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Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents
Includes bibliographical references
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Department of Psychology
2016
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| _version_ | 1867614419219906560 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Malherbe, Nick |
| author2 | Kaminer, Debbie |
| author_browse | Kaminer, Debbie Malherbe, Nick |
| author_facet | Kaminer, Debbie Malherbe, Nick |
| author_sort | Malherbe, Nick |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | Includes bibliographical references |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/18807 |
| institution | University of Cape Town (South Africa) |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:51:44.560Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publishDateRange | 2016 |
| publishDateSort | 2016 |
| publisher | Department of Psychology |
| publisherStr | Department of Psychology |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository |
| spelling | oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/18807 Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents Malherbe, Nick Kaminer, Debbie Psychology Includes bibliographical references Mass media as well as academic literature frequently refer to the high prevalence of paternal non-residence in South Africa as a 'crisis of fatherhood'. To interrogate this apparent 'crisis', this study explored how Xhosa-speaking adolescents - whose voices have been predominantly ignored in fathering literature - discursively construct fathers and fathering. Using Photovoice methodology, semi-structured photo-elicitation interviews were conducted with 17 male and female adolescents. These interviews explored fathering practices, the duty of the father, and the different kinds of fathers or fathering forms available in their community. The interviews were then analysed through discourse analysis. It was found that participants drew on eight interpretive repertoires, namely: Fatherhood as a Choice, Gendered Parenting, Maternalism as Natural Parenting, Fragmented Fatherhood, Inactive Fathering, Provider and Childrearer, Essential Father Versus the Important Father, and Collective Enterprise of Fathering. What emerged from the data was a fragmented, agentic conceptualisation of the father, who was expected to embody both 'new' and traditional parenting to varying degrees. Fathering, as well as mothering, was constructed as being performed along gendered lines, with 'good fathering' taking on an overtly active form. The discourse established the father as a secondary parent to the mother, and although biological fathering was prized over social fathering, the community father - a particular kind of social father who channels paternal energy into community concerns - was valued in a similar manner to the 'essential' or biological father. With little or vague rationalisation given to the biological father's 'specialness', the results of this study seem to indicate that the crisis of fathering is a product of a hyper-idealistic, gendered, classist conceptualisation of the nuclear family as an essential family form. The notion of the nuclear family as normative and desirable acts to limit appreciated forms of fathering to material provision, and may contribute to children feeling that they do not have a father, despite receiving adequate social fathering. Implications of these findings for future research, and for family intervention programmes in the South African context, are discussed. 2016-04-12T09:45:40Z 2016-04-12T09:45:40Z 2015 Master Thesis Masters MSocSc http://hdl.handle.net/11427/18807 eng application/pdf Department of Psychology Faculty of Humanities University of Cape Town |
| spellingShingle | Psychology Malherbe, Nick Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents |
| thesis_degree_str | Master's |
| title | Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents |
| title_full | Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents |
| title_fullStr | Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents |
| title_full_unstemmed | Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents |
| title_short | Interrogating the 'crisis of fatherhood' : discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri-urban Xhosa-speaking adolescents |
| title_sort | interrogating the crisis of fatherhood discursive constructions of fathers amongst peri urban xhosa speaking adolescents |
| topic | Psychology |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/11427/18807 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT malherbenick interrogatingthecrisisoffatherhooddiscursiveconstructionsoffathersamongstperiurbanxhosaspeakingadolescents |