"Burnout" in children's home houseparents
- Authors: Bath, Peter John
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Burn out (Psychology) , Children Institutional care , Houseparent , Foster parents , Child care workers Mental health
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/193118 , vital:45300
- Description: Aimed at replicating the results of an American study into "Burnout" in Group Home houseparents, this research had the following aims: 1) To ascertain the validity and reliability of the instrument used in the original study and presented as a "useful measure of burnout”. 2) To establish whether this line of research, within a highly problematic research field, can at present offer any guidelines in the resolution of the current staffing crisis faced by South African children's homes. 3} To describe more closely the burnout syndrome. 4) To study possible etiological factors within a local context. Sixty three houseparents completed questionaires and three independent measures of burnout were obtained. The results were regarded as having failed to replicate those of the original study. The reason for this was found to be the low validity of the original instrument. The main conclusion drawn was that the line of research adopted in the original study can offer only very tentative guidelines towards the resolution of the staffing crisis faced until such time as valid and reliable instruments to measure burnout have been developed. Many of the suggested relationships between situational variables and ones of personal characteristics were confirmed for the local population of houseparents. , Thesis (MSocSci) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 1983
- Full Text:
- Authors: Bath, Peter John
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Burn out (Psychology) , Children Institutional care , Houseparent , Foster parents , Child care workers Mental health
- Language: English
- Type: Master's theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/193118 , vital:45300
- Description: Aimed at replicating the results of an American study into "Burnout" in Group Home houseparents, this research had the following aims: 1) To ascertain the validity and reliability of the instrument used in the original study and presented as a "useful measure of burnout”. 2) To establish whether this line of research, within a highly problematic research field, can at present offer any guidelines in the resolution of the current staffing crisis faced by South African children's homes. 3} To describe more closely the burnout syndrome. 4) To study possible etiological factors within a local context. Sixty three houseparents completed questionaires and three independent measures of burnout were obtained. The results were regarded as having failed to replicate those of the original study. The reason for this was found to be the low validity of the original instrument. The main conclusion drawn was that the line of research adopted in the original study can offer only very tentative guidelines towards the resolution of the staffing crisis faced until such time as valid and reliable instruments to measure burnout have been developed. Many of the suggested relationships between situational variables and ones of personal characteristics were confirmed for the local population of houseparents. , Thesis (MSocSci) -- Faculty of Humanities, Psychology, 1983
- Full Text:
A history
- Authors: Berold, Robert
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/459424 , vital:75830 , https://journals.co.za/doi/epdf/10.10520/AJA00284459_394
- Description: New Coin is one of South Africa's most established and influential poetry journals. It publishes poetry, and poetry-related reviews, commentary and interviews. New Coin places a particular emphasis on evolving forms and experimental use of the English language in poetry in the South African context. In this sense it has traced the most exciting trends and currents in contemporary poetry in South Africa for a decade of more. The journal is published twice a year in June and December by the Institute for the Study of English in Africa (ISEA), Rhodes University.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Berold, Robert
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/459424 , vital:75830 , https://journals.co.za/doi/epdf/10.10520/AJA00284459_394
- Description: New Coin is one of South Africa's most established and influential poetry journals. It publishes poetry, and poetry-related reviews, commentary and interviews. New Coin places a particular emphasis on evolving forms and experimental use of the English language in poetry in the South African context. In this sense it has traced the most exciting trends and currents in contemporary poetry in South Africa for a decade of more. The journal is published twice a year in June and December by the Institute for the Study of English in Africa (ISEA), Rhodes University.
- Full Text:
A phenomenological explication of the experience of counselling chronic callers in Life Line
- Authors: Matthis, Kenneth Skeen
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Life Line Movement , Hotlines (Counseling)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3135 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006893 , Life Line Movement , Hotlines (Counseling)
- Full Text:
- Authors: Matthis, Kenneth Skeen
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Life Line Movement , Hotlines (Counseling)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3135 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006893 , Life Line Movement , Hotlines (Counseling)
- Full Text:
A phenomenological investigation of the experience of "connected breathing"
- Authors: Van Wyk, Edmund
- Date: 1983
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:21110 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/6439
- Description: My interest in "Connected Breathing" began with my own experience of this technique during a Gestalt workshop. It had a profound impact on me. I knew practically nothing about the theory, or lack of a theory, but my interest had been aroused. In my reading on the subject later, I was struck by the incongruence between my experience and what I read I was supposed to be experiencing. This led me "zu der Sache selbst." By using the phenomenological method, this study then is an attempt to come to an essential description of the experience of "Connected Breathing" and to make some evaluation of its usefulness as a psychotherapeutic technique. "Connected Breathing" is the main technique of the “Rebirthing”movement. It is, therefore, necessary to give some account of the development and theory, if any, of this movement. "Rebirthing" does not claim to be a psychotherapy. However, its technique of "Connected Breathing" does seem to have much in common with the techniques used by various established somatic psychotherapies. A brief overview of the development of some of these psychotherapies and their emphasis on breathing techniques is, therefore, also essential.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Van Wyk, Edmund
- Date: 1983
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:21110 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/6439
- Description: My interest in "Connected Breathing" began with my own experience of this technique during a Gestalt workshop. It had a profound impact on me. I knew practically nothing about the theory, or lack of a theory, but my interest had been aroused. In my reading on the subject later, I was struck by the incongruence between my experience and what I read I was supposed to be experiencing. This led me "zu der Sache selbst." By using the phenomenological method, this study then is an attempt to come to an essential description of the experience of "Connected Breathing" and to make some evaluation of its usefulness as a psychotherapeutic technique. "Connected Breathing" is the main technique of the “Rebirthing”movement. It is, therefore, necessary to give some account of the development and theory, if any, of this movement. "Rebirthing" does not claim to be a psychotherapy. However, its technique of "Connected Breathing" does seem to have much in common with the techniques used by various established somatic psychotherapies. A brief overview of the development of some of these psychotherapies and their emphasis on breathing techniques is, therefore, also essential.
