CHAPTER 5 IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION OF THE …

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CHAPTER 5

IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION OF THE PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL

PROGRAMMME FOR ADOLESCENTS WHO EXPERIENCE AGGRESSION IN

A SECONDARY SCHOOL

Phase two is the developmental stage of the psycho-educational programme for

adolescents who experience aggression in a secondary school context and was

discussed in chapter four of this study. Phases three and four of programme

development, namely implementation and evaluation, are discussed in this

chapter. They focus on the implementation and evaluation of the cyclical

process, which for Wadsworth (1997:10-11) started with reflection on an identified

social problem leading to a decision to alleviate it. As a result, a psycho-

educational programme for adolescents who experience aggression in a selected

secondary school was developed.

The programme was based on the themes derived from phenomenological

interviews conducted with adolescents in phase one of the study. The themes

also formed the basis of the pre- and post-test questionnaires which were

administered to the participants before and after implementation of the

programme.

5.1 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME

Success depends not only on the programme itself but also on the practical

organisation carried out beforehand (Conyne, et al. 1997:160; Dennison & Kirk,

1990:62; Doel & Sawdon, 2001:78). Effective organisation creates a safe

environment conducive to the participants' exploration and discovery, and

extension of their psychological skills (Doel & Sawdon, 2001:133; Rooth,

1995:16). The psycho-educational programme was implemented in four

sessions, each lasting approximately 90-minutes, over the course of four days.

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5.1.1 PRACTICAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME

Following the suggestions of Conyne, et al. (1997:161) and Heron (1989:102,

137) the practical aspects of the programme that were taken into consideration

are described below.

• The group contract

Group expectations and group norms were discussed with the participants at the

outset of the programme to obtain their input regarding group norms. Throughout

the programme, group rules were maintained and the group members were

assured that confidentiality and privacy would be safeguarded.

• Programme schedule

Flexibility is a key consideration in programme organisation. Flexibility respects

the group for itself, its needs and its potential, its members and its purposes (Doel

& Sawdon, 2001:90). It allows the facilitator to respond to the immediate needs

of individuals and the group as the needs arise (Heron, 1998:139; Hobbs,

1992:147). In this programme, the facilitator adhered strictly to the programme

schedule in terms of meeting times and days, timing and timetabling and the

length of the group programme. However, she was flexible and allowed for

changes in the programme activities, as indicated by group dynamics.

• The venue

A classroom in a secondary school was selected as a suitable venue for the

programme because it was familiar to the group and thus conducive to success

(Doel & Sawdon, 2001:133; Becky & Farren, 1997:303). In addition, the school

provided a well-established infrastructure with regard to resources (Stevens, et al.

2001:148). The programme was conducted during school hours as part of the

Life Skills learning programme.

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• The seating arrangement

The seating arrangement was in a semi-circle, as sitting around a table creates a

barrier to openness and mutual support. Tables were used when required for an

exercise or activity but the group reconvened in a circle to share and process

(Carrell, 2000:5-6; Rooth, 1995:17). Enough space in the classroom was allowed

for movement activities.

• Resources for the programme

The facilitator supplied all the workshop learning material, including snacks for

the participants. The provision of snacks maintained group cohesion and

provided an opportunity to practice social skills and to reflect on group

experiences (Doel & Sawdon, 2001:78, 155; Hobbs, 1992:121). Since the

programme was implemented at the end of the day, snacks were provided in the

classroom during "checking in" to the workshop sessions.

• Icebreakers

According to Rooth (1995:11) and Hobbs (1992:45) icebreakers help the

participants to relax, laugh and learn while they enjoy themselves, thus setting

the emotional tone for the group participants. Hence, after checking in, each

session started with an appropriate icebreaker linked to the main activity. This

was followed by a brief discussion of the theoretical background relevant to the

workshop topic.

• Theoretical knowledge base

A psycho-educational programme is purposefully structured to teach both

knowledge and life skills (Conyne, et al. 1997:149; Varma, 1997:165, 169).

Through discussion and active group participation, concepts relating to the topic

of the workshop form a theoretical knowledge base used to increase the

participants' awareness of and knowledge about aggression. In line with the

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experiential approach to learning, it was linked to the actual experiences of the

participants by using real-life situations.

• Checking in and out

Checking in helped the group members to re-orientate and provided continuity

between the previous and present sessions. It provided a forum for members to

report on their experiences from the previous session and to share their

expectations for the day's proceedings. Checking out provided closure for the

session, summarising the day's activities and encouraging members to share

their feelings about the group process of the day (Doel & Sawdon, 2001:133;

Loosley, et al. 1997:34).

5.1.2 IMPLEMENTATION AND QUALITATIVE EVALUATION OF THE

PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME

The overall programme was implemented in workshop format in three phases,

including an orientation phase, a working phase and a termination phase. A

similar cyclical process ensured the phases of each workshop session were inter-

linked and continuous, beginning with an orientation stage, through a working

stage, and culminating in a termination stage. The latter are referred to as

"session stages" to distinguish them from the phases involved in the programme

process. Psycho-educational strategies were applied in the programme with

each group session structured according to the experiential learning cycle

(Conyne, et al. 1997:163). The experiential learning cycle was applied in the

working phase of the psycho-educational programme, as a framework for

learning the skills deemed necessary to manage aggression constructively.

The programme was implemented by means of workshops, which included four

sessions, all of which took place during school hours. Sixteen pupils participated

in the psycho-educational programme and sixteen in the placebo programme. A

fellow research team member, who investigated how teachers experienced

aggression in the same school, assisted as co-facilitator to implement the

psycho-educational programme. The programme was designed to cover a range

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of topics to meet the needs of adolescents who experience aggression in a

secondary school context, as identified during phenomenological interviews. The

scenarios and notes used as examples in this programme were based on real-life

examples of aggression extracted from the phenomenological interviews or from

interaction with the adolescents in the workshops.

The researcher kept detailed field notes throughout the course of the programme

implementation phase. The field notes include the researcher's observational

notes, as well as theoretical, methodological and personal notes (Krefting

(1991:218). The implementation of each session of the programme is discussed

and evaluated in the light of relevant extracts from the researcher's field notes

and a qualitative evaluation of the participants' narrative evaluations. The

relevant extracts from the researcher's field notes are italicised. For purposes of

clarity, an example of the workshop evaluation form is included as Figure 5.1.

Figure 5.1 Example of workshop evaluation form

WORKSHOP EVALUATION DATE ___________________________________

How much did you enjoy the workshop today? Tick [�] the appropriate box.

A lot 1 2 3 4 5 Not at all

What did you like about today's workshop?

______________________________________________________________________________

What did you dislike about today's workshop?

______________________________________________________________________________

List five points raised in the workshop today

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

What further issues relating to aggression would you like to see included in future workshops

______________________________________________________________________________

Figure 5.2 provides a schematic summary of the implementation of the

programme which is discussed accordingly.

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Figure 5. 2 Schematic summary of the implementation of the psycho-educational programme

Orientation phase - The purpose of the programme - Practical arrangements for programme

implementation - Establish ground rules

Working phase The four workshops address the topics: - Enhanced self-awareness - Heightened awareness of aggression - Increased internal locus of control - Healthy interpersonal relationships

Workshop 1 Orientation stage - Welcome and introduction - Goals for workshop one - Ice breaker Working stage - Group activity to enhance self-awareness Termination stage - Reflection and evaluation - Closure

Workshop 2 Orientation stage - Welcome and group manifesto - Check in and connect with previous

workshop - Goals for workshop two - Ice breaker Working stage - Group activity to raise awareness of

aggression Termination stage - Reflection and evaluation - Closure

Workshop 3 Orientation stage - Welcome and Group manifesto - Check in and connect with previous

workshop - Goals for workshop three - Ice breaker Working stage - Group activity to increase internal locus of control Termination stage - Reflection and evaluation - Closure

Workshop 4 Orientation stage - Welcome and Group manifesto - Check in and connect with previous

workshop - Goals for workshop four - Ice breaker Working stage - Group activity to develop healthy

interpersonal relationships Termination stage - Reflection and evaluation - Closure

Termination phase - Closure of the workshops - Programme evaluation

Adapted from Steyn (2006:196)

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• Workshop 1 Enhanced self-awareness

Workshop one was designed around the theme of awareness, specifically the

facilitation of self-awareness. Hence, workshop one was entitled "enhanced self-

awareness".

