Faculty of Community and Health Sciences

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The Faculty of Community and Health Sciences (CHS) is committed to excellence in education and training, research and community service which promotes a progressive primary health care approach in an inter-professional manner.

Electronic theses and dissertations are available in the Electronic Theses and Dissertations Repository.

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Girl champ in eSwatini: A strategic marketing campaign to promote demand for sexual and reproductive health services among young women
(AIDS and Behavior, 21) Dlamini, Muhle; Manchia, Amanda; Mabuza, Khabonina; Christie, Sarah
Efforts to engage adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in HIV services have struggled, in part, due to limited awareness of services and stigma. Strategic marketing is a promising approach, but the impact on youth behavior change is unclear. We report findings from a mixed methods evaluation of the Girl Champ campaign, designed to generate demand for sexual and reproductive services among AGYW, and piloted in three clinics in the Manzini region of eSwatini. We analyzed and integrated data from longitudinal, clinic-level databases on health service utilization among AGYW before and after the pilot, qualitative interviews with stakeholders responsible for the implementation of the pilot, and participant feedback surveys from attendees of Girl Champ events. Girl Champ was well received by most stakeholders based on event attendance and participant feedback, and associated with longitudinal improvements in demand for HIV services. Findings can inform future HIV demand creation interventions for youth.
Feature Reduction for the Classification of Bruise Damage to Apple Fruit Using a Contactless FT-NIR Spectroscopy with Machine Learning
(MDPI, 202) Isingizwe, F; Hussein, E; Vaccari, M; Umezuruike, L
Spectroscopy data are useful for modelling biological systems such as predicting quality parameters of horticultural products. However, using the wide spectrum of wavelengths is not practical in a production setting. Such data are of high dimensional nature and they tend to result in complex models that are not easily understood. Furthermore, collinearity between different wavelengths dictates that some of the data variables are redundant and may even contribute noise. The use of variable selection methods is one efficient way to obtain an optimal model, andthis was the aim of this work. Taking advantage of a non-contact spectrometer, near infrared spectral data in the range of 800–2500 nm were used to classify bruise damage in three apple cultivars, namely ‘Golden Delicious’, ‘Granny Smith’ and ‘Royal Gala’. Six prominent machine learning classification algorithms were employed, and two variable selection methods were used to determine the most relevant wavelengths for the problem of distinguishing between bruised and non-bruised fruit. The selected wavelengths clustered around 900 nm, 1300 nm, 1500 nm and 1900 nm. The best results were achieved using linear regression and support vector machine based on up to 40 wavelengths: these methods reached precision values in the range of 0.79–0.86, which were all comparable (within error bars) to a classifier based on the entire range of frequencies. The results also provided an open-source based framework that is useful towards the development of multi-spectral applications such as rapid grading of apples based on mechanical damage, and it can also be emulated and applied for other types of defects on fresh produce.
Learning with technology in physiotherapy education: Design, implementation and evaluation of a flipped classroom teaching approach
(BMC, 219) Røe, Yngve; Rowe, Michael; Ødegaard, Nina B.
The purpose of the study was to describe the design, implementation and evaluation of a flipped classroom teaching approach in physiotherapy education. The flipped classroom is a blended learning approach in which students receive digital lectures as homework, while active learning activities are used in the classroom. Flipped classroom teaching enables a learning environment that aims to develop higher-order cognitive skills. The study design was a historically controlled, prospective, cohort study. An eight week theoretical course on musculoskeletal disorders was redesigned, moving from a conventional approach to a flipped classroom model. Pre-class learning material consisted of about 12 h of video lectures and other digital learning resources that were split up over the duration of the course. In-class activities consisted of seven full-day seminars where students worked in groups in order to solve problem-based assignments. The assignments were designed to reflect authentic clinical problems and required critical thinking and reasoning. Outcomes were measured with coursegrades and compared with historical controls of conventional teaching, using descriptive statistics. Self-perceived learning outcomes and students’ experiences were also collected in a survey.
Betrokkenheid van lidmate by die kerk as n..funksie van lidmaathoudings ten opsigte van Godsdiens en van lidmaatpersepsie van die kerk se Psigososiale klimaat. Betrokkenheid van lidmate by die kerk as n..funksie van lidmaathoudings ten opsigte van Godsdiens en van lidmaatpersepsie van die kerk se Psigososiale klimaat.
(University of the Western Cape, 1987) Pretorius, Tyrone Brian; Malan, D.J.
