The Psycho-Social Effects of Xenophobia on Immigrants Living in Townships in Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

Abstract

Xenophobia is an expression of hatred and intolerance towards foreign nationals. In recent decades, there have been waves of xenophobic attacks perpetrated against foreign nationals in South Africa, resulting in vandalism of property, displacement and homelessness, loss of lives and disintegration of families; this study sought to explore the psychosocial effects of Xenophobia in Gauteng, South Africa. The qualitative study approach was employed, and semi-structured interviews were used to obtain information from participants. Fifteen participants recruited through snowball sampling took part in the study. The fifteen participants were 8 males (53%) and 7 females (47%), and they represented five countries, namely Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Zimbabwe, Somalia and Zambia. The mean age for the participants was 35.8 years. The interviews were audio-recorded and then transcribed to obtain textual data. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data, and four salient themes alongside other subthemes emerged. The four major themes were 1) discrimination, 2) fear and uncertainty, 3) identity crisis and 4) Vulnerability due to lack of protection from police and law enforcement. Xenophobia has had a telling effect on the psychosocial well-being of the immigrants. The findings suggest that there is need for a multi-level and multi-sectoral stirred by the government to mediate a lasting solution to xenophobia and the related consequences. Further research at grassroots level is recommended to obtain contextually rich information so that contextually relevant interventions can be implemented.