N/A / Thesis / Master of Science (MS)

A research report submitted to the School of Social Science, University of the Witwatersrand in partial fulfilment of the Master of Arts in Demography and Population Studies, November 2017 / Introduction: Across Sub-Saharan Africa, studies have shown transactional sex, characterized by the exchange of money or gifts for sex, to be one of the major contributing factors of HIV/AIDS infection. Risky sexual behaviours such as multiple sexual partners, non-condom use and transactional sex are driving forces behind negative health outcomes of young people. Thus, the aim of the study is to determine the association between socio-economic status and transactional sex among young women in South Africa, primarily to investigate whether transactional sex is a survival strategy or not among young women in South Africa. Methods: Secondary data analysis was done from a cross-sectional study conducted in 2012 by the Third National Communication Survey. This analysis was limited to 4 586 167 (weighted) sexually active females aged 16-24 who reported engaging in transactional sex. STATA version 13 was used to analyse this data. Descriptive statistics was used to analyse data at the univariate level. The Chi-squared test was conducted to test the relationship between the outcome variable and the independent variables. The complementary log-log regression model was used to analyse the data at multivariate level to identify the association between demographic factors (age, race, marital status, type of residence and province), socio-economic characteristics (education status or training status and employment status), beliefs towards behaviour, subjective norms towards behaviour and transactional sex. Results: Transactional sex was higher among women whose age at first sex was 18-19 (6.34%) compared to women of older ages 20+ years (0.4%). African women were likely to engage more in transactional sex (3.46%), compared to women of other races (2.48%). This study has found that a relationship between women who were not in Education, Employment and Training (NEETS) and transactional sex did not exist (AOR 1.10, 95% CI: 0.62-1.96). Single women had higher odds of engaging in transactional sex compared to cohabitating women and married women (AOR 1.04, 95% CI: 0.42-2.54). Conclusion: The findings of this study have shown that although transactional sex is a common behaviour among young women in South Africa, there is no relationship between socio economic status and transactional sex. Being NEETS has no association with young women engaging in transactional sex, which means that young women were more likely to engage in transactional sexual relationships for reasons other than survival; that is reasons for having fashionable clothes, cars, expensive holidays, and airtime. However, factors such as early age at first sexual encounter, race, and beliefs about behaviour and subjective norms were associated with transactional sex. The fact that some young women believed that they would not be infected with HIV suggests that there is a need to have intervention programmes to educate young people about HIV risk factors. This study is relevant in informing health policies, planning and programme designs of sexual and reproductive health services in South Africa. Transactional sex is a sensitive issue; problems of underreporting may be expected. / XL2018

Thesis submitted to: The Department of Psychology School of Human and Community Development , Faculty of Humanities , University of the Witwatersrand In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Psychology, Research and Coursework , January 2017 / Background: There is wealth of research that suggests that young heterosexual women are at an increased vulnerability for HIV through engagement in transactional sex. Transactional sex in young women in Sub-Saharan Africa, including South Africa, is rife and financial constraints are a major driver. Quantitative studies conducted in Sub-Saharan Africa suggest that young women that are involved in transactional sex are nearly two or more than three times vulnerable to HIV. The young women are involved in transactional sex with older men in order to access financial needs for survival as well as for purposes of consumerism. Transactional sex is not often understood, and at times it is conflated with sex work. This thesis seeks to add to scientific understanding of transactional sex in the field of health. The goals of this thesis are to explore the participants’ understanding of transactional sex. The thesis also seeks to explore a link between transactional sex and father absence for young women. This thesis fills the gaps identified in the studies of transactional sex. Wherein, there is very little research that has investigated the discourses that shape the practice of transactional sex. The study aim was to deepen scientific understanding of transactional sex in South Africa through examination of the discourses and structural financial constraints that influence transactional sex among young women. The specific objectives of this study were: i. To explore the discourses that shapes the participants’ understanding and their involvement in transactional sex. ii. To analyse the participants’ understanding of transactional sex in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), Mpumalanga (MP) and the Eastern Cape (EC) provinces. iii. To demonstrate the likely link between transactional sex and income poverty related to father absence. iv. To describe a probable link between transactional sex and vulnerability to HIV infection. Research methods: To meet objective (i) qualitative interview data were collected in three South African provinces which are KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga using focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informant interviews (KIIs). Invitation for participation