- Full Text:
A Pied Starling study
- Authors: Craig, Adrian J F K
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/465256 , vital:76587
- Description: After some years of ringing bishop birds Euplectes sp. and other weavers at reed beds in the western Cape and Natal, a move to Grahamstown seemed a good time to change birds. So I decided look at the Pied Starling Spreo bicolor, one of those conmon birds about which we know almost nothing.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Craig, Adrian J F K
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/465256 , vital:76587
- Description: After some years of ringing bishop birds Euplectes sp. and other weavers at reed beds in the western Cape and Natal, a move to Grahamstown seemed a good time to change birds. So I decided look at the Pied Starling Spreo bicolor, one of those conmon birds about which we know almost nothing.
- Full Text:
A price analysis of vegetables on the East London municipal market
- Authors: Fraser, Gavin Cecil Gilbert
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Agricultural prices -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: vital:1055 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006970 , Agricultural prices -- South Africa
- Description: [Introduction] Much of the information available on the prices of vegetables marketed through the fresh produce markets is of limited use to producers. This information contains the actual prices for individual years. This can obviously be taken as a guide to future prices but it does not necessarily mean that those prices are a true reflection of the general pattern. In this study an attempt will be made, firstly, to establish whether a general pattern exists in the prices of selected vegetables on the East London municipal market. This will be attempted by studying the prices obtained over the 1964-1979 period. Information of this nature can be used as a basis for the planning of future crops. Secondly, to determine the months which obtain the "best" prices for the selected vegetables taking into account the quantities supplied to the market.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Fraser, Gavin Cecil Gilbert
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Agricultural prices -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MCom
- Identifier: vital:1055 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006970 , Agricultural prices -- South Africa
- Description: [Introduction] Much of the information available on the prices of vegetables marketed through the fresh produce markets is of limited use to producers. This information contains the actual prices for individual years. This can obviously be taken as a guide to future prices but it does not necessarily mean that those prices are a true reflection of the general pattern. In this study an attempt will be made, firstly, to establish whether a general pattern exists in the prices of selected vegetables on the East London municipal market. This will be attempted by studying the prices obtained over the 1964-1979 period. Information of this nature can be used as a basis for the planning of future crops. Secondly, to determine the months which obtain the "best" prices for the selected vegetables taking into account the quantities supplied to the market.
- Full Text:
A review of asbestos resources
- Authors: Abbott, Paul
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Asbestos Asbestos -- Geology Silicate minerals Mineralogy Chrysotile
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4910 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1001570
- Full Text:
- Authors: Abbott, Paul
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Asbestos Asbestos -- Geology Silicate minerals Mineralogy Chrysotile
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4910 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1001570
- Full Text:
A study in local history: Grahamstown, 1883-1904
- Authors: Sellick, Rose-Mary
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2556 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002409 , Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History
- Description: [From the Preface]: A Study in Local History: Grahamstown 1883-1904 aims to draw into a coherent picture the threads of political attitudes, approaches to racial issues and changes confronting the late Victorians in Grahamstown, particularly in the areas of sanitation, public health and shifting commercial frontiers. The relation of local development to national affairs has been investigated, although attempts to define exactly how the former influenced the latter, and vice versa, would involve one in the proverbial chicken-and-egg syndrome. Let it suffice to say that an understanding of events in the microcosm, or locality, lends clarity to the cross-current of affairs at the national level. It begins at the point where Grahamstown's commercial importance in the Eastern Cape declines after a flourish of hopes in the prospects of the Port Alfred harbour as a means of bringing trade back to Grahamstown. The study concludes when the foundation of Rhodes University College in 1904, provides a new centre of development for the city.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Sellick, Rose-Mary
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2556 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002409 , Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History
- Description: [From the Preface]: A Study in Local History: Grahamstown 1883-1904 aims to draw into a coherent picture the threads of political attitudes, approaches to racial issues and changes confronting the late Victorians in Grahamstown, particularly in the areas of sanitation, public health and shifting commercial frontiers. The relation of local development to national affairs has been investigated, although attempts to define exactly how the former influenced the latter, and vice versa, would involve one in the proverbial chicken-and-egg syndrome. Let it suffice to say that an understanding of events in the microcosm, or locality, lends clarity to the cross-current of affairs at the national level. It begins at the point where Grahamstown's commercial importance in the Eastern Cape declines after a flourish of hopes in the prospects of the Port Alfred harbour as a means of bringing trade back to Grahamstown. The study concludes when the foundation of Rhodes University College in 1904, provides a new centre of development for the city.
- Full Text:
A study of the educational thought of Rudolf Steiner
- Authors: Blunt, Richard John Scawen
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Steiner, Rudolf, 1861-1925 Education -- Philosophy
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1886 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005932
- Full Text:
- Authors: Blunt, Richard John Scawen
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Steiner, Rudolf, 1861-1925 Education -- Philosophy
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1886 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005932
- Full Text:
A victimological study among Coloureds in the Cape Peninsula
- Authors: Strijdom, Hendrik Gert
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Victims of crimes -- South Africa -- Western Cape Colored people (South Africa) -- Social conditions
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3342 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004582
- Description: From Introduction: Criminology developed as a reaction to the various revolutions that were occurring in the European countries during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In response to the turmoil and disorder of Western society criminologists attempted to discover the natural laws of society hoping to establish a stable social order. Crime was regarded as something that disturbed society and, therefore, had to be controlled or prevented. According to Quinney and Wildeman (1977) the development of criminology can be viewed as an ongoing attempt to explain crime in terms of established social order. They state that in the history of criminology there is, however, a lack of a clear accumulative theoretical growth and continue as follows: "No line of theoretical development can be found that leads to a well-developed body of knowledge. The study of crime is characterized by a number of divergent theoretical perspectives that exist in relative isolation from one another" (p. 38). Quinney and Wildeman (1977) distinguish five theoretical perspectives in the development of criminology namely: (I) early and classical criminological thought, (2) nineteenth-century sociological criminology, (3) nineteenth-century biological criminology, (4) twentieth-century eclectic criminology, and (5) twentieth-century sociological criminology.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Strijdom, Hendrik Gert
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Victims of crimes -- South Africa -- Western Cape Colored people (South Africa) -- Social conditions
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3342 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004582
- Description: From Introduction: Criminology developed as a reaction to the various revolutions that were occurring in the European countries during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. In response to the turmoil and disorder of Western society criminologists attempted to discover the natural laws of society hoping to establish a stable social order. Crime was regarded as something that disturbed society and, therefore, had to be controlled or prevented. According to Quinney and Wildeman (1977) the development of criminology can be viewed as an ongoing attempt to explain crime in terms of established social order. They state that in the history of criminology there is, however, a lack of a clear accumulative theoretical growth and continue as follows: "No line of theoretical development can be found that leads to a well-developed body of knowledge. The study of crime is characterized by a number of divergent theoretical perspectives that exist in relative isolation from one another" (p. 38). Quinney and Wildeman (1977) distinguish five theoretical perspectives in the development of criminology namely: (I) early and classical criminological thought, (2) nineteenth-century sociological criminology, (3) nineteenth-century biological criminology, (4) twentieth-century eclectic criminology, and (5) twentieth-century sociological criminology.
