Magister Artium - MA / This mini-thesis provides empirical evidence on the level of public participation and its correlation with trust, reciprocity, class and power amongst African traditional health practitioners (ATHPs) in the regulation of African traditional medicines (ATMs) in South Africa. Data on public participation of ATHPs was collected and analysed, using a social capital theoretical model created from an adaptation of Putnam’s (2000) concepts of trust and reciprocity as central to social capital theory. The analysis further employed Bourdieu’s (1968) thinking to link power and class to the concept of social capital and borrowed from feminist and historical materialism theories. The thesis sought to test how the analysis of power and class, once politicised, could be used to convert Putnam’s notion of trust and reciprocity into "critical trust” and “critical reciprocity”, based on hyper-reflexive engagement of social agents with their own reality within social networks. ATHPs were requested to rank themselves from a scale of high to low to determine their level of involvement. Public participation (the dependant variable) was tested against acts of reciprocity, trust, power and income or class (the independent variables) to ascertain correlation. Data was analysed using STATA, a computer-based programme for analysing quantitative data. The findings of the study showed that income and power play a significant role in determining public participation. The level of one’s income and power determines whether one is active or passive in participation. The high levels of trust and reciprocity demonstrated by ATHPs towards government had no particular significance in facilitating active participation instead trust, in particular, played a negative role, in that it demobilised ATHPs from active participation since they trusted that government will protect their best interest in the regulation process. The argument in this thesis is that trust and reciprocity has to be converted into ‘critical trust’ and ‘critical reciprocity’ through active questioning and analysis of power and class dynamics for it to activate and invoke conscious active participation. A follow-up study is necessary to test the possibility and success of such a conversion for public participation.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Psychology)) -- University of Limpopo, 2022 / The training to become a traditional healer has been under scrutiny because of the symptoms that are experienced during ancestral calling. Ancestral calling usually presents itself in the form of a mysterious physical or psychological illness that will not ordinarily respond to western treatment. The Eurocentric perspective interprets the symptoms of ancestral calling and the resultant process to become a traditional health practitioner as a manifestation of some psychological disturbance. The researcher embarked on a journey with traditional health practitioners to understand their lived experiences and explored the psychological meanings of Vhavenda ancestral calling with a view to identifying and documenting the psychological meanings embedded in this culturally entrenched practice. A qualitative research method located within the interpretative paradigm was used. A descriptive phenomenological research design was adopted to explore the lived experiences of traditional health practitioners who have gone through the process of ancestral calling. Both snowball and purposive sampling methods were used to recruit 17 participants until saturation was researched in the findings. The six major themes that emerged are: a) signs of ancestral calling; b) meaning attached to ancestral calling; c) help-seeking pathway following an ancestral call; d) responding to the ancestral call; e) roles of the master healer; and f) post training realities and experiences. The findings of the study revealed that there are several symptoms that are indicative that one has an ancestral calling. These symptoms are often misunderstood and misdiagnosed when interpreted from the Eurocentric perspective. However, accepting the ancestral calling and going through training is linked with identity formation. The findings also revealed that ancestral calling is a life-transforming and therapeutic experience and a journey of self realisation / South African Humanities Deans’ Association and the National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences

This mini-thesis provides empirical evidence on the level of public participation and its correlation with trust, reciprocity, class and power amongst African traditional health practitioners (ATHPs) in the regulation of African traditional medicines (ATMs) in South Africa. Data on public participation of ATHPs was collected and analysed, using a social capital theoretical model created from an adaptation of Putnam’s (2000) concepts of trust and reciprocity as central to social capital theory. The analysis further employed Bourdieu’s (1968) thinking to link power and class to the concept of social capital and borrowed from feminist and historical materialism theories. The thesis sought to test how the analysis of power and class, once politicised, could be used to convert Putnam’s notion of trust and reciprocity into "critical trust” and “critical reciprocity”, based on hyper-reflexive engagement of social agents with their own reality within social networks. ATHPs were requested to rank themselves from a scale of high to low to determine their level of involvement. Public participation (the dependant variable) was tested against acts of reciprocity, trust, power and income or class (the independent variables) to ascertain correlation. Data was analysed using STATA, a computer-based programme for analysing quantitative data. The findings of the study showed that income and power play a significant role in determining public participation. The level of one’s income and power determines whether one is active or passive in participation. The high levels of trust and reciprocity demonstrated by ATHPs towards government had no particular significance in facilitating active participation instead trust, in particular, played a negative role, in that it demobilised ATHPs from active participation since they trusted that government will protect their best interest in the regulation process. The argument in this thesis is that trust and reciprocity has to be converted into ‘critical trust’ and ‘critical reciprocity’ through active questioning and analysis of power and class dynamics for it to activate and invoke conscious active participation. A follow-up study is necessary to test the possibility and success of such a conversion for public participation. / Magister Artium - MA

Thesis (Ph.D. (Psychology)) -- University of Limpopo, 2023 / With the realisation that both the traditional and western health care systems are consulted in South Africa, the Traditional Health Practitioners Act, No 22 of 2007 was promulgated. In addition to the Act, there was a growing body of literature proposing the integration of the two health systems to improve the overall South African health system. This study explored the possibility for such collaboration by investigating case formulation by western-trained clinical psychologists and traditional health practitioners regarding selected cases of mental disorders. A qualitative research design, specifically a case study method was used in the present study. Six clinical psychologists and six traditional health practitioners were selected through purposive sampling and were requested to participate in the study. The researcher further sampled two vignettes of Major Depressive Disorder and Schizophrenia for data collection purposes. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and vignettes and analysed through Braun and Clarke‟s thematic content analysis steps. Six main themes that related to case formulations by clinical psychologists emerged. These themes were: a). Collateral information as a major determinant in the assessment and treatment of mental illness; b). Classifications of mental illness; c). The symptomatology of mental illness; d). Causes of mental illness; e). The multidisciplinary approach in the treatment of mental illness; and f). Views regarding the collaboration of Clinicians and Traditional Health Practitioners. On the other hand, eight themes that related to the case formulations by traditional health practitioners were identified. These themes were: a) Divination as the main process of enquiry, b) Descriptive names of mental illnesses, c) Conceptualisations of stress related and depressive disorders by Traditional Health Practitioners, d) Views on causes of mental illness, e) The effectiveness of the Western approach in the treatment of some forms of mental illness, f) The relationship between religion and African traditional practices; g) A calling as symbolised by symptoms of mental illness, and, h) Traditional health practitioners‟ views on the collaboration between themselves and western health practitioners. The study has further revealed that there are some similarities as well as differences in the way clinical psychologists and traditional health practitioners formulate cases. The convergences in their formulations were revealed in the following themes; a). The conceptualisation of stress and related conditions; b). The western system is the most appropriate in the management of stress-related and depressive disorders and c). The benefits of the collaboration between western and African healing systems. The following divergences were further identified from the way clinical psychologists and traditional health practitioners formulate their cases: a). The conceptualisation of the presenting symptoms from the two cases; b). The causal factors of mental health conditions; c). The initial methods of enquiry; and d). The management of mental health conditions. The study has further revealed that both traditional health practitioners and clinical psychologists have positive views regarding the collaboration of western and African traditional health systems, especially in the management of mental disorders. The study has further uncovered the convergences and divergences in the conceptualisation of mental health conditions between traditional health practitioners and clinical psychologists.