The researcher focused on developing a psycho-developmental programme that could be used as an intervention technique to combat teenage pregnancy. The literature research indicated that general factors contributing to teenage pregnancy could be divided into individual factors and social factors. The following individual factors played a major role towards teenage pregnancy: lack of knowledge, lack of future vision, lack of educational and personal goals and poor academic performance. Social factors such as poor health care services, poor socio-economic condition, unemployment and poverty could be seen as the most common general factors that lead to teenage pregnancy. Family disorientation because of families consisting of one parent, alcohol and drug abuse, and lack of parent support increase the risk to get involved in prostitution and sexual molesting ending up in teenage pregnancy. Psychological aspects such as low self-image, low self-concept, low self-esteem and an external locus of control are also contributing factors to teenage pregnancy. Cultural rituals, myths about sexuality and teenage pregnancy, poor recreational facilities, poor socio-economic condition leading to poverty and increasing the risk of becoming a victim of sexual abuse could be seen as the most common cultural factors which lead to teenage pregnancy. For the purpose of this research a cultural quasi-experimental design was used. Enrolled pupils between fourteen and sixteen years from the following culture groups: white, black (rural), black (urban) and brown were included in this research. These pupils were enrolled students from the following High Schools in Parys: Parys High School, Phehelang High School, Barnard Molekwane High School, Weiveld High School and Sckonkinville High School. All the pupils from the control group, experimental group and development groups were exposed to the completion of a questionnaire that was utilised for pre-testing as well as post-testing. This questionnaire consisted out of three dimensions: knowledge on sexuality, attitudes towards sexuality and myths occurring in connection with sexuality. This questionnaire is available in Afrikaans and Sotho. Only the experimental group was exposed to the psycho-development programme. The results of the research indicated that no differences between the research groups (experimental, development and control groups), age (14 - 16 years) and gender (male and female) groups were reported before the implementation of the psycho-educational programme. Only statistical differences in the cultural groups (white, black and brown) were found: between white and brown in connection with knowledge, attitudes and myths, and between white and black differences in connection with knowledge and myths. Between brown and black differences were found in connection with attitudes. The results after the implementation of the psycho-educational programme showed that no differences were found in connection with age and gender. The experimental group reported a positive change in attitudes towards teenage pregnancy, while knowledge increased in the development group. No changes were reported in the control group. Within the different cultural groups the following results were reported: Knowledge increased in the white group, while within the black group changes in knowledge, attitudes and myths were found. The results for the brown group did not report any change. The following conclusion could be made that the developed psycho-educational programme did have an impact on improving the knowledge and changing the attitudes of the study population in connection with sexuality and teenage pregnancy. The limitations of this research were identified and recommendations were made. / Thesis (M.A. (Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2007.

The researcher focused on developing a psycho-developmental programme that could be used as an intervention technique to combat teenage pregnancy. The literature research indicated that general factors contributing to teenage pregnancy could be divided into individual factors and social factors. The following individual factors played a major role towards teenage pregnancy: lack of knowledge, lack of future vision, lack of educational and personal goals and poor academic performance. Social factors such as poor health care services, poor socio-economic condition, unemployment and poverty could be seen as the most common general factors that lead to teenage pregnancy. Family disorientation because of families consisting of one parent, alcohol and drug abuse, and lack of parent support increase the risk to get involved in prostitution and sexual molesting ending up in teenage pregnancy. Psychological aspects such as low self-image, low self-concept, low self-esteem and an external locus of control are also contributing factors to teenage pregnancy. Cultural rituals, myths about sexuality and teenage pregnancy, poor recreational facilities, poor socio-economic condition leading to poverty and increasing the risk of becoming a victim of sexual abuse could be seen as the most common cultural factors which lead to teenage pregnancy. For the purpose of this research a cultural quasi-experimental design was used. Enrolled pupils between fourteen and sixteen years from the following culture groups: white, black (rural), black (urban) and brown were included in this research. These pupils were enrolled students from the following High Schools in Parys: Parys High School, Phehelang High School, Barnard Molekwane High School, Weiveld High School and Sckonkinville High School. All the pupils from the control group, experimental group and development groups were exposed to the completion of a questionnaire that was utilised for pre-testing as well as post-testing. This questionnaire consisted out of three dimensions: knowledge on sexuality, attitudes towards sexuality and myths occurring in connection with sexuality. This questionnaire is available in Afrikaans and Sotho. Only the experimental group was exposed to the psycho-development programme. The results of the research indicated that no differences between the research groups (experimental, development and control groups), age (14 - 16 years) and gender (male and female) groups were reported before the implementation of the psycho-educational programme. Only statistical differences in the cultural groups (white, black and brown) were found: between white and brown in connection with knowledge, attitudes and myths, and between white and black differences in connection with knowledge and myths. Between brown and black differences were found in connection with attitudes. The results after the implementation of the psycho-educational programme showed that no differences were found in connection with age and gender. The experimental group reported a positive change in attitudes towards teenage pregnancy, while knowledge increased in the development group. No changes were reported in the control group. Within the different cultural groups the following results were reported: Knowledge increased in the white group, while within the black group changes in knowledge, attitudes and myths were found. The results for the brown group did not report any change. The following conclusion could be made that the developed psycho-educational programme did have an impact on improving the knowledge and changing the attitudes of the study population in connection with sexuality and teenage pregnancy. The limitations of this research were identified and recommendations were made. / Thesis (M.A. (Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2007.

