The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to find out to what extent and for what reasons contacts with relatives have been exhausted for long-term geriatric patients in public institutions, and second, whether there is a significant difference in family contacts for the State Hospital patient as compared to the County Hospital patient. Are the reasons for changes in the family contacts basically social-psychological, medical, or economic. Such a study of family interaction requires an investigation of (a) living arrangements, family relationships, and socio-economic background prior to the hospitalization; (b) the reasons for hospitalization and the present medical diagnosis; (c) the currents economic situation of the patients and her family; and (d) the distance of the relatives’ residence from the hospital. This study attempts to obtain objective evidence in order to find answers to the above questions and to clarify the key issue of whether long-term hospitalized geriatric patients are in fact abandoned by their families.

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Change and stability on identity and family self indicators, first studied in 1989, are documented among 54 women aged 47.26 (SD=8.44) years; 26 of these women were interviewed in 1997 as well. The present study examined daughters' perceptions of relationships with parents and their influences on women's identities, self-perceptions, and vulnerabilities to distress. Categorizing women by parents' alcoholism status and respondents' concurrent therapeutic activities explained a modest proportion of variance on identity and family self in 1989. By 1997 there were no longer significant differences between alcoholics' daughters and nonalcoholics' daughters. Variance attributable to 1989 group categorization was considerably reduced. Phenomenological themes revealed among daughters' reflections included the importance of parents' time and attention with striking differences on relating with parents in alcoholics' families and nonalcoholics' families. Essential features of perspective taking experiences explain similarities and differences in daughters' felt closeness to parents influencing women's identities, self-perceptions, and therapeutic activities. Incongruity between sociocultural ideals and lived experience evidently exacerbate women's existential struggles. / Ph. D.

This survey examined anticipatory grief as a process of grieving that occurs when a loved-one has been diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. The inevitability of loss creates certain needs and feelings for the survivor. The study examined these needs, the extent to which these needs were satisfied, and the feelings. Finally, the relationship between dissatisfaction of important needs and certain feelings was observed. Findings show that certain needs, such as the need to gain knowledge about illness and to feel emotional support from family members rate as extremely important by the greatest number of respondents. These needs were not, however, rated as highly satisfied. It was also found that feelings such as anger, loneliness, and frustration were rated as occurring frequently when prognosis of death was within a year. Lastly, there was found to be a positive relationship between dissatisfaction of needs and these feelings.

