Human and Social Development

Prof Arvin Bhana
Executive Director

Our Vision

Human and Social Development (HSD) promotes research of the highest quality concerning the social conditions and identity markers that shape people's life opportunities (or human development) and promote social cohesion in the midst of ongoing and dynamic change, and alongside the social movements that emerge in response to these challenges.

Our Focus

In understanding the social conditions of people's lives, we are as interested in considering how diversity in gender, culture, language and identity shape social cohesion as we are in examining social discourse and policies that contribute to change at multiple levels in South African society. In addition, the discourse and policies sustaining environmental crises and which have an impact on livelihoods form an important focus of the HSD research programme.

Thematic Research Areas

Arising from the current movement toward a knowledge-based economy and from the renewed focus on Human and Social Dynamics as one of grand challenges facing South Africa identified by the Department of Science and Technology, the HSD research programme researches individuals, social contexts and public policies, and focuses a social sciences and humanities lens on:

Children and youth: A spotlight on childhood vulnerabilities, including those orphaned and made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS and poverty, and on providing an evidence-base for positive youth development. Studies are conducted on the resources and assets of children and youth, including their demographic presence, capacity to cope with rapid change, their openness to the future, as well as the challenges facing them. These include quality work-oriented education, employment, civic participation, and health and well-being.
Families and communities: Families are the fundamental building block for positive human development and the principal safety net for people facing chronic and acute challenges. They are also the repository of social values, livelihoods, and legacy. The work of HSD focuses on work-family combinations for men and women, care and care-giving including interactions between services and home care, the role of men in families and patterns of fathering, and intergenerational relations in families.
Social cohesion and diversity: To build a socially cohesive society following a legacy of historic racial and ethnic division requires an engagement with our diverse identity markers, including gender, race, ethnicity, language and culture. To do this we investigate public policies that address our divided history, marginal sexualities, moral values, and views regarding justice, equity, and reconciliation (including xenophobia).
Social movements and the dynamics of change: In understanding the dynamics of social and individual change (including urbanisation, migration, climate change and technological change) HSD seeks to address both the disjunctures and opportunities for civil society and the State. Furthermore we are interested in understanding social movements: how they develop, operate and impact on people's life opportunities in the context of change, and the values that drive and sustain them. Of special interest are the social aspects of climate change in South Africa and Africa.

Partnerships and Collaborations

Our work is mostly based in South Africa, but a number of collaborations and networks have been developed with other parts of Africa and international collaborators. These include Harvard University, the University of Cambridge, the Open Society Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the Association for Moral Education.

Key Funders and Implementing Networks

HSD is supported by various local, regional and international partners including local and foreign government departments, foundations and civil society organizations, continental bodies, UN organizations and international funding agencies.

Key Publications

Panday, S., Makiwane, M., Ranchod, C. & Letsoala, T. (2009)
Teenage pregnancy in South Africa: with a specific focus on school-going learners.
Pretoria: UNICEF.

Petersen, I., Bhana, A., Flisher, A.J., Swartz, L., & Richter, L. (Eds). (2010).
Promoting mental health in scarce-resource contexts: emerging evidence and practice.
Cape Town: HSRC Press.

Reddy, V., Sandfort, T. & Rispel, L. (Eds). (2009)
     From social silence to social science: same-sex sexuality, HIV & AIDS
     and gender in South Africa.
     Cape Town: HSRC Press.

Richter, L. and Morrell, R. (2006)
     Baba: men and fatherhood in South Africa.
     Cape Town: HSRC Press.

Swartz, S. and Bhana, A. (2009)
     Teenage Tata: voices of young fathers in South Africa.
     Cape Town: HSRC Press.

Swartz, S. and Taylor, M. (Eds). (2010)
     Moral education in Sub-Saharan Africa: culture, economics, conflict and AIDS.
     London: Routledge.

Swartz, S. (2010)
     Ikasi: the moral ecology of South Africa's township youth.
     Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press.

Mkhize, N., Bennett, J., Reddy, V. & Moletsane, R. (2010)
     The country we want to live in: hate crimes and homophobia in the lives of black
     lesbian South Africans.
     Cape Town: HSRC Press.

High-impact publications in which HSD publishes

Adolescence, African Identities, Agenda, Child Abuse and Neglect, Development Southern Africa, Feminist Africa, Journal of Moral Education, Journal of Psychology in Africa, Journal of Youth Studies, Qualitative Research, Social Dynamics, Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Social Indicators Research.

The Terms We Use

Social conditions: poverty, discrimination, development, environment, context
Identity markers: language, gender, sexualities, race, ethnicity, culture
People: Children, youth, families, communities
Life opportunities: access to health, work, safety, happiness, dignity, flourishing, growth
Social cohesion: diversity, values, morals, forces, capitals
Change: social, personal, political, climate, technological
Social movements: Including gender, green, AIDS, cultural and moral movements

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