The two most significant domains in the lives of employed individuals are work and home, which can influence each other in both a negative and a positive way. However, there has been a lack of empirical research investigating the positive interaction between the work and home domains, as well as the possible antecedents and outcomes associated with it, including job resources and work engagement. The objectives of this study were to test a structural model that includes job resources, positive work-home interaction (WHI) and work engagement, and to determine the mediating role of positive WHI in the relationship between job resources and work engagement for police officers in the North West Province. A cross-sectional survey design was used. Random samples (n = 468) were taken of employees in the South African Police Service in the North West Province. The Job Demands-Resources Scale, the positive WHI scale of the Survey Work-Home Interaction - Nijmegen (SWING) and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) were administered. Structural equation modelling showed that people who receive sufficient job resources (including organisational support, possibilities for advancement, growth opportunities and contact with colleagues) experience positive WHI that leads to work engagement. In addition, job resources help to enhance work engagement. These results provided evidence for the partial mediating role of positive work-home interaction in the relationship between job resources and work engagement. Recommendations were made for the organisation and for future research. / Thesis (M.Com. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Background: As a result of the restructuring of the South African Police Service (SAPS) in 1996 and various other factors, Police Social Work Services decided to broaden the scope of its services by developing and introducing proactive, personnel capacity building programmes. By 1999, 15 such programmes were developed. The need subsequently arose for a comprehensive impact assessment of these programmes and the Evaluation of Personnel Capacity Building Programmes (EPCBP) study was launched in 2001. The evaluation of the HIV and AIDS Awareness programme formed part of this research. Objectives: The primary aim of the study was to determine the effect of the HIV and AIDS Awareness Programme on SAPS personnel's knowledge, attitude and behaviour. Procedure: In the research, the comparison group pre-test and post- test design and triangulation were used. Six measurement scales and a presenter's evaluation questionnaire were developed and completed by 261 experimental group respondents, 51 comparison group members and 24 presenters. Results: Through the triangulation of measurements it was determined that the HIV and AIDS Awareness programme had a practical significant effect on the respondents knowledge, attitude and behaviour. It was thus an effective tool in the hands of Police Social Work Service that not only empowered SAPS personnel to lead more healthy professional lives, but one that also enhanced their personal well-being. / Thesis (M.A. (MW))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

The South African service (SAPS) has a reputation for being resilient despite the amounts of trauma they are exposed to. Research has shown that this occupation is one of the most stressful. However, research surrounding the SAPS suggests that police work is one of society’s most stressful occupations. The way in which individuals respond to such traumatisations is dependent on numerous factors, two being personality and coping. In so far, this study investigated three main areas around police reservists – a unit within the SAPS - in order to understand their responses to trauma: whether personality factors were related to post-traumatic stress symptomatology (PTSS) in the police reservist population; whether coping moderated the relationship between personality factors and PTSS; whether a personality factors predict coping style. A quantitative analysis was conducted among a sample of 36 reservists in the Gauteng area of South Africa. This study found that the relationship between Neuroticism and PTSS is mediated by coping, specifically Emotion-Focused and Dysfunctional Coping styles. A relationship between Conscientiousness and PTSS showed to be prevalent, however this is not due to the mediation affect of coping. Furthermore, Neuroticism and Extraversion showed to predict coping style. Specifically, Neuroticism showed to affect EFC and DC and Extraversion showed to affect EFC. The descriptive statistics showed that this sample of police reservists is suffering from PTSD. Implications of these findings are discussed and directions for future research are explored.

