Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2005. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

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M.A. / Identities are embedded in ‘shared experience’ and are, by implication, inherently social. It thus follows that identities are not formed, claimed, protected nor resisted in a vacuum. Contextual factors, which are influenced not only by historical processes and events, but also by current social, political and economic forces, are significant determinants of identity. In this study, one of South Africa’s former Model C schools was chosen as the research site in which to investigate the relationship between different, but related, contexts, the identities of learners, and the friendships that they formed. Three contexts were examined, namely the historical background of schooling in South Africa, the current school environment and the social context, which refers to relationships between teachers and learners. The teachers, in particular, were found to play a crucial role in shaping the learners’ identities. Their views, attitudes towards schooling and methods of teaching were informed largely by apartheid education, and most of their teaching experience was gained within this context. The general feeling among the teachers was that things had worked better in the past, under a system of segregated education. Although they did not reject or disregard the principle of equal education for all, they were not prepared or equipped beforehand to deal with the changes that the Schools Act introduced, and hence little effort was made on the part of the teachers to actively challenge racial stereotypes in a manner that underlies anti-racist education. De-racialised education did not only result in diversity in terms of ‘race’. It also changed the language and religious profile of the school. In its interrogation of these, and other, identity markers, this study assessed the ways in which the contexts, mentioned above, have impacted on the learners’ conceptions of themselves and others. It is clear that the immediate school context, which is ordered largely by teachers, provides little opportunity for seeking out shared experiences beyond obvious similarities, such as ‘race’, age, grade, sex, and language. However, despite the similarities among members of friendship groups, in terms of the more overt identity markers, learners display a tendency to group around other shared experiences, such as likes or dislikes, similar tastes or hobbies, and it is these experiences that, learners argue, have brought them together as friends. / Professor Peter Alexander Professor Tina Uys

To date, cross-gender friendships in childhood and adolescence have been virtually ignored in the peer relationships literature. The purpose of the present investigation was to chart the territory of cross-gender friendship by examining the domains of friendship conceptions and the selection of friends. Accordingly, 176 students (91 girls, 85 boys) in grades 3, 6, 9, and 12 participated in individual sessions and were asked to describe their beliefs about, and expectations for, both same- and cross-gender friendship. In addition, students participated in a hypothetical decision-making task using a series of information boards on which they were asked to search for, and select, a same- and cross-gender friend. Findings revealed that beliefs and expectations for both same- and cross-gender friendships were observed to follow a common developmental sequence with little evidence that cross-gender friendships lag behind. Although the pattern of gender differences in conceptions of cross-gender friendship was consistent with previous research, the results of this study suggest that for several features of friendship, participants made distinctions on the basis of what is expected in friendships involving girls versus boys. The differential emphasis placed on various expectations in friendship provides support for the notion that same- and cross-gender friendships may represent different types of personal relationships. As compared to conceptions of friendship, observations in the friendship selection task revealed that students engaged in similar predecisional searching regardless of the gender of the target friend. Findings suggest that the process of same- and crossgender friendship selection was somewhat different at different grade levels but did not vary markedly for boys and girls. Indeed, boys and girls at all ages were observed to select same- and cross-gender friends who were highly similar to themselves. The present discussion concludes with a description of the cross-gender friendship experiences of children and adolescents in this sample including consideration of the potential challenges and benefits associated with having a friend of the other gender. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

A dissertation submitted for the degree: Master of Arts in the Department of Psychology University of Zululand, 2002. / The present research was motivated by the researcher's observation of an increase in the rate of juvenile delinquency (especially among those children who are from 12 years to 18 years) in the Kwa-Dlangezwa location of Kwa-Zulu Natal. Examples of anti-social behaviour that adolescents participate in are car hijacking, drug addiction, cigarette smoking, house breaking or burglary, shoplifting, robbery, murder, sexual immorality and school dropout or truancy. The aims of the study were to identify the causes of adolescent problems that could be addressed by parents and health professionals, empower individual parents by developing effective parenting skills in workshops, improve adolescents' positive perception of communication with parents, evaluate workshops with regard to parents' perceptions of their improved parenting skills, and to evaluate adolescents' perceptions of their parents' improved skills. It was hypothesized that parent-effectiveness program would help to identify the causes of adolescent problems, the program would significantly empower parents by improving parent-adolescent communication and the program would result in effecting parenting and decreased adolescents' negative behaviour. Improvements in parent skills and parent adolescent communication were assessed over two assessments i.e. pre-test and post-test. A survey was used to determine the causes of adolescents' problems and the communication or relationship between parents and adolescents. The following psychological measures were used: biographic inventory for parents, program evaluated interview guide, need analysis questionnaire and parenting skills-rating scale. The program consisted of meetings with the group of parents and adolescents at weekly intervals over a period of six weeks. The group was comprised of educated and professional parents. The parent effectiveness program improved parent-adolescent relationships. Parents also explored ways to express warmth and love towards their adolescents. Parents of adolescents evaluated the program helpful for their adolescent children. They all wished that the program could continue. Limitations of the study were that the sample size for both survey and parent effectiveness group was small and biased in terms of female representation. A longer follow up would have helped determine program sustainability.

