PsySSA is excited to announce the 2025 Board Exam Preparation Workshops to help you excel in your professional journey! Mark your calendars for these key dates:
These workshops are designed to support, empower, and prepare psychology professionals and aspiring candidates for success.
Details to follow soon! Stay tuned for updates.
“Take the rights path: My health, my right!”
This special edition of the DRM podcast, hosted by Associate Professor Bronwyne Coetzee of Stellenbosch University, in partnership with the Psychological Society of South Africa’s Division for Research and Methodology, commemorates World AIDS Day 2024. The discussion emphasises this year’s theme, “Take the Rights Path: My Health, My Right!” and the critical role of human rights in ending HIV. In this podcast Prof Coetzee is joined by Prof. Stephan Rabie an Associate Professor and Chief Research Officer in the HIV Mental Health Research Unit in the Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health at the University of Cape Town, an expert in mental health and HIV. In the podcast they discuss the intersection of HIV care and mental health, discussing the necessity of integrated support systems and Prof Rabie’s groundbreaking upcoming programme of work on suicide prevention among adults living with HIV in South Africa. As we observe World AIDS Day 2024, it’s important to remember and recognise that protecting everyone’s health is intrinsically linked to protecting everyone’s rights.
Useful resources: https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-aids-day/2024
Calls to action: https://www.who.int/campaigns/world-aids-day/2024/calls-to-action
Prof Stephan Rabie in conversation with Prof Bronwynè Coetzee
Stephan Rabie is an Associate Professor and Chief Research Officer in the HIV Mental Health Research Unit in the Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health at the University of Cape Town. The majority of his research has been devoted to developing and implementing mental health interventions in diverse settings. His research focuses on the intersection of mental illness and chronic conditions, with specific focus on HIV and behavioural adherence. He has provided academic oversight and managed several interventions focusing on HIV, substance use, sexual trauma, sexual and reproductive health, and community-based healthcare. He currently holds an Emerging Global Leader Award from the Fogarty International Center, focusing on the development of a suicide prevention intervention among people with HIV in South Africa.
On this day we pledge to reaffirm that health is not a privilege, but rather is a fundamental human right. We call for the uncompromising commitment to ensuring that everyone regardless of demographic identity has access to the care, treatment and support that they not only deserve but are entitled to as a right enshrined within the constitution of South Africa.
HIV/AIDS continues to affect millions around the world; however, it is only through the dismantling of the stigma which too often hinders progress, that we will be able to offer the respect for their autonomy; to ensure their equitable access to prevention and treatment that they require. On this day, we reflect that our health is a right, rather than a luxury. The access to healthcare, education, and support systems are crucial for breaking the cycle of transmission and promoting a world where people living with HIV can thrive.
As we honour those affected by HIV, let us commit to fostering a society where everyone can walk the path of health with dignity, security, and the freedom to make their own choices.
Join the PsySSA DRM and Leonie Vorster for the last PsySSA DRM webinar for 2024, and it’s free!
Date: 21 November 2024
Time: 12h00 to 13h00
MS Teams Link: https://tinyurl.com/3r96yj37 (no registration is needed to attend)
About the webinar:
Now more than ever, information from the Global South should be shared to ensure justice, equality, and equity for all forms of knowledge. This is especially problematic with AI models being trained and tested primarily based on information from the Global North. Collecting and sharing information that represents a plurality of bodies of knowledge is imperative. Survey research is one of the ways that researchers collect information, asking for answers to specific questions from a selection of people. Information from survey research allows researchers to understand, interpret, and even change the world. In this webinar, the focus will be on using survey interviewing to create quality data. You will learn about the role of the interviewer, how to ask great questions, how to deal with bias, a practical system to apply during survey interviews, examples of do’s and don’ts for survey interviewing, and the ethical principles to adhere to, to make sure that the credibility of your research is not compromised.
Can’t join us live? Watch all recordings of the PsySSA DRM Webinars and Research Podcast episodes on the PsySSA DRM YouTube Channel
Leonie Vorster is a Research Psychologist, chairs the PsySSA Division for Research and Methodology, and is the author of Five Seats, a magical realism novel. She strives to ensure the effective and just use of decisive, ethically sourced, accessible, actionable information, and actively promotes empowerment by seeking the furthest limits of the possible and imaginative to make a positive difference, while inspiring others to do the same. Leonie has completed more than 400 research and consulting assignments for government, semi-government, private, and not-for-profit clients in more than 40 countries across the globe. She has delivered more than a hundred articles, papers, and talks for South African, African, and global audiences, and has edited more than a hundred articles for online and offline publication, including conference papers, and research articles in international academic journals. Leonie has a legendary commitment to professional excellence and an unwavering passion for quality, ethical standards, and sustainable interventions.
