Exploring perceptions of students on safety and security from selected south African historically disadvantaged institutions

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15587/2523-4153.2023.287470

Keywords:

Crime, Student, Higher Education Institutions, Historically Disadvantaged Institutions, Safety and security, South Africa, Perceptions, University of Limpopo, University of Venda

Abstract

Students from distinct regions and even abroad flock to campuses of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to broaden their knowledge in diverse fields of study. These institutions offer a wide array of academic, social and sports-related programs. However, safety remains a major concern for students worldwide. The increasing number of cases of victimization on and around campuses, including at the Historically Disadvantaged Institutions (HDIs), has necessitated the serious consideration of students' safety. This study aims to explore students' perceptions of safety, as it focuses on Two (02) South African HDIs, specifically focusing at Universities of Limpopo (UL) and Venda (UNIVEN) of South Africa. This study adopted the qualitative approach, employing the case study design, with the aid of exploratory objectives. About Twenty (20) participants were selected using the non-probability: Purposive sampling to take part in semi-structured, face-to-face interviews. The collected data were analysed using the inductive Thematic Content Analysis (TCA) with inductive reasoning.

The findings discovered that inadequate lighting in certain areas of the campus, insufficient Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) in some student residences, the absence of police patrols around the campus, and the unavailability of emergency phones to contact security officials are factors that contribute to the feeling of insecurity in both on-campus and off-campus housing. The study also found that students are hesitant to travel alone at night, regardless of whether they are living on-campus or off-campus. Not surprisingly, the study found that students who reside off-campus are more afraid of sexual violence than those who reside in on-campus housing. With respect to recommendations, it is advised that it is necessary to install CCTVs in all leased off-campus accommodations as well as the on-campus residences to keep students secure. For students living off-campus, there should be enough transportation to help their movement to and from their respective homes. In addition, it is recommended that police patrols be visually evident on the campus as well as near off-campus accommodations where many students reside

Author Biographies

John Kgatla Lekganyane, University of Limpopo

Doctoral Candidate for ‘Doctor of Philosophy: Criminology, Master of Arts: Criminology

Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice

Witness Maluleke, University of Limpopo

Doctor Technologiae (DTech): Policing, Associate Professor

Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice

Jaco Barkhuizen, University of Limpopo

Doctor of Philosophy: Victimology, Full Professor

Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice

References

  1. Hollis, M. J. (2010). An Exploratory analysis of university safety through an examination of students’ self-perceptions of campus and community violence levels and student. Texas State University-San Marcos: United States of America.
  2. Muscat, K. A. (2011). Rowan University students' perceptions of campus safety. Rowan University, 313. Available at: https://rdw.rowan.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1312&context=etd Last accessed: 15.01.2023
  3. Dastile, N. P. (2004). Victimisation of female students at the University of Venda with specific reference to sexual harassment and rape. University of Pretoria: Hartfield.
  4. Carrico, B. A. (2016). The Effects of Students' Perceptions of Campus Safety and Security on Student Enrolment. Paper 1006. From: Marshall University Digital Scholar. Available at: http://mds.marshall.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2010&context=etd Last accessed: 10.03.2023
  5. Agubokwu, V. O. (2016). Student Perception of Safety at Urban, Suburban, and Rural Community College. University of Morgan State.
  6. Ratti, C. L. (2010). Student Perception of Campus Safety. University of Mary Washington.
  7. Sulkowski, M. L., Dempsey, J., Dempsey, A. G. (2011). Effects of stress and coping on binge eating in female college students. Eating Behaviors, 12 (3), 188–191. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2011.04.006
  8. Clery Center for Security on Campus. (2012) Summary of the Jeanne Clery Act. Retrieved from: https://www.clerycenter.org/the-clery-act Last accessed: 10.03.2023
  9. Oluwajana, T. (2017). Students Perception of Safety in Campus VIS A VIS Crime and Violence: A Case Study of ECU. United States of America.
  10. Kahari, I. (2010). An exploratory study of first-year residence students' perceptions regarding safety and security at the University of Cape Town. University of Cape Town.
  11. Gover, A. R., Tomsich, E. A., Jennings, W. G., Higgins, G. E. (2011). An exploratory study on perceptions of safety, fear of crime, and victimization experiences among faculty and staff at an urban university: a focus on gender. Criminal Justice Studies, 24 (1), 37–55. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/1478601x.2011.544193
  12. Fletcher, P. C., Bryden, P. J. (2007). Preliminary examination of safety issues on a university campus: Personal safety practices, beliefs, and attitudes of female faculty and staff. College Student Journal, 41 (4), 1149–1162.
  13. Burris, G. W., Schafer, J. A., Giblin, M. J. (2010). Student perceptions of safety initiatives, assessing views of critical incident prevention and response.
  14. Cohen, L. E., Felson, M. (1979). Social change and crime rate trends: a routine activities approach. American Sociological Review, 44, 588–608. doi: https://doi.org/10.2307/2094589
  15. Tewksbury, R., Mustaine, E. E. (2003). College students’ lifestyles and self-protective behaviours: Further considerations of the guardianship concept in Routine Activity Theory. Criminal Justice and Behaviour, 30 (3), 202–327. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854803030003003
  16. Volkwein, J. F., Szelest, B. P., Lizotte, A. J. (1995). The relationship of campus crime to campus and student characteristics. Research in Higher Education, 36 (6), 647–670. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02208249
  17. Saponaro, A.; Peacock, R. (Ed.) (2013). Theoretical approaches and perspectives in victimology. Victimology in South Africa. Hartfield: Van Schaik Publishers, 11–30.
  18. Hsieh, H.-F., Shannon, S. E. (2005). Three Approaches to Qualitative Content Analysis. Qualitative Health Research, 15 (9), 1277–1288. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732305276687
  19. Keppler, V. (2018). Cele heads to TUT campus for ‘crime imbizo’. The Citizen. Available at: https://www.citizen.co.za/news/south-africa/cele-heads-to-tut-campus-for-crime-imbizo/ Last accessed: 09.09.2018
  20. Nel, K. (2016). How the legacy of apartheid design is making students’ lives unsafe. The Conversation. Available at: https://theconversation.com/how-the-legacy-of-apartheid-design-ismakingstudents-lives-unsafe-64770 Last accessed: 03.03.2023
  21. Steinmetz, N. M., Austin, D. M. (2013). Fear of Criminal Victimization on a College Campus: A Visual and Survey Analysis of Location and Demographic Factors. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 39 (3), 511–537. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-013-9227-1
  22. Kruger, G. (2016). Campus crime insights. News.
  23. Pieterse, C (2018). Concern for students’ safety. News24.

Downloads

Published

2023-12-25

How to Cite

Lekganyane, J. K., Maluleke, W., & Barkhuizen, J. (2023). Exploring perceptions of students on safety and security from selected south African historically disadvantaged institutions. ScienceRise: Juridical Science, (4(26), 49–58. https://doi.org/10.15587/2523-4153.2023.287470

Issue

No. 4(26) (2023)

Section

Juridical Science

License

Copyright (c) 2023 John Kgatla Lekanyane, Witness Maluleke, Jaco Barkhuizen

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Our journal abides by the Creative Commons CC BY copyright rights and permissions for open access journals.

Authors, who are published in this journal, agree to the following conditions:

1. The authors reserve the right to authorship of the work and pass the first publication right of this work to the journal under the terms of a Creative Commons CC BY, which allows others to freely distribute the published research with the obligatory reference to the authors of the original work and the first publication of the work in this journal.

 2. The authors have the right to conclude separate supplement agreements that relate to non-exclusive work distribution in the form in which it has been published by the journal (for example, to upload the work to the online storage of the journal or publish it as part of a monograph), provided that the reference to the first publication of the work in this journal is included.