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. February 2016 / South Africa is regarded as one of the most violent countries in the world. Colonialism and apartheid laid the foundations for a divided and segregated society where violence was accepted as a legitimate means of conflict resolution in order to ensure the domination of one racial group over all other groups. As social and economic inequalities have become more entrenched in South African society, criminal violence has escalated. However, the nature of violence in the country has changed from political violence to criminal violence. Against this backdrop of violence and associated trauma, the South African Police have the insurmountable task of trying to maintain law and order. The science of traumatology is a burgeoning field; traditionally empirical research has focused on the responses of primary trauma victims. However, in recent decades the secondary effects of traumatisation on those who counsel the victims of primary trauma, has received significant attention. Located within the South African Police Service, is an often forgotten secondary group of professionals who assist the police officials through assuming the roles of occupational and forensic social work. The profession of social work is inherently stressful and demanding, especially in a country like South Africa, where social problems are ubiquitous and pervade every facet of South African society. Furthermore, a particular occupational stressor significantly impacting on these social workers as they investigate child abuse or provide counselling for a police officer, is secondary traumatisation. The questions arise: firstly, how these social workers are affected by the amount of traumatic material to which they are exposed by the very nature of their work, and secondly, what coping strategies they employ. It was therefore deemed imperative to explore the effects of secondary traumatisation experienced by these social workers in the South African Police Service in order to understand and ameliorate the negative effects of secondary traumatic stress. Furthermore, social work supervisors can enhance the quality of care their social workers provide to clients if they are adequately supported. It was therefore also considered necessary to explore the stressors these social workers experience and to identify the necessary support mechanisms appropriate to such therapeutic endeavors. The primary aim of this study was therefore to explore the nature and extent of secondary traumatic stress experienced by social workers employed by the South African Police Service. The research design adopted for this study was exploratory, descriptive and correlational, while the research methodology employed was a hybrid of both quantitative and qualitative paradigms. As this study involved an in-depth analysis of a bounded system comprising social workers employed at SAPS, the research was considered a case study. The study comprised two phases: In the first phase questionnaire booklets containing seven standardised research tools and open-ended questions, were administered in group settings. In addition, questionnaires were posted to social workers who were not able to attend the group meetings along with a self-addressed envelope. The research tools measured the nature of secondary trauma exposure, levels of secondary traumatic stress, vicarious trauma, compassion satisfaction, burnout, coping resources and dimensions of the work environment. Two hundred questionnaire booklets were distributed and 128 usable questionnaires were returned. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the quantitative data, through the use of statistical programmes, SAS and SPSS. In the second stage of the study, 30 participants who participated in the first part of the study and who indicated that they were willing to be interviewed, were purposively selected. A structured research tool was used to guide the interview in order to explore the participants’ perceptions and experiences of secondary trauma while working for SAPS. The interviews were conducted either face-to face, telephonically or through Skype. The qualitative data that emerged from the interviews were analysed through the use of Atlasti, a qualitative computer programme, which assisted the researcher in the thematic analysis. Through the process of incorporating qualitative techniques, the researcher also made use of reflexivity when analysing the qualitative data. In total 128 social workers participated in the study, of whom 102 were occupational social workers while 26 were forensic social workers, all located within South Africa. The extent of exposure to secondary trauma varied substantially between both occupational and forensic social work when considered as separate divisions, as well as within each discipline. This variation manifested in frequencies and duration of cases. In the interviews forensic social workers identified particularly traumatic cases as those where the sexual abuse was severe or the child had died as a result of extreme abuse. In comparison, occupational social workers identified some of the worst cases they had dealt with as cases where the police officers became disabled; and where they were required to deal with police suicides and police family murders or femicide-suicides. Most participants presented with high or average levels of secondary traumatic stress and vicarious trauma as well as with moderate and low levels of burnout. Furthermore, there was a strong positive correlation between levels of secondary traumatic stress and burnout. The majority of participants experienced average levels of compassion satisfaction from their work. Participants identified various coping strategies and resources incorporating different individual dimensions, namely, physical, emotional, cognitive, social and spiritual. Participants showed high levels of resilience and findings indicated that resilience was negatively correlated with vicarious trauma. There were numerous significant differences between the different ranks of the participants. Participants of higher rank reported greater trauma exposure and had significantly higher secondary traumatic scores. Coloured participants experienced significantly lower levels of vicarious traumatisation than Black participants. Furthermore, there were numerous statistically significant differences apparent between the forensic and occupational social workers. Forensic social workers manifested significantly higher levels of vicarious trauma than occupational social workers, and forensic social workers had greater distortions regarding self-intimacy than occupational social workers. In addition, forensic social workers presented with lower coping resources and lower levels of resilience than occupational social workers. Participants also experienced below average levels of satisfaction within the work environment at SAPS. The results from the work environment scale showed that in particular the relationship aspects in the work environment were problematic and that colleague support levels were below average. There were also significant differences in work satisfaction levels between Black and White participants. These findings enhance understanding of trauma in racially polarised societies. Multivariate analysis revealed the complex relationships existing between the numerous variables in the study, further contributing to the theory of trauma in divided societies. Two structural equation models were developed to show the relationships of the variables measured in the study which were identical apart from the vicarious trauma variable which was separated to incorporate beliefs about self and beliefs about others. The models revealed that coping mechanisms moderated the relationship between traumatic stress exposure and vicarious trauma (self) and that such mechanisms moderated the resilience and burnout relationship. These findings of the study highlight the need to involve social workers at SAPS in the drafting and implementation of a self-care policy which would help to promote empowerment and responsibility of social workers for their own mental health. Recommendations for social work policy, education, practice, supervision and support as well as future research are also provided. / MT2017