- Goal of workshop one

The goal in this, the first workshop in a series of four, was to facilitate the

development of self-awareness in the participants. The basic assumption is that

self-management begins with an exploration of the self. It is based on the

premise that one's sense of self-identity is inexorably linked with a sense of

knowing who one is, where one comes from and who one might become in the

future, because it allows one to make meaning of one's existence (Covey,

1999:108; Frankl, 1984:127; Green, 2001:129; Hjelle & Ziegler, 1992:200).

Making meaning is a basic human activity necessary to ensure mental health

(Green, 2001:129). For Frankl (1984:127) finding meaning for one's existence is

inexorably intertwined with "what one has already achieved and what one still

ought to accomplish, or the gap between what one is and what one should

become". The question about the future is important because adolescents,

particularly those who are at risk, should be assisted to maintain hope for their

future (Karp, 1998:xxix; McWhirter, et al. 1998:222). In the activities in this

workshop, the participants were encouraged to discover that any experience

involves the whole person – as a "spiritual, thinking, feeling, choosing,

energetically and physically embodied being" (Heron, 1989:11).

- Activities

The World Health Organisation (WHO, 2004:44) suggests that life skills

education, which includes self-awareness, is effective in the reduction of

aggression and in the promotion of mental health. Art and drawing were used to

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help the participants explore their feelings and experiences, since these activities

are relaxing and less intimidating than using words.

Art and drawing help pupils to connect with their inner selves and allow for the

free expression of thoughts and emotions (Whitaker, 1995:105). Whitaker

(1995:105) confirms that when these tasks are used as activities of exploration

they deepen self-awareness, help to clarify and resolve inner turmoil and tension

and release energy for learning and for personal growth. The drawings served to

activate the participants' experiences of themselves as a whole person, bearing in

mind that "man needs to strive for a worthwhile goal" and "can only live by

looking to the future" (Frankl, 1984:94, 127).

The participants were invited to explore their awareness of the self through

exploratory art. They were then interviewed about their portraits and in the next

session asked to write about it. This activity was based on the premise that the

talk that follows the art and drawing activity is as important as the primary task

itself (Whitaker, 1995:106). Van Manen (1990:64) confirms that writing forces the

person into a reflective mood which is a prerequisite step in the experiential

learning cycle.

Four representative examples of drawings with verbatim extracts from recorded

interviews or from participants' written reflections are given to verify their level of

self-awareness. The extracts are italicised. The drawings are included as

evidence for purposes of trustworthiness and to add richness to the research

data. As the drawings do not form part of the primary collection data they were

not analysed by an educational psychologist, but are given with the participants'

personal interpretations.

The participants' depictions of self-awareness are illustrated as figures 5.3 to 5.6

and are followed by their own interpretation of the image that they wished to

portray in their drawings.

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Participant A interpreted his drawing, shown as Figure 5.3, as follows:

Figure 5.3 Participant A's drawing of self-awareness

I've drawn a heart here, which is emotions. And in my heart I drew the word love

because I'm a very loving person and I like to help others and show that they are

special. In my physical side I've drawn a rainbow to show that the different

colours have a different meaning because as you can see here the colours mean

that I can cook, I communicate, I'm a helper, I can teach people and that is what

the different colours are for. Here by my spirit I wrote "Jesus Christ its all about

you" and I drew a cross. The reason why I drew a cross is the drops represent

the blood of Jesus Christ shed for us on the cross. Here by mental I just got an

inspiration and I just said to myself I'm just going to play with the colours and just

express my opinion in the different colours.

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Participant B interpreted his drawing, shown as Figure 5.4, as follows:

Figure 5.4 Participant B's drawing of self-awareness

Participant B interpreted his drawing, shown as Figure 5.4, as follows:

What I see in my future is water; the water is running but it has no end.

But I know I have an end so I would like to enjoy my future with everything that I have.

I just want to see my light whenever there is darkness

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Participant C interpreted his drawing, shown as Figure 5.5, as follows:

Figure 5.5 Participant C's drawing of self-awareness

The person in the picture represents me and I'm happy emotionally and mentally.

The star represents my emotions and the birds mean I'm emotionally and

mentally happy without any stress. The buildings represent physically what I want

to achieve in life by being the managing director of a big corporate business.

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Participant D interpreted his drawing, shown as Figure 5.6, as follows:

Figure 5.6 Participant D's drawing of self-awareness

Participant D interpreted his drawing, shown as Figure 5.6, as follows:

I wish I was one element of nature.

Nature is where I find peace and serenity.

I see South Africa like that in the future when I become president.

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The implementation of workshop one is evaluated in the light of relevant extracts

from the researcher's field notes and a qualitative evaluation of the participants'

narrative evaluations. The relevant extracts from the researcher's field notes are

italicised.

- Relevant extract from field notes

At the end of the workshop session I bumped into the principal. She asked how

the participants had behaved as they were among the most non-compliant pupils

the school and she was hoping that the programme would be of benefit to them.

- Analysis of workshop evaluations

A qualitative analysis of the workshop evaluation form indicates that the

participants enjoyed the workshop "a lot". They thoroughly enjoyed the drawing

activity and the freedom to explore and talk about their feelings and experiences.

In response to the question "What did you like about today's workshop?", they

said:

• It was all about your inner self and your true feelings towards the next person.

• I liked the part that you have to draw and say what you feel.

• It was fun and I like working with my classmates.

Even in their response to the question "What did you dislike about today's

workshop?", the participants indicated that it was beneficial for them. They

commented:

• I would say just the thought that we should end the session. I feel that this is

something great and I really enjoy it.

• There's nothing I dislike about today's workshop.

• Nothing. Everything was a lot of fun.

On the whole, it appears that the workshop was meaningful for the participants.

Extracts from the question "five points raised in the workshop" indicated that they

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had an adequate understanding of the knowledge content of the workshop. They

were particularly knowledgeable about the person functioning as a whole person

in body, mind and spirit. This finding is verified by the participants' personal

interpretations of their drawings, as given below each of the figures 5.3 to 5.6.

• Workshop 2 Heightened awareness of aggression

Workshop two was designed around the theme "awareness of aggression",

identified as a need to be addressed for the constructive management of

aggression in the secondary school environment. It built on the exploration of the

self in workshop one. The title of workshop two was "heightened awareness of

aggression".

- Goal of the workshop

As with the first session, workshop two was designed around the theme of

awareness, but the goal was to increase the participants' awareness of what the

experience of aggression means to them using the thinking, feeling, behaviour

and body modalities of being. The participants were encouraged to discover

what triggers aggression in them and how this elicits aggression in others

(Hobbs, 1992:27). The workshop was based on the assumption that the

participants first have to become self-aware before they are in a position to

understand the effect of their behaviour on others (Covey, 1999:67). Enhanced

awareness of the effects of their behaviour on others allows them to change or

modify their own problem behaviour (McWhirter, et al. 1998:228).

- Activities of the workshop

The exploration of the self was used as a reflective observation on how the

participants experience aggression. The ability to control and manage

aggression starts with recognising the feeling (Larson, 2005:59). The researcher

hoped that the participants would become so aware of their feelings that they

would build a functional vocabulary that they could use in real life situations to

express their feelings of anger and aggression (Larson, 2005:58). This is based

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on the premise that enhanced self-awareness implies the ability to recognise

feelings and to build a vocabulary for them (Goleman, 1996:268).

A list of feeling words generated by the participants to express their feelings of

aggression is given in table 5.1 below. The variety of words used by the

adolescents to express their experience of aggression confirms the findings of

this study that adolescents experience aggression as a range of diverse feelings

and that each adolescent experiences aggression in a unique way.

Table 5.1 Feeling vocabulary generated by participants

• aggressive • nervous

• depressed • out of control

• discouraged • out of hand

• emotional • sad

• frustrated • speechless

• hatred • stress

• like crying • want to be alone

• neglected • wild

The various experiential activities in workshop two included reflective worksheets

and an exploratory game preceding the main activity, which revolved around

understanding and managing anger cues in their environment (Ayers, et al.

2000:38; Larson, 2005:126; McWhirter, et al. 1998:229). In the main activity of

the workshop, the task incorporated the so-called ABC model of managing anger

(Ayers, et al. 2000:38; Johnson, 1997:322) where:

A refers to the observable activating event that triggers the problem

behaviour.

B refers to the belief which elicited the observed behavioural response to

the event.

C refers to the observable consequences of the problem behaviour, in this

case aggression.

