Academic literature on the topic 'Social psychology – Botswana'

Attitudes to condom use for prevention of HIV infection in Botswana were examined. Data collection was by personal interview of 1349 respondents throughout the country. Alcohol is believed to be the single main barrier to condom use. Others include: beliefs that condoms are not effective, emotional barriers to condom use, cultural traditions and complacency. Men appear to have a greater tendency to agree with beliefs that encourage nonuse of condoms. There was evidence to suggest that a holder of an attitude in one area such as cultural belief is likely to hold a similar attitude in almost all other areas. The implication of this finding for theory development is that attitudes are not independent of each other. The implications for policy action are straightforward: an effective strategy for attacking the negative attitudes should put emphasis on men and be broadly educative in the sense of attacking several attitudes simultaneously, rather than one at a time.

Abstract Child poverty measurement is vital for informing policies and for improving children’s lives. Nevertheless, efforts to measure (child) poverty remain dominated mainly by monetary approaches, and many countries fail to monitor multidimensional child poverty. Using the 2015/2016 Botswana multi-topic household survey, this study developed a child-centred, individual-level and composite measure that offers nationally relevant and context-specific insights into the magnitude and depth of multidimensional child poverty in Botswana. In particular, it did so through the lens of Leave No One Behind (LNOB) by zooming in on demographic, economic and geographical characteristics that may be associated with greater vulnerability or marginalisation using both descriptive and regression analysis. Results point towards a relatively high incidence and depth of multidimensional child poverty in Botswana. Results show that disabled children, orphans, children living in larger families, families headed by unmarried couples and living in rural areas are more likely to be multidimensionally poor.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on a co-design process that was initiated between government and the private sector in Botswana to redesign current ISD practice with particular focus on finding a solution for learning failure. Learning failure was analysed retrospectively using concepts of “task conscious” and “learning conscious” learning. Design/methodology/approach – On the basis of a typical Botswana ISD project in which the lead researcher participated, inefficiencies and shortcomings in the standardised Botswana ISD process in terms of full utilisation of learning processes to support systems success were examined. Through the Developmental Work Research (DWR) methodology, which is based on Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) principles, IS practitioners from government and the private sector, together with users collaborated to redesign the current Botswana ISD work practice in order to address this shortcoming. Findings – The result has been the incorporation of activity-based learning and reflection into a proposed improved ISD practice framework for Botswana. Practical implications – Through collaborative redesign between government and industry, a new Botswana ISD practice model that incorporates activity-based learning and reflection has been designed, and findings from examination of the model suggest that it has potential to address current learning deficiencies and thus contribute to efforts of avoiding IS failures. There have also been contributions to DWR resulting from the way in which the methodology was applied. Originality/value – This is the first known study that uses concepts of “task-conscious” and “learning-conscious” learning to analyse learning retrospectively and at the same time adopting the DWR methodology in the social context of a developing country such as Botswana.

The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between pupils' self-concepts and their performance on the Botswana Primary School-leaving Examinations. Pupils with high self-concepts scored significantly better than pupils with low self-concepts in their over-all performance as well as in the subject matter examined, namely, Mathematics, English, Science, and Social Studies. The sample included 2559 (1517 girls and 1042 boys) pupils of standard seven drawn from a stratified random sample of 51 schools across Botswana. Their ages ranged from 12 to 14 yr., with a mean of 13.9 yr. Self-concept was measured by Self-appraisal Scale and their academic performance was based on the scores obtained in the final national examinations.