Human impacts on hydrological health and the provision of ecosystemservices: a case study of the eMthonjeni–Fairview Spring Wetland, Grahamstown, South Africa
- Authors: Sinchembe, M , Ellery, William F N
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/144343 , vital:38337 , DOI: 10.2989/16085914.2010.538508
- Description: Wetland hydrological health and the provision of indirect ecosystem services in the eMthonjeni–Fairview Spring Wetland, Grahamstown, South Africa, were assessed in 2008, using the newly developed wetland assessment tools WET-Health and WET-EcoServices. Variation in health and ecosystem services were assessed over time, based on aerial photograph interpretation and the use of the score sheets in these assessment tools. Hydrological health and indirect ecosystem services of the wetland have been altered since 1949, due to human activities both in the catchment and the wetland. The most significant human intervention on the wetland's hydrological health was the result of road construction and invasion by alien plants. Water use by local residents had an unmeasurable effect on hydrological health. Wetland health is related to the provision of wetland ecosystem services, and cumulative impacts in the catchment and wetland have reduced the provision of many indirect wetland ecosystem services.
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- Date Issued: 2010
The presentation of the orphan child in eighteenth and early nineteenth century English literature in a selection of William Blake's 'Songs of innocence and experience', and in Charlotte Brontë's 'Jane Eyre', and Emily Brontë's 'Wuthering Heights'
- Authors: Singh, Jyoti
- Date: 2010 , 2013-07-18
- Subjects: Blake, William, 1757-1827 -- Songs of innocence and of experience -- Characters -- Orphans Blake, William, 1757-1827 -- Criticism and interpretation Brontë, Charlotte, 1816-1855 -- Jane Eyre -- Characters -- Orphans Brontë, Charlotte, 1816-1855 -- Criticism and interpretation Brontë, Emily, 1818-1848 -- Wuthering Heights -- Characters -- Orphans Brontë, Emily, 1818-1848 -- Criticism and interpretation Orphans in literature
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2267 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005628
- Description: This thesis is a study of the presentation of the orphan child in eighteenth and early nineteenth century English literature, and focuses on William Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience, Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, and Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights. It is concerned with assessing the extent to which the orphan children in each of the works are liberated from familial and social constraints and structures and to what end. Chapter One examines the major thematic concern of the extent to which the motif of the orphan child represents a wronged innocent, and whether this symbol can also, or alternatively, be presented as a revolutionary force that challenges society's status quo in Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience. Chapter Two considers the significance of the child "lost" and "found", which forms the explicit subject of six of Blake's Songs of Innocence and Experience and explores the treatment of these conditions, and their differences and consequences for the children concerned. Chapter Three focuses on Charlotte Bronte's depiction of the orphan in Jane Eyre, which presents two models of the orphan child: the protagonist Jane, and Helen Burns. The chapter examines these two models and their responses to orphan-hood in a hostile world where orphans are mistreated by family and society alike. Chapter Four determines whether the orphan constitutes a subversive threat to the family in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights and also explores the notion that, although orphan-hood often entails liberation from adult guardians, it also comprises vulnerability and exposure. The thesis concludes by considering the extent to which orphan-hood can involve a form of liberation from the confines of social structures, and what this liberation constitutes for each of the three authors.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Implementation of the dual therapy prevention of mother-to-child transmission protocol
- Authors: Singh, Vikesh
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: HIV infections -- Transmission -- South Africa , AIDS (Disease) in pregnancy -- Prevention -- South Africa , Antiretroviral agents
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MPharm
- Identifier: vital:10138 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1374 , HIV infections -- Transmission -- South Africa , AIDS (Disease) in pregnancy -- Prevention -- South Africa , Antiretroviral agents
- Description: Antiretroviral drugs taken during pregnancy, reduce the rates of mother-to-child transmission from 35 percent to as low as 1 to 2 percent (UNAIDS, 2009). In 2002, the Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) programme was implemented in South Africa. Studies on the implementation of the PMTCT programme have shown that understaffed and under-developed health care facilities were key barriers to the provision of PMTCT services (Health Systems Trust, 2002: 6; Skinner et al., 2003). The aim of this study was to assess the challenges experienced by health care workers working in public sector facilities in the Nelson Mandela Metropole after implementation of the dual therapy PMTCT programme. Four areas were investigated: Infrastructure; Drug Supply Management; Clinic Procedures and Staffing. A quantitative descriptive study was conducted in August 2009 at nine public health care facilities in the Nelson Mandela Metropole, South Africa. Questionnaires were issued to 81 nurses and 41 pharmacy personnel (pharmacists and pharmacist assistants). Checklist audit forms were issued to the Facility Manager of each facility and completed with the researcher. The key findings for Infrastructure were lack of space at patient waiting rooms (9; 100 percent n=9), counselling area (5; 55.5 percent; n=9), nurse