Self-esteem of coloured and white scholars and students in South Africa
- Authors: Momberg, Allan
- Date: 1976
- Subjects: Self-esteem in children , Self-esteem -- Cross-cultural studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3217 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012876
- Description: A measure of the self-esteem of 426 subjects was obtained by means of the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory. The sample comprised two Afrikaans, two Coloured and two English groups. Each of the above three groups was made up of pupils and students, (i. e. there were six separate sample groups). The major purpose of this study was to ascertain whether or not the Coloureds could be said to differ meaningfully from their White counterparts with regard to their general level of self-esteem. A secondary objective was to investigate the possibility of the Afrikaans and English groups differing in self-esteem. No significant differences were found to exist between any of the three student sample groups. The ranking of the mean self-esteem scores of these groups was: Afrikaans (highest), Coloured, English (lowest). The only groups that differed significantly from one another at the pupil level were the Afrikaans and the Coloureds. Their ranking was: Afrikaans (highest), English, Coloured (lowest). The prediction arising from the hypothesis of this study was that the Coloureds do not necessarily differ from Whites in their general level of self-esteem. This view is held because factors similar to those which are believed to have facilitated the rise in the self-esteem of the American Negroes are now operating in South Africa. It was concluded that this prediction was upheld.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1976
- Authors: Momberg, Allan
- Date: 1976
- Subjects: Self-esteem in children , Self-esteem -- Cross-cultural studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3217 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012876
- Description: A measure of the self-esteem of 426 subjects was obtained by means of the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory. The sample comprised two Afrikaans, two Coloured and two English groups. Each of the above three groups was made up of pupils and students, (i. e. there were six separate sample groups). The major purpose of this study was to ascertain whether or not the Coloureds could be said to differ meaningfully from their White counterparts with regard to their general level of self-esteem. A secondary objective was to investigate the possibility of the Afrikaans and English groups differing in self-esteem. No significant differences were found to exist between any of the three student sample groups. The ranking of the mean self-esteem scores of these groups was: Afrikaans (highest), Coloured, English (lowest). The only groups that differed significantly from one another at the pupil level were the Afrikaans and the Coloureds. Their ranking was: Afrikaans (highest), English, Coloured (lowest). The prediction arising from the hypothesis of this study was that the Coloureds do not necessarily differ from Whites in their general level of self-esteem. This view is held because factors similar to those which are believed to have facilitated the rise in the self-esteem of the American Negroes are now operating in South Africa. It was concluded that this prediction was upheld.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1976
Exploring black South African men’s lived experiences of being fathered
- Authors: Rasebitse, Karabo
- Date: 2022-04-07
- Subjects: Fatherhood South Africa , Fathers and sons South Africa Psychological aspects , Masculinity Social aspects South Africa , Hegemony South Africa , Social constructionism South Africa , Culture , Men, Black Attitudes South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/294504 , vital:57227
- Description: There is a lack of research studies in South Africa that explore young men’s lived experiences of being fathered. The aim of this study focused on exploring how Black South African men construct and understand their own lived experiences of being fathered by their biological father. This research study is situated within a social constructionism methodology and theoretical framework. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with young men between the ages of 18-24. Data were analysed using thematic analysis as a way of analysing participants’ stories. Three central themes with subthemes emerged. The main themes regarded the father behaviour, fatherly roles and participants’ constructions of fatherhood. The study argues that fatherhood is a social construct based on participants’ lived experiences. Participants in this research still view fatherhood from cultural discourses, such as the provider/protector and a moral guider/role to construct fatherhood. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022-04-07
- Authors: Rasebitse, Karabo
- Date: 2022-04-07
- Subjects: Fatherhood South Africa , Fathers and sons South Africa Psychological aspects , Masculinity Social aspects South Africa , Hegemony South Africa , Social constructionism South Africa , Culture , Men, Black Attitudes South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/294504 , vital:57227
- Description: There is a lack of research studies in South Africa that explore young men’s lived experiences of being fathered. The aim of this study focused on exploring how Black South African men construct and understand their own lived experiences of being fathered by their biological father. This research study is situated within a social constructionism methodology and theoretical framework. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with young men between the ages of 18-24. Data were analysed using thematic analysis as a way of analysing participants’ stories. Three central themes with subthemes emerged. The main themes regarded the father behaviour, fatherly roles and participants’ constructions of fatherhood. The study argues that fatherhood is a social construct based on participants’ lived experiences. Participants in this research still view fatherhood from cultural discourses, such as the provider/protector and a moral guider/role to construct fatherhood. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022-04-07
A comparison of the self-esteem of black and white high school pupils
- Authors: Morrow, Brian Robert
- Date: 1988
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/193033 , vital:45292
- Description: This study investigated the level of self-esteem of black and white high-school students using the Rosenberg self-esteem scale. One hundred and eighty six subjects were used, 63 of them being white while 118 were black. A validation of the Rosenberg scale for the black sample was attempted using a correlation between the scale score and a rating of the subjects by teachers. The results of the study showed no significant difference between the self-esteem levels, while the validation study failed to confirm the validity of the test for black subjects in South Africa. However, the validation study v/as rejected as inconclusive and the results of the comparison accepted as confirmatory of previous research. An incidental positive finding revealed that white males have higher self-esteem than white females,. The theory and past research of self-esteem comparisons between racial groups is reviewed. The conclusion is reached in this study that the concept of self-esteem has outlasted its usefulness in the field of comparisons between racial groups and research of a qualitative nature .can provide further data for the understanding of differences between racial groups. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 1988
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1988
- Authors: Morrow, Brian Robert
- Date: 1988
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/193033 , vital:45292
- Description: This study investigated the level of self-esteem of black and white high-school students using the Rosenberg self-esteem scale. One hundred and eighty six subjects were used, 63 of them being white while 118 were black. A validation of the Rosenberg scale for the black sample was attempted using a correlation between the scale score and a rating of the subjects by teachers. The results of the study showed no significant difference between the self-esteem levels, while the validation study failed to confirm the validity of the test for black subjects in South Africa. However, the validation study v/as rejected as inconclusive and the results of the comparison accepted as confirmatory of previous research. An incidental positive finding revealed that white males have higher self-esteem than white females,. The theory and past research of self-esteem comparisons between racial groups is reviewed. The conclusion is reached in this study that the concept of self-esteem has outlasted its usefulness in the field of comparisons between racial groups and research of a qualitative nature .can provide further data for the understanding of differences between racial groups. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 1988
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1988
Dance as a tool for emotional well-being
- Authors: Conchar, Lauren
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Dance therapy , Well-being , Happiness , Adolescent psychology , Dance -- Social aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats , Dance -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats , Dance -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats -- Case studies , Community development, Urban -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/5129 , vital:20779
