Doctoral Degrees (Psychology)

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Parenting adolescents: a phenomenological approach
(University of the Free State, 2013-01) Dunkley, Jennifer; Nel, L.
English: The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to explore the dynamics of the parenting experience as it relates to parenting adolescents, with the specific aim of exploring and achieving an understanding of the particular experiences that parents of adolescents and their adolescent children describe; and of discovering how they have experienced a collaborative or participatory approach to the parenting process. The over-arching theoretical orientation is social constructionism. From a social constructionist point of view meaning making and knowledge is contextual, applying only to the specific context from which it is derived. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was the selected methodology, involving careful recording of participants’ expressions in semi-structured interviews followed by thematic coding and analysis. Three groups of parents and three groups of adolescents, from three culturally and economically diverse communities in the Western Cape, South Africa, participated in focus groups and shared their experiences of the parenting process. Through the explication of the data five main themes emerged as being important to the participants: Connection and communication was seen as being of first importance, reflecting perceptions of effective parent-adolescent relationships as close and emotionally connected. Parental control and protection presented as an equally important and related area of concern, reflecting the belief that effective communication would enable a more collaborative, negotiated approach to issues of safety, limit setting, expectations and consequences. Some of the adolescent participants expressed a strong need for parents to respect their individuality and independence, which in their view was related to the development of trust as a two-way process. The fourth key theme was the need for information and services. The ability to access reliable information and services empowers both parents and adolescents to make effective and informed decisions. Finally, the role of fathers featured strongly in discussions with all groups and was identified as playing a significant role in parent-adolescent relationship satisfaction. This study illustrates a process by which families can be enabled to arrive at a deeper understanding of the needs and challenges specific to each family; and to collaborate in generating ideas that could contribute to a meaningful parenting plan or parenting practices that work for that particular family.
Open Access
Psigofortologie by die leergestremde leerder
(University of the Free State, 2000) Bouma, Renate Gerrarda; Heyns, P. M.; Grobler, A. A.
English: The purpose of this study was an investigation of the dynamics of psychofortological factors in learning disabled learners in order to make a contribution to their vocational preparation and adjustment in the outside world. The advancement of the learning disabled learner's psycho-fortological functioning for successful functioning after school leaving is therefore the primary focus of the study. The investigation is directed towards the psycho-development of the learners who experience problems, as well as towards the prevention of problems in adulthood. The rationale of the study is to be found in the investigated functioning aspects: i.e., psycho-fortological factors such as coping, assertiveness, fortitude and sense of coherence which are important for functioning in the workplace. The field of study of psycho-fortology focusses upon the psychologically healthy individual, more specifically, the individual who remains psychologicallyand physically healthy in spite of stress and crisis situations. Aspects discussed are the learning disabled adolescent, learning disability, the demands made by school leaving and the task and terrain of the special school. An investigation was done into the connection between the learner's psychofortological functioning, namely, his/her coping skills, assertiveness, sense of coherence and fortitude and his/her functioning. The aspect of assertiveness was analysed to determine to what degree anxiety, associated with social situations, is problematic for the learning disabled learner. The empirical investigation consisted of a quantitative and a qualitative component. In the quantitative investigation the following scales were used to operationalise the psycho-fortological constructs: the fortitude questionnaire of Pretorius (1998), the assertivenessquestionnaire of Gambrill and Richey (1975), the sense of coherence questionnaire of Antonovsky (1987) and the COPEquestionnaire of Carver, Scheier and Weintraub (1989). A functioning index was drawn up by the investigator herself. Reliable indices were procured for all the scales. The findings of the quantitative investigation indicate that the learning disabled learner's grade and age correlate with his/her functioning and with the psycho-fortological aspects senseof coherence and assertiveness: the higher the grade (and age), the lower the level of functioning and the more negative the psycho-fortological indices, and vice versa. In the present investigation it was also found that the specific psychofortological indices "comprehensibility" (sense of coherence) "initiating personal contact" (assertiveness) as well as the learner's self-appraisal (fortitude) show a high correlation with the index of the learner's functioning. It appeared that a high level of functioning is connected to a positive self-appraisal (fortitude), the ability to conduct oneself assertively and a good grasp of the stress situation. The results of the qualitative investigation to a high degree support the findings of the quantitive investigation. The considerable deficiencies associated by the quantitative investigation with low functioning, namely, limitations regarding selfappraisal, sense of coherence, comprehensibility of the stress situation and assertivenessare confirmed by the qualitative investigation. From the results of the qualitative investigation it became evident that certain aspects, namely, constructing a positive and realistic future perspective through the experience of success, independent assertive conduct, a realistic, positive self-image and effective problem solving skills had to be included in a psycho-development programme. A psycho-development progamme was drawn up on the basis of the results of the empirical investigation as a contribution to the advancement of the psychological strengths of the learning disabled learner in particular, as well as of senior learners in general.
