published_or_final_version / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

Affirming or positive family communication is important to equip families and individuals to meet life challenges. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between affirming family communication and family functioning, as well as the relationship between family functioning and the quality of communication between the adolescent and the father and mother respectively. Following this, affirming family communication was explored qualitatively from the perspective of the adolescent. A cross-sectional, quantitative survey research design was combined with an exploratory, qualitative design. The quantitative data was collected by asking participants to complete self-report questionnaires. The qualitative component consisted of focus groups discussing the topic of affirming family communication. One hundred first-year Psychology students of Stellenbosch University in South Africa completed the questionnaires. Fourteen of these students also participated in the focus groups. The quantitative results revealed a significant positive correlation between affirming family communication and family functioning. Furthermore, a significant positive correlation was found between family functioning and openness in communication between the adolescent and the mother and father respectively. Three core categories (with sub- categories) emerged from the content analysis of the focus group discussions. These core categories were verbal affirming communication, non-verbal affirming communication and functional affirming communication. The findings of this study highlight the importance of affirming family communication, especially in families with adolescent children, while also providing a description of affirming family communication from the adolescent’s perspective.

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Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 65-71). / vii, 71 leaves, bound 29 cm

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The purpose of this investigation was to describe the attitudes of individuals who were spouses of patients with aphasia. Using modified Q-methodology, 15 spouses of fluent aphasic patients, 15 spouses of nonfluent aphasic patients and 30 matched controls completed a 70-item Q-sort constructed specifically for this study. The spouses of nonfluent aphasic patients were found to have a greater number of negative attitudes toward their spouses than were the spouses of fluent aphasic patients. The spouses of patients in both aphasia groups were found to have a greater number of negative attitudes toward their spouses than the matched controls. In addition, six factors (Compliance, Desirability, Egocentricity, Independence, Maturity, and Sociability) representative of the spouse-patient relationship were identified that incorporated the most commonly held attitudes by the spouses of patients in both aphasia groups.

This study was designed to examine the effect of perceived family functioning on social self-esteem in early adulthood. It was hypothesized that 1) there would be significant differences in level of social self-esteem based on categories of family functioning (as indicated by FACES-III scores), A) subjects with both moderate cohesion and moderate adaptability will report the highest social self-esteem, B) subjects with mixed levels of cohesion and adaptability, e.g. moderate cohesion/extreme adaptability and extreme cohesion/moderate adaptability, will report mid-level social self-esteem, and C) subjects with both extreme cohesion and adaptability will report the lowest social self-esteem. Data were analyzed by conducting a one-way ANOVA. Results did not provide support for the hypotheses. Implications of these findings and future directions for research are discussed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Studies on the effects of divorce on children often focus on the event of the divorce as being detrimental to the children. It is becoming more evident, however, that it is not the physical loss of a parent in itself that leads to later adjustment problems, but rather the type of environment in which the child lives. The present study examined the relationship between current and past familial conflict, as perceived by college students, and their current attitudes toward marriage. This study also explored the relationship between the family structure in which the students lived (intact vs. divorced) and their current attitudes toward divorce.Two hundred four students from a midwestern university participated in this study. Participants completed four questionnaires: (1) the Family Environment Scale -current; (2) the Attitudes Toward Marriage scale; (3) the Attitudes Toward Divorce scale; and (4) the Family Environment Scale - past. The following hypotheses were tested: (1) Students who perceived high levels of conflict in their families currently or while growing up will have less favorable attitudes toward marriage; (2) Students who experienced parental divorce will have more favorable attitudes toward divorce than students from intact homes. Analyses included multiple regression analyses predicting attitudes toward marriage and attitudes toward divorce from conflict and family structure.Contrary to expectations, perceived levels of conflict were not significantly related to attitudes toward marriage, and family structure was not a significant predictor of attitudes toward divorce. Compared to students from intact homes, students from divorced homes reported significantly higher levels of conflict in their homes while growing up. Implications of these findings and limitations and recommendations for future research are discussed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

This exploratory study examined the nature of family myths as perceived by mid-life married men. Of particular interest was inquiry into the origin of family mythology and the transmission process of myths as perceived by men. The most pervasive themes were found around "relations with father." These themes were indicated in a two-fold typology of "father is absent" and "father is present." The findings from this research present evidence of family myths originating in the family of origin experiences and evolving into contemporary mythology related to conflict management, marital relations, and career roles. Discussion of methodological issues, as well as implications for future research and clinical interventions are presented. / Ph. D.

The study set out to explore the complexities of the socio-cultural constructions of gender roles and psychological wellbeing in farm-families of Ogun state Nigeria. The intention of the study was to gain insight and understanding of the farmers' life experiences since farm-families are gendered institutions with peculiar needs, problems and aspirations. The study was motivated by a dearth of research on the constructions and determinants of psychological wellbeing and gender roles in farm-families. This thesis is therefore an attempt to fill the identified gap in knowledge, by generating empirical data on the socio-cultural constructions of psychological wellbeing and gender roles in farm-families. The thesis is essentially interdisciplinary in nature, drawing from and contributing to the bodies of knowledge in gender-based research, social psychology, family studies, developmental research, and agricultural extension. The inclusion of men's and women's views and perceptions, as opposed to a polarized view of men exclusively as the oppressors and perpetrators of female subordination is a poststructural feminist approach toward de-emphasizing gender dichotomies. In addition, the incorporation of children's perspectivesis due to recognition of family factors as determinants of children's gender identity construction, life outcomes, and the psychological wellbeing of the entire family. Research participants included forty adults (17 men and 23 women) and thirty-one children (17 boys and 14 girls), drawn from five farming communities in Ogun state Nigeria. These include: Kango, Ogijan, Boodo-Sanyaolu, Obafemi, and Ilewo-Orile. Adopting a qualitative research methodology, multiple methods of data collection were employed. These include life history methodology, in-depth interviews, focus group interviews, and interactive observation techniques. Although 'psychological wellbeing' is a difficult construct to define because of its complexity and high subjectivity, adopting the social representations' framework, the constructions,· meanings and determinants of psychological wellbeing and gender roles were allowed to emerge from the participants, within their peculiar socio-historical and cultural contexts. Findings reveal that the constructions of gender identity and gender roles in farm-families are the foundations of the internalization of gender ideals, socio-cultural constructions, psychological wellbeing and coping strategies. Children then grow up to become part of the society and continue the trans-generational perpetuation of gender ideals and reinforcement of gender stereotypes, and these have several implications for the psychological wellbeing of entire farm-family members. The problems of women-subordination vis-a-vis male-domination, therefore, have their roots in the socio-cultural constructions of gender, gender roles, and their ideological representations. Research outcomes thus provide basis for the development of sustainable culture-specific feminist strategies, which address the origins and foundations of gender stereotypes, as well as gender-sensitive and gender-specific interventions for the enhancement of farm-families' psychological wellbeing. The adoption of Yoruba terminology in the constructions of psychological wellbeing and related concepts in the thesis is the beginning of an innovative research process for inventing contextually meaningful and relevant Yoruba terminology for previously Western-based concepts. In this thesis for example, psychological wellbeing is construed as - ilera-okan, alafiaokan, ibale-okan, ilera pipe t 'okan-t 'ara; while stress and emotional disturbance are construed as - aibale-okan, iporuuru ati pakaleke okan. This is a unique contribution to knowledge. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.