Faculty of Education
School of Educational Studies
Department of Educational Psychology
Selected Highlights from Research Findings
Prof Irma Eloff of the Department of Educational Psychology is involved in a five-year NIH-funded project aimed at assessing the psychosocial effects of parental HIV disease on young children living in poor rural communities in South Africa.
An additional aim of the study is to assess the effectiveness of interventions aimed at improving maternal functioning and helping mothers promote resilience in their children. In particular, the study focused on support interventions based on psychological theories of resilience.
The pilot phase of the study, which was completed in 2006, involved the design of such a theory-based intervention as well as the development and validation of several psychometric assessment instruments to measure resilience.
The assessment instruments were based on questionnaires developed in the USA. It was found that they needed repeated adjustment before they could be applied in the South African cultural context.
In addition to the challenges posed by translation, the transposition of assessment instruments and intervention strategies from one context to another was found to be complicated by cultural differences in the meanings assigned to certain psychosocial constructs.
Much of the literature concerning “resilience,” for instance, has been written from an individualistic, Western perspective. Within this framework, resilience is strongly identified with independence and self-esteem. Within a traditional African context, however, resilience acquires a more collective flavour: it is viewed as a function of inter- (rather than in-) dependence.
The study also suggests that deficit-based assessment instruments (in other words, instruments that focus on problems and challenges) may paint a one-sided picture of the vulnerable child.
Eloff and her colleagues therefore argue for greater emphasis on positive psychological factors such as hope and resilience
Contact person: Prof I Eloff.
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