Thesis (MCom.( Dept. of Industrial Psychology, Faculty of Economics and Management Sciences)) --University of the Western Cape, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 160-187).

M.A. (Clinical Psychology) / Increasingly, research studies have revealed that gratitude and psychological well-being are robustly related. In addition gratitude interventions have been successful in increasing facets of well-being in adults and early adolescents. However, less is known about the effects of gratitude on middle adolescent sample groups and their eudaimonic well-being. Further, little is known about the impact that gratitude interventions will have on adolescents living in the South African context. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of a four-week gratitude intervention on the psychological well-being (PWB) of a group of middle adolescents in Gauteng, South Africa. Both state and trait gratitude were measured before the intervention as well as their levels of four facets of well-being, namely overall life satisfaction, hedonic well-being, eudaimonic well-being and the absence of pathology. These levels were measured again after the intervention had been completed. Adolescents (N=230) from two high schools were randomly allocated to either an experimental group (n=112) or control group (n=118) based on their assigned class at school. Questionnaires measuring their levels of gratitude and psychological well-being were administered to both groups before and after the intervention. The experimental group received four gratitude exercises consecutively, over a four-week period while the control group received four neutral activities over the same time frame. The data was analysed quantitatively by conducting one-tailed t-tests. In addition, a brief follow-up qualitative study was conducted to assess the participants’ subjective experiences of the intervention. The quantitative results indicated that there were no significant differences in PWB or gratitude between the two groups after the intervention. There were also no significant differences found within the experimental group when the pre- and post-test scores were compared. The qualitative results revealed that the participants found the gratitude intervention to have been enjoyable and helpful, and expressed feeling more grateful and appreciative in general. In addition, many reported that their relationships with others had improved. These findings revealed that the gratitude intervention did not yield statistically significant results however the adolescents’ subjective experience of the intervention was positive. More research is needed to understand the effect of positive psychology interventions among South African adolescents.

This study presents a description of the development and history of learner support, as well as educational psychological leaner support, in South Africa. The role and function of the educational psychologist was researched through literature study and empirical research. It was found that whereas this pivotal profession is still vital in any educational system, the nature of contemporary society has necessitated a new dimension in educational psychological service delivery, namely systemic involvement. Guidelines for a new model for educational psychological learner support in the education dispensation are put forward. This model asks for the enlargement of the role of the educational psychologist to include assessment and support of all of the systems that play a role in the learner’s life.

M.A. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.A. (Clinical Psychology) / Over the past decade, clinical psychologists have begun to play an increasingly important role in the community and in the mental health team. A good understanding of the role of the clinical psychologist is of extreme importance for the general practitioner in order -to make effective referals to the clinical psychologist when necessary and also for the maintenance of the mental health team. Van Den Berg (1980) states that the large number of incorrect referals between members of the mental health team are due to a lack of knowledge as to the services available. It is thus essential that research be conducted in order to clarify any misunderstandings that may exist between the general practitioner and the clinical psychologist who are both members of the mental health team. This research was conducted with two broad hypotheses in mind, namely that incongruence exists between the clinical psychologist's perception and the general practitioner's perception of the role of the clinical psychologist; and that general practitioners do not have a clear perception or understanding of the professional role of the clinical psychologist. In order to test these hypotheses, a questionnaire was designed and given to a sample of clinical psychologists and a sample of general practitioners. The questionnaire was based on the literature study of the role of the clinical psychologist and on interviews that were conducted with the teaching staff at the psychology department at the universities and mental institutions in the Witwatersrand area.

In understanding the importance of career adaptability in an individual‟s career development, career counsellors require a valid assessment technique for measuring career adaptability. The Career Adapt-Abilities Inventory (CAI) was originally developed by Mark Savickas (2008) as a measure of career adapt-abilities. The present study forms part of an international collaboration investigating the psychometric properties and construct validity of the CAI. The aims of the present study involved the following: conducting exploratory factor analysis in order to determine whether interrelationships within the items of the CAI can be explained by the presence of unobserved variables; conducting confirmatory factor analysis in an attempt to confirm the hypothesised factor structures of the CAI; and to explore and describe South African university students‟ perceptions of the underlying constructs of the CAI in terms of the language usage and comprehension of the inventory‟s item content. A sample of South African first-year university students were employed in this current study. In an exploratory factor analysis of the CAI, preference was given to the a priori criterion forcing the extraction of five factors. The oblique rotation method was employed using the OBLIMIN method provided by the statistical package in order to derive the simplest and most interpretable factor structure. Exploratory factor analysis supported a five factor solution after the fourth iteration, reflecting the underlying dimensions of Curiosity, Concern, Confidence, Cooperation and Control. These factors support the five scales presented by Savickas (2008). Confirmatory factor analyses were subsequently performed in order to test both the original CAI factor model as well as the factor model that emerged through exploratory factor analysis. After using several goodness-of-fit indices, it can be concluded that the inventory items adequately represent the five CAI scales based on the value obtained using the Root Mean Square Error of Approximation index. The factor model derived through EFA demonstrated a slightly better fit when compared to the original CAI factor model using other fit indices. In terms of the qualitative findings of this current study, participants indicated that the meaning of several items were unclear to them causing comprehension difficulty. Items 8 and 50 were marked by participants several times and can be viewed as the items causing most difficulty with regard to comprehension, with participants pointing out the words „keeping upbeat‟ (item 8) and „conscientious‟ (item 50). Participants were also asked to provide additional comments with regard to the readability, comprehension and applicability of the CAI. On investigation of these comments, three main themes were generated relating to: the comprehension and clarity of the CAI; the CAI enhancing participants‟ understanding of themselves; and the structure, length and general layout of the CAI. In essence, the current study provided useful information regarding the psychometric properties of the CAI using a sample of South African first-year university students. Factor analyses provided some support for the validity of the CAI while the qualitative results provided aspects for consideration in making the CAI more applicable for South African usage. Moreover, a foundation has been laid for further research to be conducted in South Africa regarding the validity and applicability of the CAI for South African populations.

