Assessing the Communicative Ecology of Male Refugees in Namibia: A Study to Guide Health Communication Interventions on Multiple and Concurrent Sexual Partnerships A thesis presented to the faculty of the Center for International Studies of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Nakia M. Matthias August 2011 © 2011 Nakia M. Matthias. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled Assessing the Communicative Ecology of male Refugees in Namibia: A Study to Guide Health Communication Interventions on Multiple and Concurrent Sexual Partnerships by NAKIA M. MATTHIAS has been approved for the Center for International Studies by Rafael Obregon Associate Professor of Media Arts & Studies Rafael Obregon Director, Communication and Development Studies Daniel Weiner Executive Director, Center for International Studies 3 ABSTRACT MATTHIAS, NAKIA M., M.A., August 2011, Communication and Development Studies Assessing the Communicative Ecology of Male Refugees in Namibia: A Study to Guide Health Communication Interventions on Multiple and Concurrent Sexual Partnerships Director of Thesis: Rafael Obregon Multiple and concurrent sexual partnerships (MCP) have been identified as a primary driver of HIV in Namibia. Consequently, a national social and behavior change communication (SBCC) campaign was launched to address this phenomenon. However, campaign messaging and activities do not target refugees, while research indicates that male refugees are particularly vulnerable to factors alluding to participation in MCP. A need persists to extend the resources from Namibia’s national MCP SBCC campaign to this group. This research sought to articulate the communicative ecology of Namibia’s male refugees to inform health communication initiatives concerned with MCP and HIV. Snapshot ethnography was conducted in Windhoek, Otjiwarongo and Osire Refugee Camp for 10 weeks. Participant mapping, interviews and go-alongs guided a grounded theory approach toward the illumination of the communicative ecology of Namibia’s male refugees. Analysis of the findings indicates that male refugees employ future orientationsi, mobility and communication assets to mitigate disempowering circumstances. Approved: _____________________________________________________________ Rafael Obregon Associate Professor of Media Arts & Studies 4 DEDICATION for Tloloc, my Gramma, my Granny, my Uncle Sol and the world’s ‘refugee’ populations 5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am the author of this document, but I am certainly not the only person that has dedicated time, energy and concern toward its completion. I would not have been able to take on the task of my academic experience without the guidance, leadership and encouragement of the numerous people who share genuine interest in my success. First I must show gratitude to Dr. Rafael Obregon, my thesis advisor, Professor and Program Director. Your support of my independence and trust of my judgment throughout this process has immersed me in a learning process that is invaluable. You have forever inspired the outlook that I have developed on my place in the realm of Communication for Development and Social Change. I would also like to thank my thesis committee members, Dr. Vibert Cambridge and Dr. Karen Riggs. Dr. Cambridge you provided encouragement and humor when I needed it most, your advice to, “keep going” will always stay with me. Karen, thank you for your ear and expertise, you helped me straighten things out with the simplest of suggestions, thank you for believing in me. [Dr.] Karen Greiner, thank you for your mentorship and your words of wisdom. You have shared so much with me and I have learned so much from you, you are phenomenal! My friend and colleague Asli Teweldeberhan Kiflemariam, your support has meant so much to me, thank you for your encouragement and much-needed company. Mom and Dad, thank you for helping me do this. The endless love and support that you both have given me has made it possible for me to transform my life. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................ 3 DEDICATION .................................................................................................................... 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. 5 CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................... 10 Significance of the Study .............................................................................................. 10 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 10 Contextualizing MCP and HIV in Southern Africa and Namibia ............................ 13 Correlating Mobility and the Role of MCP as Social Networks .............................. 17 Male Refugees and HIV ............................................................................................ 19 MCP Social and Behavior Change Communication Campaigns in Namibia ........... 24 Directed Communicative Engagement with Male Refugees in Namibia ................. 29 Previous Study of Communication Patterns in Refugee Camps ............................... 30 Assessing the Communicative Ecology of Male Refugees in Namibia ................... 31 Points of Inquiry ........................................................................................................... 32 CHAPTER TWO .............................................................................................................. 34 Methodological Approaches and Research Methods .................................................... 34 Communicative Ecology ........................................................................................... 35 Grounded Theory ...................................................................................................... 38 The Ethnographic Snapshot ...................................................................................... 40 Ethnomethodology .................................................................................................... 41 Sampling Methods ........................................................................................................ 42 Purposive Sampling .................................................................................................. 42 Social Network Sampling ......................................................................................... 42 Data Collection Methods .............................................................................................. 43 Participant Observation ............................................................................................. 44 Unstructured Interviews ............................................................................................ 44 Semi-Structured Interviews....................................................................................... 45 Participant Mapping Elicitation Interviews .............................................................. 45 Go-Along Interviews ................................................................................................ 50 7 Research Participants .................................................................................................... 51 Description of Participants and Methods in Three Settings ...................................... 52 Data Coding and Analysis Through Grounded Theory ................................................ 55 CHAPTER THREE .......................................................................................................... 56 Reflexivity .................................................................................................................... 56 Expectation and Good News ..................................................................................... 58 My Son and Our Family ........................................................................................... 61 Group Membership and Family Ties ........................................................................ 62 Meal Sharing ............................................................................................................. 62 Invitations ................................................................................................................. 63 My Child Status ........................................................................................................ 63 Good English ............................................................................................................ 64 Paradoxical Privileges of My Insider-Outsider Status .............................................. 65 The Unexpected: My Assistants in the Field ............................................................ 68 The Sun Rose and Set on Me in Osire ...................................................................... 70 CHAPTER FOUR ............................................................................................................. 72 Summary of Findings .................................................................................................... 72 Findings: Future Orientations ................................................................................... 73 Findings: Mobility Acts ...........................................................................................