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Social acts and projections of change

- Minkley, G

Authors: Minkley, G
Language: English
Type: Inaugural lecture
Identifier: vital:11982 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1011241
Description: This lecture considers the question of the social from within the workings of the SARChI Chair in Social Change. Rather than accepting ‘the social’ as something that is given, it proposes that we problematize and ‘re: work’ the social as being a hybrid domain, as being spatially diverse and as being enacted. An argument for ‘social acts’, which are related to, but not the same as actors and actions is proposed as a means to read and understand the social and projections of social change in new ways. While social acts produce actors and need actors to be actualised, social acts themselves produce ruptures in the given, entail a remaining in the scene and they always involve others and the Other in altering projections of the social, of ‘other socials’, and of projections of change. In practice too, the enactment of the social and the material as integrally associative decentre the object, bringing it into view as one that is also socially enacted, requiring continuing effort, choreography, staging, repetition, but also rupture. To enact, then, is to realize a rupture in the given-ness of the social and to necessarily attend to the unexpected, unpredictable and unknown of the social and its equally enacted and re-worked projections of change.
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Social cohesion: is it possible in a diverse society?

- Pauw, H C

Authors: Pauw, H C
Subjects: Social interaction -- South Africa , South Africa -- Social conditions , f-sa
Language: English
Type: text , Lectures
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/21914 , vital:29801
Description: The Faculty of Arts has been requested to drive one of the NMMU research themes, namely "Social cohesion". Being a memeber of the Faculty of Arts and from the School of Governance and Social Sciences I have decided to provide some input regarding this theme. South Africa experienced violent xenophobic attacks on non-South African Africans during May 2008. In a report in The Times (17 June 2008) under the title Mandela calls for 'Social cohesion', former president Nelson Mandela urged the youth of South Africa to work for social cohesion in the country. "The struggle for democracy has never been a matter pursued by one race, class, religious community or gender among South Africans. As future leaders of this country, your challenge is to foster a nation in which all people, irrespective of race, colour, sex, religion or creed, can ascertain a social cohesion fully," (http://www.TheTimes-Mandela calls for 'social cohesion'.htm). My perspective regarding humans is, to paraphrase the late Clyde Kluckhohn, that: Every human is like all other humans, some other humans and no other human.
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Social media reviews to investigate restaurant dinning experiences

- Van Achterbergh, Leon

Authors: Van Achterbergh, Leon
Subjects: Hospitality industry -- Social aspects , Restaurants -- Social aspects , Social media -- Economic aspects , Consumers -- Research
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
Identifier: vital:9349 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1021126
Description: Restaurateurs often assume that customers' online reviews of their dining experiences are a reflection of their dining preferences. This study finds this assumption not to be true. Online written reviews do not explain diners’ preferred dining experiences. In this study post-experience reactions captured in reviews are shown to be contextually different to established dining preferences. Results show online reviews to be most important in facilitating customer dining expectations, but not influencing customers’ preferences in dining experiences. Evidence gathered during the secondary research shows that in general, social media has become the great marketing equaliser in commerce. In the dining industry, restaurants cannot solely rely on traditional media in the initial attraction and retention of dining customers. Continuous interaction between the business and customers is increasingly necessary for restaurateurs to remain competitive and in-touch with customers’ needs. This study concentrates its research area on the post-experience evaluation phase as found on review websites, like TripAdvisor. TripAdvisor has especially become a popular means to perpetuate word-of-mouth opinions of dining experiences among prospective customers. Research shows clear evidence of the importance of other's online opinions in the consumer decision-making process. The main variables of the study, namely customer experiences, restaurant dining and social media, are theoretically explored within the disciplines of service management and customer behaviour. These theories have laid a sound foundation for the subsequent research methods followed. The main purpose of the study was using social media reviews from TripAdvisor to investigate dining experiences in the restaurant industry. The outcomes desired were: firstly to advise the restaurant industry about superior customer practices, secondly emphasising the importance for industry of social media use in the dining experience, and thirdly rendering clarification on the experience perceptions of customers about factors that might lead to ‘delight’ and ‘frustration’. This research centralises the constructs of delight and frustration factors, which are typically extremely emotional dining experiences for the customer, that have the common element of surprise. Methodologically, the research required two phases: firstly, the qualitative analysis of online user-generated content by content analysis. The global sample consisted of seven international cities, which included the best, worst and average-rated TripAdvisor restaurant reviews. The content analysis produced the theoretical base for the dining perception variables used in the empirical survey. In the second phase of the study, the global surveys administered resulted in measuring the general public’s perceptions of the delight and frustration factors of dining experiences. Subsequently, the research process required various quantitative data analyses to reach substantial results with inferences. The results and interpreted findings achieved were twofold: Firstly, from the content analysis: customers regard service quality as relatively unimportant in relation to the holistic dining experience. Customers regarded food and beverage quality as crucial in the dining experience. Value for money increasingly becomes an issue as customers become more frustrated, more so than when the dining was generally experienced as pleasant. Secondly, from the empirical data: mood and aesthetics are essential, especially when diners chose between their favourite restaurants. Further results show managing the service basics for restaurants is essential; this included welcoming, professional, attentive and friendly service. Service consistency has also proven to be imperative in customers’ perceptions. Results further show that different nationalities could perceive food quality and service reliability differently. In addition, men and women could perceive food quality, mood and aesthetics, and value for money differently. This study recommends various findings to the restaurant industry: most importantly that the post-experience reviews are contextually different to customers’ dining preferences. The factor determining the reputation of a restaurant is food quality and not so much service quality. Value for money should be associated with a specific service or product feature for it to be of meaningful consequence to the restaurateur.
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South Africa`s reflections and juxtapositions of puffery psychodynamic evaluation of public administration shortcomings: public protests versus elections outcomes