I hereby certify that this dissertation is my own unaided work. It has been submitted exclusively to the University of the Witwatersrand in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Industrial Psychology). / Despite the increasing concerns regarding the levels of stress expenenced by teachers, and the potential resultant effects of this stress, relatively little is known about the potential effects of coping strategies and perceived social support in coping with teacher stressors. This study aimed to investigate whether both general and specific ways of coping (namely, problem focused, emotion-focused and escape-avoidance coping) heve the potential to moderate the relationship between stressors and strain experienced by individuals within the teaching profession. Furthermore, attempts were made to establish which of these types of coping strategies are most effective for coping with the typical stressors faced by teaching professionals. Similarty, this study investigated whether perceived social support has the potential to moderate the stressor-strain relationships experienced by teachers, and examined which types of social support (namely. perceived social support from famify, friends, supervisors, or colleagues) have the potential to effectively moderate this relationship. The data were collected using questionnaires, which were distributed amongst seventeen elementary schools within the Gauteng region, The sample for this study consisted of 188 English-speaking,elementary school teachers, employed on a full-time basis. Moderated multiple linear regressions were carried out in order to investigate whether coping strategies and social support have the potential to moderate the stressor-strain relationships, and analyses of variance were used to determine which of the three ways of coping (that is, problem-focused, emotion-focused, or escape-avoidance coping) has the potential to be the most effective for coping with teacher stressors. Generally, the use of coping strategies was found to Significantly moderate the investigated stressor-strain relationships of teachers, while the potential of specific ways of coping to moderate particular stressor-strain relationships appears to be specific to the situation. Similar results were found with regards to perceived social support. Problem-focused coping strategies were generally found to be the most effective method for coping with a range of teacher stressors. but its efficacy was also found to be situation-dependent. / Andrew Chakane 2018

Bibliography: pages 116-117. / The three television channels provided by the South African Broadcasting Corporation target different demographic sectors of the South African population. A survey was conducted quantifying advertisements shown on SABC 1, which caters for a mainly black audience, and on SABC3, which caters for a mainly white audience. The semiotic codes employed to engage the viewers were recorded, tabulated and measured. The differences between the codes used on each channel were compared and tested for statistical significance. Significant differences were observed in the type of speech used by the advertisements, the race of the characters, the types of products advertised, the lifestyles portrayed and the type of rhetoric used. Specific examples were subjected to textual analysis to gauge where the approaches to the audiences differed or converged. A number of strategies were observed, reflecting the advertisers' perceptions of the audiences' relationships with the economic and political establishments. Corporate advertisements often represent the diversity of South African society, establishing a corporate identity as a unifying feature. Advertisements for financial services either exploit white anxieties, or black optimism, encouraging investment or credit purchases respectively. A stereotype representing South African isolation and backwardness is often presented as a negative identity, implying a progressive alternative to which the product is integral. Allegories of societal transformation also feature, with varying moods of anxiety or excitement depending on the audience.

Includes bibliography. / Over the past decade clinical psychologists have increasingly begun to work in general hospital settings, but little published research has dealt in depth with the adjustments and negotiations that need to occur at the interface of clinical psychology and medicine. In this dissertation, the relationship of the psychosocial to medicine and the professional relationships of psychologists and doctors are discussed. Consultation- liaison psychiatry and multidisciplinary treatment teams are presented as two ways in which medicine has attempted to deal with the psychosocial, and which provide potentially useful models of practice for psychologists. Four cases that were referred to the author while working as an intern clinical psychologist in a Neurosurgery unit are discussed in terms of the insight they provide in understanding implicit assumptions about and expectations of psychology. In addition, the head of this Department of Neurosurgery and the two clinical psychologists working in this department were interviewed, and these interviews, together with the cases, provide the material for a discussion of various issues which face clinical psychologists in this unit. These include: the power structures and relationships in the unit; the use of consultation-liaison psychiatry and multidisciplinary treatment team models of practice; the inability of psychologists to fulfil present demands for their services; and the issue of reactive or proactive definition of psychological functions. Finally, some suggestions for enhancing the psychological contribution to patient care in Neurosurgery are made, based on the principles that arise out of the discussion.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Arts in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor in Community Psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University Of Zululand, South Africa, 2015 / The incidence of rape in South Africa is high. A total of 50 481 rape cases were reported in 2010. Rape trauma is exacerbated by the fact that the country has a limited number of professionally trained therapists to attend to survivors. Most survivors end up looking for assistance from their churches, and therefore claim to be healed spiritually. This study was conducted in the Nkangala district of South Africa because of the high incidence of reported rape cases. While it is estimated that one woman is raped in every five minutes in this district, there are only three psychologists employed by the government to attend to a population of 1 020 592. As a result of the scarcity of health care professionals, survivors end up looking for assistance from their churches. South Africa is a country in which spirituality is clearly important. Seventy five percent of the population claim to be Christian and twenty percent claim allegiance to other religions In-depth interviews were conducted with eight female rape survivors between the ages of 18 and 40yrs, who considered themselves to have experienced spiritual healing. Content analysis indicated that spiritual healing approximated psychotherapeutic interventions in the provision of unconditional positive regard, empathy, congregational support and respect. Survivors strongly believed that their healing occurred as a result of prayer, reading Holy Scriptures, church support and spiritual guidance, which gave them strength to forgive perpetrators and move on with their lives. / Department of Health Mpumalanga Province