The aim of the present study was to determine whether church involvement can be conceptualized as a function of both organizational and personal factors. For the purposes of this study the psychosocial climate of the church served as an organizational factor while religious attitudes served as personal factors. A further aim of the study was to determine to what extent the church can be seen as a support system that serves as a buffer against stressors. Subjects consisted of 214 congregation members of 10 different churches that were spread out over the areas of Bellville-South, Kuilsriver and Belhar in the Cape Peninsula. Subjects completed five questionnaires: the Church climate scale (CCS), the Involvement in the church scale (ICS), the Survey of religious attitudes (SRA), a psychological well-being questionaire (RIF) and a biographical questionnaire. The relationship between the different variables were determined by means of product moment correlations, stepwise multiple regression and Chi-square analyses. The analysis of the significance of the differences between more involved and less involved church members was performed by means of Rotelling's T2 statistic. It was found that, according to the psychometric measures applied: the dimensions of the psychosocial climate of the church plays a limited role in the prediction of church insignificance as a predictor of church involvement in the final multiple regression analysis which involved all independent variables simultaneously. Orthodox religious beliefs had a positive relationship with church involvement, while inner religious conflicts had a negative relationship with church involvement. there was no relationship between church involvement and psychological well-being. orthodoxy, income, normative clarity and educational qualifications were the only significant predictors of church involvement. more involved and less involved members differed significantly and the difference between the two groups can be attributed to orthodoxy of religious beliefs. Although the results of the main investigation did not fully confirm the researcher's expectations, the intercorrelations between the different variables produced a number of interesting findings. The Church climate scale produced the following significant correlations with the other variables: ( i) "Normative clarity" correlated negatively with the experience of inner religious conflicts as well as the experience of anxiety, depression and global psychological well-being. It however correlated positively with educational qualifications. Chi-square analyses further showed that married persons, received a high level church. compared to unmarried per the persons, of "normative clarity" within "Sense of community" correlated positively with the level of religious orthodoxy and negatively with the experience of anxiety. (iii)"Social concern correlated positively with the level of religious orthodoxy as well as with sex (men percieved a higher level of social concern within the church than women) . (iv) "Openness to change" correlated positively with the level of religious orthodoxy as well as with sex (men percieved a higher level of social concern within the church than women)
Mediation of detention trauma via perceived locus of control
(South African Journal of Psychology, 1990) Perkel, Adrian K.
Political detention in South Africa has been documented to contain conditions inherently detrimental to psychological health. Reports indicate high levels of stress reponses associated with conditions of solitary confinement, and physical and psychological abuse — particularly in the form of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Amongst the moderating variables that may mediate between detention stress and post-detention trauma is perceived locus of control. In the present study the author aimed to determine post-detention sequelae and the moderating influence of perceived locus of control in this specific context. A Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder scale was combined with an Index of Well-being scale and correlated with a Detention Locus of Control scale to assess mediation significance of experienced ‘traumatization’. Results indicated a positive correlation with those who are internal in their perceived locus of control suffering reduced post-stress sequelae, compared to those who are more externally oriented. Implications and limitations of the study are discussed with specific reference to therapeutic intervention in the clinical context. © 1990, South African Psychological Association and the Psychological Institute of the Republic of South Africa. All rights reserved.
Die rol van die kerk as ondersteuningsnetwerk: Die verwantskap tussen psigo-sosiale klimaat, kerklike betrokkenheid en sielkundige welsyn
(South African Journal of Psychology, 1990-06) Malan, D.J.; Heyns, P.M.; Pretorius, T.B.
The role of the church as a supportive network: The relationship between psycho-social climate, church involvement, and psychological well-being. The aim of the present study was to determine whether mere involvement in church activities is enough to perceive the church as supportive, or whether the church should possess certain qualities before it is experienced as being supportive. The concept of psycho-social climate was used as a conceptual frame of reference to study the characteristics of the church. Two hundred and fourteen members of 10 different congregations completed a battery of questionnaires designed to measure their involvement in the church, their perception of the psycho-social climate of the church, and their level of psychological well-being. No relationship between church involvement and psychological well-being could be found. On the other hand, the analysis of the relationship between the dimensions of church climate and psychological well-being produced a number of significant correlations. Step-wise multiple regression analysis confirmed that the psycho-social dimensions of order/clarity, social concern, stability, and activity were significant predictors of the level of psychological well-being. The obtained relationship was interpreted as confirmation of the impact that the psycho-social environment has on individual functioning.
Die invloed van ‘n studiebegeleidingsprogram op die lokus van kontrole van studente
(University of the Western Cape, 1991) Laubscher, Leswin Robert; Heyns, P.M.