On t.p.: Degree of Master of Arts (Clinical Psychology) / Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: HIV-infection and AIDS are major problems not only in South Africa, but worldwide. It has become evident that not only is HIV-infection and AIDS rife amongst the youth of South Africa, but the rate of infection is likely to increase within the next few years. Second to the HIV-infection pandemic in South Africa, is the high prevalence of teenage pregnancies. These have been shown to increase rapidly with more teenage girls becoming pregnant than a few years back. Teenagers tend not to use contraceptives and do not make use of their parents as sexual informants. It is believed that parents do not play an active role in the imparting of knowledge and sexual information. The youth and especially teenage girls' sense of personal agency are limited, when they are confronted with dangerous sexual situations. Furthermore, it has been argued that a person's socio-economic status plays an important role in HIV-infection, contraceptive use and pregnancy - with teenagers from lower socio-economic groups more likely to be the higher risk group. This study proposed to address the need for research on female reproductive health in all the diverse South African communities, by focusing specifically on working-class mothers' constructions of daughters' sexuality in a "coloured"! semirural area of South Africa. In the current study, data were obtained from ten women aged 32 to 55 years about their views of their daughters' sexuality and their experiences with their own sexuality. All of the participants were mothers of teenage daughters. The women all came from a semi-rural "coloured" community and mostly varied only in terms of age and educational level. All of these participants were from a working-class background. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with the women and using a feminist social constructionist grounded theory these women's accounts were explored and analysed. The analysis revealed that women still uphold the belief that sexuality is an entity that should be feared. The focus of mothers' discussions with their daughters centered on the dangers of sexuality. Furthermore the analysis indicated that mothers aspired to reduce the sexual dangers that their daughters face. They endeavored to protect their daughters by continuously subjecting them to various messages - such as "sex is bad", "sex and sexuality can ruin one's future" and "virginity is the key to successful womanhood". Mothers also strived to protect their daughters through constant scrutiny. However, mothers, in their efforts to preserve their daughters innocence, were unwittingly seen to endanger the girls. They were endangering their daughters by keeping them ignorant and through shaming sexual experimentation and sexual curiosity. A restricted focus on the danger and perils of sexuality is found to be extremely hazardous. It overshadowed all the other sexual experiences that women might have. The emphasis on danger portrays women solely as victims and as sexually vulnerable. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Statistieke toon dat alle seksueel-oordraagbare infeksies, MIV-infeksie, VIGS en reproduktiewe gesondheidsprobleme op globale vlak toeneem, asook in Suid-Afrika. Baie duidelik is die invloed van MIV-infeksies asook VIGS onder die jeudiges van Suid-Afrika. Daar word gespekuleer dat die aantal infeksies aansienlik oor die volgende paar jaar sal toeneem. Naas die MIV-infeksie pandemonium is die hoë tienerswangerskappe 'n verdere probleem onder Suid-Afrikaanse tieners. Swangerskappe neem al hoe meer toe met meer tienerdogters wat swanger raak as 'n paar jaar gelede. Verder maak tieners nie gebruik van voorbehoedmiddels nie en gebruik ook nie hulouers as seksuele inligtingbronne nie. Daar is ook bevind dat ouers nie 'n aktiewe rol speel om seksuele informasie met hulle kinders te deel nie. Tieners, en veral tienerdogters, se siening oor hul persoonlike agentskap is beperk en veral wanneer hulle gekonfronteer word met gevaarlike seksuele situasies. Verder is daar bevind dat 'n persoon se sosio-ekonomiese status 'n belangrike rol speel by MIVinfeksie, die gebruik van voorbehoedmiddels en swangerskap. Tieners van 'n laer sosio-ekonomiese agtergrond is geïdentifiseer as die hoër risiko groep. Die huidige studie het beoog om die leemte van navorsing oor reproduktiewe gesondheid van vroue in alle diverse gemeenskappe in Suid- Afrika aan te spreek deur te fokus op "kleurling" werkersklas ma's in 'n semi-landelike area van Suid-Afrika. Tien vroue het aan die huidige studie deelgeneem. Hulle ouderdomme het gewissel vanaf 32 tot 55 jaar. Inligting aangaande hulle sienings oor hul dogters se seksualiteit sowel as hul eie was verkry. Al die vroue was ma's van tienerdogters en afkomstig uit 'n semi-landelike "kleurling" gemeenskap. Die deelnemers was almal vanuit 'n werkersklas agtergrond afkomstig. Semi-gestruktureerde in-diepte onderhoude is met die vroue gevoer. Die "feminist social constructionist grounded theory" metode is gebruik om die onderhoude te analiseer. Uit die analise blyk dit dat vroue glo dat seksualiteit 'n entiteit is wat gevrees moet word. Die fokus van ma's se besprekings met hulle dogters sentreer op die gevare van seksualiteit. Die analise toon verder dat ma's aspireer om die seksuele gevare te verminder wat hulle dogters in die gesig staar. Ma's wil hulle dogters beskerm deur hulle gedurig dop te hou asook deur boodskappe wat die ma's aan hulle dogters weergee. Boodskappe soos "seks is nie goed nie", "seks en seksualiteit kan jou toekoms verongeluk" en "maagdelikheid is die sleutel tot suksesvolle vrouwees" is van die boodskappe wat ma's aan hulle dogters weergee. Alhoewel ma's probeer om hul dogters se onskuld te beskerm, is hulle terselfdertyd onbewustelik besig om hulle dogters aan gevaar bloot te stel. Deur hulle dogters onkundig te hou en deur seksuele eksperimentasie asook seksuele nuuskierigheid as skandalig en onbetaamlik voor te hou, stel ma's hulle dogters bloot aan gevaar. Daar is 'n risiko verbonde aan die beperkte fokus op die gevaar van seksualiteit. Dit oorskadu alle ander seksuele ervarings wat vroue mag hê. Die klem op seks as 'n bedreiging stel vroue slegs voor as slagoffers en as seksueel weerloos.

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

published_or_final_version / abstract / Social Work and Social Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy