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

Thesis (M.A.)--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Humanities, 2012 / The primary aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between binge eating disorder and personality traits. Studying personality characteristics may eventually enable us to identify individuals at heightened risk for developing binge eating, and to use this information to design more effective prevention and early intervention strategies. 138 females and 42 males participated in this study. Questionnaires using the EDI, EAT-26 and 16PF as well as an interview schedule were adopted for the study. Results revealed that there appeared to be a significant positive relationship between the EAT-26 and factor O (apprehension-self assured) and factor Q 4(tension-relaxed). There appears to be a significant positive relationship between the EDI and factor I (sensitive versus tough minded), factor L (suspicious versus accepting), factor O (insecure versus complacent) and factor Q4 (tense versus relaxed and easy going). Factor O (apprehension-self assured) appears to predict the scores obtained on the EAT-26 and the propensity to develop binge eating disorder. Factor O (insecure versus complacent) and Q4 (tense versus relaxed) were able to predict the scores on the EDI and the propensity to develop binge eating disorder. Secondary aims of the study revealed that there appears to be a relationship between body image disturbance and the total EAT-26 and EDI scores respectively. This means that participants scoring high on the body dissatisfaction subscale of the EDI will also score higher on the EAT-26 total. There appeared to be a positive relationship between gender of the participants and the total scores of the EAT-26 and EDI respectively. There were 2 interviews carried and the results of the interviews reinforced the quantitative data and previous research on binge eating disorder (Belangee et al, 2003) that personality traits are link to the development of binge eating disorder.

The Rosenbaum Self Control Schedule is a self-report instrument developed to assess individual tendencies to apply self-control methods to the solution of behavioral problems. Tested on Hebrews and English-speaking Americans, it was found to transfer easily from one situation to the other. When administered in a battery of self-report questionnaires to South African university students it was found that while means of the total sample were similar to those reported overseas, the means of black and white students within the sample were significantly different from each other, with black students having higher self-control scores than the white students in the study and higher than those reported in previous studies. The study was repeated in this research project using a larger group of black students. The finding of significantly higher self-control scores was replicated. This finding was not due to response set, either acquiescence or social desirability, although black subjects were found to be more subject to social desirability response set. Distributions of the samples showed a group of low scoring white subjects for which there was no equal in the black sample. The findings suggest that black university students in South Africa have high levels of learned resoursefulness. This may be due to a selection process reflecting the relative difficulty with which black students reach university level - difficulties relating to student unrest, educational and financial limitations and economic and social drawbacks so that only those students with moderate to exceptional levels of problem solving stategy skills do succeed. Such individuals should be good candidates for cognitive therapies. Item and factor analyses showed the SCS to be psychometrically adequate for the white group but were much less conclusive for the black sample. In this group, a lower Cronbach's alpha was obtained and the factor analysis was less clear.

Considering the escalating rate of suicidal behaviour in adolescents, not much is known about the risk and protective factors that mediate non-fatal suicidal behaviour among this group. This study has focused on exploring the subjective worlds of Indian adolescents who have engaged in non-fatal suicidal behaviour in order to identify such factors, which are crucial in the designing of effective intervention programmes. The sample consisted of 10 adolescent patients who were admitted to R.K. Khan Hospital in Chatsworth, Durban after non-fatal suicide attempts. The emergent risk and protective factors were conceptualised according to Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) Social Ecology Theory, which facilitated an understanding of the multiple levels of risk and protective factors that mediate NFSB in adolescents. The results of this study highlight the collective influences of individual, familial, cultural and societal factors on adolescents’ decisions to engage in non-fatal suicidal behaviour. A number of clear priorities for prevention programmes emerged from the results of this study. As such, recommendations were made to facilitate prevention and intervention programmes at a site, familial, peer and community level. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2008.

M.Cur. (Nursing Education) / Within the formal teaching context of a nursing college it is essential that accountable basic professional preparation be offered to provide a comprehensive and fruitful feeding ground for the adolescent student nurse's development into an independent, professional practitioner with specific personal attributes. In her quest for knowledge and development the young, inexperienced nurse has a need for support. Meaningful support implies a concerted effort and involvement with the student on the part of the support givers. At a nursing college, from within a nursing didactic perspective, the support givers should focus on the nursing student as a unique individual in her totality. Opportunities should therefore be available and accessible, so that the student nurse can achieve professional growth and personal self-realization. Furthermore she should be able to assert herself in both these roles. It is therefore essential to achieve a balance between the demands of nurse training and a full and rich personal life. It is the untiring support received by the student nurse that enables her to develop a sound attitude to life and the human nature. This boosts her morale and promotes the development of skills in interpersonal relationships. Research was conducted at a Transvaal nursing college with nine affiliated hospitals. The purpose of the study was to assess the need of student nurses for support from within a nursing didactic perspective and to establish certain guidelines for the implementation of a support system at a nursing college. With the aid of a questionnaire, a descriptive and searching survey was undertaken amongst first and third-year student nurses. A data analysis revealed that student nurses do experience a need for a support system. The planning, organisation and implementation of such a system at a nursing college should however be co-ordinated in a team context by all support givers. Clear guidelines with specific goals have been formulated for the implementation of such a support system.

