The 'global' and the 'local' : a comparative study of development practices in three South African municipalities
- Authors: Gibb, Matthew William
- Date: 2013-08-15
- Subjects: Ndlambe Municipality Emalahleni Municipality Cape Town Municipality Local government -- South Africa Poor -- South Africa Globalization Economic development -- South Africa Community development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:4871 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008413
- Description: On first impression, it would seem that globalisation is producing an increasingly homogenous trans-border world, whereby, as a result of key changes including the impact of technological improvements, foreign travel, the spread of westernised cultural identities, market capitalism, and liberal democracy, the point has been reached where it is now becoming difficult to tell different localities apart. In this process, it is often forgotten what role individual places assume in the creation of this globalised world and that not all will benefit from globalisation. In many respects, locally specific activities, including urban renewal, place promotion, and infrastructural developments pursued within a selection of the planet's most strategically connected cities are now the primary catalysts of, and the influence behind, globalisation. Likewise, community-businesses, rural micro-industries, and alternative livelihoods are some of the key mechanisms that under-privileged localities in developing countries are employing to either respond to the marginalization imposed by globalisation, or to simply ensure survival. The emergence of localisation theory has therefore acknowledged and exemplified the importance of the locality in the context of the global economy as either a key node within it or a point within which people must engage in coping strategies, often as a result of the negative impacts of globalisation. In recent years, varying styles of locality-based development have become central to enhancing both the pro-growth global competitiveness of a number of South African localities, as well as for initiating pro-poor interventions in several of the country's smaller towns and rural areas. In the City of Cape Town, millions of Rands have been invested by the municipality and the private sector in urban regeneration strategies,which have led to an economic rebirth in the city centre and have generated numerous jobs in the tertiary and construction sectors that have helped to enhance the city's global stature. In Ndlambe Municipality, two community-businesses, which have received national funding and have strong municipal support, employ fifty people between them and have demonstrated the advantages of participatory action in propoor local development, within the context of the open market. In Emalahleni Municipality, attempts at locality-based development have been instigated directly by the local poor themselves and have been organised by members of the community in the face of non-existent local government support, which have resulted in the creation of several hundred income-earning opportunities for area residents. In summary, these three cases illustrate a range of approaches to locality-based development cunently undertaken in South Africa by different localities possessing widely differing resources, skills, and degrees of global connectivity in order to initiate growth and enhance standards of living. From a theoretical perspective this study provides a South African slant on global theories and processes and further indicates the role that a series of localities in the South are playing in a changing global system. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
- Full Text:
- Authors: Gibb, Matthew William
- Date: 2013-08-15
- Subjects: Ndlambe Municipality Emalahleni Municipality Cape Town Municipality Local government -- South Africa Poor -- South Africa Globalization Economic development -- South Africa Community development -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:4871 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008413
- Description: On first impression, it would seem that globalisation is producing an increasingly homogenous trans-border world, whereby, as a result of key changes including the impact of technological improvements, foreign travel, the spread of westernised cultural identities, market capitalism, and liberal democracy, the point has been reached where it is now becoming difficult to tell different localities apart. In this process, it is often forgotten what role individual places assume in the creation of this globalised world and that not all will benefit from globalisation. In many respects, locally specific activities, including urban renewal, place promotion, and infrastructural developments pursued within a selection of the planet's most strategically connected cities are now the primary catalysts of, and the influence behind, globalisation. Likewise, community-businesses, rural micro-industries, and alternative livelihoods are some of the key mechanisms that under-privileged localities in developing countries are employing to either respond to the marginalization imposed by globalisation, or to simply ensure survival. The emergence of localisation theory has therefore acknowledged and exemplified the importance of the locality in the context of the global economy as either a key node within it or a point within which people must engage in coping strategies, often as a result of the negative impacts of globalisation. In recent years, varying styles of locality-based development have become central to enhancing both the pro-growth global competitiveness of a number of South African localities, as well as for initiating pro-poor interventions in several of the country's smaller towns and rural areas. In the City of Cape Town, millions of Rands have been invested by the municipality and the private sector in urban regeneration strategies,which have led to an economic rebirth in the city centre and have generated numerous jobs in the tertiary and construction sectors that have helped to enhance the city's global stature. In Ndlambe Municipality, two community-businesses, which have received national funding and have strong municipal support, employ fifty people between them and have demonstrated the advantages of participatory action in propoor local development, within the context of the open market. In Emalahleni Municipality, attempts at locality-based development have been instigated directly by the local poor themselves and have been organised by members of the community in the face of non-existent local government support, which have resulted in the creation of several hundred income-earning opportunities for area residents. In summary, these three cases illustrate a range of approaches to locality-based development cunently undertaken in South Africa by different localities possessing widely differing resources, skills, and degrees of global connectivity in order to initiate growth and enhance standards of living. From a theoretical perspective this study provides a South African slant on global theories and processes and further indicates the role that a series of localities in the South are playing in a changing global system. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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Post-feminism in Cosmopolitan and For Him magazine (FHM) : a critical analysis
- Authors: Legge, Janet Helen
- Date: 2013-07-02
- Subjects: For Him Magazine (South Africa) Cosmopolitan (South Africa) Discourse analysis -- Social aspects Mass media and language Mass media criticism Women in mass media Sex role in mass media Women in popular culture Men in popular culture
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2375 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005956
- Description: Cosmopolitan and For Him Magazine (FHM) are, at present, both the most widely read and, therefore, the most popular "white" consumer magazines in South Africa. They both appeal to young audiences of between 18 and 34 years of age, approximately, and target middle-class, educated groups of readers. My interest in Cosmopolitan and FHM lies in their ability to influence and shape their readers' actions, values, identities and relationships, in particular with the other gender. My analysis is focused on the cover pages and the Editor's letters of six copies of each magazine, ranging from April to September 2003, providing me with a corpus of 12 cover pages and 12 Editor's letters. I adopt a critical perspective through the use of Fairclough's (1989) Critical Discourse Analysis, supported by Mills (1995) Feminist Stylistics, McLoughlin's (2000) textual analysis of cover pages and Kress & van Leeuwen's (1996) visual analysis tools. By combining these different methodologies my research falls into what is newly termed Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis (Lazar 2005). The cover page analyses used primarily McLoughlin and Kress & van Leeuwen and provides an element of pure genre analysis, while the analysis of the Editor's letters were subject to Fairclough's three inter-related stages of analysis, namely: a Description of the formal textual elements of the letters, an Interpretation which analyses the processes of text production and interpretation, and lastly an Explanation of the socio-historical context. Through an analysis of these magazines, whose interests are being served and how the readers are shaped and positioned by the magazines can be identified. My analyses revealed conflicting discourses within each magazine, however it was Cosmopolitan that revealed more tension and conflict in terms of identifying and representing women, while FHM subscribed, for the most part, uniformly to the "new lad" ideology. However, while Cosmopolitan attempted to show a forward-thinking and emancipatory view of the roles of men and women in society, both magazines covertly sustain patriarchal dominance and hegemonic masculinity. In conclusion, I reveal the need for consumers of the mass media to become more critically aware of the ideologies that are promoted through the differing tools of the media and that only through this critical awareness can any further movement towards equal relations between men and women be made. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
- Full Text:
- Authors: Legge, Janet Helen
- Date: 2013-07-02
- Subjects: For Him Magazine (South Africa) Cosmopolitan (South Africa) Discourse analysis -- Social aspects Mass media and language Mass media criticism Women in mass media Sex role in mass media Women in popular culture Men in popular culture
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2375 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005956
