This qualitative study explores the meaning of interpersonal forgiveness, using a both/and or postmodern epistemology and a phenomenological methodology. Forgiveness is seen as a reframe that could transform a limiting, disempowering dominant narrative into a more empowering and useful story. The researcher interviews three participants to co-create stories of forgiveness. Themes of emotional discomfort; blame and responsibility; shift to empathy; forgiveness as process; and lasting change or forgiveness incorporated into way of life, are identified. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

This qualitative study explores the meaning of interpersonal forgiveness, using a both/and or postmodern epistemology and a phenomenological methodology. Forgiveness is seen as a reframe that could transform a limiting, disempowering dominant narrative into a more empowering and useful story. The researcher interviews three participants to co-create stories of forgiveness. Themes of emotional discomfort; blame and responsibility; shift to empathy; forgiveness as process; and lasting change or forgiveness incorporated into way of life, are identified. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

Network Direct Selling Organisations (NDSOs) exist in more than 50 countries and have more than 74 million members. The most recent statistical information reveals that the vast majority of members do not earn significant income. Criticism of these organisations revolves around the ethicality of consumption, the commercialisation of personal relationships, and the exploitation of unrealistic expectations. This study aims to explore how communication creates networks that sustain an industry of this kind despite the improbability of its existence. The study commences with a description of NDSOs from historical, operational, tactical, and strategic perspectives. Given the broader context created by the global presence of this industry, cybernetics has been selected as a meta-theoretical perspective for the study of communication. The more recent development of second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis are introduced to communication theory as a field. Niklas Luhmann‟s new social theory of communication is assessed and applied in relation to existing communication theory. New conceptual models are developed to explore communication as the unity of the synthesis of information, utterance, understanding, and expectations as selections that occur both consciously and unconsciously, intentionally and unintentionally. These models indicate the multiplexity of individual and social operationally closed, yet informationally open systems, and they are used here to provide a systemic and coherent alternative to orthodox communication approaches to the study of organisations. The study adopts a constructivist epistemological stance and propounds throughout the necessity of further interdisciplinary collaboration. The study concludes that individuals are composite unities of self-creating systems, and they co-create social systems by self-creating and co-creating meaning. Meaning is described as the continuous virtualisation and actualisation of potentialities that in turn coordinate individual and social systems‟ actions. A communication process flow model is created to provide a theoretical explanation for the existence of NDSOs as self-creating systems. The study aims to show that communication has arguably become the most pervasive discipline as a result of the globally interactive era. It is shown that second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis raise several further questions to be explored within communication theory as a field. / Communication, first-order cybernetics, second-order cybernetics, Complexity and complex systems, autopoiesis, self-reference, recursivity, operational closure, system boundaries, Network Direct Selling Organisations / Communication / D. Litt. et Phil. (Communication)

Network Direct Selling Organisations (NDSOs) exist in more than 50 countries and have more than 74 million members. The most recent statistical information reveals that the vast majority of members do not earn significant income. Criticism of these organisations revolves around the ethicality of consumption, the commercialisation of personal relationships, and the exploitation of unrealistic expectations. This study aims to explore how communication creates networks that sustain an industry of this kind despite the improbability of its existence. The study commences with a description of NDSOs from historical, operational, tactical, and strategic perspectives. Given the broader context created by the global presence of this industry, cybernetics has been selected as a meta-theoretical perspective for the study of communication. The more recent development of second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis are introduced to communication theory as a field. Niklas Luhmann‟s new social theory of communication is assessed and applied in relation to existing communication theory. New conceptual models are developed to explore communication as the unity of the synthesis of information, utterance, understanding, and expectations as selections that occur both consciously and unconsciously, intentionally and unintentionally. These models indicate the multiplexity of individual and social operationally closed, yet informationally open systems, and they are used here to provide a systemic and coherent alternative to orthodox communication approaches to the study of organisations. The study adopts a constructivist epistemological stance and propounds throughout the necessity of further interdisciplinary collaboration. The study concludes that individuals are composite unities of self-creating systems, and they co-create social systems by self-creating and co-creating meaning. Meaning is described as the continuous virtualisation and actualisation of potentialities that in turn coordinate individual and social systems‟ actions. A communication process flow model is created to provide a theoretical explanation for the existence of NDSOs as self-creating systems. The study aims to show that communication has arguably become the most pervasive discipline as a result of the globally interactive era. It is shown that second-order cybernetics and social autopoiesis raise several further questions to be explored within communication theory as a field. / Communication, first-order cybernetics, second-order cybernetics, Complexity and complex systems, autopoiesis, self-reference, recursivity, operational closure, system boundaries, Network Direct Selling Organisations / Communication / D. Litt. et Phil. (Communication)