- Description: Dance has numerous benefits for emotional well-being. For young people specifically it can serve as a prosocial activity where they can engage in a purposeful activity, in a safe space with consistent boundaries and discipline, while surrounded by peers, teachers and positive role models. Recreational spaces that allow young people to feel safe and express themselves is especially important in low socioeconomic areas where there are limited resources and exposure to heightened levels of crime as young people may be less likely to engage in negative behaviours when they have access to alternative, positive activities. This research aimed to explore the lived experiences of a group of young people who participate in dance classes at a community dance project in the Western Cape. The sample group consisted of four young people between the ages of 16 and 20. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants and the interviews were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Three major themes emerged from the data, namely 1) My exposure to dance - The impact of context, 2) What motivates me to continue attending classes - The fulfilment of the three basic psychological needs, and 3) How does dance make me feel - The experience of emotional well-being through dance. The discussion of the findings yielded many similarities between the experiences of the participants and the relevant literature. Further, it appears that all four participants experience the satisfaction of the three basic psychological needs (competence, autonomy and relatedness) at the centre. This may serve as a motivator to continue attending classes as well as contribute to sustained eudaimonic wellbeing. Recommendations include further studies being conducted with groups of young people engaging in dance projects in different socioeconomic contexts and in different parts of South Africa. This could give us a more rounded understanding of how people young people experience dance class and how it contributes to emotional well-being. Further research could also be conducted with recreational projects that offer other activities in under-resourced areas in order to better inform the development of such recreational activities.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Conchar, Lauren
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Dance therapy , Well-being , Happiness , Adolescent psychology , Dance -- Social aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats , Dance -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats , Dance -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats -- Case studies , Community development, Urban -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Cape Flats -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/5129 , vital:20779
- Description: Dance has numerous benefits for emotional well-being. For young people specifically it can serve as a prosocial activity where they can engage in a purposeful activity, in a safe space with consistent boundaries and discipline, while surrounded by peers, teachers and positive role models. Recreational spaces that allow young people to feel safe and express themselves is especially important in low socioeconomic areas where there are limited resources and exposure to heightened levels of crime as young people may be less likely to engage in negative behaviours when they have access to alternative, positive activities. This research aimed to explore the lived experiences of a group of young people who participate in dance classes at a community dance project in the Western Cape. The sample group consisted of four young people between the ages of 16 and 20. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants and the interviews were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Three major themes emerged from the data, namely 1) My exposure to dance - The impact of context, 2) What motivates me to continue attending classes - The fulfilment of the three basic psychological needs, and 3) How does dance make me feel - The experience of emotional well-being through dance. The discussion of the findings yielded many similarities between the experiences of the participants and the relevant literature. Further, it appears that all four participants experience the satisfaction of the three basic psychological needs (competence, autonomy and relatedness) at the centre. This may serve as a motivator to continue attending classes as well as contribute to sustained eudaimonic wellbeing. Recommendations include further studies being conducted with groups of young people engaging in dance projects in different socioeconomic contexts and in different parts of South Africa. This could give us a more rounded understanding of how people young people experience dance class and how it contributes to emotional well-being. Further research could also be conducted with recreational projects that offer other activities in under-resourced areas in order to better inform the development of such recreational activities.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
A case study investigation into the utility of baseline data versus normative data using a computer-based concussion management programme
- Authors: Mitchell, Julia
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Brain -- Concussion , Neuropsychological tests , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3021 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002530 , Brain -- Concussion , Neuropsychological tests , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications
- Description: Neuropsychological testing is recognised as one of the cornerstones of concussion evaluation, contributing significantly to both an understanding of the injury as well as management of the recovery process. Despite the high incidence of concussion at school level, traditional paper-and-pencil neuropsychological testing has generally been absent from school concussion management programmes, largely due to time and cost constraints. Now, the recent development of computerised neuropsychological testing is providing the opportunity for including neurocognitive assessment in this process. The Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) is a valid and reliable instrument of this type and normed on 13 - 18 year old North American high school athletes, as well as adult groups. The current recommendation is that athletes are baselined preseason in order to provide an individualised comparative level against which to monitor recovery and provide return-to-play recommendations. This in itself is quite a cumbersome process, thus the present study set out to ascertain whether baseline testing of all athletes is necessary, or whether the use of US or SA normative data alone would provide an appropriate standard against which to interpret the postinjury scores. From a leading South African rugby playing school, the 1st and 2nd rugby teams, (16 - 18 years) were baselined using ImPACT. Three athletes, who were subsequently referred with concussion during the rugby season, were followed up with serial testing on ImPACT. An analysis of the follow up scores was conducted to chart the athletes' recovery process, in relation to the athletes own baseline scores (using US and SA reliable change indices) and age appropriate US and SA normative ranges. The relative utility of individual baselines scores versus these normative ranges was then critically evaluated. It was concluded that a combination of both baseline and normative data provided optimal management of the athlete, with the methods complementing each other in the interpretation of post-injury results. Overall, the SA normative ranges seemed to provide slightly better management guidelines than the US normative ranges when used with this sample of South African high school athletes.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Mitchell, Julia
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Brain -- Concussion , Neuropsychological tests , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3021 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002530 , Brain -- Concussion , Neuropsychological tests , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications
- Description: Neuropsychological testing is recognised as one of the cornerstones of concussion evaluation, contributing significantly to both an understanding of the injury as well as management of the recovery process. Despite the high incidence of concussion at school level, traditional paper-and-pencil neuropsychological testing has generally been absent from school concussion management programmes, largely due to time and cost constraints. Now, the recent development of computerised neuropsychological testing is providing the opportunity for including neurocognitive assessment in this process. The Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) is a valid and reliable instrument of this type and normed on 13 - 18 year old North American high school athletes, as well as adult groups. The current recommendation is that athletes are baselined preseason in order to provide an individualised comparative level against which to monitor recovery and provide return-to-play recommendations. This in itself is quite a cumbersome process, thus the present study set out to ascertain whether baseline testing of all athletes is necessary, or whether the use of US or SA normative data alone would provide an appropriate standard against which to interpret the postinjury scores. From a leading South African rugby playing school, the 1st and 2nd rugby teams, (16 - 18 years) were baselined using ImPACT. Three athletes, who were subsequently referred with concussion during the rugby season, were followed up with serial testing on ImPACT. An analysis of the follow up scores was conducted to chart the athletes' recovery process, in relation to the athletes own baseline scores (using US and SA reliable change indices) and age appropriate US and SA normative ranges. The relative utility of individual baselines scores versus these normative ranges was then critically evaluated. It was concluded that a combination of both baseline and normative data provided optimal management of the athlete, with the methods complementing each other in the interpretation of post-injury results. Overall, the SA normative ranges seemed to provide slightly better management guidelines than the US normative ranges when used with this sample of South African high school athletes.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