consultation rooms (6; 66.6 percent; n=9), storage areas (5; 55.5 percent; n=9) and filing areas (7; 77.7 percent; n=9). The key findings for Drug Supply Management were none of the dispensaries (0 percent; n=10) were fully compliant with Good Pharmacy Practice, pharmacy personnel indicated that there were no stock cards for medication (13; 31.7 percent; n=41); there was less than two weeks supply of buffer stock kept for zidovudine and nevirapine (13; 35.1percent; n=37) and medication orders were placed without any reference to minimum and maximum levels of medication (15; 36.5 percent; n=41) . The key findings for Clinic Procedures were only two facilities followed up on patients that had missed appointments (22.2 percent; n=9) and four facilities (44.4 percent; n=9) had a tracking system for patients that had defaulted. Of the nine facilities only three (33.3 percent; n=9) updated patient demographic details regularly. The key findings for Staffing were a shortage of doctors, nurses, counsellors and pharmacists at the facilities. One of the major challenges identified was the lack of training offered on new PMTCT protocols with 56.2 percent (45; n=80) of the nurses stating that no training was provided on the dual PMTCT protocol. Only 54.3 percent (44; n=81) of nurses stated that they knew the criteria to start the mother on dual PMTCT therapy. In conclusion there is an urgent need for barriers such as lack of staff, lack of space, lack of training on PMTCT and standard procedures for follow up of patients to be addressed in order to ensure the successful scaling up of PMTCT.
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- Date Issued: 2010
An investigation of the African subjectivity represented in Gavin Hood's Tsotsi (2006)
- Authors: Siwak, Jakub
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Subjectivity in literature , Subjectivity Drama , Violence in motion pictures
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8391 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1093 , Subjectivity in literature , Subjectivity Drama , Violence in motion pictures
- Description: This treatise will focus on a critical examination of Gavin Hood’s South African Oscar-winning film, Tsotsi (2006), in the interest of exploring how the mass media creates a problematic configuration of the subject, in virtue of its valorization of the continued discursive colonization of Africans (identified broadly in geographical rather than racial terms). That is, within the narrative of the film, the protagonist, after engaging in a crime spree, gives himself over to the state authorities and emotively confesses to his transgressions. Importantly, this dramatic confession is represented as a triumph of the human spirit – in the form of an autonomous rehabilitation on the part of the criminal. However, if one understands the protagonist as a subject constituted by what Foucault terms the discursive regimes of disciplinary/bio-power, what emerges into conspicuity is that the protagonist’s actions rather than being the result of his growing maturity and concomitant augmenting ‘humanity’ are the consequence of a set of discursive imperatives which render him docile and prostrate. Arguably, what this serves to represent, and, indeed, propagate, is more of a superimposition of Western cultural discourses on African subjects, and less of a negotiation with such discourses by such subjects. The treatise aims to provide a theoretical solution to the negation of alternative modes of being by disciplinary/bio-power imperatives inextricable from neo-liberal subjectivity. However, in its attempts to encourage cultural negotiation between North and South, the treatise will avoid simplistic, ‘orthodox’, Marxist solutions and will instead critically contend with the theory of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, and their perspectives on how radical democracy can be achieved.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Facilitating customer retention in hotels in the Garden Route
- Authors: Slabbert, Gabriel Johannes
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Hospitality industry -- South Africa -- Garden Route , Customer relations
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:8613 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1552 , Hospitality industry -- South Africa -- Garden Route , Customer relations
- Description: Over the past few decades, customer satisfaction, customer retention and policies and procedures to sustain the above mentioned, have earned great amount of lip service. The importance of satisfied customer percentage have been emphasized by theories even longer before the best advised companies have done so. It is only recently, on the eve of the Soccer World cup 2010 that the issue has been narrowed down to truly hard relationships and one hard question: “Will the guest visiting the hospitality establishment frequent the hotel?” Two vital financial catalysts were used as basis for customer retention. The first is that of old customer’s costs much less than acquisition of new ones and the profit generated from the retained customer must therefore handsomely exceed the harvest reaped from the new clientele. Retaining customers have become an intangible asset in the sense that their value demonstrates the return that is won by successful efforts to satisfy the customers so greatly that they and their custom literally and figuratively stays with you. South Africa has lured even the loneliest traveller to the scenic beauty that is cradled by the country and its surroundings. When taking the former into consideration, South African businesses have enjoyed an increased appreciation and application of Business Management and its accompanying principles. The hospitality industry should therefore embrace the business management principles with specific emphasis on Total Quality Management (TQM); providing managers with the capacity to think strategically about the organisation, its business position, how it can gain sustainable competitive advantage and how its business management strategy can