PYC4808
Assignment 6 2023
Guidelines – Portfolio
,Assignment 6 - Unique assignment number 888794 (Due date 30 August 2023)
Assignment 6 is the final assignment for PYC4808 and counts 35% towards your final mark.
• Assignment 06 is a compulsory written assignment. This assignment is marked out of 100, and
contributes 35% towards your final mark.
• Assignment 06 requires you to apply your theoretical and conceptual knowledge of Ecosystemic
psychology to a case scenario. The maximum length of your assignment should be ten (10) typed pages
(excluding your plagiarism declaration, the table of contents and reference list).
• Please number your answers according to the assignment questions. Do not create your own numbering
structure. Therefore, do not number your introduction and conclusion. Just number the answers to the
assignment questions.
• Submit your assignment in PDF on myUnisa. Please ensure that your PDF document is not a read-only
document, as if it is, the on-screen marking tools will not work
• Remember to reference your work. Please refer to and follow the seventh edition of the American
Psychological Association (APA) referencing guidelines. You will be penalised for work that is not
referenced correctly. You must provide both in-text referencing and a reference list.
• Work that is not referenced at all will receive a final mark of 0 and disciplinary action may be taken
against the student who submitted the work. Remember to include a table of contents, introduction and
conclusion, as well as the plagiarism declaration.
• There is no new reading material needed for this assignment. Review all previous work covered, in order
to answer the questions of assignment 6, which is largely aimed at you applying what you have learnt.
,Read the following case scenario, and answer the following questions:
Covid-19 has brought about many new challenges across various contexts.
In order to slow the infection rate, a national lockdown was enforced, which on one hand
was aimed at protecting the population from the effects of Covid-19, with new terminology
such as "lock-down, self-isolation, social distancing, flatten the curve....new normal" (Pillay
& Barnes, 2020).
On the other hand, and at the same time, the solution to the problem created many
individual, familial, social, community, educational, occupational, financial and other
challenges.
Question 1
As a student of Unisa, an Open Distance Learning Education Institution, provide a first order
cybernetic analysis of Unisa as a system. In your answer, describe the context as a first
order cybernetic thinker, and apply at least five (5) first order cybernetic
principles/concepts to your analysis. (25)
Question 2
Include yourself in the observed, and provide a second-order cybernetic analysis of Unisa as
a system. In your answer, describe how a second-order cybernetic thinker would
contextualise Unisa, and apply at least five (5) second order principle/concepts to your
analysis. (25)
Question 3
Second order cybernetics can be viewed as a meta-perspective. In line with this
premise, answer the questions below:
3.1 According to Becvar and Becvar (2014), systemic thinking is not an either/or approach.
Discuss this statement and justify how FOC and SOC can be integrated in a complementary
manner. (10)
, 3.2 In all professions there are both explicit and implicit ethical guidelines, which have been
drawn up to ensure efficacy and competency. Discuss the ethical considerations to bear in
mind if you were working from an ecosystemic perspective (include the ethical
considerations for both FOC and SOC). (10)
3.3 In your opinion, how can African ideologies and indigenous knowledge systems be
incorporated into ecosystemic psychology? (10)
3.4 Provide a critique of ecosystemic psychology in which you cover both its merits and its
shortcomings. (10)
Question 4:
This is not a question, however, a mark will be awarded for referencing. You need to
include both in-text references and a reference list that follows the American
Psychological Association (APA) guidelines. (10)
TOTAL: 100
Reference List
Pillay, A.L., & Barnes, B.R. (2020). Psychology and Covid-19: impacts, themes and way
forward. South African Journal of Psychology, Vol 50(2), 148-153 DOI:
10.1177/0081246320937684 journals.sagepub.com/home/sap
Assignment 6 2023
Guidelines – Portfolio
,Assignment 6 - Unique assignment number 888794 (Due date 30 August 2023)
Assignment 6 is the final assignment for PYC4808 and counts 35% towards your final mark.
• Assignment 06 is a compulsory written assignment. This assignment is marked out of 100, and
contributes 35% towards your final mark.
• Assignment 06 requires you to apply your theoretical and conceptual knowledge of Ecosystemic
psychology to a case scenario. The maximum length of your assignment should be ten (10) typed pages
(excluding your plagiarism declaration, the table of contents and reference list).
• Please number your answers according to the assignment questions. Do not create your own numbering
structure. Therefore, do not number your introduction and conclusion. Just number the answers to the
assignment questions.
• Submit your assignment in PDF on myUnisa. Please ensure that your PDF document is not a read-only
document, as if it is, the on-screen marking tools will not work
• Remember to reference your work. Please refer to and follow the seventh edition of the American
Psychological Association (APA) referencing guidelines. You will be penalised for work that is not
referenced correctly. You must provide both in-text referencing and a reference list.
• Work that is not referenced at all will receive a final mark of 0 and disciplinary action may be taken
against the student who submitted the work. Remember to include a table of contents, introduction and
conclusion, as well as the plagiarism declaration.
• There is no new reading material needed for this assignment. Review all previous work covered, in order
to answer the questions of assignment 6, which is largely aimed at you applying what you have learnt.
,Read the following case scenario, and answer the following questions:
Covid-19 has brought about many new challenges across various contexts.
In order to slow the infection rate, a national lockdown was enforced, which on one hand
was aimed at protecting the population from the effects of Covid-19, with new terminology
such as "lock-down, self-isolation, social distancing, flatten the curve....new normal" (Pillay
& Barnes, 2020).
On the other hand, and at the same time, the solution to the problem created many
individual, familial, social, community, educational, occupational, financial and other
challenges.
Question 1
As a student of Unisa, an Open Distance Learning Education Institution, provide a first order
cybernetic analysis of Unisa as a system. In your answer, describe the context as a first
order cybernetic thinker, and apply at least five (5) first order cybernetic
principles/concepts to your analysis. (25)
Question 2
Include yourself in the observed, and provide a second-order cybernetic analysis of Unisa as
a system. In your answer, describe how a second-order cybernetic thinker would
contextualise Unisa, and apply at least five (5) second order principle/concepts to your
analysis. (25)
Question 3
Second order cybernetics can be viewed as a meta-perspective. In line with this
premise, answer the questions below:
3.1 According to Becvar and Becvar (2014), systemic thinking is not an either/or approach.
Discuss this statement and justify how FOC and SOC can be integrated in a complementary
manner. (10)
, 3.2 In all professions there are both explicit and implicit ethical guidelines, which have been
drawn up to ensure efficacy and competency. Discuss the ethical considerations to bear in
mind if you were working from an ecosystemic perspective (include the ethical
considerations for both FOC and SOC). (10)
3.3 In your opinion, how can African ideologies and indigenous knowledge systems be
incorporated into ecosystemic psychology? (10)
3.4 Provide a critique of ecosystemic psychology in which you cover both its merits and its
shortcomings. (10)
Question 4:
This is not a question, however, a mark will be awarded for referencing. You need to
include both in-text references and a reference list that follows the American
Psychological Association (APA) guidelines. (10)
TOTAL: 100
Reference List
Pillay, A.L., & Barnes, B.R. (2020). Psychology and Covid-19: impacts, themes and way
forward. South African Journal of Psychology, Vol 50(2), 148-153 DOI:
10.1177/0081246320937684 journals.sagepub.com/home/sap
