Despite legal and policy advancements in South Africa, prejudice, discrimination and victimisation are still a reality for many lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) people in the country. The Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA) has embarked on a process to develop lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) affirmative practice guidelines for psychology professionals, when working with these client populations. As a part of the larger objective, this research study highlights LGB people’s experiences of psychotherapy and counselling in South Africa as possible inputs for the mentioned practice guidelines. Qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with selected participants. The results indicate that some aspects of LGB people’s experiences are similar to those of anyone in psychotherapy or counselling, but also that there are distinct differences. Negative experiences were almost exclusively due to the counsellor being disaffirming of the client's sexual orientation. Self-acceptance and the development of alternative perspectives of sexuality were more prominent outcomes of counselling compared to studies among broader populations. The participants’ feedback on a list of affirmative statements provides a potential basis for future affirmative practice guidelines. / Psychology / M. A. (Clinical Psychology)

Cette recherche s’intéresse aux interventions sociales axées sur les droits humains. Depuis le début du 21e siècle, différentes actrices allient intervention sociale et pratiques axées sur les droits humains. Ces pratiques sont mises de l’avant dans différents contextes d’intervention avec des populations dont les droits sont bafoués (Albrithen et Androff, 2014 ; Berthold, 2015 ; Briskman et Cemlyn, 2005 ; Cemlyn, 2008 ; Engle Merry, 2006 ; Hessle, 2014 ; Ife, 2008 ; Mapp, 2014 ; Reichert, 2011). Les femmes violentées et les personnes en situation migratoire précaire au Canada voient l’exercice de leurs droits humains affectés à plusieurs égards. Les interventions axées sur les droits humains présentent un potentiel pour favoriser l’exercice des droits de certaines d’entre elles (voir, par exemple, Critelli, 2010 ; Morgaine, 2009 ; Chammas, 2016). À l’aide de modèles conceptuels existants, la présente recherche vise à comprendre comment l’approche axée sur les droits humains est utilisée dans l’intervention sociale avec des femmes violentées en situation migratoire précaire. Elle se concentre sur l’étude de quatre moments de l’intervention, soit l’évaluation et l’analyse de la situation, la planification de l’intervention, la mise en œuvre de l’intervention, et l’évaluation de l’intervention. Pour arriver à ces fins, une recherche qualitative exploratoire a été menée. Des entrevues ont été conduites avec 25 intervenantes sociales ayant une expérience pertinente de l’intervention axée sur les droits avec des femmes violentées en situation migratoire précaire. Ces entrevues ont permis le recueil d’informations sur la perception et la pratique des intervenantes quant à l’approche axée sur les droits humains avec cette population. Le contenu de ces entrevues a été analysé notamment à partir d’un modèle de pratique professionnelle développé par McPherson (2015) et des propositions théoriques de Schmitz (2012) en matière d’interventions axées sur les droits humains. L’analyse effectuée dégage un portrait nuancé de la pratique à chaque moment de l’intervention. Elle identifie les éléments conceptuels retenus qui sont présents dans les interventions rapportées, ainsi que ceux qui en sont absents. Elle met également en évidence les limites à l’utilisation de l’approche d’intervention axée sur les droits humains, telles que dégagées par les intervenantes elles-mêmes, et par l’analyse de leurs propos. Cette thèse propose ensuite des pistes pour développer la compréhension et l’utilisation de cette approche, afin d’aider les intervenantes actives sur le terrain à respecter, protéger et promouvoir les droits humains des femmes vivant ces situations particulièrement complexes. À partir des constats dressés, cette thèse propose un nouveau modèle de pratique professionnelle axée sur les droits humains. Ce modèle est conçu pour guider la pratique et est formulé notamment en réponse aux préoccupations soulevées par les intervenantes. Il met en évidence la place des principes de droits humains dans la pratique axée sur ces droits, et détaille les composantes essentielles de chaque moment d’une telle intervention. / This research engages human rights-based practice in social interventions. In recent years, different people have started combining social work and human rights-based practice. These practices are put forward in various contexts with populations whose rights are violated (Albrithen and Androff, 2014; Berthold, 2015; Briskman et Cemlyn, 2005; Cemlyn, 2008; Engle Merry, 2006; Hessle, 2014; Ife, 2008; Mapp, 2014; Reichert, 2011). Abused women and individuals with precarious immigration status in Canada encounter barriers in the exercise of their human rights. Human rights-based interventions have the potential to foster the exercise of these rights for some of these people (see, for example, Critelli, 2010; Morgaine, 2009; Chammas, 2016). Drawing on existing conceptual models, this research seeks to understand how the human rights-based approach is used in social intervention with abused women with precarious immigration status. It focuses on the study of four moments in the intervention: the evaluation and analysis of the situation, the planning of the intervention, the implementation of the intervention, and its evaluation. To this end, an exploratory qualitative research was carried out. Interviews were conducted with 25 caseworkers with a pertinent experience of human rights-based intervention with abused women with precarious immigration status. These interviews enabled the gathering of information on the perception and practice of caseworkers regarding the human rights-based practice with this population. The content of these interviews was analyzed based on a model of professional practice developed by McPherson (2015) and theoretical propositions by Schmitz (2012) regarding human rights-based approaches. This analysis paints a nuanced portrait of practice at each moment of the intervention. It identifies the elements of the chosen model that are present in the reported interventions, as well as the elements that are absent. The analysis highlights the limits of using this approach, as described by the caseworkers themselves, and put forward by the analysis of their discourse. This dissertation then suggests pathways for developing the understanding and use of this approach, where limits have been identified, in order to help caseworkers to respect, protect and promote the human rights of women living these particularly complex situations. Building on these analyses, this dissertation proposes a new model of professional human rights-based practice. This model is conceived as a guide for practice, and it is formulated in response to preoccupations identified by caseworkers. It highlights the place occupied by human rights principles in human rights-based practice, and it details the essential components of each moment of such an intervention.