be implemented and executed successfully. The latter forms the basis for ensuring the smooth running of operations and ultimately, ensuring guests have a wonderful experience at the particular establishment. There is a strong belief that lodging facilities in the Garden Route area has experienced low customer retention due to a lack of comprehensive implementation of Total Quality Management principles which impedes on the establishments to reach their optimum profit levels. It is for this reason that this thesis will argue the importance of the systematic client retention as a strategic mandate in today’s service markets. Commercial reality demand long and lasting relationships that are beneficial to both the hospitality related establishment and their customers. The hypothesis used is the application of Total Quality Management as a Business Management Strategy which will facilitate customer retention in hospitality related industries such as hotels situated in the Garden Route area. Research shows that service expectations of customers and potential customers have escalated. Hospitality businesses found that implementation of quality processes to be a vital competitive component. However, many hotels are still struggling to reach a real understanding of what is meant by TQM. The research data indicates that 93 percent of hotels in the Garden Route do not follow a TQM program although all the hotels were familiar with the concept. This might be the reason why most hotels neglect customer retention activities. The literature reviewed in chapter two considers the customer retention activities evaluated in the questionnaire as important to retain guests. Hotels in the Garden Route do not perform these activities to the extent of success. Hotel managers thus know what to do in order to retain guests but the problem is quite simple, they do not always implement the necessary strategies.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Three's a crowd: the process of triadic translation in a South African psychiatric institution
- Authors: Slabbert, Meggan
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Mental health services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Psychiatric hospitals -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Translating and interpreting -- Psychological aspects , Translating and interpreting -- Social aspects , Content analysis (Communication) , South Africa -- Languages -- Translating and interpreting , Intercultural communication -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Culture conflict -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Communication and culture -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Physician and patient -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Communication in medicine -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSocSc
- Identifier: vital:3056 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002565 , Mental health services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Psychiatric hospitals -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Translating and interpreting -- Psychological aspects , Translating and interpreting -- Social aspects , Content analysis (Communication) , South Africa -- Languages -- Translating and interpreting , Intercultural communication -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Culture conflict -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Communication and culture -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Physician and patient -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Communication in medicine -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: Mental health care in South Africa has long been governed by inequalities (Foster & Swartz, 1997). During apartheid, those who did not speak English and Afrikaans could not access mental health services in the same way as those who did (Foster & Swartz, 1997). One main reason for this is the majority of mental health practitioners could not, and were not required to speak languages other than English and Afrikaans (Swartz, 1991). The South African mental health literature suggests that language and communication must be prioritised if there is to be an improvement in mental health care services for those individuals who do not speak English and Afrikaans (Bantjes, 1999; Drennan & Swartz, 1999; Swartz & Drennan, 2000; Swartz & MacGregor, 2002). Drawing on Prasad's (2002) interpretation of Gadamer's critical hermeneutic theory and utilising thematic networks analysis (Attride-Stirling, 2001), this study investigated the process of translated clinical assessment interviews within a psychiatric hospital in the Eastern Cape Province within South Africa. Results of the study revealed that contextual factors, issues concerning linguistic and cultural heritage, clinicians' role expectations regarding translators' role performance, as well as relational dynamics regarding individual levels of control and influence within the translation triad, all impacted on the effectiveness of communication, translation and service provision. These fmdings are supported by literature on the theory and practice of translation that identifies these issues as prominent (Robinson, 2003). Specific recommendations regarding the formalisation of translation practices within the hospital setting, as well as the familiari~ation of clinical practitioners and psychiatric nurses with the intricacies of translation processes are offered.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Target costing as a strategic cost management tool in the South African motor industry
- Authors: Slater, Michael, M A
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Target costing -- South Africa , Strategic planning -- South Africa -- Management , Cost accounting -- South Africa -- Standards , Cost accounting -- South Africa , Cost control
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8974 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1094 , Target costing -- South Africa , Strategic planning -- South Africa -- Management , Cost accounting -- South Africa -- Standards , Cost accounting -- South Africa , Cost control
