Abstract:
In Sub-Saharan Africa, the resilience phenomenon among HIV positive adolescent
girls goes unnoticed due to unfavourable cultural norms. An empirical inquiry was
conducted to explore the experiences of HIV positive Yoruba adolescent girls in
Nigeria with a bid to identify the key factors that enhance their resilience.
The study is informed by a qualitative approach guided by the interpretive paradigm. A
multiple case research design with the Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA)
was employed to explore how five HIV positive Yoruba adolescent girls make sense of
their social world and remain remarkably resilient. The photo voice technique, semistructured
interviews and field journals were used to gather data. The interpretation of
the research findings was guided by Pierre Bourdieu’s field theory (1989;1990) and
supported by Erikson’s (1962,1968) and Piaget’s(1932;1952) developmental theories.
Findings from this study indicate that many factors such as perceptions about self,
self-efficacy, spirituality, internal locus of control, social interactions, education, hard
work and optimism about future aspiration enhance the resilience of HIV positive
Yoruba adolescent girls in Nigeria. Furthermore, participants had a sense of strong
attachment with a family member, self-worth and self-esteem as well as their
emotional needs being met by their network of relationships.
I concluded the study by developing a resilience framework for HIV positive
adolescent girls. Researchers and policy makers can assist the HIV positive
adolescent girls in the process of becoming resilient by strengthening factors that are
linked to their context, identity and cognitive developmental trajectories as well as their
socializations.
