Bt30: Exposure to violence

Description

The Birth to Thirty (Bt30) study in Soweto is Africa’s largest and longest-running birth cohort study. It is colloquially nicknamed “Mandela’s Children” because the study started with children born just after Nelson Mandela was released from prison. The study intends to keep working with and tracking these families, whose lives span South Africa’s democratic transition. The first data collection round in 1989/1990 asked the still-pregnant mothers about the conditions of their pregnancy. Data was collected at birth and six months and then on a yearly basis, an enormous feat over 32-plus years.

This seminar was the fifth in a series of seven, sharing the research findings and lessons from this remarkable cohort study.

Children worldwide, and particularly in South Africa, are exposed to high levels of violence and other adverse experiences. This webinar took an in-depth look into longitudinal exposure to violence and adversity in the lives of Bt30 children, and the far-reaching consequences of this exposure on their health and wellbeing.