M.A. (Psychology) / Post-traumatic Stress Disorder has been used to describe an individual's reaction to an event "outside the range of usual human experience". South African society is one fraught with violence, to the point where authors have contended that South Africans have become accustomed to a "culture of violence". Children and Adults are victims of this violence, whether they be directly or indirectly affected by it. In such an unstable society the school can provide children with a setting which offers them stability and a normative influence. In order to make the school effective in the aid it offers its students, teachers have to be assisted in developing and strengthening already existing con-structive ways of detecting and handling of children's problems. Teachers themselves also need to be provided with support in order to assist them with their own personal problems. This study examines the effects of trauma on the teacher-pupil relationship by providing Work, for teachers in order to learn from them and guide them in the assistance they give to children who have been profoundly affected by the violence in their environment being direct or indirect victims thereof. It is my hope that this exploratory study will broaden the understanding of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and provide useful guidelines in an understanding of the impact violence has on children.

M.A. (Psychology) / Post-traumatic Stress Disorder has been used to describe an individual's reaction to an event "outside the range of usual human experience". South African society is one fraught with violence, to the point where authors have contended that South Africans have become accustomed to a "culture of violence". Children and Adults are victims of this violence, "whether they be directly or indirectly affected by it. In such an unstable society the school can provide children with a setting which offers them stability and a normative influence. In order to make the school effective in the aid it offers its students, teachers have to be assisted in developing and strengthening already existing constructive ways of detecting and handling of children's problems. The teachers themselves also need to be provided with support in order to assist them with their own personal problems. This study examines the effects of trauma on the teacher-pupil relationship by providing workshops for teachers in order to learn from them and guide them in the assistance they give to children who have been profoundly affected by the violence in their environment being direct or indirect victims thereof. It is my hope that this exploratory study will broaden the understanding of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and provide useful guidelines in an understanding of the impact violence has on children.

M.A. (Psychology) / The aim of the research conducted was to analyze and evaluate the prevalence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in emergency workers. A literature study was formulated in which PTSD, and comorbid symptoms of Anxiety, Depression, Stress and Burnout were defined. These are seen as secondary symptoms to the overall effect of PTSD. Data was collected through the use of psychometric tests. These were administered to two main groups. The experimental group reflected the results of the emergency medical worker, while the control group reflected thescores attained by the emergency worker. Both groups were made up of a sample of 30 individuals (n= 30) making the full total of persons studied 60 (n=60). To evaluate for any level of significant difference t-tests for independent groups were administered. Scores found to be significant were trait anxiety scores and burnout scores. All other scores were found to be nonsignificant in a comparison of the two' groups.

M.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / The changing political and social situation in South Africa can be associated with the current violence and poverty in especially the more rural areas. As a result large numbers of black learners are directly or indirectly exposed to violent traumatic incidences. Research indicates that exposure to violent trauma can lead to the development of psychological and emotional disturbances and in particular the development of post traumatic stress disorder. Due to a lack of support systems and accessibility thereof, large numbers of learners exposed to violent trauma are in need of assistance. The learners have serious emotional problems and are also experiencing learning and behavioral problems. Teachers also seem to experience difficulty in handling these traumatized learners, due to a lack of appropriate skills and knowledge. The aim of the study was to identify the needs of teachers in handling learners traumatized by violent incidences and to develop guidelines for teachers in assisting the learners with the purpose of reducing the psychological and emotional effects of the violent trauma. The point of departure of the study was based on the assumption that the educational system needs to support every learner in becoming a healthy member of society through optimal education and development. Eight teachers, two principals and a community worker from two different schools in a predominantly brown area participated in the study. By means of focus group interviews and informal interviews the needs and problems in handling traumatized learners were identified and discussed. The teachers then received training in identifying the symptoms of the learner who has been traumatized by violent trauma. After that, guidelines were supplied to assist teachers in the debriefing of the learner's traumatic symptoms and emotions. These sessions took place over a period of three weeks. The results indicated that the teachers experience difficulty with identifying and handling the traumatized learners in the class. As a result of the study, a number of guidelines, based on the themes that were identified by the analysis of the data, have been developed for teachers in the handling of the traumatized learner

M.A. (Psychology) / One of the most perturbing facets of South Africa's post apartheid communal existence is the high incidence of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) amongst the disadvantaged communities. It is noteworthy that the incidence of PTSD amongst urbanised black youth is so high, that it can be described as an epidemic. Since therapeutic resources are limited or absent in many environments , it is essential to develop a project to cater for the needs of traumatised communities. Such programs should be cost effective and must relate to education within a psychological context. Following a diligent study of the literature, it was decided that a theoretical behavioural project be developed which utilises a psycho educational context that can be applied to black youth with PTSD.

D.Phil. / Profound psychological trauma, which may lead to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) can continue to negatively impact the lives of its victims for years after its occurrence. Psychological trauma is seen across cultures in people of all ages, the world over, and South Africa’s high levels of crime and violence, HIV and AIDS, and road accidents, make the topic especially pertinent. The symptom clusters of PTSD, included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 4th Edition – text revised (DSM-IV-TR; American Psychiatric Association, 2000), namely Re-experiencing, Avoidance and numbing, and Increased Arousal can lead to significant distress and may interfere with all facets of life, including social functioning, career goals, romantic relationships, leisure activities, and mental wellbeing. The effects of trauma in childhood may be different than when it occurs in adulthood, due to developmental processes occurring on physical, emotional, and cognitive levels (e.g. Drell, Siegel, & Gaensbauer, 1993; Perrin, Smith, & Yule, 2000). As such it is clearly important to understand the effects of trauma specific to children. A fair amount of literature is available which discusses the emotional and psychological consequences of trauma in children. Similar studies with regard to PTSD are also available. However, a holistic picture of either psychological trauma, or PTSD in childhood should also include neuropsychological aspects, functions such as attention and concentration, planning, organisation, psychomotor speed, and memory in which dysfunction may interfere with children’s development and futures. Although the field of neuropsychology has traditionally investigated how the brain responds to physical trauma or disease processes, recent decades of technological advancement have made it possible to understand that psychological trauma may actually result in neurobiological abnormalities.

