The Types and Occurrence of Psychosocial Problems of Distance Education (DE) Students: A Study of a University in Ghana

This study is aimed at finding out the occurrence and types of psychosocial problems of DE students in a university in Ghana. The d ata was collected from 190 DE students drawn from all seven centres of the selected university through a self-designed questionnaire. ANOVA, t test and regression were used to analyse the results. The results indicated that the main types of psychosocial problems reported by the students included problems of the modules, ineffective tutorials, academic, administrative and socio-economic problems. 67.9% of the students reported moderate levels, whilst 27.9% reported severe levels of psychosocial problems. There were no differences in the level of psychosocial problems in the students with regards to gender, age and centre. Level 400 students reported the highest level of psychosocial problems, followed by levels 300 and 100, with level 200 reporting the least. The predictors of psychosocial problems account for 98% of the total psychosocial problems encountered by the students. It was recommended that the authorities of the university should open counselling units in all the centres and provide the needed teaching and learning materials on a timely basis.Keywords: Distance Education, Psychosocial Problem

‘There is anointing everywhere': An interpretative phenomenological analysis of the role of religion in the recovery of black African service users in England

Introduction Religion is an important impetus for recovery. However, there has been little work examining the role of religion in recovery for black African service users (BASUs) in England. Aim The aim of this study is to explore how religion influences recovery from mental illness for BASUs in England. Method 12 black African service users were purposively selected and interviewed using face‐to‐face semi‐structured interviews. Data was analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Results The study generates fascinating insights that BASUs views about mental illness and recovery are influenced by Pentecostalism and traditional African healing systems. Discussion The participants' perceptions of their mental illness experiences and recovery which are characterised by the pragmatism of Pentecostalism and cultural beliefs are consistent with what is reported in the literature. Implications for Practice The findings of the study show that broad changes are needed to accommodate the religious coping of BASUs in their recovery journey