Perceptions of Resilience to Social Environmental Risk Factors

Youth in Lesotho and throughout the world grow up surrounded by social environmental risk factors, as defined by Christle et al. (1999: 1) that make them susceptible to negative behaviours. However, some “resilient” young people are not affected by these risk factors; instead, they succeed in school and in life in general.This research aimed to explore and describe perceptions of resilience to environmental risk factors among youth in Lesotho. A qualitative approach, following an exploratory, descriptive and contextual research design, was employed, and purposive sampling was used to select resilient Form B/Grade 9 learners at Hlotse High School in Leribe, Lesotho, who participated in focus-group interviews. These learners were requested to nominate significant people in their lives (such as family members, teachers, friends and community members) who played a role in their resilience. A semi-structured interview guide was used to collect data from participants. The interviews were tape-recorded, and field notes were taken in order to document the data collected as well as record the researcher’s own perceptions and observations.