The purpose of this study is to examine teachers’ experiences of power relations as
psychological violence and the impact it has on their health. This study, using a qualitative
approach, thus investigates the association between power relations and the dimensions
thereof and how it manifests as psychological violence. In turn, it may have detrimental
effects on the health of the teacher and the whole teaching-learning process. Based on the
findings, recommendations for this - and future research - are proposed.
Open-ended phenomenological interviews were used to collecct the qaulitative data. Eleven
participants indicated their willingness to be individually interviewed for the study. The
qualitative findings indicated that teachers experience power relations as psychological
violence, it is experienced severely and emanates mostly from colleagues in management
positions. The most prevalent and severe forms of power relations as psychological violence
as experienced by teachers include being subjected to power abuse from principals; being
subjected to autocratic management styles and management’s power abuse through the
abdication of responsibility. The most severe physical health consequenses as experienced
by teachers include feeling tired and experiencing physical ill health. It further emerged that
the most severe phychological health consequenses were experienced in the form of feelings
of helplessness and feeling emotional or wanting to cry. Teachers’ lack of work productivity
and motivation were the most severe behavioural consequense because of the experience of
power abuse as psychological violence. Teachers’ personal and family relations and
teachers withdrawing socially were the most evident social consequense due to negative
experiences.
The findings from the study indicated that teachers experience power relations as
psychological violence in various forms and that it is highly prevalent. The research results
have shown that teachers identified many dimensions of power relations, such as
management styles, the perception or experience of someone’s power or “weak point”,
possessing no power or status, female teachers being treated in a subordinate manner and
racial or cultural differences of others as a contributer to abuse power in relationships at
school.
This study contributes towards the power relations and psychological violence literature in
general and in particular, teachers’ experiences in South Africa. In the light of the findings
the study recommends that teacher support programmes should be put in place in order to
address the experience of power relations as psychological violence. It further recommends that teachers and students studying to become teachers should be provided with information
about power relations as psychological violence to create awareness. / Thesis (MEd (Educational Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:NWUBOLOKA1/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/8704 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Human-van der Westhuizen, Alecia |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | North-West University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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