Text in Afrikaans / The Gestalt Play Therapeutic approach is used as contextual frame in this research where-in music is applied as an aid for the aggressive emotions of the primary learner. Emotional and behavioral problems in children in primary and secondary schools and even in pre-primary schools, are assuming alarming proportions. From the holistic approach of the Gestalt theory, it has an influence on the development of areas such as the emotional, physical, cognitive and social in the phase of middle childhood. There is a lack of research findings on the effect of music during support to the aggressive primary learner within a Gestalt Play Therapeutic frame. The experimental single system design was used as research method as part of the quantitative investigation. The conclusion is that music was used successfully in the handling of rage and aggressive emotions in the group of child respondents within the context of the Gestalt approach. / Social Work / M.Diac. (Play Therapy)

The aim of this study was to create awareness of the emotional needs of children diagnosed with ADHD. In order to reach the aim of this study, an initial literature study was executed to describe ADHD and the emotional needs of children. Semi-structured interviews and two projective techniques were used to conduct the empirical study. Valuable data was also collected from the biographical questionnaires completed by the parents. Based on the data collected and analysed, findings were made which were verified by means of a second literature study. This was followed by conclusions which served as the basis for recommendations that were made in the form of guidelines to the parents, with the aim to make the parents aware of the emotional needs of their children diagnosed with ADHD. These guidelines will be made available to the parents at a seminar that will be held on acceptance of this research. / Social Work / M.Diac. (Play Therapy)

The focus of this study was to investigate psychological effect on grandchildren when they are being raised by their grandparents. Considerable research has been done on the psychological effect on the grandparents, but very little on the effects on grandchildren, especially in South Africa. By means of a mainly qualitative investigation, empirical data were collected through informal discussions, observations and projection media from four families and seven grandchildren in total. The findings yielded a number of common themes among all the grandchildren, and yet others showed the influence of the attitude of the grandparents towards the situation. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Guidance and counseling)

Text in Afrikaans / The problem that motivated the study was that siblings of children with cancer may experience the relationships within the family differently after cancer treatment. The purpose was to investigate and describe how family dynamics are experienced by the siblings of a cancer patient after his/her treatment for cancer. The research methodology includes qualitative research of an explorative and descriptive nature. Data were collected through unstructured interviews with siblings of children who had received treatment for cancer. From this data eight categories were identified accordingly. Although the data do not indicate that siblings experienced family dynamics after treatment as problematic, as expected, the information contributes by making parents of cancer patients more aware of the siblings' emotions and needs. / Social Work / M.Diac (Spelterapie)

In Gestalplaytherapy there is a need for guidelines with a pastoral perspective for the child that is experiencing loss. This research is undertaken to set Gestaltplaytherapeutic guidelines with a pastoral perspective for the therapeutic intervention of the primary school child who is experiencing loss due to the death of a loved one. The study consulted relevant literature and compared the literature study with experience acquired in practice. The impact of the loss that the child is experiencing has an influence on the child as a whole. The researcher has found that the Christian child's experience of loss due to the death of a loved one is influenced greatly by the child's spiritual experience. For this reason it is necessary that Gestaltplaytherapy includes a pastoral approach within the therapeutic setting when working with a child experiencing loss due to the death of a loved one. / In Gestaltspelterapie is daar 'n leemte aan riglyne vanuit 'n pastorale perspektief wat die kind wat verlies ervaar kan begelei. Hierdie navorsing het ten doel om Gestalspelterapeutiese riglyne met 'n pastorale perspektief daar te stel vir die hantering van die laerskoolkind wat verlies ervaar as gevolg van die dood van 'n geliefde. Die studie ondersoek die kind se geestelike belewing van verlies deur middel van navorsing in relevante literatuur en vergelyk dit met praktiese ervaring wat opgedoen is in die praktyk. Die impak van die verlies wat die laerskoolkind ervaar as gevolg van die dood van 'n geliefde raak sy totale menswees. Die navorser het waargeneem dat die Christenkind se ervaring en verwerking van die dood van 'n geliefde ook deur sy geestelike belewing beinvloed word. Daarom is dit nodig dat die kind wat verlies ervaar ook op die pastorale vlak binne die Gestaltspelterapeutiese opset hanteer word. / Social work / M. Diac. (Play Therapy)

