Abstract
The concept of hope seems to have attracted increased attention in popular and academic discourse in South Africa. Despite this increased focus, no empirical studies on national hope levels have been conducted in South Africa to date. This article sought to address this gap by investigating national hope levels using data taken from the 2009 wave of the Human Sciences Research Council’s nationally representative South African Social Attitudes Survey of approximately 3,300 South Africans aged 16 and older. Using a slightly modified version of the widely used Snyder Hope Scale, this study found significant geographic and social differences in citizens’ average hope levels. Differences appear to attest to the continued negative association between hope levels and membership of groups that have historically been relegated to the margins of South African society. Contrary to most current political portrayals, however, there does not appear to be a significant age cohort effect. Self-perceptions of marginalisation also appear to be related to hope. In light of the paucity of South African empirical work in this area, the paper concluded by identifying possible future research needs.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the Human and Social Development Unit of the Human Sciences Research Council for providing the financial support which made possible the purchase of the Hope Module in the SASAS and for granting them permission to use the data gathered therefrom. They would also like to acknowledge the contribution of Ms. Petal Petersen of the Medical Research Council (Cape Town) who provided comments on an earlier draft of the paper.
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Boyce, G., Harris, G. Hope the Beloved Country: Hope Levels in the New South Africa. Soc Indic Res 113, 583–597 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-012-0112-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-012-0112-y