- Description: Traditional cost-accounting approaches have served manufacturers well over a long period, but due to the changing nature of the modern manufacturing environment shortcomings have resulted and are no longer regarded as suitable (Gagne & Discenza 1993: 68). Similarly, Monden and Lee (1993: 22) state that many practitioners and academicians have questioned the effectiveness of standard cost systems, which have been used as the primary cost control measure for the last several decades. Cooper and Slagmulder (1997: 2) point out that in contrast to the conventional cost management techniques, target costing adopts a feed-forward approach. The objective of target costing is to design costs out of products, and not to find ways of eliminating costs after the products enter production. Few firms can afford to ignore such a powerful mechanism to increase profits in today’s highly competitive environment.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Resilience in families living with child diagnosed with cerebral palsy
- Authors: Small, Renée Frances
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Resilience (Personality trait) , Cerebral palsy , Adjustment (Psychology) , Adaptability (Psychology)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:9876 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1362 , Resilience (Personality trait) , Cerebral palsy , Adjustment (Psychology) , Adaptability (Psychology)
- Description: Cerebral Palsy is a complex, non-progressive condition that manifests in various forms of motor impairments. This life-long condition holds numerous challenges for the entire family throughout the family life-cycle. While the challenges that these families have to face are many, families seem to have the ability to "bounce back" and to be resilient. Research on the construct of resilience and more specifically family resilience has increased in recent times. South African family resilience research is relatively limited. This study aimed to identify, explore and describe the resiliency factors that facilitate adjustment and adaptation in families that include a child living with Cerebral Palsy. The Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation was used to conceptualise the level of family adaptation. The study was triangular in nature, with an exploratory, descriptive approach. Non-probability purposive and snowball sampling techniques were employed. The sample consisted of 30 female caregivers. Biographical questionnaires with two open-ended questions, in conjunction with seven structured questionnaires were used to gather the data. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the biographical information. Correlation and regression analysis was used to analyse the quantitative data, while content analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. The results of the quantitative component of the study indicated five significant positive correlations with the FACI8. These variables were family hardiness (measured by the FHI), family time together and routines (measured by the FTRI), social support (measured by the SSI), relative and friends support (measure by the RFS), and spiritual support (measured by the F-COPES). The results of the qualitative analysis revealed that social support, the caregivers' acceptance of the condition, and spirituality and religion were the most important strength factors that contributed to the families' adjustment and adaptation. Although the sample was small and the study has limitations, it could be used as a stepping-stone for future research on resilience in families living with a child with a physical disability and will contribute to the broader context of family resilience research in South Africa.
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- Date Issued: 2010
The role of school discipline in combating violence in schools in the East London region
- Authors: Smit, Marie Elizabeth
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: School violence -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , M Ed
- Identifier: vital:16164 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/224 , School violence -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: This study focuses on the role of discipline in the establishment and maintenance of a safe school environment for learners and educators. In a mainly qualitative investigation, empirical data from four primary schools and five high schools in the East London Region of the Eastern Cape Province were collected by means of individual interviews and questionnaires. Historico-legal research also formed part of the literature review, thus law reports and articles from South Africa and other countries were included as part of the research process. This was done to shed light on the legal consequences of school violence and discipline, affecting the safe learning environment of learners. Perceptions of educators and learners in the selected schools regarding discipline and violence at their schools were collected by means of a survey. Three hundred and thirty questionnaires were completed by learners from the selected schools, and nine interviews were conducted with either the principal or a member of the senior management team of each school. The researcher also conducted further in-depth interviews with twenty learners from four schools (two primary and two high schools). These data were analysed in accordance with accepted procedures for qualitative data processing. The data revealed that a culture of violence exists in these schools, and that corporal punishment is still practised. Learners’ perceptions on safety and discipline at their schools revealed that bullying persists, especially when there is no teacher supervision. Participating educators’ experiences suggested the need for promoting positive discipline, and creating a safe learning environment for all, by involving parents in the education process and involving them in drawing up a code of conduct for the school.