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of the latchkey situation on children's relationships. A literature study on the concept `latchkey' children was conducted and it was established that there are only a few studies conducted on the phenomenon. However, most of the literature consulted established that self-care has a negative and positive impact on children's relationships with the self, their parents, siblings, peers and educators. To confirm the findings from the literature study an empirical study was conducted by means of collecting data from three `latchkey' children, three educators and four parents. The empirical research confirmed the findings of the literature study that a latchkey situation has indeed a negative impact on children's relationships with the self and others. The empirical study did, however, not confirm the positive impact of a latchkey situation on children's relationships with the self, parents, siblings, peers and educators. / Educational Studies / M. Ed (Guidance and Counselling)

The purpose of this study was to develop and test the efficacy of a short-term structured play therapy treatment program for latency-aged children of divorce between six and twelve years of age. Following parental divorce latency-aged children often manifest disturbed emotional and behavioural functioning in several areas of their lives including issues such as self-image problems and poor academic functioning. In many instances, problems are acute and necessitate effective help in a relatively short time. Several play therapy modalities exist for children with some focusing on problems stemming from divorce. However, due to their complex, unstructured and lengthy nature, most of the treatment programs reviewed were relatively ineffective for most social workers. Increasingly families have little time and/or limited financial resources to commit to long-term therapy. A literature review showed a clear need for a shorter, less complex treatment program to solve the problem of limited finances and time constraints of parents seeking help for their children. A seven-stage, short-term structured play therapy program was developed for this study, including a pre-and post-treatment assessment, which focused on the main areas of dysfunction prominent among latency-aged children of divorce. The program was implemented by treating a female latency-aged child from a divorced family. The findings showed that the short-term structured play therapy program developed for this study appears to be effective in dealing with necessary and important psychological tasks facing children of divorce. The treatment program worked effectively with a female latency-aged child and facilitated psychological and emotional movement in a relatively short period of time. For social workers specialising in child play therapy the treatment program will be easy to use since all activities are clearly structured and explained with materials utilised in the sessions easy to obtain. As such, it could be a necessary and effective addition to the social work profession. / Social Work / D. Phil. (Social Work)

In die konteks van hierdie studie word daar deurlopend van die manlike vorm gebruik gemaak om na die kleuter te verwys, ten einde 'n lomp stelwyse te voorkom. Die vroulike vorm sou ook daarmee veronderstel en ingesluit kon word. Die vroulike vorm word gebruik wanneer daar na die moeder verwys word. / Merkbare verandering word soms in die kleuter se gedrag, emosies en verhoudings na die geboorte van `n baba waargeneem. Die doel van die kwalitatiewe studie was om die moeder se persepsie, belewenis en hantering van hierdie aanpassingsprobleme van die kleuter te verken. Semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude is met nege moeders gevoer. Uit die studie het dit duidelik geword dat onkunde ten opsigte van die ontwikkelingsfase van die kleuter, asook die aanpassingsprobleme aanleiding tot foutiewe persepsies by die moeder gegee het. Hierdie foutiewe persepsies het `n negatiewe invloed op die moeder se belewenis en hantering van die aanpassingsprobleme gehad. Die navorser het tot die gevolgtrekking gekom dat moeders betrek moet word vir ouerleiding wanneer aanpassingsprobleme by die kleuter aangemeld word. Verskeie aanbevelings wat van waarde kan wees tydens ouerleiding aan moeders van kleuters is deur die navorser gemaak. / The birth of a sibling often results in a toddler displaying changes in behaviour, emotions and relationships. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the mother's perception, experiences, as well as coping strategies of the toddler's adaptation problems, following the birth of a sibling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine mothers. The study revealed that the mother's lack of knowledge and understanding of the developmental phase of the toddler, as well as the adaptation problems, manifested in misconceptions. These misconceptions affected her experiences of the adaptation problems, as well as how she managed it. The researcher concluded that mothers should be referred for parental guidance when adaptation problems are reported. Various recommendations to be used within parental guidance have been made. / Social Work / M.Diac. (Spelterapie-Rigting)