- Full Text:
African middle class elite
- Authors: Nyquist, Thomas E
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Black people -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Social conditions Social classes -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Black people -- South Africa -- Social conditions Black people -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Social conditions Grahamstown African Rugby Union Middle class -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Book , Text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/2780 , vital:20325 , ISBN 0868100412
- Description: In this time of crucial change for all of Southern Africa - as the former colonies of Portugal struggle to become viable states, as Rhodesia totters on the brink of political change, and as South Africa girds itself for an uncertain future - the question is: “What of the potential African leaders in South Africa?” We hear of the Bantustans and their thrust forward, but what of those Africans of ability living in the urban areas whose counterparts have provided much of the leadership in other African countries? Who are they? What are their circumstances? What are they thinking? And what are they doing? The goal of this study is to suggest tentative answers through the careful and detailed study of a specific community and its potential leaders, the upper stratum. Such answers can only be approximate, of course. Community circumstances differ. Moreover, the explosive events in Soweto and elsewhere in South Africa during 1976 have altered reality, and our study was carried out during 1966-7 and 1975. The locus of research has been Grahamstown and, most particularly, the African community attached to it (see Maps 1 and 2). Situated in the eastern region of the Cape Province, Grahamstown is a city of regional importance, best known as the centre of the first large English settlement1. Arguments about its suitability for research of this nature are detailed in Appendix A, but from the researcher’s perspective its African population of 35 000+ gives it more than local significance while still being small enough to allow a thorough study. In addition, the community’s depth of contact with Europeans going back to the 1830’s, and the general importance of Grahamstown as an educational centre, imply a more sophisticated population than its size might otherwise indicate. Further, the community's nearness to the African Bantustan of the Ciskei, one of nine such “homelands” for Africans, and to the African university at Fort Hare, add to its significance. The primary group under study has been the upper stratum of the African community, as defined by the Africans themselves. From the research has evolved a series of propositions. They relate, first, to the composition of the African upper stratum and the role of its members in their own community, and, second, to the way in which their marginal position within South Africa contributes to particular attitudes and social behaviour often detrimental to the achievement of a better community. (For a discussion of the research techniques used, see Appendix B.) , Digitised by Rhodes University Library on behalf of the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER)
- Full Text:
- Authors: Nyquist, Thomas E
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Black people -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Grahamstown (South Africa) -- History Grahamstown (South Africa) -- Social conditions Social classes -- South Africa -- Grahamstown Black people -- South Africa -- Social conditions Black people -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Social conditions Grahamstown African Rugby Union Middle class -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Book , Text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/2780 , vital:20325 , ISBN 0868100412
- Description: In this time of crucial change for all of Southern Africa - as the former colonies of Portugal struggle to become viable states, as Rhodesia totters on the brink of political change, and as South Africa girds itself for an uncertain future - the question is: “What of the potential African leaders in South Africa?” We hear of the Bantustans and their thrust forward, but what of those Africans of ability living in the urban areas whose counterparts have provided much of the leadership in other African countries? Who are they? What are their circumstances? What are they thinking? And what are they doing? The goal of this study is to suggest tentative answers through the careful and detailed study of a specific community and its potential leaders, the upper stratum. Such answers can only be approximate, of course. Community circumstances differ. Moreover, the explosive events in Soweto and elsewhere in South Africa during 1976 have altered reality, and our study was carried out during 1966-7 and 1975. The locus of research has been Grahamstown and, most particularly, the African community attached to it (see Maps 1 and 2). Situated in the eastern region of the Cape Province, Grahamstown is a city of regional importance, best known as the centre of the first large English settlement1. Arguments about its suitability for research of this nature are detailed in Appendix A, but from the researcher’s perspective its African population of 35 000+ gives it more than local significance while still being small enough to allow a thorough study. In addition, the community’s depth of contact with Europeans going back to the 1830’s, and the general importance of Grahamstown as an educational centre, imply a more sophisticated population than its size might otherwise indicate. Further, the community's nearness to the African Bantustan of the Ciskei, one of nine such “homelands” for Africans, and to the African university at Fort Hare, add to its significance. The primary group under study has been the upper stratum of the African community, as defined by the Africans themselves. From the research has evolved a series of propositions. They relate, first, to the composition of the African upper stratum and the role of its members in their own community, and, second, to the way in which their marginal position within South Africa contributes to particular attitudes and social behaviour often detrimental to the achievement of a better community. (For a discussion of the research techniques used, see Appendix B.) , Digitised by Rhodes University Library on behalf of the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER)
- Full Text:
Al/Cr ratios of coexisting pyroxenes and spinellids in some ultramafic rocks
- Eales, Hugh V, Marsh, Julian S
- Authors: Eales, Hugh V , Marsh, Julian S
- Date: 1983
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/133534 , vital:36987 , https://doi.org/10.1016/0009-2541(83)90045-1
- Description: Al/Cr atomic ratios of coexisting spinellids and ortho- and clinopyroxenes show a pattern of sympathetic variation that persists through ultramafic rocks of layered mafic complexes of upper-crustal type, Alpine complexes, and the nodules found in kimberlites and alkaline basalts. Simple expressions are empirically derived to link (Al/Cr) orthopyroxene and (Al/Cr)spinel ratios in putatively equilibrated rocks. Equivalence of spinel compositions in shallow layered complexes and kimberlite nodules of deep-seated origin negates direct crystallochemical control of Al/Cr ratios of spinels by pressure.