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The ABC-framework is based on the notion that the assumptions that the

adolescents make influence their interpretations of what the events in their lives

mean. They automatically respond to the event that activates or triggers

aggression by using their current beliefs. If they replace irrational beliefs with

rational and constructive ones, their response to the event is positive. People in

turn respond in a positive way (Gillis, 1994:26; Larson, 2005:126).

In the workshop, the participants were encouraged to give examples of actual

incidents of aggression at school, to identify the activating event and to discuss

its consequences. In the open group, the participants discussed alternate and

more constructive ways of managing the incident. The researcher facilitated the

task by providing a checklist of probing questions adapted from Johnson

(1997:322).

An abbreviated example of the ABC-model applied in the psycho-educational

programme, together with the representative responses of a selected group of

participants, is provided in table 5.2.

Table 5.2 Summary of ABC-model of anger management implemented in workshop 2

ABC step Probing question Response

Activating event What happened? Lew* provoked Neville* and they fought

Belief about the behaviour

Why did it happen? They had an argument about a textbook

What consequences could there have been?

Lew could have been stabbed

How could the incident have been managed in a more constructive way?

By talking about and discussing the incident with one another

Consequences of the behaviour

What did you learn from the incident?

- Communication is important

- Violence does not solve problems

- Respect the opinion of others

*Pseudonyms

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The implementation of workshop two is evaluated in the light of relevant extracts

from the researcher's field notes and a qualitative evaluation of the participants'

narrative evaluations. The relevant extracts from the researcher's field notes are

italicised.


Chaos reigned at school! The matriculants had completed their curriculum and

would soon be sitting for their final examinations. They went ballistic! They were

attacking fellow pupils and teachers alike with mud and water bomb concoctions.

They had opened the water hydrants at the school and were holding some

teachers hostage in their classroom while other staff members waited in the staff

room with apprehension and fear.

Having just arrived at the school to present the programme I sensed something

was amiss when I was warned to stay in my car and only leave on when advised

to do so by the principal. Sometime later a mass of pupils descended on the

school gate and left the premises. I feared for my life, especially since the school

was located in a traditionally dangerous area of the suburb. The principal

explained the situation to me and I fully expected the workshop to be cancelled.

However, the enthusiastic way in which every single one of the participants

attended and joined in the workshop activities affirmed an intrinsic motivation on

their part to learn and benefit from the programme.


On the whole, most participants indicated that they enjoyed the workshop. The

planned topic for the session could hardly have been more fortuitous, considering

the chaos at the school when I arrived there that morning. Through concrete

experience and reflective observation, the participants could relate the chaos at

the school as a real life example of how they experience aggression in the

school. An analysis of the pupils' responses to the question "What did you enjoy

about today’s workshop?", elicited the following:

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• The part where we had to choose an incident and answer questions about it.

• It was great. And I learned something new and it was a great experience.

Some participants did not enjoy the exploratory introduction to the main activity

but were able to interpret its significance in the context of the workshop. A

particularly significant response was:

• I disliked the fact that we had to take off our one shoe and walked in another

person's shoe. It was really uncomfortable.

An analysis of the participants' responses to the task of listing five points that

were raised in the workshop shows an increased awareness of aggression on

their part, indicating that the goal of providing a solid knowledge base on

aggression was reached. A representative sample of their responses is indicated

below. They indicated that they had learnt about:

• what makes you aggressive

• what makes my fellow students aggressive

• controlling your aggression.

In general, it appears that the workshop was meaningful for the participants.

• Workshop 3 Increased internal locus of control

Workshop three was designed around the theme "locus of control", identified as a

need to be addressed for the constructive management of aggression in the

secondary school environment. Hence, the title of workshop three was

"increased internal locus of control".

- Goal of workshop three

The goal of workshop three was to increase the extent to which the participants

were able to experience that they were in control of own world and to accept

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responsibility for their feelings, thoughts and behaviour, thus to develop an

increasingly internal locus of control. The researcher hoped to attain the goal by

using activities related to problem-solving and decision-making. The premise is

that social problem-solving and decision-making skills contribute to the

development of an internal locus of control and to the management of behaviour

such as aggression (McWhirter, et al. 1998:227). When people feel that their

behaviour is under their own control they tend to accept responsibility for their

own actions. They will modify or change disruptive and self-defeating behaviour,

thus taking the first steps towards developing a greater internal locus of control.

As a theoretical base for the workshop, the participants were exposed to a

problem-solving model developed by McWhirter, et al. (1998:227), and were then

set a painting task. Part of the task was to work out various problems relating to

performing the activity. Initially, the participants applied the model very effectively

by solving practicalities such as sharing paints, working space and working in

groups. However, extracts from the researcher's field notes and a qualitative

evaluation of the participants' narrative evaluations reveal that the seemingly

innocuous painting activity would elicit unplanned incidents that would wreak

havoc in the workshop session. The relevant extracts from the researcher's field

notes are italicised.


By the third day of programme implementation word had spread that Grade 11

pupils were participating in workshops. Many other pupils wanted to join in the

programme. By this stage group cohesion had strengthened and the participants

made it clear that they did not want any new group members. For this reason

and because of the closed nature of the workshops the prospective participants

had to be turned down.

After a chance meeting with the principal she remarked that she could discern a

noticeably positive attitude change in the participants. I felt very encouraged.

The feeling of well-being was shattered before the end of that very day. Chaos

reigned in the workshop! The participants were given large sheets of art paper

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and water paint as material for the group activity. Some conflict arose in the

group about space and sharing the material. After group negotiation and

mediation facilitated by the researcher and her co-facilitator compromise was

reached between the participants and the activity commenced.

Laughing interspersed with humming; the participants captured the exploratory

activity on film. They appeared to be engrossed. All at once the peaceful

atmosphere shattered as the participants started splashing each other with paint,

companionship forgotten. I was aghast at the turn of events.

The words of the headmistress echoed in my sub-conscious mind: "These

participants are renowned for their ill discipline and non-compliance." That was

not my opinion of them. I felt that they had made a valuable contribution to the

programme. After all no participant had "dropped-out" of the programme. It

seemed to me that they were all enjoying the workshops. What a

disappointment! My co-facilitator and I took control of the situation and after

everybody cleaned up the mess the group was dismissed. The workshop ended

on a somewhat disheartening note for me. I felt very disturbed by the turn in the

behaviour of the adolescents.


As a result of the chaos in the workshop, the evaluation was left over for the next

day. A qualitative analysis of the workshop evaluation form indicates that the

majority of participants enjoyed the workshop "a lot". Without exception they

remarked that they had enjoyed the painting activity because:

• I liked the way I expressed myself when I was able to draw.

• I liked working with painting and expressing feelings in pictures.

• I did like the painting. I feel that if you paint you can release yourself from

problems and stress.

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In response to the question "What did you dislike about today's workshop?", most

of the participants said that they disliked the chaos caused by the "paint incident".

It appears that some of the participants were leaning towards a greater internal

locus of control by accepting responsibility for their behaviour when they said

they disliked the way:

• I behaved and the way I messed with the paint.

• When at the last minute we started getting out of hand.

One of the participants distanced herself from the activity by neither casting

blame nor accepting responsibility for the behaviour, saying: "I disliked the

messing with paint". In the following responses the participants showed a more

external locus of control by casting the blame for the misbehaviour on "the

others".

• They messed with the paintings.

• They threw one another with the paint and that spoiled everything.

• I disliked it when things started going out of hand.

In response to "list five points about the workshop", the participants appeared to

have internalised the conceptual knowledge base of the workshop by listing

points such as:

• Anger leads to aggression.

• Learn to control your feelings.

• Respect one another's things.

• I learnt not to get aggressive when somebody makes a mistake.

• External locus of control: saying that if you do it to me, I'll do it to you.

• Internal locus of control: telling yourself you won't do it.

In spite of the chaos that disrupted the workshop session at the end of the

session, it appears from the participants' narrative evaluations that the workshop

was of benefit to them.

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• Workshop 4 Healthy interpersonal relationships

Workshop four was designed around the theme of "the unhealthy interpersonal

relationships that stem from aggression", which was identified as a need to be

addressed for the constructive management of aggression in the secondary

school environment. Hence, the title in workshop four was developing "healthy

interpersonal relationships".

- Goal of workshop four

The goal of workshop four was to teach the participants effective communication

skills, which promote the development of healthy interpersonal relationships

(Hobbs, 1992:59). The goal was based on the premise that communication leads

to improved interpersonal relationships when people practise active listening

skills and communicate in an assertive way rather than with aggression.

According to Gray (2002:120), "listening is the fundamental first step in

communication. Without listening there can be no respect, no valuing".

