M. Psych. (Educational Psychology) / The high child sexual abuse rate in South Africa and all over the world makes these cases a reality for educational psychologists practising today. Equineassisted psychotherapy is a relatively new field in psychology, and research shows that this therapeutic intervention can have a very significant impact on people. Sexual abuse leaves children with psychological effects (Beitchman, Zucker, Hood, DaCosta & Akman, 1991) ranging from intrapersonal problems such as low self-esteem and feeling emotionally overwhelmed to interpersonal problems resulting in communication and relationship challenges (Mandrell, 2006). According to Kidson (2012), equine-assisted therapy deals very well with such issues as well as self-concept, self-efficacy and self-acceptance. These issues correlate well with the effects of child sexual abuse and the issues that the therapist needs to deal with in the therapeutic sessions (Conte & Scheumann, 2011). Seeing the possibilities that equine-assisted therapy held for a therapist working with a case of sexual abuse, I inquired in terms of the involved systemic influences and experiences. The study investigated the experiences of the therapist, the client and the parents when using equine-assisted psychotherapy in a case of sexual abuse. The study attempted to identify themes that could explain these experiences and maybe make a contribution to the field of equine-assisted psychotherapy, specifically pertaining to work with sexual abuse cases. I made use of a phenomenological, qualitative case study design to explore the experiences of the participants. The data collection methods included interviews, field notes and observations. Artefacts were used to aid the researcher in the observation process but also to help the researcher explain the findings in Chapter 4. Furthermore, creative expressive arts therapy tools were used in the interviews to assist the participants in expressing their experiences regarding the equine-assisted therapy process. Data was analysed using the phenomenological data analysis process. This process is al about “being true to the phenomenon”. The first step in this research was to transcribe the interview recordings. Using the transcribed text, the field notes and the observations, the researcher then identified units of general meaning. Out of the units of general meanings, themes were identified. In the findings, three themes were identified: equine-assisted therapy, an empowering life changing experience; the extent to which active engagement with horses assist in expressing emotions; and the equine-assisted therapy process and therapeutic experience. The limitations and strengths of the research were also explained and discussed. Subsequently, recommendations were made for possible future research that evolved from the study’s findings.

This survey research was designed to identify play therapy behaviors of sexually abused children. A survey instrument was developed from a comprehensive review of the professional literature and the assistance of an expert panel. After a field test, 140 items of play therapy behavior were developed into a survey instrument. The respondent was asked to rate on a Likert scale the frequency of occurrence of these play therapy behaviors of sexually abused children. Each play therapy behavior was rated for the following four groups: Males, 3-6 Years; Females, 3-6 Years; Males, 7-10 Years and Females, 7-10 Years. The entire international membership of the Association of Play Therapy (APT) was used to obtain the largest possible number of viable responses. As anticipated, of the 786 replies, 41% were not seeing sexually abused children in play therapy. In order to insure the most robust findings possible, it was determined to utilize data from the 249 most experienced play therapists (having worked with 16 or more sexually abused children). The typical respondent in this group was a female play therapist, 40-50 years of age, with a Masters degree in Counseling or Social Work.

A dissertation submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Psychology, University of Zululand, South Africa, 2002. / The purpose of this study was to explore and uncover the levels of stress and emotional difficulties of victims of sexual abuse through their written narratives. The study involved five females who had been recently sexually abused and had sought assistance at the Empangeni Crisis Centre. In the present study, the researcher used purposive sampling in selecting the research respondents. Data was collected in a series of individual interviews during which individual assessments were also done. All interviews with the subjects were conducted in Zulu in order to avoid any misunderstanding. Qualitative data analysis was used to analyze the thematic content of the narratives to uncover the themes, attitudes, fears and hopes. The following conclusions were drawn from the study: • The written narratives of sexually abused children proved to be an important and a rich source of understanding the experiences of victims of sexual abuse. • Thoughts and feelings experienced by the research respondents including amongst others, loss of trust, anger, guilt, hatred, depression, helplessness and loss of self- esteem are not different from those expressed by individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder. Most participants in this research were victims of incest. This finding confirms the work of Nevid et al., (2000) that the great majority .of assailants had some prior relationship with the child. The present study strongly implicates abuse by a parent figure, a factor also supported by the findings of Cahill, Llewelyn and Pearson (1991). In the light of the above-findings, the researcher recommends that a great deal of research is needed to enable us to understand the mechanism, processes, conditions and the many other variables in operation in the development of the kinds of problems which have been identified in children who are victims of sexual abuse.