by key informants (KIs) was sent to older men and women who are stakeholders of the communities studied. The KIs were invited from the social services sector such as the Police, Social Development, Health, Justice and Community-based leaders of faith, healers and youth leaders. For FGDs, participants were invited through meetings that are conducted in the communities and also through the distribution of fliers using facilitators in the communities that were selected as study sites. All participants for this study comprised both females and males above the age of 18 years. Trained field officers conducted FGDs which were gender-matched as well as KIIs. The FGDs varied in length with an average of above one hour each. KIIs were an average of 45 minutes long each. For all the interviews, isiZulu, siSwati and Xhosa were used, accordingly, to suit the participants’ local languages. All interviews were recorded using a digital recorder. After the interviews, the audio records were transcribed and saved in Microsoft word documents which were kept in password protected folders. I later read and coded the data then analysed it using thematic analysis for organising the codes in respective themes. I then used critical discourse analysis for an in-depth analysis of the themes. To meet objective number (ii) and (iii), in addition to text data, I conducted a comprehensive literature review. I present the literature review in Chapter 2 of this thesis. I also used the literature review to interpret the findings of the empirical study in Chapter 4. Findings and discussion: Heteronormative perceptions, Christian religion and African traditional culture as well as safe sex public health interventions are major discourses that appeared to influence the way in which transactional sex was perceived. The gender discourse owed to the consensual perception that transactional sex only happened between young women and older men. This was clear in the research findings. The main findings were; (i) participants’ understanding of transactional sex, (ii) the link between transactional sex and vulnerability to HIV, and (iii) probable relationship between transactional sex and father absence. The participants understood transactional sex as a source of income driven especially by perceived high rates of unemployment and poverty in the study sites. Young women were viewed as receivers of financial and material benefits yet givers of sex to men. The flip side of the same coin was that, men were viewed as the givers of material and financial benefits, and receivers of sex. The discourses found also demonstrated that transactional sex was fuelled by young women and their families’ financial needs. The financial constraints that young women and their families face could be influenced by the absence of the father who is supposedly a provider. Consumerist society that promotes extensive consumption of goods and services also appeared to be influential in the practice of transactional sex particularly for the young women. Conclusion: Transactional sex is not a new phenomenon in the study sites. It has been practiced in a several ways, were the community elders were in control of the transactions that were involved in different sexual intercourses that happened historically. The community elders facilitated financial transactions for sex in the forms of punishment when a man had sex with a young woman outside marriage. This punishment was identified as a payment for damage that the man would have caused. The man could also pay lobola as a form of compensation for the woman that he would have married. Overtime, the practice of these transactions has changed. The young women now consciously get involved in transactional sex so that they can directly receive money and gifts from the men that they give sex to. The change in the practice of transactions and sex reflects the change in the socio-economic conditions where there is a high need for consumerism which is constructed within the context of modernity. Consumerism emerges together with capitalism, which is a relatively new economic model in South Africa. Capitalism requires one to be employed so that they can have access to economic benefits. However, the rate of unemployment challenges the young women and deprives them of accessing the modern materials for consumerism. This influences the young women to consciously adopt the practice of transactional sex. It is this move by young women to decide adopting transactional sex that raises various panics among the elders of the community and the perpetuation of the discourses that transactional sex is an immoral and unacceptable practice. The panic has also become evident in the safe sex public health interventions where transactional sex is perceived as a dangerous practice among young women ad it should not be accepted. The interjection of the discourses of morality in transactional sex obstructs studies to clearly understand the discourses that influence its practice. These obstructions also limit knowledge that could be discovered by research and hence reduces the possibilities for interventions. Recommendations: Based on the findings from this study, it is recommended that research should increase focus on the effects of father absence to the practice of transactional sex. The studies in transactional sex also need to include samples of the at risk groups such as the LGBTI community. Transactional sex needs to be studied among young men as receivers of the financial and material benefits, as suggested in this study. Transactional sex is happening in the communities studied. It is therefore, recommended that public health interventions should encourage the practice of safe sex to prevent the spread of HIV. The long term interventions should address the structural factors which are; assisting young women to attain education which will make them employable so that they will be able to get sustainable incomes. The practice of transactional sex in KZN, MP and EC are tangled and shaped by the communities’ overarching discourses concerning sex and transactions. The overarching discourses make the practice of transactional sex to happen in a secretive manner particularly among young women. It is recommended that more studies need to be done among the overarching discourses of sex and transactions in these communities. It is important to extensively understand the overarching discourses and their effects through research because this will further unearth the hidden risks that come with the secretive practices of transactional sex. / MT2018

