This thesis constitutes a narrative description of the evolution of my therapeutic self during my training as a clinical psychologist. During the telling of this story, I review the ways in which I was perturbed by the mix between the various theories and the various contexts visited during the years of my post-graduate training. I have described and critically compared my responses to the following models: psychoanalytic, psychodynamic, first-order cybernetic, and secondorder cybernetic (covering the first, second and third movements). Throughout, I have attempted to track the development of a congruent, personal therapeutic self while simultaneously assuming that this self is constantly coming-into-being. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

This thesis constitutes a narrative description of the evolution of my therapeutic self during my training as a clinical psychologist. During the telling of this story, I review the ways in which I was perturbed by the mix between the various theories and the various contexts visited during the years of my post-graduate training. I have described and critically compared my responses to the following models: psychoanalytic, psychodynamic, first-order cybernetic, and secondorder cybernetic (covering the first, second and third movements). Throughout, I have attempted to track the development of a congruent, personal therapeutic self while simultaneously assuming that this self is constantly coming-into-being. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

Network Direct Selling Organisations (NDSOs) exist in more than 50 countries and have more than 74 million members. The most recent statistical information reveals that the vast majority of members do not earn significant income. Criticism of these organisations revolves around the ethicality of consumption, the commercialisation of personal relationships, and the exploitation of unrealistic expectations. This study aims to explore how communication creates networks that sustain an industry of this kind despite the improbability of its existence. The study commences with a description of NDSOs from historical, operational, tactical, and strategic perspectives. Given the broader context created by the global presence of this industry, cybernetics has been selected as a meta-theoretical perspective for the study of communication. The more recent development of second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis are introduced to communication theory as a field. Niklas Luhmann‟s new social theory of communication is assessed and applied in relation to existing communication theory. New conceptual models are developed to explore communication as the unity of the synthesis of information, utterance, understanding, and expectations as selections that occur both consciously and unconsciously, intentionally and unintentionally. These models indicate the multiplexity of individual and social operationally closed, yet informationally open systems, and they are used here to provide a systemic and coherent alternative to orthodox communication approaches to the study of organisations. The study adopts a constructivist epistemological stance and propounds throughout the necessity of further interdisciplinary collaboration. The study concludes that individuals are composite unities of self-creating systems, and they co-create social systems by self-creating and co-creating meaning. Meaning is described as the continuous virtualisation and actualisation of potentialities that in turn coordinate individual and social systems‟ actions. A communication process flow model is created to provide a theoretical explanation for the existence of NDSOs as self-creating systems. The study aims to show that communication has arguably become the most pervasive discipline as a result of the globally interactive era. It is shown that second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis raise several further questions to be explored within communication theory as a field. / Communication, first-order cybernetics, second-order cybernetics, Complexity and complex systems, autopoiesis, self-reference, recursivity, operational closure, system boundaries, Network Direct Selling Organisations / Communication / D. Litt. et Phil. (Communication)

Network Direct Selling Organisations (NDSOs) exist in more than 50 countries and have more than 74 million members. The most recent statistical information reveals that the vast majority of members do not earn significant income. Criticism of these organisations revolves around the ethicality of consumption, the commercialisation of personal relationships, and the exploitation of unrealistic expectations. This study aims to explore how communication creates networks that sustain an industry of this kind despite the improbability of its existence. The study commences with a description of NDSOs from historical, operational, tactical, and strategic perspectives. Given the broader context created by the global presence of this industry, cybernetics has been selected as a meta-theoretical perspective for the study of communication. The more recent development of second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis are introduced to communication theory as a field. Niklas Luhmann‟s new social theory of communication is assessed and applied in relation to existing communication theory. New conceptual models are developed to explore communication as the unity of the synthesis of information, utterance, understanding, and expectations as selections that occur both consciously and unconsciously, intentionally and unintentionally. These models indicate the multiplexity of individual and social operationally closed, yet informationally open systems, and they are used here to provide a systemic and coherent alternative to orthodox communication approaches to the study of organisations. The study adopts a constructivist epistemological stance and propounds throughout the necessity of further interdisciplinary collaboration. The study concludes that individuals are composite unities of self-creating systems, and they co-create social systems by self-creating and co-creating meaning. Meaning is described as the continuous virtualisation and actualisation of potentialities that in turn coordinate individual and social systems‟ actions. A communication process flow model is created to provide a theoretical explanation for the existence of NDSOs as self-creating systems. The study aims to show that communication has arguably become the most pervasive discipline as a result of the globally interactive era. It is shown that second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis raise several further questions to be explored within communication theory as a field. / Communication, first-order cybernetics, second-order cybernetics, Complexity and complex systems, autopoiesis, self-reference, recursivity, operational closure, system boundaries, Network Direct Selling Organisations / Communication / D. Litt. et Phil. (Communication)

This research was conducted as part of the formative evaluation of a mother-child interaction intervention, which was incorporated into the Kgolo Mmogo pilot study at the Kalafong Hospital in Tshwane (South Africa). The purpose of the intervention was to encourage the development of parenting skills and to improve mother-child relationships within an HIV context over a six-month period. By promoting more effective interaction between mother and child, child resilience could be enhanced and children could learn the necessary coping skills that would help them deal with the challenges posed by HIV and other life events. The aim of the study was to generate a systemic understanding of families affected by HIV/AIDS. The study explored (1) the effect of HIV on family interaction and (2) the effect of the mother-child interaction intervention on family interaction from the perspective of HIV-infected mothers. The theoretical framework chosen for the study was of a systemic nature and the standpoints, as set out by the Milan family therapy team, were implemented. Ten months after the intervention, four of the HIV-positive mothers who had participated in the intervention were interviewed and encouraged to share their experiences. Circular questions were employed in the interviews as a means of gathering data. A qualitative design was therefore the best option for this study. The research findings of this study coincide with previous literature and research findings; thus, the findings of this study have been consolidated. The current study findings support the importance of bridging the distance that is created by HIV in family relations, particularly between mother and child. Newly-diagnosed mothers often become stuck in their own processes and distance themselves from others in order to make sense of their situation. The broader social stigmas associated with HIV/AIDS contribute further to the sense of isolation that HIV-positive women experience. Often, women perceive HIV to be a disruptive force in their relationships with their partners and children, which creates tension, secrets and uncertainty within the family. HIV-infected mothers generally feel that keeping secrets from their children protects them from being traumatized by the social stigmas surrounding HIV/AIDS. Some HIV-positive mothers also feel that an emotional distance will shield their children from the pain of losing their mother. Because they are grappling with many negative feelings, such as anger and frustration, many HIV-positive mothers resort to strict disciplinary measures and avoid spending time with their children. The children misinterpret their mother’s behaviour and react in a manner that the mother perceives to be both disrespectful and disobedient, thus creating a recurring cycle in which both mothers and children become stuck. The participating mothers perceived the mother-child interaction intervention to focus on their emotional, physical, cognitive and behavioural needs as well as the needs of their children. The mothers experienced the intervention as having been particularly helpful to them and their children. They perceived themselves to be warmer, more supportive, more accepting and to have found meaning in their lives. In addition they felt that their children had begun to behave themselves and were also less avoidant of them. It enhanced their understanding of one another, and strengthened their bond so that they can depend on each other in times of difficulty. Copyright / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Psychology / unrestricted