Welcome

The mission of the Optentia Research Unit is to develop and organise knowledge for the optimal expression of individual, social and institutional potential, with a specific interest in the African context. The research unit utilises the inputs from multiple disciplines: Economics, Educational Sciences, Employment Relations, Human Resource Management, Information Technology, Philosophy, Psychology (Work and Organisational Psychology, Educational Psychology, Counselling Psychology, and Clinical Psychology), Risk Management, Social Anthropology, Social Work, and Sociology. We study the optimisation of the potential of people and institutions by focusing on pathways from precarity to capability and optimal functioning.

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Recent news

COVID-19 Corona Virus South African Resource Portal

For official information regarding COVID-19 and the Corona Virus please visit the COVID-19 Corona Virus South African Resource Portal. Visit Now.

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Decolonial science: Towards more equitable knowledge practices

In a recent paper in Nature, Ecology and Evolution entitled ‘Decoloniality and Anti-Oppressive Practices for a More Ethical Ecology’, Dr Jess Auerbach and her colleagues developed five concrete interventions for shifti...Read article

NWU anthropologist highlights 5 practical steps towards inclusive ecology studies

We live in a vast world of knowledge and yet many scientific fields predominantly emphasise the contributions of Western knowledge. The importance of decolonising ecology to broaden the reach and impact of the field in an ethical ...Read article

Riding the Corona wave: Student wellbeing before and during the Covid-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in radical changes within the (higher) education system. These changes have posed new challenges for university students, and many social welfare agencies have warned that it could adversely affe...Read article

Newsletter, April 2021