Magister Artium (Social Work) - MA(SW) / Emergency services personnel are potentially exposed to events involving trauma, suffering and tragedy on a daily basis, which could consequently lead to secondary trauma and post- traumatic stress symptoms. The images and feelings that are associated with continuously being exposed to traumatic situations are not limited to the emergency services personnel, who are primarily exposed to the event, but these events can also have an effect on the significant others in their environment, such as their spouses. The aim of this study was to explore and describe the experiences of secondary trauma among the spouses of emergency services personnel. The research study followed a qualitative research approach, which provided in-depth descriptions and understandings of the participants’ secondary trauma experiences. The research design was explorative and descriptive in nature. Purposive sampling was used to select eight (8) participants, who were the spouses of emergency services personnel. The data was collected by means of semi-structured individual interviews and was analysed according to Creswell. Various research findings indicated that secondary trauma was prevalent in the emergency services industry and, in this current study, most participants indicated that it impacted their marital relationships. The experiences of secondary trauma among the spouses of emergency services personnel stemmed from their partners’ repeated exposure to trauma, managing everyday job stress, safety fears, behavioural changes, dealing with their partners’ emotional reactivity and emotional withdrawal from the family, following trauma exposure. Based on some of the suggestions provided by all the participants, the researcher concluded the study with recommendations for future practice and future research, the main recommendation being that organisational support systems be made available to spouses and families of emergency services personnel.

This study aims to ascertain the legal redress available to employees who suffer psychological harm as a result of workplace stress. On a general level, it identifies and assesses some of the available policy options, particularly as they relate to the interaction of statutory workers’ compensation schemes and the common law. On a more specific level, it examines and analyses various issues: the nature and extent of compensable psychiatric harm; the legal duty on employers to protect employees’ health and well being; the role of negligence; requirements specific to the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act 130 of 1993 (COIDA); and the causal nexus necessary to sustain a claim. The conclusion is reached that employees should utilise the workers’ compensation system as the primary vehicle to obtain redress if they suffer from occupational psychiatric harm. However, due to the law’s generally conservative approach to psychiatric harm and intimations that the Department of Labour intends setting strict requirements for claims for psychiatric harm in terms of COIDA, the common law of delict might continue to play an important role in claims for occupational psychiatric harm. The writer recommends that a hybrid system for compensation for stress-related psychiatric harm suffered in the course and scope of employment be adopted, with the statutory compensation scheme providing relatively limited benefits and the common law providing general damages if the claimant can prove negligence on the part of the employer; that the requirement of a recognised psychiatric illness be maintained for both statutory compensation and compensation in terms of the common law; that all parties’ interests are carefully balanced in delineating the employer’s legal duty to employers and that undue weight not be accorded to the terms of the contract of employment; that more attention be paid to factual causation and the development of lternatives/complements to the traditional conditio sine qua non test; that the validity of the circular instruction on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) be tested on administrative-law grounds; and that the stringent prescription requirements set by the circular instruction on PTSD be reviewed.

The psychological sequelae of being involved in combat are only recently coming to be understood. Most of the available data are from research conducted on help-seeking Vietnam veterans in the United States, and very little work has been done in South Africa. There does not as yet appear to be any instrument designed specifically to detect combat-related psychopathologies amongst soldiers who are still in active service, either in the USA or in South Africa. Combat involvement has been shown to lead to a high incidence of combat stress reaction. This in turn has shown that it can predispose sufferers to the development of a Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. It is thus expected that there would be significantly higher incidences of reported symptoms of stress disorders amongst soldiers exposed to high levels of combat as compared with a similar group of soldiers who had no combat involvement. This study used a self-reporting questionnaire, developed in the USA but adapted for use in South Africa, to allow the soldiers in the study to rate the severity of various symptoms derived from the DSM-III criteria for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. A Beck Depression Inventory was also administered to eliminate any persons who nay have been exhibiting symptoms of depression, as this would have confounded the results. Both questionnaires were administered to serving members of the Permanent Force of the South African Defence Force, with one group being members of various high-combat units based in what was then South West Africa, and the other group being non-combat or Headquarters elements. As a precondition of the study, absolute confidentiality of the respondents and their units was maintained. The study found the expected higher scores in the high-combat group, and also showed that the Keane questionnaire has a good coefficient alpha in South Africa. The study closes with several recommendations for further research, especially in the light of the new PTSD criteria in the DSM-IIIR.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric diagnosis receiving increased attention. Occupational therapists are becoming more involved with this diagnosis, particularly with Vietnam Veterans in Veteran Affairs Hospitals. Aerobic exercise is a treatment which has not been explored with this population. Depression and anxiety are symptoms commonly associated with PTSD. This study sought to determine whether aerobic exercise would reduce overall PTSD symptomatology, including depression and anxiety. Three psychological inventories: The Penn Inventory for PTSD, The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and The Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and one physiological inventory: The Queens Step Test for VO2 Max were given to eighteen subjects before and after a four week period. Ten subjects engaged in no exercise, and eight subjects participated in an aerobic exercise program. Results indicate that aerobic exercise has a significant effect on reducing depression and anxiety and a marginal effect on their overall symptomatology.