- Ijeoma, Edwin Okechukwu Chikata

Authors: Ijeoma, Edwin Okechukwu Chikata
Subjects: Public procurement , Service delivery , Corruption , Tender fraud , Cadre deployment , Law courts
Language: English
Type: Inaugural lecture
Identifier: vital:11972 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1007762 , Public procurement , Service delivery , Corruption , Tender fraud , Cadre deployment , Law courts
Description: As the country concludes the second decade since the dawn of the new democratic dispensation in South Africa, there has been an explosion in the magnitude and intensity of service delivery related protest in the entire country. Such grumbling actions are a sign of the perceived growing frustration of the citizens of the failure of their government to provide service to them or a situation catalysed by the “enemies of the state”?. The governing party has to reflect on its policies and practices so as to rectify these in line with satisfying the citizens since these are the voters-cum-tax payers. Ironically, the protests related to service rendering are more frequent in the strongholds of the governing party, a situation which has led to some scholars handpicking the cadre deployment policy of the governing party as a failure. There are various incidences where residents or citizens had to take to the streets in protest of the manner in which the government has addressed the plight of the ordinary citizens. Some of these protests have turned into running battles between the residents and the police, sometimes even leading to death of protestors. One case in point is the death in Ficksburg of Andres Tatane on the 13 of April 2011, a protester from rubber bullet wounds in the Free State Province. The death has also been labelled a failure on the side of the police, same as those of the Marikana miners and the Mozambican Mido Macia on the 27 of February 2013, who also succumbed to police inflicted injuries. This paper probes the outcomes of elections and service delivery in the wake of the protracted rise in public service delivery protests. The paper also provides some recommendations which the governing parties can consider in reshaping its mandate and policies aimed at elimination the frequency of Public protest everywhere in the country.
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Speaking at Union Meetings

- Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU)

Authors: Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU)
Subjects: ICTU
Language: English
Type: text
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/174145 , vital:42446
Description: The type of meetings we have in mind are general members’ meetings with more than ten people in attendance. These notes are relevant where you have an opportunity to think beforehand about what you are going to say and to spend some time on preparation. Sometimes you may have to speak 'on the spur of the moment' in response to information, a statement or an event. In these circumstances, you should try to get your thoughts together before you speak, rather than simply 'thinking out loud’. The most important point about the 'spur of the moment' type of situation is to say what’s on your mind. Don’t leave it to someone else. These ‘spontaneous’ contributions to meetings can be very effective. People usually can recognise when someone is speaking ‘from the heart’! Sincerity, honesty and conviction are much more important for effective speaking than ‘polish’ and presentation. Hundreds of books have been written and millions of pounds ’earned’ telling people how to get their message across. While good presentation can help, for the trade union movement what people say is more important than how they say it. A speech is effective if the audience remembers most of the points made by the speaker.
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Speaking out : Africa orality and post-colonial preoccupations in selected examples of contemporary performance poetry

