SEMESTER 1 ESSAY TOPIC:
Why is it important to question psychologys relevance for the South African
context?
In order to answer this question, YOU MUST adhere to the following instructions:
You must include a single introductory paragraph (no less and no more than 6
to 10 lines)
You must include a clear and concise discussion on the following points:
I. Briefly explain how apartheid shaped the history of psychology in
South Africa before and after 1994. (one page)
II. Briefly discuss how the process of knowledge-production influences
how psychology is taught and practiced in South Africa. You will have
to discuss (1) the types of knowledge psychology produces; (2) the
interests and values attached to this knowledge; and, (3) how exactly this
knowledge includes and excludes people. (one and a half pages)
III. Provide examples of everyday problems related to (1) race and (2)
gender which people experience in South Africa. Discuss one strength
and one weakness about psychology’s status as a science when it comes
to explaining social issues regarding race and gender in South Africa.
(one and a half pages)
You must include a single concluding paragraph (no less and no more than 6
to 10 lines)
You must think carefully about how you structure the essay so that the
reader/marker can see that you have answered each of these discussion points
in a way that creates a clear and concise discussing with a logical convincing
argument throughout. You cannot simply provide a general response to each
of the three points above.
It is mandatory for each essay to:
Be typed
Use formal academic language
Use 1.5-line spacing in between all sentences and points.
Be typed using times new roman font.
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Be typed using a size 12 font.
Be no less than 1400 words and no more than 1600 words.
If students follow these instructions, they should end up with a typed document that is
around four to five pages, no less and no more. It is also important to mention that the
1400 to 1600 word count includes the reference list and excludes the title page of the
essay.
The following two readings are compulsory (you will be able to find them on
SUNLearn). They will help you answer the essay question. This means that you must
cite these articles in your essay as references:
Duncan, N., Stevens, G., & Bowman, B. (2004). South African psychology
and racism: Historical determinants and future prospects. In D. Hook (Ed.),
Critical psychology (bl. 360389). Juta.
Naidoo, A. V. (1996). Challenging the hegemony of Eurocentric psychology.
Journal of Community and Health Sciences, 2(2), 916.
Furthermore, your essay must include two additional articles. You may select any
two (or more) articles from the following list of journal articles:
Cooper, S., & Nicholas, L. (2012). An overview of South African psychology.
International Journal of Psychology, 47(2), 89101.
De la Rey, C., & Ipser, J. (2004). The call for relevance: South African
psychology ten years after democracy. South African Journal of Psychology,
34(4), 544552.
Long, W. (2013). Rethinking relevance: South African psychology in
context. History of Psychology, 16(1), 1935.
Painter, D., & Blanche, M. T. (2004). Critical psychology in South Africa:
Looking back and looking ahead. South African Journal of Psychology, 34(4),
520543.
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Kessi, S., & Kiguwa, P. (2015). Social psychology and social change: Beyond
Western perspectives. Papers on Social Representations, 24(1), 11.
Therefore, your essay should have no less than four references. You are more than
welcome to use additional readings and articles. However, it is recommended that you
use the aforementioned list of journal articles.
