Eerstejaarkoshuisstudente se belewenis van kampusonrus : ʼn ondersoek na die invloed van die buitengewone stressor op hul psigososiale- en akademiese ontwikkeling

Abstract

For the past four years campus unrest has been very prominent on South African university campuses. This unrest disrupts the universities’ classes and programmes, which in turn, puts a great deal of stress on the campus and the students. This stress is extraordinary, as it does not form part of the general stress that occurs on university campuses. First-year resident students already experience a lot of stress during their adaptation to the new university and residence lifestyle and when extraordinary stressors, such as campus unrest, are added it can possibly affect their psychosocial and academic development. The researcher aims to determine first-year residence students’ experience hereof. The overall aim of this research study was to investigate what first-year residence students’ experience of campus unrest is, and what influence this extraordinary stressor has on their psychosocial and academic development. The objectives of the research study were to determine what first-year students understand by the terms “campus unrest” and “extraordinary stress” and what their experiences are of the possible influence thereof, as well as to offer possible suggestions to South African universities and first-year resident students on how to deal with campus unrest and the stress it causes. For this research study, I used an overall qualitative research design, with the focus on a descriptive and exploratory phenomenological approach. A phenomenological qualitative research design enabled me to study the perceptions, experiences and attitudes of first-year residence students in connection with campus unrest, and discover what influence it has on their psychosocial and academic development.