Masters in Public Administration - MPA / The Beginning of the paradigm shift in policing in the South African Police was first seen in 1993 when the concept of Community Policing was first introduced. The South African Police Service that was formed through the Police Act 68 of 1995 subsequently adopted Community Policing as a Corporate Strategy of the organisation. There is a question as to whether some of the efforts reflect the necessary elements of community policing or are merely reactions to a contemporary political thrust for police reform. This study seeks to critically analyse the challenges and contradictions in Community Policing in terms of strategy and organisation. Nyanga SAPS will be use as the case study. Nyanga is one of the Police Stations in the so-called Black Township that has been engulfed by Community-Police conflicts since the democratic dispensation came into existence in South Africa. The highest point of this animosity saw certain people within the community between 1998 and 1999 reporting criminal activities to Taxi Operators rather than to the police. This study will be approached through gap analysis. The author will first describe the desired state of affairs in terms where the SAPS should be, in relation to reform policies put in place by the government. This will be followed by the analysis of the present situation in Nyanga, which will highlight the shortcomings. Then the study will put forward recommendations which should address the identified shortcomings. Based on that, the strategy that should inform policing in the new millennium will be developed. The author will recommend an African approach to policing as it has become apparent that the policing approaches are different for different countries and different communities. The author will propose full participation of the public in policing, in terms of determining policing priorities in their areas.

Thesis (M.A. (MW))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

Thesis (Ph. D.(Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 209-226).

(MTech. degree in Policing) / Focuses on how to improve poor service delivery at the Galeshewe Community Service Centre.

Background: As a result of the restructuring of the South African Police Service (SAPS) in 1996 and various other factors, Police Social Work Services decided to broaden the scope of its services by developing and introducing proactive, personnel capacity building programmes. By 1999,15 such programmes were developed. The need subsequently arose for a comprehensive impact assessment of these programmes and the Evaluation of Personnel Capacity Building Programmes (EKBP) study was launched in 2001. The evaluation of the Managing Stress Effectively programme formed part of this research. Objectives: The primary aim of the study was to determine the effect of the Managing Stress Effectively Programme on SAPS personnel's knowledge, attitude and behaviour. Method: In the research, the comparison group pretest and posttest design and triangulation were used. Six measurement scales and a presenter's evaluation questionnaire were developed and completed by 327 experimental group respondents, 57 comparison group members and 32 presenters. Results: Through the triangulation of measurements it was determined that the Managing Stress Effectively programme had a practical significant effect on the respondent's knowledge, attitude and behaviour. It was thus an effective tool in the hands of Police Social Work Service that not only empowered SAPS personnel to lead more productive professional lives, but one that also enhanced their personal well-being. / Thesis (M.A. (MW))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

To effectively consult with the community, police managers should have a good understanding of what the public thinks that the police currently do and what they would prefer the police to do. Citizen satisfaction is jointly used with job satisfaction, job stress, the possibility of burnout and work engagement within the police as a performance measure of police-citizen encounters. The objectives of this study were to determine the expectations and satisfaction of the community and the police as well as the congruence between the community's expectations and the police's perceptions regarding policing in the Klerksdorp area of the North West Province. A further objective was to determine if there were any differences between Afrikaans-, English- and Tswana- speaking members of the community. The relationship between job satisfaction, stress, burnout and engagement of police members was also investigated. A cross-sectional survey design was used. The study population (N = 597) includes samples of uniformed police personnel in the Klerksdorp area (n = 109), as well as a sample of the community (n = 488). Two different measuring batteries were compiled, the one for community members consisted mainly of the Public Attitude survey (PAS), and the one for police members of the Public Attitude Survey (PAS), Job Satisfaction Survey (MSQ), Police Stress Survey (PSS), Maslach Burnout Inventory - General Survey (MBI-GS) and Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. The results indicate that both the SAPS and the community perceive the present and preferred priorities of the police to be the investigation of crime, with the exception that the public expect the police to make the giving of advice a higher priority. Correlations were found between police members' intrinsic job satisfaction, and extrinsic job satisfaction and professional efficacy; police stressors and exhaustion; and between the dimensions of engagement. It appears that the community experienced the SAPS as neat and respectful but not really trustworthy. Accordingly, the police do not truly trust the community to co-operate with them. Recommendations for future research were made. / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.