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- Date Issued: 2010
An exploration of the personality preferences of post graduate psychology students utilising the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
- Authors: Smit, René
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Personality assessment , Students -- South Africa -- Psychology , Personality and academic achievement -- South Africa , Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:9898 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1096 , Personality assessment , Students -- South Africa -- Psychology , Personality and academic achievement -- South Africa , Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
- Description: In order to continue their contribution to the profession of psychology in South Africa the selection committees of psychology departments of higher education institutions are faced with the difficult task of selecting the most suitable candidates to fill their Clinical, Counselling, Educational and Industrial Psychology masters coursework programmes. Selection committees have traditionally made use of several admission criteria and procedures ranging from academic performance to personality assessment to a combination of methods. Admission criteria vary greatly across Higher Education Institutions. The selection committee at the selected participating institution of higher education takes into account the prospective students' academic performance, relevant work or practical experience, research experience, active participation in the classroom, active involvement outside of the classroom (participation in and engagement with community activities), and personality. Currently the institution of higher education that provided the sample for the current study employs the NEO PI-R as well as the MMPI-2 to assess masters applicants’ personality traits. A study by Britz (1994) recommended that the MBTI® be included in the assessment battery for psychology masters students. The primary aim of the proposed study is to identify, explore and describe the personality preferences of a group of prospective psychology masters applicants and a group of successfully selected psychology masters students at a South African Higher Education Institution utilising the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®). The study was exploratory descriptive in nature and was based on the quantitative research approach. Non-probability convenience sampling and the survey method was utilised to identify and approach prospective participants. Participants were requested to complete the MBTI® questionnaire. The MBTI® protocols were hand-scored and the findings analysed utilising frequency distributions and inferential statistics, that is, means and standard deviations. The MBTI® was found to be valid and reliable in a variety of populations and contexts. xi Results indicated that the ISTJ (15 percent), INTP (15 percent) and ESFJ (15 percent) personality types were the three most common personality types amongst participants from the group of prospective psychology masters applicants. The ENFP (13 percent), INTP (13 percent) and ISFJ (13 percent) personality types were the three most common personality types amongst participants from the group of successfully selected masters students. The majority (14 percent) of participants from the total sample displayed a preference for the INTP personality type. An examination of the dichotomous personality types of the participants revealed that the majority of participants preferred the Extraversion attitude, Sensing and Thinking functions, and Judgement attitude.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Revolt as a strategy of de-reification in contemporary performance practice
- Authors: Smit, Sonja
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Mantero, Vera Bouwer, Jaco, 1973- Performance art -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2147 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002379
- Description: This thesis investigates the concepts of revolt and de-reification and how these can be perceived and implemented within the context of performance. The argument focuses on the ability of revolt to question and unsettle processes of reification which in turn manifest a strategy of de-reification. I investigate the potential in contemporary performance practice to challenge prevailing modes of perception and restore the production of desire to the spectator through strategies of de-reification. This research is approached through a qualitative process which entails a reading and application of critical texts to the analysis. This reading/application is engaged in a dialogue with the interpretative and experiential aspects of the two works selected for analysis. Chapter One functions as an introduction to the concept of reification and the necessity of a process geared towards de-reification through revolt. I argue that revolt is already embedded in avant-garde artistic practices through an experimental and questioning approach to artistic practice and the production of meaning. Chapter Two is an analysis of Vera Mantero’s solo work, one mysterious Thing said e.e cummings* (1996). This is structured around two identifiable elements, one being the resistance to signification (designification), which is argued as a strategy of revolt within the piece. The second is the notion of abjection, which works doubly to aid the resistance to signification as well as working as a strategy of revolt by its implication in the work. Chapter Three analyses Jaco Bouwer’s Untitled (2008), specifically dealing with the notion of absence as a strategy of revolt and de-reification. The discussion is focused on the potential complication of desire through absence as enacting a larger project of revolt. As in Chapter Two, this is similarly related to the fragmentation of signs through designification which emphasises the strategy of absence. This thesis concludes with the idea that meaning-making in performance can be considered a process. Instead, the lack or failure of meaning within these selected performance practices enables a return to the individual (performer and spectator) as the agent of desire.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Introducing a learning management system in a large first year class: impact on lecturers and students
