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Acknowledging Methodological Complexity in Assessing Children in HIV-Affected Communities in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa

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Neuropsychology of Children in Africa

Part of the book series: Specialty Topics in Pediatric Neuropsychology ((STPN))

Abstract

Although health services work towards improving conditions of children living in poverty in resource-poor countries affected by the HIV and AIDS epidemic, progress towards these goals is complicated not only by the negative impact of disease but also social and economic circumstances. Theories that are used to guide intervention must, therefore, account for the multicausal origins of developmental lag. The data that have been used to develop intervention are primarily from research conducted in developed nations, where the risk factors are less intense and support services are more accessible to children. This chapter proposes ways for research to account for development of children living in communities affected by poverty and HIV. The suggested methods of research integrate a co-constructivist model, which acknowledges the interplay of biological and cultural factors and addresses the complexity of human development. This chapter focuses on the circumstances of a specific geographic context, the KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa, to demonstrate how child development can be complicated by poverty and disease.

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Acknowledgments

Some of the methods quoted as examples of co-constructivism in practice were developed within the Asenze project, Health and Psychosocial Need: Children with Disability in a Time of HIV funded by NIDA (R01DA023697), and the INSTAPA project, Novel Staple Food-Based Strategies to Improve Micronutrient Status for Better Health and Development in Sub-Saharan Africa, funded by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme [FP7/2007–2013] under grant agreement no. 211484. We are grateful to Dulcie Krige and Anne B. Giordani for editorial assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health Medicine, Nelson Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, 7, Congella, Durban, 4013, South Africa

    J. D. Kvalsvig M.D.

  2. Department of Public Health Medicine, School of Nursing and Public Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Science Drive, Howard College, Durban, 4001, South Africa

    M. Taylor Ph.D.

  3. Maternal and Child Health Unit, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of KwaZulu-Natal, x7, Congella, Durban, 4013, South Africa

    S. Kauchali FCPaed., M.Phil. & M. Chhagan FCPaed., Ph.D.

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  1. J. D. Kvalsvig M.D.
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  3. S. Kauchali FCPaed., M.Phil.
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  4. M. Chhagan FCPaed., Ph.D.
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Correspondence to J. D. Kvalsvig M.D. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Psychiatry and Neurology/Ophthalmology, Michigan State University, West Fee Hall 324, East Lansing, 48824-1315, Michigan, USA

    Michael J. Boivin

  2. , Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Commonwealth Blvd, Suite C 2101, Ann Arbor, 48105, Michigan, USA

    Bruno Giordani

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Kvalsvig, J.D., Taylor, M., Kauchali, S., Chhagan, M. (2013). Acknowledging Methodological Complexity in Assessing Children in HIV-Affected Communities in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. In: Boivin, M., Giordani, B. (eds) Neuropsychology of Children in Africa. Specialty Topics in Pediatric Neuropsychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6834-9_3

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