Open Access
Psychosocial factors as predictors of suicidal ideation amongst adolescents in the Free State Province: a cross-cultural study
(University of the Free State, 2012-02) Du Plessis, Edwin Devon; Van den Berg, H. S.; Walker, S. P.
English: The recently published National Youth Risk Behaviour Surveys highlighted an alarming increase in adolescent suicidal behaviour in South Africa. The death of a young person has a profound psychological and social effect on both the family and broader community. Moreover, the high incidence of adolescent suicides and suicide-related hospitalisations places a heavy burden on the service delivery of the South African health sector. Understanding the social-cultural context in which suicidal behaviour occurs is essential for public health efforts to reduce this behaviour amongst adolescents. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of underlying psychosocial factors in adolescent suicidal behaviour, as well as to explore ethnic differences in the stressors and resources as reported by a sample of black, white and coloured adolescents in the Free State province. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to collect and analyse data. Quantitatively, a cross-sectional, correlational, and criterion-group design was used, while thematic content analysis was used for the analysis of the qualitative data. A stratified, multi-ethnic sample of 1033 Grade 11 and 12 learners was included from eighteen schools in the Free State province. The Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire for Adolescents, the Social Stressors and Resources Inventory - Youth Form, the COPE Questionnaire, the South African Acculturation Scale, and a biographical questionnaire were used to gather information from the participants. Various statistical analyses were conducted such as a multivariance of analysis to compare the ethnic groups with regard to significant differences in suicidal ideation, stressors, resources, acculturation and coping strategies. A product- term analysis was also performed to investigate the role of coping strategies in the relationship between stressors and suicidal ideation, while hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to determine the unique contributions of stressors, resources, acculturation- and coping strategies to suicidal ideation. The qualitative data was gathered through the use of two open-ended statements that required participants to identify stressors and resources in their lives. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse these responses. The results from the quantitative study indicated that the level of suicidal ideation reported by the current sample was substantially higher than for a comparative American sample. Ethnic and gender differences were also found between groups, with coloured females reporting the highest levels of suicidal ideation. Parent-child relationship, peer relationships and financial constraints appear to be common stressors among coloured adolescents, while black adolescents reported financial constraints and romantic relationships as major sources of stress. For white adolescents, their parent-child relationship seemed to act as a major stressor. Coping strategies did not mediate the relationship between perceived life stressors and suicidal ideation amongst any of the three ethnic groups, on either the 1% or 5% level of statistical significance. Coping strategies, did, however, act as moderators in this relationship. Furthermore, coping strategies did not explain a statistically significant proportion of the variance in the suicidal ideation of either black or coloured adolescents in the current sample. The findings, however, suggested that active coping and alcohol and drug disengagement contributed significantly to the variance in suicidal ideation amongst the white adolescents. None of the acculturation scales contributed significantly to the variance in suicidal ideation for any of the three ethnic groups. The main findings of the qualitative data suggested ethnic differences in the reported experiences of stressors and resources. In terms of stressors, participants from all three ethnic groups identified negative self-perception, poor behaviour regulation and financial difficulties as major sources of stress in their lives. Black and coloured participants identified alcohol abuse in their communities and financial problems as major stressors and white participants identified the high levels of crime. Black adolescents identified a positive self-esteem as most important resource, while white participants identified the relationship with their families, as well as material resources as main resources. Coloured adolescents, on the other hand, showed stronger identification with religion as prominent resource. It is recommended that future research focuses on the inclusion of additional variables such as socio-economic status, as well as the use of longitudinal studies to explore the dynamics of adolescent suicidal behaviour. The implementation of programmes aimed at enhancing effective coping strategies and social skills of adolescents are also recommended.
Open Access
Psycosocial predictors of suicidal ideation in adolescence
(University of the Free State, 2010-05) Tancred, Hester Maria; Louw, D. A.; Van den Berg, H. S.