- Description: Cosmopolitan and For Him Magazine (FHM) are, at present, both the most widely read and, therefore, the most popular "white" consumer magazines in South Africa. They both appeal to young audiences of between 18 and 34 years of age, approximately, and target middle-class, educated groups of readers. My interest in Cosmopolitan and FHM lies in their ability to influence and shape their readers' actions, values, identities and relationships, in particular with the other gender. My analysis is focused on the cover pages and the Editor's letters of six copies of each magazine, ranging from April to September 2003, providing me with a corpus of 12 cover pages and 12 Editor's letters. I adopt a critical perspective through the use of Fairclough's (1989) Critical Discourse Analysis, supported by Mills (1995) Feminist Stylistics, McLoughlin's (2000) textual analysis of cover pages and Kress & van Leeuwen's (1996) visual analysis tools. By combining these different methodologies my research falls into what is newly termed Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis (Lazar 2005). The cover page analyses used primarily McLoughlin and Kress & van Leeuwen and provides an element of pure genre analysis, while the analysis of the Editor's letters were subject to Fairclough's three inter-related stages of analysis, namely: a Description of the formal textual elements of the letters, an Interpretation which analyses the processes of text production and interpretation, and lastly an Explanation of the socio-historical context. Through an analysis of these magazines, whose interests are being served and how the readers are shaped and positioned by the magazines can be identified. My analyses revealed conflicting discourses within each magazine, however it was Cosmopolitan that revealed more tension and conflict in terms of identifying and representing women, while FHM subscribed, for the most part, uniformly to the "new lad" ideology. However, while Cosmopolitan attempted to show a forward-thinking and emancipatory view of the roles of men and women in society, both magazines covertly sustain patriarchal dominance and hegemonic masculinity. In conclusion, I reveal the need for consumers of the mass media to become more critically aware of the ideologies that are promoted through the differing tools of the media and that only through this critical awareness can any further movement towards equal relations between men and women be made. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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An investigation of the factors necessary in the development of a retention strategy for a financial organization
- Authors: Gouws, Erika
- Date: 2013-07-01
- Subjects: Employee retention Organizational change Personnel management Discrimination in employment -- Law and legislation Employee motivation Incentives in industry Employee morale Employees -- Rating of
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3181 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008198
- Description: rhe research study investigated the factors necessary for the development of an organizational retention ;trategy for a financial organization pertaining to key equity employees. Equity employees are those employees jescribed as such in the Employment Equity Act 55 of(1998). Bussin's (2002) Total Rewards Model was used as the theoretical framework for the study. The investigation was conducted within an interpretive paradigm and employed a qualitative methodology. Thematic analysis was used in the interpretation of the three data sources gained access through the data collection process. A previously completed employee relationship audit's findings, and the data derived from nine exit interviews formed the basis for the twenty-four semi-structured individual interviews, which were conducted with a sample ofthe employees. A purposive sampling technique enabled the identification of particular employees, who were the equity participants in the study. An additional component of the Total Rewards Model, namely Talent Management was identified from an analysis of the results. Six salient factors were highlighted in the investigation. The factors identified were: A need for a short-term incentive plan, which would provide recognition above and beyond an employee's monthly salary. The need for career development opportunities. The utilization of new skills from the training initiated by the organization. The representation of women and Black people in senior management positions. The need for formal performance support. The standardization of the recruitment process, the management of unrealistic or unattainable expectations and listening to employees' concerns. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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- Authors: Gouws, Erika
- Date: 2013-07-01
- Subjects: Employee retention Organizational change Personnel management Discrimination in employment -- Law and legislation Employee motivation Incentives in industry Employee morale Employees -- Rating of
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3181 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008198
- Description: rhe research study investigated the factors necessary for the development of an organizational retention ;trategy for a financial organization pertaining to key equity employees. Equity employees are those employees jescribed as such in the Employment Equity Act 55 of(1998). Bussin's (2002) Total Rewards Model was used as the theoretical framework for the study. The investigation was conducted within an interpretive paradigm and employed a qualitative methodology. Thematic analysis was used in the interpretation of the three data sources gained access through the data collection process. A previously completed employee relationship audit's findings, and the data derived from nine exit interviews formed the basis for the twenty-four semi-structured individual interviews, which were conducted with a sample ofthe employees. A purposive sampling technique enabled the identification of particular employees, who were the equity participants in the study. An additional component of the Total Rewards Model, namely Talent Management was identified from an analysis of the results. Six salient factors were highlighted in the investigation. The factors identified were: A need for a short-term incentive plan, which would provide recognition above and beyond an employee's monthly salary. The need for career development opportunities. The utilization of new skills from the training initiated by the organization. The representation of women and Black people in senior management positions. The need for formal performance support. The standardization of the recruitment process, the management of unrealistic or unattainable expectations and listening to employees' concerns. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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What makes news on the front page? : an investigation of conceptions of newsworthiness in the East African Standard
- Authors: Nzioka, Roseleen M
- Date: 2013-06-19
- Subjects: East African Standard (Nairobi, Kenya) Journalism -- Social aspects -- Kenya Journalism -- Editing -- Kenya Newspapers -- Sections, columns, etc -- Kenya Mass media -- Political aspects -- Kenya Newspapers -- Kenya
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3519 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008178
- Description: Determining what is newsworthy is a daily challenge even to the very people who source news, produce and disseminate it. This study is part an exposition and exploration of the different approaches that media researchers have used to explain and determine the value of news. Like similar research before it, this study more specifically delves into the news selection process of news of one particular newspaper with the goal of investigating why and how news is selected for publication in the front page. News is the 'result of many forces: ranging from source power, journalistic orientation, medium-preference and market model, news values and production routines and processes. The study briefly expounds on the different definitions of news as perceived in terms of the developed and developing world. Just as journalists do not operate in a vacuum, a close examination of the various definitions reveals that news cannot be defined in isolation. Its definition is intrinsically tied to that of news values. Also explored here are debates about news values and their Western rootedness. Here reference is made to literature regarding theories on the social construction of meanings and on the gatekeeping concept.The study is informed by similar research in gatekeeping studies and sociology of news studies. It is important to state at the outset that the study is not concerned with how news is produced but why there is a bias for certain kinds of news. I am interested in explaining why and how the writers and editors at the East African Standard make decisions about what is worthy of being published on the front page of the newspaper. This distinction is necessary because the theories that inform this study transcend news sourcing and production. This study takes cognizance ofthe fact that one cannot separate social processes from the individual and vice versa. For this reason, this study investigates and analyses the biases of individual gatekeepers at the East African Standard as well as their collective biases. In the concluding section, this study calls for an alternative paradigm for journalism and news. The foregoing discussions in the other sections prove that a universal definition of news and what is newsworthy will not suffice and there is need to contexualise it.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Nzioka, Roseleen M
- Date: 2013-06-19
- Subjects: East African Standard (Nairobi, Kenya) Journalism -- Social aspects -- Kenya Journalism -- Editing -- Kenya Newspapers -- Sections, columns, etc -- Kenya Mass media -- Political aspects -- Kenya Newspapers -- Kenya
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3519 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008178
- Description: Determining what is newsworthy is a daily challenge even to the very people who source news, produce and disseminate it. This study is part an exposition and exploration of the different approaches that media researchers have used to explain and determine the value of news. Like similar research before it, this study more specifically delves into the news selection process of news of one particular newspaper with the goal of investigating why and how news is selected for publication in the front page. News is the 'result of many forces: ranging from source power, journalistic orientation, medium-preference and market model, news values and production routines and processes. The study briefly expounds on the different definitions of news as perceived in terms of the developed and developing world. Just as journalists do not operate in a vacuum, a close examination of the various definitions reveals that news cannot be defined in isolation. Its definition is intrinsically tied to that of news values. Also explored here are debates about news values and their Western rootedness. Here reference is made to literature regarding theories on the social construction of meanings and on the gatekeeping concept.The study is informed by similar research in gatekeeping studies and sociology of news studies. It is important to state at the outset that the study is not concerned with how news is produced but why there is a bias for certain kinds of news. I am interested in explaining why and how the writers and editors at the East African Standard make decisions about what is worthy of being published on the front page of the newspaper. This distinction is necessary because the theories that inform this study transcend news sourcing and production. This study takes cognizance ofthe fact that one cannot separate social processes from the individual and vice versa. For this reason, this study investigates and analyses the biases of individual gatekeepers at the East African Standard as well as their collective biases. In the concluding section, this study calls for an alternative paradigm for journalism and news. The foregoing discussions in the other sections prove that a universal definition of news and what is newsworthy will not suffice and there is need to contexualise it.