Julian Rotter (1966, 1975) het die persoonlikheidskonstruk lokus van kontrole beskryf as die mate waartoe.die individu glo dat versterking die gevolg is van sy eie gedrag (interne lokus van kontrole) of die gevolg is van gelukkige toeval, kans, of die noodlot (eksterne lokus van kontrole) . Sedert Rotter (1966) die konstruk "lokus van kontrole" gedefinieer en as integrale komponent van sy sosiale leerteorie voorgestel het, het velerlei navorsers ook hierdie konstruk indringend ondersoek en met talle aspekte in verband probeer bring. Een van die veranderlikes wat veral aandag geniet het, is akademiese prestasie en die verband wat ditmet lokus van kontrole sou toon. Alhoewel daar nie ooreenstemming bestaan met betrekking tot hierdie verband nie, blyk dit asof die meerderheid navorsers wel bevind dat 'n interne lokus van kontrole verband hou met hoê akademiese prestasie (byvoorbeeld Kishor, 1983; Maqsud, 1980; Messer, 1972). Verskeie tersiêre inrigtings (waaronder die Universiteit van Wes-Kaapland, waar hierdie studie beslag vind) bied dan ook studiebegeleidingsprogramme aan ten einde studente van studievaardighede te voorsien wat hulle in staat sou stelom akademies beter te presteer. Hierdie programme neem egter selde persoonlikheidsveranderlikes in aanmerking en fokus veel eerder op die verskaffing van studiewenke en -vaardighede. Hierdie studie het dus In unieke studiebegeleidingsprogram probeer ontwerp wat In interne lokus van kontrole by die deelnemende proefpersone wil bevorder. Dit is dan die primêre studiebegeleidingsprogram van die U.W.K. te evalueer ten opsigte van die invloed daarvan op die persoonlikheidskonstruk lokus van kontrole by die deelnemende proefpersone. Sekondêre doelstellings behels die volgende ii) om die samehang tussen die konstruk lokus van kontrole met die volgende veranderlikes te bepaal: a) Geslag b) Geografiese herkoms, naamlik plattelandse vs. stedelike studente • c) Ouderdom d) Sosio-ekonomiese status e) Studierigting f) Taalgroep g) Politieke betrokkenheid, organisatoriese affiliasie en organisatoriese betrokkenheid h) Akademiese prestasie i) Akademiese studiejaar iii) om vergelykings te tref met Westerse navorsingsbevindinge Die huidige studie was ondersoekend van aard weens die afwesigheid van soortgelyke voorafgaande navorsing. In Voortoets-natoets kontrole groep-ontwerp is gebruik om die verband tussen lokus van kontrole en die studiebegeleidingsprogram na te vors. Altesaam Proefpersone het aan die ondersoek deelgeneem Collins (1974) se aanpassing van Rotter (1966) se interneeksterne lokus van kontrole skaal is as meetmiddel gebruik. Herdie skaal het deel gevorm van In vraelys wat ook informasie ingewin het omtrent die persoon huistaal, studiedoelstellings, se geslag, politieke studentestatus, betrokkenheid, betrokkenheid, organisatoriese affiliasie, organisatoriese akademiese prestasie en geografiese herkoms. Die resultate van die huidige navorsing het aangedui dat daar geen beduidende verband bestaan tussen die lokus van kontrole geneigdheid van die proefpersone en die ervaring van die studiebegeleidingsprogram nie. Die huidige navorsing het voorts geen verband gevind waar dit die samehang van lokus van kontrole en die veranderlikes van geslag, geografiese herkoms, ouderdom, sosio-ekonomiese status, studierigting, taalgroep, politieke affiliasie, en organisatoriese betrokkenheid aangaan nie. Beduidende verbande is wel bespeur ten opsigte van die lokus van kontrole-tellings van manlike en vroulike proefpersone wat In Afrika-taal besig, asook ten opsigte van die veranderlikes politieke betrokkenheid, akademiese prestasie en akademiese studiejaar. Hierdie bevindinge is bespreek met verwysing na die geneigdheid van die proefpersone en die ervaring van die studiebegeleidingsprogram nie. Die huidige navorsing het voorts geen verband gevind waar dit die samehang van lokus van kontrole en die veranderlikes van geslag, geografiese herkoms, ouderdom, sosio-ekonomiese status, studierigting, taalgroep, politieke affiliasie, en organisatoriese betrokkenheid aangaan nie. Beduidende verbande is wel bespeur ten opsigte van die lokus van kontrole-tellings van manlike en vroulike proefpersone wat In Afrika-taal besig, asook ten opsigte van die veranderlikes politieke betrokkenheid, akademiese prestasie en akademiese studiejaar. Literatuuroorsig, asook met inagneming van die unieke aard van die studentebevolking aan die Universiteit van Wes-Kaapland. Die unieke suid-Afrikaanse sosio-politieke realiteit is ook in aanmerking geneem. Ten slotte word sekere aanbevelings gemaak met die oog op verdere navorsing .
Psychosocial variables in the transmission of AIDS
(University of the Western Cape, 1991) Perkel, Andrian, Keith; Broekmann, Neil; Pretorius, Tyrone
In the decade since first identified, the Acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) has become a serious global disease. The nature of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) that causes AIDS, whereby a carrier may be asymptomatic yet remain infectious, has enabled its dramatic spread. The number of AIDS cases is increasing exponentially, averaging a doubling time of between 8-15 months indifferent countries. Of the millions of HIV carriers, it is now estimated that all will eventually go on to develop full-blown AIDS and probably die within 15 years. Unlike other infectious diseases, there is currently no known vaccine or cure. Further, HIV is now virtually completely dependent on volitional sexual behaviours for transmission to occur. It is therefore an entirely preventable disease. However, since the behaviours that contribute to HIV-transmission are influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors, their alteration in line with safer sexual practices has been shown to be considerably complex and difficult. Intervention strategies that have relied on imparting knowledge about the disease have achieved limited success in influencing behaviour change. Unsafe sexual practices, and the risk of HIV-infection, often continue even when knowledge regarding prevention is adequate. It has therefore become apparent that other variables intrude which may mediate between knowledge acquisition, attitude formation, and consequent sexual behaviours. There appear to be no models which adequately explain the complexities in this area, and which enable adequate intervention strategies to be developed. The present study was undertaken to redress this problem, and to explore those variables that mediate in the area. Various psychological and social factors appear to be implicated in influencing sexual attitudes and behaviours. In order to adequately test the impact of psychosocial variables that were found to have significant associations in an exploratory study, a measuring instrument was developed. The AIDS Psychosocial Scale was statistically validated using content, frequency, factor, and reliability analyses and included psychological factors of self concept, defenses of denial, repression, and rationalisation, perceived empowerment in the form of locus of control and self efficacy, and the social factor of peer pressure susceptibility. The impact of these psychosocial variables on indices of knowledge, condom attitude, and sexual practices, and on other epidemiological variables was tested using a sample of students at the University of the Western Cape (n=308). Results indicated a number of correlational and causal links between variables, confirming the mediational role psychosocial factors have in influencing knowledge acquisition, attitude formation, and behaviour outcome. A profile of lower self concept, higher defenses, lower self-efficacy, more external locus of control, and higher peer pressure susceptibility emerged which was associated with poorer knowledge, more negative attitudes, and higher unsafe sex. Based on this study, a model of psychosocial mediation is developed and its implications for intervention strategies discussed.
