Epistemological resistance towards diversality: teaching community psychology as a decolonial project

In contexts of political instability and change, the value of disciplinary knowledges and the processes that constituted them is often questioned. Psychology is not exempt from this process. Little South African work has illustrated what teaching for decoloniality may mean in South African psychology. We draw on examples of curriculum design in community psychology from the Universities of the Witwatersrand, South Africa and Stellenbosch, three large South African public universities, in an attempt to surface what we regard as the decolonial frameworks that underpin their development and delivery. Capacities for reflexivity and the ability to hold multiple epistemologies encourage economies of knowledge that may prevent abyssal thinking, while contributing to cognitive justice and minimising opportunities for epistemicide. Some challenges to our pedagogy involve the potential for romanticising decoloniality.

Cultural discourses in apartheid-era psychology, 1980–1994

Since the 1970s, “indigenous psychology” has blossomed into a global movement that seeks to tailor psychological knowledge and practices for use in other-than-western contexts. Prompted by the often apolitical presentation of indigenization imperatives in academic discourse, this article critically examines conceptualizations of “culture” in the South African Journal of Psychology and Psychology in Society between 1980 and 1994. In a discourse analysis of 48 journal articles, three cultural discourses are identified. Discourse 1 conceptualizes “culture” on the basis of an essentialist ontology and advocates a position of cultural relativism and Discourse 2 draws on a social constructionist ontology that advances an anti-essentialist position, while Discourse 3 relies on a neo-primordial ontology that favors a pluralist position. By identifying the discursive functions of these formations in relation to the broader South African political context, this article reveals striking parallels between psychological and political cultural discourses.

Psychology in the 2011 South African census

The database of the 2011 South African census results provides an additional source of data to understand psychology education in South Africa. Despite the limitations of the data, the emerging picture is a familiar one: Those reporting psychology as a primary field of education tend to be concentrated in urban areas and are mostly White and female. In addition, census respondents are mostly Afrikaans-speaking or English-speaking and earn reasonable salaries.

Community psychology in South Africa: origins, developments, and manifestations

This article represents a South African contribution to the growing international body of knowledge on histories of community psychology. We trace the early antecedents of social-community psychology interventions and describe the social forces and academic influences that provided the impetus for the emergence and development of community psychology in South Africa. We then draw on various sources, including undocumented small histories of organized groups and individuals, to present on account of the emergence, development, and focus of community psychology in South Africa. We also very briefly describe community-focused work in other selected African countries. In the penultimate section, we take a critical look at the notions of “community” embedded in community psychology practice in South Africa, and then by way of conclusion, we describe the trajectory of community psychology and speculate about its future in the country.

Obstacles to the Utilisation of Psychological Resources in a South African Township Community

Attitudes and beliefs regarding the utilisation of psychological resources were explored among a group of black Africans of 18 years and older. Both males and females participated in focus groups that were conducted at Itsoseng Clinic on the Mamelodi Campus of the University of Pretoria. Discussion questions addressed participants' perceptions of psychologists and psychotherapy, barriers to seeking treatment and recommendations for improved service delivery. The focus group responses indicated that reasons for seeking treatment included HIV&AIDS, problems related to the participants' socioeconomic situation, relationship issues and educational problems (learning problems, career guidance and educational stress among tertiary learners). Key barriers to service utilisation included the stigma of mental illness, lack of knowledge, affordability of treatment, lack of trust, impersonal service and lack of cultural sensitivity. Participants discussed the issue of the psychologist's race, as they felt that many white psychologists lack sensitivity toward and knowledge of black communities. Participants further stated that black psychologists were not much better due to the acculturation that occurs during the training of black psychologists. Recommendations for more culturally sensitive services are suggested. The implications of these findings for the practice and profession of psychology are also examined.