Thesis (M. Nurs.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

No description available.

The experience of successfully ending a relationship with an abusive partner is seldom explored, although abuse has been experienced by 29% of married Canadian women (Johnson, 1996, cited in Morrow & Varcoe, 2000). This study used a phenomenological design and a critical social science approach to explore the lived experience of women who ended a relationship with an abusive partner. Seven in-depth interviews were analyzed, and encounters with social support from the justice system, counselling agencies, and transition houses were examined. A five-stage model to describe the change process emerged from the data. Metathemes illuminated important internal and external aspects of change during each stage. Childhood gender socialization influenced participants to stay in abusive relationships. Nevertheless, resistance to abuse was seen to have occurred from the beginning. Changing beliefs about gender roles and relationship expectations emerged as an important part of learning and influenced decision-making. Loss of hope and realization of harm led to a shift in decisional balance that culminated in determination to end the relationship. Simple goals evolved to become complex goals as change continued. Participants who attempted to understand their experiences reached a stage that included evolving and healing. Healing also involved a balanced lifestyle, in accordance with the bio-psycho-social-spiritual model. The model's terminology describes a woman in the successive stages of change as a learner, an actor, an evaluator, a survivor, and a thriver. The model is compared with the Transtheoretical Model of Change, and surprising reports of very low self-efficacy at the point of ending the relationship are discussed.

M.A. / This study explores the narratives of six women who were subjected to peer abuse, or bullying, during their school years and attempts to discover the legacy of such persecution. The literature on bullying is discussed together with gender differences in the expression of bullying, various hypotheses about these differences, and the importance of peer relationships during childhood and adolescence. The process of enquiry is embedded in a social constructionist perspective, in particular within a narrative frame, and uses narrative analysis of the content of participants’ stories to elicit common themes. Themes that emerged relate mainly to participants’ social interaction. Use of a variety of defensive techniques in social settings, vigilance extending to hypervigilance, inability to trust, inability to accept from others, social anxiety, wariness around females and self-esteem issues surfaced. Other manifestations of distress, for example depression and loneliness, are not experienced by all participants. Some of the discourses around bullying that may inform participants’ stories and the researcher’s interpretations are explored. Similarities to other forms of abuse and psychological trauma are considered, for example loss of memory, hypervigilance and emotional numbing. The implications for therapy are considered, together with the importance of peer relationships in childhood and adolescence. The need for unequivocal adult intervention in preventing peer abuse is emphasised.

M.A. / This body of work examines the effects of child abuse, and then discusses the use of ego state therapy as a model for the treatment of child abuse. It is found that the predominant characteristic of children who experience abuse is a tendency to dissociate, creating impermeable and dangerous boundaries between different aspects of their personalities. An effective therapeutic process must address both cause and effect, and must therefore access these ego states, not only to determine the reason for their presence but also in order to change the relationships between the different states. This must be achieved for the survivor to become a healthy and well-adjusted adult. A detailed discussion of ego state theory is included, and ego-state therapy is then discussed within the therapeutic setting. This is done using an actual case study involving a thirteen-year-old survivor of physical child abuse and discusses the use of ego state therapy in an attempt to restore homeostasis. The clinical experiences of the therapist and client are described, and they lend support for the use of ego-state therapy in the treatment of child abuse. The complex array of emotional, behavioural and psychological problems presenting as a result of abuse, together with the lack of formal intervention strategies in treating these cases, highlighted the need and also provided the impetus for this project. / Dr. H. Rudnick

Thesis ( M.A. (African Languages)) --University of Limpopo, 2014 / Refer to document