Psychosocial variables in the transmission of AIDS
(University of the Western Cape, 1991) Perkel, Adrian Keith; Broekmann, N.
In the decade since first identified, the Acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) has become a serious global disease. The nature of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) that causes AIDS, whereby a carrier may be asymptomatic yet remain infectious, has enabled its dramatic spread. The number of AIDS cases is increasing exponentially, averaging a doubling time of between 8-15 months in different countries. Of the millions of HIV carriers, it is now estimated that all will eventually go on to develop full-blown AIDS and probably die within 15 years. Unlike other infectiqus diseases, there is currently no known vaccine or cure. Further, HIV is now virtually completely dependent on volitional sexual behaviours for transmission to occur. It is therefore an entirely preventable disease. However, since the behaviours that contribute to HIV-transmission are influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors, their alteration in line with safer sexual practices has been shown to be considerably complex and difficult. Intervention strategies that have relied on imparting knowledge about the disease have achieved limited success in influencing behaviour change. Unsafe sexual practices, and the risk of HIV-infection, often continue even when knowledge regarding prevention is adequate. It has therefore become apparent that other variables intrude which may mediate between knowledge acquisition, attitude formation, and consequent sexual behaviours. There appear to be no models which adequately explain the complexities in this area, and which enable adequate intervention strategies to be developed. The present study was undertaken to redress this problem, and to explore those variables that mediate in the area. Various psychological and social factors appear to be implicated in influencing sexual attitudes and behaviours. In order to adequately test the impact of psychosocial variables that were found to have significant associations in an exploratory study, a measuring instrument was developed. The AIDS Psychosocial Scale was statistically validated using content, frequency, factor, and reliability analyses and included psychological factors of self concept, defenses of denial, repression, and rationalisation, perceived empowerment in the form of locus of control and selfefficacy, and the social factor of peer pressure susceptibility. The impact of these psychosocial variables on indices of knowledge, condom attitude, and sexual practices, and on other epidemiological variables was tested using a sample of students at the University of the Western Cape (n=308). Results indicated a number of correlational and causal links between variables, confirming the mediational role psychosocial factors have in influencing knowledge acquisition, attitude formation, and behaviour outcome. A profile of lower self concept, higher defenses, lower self-efficacy, more external locus of control, and higher peer pressure susceptibility emerged which was associated with poorer knowledge, more negative attitudes, and higher unsafe sex. Based on this study, a model of psychosocial mediation is developed and its implications for intervention strategies discussed.
Psychosocial variables in the transmission of AIDS
(University of the Western Cape, 1991) Perkel, Adrian Keith; Broekmann, N.
In the decade since first identified, the Acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) has become a serious global disease. The nature of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) that causes AIDS, whereby a carrier may be asymptomatic yet remain infectious, has enabled its dramatic spread. The number of AIDS cases is increasing exponentially, averaging a doubling time of between 8-15 months in different countries. Of the millions of HIV carriers, it is now estimated that all will eventually go on to develop full-blown AIDS and probably die within 15 years. Unlike other infectiqus diseases, there is currently no known vaccine or cure. Further, HIV is now virtually completely dependent on volitional sexual behaviours for transmission to occur. It is therefore an entirely preventable disease. However, since the behaviours that contribute to HIV-transmission are influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors, their alteration in line with safer sexual practices has been shown to be considerably complex and difficult. Intervention strategies that have relied on imparting knowledge about the disease have achieved limited success in influencing behaviour change. Unsafe sexual practices, and the risk of HIV-infection, often continue even when knowledge regarding prevention is adequate. It has therefore become apparent that other variables intrude which may mediate between knowledge acquisition, attitude formation, and consequent sexual behaviours. There appear to be no models which adequately explain the complexities in this area, and which enable adequate intervention strategies to be developed. The present study was undertaken to redress this problem, and to explore those variables that mediate in the area. Various psychological and social factors appear to be implicated in influencing sexual attitudes and behaviours. In order to adequately test the impact of psychosocial variables that were found to have significant associations in an exploratory study, a measuring instrument was developed. The AIDS Psychosocial Scale was statistically validated using content, frequency, factor, and reliability analyses and included psychological factors of self concept, defenses of denial, repression, and rationalisation, perceived empowerment in the form of locus of control and selfefficacy, and the social factor of peer pressure susceptibility. The impact of these psychosocial variables on indices of knowledge, condom attitude, and sexual practices, and on other epidemiological variables was tested using a sample of students at the University of the Western Cape (n=308). Results indicated a number of correlational and causal links between variables, confirming the mediational role psychosocial factors have in influencing knowledge acquisition, attitude formation, and behaviour outcome. A profile of lower self concept, higher defenses, lower self-efficacy, more external locus of control, and higher peer pressure susceptibility emerged which was associated with poorer knowledge, more negative attitudes, and higher unsafe sex. Based on this study, a model of psychosocial mediation is developed and its implications for intervention strategies discussed.