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Externalism, self-knowledge and explanation
- Authors: Flockemann, Richard
- Date: 2013-06-11
- Subjects: Burge, Tyler Externalism (Philosophy of mind) Self-knowledge, Theory of Philosophy of mind
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2743 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008060
- Description: In recent years, much attention has been given to the question of whether content externalism is compatible with an account of self-knowledge maintaining that we have an epistemically privileged access to the content of our propositional mental states. Philosophers who maintain the two are incompatible (incompatibilists) have put forward two majors types of challenge, which I call - following Martin Davies - the Achievement and Consequence Problems, which aim to demonstrate that self-knowledge cannot be reconciled with externalism. These challenges have spawned a great deal of literature, and a diverse range of arguments and positions have emerged in response. In this dissertation, I intend to focus on examples of these different avenues of response, and show how none of them are adequate. In the first chapter, I lay the groundwork for the debate, setting up how externalism and self-knowledge are to be understood, and outlining both the incompatibilist challenges as well as the available responses to them. In the second chapter I examine these responses in more detail, concluding finally that the best available response is Tyler Burge's. Burge has two arguments that together establish his compatibilist position. First, he shows that even if externalism is true, our judgements about our occurrent thoughts are immunejrom error. This establishes that our judgements about our thoughts must be true. Second, he offers a transcendental argument for self-knowledge, arguing that our access to our mental states must be not only true, but non-accidentally true, in a way sufficient for genuine knowledge. This establishes that we possess the correct epistemic entitlement to our thoughts. In the third chapter, I argue Burge's arguments do not, in fact, give us good reason to suppose externalism and self-knowledge to be compatible. This, I argue, is because B urge relies upon a transcendental argument, which, in this context, cannot establish that we have self-knowledge if externalism is true. All it establishes, I argue, is that we do possess self-knowledge. And this is insufficient to establish that externalism and self-knowledge are compatible. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
- Full Text:
- Authors: Flockemann, Richard
- Date: 2013-06-11
- Subjects: Burge, Tyler Externalism (Philosophy of mind) Self-knowledge, Theory of Philosophy of mind
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2743 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008060
- Description: In recent years, much attention has been given to the question of whether content externalism is compatible with an account of self-knowledge maintaining that we have an epistemically privileged access to the content of our propositional mental states. Philosophers who maintain the two are incompatible (incompatibilists) have put forward two majors types of challenge, which I call - following Martin Davies - the Achievement and Consequence Problems, which aim to demonstrate that self-knowledge cannot be reconciled with externalism. These challenges have spawned a great deal of literature, and a diverse range of arguments and positions have emerged in response. In this dissertation, I intend to focus on examples of these different avenues of response, and show how none of them are adequate. In the first chapter, I lay the groundwork for the debate, setting up how externalism and self-knowledge are to be understood, and outlining both the incompatibilist challenges as well as the available responses to them. In the second chapter I examine these responses in more detail, concluding finally that the best available response is Tyler Burge's. Burge has two arguments that together establish his compatibilist position. First, he shows that even if externalism is true, our judgements about our occurrent thoughts are immunejrom error. This establishes that our judgements about our thoughts must be true. Second, he offers a transcendental argument for self-knowledge, arguing that our access to our mental states must be not only true, but non-accidentally true, in a way sufficient for genuine knowledge. This establishes that we possess the correct epistemic entitlement to our thoughts. In the third chapter, I argue Burge's arguments do not, in fact, give us good reason to suppose externalism and self-knowledge to be compatible. This, I argue, is because B urge relies upon a transcendental argument, which, in this context, cannot establish that we have self-knowledge if externalism is true. All it establishes, I argue, is that we do possess self-knowledge. And this is insufficient to establish that externalism and self-knowledge are compatible. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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Ameliorating poverty in South Africa through natural resource commercialisation : how can NGO's make a difference?
- Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6615 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1016222
- Description: [From Introduction] Some of the poorest rural people in South Africa are turning to the natural resource base for income generation. Using traditional skills they are converting a variety of wild resources into commodities that are sold in the market place. Wood and woven craft, medicines, fresh and processed wild foods, alcoholic beverages, building materials, fuelwood, dried mopane worms, cultural artefacts and brooms are just some examples of the array of natural resource products increasingly seen for sale in local and external markets. Many of the participants in this trade have minimal education, few assets to draw on, and little access to alternative sources of income or jobs. A significant proportion are women, with more than half heading their own households. Many come from households devastated by HIV/AIDS. The cash earned from selling natural resource products, however modest, is of critical importance to the households involved, preventing them from slipping deeper into poverty. “Since I have been making brooms my children no longer go to bed crying of hunger” observed one broom producer. NGOs, particularly those involved in rural development, can play an important role in assisting producers overcome some of the obstacles they face and in enhancing the opportunities to grow this informal sector. , This policy brief is based on the original brief made available for a workshop in August 2006. It draws on, amongst other sources, the results of several case studies of natural resource commercialisation undertaken across South Africa. The project was funded by the South Africa-Netherlands Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD), BP South Africa and the National Research Foundation (NRF). The Center for International Forestry Research, with support from SIDA, provided the funding to share these findings with key stakeholders including government policy and decision makers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
- Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: Article
- Identifier: vital:6615 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1016222
- Description: [From Introduction] Some of the poorest rural people in South Africa are turning to the natural resource base for income generation. Using traditional skills they are converting a variety of wild resources into commodities that are sold in the market place. Wood and woven craft, medicines, fresh and processed wild foods, alcoholic beverages, building materials, fuelwood, dried mopane worms, cultural artefacts and brooms are just some examples of the array of natural resource products increasingly seen for sale in local and external markets. Many of the participants in this trade have minimal education, few assets to draw on, and little access to alternative sources of income or jobs. A significant proportion are women, with more than half heading their own households. Many come from households devastated by HIV/AIDS. The cash earned from selling natural resource products, however modest, is of critical importance to the households involved, preventing them from slipping deeper into poverty. “Since I have been making brooms my children no longer go to bed crying of hunger” observed one broom producer. NGOs, particularly those involved in rural development, can play an important role in assisting producers overcome some of the obstacles they face and in enhancing the opportunities to grow this informal sector. , This policy brief is based on the original brief made available for a workshop in August 2006. It draws on, amongst other sources, the results of several case studies of natural resource commercialisation undertaken across South Africa. The project was funded by the South Africa-Netherlands Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD), BP South Africa and the National Research Foundation (NRF). The Center for International Forestry Research, with support from SIDA, provided the funding to share these findings with key stakeholders including government policy and decision makers.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
Making the Invisible Visible: Ameliorating Poverty through Natural Resource Commercialisation
- Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text
- Identifier: vital:6618 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1016226
- Description: [From Introduction] The majority of households in South Africa, especially those in the rural communal areas, live in abject poverty. Some 70% of rural households can be classified as poor, while 18-24% fall into the chronically poor category. Unlike many other developing nations, South Africa's rural communal areas are characterised by relatively poor availability of agricultural land, with only about 40% of rural households involved in field cropping. This results in high levels of integration and dependence on the cash economy. Unemployment levels are amongst the highest in the world at about 30%. Unemployment amongst women tends to be greater than amongst men resulting in a poverty rate amongst rural female-headed households of over 60%; double that of male-headed households. The scourge of HIV/AIDS is devastating already poor households' ability to cope. More than half of HIV/AIDS affected households have insufficient food (UNDP 2003). Impacts of the pandemic include not only the loss of income, but also increased expenditure particularly on medical care and funerals. The need to care for ill household members or orphaned children also limits the choices of occupation that other household members can pursue, and may restrict labour availability for food production. Household assets are often sold for cash eroding the few safety nets people have. HIV/AIDS is expected to contribute to a chronic impoverishment of 26-33% more households than would be the case in its absence (Aliber 2003). , Endnote: This policy brief is based on the original brief made available for a workshop in August 2006. It is derived, amongst other sources, from the findings of nine case studies of local natural resource commercialisation undertaken as part of a project funded by the South Africa-Netherlands Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD), BP South Africa and the National Research Foundation (NRF). Case studies on woodcraft, furniture production, weaving, broom production and the sale of wild foods and traditional marula beer were completed by Zwoitwa Makhado (UWC), Sibongile Mavimbela (Rhodes), Taryn Pereira (Rhodes), Sheona Shackleton (Rhodes) and Jabulile Sithole (WSU). CIFOR with support from SIDA, provided the funding to share these findings with key stakeholders. The opinions expressed in these policy briefs are those of the author and research team and should not necessarily be attributed to funders and partner institutions.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
- Authors: Shackleton, Sheona E
- Date: 2009
- Language: English
- Type: text
- Identifier: vital:6618 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1016226
