exploring the psycho-social determinants of heavy alcohol drinking amongst women in oshana ...

172 Pages·2017·11.82 MB·English

EXPLORING THE PSYCHO-SOCI AL DETERMINANTS OF HEAVY
ALCOHOL DRINKING AMONGST WOMEN IN OSHANA, NAMIBIA

Hilya Ndeapo Shikoyeni

3414837

Full Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree
MA (Child and Family Studies) in the Department of Social Work,
Faculty of Community and Health Sciences,
University of the Western Cape

Supervisor: Dr. C.J. Erasmus
Co-Supervisor: Dr. L. Jacobs

February 2017
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DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the dissertation,” Exploring the psycho-social determinants of heavy

drinking amongst women in Oshana, Namibia” is my own work and that all resources that were
used or during the research study, are indicated by means of a complete reference and
acknowledgement.

Name: Hilya Ndeapo Shikoyeni
Date____________________

Signature____________________

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS  

 First I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the number of amazing people who

are dear to my heart. I could not have completed this thesis without their support, ideas

and critical thinking.
 I would like to give my gratitude to my Supervisor, Dr C. Erasmus, who has motivated
me to go on and explore this rather sensitive topic in the Namibian context. Despite me
struggling to meet deadlines at times, you kept on motivating, supporting, and guiding me
with critical thinking and structuring my work, which enabled me to successfully
complete this study.
 I would also like to humbly thank the eight participants who made this study a reality for
giving their time and sharing their views with me.
 Many thanks also go to the following people who assisted me in various ways: Dr Moses
Chirimbana for your technical support in structuring and organising this work. My
colleagues: Ms Menesia Panduleni Shikongo, Mr Jonathan K. Mvula, Prophet Elijah I
Desiderius and many more, for your moral support and encouragement.
 Thanks to my friends and family who have been a constant source of encouragement and
enduring support through the research process.
 Many thanks go to my children, Big Ngame Nicodemus, Pendapala and Ndinelago, I
respect you with this work and with the hope of creating a legacy of tolerance,
compassion and understanding of the study process.
 Finally, My God creator, for his love, mercy, strength and wisdom provided to complete
this thesis.
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ABSTRACT  
Heavy alcohol drinking is a serious health conc ern in many African countries such as Namibia
and South Africa. The heavy use of alcohol is m  ainly due to avoid coping with the realities of

life. There is however, a paucity of research on heavy alcohol use amongst women, particularly
in Oshana region of Namibia, where problem drinking is threatening the well-being of women
and society. This study explored the psycho-social determinants of women who are heavy
alcohol users in the Oshana region. The study design was explorative and descriptive within a
qualitative approach. The social constructionist theory underpinned this study. Four participants
were randomly selected from the Developmental Social Services caseload which led the
researcher to snowball the other four participants for a total of eight participants in the study.
Data was collected by means of semi-structured face-to-face interview with the aid of an
interview guide. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and field notes were taken. Thematic
analysis was used to analyse and interpret the data. The participants identified with coping with
realities among women heavy drinking. They reported psychological and social factors affected
the well- being of women drinking. These factors included poverty, unemployment, family
pressure or influence, availability and accessibility of alcohol, expression, stress, low self-
esteem, fear of loneliness and many others. Based on these results, some of the suggestions put
forward by all the participants and the researcher concluded the study with a recommendation
that an awareness can be created by service providers such as social workers working with
women who are heavy drinkers to establish and improve alcohol programmes in Oshana Region
and Namibia as a whole.

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KEYWORDS

Social Constructionist Theory  
Alcohol use disorder
Psycho-social determinants
Alcohol abuse
Alcoholism
Alcohol dependency
Binge drinking
Gender equality
Coping strategies

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ABBREVIATIONS  

MoHSS: Ministry of Health and Social Services

CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

WHO: World Health Organization
AIDS: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
APA: American Psychological Association
WHO: World Health Organisation
NIAAA: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
DSS: Department of Social Services
QDA: Qualitative Data Analysis
TA: Thematic Analysis
SES: Socio-Economic Status

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LIST OF TABLES  

Table5.1: Demographic details of each participant ...................................................................... 93

Table5.2: Themes and sub-themes ................................................................................................ 95

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TABLE OF CONTENTS  

DECLARATION ............................................................................................................................. i

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .............................................................................................................. ii
KEYWORDS ................................................................................................................................. iv
ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................................................................ v
LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................................. vii
CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................. 1
1.1 Background and Rationale of the study ................................................................................ 1
1.2 Theoretical Framework .................................................................................................... 4
1.3 Problem statement ................................................................................................................. 6
1.4 Research question .................................................................................................................. 7
1.5 Aim and Objectives of study ................................................................................................. 7
1.5.1 Aim of the research ......................................................................................................... 7
1.5.2 The objectives ................................................................................................................. 7
1.6 Research Methodology .......................................................................................................... 8
1.7 Research Design. ................................................................................................................... 8
1.7.2 Data collection .............................................................................................................. 10
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1.7.3 Data Analysis ....................................... ......................................................................... 10

1.7.4 Trustworthiness ............................................................................................................ 12

1.7.5 Ethic considerations ...................................................................................................... 13

1.8 Significance of the study ..................................................................................................... 15
1.9 Definition of Terms ............................................................................................................. 15
1.10 Structure of Thesis. ........................................................................................................... 17
1.11Summary ............................................................................................................................ 18
CHAPTER TWO .......................................................................................................................... 19
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ................................................................................................ 19
2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 19
2.2 The social constructionist theory......................................................................................... 19
2.3 Origin and evolution of the Social Constructionist Theory. ............................................... 23
2.3.1 Husserl‟s Transcendental Phenomenology ................................................................... 23
2.3.2 Schutz‟s Sociological Phenomenology ........................................................................ 24
2.3.3 Berger and Luckmann‟s Social Construction of Reality .............................................. 25
2.3.4 Garfinkel‟s Ethnomethodology .................................................................................... 26
2.3.5 The Social Interactionism of Mead and Blummer ........................................................ 27
2.4 Critiques of the social constructionism theory .................................................................... 28
2.5 Relevance of the Social Constructionist Theory to the study. ............................................ 30
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CHAPTER 3 ........................................................ ......................................................................... 34

LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................................. 34

3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 34

3.2 Alcohol use .......................................................................................................................... 34
3.3 Alcohol use in Namibia .................................................................................................... 36
3.3.1 Drinking patterns .......................................................................................................... 41
3.4 Women and alcohol use ...................................................................................................... 44
3.5. Psycho-social determinants of drinking alcohol ................................................................ 50
3.5.1 Psychological determinants .......................................................................................... 51
3.6 Social Determinants ............................................................................................................ 55
3.6.1 Family ........................................................................................................................... 56
3.6.2 Marital Status and Parenthood. ..................................................................................... 59
3.6.3 Cultural practices. ......................................................................................................... 60
3.6.4 Loss of religion. ............................................................................................................ 61
3.6.5 Education and Social Status ......................................................................................... 62
3.6.6 Employment/ Occupation. ............................................................................................ 64
3.6.7 Alcohol availability and accessibility. .......................................................................... 65
3.7 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................... 67
CHAPTER FOUR ......................................................................................................................... 67
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