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Cognitive domain
Meta-cognition competencies include the ability to solve problems, to plan and think critically, reflectively and creatively. A resilient middle adolescent has a positive view of his or her personal future, a sense of purpose, goals and aspirations. These favourable resiliency modalities create hope and motivate a middle adolescent to work hard for their future and overcome problems and obstacles. The middle adolescent’s thinking style affects how they perceive and react to problems and difficulties and how they use their meta-cognition to address the adversities.
Social Learning Theory
The Social Learning theory of Bandura emphasizes that human behaviour is learned by observation, modelling and imitation. Human behaviours also include attitudes and the emotional reactions of others. « Social learning theory explains human behaviour in terms of continuous reciprocal interaction between cognitive, behavioural and environmental influences » (Rutledge, 2000:1). This statement implies that learning occurs within a social context. The social learning theory underlies the concept of resilience because social environments play an important role in the development of values and attitudes while creating the opportunity to practice behaviours and reinforce aspects like social competencies.
Brainstem
The brainstem seems to be responsible for the emotional expressions of anger, joy and sadness. According to Amaral and De Oliveira, (2000:5) the brainstem is associated with survival and the emotions related to it (for example aggression). The amygdala and hippocampus are areas involved with generating emotion.
Amygdala and Hippocampus
The amygdala is responsible to assess the emotional importance of the stimuli experienced. « The amygdala plays an important role in the mediation and control of major affective activities like friendship, love and affection, on the expression of mood and, mainly on fear. The hippocampus allows the adolescent to compare the conditions of a present threat with similar past experiences, thus enabling it to choose the best option, in order to guarantee its own survival. »(Amaral et al., 2000:1). According to Cacioppo (1999:6), who agrees with this above mentioned view also feels that the hippocampus appears to be especially important in the explicit learning of emotional expectancies, whereas the amygdala appears to be important in the implicit emotional conditioning.
Verbal Communication
This includes the middle adolescents’ ability to use and understand words effectively when speaking to others as well as their ability to modulate tone and volume of their voice to adapt to the situation. Exhibiting a sense of timing in a conversation. The ability to use appropriate topics of conversation suitable to the context.
Non-Verbal Communication
The middle adolescent’s ability to understand what his or her body language is communicating and correctly interpreting the body language and facial expressions of others. The ability to use appropriate eye contact and facial expressions to convey interest or emotional reactions when listening to others.
Cognitive resilience and school context
The teacher’s role in facilitating cognitive competence includes structuring and planning activities, assignments and lessons that incorporate meta-cognition and foster positive future expectations and goals. The middle adolescents’ development should be kept in mind when developing activities to ensure that the content is optimally integrated in their frame of reference. « The educator should be aware that the middle adolescent may be capable of formal-operational thought on one day, only to laps back to the concrete-operational phase the very next day. Therefore, teaching should start from concrete considerations, building up where applicable to more abstract reasoning. It is important to expose adolescents to a variety of experiences in order to promote their development of a capacity for flexible, versatile thinking » (Gouws, et.al., 1994: 71). Teachers and psychologists should attempt to integrate the middle adolescent’s innate abilities, interest, experiences and background knowledge when designing activities.
Meta-cognition
Cognitive competence as a modality of resilience includes meta-cognition which comprises of a thinking style of effective problem solving and decisions making. Resiliency requires cognitive restructuring of how a middle adolescent thinks about stresses and adversities. Middle adolescents’ who manage well under stress perceive themselves as capable and feels confident in making decisions to face adversities. Resilient middle adolescents view mistakes as opportunities to learn and grow, which can be described as a phoenix rising from the fiery ashes to become stronger and wiser. Resilient middle adolescents have the ability to reframe negative events to maintain a realistic and optimistic perspective on their lives.
Selection of data collecting.
The selection of data collecting strategies comprise of qualitative research techniques such as an open-ended question, observations and the Resilience Enhancement Kit as well as a combination of qualitative and quantitative technique namely the Resiliency Scale (Likert-type questionnaire).
Summary and integration of the literature review
The paradigm shift in Educational Psychology to move away from the medical model that only focuses on deficits in middle adolescents but also to consider the strengths and abilities as well as working preventatively, evoked the research into enhancing the resiliency modalities of middle adolescents that could enable them to rebound against adversities and risks. In the first chapter, the introduction elaborates on the above-mentioned statement. The nature of resilience and the aspects that constitute resilience modalities are also discussed. The importance of the role of the school in fostering resiliency is addressed. The theoretical framework of resiliency is discussed and includes the social learning theory, cognitive behavioural theory, health realisation theory ecological systems theory, positive psychology and the asset-based perspective.
Chapter 1
1.1.1. Emotional domain
1.1.2. Social domain
1.1.3. Cognitive domain
1.2. The role of the school context in promoting resilience
1.3. Theoretical framework
1.3.1. Social learning theory
1.3.2. Cognitive behavioural theory
1.3.3. Health realization theory
1.3.4. Ecological systems theory
1.3.5. Asset-based perspective
1.3.6. Positive psychology
Chapter 2: Nature, origin, development and appraisal of emotional competencies in middle adolescents in the school context
2.2. Defining terms related to emotional competence
2.3. Nature and origin of emotions
2.3.1. Areas in the brain involved with emotional competence
2.3.1.1. Prefrontal area
2.3.1.2. Brainstem
2.3.1.3. Amygdala and Hippocampus
2.3.1.4. Hypothalamus
2.3.1.5. Cingulate gyrus
2.3.1.6. Papez circuit
Chapter 3: Nature, origin, development and appraisal of social competencies in middle adolescents in the school context
3.2. Defining terms related to social competence
3.3. Nature and origin of social competence
3.3.1. Areas in the brain involved with social competence
3.3.1.1. Prefrontal cortex situated in the frontal lobe
3.3.1.2. Corpus striatum and amygdala
3.3.1.3. Orbitofrontal cortex (Limbic frontal lobe)
3.4. Theory of social competence
Chapter 4: Nature, origin, development and appraisal of cognitive competencies in middle adolescents in the school context
4.2. Defining terms related to cognitive competence
4.3. Nature and origin of cognitive competence
4.3.1. Areas in the brain involved with cognitive competence
4.3.1.1. Cerebral cortex
4.3.1.2. Frontal lobe
4.4. Theory of cognitive competence
4.5. Development of cognitive competence
Chapter 5: Resilience Enhancement Kit Design
5.2. The Resilience modalities
5.2.1. Emotional competence
5.2.1.1. Identifying and managing emotions
5.2.1.2. Empathy
5.2.1.3. Ego-control and ego-resiliency
5.2.2. Social competencies
5.2.2.1. The ability to form and maintain positive relationships
5.2.2.2. The ability to communicate effectively on verbal and
Chapter 6: Empirical Research Design
6.2. Literature review
6.3. Methodology of the study
6.3.1. Qualitative study
6.3.2. Quantitative study
6.4. The sample
6.4.1. The target population
6.5. Selection of data collecting
6.5.1. Open-ended question
6.5.2. Observations
Chapter 7: Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations
7.2. Summary and integration of research results
7.2.1. Summary and integration of literature review
7.2.2. Summary and integration of empirical research
7.2.2.1. Qualitative data analysis
7.2.2.2. Quantitative analysis of the Resiliency Scale responses
7.3. Conclusions