An exploratory study of Rhodes students' attitudes and perceptions towards HIV/Aids
- Authors: Weston, Robyn
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Rhodes University -- Students Rhodes University -- Students -- Attitudes Counseling in higher education AIDS (Disease) -- Prevention -- South Africa HIV infections -- South Africa AIDS (Disease) -- Study and teaching -- South Africa HIV infections -- Study and teaching -- South Africa HIV infections -- Diagnosis -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3095 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003294
- Description: The present study explores Rhodes students' perceptions and attitudes towards HIV/Aids issues. This study focuses on risk behaviour, stigmatisation, social perceptions and voluntary counselling and HIV testing (VCT). There is a lack of research on student attitudes, knowledge and behaviour at Rhodes University. It was therefore deemed pertinent to research this topic in that context. It was envisaged that the study would provide insights to be used in the formulation of improved strategies for HIV/Aids programs and education, ultimately impacting on the exponential increase of the pandemic in the Southern African region. A sample of six hundred and seventy five Rhodes University undergraduates completed a survey and its findings were interpreted in terms of relevant literature. A mixed methods approach using qualitative and quantitative methods was used. A focus group consisting of seven post-graduate students informed the development of the survey along with relevant literature. Four departments from the faculties of Commerce, Humanities, Science and Law were randomly sampled for the survey phase. Statistica was used to calculate descriptive statistics while the chi-square statistic was applied to examine the relationships between the variables. The findings show that the majority of students have high intention levels in planning to use preventative behaviour. However, in practise, this may not be the case. Many students feel that they belong to high or medium risk groups, as opposed to the low-risk groups. In terms of motivation levels, only sixty three percent of students are highly motivated to protect themselves from HIV/Aids and one third of respondents felt that they could not ask their partner to accompany them for an HIV/Aids test. In addition, students who had received VCT were more likely to be positive about the counselling process.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Weston, Robyn
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Rhodes University -- Students Rhodes University -- Students -- Attitudes Counseling in higher education AIDS (Disease) -- Prevention -- South Africa HIV infections -- South Africa AIDS (Disease) -- Study and teaching -- South Africa HIV infections -- Study and teaching -- South Africa HIV infections -- Diagnosis -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3095 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003294
- Description: The present study explores Rhodes students' perceptions and attitudes towards HIV/Aids issues. This study focuses on risk behaviour, stigmatisation, social perceptions and voluntary counselling and HIV testing (VCT). There is a lack of research on student attitudes, knowledge and behaviour at Rhodes University. It was therefore deemed pertinent to research this topic in that context. It was envisaged that the study would provide insights to be used in the formulation of improved strategies for HIV/Aids programs and education, ultimately impacting on the exponential increase of the pandemic in the Southern African region. A sample of six hundred and seventy five Rhodes University undergraduates completed a survey and its findings were interpreted in terms of relevant literature. A mixed methods approach using qualitative and quantitative methods was used. A focus group consisting of seven post-graduate students informed the development of the survey along with relevant literature. Four departments from the faculties of Commerce, Humanities, Science and Law were randomly sampled for the survey phase. Statistica was used to calculate descriptive statistics while the chi-square statistic was applied to examine the relationships between the variables. The findings show that the majority of students have high intention levels in planning to use preventative behaviour. However, in practise, this may not be the case. Many students feel that they belong to high or medium risk groups, as opposed to the low-risk groups. In terms of motivation levels, only sixty three percent of students are highly motivated to protect themselves from HIV/Aids and one third of respondents felt that they could not ask their partner to accompany them for an HIV/Aids test. In addition, students who had received VCT were more likely to be positive about the counselling process.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
HIV-related stigma amongst service staff in Grahamstown: a comparison of Hi-Tec security guards and Rhodes catering in the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Mazorodze, Tasara
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: AIDS phobia -- Research -- South Africa -- Grahamstown HIV infections -- Employees -- Research -- South Africa AIDS (Disease) -- Employees -- Research -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3016 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002525
- Description: Despite the acknowledged reality that HIV-related stigma is a major barrier to effective HIV prevention and treatment, and perhaps because it is complex in nature, few local empirical scales have been developed to measure stigma and to be able evaluate the impact of anti-stigma interventions. Whilst the development of two recent South African HIV-related stigma scales can be celebrated as a major breakthrough, the reliability and validity of these scales across contexts remains largely unknown. This research project employs these two local, and competing, HIV-related personal stigma scales - the first developed by Kalichman et al. (2005) and the second developed by Visser, Kershaw, Makin and Forsyth (2008)-to compare the psychometric properties of the scales and to obtain a measure of HIV-related stigma with a sample of 246 service staff employed at either Rhodes University Catering Division or the Hi-Tec Security company, both organisations located in Grahamstown, a small town in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Both organisations are major employers of semi-skilled workers in this local context. The results suggest that the Visser et al. scale (2008) reports slightly better psychometric properties than the Kalichman et al. (2005) scale for this sample. Furthermore, the security guards appear to be more stigmatising than the caterers, and it is suggested that this might be a consequence of the combined influences of normative occupational roles and workplace context. Results also show that participants who practices safe sex, know someone with HIV and/or who have been tested for HIV show lower levels of HIV-related stigma. Finally, personal stigma scores are generally lower than attributed stigma scores, which might offer a useful point of intervention.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
- Authors: Mazorodze, Tasara
- Date: 2011
- Subjects: AIDS phobia -- Research -- South Africa -- Grahamstown HIV infections -- Employees -- Research -- South Africa AIDS (Disease) -- Employees -- Research -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3016 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002525
- Description: Despite the acknowledged reality that HIV-related stigma is a major barrier to effective HIV prevention and treatment, and perhaps because it is complex in nature, few local empirical scales have been developed to measure stigma and to be able evaluate the impact of anti-stigma interventions. Whilst the development of two recent South African HIV-related stigma scales can be celebrated as a major breakthrough, the reliability and validity of these scales across contexts remains largely unknown. This research project employs these two local, and competing, HIV-related personal stigma scales - the first developed by Kalichman et al. (2005) and the second developed by Visser, Kershaw, Makin and Forsyth (2008)-to compare the psychometric properties of the scales and to obtain a measure of HIV-related stigma with a sample of 246 service staff employed at either Rhodes University Catering Division or the Hi-Tec Security company, both organisations located in Grahamstown, a small town in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Both organisations are major employers of semi-skilled workers in this local context. The results suggest that the Visser et al. scale (2008) reports slightly better psychometric properties than the Kalichman et al. (2005) scale for this sample. Furthermore, the security guards appear to be more stigmatising than the caterers, and it is suggested that this might be a consequence of the combined influences of normative occupational roles and workplace context. Results also show that participants who practices safe sex, know someone with HIV and/or who have been tested for HIV show lower levels of HIV-related stigma. Finally, personal stigma scores are generally lower than attributed stigma scores, which might offer a useful point of intervention.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2011
An exploratory study of responsible gambling behaviour
- Authors: Harris, Cheyne
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: Gambling -- Case studies -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Gambling -- Social aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Gambling -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Gambling -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:3187 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008442
