Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2004. / Also available in print.

Dissertation (Ph.D.) -- The Institute for Clinical Social Work, 1998. / A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Institute of Clinical Social Work in partial fulfillment for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Includes bibliographical references.

This study has examined in detail the experiences of an individual who was ritually abused as a young person. Two other people, who had been ritually abused, were also interviewed in order to serve as a means of triangulation of the first person's experiences. A limited amount of data obtained by another researcher was used to add to the information provided by one of the secondary participants. The data was analyzed using a modified grounded theory procedure. This analysis combined with a comparison of information in the literature served as a basis for the development of theory. Theory was generated regarding the process of healing for people who have been ritually abused. A model of conceptualizing the healing process was also developed. / Graduate

The present investigation sough to explore the psychological responses of rape victims. A review of pertinent literature suggested a primary reaction of women to rape was fear, but the absence of controlled research and standardized observations limited the generalizability of these findings. A triparate interpretation of fear -- with autonomic, self-report, and avoidance behavior components -- was proposed. In addition, the research attempted to document negative changes in self-concept and feelings of powerlessness resultant from the rape experience.

There is mounting evidence that psychological reactions to criminal victimization can be far more severe, much longerlasting, and recovery less complete than had been originally thought. The plight of crime victims is often compounded by a suspectibility to a 1 'second wound', or aggravation of their distress, arising from the neglect or mistreatment by those whom victims rely on for support. There is, at the same time, evidence that both the criminal justice system and the mental health profession have often been ill-equipped to adequately tend to the needs of this population. Despite a growing research interest in victimization (e.g., social psychology, counselling psychology, psychiatry, criminology), there is a lack of integration of victimization-related research both across and within these disciplines. As a result, those counselling crime victims and their families find insufficient guidance in the literature for intervening with this population. In the aftermath of their misfortune, victims need to regain what was abruptly taken from them (i.e., a sense of safety, trust, agency, self-esteem, intimacy, a sense of the world as meaningful). To facilitate post-trauma counselling, an assessment of crime victims' coping needs is presented in the context of an interventive framework. The framework distinguishes victims' identified needs according to (1) victims' intermediate vs. long-term coping needs, (2) what victims need from others vs. what they can do for themselves, and (3) what victims need from whom. These distinctions serve to operationalize crime victims' adjustment processes. Furthermore, these distinctions require an integration of an otherwise diverse victimization literature. / Education, Faculty of / Graduate

Bully-victims have not been studied extensively in the South African context and studies regarding cyber bullying are not keeping up with this widespread of ICTs. There is a large scale of research that focuses on bullying and victimisation, but not much on bully-victims in general which makes it difficult to identify this group of individuals for better intervention measures. The term bully-victims refers to those individuals that are bullies but also experience bullying as well. An obstacle in the development of interventions suitable for this phenomenon is the inability of researchers, teachers as well as learners to differentiate between the different forms of bullying. Failure to understand the distinctions in the forms of bullying may result in a domino effect of not understanding individuals' behavioural differences as well as bullies' risk profiles. Therefore, it would be very important to try and get an understanding of this behaviour and the possible causes which will help in developing tools that can assist in preventing the cycle of mobile bullying, and mobile bully-victimisation as well as raise awareness on the issue. This study will therefore target the category of mobile bully-victims, this class has not been studied extensively but recent developments show that it has extreme consequences for young people. This study identified different factors that impact on bully-victim behaviour and the evolution thereof. Following literature review, the researcher developed a conceptual framework illustrating the evolution of mobile bully-victim behaviour. The framework proposed that there are relationships between previous traditional bullying experience and (1) the school environment, (2) self-control/self-esteem, (3) age/grade, (4) retaliation and (5) technology which result in the evolution of mobile bully-victim behaviour. The conceptual framework was tested using a questionnaire which was distributed to grade 8 and 9 learners in four schools in the Mpumalanga province where 817 responses were obtained. A Frequency distribution test was run on factors of mobile bullying that are significantly associated with factors of mobile victimisation and it was found that a total of 121 learners scored high on both these factors thus making them mobile bully-victims. It was also found through the execution of a Spearman rank order correlation that learners that currently use their mobile phones to bully others are those that were victims of previous traditional bullying. The results revealed, for example, that learners tend to threaten, spread rumours, share content online and create groups solely for the purpose of excluding others because they have been bullied in the past. Studies explain that this reaction is as a result of impulsivity, a characteristic of low self-esteem or lack of self-control, after experiencing bullying. Structural Equation modelling was run to analyse how bully-victim behaviour evolves and how the bully-victim pathways are formed. The results revealed that schools located in rural or less advantaged communities engage in bullying activities more than those in urban or suburban communities. It was also found that only 14% of learners were aware or knew of exiting anti-bullying policies in their schools and 40% indicated that they know of other mobile bullying reporting mechanisms, with most of these learners being from urban and suburban schools. Studies found that this may be due to the high social capital provided by well off communities which provide a safer environment. The findings also proved that learners are more involved in mobile bullying activities at a younger age, this contradicting previous studies which found that mobile bullying is more prevalent as children mature. Also, younger learners lack self-control/self-esteem due to previous traditional bullying experience whereas for older learners it is due to mobile bullying experience. This is despite the fact that studies show that self-control improves with age.

Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the Department of Psychology of Education of the University of Zululand, 2004. / In order to study adolescents perception of rape, relevant literature pertaining to rape and adolescence as a stage in the development of an individual was reviewed. The literature review pertaining to rape deals mainly with the following aspects: > Rape in terms of the law. > Conditions in society that promote rape. > Reasons for raping. > Recognition of sexual abuse. > Reactions to rape. > Needs of the rape victim. > Types of rape. > Coping with rape. > The responsibility of parents towards rape victims. Literature on the following aspects of adolescence is also reviewed: > Developmental tasks of the adolescent. > Relations of adolescents. > Characteristics of adolescent sex offenders. The descriptive method of research was used to collect data with regard to adolescents' perception of rape. Grade eleven learners at selected schools in the Bergville District, Ladysmith Region of KwaZulu-Natal, completed an empirical survey comprising a structured questionnaire. The data that was collected was analysed using inferential statistics. From the information gathered the following are the most important findings of the research regarding adolescents' perception of rape: > Adolescents are aware that rape is unlawful. > Adolescents believe that effective law enforcement can curb rape. > Adolescents do not believe that a culture of violence contributes to rape. > Women are reluctant to report being raped. > Adolescents' perception is that rape victims have difficulty in coping with relationships with other people. > The study reveals that it is vital for rape victims to talk about the rape. > Adolescents perceive rape as a crime of aggression. > Adolescents do not want parents to support a child that has been raped. > Rape is an action that decreases the self-esteem of women. > They do not believe that there is any relationship between rape and family violence. > They are uncertain if there is a relationship between women abuse and rape within marriage. The study also reveals that there is a significant difference statistically between the responses of males and females regarding responses to question that deal with rape whereas there is no significant difference between the responses of males and females regarding questions based on adolescence as a developmental stage. Based on the findings, the study makes the following recommendations: > Adolescents must lobby support to ensure more effective law enforcement, speak out against rape and must not be put under pressure by peers to engage in sex. > Parents need to communicate more effectively with adolescents. > Law enforcement must be stepped up to curb rape. > Programs must be put in place to educate adolescents regarding rape.

No description available.

No description available.

Battered women who choose to remain with their abusive partners tend to blame themselves for the violence that occurs within their relationships. However, no empirical studies have systematically investigated the specific perceptions of battered women who stay in abusive relationships. Since self-blame may influence battered women's decision to stay or leave, a battered woman's assessment of her own behavior within conflict situations may be critical to understanding this process. The present study examined the differences between abused and non-abused women's cognitive attributions of their own behavior as well as their verbally abusive boyfriends' behavior in the context of hypothetical dating scenes. College age women (n=100) were presented with descriptions of dating situations involving conflict between a male and female. Half the women received scenes wherein the female's statement toward her boyfriend provoked anger (i.e., provocative condition). The other half of the women received scenes wherein the female's statement toward her boyfriend did not provoke anger (i.e., non-provocative). Other personality variables which have been shown to be related to the experience of abuse (i.e., self-esteem and feminine gender role beliefs) were additionally assessed in relation to attributional response. Results suggested that abused women who were exposed to non-provocative female statements were more inclined to blame themselves than were non-abused women who were exposed to non-provocative female statements. Few differences were found between abused and non-abused women who were exposed to provocative female statements. Low self-esteem was shown to be moderately related to attributions of self-blame. Implications of these findings were discussed with regard to abuse prevention and therapeutic intervention. / Master of Science