- Description: [From Introduction] The majority of households in South Africa, especially those in the rural communal areas, live in abject poverty. Some 70% of rural households can be classified as poor, while 18-24% fall into the chronically poor category. Unlike many other developing nations, South Africa's rural communal areas are characterised by relatively poor availability of agricultural land, with only about 40% of rural households involved in field cropping. This results in high levels of integration and dependence on the cash economy. Unemployment levels are amongst the highest in the world at about 30%. Unemployment amongst women tends to be greater than amongst men resulting in a poverty rate amongst rural female-headed households of over 60%; double that of male-headed households. The scourge of HIV/AIDS is devastating already poor households' ability to cope. More than half of HIV/AIDS affected households have insufficient food (UNDP 2003). Impacts of the pandemic include not only the loss of income, but also increased expenditure particularly on medical care and funerals. The need to care for ill household members or orphaned children also limits the choices of occupation that other household members can pursue, and may restrict labour availability for food production. Household assets are often sold for cash eroding the few safety nets people have. HIV/AIDS is expected to contribute to a chronic impoverishment of 26-33% more households than would be the case in its absence (Aliber 2003). , Endnote: This policy brief is based on the original brief made available for a workshop in August 2006. It is derived, amongst other sources, from the findings of nine case studies of local natural resource commercialisation undertaken as part of a project funded by the South Africa-Netherlands Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD), BP South Africa and the National Research Foundation (NRF). Case studies on woodcraft, furniture production, weaving, broom production and the sale of wild foods and traditional marula beer were completed by Zwoitwa Makhado (UWC), Sibongile Mavimbela (Rhodes), Taryn Pereira (Rhodes), Sheona Shackleton (Rhodes) and Jabulile Sithole (WSU). CIFOR with support from SIDA, provided the funding to share these findings with key stakeholders. The opinions expressed in these policy briefs are those of the author and research team and should not necessarily be attributed to funders and partner institutions.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2009
Pricing exotic options using C++
- Authors: Nhongo, Tawuya D R
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: C++ (Computer program language) , Monte Carlo method , Simulation methods , Options (Finance) -- Mathematical models , Pricing -- Mathematical models
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5577 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008373 , C++ (Computer program language) , Monte Carlo method , Simulation methods , Options (Finance) -- Mathematical models , Pricing -- Mathematical models
- Description: This document demonstrates the use of the C++ programming language as a simulation tool in the efficient pricing of exotic European options. Extensions to the basic problem of simulation pricing are undertaken including variance reduction by conditional expectation, control and antithetic variates. Ultimately we were able to produce a modularized, easily extend-able program which effectively makes use of Monte Carlo simulation techniques to price lookback, Asian and barrier exotic options. Theories of variance reduction were validated except in cases where we used control variates in combination with the other variance reduction techniques in which case we observed increased variance. Again, the main aim of this half thesis was to produce a C++ program which would produce stable pricings of exotic options.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
- Authors: Nhongo, Tawuya D R
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: C++ (Computer program language) , Monte Carlo method , Simulation methods , Options (Finance) -- Mathematical models , Pricing -- Mathematical models
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5577 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008373 , C++ (Computer program language) , Monte Carlo method , Simulation methods , Options (Finance) -- Mathematical models , Pricing -- Mathematical models
- Description: This document demonstrates the use of the C++ programming language as a simulation tool in the efficient pricing of exotic European options. Extensions to the basic problem of simulation pricing are undertaken including variance reduction by conditional expectation, control and antithetic variates. Ultimately we were able to produce a modularized, easily extend-able program which effectively makes use of Monte Carlo simulation techniques to price lookback, Asian and barrier exotic options. Theories of variance reduction were validated except in cases where we used control variates in combination with the other variance reduction techniques in which case we observed increased variance. Again, the main aim of this half thesis was to produce a C++ program which would produce stable pricings of exotic options.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
The impact of load and frequency on the biomechanical, physiological and perceptual responses to dynamic pushing
- Authors: Cripwell, Adam Michael
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: Work -- Physiological aspects , Psychophysiology , Human engineering , Biomechanics
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5144 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008183 , Work -- Physiological aspects , Psychophysiology , Human engineering , Biomechanics
- Description: The objective of the present research was to establish the biomechanical, physiological and perceptual responses of male operators to dynamic pushing tasks. The pushing tasks were performed using an industrial pallet jack with varying load/frequency combinations, in a controlled laboratory environment. Thirty healthy male subjects comprised the sample. Experimental procedures were conducted utilising the Chatillon ™ Dynamometer to measure force output in the initial, sustained and ending phases. The K4b2 Ergospirometer was used to assess physiological responses (heart rate and oxygen consumption [V02])' Nine recorded forces and nine experimental conditions formed the basis of this study, with subjects required to push three loads (200kg, 350kg, 500kg) at three frequencies (1120 sec, 1/40 sec, 1/60 sec) at a speed of 3.6km.h-1 over 14 metres on a co-efficient of friction controlled walkway for six minutes. Gait analysis, along with perceptions of exertion (,Central ' and 'Local' RPE) were collected during the third and sixth minutes of each condition . Body discomfort and contribution were identified upon completion of each condition. The results demonstrated that load and frequency interacted to influence responses within each domain. Increasing loads required increased force output during each stage of the push, which had a concomitant effect on physiological and perceptual responses. Significant differences arose between the initial, sustained and ending forces for each load, showing the direct relationship between load and force exertion. The combination of heaviest load/quickest frequency required the greatest physiological output, exceeding recommended guidelines for heart rate, V02 and energy expenditure responses. Intermediate combinations required moderate and acceptable energy cost. Linear relationships were established between heart rate and oxygen consumption , as well as between load and V02 , thus providing industrial practitioners an opportunity to evaluate task demands in situ. The combination of high forces and elevated physiological responses increased the subjective rating of the condition. The results emphasise the need to holistically consider all contributing factors in a dynamic pushing task. Dynamic pushing tasks place biomechanical, physiological and perceptual demands on the human operator, which must be minimised in order to ensure that this form of manual materials handling becomes sustainable in the long term.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
- Authors: Cripwell, Adam Michael
- Date: 2007
- Subjects: Work -- Physiological aspects , Psychophysiology , Human engineering , Biomechanics
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5144 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008183 , Work -- Physiological aspects , Psychophysiology , Human engineering , Biomechanics
- Description: The objective of the present research was to establish the biomechanical, physiological and perceptual responses of male operators to dynamic pushing tasks. The pushing tasks were performed using an industrial pallet jack with varying load/frequency combinations, in a controlled laboratory environment. Thirty healthy male subjects comprised the sample. Experimental procedures were conducted utilising the Chatillon ™ Dynamometer to measure force output in the initial, sustained and ending phases. The K4b2 Ergospirometer was used to assess physiological responses (heart rate and oxygen consumption [V02])' Nine recorded forces and nine experimental conditions formed the basis of this study, with subjects required to push three loads (200kg, 350kg, 500kg) at three frequencies (1120 sec, 1/40 sec, 1/60 sec) at a speed of 3.6km.h-1 over 14 metres on a co-efficient of friction controlled walkway for six minutes. Gait analysis, along with perceptions of exertion (,Central ' and 'Local' RPE) were collected during the third and sixth minutes of each condition . Body discomfort and contribution were identified upon completion of each condition. The results demonstrated that load and frequency interacted to influence responses within each domain. Increasing loads required increased force output during each stage of the push, which had a concomitant effect on physiological and perceptual responses. Significant differences arose between the initial, sustained and ending forces for each load, showing the direct relationship between load and force exertion. The combination of heaviest load/quickest frequency required the greatest physiological output, exceeding recommended guidelines for heart rate, V02 and energy expenditure responses. Intermediate combinations required moderate and acceptable energy cost. Linear relationships were established between heart rate and oxygen consumption , as well as between load and V02 , thus providing industrial practitioners an opportunity to evaluate task demands in situ. The combination of high forces and elevated physiological responses increased the subjective rating of the condition. The results emphasise the need to holistically consider all contributing factors in a dynamic pushing task. Dynamic pushing tasks place biomechanical, physiological and perceptual demands on the human operator, which must be minimised in order to ensure that this form of manual materials handling becomes sustainable in the long term.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2007
"How did I get this lucky?" : issues of power, intimacy and sexuality in the construction of young women's identities within their heterosexual relationships
- Authors: McEwen, Caryn
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Foucault, Michel, 1926-1984 -- Criticism and interpretation Heterosexuality Heterosexual women Women -- Sexual behavior Feminism -- Political aspects Sex role -- Political aspects Feminist psychology Sex (Psychology)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2861 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007595
- Description: This thesis seeks to explore how young, educated and seemingly liberated women construct their identities and make sense of their futures around their heterosexual relationships. Using the experiences of eight women participants engaged in long-term heterosexual relationships, combined with relevant secondary literature, issues of sexuality, identity, power and intimacy are discussed. Emphasis is placed on the implications of their identity construction and how they 'perform' their roles as women in society. How their sexual stories reflect their positioning in society is premised by the phrase, 'the personal is political' . Through analysis of the participants' experiences mixed with theoretical arguments, this thesis finds that young women are apparently sexually, economically and intellectually liberated but locked into discourses that provide highly unequal, limiting, disempowering and oppressive understandings of masculinity, femininity and sexuality. They live and experience a reality which is far from liberated.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: McEwen, Caryn