Join the PsySSA Division for Research and Methodology for the first of two free webinars in November!
Date: 7 November 2024
Time: 12h00 to 13h00
MS Teams Link: https://shorturl.at/Fq8Uv (no registration is needed to attend)
About the webinar: Qualitative findings are important for the purposes of contextualising and giving voice to others. However, a persistent issue is the difficulty of moving beyond the unique context often required to carry out good qualitative work. Meta-synthesis has been proposed as a plausible solution to extend the contributions of qualitative research by synthesising findings across studies. Meta-synthesis is often touted as the qualitative equivalent of meta-analysis, yet the approach can be used to go beyond describing or accumulating findings across studies. It can provide researchers with the tools to generate broader insights and understand patterns across varied contexts. Since its inception, meta-synthesis has evolved into various approaches, including meta-ethnography, meta-narrative, critical interpretive synthesis, formal grounded theory, thematic synthesis, and meta-study. This webinar will contextualise some of these approaches, focusing on interpretive rather than aggregative versions of meta-synthesis. Specifically, meta-study will be discussed for its usefulness in exploring and synthesising beyond the findings of qualitative work. Thus, meta-study could aid in understanding how psychological topics are constructed by critically examining the theories, methods, and findings of qualitative research.
Can’t join us live? Watch all recordings of the PsySSA DRM Webinars and Research Podcast episodes on the PsySSA DRM YouTube Channel
Sulaiyman Philander has been lecturing at the University of Pretoria since 2012. Currently, he lectures at undergraduate and postgraduate level. At undergraduate level, he lectures personology and critical psychology and has contributed to the prescribed text used in the introductory modules. At postgraduate level, he enjoys lecturing on the philosophical foundations of qualitative research, critical social psychology, and introducing ATLAS.ti to his students. Sulaiyman also supervises postgraduate students at honours and master’s level. Since 2023, he has served as an Executive Committee Member for the Division for Research and Methodology of PsySSA. He is currently completing his PhD at the University of Pretoria under the guidance of Professor David Maree and is exploring how emotion is constructed in psychological research. His interests include emotion, uncertainty, procrastination, and qualitative methodology, and he is also developing an interest in exploring psychology within digital spaces.
Mental health challenges leave no age, socio-economic, gender, educational or occupational group unscathed. From young children to the elderly, mental health challenges, generally referred to as stress, anxiety, or depression, have increased exponentially and it is time to act with conviction and fervour.
Although mental health has been recognised as a critical part of human life, a stark realisation of the vulnerability of individuals to stressful events became evident during and following the COVID-19 pandemic. The global COVID-19 pandemic has led to a widespread increase in depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder, particularly due to the sudden and untimely loss of loved ones and high levels of uncertainty. As we look ahead, providing support to one another and striving to promote mental well-being for people around the world are paramount.
The recent spate of athletes who have either left their respective sporting pursuits permanently or temporarily or resorted to self-destructive behaviours, is unprecedented. The adage that ’good physical health equals good mental health’ is being challenged daily. The impact of mental health challenges on individuals and families, as well as on employers, has become pervasive in modern societies. Furthermore, the technological uptake of online interaction for work and learning has added to the burden on people’s mental health and finding new ways to manage school and work environments contributes to the mental burden. At an individual level, self-care is important especially when managing demanding work and learning environments. Economical but high reward physical and social activities can enhance work life balance and address aspects of stress, anxiety, and depression.
Like physical health, mental health requires regular ‘maintenance’ sessions to identify areas of potential emotional or relational difficulties. Without regular self-appraisal by the individual (in the case of an adult) or by a parent (for a child) or a partner in adulthood, mental health challenges may quickly escalate into crises of daily life that impact health, educability, relationships, employability, and society as a whole.
Ongoing strife between countries and ethnicities continue across the globe, filtering across media platforms and leaving a sense of doom, helplessness, and despair. There is likely to be a numbing of emotions at the continuous and increasing destruction of people, leaving a sense of despair that plays out in aberrant behaviours in daily life.
It has been long recognised that mental health difficulties are at the core of most physical illnesses, often described as the psychosomatic component of health and disease, and therefore constitute a foundational pillar of all health programmes. Against this background, a call is made for individuals and families to protect and enhance their mental health as well as that of their loved ones, particularly in the pervasively traumatic circumstances that confront societies worldwide. In light of these living conditions, access to psychological services should become part of all healthcare provisions across countries, and increased attention to training mental health professionals should be given utmost urgency.
