Young adults' perceptions of community violence experienced in a South African context during adolescence

Abstract

Community violence (CV) is a social phenomenon that touches societies around the globe and exhibits alarming prevalence, especially among South African youth. Considering that CV exposure often causes severe internalising and externalising effects, it is not surprising that it can be one of the most destructive experiences for children. Since childhood informs further development, it is significant that factors influencing the general well-being of children be understood and discussed. This includes the exploration and study of a child’s perception, as perceptions have substantial influence over behaviour and well-being. However, few studies have been employed to understand how the youth perceive CV, despite the extensive literature available on this phenomenon. The current study was thus imperative in understanding how adolescents make sense of and perceive CV, which may contribute invaluable knowledge to the intervention efforts and strategies of social workers working with communities. The goal of this study was to explore and describe young adults’ perceptions of CV experienced in a South African context during adolescence. The major objectives of this study were to explore and describe how the participants were exposed to and perceived CV during adolescence, as well as how they believe they were affected by this exposure. The study followed a qualitative research approach and the participants, who comprise of the study population of young adults between the ages of 20 and 25 residing in the City of Tshwane, were attained through means of non-probability sampling, specifically the purposive and snowball sampling methods. An instrumental case study design was applied to the cases of ten (10) participants, who voluntarily participated in semi-structured qualitative interviews that were analysed according to the process phases of Thematic Analysis and were interpreted from the theoretical underpinning of Gestalt theory. The results show that adolescents’ exposure to CV took many different forms and infiltrated their everyday lives. In addition, adolescents’ perceptions of CV were greatly informed and influenced by various factors, both within themselves and within their environments. Furthermore, perceptions of CV were found to largely determine and affect their appraisal thereof, their relative interest therein, as well as their behavioural responses thereto. It can thus be concluded that the study on perceptions of CV is significant towards understanding adolescents’ internal and external functioning and for determining some of the threats encapsulated in CV exposure on adolescent development. Another conclusion drawn was that adolescents’ perceptions of CV may have certain limitations, which could negatively influence reasoning and decision-making and may place various restrictions on their lives. Through socialisation, beliefs and behaviour regarding CV can become normalised, which may lead to the desensitisation thereof. Moreover, perceptions of CV are highly complex and can shape adolescents’ worldviews and self-perception, which might go on to threaten their moral ground and cause disempowerment. The results provide some support for social workers working in violent communities by highlighting various protective factors that may curb the normalisation of CV, as well as its negative effects. Further research should be conducted to determine the degree to which CV has been normalised in South African communities, and the researcher recommends the use of a longitudinal and mixed-method research approach.