Follow-Up Investigation

Abstract

A report on findings of a follow-up investigation to our research will be related in Chapter Twenty-three. A number of reasons delayed carrying out the follow-up investigation, which had been planned to take place three years after the initial research, for about a year. These reasons were chiefly due to difficulties inherent in tracing the respondents after they had left the Ulpan. The outcome of the interviews with 28 of the 99 respondents affirmed some of the main results of the research. Relations between mental health, integration and general adjustment about four years after the end of the Hebrew courses were found. Relations between “mental health after” and “mental health before”, between “general adjustment after” and “general adjustment before” were assessed. Relations were also found between “integration after” and a score of its assumed facets. The impact of social contacts and knowledge of the Hebrew language is remarkable on mental health, integration and general adjustment. Relations of these three variables to prejudice are recorded. The finding of inverse relations of general adjustment after, integration after and social contacts after to at-home feeling in the Ulpan at the time of the initial research seems to point to opposite functions of active personal adjustment and affiliation. The investigation brought into relief the usefulness of the methodological procedure of comparative research, through compilation of indices fixed by diagnostic judgement, which is based on scaled replies with additional confidential comments to questions submitted by interview in a friendly relationship.