Grade six and seven learners' perceptions of the HIV/AIDS life skills education programme
- Authors: Julies, Zainuneesa
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: AIDS (Disease) -- Study and teaching (Primary) -- South Africa -- Evaluation , AIDS (Disease) -- South Africa -- Prevention
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:10988 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/315 , AIDS (Disease) -- Study and teaching (Primary) -- South Africa -- Evaluation , AIDS (Disease) -- South Africa -- Prevention
- Description: At present there is no cure or vaccine for Human Immuno-deficiency Virus (HIV) or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) therefore prevention programmes are seen as the only means of reducing the spread of the disease. HIV/AIDS education programmes in schools have been identified as the most effective intervention because billions of children can be reached worldwide and because schools are the one social institution with which most children come into contact. Young people in particular have been identified as the age group most in need of a preventative programme. The aim of this study is to explore the perceptions of grade six and seven learners with regard to the Life Skills programme focusing on HIV/AIDS education in the Port Elizabeth region. In order to fulfill the above aim a qualitative study was undertaken within an exploratory descriptive approach. A non-probability, convenient sample of six schools were selected. Focus groups, utilising an unstructured interview, were used to gather qualitative data about the perceptions of grade six and seven learners. The focus groups consisted of 10-12 participants. The data was thematically analysed using Tesch’s approach. The major findings of the present study included the following: 1. Learners’ perceptions of completing the questionnaire were generally positive in nature. Negative perceptions related to practical issues such as the length of the questionnaire and the time of administration. 2. Learner’s perceptions of the programme were generally positive. 3. Learners’ felt more comfortable discussing HIV/AIDS with parents and teachers. xi 4. Learners’ appeared to be well informed about high-risk behaviour related to HIV/AIDS and existing myths. 5. Contact with HIV+ people is non-existent. However, learner’s felt that the programme had fostered positive attitudes towards HIV+ people. 6. Learner’s felt that schools had an important role to play in sharing information about HIV/AIDS. These findings seem to indicate positive outcomes for the programme as a whole, in that is was successful in terms of conveying information regarding HIV/AIDS; it led to positive changes in attitudes, especially towards HIV+ people; and it confirmed the school as the best setting for implementing HIV/AIDS Life Skills programmes.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Julies, Zainuneesa
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: AIDS (Disease) -- Study and teaching (Primary) -- South Africa -- Evaluation , AIDS (Disease) -- South Africa -- Prevention
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:10988 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/315 , AIDS (Disease) -- Study and teaching (Primary) -- South Africa -- Evaluation , AIDS (Disease) -- South Africa -- Prevention
- Description: At present there is no cure or vaccine for Human Immuno-deficiency Virus (HIV) or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) therefore prevention programmes are seen as the only means of reducing the spread of the disease. HIV/AIDS education programmes in schools have been identified as the most effective intervention because billions of children can be reached worldwide and because schools are the one social institution with which most children come into contact. Young people in particular have been identified as the age group most in need of a preventative programme. The aim of this study is to explore the perceptions of grade six and seven learners with regard to the Life Skills programme focusing on HIV/AIDS education in the Port Elizabeth region. In order to fulfill the above aim a qualitative study was undertaken within an exploratory descriptive approach. A non-probability, convenient sample of six schools were selected. Focus groups, utilising an unstructured interview, were used to gather qualitative data about the perceptions of grade six and seven learners. The focus groups consisted of 10-12 participants. The data was thematically analysed using Tesch’s approach. The major findings of the present study included the following: 1. Learners’ perceptions of completing the questionnaire were generally positive in nature. Negative perceptions related to practical issues such as the length of the questionnaire and the time of administration. 2. Learner’s perceptions of the programme were generally positive. 3. Learners’ felt more comfortable discussing HIV/AIDS with parents and teachers. xi 4. Learners’ appeared to be well informed about high-risk behaviour related to HIV/AIDS and existing myths. 5. Contact with HIV+ people is non-existent. However, learner’s felt that the programme had fostered positive attitudes towards HIV+ people. 6. Learner’s felt that schools had an important role to play in sharing information about HIV/AIDS. These findings seem to indicate positive outcomes for the programme as a whole, in that is was successful in terms of conveying information regarding HIV/AIDS; it led to positive changes in attitudes, especially towards HIV+ people; and it confirmed the school as the best setting for implementing HIV/AIDS Life Skills programmes.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