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: While every Botswana national can claim to be a citizen legally within the framework of the modern nation-state, some (minority groups in the main) are perceived by others (among the majority Tswana groups especially), as less authentic nationals or citizens. There is a hierarchy of citizenship fostered by political, economic, social and cultural inequalities, such that it makes some individuals and groups much more able to claim and articulate their rights than others. Ethnic identities seem stronger than ‘national identities’ as they work at the very macro level and on an immediate and daily basis. Thus the multicultural and linguistic diversity of Taung compels us to view every group as heterogeneously unique and important in its own ways, since students become marginalised as a result of individual circumstances, by being members of historically oppressed social groups. The main aim of this study was to explore visual art as a learning platform to negotiate social and cultural meanings and inform understandings of self. A qualitative approach towards the study was considered the most suitable way for conducting the research. An interpretive analysis was used to gain insight into how students made sense of their experiences and the significance of art as a platform to negotiate stigmas and stereotypes in class and school. Using the case study drawn from Taung Junior Secondary School comprising of twelve students from different ethnic groups, two major themes of difference and discrimination were identified. The sub-theme discussed under difference includes sub themes race, ethnicity and nationality, and language; while stereotyping and stigma, feelings of discomfort and feeling outcast, and Othering and marginalisation were discussed under the theme discrimination. My study revealed that art can be an especially effective catalyst for developing a critical awareness of issues of race, immigration, difference, and privilege. Art practices can become a platform for the negotiation and construction of meaning and lobby for removing the historic inequalities and injustices created by a stratified society. For this reason, it is important to understand culture and cultural diversity because culture provides beliefs, values, and the patterns that give meaning and structure to life. It enables individuals within the multiple social groups of which they are a part to function effectively in their social and cultural environments, which are constantly changing. Groups try to maintain social hierarchies and individuals maintain their position within such hierarchies by excluding others, to deny difference and try and enforce homogeneity and reproduce current social relations. As such if forces such as, differences in race, culture, gender, language, and religion are well understood, the students will engage in the process of identifying ways to manage them to shape their own educational practices.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Terwyl elke Botswana burger wetlik aanspraak kan maak op burgerskap binne die raamwerk van die moderne volkstaat, word sommige (hoofsaaklik minderheidsgroepe) deur ander (veral Tswana groepe) as minder egte burgers beskou. Daar bestaan ‘n hierargie van burgerskap wat deur politieke, ekonomiese, sosiale en kulturele ongelykhede bevorder word; tot die mate dat sommige individue en groepe meer geredelik hulle regte kan verwoord as ander. Etniese identiteite blyk sterker te wees as ‘nasionale identiteite’ omdat dat dit op makrovlak funksioneer sowel as op ‘n onmiddellike en daaglikse basis. Gevolglik dring die multikulturele en linguistiese diversiteit van Taung ons om elke groep as heterogeen uniek en belangrik op sy eie manier te beskou, aangesien studente gemarginaliseerd raak weens individuele omstandighede, deurdat hulle lede van geskiedkundigonderdrukte sosiale groepe is. Die hoofdoel van hierdie studie was om ondersoek in te stel na die visuele kunste as ‘n leerplatform om oor sosiale en kulturele betekenisse te onderhandel en selfbeskouings toe te lig. Daar is besluit dat ‘n kwalitatiewe benadering tot die studie die mees geskikte manier is om die navorsing uit te voer. ‘n Verklarende analise is gevolg om insig te verkry ten opsigte van hoe studente sin maak uit hulle ervarings en die betekenisvolheid van kuns as ‘n platform om oor stigmas en stereotipes in die klas en skool te onderhandel. Deur van Taung Junior Sekondêre Skool, met twaalf studente van verskillende etniese groepe, as gevallestudie gebruik te maak, is twee hooftemas, nl verskil en diskriminasie, geidentifiseer. Die subtemas wat onder verskil bespreek word, sluit ras, etnisiteit en burgerskap en taal in; terwyl stereotipering en stigma, gevoelens van ongemak en verwerping en ‘Othering’ en marginalisering onder die tema diskriminasie bespreek word. My studie het getoon dat kuns ‘n besonder effektiewe katalisator is vir die ontwikkeling van ‘n kritiese bewustheid ten opsigte van kwessies soos ras, immigrasie, verskil en voorreg. Kunspraktyke kan ‘n platform word vir die onderhandeling en konstruksie van betekenis en selfs druk uitoefen ten opsigte van die opheffing van historiese ongelykhede en ongeregtighede wat deur ‘n gestratifiseerde samelewing geskep is. Dit is vir hierdie rede belangrik om kultuur en kulturele diversiteit te verstaan omdat kultuur die oortuigings, waardes en die patrone voorsien wat betekenis en struktuur aan die lewe gee. Dit gee vir individue binne die verskeie sosiale groepe waarvan hulle deel vorm, die vermoë om effektief in hul sosiale en kulturele omgewings, wat deurlopend verander, te funksioneer. Groepe poog om sosiale hierargië te handhaaf en individue handhaaf op hulle beurt hul posisie binne hierdie hierargië deur ander uit te sluit, verskille te ontken en homogeniteit af te dwing en huidige sosiale verhoudings te herproduseer. Indien daar ‘n goeie begrip is van magte, soos verskille in ras, kultuur, geslag, taal en godsdiens, sal studente betrokke raak by die proses om maniere te identifiseer om dit te bestuur en sodoende hule eie opvoedkundige praktyke te vorm.