- Full Text: false
- Authors: Eales, Hugh V , Marsh, Julian S
- Date: 1983
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/133534 , vital:36987 , https://doi.org/10.1016/0009-2541(83)90045-1
- Description: Al/Cr atomic ratios of coexisting spinellids and ortho- and clinopyroxenes show a pattern of sympathetic variation that persists through ultramafic rocks of layered mafic complexes of upper-crustal type, Alpine complexes, and the nodules found in kimberlites and alkaline basalts. Simple expressions are empirically derived to link (Al/Cr) orthopyroxene and (Al/Cr)spinel ratios in putatively equilibrated rocks. Equivalence of spinel compositions in shallow layered complexes and kimberlite nodules of deep-seated origin negates direct crystallochemical control of Al/Cr ratios of spinels by pressure.
- Full Text: false
Alcoholic adaptation : a preliminary investigation of the transactional analysis viewpoint, with application to delta and gamma alcoholics
- Authors: Cohen, L Derek
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Alcoholism Alcoholism -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:3193 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008559
- Description: Two delta and two gamma alcoholics were assessed by case study according to the theoretical formulations of Transactional Analysis. Scripts and Games were elicited through the Thematic Apperception Test, Laddering Procedure, and Life History. Analyses demonstrated, firstly, that parallels were present between the parent-child relationship and present adult transactions; secondly, that needs, fears, and control mechanisms were traceable to early parental injunctions; thirdly, that among these subjects, delta alcoholics tend to play the alcoholic game "Lush", and gamma alcoholics tend to play the alcoholic game "Drunk and Proud". It was concluded that the script and existential position appear to play an important role in the maintenance of the drinking pattern. Alcoholic Loss of Control appears to be influenced by the degree to which aggression is suppressed.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Cohen, L Derek
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Alcoholism Alcoholism -- Case studies
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:3193 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008559
- Description: Two delta and two gamma alcoholics were assessed by case study according to the theoretical formulations of Transactional Analysis. Scripts and Games were elicited through the Thematic Apperception Test, Laddering Procedure, and Life History. Analyses demonstrated, firstly, that parallels were present between the parent-child relationship and present adult transactions; secondly, that needs, fears, and control mechanisms were traceable to early parental injunctions; thirdly, that among these subjects, delta alcoholics tend to play the alcoholic game "Lush", and gamma alcoholics tend to play the alcoholic game "Drunk and Proud". It was concluded that the script and existential position appear to play an important role in the maintenance of the drinking pattern. Alcoholic Loss of Control appears to be influenced by the degree to which aggression is suppressed.
- Full Text:
An assessment of employment opportunities created by the Keiskamma Irrigation Scheme
- Authors: Nightingale, Fiona Mary
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Economic development projects -- South Africa --Ciskei , Job creation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Irrigation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Black people -- Employment -- South Africa -- Ciskei
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:4862 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006912 , Economic development projects -- South Africa --Ciskei , Job creation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Irrigation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Black people -- Employment -- South Africa -- Ciskei
- Description: Preface: "The need for development as observed today is a problem peculiar to the 20th century. The current situation is characterised by the fact that there are no more empty places on the earth, while our use of dwindling resources is curbed by environmental constraint." (Mouly and Costa, 1974, 155). The need for development is not equally felt by all nations as disparities in income and standards of living on a national basis have dissected the world into developed and underdeveloped countries. Disparities also exist within nations. These divisions are not simply determined nor are the terms related to development clearly defined - a matter that will be discussed in Chapter Two. Impetus to developing underdeveloped countries may be provided by various means, such as a general injection of capital or by more specific development projects. The purpose of these projects is to initiate changes that are intended to promote rapid development of an area. An interest has been shown by Geographers in the ability of these projects to stimulate economic growth in surrounding areas (Silberfein, 1976). The resulting success of development projects is closely related, if not determined, in large measure, by the aims. In view of the need for the aims of development projects to be successfully fulfilled, research into what constitute constructive developmental aims would be beneficial. Previous studies have revealed problems encountered with conflicting aims and objectives (Mountjoy, 1971); poorly defined aims (de Wilde, 1967); and inadequate groundwork prior to initiating the project (Berry, 1976). It is the intention of the study to examine the impact made by a development project in an underdeveloped area, and thereby assess the extent to which the development aims have been carried out. In order to carry out an examination of a development project in an underdeveloped area, an area in need of development had to be selected; a project within the area chosen for study; and the particular aim of the project examined. The Ciskei, a Homeland in South Africa, was chosen as a suitable area for study. A number of factors contribute towards it being an area in need of development, particularly as the Ciskei is a small country and dependent on South Africa, which is explained in the overview of the Ciskei in Chapter One. Three characteristics of underdevelopment noted by Seers (1972) are poverty, inequality and underemployment. Of these three factors it was decided to focus on unemployment as the indication of the extent to which development has taken place. The reduction of unemployment was one of the aims of the Keiskammahoek Irrigation Scheme, the project chosen for study. The overview concludes with a presentation of the Keiskamma Irrigation Scheme.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Nightingale, Fiona Mary
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Economic development projects -- South Africa --Ciskei , Job creation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Irrigation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Black people -- Employment -- South Africa -- Ciskei
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:4862 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006912 , Economic development projects -- South Africa --Ciskei , Job creation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Irrigation -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Agriculture -- Economic aspects -- South Africa -- Ciskei , Black people -- Employment -- South Africa -- Ciskei
