Psychosocial effects on victims of father-daughter incest in Ngaka Modiri Molema District

Abstract

Father-daughter incest, one of the most prohibited sexual acts, is increasingly becoming a widespread problem in South Africa. This study sought to investigate the psychosocial effects of incest on the victims, offenders and the family as a whole in Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality situated at the North-West province. Specifically, the study explored factors contributing to incest, how incidences of incest become known, different ways that incest can affect the offender, the victim and the family as well as how professionals intervene in incest cases. The present study adopted a qualitative research design with an intention to illustrate how father-daughter incest occurs in human lives. The literature was studied to understand incest within the Western and African context, how father-daughter conspire, what influences the occurrence of father-daughter incest and what measures are taken to intervene in father-daughter incest cases. Data was collected through in-depth semi structured interviews with a sample of eight social workers and one auxiliary social worker who have helped father-daughter incest victims, offenders and their families on a therapeutic level. The results obtained from the thematic analysis through the utilization of Atlas.ti software indicated that father-daughter incest disrupts family systems which sometimes lead to divorce; fathers who commit incest are more likely to commit suicide; daughter’s education becomes disrupted and mothers mostly suffer from depression. Also, the findings of the study were that professionals were not provided with adequate training to intervene in father-daughter incest cases. It is recommended that professionals be trained to handle father-daughter incest cases. Evidently, findings from this study advocate that father-daughter incest is traumatic to the family as a whole.