| Summary: | Thesis (DPhil (Psychology))—University of Stellenbosch, 2008. === This study is located in the Joe Slovo informal settlement, Langa, Cape Town. This is a
settlement much like many other townships in South Africa in that it is a disaster-prone,
marginalised community. On the 15 January 2005 a fire ravaged the area, destroying 2 590
dwellings and leaving 12 950 people homeless. This qualitative study attempted to explore
the personal perspectives of the survivors of this shack fire within the wider context of
communal and socio-political variables.
A number of interviews were conducted, some with the fire survivors, and others with service
providers in the field of disaster management. Conservation of Resources (COR) theory was
found to be a useful lens through which to analyse the data. The fire event itself is shown to
have been a precipitant of a far longer and more complex chain of events and ongoing
struggles for survival. Reactions to the fire and subsequent events, furthermore, must be
understood at a number of levels – including at inter-personal and inter-group levels. The
principles and corollaries of COR theory enable a deeper exploration of the disaster especially
in terms of resource loss and the implications of survivors having been disadvantaged prior to
the fire taking place. A number of pre-event issues are presented in order for this context to
be fully understood. Two obstacles to community intervention are emphasised as key. First,
the reality of what COR theory terms ‘communities within communities’ has implications for
survivor behaviour. Second, the focus on the acute aftermath of the fire, and what COR
theory terms the ‘avoidance of long-term needs’ is also crucial.
COR theory facilitated the visibility of a link between the data and the use of space at an intergroup
level. Despite the abolition of apartheid, segregation between groups in South Africa
remains high. The current study made use of the social psychology of segregation to explore
the inter-group conflict that emerged as the most salient and ongoing feature of this disaster.
Although the current study is exploratory, it is hoped that it will encourage future research into
the interface between space, inter-group relations and disaster.
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