Browsing by Author "Nell, Michelle"

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    A descriptive study of infants’ emotional status in foster care placement in a welfare organisation in Cape Town
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2021-03) Nell, Michelle; Berg, Astrid; Lachman, Anusha; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Psychology.
    Background: There is an increasing number of children in South Africa who need alternative placement for their care and protection. The prevalence of emotional abuse in infants and toddlers is difficult to discern. There is no consensus in South Africa on how to assess the mental status of children who are considered for placement into foster care. Aim: To describe the emotional status of infants/toddlers when they are placed in emergency foster care. Methods: Infants /toddlers were recruited from BADISA in Kuilsriver, Cape Town. The psychological assessment of the infant/toddlers included an unstructured interview of their caregivers after they were removed from their biological mothers. The infant’s mental health status was screened for using the Basic Infant Mental Health Screening and the Mental Health Screening (0 – 5) tools. Results: Nine infants/toddlers were included in this study, six girls and three boys, whose ages ranged from 0-5years. An association was noted between parental worry and infant (p = 0.048), with foster parents of the boys in the sample reported being more worried. The parents often described their infants as presenting with uncontrollable behaviour rather than being depressed or withdrawn. We also noted that infants and toddlers who were exposed to parental drug abuse, as opposed to those who were physically abused in their family of origin, were younger (p=0.025). While those who experienced sexual abuse were younger than those who were exposed to drug abuse (p=0.046) in their family of origin. Conclusion: This study highlights the occurrence of emotional problems in infants in foster care. The parents were more worried about the infants’ emotional status than their behaviours. There is a need for early screening for emotional abuse to allow for early intervention. Initial results support the need for future larger prospective studies.
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    An investigation into the lived experiences of visually impaired music students in the South African system of higher education
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2019-04) Nell, Michelle; Ludemann, Winfried; Swart, Estelle; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Department of Music.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The present study investigated the lived experiences of visually impaired music students within the South African system of higher education. Due to the strong interpretative impetus of the study, the design of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was decided upon, whereby rich data was gathered via semi-structured interviews. Participants were selected via the method of snowball sampling, whereby 11 individuals agreed to partake in the present study, all of them either current music students or university alumni. The findings identified three overarching themes, namely academic life regarding tertiary studies, with the sub-themes including transitioning from school to university, academic support, access to information, and interaction with faculty. The second theme is that of social life during university years, where the focus was on participation on campus, as well as peer support. Regarding the third theme, inner life of visually impaired students within the South African system of higher education, the focus was on participants’ subjective experiences, where various personal coping strategies were identified, including self-advocacy, self-reliance, social support, and the masking of emotional hardship and pain. Finally, the issue of finding meaning within the university experience was discussed. The stories of participants revealed that, despite democracy and the enactment of anti-discriminatory legislation and government policies and initiatives, there is still a significant gap between policy and practice, and that the pervasive problems of racial, economic, and social inequalities are still prevalent to some extent. Furthermore, it also became evident that the pervading medical discourse regarding disability prevalent in special schools within the country has a lasting effect on visually impaired individuals, who were subjected to these injustices, and that it works to silence the voices of visually impaired musicians and sometimes conditions them to internalise the deficit views and normalised assumptions of visual impairment. In addition, participants reported experiencing structural and psycho-emotional impairment within their university, which had an effect on their psychological well-being. Finally, practical recommendations for relevant stakeholders are discussed.