Narratives of female care leavers' aftercare experiences in Harare, Zimbabwe: A Constructive grounded theory study

Abstract

The development of females in institutional care into self-reliant, self-sufficient, and contributing members of society, is crucial. Apart from ensuring a smooth transition into their independence, it is also a fulfilment of their rights, a positive step towards the realization of the sustainable development of their communities and the nation at large. Hitherto, upon release from residential care institutions, female care leavers face many problems, and a number of authors argue that they are among the most vulnerable groups in society. The problems they face include early motherhood, sexual exploitation, poverty, poor health, and chronic social exclusion and discrimination. Yet, gaps still exist in the current literature on the aftercare experiences and coping strategies of female care leavers in Zimbabwe. Knowledge of their aftercare experiences is crucial for the evaluation and review of existing child policies and practices on care leaving. This study, therefore, sought to explore female care leavers’ aftercare experiences in their independent life in Zimbabwe. The objectives were thus to establish female care-leavers’ views about their aftercare experiences, to determine how prepared they were for life aftercare, to understand how they have responded to the challenges they encountered out of care, and to suggest ways to empower them for life after care. A constructivist grounded theory design was used to explore the aftercare of female care leavers. A triangulation of in-depth interviews with six female care leavers and three key informants was employed, giving a sample size of nine. The key informants who backed the female care leavers’ participants consisted of a social worker, a care giver, and one official working for a care leavers’ network. Participants were purposively sampled for the study. Member checking, prolonged engagement with participants, and keeping an audit trail were done to increase rigor and trustworthiness of this study. The generated data were analysed thematically using the three stages of constructivist grounded theory. The study revealed incomplete preparation for life after care, impersonal transitional pathways, challenging lived experiences, and unclear and unsustainable surviving strategies. This study concludes that the preparation that female care leavers are receiving for life aftercare is incomplete. They lack the mentorship aspect, and the start-up packs available to them are inconsistent. The transitional pathways they took out of care made them feel detached, rejected, abandoned, and lonely when they aged out. Upon leaving care, both challenges and opportunities were reported, but the former outweighed the latter. This study recommends that female care leavers actively participate in processes that shapes their future. An alternative care policy addressing the needs of children during and beyond care, outlining mechanisms of support in life aftercare, should be put in place. Preparation for life after care should be gender-sensitive. Gender-sensitive social support networks should be strengthened, and communities should be sensitized to reduce the stigma and discrimination of female care leavers. Traditional methods of child care should be revived to preserve ubuntu. Further studies should be done, a longitudinal one to establish the state of the study participants over time, and a comparative one to explore the experiences of male care leavers. This study contributes to knowledge through a proposed model, ‘The Continuum of Care Benchmarking Model for Female Care leavers.’ The model focuses on the specific requirements of individual female care leavers in preparation for life aftercare. It acknowledges the distinct challenges and multiple vulnerabilities faced by this group, and proposes gender-sensitive support systems that empower and equip them with skills and resources for successful aftercare life. The model acknowledges the intersectionality theory and the systems theory in ensuring that no female care leaver is left behind, and that a multisectoral approach is adopted respectively. It is, therefore, a yardstick that can be tailored to suit individual female care leavers’ needs at different stages in their transitioning journey