Peroutková, P.: Art as a Social Intervention. [Diploma thesis] Prague 2014 - Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Education, Department of Art education, 99 s. (Attachment: cd with video-documentation) This work is a theoretical study of art as a social intervention with an application on a didactic project in art education. Firstly, it outlines the underlying issues linked to social interventions, especially to participatory art. Secondly, these issues are subsequently examined on diverse approaches on both Czech and international art scenes after 1990. They are connected by the common subject of food, which appears in socially engaged art projects across the whole range of different approaches and strategies. Further, it points to the connection of examined strategies and teaching activities. The phenomenon of art as a social intevention is also used as the main theme in a didactic project implemented in art education, in grammar school and on an author's project.

Globally, twenty-seven countries have resettlement programs associated with UNHCR - representing commitments to the international refugee framework and domestic commitments to those refugees resettled. Since 1975, the US has resettled over three million refugees, including over 75,000 Bhutanese refugees since 2008 - more than all other countries combined on both accounts. The US Office of Refugee Resettlement has the mandate to 'make available sufficient resources for employment training and placement in order to achieve economic self-sufficiency among refugees as quickly as possible' (The Refugee Act of 1980). Nevertheless, their economic self-sufficiency and the intertwined ideas of employment and wellbeing remain little examined. A global systematic review of available high-quality evidence examined whether interventions affect resettled refugees' economic self-sufficiency and wellbeing. Although 9,260 citations were reviewed from a wide variety of academic, policy, and grey literature, no studies met inclusion criteria. This Campbell-registered systematic review concludes that evidence is insufficient to determine if programs affect resettled refugees' economic self-sufficiency and wellbeing. Subsequently, qualitative research explored existing interventions to improve the economic self-sufficiency of resettled refugees, their theories of change, and perceptions of effectiveness in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Program design follows a policy mandate and expects that initial employment leads to sustained self-sufficiency and wellbeing, albeit without measuring these outcomes or providing long-term assistance. The findings serve as a basis for future research and reveal programming implications for the Bhutanese refugee community in Pittsburgh and broadly for refugee resettlement. Next, a cross-sectional survey of 145 randomly selected Bhutanese refugees in Pittsburgh (a response rate of 92.9%) was conducted to provide groundbreaking demographics, rates of economic self-sufficiency, and correlates with improved outcomes. The population was overwhelmingly low-income with high usage of certain assistance such as food assistance. Both bivariate relationships and predictive models for employment, gross income, wages, assistance usage, and having 'enough' money to pay the bills were examined. Overall, these paint a complex picture, including the potential importance of neighborhoods, household size, and religious affiliation as well as a more typical picture of the importance of gender, education levels, and time in the country for certain measures of employment, earnings, and household self-sufficiency. The evidence-based perspective on the economic self-sufficiency of resettled refugees shows that little is known globally, including the potential for interventions to cause harm or success. Understanding the employment services and perspectives of economic self-sufficiency and wellbeing for the Bhutanese population provides a lens to view not only the challenges and successes of this population, but also national and international obligations. As one focus group participant stated, 'Government should understand the nature of the refugees arriving and put us with jobs that ... allow the life to sustain.'

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