- Authors: Snowball, Jeanette D , Mostert, Markus
- Date: 2010
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68631 , vital:29297 , https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC37639
- Description: Publisher version , The challenges of teaching large classes are well documented in the literature on teaching in higher education. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have the potential to address some of these challenges, but, used inappropriately, technology can perpetuate entrenched practices and simply support performance models of teaching that encourage transmission approaches to learning. This article reports on the impact of implementing a learning management system (LMS) in a first year introductory macroeconomics course with 600 students in a blended learning context. Experiences of the course coordinator, lecturers and an educational technologist are discussed and data was also collected on student perceptions via a course evaluation questionnaire. Results show that the LMS was successful in a number of areas, particularly in improving the lecturers' accessibility to students and in encouraging interaction and participations in online discussion forums.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Unfallen women : negotiations of alternative feminine identities in selected writings by Olive Schreiner
- Authors: Snyman, Vicki
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Schreiner, Olive, 1855-1920 Criticism and interpretation Schreiner, Olive, 1855-1920 Story of an African farm Schreiner, Olive, 1855-1920 From man to man Schreiner, Olive, 1855-1920 Undine Feminism in literature Women and literature -- South Africa -- History South African literature (English) -- History and criticism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2214 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002257
- Description: This study constitutes an inquiry into how Olive Schreiner‟s peripheral position as a colonial woman writer enabled her rewriting of feminine identity, specifically her subversion of Victorian feminine stereotypes. I focus particular attention on three novels: The Story of an African Farm (1890), and the posthumously published From Man to Man (1926) and Undine (1929). I employ a feminist literary approach to examine how Schreiner‟s hybrid identity as a British South African enabled her revisioning of femininity. If Schreiner is situated within the context of her time, it can be demonstrated that her negotiations of feminine identity are influenced by her dual intellectual and cultural heritage. On the one hand, she can be situated within a British tradition of women‟s writing – in particular, the New Woman fiction which emerged in the late nineteenth century. On the other hand, she can be situated within a nascent South African literary tradition – and demonstrates prototypically post-colonial concerns. Schreiner‟s writing style develops out of her colonial heritage and her experiences as a woman living in a patriarchal society. The resultant voice subverts the narrative traditions of the metropolitan novel in an attempt to articulate an alternative view of femininity. I examine in detail how Schreiner undermines and subverts Victorian stereotypes, and focus particular attention on the „fallen woman‟ and the „mother-figure‟. She attempts to challenge conventional Victorian conceptions of femininity by erasing the binary between the „angel‟ and the „whore‟ in order to create a New Woman. In Undine and The Story of an African Farm the full realisation of this New Woman is deferred, since both protagonists die, but From Man to Man is more nuanced, particularly in its emphasis on economic empowerment for women. Schreiner also destabilises traditional notions of motherhood, in order to offer glimpses of an alternative maternal role. It is my contention that, in her depiction of mother-figures and (un)fallen women, Schreiner challenges stock Victorian notions of femininity and, in the process, creates a space in which new possibilities for women can be imagined and negotiated.
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- Date Issued: 2010
An exploration of the role of a strategic internal communication system in the merging Walter Sisulu University
- Authors: Soha, Sandi
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Universities and colleges -- Communication systems -- Evaluation , Universities and colleges -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MTech
- Identifier: vital:8485 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1458 , Universities and colleges -- Communication systems -- Evaluation , Universities and colleges -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: The merger of institutions of higher learning in South Africa has demonstrated to the study an exploration of the role of strategic internal communication system – in the merging of the Walter Sisulu University. The purpose of the study is to determine to what extent employees of the Walter Sisulu University have perceived that the internal communication system of this university has contributed towards an effectively merged organisation. The study was conducted after three historically disadvantaged institutions of higher learning merged to form one comprehensive university. The three merged institutions are: the Border Technikon, the Eastern Cape Technikon and the University of Transkei. It was foreseeable during the process of the merger, that combining three institutions could possibly result in lower staff morale and uncertainty. The study has explored the theoretical framework for understanding the role of strategic internal communication systems in an organisation. The study was approached from a systems' perspective and that of a transformational model. A survey research design was utilised for the purpose of this study – in order to assess the validity and reliability of the data. A qualitative research design was used for the purpose of this study – in order to acquire the desired outcomes of the research. Questionnaires were used and the sample was drawn from a large population of the Walter Sisulu University – from, four campuses – with the aim of allowing one to make inferences about the population as a whole. The questionnaire was structured in four main sections namely: Biographical information, internal-communication systems, tools of internal communication, and line-management communication. The findings of the study aids the understanding behind the view of internal communication systems as having contributed – or not contributed – to a successfully merged university.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Photodynamic therapy for the Developing World
