3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item Counsellor's views of diversity and difference in an NGO counselling environment(2016) Reeves, Anne ElizabethThe topic of this research is lay counsellors’ attitudes towards difference in an NGO organization that offers a counselling service based on Carl Rogers’ Person-Centred approach. South Africa post-apartheid is a fragmented and traumatized society and attempts at redressing past inequities have largely overlooked the mental health care sector. As a result, NGO’s are increasingly having to fill the gap, with little co-ordination with or co-operation from professional mental health care practitioners. With critical race theory as a theoretical point of departure, Lacau and Mouffe’s discourse theory was used to analyze results from in-depth semi structured interviews with counsellors at an NGO in Johannesburg. The findings confirmed that counsellors’ attitudes towards difference are shaped by their and the client’s racialized identities, with the adherence to Rogerian principles and the need to be a ‘good’ counsellor, foreclosing any opportunity to critically examine subject positions and the role of history in how such positions are constructed. The introduction of a training component that includes historical analysis and courageous conversations about difference would better equip counsellors to carry the burden of complex presenting issues from a diverse clientele.Item Identity constructions of black South African female students.(2013-07-25) Mophosho, Bonolo OnkgapileA viewpoint of the intersectional and complex nature of identity is seen to be integral to the understanding of the identities of black female students. ‘Identity constructions of black South African female students’ is an exploratory study with a view to understand the identities of black South African women in institutions of higher learning and education. The study investigated the experiences of 16 female South African black students; with a focus on their race category, gender as well as class subject positions. The study is placed within the context of the Historically White University (HWU) and was specifically conducted in a HWU situated in Johannesburg. The students’ articulations of their university experiences were explored qualitatively, within three focus group discussions through an open-ended interview guideline. Results show that their education is accounted for as a significant influence in their subjectivity given the social mobility it grants as the women’s experience of self shifts as does their position in society. Furthermore it was found that with the cultural capital attained through education, notions of class, racial and gender identities are affected and a multiplicity of identities exists as a result.Item South African volunteer perceptions : an exploratory study into the perceptions of female white South African volunteers working with black children orphaned by AIDS.(2012-02-10) Nichas, TraceyThis study explored the perceptions of ten White female South African volunteers working with black children diagnosed HIV positive and/or orphaned by AIDS. A qualitative research strategy was used in order to explore the participants’ perceptions of the role that racial dynamics and everyday racism play in their work as volunteers. Ten participants over the age of 18 years, that have been volunteering for a minimum of one month and that volunteer for a minimum of one hour a week at an organisation in Johannesburg, were interviewed. The data were transcribed and analysed using thematic content analysis and the findings were interpreted using a framework drawn from critical race theory and critical Whiteness studies. Notions of everyday racism were evidenced in the findings of the study. These findings challenge traditional notions in a novel way by expanding the current understanding of the racial dynamics at play in a country working towards equality. In doing so, the study raises theoretical and practical implications for efforts aimed to address racism in South Africa.