South African adolescents - like their peers around the world – struggle to keep their emotional health intact. These problems are revealed by the youths’ involvement in risky activities such as suicidal behaviour. The steady increase in suicidal behaviour in South Africa makes it imperative to understand the contextual resources and dispositional factors which can act as potential protectors in adolescent suicide; and also to understand the psychosocial risk factors experienced by South African adolescents at risk of suicide. Suicidal ideation has been proved to be a good predictor of suicide risk and was therefore taken as the criterion variable in the current study. A high level of suicide risk among the participants was determined by cut off scores of above 31; and low levels by cut off scores of below 16 on the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire. The adolescents in the present study with a high suicide risk (N=214) brings the incidence of suicidal ideation to 36% for the current study. The primary aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between a contextual resource (social support from family and friends) and suicidal ideation in a community sample of (N=594) grade 8 to 10 learners from an urban area in the Western Cape region, South Africa. Social support from family and friends was measured with The Perceived Social Support from Family and Friends Scale. A hierarchical regression analysis revealed that the support from family and friends explained 21,5% of the variance of suicidal ideation with support from family being more important than support from friends. The unique contribution of the present study was that social support differed for population groups but not for gender and family structure. Secondly, the present study aimed to determine how adolescents with high risk and those with low risk for suicide differed with regard to the dispositional factors of selfesteem, hope, sense of coherence and cognitive style. The 214 adolescents with a high suicide risk and 267 adolescents with a low suicide risk were compared in terms of these dispositional factors. The results from the MANOVA and ANOVA analyses indicated that adolescents with a high risk of suicide displayed lower self-esteem, a weaker sense of coherence and made more negative attributions for negative life events. The third aim of the present study was to explore the psychosocial risk factors experienced by adolescents. The participants with a high risk of suicide (N=214) were asked to give their opinions on adolescent suicide. These qualitative responses were analysed using the method of content analysis. From this analysis it was clear that adolescents experienced numerous risks, which were given in the following order of prominence: individual factors (substance abuse; negative emotional experiences; self-esteem; problem-solving ability and hope for the future); family environments and family relationships; peer group and romantic relationships; stressful life events; and socio-economic factors. The findings from the present study suggested that a supportive family; a healthy selfesteem; a sense of coherence; and an optimistic explanatory style could be protective mechanisms in lowering the identified risks of substance abuse, feeling stressed, a troubled family environment and poor parent-child relationships found among suicidal adolescents in South Africa.
Open Access
Risk factors and the availability of social resources as variables influencing suicidal ideation among South African and British adolescents
(University of the Free State, 2010-05) Krüger, Anton H.; Van den Berg, H. S.
Adolescence is considered as a period filled with significant physical, emotional, cognitive and social changes and challenges. Some adolescents might become so overwhelmed by the extensive internal and external transitions that they resort to self damaging behaviour such as suicidal behaviour. A significant increase in adolescent suicidal behaviour has been noted globally in both developed and developing countries. Suicidal behaviour is a multidimensional phenomenon, comprising of personal and contextual factors, developmental challenges and transitions as well as coping responses that constantly interact and as such, influence the risk for suicidal behaviour. The Integrated Stress and Coping Model of Moos and Schaefer (1993) was used as theoretical framework of this study. The aim of this study was to investigate a group of English (United Kingdom as a developed country) and South African (a developing country) adolescents with regard to the influence of personal and contextual stressors and resources, as well as coping strategies on their level of suicidal ideation. A non-experimental, cross sectional design including a correlational and criterium group design was used in this study. A stratified sample of 678 (297 English and 381 Northern Cape) 14 to 16 year old learners were gathered from schools in Surrey, England and the Northern Cape Province in South Africa. A biographical questionnaire, The Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire for Adolescents, the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale, the Life Stressors and Social Resources Inventory Scale (LISRES), the Hope Scale as well as the Coping Orientations to Problems Experienced Scale (COPE) were used to gather information from the participants. Intercorrelations between the variables were determined with Pearson-product moment correlation coefficients. A step-wise regression analysis was computed in which suicidal ideation was the criterion variable and the various subscales of the Self Esteem, Hope, COPE and LISRES scales were the predictor variables.The 1 % level of statistical significance was used as guideline of significance. Results from the study suggested that the incidence of suicidal ideation was significantly higher for the English adolescent group than for their Northern Cape counterparts. The