- Description: Preface: "The need for development as observed today is a problem peculiar to the 20th century. The current situation is characterised by the fact that there are no more empty places on the earth, while our use of dwindling resources is curbed by environmental constraint." (Mouly and Costa, 1974, 155). The need for development is not equally felt by all nations as disparities in income and standards of living on a national basis have dissected the world into developed and underdeveloped countries. Disparities also exist within nations. These divisions are not simply determined nor are the terms related to development clearly defined - a matter that will be discussed in Chapter Two. Impetus to developing underdeveloped countries may be provided by various means, such as a general injection of capital or by more specific development projects. The purpose of these projects is to initiate changes that are intended to promote rapid development of an area. An interest has been shown by Geographers in the ability of these projects to stimulate economic growth in surrounding areas (Silberfein, 1976). The resulting success of development projects is closely related, if not determined, in large measure, by the aims. In view of the need for the aims of development projects to be successfully fulfilled, research into what constitute constructive developmental aims would be beneficial. Previous studies have revealed problems encountered with conflicting aims and objectives (Mountjoy, 1971); poorly defined aims (de Wilde, 1967); and inadequate groundwork prior to initiating the project (Berry, 1976). It is the intention of the study to examine the impact made by a development project in an underdeveloped area, and thereby assess the extent to which the development aims have been carried out. In order to carry out an examination of a development project in an underdeveloped area, an area in need of development had to be selected; a project within the area chosen for study; and the particular aim of the project examined. The Ciskei, a Homeland in South Africa, was chosen as a suitable area for study. A number of factors contribute towards it being an area in need of development, particularly as the Ciskei is a small country and dependent on South Africa, which is explained in the overview of the Ciskei in Chapter One. Three characteristics of underdevelopment noted by Seers (1972) are poverty, inequality and underemployment. Of these three factors it was decided to focus on unemployment as the indication of the extent to which development has taken place. The reduction of unemployment was one of the aims of the Keiskammahoek Irrigation Scheme, the project chosen for study. The overview concludes with a presentation of the Keiskamma Irrigation Scheme.
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An ecological study of the ixodid tick rhipicephalus glabroscutatum (Du Toit, 1941)
- Macivor, Keith Malcolm de Falloux
- Authors: Macivor, Keith Malcolm de Falloux
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Ticks -- Control -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Parasites -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Rhipicephalus -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Angora goat -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Larvae -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5602 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002052
- Description: An intensive study was conducted on the free-living larvae and parasitic life stages of R.glabroscutatum on Angora and Boer goats in the Uitenhage district. Free-living larvae exhibited periods of maximum relative abundance during months of generally lower rainfall, from the end of autumn to the beginning of spring. Relative larval abundance in open and gully sites was low while larvae were rarely found in bush sites. Relative abundance was higher at 20h00 than at 08h00 and 14h00. Repeated sampling in the same areas did not reduce larval numbers. Over 99% of parasitic ticks removed from Angora and Boer goats were located on the feet. The annual occurrence of a low and variable number of parasitic immatures was synchronous with the occurrence of free-living larvae. High, less variable numbers of adult ticks were removed from goat feet from September to December, the highest numbers being recorded during October and November. The occurrence of a single period of parasitic adult abundance annually indicated a life cycle with 1 generation per anum. There were higher numbers of adult ticks on the feet of the Angora goats than on the Boer goats. Adult numbers were higher on the hind feet of both breeds of goats than on the front feet. R.glabroscutatum adults seem to be implicated in the aetiology of foot abscesses since more infections were observed in Angora goats than in Boer goats and on the hind feet rather than the front feet within both goat groups. In addition R.glabroscutatum adults attached at interdigital sites where abscesses also originated and reached highest numbers in October and November when abscesses were most frequently observed. A review of distribution and host records indicated that R.glabroscutatum was limited in its distribution to the eastern Cape Province, being primarily located in South Africa's major mohair producing areas. R.glabroscutatum was classed an obligative xerophile on the basis of its recorded occurrence in non coastal areas with a low annual rainfall and Karoo and Karroid Bush vegetation. Host records for R.glabroscutatum included 10 species of wild ungulate, sheep, goats and cattle. The common site of occurrence on small stock and on small to medium sized wild animals appeared to be the legs and feet.
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- Authors: Macivor, Keith Malcolm de Falloux
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Ticks -- Control -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Parasites -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Rhipicephalus -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Angora goat -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Larvae -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5602 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002052
- Description: An intensive study was conducted on the free-living larvae and parasitic life stages of R.glabroscutatum on Angora and Boer goats in the Uitenhage district. Free-living larvae exhibited periods of maximum relative abundance during months of generally lower rainfall, from the end of autumn to the beginning of spring. Relative larval abundance in open and gully sites was low while larvae were rarely found in bush sites. Relative abundance was higher at 20h00 than at 08h00 and 14h00. Repeated sampling in the same areas did not reduce larval numbers. Over 99% of parasitic ticks removed from Angora and Boer goats were located on the feet. The annual occurrence of a low and variable number of parasitic immatures was synchronous with the occurrence of free-living larvae. High, less variable numbers of adult ticks were removed from goat feet from September to December, the highest numbers being recorded during October and November. The occurrence of a single period of parasitic adult abundance annually indicated a life cycle with 1 generation per anum. There were higher numbers of adult ticks on the feet of the Angora goats than on the Boer goats. Adult numbers were higher on the hind feet of both breeds of goats than on the front feet. R.glabroscutatum adults seem to be implicated in the aetiology of foot abscesses since more infections were observed in Angora goats than in Boer goats and on the hind feet rather than the front feet within both goat groups. In addition R.glabroscutatum adults attached at interdigital sites where abscesses also originated and reached highest numbers in October and November when abscesses were most frequently observed. A review of distribution and host records indicated that R.glabroscutatum was limited in its distribution to the eastern Cape Province, being primarily located in South Africa's major mohair producing areas. R.glabroscutatum was classed an obligative xerophile on the basis of its recorded occurrence in non coastal areas with a low annual rainfall and Karoo and Karroid Bush vegetation. Host records for R.glabroscutatum included 10 species of wild ungulate, sheep, goats and cattle. The common site of occurrence on small stock and on small to medium sized wild animals appeared to be the legs and feet.
