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Purpose: Due to the limited research on fatherhood and dyspraxia, this study is critical as it highlights the challenges that fathers face in parenting a child that presents with dyspraxia. The purpose of this study is to inform various interventions while simultaneously highlighting a largely neglected area of research. Design/methodology/approach: The principal aim of this study was to explore the subjective challenges that fathers experience in parenting a child that presents with dyspraxia in the Cape Metropole area. This study adopted a qualitative approach utilising an exploratory design to understand and provide in-depth information about fathers' subjective experiences of parenting a child that presents with dyspraxia (Mack et al., 2005). Data were collected using semi-structured individual interviews with fathers. Findings: The authors' findings highlight that fathers' roles are inextricably more complex, shifting between more traditional conceptions such as the provider toward the all giving and nurturing care. Future research would benefit from adopting a more masculinity-focused framework to determine the effect that learning disorders have on constructing and challenging more traditional gendered constructions of what it means to be a man, masculinity and what it means to be a father, fatherhood and fathering. Research limitations/implications: The study was limited to the challenges faced by fathers whose children were engaged in some or other treatment plan. In addition, the study was limited to children who presented with dyspraxia, rather than those who had received an official diagnosis and this relates directly to the obscurity and ambiguity surrounding diagnosis of the disorder itself. Practical implications: The study has shed light in terms of the common features between dyspraxia and that of other developmental disorders. This is further extended to include the comorbidity of this disorder with other learning disabilities. Social implications: Mental health professionals may benefit from identifying the issues raised by fathers within this study and to further aid and support both children and parents in the treatment of dyspraxia. Originality/value : The study has shed much needed light on two very neglected areas -- the area of learning disabilities, in particular, the issue of dyspraxia and second, including fathers' voices in the discussion of their experiences.

Confronting the realisation that one's child may have a developmental disability presents a major challenge for any parent. The body of scholarship in this area however, focused mainly on the role that mothers play highlighting a distinct gap within the literature. In an attempt to address this, the study aimed to highlight the experiences of fathers in parenting a child that presents with dyspraxia. The study adopted an Interpretivist framework using a qualitative approach. Consistent with this approach, 14 semi-structured individual interviews were conducted. Fathers across the Cape Metropole area were purposefully recruited and interviewed regarding their experiences in parenting a child with dyspraxia. These interviews were transcribed verbatim and subjected to Clarke and Braun's version of thematic analysis. Ethics principles as stipulated by the University of the Western Cape were strictly adhered to throughout the research process. The thematic domain of 'experiences' revealed father's expectations; their initial reactions; the periphery of father's emotions; guilt and devastation. Based on the findings of the study, alternative understandings of fathering need to be developed to enable new and more equal ways of being both fathers and men and mothers and women. This is necessary to challenge the limiting essential notions of what is possible for men and women., Author(s): Kyle Jackson [sup.1] , Michelle Andipatin [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.8974.2, 0000 0001 2156 8226, The University of the Western Cape, , Cape Town, South Africa Introduction Discussing fatherhood [...]

Obstetric research in sub-Saharan Africa largely focuses on the material, physical, and psychosocial aspects of pregnancy and childbirth in relation to mothers. This research aimed to address a research gap in terms of fathers' experiences of pregnancy and childbirth, particularly in the context of a medically high-risk pregnancy. Specifically, this article focuses on fathers' interactions with the healthcare system and healthcare professionals throughout the antenatal and neonatal periods. This study was exploratory and qualitative in nature. Eight fathers whose partners had experienced at least one medically high-risk pregnancy participated in semi-structured interviews that were examined using interpretive phenomenological analysis. The findings indicate that fathers' experiences vacillated between healthcare providers being supportive and informative versus them being uncompassionate and not conveying adequate information. Importantly, the distinctions were largely attributed to the type of healthcare facility (i.e. public or private) that was attended. This research offers recommendations to healthcare workers to enhance fathers' experiences during pregnancy and childbirth, especially in potentially traumatic situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Violence against women and violence against children are distinct research fields. Quantitative studies have demonstrated their intersection, but qualitative data provides an opportunity for a comprehensive understanding of this interface. Interviews with 22 parents/caregivers convicted of child homicide provided an opportunity to explore the context of violent experiences in their lives including their use of violence and their experiences of it in their intimate and parenting relationships. Using a feminist framework, we found that patriarchal family structures, gender and power dynamics contribute to the use of violence. Revenge child homicide was common with distinct gendered differences. This study calls for closer collaboration between the two fields to assist in developing prevention interventions to address and eradicate both forms of violence., Author(s): Bianca Dekel [sup.1] , Naeemah Abrahams [sup.1] , Michelle Andipatin [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (Aff1) 0000 0000 9155 0024, grid.415021.3, Gender and Health Research Unit, The South African Medical Research [...]

Ulwaluko is a Xhosa word that refers to an initiation ritual. The purpose is to transform boys into men. Circumcision is one of the rituals performed. The ritual aims to instil good moral and social values. Due to socio-cultural shifts, the practice of Ulwaluko has changed and this has culminated in instances of criminal activity, drug abuse, risky sexual behaviours, and inhumane behaviours among some of the initiates. There has been a recent upsurge in research on Ulwaluko in South Africa. While many studies examined Ulwaluko from a constructionist framework, very few have focused on subject positions and how Ulwaluko contributes to the construction of masculinity in Xhosa men. Using social constructionist theory, the study employed a qualitative exploratory design and semi-structured interviews that were analysed using thematic decomposition analysis and positioning theory. Seven participants, from a university in Cape Town, aged from 19 to 32 were recruited using purposive sampling. The results of the study reflect the fluidity of masculinity as reported in literature. First, in some of the participants, Ulwaluko created an idealised masculine identity that was chiefly characterised by upholding ritual teachings and yet the same men were burdened by a prescriptive set of masculine role expectations. Second, through self-reflection and critical engagement, some men contested Ulwaluko resulting in the creation of rival masculinities and thus the study created spaces to rethink masculine identities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Much has been written about fathers, fatherhood and premature babies. However, in the South African context, studies about the experiences of fathers having a premature baby are lacking., Aim: This study aimed to explore how South African fathers ( n = 10) experience having a premature baby using a descriptive phenomenological approach., Setting: This research study was conducted online using various social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Google Meet and through telephonic conversations., Methods: A descriptive phenomenological approach that allowed for the distillation and elucidation of common core experiences among fathers who had a premature baby., Results: The findings demonstrated that the participants experienced intense fears regarding the survival and well-being of their children. They reported experiencing financial difficulties related to hospital bills and experienced being alienated by hospital institutions. Despite these reported barriers, these fathers were adamant in their resolve to support their children and partners during this challenging time., Conclusion: The experiences of fathers were riddled with fear, uncertainty, ambiguity and alienation, which placed them in very precarious situations when trying to navigate their role in a more sensitive and enlightened way. Having a premature infant calls into question the systems that men are positioned within as these systems to a large extent shape these events and how they are experienced., Contribution: This study is original as no other published studies seem to exist in South Africa that speaks to fathers' lived experiences of having a premature baby., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no financial or personal relationships that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article., (© 2024. The Authors.)