Leaders bring unconscious information into their personal and working relationships. Some of this unconscious material is communicated through language use, and it is argued that one of the bridges between the unconscious and the conscious is language use. It is postulated that insight is possible into leaders’ understanding, meaning-making and leadership experience by exploring their language use, as the vehicle through which they make sense of the world. Hence, the aim of this study was to explore by developing and describing a systems psychodynamic model of language use as manifestation of leadership anxiety dynamics, to refine this theoretical model, and to explore the utility value of the theoretical model. A qualitative and descriptive research method was selected towards reaching this aim. Hermeneutic phenomenology, using the systems psychodynamic perspective allowed for the description, analysis and interpretation of the experiences of participants. Data was collected through a purposive, convenient sample, in the form of three listening posts, which comprised systems psychodynamic practitioners, business leaders and post-modern discourse analysts. Data was analysed by means of critical discourse analysis and systems psychodynamically informed discourse analysis. Manifesting themes were the language of titles, as potential space, and the language of silence versus non-silence; anxiety and its triggers, anxiety and leadership response, and anxiety and language use; the sources of anxiety, language as unconscious defence and offence and towards a language of vulnerability. The findings indicated that leaders use both conscious and unconscious expressions of language simultaneously. Language use manifested as the carrier of conscious messages (between sender and receiver) as well as the unconscious role of language, to attack (accessing the dark side of language use) or defend against anxieties, and to cover leadership vulnerabilities. Language use as container, as well as transitional phenomenon (a potential space) is a carrier of anxieties. Language use thus has the potential to be used for its defensive, regressive and relational value. In a world of uncertainty and increasing attack on and by leadership, the findings further indicated that the defended leaders should be aware of the conscious and unconscious impact and outcome of language. Language use is useful as a lens to explore, diagnose and raise awareness, because the unconscious reveals itself through language as speech and image, and through the language of relations and relatedness and the language of action and omission. Since leaders operate in a colliquated space, both at individual and systemic level (i.e. as collisions), leadership anxiety could be elevated, resulting in the access of the dark side of language use. However, when these collisions occur, leadership anxiety could be reduced when the leader enters the reflective or potential space by accessing the relational value of language use. The utility value of the systems psychodynamic model was subsequently also confirmed. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / D. Com. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

The daunting challenge that faces South African business is to redress the inequalities of past discrimination and to develop to its maximum the potential of every team member while remaining competitive. Some of the key challenges include creating a supportive and attractive work environment that's inclusive of diversity, staff retention and an organisational culture that will leverage diversity. The case study organisation faced similar challenges. In order to understand the dynamics a diversity workshop was designed and consulted from a systems psychodynamic paradigm. The primary task of the Diversity Workshop was to provide opportunities for members to study and learn about intrapersonal, interpersonal and inter group relationships in relation to diversity behaviour in the workplace. 50 participants attended the workshop and 22 participants completed the questionnaire. The content was analysed and themes from a psychodynamic stance identified. The overall objective of the workshop was met as it made unconscious behaviour visible, allowed participants to reflect, facilitated dialogue and enabled transfer of learning to the workplace. This approach allowed groups to move from basic assumptions to task oriented behaviour. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M. Com. (Industrial Psychology)

Executive group coaching, as a development intervention, and interest in coaching research has steadily increased over the years. Psychodynamic group coaching and coaching programmes have, however, received limited empirical attention. In this study, the researcher argues the criticality for coaches in better understanding of unconscious group coaching dynamics. The researcher felt that by designing a Systems Psychodynamic Executive Group Coaching Programme (SPEGCP) as a psychoeducational developmentally focused learning opportunity would allow for an exploration of systemic conscious and unconscious group coaching dynamic behaviours. The researcher sought to explore, describe and analyse the lived experiences of coaches in the SPEGCP. Interpretative phenomenological hermeneutic, using systems psychodynamic perspective as a theoretical framework, served the study well by enabling the researcher to apply in-depth description and interpretation. A case study research strategy was adopted were individual participants were analysed and then integrated across participants analysis of findings. The study revealed the structured nature of the SPEGCP acted as a container, transitional object, and containment for coaches. SPEGCP contributed to the development of insights into the unconscious group coaching dynamics related to role, authority, boundary and identity manifested in uncertainties, role confusion, person-role-organisation dynamic influences and defensive structures in the paranoid-schizoid position, and reflective containment for learning in the depressive position. The quality of the relationship between the consultant-coach and group, and the systems psychodynamic consulting and coaching stance, were critical for exploration and reflective insights to emerge. As the systems psychodynamic group coaching and consulting stance can add significant value to the growth and functioning of coaches, and thus executives and their groups in which they operate, a study of this nature was important if not critical. The study provides an opportunity to consider that this third generation type of evidence based consulting and coaching be viewed as an integrated part of the development of coaches, consultants, and thus executive groups. / Psychology / D. Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)

The daunting challenge that faces South African business is to redress the inequalities of past discrimination and to develop to its maximum the potential of every team member while remaining competitive. Some of the key challenges include creating a supportive and attractive work environment that's inclusive of diversity, staff retention and an organisational culture that will leverage diversity. The case study organisation faced similar challenges. In order to understand the dynamics a diversity workshop was designed and consulted from a systems psychodynamic paradigm. The primary task of the Diversity Workshop was to provide opportunities for members to study and learn about intrapersonal, interpersonal and inter group relationships in relation to diversity behaviour in the workplace. 50 participants attended the workshop and 22 participants completed the questionnaire. The content was analysed and themes from a psychodynamic stance identified. The overall objective of the workshop was met as it made unconscious behaviour visible, allowed participants to reflect, facilitated dialogue and enabled transfer of learning to the workplace. This approach allowed groups to move from basic assumptions to task oriented behaviour. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M. Com. (Industrial Psychology)