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An investigation into the problems related to the adjustment of beginning-teachers leading to the development of an induction programme
- Authors: Algie, Rowan Craig
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Teachers, Probationary -- South Africa Teaching -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1411 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003074
- Description: There is little doubt that there is a widespread concern that the transition from the supportive environment of the training institution where mistakes are expected, self criticism is encouraged and both tutorial guidance and peer group friendship are readily available into a situation where professional and personal responsibilities are profoundly altered, where the methods used, the progress of the pupils, their parents' expectations, the working relationship with colleagues are now permanent responsibilities. This transition can be traumatic for some and a considerable ordeal for many.--Chapter 1, p. 10.
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- Authors: Algie, Rowan Craig
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Teachers, Probationary -- South Africa Teaching -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1411 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003074
- Description: There is little doubt that there is a widespread concern that the transition from the supportive environment of the training institution where mistakes are expected, self criticism is encouraged and both tutorial guidance and peer group friendship are readily available into a situation where professional and personal responsibilities are profoundly altered, where the methods used, the progress of the pupils, their parents' expectations, the working relationship with colleagues are now permanent responsibilities. This transition can be traumatic for some and a considerable ordeal for many.--Chapter 1, p. 10.
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An investigation of the shared experience of children's literature, with particular reference to the teacher reading aloud, in senior primary classes
- Authors: McKellar, David William
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Reading (Elementary) -- South Africa Teachers -- Training of -- South Africa Children's literature Children -- Books and reading
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1919 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007401
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- Authors: McKellar, David William
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Reading (Elementary) -- South Africa Teachers -- Training of -- South Africa Children's literature Children -- Books and reading
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1919 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007401
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Aspects of prostacyclin in experimental hypertension
- Authors: Botha, Julia Hilary
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Prostacyclin Prostaglandins Prostaglandin endoperoxides Thromboxanes Hypertension
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3825 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006109
- Description: A new prostaglandin - prostaglandin X (later renamed prostacyclin or prostaglandin I₂ (PGI₂)), was discovered by Moncada, Gryglewski, Bunting and Vane in 1976. This unstable substance was shown to be produced by vascular tissue and to be a vasodilator and the most potent endogenous inhibitor of platelet aggregation known. Because of its properties, it appeared that a lack of it may be related to the development and or maintenance of hypertension, a disorder featuring vasoconstriction and an increased tendency to arterial thrombosis. The present studies aimed to investigate this possibility using a rat model. A bioassay for prostacyclin was first perfected. This consisted of a modification of the method used by Moncada, Higgs and Vane (1977): PGI₂ released by rat aortic strips, during incubation in tris buffer, was measured by assessing the ability of the incubate to inhibit adenosine diphosphate induced aggregation of human platelets, as compared to the inhibitory effect of standard prostacyclin sodium salt. The specificity of the assay for the detection of PGI₂ was tested. The abil ity of hypertensive rat aorta to release prostacycl in was investigated in two studies. The first compared aortas of Wistar rats of the New Zealand genetically hypertensive strain (GH) with those of matched normotensive Wistar controls. In the second study, hypertension was induced by wrappi ng the ri ght kidney with surgical silk and removing the contralateral kidney. Ten weeks later, aortic generation of prostacyclin by these animals was compared with that of matched sham controls which had received identical surgical manipulation but for the application of silk to the right kidney. Contrary to expectation, in both forms of hypertension, aortas of the rats with elevated pressure produced consistently more prostacyclin than those of matched controls. In order to discover more about the relationship between elevated pressure and elevated PGI₂ production, the effect of pressure reduction with hypotensive agents on the ability of GH rat aortas to produce prostacyclin, was investigated. After pressure had been controlled within normal range for one week (achieved by oral administration of furosemide, dihydralazine and reserpine for one month), aortic PGI₂ was reduced in comparison with matched GH controls. However, the reduction was not consistent and statistical significance was not reached. Because it was subsequently reported by other workers, that some of the hypotensive agents which had been employed may effect prostaglandin levels per se, no conclusions could be drawn from this study as to any possible direct relationships between pressure and aortic prostacyclin generating capacity. A further means of reducing elevated pressure (which had no inherent effect on prostaglandin levels) was thus sought. A mechanical method was eventually selected, application of a silver clip to the aortas of GH rats, just below the diaphragm, producing an immediate reduction in pressure distal to the constriction. Eighteen hours with later, PGI₂ production by these distal aortas those of matched sham GH controls and was was compared found to be consistently reduced. These results indicate that the ability to produce PGI₂ may be influenced by prior local pressure changes and that the increased capacity of hypertensive rat aortas to generate prostacyclin may be related to the increased mechanical transmural stress consequent on elevated pressure. Since haemostatic balance must be influenced not only by vascular PGI₂ generation but also by platelet sensitivity to PGI₂, the response of GH platelets to the anti-aggregatory effect of prostacyc1in was also investigated. As it had been shown by Sinzinger, Si1berbauer, Horsch and Gall (1981) that intra-arterial infusion of PGI₂ in humans decreased platelet sensitivity to the substance, the possibility existed that platelet sensitivity in hypertension might be reduced. This hypothesis was, however, invalidated as the sensitivity of GH platelets to the anti-aggregatory effect of PGI₂ was almost identical to that of normotensive controls. The shortcomings of the methodology and the possible importance of these findings in the hypertensive animal are discussed. The idea that elevated PGI₂ in hypertension may play a protective role both with respect to platelet aggregation and in attenuating further pressure rises is considered. It is finally suggested that it will be possible to draw more accurate conclusions as to the meaning of the increased PGI₂ generation in hypertension (both in relation to vascular tone and platelet function) only when details of production of, and sensitivity to, thromboxane A₂ are known. Thromboxane A₂ (TXA₂) is a vasoconstrictor and promotor of aggregation (Hamberg, Svensson and Samuelson, 1975) and it may be that, despite elevated vascular PGI₂ generation, the TXA₂/PGI₂ balance is still tipped in favour of vasoconstriction and platelet aggregation in hypertension.