Habitat suitability and behaviour of springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis) at Augrabies Falls National Park, South Africa
- Authors: Reid, Caroline
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Springbok -- Habitat suitability index models -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park , Springbok -- Behavior -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11079 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/362 , Springbok -- Habitat suitability index models -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park , Springbok -- Behavior -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park
- Description: Habitat selection may be considered a behavioural consequence of an individual actively selecting where it lives or passively persisting in a certain habitat. There are a variety of approaches to assessing habitat selection, including relating densities to predefined habitats and the characteristics of these habitats, measuring the behaviour of animals within predefined habitats in order to assess the relative benefits to the animal and comparing these between habitats, and using optimality theory to allow the animal to provide measures of its preference for particular habitats or patches. Each approach provides different perspectives on an animal’s choice and use of habitat, with some approaches working more effectively with certain species or habitats than others. There have, however, been no attempts to apply all these approaches to a single species at a single site. The objective of this study was therefore to apply the three above-mentioned approaches to assess habitat use and quality to a single species, the springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis) at the Augrabies Falls National Park (AFNP), on the northern bank of the Orange River, in order to provide the basis for further work on comparing and integrating these approaches. The relative abundance of springbok in Augrabies Falls National park was used to develop a habitat suitability model for the park, and thus determine the habitat variables that influenced habitat suitability. Isodar analysis revealed information on the mechanisms underlying habitat preference. Behavioural models were developed to improve our understanding of how springbok behaviour changes in relation to the habitat, and incorporated the variables identified in the habitat suitability model. The different spatial and temporal scales influencing springbok habitat selection were determined using optimal foraging theory and giving-up densities. Springbok preferred open habitats providing high food quality. Springbok behaviour was related to the foraging and predation risk characteristics of the habitat, and springbok varied their temporal and spatial utilisation so as to minimise their risk of predation and maximise their food intake. The habitat suitability model, behaviour models and giving-up densities were compared for ease of use and applicability. Using giving-up densities to reveal habitat suitability had greater applicability and was both efficient and objective.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Reid, Caroline
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Springbok -- Habitat suitability index models -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park , Springbok -- Behavior -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11079 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/362 , Springbok -- Habitat suitability index models -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park , Springbok -- Behavior -- South Africa -- Augrabies Falls National Park
- Description: Habitat selection may be considered a behavioural consequence of an individual actively selecting where it lives or passively persisting in a certain habitat. There are a variety of approaches to assessing habitat selection, including relating densities to predefined habitats and the characteristics of these habitats, measuring the behaviour of animals within predefined habitats in order to assess the relative benefits to the animal and comparing these between habitats, and using optimality theory to allow the animal to provide measures of its preference for particular habitats or patches. Each approach provides different perspectives on an animal’s choice and use of habitat, with some approaches working more effectively with certain species or habitats than others. There have, however, been no attempts to apply all these approaches to a single species at a single site. The objective of this study was therefore to apply the three above-mentioned approaches to assess habitat use and quality to a single species, the springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis) at the Augrabies Falls National Park (AFNP), on the northern bank of the Orange River, in order to provide the basis for further work on comparing and integrating these approaches. The relative abundance of springbok in Augrabies Falls National park was used to develop a habitat suitability model for the park, and thus determine the habitat variables that influenced habitat suitability. Isodar analysis revealed information on the mechanisms underlying habitat preference. Behavioural models were developed to improve our understanding of how springbok behaviour changes in relation to the habitat, and incorporated the variables identified in the habitat suitability model. The different spatial and temporal scales influencing springbok habitat selection were determined using optimal foraging theory and giving-up densities. Springbok preferred open habitats providing high food quality. Springbok behaviour was related to the foraging and predation risk characteristics of the habitat, and springbok varied their temporal and spatial utilisation so as to minimise their risk of predation and maximise their food intake. The habitat suitability model, behaviour models and giving-up densities were compared for ease of use and applicability. Using giving-up densities to reveal habitat suitability had greater applicability and was both efficient and objective.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