Thesis (MPhil--Stellenbosch University, 2013.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The incidence of HIV/AIDS in Botswana is one of the largest in the world taking its toll on many lives and posing developmental challenges to the nation. Nearly 25% of the population is living with HIV and 14% are newly infected; AIDS is acknowledged as the major cause of death. Most HIV and AIDS studies have been dominated by surveillance, biomedical and ethical methodologies. These approaches failed to stem the tide of HIV infection because they did not follow-up with the tracking of risky behaviours and the underlying causes of the behaviours. This research scrutinized socio-economic factors in relation to the spread of the epidemic. Available literature showed that little or no attention has been paid to the socio-economic backgrounds in which individuals exist in connection with understanding HIV and AIDS. This study used an economic model of risky sexual behaviour to explore the link between socio-economic status and the practice of HIV self-protective/preventive behaviours in Maruapula, Gaborone, Botswana. The research is vital as it goes beyond surveillance in an effort to establish why the community of the study is susceptible to HIV infection. This research l used both collected data and that from BAIS II.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die navorsing is oor die verhouding tussen sosio-ekonomiese status en die praktyk van MIV self-protective/preventive gedrag binne Maruapula distrik. Die doel van die studie is om vas te stel of daar 'n verband tussen sosio-ekonomiese status en die praktyk van MIV-voorkomende gedrag onder die inwoners, van Maruapula, Gaborone, Botswana. Data is ingesamel deur die gebruik van vraelyste en die ontleding van die statistiek het getoon dat die is geen verwantskap tussen sosio-ekonomiese status en die praktyk van MIV self-protective/preventive gedrag onder die inwoners. Aanbevelings gebaseer op die bevindinge is gemaak met betrekking tot MIV-voorkoming in die woongebied in die besonder en in die land in die algemeen.

Cette contribution, qui s’inscrit dans le cadre d’une recherche-action menée sur différents terrains d’enquête, se propose, dans une perspective comparative, d’examiner les caractéristiques et l’apport de dispositifs ou de programmes de soutien et d’entraide mis en œuvre par des communautés locales africaines afin de prendre en charge de jeunes enfants victimes de sévices graves, livrés à eux-mêmes et en proie à la vulnérabilité ou à la maltraitance. Trois pays, en développement ou émergents, servent ici de support à l’argumentation : le Botswana, confronté au sida, à la famine et à la sècheresse ; le Liberia, meurtri par la guerre civile et son cortège de violences ; le Maroc, enfin, avec – en arrière-plan – la problématique de la pauvreté et l’évolution du statut de la femme. L’approche privilégiée, de type qualitatif, se situe au carrefour de la psychologie sociale et de la sociologie des représentations et des identités, la méthodologie retenue reposant sur une analyse classique en termes de forces et de faiblesses, d’opportunités et de blocages. Les relations de partenariat sont également à l’honneur, ainsi que le processus de mobilisation des ressources et les mécanismes de résilience
This contribution, which is part of a research-action carried out on different fields of investigation, proposes, in a comparative perspective, to examine the characteristics and the contribution of devices or programs of support and self-help implemented by African local communities to care for children who are victims of severe trauma, including orphaned, abuse and poverty, who are left to their own capabilities or who are vulnerable to maltreatment.Three countries, developing or emerging, serve as support for this argument: Botswana, facing deaths from AIDS and famine and drought; Liberia, bruised by civil war and its continued violence; Morocco, finally, with - in the background - the problem of precarity and the evolution of the status of women.Our approach, both quantitative and qualitative, is at the crossroads of social psychology and the sociology of representations and identities. The chosen methodology is based on a classical analysis in terms of strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and blockages. Partnership relationships are also honored, as is the resource mobilization process, and resilience mechanisms