- Description: In light of the findings of a pilot study by this researcher, entitled a study of the behaviour and strategies of responsible gamblers, it is vital that responsible gambling behaviour in the Eastern Cape be researched more thoroughly. The pilot study found that many ordinary gamblers experience cognitive distortions which may predispose them to varying levels of gambling problems, as well as specific biographical attributes that may determine such an outcome. The present study aims to address the limitations and recommendations put forward by the pilot study, namely its relatively small scale, and lack of generalisability as a result of sampling from a single gambling population. This project set out to assess gambling behaviour, and more so responsible gambling practices, to be able to conclude how, and in what form, responsible gambling takes place. The research was conducted USll1g a sample of one-hundred-and-thirty-seven gamblers from Hemingway's Casino in East London to develop data and establish norms on general gambling behaviour over a week, by administration of a survey questionnaire. The analysis of the data focussed on areas such as the link between gender and gambling behaviour, amount earned and amount spent on gambling, age and gambling trends as well as belief in luck and chances to win. Finally, the strategies (if any) used by gamblers to avoid problem gambling or overspending were assessed, and described by the gamblers themselves, and added to the results of the research. The results indicate that the majority of gamblers in the Eastern Cape are responsible, but many do still exhibit cognitive distortions and other behaviours that might put them at risk for problem gambling. With these results it is possible to provide basic data and information about the nature of gambling in the East London area that can be added to previous (as well as subsequent) studies, in order to build a clearer and more representative picture of the gambling situation in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
- Authors: Harris, Cheyne
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: Gambling -- Case studies -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Gambling -- Social aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Gambling -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Gambling -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:3187 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008442
- Description: In light of the findings of a pilot study by this researcher, entitled a study of the behaviour and strategies of responsible gamblers, it is vital that responsible gambling behaviour in the Eastern Cape be researched more thoroughly. The pilot study found that many ordinary gamblers experience cognitive distortions which may predispose them to varying levels of gambling problems, as well as specific biographical attributes that may determine such an outcome. The present study aims to address the limitations and recommendations put forward by the pilot study, namely its relatively small scale, and lack of generalisability as a result of sampling from a single gambling population. This project set out to assess gambling behaviour, and more so responsible gambling practices, to be able to conclude how, and in what form, responsible gambling takes place. The research was conducted USll1g a sample of one-hundred-and-thirty-seven gamblers from Hemingway's Casino in East London to develop data and establish norms on general gambling behaviour over a week, by administration of a survey questionnaire. The analysis of the data focussed on areas such as the link between gender and gambling behaviour, amount earned and amount spent on gambling, age and gambling trends as well as belief in luck and chances to win. Finally, the strategies (if any) used by gamblers to avoid problem gambling or overspending were assessed, and described by the gamblers themselves, and added to the results of the research. The results indicate that the majority of gamblers in the Eastern Cape are responsible, but many do still exhibit cognitive distortions and other behaviours that might put them at risk for problem gambling. With these results it is possible to provide basic data and information about the nature of gambling in the East London area that can be added to previous (as well as subsequent) studies, in order to build a clearer and more representative picture of the gambling situation in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
The precarious ‘good mother’ position: a psychosocial reading of maternal subjectivity of working mothers in scarcely-resourced South African communities
- Authors: Kinahan-Sweeney, Siobhan
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Motherhood -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa , Working mothers -- South Africa -- Attitudes , Working mothers -- South Africa -- Psychology
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142464 , vital:38082
- Description: This psychosocial study investigates the maternal subjectivities of mothers returning to work after maternity leave, who are living in scarcely-resourced Cape Town communities in South Africa. Engaging with interview texts and listening to mothers’ talk, I explore how and why maternal subjectivity is constructed discursively and defensively in our talk. This thesis claims that these particular mothers predominately employ instrumental mothering discourse. The traditional subject position of the intensive mother – which is typically assumed to be the ‘good mother’ – is not a position available to these mothers due to their social circumstances and working role. Subsequently, material provision, the baby’s thriving and surviving body, finding substitute carers and maternal preoccupation are constructed as qualities of ‘good mothering’ in their talk. This ‘good mother’ position, however, is a precarious position that both these mothers and I invest in to defend against feelings towards their babies and themselves as well as to deny (maternal) ambivalence in a problematic social system. In a combined analysis drawing on discursive theory and psychoanalysis, more specifically contemporary attachment theory and intersubjectivity theory, I illustrate how both these mothers and I – as emotional, social and political subjects – co-construct maternal subjectivity. Based on the findings, recommendations for parent-infant interventions are discussed. Arguing that a purely psychoanalytic reading of investment perpetuates notions of individual blame and pathology, I advocate for a psychosocial reading that does not neglect failing social systems but rather pursues an open and reflective, yet critical, mindfulness when listening to talk.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Kinahan-Sweeney, Siobhan
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Motherhood -- Psychological aspects -- South Africa , Working mothers -- South Africa -- Attitudes , Working mothers -- South Africa -- Psychology
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142464 , vital:38082
- Description: This psychosocial study investigates the maternal subjectivities of mothers returning to work after maternity leave, who are living in scarcely-resourced Cape Town communities in South Africa. Engaging with interview texts and listening to mothers’ talk, I explore how and why maternal subjectivity is constructed discursively and defensively in our talk. This thesis claims that these particular mothers predominately employ instrumental mothering discourse. The traditional subject position of the intensive mother – which is typically assumed to be the ‘good mother’ – is not a position available to these mothers due to their social circumstances and working role. Subsequently, material provision, the baby’s thriving and surviving body, finding substitute carers and maternal preoccupation are constructed as qualities of ‘good mothering’ in their talk. This ‘good mother’ position, however, is a precarious position that both these mothers and I invest in to defend against feelings towards their babies and themselves as well as to deny (maternal) ambivalence in a problematic social system. In a combined analysis drawing on discursive theory and psychoanalysis, more specifically contemporary attachment theory and intersubjectivity theory, I illustrate how both these mothers and I – as emotional, social and political subjects – co-construct maternal subjectivity. Based on the findings, recommendations for parent-infant interventions are discussed. Arguing that a purely psychoanalytic reading of investment perpetuates notions of individual blame and pathology, I advocate for a psychosocial reading that does not neglect failing social systems but rather pursues an open and reflective, yet critical, mindfulness when listening to talk.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
Clinical psychologists’ perceptions of the phenomenon of schizophrenia in a psychiatric setting in the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Authors: Hamman, Colette
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Schizophrenia -- Diagnosis -- South Africa , Schizophrenia -- Treatment -- South Africa , Schizophrenics -- Rehabilitation -- South Africa , Schizophrenics -- South Africa -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71398 , vital:29845
