ETHICAL CONCERNS REGARDING MALE CIRCUMCISION CULTURE: A SELECTED ETHNICAL GROUP
Abstract
: Traditional cultural practices reflect values and beliefs of members of a community. Culture is an umbrella term, which explains common things people share such as language, customs, beliefs and the way of life. This paper seeks to look at male circumcision culture of a certain indigenous group in South Africa. Male circumcision is associated with ethnic marks, virility, masculinity, rite of passage to manhood however, there are many ethical concerns centering on male circumcision. Hence, this paper seeks to explore the ethical concerns surrounding male circumcision culture of a selected ethnical group in order to contribute to ethical execution of the practice. Little has been done on ethical issues surrounding male circumcision. The fallacy surrounding this phenomenon needs further investigation. The paper intends to contribute to the debate on male circumcision as a way of mitigating HIV/AIDS infections. The Social Norm Theory has been used to explain the phenomenon under study. The constructivist research paradigm enabled the interviewing of participants from the target population, as the study is inductive in nature. The key finding was that they do male circumcision mostly in an unethical way that it also affects women and children. They also do it based on the misconception and the fallacy that they will not get HIV/AIDS.References
Cassell, M., Halperin, D & Shellton. (2006). Risk Compensation: The Achilles’ Heel of Innovations in IV Prevention. BMJ. 332605-607.
Creswell, J.W. (2014). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed Methods Approaches,
th edition. London. Sage Publications, Inc. 1-242.
Doctors opposing male circumcision (2008). The Use of Male Circumcision to Prevent HIV Infection.
United States of America. Seatle. http://www.doctorsopposingcircumcision,org/info.HIVStatement.html.
Glick, L.B. (2005). Marked in Your Flesh: Circumcision from Ancient Judea to Modern America.
New York. Oxford University Press.
Gwandure, C. (2011). Ethical Concerns of Using Medical Male Circumcision in HIV Prevention,
Educational Psychologist, HPCSA. Johannesburg. SAJBL. 4(2)
Hutson, J.M. (2003). Circumcision: A Surgery Perspective. Victoria. BMJ Open.
Laumann, E.O., Masi, C.M. & Zuckerman, E.W. (1997). Circumcision in the United States:
Prevalence, Prophylactic Effects and Sexual Practice. JAMA. 2771052-157.1057. (Pubmed).
Mackenzie, N. & Knipe, S. (2006). Research Dilemmas, Methods and Methodology. Issues in
Educational Research, 16. http://www.iier.org.au/iier16/mackenzie.html.
Maluleke, M.J. (2012). Culture, Tradition, Law and Gender Equality. PotchestroomSAFL11.
Rennie, S., Muula, A.S.& Westreich, D. (2007). Male Circumcision and HIV Prevention. Journal of
Medical of Medical Ethics. 33 (6), p. 357-361.
Spearman, P. (2006) Current Progress in the Development of HIV Vaccines. Current Pharm Des, 12 (9).
Stein, S. (2008). When Falls the Colisem. A Journal of American Culture. Philadephia.
http://whenfallsthecoliseum.com/2008/1030/circumcision-jewish-conspiracy-theory/
Szabo, R., Short,R.V. (2000). How Does Male Circumcision Protect against HIV Infection.
BMJOpen.
Talbott, J.R. (2007). Size Matter: The Number Prostitutes and the Global HIV/AIDS Pandemic.
PlosOne.
Waldeck, S.C. (2003). Social Norm Theory and Male Circumcision: Why Parents Circumcise?
Amercian Journal of Bioethics. 3(2), p. 56-60
Copyright information
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (Creative Commons Attribution License 3.0 - CC BY 3.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
info@iseic.cz, www.iseic.cz, ojs.journals.cz