[Truncated abstract] A diagnosis of breast cancer is a life-changing event for any woman. For young women and their families it can be devastating. Women aged less than 45 years make up 20% of new cases of breast cancer diagnosed annually in Australia. With the trend for women to delay pregnancy, young women diagnosed with breast cancer may want at least the option to become pregnant after diagnosis and treatment but little is known about how pregnancy affects breast cancer or how breast cancer affects pregnancy. The aims of this thesis were to investigate how concurrent and subsequent pregnancy affects the development and outcomes of breast cancer and how breast cancer affects a concurrent or subsequent pregnancy. This study describes two groups of women identified from the entire Western Australian population less than 45 years of age when diagnosed with: 1. Gestational breast cancer, defined as breast cancer diagnosed while a woman is pregnant or in the first twelve months after completion of a pregnancy; and 2. Breast cancer who subsequently conceive. This study focused on three main areas; patterns of care and outcomes for women diagnosed with gestational breast cancer and those women diagnosed with breast cancer who subsequently conceived; the imaging and pathological characteristics of gestational breast cancer; and lastly the psychosocial issues associated with gestational breast cancer. ... This result was statistically significant. In an age and staged matched case control study lymph node negativity did not purvey a survival advantage for women diagnosed with gestational breast cancer as it did for the non- gestational breast cancer controls. Women diagnosed with breast cancer who have good prognosis tumours need not necessarily wait two years to become pregnant. In an age matched case control study women diagnosed with gestational breast cancer were more likely to have extensive insitu carcinoma, higher mitotic rates and tumours with medullary like features than their age matched controls. In a Cox's proportional hazards regression model which included pathological characteristics, there was no significant difference in survival for women diagnosed with gestational breast cancer were compared to women diagnosed with non-gestational breast cancers. The psychosocial issues for women diagnosed with gestational breast cancer are similar to other young women diagnosed with breast cancer but the effect on the 9 lives of women dealing with pregnancy and breast cancer simultaneously was much greater. The issues of breast cancer and pregnancy are complex at both a physical and psychological level. Much more research is needed to understand the mechanisms of how pregnancy affects breast cancer and its spread. Women who are pregnant when diagnosed with breast cancer or who consider pregnancy after their diagnosis need unbiased support from those around them. Survival is important but other survivorship issues may be just as important. To translate these findings into clinical practice and offer directions for future research eleven recommendations are proposed.

This treatise investigates the representation of career opportunities for young girls as portrayed in three English-medium newspapers published in the Nelson Mandela Bay in 2010.While there have been numerous researches on the representation of women in the media, studies on career opportunities for young girls have yet to be conducted. Previous studies have established that girls were socialized to occupy nurturing roles in society: through parents, schools and social institutions like churches were chief socialization instruments. The use of language and rhetoric in the media often reiterates this socialization. Due to the power of the media to influence perceptions, this research reflects on the messages obtained by readers of the publications. The research is important because it aims to identify the trends of representation of career and life opportunities for girls in: The Herald, the Weekend Post and La Femme newspapers. A pilot study of articles on women and young girls was completed; this was followed by a main study. A content analysis of articles only on women and girls was conducted; whilst articles on young boys and men were excluded from this research, as its main focus was on women. The theoretical frameworks applied were the theories of journalism and feminism to determine the nature of representation. While the media organisations operate solely as a business, whose interest is to make profit, they have the fundamental responsibility of promoting values, particularly in South Africa. Under the leadership of the ANC-led government, plans have been executed to promote a 50/50 representation in government. Also, the participation of women in the private sector has improved through the requirements of the policy of Black Economic Empowerment, which aims to redress the wrongs of the past. This project has established that although the world has embraced feminism and the equality of women and men, much still needs to be done to reinforce these ideals, especially in the socialization of children.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Western Sydney, 2002. / Bibliography : leaves 247-276.