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- Authors: Botha, Julia Hilary
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Prostacyclin Prostaglandins Prostaglandin endoperoxides Thromboxanes Hypertension
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3825 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006109
- Description: A new prostaglandin - prostaglandin X (later renamed prostacyclin or prostaglandin I₂ (PGI₂)), was discovered by Moncada, Gryglewski, Bunting and Vane in 1976. This unstable substance was shown to be produced by vascular tissue and to be a vasodilator and the most potent endogenous inhibitor of platelet aggregation known. Because of its properties, it appeared that a lack of it may be related to the development and or maintenance of hypertension, a disorder featuring vasoconstriction and an increased tendency to arterial thrombosis. The present studies aimed to investigate this possibility using a rat model. A bioassay for prostacyclin was first perfected. This consisted of a modification of the method used by Moncada, Higgs and Vane (1977): PGI₂ released by rat aortic strips, during incubation in tris buffer, was measured by assessing the ability of the incubate to inhibit adenosine diphosphate induced aggregation of human platelets, as compared to the inhibitory effect of standard prostacyclin sodium salt. The specificity of the assay for the detection of PGI₂ was tested. The abil ity of hypertensive rat aorta to release prostacycl in was investigated in two studies. The first compared aortas of Wistar rats of the New Zealand genetically hypertensive strain (GH) with those of matched normotensive Wistar controls. In the second study, hypertension was induced by wrappi ng the ri ght kidney with surgical silk and removing the contralateral kidney. Ten weeks later, aortic generation of prostacyclin by these animals was compared with that of matched sham controls which had received identical surgical manipulation but for the application of silk to the right kidney. Contrary to expectation, in both forms of hypertension, aortas of the rats with elevated pressure produced consistently more prostacyclin than those of matched controls. In order to discover more about the relationship between elevated pressure and elevated PGI₂ production, the effect of pressure reduction with hypotensive agents on the ability of GH rat aortas to produce prostacyclin, was investigated. After pressure had been controlled within normal range for one week (achieved by oral administration of furosemide, dihydralazine and reserpine for one month), aortic PGI₂ was reduced in comparison with matched GH controls. However, the reduction was not consistent and statistical significance was not reached. Because it was subsequently reported by other workers, that some of the hypotensive agents which had been employed may effect prostaglandin levels per se, no conclusions could be drawn from this study as to any possible direct relationships between pressure and aortic prostacyclin generating capacity. A further means of reducing elevated pressure (which had no inherent effect on prostaglandin levels) was thus sought. A mechanical method was eventually selected, application of a silver clip to the aortas of GH rats, just below the diaphragm, producing an immediate reduction in pressure distal to the constriction. Eighteen hours with later, PGI₂ production by these distal aortas those of matched sham GH controls and was was compared found to be consistently reduced. These results indicate that the ability to produce PGI₂ may be influenced by prior local pressure changes and that the increased capacity of hypertensive rat aortas to generate prostacyclin may be related to the increased mechanical transmural stress consequent on elevated pressure. Since haemostatic balance must be influenced not only by vascular PGI₂ generation but also by platelet sensitivity to PGI₂, the response of GH platelets to the anti-aggregatory effect of prostacyc1in was also investigated. As it had been shown by Sinzinger, Si1berbauer, Horsch and Gall (1981) that intra-arterial infusion of PGI₂ in humans decreased platelet sensitivity to the substance, the possibility existed that platelet sensitivity in hypertension might be reduced. This hypothesis was, however, invalidated as the sensitivity of GH platelets to the anti-aggregatory effect of PGI₂ was almost identical to that of normotensive controls. The shortcomings of the methodology and the possible importance of these findings in the hypertensive animal are discussed. The idea that elevated PGI₂ in hypertension may play a protective role both with respect to platelet aggregation and in attenuating further pressure rises is considered. It is finally suggested that it will be possible to draw more accurate conclusions as to the meaning of the increased PGI₂ generation in hypertension (both in relation to vascular tone and platelet function) only when details of production of, and sensitivity to, thromboxane A₂ are known. Thromboxane A₂ (TXA₂) is a vasoconstrictor and promotor of aggregation (Hamberg, Svensson and Samuelson, 1975) and it may be that, despite elevated vascular PGI₂ generation, the TXA₂/PGI₂ balance is still tipped in favour of vasoconstriction and platelet aggregation in hypertension.