Therefore, mental health professionals, and particularly health care professionals in South Africa, should consider availing their services, where possible, to communities where they work, to include financially disadvantaged communities in their service offerings. Group interventions and activities that facilitate affordable psychological wellness would meaningfully connect people to each other for support and further the creation of sustainable support networks.
To achieve the above, we call on the South African government to make available suitable and appropriate compensation, treatment, and recovery environments to mental health professionals. In addition, a significant effort should be made to destigmatise psychological interventions in communities by showcasing the impact appropriate interventions have on individual and family functioning and society in general. Furthermore, the South African government should consider making available funding instruments for mental health care professionals to provide psychological support services with the aim of initiating interventions that can be sustainable for the communities most vulnerable and in need in South Africa.
World Mental Health Day is a global initiative founded by the World Federation for Mental Health (2022). First celebrated on October 10, 1992, it aims to promote mental health advocacy and educate the public about mental health issues. Over the last three decades, it has become an annual observance encouraging individuals to reflect on their mental well-being and engage in conversations about mental health. This year, the focus is on mental health in the workplace, an area gaining attention due to the increasing pressures of modern work life. The 2024 theme, “It’s Time to Prioritize Mental Health in the Workplace,” highlights the need for a holistic approach, advocating for mental health awareness and practices that foster thriving work environments (Akiyama, 2024).
Work-related stress, long hours, and the blurring of work-life boundaries — particularly exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and South Africa’s complex economic climate — have made it crucial for both employees and employers to take a proactive role in mental health care (Kotera et al., 2021; Van Der Vaart & De Beer, 2021). Employers should remain cognisant of the relationship between promoting positive mental health, a motivated work force and productivity. Creating supportive work environments, preventing burnout, and providing accessible mental health resources for employees align with both this year’s theme and existing literature.
In South Africa, the workplace poses unique challenges, especially for emerging adults (18-29 years) (Naudé & Esau, 2024; Olonisakin et al., 2024). Many workers face long hours, high stress, and job insecurity, leading to increased rates of burnout and mental health issues (Kotera et al., 2021; Van Der Vaart & De Beer, 2021). The contrast between high unemployment among emerging adults and the pressures on those employed creates a complex dynamic placing significant strain on an already overburdened mental healthcare system. Mental health care, both before joining and within the workplace, is not a luxury but an urgent necessity to ensure individuals remain productive, healthy, and engaged.
World Mental Health Day 2024 reminds us to prioritise our mental health, especially in environments where stress and pressure are common. Whether you are employed or job-seeking, taking time to care for your mental well-being is vital. Mental health involves more than managing stress; it is about cultivating meaningful emotional experiences, nurturing supportive relationships, and maintaining a sense of purpose, regardless of employment status (Van Der Vaart & De Beer, 2021; Van Lill & Bakker, 2022). This year, let us collectively promote mental health by:
Mental health support resources:
* OpenAI’s (2024) ChatGPT was utilised to assist with editing and structuring the article.
References
Akiyama, T. (2024, April 17). “It is time to prioritize mental health in the workplace”. World Federation for Mental Health. https://wfmh.global/news/2024.24-04-17_wmhd2024-theme
Kotera, Y., Mayer, C.-H., & Vanderheiden, E. (2021). Cross-cultural comparison of mental health between German and South African employees: Shame, self-compassion, work engagement, and work motivation. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 627851. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.627851
Naudé, L., & Esau, M. (2024). The quest for a “soft life” and the transition into adulthood: Views from South African emerging adult students. Emerging Adulthood, 0(0), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1177/21676968241273135
Olonisakin, T. T., Adedeji, A., & Idemudia, E. S. (2024). Examining psychological outcomes of social inequality for Black South Africans. Studies in Clinical Social Work: Transforming Practice, Education and Research, 94(1), 45–66. https://doi.org/10.1080/00377317.2023.2222171
OpenAI. (2024). ChatGPT (Sep 13 version) [Large multimodal model]. https://chat.openai.com/
Thill, S., Houssemand, C., & Pignault, A. (2020). Effects of meaning in life and of work on health in unemployment. Health Psychology Open, 7(2), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1177/2055102920967258
Van Der Vaart, L., & De Beer, L. T. (2021). Engaged but exhausted: Work-related wellbeing profiles of South African employees. International Journal of Wellbeing, 11(4), 88–105. https://doi.org/10.5502/ijw.v11i4.1823
Van Lill, R., & Bakker, T. M. (2022). Significance as component of meaning in career narratives of unemployed graduates. South African Journal of Psychology, 52(3), 301–312. https://doi.org/10.1177/00812463211059280
World Federation for Mental Health. (2022, August 22). About the World Mental Health Day. https://wmhdofficial.com/about-the-world-mental-health-day/