Gender-based violence (GBV) is particularly widespread in South Africa and it is reaching alarming proportions. Violence in South Africa is considered normative. Cognizance needs to be taken of the negative consequences thereof for the lives of men, women and children. Highly publicized acts of violence by men have captured the concern of the country, yet traditional intervention responses continue to focus more on women as victims. This research explored perceptions of non-perpetrating men involved in a GBV gender-based violence prevention programme at Sonke Gender Justice, Johannesburg. A qualitative research approach was used. Purposive sampling was applied when study participants were selected. Twelve participants were accessed from “One Man Can” – a prevention programme at Sonke Gender Justice. All the participants were male and had been involved in the prevention programme since its inception. Semi-structured interviews were used to conduct in-depth interviews. To enhance trustworthiness and rigour, data was triangulated, and in-depth interviews were also conducted with three key informants. The interviews were audio-recorded with the participants’ consent and transcribed verbatim. Thematic content analysis was used to analyze all data collected, resulting in the identification of themes, sub-themes and categories. The data was subjected to literature control against the existing body of knowledge. The research report indicated that there was awareness by participants in the GBV prevention programme of the multiple forms of GBV as well as the interrelatedness of the different forms. Substance abuse was found to both cause and exacerbate GBV. Prevention programmes were acknowledged to be beneficial to participants in terms of the knowledge and skills that were gained. The research study will make a valuable contribution to social work’s understanding of GBV and the positive role men can play in prevention interventions. Subsequently the recommendations indicate that men can be positively involved as partners in raising awareness and development of GBV programmes.

Caries of the pits and fissures of permanent teeth continues to be a problem for children. Newly erupted permanent molars are particularly at risk. Oral hygiene measures have been shown to be able to reduce the incidence of caries. The aim of this study was to compare the caries preventive effects of a professional tooth cleaning and oral health education programme (test) with a standard preventive programme (comparison), comprising selective fissure sealing and application of topical fluorides on newly erupted first permanent molars. School Dental Service clinics of the Health Department of Western Australia, in Perth, were assigned to test (4)or comparison (4) clinics. Schoolchildren, mean age 6.3 plus or minus 0.3 (s) yr with, sound, newly erupted first permanent molars were included in the study (n=404; 207 test; 197 control).Children were examined after twelve and twenty-four months by an examiner who was 'blind' to the test or control status of the children. After twelve months, 186 test and 163 control children were examined, and after twenty-four months, 179 test and 156 control children were examined. Three hundred and twenty children were examined in both years. After twenty-four months, 32 children in test and 31 children in control developed caries of the first permanent molars, the estimated risk ratio was 0.90 (95% CI 0.58, 1.41); and children in the test group had an average DFT score of 0.30 plus or minus 0.75 compared with 0.30 plus or minus 0.70 DFT in the control group (t-test, p=0.96). The results suggest that, after two years, there was no statistically significant difference between the caries preventive effects of a professional tooth cleaning and oral health education programme and a programme based on selective fissure sealing and application of topical fluorides.Baseline deciduous caries experience, presence of hypomineralised first ++ / permanent molars and frequency of toothbrushing were statistically significant factors in predicting molar caries. Using baseline deciduous caries experience as a screening criterion to predict permanent molar caries, sensitivity of 0.67 and specificity 0.61 were obtained at a cutpoint of 1 dmfs. Sensitivity and specificity values were maximised at 0.72 by using a combined baseline dmfs and hypomineralisation as screening criteria. Cost-effectiveness analysis indicated an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $40/child/year. The test programme was more costly and produced similar outcomes and does not warrant adoption on economic grounds.

Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Education in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education (Educational Psychology) at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2014. / The current investigation consists of one aim and two objectives. The aim is to evaluate drug abuse prevention programmes for adolescents in secondary schools and the effect that they have on attitudes, knowledge and behaviour. The objectives are to determine the effectiveness of the drug abuse prevention programmes on attitude, knowledge and behaviour on adolescents and the relationship between them. The research methodology was in the form of a quantitative survey. A questionnaire was administered to a group of grades 10 and 11 learners between ages 14 to 25 from four selected schools. Twenty-five year olds were included in the target group as it is not unusual for adult learners to still be at school with minors, especially in rural areas. This may have an influence on adolescents’ attitudes towards drug abuse. It was therefore of utmost importance for them to understand the effects of abusing drugs. Respondents were randomly selected with the help of Life Orientation Educators in each school. Questionnaires were distributed to a sample population of one hundred learners. Ten of these questionnaires were not properly completed and therefore were not included in the final analysis. The results demonstrated that the use of drugs is prevalent in the surveyed schools and respondents were aware of its consequences. The results also demonstrated that a significant number of the respondents had a negative attitude toward the use of drugs, while a small number of respondents did not see any problem in using drugs. It was concluded that the influence on behavioural change in the schools surveyed is not due to formal prevention programmes but to the involvement of parents and peer educators, who are not involved in formal programmes for drug prevention. Furthermore, it was found that in these schools no programmes were available for the education of learners about drug abuse and its consequences. While respondents have shown a positive attitude and behaviour toward drugs and its use, it is important to note that formal drug prevention programmes do not seem to exist in schools and where they are claimed to exist, they refer to life skills programmes and drug awareness programmes.

There are repeated calls in the literature for the implementation and evaluation of evidence based HIV prevention programmes. This study aimed to evaluate a life-skills theatre performance for adolescents promoting safer sex behaviour against aspects of an established AIDS risk reduction theory. The study used a quasi-experimental research design, and was operationalised through the use of a questionnaire measuring knowledge, attitudes and perceptions conducive to HIV/AIDS risk reduction. Bandura’s (1990) Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) provided a conceptual framework for the development of the instrument. A further aim of the study was to establish whether the instrument would yield a factor structure that could be linked to Social Cognitive Theory using a principal components factor analysis. A sample of 392 adolescent high school learners in Grades 10 and 11 at two high schools in Naledi, Soweto completed the evaluation instrument. A sample of 165 learners were exposed to the play prior to completion of the evaluation instrument. A sample of 227 learners completed the questionnaire before the play was scheduled to be performed and were thus considered a control group. The effects of exposure to the play, gender, age, grade and whether the learners reported that they were sexually active formed the independent variables in the analysis, which were examined for their influences on the theoretical constructs measured by the instrument through analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results indicated that learners at both schools had a reasonably high level of knowledge, attitudes and perceptions conducive to HIV/AIDS risk reduction. However, learners at the control school scored significantly higher on the factors tapped by the questionnaire than learners attending the school exposed to the play. Possible reasons for these differences are discussed in the report. The results also highlighted significant differences between Grade 11 and Grade 10 learners in knowledge, attitudes and perceptions conducive to HIV/AIDS risk reduction. The physical age of the learner did not appear to be as important as educational level and/or possible social peer group norms on responses to the instrument.

Rehabilitation centres in Mpumalanga recently experienced a sharp increase in the admission of younger patients for the treatment of alcohol and drug dependence. This phenomenon gives rise to the question of the prevalence and awareness of substance abuse, as well as the awareness of substance abuse prevention programmes in secondary schools in Mpumalanga. By investigating learners‘ awareness of drugs, the role their parents play in educating them, as well as the availability of prevention programmes, recommendations could be made regarding prevention and prevention programmes. / Thesis (M.A. (MW))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

Rehabilitation centres in Mpumalanga recently experienced a sharp increase in the admission of younger patients for the treatment of alcohol and drug dependence. This phenomenon gives rise to the question of the prevalence and awareness of substance abuse, as well as the awareness of substance abuse prevention programmes in secondary schools in Mpumalanga. By investigating learners‘ awareness of drugs, the role their parents play in educating them, as well as the availability of prevention programmes, recommendations could be made regarding prevention and prevention programmes. / Thesis (M.A. (MW))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