- Description: Numerous international and South African scholars are critical of the dominant research on the phenomenon of schizophrenia. Rather than refuting dominant biomedical psychiatric conceptualisations of schizophrenia, there is a call for incorporating a focus on the psychology of the person diagnosed with schizophrenia. In South Africa, the integration of the psychosocial components of psychotic experiences into the understanding and treatment of psychosis are still neglected in biomedically-focused psychiatric settings. In relation to this call, the role of clinical psychologists working within these settings seems pertinent. Against this background, this study aimed to explore and describe the perceptions of clinical psychologists, working in a psychiatric setting in South Africa, in relation to the phenomenon of schizophrenia. Informed by a social constructionist theoretical framework, this study utilised a qualitative research design and a semi-structured interview schedule. In-depth, individual interviews were conducted with three clinical psychologists and the transcribed interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. From the data, perceptions were identified as largely polarised in relation to the phenomenon of schizophrenia. These polarised perceptions included: Physical impact of schizophrenia versus social impact of schizophrenia; rehabilitation of schizophrenia versus recovery within schizophrenia; diagnostic frameworks as useful versus diagnostic frameworks as limiting; and institutionally-defined identity versus self-defined identity. In terms of these polarised perceptions, an overarching theme of the medicalisation versus the demedicalisation of schizophrenia was identified. Therefore, the perceptions of clinical psychologists in this study were largely polarised towards either a medicalisation of the phenomenon of schizophrenia or a demedicalisation of it. However, perceptions were also identified that evidenced an integration of the two sides of the polarities, and a holding of tension between seemingly incompatible or incongruent frameworks. The participants perceived psychologists as positioned in the middle ground between the medicalisation and demedicalisation of schizophrenia in a biomedical psychiatric setting. In response to the call for a focus on the psychology of the person diagnosed with schizophrenia, the findings support both the value and the need for an “integration of polarised perceptions”, “holding of the tension”, and “middle ground positioning” of clinicians between medicalised and demedicalised aspects of the phenomenon of schizophrenia.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Hamman, Colette
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: Schizophrenia -- Diagnosis -- South Africa , Schizophrenia -- Treatment -- South Africa , Schizophrenics -- Rehabilitation -- South Africa , Schizophrenics -- South Africa -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71398 , vital:29845
- Description: Numerous international and South African scholars are critical of the dominant research on the phenomenon of schizophrenia. Rather than refuting dominant biomedical psychiatric conceptualisations of schizophrenia, there is a call for incorporating a focus on the psychology of the person diagnosed with schizophrenia. In South Africa, the integration of the psychosocial components of psychotic experiences into the understanding and treatment of psychosis are still neglected in biomedically-focused psychiatric settings. In relation to this call, the role of clinical psychologists working within these settings seems pertinent. Against this background, this study aimed to explore and describe the perceptions of clinical psychologists, working in a psychiatric setting in South Africa, in relation to the phenomenon of schizophrenia. Informed by a social constructionist theoretical framework, this study utilised a qualitative research design and a semi-structured interview schedule. In-depth, individual interviews were conducted with three clinical psychologists and the transcribed interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. From the data, perceptions were identified as largely polarised in relation to the phenomenon of schizophrenia. These polarised perceptions included: Physical impact of schizophrenia versus social impact of schizophrenia; rehabilitation of schizophrenia versus recovery within schizophrenia; diagnostic frameworks as useful versus diagnostic frameworks as limiting; and institutionally-defined identity versus self-defined identity. In terms of these polarised perceptions, an overarching theme of the medicalisation versus the demedicalisation of schizophrenia was identified. Therefore, the perceptions of clinical psychologists in this study were largely polarised towards either a medicalisation of the phenomenon of schizophrenia or a demedicalisation of it. However, perceptions were also identified that evidenced an integration of the two sides of the polarities, and a holding of tension between seemingly incompatible or incongruent frameworks. The participants perceived psychologists as positioned in the middle ground between the medicalisation and demedicalisation of schizophrenia in a biomedical psychiatric setting. In response to the call for a focus on the psychology of the person diagnosed with schizophrenia, the findings support both the value and the need for an “integration of polarised perceptions”, “holding of the tension”, and “middle ground positioning” of clinicians between medicalised and demedicalised aspects of the phenomenon of schizophrenia.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Disturbing the neighbours: an investigation into the relationship between psychopathology and social formations
- Authors: Collins, Anthony
- Date: 1995
- Subjects: Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939 , Winnicott, D. W. (Donald Woods), 1896-1971 , Social psychiatry , Social psychology , Psychology, Pathological , Frankfurt school of sociology , Political psychology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2953 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002462 , Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939 , Winnicott, D. W. (Donald Woods), 1896-1971 , Social psychiatry , Social psychology , Psychology, Pathological , Frankfurt school of sociology , Political psychology
- Description: This work attempts to confront certain political problems created by the individualistic bias in psychoanalytic thinking, and the resulting failure to adequately theorise the importance of social processes. The thesis traces the origins of intrapsychic thinking to Freud's initial move from the seduction theory to the Oedipal theory. This development is offered as a prototype for the debates between conceptualisations of childhood traumatisation as a social problem of actual abuse occurring within dermed power relations, and theories which locate pathology purely within internal conflicts occurring inside the individual. Several criticisms of this shift are offered, and it s impact on later theory is considered. Here a contrast is offered between the theoretical approaches of Melanie Klein and Donald Winnicott, arguing for the usefulness of Winnicott's emphasis on environmental factors within psychodynamic theory. The impact of these theoretical approaches is illustrated through a critical evaluation of Freud's case study of Judge Schreber. Additional historical material is brought in to show the importance of environmental considerations ignored by Freud, and contrasting psychodynamic readings of the case are offered. As an alternative to purely intrapsychic approaches, a reinterpretation of certain strands of Critical Theory is then presented. Adorno's theory of the Authoritarian Personality and Marcuse' s concept of One-Dimensional Man are extended using Winnicott's formulations concerning psychological development. This leads to an examination of the question of the relationship between social structure and individual consciousness. Post-structuralist accounts of language and the construction of identity are explored. These are then developed drawing on theories of ideology, language and consciousness, integrating these with Winnicott's developmental theory to offer an alternative psychodynamic understanding of the relationship between social process and psychopathology. An attempt is made to reformulate - the notions of consciousness and the unconscious in terms of the possibilities and difficulties of representation within available social symbolic codes. In conclusion the it is argued that psychology needs to integrate critical social theory and contemporary understandings of the social construction of consciousness in order to become a meaning force in positive social transformation.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1995
- Authors: Collins, Anthony
- Date: 1995
- Subjects: Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939 , Winnicott, D. W. (Donald Woods), 1896-1971 , Social psychiatry , Social psychology , Psychology, Pathological , Frankfurt school of sociology , Political psychology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2953 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002462 , Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939 , Winnicott, D. W. (Donald Woods), 1896-1971 , Social psychiatry , Social psychology , Psychology, Pathological , Frankfurt school of sociology , Political psychology
- Description: This work attempts to confront certain political problems created by the individualistic bias in psychoanalytic thinking, and the resulting failure to adequately theorise the importance of social processes. The thesis traces the origins of intrapsychic thinking to Freud's initial move from the seduction theory to the Oedipal theory. This development is offered as a prototype for the debates between conceptualisations of childhood traumatisation as a social problem of actual abuse occurring within dermed power relations, and theories which locate pathology purely within internal conflicts occurring inside the individual. Several criticisms of this shift are offered, and it s impact on later theory is considered. Here a contrast is offered between the theoretical approaches of Melanie Klein and Donald Winnicott, arguing for the usefulness of Winnicott's emphasis on environmental factors within psychodynamic theory. The impact of these theoretical approaches is illustrated through a critical evaluation of Freud's case study of Judge Schreber. Additional historical material is brought in to show the importance of environmental considerations ignored by Freud, and contrasting psychodynamic readings of the case are offered. As an alternative to purely intrapsychic approaches, a reinterpretation of certain strands of Critical Theory is then presented. Adorno's theory of the Authoritarian Personality and Marcuse' s concept of One-Dimensional Man are extended using Winnicott's formulations concerning psychological development. This leads to an examination of the question of the relationship between social structure and individual consciousness. Post-structuralist accounts of language and the construction of identity are explored. These are then developed drawing on theories of ideology, language and consciousness, integrating these with Winnicott's developmental theory to offer an alternative psychodynamic understanding of the relationship between social process and psychopathology. An attempt is made to reformulate - the notions of consciousness and the unconscious in terms of the possibilities and difficulties of representation within available social symbolic codes. In conclusion the it is argued that psychology needs to integrate critical social theory and contemporary understandings of the social construction of consciousness in order to become a meaning force in positive social transformation.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1995