In vitro anti-HIV activities of Sutherlandia frutescens and Lobostemon trigonum extracts
- Authors: Harnett, Siobhán Margaret
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Medicinal plants -- South Africa , Materia medica, Vegetable -- South Africa , HIV infections -- Alternative treatment -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11072 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/347 , Medicinal plants -- South Africa , Materia medica, Vegetable -- South Africa , HIV infections -- Alternative treatment -- South Africa
- Description: Currently, the approved anti-HIV drugs on the market only target the three HIV enzymes: reverse transcriptase, protease and more recently, integrase. Due to the limited nature of the current therapy, it is possible that a multi-drug resistant virus can emerge. The main concerns in developing countries however, are the expense and availability of the drugs and because of this, it is essential to investigate all alternatives. Traditional medicine offers many advantages as compared to allopathic treatment in so far as being relatively cheaper, accessible and it is broadly accepted in the population groups of the developing countries. Little is known though, of the exact efficacy and toxicity of these remedies so it is vital that these possible leads be investigated thoroughly. For the purpose of this study, two plants, Sutherlandia frutescens and Lobostemon trigonum were studied to ascertain their potential anti-HIV activity. Sutherlandia has received international attention as a possible cheap herbal remedy to improve the health of AIDS sufferers. Anecdotal evidence from health workers claim that HIV- infected patients on Sutherlandia treatment have shown improved CD4 counts, decreased viral loads and a general improvement in well-being. Extracts were prepared from dried leaves and flowers in methanol, ethanol, acetone, methylene dichloride or distilled water. Sulphated polysaccharides have been described extensively in literature with regards to their anti-HIV activity, so as a form of dereplication; an ethanol precipitation was performed on the aqueous extracts to remove sulphated polysaccharides. A toxicity study was performed on all crude extracts using uninfected peripheral mononuclear blood cells (PBMCs) isolated from whole blood. To measure anti-HIV activity, HIV-infected PBMCs were cultured with each of the crude extracts and cell viability measured using the tetrazolium salt, XTT. HIV-infected CEM-NKR-CCR5 cells were also used and supernatant from the viral studies was tested for the HIV antigen p24. xii Results varied greatly between assays but with the inclusion of a point-scale system to evaluate the extracts it was clear that overall the organic extracts of the Sutherlandia flowers, especially the acetone extract (SFA), showed great anti-HIV potential. SFA in every case decreased p24 levels and in the toxicity study did not decrease cell proliferation. With the HIV-infected PBMCs SFA actually helped improve cell proliferation despite the infection. To determine the specific anti- HIV activity, all crude extracts were tested for inhibition of HIV-I reverse transcriptase, the glycohydrolase enzymes: a-glucosidase, ß-glucosidase, ßglucuronidase, HIV-I integrase and HIV-II protease. No significant inhibition was seen with these experiments except for the HIV-I RT assay. The aqueous extract of the Lobostemon leaves produced an inhibitor of HIV-RT with a very low IC50 value of 0.049mg/ml. Some inhibitory effect was lost with the removal of the sulphated polysaccharides and the addition of BSA to the assay, but still 64% inhibition of the HIVRT remained, which confirmed that the inhibitor could be something novel, and not of the polysaccharide or tannin compounds.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
- Authors: Harnett, Siobhán Margaret
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Medicinal plants -- South Africa , Materia medica, Vegetable -- South Africa , HIV infections -- Alternative treatment -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11072 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/347 , Medicinal plants -- South Africa , Materia medica, Vegetable -- South Africa , HIV infections -- Alternative treatment -- South Africa
- Description: Currently, the approved anti-HIV drugs on the market only target the three HIV enzymes: reverse transcriptase, protease and more recently, integrase. Due to the limited nature of the current therapy, it is possible that a multi-drug resistant virus can emerge. The main concerns in developing countries however, are the expense and availability of the drugs and because of this, it is essential to investigate all alternatives. Traditional medicine offers many advantages as compared to allopathic treatment in so far as being relatively cheaper, accessible and it is broadly accepted in the population groups of the developing countries. Little is known though, of the exact efficacy and toxicity of these remedies so it is vital that these possible leads be investigated thoroughly. For the purpose of this study, two plants, Sutherlandia frutescens and Lobostemon trigonum were studied to ascertain their potential anti-HIV activity. Sutherlandia has received international attention as a possible cheap herbal remedy to improve the health of AIDS sufferers. Anecdotal