Male teachers’ experiences of own aggression

Abstract

We describe an exploratory, descriptive, and contextual study on the lived experiences of 17 male teachers’ own aggression in the Gert Sibande district in Mpumalanga province. Individual phenomenological interviews were used to collect data from these volunteers for this qualitative research. The data were analysed by means of an open coding systematic process in order to establish the themes and categories that describe male teachers’ experiences of own aggression. Results show that the  participants in this sample experience their own aggression in a variety of ways. It appears they primarily experience a loss of power and control that gives rise to aggression. Significantly, participants are aware that they need guidelines to enable them to cope with their aggression. Although there are aggression theories that support and provide an understanding of aggressive behaviour, Transformative Learning Theory seems to offer the best way of bringing about transformative change in individual behaviour, as it raises consciousness and an understanding of the self through self-reflection.

Keywords: aggression; male teachers; own experience of aggression; teacher experience