Submitted by Maria de Lourdes Mariano (lmariano@ufscar.br) on 2017-01-18T19:07:00Z No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANÇA_Giselli de Oliveira_2014.pdf: 3491500 bytes, checksum: 2ec0ec206762cc9a8b8c6660eb299827 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Maria de Lourdes Mariano (lmariano@ufscar.br) on 2017-01-18T19:07:09Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANÇA_Giselli de Oliveira_2014.pdf: 3491500 bytes, checksum: 2ec0ec206762cc9a8b8c6660eb299827 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Maria de Lourdes Mariano (lmariano@ufscar.br) on 2017-01-18T19:07:17Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANÇA_Giselli de Oliveira_2014.pdf: 3491500 bytes, checksum: 2ec0ec206762cc9a8b8c6660eb299827 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-01-18T19:07:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANÇA_Giselli de Oliveira_2014.pdf: 3491500 bytes, checksum: 2ec0ec206762cc9a8b8c6660eb299827 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-08-22 / Não recebi financiamento / This qualitative research aims to analyze the emotional, sexual and reproductive trajectories of young mothers who have experienced social vulnerability, including the condition of institutional shelters. The goal is to evaluate how young girls perceive the relationship between their life experiences and how they experience sexuality, maternity and affection. The concept of socialization adopts Berger and Luckmann referential, and the gender concept follows the definition of Joan Scott. The methodology of History of Life, within the field of Oral History was adopted. Five interviews with young mothers who had the experience of sheltering next to Sorocaba (SP) were conducted. Two interviews were transcribed in full and deeply examined. In the analysis, the impact of various socializing agents was discussed- public and private, and the social construction of women's identities, especially motherhood. The analysis of the life stories of these young people allows us to understand motherhood as a marker of their sedentarization, who usually have a history marked by nomadism. Moreover, the reports allowed reflections on gender relations, the social and historical construction of the role of women in our society. The absence of programmatic responses referring to this population was discussed, as well. / Trata-se de uma pesquisa qualitativa que objetiva analisar as trajetórias afetivas, sexuais e reprodutivas de jovens mães que vivenciaram situações de vulnerabilidade social, incluindo a condição de abrigamento institucional. Objetiva-se avaliar como as jovens percebem a relação entre suas experiências de vida e a forma como vivenciam a sexualidade, a maternidade e o afeto. O conceito de socialização é compreendido a partir do referencial de Berger e Luckmann, e o de gênero, pela definição de Joan Scott. Adotou-se a metodologia de História de vida, dentro do campo da História Oral. Foram realizados encontros com cinco jovens mães que passaram pela experiência de abrigamento em uma instituição da região de Sorocaba (SP) específica para essa população. Duas entrevistas foram transcritas na íntegra e analisadas em profundidade. Na análise, discutiu-se o impacto dos diversos agentes socializadores – públicos e privados, e a construção social das identidades femininas, especialmente a da maternidade. A análise das histórias de vida dessas jovens permitiu compreender a maternidade como um marcador do processo de sedentarização dessas jovens que em geral possuem uma história marcada pelo nomadismo. Além disso, os relatos possibilitaram reflexões acerca das relações de gênero, da construção social e histórica do papel da mulher em nossa sociedade. Ainda discutiu-se a ausência de respostas programáticas voltadas à essa população.