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Foucault, Michel, 1926-1984 -- Criticism and interpretation Heterosexuality Heterosexual women Women -- Sexual behavior Feminism -- Political aspects Sex role -- Political aspects Feminist psychology Sex (Psychology)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2861 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007595
- Description: This thesis seeks to explore how young, educated and seemingly liberated women construct their identities and make sense of their futures around their heterosexual relationships. Using the experiences of eight women participants engaged in long-term heterosexual relationships, combined with relevant secondary literature, issues of sexuality, identity, power and intimacy are discussed. Emphasis is placed on the implications of their identity construction and how they 'perform' their roles as women in society. How their sexual stories reflect their positioning in society is premised by the phrase, 'the personal is political' . Through analysis of the participants' experiences mixed with theoretical arguments, this thesis finds that young women are apparently sexually, economically and intellectually liberated but locked into discourses that provide highly unequal, limiting, disempowering and oppressive understandings of masculinity, femininity and sexuality. They live and experience a reality which is far from liberated.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
"Is rugby bad for your intellect": the effect of repetitive mild head injuries on the cognitive functioning of university level rugby players
- Authors: Smith, Ian Patrick
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Rugby football injuries Brain damage Neuropsychological tests Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3058 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002567
- Description: The study sought to determine whether there is evidence for the presence of residual (chronic) deleterious effects on cognition due to repetitive mild traumatic brain injury in top team university level rugby players, using ImPACT 3.0, Trail Making Test (TMT) and Digit Span. The initial sample of 48 participants was divided into groups; Rugby (n = 30) and Controls (n = 18), Rugby Forwards (n = 14) and Rugby Backs (n = 16). A reduced sample (N = 31) comprised of Rugby (n = 20) and Controls (n = 11), Rugby Forwards (n = 9) and Rugby Backs (n = 11). Comparative subgroups were equivalent for estimated IQ but not for age and educational level in the full sample; in the reduced sample there was equivalence for all three variables of age, education and estimated IQ. All cognitive test measures were subjected to independent t-test analyses between groups at the pre- and post-season, and dependent t-test analyses for Rugby and Controls at pre- versus post-season. Overall, the results implicated the presence of deleterious effects of concussive events on Rugby players in the areas of speed of information processing, working memory and impulse control. Significant practice effects were found on the TMT and Digit Span for controls, but not on ImPACT 3.0, supporting the use of this computer-based programme in the sports management context.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Smith, Ian Patrick
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Rugby football injuries Brain damage Neuropsychological tests Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3058 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002567
- Description: The study sought to determine whether there is evidence for the presence of residual (chronic) deleterious effects on cognition due to repetitive mild traumatic brain injury in top team university level rugby players, using ImPACT 3.0, Trail Making Test (TMT) and Digit Span. The initial sample of 48 participants was divided into groups; Rugby (n = 30) and Controls (n = 18), Rugby Forwards (n = 14) and Rugby Backs (n = 16). A reduced sample (N = 31) comprised of Rugby (n = 20) and Controls (n = 11), Rugby Forwards (n = 9) and Rugby Backs (n = 11). Comparative subgroups were equivalent for estimated IQ but not for age and educational level in the full sample; in the reduced sample there was equivalence for all three variables of age, education and estimated IQ. All cognitive test measures were subjected to independent t-test analyses between groups at the pre- and post-season, and dependent t-test analyses for Rugby and Controls at pre- versus post-season. Overall, the results implicated the presence of deleterious effects of concussive events on Rugby players in the areas of speed of information processing, working memory and impulse control. Significant practice effects were found on the TMT and Digit Span for controls, but not on ImPACT 3.0, supporting the use of this computer-based programme in the sports management context.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
"Morality and authority in existential praxis"
- Authors: Praeg, Leonhard
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Hooks, Bell Teacher-student relationships Education, Higher Knowledge, Sociology of Universities and colleges Educational change College teaching|xPhilosophy
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1928 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007593
- Description: In this study I am concerned with understanding how the emergence of participatory or, broadly understood, existential approaches to education has shifted the nature of the student/lecturer relationship. Historically, the difference was represented through the in loco parentis trope which contains implicit understandings as to the nature of the lecturer's authority and the ethical parameters of the relationship. With the emergence of more participatory approaches this relationship and its constitutive elements have to be re-imagined. In the first chapter I place this enquiry in the contemporary context in which the very identity of the university is changing as a result of massification and the accountability regime. In the second chapter I look at bell hooks' pedagogy as an example of such a participatory approach to education at higher education institutions. I describe her practice as a deconstructive pedagogy that is as powerful as it is because of the operation of a difference constitutive of it. In the third chapter I ask whether representing this difference in terms of the pre-modern master/apprentice offers a useful response to the questions raised by an existential praxis.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Praeg, Leonhard
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Hooks, Bell Teacher-student relationships Education, Higher Knowledge, Sociology of Universities and colleges Educational change College teaching|xPhilosophy
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1928 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007593
- Description: In this study I am concerned with understanding how the emergence of participatory or, broadly understood, existential approaches to education has shifted the nature of the student/lecturer relationship. Historically, the difference was represented through the in loco parentis trope which contains implicit understandings as to the nature of the lecturer's authority and the ethical parameters of the relationship. With the emergence of more participatory approaches this relationship and its constitutive elements have to be re-imagined. In the first chapter I place this enquiry in the contemporary context in which the very identity of the university is changing as a result of massification and the accountability regime. In the second chapter I look at bell hooks' pedagogy as an example of such a participatory approach to education at higher education institutions. I describe her practice as a deconstructive pedagogy that is as powerful as it is because of the operation of a difference constitutive of it. In the third chapter I ask whether representing this difference in terms of the pre-modern master/apprentice offers a useful response to the questions raised by an existential praxis.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
"Museum spaces in post-apartheid South Africa": the Durban Art Gallery as a case study
- Authors: Brown, Carol
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Durban Art Gallery -- History Museums -- South Africa -- Durban Art museums -- South Africa -- Durban Art -- South Africa -- Durban -- Exhibitions Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Exhibitions Art, Modern -- 19th century -- Exhibitions
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2446 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006231
- Description: This dissertation examines the history of the Durban Art Gallery from its founding in 1892 until 2004, a decade after the First Democratic Election. While the emphasis is on significant changes that were introduced in the post-1994 period, the earlier section of the study locates these initiatives within a broad historical framework. The collecting policies of the museum as well as its exhibitions and programmes are considered in the light of the institution 's changing social and political context as well as shifting imperatives within a local, regional and national art world. The Durban Art Gallery was established in order to promote a European, and particularly British, culture, and the acquisition and appreciation of art was considered an important element in the formation of a stable society. By providing a broad overview of the early years of the gallery, I identify reasons for the choice of acquisitions and explore the impact and reception of a selection of exhibitions. I investigate changes during the 1960s and 1970s through an examination of the Art South Africa Today exhibitions: in addition to opening up institutional spaces to a racially mixed community, these exhibitions marked the beginning of an imperative to show protest art. I argue that, during the political climate of the 1980s, there was a tension in the cultural arena between, on the one hand, a motivation to retain a Western ideal of 'high art' and, on the other, a drive to accommodate the new forms of people's art and to challenge the values and ideological standpoints that had been instrumental in shaping collecting and exhibiting policies in the South African art arena. I explore this tension through a discussion of the Cape Town Triennial exhibitions, organised jointly by all the official museums, which ran alongside more inclusive and independently curated exhibitions, such as Tributaries, which were shown mainly outside the country. The post-1994 period marked an opening up of spaces, both literally and conceptually. This openness was manifest in the revised strategies that were introduced to show the Durban Art Gallery 's permanent collection as well as in two key public projects that were started - Red Eye @rt and the AIDS 2000 ribbon. Through an examination of these strategies and initiatives, I argue that the central role of the Durban Art Gallery has shifted from being a repository to providing an interactive public space.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Brown, Carol
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Durban Art Gallery -- History Museums -- South Africa -- Durban Art museums -- South Africa -- Durban Art -- South Africa -- Durban -- Exhibitions Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Exhibitions Art, Modern -- 19th century -- Exhibitions
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2446 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006231