Die terapeutiese effektiwiteit van hipnoterapie soos toegepas op studente met gewigsprobleme
(University of the Western Cape, 1992) Jacobs, Joachim John; Sonn, F.G.T.
In 'n geïndustrialiseerde en Westers-georiënteerde samelewing, kenmerkend van sommige bevolkingsektore van Suid-Afrika, is 'n slanke figuur soms aanduidend van skoonheid en gesondheid. Dit is daarom geensins buitengewoon dat gewigsbewustheid een van die belangrikste verskynsels van ons tyd is nie. Duisende oorgewig-persone poog om 'n "norm" van slankheid na te streef (Polivy & Herman, 1987). Estetiese oorwegings is egter nie die. enigste rede waarom mense gewigsbewus is nie. Versekeringstatistieke dui toenemend daarop dat oorgewig-persone 'n hoër mortaliteitsyfer toon (Stunkard, stinnet & Smoller, 1986). Hierdie uiters nadelige gevolge van oorgewig is tweërlei van aard, naamlik psigies en fisiek. Spesifieke fisieke gevolge waarna in die literatuur (Kirschner, Schneider, Ertel & Gorman, 1988; Millar & Stephens, 1986) verwys word, is beroerte, diabetes, kardiovaskulêre- en ortopediese komplikasies. Op sielkundige vlak verwys Stunkard et al. (1986) na sielkundige stoornisse wat uniek is aan die obese populasie. Hierdie stoornisse kan terug gevoer word na die belewenis van uitermatige sosiale diskriminasie en vooroordeel (Rodin, Schank, Striegel & Moore, 1989). Hoër vlakke van stres, angs,depressie en In verwronge liggaamsbeeld word met die oorgewig-persoon geassosieer (Rodin et al., 1989; Stunkard et al.,1986). In talle gevalle moet hierdie sielkundige las as die grootste negatiewe gevolg van obesiteit beskou word. In Bykomende verskynsel ten opsigte van die probleem van oorgewig is die toename in die oorgewigsyfer van die wêreldpopulasie. Oberholzer (1984) beweer dat alreeds eenderde van die Suid -Afrikaanse bevolking oorgewig is. Ten spyte van die toename in die oorgewigsyfer word In begrip van die verskynsel bemoeilik deur die magdom teoretiese aannames en teenstrydighede rakende die etiologie, behandeling, en voorkoming daarvan. Ten opsigte van die etiologie van obesiteit besef te min klinici die multifaktoriale aard van die verskynsel en verklaar hulle dit dikwels slegs vanuit In enkele perspektief (Sobal & Stunkard, 1989) . Met betrekking tot die behandeling daarvan bestaan daar In wye verskeidenheid van benaderings wat chemoterapie, chirurgie, dieetterapie, akupunktuur, fisieke oefening en psigoterapie insluit.
Towards a critical approach to art education: in action research project
(University of the Western Cape, 1992) Kriel, Sandra; van den Berg, Owen
The action research project documented in this thesis was informed by Jurgen Habermas' theory of knowledge-constitutive interests. In this theory Habermas postulates three anthropologically deep-seated interests that inform our search for knowledge. These interests are the technical, the practical and the emancipatory. In the action-research project, which was done in collaboration with a group of first year art students at Bellville College of Education, I attempted to uncover the values, assumptions and interests underlying our educational interaction in the hope of transforming it to be more empowering and emancipatory. The project went through three stages, each of which was informed by a different interest. The first stage could be described as having a technical interest because it was based on positivist assumptions of reductionism, duality and linearity. In this "- stage art was understood as being value-free, objectively describing and reflecting visual reality. It was believed that theory and skills could be applied to achieve a predetermined product. In the second stage of the project the positivist paradigm of perception was replaced by the assumption that our relationship to others and the world is mediated by language which needs to be interpreted in a socio-political and historical context. Art does not only have a descriptive role but it can express subjective understandings of the networks of meanings and social rules involved in experienced reality. Finally, the third stage evolved within a critical framework informed by an emancipatory interest. In the drawing project we looked critically at aspects of our society which frustrate and constrain individuals to sustain dependence, inequality and oppression. We tried to uncover existing power relations and the historical, social and material conditions underlying certain problems we were experiencing. We hoped to find ways in which we could contribute to the transformation of ourselves and our society. The process of making art was here seen as a form of communicative action which can be empowering, emancipatory and transformative.
