Browsing by Author "Malcolm, C."

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    High school girls' and violence: a mixed-method investigation
    (Medical Research Council, Tygerberg, 2010) Phillips, Julie; Malcolm, C.
    Violence is a problem of epidemic proportions among the youth both internationally and locally. Women and girls are not immune to the high levels of violence in society. The overall purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of health risk behaviours among black female high school learners in the Strand, Western Cape, South Africa. This article reports only on those behaviours related to violence. The method of enquiry used in the study was a mixed-method sequential explanatory strategy. In the 1st phase, learners completed a self-administered questionnaire adapted from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey (YRBSS) developed by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States (US). In the second phase, focus group discussions were conducted to explore and examine socially constructed views of learners on behaviours related to violence. The cross-sectional data of this study illustrated that many high school learners are exposed to a number of health-impacting risks derivative of exposure to multiple forms of violence. The qualitative data expanded on and contextualized the quantitative findings. The study highlighted that detailed attention must be paid to the role of the social environment as antecedent to the adoption of risky behaviours such as violence related activities.
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    Perceptions of constraints to recreational sports participation :a case study of the University of the Western Cape (UWC) undergraduate female students
    (University of the Western Cape, 2005) Solomon, Ghebremedhin Asihel; Jones, D.E.M.; Malcolm, C.; Dept. of Sports, Recreation and Exercise Science; Faculty of Community and Health Sciences
    The effects of attitudes and perceived constraints on behavior and the choices females make about involvement in recreational sports, exercise, and other physical recreation activities are important to consider if females physical, social, and emotional quality of life is to be enhanced. The main aim of this study was to explore the perception held by female undergraduate students at UWC regarding the physical and socio-cultural constraints that influence their participation in recreation sport.
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    Sexual risk behaviour among female school adolescents in a local community in the Western Cape, South Africa
    (LAM Publications Limited, 2006) Phillips, Julie; Malcolm, C.
    Youth in Sub-Saharan Africa are faced with a changeover from adolescence to adulthood shadowed by the growing HIV/AIDS epidemic sweeping through the African continent. With this growing HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa it is important to understand the behaviours that place youth at risk of HIV/AIDS, other STDs and unwanted pregnancies in order to develop and to implement appropriate health-promoting interventions. The prevalence of self-reported sexual risk behaviours of high school girls was investigated at three high schools in the Strand, Western Cape. Data was collected using a self-administered questionnaire adapted from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. Statistical methods of data analysis included cross-tabulations using the Chi-square test for association between sexual risk behaviours and socio-demographic variables. The study sample consisted of 801 female high school learners aged 13-19 years (X=15.75 years, SD = 1.57). Twenty-seven percent of the learners reported being sexually active with 3.6% reporting sexual intercourse onset before 14 years of age. Forty-five percent reported having had more than one sexual partner and 50% of the sample reported no condom use. More than 5% of the learners had already been pregnant. Most learners (78.9%) indicated that they had been informed about HIV/AIDS at school, and 82.5% indicated that they are aware of the consequences of unprotected sex. Results of the study confirm that many female high school learners are engaging in sexual risk behaviours despite risk knowledge. The results emphasise the need to provide learners with targeted information and skills at an early age.
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    Single and married mother pre-adolescent relationships: understanding and comparing the interaction between self-esteem and family functioning
    (University of the Western Cape, 2008) Roman, Nicolette Vanessa; Mwaba, K.; Malcolm, C.; Lens, W.; Dept. of Psychology; Faculty of Community and Health Sciences
    The main purpose of this study was to assess the psychological well-being of mothers and their pre-adolescent children (aged 10-12). Specifically, the study used a mixed methods sequential explanatory design to compare and understand the interaction between 245 single and married mother-pre adolescent relationships with regard to self esteem, autonomously-supportive and psychologically controlling parenting practices. And their familial enviironment within low and high socio-economic settings. A qualitative component was used to explore mothers' understanding of their relationships with their pre adolescent children. The Coppersmith- Self-steem Inventory and the Satisfaction with Life Scale were used to assess the psychological well-being of mothers and children, the Perceptions of Parents Scale for autonomously-supportive maternal parenting practices, Parent Psychological Control for psychologically controlling parenting practices and the environment Scale for family functioning. The findings provide an understanding of how healthy families function within enhancing and hindering environments and empasises the importance of parenting.