English group reported school, relationship with siblings and physical health as major stressors while the Northern Cape group viewed socio-economic problems and negative life experiences as significant stressors. Both groups reported family and friends as significant resources. With regard to coping strategies utilized it appears that the Northern Cape participants made use of a wider range of coping strategies such as Problem-focussed, Emotion-focussed and Dysfunctional coping responses. The only coping strategy that the English adolescents utilized more frequently than the Northern Cape participants was alcohol and drug disengagement. Furthermore English girls showed a stronger preference in utilizing this dysfunctional coping strategy than the English boys. In the step-wise regression analysis the predictor variables together explained a much higher percentage of the variance in the suicidal ideation of the English group than for their Northern Cape counterparts. Ten of the 33 variables made a significant contribution (93.5%) to the variance of the suicidal ideation of the English group. The 10 variables in order of their introduction to the step-wise regression equation was Alcohol-drug Disengagement (67.7%), Physical Health (8.24%), Hope Agency (9.72%), Resource: Family (3.10%), Resource: Friends (1.10%), Self-Esteem (1.10%) Siblings as stressor (0.82%), Family as stressor (0.34%), Mental Disengagement (0.71%) and Acceptance (0.50%).Only two variables, namely Self-esteem (10.94%) and Denial (1.92%) made a statistically significant contribution to the variance in suicidal ideation (explaining 12.4% of the variance of the Northern Cape participants). Limitations of this study were the use of non British and South African measuring instruments and the age difference between the two groups with the English group being 18 months younger than the Northern Cape group. The results of this study emphasise the value of cross national studies. Longitudinal studies comparing cohorts from different countries are recommended.
Open Access
Die verband tussen psigologiese welstand en kognitiewe buigsaamheid by adolessente
(University of the Free State, 2003-05) Hill, Amanda; Beukes, R. B. I.
English: The primary aim of this study was to investigate the relatioship between cognitive flexibility and psychological wellbeing amongst adolescents empirically, as well as to determine the role of sex and culture as possible predictive variables. Cognitive flexibility was theoretically explored and defined as a cognitive process, characterised by plasticity, elasticity and pliancy, as well as an ability that simultaneously leads to the reconstruction of information and facilitation of problem solving. Adolescence as developmental phase was theoretically explored. Specific attention was given to the potential role of cognitive flexibility regarding problematic developmental tasks, especially within the current South African context and in connection with the adolescent’s experience of psychological wellbeing. Psychological wellbeing was also theoretically examined within the context of the science of psychofortology. Psychological wellbeing is defined as a dynamic state of being at the highest position on the continuum of human functioning. The following constructs were used to determine psychological wellbeing: satisfaction with life, sense of coherence and fortitude. The empirical research conducted amongst schools of the National Department of Education in the Eastern Cape, Gauteng province and Mpumalanga during 2001, amongst others yielded information regarding the psychological wellbeing and cognitive flexibility of a study sample of 1203 grade 11 and grade 12 learners. During 2002 the research sample was enlarged by means of 271 additional adolescents from two schools in Potchefstroom (Northwest Province) with an African language as their mother tongue. All the grade 11 and grade 12 learners of these two schools were included in the study and the necessary consent was obtained. The psychological wellbeing of the study sample was determined by means of the Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener, Emmons, Larsen & Griffen, 1985), the Fortitude Questionnaire (Pretorius, 1997) and the Sense of Coherence Scale (Antonovsky, 1988). Cognitive flexibility was measured by the Cognitive Flexibility Scale (Martin & Rubin, 1995). Acceptable reliability and validity indices for all the measurements were obtained. It was found that a negative correlation exists between the cognitive flexibility and sense of coherence of the adolescents in the study sample. A difference was also found between the two sexes; no meaningful correlation was found between the cognitive flexibility scores of girls and the three factors measured for psychological wellbeing, whilst the scores of boys statistically correlate meaningfully with all three factors for psychological wellbeing, though negatively. A difference was also found to exist between the two language (cultural) groupings. In the case of Afrikaans speaking learners, a positive correlation was found, whereas a negative correlation was found amongst the speakers of an African language. The importance of culture, life context as well as the spirit of the time upon the functioning of the individual has been confirmed in this study - to such an extent that well established Western theories of cognitive functioning and psychological well-being can indeed be questioned when evaluated within the African context. From the results obtained, recommendations were made for future research. The manifestation of cognitive flexibility amongst different cultures and males and females respectively, as well as the prevalence thereof during later developmental stages should be further investigated.

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Browsing Doctoral Degrees (Psychology) by Subject "Adolescence"

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