Thokozile Mayekiso

Promoting children's public participation in South Africa: A social systems control perspective

The paper explores the theoretical application of the social systems control concept derived from Rotters social learning theory to the promotion of childrens public participation in South Africa. The paper describes social systems control concepts and strategies that educators could use to promote childrens public participation at individual and institutional levels. The paper argues that if children were empowered through social systems control training programmes, they would be able to know, seek, and articulate childrens public participation. It is envisaged that exposure of children to social systems control concepts in the educational system may result in children working for the promotion of childrens rights in all social spheres in South Africa. Directions for future research can focus on the need to promote childrens public participation through social systems control training programmes.

Predicting HIV risk using a locus of control-based model among university students

Objective: The purpose of the study was to predict HIV risk using a locus of control-based intervention. The locus of control-based variables that were used in this study were social systems control, self-control, fatalism and achievement-oriented behaviour. The study sample was made up of 257 university students whose ages ranged from 17–20 years. All the students were black. Method: The study assessed participants’ perceived health control perceptions using Rotters locus of control scale, social systems control scale, self-control scale, fatalism scale, the intellectual responsibility questionnaire and HIV risk assessment questionnaire. The study performed correlational and linear regression analyses using statistical software SAS to establish the relationship between locus of control-based factors and HIV risk. Results: The results showed significant correlations between locus of control-based variables and HIV risk. The locus of control-based model significantly predicted variance in HIV risk. Conclusion: Directions for future research on the relationship between locus of control-based interventions and HIV risk could focus on the development of locus of control-based HIV risk reduction interventions in South African universities.

Reservations on the Use of New HIV Prevention Technologies in HIV Prevention in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract The aim of the study was to explore the effectiveness of New HIV Prevention Technologies in preventing HIV infection among participants in clinical trials. The study assessed the effectiveness of New HIV Prevention Technologies as reported by researchers on the field. Although it is reported in the media that New HIV Prevention Technologies have made a great deal of progress in HIV prevention, research on the ground indicates that the clinical trials have not managed to reduce HIV infection by a great margin despite the fact that some of the clinical trials have been in place for more than two decades in Sub-Saharan Africa. Most of the clinical trials in HIV prevention have not gone beyond phase III. In this study, it is argued that the use of vaccines, microbicides, antiretroviral therapy for discordant couples, pre-exposure prophylaxis and medical male circumcision in HIV prevention in Sub-Saharan Africa needs a paradigm shift because the results reported so far in clinical trials show more challenges than solutions to the prevention of the HIV pandemic in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Manualised health support interventions: Their efficacy in a South African primary healthcare setting

The study examined the implementation efficacy of a stress-reduction intervention for people living with HIV/AIDS by health care workers in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Informants were 20 health care workers drawn from two health facilities. There were 17 females (85%) and 3 males (15%). Participants engaged in a focus group discussion on their experiences using a theory-based manualised stress-reduction support intervention in primary care settings. Thematic content analysis of the data yielded the following themes characterising costs to faithful implementation: departure from manualised instructions and ad hoc improvisation of theoretical concepts; disruptive power dynamics; lack of grounding in community values; and implementation resource limitations. Manualised intervention implementation efficacy by health workers needs customisation to local culture and health service support services.

Psychological Contract in HIV Prevention Clinical Trials in Resource Poor Communities in Africa

The paper explored the application of psychological contract in HIV prevention clinical trials in resource poor communities in Africa. The psychological contract was discussed in relation to practices in New HIV Prevention Technologies in Africa. From this discussion, it would seem risk for exposure to HIV infection is less well articulated in the psychological contract between the promoters of HIV prevention clinical trials and participants in resource poor communities in Africa. The trialing of New HIV Prevention Technologies in Africa should have in-built psychological contract transparency to reduce the risk of participant exposure to HIV infection in clinical trials.

Medical Injury Compensation Complications in New HIV Prevention Technologies in Africa

Abstract The study investigated complications associated with medical injury compensation in New HIV Prevention Technologies in Africa. The study looked at possibilities of liability in HIV infection during clinical trials and the legal resources that could be used in seeking medical injury compensation in resource poor communities in Africa. A survey of literature on medical injury compensation was used to highlight possibilities and complications associated with medical inj ury compensation in developing countries. An analysis of research findings on medical injury compensation indicated that it would be difficult for people who get infected with HIV in clinical trials to successfully sue international organisations that sponsor New HIV Prevention Technologies in Africa. It is suggested in this study that African governments could use the no-fault approach in settling medical injury compensation claims in New HIV Prevention Technologies clinical trials.

Promoting children's public participation in policy-making through achievement-oriented education

Abstract This theoretical paper looked at the possibility of incorporating the social learning concept of achievement-oriented behaviour in promoting childrens public participation in policy-making in the educational system. The paper highlighted how the concepts of public participation and achievement-oriented education could be used in the governance of the educational system in South Africa. The paper explored concepts such as goal-directed behaviour, achievement standards, achievement beliefs, and how the educational system could use the concepts in the promotion of childrens public participation. Future studies could focus on the empirical relationship between achievement-oriented behaviour and child involvement in participatory democracy in the governance of the educational system in South Africa.

Identifying Locus of Control Dimensions Related to HIV/AIDS Risk Among South African Students

The aim of the study was to identify significant correlates of HIV-related risk behaviors using locus of control-based dimensions such as self-control, deferment of gratification, personal values, and social alienation. Participants in this study were university students who volunteered to participate in the study. The authors used correlations and linear regression to analyze the relationships between locus of control-based variables and HIV/AIDS risk. The results of the study found significant correlations between the locus of control-based variables and HIV/AIDS risk. Regression analysis indicated that the locus of control-based model, for example, deferment of gratification and personal values and expectancies explained a significant proportion of the variance in HIV/AIDS risk. Directions for future research could focus on locus of control-based models in predicting HI/AIDS risk among individuals in diverse population groupings.

A Prospective Model for HIV and AIDS Prevention in an African Setting

The study conceptualizes locus of control as a behavioural mechanism for HIV and AIDS prevention. The locus of control variables that could build the model are: social systems control, self-control, fatalism, achievement-oriented behaviour, willingness to delay gratification, personal values and expectations, and alienation. This study seeks to investigate the possibility of designing a locus of control-based HIV and AIDS model that can be used in South Africa to complement existing health promotion models. While other models tend to take an exploratory approach in which various factors are put together to explain HIV and AIDS risk and prevention, the envisaged model seeks to focus on personality-related factors of Rotters social learning theory. The model design involves the use of statistical modeling in predicting HIV and AIDS risk.