Summaries in Afrikaans and English / Hierdie studie spreek die emosionele skoolgereedheid van voorskoolse kinders aan. Die voorskoolse kind met sy basiese emosies vanuit sielkundig opvoedkundige perspektief word in die studie van naderby beskou. Tydens die studie is die basiese emosies volgens Plutchik (1980) wat bepalend vir die emosionele skoolgereedheid van die skooltoetreder is, geidentifiseer. Na aanleiding van nuwe insigte waartoe gekom is, het die navorser 'n eie emosionele skoolgereedheidsevalueringslys volgens Plutchik (1980) se basiese emosies antwerp, wat as 'n maatstaf vir die evaluering van emosionele skoolgereedheid kan dien. 'n Empiriese ondersoek is onderneem om te bepaal of 'n aantal proefpersone volgens n emosionele skoolgereedheidsevalueringslys emosioneel skoolgereed is al dan nie. Emosionele tekorte is vanuit die emosionele skoolgereedheidsevalueringslys geidentifiseer, waarna diagnostiese en terapeutiese tegnieke vir emosionele skoolgereedmaking kortliks bespreek is. Opvoedkundige sielkundiges kan die diagnostiese en terapeutiese tegnieke as hulpmiddel gebruik om emosionele tekorte, wat moontlik 'n blokkasie vir emosionele skoolgereedheid inhou, aan te spreek. / This stidu addresses the emotional school preparedness (readiness) of pre-primary children. The pre-primary child with his basic emotions from a psychological educational perspective is examined more closely in this study. During this study the basic emotions according to Plutchik {1980) that determine the emotional school readiness of the school entrant, were identified. On account of new insights gained, the researcher designed a school readiness evaluation list of her own according to Plutchik's (1980) basic emotions. This list can serve as a guideline for the evaluation of emotional school readiness. An empirical study was undertaken to determine whether a number of experimental subjects {children) were ready for school or not. Emotional deficiencies were identified by means of the emotional school readiness evaluation list, whereafter diagnostic and therapeutic techniques for the emotional preparation of children were briefly discussed. Educational psychologists can use these diagnostic and therapeutic techniques as an aid to address emotional deficiencies, which may impede the emotional school readiness of children. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (met spesialisering in Voorligting)

The study assessed the Emotional Intelligence/Ubuntu understanding in sixteen learners aged 11-14 from both the Low SES and High SES levels, which includes the peri- urban/disadvantaged/informal settlements and the urban/privileged areas. The research motivated towards the conception that an inclusive Eurocentric and African approach towards education could benefit South African adolescent learners emotionally, socially and academically. Notwithstanding, providing an Emotional Intelligence framework that includes tenets of the African Philosophical paradigm of Ubuntu could enable adolescent learners to feel more empowered when confronting their socio- economic challenges. Hence, the purpose of this study was to ascertain whether the lack of formal EI/Ubuntu skills training in schools leaves learners without the competences to surmount the many challenges adolescents face during the turbulent phase of early adolescence. The aim of this study was to assess the levels of EI in a sample of adolescents from both SES levels. Qualitative methods were used in order to ascertain the impact of Western and Ubuntu epistemologies/worldviews on the adolescent learners’ Emotional Intelligence. This study also sought to determine the impact of education and role models on this sample of adolescent learners' EI/Ubuntu levels. This research also investigated how the merged EI/Ubuntu concepts can be incorporated into a life skills programme aimed at enhancing EI/Ubuntu in South African adolescent learners. In this study both quantitative and qualitative data were collected using the convergent parallel mixed method study and the paradigms that informed the study includes pragmatism, interpretivism, positivism and post-positivism. The objectives of this study includes identifying the emotional needs and EI status of adolescent learners and to investigate to what extent these are being met in the current educational system in South Africa. The research noted the contextual factors that influence EI in adolescent learners. The research explored how adolescents align their behaviour with the values and virtues of EI and Ubuntu. The following tools were used to accomplish the aforementioned objectives; a short introduction to Ubuntu, the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire - Adolescent Short Form (TEIQue-ASF) questionnaire was utilised to obtain a measure of the individual learner’s EI. A biographical questionnaire was given to all learners in order to establish what contextual factors impact on EI/Ubuntu consciousness. An Ubuntu style 10-item questionnaire to obtain insight into individual learners’ conceptualisation of EI. A short paragraph of approximately 300 words allowed for the narrative of each learner to be explored and a 22-item semi-structured parent/teacher interview from both SES groups. Role-playing scenarios were enacted to assess the depth of EI through the identification and understanding that took place between the players and draw a person diagrams (DAP) were utilised and assessed for EI aspects such as self-esteem, levels of confidence and awareness of self. The most pertinent aspects that were revealed by this study was that Low SES learners, especially those that lived in corrugated housing felt a sense of helplessness, fear and social alienation when challenged by their extreme living conditions. The study also revealed that the High SES group struggled at forming meaningful relationships and felt panicked and stressed regarding their academic responsibilities and outcomes. Hence as both groups struggled socially, they relied on technology and Western materialism to fill the void. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)