M.A. (Psychology) / Youth and children constitute seventy percent of the population in South Africa. It is these children who carry the potential for the future of our nation. They may be precluded from reaching their potential jf we do not urgently address the problems brought about by violence. Highly evident is the increased incidence of PTSD within the violence stricken communities in South Africa. PTSD among black youths is so high that it can be described as an epidemic. Due to the limited therapeutic resources available, it is imperative that a programme ofaction aimed atreducing the negative impact which PTSD has and continues to have on children is designed. Thus, following adiligent study of the literature, it was decided to train lay counsellors I volunteers in terms of a previously devised Cognitive Behavioural Group intervention formulated by Cowley, Hetz and Rosin (1994) in order to reach out to these children who have been so aversively affected by violence. Utilising the services of lay counsellors rather than professionals is cost effective and time effective. A large sample of PTSD positive subjects were selected from three different schools on the basis that they satisfied the DSM IV criteria for PTSD. The subjects participated in a six week intervention programme. A large number of lay counsellors were trained and selected to facilitate the intervention programme. The administration of the intervention by the lay counsellors did not alter the effectiveness of the Cognitive Behavioural intervention. The results obtained were in accordance with those obtained by Cowley et al.,(1994) in the paired sample tests which were deemed appropriate for this kind of research.

M.A. (Psychology) / The aim of the research conducted was to analyze and evaluate the prevalence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in emergency workers. A literature study was formulated in which PTSD, and comorbid symptoms of Anxiety, Depression, Stress and Burnout were defined. These are seen as secondary symptoms to the overall effect of PTSD. Data was collected through the use of psychometric tests. These were administered to two main groups. The experimental group reflected the results of the emergency medical worker, while the control group reflected thescores attained by the emergency worker. Both groups were made up of a sample of 30 individuals (n= 30) making the full total of persons studied 60 (n=60). To evaluate for any level of significant difference t-tests for independent groups were administered. Scores found to be significant were trait anxiety scores and burnout scores. All other scores were found to be nonsignificant in a comparison of the two' groups.

Text in Afrikaans / Aangesien depressie en angs hedendaags so 'n ingrypende invloed het op mense se lewens en hulle lewenskwaliteit, is daar 'n dringende behoefte aan 'n dinamiese, korttermyn en gerigte terapie om so gou as moontlik by die werklike onderliggende oorsake van die depressie en angs uit te kern. Hierdie studie het ten doel om die gebruik van hipnoterapie in die hantering van depressie en angs by adolessente en volwassenes te ondersoek. Tydens die studie word aangetoon dat die mediese hipnoanalise model 'n geskikte benadering is om as diagnostiese tegniek en terapeutiese intervensie, die oorsprong van depressie en angs aan te spreek. Emosionele probleme soos depressie en angs se oorsprong lê dikwels by foutiewe persepsies wat ontstaan tydens insidente in die kindertyd. Aangesien die persoon se breinprosesse in daardie stadium nag nie goed genoeg ontwikkel is om te besef dat die bedreiging verby is nie, word sulke persepsies nie verwyder nie. Elke persoon analiseer 'n nuwe stresvolle situasie of bedreiging vanuit sy persepsies en verwysingsraamwerk uit die verlede. Tydens 'n stresvolle insident is die depressie- en angslyer in die gewoonte om vanuit 'n depressiewe en angsvolle verwysingsraamwerk te dink en op te tree. Hierdie wyse van dink en optree is volgens sy onbewuste beter vir sy oorlewing van die stresvolle situasie, as wat denke en optrede vanuit 'n verwysingsraamwerk van die werklike onderliggende probleem sou wees. Die mediese hipnoanalise model is in staat om, tydens regressie, die ou foutiewe gedagtepatrone te verander deur die onderliggende gedagte, wat probleme veroorsaak, bloot te lê en te verwyder. Sodoende word die werklike onderliggende probleem blootgelê en verwyder. Die persoon word vry van foutiewe persepsies van die verlede en in staat om te dink en in die toekoms op te tree volgens die nuwe, akkurate persepsies. Deur hierdie meganismes, bewys mediese hipnoanalise homself as 'n geskikte terapeutiese ingreep om depressie en angs suksesvol aan te spreek. / In the light of the far-reaching effects that depression and anxiety have on the lives and the quality of people's lives, there is a need for a dynamic, short term and directed therapy in order to determine the real underlying causes of depression and anxiety as soon as possible. This study aims to examine the use of hypnotherapy in the treatment of depression and anxiety with adolescents and adults. During the course of this study, it is shown that the medical hypnoanalysis model is well suited as a diagnostic technique and therapeutic intervention for treating the origins of depression and anxiety. The origin of emotional problems like depression and anxiety, often lies in the faulty perceptions that have been formulated during childhood incidents. Since the brain processes are not yet as developed as they will become in adult life, the conscious mind does not realize that the threat ceased to exist, and can therefore not remove such perceptions. Each person analyses new stressful situations from the perspective of his own perceptions and the frame of reference of the past. A person suffering from depression and anxiety is in the habit of generating depressive and anxious ways of thinking and acting when confronted with a new stressful situation. The subconscious mind considers these ways of thinking and acting as the best way of surviving the stressful situation, better than ways of thinking and acting from the frame of reference of the underlying problem. The medical hypnoanalysis model can detect and remove the real underlying problem by regressing the person to the time of the incident, thus correcting the old patterns of thinking and acting. The person is freed from past false perceptions, and can think and act according to his new, corrected perceptions. Through use of these mechanisms, medical hypnoanalysis has shown itself to be well suited to the treatment of depression and anxiety. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Sielkundige Opvoedkunde)

