The aim of this work is to assess the peculiarity and aggressiveness of adolescent‘s personality identity and the connection of their manifestation.

The opening chapter states the problem, purpose of study and also provides background to the problem as well as preliminary literature of the study. The other chapter that has substantially enriched the project is chapter two, which provided all the literature, related to the research. The third chapter explains the methodology used in this research study. Data was collected through the use of questionnaires from learners in Gaborone Junior Secondary Schools. All in all, a sample of sixty (60) (n=60) subjects were used to collect data. Chapter four is about data presentation, analysis and interpretation and lastly the recommendations, which are provided to help the authorities as well as the school administrators. The study sought to find out the causes and effects of peer harassment in Gaborone Junior Secondary Schools, as well as the prevalent forms of bullying and the effort undertaken by school administrators and other stakeholders to support victims of peer harassment in the educational system. The researchers' hypotheses were that home background, peer pressure, and popularity are some of the major causes of school bullying, physical and verbal abuse are the prevalent forms of bullying in secondary school, there is . a significant positive relationship between school bullying and learners' low academic achievement and that school administrators and teachers are not supportive to learners who are victims of peer harassment. The findings revealed that indeed, children who come from violent homes, homes faced with divorce, alcoholism, lack of maternal affection and poverty, become bullies. The other ,causes of bullying behaviour according to the study, is negative peer pressure as well as the desire to be popular. The study also revealed that learners who are victims of bullying academically perform poorly, fear going to school, riding a school bus and develop low self-esteem and are depressed. Furthermore, the study found that the school administration and teachers do not make an effort to attend to victims of peer harassment. The study recommends that the Ministry of Education through the work of curriculum developers should provide , policies and programs that address unacceptable behaviour. These polices can include expansion of the school curriculum to cater for guidance and counselling. During the study, the researcher's schedule was affected especially during administration of questionnaires as . a lot of schools were engaged in the Performance Management System exercise (P.M.S), thus some were reluctant to help. / (M.Ed.) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2005

Aggressive behaviour in children has been a problem for decades in the society we live in and it is a phenomenon which continues in children today in spite of the negative impact it has on the socialisation of the child and the parent-child bonding. Aggression is regarded as a normal feeling, but the way in which the child vents his anger must be determined according to boundaries. Children in their middle childhood years yearn for a feeling of belonging to. If the child is pushed at or even rejected by friends, they are inclined to protect themselves often by aggressive behaviour. It is the parent’s responsibility to build optimal relationships with the child. The child in the middle childhood years is still dependent on his parents for love and security. There is a connection between a child’s aggressive behaviour and the type of parent-child bonding. The research hypothesis, namely if the child in the middle childhood years gets support and advice by means of the play therapeutic intervention programme, the child should become aware of his aggression, and the parent-child bonding will be strengthened. The aim of the study was to make the aggressive child more aware of his aggression in order to support the child in improving his relationship with his parents. To achieve this goal a literature as well as an empirical study were carried at. Literature on the aggressive child in the middle childhood years, the parent-child bond and playtherapy using the gestalt approach enabled the researcher to complete the study successfully and to develop insight. The empirical research involved that six junior-primary school children who exhibited aggressive behaviour, were involved in the intervention programme which consisted of ten sessions. The parents of the relevant children were also involved during the first and last three sessions of the intervention programme. Intervention research in the form of a combination of qualitative and quantifying research was conducted. Quasi-experimental research in the form of the single system design was conducted to determine to what degree the independent variable influenced the dependent variable. Standardised scales were used as the measuring instrument during the pre and post testing. The research hypothesis could thus be established and the effectiveness of the programme could be determined. Conclusions and recommendations could be made from the study. From the study it seems that the intervention programme can be applied successfully with the aggressive child and his parents. The parent and the child could learn now behavioural patterns and thus accept responsibility for their behaviour and were enabled to make decisions. / Thesis (DPhil (Social Work))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Social Work and Criminology / Unrestricted