Promoting Responsible Research Conduct: A South African Perspective

A great deal of effort has gone into developing capacity in the sphere of human research protection programmes in South Africa and Africa over the last decade or more, by several international organisations. However the promotion of the broader agenda of research integrity or ‘RCR’ (Responsible Conduct of Research) has lagged behind. From a global perspective South Africa and other African countries are actively involved in research endeavours and collaborations across a very broad spectrum of scientific fields. For this research to fulfil its potential social value it must be reliable and trustworthy and hence it is essential that research institutions and universities take the promotion of research integrity seriously. The purpose of this paper is to consider the role of an institutional office of research integrity within the context of academic research particularly in South Africa but also in Africa. I will reflect on my own experience over a period of five years as a research integrity officer at a South African academic institution to highlight concerns in five domains; the promotion of an ethic of responsibility in opposition to compliance and bureaucracy, collaboration ethics and collegiality especially in the context of North-South collaborations, authorship and publication ethics, the problem of plagiarism and the utility of policy and procedure. I will suggest that the establishment of such an office can be of great value in the promotion of a broad culture of research ethics and responsible research conduct. The possible role and scope of function of an institutional office of research integrity will be briefly outlined.     

Motives for Choosing a Career in Teaching: A South African Study

The study investigated motives for teaching career entry by students (n= 232, males= 103, females= 129, mean age 23) at a large South African university. Data were collected using a career motives survey differentiating extrinsic, intrinsic and altruistic motivators. Extrinsic motivators scored higher than intrinsic or altruistic motivators. The motives advanced for teaching were in alignment with those reported in similar research carried out in metropolitan and developing countries.     

家庭对青少年职业发展影响的研究综述

家庭在青少年职业发展上的重要作用越来越受到职业发展领域研究人员的重视.本文从家庭因素是青少年职业发展的重要环境、父母对青少年职业发展的影响和亲子依恋关系与青少年职业发展三个方面回顾了家庭对青少年职业发展影响的研究。     

A Social-Ecological Perspective on Vulnerable Youth: Toward an Understanding of Sexual Development Among Urban African American Adolescents

The authors employ a social-ecological framework to aid our understanding of the complex array of factors in the immediate and broader environment that influence adolescent sexual development. Further, sexual development is viewed as normative and critical to positive growth. The authors provide an overview of the Two-Cities Study, a multi-stage qualitative investigation that aims to contribute to an understanding of sexual development and to illuminate gender differences in sexuality. The current studies focus on urban African American youth living in low-income neighborhoods, offering new data on sexual development among these youth.     

Psychosocial Development and Black Male Masculinity: Implications for Counseling Economically Disadvantaged African American Male Adolescents

Few articles exist on issues related to counseling African American male adolescents. This article examines developmental and sex role factors and their importance for counseling interventions and the counselor-client relationship. Implications are drawn for counselors desiring to improve their abilities to assist this population.     

South African Adolescents' Career Development through the Lens of the Systems Theory Framework: An Exploratory Study

Adolescent career development has predominantly been studied in the context of middle class Eurocentric cultures and there have been calls for greater attention to the career development of non-dominant and disadvantaged groups. Further, there have been calls to explore career development in terms of its context and process. In this regard, the need for research measures and approaches sensitive to adolescents and particular cultures has been recognised. This is particularly the case in South African career psychology. The present study used a qualitative career assessment instrument, My System of Career Influences, to explore influences on the career development of disadvantaged South African adolescents living in a children's home. Consistent with previous international and national studies, parents were shown to be an important influence. Unlike previous studies, the influence of working overseas was also identified as an important influence. The MSCI was shown to be effective in providing insight into both the context and process of career development and as a research instrument that may be used with adolescents. Recommendations for future research are made.     

Sapphires-in-Transition: Enhancing Personal Development Among Black Female Adolescents

The author describes a counselor intervention program used for facilitating the personal development of adolescents. Intervention occurred through activities that were designed for Black female adolescents in a secondary public school. Goals were met through structured developmental activities, counseling sessions, and organized network support. Results indicated the program was successful.     

