Mr Duane Booysen, lecturer in the psychology department, recently completed research training on Single-Case Intervention Research: New Developments in Methodology and Data Analysis (SCR) in Madison, Wisconsin, USA, from, August 13 to August 17, 2018. The ATI was hosted by the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Advanced Training Institute (ATI), and was facilitated by Emeritus Professor Thomas Kratochwill (University of Wisconsin-Madison), Emeritus Professor Joel R. Levin (University of Arizona & University of Wisconsin-Madison), Professor John Ferron (University of South Florida at Tampa), and Professor Wendy Machalicek (University of Oregon).

 

Over the last several decades, single-case designs have become a standard approach for conducting educational, behavioural and psychological scholarship. Single-case research primarily aims to evaluate the extent to which a causal relation exists between the introduction of an intervention and the change in a specific dependent variable (e.g. anxiety symptoms) (Horner & Spaulding, 2010). Therefore, SCD is a relevant intervention research design to grow the science of psychology in South Africa. This research method also presents an opportunity to contextually adapted widely used psychological interventions to address the needs of a South African society. According to Mr Booysen, single-case design is appropriate to conduct pre-experimental small sample intervention research in low-income communities. Using a SCD is also economically feasible method, as it does not require large-scale resources such as a randomized controlled trial (RCT).

 

Looking ahead, Mr Booysen aims to continue his reading of single-case design research and plan to teach and supervise prospective students using SCD as a research method. Lastly, he acknowledges the support of his head of department, Professor Charles Young, his colleagues in the department of psychology, and the director of the Rhodes University Research Office, Ms Jaine Roberts.