Browsing by Author "Tembe, Silindokuhle Shika"

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    Males experiences of female partner abuse in intimate relationships in Jozini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal
    (University of Zululand, 2024) Tembe, Silindokuhle Shika; Mulqueeny, D.M. and Shabalala, M.M.
    The study aimed to explore males’ experiences of female partner abuse in intimate relationships in the Jozini Municipality, of KwaZulu-Natal. The study considered abuse as any incident or threatening behavior, violence, or psychological, physical, sexual, financial, or emotional abuse between adults who are or have been intimate partners or are family members. The study also considered IPV as a subset of domestic violence since it is an act of violence perpetrated against intimate partners, spouses and dating partners, either in current or former relationships. The study was informed by three main research objectives: to explore men’s experiences of intimate partner violence IPV in the Jozini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal; to identify the types of intimate partner violence IPV experienced by men in the Jozini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal; and to develop strategies to reduce IPV experienced by men in the Jozini Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal. The Social Learning Theory by Bandura (1963) underpinned this study that used the interpretivism research paradigm to enable the study participants to narrate their daily lived experiences. Hence, the study used the qualitative research approach during data collection. The qualitative data were gathered through interviews with open-ended questions among men who had experienced abuse by their intimate partners. The study adopted purposive and snowball sampling to identify the targeted population, who were twelve (12) men who had experienced IPV by their female partners to participate in interviews conducted by the researcher. The study also used an in-depth literature review and document analysis, as part of the qualitative content analysis. The data was analyzed using thematic analysis whereby themes and narrations were extensively used to explain the men’s experiences of IPV. The study recognized the wealth of knowledge on the concept of ‘IPV’ by the participants. The findings revealed that men are abused by women in an intimate relationship. Additionally, the terminology ‘IPV’ among men had a common meaning, even though it was explained in many different ways. For example, the findings showed that IPV means an intimate partner who may use insulting words, deprive the other partner of sexual intercourse and not allow the other partner to see and be visited by his/her family members. The findings demonstrated that men do not report cases of IPV to the relevant authorities but only to the in-laws and family members. Additionally, it was discovered that men do not report cases of IPV to authorities because they are not taken seriously and end up being ridiculed in the very centers from which they seek help. It was noted that in instances where men do report cases of IPV to the police station, they tend to receive gender-stereotyped treatment because IPV is widely viewed as an issue affecting women only. The issue of confidentiality also becomes a factor as police personnel are members of the community, therefore the absence of discretion means that the men with cases of IPV end up being mocked in the community. It was also established that one of the main causes of IPV against men is the hunger for power by women; women deprive men of sexual intercourse, due to insufficiency of money to support the family, cheating, just to mention a few. The study demonstrated that there were solutions that could work effectively in their suffering. Firstly, the public should believe that IPV against men is not a joke, but a reality. Secondly, the police stations, where men report cases of IPV, should treat their complaints with the seriousness and urgency they deserve; and should not make it a laughing matter. Thirdly, government should take cases of IPV against men as a serious act by addressing it with the same enthusiasm and tenacity used when addressing violence against women and children. The study recommended that the most crucial strategies for eliminating IPV against men is to conduct additional research on this phenomenon, and raise awareness through campaigns on IPV against men, to mention a few. More studies can be conducted in Jozini as there are high incidents of IPV against men in the municipality. The full mini-dissertation is available in the University of Zululand Institutional Repository.