Pregnant and parenting young women rarely access community-based smoking cessation interventions. Targeted cessation interventions have been laden with challenges and have produced suboptimal outcomes. There is a paucity of qualitative research specific to young women that explores the context of their tobacco use, as well as their attitudes towards and experiences with smoking cessation supports in pregnancy and postpartum. To bridge this gap, an interpretive descriptive design was used to explore the personal and contextual factors influencing young women’s smoking behaviour during and after pregnancy. Factors were identified by analyzing influences at the multiple levels of McLeroy’s social ecological model of health promotion. Data were collected via in-depth, semi-structured interviews with young women aged 16-24 years (n=13) who smoked regularly preconception and were pregnant or parenting. Transcripts were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Findings highlighted the complexity and chronicity of issues young women faced and emphasized the interplay of social determinants that influenced their smoking. Smoking was a crutch that helped them to relieve psychological distress stemming from exposure to adverse or traumatic experiences; and persistent stress in the context of socioeconomic hardship, neighborhood disadvantage and limited social support. Smoking also was influenced by young women’s understanding of the harms related to smoking during pregnancy and their reconceptualization of risk for smoking-related consequences postpartum. Young women described having limited discussions regarding smoking with maternity care providers and found their passive approach to cessation counselling unhelpful. They desired more comprehensive cessation support from providers. They expressed interest in a tailored group cessation program and offered suggestions for improving cessation supports for young women in pregnancy and postpartum. Study findings bridge gaps in the literature and identify appropriate next steps in addressing the issue of smoking in pregnancy and postpartum amongst young women by suggesting a multi-level approach to cessation. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

This dissertation examines the question of girlhood as a social and legal category, within contemporary feminist frameworks. Turning to Jamaica today, girls are disproportionately apprehended by the law and sentenced to prison for a range of so-called deviant behaviors. Colloquially, they are known as uncontrollable girls, and the law that incarcerates them, the uncontrollable law. This dissertation examines how girlhood has long been a site of Jamaican governance. I argue that the figure of the uncontrollable girl and the uncontrollable law must be analyzed as a project of state building, revealing carceral and colonial logics from chattel slavery into the present. Further, I examine the perceived deviance or vulnerability that girlhood elicits—as a dissident body that transgresses, or an innocent class in need of legal protection. Drawing across multiple discursive domains—from archival travelogues, colonial acts and amendments, to contemporary newspapers, legal documents, Jamaican literature, and ethnographic fieldwork—the dissertation situates girlhood as an analytic lens through which we might better understand how Jamaican citizenship, rights, and political futures are forestalled or qualified. The historical particularity of Jamaica exemplifies the role the state plays in discursively producing and surveilling the domestic—from the intimate register of the family to the everyday lives of girls.

Sammanfattning Bakgrund: När en ung kvinna mitt i livet drabbas av ett cancerbesked kan detta påverka kvinnans syn på livet. Genom att läsa bloggar om cancer skrivna av unga kvinnor kommer sjuksköterskan närmare den vårdsökandes personliga upplevelse. Denna ökade kunskap ska ge sjuksköterskan en ökad förståelse för vad som är viktigt för unga kvinnors hantering av ett cancerbesked. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva unga kvinnors upplevelser när de fått ett cancerbesked. Metod: Detta är en kvalitativ studie gjord på bloggar. Studien vill belysa hur unga kvinnor upplever att ha fått ett cancerbesked. Analysen sker utifrån en förbestämd vald teori, i denna studie teorin KASAM. Datainsamlingen gjordes via ung cancers hemsida. Totalt resulterade det i 15 bloggar som användes till studien. I utvalda bloggar söktes inlägg om cancerbeskedet fram. Resultat: Studiens resultat har gett två kategorier, känsloladdad tid och betydelsen av stöd vid bearbetning av ett cancerbesked. Till dessa har det framkommit fyra subkategorier. Slutsats: Känsloladdad tid och betydelsen av stöd i samband med bearbetning av ett cancerbesked är upplevelser som uppstår i samband med att unga kvinnor drabbas av ett cancerbesked. Det är viktigt att sjuksköterskor har denna kunskap för att kunna bemöta och ge en så god omvårdnad som möjligt när de möter unga kvinnor som fått ett cancerbesked. För att förstå hur känslorna vid ett cancerbesked hör ihop med känslan av sammanhang, KASAM. / Summary Background: When a young woman in mid-life are affected by a cancer diagnosis this may affect a woman's outlook on life.. By reading blogs about cancer written by young women, the nurse will come closer to the patient’s personal experience. This increased knowledge should give the nurse a better understanding of what is important for young women's handling when they got a cancer diagnosis. Objective: The aim was to describe young women's experiences when they have received a cancer diagnosis. Method: The study is a qualitative content analysis using a deductive approach, where blogs are studied. The analysis is based on a pre-selected theory, in this study the theory sense of coherence (SOC). The collection of data was made from ungcancer.se website. In total this resulted in 15 blogs that are used for the study. The search for posts where cancer diagnosis was presented was done in selected blogs. Results: The results of the study are two categories, a time of emotional atmosphere and the importance of support while processing the information about a cancer diagnosis. To these categories four subcategories have appeared. Conclusion: The time of emotional atmosphere and the importance of support in the processing of a cancer diagnosis is the emotions that arise in connection with young women who are affected by a cancer diagnosis. It is important that nurses have the knowledge to respond and provide the best care possible when they meet young women who have had a cancer diagnosis. Understanding of how emotions at a cancer diagnosis are associated with a sense of context, SOC.