Black South African students' use of counseling service

This paper reports the demographic and summative annual data for presenting concerns of students seeking counseling at a Black South African university. Rankings of the major presenting concerns identified by the clients are presented.     

Career counselling intervention efficacy with South African university students

This exploratory study examined the efficacy of a brief career counselling intervention with South African university students (n?=?54; female?=?59%, male?=?40%; black?=?77%, Indian?=?27%, coloured?=?1%, white?=?3%; age range 17 to 19 years). The students completed a brief career development workshop and focus group discussion to address their career self-efficacy, career uncertainty, and anxiety post intervention. Findings suggest the students to have experienced a higher awareness of individual career assets and career self-management competencies from the counselling intervention.     

Parental Involvement in Career Development among Disadvantaged Adolescents

The study investigated perceived parental involvement in career development amongst disadvantaged adolescents. Participants were 14 Grade 9 learners (8 boys and 6 girls: mean age =14 years) from a disadvantaged community in North-West Province in South Africa. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews, and analyzed thematically. Perceived constructive verbal persuasion or encouragement was influential in parents' facilitation of career development in their adolescent children. One-way communication from the parents to the adolescents was perceived to be non-supportive of their career development. Vicarious learning was manifested in the adoption of well-known people as role models in the absence of parental role models.     

Attachment Disruptions,IQ, and PTSD in African American Adolescents: A Traumatology Perspective

Attachment disruptions, other traumas, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and intelligence quotient (IQ) were measured in a sample of 181 African American adolescents. Path analysis was utilized to test the effects of different types of attachment disruptions on IQ and PTSD. Findings supported that mother and father abandonments and being in foster care are associated with decreased perceptual reasoning, processing speed, and working memory, and increased discrepancy between perceptual and verbal toward decreased perceptual reasoning. Such suppression and discrepancy contribute to poor academic achievement. Results validated the traumatology perspective on attachment disruptions as traumas that are associated with PTSD, suppression of most IQ potentials, and with potential brain hemispheric desynchronization. The ramifications of these results for helping African American adolescents are discussed.     

The Effectiveness of Career Development Seminars on African American Premedical Students: A Program Evaluation Using the Medical Career Development Inventory

The authors examined the impact of a structured career planning program on the career maturity scores of 61 African American premedical students as measured by the Medical Career Development Inventory.     

Experiences of Father Absence Adolescents from a South African Community

The aim of this study was to explore commitment in postgraduate students in relation to self-regulation. An exploratory case study design was employed. Three participants completed unstructured interviews about commitment, the Structured Interview for the Five-Factor Model of Personality (SIFFM) and ongoing email conversations form part of the data source. Thematic analyses of data from the unstructured interviews were triangulated with participants' SIFFM results. The findings are consistent with the notion that commitment may be the mechanism by which positive affect and self-regulation is maintained and that commitment is at least partially impacted by participants' knowledge of their identities in various contexts.     

Dimensions of Job Satisfaction Identified Among South African Black Middle-level Managers: A Qualitative Investigation

The aim of the present study was to identify the factors contributing to job satisfaction for black middle-level managers and to contextualise these factors in terms of Afrocentric values and South Africa's socio-political and historical background. The sample comprised eight participants (4 males and 4 females), primarily from the educational sector, selected by means of purposive sampling. Semi-structured telephonic interviews were conducted to collect data, and the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used for in-depth analysis of the participants' experiences. Social needs consistent with Ubuntu were identified as important. These included a need for effective communication, transparency, trust and tolerance in the face of cultural and work-related differences. The frustrations associated with cultural differences and language barriers were elaborated on. For the participants, professional development and recognition were related to affirmative action policies and practices as well as the socio-political background. These findings contribute to the limited research available for the particular population—an essential contribution, given the cultural diversity of the South African workforce.