M.A. (Psychology) / The aim of this study is the development of a career program to promote career maturity in standard eight pupils. In order to achieve the aim of the study a development research model was conceptualised. The model is based on Thomas (1984) four-phase model and consists of the following phases: analysis, design, implementation and evaluation phases. In each of these phases a number of methodologies were conducted to meet the requirements of each phase. In the design phase a deviation was made from Thomas (1984) methodology and the methodologies used by Nel and Nel (1992) was implemented to fit the needs of the study. In the first phase the analysis phase a problem was identified and analyzed by using qualitative and quantitative analysis. In the design phase a practice model was conceptualised which serves as an explication model within which the contents' of the career maturity program could be justified. Out of this explication model and theoretical framework the contents of the programme was determined. In the implementation phase of the research model the program was applied and monitoring evaluation was done by the researcher. The implementing of the programme resulted in a number of modifications of the programme because of certain problems that were picked up by the researcher. The evaluation of the programme fell mainly on monitoring evaluation that was done by the researcher in the implementing of the program. The main finding of the research was that the program does promote career maturity in standard eight pupils but it is necessary to do further research on the impact evaluation of the programme.

D.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

In order to continue their contribution to the profession of psychology in South Africa the selection committees of psychology departments of higher education institutions are faced with the difficult task of selecting the most suitable candidates to fill their Clinical, Counselling, Educational and Industrial Psychology masters coursework programmes. Selection committees have traditionally made use of several admission criteria and procedures ranging from academic performance to personality assessment to a combination of methods. Admission criteria vary greatly across Higher Education Institutions. The selection committee at the selected participating institution of higher education takes into account the prospective students' academic performance, relevant work or practical experience, research experience, active participation in the classroom, active involvement outside of the classroom (participation in and engagement with community activities), and personality. Currently the institution of higher education that provided the sample for the current study employs the NEO PI-R as well as the MMPI-2 to assess masters applicants’ personality traits. A study by Britz (1994) recommended that the MBTI® be included in the assessment battery for psychology masters students. The primary aim of the proposed study is to identify, explore and describe the personality preferences of a group of prospective psychology masters applicants and a group of successfully selected psychology masters students at a South African Higher Education Institution utilising the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®). The study was exploratory descriptive in nature and was based on the quantitative research approach. Non-probability convenience sampling and the survey method was utilised to identify and approach prospective participants. Participants were requested to complete the MBTI® questionnaire. The MBTI® protocols were hand-scored and the findings analysed utilising frequency distributions and inferential statistics, that is, means and standard deviations. The MBTI® was found to be valid and reliable in a variety of populations and contexts. xi Results indicated that the ISTJ (15 percent), INTP (15 percent) and ESFJ (15 percent) personality types were the three most common personality types amongst participants from the group of prospective psychology masters applicants. The ENFP (13 percent), INTP (13 percent) and ISFJ (13 percent) personality types were the three most common personality types amongst participants from the group of successfully selected masters students. The majority (14 percent) of participants from the total sample displayed a preference for the INTP personality type. An examination of the dichotomous personality types of the participants revealed that the majority of participants preferred the Extraversion attitude, Sensing and Thinking functions, and Judgement attitude.

This study assessed the prevalence of unwanted early sexual experiences (UESE), of the first year psychology students at the University of Fort Hare, in East London. Of the participants, 65 (31 percent) indicated that they had been exposed to some form of non-contact (56.9percent) or contact (22.3 prercent) UESE before the age of 16 years. It was found that more male (42.5 percent) than female (25.2 percent) students reported being exposed to an UESE. The most common perpetrator reported by the majority of the participants were friends (52.4 percent). Most respondents reported that they were only exposed to the UESE once (55.6 percent). The study found that females were significantly more bothered than males both at the time of the UESE and at the time of completing the questionnaire. Both male and female participants were more bothered by the UESE at the time of the event than they were at the time of completing the questionnaire, which indicates an abatement of symptoms over time. The results indicate that flashbacks of the UESE were the most bothersome experience for both male and female participants at the time of completing the questionnaire.

This study assessed the personal, career and learning skills needs of 196 psychology students (M= 56, F= 103). The preferred means of counselling assistance, preferred experience of counselling and preferred counselling provider were also assessed. The most highly endorsed needs were time management skills (83.5 percent, n=162), learning test-taking strategies (82 percent, n=159), job search strategies (73.6 percent, n=142), increasing self-confidence (70.3 percent, n=135), increasing motivation (72.4 percent, n=134), controlling anxiety and nervousness (68.7 percent, n=134), public speaking anxiety (68.4percent, n=134), understanding career interests and abilities (67.5 percent, n=131), fear of failure (68.1 percent, n=130), and improving study skills (66.5 percent, n=129). Significant sex differences were found for the following, finding a greater purpose in life, controlling weight, job search strategies, concerns about career choice, understanding career interests and abilities in the selection of major subjects and improving study skills. Males highly endorsed the need for finding a greater purpose in life, job search strategies, and concern about career choice, understanding career interest and abilities, selection of major subjects and to improve study skills, whereas females endorsed the need for controlling weight. Respondents indicated individual counselling as being their preferred means of counselling assistance, but lectures were the most prevalent means of assistance previously received by respondents. Most respondents (78.1 percent) found the assistance they had received to be helpful.