- Authors: Songca, S P
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Skin -- Diseases -- Photochemotherapy Phototherapy Skin -- Diseases -- Treatment
- Language: English
- Type: text , Lectures
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/11260/1056 , vital:30559
- Description: This article contains some of the contributing works to the founding of the prestigious journal Tetrahedron and it describes the total synthesis of chlorophyll-a starting from Knorr's pyrrole synthesis and includes more than forty six stages required to reach the target molecule.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Effects of salinity on the growth and lipid production of ten species of microalgae from the Swartkops saltworks : a biodiesel perspective
- Authors: Sonnekus, Martinus Jakobus
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Microalgae -- South Africa -- Swartkops , Salinity -- South Africa -- Swartkops , Biodiesel fuels
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:10618 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1097 , Microalgae -- South Africa -- Swartkops , Salinity -- South Africa -- Swartkops , Biodiesel fuels
- Description: Biodiesel from microalgae is a viable alternative for replacing the global demand for petro-diesel. High biomass and lipid production are key desirable characteristics needed in a species to be used for biodiesel production. It has been demonstrated in literature that the increase in salinity can increase the lipid content of microalgae, but lower the growth rate of a species. Therefore the effect that salinity has on the growth and lipid content of ten microalgal species, isolated from a warm temperate solar saltworks, was investigated. The microalgae were cultivated at a temperature of 22°C and at salinities ranging from 17 to 70 psu. It was found that growth and lipid production for all species were influenced to some degree by the salinity. Growth rates greater than 0.6 d-1 showed a decrease with higher salinity. Most (71 percent) of the growth rates that exceeded 0.6 per day were exhibited by cultures exposed to normal salinity (35 psu). This shift is a good indication that salinity inhibits/slows down growth and that the species in general prefer lower salinity conditions. Growth rates ranged from 0.17 ± 0.05 to 1.19 ± 0.17 d-1. Lipid content for the diatoms (2.78 ± 0.36 to 10.86 ± 4.59 percent DW) were lower than expected, whereas the lipid content for the green flagellates (3.10 ± 1.56 to 22.64 ± 1.19 percent DW) was on par with that reported in literature. To bring results into perspective a production model was developed to simulate a production scenario at the Swartkops Saltworks. Lipid and productivity results obtained in this study were used to estimate how much oil and biomass can be produced within the ponds of the Swartkops Saltworks. The model showed that although microalgae cultivation for biodiesel is technically feasible, at present it is not economically viable to do so.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Occupational stressors that influence professional health workers
- Authors: Sontyale, Ulungile Klaas
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Job stress -- South Africa , Medical personnel -- Job stress , HIV-positive persons -- Care -- South Africa , AIDS (Disease) -- Patients -- Care -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MBA
- Identifier: vital:8695 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/1098 , Job stress -- South Africa , Medical personnel -- Job stress , HIV-positive persons -- Care -- South Africa , AIDS (Disease) -- Patients -- Care -- South Africa
- Description: Background: Despite the prevalence of HIV/AIDS stabilizing and slightly decreasing in certain provinces, there are a number of People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in South Africa. Many people seek help at primary health clinics and hospitals and receive chronic care at these facilities. Caring for these chronic patients and new patients entering the health system can be stressful to the health professionals who are involved. Many studies that have been conducted have focused on the clinical aspects of individual patients, while few studies have focused on the experiences and stressors of health professionals looking after PLWHA. To ensure quality of care for patients with HIV/AIDS, it is important to understand the experiences of health professionals looking after HIV/AIDS patients and how stressful experiences may influence their attitude towards these patients. Aim: The aim of this study is to report the factors health professionals perceive as occupational stressors caring for people living with HIV/AIDS in the public health sector of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality. Research design and Methodology: A quantitative, descriptive and non-experimental research design was followed. A pilot study was conducted to determine the clarity of questions, effectiveness of the instructions, completeness of the response sets, the time required to complete the questionnaires and the success of the data collection. The primary method of data collection was self-administered questionnaires. The questionnaires were dispatched to 30 health professionals at the public health facilities in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality. A descriptive statistical analysis was done using a Statistical Package. This revealed the following findings. Findings: The following are the findings that were perceived to be occupational stressors: organizational factors, job design factors, career and promotional factors, role-related factors and cultural factors. iv Conclusion and recommendations: There are occupational stressors that affect health care professionals working in an HIV/AIDS setting. The following are the recommendations to rectify or to improve the situation: • Improve the communication of goals and objectives; • Redesign the job; • Human-resources development ; • Improvement of salaries; • Career planning and mentoring; and • Sensitisation of employees to cultural differences.
