Vulnerable and Resilient Masculinities among Schoolboys Heading Homes in South Africa
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Abstract
Masculinity constructions and experiences among black/African adolescent boys in Global South contexts have often been studied from a conceptual framework based on issues, vulnerabilities, and troubles in ways that obscures these boys’ resilient and agential capabilities through which they resist vulnerable masculinity. In this article, we draw upon data from qualitative interviews to explore the experiences and constructions of vulnerable and resilient masculinities among schoolboys heading child-headed homes in a poverty context in a South African township. In demonstrating how vulnerable and resilient masculinities manifest among these boys, we suggest how the emerging vulnerabilities could be addressed towards strengthening their resilience.
Contributor Notes
Emmanuel Mayeza is an associate professor and a head of sociology at the University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa. He is a C2 NRF-rated researcher. His research and teaching interests includes sociology of education and gender as well as young people and social identities.
Seipati Mosia holds a master's degree in sociology from the University of the Free State (UFS) in South Africa. She is interested in sociological research around young people, gender, and social inequalities in the South African society. She currently works as an academic facilitator in the Faculty of the Humanities at the UFS.