Sahaya G. Selvam, PhD
Academic Contributions 2018
| Publications |
Selvam, S.G., & Munyiva, L. (2018). Benefits of Good Shepherd Catechesis among children with intellectual disabilities in Kenya. Journal of Religious Education, 66(3), 225-234. DOI: 10.1007/s40839-018-0069-5.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40839-018-0069-5
Since Martin Luther, religious education has largely been identified with catechism that used question and answer method, particularly in the Catholic church. For a person with intellectual disability, this offers a grave difficulty in religious formation. Could there be alternatives? The present study aimed at exploring the benefits of Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) for children living with intellectual disabilities. The participants were 23 children and 9 care-givers in a Catholic context in Kenya. Observation guides and interviews were used to collect data that showed that children with intellectual disabilities had the ability to spontaneously relate with the spiritual world, and in some cases, with Jesus. The findings confirmed that the CGS offers children with special needs the space, tools, and time to get in touch with the Divine through witnessing to the narrative of the Word.
Churu, B.E., & Selvam, S.G. (2018). Young adults’ awareness and commitment to use character strengths: An examination of university students in Nairobi. In P. Aneesh Kumar, T.S. George, & N.T. Sudesh, Character strength development (pp.337-352). New Delhi: Sage Publications.
https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/afr/character-strength-development/book265801
Against the backdrop of HIV prevention trainings, young adults in Kenya have had ample opportunities to develop their life-skills. But are they aware of the wide spectrum of their character strengths and the opportunity to use and develop character strengths in their lives and career? A five-step assessment was carried out on the character strengths awareness of 20 young adults (aged between 18 and 30 years) selected for this case study. The assessment set to find out if these participants were aware of their individual character strengths and how much they were putting them to deliberate use to advance their careers and social relationships. The findings of the study indicate a disconnect between awareness of strengths and the commitment to use them as a springboard for personal, relational and career development. Basing on evidence from literature of its effectiveness, the authors recommend fortification of strengths-based nurturing programmes for children and youth and even for supporting young adults to determine their identity and direction in life.
Selvam, S.G. (2018). Defining youth: Pastoral implications for Africa. In G. Caramazza & E. Gibson, Young people, the faith and vocational discernment (pp.9-28). Nairobi: Institute of Youth Studies. https://www.sahayaselvam.org/2018/09/28/defining-youth-pastoral-implications-for-africa/
“Youth” is a greasy term that slips out of the grip of any definition. Yet, everyone talks about youth, in academics, pastoral ministry, and daily life. Is the concept of youth that straightforward? Despite these intricacies around ‘youth’, a serious consideration on the nuances of the term is seldom a subject for study. Therefore, the objective of this article is to explore the meaning of “youth” and other terms related to it, such as, child, adolescent, teenager, emerging adult. The paper also looks at different criteria employed to define youth. Often, the paper focuses on terminology tracing their etymology and historical origin. As the French historian Aries (1962) argues, the absence of specific terminology to refer to a particular age of development implies that people of that era did not feel the need for explicit distinction of those age groups. On the contrary, the introduction of a specific term to refer to a particular age-group means that this group began to gain noticeable significance in terms of numbers and social role. Thus, the present paper points out the implication of terminologies and the difficulty in the definition and conceptualisation of youth. Due to lack of data, we will explore the global scenario and conceptually extend it to the African context, and point out the pastoral implications of such conceptualisation.
Selvam, S.G. (2018). The goal of accompaniment of youth: A psychospiritual perspective. In J.P. Doss & S. Fernando, Discernment and accompaniment of the young in today’s India (pp.305-319). New Delhi: Don Bosco Publications.
Accompaniment suggests a journey. Every journey presupposes a destination, an end, a goal, a telos. What is the end of the accompaniment of youth? In an attempt to define the goal of the accompaniment process, this chapter offers some benchmarks of maturity from a psychospiritual perspective. As far as possible, the chapter will include dimensions that are alluded to in the summary of the theme of the synod as quoted above. The chapter is laid out in three parts, as most chapters are in the present book. The first part of the chapter situates the contents of the chapter within the context of the situation of youth and youth ministry in India. This section may not be exhaustive. It is foreseen that other chapters in this book will supplement this section. The second section of the chapter discusses three psychological models of life-long development with an aim of clarifying the benchmarks of maturity. The third part of the chapter focuses on three means of providing the accompaniment of youth towards maturity.
| Conference Paper Presentations |
8-13 March 2018 – Invited presentation
“Becoming Disciples-Transforming the World: Bible Study on Mt 5:1-16,” Conference on World Mission and Evangelism-World Council of Churches, Arusha, Tanzania.