The researcher integrated communication skills with the skills taught through the

last three sessions into a composite skills base for the constructive management

of aggression in the secondary school context. The ability to communicate

effectively with one another in order to manage aggression creates unique

opportunities for the participants to learn about themselves. This was the goal of

workshop one. Through the development of appropriate skills and strategies

taught in workshop two, they learnt more about how others experience

aggression.

In workshop three they developed the skills to find workable solutions to a

problem which helps to build relationships and trust and so improves

interpersonal relationships, the goal of workshop four. The flow diagram

developed by the participants provides a schematic summary of the integrated

skills framework and is presented as figure 5.7.

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Figure 5.7 Schematic summary of the integrated skills framework

- Activities

As theoretical knowledge for the session, following the suggestions of Le Roux

and De Klerk (2001:97), the participants were given guidelines on the skill of

active listening that included the use of "I"-messages, listening with empathy and

paying careful attention to what the speaker is saying. Acknowledging that

experiential learning is the cornerstone of the psycho-educational programme,

the researcher used the "paint incident" in session three as a real-life scenario

around which to organise the group activities.

The participants were facilitated to suggest how the conflict and aggression

caused by the incident could have been better managed by combining

communication skills with skills acquired in the previous workshops as an

effective way of relating to one another and solving problems.

The implementation of workshop four is evaluated in the light of relevant extracts

from the researcher's field notes. The relevant extracts from the researcher's

field notes are italicised. Owing to the administration of the post-test

questionnaire in workshop four, the participants did not complete a workshop

evaluation form.

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As it transpired the "paint incident" during session three was an event of

serendipity! In the workshop I was able to use the incident as a practical

example of how to implement skills for effective interpersonal communication.

The participants were encouraged to explore ways to improve interpersonal

relationships by applying active listening skills and the skills learnt in workshops

one, two and three to change hostile, angry, aggressive behaviour that causes

barriers to effective interpersonal relationships (McWhirter, et al. 1998:225).

Through general group discussion the participants acknowledged that they acted

irresponsibly and suggested ways of managing similar situations differently in the

future. By word of mouth I heard that the boys in the group who were splashed

with paint became physically aggressive with the culprits. The culprits were

punched and pushed and one had the sleeve of his shirt torn off. His response to

me was "I learnt a lesson yesterday. Do not splash paint at G…!"

On further discussion over the paint episode the participants responded that had I

reacted differently and treated them with disrespect by shouting at them, for

example, they would have boycotted the last session by non-attendance. This

made me reflect on the value of the workshops. Had the participants benefited at

all? After all boycotting is a form of passive aggression! The results of the

quantitative findings will show in actual, objective terms whether the programme

had a positive impact on the participants. One participant summed up the

general experiences of the group regarding the implementation of the psycho-

educational programme by saying "We had a lot of fun and liked the way you

treated us".

All the participants attended the final workshop and actively participated in the

activities and discussion, albeit somewhat subdued initially. Based on

observation and my interaction with them I felt that they found the workshop was

of benefit to them.

208

• Conclusion

Many of the participants commented that because the facilitators had treated

them with respect and dignity during the implementation of the psycho-

educational programme they really enjoyed the workshops. The young men in

the group shook my hand in the traditional African way on the final day of the

programme. This gesture was very touching, as it is a sign of respect. All the

participants attended the workshop on day two, even though the whole school

had been dismissed for unruly and disruptive behaviour. I really valued that and

interpreted it to mean that the workshops were of benefit to them and they

enjoyed participating in them.

By the end of the programme I felt that, based on observation alone, and from

comments made by teachers at the school, the programme had been of benefit to

the participants. Many teachers remarked that they had noticed an observable

change in some of the participants. The participants who participated in the

programme had been labelled as amongst the most aggressive and non-

compliant in the school, yet they had the maturity to recognise their disruptive

behaviour in workshop three and made positive suggestions to change.

Throughout the research process the researcher respected the ethical principles

described in section 1.7 which include respecting the privacy, dignity and

confidentiality of the participants.

A discussion on the implementation of the placebo programme follows.

5.2 IMPLEMENTATION AND QUALITATIVE EVALUATION OF THE PLACEBO PROGRAMME

As with the psycho-educational programme, the venue for the implementation of

the placebo programme was a secondary school in an urban area in the Gauteng

province of South Africa. Owing to the pressure of the school's timetable and

constraints on the availability of the venue, workshops one and two were

conducted in one marathon session and workshops three and four in another.

209

The researcher elected to implement a placebo intervention whereby the control

group receives an alternate but equally desirable intervention rather than no

intervention at all so that the experiences of the experimental and control groups

could be as close to being identical as possible and to control for the Hawthorne

effect (Bailey, 1994:33; Martella, et al. 1999:133).

Research participants in the experimental group suggested "discrimination" as a

topic for inclusion in future workshops on aggression. After a survey of the

literature the researcher then selected "discrimination" as the topic for the

placebo programme because of its association with aggression. In this way the

control group could receive an intervention as close to being identical as possible

to that of the experimental group.

Discrimination has been defined as unfair behaviour against an entire social

group or individual members of that group, who are the object of prejudice, by

openly behaving in a hostile manner towards them (Morris & Maisto, 1999:588;

Baron & Byrne, 1994:217). Unchecked discrimination results in overt

expressions of aggression, and ultimately physical violence, against its target/s.

Interventions to manage discrimination may combat the ever-increasing spiral of

hatred and violence in society (Baron & Byrne, 1994:217).

• Workshops one and two

The implementation of workshops one and two are discussed with regard to the

goals of each workshop, relevant extracts from the researcher's field notes and

the qualitative evaluation of the workshop process given by the participants. The

relevant extracts from the researcher's field notes are italicised.

- Goals of the workshops

The goal of the first workshop was to raise awareness of the participants'

experience of discrimination by means of reflection on personal experience. The

goal was based on the assumption that reflection leads to continued self-

exploration. The researcher facilitated their reflective observations by utilising

210

experiential activities that included icebreakers, exploratory games linking with

the main activity, and reflective worksheets

The goal of the second workshop was to generate a definition of discrimination

based on the participants' experience of discrimination. This goal was based on

the premise that naming an experience clarifies it for the person experiencing it.


My first impression of the classroom which was the venue for the workshop was

one of absolute astonishment. Verbally aggressive graffiti was scrawled across

the blackboard and on the desks, the teacher's desk was cluttered with papers

that had gathered dust and the floor was strewn with litter. In general the

classroom was not conducive to a constructive learning environment. I thought

that the pupils could benefit from participation in a programme that dealt with

aggression! However, once the desks were rearranged and the litter removed,

my co-facilitator and I implemented the placebo programme on discrimination.

The participants actively took part in the workshop and contributed valuable

information on the topic.


A qualitative analysis of the workshop evaluation form indicates that the majority

of participants enjoyed the workshop "a lot". They thoroughly enjoyed exploring

their personal experience of discrimination and felt it was a relevant issue to

explore. In response to the question "What did you like about today's

workshop?", they said:

• The issue of discrimination was raised although people don't normally want to

talk about it.

• It dealt a lot with discrimination, which I think is a very important issue.

• I liked the fact that they brought up the discrimination topic.

211

An analysis of the question "What did you dislike about today's workshop?"

indicates that the participants enjoyed participating in the workshops, as their

comments included responses such as:

• There was nothing I did not like about the workshop.

• Nothing. Everything was a fine.

• Nothing. It was full of fun.

Overall, it appears that the workshops were meaningful for the participants.

Extracts from the question "five points raised in the workshop" indicated that they

had an adequate understanding of the concept of discrimination and that they

became more aware of discrimination in the school environment.

• Workshops three and four

As with workshops one and two, the implementation of workshops three and four

are discussed with regard to the goals of each workshop, relevant extracts from

the researcher's field notes and the qualitative evaluation of the workshop

process given by the participants.

- Goals of the workshops

The goal of workshop three was to enable participants to identify incidents of

discrimination based on personal experience and observation. The workshop

was facilitated around critical incidents of discrimination that they experienced in

the school setting. The goal of the fourth workshop was to enhance the

participants' awareness of the nature and frequency of discrimination in their

personal lives. The workshop was facilitated around an analysis of the critical

incidents generated in workshop three, which were used to analyse different

types of discrimination and how frequently the participants experienced them at

school.

212


I had to keep reminding myself that I was facilitating the placebo programme,

especially when I observed that the participants were truly enjoying the

programme. Throughout the implementation there was not one single participant

who "dropped out" of the programme. That affirmed an intrinsic motivation on

their part to benefit from the programme.