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Behavioural methods for the control of examination anxiety : an experimental investigation
- Authors: Norton, Gary Kenneth
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Anxiety , Test anxiety
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2916 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002081
- Description: In 1982, it was reported that one in every three students who fail at South African universities, do not pass because of experiences of excessive anxiety resulting from university examinations. A survey conducted amongst student counsellors and counselling services on all South African university campuses, revealed a deficiency of group and individual therapy for this phenomenon of examination anxiety. The cause of this deficiency, was found to be the already excessive demands made on the time of student counsellors. Noting a similar situation at Rhodes University, the present investigation was initiated, with the aim of developing an economical group counselling programme for test anxious students on Rhodes campus. Sixty-four Rhodes students (who identified themselves as test anxious) volunteered for this investigation. These Subjects were randomly assigned to one of four treatment programmes (each divided into two groups, where Group A, N=6 and Group B, N=7) and a wait-list control group (N=12). Three of the treatments featured multicomponent programmes, each offering a cluster of behavioural interventions centred around: Study Skills Training/Counselling; Systematic Desensitisation (Using individually-constructed anxiety hierarchies); Systematic Desensitisation (Using group-constructed anxiety hierarchies). Included in addition, was a single-component treatment, featuring cognitive modification: a component much favoured by local test anxiety counsellors. Given adverse reports concerning the efficacy of single component programmes, when contrasted with multi component treatments, the cognitive modification package was included as a placebo. A battery of measures was used to assess test anxiety and progress made by Subjects to assuage its debilitative effects . The measures included: (a) Six Self-report measures (including a treatment evaluation schedule and the maintenance of a diary of experience by each Subject); (b) Two measures of physiological reactivity, viz. pulse rate and finger sweat print; and (c) One 'observable' measure, that of academic performance. Using these measures, an assessment of the performance gains or losses by each of the Subjects, was made on three occasions: at pre-treatment, post-treatment and 6-month follow-up. In support of the a priori hypotheses, the systematic desensitisation and study skills multicomponent programmes, realised significant gains on all measures over both the placebo and control groups (with exception of the higher score achieved by placebo subjects over that of the study skills group, on the treatment evaluation schedule) . This finding confirmed the superiority of multicomponent programmes over those with only a single component. The systematic desensitisation programmes proved to be the most effective, as measured on self-report and physiological measures. The superiority of group-constructed anxiety hierarchies over those individually-constructed was established. Study skills training helped Subjects to realise and maintain gains on the academic performance measure, although it took many of these subjects six months, before they had fully incorporated the study techniques taught, in with their own study habits. In discussion of the findings, the evident need to match test anxious students to programmes which "best suit" their characteristics, is presented, and solutions proposed. Weaknesses evident in the measuring instruments and research design, are also highlighted for discussion. As part of this experimental investigation, a discussion on the nature of test anxiety and its links with anxiety theory is introduced, together with a review of problems in measuring test anxiety; popular behavioural treatments used to relieve test anxiety; and a survey of test anxiety counselling on South African campuses. Advice for the therapist/counsellor, the academic, and the researcher, are posited in conclusion.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Norton, Gary Kenneth
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Anxiety , Test anxiety
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2916 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002081
- Description: In 1982, it was reported that one in every three students who fail at South African universities, do not pass because of experiences of excessive anxiety resulting from university examinations. A survey conducted amongst student counsellors and counselling services on all South African university campuses, revealed a deficiency of group and individual therapy for this phenomenon of examination anxiety. The cause of this deficiency, was found to be the already excessive demands made on the time of student counsellors. Noting a similar situation at Rhodes University, the present investigation was initiated, with the aim of developing an economical group counselling programme for test anxious students on Rhodes campus. Sixty-four Rhodes students (who identified themselves as test anxious) volunteered for this investigation. These Subjects were randomly assigned to one of four treatment programmes (each divided into two groups, where Group A, N=6 and Group B, N=7) and a wait-list control group (N=12). Three of the treatments featured multicomponent programmes, each offering a cluster of behavioural interventions centred around: Study Skills Training/Counselling; Systematic Desensitisation (Using individually-constructed anxiety hierarchies); Systematic Desensitisation (Using group-constructed anxiety hierarchies). Included in addition, was a single-component treatment, featuring cognitive modification: a component much favoured by local test anxiety counsellors. Given adverse reports concerning the efficacy of single component programmes, when contrasted with multi component treatments, the cognitive modification package was included as a placebo. A battery of measures was used to assess test anxiety and progress made by Subjects to assuage its debilitative effects . The measures included: (a) Six Self-report measures (including a treatment evaluation schedule and the maintenance of a diary of experience by each Subject); (b) Two measures of physiological reactivity, viz. pulse rate and finger sweat print; and (c) One 'observable' measure, that of academic performance. Using these measures, an assessment of the performance gains or losses by each of the Subjects, was made on three occasions: at pre-treatment, post-treatment and 6-month follow-up. In support of the a priori hypotheses, the systematic desensitisation and study skills multicomponent programmes, realised significant gains on all measures over both the placebo and control groups (with exception of the higher score achieved by placebo subjects over that of the study skills group, on the treatment evaluation schedule) . This finding confirmed the superiority of multicomponent programmes over those with only a single component. The systematic desensitisation programmes proved to be the most effective, as measured on self-report and physiological measures. The superiority of group-constructed anxiety hierarchies over those individually-constructed was established. Study skills training helped Subjects to realise and maintain gains on the academic performance measure, although it took many of these subjects six months, before they had fully incorporated the study techniques taught, in with their own study habits. In discussion of the findings, the evident need to match test anxious students to programmes which "best suit" their characteristics, is presented, and solutions proposed. Weaknesses evident in the measuring instruments and research design, are also highlighted for discussion. As part of this experimental investigation, a discussion on the nature of test anxiety and its links with anxiety theory is introduced, together with a review of problems in measuring test anxiety; popular behavioural treatments used to relieve test anxiety; and a survey of test anxiety counselling on South African campuses. Advice for the therapist/counsellor, the academic, and the researcher, are posited in conclusion.
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Cognitive structuring of residential environments in black Grahamstown: a political view
- Authors: Taylor, Beverley Mary King
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Black people -- Housing -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Political aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:4809 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004546 , Black people -- Housing -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Political aspects
- Description: This research project investigates black cognitive structuring of their residential environment in the Grahamstown location. A clinical psychological method (repertory grid method) was used to elicit the construct systems of residents. The associative construct theory formulated by Kelly (1955) was used in interpreting the data set from the liberal perspective. The radical perspective demonstrated an alternative interpretation. A focus of the study centres around the possible implications of this type of research for planning action. The results showed that the repertory grid did appear to accurately reflect people's construing systems regarding their circumstances and behaviour. However, Kelly's (1955) Personal Construct Theory proved inadequate as a theory of explanation as to why people construed in the manner they did. To enhance this explanation, the marxist approach to the theory of knowledge was investigated.
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- Authors: Taylor, Beverley Mary King
- Date: 1983
- Subjects: Black people -- Housing -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Political aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:4809 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004546 , Black people -- Housing -- South Africa -- Grahamstown -- Political aspects
- Description: This research project investigates black cognitive structuring of their residential environment in the Grahamstown location. A clinical psychological method (repertory grid method) was used to elicit the construct systems of residents. The associative construct theory formulated by Kelly (1955) was used in interpreting the data set from the liberal perspective. The radical perspective demonstrated an alternative interpretation. A focus of the study centres around the possible implications of this type of research for planning action. The results showed that the repertory grid did appear to accurately reflect people's construing systems regarding their circumstances and behaviour. However, Kelly's (1955) Personal Construct Theory proved inadequate as a theory of explanation as to why people construed in the manner they did. To enhance this explanation, the marxist approach to the theory of knowledge was investigated.
- Full Text: