Social determinants of gender-based violence perpetrated by men in the North West Province, South Africa

Abstract

Gender-based violence (GBV) is derived from a broad term to define violent behaviour or violent reaction by perpetrators towards their  victims. These victims are mostly women and in other instances female children. In this study women are victims. GBV is a global social ill  and perpetrators are found in all shapes and forms and all walks of life. In South Africa GBV has become a pandemic and where attention  is normally given to women, in this study the focus was on me as perpetrators. This was in the quest to understand what drives  men to react violently. Ten men and ten social workers were purposively selected as participants and recruited in the Ngaka  Modiri District. The research approach used was qualitative through the utilisation of the phenomenological design. The findings of the  study were that a few factors triggered the violent behaviour and aspects like anger, cheating, toxic masculinity, lack of self-esteem and  education, emotional and physical abuse, alcohol and drug abuse, insecurities which included meaning of romantic love and loss of  income which resulted in financial strain were identified. Through this, a programme was designed to help re-educate and skill men  through behaviour modification and other social work intervention mechanisms.