An exploration of group dynamics in “stokvels” and its implications on the members’ mental health and psychological well-being.
Stokvels are social groups usually formed randomly by people who share a common bond such as relatives, neighbours, colleagues in the workplace or friends with a purpose of financially saving together on a monthly basis. This study aimed to explore the group dynamics in stokvels and its implications on the members’ mental health and psychological well-being. In this qualitative study, a non probability sampling technique was used and the participants were selected by means of a snowball sampling. The sample consisted of eight middle aged women between the ages of 35 and 45 from the townships in KwaZulu Natal. The inclusion criteria being that they were stokvel participants for over five years. Data was gathered through the use of semi-structured interviews to elicit the spoken experiences and narratives by individual members. The data collected was then analyzed according to the aim and objectives of the study using grounded theory, particularly the Straussian approach. The results of the study suggested that the group dynamics of fight or flight response, trust versus mistrust and dependence versus independence appear to be experienced at polar opposites. The latter further infers the ambivalent behavior that members engage with a view to succeed within the stokvels’ environments. The results also identified three themes, which revealed the members’ mental health and their psychological well-being as experienced within the stokvel environment; the empowering dimension, pathological dimension and the resilience demonstration dimension. The findings of the research also highlight and further contribute towards the advancement of the communal concepts of “ubuntu” and “we”ness inherent in the stokvek names.
Stokvels, Social groups -- Stokvels, Group dynamics
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