Based on the collected data, the participants identified how frequently they

experienced discrimination at school and analysed the nature of it. In the open

group discussion, the participants identified that they experienced eight different

types of discrimination at school, these being issues surrounding physical

appearance, favouritism, intelligence, nationality, language, age, culture and

lifestyle. Thus, the workshops fulfilled their goal of increasing the participants'

awareness of how they experience discrimination in the secondary school

context. The administration of the post-test questionnaire, which was used to

measure the efficacy of the programme, marked the termination phase of the

placebo programme. The researcher respected the ethical principles described

in section 1.7 which include respecting the privacy, dignity and confidentiality of

the participants throughout the research process. A discussion of the quantitative

evaluation of the psycho-educational programme, phase four of the study,

follows.

5.3 QUANTITATIVE EVALUATION OF THE PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME

The evaluation phase of the research study is the fourth and final stage of

programme development, implementation and evaluation. The process by which

the programme was implemented was qualitatively evaluated by using the

researcher's field notes and the narrative comments of the participants, and was

discussed in section 5.1 above.

213

The quantitative evaluation, done by means of an experimental research design,

of the psycho-educational and placebo programmes is discussed next.

• Comparison group pre-test post-test experimental design

This researcher selected a comparison group pre-test post-test experimental

design to evaluate the impact of the programme on the research participants,

thus changing the focus of the study from a qualitative to a quantitative research

approach (De Vos, et al. (ed), 1998:79).

According to Rossi, et al. (1999:279), "the randomised controlled experiment is

the strongest research design for assessing net impacts of interventions and the

analysis of data from them". The advantage of randomisation is that there is

unbiased assignment of participants to the experimental and control groups, all

having an equal chance of being allocated to either group and the extraneous

factors being distributed equally across the two groups (Rossi, et al. 1999:290,

305; Rubin & Babbie, 2005:326). If randomisation is conducted correctly,

experimental and control groups are statistically equivalent, which suggests that

the two groups are, with the exception of the intervention, comparable (Rossi, et

al. 1999:292, 305; Rubin & Babbie, 2005:326).

The assumption is that if the groups are comparable they would be affected by

the same extraneous variables and the impact of the programme, as intervention,

can be shown as the difference between the treatment and control groups. The

difference between the groups would be the result of the intervention (Rossi, et

al. 1999:281), which in this research refers to the psycho-educational

programme. Randomisation also ensures, as far as is possible, that the two

groups are equivalent before the intervention (Rubin & Babbie, 2005:324).

However, although the true experiment is the most rigid of the experimental

research designs and provides the most valid measure of causality between

variables, random assignment of participants to experimental and control groups

is often impossible (Bailey, 1994:237, 239). Hence this researcher elected to

administer a comparison group pre-test post-test experimental design which,

214

except for randomisation, is the equivalent of the true experimental research

design (De Vos, et al. (ed), 1998:79).

To control for threats to internal validity as a result of a possible diffusion effect,

should members of the experimental and control groups talk to each other

(Creswell, 2003:171; Rubin & Babbie, 2005:332), two different secondary schools

in the same school district were purposively selected to participate in the

experimental and control conditions. They were allocated to be either the

experimental or the control group by means of coin flip as recommended by

Rosnow and Rosenthal, (1996:145) and Rubin and Babbie (1999:327).

In random sampling or selection, a sample of participants considered to be

representative of the target population is randomly selected and the results of the

findings generalised to the population (Creswell, 2002:318). In this study, by

using the class list as a sampling frame, participants were randomly selected

from the target population of Grade 11 pupils in each participating school and

were assigned to the experimental group which received the intervention, the

psycho-educational programme, and to a control group which received the

placebo intervention. Informed consent was obtained from the school principal

and the pupils prior to participation in the programme, and confidentiality was

ensured.

A total of 32 pupils, 10 of whom were females and 22 males, took part in this

phase of the research study. In terms of ethnicity, 10 participants identified

themselves as "Black" and 22 as "Coloured". Sixteen of these pupils participated

in the psycho-educational programme, while 16 pupils in the control group

participated in a placebo treatment. The majority of participants were between

sixteen and nineteen years of age, which is in accordance with the age cohort for

grade 11 pupils in public schools in South Africa.

The researcher administered a pre-test to the two groups, to measure

aggression, before they received the intervention and a post-test after the

implementation of the intervention to measure noticeable changes brought about

by the intervention. The researcher developed a questionnaire based on

215

phenomenological interviews with the target population of adolescent pupils to

measure the outcome of the intervention. A detailed description of the process

involved in the development of the questionnaire follows.

- Development of the questionnaire

The process involved in the development of the questionnaire is graphically

represented in figure 5.8 and is discussed accordingly.

Figure 5.8 Process involved in the development of the questionnaire

- Situation analysis: identification of variables

A questionnaire was constructed based on phenomenological interviews in phase

one of the study. The structured questionnaire, of pencil and paper nature and

consisting of 30 items, was specifically developed for this study to provide a valid

216

and reliable measure of the aggression experienced by pupils in a secondary

school context. The questionnaire included the variables self-awareness, locus

of control, interpersonal relationships and awareness of aggression, all of which

were identified, through an analysis of the phenomenological interviews, as most

typical of the construct aggression. Eight test items were formulated to measure

the variables self-awareness, awareness of aggression and interpersonal

relationships, and five items were formulated for locus of control.

The items on the questionnaires were answered by means of a five-point Likert-

type scale, where a value of [1] indicated the participant did not agree with the

question and a value of [5] showed agreement to a large extent. An example of

the five-point Likert scale used in the questionnaire is indicated below.

22. To what extent are learners aggressive towards educators?

Not at all 1 2 3 4 5 To a large extent

23. To what extent are you aggressive towards educators?


24. To what extent are learners aggressive towards peers?


25. To what extent do you get along with other learners?


- Conceptual framework

The conceptual framework of the psycho-educational programme was based on

the researcher's paradigmatic assumptions and the data collected by means of

phenomenological interviews with the target population of adolescents during

phase one of the study, and was discussed in detail in section 4.1.

217

- Pre- and post-test

Pre-and post-test questionnaires were developed to measure aggression before

and after implementation of the programme. The pre-test also measured whether

the experimental and control groups were equivalent before the intervention, the

psycho-educational programme (Creswell, 2002:319).

The pre-test questionnaire was completed before the programme was

implemented, to establish a baseline measure of aggression enabling

comparisons to be made after termination of the intervention (Horne, et al.

2003:10). Both the experimental and the control groups completed the same pre-

test questionnaire. The questionnaire, which took about 30 minutes to answer,

was completed in the group context in the presence of the researcher.

The same questionnaire, with additions for post evaluation purposes, was

administered to both groups after they participated in the psycho-educational and

the placebo programmes. The pre-test questionnaire is included as Appendix 5

and the post-test questionnaire as Appendix 6 in this research study. At the end

of each workshop session, the participants completed a workshop evaluation

form which was used to evaluate the programme process (De Vos, et al. (ed),

1998:372; Rubin & Babbie, 2005:415).

1. The pre-test

The pre-test was divided into two sections. Section A included an introductory

section to explain the purpose of the research, the assurance that confidentiality

would be maintained and instructions for completion of the questionnaire. The

participants answered five items which provided demographic details relating to

personal data, such as the participants' gender, age, race, mode of transport to

and from school and the length of time it took the participant to get to school. The

researcher included the latter information, as issues around transport to school

were identified during the situation analysis as a source of frustration for the

participants. The participants' names were substituted with code numbers.

218

Section B contained 31 questionnaire items to which the participants' responses

were measured on the five-point Likert scale. Four different variables were used

to measure adolescent aggression, based on the three themes identified in the

data collection phase. The four variables were self-awareness, locus of control,

interpersonal relationships and awareness of aggression. A breakdown of the

variable measured and the matching item number is given in table 5.3.

Table 5.3 Summary of variables and matching item numbers

Variable Item number

self-awareness 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

locus of control 9, 11, 13, 15, 17,

Interpersonal relationships 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29

awareness of aggression 10, 12, 14, 16, 22, 24, 26, 28

The following eight items measured the participants' self-awareness:

(1) To what extent do you find it easy to talk about your strengths?

(2) To what extent do you set academic goals for yourself?

(3) To what extent do you set extracurricular goals for yourself?

(4) To what extent are you positive about your future?

(5) To what extent are you frustrated at school?

(6) To what extent do you think learners act fairly towards other

learners?