- Mnensa, Mabel Thandeka

Authors: Mnensa, Mabel Thandeka
Subjects: Oral interpretation of poetry , Poetry slams , Oral tradition -- Africa , Folk literature -- Africa
Language: English
Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
Identifier: vital:8455 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1193 , Oral interpretation of poetry , Poetry slams , Oral tradition -- Africa , Folk literature -- Africa
Description: Contemporary performance poetry is a democratic art form that elicits dialogue and is a catalyst for social change. Yet it is an art form that is still not well understood: it is accused of unconsciously mimicking hip-hop and being a watered-down, lesser version of "real" poetry. However once its power is harnessed it may be a powerful art form that can be used to address social ills and act as a medium for memory work. The themes that are prevalent in contemporary performance poetry illustrate society‘s preoccupations. Different South African and American poets from a wide range of socio-economic, national, generational and racial backgrounds are examined to explore the collective preoccupations that keep emerging in the poetry, issues pertaining to race and class, gender, and to the politics of the past and its effect on the present. There is a long debate around the influences of contemporary performance poetry, which is negotiated in Chapter One. Though Gil Scott-Heron‘s "The Revolution will not be Televised" is identified as being a major influence, Saul Williams‘s "Black Stacey" challenges some of the arguments made by Scott-Heron. Lesego Rampolokeng lays the foundation for South African performance poetry by criticising the new black elite in the country in "Riding the Victim Train". Chapter Two examines how the poets challenge the status quo in their work. Sarah Jones‘s "Blood" illustrates how the new black middle class in America is complicit in keeping poor people on the margins, while Kgafela oa Magogodi levels his criticism against state sanctioned poets in South Africa. Mxolisi Nyezwa‘s "The Man is Gone" illustrates that the new class based hierarchal system in South Africa is potentially harsher than the apartheid one that was based on race. Chapter Three focuses on gender issues that are prevalent in South Africa. Tumi Molekane‘s "Yvonne" illustrates the danger that is embedded in the hetero-normative narrative while oa Magogodi‘s "Samson and deli(e)lah" and Sam‘s "Eve" explore how this narrative is unjustly informed by misinterpretations of the Bible. History and the impact of the past on the present is the focus of Chapter Four. "76" by Molekane illustrates how the apartheid legacy still affects many in South Africa, while Andrea Gibson‘s "Eli" explores the devastating effects of America‘s war efforts in Iraq. Dennis Brutus highlights the cathartic attributes of poetry that is community-driven in "So Neat They Were" and "Mumia". The chapter ends with an exploration of how the form of izibongo is used by Chris Thurman in "Holy City (A Jozi Praise-Poem)". The last poem illustrates how the past informs the present and suggests that despite the bleakness of the past, there is hope for South Africa because of its rich cultural heritage.
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Spectral properties and photophysical behaviour of water soluble cationic Mg(II) and Al(III) phthalocyanines

- Idowu, Mopelola A, Arslanoglu, Yasin, Nyokong, Tebello

Authors: Idowu, Mopelola A , Arslanoglu, Yasin , Nyokong, Tebello
Language: English
Type: Article
Identifier: vital:7277 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020292
Description: Peripherally and non-peripherally tetrasubstituted-[(N-methyl-2-pyridylthio)]phthalocyaninato magnesium (II) (5 and 6) and chloro aluminium (III) (7 and 8) tetraiodide have been synthesized and characterized. The photophysical properties of the complexes in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and aqueous medium in the presence and absence of cremophore EL have been studied. These complexes show high solubility in aqueous medium though they were aggregated. The triplet state quantum yields (FT) and the triplet lifetimes (tT) were found to be higher in DMSO with ΦT ranging from 0.32 to 0.51, while tT ranged from 282 to 622 ms in DMSO, compared to aqueous medium (pH 7.4 buffer) where ΦT ranged from 0.15 to 0.19 and tT from 26 to 35 ms. Addition of cremophore EL in aqueous solution resulted in partial disaggregation and increased photoactivity. The fluorescence lifetimes of the complexes showed strong dependence on their immediate environment. The ionic magnesium(II) and aluminium(III) phthalocyanines strongly bind to bovine serum albumin (BSA). , Original publication is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/s11532-013-0388-z
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Speech and Music for Chopi Wedding

- Tracey, Hugh

Authors: Tracey, Hugh
Subjects: Chopi wedding , Speech , Music , Xylophone , Orchestra , Dances , Chief Banguza, Philipi , Chief Zandamela , Bride, Chief Banguza's daughter , Groom, Chief Zandamela's son , Komukomu, leader of xylophone orchestra , Makara , Rattle players , Mzeno movement , Whistling , Ngondo dance , Chibudo movement , Villagers , Mozambique
Language: English
Type: Sound , Radio broadcast , Music
Identifier: vital:15134 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1012208 , Reel number: BC159
Description: Broadcast entitled 'Speech and Music for Chopi Wedding', for a television film programme broadcast by the British Broadcasting Corporation , For further details refer to the ILAM Document Collection: Hugh Tracey Broadcasts
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