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Thesis (PhD)--University of Stellenbosch, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: An increasing number of children in South Africa are deprived of adequate parental care. Factors exacerbating the situation are the deaths of parents due to HIV/AIDS and contextual stressors like poverty and violence. Children removed from family care in accordance with stipulations of the Act on Child Care, were all exposed to factors of inadequate care like a lack of basic means of existence and/or physical, emotional or spiritual neglect or sexual abuse. The current thesis tried to determine to what extend these factors influence the social development of children. Theories of psychosocial development have shown that optimal social development starts with securing a strong positive and reciprocal emotional bond with the primary caregiver. This is the basis of personal security and interpersonal trust upon which further developmental elements like a positive self image, autonomy, pro-social behaviour, emotional well-being, moral values, the ability to find solutions to problems, self control and expectations about the future, will be based. Schema theory has confirmed the importance of positive developmental experiences in establishing positive expectations about social interaction. Negative developmental experiences will lead to dysfunctional schemas and selective processing of information. This will negatively influence emotional well-being, the ability to solve interpersonal problems and realistically assessing the self and others. Dysfunctional interpersonal patterns, inappropriate social behaviour and a less positive expectation of the future, will follow. Patterns of parental care are still important in adolescence and influence body image, sexual identity, academic achievement, career aspirations, values, autonomy and emotional well-being. Negative patterns of parenting, like loveless over-control and child abuse, lead to dysfunctional interpersonal expectations. Residential care increases the risk of diffused bonding, unless sufficient preventive measures are put in place. In the current thesis ten elements of interpersonal schemas were identified according to the above theories. Statistical comparisons of the elements were done using two groups of adolescents. Adolescents in the first group were removed from parental care in accordance with the Act on Child Care, while adolescents in the second group experienced continuous and adequate parental care. The results supported all of the hyphotheses, with a measure of ambivalence about autonomy. Psychosocial history was proved to be a measurable discriminating factor in adolescent interpersonal schemas. Sex proved to be a further discriminating factor in some elements. Girls were influenced most by the presence or lack of family security. In a second section, current programmes for social empowerment in use in children's homes, were evaluated according to the above results. Indications were given about possible adaptations and additions to therapeutic and skills programmes, the role of substitute families and character traits of staff that may help in limiting the risks of residential care. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: 'n Toenemende getal kinders in Suid-Afrika ontbeer deurlopende en toereikende gesinsorg. Faktore wat hiertoe bydra, is ouersterftes weens MIVNIGS en kontekstuele stressors soos armoede en geweld. Kinders wat uit gesinsorg verwyder word weens die bepalings van die Wet op Kindersorg, was almal blootgestel aan faktore van ontoereikende sorg soos gebrekkige bestaansmiddele en/of fisieke, emosionele of geestelike verwaarlosing of seksuele misbruik. Hierdie proefskrif het probeer vasstel in watter mate dié faktore die sosiale ontwikkeling van kinders beïnvloed. Teorieë omtrent psigososiale ontwikkeling toon aan dat optimale sosiale ontwikkeling begin by die vestiging van 'n sterk positiewe en wederkerige emosionele band met 'n primêre bindingsfiguur. Dit vorm die basis van persoonlike sekuriteit en interpersoonlike vertroue, waarop ontwikkelingselemente soos 'n positiewe selfsiening, outonomie, pro-sosialiteit, emosionele welstand, morele waardes, probleemoplossingsvaardighede, selfbeheer en toekomsverwagting gebaseer is. Skema-teorie bevestig die belang van positiewe ontwikkelings-ervarings in die daarstel van positiewe verwagtings omtrent sosiale interaksie. Negatiewe ontwikkelings-ervarings lei tot disfunksionele skemas, waarin inligting selektief verwerk word. Dit het 'n negatiewe uitwerking op emosionele welstand, die vaardigheid om interpersoonlike probleme op te los en realisties oor die self en ander te oordeel. Die gevolg is patrone van interpersoonlike wanaanpassing, ontoepaslike sosiale optrede en 'n minder positiewe toekomsverwagting. In adolessensie speelouerskapspatrone steeds 'n rol ten opsigte van liggaamsbeeld, geslagsidentiteit, akademiese prestasie, beroepsideale, waardes, outonome optrede en emosionele welstand. Negatiewe ouerskapspatrone, soos oormatige en liefdelose beheer en kindermishandeling, lei tot disfunksionele interpersoonlike verwagtings. Residensiële sorg verhoog die risiko vir diffuse bindingsgedrag, tensy doeltreffende voorsorgmaatreëls daargestel word. In die proefskrif is tien elemente van interpersoonlike skemas aan die hand van die teoretiese uiteensetting geïdentifiseer. 