Thesis (M.A. ( Clinical Psychology)) --University of Limpopo, 2014 / A number of studies have indicated that psychological management of chronic diseases is important in order to assist a patient to cope with and manage their condition. The disease and the phenomenon around it can be explained as reasons why individuals move from one treatment facility to the other. This study explored the psychological strategies used by people in Ga-Dikgale community to manage chronic diseases. A qualitative approach was followed and participants were selected through purposive sampling. Ten participants (five males and five females) who are receiving health care services for their chronic diseases were requested to participate in the study. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews and were analyzed using interpretive phenomenological analysis. The results of the study are presented in terms of the following themes: participants‟ own explanations of chronic diseases; participants‟ subjective notions of the events or factors that could have led to their chronic diseases; what participants believe is the main causes of their disease(external or internal factors); pathways followed by the participants to manage their chronic disease; experiences of living with chronic disease; psychological coping strategies; the role of educational agencies; and implications for theory. The study revealed that chronic diseases are ambiguous in nature, with every individual explaining them in ways that relate to their personal experiences. For this reason there are different ways of managing or coping with them. Some people take on more active means of coping, while others are more passive. / VLIR project

En kvantitativ studie genomfördes med syftet att undersöka i vilken utsträckning psykologiska strategier används av ryttare samt om det finns några eventuella skillnader i användandet av psykologiska strategier på träning och tävling och i mellan grenarna inom ridsporten. Vidare undersöktes det om det finns ett samband mellan användandet av psykologiska strategier och upplevd prestation. För att mäta detta användes en svensk version av självskattningsinstrumentet Test of Performance Strategies (TOPS). 185 ryttare deltog i studien, varav 107 stycken var dressyrryttare, 39 stycken var hoppryttare och 38 stycken deltog inom en övrig gren inom ridsporten. Resultatet visade en signifikant skillnad i användandet av psykologiska strategier mellan träning- och tävlingssammanhang, där strategierna användes mer i träningssammanhang. Resultatet visade även en signifikant skillnad i användandet av psykologiska strategier mellan grenarna i ridsport, där ryttarna inom hoppning och annan gren visade sig använda sig av mer automatisering på tävling än ryttarna inom dressyr. Dessutom fanns ett positivt signifikant samband mellan upplevd grad av prestationsnivå på tävling och användandet av psykologiska strategier. Samt ett ytterligare ett positivt signifikant samband mellan upplevd grad av prestationsnivå på träning och användandet av psykologiska strategier. Slutsatsen kunde dras att populationen använder mer psykologiska strategier i träningssammanhang samt de upplever att en hög grad av användande av psykologiska strategier resulterar i en upplevd hög grad av prestationsnivå. / A quantitative study has been conducted with the aim of investigating the extent to which psychological strategies are used by riders as well as whether there were any differences in the use of psychological strategies during training and competition and between the disciplines of the equestrian sport. Furthermore, it examined whether there was a connection between the use of psychological strategies and experienced achievement-level. To measure this a Swedish version of the self-assessment instrument Test of Performance Strategies (TOPS) was used. 185 equestrians participated in the study, whence 107 of them competed in dressage, 39 of them competed in jumping and 38 of them competed in another discipline. The result showed a significant difference in the use of psychological strategies in training and competition, where the psychological strategies was used more in the training sessions. The result also showed a significant difference in the use of psychological strategies between the disciplines, it showed that the equestrians who jumped and participated in another discipline used more automaticity in competition than dressage riders. In addition, there was a positive significant relationship between the degree of perceived performance on competition and the use of psychological strategies. There were also a positive significant relationship between the degree of perceived performance on training and the use of psychological strategies. The conclusion is that the population used more psychological strategies in training sessions and they experience that a high degree of using psychological strategies results in a high degree of perceived performance.