(7) To what extent do you think you act fairly towards other learners?

(8) To what extent do you find it easy to talk about your weaknesses?

The following five items measured the participants' locus of control:

(9) To what extent do you consider your life to be determined by your

own actions?

(11) To what extent do you follow the rules of the school?

(13) To what extent do you become aggressive when provoked at

school?

219

(15) To what extent do you become verbally aggressive at school?

(17) To what extent do you become physically aggressive at school?

The following eight items were used to measure the participants’ interpersonal

relationships:

(18) To what extent do you make educators aware of the academic

pressure you experience?

(19) To what extent do you make educators aware of your domestic

responsibilities?

(20) To what extent would you report the misbehaviour of learners to the

principal?

(21) To what extent would you report the misbehaviour of learners to

educators?

(23) To what extent are you aggressive towards educators?

(25) To what extent do you get along with other learners?

(27) To what extent do you become involved in aggressive situations at

school?

(29) To what extent are you able to resolve conflict at school?

The following eight items measured awareness of aggression:

(10) To what extent do learners follow the rules of the school?

(12) To what extent do learners become aggressive when provoked at

school?

(14) To what extent do learners become verbally aggressive at school?

(16) To what extent do learners become physically aggressive at

school?

(22) To what extent are learners aggressive towards educators?

(24) To what extent are learners aggressive towards peers?

(26) To what extent do learners become involved in aggressive

situations at school?

(28) To what extent are learners able to resolve conflict at school?

220

Items (30) and (31) gave participants the options to suggest issues relating to

their experience of aggression that were not included in the questionnaire but

might have been useful for future research.

2. The post-test

The post-test contained the same introductory information as the pre-test but for

the participants' code numbers and the demographic information, which was

omitted. Section B contained the same questionnaire items from 1 - 29 as the

pre-test but with the addition of the following items so that changes that were

brought about by the programme could be measured:

(30) To what extent are you able to communicate without becoming

aggressive at school?

(31) To what extent has the psycho-educational programme made you

aware of the aggression of others at school?

(32) To what extent has the psycho-educational programme made you

aware of your aggression at school?

(33) To what extent has the programme sensitised other learners to the

management of aggression at school?

(34) To what extent has the programme sensitised you to the

management of your aggression at school?

(35) To what extent has the behaviour of other learners changed at

school since the programme was introduced?

(36) To what extent has your behaviour changed at school since the

introduction of the programme?

(37) Is there anything else about aggression at your school that you

would like to add?

(38) If the answer is "yes" write down which experiences of aggression

were not described.

The questions focussed specifically on how the participants experienced the

psycho-educational and placebo programmes hence the researcher did not

include these questions when comparing the pre-test and the post-test averages.

221

- Reliability of the questionnaire

Reliability refers to how consistently an experimental design produces the same

results on subsequent administration of the design by using different samples or

by measuring the internal homogeneity of a measure (Breakwell, 2000:48; ; De

Vos, et al. (ed), 1998:84; Gregory, 1996: 84). The reliability of the subscales on

the questionnaire was established by means of Cronbach's Alpha.

- Validity of the questionnaire

Validity refers to an instrument measuring what it is supposed to measure and

ensuring that it is measured accurately (Bless & Higson-Smith, 2000:130;

Breakwell, 2000:48; De Vos, et al. (ed), 1998:83). Internal validity refers to

whether the intervention actually caused the results of the experiment (Anderson

& Bushman, 1997:20; Vockell & Asher, 1995:219). External validity, on the other

hand, refers to whether the results of a study are generalisable to other settings

or populations (Anderson & Bushman, 1997:21.

The researcher ensured the validity of the experimental design in this study by

using a pre-test/post-test control group research design, by which the control

group receives an alternate but equally desirable intervention. It controls for most

of the potential threats to internal validity and many of the threats to external

validity associated with experimental research designs (Martella, et al. 1999:133)

as discussed in section 2.2.3.3. In addition, internal validity was ensured by

means of the random allocation of the two purposively selected secondary

schools to experimental and control conditions, while random sampling ensured

external validity (Rubin & Babbie, 2005:326).

Content validity refers to whether the items of a measuring instrument such as a

questionnaire have been sampled in a representative fashion. It is a judgemental

measure informed by asking knowledgeable judges or colleagues to review and

evaluate the test procedures. Their judgement is based on a thorough theoretical

background of that which is being measured (De Vos, et al. (ed), 1998:84; Bless

& Higson-Smith, 2000:131; Gregory, 1996:109; Trochim, 2002:online).

222

Content validity for the scales of the questionnaire applied in this study was

established in consultation with a panel of experts consisting of the researcher's

research study promotors, personnel from the Statistical Consultation Service of

the University of Johannesburg and this researcher's team worker in the

countrywide project on aggression in South African society.

• Discussion of results

The collected data was analysed statistically by using Cronbach's alpha, the One-

sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and the Student's t-tests. The researcher

assessed the practical importance of the programme by using effect size

statistics (Cook, 1999:online). A discussion of the quantitative findings of the

programme follows with reference to the applicable statistical tests that were

applied in the study.

- Cronbach's Alpha

Cronbach's Alpha is the most commonly used means to measure the internal

consistency of items in a scale (Gregory, 1996:98). It measures the extent to

which item responses obtained at the same time correlate highly (Garson,

2005:online). In this research it was used to establish internal-consistency

reliability for the variables of self-awareness, locus of control, interpersonal

relationships and awareness of aggression.

Cronbach's alpha for self-awareness was 0.609 at pre-testing and 0.304 at post-

testing; for locus of control it was 0.617 at pre-testing and 0.740 at post-testing.

Cronbach's alpha for interpersonal relationships was 0.637 at pre-testing and

0.583 at post-testing and for awareness of aggression it was 0.609 at pre-testing

and 0.665 at post-testing.

An analysis of the results of Cronbach's Alpha indicates that the test items for

locus of control, interpersonal relationships and awareness of aggression were

reliable. The variable for self-awareness was rejected as unreliable and there is

no further discussion of it in the study.

223

- The One-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test

The One-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test measures whether there is a

significant difference between the distribution of the database of the experimental

group and that of the control group (Garson, 2005:online; Statsoft, 2003:online).

In this study the One-sample Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used to determine

the probability that the sample came from a normally distributed population of

observations (Garson, 2005:online; Statsoft, 2003:online).

Test results indicate that the sample for each of the variables of locus of control

with a pre-test p-value of 0.413, interpersonal relationships with a pre-test p-value

of 0.427 and awareness of aggression with a pre-test p-value of 0.403, were

normally distributed.

- Effect size statistics

Effect size statistics provide an objective means to measure the importance of the

effect of an intervention regardless of the size of the sample (Cook, 1999:online;

Field, 2005:32-33; Rosnow & Rosenthal, 1996:405). They are used to assess the

meaningfulness of research outcomes and may be used in addition to statistical

significance testing.

Effect size statistics quantify how well an experiment worked by comparing the

mean of the experimental group with the mean of the control group. Effect sizes

are usually categorised as small, medium and large (Cook, 1999:online;

Rosenthal, et al. 2000:15).

The value range of effect sizes is indicated in table 5.4 with the results of the

effect size statistics relevant to this study.

224

Table 5.4 Table of effect size statistics

Variable Value Practical effect

locus of control 0.134 Small effect

interpersonal relationships 0.313 Medium effect

awareness of aggression 0.425 Medium effect

0 - 0.1

No effect

0.1 – 0.3

Small effect

0.3 - 0.5

Medium effect

0.5 - 1

Large

Rosenthal, et al. (2000:15)

For the variable internal locus of control the effect size statistic = 0.134 means

that the psycho-educational programme had a small effect on the research

participants in terms of this variable. For the variable interpersonal relationships

the effect size statistic = 0.313 means that the psycho-educational programme

had a medium effect on the participants. For the variable awareness of

aggression the effect size statistic = 0.425 means that the psycho-educational

programme had a medium effect on the research participants in terms of this

variable.

Thus, the difference in the post-test scores between the experimental and control

groups indicates that the positive changes in the experimental group were due to

the effects of the programme and not to other extraneous factors.

- The independent samples t-test

Null and alternate hypothesis are formulated to measure if the differences

between two independent groups, the experimental and control groups, is

significant (Creswell, 1994:73). The hypotheses tabled in table 5.5 were

formulated to test the comparison between the experimental and control groups

before (pre-test) and after (post-test) the implementation of the psycho-

educational programme for the constructive management of aggression a in

secondary school context, and the placebo programme.

