1 © South African Professional Society on the Abuse of Children: ISSN 1562-1383 Child Abuse Research: A South African Journal 2018, 19(2): 1-13 Reflections on parenting practices that impact child- rearing in a low-income community Naiema Taliep South African Medical Research Council-University of South Africa Violence, Injury and Peace Research Unit, Tygerberg; Institute for Social and Health Sciences, University of South Africa E-mail: naiema.taliep@mrc.ac.za Ghouwa Ismail Institute for Social and Health Sciences, University of South Africa; South African Medical Research Council-University of South Africa Violence, Injury and Peace Research Unit, Tygerberg E-mail: ghouwa.ismail@mrc.ac.za Neziswa Titi South African Medical Research Council-University of South Africa Violence, Injury and Peace Research Unit, Tygerberg E-mail: neziswa.titi@mrc.ac.za Parenting plays an important role in the socialisation of children and youth, and ineffective parenting has been associated with multiple negative social and health outcomes among young people. Any attempt to design contextually relevant multi-system interventions to improve parenting practices and reduce negative child and adolescent outcomes must be based on an understanding of how contextual factors influence parenting practices. A phenomenological reflective lifeworld approach was utilised to explore parents’ lived experiences of multiple intersecting socio-demographic factors and community social processes that impact on their parenting practices. This study was framed by social disorganisation theory rooted within an ecological framework. Using purposive sampling, data was collected from 47 parents comprising local residents and stakeholders (36 focus group participants and 7 individual interview participants) in a low-income community in Cape Town, South Africa, Thematic analysis of the qualitative data revealed various socio-demographic factors characteristic of community disorder that intersect with parenting and contributes to neglectful parenting. These factors include socio-economic disadvantage that leads to parental stress for predominantly single parent families, and a lack of formal and informal social control compounded by community disorder. This highlights the need for multi-level parenting interventions that address both community structural and social processes. Keywords: parenting practices; South Africa; family structure; social disorganisation theory INTRODUCTION Parenting plays an important role in the socialisation of children and adolescents. Ineffective parenting has been associated with multiple negative social and health outcomes, including child and adolescent negative emotionality (Haller & Chassin, 2011); delinquency, violence, anti-social behaviour (Cooper, De Lannoy & Rule, 2015); substance abuse problems (see Pears, Capaldi & Owen, 2007) and various health disparities (see Ventura & Birch, 2008). A large corpus of research focuses on the consequences of negative parenting practices and the impact and outcomes of parenting interventions within contexts outside of Africa (see Power et al, 2013; Scott et al, 2014). Little research has been done on parental perceptions regarding contextual factors that impact parenting practices within low-income communities within South Africa. Given the complexities and dynamic nature of family structures, and compositional features and community social processes within a South African context, one cannot generalise from one community to the next, much less from other contexts to a South African context. Attempts to design contextually relevant multi-system interventions focusing on improving parenting practices and reducing negative child and adolescent outcomes must be based on an understanding of how the aforementioned features and processes influence parenting. Thus, in light of this paucity in the South African context, the need exists to explore contextual factors that affect parenting practices within low-income South African communities that will inform contextually relevant interventions. Approximately 85,000 children (0.5%) in South Africa are reared in a total of 61,000 child-headed households (Meintjies, Hall & Sambu, 2015), which has been ascribed to challenges such as HIV/AIDS and violence (UNICEF, 2013). A child-headed household can be regarded as one in which a child (under 18 years) within the household has assumed the primary responsibility for the household due to parental or caregiver absence or when parents or primary caregivers are present, but are unable to provide the Open Rubric