In contrast to Luke (6:17), where Jesus delivers the “Beatitudes” from a level ground, Matthew (5:1) places Jesus on a mountain as he delivers first of the discourses. Given the Jewish context of the Gospel according to Matthew, Jesus is portrayed as the new Moses (see Ex 19:3-9), now wanting to form a new community of disciples: “he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him” (Mt 5:1). Moreover, Jesus delivers the discourse seated down, exhibiting authority (Mt 7:29; also Lk 4:20) – and appearing to be the new judge (see also Jn 8:2). However, his authority is different and his criteria for judgement is new. What is at the core of his teaching? Jesus is proposing a new definition of righteousness: the righteousness of the members of his community is to surpass the legalistic righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees (Mt 5:20). Righteousness in the mind of Jesus is a response of an individual to the makarios (Greek, for blessing) of God. The presentation pointed out to the three-dimensional spirituality that emerges from the Beatitudes: an upward journey towards God, an inward journey towards the self, and an outward journey towards others and to the rest of creation.
4th to 7th April 2018 – Keynote Address
“Character Strengths in the African Context: Attempts at Conceptualisation, Operationalisation, and Interventions” A Keynote Address delivered at the 1st Africa Positive Psychology Conference: Embracing Well-being in Diverse Contexts, Potchefstroom, South Africa.
Character strengths (CS) are morally valued dispositions that are trait-like and are measurable in terms of an individual’s thoughts (cognitive processes), feelings (affective states), and actions (behavioural patterns). In positive psychology, they are perceived to be substrates of individual and collective wellbeing. Globally, research on the conceptualisation and operationalisation of CS is well developed, even if this is still largely a work in progress. Besides several models of taxonomy, there is a plethora of measures that attempt at operationalising CS. Development of interventions aimed at enhancing CS is also ongoing. What is the scenario of these efforts in the African continent? The present paper aims at reviewing the existing body of literature that attempts at classification and conceptualisation of CS. Some of these studies are philosophical, others are anthropological, and still others are empirical using qualitative data. There are also quantitative studies that have attempted to validate the measures of CS among the African population. The present paper examines the outcome of these studies. Character-Strengths-based-Interventions are also being implemented in Africa in order to enhance wellbeing, particularly among youth. The paper pays attention to the specificities of the African contributions, and ends by proposing the way forward in this endeavour.
24 April 2018 – Keynote Address
“A knowledge-based management of youth ministry in Africa.” A Keynote Presentation at the International meeting of the managers of the planning and development offices of Salesians of Don Bosco. Dimesse Centre, Nairobi.
The presentation highlighted several changing patterns among the youth of Africa that have implication for youth ministry in Africa. The first part highlighted the demographic reality of youth; 80% of the population of Eastern Africa is below the age of 35. Among other changes two salient factors are important: in the recent decades, physical maturity has been largely anticipated due to better food while social maturity has been delayed due to formal education. This has widened the gap between childhood and adulthood. At another level, youth are becoming alert to modern possibilities such as the internet and social media, which also relates to an entertainment culture that highlights celebrities rather than heroes. The paper also considered other changing patterns in the family and values structures in the society. In this context, Salesians have to focus on evidence-based interventions rather than just repeating the old systems or relying on good-will.
22-24 August 2018 – Accepted Paper Presentation
(co-authored with Stan Agava) “Systematic Literature Review: A Means to Promoting Effective Use of E-Resources in Higher Learning Institutions of Kenya.” A paper presentation at the Second International Conference On Information And Knowledge Management, Technical University of Kenya, Nairobi.