Text in Afrikaans / Aangesien depressie en angs hedendaags so 'n ingrypende invloed het op mense se lewens en hulle lewenskwaliteit, is daar 'n dringende behoefte aan 'n dinamiese, korttermyn en gerigte terapie om so gou as moontlik by die werklike onderliggende oorsake van die depressie en angs uit te kern. Hierdie studie het ten doel om die gebruik van hipnoterapie in die hantering van depressie en angs by adolessente en volwassenes te ondersoek. Tydens die studie word aangetoon dat die mediese hipnoanalise model 'n geskikte benadering is om as diagnostiese tegniek en terapeutiese intervensie, die oorsprong van depressie en angs aan te spreek. Emosionele probleme soos depressie en angs se oorsprong lê dikwels by foutiewe persepsies wat ontstaan tydens insidente in die kindertyd. Aangesien die persoon se breinprosesse in daardie stadium nag nie goed genoeg ontwikkel is om te besef dat die bedreiging verby is nie, word sulke persepsies nie verwyder nie. Elke persoon analiseer 'n nuwe stresvolle situasie of bedreiging vanuit sy persepsies en verwysingsraamwerk uit die verlede. Tydens 'n stresvolle insident is die depressie- en angslyer in die gewoonte om vanuit 'n depressiewe en angsvolle verwysingsraamwerk te dink en op te tree. Hierdie wyse van dink en optree is volgens sy onbewuste beter vir sy oorlewing van die stresvolle situasie, as wat denke en optrede vanuit 'n verwysingsraamwerk van die werklike onderliggende probleem sou wees. Die mediese hipnoanalise model is in staat om, tydens regressie, die ou foutiewe gedagtepatrone te verander deur die onderliggende gedagte, wat probleme veroorsaak, bloot te lê en te verwyder. Sodoende word die werklike onderliggende probleem blootgelê en verwyder. Die persoon word vry van foutiewe persepsies van die verlede en in staat om te dink en in die toekoms op te tree volgens die nuwe, akkurate persepsies. Deur hierdie meganismes, bewys mediese hipnoanalise homself as 'n geskikte terapeutiese ingreep om depressie en angs suksesvol aan te spreek. / In the light of the far-reaching effects that depression and anxiety have on the lives and the quality of people's lives, there is a need for a dynamic, short term and directed therapy in order to determine the real underlying causes of depression and anxiety as soon as possible. This study aims to examine the use of hypnotherapy in the treatment of depression and anxiety with adolescents and adults. During the course of this study, it is shown that the medical hypnoanalysis model is well suited as a diagnostic technique and therapeutic intervention for treating the origins of depression and anxiety. The origin of emotional problems like depression and anxiety, often lies in the faulty perceptions that have been formulated during childhood incidents. Since the brain processes are not yet as developed as they will become in adult life, the conscious mind does not realize that the threat ceased to exist, and can therefore not remove such perceptions. Each person analyses new stressful situations from the perspective of his own perceptions and the frame of reference of the past. A person suffering from depression and anxiety is in the habit of generating depressive and anxious ways of thinking and acting when confronted with a new stressful situation. The subconscious mind considers these ways of thinking and acting as the best way of surviving the stressful situation, better than ways of thinking and acting from the frame of reference of the underlying problem. The medical hypnoanalysis model can detect and remove the real underlying problem by regressing the person to the time of the incident, thus correcting the old patterns of thinking and acting. The person is freed from past false perceptions, and can think and act according to his new, corrected perceptions. Through use of these mechanisms, medical hypnoanalysis has shown itself to be well suited to the treatment of depression and anxiety. / Psychology of Education / D. Ed. (Sielkundige Opvoedkunde)

