The complex transformation of the Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA)
Loading...
Authors
Bhamjee, Fatima
Issue Date
2023-01-30
Type
Thesis
Language
en
Keywords
Transformation , Identity , Psychological Association , PsySSA , Discourse analysis , Organisational Transformation , Good Health and Well-being , SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being
Alternative Title
Abstract
1994 saw the fall of the apartheid regime in South Africa, which was replaced by a
‘new’ democratic society. With the fall of the apartheid regime came the need to transform
and (re)construct a South African identity and the psychology profession in the country.
However, the Africanisation of psychology is fought for on political grounds of injustice and
irrelevance rather than grounds of conceptual and practical transformation. Often arguments
for Africanisation seek to distance and exclude psychology from indigenous theory and
practice, and vice versa, creating theories and methodologies that are immune to each other.
The Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA) was established in January 1994,
preceding democracy by four months. PsySSA is the amalgamation of several disparate
psychological societies that existed up to that point. The mandate of PsySSA was to replace
the previously racially split societies with an equal and democratic society. As part of this
mandate, internal transformation was required while encouraging external transformation.
Simultaneously, PsySSA has to represent South African psychology and psychologists,
nationally, continentally and internationally. 27 years since the establishment of PsySSA, 18
past presidents of the society were interviewed to gain a deeper understanding of their
construction of PsySSA’s identity and transformation. Foucauldian discourse analysis was
used to analyse the data. PsySSA’s transformation and identity were constructed in
metaphorical terms and as becoming and as endorsed. The findings of this study indicate that
PsySSA is an organisation transforming while being an agent of transformation for
psychology in South Africa. Despite PsySSA having contributed productively to psychology
in the country and having gained international recognition, PsySSA has no clear end-goal of
transformation, making it challenging to assess its progress in this regard. A primary fault
line in PsySSA is the continuity of the organisation in the face of discontinuity and vice
versa. This fault line, often constructed utilising racialised and historical discourses, threatens
the very existence of PsySSA, but is also the articulation point that fuels and directs its
transformation. It is recommended that future studies consider the views of PsySSA’s members regarding transformation in relation to the society.