Browsing by Author "Du Toit, Simone"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The experience of postpartum distress in the transition to motherhood: A study of one group of low-income mothers in South Africa
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-12) Du Toit, Simone; Kruger, Lou-Marie; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Psychology.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY: The aim of this study was to explore a group of low-income South African mothers’ experience of maternal distress during the transition to motherhood. Research on mental illness in motherhood has largely focused on investigating the aetiology, prevalence rates and implications of thereof within a positivist framework. There is a dearth of studies in South Africa that has examined the lived experiences of maternal distress despite the need for a thorough and rigorous investigation of these issues from the perspective of the individual. This is especially important in South Africa, where understanding of the lived experiences of maternal distress is the first step in conceptualizing a more efficient approach to identifying and addressing postpartum distress in the resource-restricted, overburdened South African healthcare system. The present study used data from a larger research project entitled the Women’s Mental Health Research Project (WMHRP). The sample comprised of 11 low-income mothers who can be characterized as suffering from postpartum depression (given their scores on self-report measures). The longitudinal dimensions of the study enabled narrative trajectories to be collected and strategic construction and presentation of narratives to be explored. A grounded theory approach guided this study in which data was collected from interview transcriptions that were collected during the parent study. Data analysis followed the principles outlined by the social constructionist grounded theory methodology including the constant comparative method and a sequential process of open, axial, and selective coding of the data. Throughout the duration of the study, specific processes were carried out to ensure trustworthiness of the research findings. A social constructionist epistemological analytic approach, aligned with a feminist theoretical lens was used to analyse the findings. Seven superordinate categories emerged from the interviews: the mothers, the expectations and reality of motherhood, caregiving overload, dysfunctional interpersonal relationships, mothering in poverty, the physical body and motherhood and silencing of the self. These categories demonstrate how unprepared for motherhood the women were and how their expectations were based on the dominant ideology of motherhood. Overwhelmed, fatigued, ambivalent and unable to make sense of their experiences, the women continued to suffer in silence in a context of depleting resources and the loss of their former life, wellbeing and sense of self. This study has demonstrated that the experience of maternal distress is deeply embedded in the cultural context within which it occurs. The ways in which women make sense of their experience has been created and sustained through powerful institutions that serve to pathologize women who do not adhere to the dominant ideology of motherhood. These findings are supported by the broader literature on maternal distress. However, this study adds to the literature by identifying motherhood as a gendered practice situated within a powerful and normative ideology of gender inequality and poverty within a particular context. As such poverty, gender inequality and the ideology of motherhood are interrelated, mutually supporting systems of domination and their relationship is essential to understanding the distress experienced during the transition to motherhood. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed with consideration of the study’s limitations. Recommendations for future research are also indicated.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Exploring the factors that influence SRT performance in young adults using South African sign language
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2024-03) Du Toit, Simone; Huddlestone, Kate; Baker, Anne; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of General Linguistics.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study aimed to explore the proficiency of young adult users of South African Sign Language (SASL), using a sentence repetition test (SRT) as an assessment tool. SRTs are argued to be valid and reliable for sign language testing, and can be used to establish proficiency, as well as to determine which factors influence performance (Hauser, Paludnevičienė, Supalla and Bavelier 2006:166). As such, an SASL SRT displays the potential to be an efficient and cost-effective measurement of SASL proficiency. The study examined what general SASL performance on an SRT looks like in young deaf adults, and how their age of acquisition (AoA) affects their performance. The SASL-SRT consisted of 20 sentences, video recorded by native deaf signers, ranging in complexity and length. Sentences were between three and seven signs in length and included different grammatical constructions, such as questions, imperatives, negation, and verb agreement. The participants were 15 young adults recruited with the help of the National Institute for the Deaf (NID) and the NID Training College in Worcester, Western Cape and their ages ranged from 19 to 36 years, with AoA ranging from birth to 20 years of age. The mean age of the participant group was 29.3 and they had a mean AoA of 7.3 years. The participants were divided into groups of four, and presented with the video recorded SRT sentences displayed on a screen. After viewing each sentence, participants were prompted to repeat it, and their repetitions were video recorded. These recordings were then transcribed and scored according to the closeness of the match that the participant’s sentence was to the model sentence. The three categories for scoring were as follows: (i) whether the sentence was an exact repetition, referred to as overall score; (ii) whether the repetition of the manual items was a match to the model sentence, i.e., excluding all non-manual markers (NMMs); and (iii) whether the sign order was identical to the model sentence. Omissions, additions, phonological and lexical variants, lexical substitutions, and repetitions/self-corrections were also counted, along with the total number of target signs produced in each sentence. Statistical analyses showed that AoA is a strong predictor of the performance of the young adults on the SASL-SRT and that an extended length of exposure does not compensate for a late AoA. Overall scores ranged from 0% to 74%, with a mean overall score of 30%. Scores increased when NMMs were excluded from the analysis, with a maximum score of 84% achieved by one participant, and a mean score of 52%. This indicates that further research into the functions and optionality of discourse and grammatical NMMs is required. The number of target signs produced amounted to a mean of 87%, which indicated that participants largely understood the meaning of sentences, and that they could reproduce most of the signs seen in the model sentences. Sign order largely matched the model sentences, providing evidence that SASL has a verb-final basic sign order. This thesis shows evidence of the importance of an early AoA and that it plays a significant role in the performance of young adults. The study revealed that, while several areas require further research, the current state of the SASL-SRT shows robustness as a sign language assessment tool.