Browsing by Author "Parker, Lorien"

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    An ecological perspective of adolescents' need for support during pregnancy
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2011-03) Parker, Lorien; Green, Sulina; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Social Work.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: According to South African policy documents, social welfare services, health care providers and schools should place special focus on supporting pregnant adolescents to avoid the possible deleterious effects of early unplanned pregnancies. This implies that pregnant adolescents require support, from multiple levels, in order to adjust positively to their pregnancy so as to promote their well-being and the well-being of their unborn child. This study explores and describes the support needs of pregnant adolescents in three lowincome communities. This was done by examining the support that was currently available and utilised by pregnant adolescents, as well as identifying areas that required improved support. By adopting an ecological approach to the study, the need for support could be investigated on multiple levels. A combination of a quantitative and qualitative research approach was used in the study. The study further assumed an exploratory and descriptive research design in order to provide a detailed description of the phenomenon being studied, namely adolescent pregnancy. Data was gathered by means of a semi-structured questionnaire, which was administered during an individual interview. This allowed for data to be collected that was both measurable as well as rich in description. The design of the semi-structured questionnaire was based on the information obtained from the literature review. The findings of the empirical investigation reveal that adolescents have limited knowledge of formal support services, particularly social welfare services, support groups and health care services, which results in poor utilisation of these services. Consequently, limited support is attributed to these particular services. The findings further indicate that informal sources of support, such as family, friends and partners, were relatively supportive during the adolescent’s pregnancy. However, the adolescents’ relationships with their parents and partners were particularly strained during the pregnancy, especially the relationship with their father. Of significance is the finding that fathers were considered those who offered the adolescents the least amount of support during the pregnancy. As a result of their pregnancy, the adolescents were stigmatised on multiple levels. There was stigmatisation from their friends and peers at school, which had an impact on their social adjustment. Stigma experienced at health care services led to chastising experiences, which deterred the adolescents from utilising such services. Furthermore, pregnant adolescents are stigmatised by their community, and the widespread judgement leads to increased tension and apprehension when seeking formal and informal support. The most important recommendations resulting from the study indicate that many resources of support would be better utilised during pregnancy if adolescents had greater knowledge of the support available to them. This is of particular significance with regard to social welfare services, which play a key role in educating adolescents, their parents and the community about sexuality, adolescent pregnancy and the significance of support. In addition, the recommendations emphasise the importance of promoting and facilitating peer education and support services, which could be of great value for pregnant adolescents. Receiving support and education from peers can be highly effective, but also allows pregnant adolescents to make a valuable contribution to other adolescents in similar situations. In doing so, pregnant adolescents are empowered and encouraged, which is much needed in an environment where they are typically shunned and branded as failures.
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    Essential professional competencies of social work supervisors an a non-profit welfare organisation
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2017-03) Parker, Lorien; Engelbrecht, Lambert; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Social Work.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Social work supervisors who possess essential professional competencies will have a positive influence on their supervisee, the organisation, and the end service user. They bring about professional growth and change, which encourages the development and maturity of the social worker, resulting in optimum practice. These are key responsibilities of the supervisor, who should be competent to offer supervision at a level that is beneficial to the ecosystem of supervision within the organisation. According to South African policy documents, social work supervisors should be competent to fulfil the expectations and requirements of their position. This implies that supervisors are equipped for their position as social work supervisors, and that they possess the skills, knowledge and experience that are critical for social work supervisors. However, the literature reveals that supervisors are not well prepared for their position, they do not receive training prior to their appointment, and there is no focus on the identification or development of their competencies. There are no policy documents or research papers that explore the essential professional competencies of supervisors. This aspect is critical to examine further, as there is an identified need in South African policy documents to increase the retention and quality of services of social workers, and competent supervisors can contribute significantly to solving this problem. A competent supervisor will lead to a competent supervisee, thus benefitting the organisation and the service user. This study explored and described the essential professional competencies of social work supervisors in a non-profit welfare organisation. This was done by examining which competencies are deemed essential for supervisors, and how they are implemented or experienced. By exploring a conceptual framework for supervisors in South Africa and considering a model and definition of competence within the context, the development and importance of professional competencies could be better understood and explored. An instrumental case study design was deemed the most appropriate design for the research, as it provided a clear context for the research topic to be explored. The study further assumed an exploratory and descriptive research design in order to provide a detailed description of the phenomenon being studied, namely the essential professional competencies of social work supervisors. A qualitative approach was used in the study in order to explore the topic at hand, as it was complementary to the explorative and descriptive research design. Data was gathered Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za by means of a semi-structured interview schedule, which was administered during individual face-to-face or telephonic interviews. This allowed for data to be gathered that provided a rich description of the research topic. The design of the semi-structured interview schedule was based on the information obtained from the literature review chapters. The findings from the empirical investigation reveal that the two main categories in which supervisors should be competent are foundational and functional competencies. Foundational competencies include four subthemes, namely that supervisors should be competent in: emotional intelligence; anti-discriminatory supervisory practices; professional relationships; and ethical practices and legal knowledge. The functional competencies focused on three main subthemes, namely that supervisors should be competent in: balancing the three supervision functions (administration, education and support); implementing the supervision process; and possessing specific managerial competencies for the non-profit organisation (NPO) sector. The findings indicate that supervisors are not fully equipped for their position, and that they require training and equipping in order to understand and implement the competencies that are essential for their practice. Furthermore, the findings show that supervisors have a high workload, they are responsible for a large number of staff, and their supervisory responsibilities are often over-shadowed by structural issues. Supervisors in South Africa need to be competent in balancing their supervision responsibilities alongside the middle management responsibilities that they are expected to bear. Recommendations were made on four of the systems involved in supervision. Specific recommendations were made for each theme, subtheme and category. The general recommendations focus on: supervisors prioritising their competencies and creating opportunities to practise them and improve in them; organisations needing to emphasise the importance of professional competencies, specify them in supervisors’ job descriptions and encourage opportunities for competencies to be learnt and practised; training institutions needing to offer more training in foundational and functional competencies, on both an undergraduate and postgraduate level; and finally, ethical and legal bodies needing to incorporate competencies into policy documents and to facilitate national development programmes to operationalise foundational and functional competencies.