Ray Charles: a psychobiographical study
- Authors: Biggs, Ilze
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Charles, Ray, 1930-2004 Psychology -- Biographical methods -- Case studies Jazz singers -- Biography Blind entertainers -- Psychology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2933 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002442
- Description: Psychobiography is the formulation of an individual's narrative according to a psychological theory. Psychobiographical researchers face a number of challenges. One pertinent challenge is the limited amount of psychobiographical research conducted at academic institutions, including South Africa. Although a number of studies had been completed in the past decade, the impact of psychobiographical research remains negligible. Although much has been written about Ray Charles, none of the existing literature adopted a specific psychological focus. Charles developed from a young boy in a poverty stricken, racially segregated society into an exceptionally successful musician who worked productively until he died at the age of 73. He was selected as the subject on the basis of interest value, uniqueness and significance of life achievements. The primary aim of this study was to explore and describe the development of Charles according to Levinson's (Levinson, et. ai, 1978) theoretical framework. Levinson's theory of adult development identifies and describes the important changes that occur throughout the lifespan of an individual. A secondary aim was to provide an understanding of Charles within the social, economic and historical context in which he lived. The data collection and analysis was conducted according to Yin's (2003) 'analytic generalization'. The data was analysed according to three linked sub-processes proposed by Huberman and Miles (1994).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Biggs, Ilze
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Charles, Ray, 1930-2004 Psychology -- Biographical methods -- Case studies Jazz singers -- Biography Blind entertainers -- Psychology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2933 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002442
- Description: Psychobiography is the formulation of an individual's narrative according to a psychological theory. Psychobiographical researchers face a number of challenges. One pertinent challenge is the limited amount of psychobiographical research conducted at academic institutions, including South Africa. Although a number of studies had been completed in the past decade, the impact of psychobiographical research remains negligible. Although much has been written about Ray Charles, none of the existing literature adopted a specific psychological focus. Charles developed from a young boy in a poverty stricken, racially segregated society into an exceptionally successful musician who worked productively until he died at the age of 73. He was selected as the subject on the basis of interest value, uniqueness and significance of life achievements. The primary aim of this study was to explore and describe the development of Charles according to Levinson's (Levinson, et. ai, 1978) theoretical framework. Levinson's theory of adult development identifies and describes the important changes that occur throughout the lifespan of an individual. A secondary aim was to provide an understanding of Charles within the social, economic and historical context in which he lived. The data collection and analysis was conducted according to Yin's (2003) 'analytic generalization'. The data was analysed according to three linked sub-processes proposed by Huberman and Miles (1994).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
“Oh, you have a ‘she’?”: exploring the lived experiences of black same-sex females living in Grahamstown, South Africa
- Authors: Haihambo, Naem Patemoshela
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Lesbians, Black -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Lesbians, Black -- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Psychology , Lesbians, Black -- South Africa -- Public opinion , Lesbianism -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Lesbianism -- South Africa -- Public opinion
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/4304 , vital:20646
- Description: The South African Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of a variety of factors including race and gender and sexual orientation. This inclusion came in 1996 after an oppressive apartheid regime was overcome, also positioning the South African Constitution amongst the more liberal, especially in the wider African context. This inclusion and the contextual disparity has caused curiosity about the realities of same-sex sexualities, especially taking into consideration media reports on violence and perceived social opposition of same- sex sexualities in South Africa. Much of this attention has motivated research studies on same-sex sexualities. Within this research, however, black female same-sex sexualities have been positioned as vulnerable and victimised within the heteronormative context, with much of this research focusing on ‘corrective/curative’ rape. There has however been increasing efforts in moving away from this limiting position by a select few (e.g. Zanele Muholi and Zethu Matebeni) in a more explorative direction in attempts to investigate black female sexualities as complex and expressive rather than passive. This study is an interpretive phenomenological investigation of the lived experiences of black female same-sex sexualities and the plurality of identities that influence their everyday experiences. This took into account intersectionality, heteronormativity and queer theory, which provided a theoretical framework for this study. During the interview process, participants described their experiences as black same-sex females in a variety of contexts including their experiences and influences of external factors (such as family and university. From the results of this research, experiences and identities of participants are presented as complex, fluid, expressive and to some extent political. Participants also expressed the difficulties encountered with misinformed friends and families and describe ways in which they assert themselves within their social and personal contexts.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Haihambo, Naem Patemoshela
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: Lesbians, Black -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Lesbians, Black -- South Africa -- Makhanda -- Psychology , Lesbians, Black -- South Africa -- Public opinion , Lesbianism -- South Africa -- Makhanda , Lesbianism -- South Africa -- Public opinion
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/4304 , vital:20646
- Description: The South African Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of a variety of factors including race and gender and sexual orientation. This inclusion came in 1996 after an oppressive apartheid regime was overcome, also positioning the South African Constitution amongst the more liberal, especially in the wider African context. This inclusion and the contextual disparity has caused curiosity about the realities of same-sex sexualities, especially taking into consideration media reports on violence and perceived social opposition of same- sex sexualities in South Africa. Much of this attention has motivated research studies on same-sex sexualities. Within this research, however, black female same-sex sexualities have been positioned as vulnerable and victimised within the heteronormative context, with much of this research focusing on ‘corrective/curative’ rape. There has however been increasing efforts in moving away from this limiting position by a select few (e.g. Zanele Muholi and Zethu Matebeni) in a more explorative direction in attempts to investigate black female sexualities as complex and expressive rather than passive. This study is an interpretive phenomenological investigation of the lived experiences of black female same-sex sexualities and the plurality of identities that influence their everyday experiences. This took into account intersectionality, heteronormativity and queer theory, which provided a theoretical framework for this study. During the interview process, participants described their experiences as black same-sex females in a variety of contexts including their experiences and influences of external factors (such as family and university. From the results of this research, experiences and identities of participants are presented as complex, fluid, expressive and to some extent political. Participants also expressed the difficulties encountered with misinformed friends and families and describe ways in which they assert themselves within their social and personal contexts.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Working with the contemptuous client in psychotherapy
- Authors: Hoffman, Elan
- Date: 1992
- Subjects: Psychotherapist and patient -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3213 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012315 , Psychotherapist and patient -- Case studies