- Description: This dissertation examines the history of the Durban Art Gallery from its founding in 1892 until 2004, a decade after the First Democratic Election. While the emphasis is on significant changes that were introduced in the post-1994 period, the earlier section of the study locates these initiatives within a broad historical framework. The collecting policies of the museum as well as its exhibitions and programmes are considered in the light of the institution 's changing social and political context as well as shifting imperatives within a local, regional and national art world. The Durban Art Gallery was established in order to promote a European, and particularly British, culture, and the acquisition and appreciation of art was considered an important element in the formation of a stable society. By providing a broad overview of the early years of the gallery, I identify reasons for the choice of acquisitions and explore the impact and reception of a selection of exhibitions. I investigate changes during the 1960s and 1970s through an examination of the Art South Africa Today exhibitions: in addition to opening up institutional spaces to a racially mixed community, these exhibitions marked the beginning of an imperative to show protest art. I argue that, during the political climate of the 1980s, there was a tension in the cultural arena between, on the one hand, a motivation to retain a Western ideal of 'high art' and, on the other, a drive to accommodate the new forms of people's art and to challenge the values and ideological standpoints that had been instrumental in shaping collecting and exhibiting policies in the South African art arena. I explore this tension through a discussion of the Cape Town Triennial exhibitions, organised jointly by all the official museums, which ran alongside more inclusive and independently curated exhibitions, such as Tributaries, which were shown mainly outside the country. The post-1994 period marked an opening up of spaces, both literally and conceptually. This openness was manifest in the revised strategies that were introduced to show the Durban Art Gallery 's permanent collection as well as in two key public projects that were started - Red Eye @rt and the AIDS 2000 ribbon. Through an examination of these strategies and initiatives, I argue that the central role of the Durban Art Gallery has shifted from being a repository to providing an interactive public space.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
'Show and tell': a discursive analysis of women's written accounts of their self-injuring practices
- Authors: Morison, Tracy
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Self-injurious behavior , Psychology, Pathological
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3026 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002535 , Self-injurious behavior , Psychology, Pathological
- Description: Self-injuring is a practice that involves self-administered damage to one’s body, most commonly cutting of the skin on the forearms. (The practice is distinguished from other intentional and in/direct self-harmful or self-damaging behaviours that cause bodily harm). Dominant psychiatric, psychological or medical approaches construct self-injuring as deviant, socially unacceptable or abnormal behaviour that is indicative of more or less severe psychopathology, and importantly as a stereotypically female practice. This research is conducted within a post-essentialist framework and views self-injuring, and the injured body, as discursively constituted as well as a cultural and political act. It therefore moves away from pathologising discourses in which those who self-injure typically find themselves and their own accounts of their behaviour invalidated and silenced. Instead, the mental health perspective is viewed as one party among many that may contribute to the conceptualisation of ‘self-injuring’ practices as socially meaningful and thus self-injuring is critically interpreted without reliance on a medical model of ‘normalcy’. As part of attempts to challenge medical models and cultural ideals of normalcy, this research presents a critical discursive analysis of a series of narratives provided by 5 female participants in which they record their own experiences, feelings and thoughts related to their practices of selfinjuring. It makes use of critical discourse analytic methodology to identify certain characteristics of these narratives as representations of larger collective meaning systems. It analyses the ways in which self-injuring is constructed in women’s stories of their self-injuring experiences, focusing particularly on the subject positions available in these discourses, as well as their ideological effects. The analysis focuses particularly on constructions of the body and subject positions as they enable or undermines the self-injuring subject’s agency. Finally, it attempts to determine the limitations of certain accounts of self-injuring, pursuing multiple meanings of self-injuring and illuminating new dimensions of talk on self-injuring and novel ways of conceptualising and understanding the practice.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Morison, Tracy
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Self-injurious behavior , Psychology, Pathological
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3026 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002535 , Self-injurious behavior , Psychology, Pathological
- Description: Self-injuring is a practice that involves self-administered damage to one’s body, most commonly cutting of the skin on the forearms. (The practice is distinguished from other intentional and in/direct self-harmful or self-damaging behaviours that cause bodily harm). Dominant psychiatric, psychological or medical approaches construct self-injuring as deviant, socially unacceptable or abnormal behaviour that is indicative of more or less severe psychopathology, and importantly as a stereotypically female practice. This research is conducted within a post-essentialist framework and views self-injuring, and the injured body, as discursively constituted as well as a cultural and political act. It therefore moves away from pathologising discourses in which those who self-injure typically find themselves and their own accounts of their behaviour invalidated and silenced. Instead, the mental health perspective is viewed as one party among many that may contribute to the conceptualisation of ‘self-injuring’ practices as socially meaningful and thus self-injuring is critically interpreted without reliance on a medical model of ‘normalcy’. As part of attempts to challenge medical models and cultural ideals of normalcy, this research presents a critical discursive analysis of a series of narratives provided by 5 female participants in which they record their own experiences, feelings and thoughts related to their practices of selfinjuring. It makes use of critical discourse analytic methodology to identify certain characteristics of these narratives as representations of larger collective meaning systems. It analyses the ways in which self-injuring is constructed in women’s stories of their self-injuring experiences, focusing particularly on the subject positions available in these discourses, as well as their ideological effects. The analysis focuses particularly on constructions of the body and subject positions as they enable or undermines the self-injuring subject’s agency. Finally, it attempts to determine the limitations of certain accounts of self-injuring, pursuing multiple meanings of self-injuring and illuminating new dimensions of talk on self-injuring and novel ways of conceptualising and understanding the practice.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
A case study investigation of the neuropsychological profile of a rugby player with a history of multiple concussions
- Authors: Case, Stephanie
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Rugby football injuries , Brain -- Concussion -- Complications , Neuropsychological tests , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3165 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007727 , Rugby football injuries , Brain -- Concussion -- Complications , Neuropsychological tests , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects
- Description: sustained multiple concussions may be at risk of cumulative impairment. The role of neuropsychological testing in the management of sports-related concussion is a contentious and challenging issue which has gained credibility given the lack of clear and well-established guidelines pertaining to the diagnosis, assessment and return-to-play decisions following concussion. Despite various traditional paper and pencil tests being shown to be effective indicators of postconcussive neuropsychological dysfunction, testing has not been widely implemented, due to time- and labour-demands. ImPACT, a computer-based neuropsychological assessment instrument, has been recognised as a valid and reliable tool in the monitoring of athletes' symptoms and neurocognitive functioning preseason and postconcussion. As a part of larger-scale concussion research conducted on top-team university rugby players, this is an in-depth case study conducted on a 20-year old participant with a history of multiple concussions, who was referred following a concussion sustained during the season. The objectives of the study were: (i) to determine the sensitivity of ImPACT versus WAIS-III Digit Span and Trail Making Test during the acute postconcussive phase; and (ii) to examine the sensitivity of ImPACT versus a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tests to possible residual deficits as a result of the multiple concussions. ImPACT was determined to be more sensitive to acute postconcussive impairment following concussion than Digit Span and Trail Making Test. Furthermore, the ImPACT preseason baseline scores appear to be sensitive to neurocognitive dysfunction, possibly due to cumulative concussive injuries.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Case, Stephanie
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Rugby football injuries , Brain -- Concussion -- Complications , Neuropsychological tests , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3165 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007727 , Rugby football injuries , Brain -- Concussion -- Complications , Neuropsychological tests , Head -- Wounds and injuries -- Complications , Sports injuries -- Psychological aspects
- Description: sustained multiple concussions may be at risk of cumulative impairment. The role of neuropsychological testing in the management of sports-related concussion is a contentious and challenging issue which has gained credibility given the lack of clear and well-established guidelines pertaining to the diagnosis, assessment and return-to-play decisions following concussion. Despite various traditional paper and pencil tests being shown to be effective indicators of postconcussive neuropsychological dysfunction, testing has not been widely implemented, due to time- and labour-demands. ImPACT, a computer-based neuropsychological assessment instrument, has been recognised as a valid and reliable tool in the monitoring of athletes' symptoms and neurocognitive functioning preseason and postconcussion. As a part of larger-scale concussion research conducted on top-team university rugby players, this is an in-depth case study conducted on a 20-year old participant with a history of multiple concussions, who was referred following a concussion sustained during the season. The objectives of the study were: (i) to determine the sensitivity of ImPACT versus WAIS-III Digit Span and Trail Making Test during the acute postconcussive phase; and (ii) to examine the sensitivity of ImPACT versus a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tests to possible residual deficits as a result of the multiple concussions. ImPACT was determined to be more sensitive to acute postconcussive impairment following concussion than Digit Span and Trail Making Test. Furthermore, the ImPACT preseason baseline scores appear to be sensitive to neurocognitive dysfunction, possibly due to cumulative concussive injuries.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
A case study of teacher modification strategies in an ESL classroom context
- Authors: Rataza, Themba Theophilus
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: English language -- Study and teaching (Foreign speakers) -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape English language -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Code switching (Linguistics) -- South Africa Language and education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1925 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007558