M.A. / This study looks into the types of stressors specific to the Emergency Medical Services. The study was undertaken over a period of two years with the following objectives: • A literature survey regarding stress, organisational stress in general and stress in the context of Emergency Medical Services in particular. • An investigation of the personnel of the Emergency Medical Services to ascertain the stressors perceived as stressful by them. • Recommendations on how to prevent or lower stress in the Emergency Medical Services. The first part of this study is devoted to a theoretical investigation which gives an overview of stress in its broadest sense as well as stress in organisations which includes cumulative stress/burnout. Critical Incident Stress and Post Traumatic Stress are also closely examined, as well as the personality characteristics of members of the Emergency Medical Services. The point of departure for the researcher is an ecosystemic perspective where objectivity itself is questionable. Therefore, qualitative research was called for and the transactional/interactional model of Richard Lazarus was used to categorise stressors. The research results suggest that what the Emergency Medical Service personnel perceive as stressful are mainly organisational stressors but they acknowledge that in the long term the continual dealing with death and trauma starts to take its toll. Criticisms that could be levelled against the study are that the results are only generalisable to the personnel of the Johannesburg Emergency Services, whose demographic characteristics and backgrounds differ, for instance, from those who work at Bryanston, or Pretoria. As the study relied solely on personal disclosure and observation the results can be seen as somewhat subjective in nature. What was communicated as stress-related events was what was perceived as stressful by the personnel as well as the researcher's subjective perception of whether certain events were perceived as stressful for the personnel. After working on the ambulance with these personnel for over three years, the researcher is an accepted part of their system, and became subject to the same blunting of affect and depersonalisation of victims as the Emergency workers. Over an extended period in time, it became harder to divorce the researcher from the "worker" while on duty, to maintain a scientific perspective and to write objectively. However, the findings of this study concur with those done by previous researchers on this subject such as Sparrius (1992) and Du Toit & Botes (1996).

In the financial industry, there is a high demand for employees to possess all the necessary skills and motivation to perform highly specialized functions, and handle demands that accompany increasing stress levels. The aim of the research was to determine whether there is a relationship between work and non-work stressors and work-life balance in the Global Market Trading industry. A cross-sectional survey design was used, with a sample of 72 global market trading professionals drawn from a financial institution in Gauteng. Two questionnaires and a biographical questionnaire were administered. The questionnaires proved to be reliable. The power of the study was calculated. Descriptive statistics and Spearman correlation was used to organise, summarise and describe the data. The findings of the study show that as global market trading professional’s intrinsic factors at work and stress regarding their personal time increases, their experience of negative WHI increase as well. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.Com. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology )

In the financial industry, there is a high demand for employees to possess all the necessary skills and motivation to perform highly specialized functions, and handle demands that accompany increasing stress levels. The aim of the research was to determine whether there is a relationship between work and non-work stressors and work-life balance in the Global Market Trading industry. A cross-sectional survey design was used, with a sample of 72 global market trading professionals drawn from a financial institution in Gauteng. Two questionnaires and a biographical questionnaire were administered. The questionnaires proved to be reliable. The power of the study was calculated. Descriptive statistics and Spearman correlation was used to organise, summarise and describe the data. The findings of the study show that as global market trading professional’s intrinsic factors at work and stress regarding their personal time increases, their experience of negative WHI increase as well. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.Com. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology )

Changing trends within the mental health system treatment practices demand exploration of the cultural context of assessment and treatment of Black/African Americans. Culturally competent assessments include a realistic integration of historical context. Clinicians counseling Black/African Americans must be prepared to assess and address PTSD, racial trauma, micro-aggressions, and other known (or unknown) issues that may affect Black/African Americans. In addition, clinicians must be prepared for the depth and permanence of race-based stress and trauma, as well as the idea that said stress and trauma can result from unaddressed environmental, familial, and/or individual factors. The purpose of this study is to explore cultural competence in the practices of clinicians working with Black/African Americans clients as it relates to assessment, treatment and engagement. Through the exploration of current multicultural counseling and assessment trends, the study explores the origins of stress and trauma in American descendents of African slaves, and proposes an evaluation of clinicians' mental health assessment for PTSD with said clients based on those implications. Exploring to what extent a culturally-proficient clinician engages Black/African Americans clients from initial through on-going assessment and treatment process in conjunction with the professional literature on treatment practices, research suggests that Black/African American clients do suffer from intergenerational trauma and are often mis- or under-diagnosed for mental health issues. With proper assessment of Black/African Americans, the reduction of misdiagnosed or under diagnosed cases of Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as well as other mental health conditions will occur. / Graduation date: 2012