- Description: The purpose of this case study is to explore the issue of contempt in the therapeutic relationship. The aims are twofold; namely, to illustrate to what extent the case studied throws light on existing theories on contempt in psychotherapy, and to enquire about which stance adopted by the therapist is most appropriate in the therapeutic interaction with a contemptuous client. It investigates the validity of using the case study method in examining both the content and the process of this particular course of psychotherapy. Literature on contempt in psychotherapy is reviewed, as well as the foundation-stone on which it rests, namely, the Kleinian approach to envy . The concepts of the superego and false self are also drawn upon in understanding this particular client's dynamics. The client's therapy is then presented and explored, in order to gain insight into how a psychotherapist's understanding of the contemptuous client can clarify the process of therapy. It highlights the limitations and potentialities that exist in working in this sphere of resistance, and raises questions relevant to therapists faced with these clients. The case study shows how theory in this area is helpful in understanding the contemptuous client, and that the ability of the therapist to endure and survive the contempt of the client is a crucial factor in working with the contemptuous individual.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1992
- Authors: Hoffman, Elan
- Date: 1992
- Subjects: Psychotherapist and patient -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3213 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012315 , Psychotherapist and patient -- Case studies
- Description: The purpose of this case study is to explore the issue of contempt in the therapeutic relationship. The aims are twofold; namely, to illustrate to what extent the case studied throws light on existing theories on contempt in psychotherapy, and to enquire about which stance adopted by the therapist is most appropriate in the therapeutic interaction with a contemptuous client. It investigates the validity of using the case study method in examining both the content and the process of this particular course of psychotherapy. Literature on contempt in psychotherapy is reviewed, as well as the foundation-stone on which it rests, namely, the Kleinian approach to envy . The concepts of the superego and false self are also drawn upon in understanding this particular client's dynamics. The client's therapy is then presented and explored, in order to gain insight into how a psychotherapist's understanding of the contemptuous client can clarify the process of therapy. It highlights the limitations and potentialities that exist in working in this sphere of resistance, and raises questions relevant to therapists faced with these clients. The case study shows how theory in this area is helpful in understanding the contemptuous client, and that the ability of the therapist to endure and survive the contempt of the client is a crucial factor in working with the contemptuous individual.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1992
Torn between skinship and kinship: the phenomenology of self-mutilation
- Authors: Malcolm, Charles F
- Date: 1994
- Subjects: Self-mutilation Case studies Borderline personality disorder
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3012 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002521
- Description: The aim of this study was to describe the female elf-mutilator's lived experience of cutting herself. A question which would elicit a description of the experience of this phenomenon was formulated. Five self-mutilators were interviewed. The four psychologically richest narratives were chosen for this study. Using the empirical phenomenological method. the four protocols were analysed in detail. Self-mutilation is conceptualized as a cycle wherein the mutilator experiences a diffuse bodily felt-sense that mounts to an unbearable point. She has an irresistible urge to alleviate the distress. She isolates herself and cuts herself with a sharp blade. Upon seeing the blood appear she is overcome with a deep sense of satisfaction. power, and ecstatic pleasure. The blood is perceived to carry the distressing contents out of the body. Concomitantly the self-mutilator recollects a sense of her feelings and her body as belonging to her. Her previously alienated body is felt to be a site of vitality. She also feels removed from further harm. encased in a cocoon of safety that renders her invulnerable to others. However. the cutting can never totally rid the body of distressing feelings. As a result the cycle of cutting wiII be re-enacted. The cutting cycle is conceptualized as a process whereby the self-mutilator suffers from a traumatization of the psyche such that the psychic container is fractured and rendered painfully porous. The act of cutting rids the psyche of unwanted contents such that a sense of going-on-being is restored. The cutting acts to temporarily shore up the rent fabric of the psychic envelope and thereby consolidate a sense of personal boundary. This is a temporary respite from the fracturing of the psychic container in that, once again confronted with interpersonal existence, the self-mutilator begins to feel vulnerable and defenceless. When it seems as if disintegration is again imminent, a cycle of cutting is reconstituted. The findings emergent from the interviews were dialogued with the literature on psychic containers, particularly that which addresses the role of the skin in the formation and functioning of psychic containers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1994
- Authors: Malcolm, Charles F
- Date: 1994
- Subjects: Self-mutilation Case studies Borderline personality disorder
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3012 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002521
- Description: The aim of this study was to describe the female elf-mutilator's lived experience of cutting herself. A question which would elicit a description of the experience of this phenomenon was formulated. Five self-mutilators were interviewed. The four psychologically richest narratives were chosen for this study. Using the empirical phenomenological method. the four protocols were analysed in detail. Self-mutilation is conceptualized as a cycle wherein the mutilator experiences a diffuse bodily felt-sense that mounts to an unbearable point. She has an irresistible urge to alleviate the distress. She isolates herself and cuts herself with a sharp blade. Upon seeing the blood appear she is overcome with a deep sense of satisfaction. power, and ecstatic pleasure. The blood is perceived to carry the distressing contents out of the body. Concomitantly the self-mutilator recollects a sense of her feelings and her body as belonging to her. Her previously alienated body is felt to be a site of vitality. She also feels removed from further harm. encased in a cocoon of safety that renders her invulnerable to others. However. the cutting can never totally rid the body of distressing feelings. As a result the cycle of cutting wiII be re-enacted. The cutting cycle is conceptualized as a process whereby the self-mutilator suffers from a traumatization of the psyche such that the psychic container is fractured and rendered painfully porous. The act of cutting rids the psyche of unwanted contents such that a sense of going-on-being is restored. The cutting acts to temporarily shore up the rent fabric of the psychic envelope and thereby consolidate a sense of personal boundary. This is a temporary respite from the fracturing of the psychic container in that, once again confronted with interpersonal existence, the self-mutilator begins to feel vulnerable and defenceless. When it seems as if disintegration is again imminent, a cycle of cutting is reconstituted. The findings emergent from the interviews were dialogued with the literature on psychic containers, particularly that which addresses the role of the skin in the formation and functioning of psychic containers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1994
Exploration of remote work and wellbeing of academics in a South African tertiary institution
- Authors: Chikutu, Michelle
- Date: 2022-10-14
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/405963 , vital:70223
- Description: Thesis embargoed. To be released in 2024. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022-10-14
- Authors: Chikutu, Michelle
- Date: 2022-10-14
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Academic theses , Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/405963 , vital:70223
- Description: Thesis embargoed. To be released in 2024. , Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022-10-14
Understanding how students' relationships with their cellphones inform their experience of social participation online and offline
- Authors: Oosthuizen, Jess
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Cell phones -- South Africa -- Psychological aspects , Social participation , Cell phones -- South Africa -- Social aspects , College students -- South Africa , Social media addiction
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3264 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017887