Persoonlikheids eienskappe en skoolprestasie as voorspellers van uitkoms in die kursus b.sc. in fisioterapie aan die Universiteit van Stellenbosch
(University of the Western Cape, 1992) Bester, Maria M; Steyn, D. M; Versfeld, P. A
Keuring van fisioterapie studente vind wereldwyd hoofsaaklik op grond van skolastiese prestasie plaas. Sommige opleidingsinstansies sluit biografiese veranderlikes en sommige persoonlikheidsveranderlikes wat deur middel van onderhoude indentifiseer word, in" Hierdie studie poog daarin om'n korrelasie te vind tussen skolastiese prestasie enpsigomotoriese veranderlikes aan die een kant en akademiese-, praktiese- en kliniese veranderlikes aan die ander kant. Vanuit die resultate van die studie word voorstelle gemaak vir die samestelling van 'n keuringsprosedure of battery vir fisioterapie studente. Die steekproef bestaan uit 'n groep van7l(x studente wat met die B.Sc. kursus in Fisioterapie begin het vanaf L979 tot 1985. Die resultate van die psigometriese toetse deur die studente in hul eerstejaar afgel6, word in die studie gebruik. Hierdie toetse word met die oog op beroepsvoorligting gedoen. Die studie slaag daarin om die tekortkominge iq beide die huidige metodes van keuring sowel as die psigometriese toetse in hierdie studie gebruik, te identifiseer. Skolastiese prestasie toon steeds die hoogste beduidende korrelasie tydens die prekliniese studiejare. Nie-kognitiewe veranderlikes skp egter van belang te wees by die voorspetling van kliniese prestasie. Verskeie belowende alternatiewe om as keuringskriteria of -prosedures te dien, word identifiseer en hoort in toekornstige ondersoeke in hierdie rigting'n rol te speel.
Discourses on Racism
(University of the Western Cape, 1993) Duncan, Norman. T.F; Cooper, Saths
A central aim of this study is to examine the meanings which (i) a group of South African psychologists and (ii) a group of Black parents give to racism in their discourses and how these meanings are linked to existing relations of domination. To this end the discourses on racism produced by the former in various journal articles and the latter in various group discussions are submitted to analysis. The study basically utilizes the following working hypotheses as its point of departure: (i) that the discourses produced by the group of psychologists - in so far as they could broadly be seen as being representative of prevailing dominant discourses - would, to varying degrees, reflect attempts to legitimate and reinforce the relations of domination which the ideology of racism entails; and (ii) that despite certain similarities between . dominant group discourses and dominant group discourses on racism, the latter's discourses would, to varying degrees, be the site of resistance against dominant group discourses as well as against their domination. The findings of the study seem to support the basic postulates contained in the two working hypotheses presented above. More specifically, the analysis of the discourses collected reveals (i) that, though ostensibly very disparate, the discourses produced by the group of psychologists, by and large, appear to justify and dissimulate the asymmetric relations of power which the ideology of racism maintains; and (ii) that despite the similarities between dominant group and dominated group discourses the latter, in a variety of ways, undermine the ideology of racism as well as dominant group discourses on the ideology. The study concludes with an examination of the suggestions emerging from the discourses analyzed ,regarding how racism as it manifests itself in South Africa can be combatted and eliminated.
