A psychobiographical study of Elie Wiesel : our brother’s keeper
- Authors: Grindler, Yanir
- Date: 2021
- Subjects: Psychic trauma , Post-traumatic stress disorder , Wiesel, Elie, 1928-2016 - Criticism and interpretation , Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) - Psychological aspects , Holocaust survivors - Biography
- Language: English
- Type: Masters (Thesis)
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10210/496967 , uj:45321
- Description: Abstract: It has been argued that the only satisfactory approach to appreciate the compound meanings and aftermaths of trauma from the Holocaust would be through studying the entire lives of individual survivors. As a way of preserving the experiential and historical memory of the Holocaust and in responding to the relative neglect of the individual child and adolescent survivor in Holocaust trauma research, a comprehensive psychological understanding of an exemplary adolescent survivor’s life narrative is forged to comprehend the long-term effects of Holocaust trauma from a lifespan, developmental perspective. Principles of psychobiographical research approached through Plessis’ (2017) 12-step model are applied within a psychoanalytic and psychodynamic framework to explore the entire life of Elie Wiesel so that it can be made meaning of psychologically. In employing phenomenologicalhermeneutic life-narrative analysis (PLA) as a method of analysis, this study concludes Elie’s life being characterised by a progression from deep despair to a triumphant achievement of faith. Although his life following liberation was characterised by a psychological space Gerson (2009) describes as a ‘dead third’, Elie, it has been argued, was able to make use of his internal resources partly fostered in his childhood to reengage an empathic ‘live third’ that would allow him to live with a sense of integrity and meaning into his old age. Analysis of Elie’s life suggests that his childhood trauma coloured his internal world, ultimately informing the course of his perceived role in the external world. Keywords: Holocaust, Elie Wiesel, psychobiography, traumatic stress, psychoanalysis, the dead third. , M.A. (Clinical Psychology)
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Executive functioning as a predictor of posttraumatic growth
- Authors: Hyslop, Jamie L.
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Psychic trauma , Psychological debriefing , Post-traumatic stress disorder - Physiological aspects , Adjustment (Psychology)
- Language: English
- Type: Masters (Thesis)
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10210/241384 , uj:24850
- Description: M.A. , Abstract: A trauma represents a negative event that severely challenges or breaks down the assumptive world, or the set of mental frameworks an individual uses to understand the self, other people, and the world. Trauma is associated with distress and can lead to a variety of negative physical and psychological outcomes. However, experiencing a traumatic event has the potential to result in positive individual outcomes, a phenomenon known as posttraumatic growth (PTG). Posttraumatic growth is associated with positive changes within the domains of the self, relationships with others, and life perspective and is also linked to greater physical and mental well-being after a trauma. Executive functioning refers to a collection of higher order cognitive processes that support complex human functioning. The higher order nature of these processes implies that executive functions are under the conscious control of the individual and, consequently, support flexible cognition and behaviour. As such, executive functions allow individuals to adapt to a variety of situations, particularly those that are new or complex, where existing guides for thinking and behaving are inadequate. Given the role of executive functioning in adaptive functioning, it is reasoned that executive functions will play a role in rebuilding the assumptive world in the aftermath of a trauma. Because PTG can occur as a result of this rebuilding process, it is further suggested that executive functioning plays a role in the experience of growth. However, little research was found to directly investigate the relationship between executive functions and PTG. As such, the present study investigated executive functioning as a predictor of posttraumatic growth. The study used archival data obtained from 1063 first and second year psychology students at the University of Johannesburg. Executive functioning was assessed using the Executive Function Index (EFI) and posttraumatic growth was assessed using the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI). A hierarchical multiple regression analysis was conducted to explore the relationship between the two variables of interest. The study found support for a relationship between executive functioning and PTG in that higher levels of executive functioning related to higher levels of posttraumatic growth. Furthermore, the executive functions of Strategic Planning, Motivational Drive, and Empathy...
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