By Emmanuel Rowlands

Male Powerlessness investigates black African men’s lived encounters with intimate partner violence (IPV) and the ways in which these men make sense of, and struggle to overcome, their unprecedented experiences of abuse at a time when research on women’s experiences of gender-based violence is expanding. In the transnational and dynamic gender environment of the City of Johannesburg, men (local and immigrant) engage in short- and long-term relationships that are typically marked by contestation and conflict. This book examines how men may become abused in heterosexual relationships, a topic that has received little attention in South African literature. The book examines the impact of IPV on black African men’s masculine identities and helps us understand the many masculine constructs that abused men may articulate. The book explores male powerlessness and its implications for men’s experiences of IPV and masculine well-being. The book makes an invaluable contribution from an empirical, methodological, and theoretical viewpoint to the corpus of gender-based violence literature that will interest students of sociology, criminology, social work, sexual politics, feminism, and critical men’s studies, among others. Emmanuel Rowlands is a Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology at the University of Johannesburg and the author of “She is trying to control me”: African Men’s Lived Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence in Johannesburg (2021), and Hegemonic Masculinity and Male Powerlessness: A Reflection on African Men’s Experiences of Intimate Partner Violence (2021), and Autoethnography, Reflexivity, and Insider Researcher Dynamics: Reflections on Investigating Violence against Men in Intimate Relationships 2022), and Constructing Victimisation as Masculine Honour: Men and Intimate Partner Violence in Johannesburg (2022).

Johannesburg, UJ Press, 2023. 288p.

By Joanna Jamel

The aim of this thesis is to examine the under-researched subject of male rape from a social constructionist perspective across a variety of contexts. First, the three studies which were conducted are contextualised by providing a critical review of the available literature on male rape; from the embryonic stages of male rape research within penal institutions through to its evolution from clinical to community-based studies. Second, the findings of the study on the specialist police response, (particularly that of the Sexual Offences Investigative Technique Officers) to male and female rape victims is explored using a thematic analysis. Few male rape cases were reported to the police but those that were suggested that more training is required about the complexities of male rape in relation to the psychological sequelae; and its impact on the survivors’ masculinity. These factors may influence the male survivor’s behaviour on reporting, and affect the police response received. It was also noted that male and female rape myths were pervasive in the police responses and influenced survivors’ decision to report. Third, the incidence of client-perpetrated rape of male sex workers is investigated by employing an adapted form of grounded theory. It was found that in contrast with female sex work, sexual violence within the commercial male sex industry is reported to be rare. Fourth, whether the print media provided a gender-biased representation of rape victims as identified by the journalistic tone and the influence of the gender of the journalist and/or rape victim were investigated. It was found that contrary to the historical myth-laden and victim-blaming portrayal of female rape victims in the press (circa thirty years ago which would parallel the current time frame regarding the awareness of male rape), a sympathetic tone is evidenced in the male rape cases reported.

University of Leicester, November 2008

By Sana Rehman, Memona Habib, and Saad Bin Tahir

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against men has become a serious and widespread public health issue, but limited research about the occurrence of female-to-male violence is available, as most studies on the subject have focused on female victims only. The study aims to determine the pooled prevalence and predictors of physical, emotional, and sexual violence against men across all recall periods and the potential risk factors of male victimization. Databases of PubMed, PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, Scopus, Google Scholar, Science Direct, EMBASE, and JSTOR were searched. Data were extracted from studies published in 2010 to 2022. A systematic review and Random effect meta-analyses for the pooled prevalence were performed. Thirty studies with 58,357 participants were included in the final analysis. The pooled prevalence of Physical IPV was 20% (95% CI: 11–28%), Psychological IPV was 44% (95% CI: 30–59%), and Sexual IPV was 7% (95% CI: 3.1–10%) in Victimization for all recall periods, respectively. Findings demonstrated psychological IPV as the most prevalent form of IPV among men, which suggests that effective attempts are required to develop related prevention programs for victims. Furthermore, gender, age, substance abuse, socioeconomic status, multiple sex partners, history of abuse, and childhood victimization were found to be the predictors of IPV among men. Implementations of policies are also needed to reduce IPV. The findings of the study were discussed in terms of counselling and interventions.

Violence and Gender: Volume: 10 Issue 4: December 8, 2023