Bullying is rife in schools across the world, which has emotional, educational as well as financial implications. Research suggests that the way in which bystanders, and in particular adults, react to such incidents is pivotal in curbing this problem. While a dearth of research focuses on the victims as well as the perpetrators of bullying, one…

Despite a high prevalence of intimate partner violence in South Africa, few epidemiological studies have assessed individual risk factors and differential vulnerability by gender. This study seeks to analyze gender differences in risk for intimate partner violence victimization and perpetration according to childhood and adult risk factors in a…

Objectives: To describe prevalence of childhood experiences of adversity in rural South African youth and their associations with health outcomes. Methods: We analyzed questionnaires and blood specimens collected during a baseline survey for a cluster randomized controlled trial of a behavioral intervention, and also tested blood HIV and herpes…

South Africa, a country with the highest incidence of rape and child rape in the world, has the fifth highest prevalence of HIV in the world, with 1.1 million AIDS orphans. The UNAIDS Global Report reveals 370,000 AIDS-related deaths in South Africa in 2003. Given the numbers of people infected and dying, South Africa is regarded as having the…

Objective: This article reviews the English-language literature on child sexual abuse in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The focus is on the sexual abuse of children in the home/community, as opposed to the commercial sexual exploitation of children. Methods: English language, peer-reviewed papers cited in the Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) are…

Over a 6-year period, 162 cases of child abuse were encountered at a South African hospital serving an Indian community. Sexual abuse occurred in 37 cases. This report discusses the victim's age and medical history, type of abuse, perpetrators, religion, stress factors, and sexually transmitted disease. (JDD)

Despite the growing recognition of the prevalence of incest which is challenging traditional views about the family as a safe haven for children, there is a serious paucity of scientific research on incest in South Africa in the new field of family violence. Almost a century after Sigmund Freud dismissed most women's reports of incest…