3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item Glossolalia(1960) Van Eetveldt Vivier, Lincoln MorseThe introduction to the problem covers mainly three sections, namely. Biblical, Historical and Psychological. Various tests are then named and described. This is followed by the section dealing with the Test Results, statistical methods used and finally a summary and conclusion. The summary and conclusion are of necessity brief, and cannot be expected to cover the whole field. Special mention must here be made of & B. Cutten whose book Speaking with Tongues is considered by the present writer to be the most scholarly and extensive account of the historical aspect of GLOSSOLALIA yet systematised. Portions relevant to the present investigation were either quoted in toto or epitomised because the writer felt they could not be improved upon. An intimate knowledge of the historical instances quoted by Cutten is essential to a complete understanding of the scope of the present work. The only originality claimed lies in the selection and presentation of the material to be found in Cutten's invaluable work. Extensive references and/or quotations have also been taken from the works of A. Schweitzer - Mysticism of St. Paul the Apostle and E.B. Tylor - Primitive Culturo, both of whom are regarded as being leaders of thought in their respective fields.Item A study of certain psychological functions of the human brain.(1951) Reinhold, MargaretItem A psychosocial study of cardiovascular diseases, health behaviours and risk perception among retail pharmacy workers in Johannesburg, South Africa(2016) Buldeo, PriyaThis thesis is based on a descriptive and exploratory psychosocial study which investigates the underlying factors that shape cardiovascular diseases, health behaviours and risk perception among retail pharmacy workers in Johannesburg, South Africa. It further examines help-seeking behaviours and the meanings attached to ‘The Body’, self and identity as related to symbolic interactionism. A review of literature presents a background to the local and global context and engages classic and contemporary discourses and debates on health, illness and chronic diseases. The unique context of non-communicable diseases in South Africa is interrogated by utilising the Integrative Model of Behavioural Prediction as a guiding theoretical framework. A mixed methods research design incorporated (i) a survey (N=400) and (ii) in-depth follow-up interviews (N=60). Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic content analyses for deeper reflections on the topic. The findings revealed that cardiovascular disease knowledge and risk perception is shaped by one’s family, community, workplace, colleagues and the media. It found that workers have an understanding of cardiovascular diseases, the problem, however, is that individual risk perception is overlooked. Social networks, cultural norms and gender contributed to the public framings of bodies and the sociocultural anxieties surrounding juxtapositions – thin/fat, healthy/unhealthy, acceptable/unacceptable, good/bad – prominent in ‘Othering’ deliberations. These illuminated the symbolic and material dimensions of how workers conceptualise their bodies. ‘Good’ health behaviours were associated with physical attractiveness, social acceptance and health improvement and maintenance. ‘Bad’ health behaviours were linked to time constraints, long working hours, financial stress and family responsibilities. The discussion and conclusion consolidate the study’s sociological significance and the multi-layered aspects of health, illness and chronic diseases. This thesis challenges sociocultural expectations of ‘The Body’ in ways which contrast some of the available literature in Africa. It further contributes to the existing knowledge on non-communicable diseases while introducing innovative ways of (re)thinking about chronic conditions and the practical implications as related to the study. The pertinent issues raised regarding non-communicable disease diagnosis, management and treatment, as well as food consumption and body weight perceptions complicate an ever-changing South African risk society. This thesis, therefore, paves the way for further research on the perceived and actual cardiovascular disease risks in the South African context.Item Emergency department workplace violence(2016) Jaffal, AmerObjectives: The aim of the current research was to determine the perception and experience of different emergency department occupational groups regarding workplace violence in the past 12 months and to determine the effect that it had on them in two government hospitals in Johannesburg, South Africa. Materials and Methods: The current research was a cross sectional, retrospective qualitative survey. Results: Eighty-six surveys (43%) out of the distributed 200 questionnaires were returned. Five surveys were unfilled leaving 81 surveys (40.5%) that are included in the analysis. Psychological violence was experienced by 73 % (n=51) of the participants while physical violence was experienced by 34.2% (n=27). Patients were the perpetrators of 61% and 67.9% of psychological and physical violence against staff members, respectively. Friends and family members who accompanied patients in the emergency department accounted for 27.4% psychological violence while this same set of people caused 17.3% of physical violence. Ninety-one percent of the participants reported that they did not receive any training courses on how to handle workplace violence incidents. Medical staff (doctors and nurses) were found to be at an increased risk to psychological violence. Conclusions: Workplace violence was commonly experienced by ED staff members. Majority of the incidents were in the form of psychological violence; however, a considerable percentage of the participants experienced physical violent incidents. Most of the violent incidents experienced were perceived to be preventable by majority of participants. This research supports the need for practical training and education of the ED staff members, on how to prevent and deal with issues related to ED WPV.Item Exploring career choice negotiation among psychology honours students.(2014-02-27) Isakow, HaleyThe primary aim of the research was to examine the ways in which Psychology Honours students interactionally made sense of their career choices. In addition, the research examined how these students interactionally made sense of psychology as a discipline and field of study, particularly in the context of discussions of career choices. The participants were selected for inclusion into the study (through purposive sampling) if they were currently in their psychology honours year. An interview schedule that contained open-ended questions and prompts was used to guide the focus groups. The findings showed that the participants were contextually creating meanings of career choice and psychology as seen by the acknowledged, additive or at times challenged responses, statements, descriptions etc. in the focus groups. Further research could be performed on students from other disciplines to see if the meanings of ‘psychology’ and ‘career choice’ vary or are similar across disciplines. This would provide the field of psychology with a better understanding of how it is perceived and might provide some constructs that have not been considered yet, with regards to careerItem Shaping identity : personal narratives of women's birth experiences.(2013-03-15) Verrall, Sandi-LynnThe purpose of this study was to explore the childbirth narratives of first-time mothers in order to understand and describe the ways in which experiencing birth for the first time shaped their personal identities and identities as women. The study was guided by a qualitative postmodern research approach and involved conducting in-depth interviews with eight South African first-time mothers. The narrative accounts of these mothers were then analysed in two stages in order to present the findings. Firstly, using a holistic-content narrative analysis approach, significant themes that emerged from the data analysis were contextualised and organised in relation to the holistic accounts and interpretations of participants’ experiences in order to present how their personal identities were shaped through the experience of giving birth for the first time. Secondly, by conducting a qualitative thematic content analysis, shared common themes emerging from participant’s narratives were presented to understand in what ways individual elements interrelated to all participants’ identities in general, with a focus on female-gender identity. The findings reinforce the message that women’s personal and shared social identities are indeed significantly shaped by their first time childbirth experiences. These findings lend voice to women’s experiences and may serve to deepen insight for individuals and professionals working with perinatal women.