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Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2024.
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2025
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| _version_ | 1867614006384001024 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Lefika, Jimmy M. |
| author2 | Painter, Desmond |
| author_browse | Lefika, Jimmy M. Painter, Desmond |
| author_facet | Painter, Desmond Lefika, Jimmy M. |
| author_sort | Lefika, Jimmy M. |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description |
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2024. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/131797 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:45:09.986Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/131797 Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University Lefika, Jimmy M. Painter, Desmond Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Psychology. College students, Black -- Racial identity -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Identity (Psychology) in education -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Students, Black -- Psychology -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Self-perception in adolescence -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Assimilation (Sociology) Stereotypes (Social psychology) Race relations -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2024. ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This is a qualitative, exploratory study of Black students’ self-reports and narratives of their perceptions and experiences of being students at Stellenbosch University, a Historically White Institution (HWI): how they navigate and negotiate space and a sense of self in the context of historical and contemporary racism and limits to transformation. Almost three decades post-1994, race and racism continue to affect many South Africans’ lives. The institutional cultures and environments of HWI’s are embedded in the historical legacies of apartheid and Whiteness, and this hinders transformation. Research has indicated that Black students experience alienation and perceive a lack of transformation at Higher Education Institutions (HEI’s) and especially HWI’s in South Africa. However, many of these institutions have indeed amended their old policies and have transformation agendas aimed at welcoming students of the historically excluded groups and meeting government transformation requirements. The discrepancy between research findings on black student experiences and the universities’ stance regarding the exclusion, marginalization and racism, requires critical exploration. Based on a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with nine Black students at Stellenbosch University, the thesis shows that Whiteness and racism continues to mark students’ lived experiences on campus and that transformation policies without changes that are meaningful from the vantage point of Black experiences, often fall prey to becoming an illusionary, tokenistic façade that further fuels feelings of alienation. Black students experience immense pressure to assimilate and acculturate, and they are fraught with perceptions of being negated. As such “becoming” what institutional culture embraces and assimilating into campus culture becomes a priority; however, this also means “unbecoming” that which Whiteness categorizes and negates as inferior, a contradiction that leads to identity paralysis. This research sought to afford Black students a platform and a voice to share their experiences and perceptions of the campus environment, to explore their feelings of being welcome or unwelcome at the university and their perception of what a transformed HWI would look like. Findings reveal that Black students do not feel fully welcome, and that they experience a sense of being tolerated and offered a space to study at the institution as form of tokenism. Across participants, there seems to be a common sentiment of fighting: to study at Stellenbosch University, for space and recognition, to graduate and to disprove Black inferiority stereotypes. AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie is 'n kwalitatiewe, verkennende studie van Swart studente se selfverslae en narratiewe oor hul persepsies en ervarings as studente aan Stellenbosch Universiteit, 'n Historiese Wit Instelling (HWI): hoe hulle ruimtes navigeer en onderhandel, sowel as 'n gevoel van self, in die konteks van historiese en hedendaagse rassisme en die grense van transformasie. Byna drie dekades na 1994, beïnvloed ras en rassisme steeds die lewens van baie Suid-Afrikaners. Die institusionele culture en omgewings van HWI’s is ingebed in die historiese nalatenskap van apartheid en Witheid, wat transformasie belemmer. Navorsing het gewys dat Swart studente vervreemding ervaar en 'n gebrek aan transformasie waarneem by Hoër Onderwys Instellings (HOI's), veral HWI’s, in SuidAfrika. Baie van hierdie instellings het egter hul ou beleid gewysig en transformasie-agendas ontwikkel wat daarop gemik is om studente van groepe wat histories uitgesluitis te verwelkom en aan die regering se transformasievereistes te voldoen. Die gaping tussen navorsingsbevindinge oor Swart student-ervarings en die universiteite se standpunt oor eksklusiwiteit, marginalisering en rassisme vereis kritiese ondersoek. Op grond van 'n tematiese ontleding van semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude met nege Swart studente aan Stellenbosch Universiteit, toon die tesis aan dat Witheid en rassisme steeds die studente se geleefde ervarings op kampus kenmerk en dat transformasiebeleide sonder betekenisvolle veranderinge vanuit die perspektief van Swart ervarings dikwels 'n illusoriese, tokenistiese fasade word wat verdere vervreemding voed. Swart studente ervaar enorme druk om te assimileer en te akkommodeer, en hulle is belas met persepsies van negasie. As sulks word ‘n soort “wording” wat die institusionele kultuur omhels en die assimilering in kampus kultuur 'n prioriteit; dit beteken egter ook ‘n “ont-wording” van wat Witheid as mindermaardig kategoriseer en as negatief beskou; 'n teenstrydigheid wat lei tot identiteitsverlamming. Hierdie navorsing het ten doel gehad om Swart studente 'n platform en 'n stem te gee om hul ervarings en persepsies van die kampusomgewing te deel, hul gevoelens van welkom of nie-welkom wees aan die universiteit te verken, en hul persepsie van wat 'n getransformeerde HWI sou lyk te ondersoek. Bevindings toon aan dat Swart studente nie volkome welkom voel nie, dat hulle voel hulle word bloot verduur, en dat die ruimte wat vir hulle aangebied word om aan die instelling te studeer, 'n vorm van tokenisme is. Oor deelnemers heen blyk daar 'n algemene sentiment van stryd te wees: om aan Stellenbosch Universiteit te studeer, vir ruimte en erkenning, om te gradueer en stereotipes rondom Swart minderwaardigheid te weerlê. Masters 2025-03-25T12:12:32Z 2025-03-25T12:12:32Z 2024-12 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/131797 Stellenbosch University ix, 164 pages application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | College students, Black -- Racial identity -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Identity (Psychology) in education -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Students, Black -- Psychology -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Self-perception in adolescence -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Assimilation (Sociology) Stereotypes (Social psychology) Race relations -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Lefika, Jimmy M. Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University |
| title | Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University |
| title_full | Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University |
| title_fullStr | Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University |
| title_full_unstemmed | Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University |
| title_short | Becoming and unbecoming: black students’ identity paralysis at Stellenbosch University |
| title_sort | becoming and unbecoming black students identity paralysis at stellenbosch university |
| topic | College students, Black -- Racial identity -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Identity (Psychology) in education -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Students, Black -- Psychology -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Self-perception in adolescence -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) Assimilation (Sociology) Stereotypes (Social psychology) Race relations -- Stellenbosch (South Africa) |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/131797 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT lefikajimmym becomingandunbecomingblackstudentsidentityparalysisatstellenboschuniversity |