225

Table 5.5 Hypotheses for the independent samples t-test

Hypothesis Description

Ho1 There is no statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the experimental group and the control group before the implementation of the psycho-educational programme and the placebo programmes for the variables (pre-test)

- locus of control

- interpersonal relationships

- awareness of aggression

Ha1 There is a statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the experimental group and the control group before the implementation of the psycho-educational programme and the placebo programmes for the variables (pre-test)

- locus of control



Ho2 There is no statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the experimental group and the control group after implementation of the psycho-educational programme and the placebo programme for the variables (post-test)

- locus of control



Ha2 There is a statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the experimental group and the control group after implementation of the psycho-educational programme and the placebo programme for the variables (post-test)

- locus of control



The independent samples t-test was used for comparisons between the

experimental and control groups before (pre-test) and after (post-test) the

intervention programme on locus of control, interpersonal relationships and

awareness of aggression. The results of the statistical findings are indicated in

the table 5.6 and are discussed accordingly.

226

Table 5.6 Results of the independent samples t-test

N

_ X

S

Variable Group Pre-test

Post-test

Pre-test

Post-test

Pre-test

Post-test

P-value

Experimental 16 15 2.52 2.27 0.981 0.956 locus of control

Control 16 16 2.42 2.50 0.815 0.832 0.237

Experimental 15 15 2.35 2.89 0.672 0.851 interpersonal relationships

Control 16 16 2.62 2.46 0.741 0.455 *0.048

Experimental 16 16 3.66 3.90 0.613 0.596 awareness of aggression

Control 15 16 3.39 3.37 0.680 0.581 **0.007

* = p<0.05 denotes significance at the 5% scale of significance

** = p<0.01 denotes significance at the 1% scale of significance

From table 5.6 it is clear that Ho1 is not rejected in favour of Ha1 with respect to

locus of control, interpersonal relationships and awareness of aggression. This

means that there is no statistically significant difference between the mean scores

of the experimental and control groups in internal locus of control, interpersonal

relationships and awareness of aggression before participation in the psycho-

educational and placebo programmes (pre-test). This finding suggests that at

pre-testing the experimental and control groups did not differ statistically with

respect to the variables of aggression experienced by adolescents in a secondary

school context.

The finding is to be expected, given that randomisation ensures that at pre-

testing differences between the experimental and control groups are insignificant

and that the two groups are equivalent in all relevant respects. Ideally the

"control group represents what the experimental group would have looked like

had it not been exposed to the intervention" (Rubin & Babbie, 2005:326) - in this

case the psycho-educational programme. The fact that at pre-test there are no

differences between the groups, while at post-test there are, means that the

intervention did have an influence on the experimental group but the placebo

programme had no influence on the control group.

227

From table 5.6 it is clear that Ho2 is not rejected in favour of Ha2 for the variable

locus of control (0.237), which means that there is no statistically significant

difference between the mean scores of the experimental and control in the post-

test for that variable. This suggests that the intervention made no impact on the

experimental group. The researcher is of the opinion that the questionnaire did

not operationalise the construct locus of control accurately, which may account

for the insignificant result in this variable.

Table 5.6 indicates that Ho2 is rejected in favour of Ha2 for the variable

interpersonal relationships on the 5% level of significance (p-value of 0.048).

From this it can be gathered that there is a statistical difference between the

experimental and control groups for interpersonal relationships after

implementation of the psycho-educational intervention (post-test). The finding

suggests that the psycho-educational programme made an impact on the

experimental group in terms of this variable.

Table 5.6 shows that Ho2 is rejected in favour of Ha2 for the variable awareness

of aggression on the 1% level of significance (p-value of 0.007). This means that

there is a statistical difference between the experimental and control groups for

awareness of aggression after implementation of the psycho-educational

intervention (post-test). The finding suggests that the psycho-educational

programme made an impact on the experimental group in terms of this variable.

In sum, Table 5.6 shows that Ho2 is rejected in favour of Ha2 for the variable

interpersonal relationships on the 5% level of significance (p-value of 0.048) and

for the variable awareness of aggression on the 1% level of significance (p-value

of 0.007). This means that there is a statistical difference between the

experimental and control groups for interpersonal relationships and for

awareness of aggression after implementation of the psycho-educational

intervention (post-test). The difference between the raw mean scores of the

experimental and control groups on interpersonal relationships, 0.43 (2.89-2.46)

and awareness of aggression, 0.53 (3.90-3.37) at post-test are indications of

small changes. While the statistical effects may be considered numerically small

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they do not diminish the importance of the findings. Taking into account the short

timeframe in which the psycho-educational programme was implemented, the

change may be regarded as a positive movement in the direction of greater

management of aggression. The researcher's field notes discussed in "summary

of findings" support the observation.

- The paired samples t-test

The null and alternate hypotheses, as shown in table 5.7, were formulated to

measure if the differences within the experimental and control groups were

significant after implementation of the psycho-educational and placebo

programmes.

Table 5.7 Hypotheses for the dependent samples t-test

Hypothesis Description

Ho3 There is no statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the experimental group from pre-test to post-test for the variables

- locus of control



Ha3 There is a statistically significant increase in the mean scores of the experimental group from pre-test to post-test for the variables

- locus of control



Ho4 There is no statistically significant difference between the mean scores of the control group from pre-test to post-test for the variables

- locus of control



Ha4 There is a statistically significant increase in the mean scores of the control group from pre-test to post-test for the variables

- locus of control



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The paired samples t-test for dependent samples was used to determine if there

were significant differences within the experimental and control groups for the

variables locus of control, interpersonal relationships and awareness of

aggression before and after the intervention programme. The results of the

statistical findings are indicated in the table 5.8 and are discussed accordingly.

Table 5.8 Results of the dependent samples t-test

Variable Group Pre-test/ post-test

N

_ X S P-

value

Experimental Pre-test

Post-test

15

15

2.62

2.27

0.925

0.956 0.059

locus of control

Control Pre-test

Post-test

16

16

2.42

2.50

0.815

0.832 0.369


Post-test

14

14

2.31

2.79

0.672

0.786 *0.027

interpersonal relationships

Control Pre-test

Post-test

16

16

2.62

2.46

0.741

0.455 0.189


Post-test

16

16

3.66

3.90

0.613

0.596 0.079

awareness of aggression

Control Pre-test

Post-test

15

15

3.39

3.39

0.680

0.593 0.500

* = p<0.05 denotes significance at the 5% scale of significance

** = p<0.01 denotes significance at the 1% scale of significance

Table 5.8 shows that Ho3 is not rejected in favour of Ha3 for the variable locus of

control, with a p-value of 0.059. This means that there was no statistical

improvement in the experimental group in locus of control from pre- to post-

testing. The insignificant change in this variable may be due to the fact that an

increasing internal locus of control is a personality characteristic that develops

gradually over time through experience (Hjelle & Ziegler, 1992:381; Hobbs,

1994:179-180). The researcher's field notes on the ubiquitous "paint incident" in

workshop three supports this finding.

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According to McWhirter, et al. (1998:228), self-management depends on the

control of own behaviour based on internal standards without depending on

external forces. Clearly the participants' inability to control their behaviour by

splashing paint at one another is an indication that they were not yet at the level

where they had developed an internal locus of control. Hence the insignificant

change in the mean scores for the variable locus of control. One possible

explanation for the insignificant result is the short time period in which the

programme was implemented. Perhaps developing an internal locus of control as

a variable of aggression ought to be integrated into a longer term, more

comprehensive, programme than the four sessions implemented in the present

one.

Alternatively, some changes occurring as a result of a workshop are not

immediately observable (Hobbs, 1992:179). Perhaps post treatment assessment

may have occurred too soon for changes to manifest and to be measured

statistically. Though the changes that may have been brought about by the

psycho-educational programme were not immediate and measurable, it is

possible that they may rouse the participants towards greater personal autonomy

and enhanced awareness of their own internal locus of control (Hobbs,

1992:179), as their life experiences accumulate and develop. Developing an

internal locus of control is a highly desirable goal for success in the educational

field and in life (Wikipedia, 2006:online).

From table 5.8 it is clear that Ho3 is rejected in favour of Ha3 for the variable

interpersonal relationships on the 5% level of significance (p-value of 0.027).

This means that the experimental group showed a statistical improvement in

interpersonal relationships between pre- and post-testing. The finding is to be

expected, given that the researcher's field notes and comments from the

participants' narrative evaluation of workshop process verify that the interaction in

the group activities during the implementation of the psycho-educational

programme promoted the development of healthy interpersonal relationships.

