Psychological implication of student unrest on student leaders: A social support perspective

Abstract

The study explored the psychological implications of student unrest on student leaders in South African universities, focusing on both the negative and positive implications. The study is underpinned by social support theory and lensed within transformative paradigm. The study is qualitative in nature and employs participatory research design. Three universities were randomly selected across three provinces in South Africa, and four student leaders from each univesity were selected as participants using convenient sampling technique. Semi-structured interview was used to elicit information from the participants, and the data was analysed using thematic analysis. The study found that social and unpleasant anxiety and social group conflict tendencies are major negative psychological implications on student unrest. On the other hand, it also revealed that student unrest enhances the sense of empowerment and solidarity and also promotes self-esteem and political awareness among student leaders, with a recommendation that universities should provide adequate social support for student leaders.