Browsing by Author "Burkhardt, Käthe-Erla"
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- ItemFears in a selected group of middle childhood South Africa children : a cross cultural study(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2002-03) Burkhardt, Käthe-Erla; Loxton, H. S.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Psychology.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The primary aim of this study was to determine the content, number, level and pattern of fears expressed by a culturally diverse selected group of middle childhood children in the Stellenbosch area. The secondary aim of this study was to establish whether there were any differences in the fears expressed with respect to culture, gender and socio-econmic status (SES) as well as to ascertain any differences with respect to the two fear measuring instruments. The two fear measuring instruments administered were the Free-Option Method (FOM) and the Fear Survey Schedule for Children Revised (FSSC-R). The FOM was used to determine the content and number of fears and the structured FSSC-R, to establish the content, number, level and pattern of fears. A predominantly quantitative method of data collection was used. In all, three questionnaires were completed by 404 middle childhood children between the ages of 8 and 12 years, attending four primary schools in the Stellenbosch area. These questionnaires comprised of the Biographical questionnaire, the FOM and the FSSC-R and were administered in the same order as mentioned. The data was also analysed in a quantitative manner. Culture was defined in the terms of the main representative cultural communities III the Stellenbosch area, namely, black, white and coloured South African children. The content of fears based on the results of the FOM yielded only a few similarities upon comparisons to the findings of previous studies. This, however, may be due to variations in the methodology of the FOM among studies. Similarities were found regarding the content of fears based on the FSSC-R results implying that certain fears are universal. The fear of crime or crime related aspects featured among the ten 11:0stcommon fears for all the children regardless of the measuring instrument used. The number and level of fears for the three cultural groups were the highest for the black South African children, followed by the coloured South African children while the white South African children displayed the lowest number and level of fears. The number and level of fears for all three cultures were generally higher than found elsewhere in the world according to previous studies. The pattern of fear was similar for all three cultures. Gender differences for all three cultures were consistent with preVIOUS research with girls expressing more fears than boys. Girls also displayed a higher level of fears on all the five factors than the boys. The number and level of fears was the highest for children coming from lower SES background than those coming from higher SES background. Difficulties were experienced with regard to sample size and SES and a caution to use the results regarding SES as only tentative guidelines is given. The similarities between the results on the two measuring instruments, the FOM and the FSSC-R, were sparse emphasising a need for the development of emic assessment tools. In the conclusion, recommendations for future studies are provided.