http://hdl.handle.net/1893/24086 Electronic copies of Faculty of Health Sciences and Sport book reviews. 2026-09-26T01:56:39Z http://hdl.handle.net/1893/38298 Title: Academic Editors: Donna-Marie Exploring Service Users' Experiences of Activities Used During Their Occupational Therapy Treatment in South Africa Author(s): Makhubela, Mahlako; Seekoe, Eunice; Donaldson, Jayne; Kronenberg, Frank; Ned, Lieketseng; Ramugondo, Elelwani Abstract: Background/Objectives: Occupational therapy theories, models, and frameworks appear to be developed in Western countries. The philosophical framework for occupational therapy in South Africa appears to have relied upon various models, predominantly stemming from Western and European origins, with vague and fleeting references to African knowledge systems and philosophies. The objectives of the study were to explore how service users understand occupational therapy following their engagement in occupational therapy services; service users' perceptions of the activities used during occupational therapy; and service users' participation in decisions regarding the selection of activities during occupational therapy. Methods: This study used an interpretive qualitative design. Purposive sampling was used to select participants. A total of 21 participants were interviewed before reaching data saturation; 30 min semi structured interviews were conducted. Data were collected by the research assistant. Data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis at the latent level. Findings: Four themes were derived from the data, which are misconceptions and vagueness, impact yet optimism, limited meaningful activities, and mostly therapist-directed activity choice. Conclusions: The findings highlight systemic barriers such as language of communication in occupational therapy practice and education. They also suggest ambiguity in the understanding of therapeutic goals by service users. In the findings of this study, it is also indicated that there seems to be a lack of meaningful activities selected for therapy. This is shown by the activities, such as the exercises, in which the participants expressed their participation during occupational therapy. The power dynamics, knowledge, and use of technology in occupational therapy practice were also highlighted in the findings. 2026-08-20T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/1893/36856 Title: Book Review: Mekada Julia Graham Reflective Thinking in Social Work: Learning from Student Narratives Author(s): Mitchell, Gemma Abstract: First paragraph: Researchers, policy makers, teachers and students in the social work community are often concerned with gaps between research, policy and practice. This book is a highly original, successful attempt to overcome these apparent divisions by connecting personal histories; social work practice; and broader social, cultural and political contexts. By doing so, insights from Mekada Graham’s unique collection of narratives and critical reflections will be of interest not only to the groups outlined above, but also to readers of CSP who grapple with the same question (how to improve the relationship between research, policy and practice) beyond the social work context. 2019-02-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/1893/34207 Title: Book review: Transforming gender, sex, and place: gender variant geographies Author(s): Todd, James D Abstract: First paragraph: In this volume Lynda Johnston embarks on an ambitious project: to understand the relations between trans and gender variant people and the places and spaces they live through, by exploring their ‘identities, subjectivities, bodily senses, moods, sensations and feeling of being in and/or out of place’ (p. x). Sharing this goal with Johnston, and encouraged by her dedication to exploring both alienation and belonging in everyday life, I drank deeply from the connections she weaves through the lived experiences of her participants. Their stories are taken from Johnston’s existing work exploring the spatialities of gendered relations, alongside a set of 22 interviews with adult trans, gender variant and intersex people predominantly of Aotearoa New Zealand. 2020-01-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/1893/34206 Title: Book review: Reflexivity: The Essential Guide, Tim May and Beth Perry, Sage Publications, London (2017), ix and 234 pp., £26.99 paperback, ISBN: 978-14462-9517-5 Author(s): Todd, James D Abstract: First paragraph: In Reflexivity: The Essential Guide, Tim May and Beth Perry seek to present reflexive processes in their rich complexity by moving beyond suggestions for methodological interventions. Throughout, a multidisciplinary approach is attempted, charting the rise of reflexivity and its subsequent methodological entanglements through the decades it has been theorised and applied in social scientific research. By averting the gaze of potential readers who seek the fallacy of a ‘quick fix’ – an injection of uncomplicated, well-considered debate imploring them to undertake research reflexively – May and Perry instead push readers to consider the origins of self-knowledge. Consequently, they hope to encourage readers' ‘active intermediation as the embodiment of a set of reflexive practices’ (p.7) from individual acts driving ‘self transformation’ (p.3) to actions placing oneself in relation to others. Building upon their philosophically-minded volume exploring University-reflexivity relations (May and Perry, 2011), the nature of reflexivity as an iterative and spatially-extensive undertaking is emphasised, aligning their arguments with both established and emergent social scientific work highlighting the necessary comprehensiveness of reflexivity (see England, 1994; Wainwright et al., 2018). Numerous segments are contextualised politically and economically, with a diversity of voices from the philosophical and social scientific canon influencing debates, whilst informative boxes punctuate the dense prose to offer clarity through a multiplicity of readings and more tangible contextualisations. 2018-08-01T00:00:00Z