- Description: The pervasive presence of cellphones in the lives of urban young people around the globe has led to widespread research to evaluate the impact that this device has on young people’s overall psychosocial development. This relationship is often characterised as “addictive”. This research study presents a unique South African youth perspective in a field of research that is predominantly conducted in the United States, Europe and Asia. It explores the relationship that students (ages 18–21) at Rhodes University have with their cellphones in order to understand how this device informs their experience of social participation online and offline. Central to the design of this study is a “social media detox” which involved the research participants volunteering to restrict their social media and cellphone use for an agreed-upon period of time. The study employs interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to uncover key themes from in-depth interviews before and after the detox. Eight respondents were interviewed twice; once before and once after their detox. This study provides insights into the integral role of a cellphone as reported from a young adult’s perspective. Communicating on social media platforms using a cellphone has become normalised among this age-group and the respondents described how the cellphone feels like “a part of you”. Unlike interacting face-to-face which is potentially awkward and involves effort, socialising on a cellphone offers the respondents a sense of companionship, control and instant access to their peer groups. The respondents in this study seemed unaware of their own agency in social situations until their participation in the social media detox. By participating in this study, the participants became more aware of how their cellphone use influences social behaviour, both online and offline. The study proposes that the term “addiction” undermines the positive association young people have with their cellphones. Instead, this study suggests that “social fitness” would be a more relevant construct through which to encourage and support young people to exercise agency in their social lives. This exploratory study raises new questions for researchers, programme developers and educators to take up in future studies and programme development
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Oosthuizen, Jess
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Cell phones -- South Africa -- Psychological aspects , Social participation , Cell phones -- South Africa -- Social aspects , College students -- South Africa , Social media addiction
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3264 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1017887
- Description: The pervasive presence of cellphones in the lives of urban young people around the globe has led to widespread research to evaluate the impact that this device has on young people’s overall psychosocial development. This relationship is often characterised as “addictive”. This research study presents a unique South African youth perspective in a field of research that is predominantly conducted in the United States, Europe and Asia. It explores the relationship that students (ages 18–21) at Rhodes University have with their cellphones in order to understand how this device informs their experience of social participation online and offline. Central to the design of this study is a “social media detox” which involved the research participants volunteering to restrict their social media and cellphone use for an agreed-upon period of time. The study employs interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to uncover key themes from in-depth interviews before and after the detox. Eight respondents were interviewed twice; once before and once after their detox. This study provides insights into the integral role of a cellphone as reported from a young adult’s perspective. Communicating on social media platforms using a cellphone has become normalised among this age-group and the respondents described how the cellphone feels like “a part of you”. Unlike interacting face-to-face which is potentially awkward and involves effort, socialising on a cellphone offers the respondents a sense of companionship, control and instant access to their peer groups. The respondents in this study seemed unaware of their own agency in social situations until their participation in the social media detox. By participating in this study, the participants became more aware of how their cellphone use influences social behaviour, both online and offline. The study proposes that the term “addiction” undermines the positive association young people have with their cellphones. Instead, this study suggests that “social fitness” would be a more relevant construct through which to encourage and support young people to exercise agency in their social lives. This exploratory study raises new questions for researchers, programme developers and educators to take up in future studies and programme development
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2015
Clay sculpture within an object relational therapy: a phenomenological-hermeneutic case study
- Authors: Masters, Carin-Lee
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3015 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002524 , Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Description: The overall aim of this thesis is to explore the process of working with the Edwards claywork method with a psychotherapy client who had significant relational difficulties and feared being exposed as defective. Within this there are particular aims: Firstly, to investigate whether the distancing that art therapy can create, can help the client with relational difficulties to tolerate unexpressed disavowed feelings, in particular her sense of shame about being exposed as defective; and secondly, to examine whether material evoked through the claywork process can assist in furthering the psychological formulation of this kind of client. The research was a phenomenological-hermeneutic case study of a psychotherapy client, called Kim. Kim’s experience of therapy, including two claywork sessions, was documented. This comprises a thematic narrative of her therapy process prior to the claywork process, as well as a thematic narrative focusing on the two claywork sessions. Her clay sculpture was photographed and alphabetically labeled according to the chronological order in which she made the eight pieces comprising her sculpture. A hermeneutic reading of the narratives was conducted using theoretical perspectives including object relations, Adlerian psychology and art therapy. It was concluded that, firstly, the distancing that art therapy can create does help the client, who is afraid of being exposed as defective, to tolerate previously disavowed and unexpressed feelings; and secondly, art therapy such as the Edwards claywork method, does deepen psychological formulation of the client’s affective and relational difficulties. However, although the image may graphically symbolize unconscious aspects of a client’s psyche, the present study illustrates that a client may not always be able to enter into a relationship with the image or dialogue between conscious and unconscious states. In this respect, the present study focuses on aspects of art therapy of which there is limited literature.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Masters, Carin-Lee
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3015 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002524 , Art -- Psychology , Art therapy -- Case studies , Psychotherapy , Modeling -- Therapeutic use
- Description: The overall aim of this thesis is to explore the process of working with the Edwards claywork method with a psychotherapy client who had significant relational difficulties and feared being exposed as defective. Within this there are particular aims: Firstly, to investigate whether the distancing that art therapy can create, can help the client with relational difficulties to tolerate unexpressed disavowed feelings, in particular her sense of shame about being exposed as defective; and secondly, to examine whether material evoked through the claywork process can assist in furthering the psychological formulation of this kind of client. The research was a phenomenological-hermeneutic case study of a psychotherapy client, called Kim. Kim’s experience of therapy, including two claywork sessions, was documented. This comprises a thematic narrative of her therapy process prior to the claywork process, as well as a thematic narrative focusing on the two claywork sessions. Her clay sculpture was photographed and alphabetically labeled according to the chronological order in which she made the eight pieces comprising her sculpture. A hermeneutic reading of the narratives was conducted using theoretical perspectives including object relations, Adlerian psychology and art therapy. It was concluded that, firstly, the distancing that art therapy can create does help the client, who is afraid of being exposed as defective, to tolerate previously disavowed and unexpressed feelings; and secondly, art therapy such as the Edwards claywork method, does deepen psychological formulation of the client’s affective and relational difficulties. However, although the image may graphically symbolize unconscious aspects of a client’s psyche, the present study illustrates that a client may not always be able to enter into a relationship with the image or dialogue between conscious and unconscious states. In this respect, the present study focuses on aspects of art therapy of which there is limited literature.
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- Date Issued: 2005
Getting "layed" : new professional positions in South African psychology
- Authors: Henderson, Jill
- Date: 2013-06-04
- Subjects: Psychology -- Study and teaching -- South Africa Psychologists -- Training of -- South Africa Psychologists -- Selection and appointment -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3179 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007953
- Description: KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
- Full Text:
- Authors: Henderson, Jill
- Date: 2013-06-04
- Subjects: Psychology -- Study and teaching -- South Africa Psychologists -- Training of -- South Africa Psychologists -- Selection and appointment -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3179 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007953
- Description: KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
- Full Text:
Recruitment disruptors: an exploratory study on the perception of artificial intelligence amongst selected Eastern Cape Province recruiters
- Authors: Sobekwa, Sinazo
- Date: 2022-04
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/232238 , vital:49974
- Description: Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022-04
- Authors: Sobekwa, Sinazo
- Date: 2022-04
- Subjects: Uncatalogued
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/232238 , vital:49974
- Description: Thesis (MA) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 2022
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2022-04