The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences (both professional and personal) of the therapist who is visually impaired or blind. This is a post-modernist dissertation contextualised within the ecosystemic-hermeneutical epistemology. These paradigms are two sides of the same coin and emphasize a social constructionist worldview. A descriptive methodology within the domain of language and narrative discourse is utilised in accordance with this worldview. The narratives of two research participants were recounted through the researcher's lens within particular `dimensions of understanding'. These `dimensions of understanding' were interpreted, deconstructed and co-constructed (with the research participants). Thus this dissertation operates simultaneously on a number of different levels which emphasises the social constructionist worldview. This also allowed for the hermeneutic-ecosystemic analysis of these `dimensions of understanding' as method of data analysis. There are also emerging `dimensions of understanding' from the researcher's own perspective and personal experience as a visually impaired therapist in training. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

An overview of the existing body of knowledge on the most widely researched areas of childhood leukaemia was presented and it was argued that a conceptual shift is required to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of the problem. This conceptual shift encompassed an ecosystemic approach. This study was conducted within a holistic systemic epistemology. A qualitative approach employing a case study method to provide rich descriptions of the context in which two leukaemia sufferer's symptoms were embedded. / Psychology / M.A. (Psyhcoloy)

This study sets out to demonstrate the usefulness of cybernetic description for grief therapy, specifically the field parental loss of a child. This paradigm was used to facilitate an alternate mode of conceptualisation, one engendering a more encompassing, aesthetic view. The following core cybernetic concepts were used: punctuation, complementarity, pattern and metapattern forming the framework of cybernetic description as applied. A literature study attempting to merge the gestalt of cybernetic description with that of bereavement theory, specifically that pertaining to the parental loss of a child, is presented. A single case study is described illustrating how cybernetic description is applied to the grief narrative. Arising out of this, the implications of cybernetic description for the field of grief and social work in general are outlined. / Social Work / M.A. (Social Science (Mental Health))

This thesis constitutes a narrative description of the evolution of my therapeutic self during my training as a clinical psychologist. During the telling of this story, I review the ways in which I was perturbed by the mix between the various theories and the various contexts visited during the years of my post-graduate training. I have described and critically compared my responses to the following models: psychoanalytic, psychodynamic, first-order cybernetic, and secondorder cybernetic (covering the first, second and third movements). Throughout, I have attempted to track the development of a congruent, personal therapeutic self while simultaneously assuming that this self is constantly coming-into-being. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

Two important trends have been noted in humankind's thinking of the world. These are increasing dissatisfaction with the rigid, dichotomous views of the Cartesian-Newtonian paradigm, and an increasing awareness of humankind's gpirituality. This dissertation broaches both these trends by exploring the new paradigm, that of cybernetic epistemology, which is a far more holistic and spiritual perspective. This is done as follows. Certain concepts from cybernetics are discussed in terms of their implications and meanings. These are then discussed from a spiritual perspective, (specifically Christian), according to how they fit with the Biblical understanding of God and His creation. The aim was to see if and how cybernetics and Christianity meet - how their basic assumptions about the world and life compare. The conclusion is that the relationship between cybernetics and Christianity is that they are both similar and different and this dissertation is about the pattern that connects the two. / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

This study sets out to report on the reflections of a therapist-in-[post-graduate] training on his experiences when endeavouring to shift from [between] a positivistic to [and] a constructivistic paradigm. Reflections on some experiences associated with the positivistic epistemology that were relinquished were described; reflections on experiences associated with the constructivistic epistemology that were gained were described as well as reflections on experiences of both paradigms, that were added. These reflections were based on research data acquired during the researcher's first year of post-graduate training and exposure to the "new" constructivistic paradigm. Transcriptions from audio-taped sessions with a client from the researchers private practice, during this period served as the research data for this study. A literature study attempting to distinguish between the positivistic and constructivistic paradigms is presented. Arising out of this, the implications of a paradigm shift of this nature, is outlined. / Health Studies / M.A. (Mental Health)