The Psycho-educational Perspective of the Lived Experiences of Overweight and Obese ...

159 Pages·2015·1.28 MB·English

by  Jenilee Axsel

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How to cite this thesis
Surname, Initial(s). (2012) Title of the thesis or dissertation. PhD. (Chemistry)/ M.Sc. (Physics)/
M.A. (Philosophy)/M.Com. (Finance) etc. [Unpublished]: University of Johannesburg. Retrieved
from: https://ujdigispace.uj.ac.za (Accessed: Date).
THE PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE LIVED EXPERIENCES
OF OVERWEIGHT AND OBESE ADOLESCENT BOYS

by

JENILEE AXSEL

DISSERTATION
Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree

MAGISTER EDUCATIONIS
in
PSYCHOLOGY OF EDUCATION
in the
FACULTY OF EDUCATION
at the
UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG

SUPERVISOR: PROF. C.P.H. MYBURGH
CO-SUPERVISOR: PROF. M. POGGENPOEL

May 2014
i
DEDICATION

I dedicate this study to every overweight and obese adolescent boy who has
ever felt unworthy of acceptance, friendship and love.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Soli Deo Gloria – To God be the glory
To my God and Saviour – thank you for Your faithfulness towards me, not only in my
studies but in every aspect of my life. Thank you that nothing can separate me from
Your love – “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor
principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor heights nor
depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8: 38-39).
To my mom and dad, Jenny and Carel – thank you for teaching me the value of hard
work and always giving your best. Thank you for your longstanding commitment to
my education and for supporting me emotionally and financially throughout my
academic career. Thank you for serving me hand and foot when things got hectic
and for loving me unconditionally. I love you.
To my sister, Liezel – thank you for being proud of me and for praying for me
throughout this study. Your prayers especially meant a lot when I was struggling to
find participants. Thank you for being my personal assistant and organising my life
when I did not have the time or energy to do so. I love you.
Vir my beste vriend en kêrel, Jantjie – dankie dat jy dink ek is die slimste en die
flukste meisie. Dankie dat jy soveel vertroue in my vermoëns het en in my glo
wanneer ek soms in myself twyfel. Dankie dat jy my lewe inkleur met lag, gesels en
mooi herinneringe. Ek is lief vir jou.
To the rest of my family, my friends and colleagues – thank you for supporting me
throughout this study; your words of encouragement or sympathetic glances at my
pile of library books meant a great deal to me.
To the participants – thank you for your willingness to participate and for allowing me
access to the hidden parts of your hearts and minds. Thank you for trusting me with
your experiences and providing me with valuable information and insight into the
study conducted.
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To my supervisor and co-supervisor, Prof. Chris Myburgh and Prof. Marie
Poggenpoel – thank you for the guidance you have given me. I have enjoyed our
conversations and appreciate your support.
To my independent coder, Douline Minnaar – thank you for your insightful
independent coding of the data.
To my transcriber, Elize Terblanche – thank you for patiently and thoroughly
transcribing my interviews.