The 21st century is characterised by globalisation, turbulent change, an information explosion and an electronic revolution. The result is organisations with decentralised structures, increased employee empowerment and growth alliances. This changing landscape calls for a more holistic, collaborative outlook on leadership, placing the emphasis on relationships, context and transformation where leadership occurs at multiple levels in organisations. While organisations work towards future sustainability in response to the demands of this landscape, leaders are faced with their own personal transition within their roles. Leadership is a socially constructed process that is co-created amidst pressure from self-expectations, follower expectations and organisational requirements. Leadership as a boundary-keeping role that functions on the periphery between the organisation and the external environment, evokes anxiety. The researcher sought to explore, describe and analyse the lived leadership role experience of 21st century leaders as it plays out above and below the surface of consciousness. At the conscious level, the normative role refers to job description and content. At the unconscious level, the existential role deals with the role in the mind of the individual, while the phenomenal role relates to what others perceive and project onto the individual fulfilling the role. The level of congruence between these three roles and its consequent impact on the individual leadership experience were explored. Hermeneutic phenomenology, using the systems psychodynamic perspective as a theoretical framework, enabled the researcher to apply in-depth description and interpretation. A case study research approach was adopted where individual cases were analysed and then consolidated into a cross-case analysis of findings. The study revealed the underlying mental activity and irrational behaviour relating to anxiety, conflict and defences that manifest for 21st century leaders. By integrating the findings with both systems psychodynamic literature and leadership literature, nine themes emerged, namely anxiety, leadership identity, boundaries, authority, role, task, containment, valence and perceived performance. These themes culminated in a research hypothesis about the constant evolution of the leadership role in the context of the current business landscape. / Psychology / Ph. D. (Consulting Psychology)

The post-modern economy has altered the career landscape – career trajectories are now far more fluid and unpredictable, punctuated by multiple occupational changes, increased job mobility and more frequent and increasingly difficult job transitions. Leaders are frequently ill-prepared for the changing world of work that is progressively dominated by self-managed careers. Taking on a new role is fraught with complexity - for the “chosen one” and for organisations. The implications of successful, failed or derailed job transitions can have strategic and other ramifications for organisations and individuals alike. This study explores the career transition experiences of and the usefulness of career transition executive coaching for eleven individual leaders from various South African organisations. It is a descriptive, explanatory and exploratory qualitative study, employing the systems psychodynamic paradigm, chosen because it focuses on depth psychology and is a developmentally oriented, psycho-educational organisational theory. The study adopted an interpretive stance for understanding leaders’ systemic conscious and unconscious behaviour. The ACIBART model helped to interpret the experiences of leaders in transition. These transitions involve the taking and making of a role, implying the loss which attends leaving a previous role, and adjustment to and being authorised in a new, unfamiliar role, including a liminal period of being “in between”. This inevitably produces an inner drama in which internalised past figures, possibly related to the new role, are brought back to life, and perhaps even amplified in the present. These “unconscious echoes” explain the powerful emotions that frequently attend transitions, especially at the so-called mid-life, and which in turn activate various defence mechanisms. The systems psychodynamic approach to career transition coaching was particularly useful in helping the participants identify personal patterns and link these to their past and thereby develop personal awareness and insight. The “coaching space” thus became a containing, “transitional space” where the participants could safely do the work required to make the adjustment to their new roles. Finally, recommendations to various stakeholders regarding the provision of systems psychodynamic coaching for leaders in career transition are made. / Psychology / D. Phil. (Psychology)

Diversity has, over the last few decades, become a burning issue on the agenda of most companies. Current diversity-related interventions are mainly based on behaviouristic and socio-cognitive approaches. In this research diversity was approached from the systems psychodynamic paradigm. The general aim was to gain an understanding of the diversity dynamics that manifests in an South African diversity experience. The literature review focussed on diversity in the workplace, on the group relations training model, and on the application of the group relations training model to diversity. Qualitative research was done by interviewing a sample of 15 delegates who attended the November 2000 Robben Island Diversity Experience. These unstructured interviews were used to obtain in-depth information about the participant's experience and the data was analysed hermeneutically. The emerging themes were `crossing the boundary, engage the new world, the ties that bind, being imprisoned, the struggle, the road to reconciliation, integration and healing, back to the future and the crucible'. It is recommended that South African organizations make more use of the systems psychodynamic approach to study the manifestations of diversity dynamics. The aim is not to replace the other approaches to diversity, but to add a perspective that can enhance awareness and sensitivity to the covert, unconscious and irrational forces that impact on diversity. / Industrial and Organisational Psycology / M. A.(Industrial and Organisational Psycology)

Diversity has, over the last few decades, become a burning issue on the agenda of most companies. Current diversity-related interventions are mainly based on behaviouristic and socio-cognitive approaches. In this research diversity was approached from the systems psychodynamic paradigm. The general aim was to gain an understanding of the diversity dynamics that manifests in an South African diversity experience. The literature review focussed on diversity in the workplace, on the group relations training model, and on the application of the group relations training model to diversity. Qualitative research was done by interviewing a sample of 15 delegates who attended the November 2000 Robben Island Diversity Experience. These unstructured interviews were used to obtain in-depth information about the participant's experience and the data was analysed hermeneutically. The emerging themes were `crossing the boundary, engage the new world, the ties that bind, being imprisoned, the struggle, the road to reconciliation, integration and healing, back to the future and the crucible'. It is recommended that South African organizations make more use of the systems psychodynamic approach to study the manifestations of diversity dynamics. The aim is not to replace the other approaches to diversity, but to add a perspective that can enhance awareness and sensitivity to the covert, unconscious and irrational forces that impact on diversity. / Industrial and Organisational Psycology / M. A.(Industrial and Organisational Psycology)