'n Statistiese vergelyking ten opsigte van die elemente is gedoen met twee groepe adolessente. Die eerste groep is weens wetlike bepalings uit ouersorg verwyder, terwyl die tweede groep deurlopende en toereikende ouersorg ervaar het. Die resultate het al die hipoteses ondersteun, met 'n mate van ambivalensie omtrent outonomie. Psigososiale geskiedenis was dus 'n meetbare onderskeidingsfaktor ten opsigte van interpersoonlike skemas in adolessensie. Geslag was 'n verdere meetbare faktor by sommige elemente. Dogters was die meeste beïnvloed deur die teenwoordigheid van óf gebrek aan gesinsekuriteit. In 'n tweede afdeling, is die bestaande programme van sosiale bemagtiging in kinderhuise geëvalueer in die lig van bogenoemde resultate. Aanbevelings is gedoen oor die aanpassing en uitbouing van terapeutiese en vaardigheidprogramme, die rol van substituut-gesinne en die eienskappe van personeel wat kan bydra om die risiko's van inrigtingsorg te verminder.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Intimate and satisfying relationships in adolescence are connected to mental health and well-being and have significant implications for adolescent psychosocial development. Despite the benefits of romantic involvement, research into adolescents’ experiences within their romantic relationships is limited. Few studies on adolescent intimacy experiences, especially those leading to conceptualizations of intimacy, have been undertaken. The majority of studies that have been conducted on adolescents’ intimacy experiences have been conducted in White, Euro-American, middle-class samples, using quantitative methodology and researchers’ definitions of the construct. In South Africa adolescent romantic relationships are often studied because of their links with pressing social issues, such as teenage pregnancy, intimate partner violence and risky sexual behaviour and HIV/AIDS, rather than for the value of understanding the relationships themselves. The resultant negative constructions of adolescent romance in research literature serve to continue the narrow scope of inquiry into adolescent intimate relationships and also limit the ability of professionals and care-givers to respond to the relationship challenges of South African youth. The present study was aimed at addressing some of the limitations of previous research on adolescent romantic relationship experiences, with a particular focus on intimacy. Coloured adolescents from a low-income, semi-rural community in the Western Cape were selected as participants for the inquiry due to the overwhelming lack of knowledge about the constructions of intimacy in this group. Social constructionism was used as a theoretical framework to ground and inform the study. The research objective was to develop an understanding of the constructions and experiences of intimacy of middle adolescents within the specific target community. A social constructionist grounded theory method was used. In-depth interviews were conducted with 20 young men and women. The social constructionist grounded theory analysis indicated that participants appeared to strive toward having ideal relationships as portrayed in the Western popular media. Participants’ constructions of intimacy centred on behaviour rather than on abstract, emotional experience, Their relationship experiences and behaviours reflected discourses of gendered romantic relationship interaction, with boys emphasizing commitment and girls focusing on “doing emotion work” as pathways to experiencing and expressing intimacy. The researcher raises the possibility that adolescent boy’s and girl’s striving toward ideal Western relationships, media and peer reinforcement of these ideal relationships and adolescents’ specific developmental cognitive limitations may limit their capacity for knowing themselves and their partners in their romantic relationships and contribute to inauthenticity in romantic relationships. As Western mainstream intimacy discourses stress the importance of self and partner knowledge, as well as authenticity in romantic relationships, these discourses therefore make it difficult to recognize and validate adolescents’ intimacy experiences. In fact these discourses imply that adolescents have a limited ability to experience intimacy. The researcher argues that by situating intimacy in the context of behaviours rather than emotional experience, understandings of intimacy can move beyond the essentialist depictions of what is and is not intimate, thus allowing for a range of behaviours to count as intimate, broadening the possibilities for conceptualizing and acknowledging intimacy. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Intieme en bevredigende verhoudings in adolessensie is verbind aan geestelike gesondheid en welsyn en het beduidende implikasies vir die adolessent se psigososiale ontwikkeling Ten spyte hiervan, is navorsingoor adolessentese ervaringsin hulromantiese verhoudingsbeperk. Minstudies ooradolessenteintimiteit, veral dié wat lei totbegrippevanintimiteit, isonderneem.Diemeerderheid van studiesooradolessente seintimiteitservaringsis uitgevoer inWit,Euro-Amerikaanse, middelklas steekproewe. In Suid-Afrika word adolessente se romantiese verhoudings dikwels bestudeervanweehul assosiasie met dreigende sosiale kwessies soos tienerswangerskappe, intieme maatgeweld, riskante seksuele gedrag en MIV/VIGS, eerder as vir die waarde van die begrip van die verhoudings self. Die gevolglike negatiewe konstruksies van adolessente se romantiese betrokkenheid dra by tot die beperkte fokus en omvang van ondersoekeoor adolessente se romantiese verhoudings, en ook die beperkte vermoë van professionele mense en versorgers om te reageer op die verhoudingsuitdagings van die Suid-Afrikaanse jeug te beperk. Die huidige studie was daarop gemik om van die beperkings van vorige navorsing oor adolessente se romantiese verhoudingservarings, met 'n besondere fokus op intimiteit, aan te spreek. Kleurling adolessente van 'n semi-landelike gemeenskap in die Wes Kaap is gekies as deelnemers as gevolg van die oorweldigende gebrek aan kennis oor die konstruksie van intimiteit in hierdie groep. ‘nSosiaal-konstruktionistiese raamwerk is gebruik om die studie te begrond en te rig. Die navorsingsdoelwit was om 'n begrip van die ervarings van intimiteit van middel-adolessente binne die spesifieke teikengemeenskap te ontwikkel. Hierdie doel is bereik deur gebruik te maak van 'n sosiaal-konstruksionistiese gegrondeteoriemetode.In-diepte onderhoude is gevoer met 20 adolessente mans en vrouens. Die sosiaal konstruktionistiese gegronde teorie analise het aangedui dat deelnemers se konstruksies van intimiteit gedrag eerder as emosionele ervaring in hul intimiteitsvertellings beklemtoon het. Hul verhouding ervarings en gedrag weerspieël diskoerse van geslagtelike romantiese verhoudinginteraksie met seuns wattoewyding en meisies wat die "doen van emosie werk" beklemtoon as roetes na intimiteit. Deelnemers blyk om te streef na ideale verhoudings soos uitgebeeld is in die Wes-populêre media, duer ‘n behoefte om in te pas en aanvaar te word deur hul eweknieë. Hierdie proses kan deelnemers lei om op te tree en hulle gedagtes oor romantiese verhoudings uit te spreek in ooreenstemming met wat algemeen aanvaar word binne hul portuurgroep, eerder as in die maniere wat hulle eie oortuigings, begrip en begeertes weerspieël. Hierdie proses lei tot 'n beperkte kennis en bewustheid van die self as' n romantiese vennoot sowel as 'n neiging tot onoutentieke grdrag in romantiese verhoudings. Hierdie beperkte self-bewustheid en onoutentieke gedrag inhibeer dan adolessente se vermoë om intimiteit te ervaar wanneer dit volgens die hoofstroom konstruksies daarvan beskou is. Die bevindinge dui op die behoefte aan die gebruik van breër definisies van intimiteit in die oorweging van adolessente romantiese verhoudings, die bou van alternatiewe diskoerse van intimiteit en‘n verhoging van leiding deur volwassenes ten opsigte vanadoloesente se romantiese verhoudings Sekere beperkings van die huidige navorsing het ook verwys na 'n behoefte aan meer navorsing oor die invloed van' n wyer kontekstuele faktore in adolessente se konstruksies van intimiteit.

This study investigated friend influence on school engagement in a sample of 160 stable same-sex friendship dyads (94 female dyads and 66 male dyads) from five senior high schools and four vocational schools in a small city in central Finland. Longitudinal data were collected during the first and second years of upper secondary school, approximately one year apart, and self-reports were available from both members of each friendship dyad. The framework of the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM; Kenny, Kashy & Cook, 2006) was used to estimate friend influence on school engagement in a model that did not distinguish same-sex friends, in a direct-effects model that distinguished friends based on relative levels of school burnout, and in a multiple-group model for distinguishable friends that investigated perceptions of maternal affection as a moderator of friend influence. Results suggest that the higher burnout partner in a friendship dyad influenced a decline in the lower burnout partner's school engagement only when the lower burnout partner perceived low maternal affection. When the lower burnout partner perceived high maternal affection, there was no evidence of negative influence by a higher burnout partner. Patterns of influence did not vary as a function of sex or school track. The importance of distinguishing friends on a theoretically and statistically meaningful basis to learn who influences whom, and of investigating indirect effects models when studying friend influence is also discussed. / by Donna Marion. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.