When a child has been sexually abused, the non-offending parent and child may benefit from an intervention aimed at enhancing the parent child relationship. This mixed-methods study examined the process of child parent relationship therapy (CPRT) with non-offending parents of children who had been sexually abused. One purpose of the present study was to examine change in parent-child relationship, child behavior, and parent empathy of non-offending parents whose children have been sexually abused after participation in CPRT. A secondary purpose of this study was to explore subjective experiences of non-offending parents who participate in CPRT. Participants (N = 8) completed 11 weeks of CPRT in either Spanish speaking (n = 4) or English speaking (n = 4) groups. All participants completed pretest and posttest instruments including Child Behavior Checklist, Parenting Stress Index, and Measurement of Empathy in Adult-Child Interaction. Pretest and posttest means were reported but because of small sample size, only descriptive statistics are reported. Possible trends in pretest/posttest mean scores of the quantitative instruments are discussed. All participants also completed a post semi-structured interview to account for the experience of participants qualitatively. Analysis of the qualitative data revealed enhanced parent-child relationships, improved communication, greater acceptance, positive parental internal changes, positive behavioral changes in child, and positive changes in discipline.

published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Master / Master of Social Sciences

No description available.

The general purpose of this study was to duplicate research conducted by Beverley Joyce Miller Pitts, Ph.D., regarding the newswriting process of practicing journalists. (Future reference regarding this study will be termed the Pitts study.) In an effort to update previous research, this study sought to: review literature published between 1981 and 1987, update research conducted since 1981, support or disprove previous findings as documented in the Pitts study, and provide further research regarding the journalist's newswriting process. The study was conducted separately from previous research; thereby adopting an objective atmosphere in which research and data were obtained. The methodology and procedure of this study were replicated from the Pitts study to ensure consistency in research methods. All analyses, discussions, summaries, conclusions, observations, and recommendations, presented in this study, are based solely on data gathered during the research and presentation phases of this study.Although the Pitts study, 1981, consisted of protocol analysis case studies of three practicing journalists, the study contained herein focuses on the case study of one isolated journalist. As with the Pitts study, this study sought to gather data which describes the overall thought process as executed by a practicing journalist. The primary research tool utilized was protocol analysis. During taped sessions, these verbal protocols required the journalist to "think out loud" while composing the news story.Three protocol case studies were comprised. The first protocol session, the journalist was provided with a fact sheet from which to write. In the second and third protocol sessions, the journalist composed news stories based upon events covered on the daily beat. All three stories were composed on a video display terminal (VDT). The three protocol transcripts, follow-up interviews, reporter's notes, and the completed stories provided the data for analysis. These may be found in the Appendix. The coding scheme used in the Pitts study, which isolated and labeled activities of the newswriting process, was utilized; thus, deciphering the thought process evoked from the journalist when composing newsworthy articles.Journalist Kristi Stone, reporter for the Muncie Star, was selected to participate in this study.Findings indicated that the selection and writing of the lead was the most time-consuming task, that the writer wrote in a patterned sequence, that the writercomposed the story in small units, that goals, planning, and evaluations were short-term in nature, and that the writer created sentences as they were being typed into the VDT. In addition, the writer demonstrated recursiveness in her writing style, and had difficulty in composing stories when the newsgathering element was omitted.A major finding was that the task of writing the lead was the initial step in the writing process and had to be completed before any other writing could take place. The selection of the lead determined the direction of the story; thus, it was the most important act the writer performed. The story was organized as it was written, not planned in advance. The writer planned and wrote one sentence at a time incorporating a series of activities aimed at completing an immediate task. Editing was an important part of the writing process as well as a tool for refining. Memory was an important tool for obtaining information during the writing process. Recall was used for the purposes of remembering information from the newsgathering process, while notes provided the specific details of the incident. The newsgathering task was an integral part of the newswriting process, serving as a catalyst for the story's composition. Difficulty in writing occurred when the newsgathering process was omitted; thus, the newsgathering and newswriting tasks worked in unison and were so closely related they could not easily be separated.The findings documented in this research paper support the previous findings by Pitts conducted in her 1981 port the previous findings by study in that:the lead was the most important taskselection and writing of the lead took place first editing was an integral part of the writing process, not a separate act of refining memory served to recall overall story ideas and informationnotes provided a tool for obtaining specific pieces of informationwriters planned and wrote one sentence at a time by orchestrating a complex set of activities directed at completion of an immediate task.l1Beverly Joyce Miller Pitts, "The Newswriting Process: A Protocl Analysis Case Study of Three Practicing Journalists," Ed.D. Dissertation, Ball State University, pp. 2-3. / Department of Psychological Science