Topics, trends and silences in South African psychology 1948-1988 : ethnocentricism, crisis and liberatory echoes /
(University of the Western Cape, 1993) Seedat, Mohamed Amin; Cooper, Saths
The deliberate and sometimes unwitting complicity of psychology with apartheid social formations has received little attention in the psycho-historical literature. This, study in an attempt to break the silence, offers a descriptive characterization of South African psychology by tracing its origins, evolution, formalization and development to its ethnoscientific, colonial and apartheid roots. The study begins with an examination of the globalization of Euro-American psychology. The proliferation and domination of Euro-American psychology closely correlates with the emergence and globalization of colonial power that is intimately connected to the missionary discourses of conquest and conversion and to the doctrines of scientific racism. Western explorers, soldiers, missionaries, and social scientists are among the figures who participated in the occupation and conversion of the 'Dark Continent' of Africa. Within the context of colonialism, psychology became an enterprise of conquest and conversion that endeavoured to understand how people of colour, 'marginal beings', could be transformed into active subjects The history of South African psychology provides an illuminating illustration of how psychological discourse and practice may be employed for the purposes of oppressive social engineering. Besides projecting psychological intervention as vital to the alleviation of economic, social and industrial problems, psychologists utilized their expert roles in the Carnegie Poor White Study, in the Air-force and in industry and objects of Western racial and economic exploitation. The history of South African psychology provides an illuminating illustration of how psychological discourse and practice may be employed for the purposes of oppressive social engineering. Besides projecting psychological intervention as vital to the alleviation of economic, social and industrial problems, psychologists utilized their expert roles in the Carnegie Poor White Study, in the Air-force and in industry to rationalize and bolster White economic and political hegemony. The racial overtones that characterized the establishment of a professional association represents a startling example of how apartheid ideology was reproduced within the profession itself Unfortunately, oppressive discourse appears to continue to inform the research agenda, practices and theoretical concerns of many South African psychologists, thereby creating the impetus for the present crisis within the discipline. The crisis relates to, among other issues, the failure of Euro-American psychology to represent the psychological experiences of people of colour. Attempts at resolving the crisis are stymied by the production and reproduction of conceptual paradoxes within the fields of family therapy, community psychology and cross-cultural psychology, fields that are often portrayed as the solution to the crisis. Despite the increasing levels of theoretical complexity and ideological scrutiny each of these fields offer, South African psychology still faces various epistemological challenges and communieentric biases. A content analysis of 977 articles that appear in the South African Journal of Psychology, Psychologia Africana, the Journal of Behavioural Science, Psychology in Society, Humanitas. Psygram and the South African Psychologist confirms that the crisis in psychology continues. Details obtained from the analytical review show South African psychology, between 1948 and 1988, to be characterized by five features. First, Whites and males affiliated to the open liberal universities and Afrikaans universities dominate knowledge-production in the discipline. Blacks and women authors, especially those affiliated to the historically Black universities, tend to occupy mainly co-authorship positions at the level of publication. Second, the majority of articles reviewed are written in English. Third, whereas the bulk of articles analysed are empirical in nature, there is an increasing trend towards theoretical articles that examine the ideological and philosophical premises of the discipline. Fourth, empirical studies tend -to select subjects from both male and female gender groups, who are mainly White, and mostly affiliated to institutional settings. Fifth, research is dominated by an emphasis on conventional areas such as psychometrics, research methodology, industrial psychology and educational psychology. The more recently evolved fields such as community psychology and the psychology of oppression receive little attention. By moving to a point beyond critique and characterizations, the study concludes with an exploration of the dynamic quest for liberatory psychology, central to which is the formulation of an emancipatory agenda. An emancipatory agenda may well propel progressive psychologists towards systematically addressing the silences within the field, securing the centralization of Blacks and women at the levels of knowledge production and political representation and creating liberatory epistemologies.
Type of behaviour and burnout: a comparison between intensive care nurses and psychiatric nurses
(University of the Western Cape, 1993) Booysen, L.B; Broekmann, N
Nursing evolved as an altruistic response toward helping others, particularly in the realm of maintaining and restoring health (Dolan, Fitzpatrick & Hermann, 1983). This particular role involved providing physical and emotional comfort and care to the sick and has, through the ages, been voluntary or delegated to certain women who have proven to be particularly adept at caring for the sick in their respective communities. Therefore, nursing was not a role expected of all women but was reserved for those who had the ability and desire to nurture others (Dolan et al., 1983). The first nurses were independent figures who performed the duties not only of nurse, but also of nutritionist, pharmacist, physical therapist, and social welfare worker (Dolan et al., 1983). Although their initial response to, and treatment of, illness was intuitive, knowledge about illness and the treatment thereof was continuously being improved upon. Trial and error and basic problem solving resulted in the accumulation of a body of knowledge which gradually developed and expanded.
The effect of · iron supplementation on maximal oxygen consumption in boys aged 9 11 years with iron deficiency and anaemia
(University of the Western Cape, 1993) Leach, Lloyd Llewellyn; Maritz, G.
Iron deficiency anaemia is the most common abnormality of the blood in childhood (Karabus 1987). If the quantity of iron lost by the body exceeds iron intake, the body will draw on its iron reserves to counterbalance this deficit. However, the continuance of an iron imbalance will eventually lead to a reduction in body iron stores. Because iron forms an integral component of the oxygen transport mechanism of the body, it is understandable that the functional capacity of this system will be compromised under conditions of iron deficiency. A deficit in oxygen transport capacity will presumably indicate a decreased capacity to persevere in the face of continuing strenuous physical activity. The decrement in physical aerobic working capacity (maximal oxygen consumption) will largely be indicative of the decrease in oxygen transport capacity. Routine haemoglobin determinations carried out in the outpatient department of the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital in Cape Town showed that many Coloured and African pre-schoolgoing children had abnormally low haemoglobin levels which occurred as a manifestation of iron deficiency anaemia (Lanzkowsky 1961). In another similar but more recent study also in the Cape Peninsula, Lamparelli et al. (1988) showed that the prevalence of iron deficiency anaemia in Coloured and African children was 15.5 % and 36.0 %, respectively . In this study, the condition of iron deficiency anaemia was particularly pronounced in urban Coloured children. In both these studies done in the Western Cape, the majority of Coloured children were classified as coming from the lowest socioeconomic income group in the community. In the majority of studies concerning the relationship between socioeconomic status and iron deficiency anaemia, it is often stated that low socioeconomic circumstances are significantly correlated to low blood haemoglobin levels (Expert Scientific Working Group 1985; Lanzkowsky 1959; Lanzkowsky 1961; World Health Organization 1972; World Health Organization 1975).
