Growing old with HIV: narratives of women in Manicaland Zimbabwe
| dc.contributor.advisor | Coetzee, Jan K. | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Rau, Asta | |
| dc.contributor.author | Chikonzo, Ndakaitei | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2017-07-14T07:44:50Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2017-07-14T07:44:50Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2016-12 | |
| dc.description.abstract | English: In this study, research participants’ narratives provide knowledge and a better understanding of the nature of life of women who are living and growing old with HIV. I use phenomenology as a principal lens to study the research participants’ lived experiences, social realities, existential being, and gendered lives. Phenomenological assumptions inform us that experiences are subjectively (personally), intersubjectively (interpersonally) and objectively (culturally and historically) impacted upon by different realities that exist in society. This study is interpretive — research participants share their unique perspectives. As a result, I adopt a qualitative approach to obtain the research participants’ first-hand narratives about their life stories. Audio-recorded, semi-structured and in-depth interviews with eight purposively-selected women, aged fifty to sixty-five years and living in the Manicaland Province of Zimbabwe, were conducted. Informed consent from the participants was obtained after approval to conduct the research by the Medical Research Council of Zimbabwe and the Ethical Committee of the University of the Free State’s Faculty of the Humanities. A thematic data analysis approach was used to make sense of the data gathered. The process yielded various themes and eventually produced four major over-arching themes, which are pre-diagnosis experiences, post-diagnosis experiences, adapting and adjusting to the condition, and life in the future. These phases are congruent with the notion that lived experiences are temporal, organised and inform each other. In addition, the analyses are also organised with reference to the observations that people who suffer from chronic conditions initially undergo a phase of inner struggle with regard to the reality of living with that condition, but come to terms with that reality over time and undertake to live positively with it. The ordinary everyday life experiences are mainly intersubjective, with people aligning their thoughts, judgements and actions with the common and shared knowledge and assumptions that construct and order life in that society. As noted in the findings, the research participants were initially not knowledgeable, some were fatalistic of the existence of HIV in their lives and others took long to implement proper courses of action to manage their condition. Consequently, their perspectives on HIV were mainly guided by the socially constructed assumptions and misconceptions about HIV existing in their communities. Some report that they encountered great difficulties during the disclosure of their HIV-positive status to those they deemed fit or trusted. Later on, proper support and age-influenced maturity assisted the research participants to acquire competencies that enabled them to deal with HIV in a positive way. They eventually adjusted and adapted well as they made efforts to understand, accept and manage their condition in a way that facilitates the re(creation) of the social order. The development of functional new meanings, such as a positive outlook on life, positive perception of self and personal strength, result in a positive outlook of the future, where some research participants hope for an HIV cure in their lifetime. Others, less ambitiously, hope to get well enough to return to their old activities such as engaging in cross-border businesses. They also acquired the ability to assess the impact of societal norms, beliefs and practices on their condition and discern what works for them, rather than acting blindly according to what is socially-accepted. Nevertheless, despite these positives, the research participants still have concerns about what lies ahead as they worry about the unpredictable effects of HIV and old age. The participants’ experiences as women, are also impacted by societal norms and values that relegate them to an inferior position in heterosexual relationships. Gender imbalances and inequality disempower women with regard to taking relevant courses of action to prevent or alleviate the effects of HIV owing to the societal expectations that women be submissive on issues that involve sexuality and the conduct of their husbands. Most of the research participants acknowledge that their experiences in this life-changing condition (HIV-positive) were complicated by their upholding of societal norms instead of having a greater regard for their personal wellbeing. On the whole, the study observes that the research participants create new meanings to live well with HIV despite the existing challenging social structures in their society. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | Afrikaans: In hierdie studie verskaf die vertellings van navorsingsdeelnemers ‘n beter begrip van die lewens van vrouens wat met MIV oud word. Ek gebruik die fenomenologie as hooflens om die deelnemers se ervarings, sosiale realiteit, eksistensiële wese, en lewe as vrouens te bestudeer. Fenomenologiese aannames leer ons dat ervarings subjektief (persoonlik), intersubjektief (interpersoonlik) en objektief (kultureel en histories) geimpakteer word deur verskeie samelewingsrealiteite. Die studie is interpretatief – waarin navorsingsdeelnemers hul unieke perspektiewe deel. Om hierdie rede het ek 'n kwalitatiewe benadering gevolg om eerstehandse vertellings oor die deelnemers se lewensverhale in te win. Semi-gestruktureerde, in-diepte onderhoude (wat digital opgeneem is), is met agt doelgerig-geselekteerde vroue, tussen die ouderdomme van vyftig tot vyf-en-sestig jaar (wat in Manicaland, Zimbabwe, woon), gevoer. Hierdie onderhoude is met hulle ingeligte toestemming uitgevoer, nadat daar goedkeuring verky is van die Mediese Navorsingsraad van Zimbabwe sowel as die Etiese Komitee van die Fakulteit Geesteswetenskappe (Universiteit van die Vrystaat). ‘n Tematiese data-analise benadering is gebruik om sin te maak van die ingesamelde data. Die proses het verskeie temas opgelewer wat uiteindelik in vier hoof oorkoepelende temas saamgevat kan word: pre-diagnose ervarings, post-diagnose ervarings, aanpassing tot die toestand, en die lewe in die toekoms. Hierdie fases is kongruent met die idee dat ervarings tydelik is, georganiseer is en ook met mekaar ineenskakel. In aansluiting hiermee is die analise georganiseer in terme van die observasie dat individue wat aan ‘n kroniese toestand ly, aanvanklik ‘n tydperk van wroeging deurmaak, voordat hulle die werklikheid van die toestand aanvaar en leer en onderneem om op ‘n positiewe wyse met die toestand saam te leef. Alledaagse ervarings is hoofsaaklik intersubjektief, waar mense hulle gedagtes, oordele en gedrag in lyn bring met gemeenskaplike en gedeelde kennis en aannames wat die lewe in hulle samelewing konstrueer en orden. Soos in die bevindinge gemeld, was hierdie vroue aanvanklik nie bewus van die bestaan van MIV in hul lewens nie, en het dit lank geneem om behoorlike aksieplanne in werking te stel om hulle toestand te bestuur. As gevolg hiervan, is hul siening van MIV hoofsaaklik gelei/beinvloed deur die sosiaal gekonstrueerde aannames en wanopvattings oor MIV wat in hulle gemeenskappe bestaan. Hulle het met moeite hulle MIV-positiewe status met diegene wat hulle “vertrouelinge” geag het, gedeel. Mettertyd het behoorlike ondersteuning en-ouderdom beïnvloed volwassenheid die deelnemers instaat gestel om vaardighede aan te leer wat hulle gehelp het om MIV op ‘n positiewe wyse te hanteer. Hulle het later aangepas en pogings aangewend om hulle toestand te verstaan, te aanvaar en te bestuur op ‘n wyse wat die skepping van sosiale orde fasiliteer. Die ontwikkeling van funksionele nuwe betekenisse, soos ‘n positiewe uitkyk op die lewe, positiewe selfpersepsie en persoonlike krag, gelei tot 'n positiewe uitkyk op die toekoms waar sommige deelnemers hoop op 'n MIV-kuur in hul leeftyd en ander, minder ambisieus, hoop om gesond genoeg te word sodat hulle terug kan keer na hulle besighede. Hulle het ook die vermoë aangeleer om die impak van samelewingsnorme, oortuigings en praktyke op hul toestand te evalueer en om aan te neem wat vir hulle werk, eerder as om blindelings op te tree volgens wat sosiaal aanvaarbaar is. Ten spyte van hierdie positiewe aspekte, is die deelnemers tog bekommered oor die onvoorspelbare gevolge van MIV en ouderdom. Die ervarings van die deelnemers as vrouens, is ook beïnvloed deur die samelewingsnorme en waardes wat aan vrouens ‘n onderdaninge posisie in heteroseksuele verhoudings toesê. Die geslagswanbalanse en ongelykheid ontmagtig vroue om toepaslike aksies te neem om MIV te vermy of die effek daarvan te verlig aangesien hulle gebind word deur samelewingsverwagtings wat verwag dat hulle ondaning moet wees in kwessies wat seksualiteit en die gedrag van hulle mans aanbetref. Die meeste deelnemers erken dat hulle hulself in hierdie posisie (MIV-positief) bevind omdat hulle samelewingsnorme belangriker as persoonlik welstand geag het. In die geheel gesien, soos wat die deelnemers ouer met MIV word, skep hulle nuwe betekenisse om goeie/volle lewens te lei met MIV ten spyte van uitdagende sosiale strukture binne hulle samelewing. | af |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11660/6476 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Women -- Diseases | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | HIV infections -- Zimbabwe -- Manicaland | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | AIDS (Disease) in old age | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Older people -- Health and hygiene | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Older women -- Diseases | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Dissertation (M.A. (Sociology))--University of the Free State, 2016 | en_ZA |
| dc.title | Growing old with HIV: narratives of women in Manicaland Zimbabwe | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Dissertation | en_ZA |