D.Litt. et Phil. / The sexual molestation of children is one of the most pressing problems of our times. Considering that as many as one in every four girls, and one in every ten boys are sexually victimized as children, the sexual molestation of children seems to be a common occurrence. Child sexual abuse results in emotional symptoms such as depression, low self esteem, sexual disfunction, impaired health, eating disorders and other emotional disturbances. The vast number of children being subjected to sexual molestation, as well as the cost in terms of human suffering, necessitates studies that focus on determining why certain individuals violate sexual boundaries with children. Mainstream theories and research to date only focus on the conscious functioning of men who sexually molest children. The focus is therefore only on the description of the outward manifestation of symptoms. Research to date does not succeed in describing the mechanisms or processes that culminate in the sexual molestation of children. This study represents a first step in addressing this void in the body of knowledge pertaining to men who sexually molest children. By means of a method of analysis, namely Medical Hypnoanalysis, the subconscious thought patterns of two males, which culminated in the molestation of children, were revealed, described and explained. The problem statement and purpose of the study, namely to reveal, describe and explain the dynamic development and course of the subconscious thought patterns which eventually culminated in the molestation of children, inspired a qualitative multiple case study as a research design. After an in-depth analysis of each individual case, the dynamic development and course of the subconscious thought patterns of the two cases were integrated with each other by means of a cross case analysis. The cross case analysis enabled the researcher to develop detailed explanations, better insight and theories pertaining to the subconscious thought patterns underlying the sexual molestation of children. The cross case analysis was integrated with the theory of Medical Hypnoanalysis to form a general psychological structure consisting of the dynamic development and course of the subconscious thought patterns of men who molest children. The general psychological structure was subsequently integrated with previous literature, which allowed for the development of new theory. This study has found that the absence of love, which was experienced since the prenatal period, and intensified throughout, resulted in the perception of worthlessness. The absence of love led to an insecurity with regards to the self and a feeling of spiritual emptiness, a death-like feeling. Without love a person cannot survive; without love life is just not worthwhile. The subconscious mind is genetically programmed to survive, and is therefore compelled to engineer ways to establish survival. For various reasons, sexual interaction became the proof to the two molesters in this study that they were loved, that they were worthy, and thus alive. Sexual interaction was therefore the way in which survival was established. For both molesters, sexual interaction developed into a compulsion. Their emotional and spiritual survival were threatened whenever they were deprived of sexual interaction. This led to severe anxiety, which was provided by the subconscious mind in order to compel the men to have sexual interaction, and survive. It is this compulsion, together with the fact that both respondents’ emotional development was arrested at an earlier age, which led to the sexual molestation of children. The study was concluded with recommendations to psychologists on how to treat men who molest children.

As the first exploratory qualitative study on child sexual abuse in the People's Republic of China, this study adopted system-individual-culture-gender-resilience perspectives under social constructionism approach using the family as the unit of study, and extended the research parameters beyond the individual child to other systems. The data was collected through ethnography, family and couple interviews, individual interviews with parents and the abused children, participant and part-participant observation by this researcher in a village in north-eastern China. Six families were selected for the study, each with a 10-year-old daughter who had been sexually abused by the same male teacher for two years, with the said teacher engaging in molestation, masturbation, oral sex, intercourse, etc. on the girls, two of whom were also known to have been physically abused. The researcher conducted the field study between eight and thirteen months after the disclosure (over a six-month period), and sought to understand the family experiences from seven aspects: the disclosure process, the family coping, traumatic experiences (including the abused and their family), the family relational process, the reactions from extra-familial systems, the healing process for the abused, and the need for professional support. / Results indicated that while the entire family was traumatically impacted, there were significant differences in reactions from male and female parents. In responding to "one of their own" being sexually exploited by an outsider, parents made concerted efforts in facing external ramifications, often at the expense of marginalizing the abused daughter and adding an extra burden on the whole family in healing from the trauma. Furthermore, parents were observed to become more protective in the process, providing physical care and material needs, and refraining from mentioning the trauma before the abused. As for emotional support, families varied in their coping at different stages in time. At the initial stage, parents seemed to be overshadowed by shame towards their daughter's loss of chastity. As time went by, they resumed their parenting routine, until eventually the adult-, sibling- and extended family relations constituted a circular impact that would in turn impact on the parent-child relations. The external systems, the family relational reality before disclosure, as well as family financial conditions combined could either facilitate or hinder the family system in seeking change. / The study further analyzed the systems and cultural mechanisms vis-a-vis the traumatic experience and family support, seeking to de-construct the chastity myth in the Chinese rural culture, as well as expert discourses in mainstream western research that focused on a psycho-pathological approach to study trauma. It further challenged the cultural practice of attributing blame to the individuals and their family, and provided recommendations to address the above-mentioned issues. / Western studies on the sexual abuse of children and the resulting trauma on the abused and their families have adopted primarily a psycho-pathological perspective. This has led to the tendency of blaming the victim, the mother and the family. Until now, comparative studies on this subject have not been carried out in a Chinese context. / 龍迪. / 論文(哲學博士)--香港中文大學, 2005. / 參考文獻(p. 464-487). / Adviser: Joyce Ma. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-07, Section: A, page: 2753. / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts also in English. / School code: 1307. / Lun wen (Zhe xue bo shi)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 2005. / Can kao wen xian (p. 464-487). / Long Di.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.