SPECIAL ISSUE 1 June 2026
DOI DOI: 10.66434/ijspsy.v1i1si.487

Digital patriarchy in educational leadership: Technology-facilitated gender-based violence against black women leaders in South African schools

Dean Langeveldt1, Doniwen Pietersen2
  1. 1 Sol Plaatje University, South Africa
  2. 2 University of South Africa, South Africa

Abstract

The article reports on a qualitative study of technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) targeting Black women in school leadership positions in South Africa, an underexplored area compared to the extensive body of learner-focused research. Based on Crenshaw’s (1989) intersectionality framework and drawing on a continuum of violence, adapted for digitally mediated contexts, the study examined how race, gender, class, and leadership status intersect to structure the experiences of Black school leaders of TFGBV on multiple platforms, including WhatsApp, email, social media, and video conferencing technologies. Empirical data were generated through in-depth focus group discussions and individual narrative accounts conducted with 10 Black women who held formal leadership roles in schools. Reflexive thematic analysis was employed to analyse the data. The analysis revealed a broad spectrum of technology-mediated harms, including exclusion and hostile communication within WhatsApp groups; email-based intimidation and professional sabotage; social media attacks; online impersonation; and racialised and gendered microaggressions during virtual meetings. Four overarching themes emerged: digital amplification of patriarchal and racist power; technology as an instrument of authority erosion; institutional inaction and digital silence; and the psychological, professional, and embodied consequences of TFGBV. The study contributes to TFGBV scholarship by centring the experiences of women in educational leadership and demonstrating how digital environments intensify intersectional forms of violence rooted in race, gender and institutional hierarchies.

How to Cite

Langeveldt, D., & Pietersen, D. (2026). Digital patriarchy in educational leadership: Technology-facilitated gender-based violence against black women leaders in South African schools. International Journal of Studies in Psychology, 1(1si), 24–31. https://doi.org/10.66434/ijspsy.v1i1si.487
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS) BibTeX

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