The development of a university-based sex counselling programme in the age of AIDS.
(University of the Western Cape, 1993) Nicholas, Lionel John; Cooper, Sathasivan
The sexual behaviours, attitudes, beliefs and communication of 1896 black first-year university students were examined by means of a structured questionnaire for their contribution to the development of a university-based sex counselling programme. The areas of sexuality investigated included intra-familial communication about contraception and sexuality, belief in sex myths, knowledge of and myths about AIDS and the manner of acquisition of sex knowledge. The results of this study are consistent in reflecting much greater deficits in the knowledge of respondents about sexuality than encountered in the literature. Statistically significant gender differences were found for intra-familial communication about contraception, prejudice towards AIDS victims, knowledge of the modes of HIV infection, prejudice towards homosexuals, belief in myths about sexuality, age at which sex information was acquired, the preferred source of information about sexuality, attitude towards pre-marital intercourse, experience of pre-marital intercourse, belief about the acceptability of abortion, experience of pre-marital intercourse and worry about masturbation. No gender differences were found for belief in myths about high-risk AIDS infection, exposure to sex information within educational institutions and approval of sex education. The statistically significant gender differences which were found for most of the questionnaire items reflect the different sexual socialization experiences of respondents. Male and female students may therefore require counselling interventions geared to their respective needs Concern about AIDS has become central to university student sexual behaviour as well as protection against rape and sexual harassment and male responsibility for contraception. All campus counsellors will eventually experience the impact of AIDS and other sexually·transmitted diseases in their sessions with clients. Sexual harassment, rape, contraceptive failure and abortion will also increasingly impact on counselling sessions and require the university-based counsellor's involvement in broader university-wide prevention programmes as well as group based interventions. The development of a university-based sex counselling programme requires comprehensive interventions ranging from individual counselling to human sexuality courses. An awareness of the high profile sexuality problems as perceived by students, is essential for the development of preventive programmes at the group and academic class level as well as at the level of inf luencing uni versi ty policy. Knowledge of the merits of different theoretical positions and interventions for particular sexual problems is crucial for counselling intervention or referral. A systemic model of intervention for sexuality problems is proposed. The task of university-based sex counselling programmes is made more onerous by the paucity and ineffectiveness of sex information students are exposed to, the lack of sex education in the schools and the inadequate quality and degree of intrafamilial communication about sexuality. A significant proportion of respondents engage in pre-marital sexual intercourse without the benefit of adequate sex knowledge. The results of this study emphasize the need for research on the sexuality of, black South Africans, the particular vulnerabilities of first-year university students to sexuality problems and the dire need for structured sex education programmes at school as well as university.
Social workers in the transition of social welfare : A descriptive-dialogical enquiry
(University of the Western Cape, 1994) Ntebe, Ann Beatrice; Small, Adam
The time period of this study is the contemporary first half of the Nineties, a momentous time in the history of South Africa. The country is passing from apartheid (the "old" South Africa) to the hope of democracy (the "new" South Africa). Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as President of South Africa in May 1994. Social workers, too, find themselves in transition. What is the thinking of experienced progressive social workers at this historical moment, concerning themselves and their profession within its context of social welfare as societal institution? This is the question I explore, specifically with reference to senior social workers within the area of greater Cape Town It is important to note that in terms of the research philosophy underlying this enquiry, the methodological process of the thesis is integral to its substance. My approach, along "New Paradigm" lines, is descriptive dialogical. Implicit in it is a "confrontation of the positivistic epistemology of 'The Scientific Method' in the misguided sense of an 'absolute and only' method of science, which unfortunately is still prevalent in standard practices of enquiry inside and outside the university" (see Note [i] at the end of this Summary). My thesis therefore offers not only outcomes but, as much as possible, also the process of the enquiry. A descriptive-dialogical approach also takes the idea of narrative seriously, "narrative being a mode that makes room for in fact, that insists on more than merely written presentation" (see Note [ii] at the end of this Summary). My research philosophy and methodology accommodate as far as possible "the whole academic and professional potential of a student, rather than just the student's writing potential" (see Note [iii] at the end of this Summary). In line with this, I submit as an accompaniment to this writing -- and as holistically intrinsic to this thesis -- a relevant video-recording and audio recordings illustrating myself at work in the execution of this study. In conclusion of this Summary I must indicate my promoter's and my own serious commitment to the possibility of creative indigenousness of academic style and presentation. This must be viewed within African and South African context, and it explains much of the "humanistically holistic" tenor of this study. This, of course, is in no way intended to discount the worthwhileness and substantiality, in fact the necessity for us, of recourse to the best tenets of European and Euro-American university tradition.
Suicide mortality in NSW: geographic variation.
(CSIRO, 1995) Stewart, Gavin; Chipps, Jennifer; Sayer, Geoffrey
This is the first of a series of articles on the epidemiology of suicide in NSW. We examine pooled suicide mortality data for Area and District Health Services from the time of the introduction of the ICD9-CM cause of death coding in 1979 to the most current complete year for which death data are available (1992).

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