Due to the successful rollout of the Antiretroviral Therapy Program, an increasing number of perinatally HIV infected adolescents are emerging into young adulthood throughout Botswana. Young adulthood is a critical period of human development, with long-lasting implications for a person’s economic security, health and well-being. During this time, young women and men normally complete school, find employment and start working, develop relationships, form families, bear children and pursue those things that help set them on the path to healthy and productive adult life. However, the presence of a chronic illness such as HIV can interfere with the achievement of the developmental milestones of young adulthood and affect their Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL). The purpose of this study was to identify the factors that affected the HRQOL of young adults living with perinatally acquired HIV (YALPH) and to propose policy guidelines to promote their HRQOL. A mixed-methods sequential explanatory research design was used. HRQOL assessments were made using the WHOQOL-HIV BREF instrument. Data about the clinical characteristics of the respondents was obtained from medical records. In-depth interviews were conducted with a purposefully selected subsample of respondents who completed the WHOQOL-HIV BREF instrument. All the respondents were recruited from Botswana-Baylor Children’s Clinical Centre of Excellence, in Gaborone, Botswana. Data were analyzed using SPSS Inc. software version 16.0 (statistical package for social science, SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA). The study population consisted of 509 YALPH including 255 (50.1%) females and 254 (49.9%) males. The mean age of the population was 21.7 (± 2.6) years (range 18-29.8 years). The majority of the respondents were single (98.1%), living in their parental homes (90.8%), neither in school nor working (47.35%) and 14% were parents (range 1-3 children). The mean duration on ART was 12.4 years (± 4.0). Based on the BMI classifications by WHO, 38.5% of respondents were underweight (BMI < 18.5 kg/m2) and 7.3% were overweight (BMI ≥ 25.0 kg/m2). Unsuppressed viral load (>400 cell/mL) occurred in 13.4% of the sample. Most respondents had good HROQL (78.4%). The highest mean HRQOL score was recorded in the Physical domain (15.4 (± 2.9) and the lowest in the Environment domain 13.8 (± 2.7). The results fitted using the multivariable logistic regression suggest the odds for good general QOL were increased amongst individuals with a higher level of education and 6 those who were employed. The odds for good general QOL were reduced for individuals with unsuppressed viral load (> 400 cells/mm2) and those who had illnesses (self-reported). The odds for good general QOL increased by almost two folds (OR = 1.97, 95% CI = (1.11 – 3.48)) when comparing respondents with higher level of education against those with lower education. The odds for good general QOL were increased for employed respondents OR = 1.73 (95% CI = (0.92 – 3.23) when compared to the unemployed group. Whereas the odds for good general QOL declined by almost two folds (OR = 0.60, 95% CI = (0.33 – 1.08)) amongst patients with VL > 400 cell/mm2 compared to those with VL < 400 cells/mm2. Also, respondents who were ill had lower odds ratios for good general QOL compared to those who were not ill (OR = 0.42, 95% CI = (0.25 – 0.70)). The results of in-depth interviews with 45 respondents showed that the majority of YALPH were in good physical health and they had positive perspectives about the future including health, completing school, finding employment, marriage and childbearing. The main sources of social support for YALPH were close family members and health care workers (HCWs). However, worries and concerns about disclosure, fear of stigma, lack of financial independence, and limited social relationships and networks were the most identified stressors that put the YALPH at risk of compromised HRQOL. Some sub-groups of YALPH were at higher risk for poor HRQOL including: young mothers, YALPH who were aging out of institutional care, YALPH with disabilities and impairments, YALPH who were neither in school nor working and YALPH with maladaptive coping strategies. Therefore, the promotion of the HRQOL of YALPH will require policies and interventions to increase educational attainment, provide employment and livelihood opportunities, promote good ART adherence and VL suppression, and effectively prevent and manage illnesses. Special attention should be paid to sub-groups of YALPH who are at increased risk of compromised HRQOL.
Health Studies
D. Litt. et Phil. (Health Studies)