Blogpost 2: Forms of Violence & Consequences
This blogpost will focus on a research paper that aligns with FamConnect’s inquiries. Nyaranga, R., et al. ‘s work looks into the question of violence and its impact on students’ behaviors, and although the violence examined is domestic violence (DV), its findings align with FamConnect’s understanding of the types of gender-based violence and the effects it has on students. Additionally, the study was conducted in Bungoma County, which is where our group intervention will take place. Having the ability to look at research coming directly from the population we are working with is incredibly helpful as it allows us to develop our understanding through a more specific lens.
The study involved students, parents, principals, and guidance counselors from the nine sub-counties of Bungoma. They collected data, predominantly from the students, using closed-ended choice questions and Likert questions with a rating scale (Nyaranga, 2021). For the adults, they applied the same methods with the addition of interviews with open-ended questions, though they were minimal. The researchers wanted to look at two questions in particular: what were the prevalent forms of domestic violence forms, and what were their academic impacts.
In addressing their first inquiry, four notable forms of domestic violence arose: sexual abuse, psychological torture, physical assault, and emotional torture (listed here in order of prevalence). These groups were taken from the student responses during their investigation. The majority of principals in the study agreed that the aforementioned forms of DV are the main ones that they witness in their schools and that sexual abuse is the highest form within the families enrolled in their schools (Nyaranga, 2021). The study also highlighted the response of one of the participating principals during the discussion of physical assault. The principal stated that their institution had settled hospital payments caused by “stray kicks [or] harmful dangerous items thrown”, and in some cases “severe bruises and burns” (Nyaranga, 2021). To address the second inquiry, they used four categories to understand the consequences of DV. These were effects on concentration, display of violent behavior, effects on performance, and lack of interest in class. For sexual abuse, the majority of students felt it affected their ability to concentrate the most. With regards to physical abuse, the majority agreed it caused violent tendencies. Lastly, for psychological and emotional torture, the majority agreed that it affected performance (Nyaranga, 2021).
The study concludes that, given their research, every form of domestic violence examined influences student classroom behavior in a particular way out of the four categories chosen (Nyaranga, 2021). As our group is working with secondary school girls, it is interesting to acknowledge how their experiences at home and in their larger community affect them not only in terms of their performance, but also their cognitive abilities, their demeanor towards education, and their behavior. Not all of the findings from this study align with what we’ve learned in discussion with Lilian and Dr. Leunita, however, these are minute and expected given the fact that the study’s more generalized population will not necessarily be representative of a smaller, more individualized group. However, having an understanding of how it affects the general population can prove beneficial When thinking about it from a broader perspective.
What we are specifically looking to combat with our intervention are the effects of violence on the girls’ mental health. I feel that the best interventions are the ones tailored to their population, and in order for our work to be effective we will need to create something that works with their school life and, attitudes, and perspective. I feel that their classroom behavior and their mental health are inevitably inter-related. They impact one another so intrinsically that addressing one aspect would need to address the other, or perhaps do so as a natural consequence of ameliorating the former.
I feel that this blogpost assignment allowed us to explore all facets of our project and gain additional perspectives, hopefully resulting in more well-rounded, targeted solutions. I look forward to seeing what we can come up with and how we will synthesize our findings to accomplish it.
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Source: Nyaranga, R. L., Ngesu, L., K’odhiambo, A. . K., & Masese, A. (2021). Prevalence of various forms of domestic violence and their effects on students classroom behaviours in Bungoma county, Kenya. Journal of Educational Research in Developing Areas, 2(3), 278–289. https://doi.org/10.47434/JEREDA.2.3.2021.278