With the introduction of electronic information resources commonly referred to as e-resources, a significant impact has been felt in the world of information. According to the Kenya Library and Information Services Consortium (KLISC), despite the increase in the number of institutions that subscribe to e-resources, many academic institutions of higher learning in the country are recording low use of e-resources. This paper proposed the promotion of Systematic Literature Review (SLR) as a way of encouraging the use of e-resources. SLR in social sciences is an orderly manner of searching for academic literature, selecting relevant literature following a set of inclusion/exclusion criteria, qualitatively analysing the selected literature, and reporting the findings in such a way as to generate a set of hypotheses or conclusions. SLR involves four key steps: literature search, literature selection, literature analysis, and reporting of findings. By encouraging SLR, users would choose one or more of the e-resources databases and using a keyword search technique they would carry out their research by following the four steps. The output of SLR could yield publishable papers, and the outcome of such an exercise would be the increased use of e-resources available. The outcome will justify the amount of financial resources spent on e-resources.
8-10 August 2018 – Accepted Paper Presentation
“The outcome of trainings of the staff of statutory children institutions in Kenya,” A paper presentation at the 1st International Conference on Child Protection in Africa. Daystar University, Nairobi.
Children who are in conflict with the law form a significant group exposed to vulnerability. The Government of Kenya under its Children Services caters to this population through the Rescue Centres, Remand homes, Screening Centres, and Rehabilitation Schools. A needs-assessment carried out in 2015 showed that the staff need improved understanding in stages of child-development and children’s psychosocial needs; the staff lack pedagogical and organisational skills. The Tangaza Institute of Youth Studies in Nairobi, in collaboration with two NGOs, undertook to accompany the staff over a period of three years (2015-2017). The objective of the proposed paper is to report the process and outcome of these interventions and point out lessons learnt. Considered together, the three-year programme offers several learning points that are transferrable to similar contexts elsewhere. These include, among others: the training of staff has direct impact on the lives of children, managers of centres have to be motivated to build capacity of their staff, and growth in knowledge and skills improves the personal wellbeing of the staff.
24-25 October 2018 – Invited Paper Presentation
“Character Grooming of Youth”. An invited presentation at the Africa Regional Symposium on Character Development. Co-sponsored by The Templeton World Charity Foundation and The Institute of Human Development – Aga Khan University. Held at Safari Park Hotel, Nairobi.
The presentation had four parts: 1. Who are the youth? Understanding Youth Situation in Africa; 2. What are Character Strengths? Conceptualising Character Strengths in Africa; 3. How to carry out Character Grooming of Youth in Africa? Attempts at Interventions; 4. Recommendations for the Way Forward. The first part highlighted the demographic reality of youth; 80% of the population of Eastern Africa is below the age of 35. Among other changes two salient factors are important: in the recent decades, physical maturity has been largely anticipated due to better food while social maturity has been delayed due to formal education. This has widened the gap between childhood and adulthood. The gap needs accompaniment. Life-skills training alone is not enough for these emerging adults, but they need character development focusing on what they will be in addition to what they will do. Character strengths are morally valued trait-like dispositions that are discerning in individuals’ patterns in thoughts, feelings and actions. There have been several experiments carried out in Nairobi on character-based interventions that have shown to improve individuals’ wellbeing. The paper recommended that more systematic interventions are needed.
| Academic Fellowship |
May – July 2018
The Margaret Beaufort Institute of Theology Silver Jubilee Fellowship, Cambridge Theological Federation, UK. Worked on a book project: Pastoral Psychology: Insights for Christian Ministry in Africa.
In pastoral practice, good will is not good enough. We need also a scientific approach. Psychology can provide a framework for a systematic approach in pastoral care. Psychology for Pastoral Practice is designed to offer a scientific framework for caring ministry in traditional societies. The approach is ecumenical and Catholic. It is scholarly and accessible. It is aimed at ordained ministers and lay collaborators. This book could be a guide to parish pastors, chaplains, spiritual directors, formation guides, and other pastoral collaborators. An ideal textbook for a seminary course in pastoral psychology!
Margaret Beaufort Silver Jubilee Fellowship (May–July 2018) offered me an excellent opportunity to take time off my work of academic administration in Kenya and dedicate some focused attention on a book-project. The access to academic literature through the libraries of the Cambridge Theological Federation and the valuable interaction with scholars in the field made it possible for me to complete my book-project within 10 weeks. There were also other academic possibilities at Cambridge: open-lectures, summer courses, and visits to museums and exhibitions. The lighter aspects of Cambridge – the open spaces, the meadows, the historical sites – gave me a feeling of being on a holiday even as I rushed with my writing target. Thanks to the Principal and the staff of MBIT for making this possible for me.
See: http://www.margaretbeaufort.cam.ac.uk/sabbatical-opportunities/