- Description: The purpose of this study is to explore and discuss the use of teacher modification strategies by a high school teacher in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa in an English second language classroom. This teacher does not share the mother tongue of the learners. Unlike other teachers who resort to code switching when teaching L2 learners, this particular educator does not have that liberty. Code switching has been found to be a useful strategy for teaching and learning (Adendorff 1996, Marawu 1996). Code switching will henceforth be abbreviated as CS in the rest of the text. Often teachers use CS to help students understand as an avoidance strategy to teach in English. They have no other way of getting through to students because they haven't been shown the benefits of teacher modification strategies employed by the teacher I have observed in this study. The study therefore seeks to establish or investigate and describe the modification strategies the teacher uses to make his lessons comprehensible to his learners and to accommodate the needs of his L2 learners in view of the fact that he does not share the language of his learners. The motivation behind this study stems from the difficulties experienced by L2/ESL learners learning through the medium of English. These problems are described by researchers such as Macdonald (1990), Eiseman (1992), NEPI report (1992). These difficulties relate to the lack of vocabulary, low proficiency levels and comprehension skills. In view of the above, this case study research was conducted on one teacher to find out or investigate how he modifies his teaching strategies. It has been revealed in the literature studied / reviewed that teachers employ a variety of teaching strategies to adapt to the needs of their L2 learners. (Long (1983), Wong-Filhnore (1985), Chaudron (1988), Huizenga et al (1990)). The teacher in this study has also been found to employ the main strategies to modify his teaching practice. It is clear from the interviews with both the teacher and his students, that this particular teacher makes full use of a range of language and methodological strategies to help his students understand his lessons. It is hoped that the findings of this research may illuminate some valuable insights in the necessity and usefulness of teacher modification strategies for all teacher trainers so that our teaching institutions can provide a variety of methods for teacher trainees to help L2 students develop their English language skills.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Rataza, Themba Theophilus
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: English language -- Study and teaching (Foreign speakers) -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape English language -- Study and teaching (Secondary) -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Code switching (Linguistics) -- South Africa Language and education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1925 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007558
- Description: The purpose of this study is to explore and discuss the use of teacher modification strategies by a high school teacher in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa in an English second language classroom. This teacher does not share the mother tongue of the learners. Unlike other teachers who resort to code switching when teaching L2 learners, this particular educator does not have that liberty. Code switching has been found to be a useful strategy for teaching and learning (Adendorff 1996, Marawu 1996). Code switching will henceforth be abbreviated as CS in the rest of the text. Often teachers use CS to help students understand as an avoidance strategy to teach in English. They have no other way of getting through to students because they haven't been shown the benefits of teacher modification strategies employed by the teacher I have observed in this study. The study therefore seeks to establish or investigate and describe the modification strategies the teacher uses to make his lessons comprehensible to his learners and to accommodate the needs of his L2 learners in view of the fact that he does not share the language of his learners. The motivation behind this study stems from the difficulties experienced by L2/ESL learners learning through the medium of English. These problems are described by researchers such as Macdonald (1990), Eiseman (1992), NEPI report (1992). These difficulties relate to the lack of vocabulary, low proficiency levels and comprehension skills. In view of the above, this case study research was conducted on one teacher to find out or investigate how he modifies his teaching strategies. It has been revealed in the literature studied / reviewed that teachers employ a variety of teaching strategies to adapt to the needs of their L2 learners. (Long (1983), Wong-Filhnore (1985), Chaudron (1988), Huizenga et al (1990)). The teacher in this study has also been found to employ the main strategies to modify his teaching practice. It is clear from the interviews with both the teacher and his students, that this particular teacher makes full use of a range of language and methodological strategies to help his students understand his lessons. It is hoped that the findings of this research may illuminate some valuable insights in the necessity and usefulness of teacher modification strategies for all teacher trainers so that our teaching institutions can provide a variety of methods for teacher trainees to help L2 students develop their English language skills.
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- Date Issued: 2006
A case study of the goals of the business communication course at Technikon Witwatersrand
- Authors: Vongo, Mthuthuzeli Rubin
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Communication in education -- South Africa Communication -- Study and teaching (Higher) -- South Africa English language -- Study and teaching (Higher) -- South Africa Curriculum change -- South Africa Competency-based education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1316 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003949
- Description: At Technikon Witwatersrand, Business Communication is offered as a service subject, which is compulsory for a variety of diplomas and the majority of students are obligated to do the course. Its broad intention is to assist students in developing their proficiency in English, enabling them to cope with studying at Technikon and preparing them for the workplace. Despite the fact that the course is designed to assist them, many students question why they have to do the course and whether it is simply a repetition of high school work. The study attempts to examine the implicit and explicit goals of Business Communication, to explore the process through which the goals have been developed and changed over the years (i.e. how the goals have been constructed), and to elicit and compare the perspectives of the different stakeholder groups as to the goals. Both a qualitative and a quantitative approach are used in the research design. Interviews with four fulltime lecturers were conducted and a self-designed questionnaire was administered to students. These were the main means of data collection. The data reveals that the goals of Business Communication are implied rather than explicit. Despite this, students and lecturers see the course as important. Recommendations are made to help the Department of Business Communication to reflect on their practice with particular emphasis given to material development and the application of OBE principles.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Vongo, Mthuthuzeli Rubin
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Communication in education -- South Africa Communication -- Study and teaching (Higher) -- South Africa English language -- Study and teaching (Higher) -- South Africa Curriculum change -- South Africa Competency-based education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1316 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003949
- Description: At Technikon Witwatersrand, Business Communication is offered as a service subject, which is compulsory for a variety of diplomas and the majority of students are obligated to do the course. Its broad intention is to assist students in developing their proficiency in English, enabling them to cope with studying at Technikon and preparing them for the workplace. Despite the fact that the course is designed to assist them, many students question why they have to do the course and whether it is simply a repetition of high school work. The study attempts to examine the implicit and explicit goals of Business Communication, to explore the process through which the goals have been developed and changed over the years (i.e. how the goals have been constructed), and to elicit and compare the perspectives of the different stakeholder groups as to the goals. Both a qualitative and a quantitative approach are used in the research design. Interviews with four fulltime lecturers were conducted and a self-designed questionnaire was administered to students. These were the main means of data collection. The data reveals that the goals of Business Communication are implied rather than explicit. Despite this, students and lecturers see the course as important. Recommendations are made to help the Department of Business Communication to reflect on their practice with particular emphasis given to material development and the application of OBE principles.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
A case study of two teachers' understanding of and attitudes towards bilingualism and multiculturalism in a South African primary school
- Authors: Sutton, Candace
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Bilingualism in children , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- Foreign speakers , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- South Africa , Education, Bilingual -- South Africa , Language and languages -- Study and teaching , Language policy -- South Africa , Multicultural education -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa , Multiculturalism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2363 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002646 , Bilingualism in children , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- Foreign speakers , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- South Africa , Education, Bilingual -- South Africa , Language and languages -- Study and teaching , Language policy -- South Africa , Multicultural education -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa , Multiculturalism
- Description: At present, there is an emphasis in South African education on promoting multicultural classrooms in schools. This thesis examines the classroom culture of a South African English-medium school, where the majority of the learners are Second Language English learners. It first describes, in the form of a case-study, how two teachers have constructed the culture of their foundation phase classrooms. It then considers why the two teachers have constructed their classrooms in such ways by exploring their knowledge and understanding of, and attitudes towards, multiculturalism, second language acquisition and multilingualism. The study also briefly considers whether teacher training has sufficiently prepared these teachers for the challenges of a multicultural classroom. The data is discussed in terms of education and second language acquisition theory and South African education and language policies. The results of this study indicate that for the most part the classroom culture is distinctly Western and that the teachers have two fundamental assumptions that underpin their action and classroom construction. The first is that a lack of exposure to English is the primary cause of language problems for L2 learners and the second is that the L1 does not need to be maintained or promoted in the school environment because learners are sufficiently exposed to their L1 in the home. The thesis concludes that shortcomings in training and information encourages these two assumptions to take root and that more in-service training that focuses specifically on the nature of second language acquisition and multiculturalism is necessary.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Sutton, Candace
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Bilingualism in children , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- Foreign speakers , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- South Africa , Education, Bilingual -- South Africa , Language and languages -- Study and teaching , Language policy -- South Africa , Multicultural education -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa , Multiculturalism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2363 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002646 , Bilingualism in children , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- Foreign speakers , English language -- Study and teaching (Elementary) -- South Africa , Education, Bilingual -- South Africa , Language and languages -- Study and teaching , Language policy -- South Africa , Multicultural education -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa , Multiculturalism