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SUMMARY

The World Health Organisation (2011) states that overweight and obesity is one of
st
the most serious health problems of the 21 century. This is true of Africa as well. It
is estimated that the number of overweight children in Africa has doubled since 1990
and growth rates of overweight and obesity are among the highest in Africa. South
Africa’s overweight and obesity rates are among the highest in Africa. The South
African National Health and Nutrition Survey (2013) found that the combined
overweight and obesity prevalence in South Africa is 13,5% for children between the
ages of six and 14 years; this is higher than the global prevalence of 10%. Therefore,
overweight and obesity is threatening to become a major health concern in South
Africa.
When considering adolescents who are overweight and obese, it becomes apparent
that it has a great impact on their mental health. Overweight and obesity during
adolescence not only has a negative impact on their physical health but also their
mental health, thus overweight and obesity should not only be addressed to improve
the physical health but also the mental health of adolescents.
The researcher aimed to explore the lived experiences of adolescent boys who are
overweight and obese, to suggest guidelines to facilitate mental health in these boys.
A qualitative, explorative, descriptive and contextual study design was followed.
Research took place in two phases. The first phase was concerned with the
description of the lived experiences of adolescent boys who are overweight and
obese. In the second phase, guidelines were described to facilitate mental health in
these boys.
Ethical principles were adhered to from the onset of the study to ensure participants’
human rights were respected, that participants were treated with dignity and that no
harm would come to them. Further, principles of fairness and justice were
considered. The data were collected through in-depth phenomenological interviews.
Interviews were conducted with 10 participants who met the sampling criteria and
who were purposively selected. However, one participant’s interview was too short to
be included. Consent was obtained from the participants. The researcher and the
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independent coder analysed the data using a constant comparative technique. A
consensus discussion on the research findings was held between the researcher
and the independent coder. Trustworthiness was ensured by using strategies of
credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability.
The findings show that adolescent boys who are overweight and obese experience
living an empty life in a full body. Their lives seem to be empty on a personal, family
and social level. They experience low self-concept and low self-esteem, with this
vulnerable self-concept and self-esteem causing them to become targets of teasing
and bullying. Adolescent boys who are overweight and obese experienced that they
applied both healthy and unhealthy strategies to cope with their experiences.
Among the contributing factors to adolescent boys being overweight and obese is a
lack of personal regulation, a lack of a healthy family environment and a lack of
social interaction. Overweight and obese adolescent boys’ self-concepts and self-
esteems are greatly informed by their weight. Low self-concept and self-esteem are
reinforced by self-perception, their perception of peer’s perceptions and their
perception of the opposite sex’s perceptions. The consequences of their low self-
concept and self-esteem include feeling inferior, shy, incompetent, ashamed, lonely,
angry and frustrated – as if they are outsiders. These feelings contribute to many
adolescent boys experiencing depression. Adolescent boys who are overweight and
obese apply different strategies to cope with their experiences. Healthy coping
strategies include using teasing and bullying as motivation to lose weight, losing
weight to get a girlfriend and starting exercising. Unhealthy coping strategies include
living behind a mask: pretending to be who they are not, withdrawing socially,
following unhealthy diets and becoming aggressive.
Guidelines to deal with this phenomenon and recommendations for future study were
formulated and are presented at the end of Chapter 4. It was concluded that the
research question was answered, the research objectives were achieved and the
problem statement supported.

Please note: this study is concerned with the experiences of adolescent boys who
are overweight and obese, thus their experiences of having a certain body mass.
v
Mass is generally referred to as weight and therefore this study will refer to weight
and not mass. However, there is a difference between mass and weight. Mass can
be defined as the amount of mass within a body and is seen as an inherent property.
Weight, in contrast, is the measurement of the gravitational force acting on an object
and differs from one place to another (Diffen comparisons: 2014:1).

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
1.1 INTRODUCTION 1
1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT 6
1.3 THE AIMS AND PURPOSE OF THE STUDY 15
1.4 PARADIGMATIC PERSPECTIVES 15
1.4.1 Meta-theoretical assumptions 16
1.4.1.1 I am a Seventh-Day Adventist 16
a) Choice 17
b) Exercise 17
c) Liquids/water 17
d) Environment 18
e) Belief 18
f) Rest 19
g) Air 19
h) Temperance 20
i) Integrity 20
j) Optimism 20
k) Nutrition 21
l) Social support 22
1.4.1.2 I am a teacher 22
1.4.2 Methodological assumptions 23
1.4.3 Theoretical assumptions 24
1.5 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHOD 25
1.5.1 Research design 25
1.5.1.1 Qualitative research design 25
1.5.1.2 Exploratory design 26
1.5.1.3 Descriptive design 26
1.5.1.4 Contextual design 26
1.5.1.5 Research method 27

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1.5.1.6 Phase 1: An exploration and description of the
experiences of adolescent boys who are overweight and
obese 27
a) Selection of participants 27
b) Data collections 28
c) Data analysis 29
1.5.1.7 Phase 2: Description of guidelines for adolescent boys
who are overweight and obese 30
1.6 MEASURES TO ENSURE TRUSTWORTHINESS 30
1.6.1 Credibility 30
1.6.2 Transferability 30
1.6.3 Dependability 31
1.6.4 Confirmability 31
1.7 ETHICAL MEASURES 32
1.8 DIVISION OF CHAPTERS 33
1.9 SUMMARY 33

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