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- Date Issued: 2010
Assessment of plants used for the treatment of cattle wounds and myiasis in Amatola Basin, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
- Authors: Soyelu, Oluseyi Temitope
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Domestic animals -- Parasites , Insect pests -- Control , Cattle -- Health -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Screwworm -- Biological control , Traditional medicine -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Medicinal plants -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc Agric (Animal Science)
- Identifier: vital:11160 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1000986 , Domestic animals -- Parasites , Insect pests -- Control , Cattle -- Health -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Screwworm -- Biological control , Traditional medicine -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Medicinal plants -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
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- Date Issued: 2010
An evaluation of citizen participation in low-income housing settlement in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa: the case of the Tyutyu Housing Project in Buffalo City Municipality (1985-2010)
- Authors: Ssekibuule, Henry Jacob Festus
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Community development Urban -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Local government -- Citizen participation , Housing policy -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Municipal services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Poverty -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Sustainable development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MPA
- Identifier: vital:11631 , http://hdl.handle.net/10353/337 , Community development Urban -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Local government -- Citizen participation , Housing policy -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Municipal services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Poverty -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape Case studies , Sustainable development -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: The provision of housing is a developmental practice and development cannot prevail without public participation. This is echoed in the Manila Declaration on People‟s Participation and Sustainable Development, 1989 as follows, “Public participation is an essential part of human growth that is the development of self-confidence, pride, initiative, responsibility, cooperation. Without such development within the people themselves, all efforts to alleviate their poverty will be immensely more difficult, if not impossible” (Burkey, 1993:56). Housing provision plays a vital role in meeting basic needs; dwellings provide the security required for basic functioning and are thus essential for both human development and the alleviation of poverty. South Africa has one of the most progressive constitutions in the world. It includes the municipal legislative framework that provides for community participation in decision-making at municipal level. However, in practice, citizens have had little experience of this, which is particularly relevant in contexts of severe poverty and failure by the state to provide basic services. This case study demonstrates the challenges faced by the Centre for Public Participation (CPP), a national NGO, when working to influence central government policy on citizen participation. It also explores the role and influence of international donors in promoting this agenda. From the literature review, it was evident that service delivery is essential in the communities, and, as such, government departments and municipalities have a critical role to play. In order to achieve this goal, an interview was conducted with various interviewees. The participants ranged from the youth to the elderly citizens in the community as well as government officials. The main patterns that emerged from the collected data related to the dissatisfaction of the community about the lack of consultation. It would be advisable for government, especially municipalities, to take cognizance of the results and concerns, in an effort to improve and ensure the effective service delivery, as stipulated in the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) document.
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- Date Issued: 2010
The effects of glove fit on task performance and on the human operator
- Authors: Stack, Jessica Danielle
- Date: 2010
- Subjects: Hand -- Anatomy , Hand -- Wounds and injuries , Hand -- Care and hygiene , Gloves , Safety education, Industrial , Human-machine systems , Industrial safety , Industrial accidents
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:5119 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1005197 , Hand -- Anatomy , Hand -- Wounds and injuries , Hand -- Care and hygiene , Gloves , Safety education, Industrial , Human-machine systems , Industrial safety , Industrial accidents
- Description: The hand is one of the most complex of all of the anatomical structures in the human body. It has been found that hand injuries are among the most frequent injuries that occur to the body, predominantly during industrial activities. It has therefore been concluded that more research is needed into protective factors, such as glove use. The design features of a glove emphasise either protection or performance. There is often a trade-off between increased safety and performance capability when donning gloves. It has been determined that gloves which are fitted and comfortable for the worker may provide the best compromise between protective functions and decreased performance. This investigation aimed to assess the influence of glove fit on the performance attributes of industrial tasks, as well as on the responses of the human operator. Glove fit was analysed as 35 male participants donned three different glove sizes during each test, including a best-fitting glove, a glove one size smaller than best-fitting, and a glove one size larger than best-fitting. For each glove size, gloves of two differing materials were tested, namely nitrile and neoprene. A barehanded condition was also tested, totalling seven gloved/barehanded conditions for each test. The seven conditions were assessed in a laboratory setting in a battery of tests. This consisted of components of task performance, including maximum pulling and pushing force, maximum torque, precision of force, tactility, speed and accuracy and dexterity. The performance responses were recorded, as well as participants’ perceptual responses using the Rating of Perceived Exertion scale, and muscle activity. Six muscles were selected: Flexor Digitorum Superficialis, Flexor Pollicus Longus, Extensor Carpi Ulnaris, Extensor Carpi Radialis, Flexor Carpi Ulnaris and Flexor Carpi Radialis. The results revealed that glove fit does affect certain spects of performance, and influences human operator responses for selected task components. Furthermore, discrepancies were distinguished between orking barehanded and working with an optimally fitted glove. There was also a glove material effect established. Overall, it was found that muscle activity when exerting maximum force in a pushing and pulling direction was optimal with the nitrile glove material. Maximum torque performance was enhanced with the use of a best-fitting glove, as compared with an ill-fitting glove or barehanded work. Force precision was preferable when barehanded, as opposed to the tactility task which rendered optimal results with a best-fitting glove. The same was found for speed and accuracy results, as glove fit appeared to have no effect on performance, but performance was improved when participants were barehanded. Dexterity performance was the most conclusively influenced by the conditions, resulting in barehanded performance being optimal. However, should a glove be necessary for a given task, an optimally-fitted glove which is of a thinner material would be recommended. It is necessary to distinguish the performance components of a task within industry and select the most appropriate glove for optimal performance and the least risk of overexertion.
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- Date Issued: 2010