The participants commented that they benefited from working in small groups and

"finding out about the other fellow students, reason being that we don't actually

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[normally] communicate in class" and "getting to know a lot of other things about

the people around you". The development of healthy interpersonal relationships

involves building friendships, working in teams and groups and above all the

ability to communicate effectively (Johnson, 1997:46; Whitaker, 1995:144).

These skills were addressed in the psycho-educational programme.

The participants in the experimental group also stated that they respected the

relationship that had developed with the researcher during the implementation of

the psycho-educational programme. Literature on aggression confirms that by

maintaining order without conflict, as occurred in workshop three, the researcher

encouraged the participants to accept order willingly (McWhirter, et al. 1998:215).

This lead to co-operation and an atmosphere of mutual respect and tolerance for

mistakes, and the subsequent development of healthy interpersonal relationships

in the workshops. Hence, there was an improvement in the participants in the

variable interpersonal relationships.

Table 5.8 shows that Ho3 is not rejected in favour of Ha3 for the variable for

awareness of aggression with a p-value of 0.079. This means that there was no

statistical improvement in the experimental group in awareness of aggression

between pre- and post-testing. However, when the mean raw scores for the

variable awareness of aggression are compared from pre- to post-test there is a

difference of 0.24 (3.90-3.66), which means that there is a slight movement

towards change in the desired direction. This may be regarded as a positive

development, considering that the psycho-educational programme was

implemented within the short time period of four sessions. In addition, when the

mean scores for the variable awareness of aggression for the control group are

compared from pre- to post-test there is no change in the desired direction.

Thus, the positive direction towards change in awareness of aggression for the

experimental group is supported.

From table 5.8 it is clear that Ho4 is not rejected in favour of Ha4 for the variables

locus of control, interpersonal relationships and awareness of aggression for the

control group. This indicates that between pre- and post-testing for the control

group there was no statistically significant improvement in locus of control which

232

reflected a p-value of 0.369, interpersonal relationships with a p-value of 0.189

and awareness of aggression which showed a p-value of 0.500 at post-testing.

Thus, it may be concluded that in statistical terms the control group did not

benefit from participation in the placebo programme. This finding is to be

expected, when taking cognisance of the fact that in an experimental research

design no changes are expected between the administration of the pre-test and

post-test measurements for the control group.

In sum, after participation in the psycho-educational programme the experimental

group showed an improvement in interpersonal relationships. In addition, an

analysis of the raw mean scores shows that the differences in the calculations

from pre- to post-testing for awareness of aggression reflected a slight change in

this variable. However, the participants showed no improvement in locus of

control. No improvements were shown in any of the variables for the control

group following the intervention.

• Summary, conclusions and implications of findings

The statistical test results of the independent samples t-test indicate that there

were no statistically significant differences between the experimental and control

groups at pre-testing. This indicates that the two groups were statistically

equivalent in internal locus of control, interpersonal relationships and awareness

of aggression before the intervention of the psycho-educational- and placebo

programmes. After participation in the psycho-educational programme the

experimental group showed a slight improvement in interpersonal relationships

and awareness of aggression when compared to the control group who

participated in a placebo programme. The results for locus of control indicated no

change after participation in the psycho-educational programme.

It is clear, therefore, that the psycho-educational programme was effective in

bringing about changes in the experimental group when compared with the

control group for interpersonal relationships and awareness of aggression but

made no significant changes in locus of control. That no significant

improvements were found in locus of control is ascribed to various factors such

233

as the limited timeframe in which the programme was implemented and to the

long developmental process involved in acquiring a psychological construct such

as an internal locus of control.

The results of the statistical data obtained from the dependent samples t-test

indicated that there were no changes in the three variables for the control group

from pre- to post-testing. This means that the placebo programme had no

statistically significant impact on the research participants. For the experimental

group no changes were indicated in the variables locus of control from pre- to

post-testing. For the variable interpersonal relationships a statistically significant

difference at the 5% scale of significance was noted between the pre-test and the

post-test measurements for the experimental group. Although no statistically

significant changes were indicated in the experimental group in awareness of

aggression from pre- to post-testing an examination of the raw mean scores in

table 5.8 reveals that the experimental group had a higher, more preferred, raw

mean score of 3.90 at post-test than at pre-test (3.66) which shows a movement

towards the desired change. Hence it is clear that the psycho-educational

programme affected changes in the experimental group in interpersonal

relationships and awareness of aggression but had no impact in terms of locus of

control.

The results of the effect size statistical testing showed that participation in the

psycho-educational had a medium effect on the research subjects for

interpersonal relationships and awareness of aggression and a small effect for

locus of control. Thus the effect size statistics indicate that in practical terms the

psycho-educational programme had a positive effect on the participants.

In the qualitative evaluation conducted after each group session, many

participants commented that, as a result of the programme they were more aware

of their own feelings and those of others in the group. They became aware of

what triggers anger and aggression in them and were able to accept

responsibility for their own role in precipitating and maintaining aggression. They

felt that they had learnt skills to manage anger and aggression better. They

particularly enjoyed working in the group context, getting to know their peers

234

better and working constructively as a group. The latter may be regarded as a

reflection of positive changes in their management of interpersonal relationships.

From the researcher's field notes it appears that the psycho-educational

programme enhanced the behaviour of the participants in a way that was

observed by their teachers in the school. Perhaps this occurred because the

participants implemented skills acquired during the programme to manage

aggression better.

The results from the statistical tests read in conjunction with the qualitative

evaluation of the psycho-educational programme and the conclusions drawn from

the researcher's field notes provide a basis for concluding that the experimental

group benefited from participation in the psycho-educational programme. Though

the study used only a small sample of participants, the findings are of value in

that they provide research based support for implementing programmes such as

the present one in secondary schools to curb or prevent aggression in that

context. There was no change for the control group in any of the variables that

were measured indicating that they did not benefit from participation in the

placebo programme.

The psycho-educational programme was specifically designed to provide

adolescents with a skills-base to manage the aggression that they experience in

a secondary school context. Learning was enhanced through active participation

in group presentations and group discussions, which centred on the training of

the critical life skills to participants in small groups (Geldard & Geldard,

1999:183). As the facilitator and adolescent journeyed together through the

experiential learning cycle, the participants discovered basic life skills. The life

skills enhanced their self-awareness and awareness of their experience of

aggression, promoted an increased internal and decreased external locus of

control and improved the unhealthy interpersonal relationships that create a

barrier to mental health and the attainment of wholeness in body, mind and spirit.

A perusal of literature confirms the findings of this study, that a comprehensive

programme combining critical life skills that include interpersonal skills, cognitive

change strategies and coping techniques can be effective in improving behaviour

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such as aggression in the school context and can thus lead to improved mental

health (McWhirter, et al. 1998:235; WHO, 2004:34, 44). The findings of this study

have direct implications for secondary schools. By implementing psycho-

educational programmes of this nature, preferably as part of the Life Skills

learning programme in schools, it is likely that through active participation in the

programme adolescents who experience aggression in secondary school will

acquire skills to manage aggression in a constructive manner.

The programme should be regularly re-evaluated and reinforced throughout

secondary school. According to Palmary and Moat (2001:online), "Evaluation

should be seen not as an event but a cycle. After the evaluation, the

[programme] is altered to improve it, these changes are then also evaluated, and

more alterations are made to the [programme]. In this way, the psycho-

educational programme is continually improved and refined. Psycho-educational

programmes are best implemented together with community-based efforts to

prevent aggression and violence in schools and its immediate neighbourhood

(Stevens, et al. 2001:153; WHO, 2004:36). Such community-based interventions

"not only prevent violence, but also have effects on mental health and well-being

of the affected population" (WHO, 2004:36), such that they guide adolescents to

actualise their full potential for a positive future.

5.4 CHAPTER SUMMARY

The implementation and evaluation phases, phases three and four, of programme

development, implementation and evaluation were discussed. The practical

arrangements that were made for the implementation of the psycho-educational

programme were explained. Then the implementation of the programme was

discussed in conjunction with the qualitative evaluation of the programme process

made after each workshop session. The implementation of the placebo

programme and an accompanying qualitative evaluation was described next.

Finally the efficacy of the programme, which was evaluated by means of an

experimental research design, was explained. Chapter six provides a review of

the research study then focuses on the conclusions, limitations and

recommendations that can be drawn from the study.

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CHAPTER 5 IMPLEMENTATION AND EVALUATION OF THE …