Browsing by Author "Mdikana, Andile Alfred"

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    Identity-related decisionmaking among Xhosa-speaking adolescents
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2000-03) Mdikana, Andile Alfred; Ackermann, C. J.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Educational Psychology.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Identity-related decisionmaking by Xhosa speaking adolescents was investigated in this study. Adolescence is an exceptionally challenging developmental phase in the human life cycle, and the development of identity is regarded as a central developmental task during this developmental phase. The managing and solving of the identity crisis influences the whole psychosocial development of the individual, and effective personal development is largely dependent on the aquisition of a personal identity. The process of identity development holds further important implications for education and guidance, because a knowledge and understanding of this process can be regarded as a condition for effective educational and psychological intervention. There is a real need for research in the field of identity development, especially in the multicultural context. This study focused on the decision-making of Xhosa speaking adolescents in the Cape Metropolitan area concerning matters that can play an important role in their identity development. From the research literature it appeared that in the past certain differences in the patterns of identity development were found among different cultural groups. Possible explanations for these differences are offered. The empirical investigation, which was conducted by means of interviews, focused firstly on aspects such as the following: • the most important factors that played a role in the participants' lives • important decisions that they have made, the factors and considerations that played a role and their commitment to these decisions. • their plans and goals for the future, important factors that play a role and their commitment to these plans and goals. Apart from the above mentioned aspects, the Identity Status Interview (Grotevant and Cooper, 1981) was used to investigate identity development in four specific areas, namely, occupation, religion, dating and gender role. For the purpose of the investigation a sample of convenience was constituted of grade 12 learners who attended a voluntary Enrichment Programme under the auspices of the South African Institute of Race Relations in Cape Town on Saturdays. The research group consisted of 40 (20 male and 20 female) grade 12 learners. The following were the most important findings: • The parents (in particular the mother) constitute the most important factor in the most participants' lives, but it appears that the parents playa progressively less important role when it comes to the making of specific decisions. • The most important decisions that the participants made in the past are dominated by decisions regarding their future occupations, and almost all the participants are considering tertiary education. • The traditionally strong collectivist approach is apparently on the decline, and a more individualistic orientation is becoming evident with regard to , among other things, matters such as future marriage. • With regard to occupational identity, the male participants displayed significantly higher levels of identity development than the female participants. In spite of the fact that about 75% of the male participants were classified in the occupation achievement status, as against 35% of the female participants, a qualitative analysis of the interviews indicated that the breadth of exploration of both groups was fairly limited. • The religious domain displayed largely the same identity status pattern as the occupational domain, with significant differences between the two sexes. • Of the four areas of identity development, gender role is the one in which the largest percentage of participants were classified as being in the achievement status. • Age displays a significant correlation with exploration in the occupational domain and with the level of commitment in the religious domain. • In the case of female participants, three independent variables (age, family size and the educational level of the mother) displayed a relationship with the participants' decisionmaking in identity-related areas. Important implications of the findings, recommendations derived from these, limitations and recommendations for further research are indicated.