientifically analyse and describe the marginalisation of youth within South African society. programmatic: to provide results which directly assist organisations designing programmes which target youth. Designing the survey The survey was designed by the CASE senior research team of Professor Mark Orkin, Director of C A S E; Dr David Everatt, Deputy Director of CASE and project co-ordinator; and Dr Ros Hirschowitz, Specialist Researcher at C A S E. The design process was lengthy and complex, because the aims of the survey were complicated. As a first step, CASE gathered together existing youth research and survey data, in order to see what we could learn from them. We then convened a design workshop to assist us. Participants in the C A S E national youth survey for JEP 1 workshop comprised people who had experience with youth, or with survey design. They included John Aitchison (CASE and the Centre for Adult Education, University of Natal), Debbie Budlender (CASE and the National Women's Coalition), Dr Jannie Hofmeyr (Research Surveys), Ms Vanessa Kruger and Professor Ari Sitas (University of Natal), Ms Anne Letsebe (SABSWA), Mr Steve Mokwena (JEP), Mr Rory Riordan (Human Rights Trust) and Dr Jeremy Seekings (University of Cape Town). We also needed input from the youth themselves. Discussion groups with youth (called 'focus groups') were held with youth from Alexandra and Soweto, from Ciskei and the eastern Cape, from Bophuthatswana and the northern transvaal, from Chatsworth and Claremont in Durban, and elsewhere. We reached youth from cities, squatter camps, towns and rural areas. The focus groups were organised by C A S E and Research Surveys, a professional market research company. The youth told us what their concerns were, what their aspirations and fears were, and what interventions they felt are necessary to improve their lives. CASE then designed a draft survey. We had to try it out (called 'piloting') to find out if the survey tapped the youth's actual views and experiences, and so give the JEP the information they sought. The survey was piloted on a representative sample of 100 youth (aged between 16 and 30) by Research Surveys. Using the results of the focus groups and the pilots, the CASE research team then produced the final questionnaire, which went into the field in November/December 1992.

Thesis (MTech (Design))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2011 / This study explores the possibilities of using design interventions in mitigating crime. The study employs the Design Against Crime (DAC) philosophy in dealing with crime, which provides a holistic perspective regarding crimeand related issues.High crime levels in South Africa necessitate alternative approaches to dealing with crime, as it is becoming evident that the old strategies that have been utilised are not providing the desired effects.The focus is on the emergence of crime amongst youth at risk, living in communities-in-tension and more specifically,the Bridgetown community near Cape Town. Communities which constitute the lower socio-economic income level, usually suffer the most with regards to crime. The effects of crime negatively influence the development of the community, allowing the cycle of poverty and crime to continue. If the cycle of crime can be broken in these communities, development may take place which will strengthen them in a number of ways, including their standing in society. In order to gain a better understanding of the crime situation in South Africa, the study investigates the country‘s crime history and its widespread effects on society today. The research also looks at other factors such as personal and environmental settings that inform an individual‘s decision to commit crime. Delinquency and its results are also explored. The theoretical lens used in the study is that of Socially Responsible Design (SRD), with DAC as a subsection.SRDlooks at providing solutions to societal problems from a holistic point of view. The study uses a qualitative approach which focuses on people in real life situations,allowing the researcher to gain insight into what motivates people in their specific circumstances. The participants involved in the study are members of the Bridgetown community, youth from that community and theReconstructed Living Labs (RLabs) team, who were previously involved in crime. The researcher sought the views of experts in the field with regards to crime alleviation in communities such as Bridgetown. This research study concludes that opportunities exist forholistic and multi-faceted deployment of DAC strategies in that community to ameliorate crime, when these strategies targetyouth at risk.

Thesis (MPH.) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / The purpose of this study was to determine and describe the lived experiences of youth residing in Elias Motsoaledi Municipality at Sekhukhune District about Nyaope. A qualitative research was applied using the Phenomenolgical research design to explore the lived experiences. The purposive sampling technique was used to select the participants at Rite Substance organization between the age of 18 and 35, and also the convenient sampling applied to select key informants. The study revealed that the youth Nyaope users experienced; the lived physical effects such as ;bodily weakness and strenght, bodily pains, drowsiness, loss of appetite and poor hygiene, the psychological effects such as mental relaxation, regret and worry, drug dependency and addiction, and the social effects such as family rejection, community stigmatization, relationship failure, engagement in crime, and economic and educational failure. As such, more funds, staff and resources are needed to assist in dealing with the Nyaope crisis.

The backlog in foster care applications has been an issue in the Department of Health and Social Development, Johannesburg office, for the last number of years, resulting in foster care placement applications accumulating and families’ quality of life being affected and compromised. The service providers are inundated with high caseloads. Foster care applications could take up to a year or longer before they are processed and finalised at the Children’s Court. The aim of the study was to explore and describe the factors contributing to the foster care backlog from the service providers’ perspective and to provide suggestions to address this continuing backlog. The researcher employed a qualitative research approach and an explorative, descriptive and contextual research design. Factors such as high caseloads, lack of resources and lack of support and training from management were identified as contributing to the backlog. Recommendations made are the immediate filling of vacant posts, induction of new social workers, provision of adequate resources and infrastructure as well as the division of foster care services. / Social Work / M.A. (Mental Health)