- Description: At present, there is an emphasis in South African education on promoting multicultural classrooms in schools. This thesis examines the classroom culture of a South African English-medium school, where the majority of the learners are Second Language English learners. It first describes, in the form of a case-study, how two teachers have constructed the culture of their foundation phase classrooms. It then considers why the two teachers have constructed their classrooms in such ways by exploring their knowledge and understanding of, and attitudes towards, multiculturalism, second language acquisition and multilingualism. The study also briefly considers whether teacher training has sufficiently prepared these teachers for the challenges of a multicultural classroom. The data is discussed in terms of education and second language acquisition theory and South African education and language policies. The results of this study indicate that for the most part the classroom culture is distinctly Western and that the teachers have two fundamental assumptions that underpin their action and classroom construction. The first is that a lack of exposure to English is the primary cause of language problems for L2 learners and the second is that the L1 does not need to be maintained or promoted in the school environment because learners are sufficiently exposed to their L1 in the home. The thesis concludes that shortcomings in training and information encourages these two assumptions to take root and that more in-service training that focuses specifically on the nature of second language acquisition and multiculturalism is necessary.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
A comparative analysis of environmental policies of South African universities
- Authors: Gyan, Cecilia Adwoa
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Environmental education -- South Africa , Sustainable development -- Study and teaching , Education, Higher -- South Africa , Universities and colleges -- Environmental aspects , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Campus planning -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4773 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008067 , Environmental education -- South Africa , Sustainable development -- Study and teaching , Education, Higher -- South Africa , Universities and colleges -- Environmental aspects , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Campus planning -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa
- Description: There has been ongoing global concern on environmental issues and which is supposed to have moved down into smaller institutions and areas through local agenda 2l. Environmental issues are associated not only with care for the environment but also sustainable development. Various universities are beginning to strive for sustainable development and care for the environment. Some universities are therefore integrating care for the environment in their curricula and in their daily operations on campus. The greening of higher educational institutions as models is important as they are the seat for research and training of undergraduates who will become future leaders and policymakers and caretakers of the environment. It is therefore important for undergraduates to be exposed to greening processes in operations, research and curricula whilst still on campus. This study examines the process of formulating a policy and applies that to forming an environmental policy. The study involved a comparative analysis of environmental policies of various tertiary educational institutions from different countries. The study focused on how many universities in South Africa have environmental policies and how the universities which have environmental policies went about their formulation process. The study further examines the duration of the formulation process and the constraints encountered by universities. The study then reviews strategies on how the environmental policy is being implemented and how effective the implementation process is practically and the constraints these institutions face. The findings of the study reveal that few universities ill South Africa have an environmental policy. The universities are making efforts in their implementation process however, not all the principles found in the policies are being implemented effectively as there are no environmental management systems in place and there are no measurable objectives and targets set for proper evaluation of the success or failure of the policy.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Gyan, Cecilia Adwoa
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Environmental education -- South Africa , Sustainable development -- Study and teaching , Education, Higher -- South Africa , Universities and colleges -- Environmental aspects , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Campus planning -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:4773 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1008067 , Environmental education -- South Africa , Sustainable development -- Study and teaching , Education, Higher -- South Africa , Universities and colleges -- Environmental aspects , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Campus planning -- Environmental aspects -- South Africa
- Description: There has been ongoing global concern on environmental issues and which is supposed to have moved down into smaller institutions and areas through local agenda 2l. Environmental issues are associated not only with care for the environment but also sustainable development. Various universities are beginning to strive for sustainable development and care for the environment. Some universities are therefore integrating care for the environment in their curricula and in their daily operations on campus. The greening of higher educational institutions as models is important as they are the seat for research and training of undergraduates who will become future leaders and policymakers and caretakers of the environment. It is therefore important for undergraduates to be exposed to greening processes in operations, research and curricula whilst still on campus. This study examines the process of formulating a policy and applies that to forming an environmental policy. The study involved a comparative analysis of environmental policies of various tertiary educational institutions from different countries. The study focused on how many universities in South Africa have environmental policies and how the universities which have environmental policies went about their formulation process. The study further examines the duration of the formulation process and the constraints encountered by universities. The study then reviews strategies on how the environmental policy is being implemented and how effective the implementation process is practically and the constraints these institutions face. The findings of the study reveal that few universities ill South Africa have an environmental policy. The universities are making efforts in their implementation process however, not all the principles found in the policies are being implemented effectively as there are no environmental management systems in place and there are no measurable objectives and targets set for proper evaluation of the success or failure of the policy.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
A critical investigation of a Future Search Conference as a planned organisational change initiative within the National Health Training Network in Namibia
- Authors: Hausiku, Marthina Ndahepa
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Future Search Conference National Health Training Network Organizational change -- Namibia Research -- Methodology Interviewing
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1478 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003359
- Description: “The world is changing faster than the experts” (Weisbord & Janoff, 2000:xi). Change, according to Meyer & Botha (2000:223), is the movement of people from a current state to a defined, different, improved and desired new state. Change is needed in all organisations because it has direct influence on the organisation’s performance, and the National Health Training Network in Namibia is no exception. The Future Search Conference as a powerful organisation development strategy, can help people transform their capacity for action. The National Health Training Network (NHTN), like any other institution, has been experiencing some managerial/administrative problems. I, being a member of the NHTN, together with most of the organisation, was faced with the challenge of not knowing what to do. Learning about approaches that might help organisations to develop, concepts such as organisation development in general and Future Search in particular, I developed an interest especially in the Future Search Conference. My interest was based on successful developmental stories of Future Search Conferences in organisations across the world. I decided to introduce the Future Search Conference to our organisation, which I thought might be a remedy for our problems at a later stage. The aim of the study was to investigate participants' experiences and the perception of the Future Search Conference as an approach to organisational change, through interviews. The study found that Future Search was a new concept/approach to the NHTN as well as to the whole Ministry, and it is different from the traditional strategic planning. The difference is seen in the way Future Search involves all stakeholders in issues of concern, while strategic planning involves only managers. The responses revealed the willingness of participants to implement the Future Search Conference in their organisation. Data also revealed, however, that it was not clear how ready the managers were to carry out this task, as they are the gatekeepers. Participants suggested a separate Future Search Conference with managers, to sensitise them to the approach, so that they can see whether it addresses the values and goals of the organisation and can be implemented for developmental purposes.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006
- Authors: Hausiku, Marthina Ndahepa
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Future Search Conference National Health Training Network Organizational change -- Namibia Research -- Methodology Interviewing
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MEd
- Identifier: vital:1478 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003359
- Description: “The world is changing faster than the experts” (Weisbord & Janoff, 2000:xi). Change, according to Meyer & Botha (2000:223), is the movement of people from a current state to a defined, different, improved and desired new state. Change is needed in all organisations because it has direct influence on the organisation’s performance, and the National Health Training Network in Namibia is no exception. The Future Search Conference as a powerful organisation development strategy, can help people transform their capacity for action. The National Health Training Network (NHTN), like any other institution, has been experiencing some managerial/administrative problems. I, being a member of the NHTN, together with most of the organisation, was faced with the challenge of not knowing what to do. Learning about approaches that might help organisations to develop, concepts such as organisation development in general and Future Search in particular, I developed an interest especially in the Future Search Conference. My interest was based on successful developmental stories of Future Search Conferences in organisations across the world. I decided to introduce the Future Search Conference to our organisation, which I thought might be a remedy for our problems at a later stage. The aim of the study was to investigate participants' experiences and the perception of the Future Search Conference as an approach to organisational change, through interviews. The study found that Future Search was a new concept/approach to the NHTN as well as to the whole Ministry, and it is different from the traditional strategic planning. The difference is seen in the way Future Search involves all stakeholders in issues of concern, while strategic planning involves only managers. The responses revealed the willingness of participants to implement the Future Search Conference in their organisation. Data also revealed, however, that it was not clear how ready the managers were to carry out this task, as they are the gatekeepers. Participants suggested a separate Future Search Conference with managers, to sensitise them to the approach, so that they can see whether it addresses the values and goals of the organisation and can be implemented for developmental purposes.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2006