Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / The primary intent of this study was to seek solutions to the practical problems experienced by practitioners in their management of child abuse cases. A fundamental problem regarding the current management of child abuse is that there is no guarantee that a child entering the child protective system will be dealt with in terms of a set procedure and/or protected against further abuse. To address this problem in the Western Cape, the Intervention Research (IR) methodology (Rothman & Thomas, 1994) was used to develop a Protocol for the Multi- Disciplinary Management of Child Abuse and Neglect. IV The protocol was designed for agencies that intervene in instances of child abuse. It establishes criteria and procedures for interdisciplinary co-ordination and effective case management, delineates the professional roles and responsibilities and provides step-by-step intervention procedures. The Intervention Research Design and Development methodology provided a useful framework to apply social science research methods to child protective practice and policy reform. IR focuses on the design of practice guidelines for intervention and policy reform. It can be conducted in a diversity of practice settings and therefore enhances collaborative efforts and inter-agency exchange among practitioners and among practitioners and universities. The study evolved through six phases involving inter-as well as intra-disciplinary activities. These activities were guided by systematic and deliberate research procedures, techniques and instruments. The research phases included: problem analysis; information gathering and synthesis; the development and design of the protocol; testing the protocol through a process of workshops and finally, the launch and dissemination of the protocol. http://etd.uwc.ac.za A core element of the study was the active participation and collaboration of a broad range of key stakeholders, including: victims of child abuse, their families, service providers, and policy makers. The methods and instruments used were therefore designed to enhance participation and included interviews, workshops and observation of court processes. The bottom-up approach and collaborative design enhanced the level of contextual relevance, ownership and the commitment of stakeholders. As a demonstration of this commitment, the protocol has been endorsed by the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Health and Social Services of the Western Cape. The Department of Social Services has committed financial support to the project and is pilot testing it in three districts. The study cautions that protocols alone cannot eradicate and solve all the problems in the child protective field and asserts that there is an urgent and critical need to develop and to implement a National Strategy on Child Abuse. Such a National strategy should include legislation that supports and enforces all aspects of a national policy on child abuse. At minimum, national policy should ensure consistent political will and leadership. This means that broad statements about the obligations of politicians and state officials is not enough. These should be followed by specific accountability and measuring mechanisms for enforcement. State policy should also provide guidelines for standardized and appropriate working conditions, recruitment and training of staff. Furthermore, it should provide for a broad array of effective and accessible services to all children and families and the co-ordination of such services. Finally, legislation should include specific obligations regarding the appropriation of adequate and flexible funding to see that commitments made to children are realized

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The Amish are commonly known for horse-and-buggies, simple clothing, and refusal to use electricity. Less commonly known is their rate of mental illness, which is significantly lower than the non-Amish population. The literature that points to lower depression and anxiety among the Amish does not adequately explain what elements of their lifestyle contribute to this phenomenon. Depression and anxiety are a widespread problem in the United States, increasing the importance of understanding a lifestyle that can reduce these issues. The purpose of this study was to explore the Amish way of life through the words of its members. The three research questions that drove this investigation inquired how the Amish conceptualize mental illness, if and how they seek help for mental stress, and what elements of their lifestyle may protect them from higher rates of depression and anxiety. This qualitative study employed social constructionism as the conceptual framework and positive psychology as the theoretical foundation. Data collection employed a purposeful, maximum variation sample and consisted of 14 in depth, semi-structured, face-to-face interviews. Data analysis employed phenomenological techniques as outlined by Moustakas. Elements of the Amish lifestyle contributing to positive mental health include the increasing availability of Amish focused treatment centers, bishops who encourage mental health treatment, family ties, social bonds, work ethic, and the most significant to the Amish: their faith. This study contributes to positive social change by discovering elements of Amish life that may be practical to the non-Amish. If non-Amish find positive meaning from the elements of Amish life, it may lead to lower rates of depression and anxiety.

The purpose of this mini-dissertation was to explore and describe how first sandtrays are useful in facilitating the operationalisation of Ungar’s diagnostic criteria for resilience among rural SiSwati-speaking South African adolescents. The study forms part of continuing investigation at the Centre for the Study of Resilience with regards to the nature of school-based Educational Psychology services in remote South Africa. My study draws on a subset of data that was generated when a group of Educational Psychology Masters students worked with a group of Grade 9 students at a rural school in Mpumalanga. I performed a qualitative secondary data analysis of the documentation obtained from the first sandtrays completed by 50 male and female Grade 9 learners as part of the psycho-educational assessments conducted in the 2015 Flourishing Learning Youth project. A qualitative exploratory design is used, and within this broad approach, I conduct a secondary data analysis to explore how first sandtrays are useful in facilitating a resilience diagnosis. The documentation relating to the first sandtrays includes visual data (photographs), client narratives and MEd (educational psychology) student reflections. A priori categories, which come directly from Ungar’s diagnostic criteria for resilience and relevant literature are used to categorise the coded data. The results showed that first sandtrays are useful in facilitating the operationalisation of Ungar’s diagnsotic criteria for resilience among rural SiSwati-speaking adolescents. Indicators of both individual and interpersonal risks and resources emerged during data analysis. Evidence from analysis of first sandtray documentation showed risks including adolescent life-stage, family violence, lack of safety and structural disadvantage. The most common of these was lack of safety in the community. Protective resources alluded to included personal strengths, supportive family systems, supportive teachers, community attachments and sharing of resources, supportive community structures, cultural values of Ubuntu and spiritual support. The findings indicate that first sandtrays can be used by the educational psychologist to diagnose resilience, and may be particularly useful in a multilingual and diverse context such as South Africa to understand which resources need to be sustained and which resources are absent and need to be amplified. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Educational Psychology / MEd / Unrestricted

This qualitative study utilized the protective action decision model to explore the risk perceptions and hazard adjustments to the earthquake risk of residents in El Reno, Oklahoma.

