An article discussing resilience in young children affected by maternal HIV and AIDS, which was co-authored by members of the Faculty of Education’s staff, has been published in the August 2015 edition of African Journal of AIDS Research.

The article, co-authored by the Faculty of Education’s Dean, Prof Irma Eloff, and Prof Liesel Ebersöhn, Director of the Unit for Education Research in AIDS, as well as Mrs Melanie Moen, Dr Michelle Finestone and Ms Adri Grobler, is entitled "Telling stories and adding scores: Measuring resilience in young children affected by maternal HIV and AIDS".

In the article, the authors demonstrate how a concurrent mixed method design assisted cross-cultural comparison and ecological descriptions of resilience in young South African children, as well as validated alternative ways to measure resilience in young children.

In a longitudinal randomised control trial, which investigated psychological resilience in mothers and children affected by HIV/AIDS, the authors combined a qualitative projective story-telling technique (Düss Fable) with quantitative data (Child Behaviour Checklist). The children in the study mostly displayed adaptive resilience-related behaviours, although maladaptive behaviours were present. Participating children used internal resources, such as resolve/agency, positive future expectations and emotional intelligence, as well as external protective resources, such as material resources and positive institutions, to mediate adaptation. Children's maladaptive behaviours were exacerbated by internal risk factors, including limited problem-solving skills and negative emotions, as well as external risk factors, like chronic and cumulative adversity.

Click here to read the full article.