Darbo tikslas - įvertinti Kauno miesto ir Kauno rajono šeimos gydytojų nuomonę apie skatinamųjų paslaugų teikimo tvarką, vykdant profilaktines programas, sistemines bei įstaigų, teikiančių šias paslaugas, organizavimo problemas. Darbo uždaviniai: 1. Įvertinti Kauno miesto ir Kauno rajono pirminės asmens sveikatos priežiūros įstaigose dirbančių šeimos gydytojų nuomonę apie skatinamųjų paslaugų teikimo tvarką ir organizavimą jų įstaigoje. 2. Nustatyti, kaip motyvuojami Kauno miesto ir Kauno rajono šeimos gydytojai teikti skatinamąsias paslaugas. 3. Palyginti skirtingos priklausomybės Kauno miesto ir Kauno rajono pirminės asmens sveikatos priežiūros įstaigose skatinamųjų paslaugų organizavimo tvarką ir jų skatinimą. Tyrimo metodika. Anoniminės anketos pagalba 2010m. spalio – 2011m. kovo mėn. buvo apklausti skirtingos priklausomybės (privati ar priklausanti savivaldybei) Kauno miesto ir Kauno rajono pirminės asmens sveikatos sveikatos priežiūros įstaigų šeimos gydytojai (n=130). Duomenų analizė atlikta „MS Excel“ ir „SPSS Windows 14,0“ versijos kompiuterinėmis programomis. Rezultatai. Visi respondentai pažymėjo, kad jų PASP įstaigose yra vykdomos profilaktinės programos ir teikiamos kitos skatinamosios paslaugos. Pacientai dažniausiai kviečiami dalyvauti programose spontaniškai. Atsakomybė už pacientų kvietimą tenka šeimos gydytojams (74,1proc.). Informavimo paslaugų iš viso neregistruoja 31,8 proc. visų tyrime dalyvavusių PASP įstaigų darbuotojų. Tyrimo metu buvo nustatyta... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Aim of study – to evaluate the opinion of family physicians practicing in Kaunas city and district about organizating and providing the promotive health care services in prevention programmes as well as system-specific and setting-specific problems related with promotive services. Objectives: 1) to evaluate the opinion of family physicians practicing in Kaunas city and district about organization and provision of promotive health care services in prevention programmes at their health care settings; 2) to evaluate the motivation ways for family physicians to provide the promotive services at Kaunas city and district; 3) to compare the organization and motivation of promotive services between primary health care settings of different subordination at Kaunas city and district. Material and methods. From October 2010 to March 2011 anonymous questonnaire survey was conducted aimed at family physicians (n=130) working at public and private primary health care settings at Kaunas city and district. Data analyses were done using „MS Excel“ software and „SPSS Windows 14.0“ statistical package. Results. All study participants stated that at their health care setting the prevention programmes are running together with promotive services. Patients are asked to participate in programmes spontaneously. Main responsibility for patients invitation to participate is regarded for family physicians (74.1%). Of all study participants, 31.8% do not have a practice of registering the informative... [to full text]

The Cognitive theory was utilised in an attempt to understand the HIV and AIDS practice needs of peer educators in the Department of Social Development in the Free State province. The absence of guidelines affects the utilisation of peer educators and thus leads to the under-utilisation of programmes. The practice needs were therefore identified and recommendations were submitted with a view to address existing gaps Applied research was utilised as findings were used to make suggestions on the development of practice guidelines for programmes used by peer educators. As the researcher was interested in the rich data from peer educators‟ explanations about their HIV and AIDS practice needs, the most suitable research design for the study was the qualitative design with a collective case study. Purposive sampling was selected as the most appropriate sampling method within non-probability sampling, as the researcher‟s own knowledge and judgment of the population, its elements and the nature and purpose of the study, guided him. Within purposive sampling the researcher implemented volunteer sampling by issuing invitations to targeted participants who met specific criteria. Data collection was conducted through the implementation of two focus groups sessions consisting of 11 participants and eight participants respectively in each group for the duration of 90 minutes. Data collected was analysed using Creswell‟s analytical spiral. The planned research was expected to address issues of gaps and practice needs, as well as guidelines necessary for the implementation of the HIV and AIDS workplace prevention programme. / Dissertation (MSocial Work)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / tm2015 / Social Work and Criminology / MSocial Work / Unrestricted