Amifostine (WR-2721, Ethyol®), a phosphorylated thiol, demonstrates the unique ability to protect normal but not tumour tissue from cytotoxic damage induced by radiation therapy and chemotherapy. This study tested the effect of amifostine's active metabolite, the free thiol, WR-1065, on the cytotoxicity of standard anticancer drugs against human A2780 ovarian and MCF7 breast cancer cell lines in vitro, using the well-characterised sulphorhodamine B assay. 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) values were determined for each of 16 different anticancer drugs in the presence and absence of the highest nontoxic dose of WR-1065 from concentration-response curves constructed in triplicate and based on 18 replicate cell culture plates for each tested drug concentration. Pretreatment with WR-1065 had no statistically significant effect on the IC50 value of any of the 16 drugs tested against either the A2780 or MCF7 human tumour cells. These data expand upon previous reports showing that amifostine does not protect tumours from the cytotoxic effects of anticancer agents. The ability of amifostine to protect against dose-limiting toxicity to a variety of normal tissues without protection of tumour should enhance the efficacy ratio of a wide range of standard anticancer drugs.

Bullying is well known to have harmful effects on child development and mental health, so understanding the underlying factors involved in bullying behaviour is critical (World Health Organization, 2008). In the present study, mental health, parenting challenges, and children’s individual strengths were explored across different types of bullying involvement. In this cross- sectional study involving 91 children between the ages of four to 11 receiving services at a mental health agency, the results indicated significant differences on dependent variables across the four different bullying involvement groups: bully, victim, bully-victim, and non-involved. Children in the bully group were more likely to be experiencing externalizing behaviours and have fewer individual strengths whereas children in the victim group were more likely to be experiencing difficulties with internalizing behaviours and have fewer individual strengths. Children in the bully-victim group were more likely to be displaying externalizing behaviours, come from homes experiencing parenting difficulties, and have fewer individual strengths. In contrast, children who were non-involved in bullying were more likely to have greater individual strengths including stronger peer relations, greater self-expression, able to successfully adapt to change, and have stronger family units. The results of this study highlight the different behaviour patterns across the types of bullying involvement as well as shed light onto the needs and strengths of children accessing mental health services from a community agency.

Chemical and biological agents can cause serious adverse occupational health effects, and can adversely impact environmental health. Adverse incidents occur in laboratories using chemical, biological and radiologic agents, and laboratories pose a number of dangers to workers. Adverse incidents occur more frequently in teaching and research institutions when compared to industrial laboratories. Good laboratory safety practices, including the use of personal protective equipment, can reduce the number and severity of laboratory accidents, thus reducing the risk of chemical, biological and radiologic exposure for workers and for the public. Improving laboratory safety training should also result in fewer lab accidents. This study was conducted at a mid-sized Midwestern research university. The study population consisted of people who had attended a laboratory safety training session in 2010, 2011 or 2012. Following administration of a pilot survey and development of additional items, a sample (N=451) of the total population (N=936) received a survey inquiring about the use of personal protective equipment, and about laboratory safety training. 143 completed surveys were returned. The survey was based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, 1991). Theoretical constructs investigated included personal protective equipment attitude, subjective norm, behavioral control, behavioral intention, past self-reported behavior, and safety training attitude. Multiple regression showed that the overall model accounted for 56% of the variability in the study population. Subjective norm was the theoretical construct most strongly predictive of behavioral intention (B=.653, p=.001). Attitude was next most strongly predictive of intention (B=.343, p=.001). Behavioral control was not significantly correlated with behavioral intention. There was a positive significant correlation between training attitude and behavioral intention (Pearson's r = 0.233, p=.006, 2-tailed). There was also a positive significant correlation between attitude toward personal protective equipment, and attitude toward training (Pearson's correlation coefficient was 0.332, p=.001, 2-tailed). Self-reported behavior was regressed on the three theoretical constructs. Subjective norm was most significantly predictive of self-reported behavior (B = .523, p= .001), followed by attitude (B = .281, p= .034). Behavioral control was not significantly predictive of self-reported behavior. The study determined that about 80% of respondents felt that their lab was usually or always a safe place to work, although 40% reported having been injured in a lab. Training can be improved by emphasizing the importance of subjective norm, by clarifying the responsibilities of lab supervisors, and by providing additional information regarding how to obtain, use, and care for personal protective equipment. Use of personal protective equipment may be increased by emphasizing the importance of subjective norm during training.

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