evidence from health workers claim that HIV- infected patients on Sutherlandia treatment have shown improved CD4 counts, decreased viral loads and a general improvement in well-being. Extracts were prepared from dried leaves and flowers in methanol, ethanol, acetone, methylene dichloride or distilled water. Sulphated polysaccharides have been described extensively in literature with regards to their anti-HIV activity, so as a form of dereplication; an ethanol precipitation was performed on the aqueous extracts to remove sulphated polysaccharides. A toxicity study was performed on all crude extracts using uninfected peripheral mononuclear blood cells (PBMCs) isolated from whole blood. To measure anti-HIV activity, HIV-infected PBMCs were cultured with each of the crude extracts and cell viability measured using the tetrazolium salt, XTT. HIV-infected CEM-NKR-CCR5 cells were also used and supernatant from the viral studies was tested for the HIV antigen p24. xii Results varied greatly between assays but with the inclusion of a point-scale system to evaluate the extracts it was clear that overall the organic extracts of the Sutherlandia flowers, especially the acetone extract (SFA), showed great anti-HIV potential. SFA in every case decreased p24 levels and in the toxicity study did not decrease cell proliferation. With the HIV-infected PBMCs SFA actually helped improve cell proliferation despite the infection. To determine the specific anti- HIV activity, all crude extracts were tested for inhibition of HIV-I reverse transcriptase, the glycohydrolase enzymes: a-glucosidase, ß-glucosidase, ßglucuronidase, HIV-I integrase and HIV-II protease. No significant inhibition was seen with these experiments except for the HIV-I RT assay. The aqueous extract of the Lobostemon leaves produced an inhibitor of HIV-RT with a very low IC50 value of 0.049mg/ml. Some inhibitory effect was lost with the removal of the sulphated polysaccharides and the addition of BSA to the assay, but still 64% inhibition of the HIVRT remained, which confirmed that the inhibitor could be something novel, and not of the polysaccharide or tannin compounds.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
Investigations into the asymmetric reduction of ketones
- Authors: Bena, Luvuyo Clifford
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Ketones , Asymmetric synthesis
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11065 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/323 , Ketones , Asymmetric synthesis
- Description: A six-step synthesis of salbutamol from methyl salicylate with an overall yield of 17% has been completed, although the yield was not optimised. In the process, Zn(BH4)2 was found to selectively reduce a ketone carbonyl group in the presence of an ester unit. In contrast, borane was found to reduce both the ketone and ester carbonyl groups. Reduction of phenacyl bromide with borane in the presence of chiral catalysts based on (R)-alaninol and (R,S)-ephidrine resulted a measure of enantioselectivity in the product. However, the configuration of the alcohol obtained in the case of (R)-alaninol was contrary to expectations based both on experimental trends observed elsewhere as well as our own theoretical predictions. The asymmetric reduction of methyl 5-bromoacetyl-2-benzyloxybenzoate was accomplished with both borane and Zn(BH4)2 in the presence of a range of chiral catalysts. Optically active products were obtained in all cases, although the optical rotations were significantly smaller in the case of Zn(BH4)2. Unfortunately, we were not successful in determining the enantiomeric excesses of these reactions. The use of a NMR lanthanide shift reagent resulted in a complex spectrum that was impossible to interpret unambiguously. This presumably arises from the presence of several Lewis base sites in the product at which complexation with the shift reagent can take place. It was also not possible to determine the optical rotation of salbutamol itself owing to the relatively small amount of material obtained. A conformational analysis of salbutamol, where NMR data was correlated with molecular modelling results, was successfully carried out and revealed a strong preference for that conformer family characterised by O–C–C–N and Ar–C–C–N torsion angles of ca. 60º and 180º, respectively. Interestingly, these conformers are found to be stabilised by OH…N rather than NH…O hydrogen bonding. This study has also confirmed the effectiveness of the MMFF94 force field for conformational analysis studies in compounds of this kind. Lastly, a relatively simple method for modelling the BH3/oxazaborolidine reduction of ketones at the PM3 semiempirical MO level of approximation was devised. This approach has provided insights into the mechanism of the reaction and has furthermore enabled us to predict the enantioselectivities likely to result from various catalysts and ketones. In comparing our theoretical and experimental findings, an anomalous result was observed in the case of (R)-alaninol; this will have to be investigated further, particularly at the experimental level. However, we believe that our approach provides a sound basis for aiding the design and screening of new, potentially better catalysts.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Bena, Luvuyo Clifford
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Ketones , Asymmetric synthesis
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11065 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/323 , Ketones , Asymmetric synthesis
- Description: A six-step synthesis of salbutamol from methyl salicylate with an overall yield of 17% has been completed, although the yield was not optimised. In the process, Zn(BH4)2 was found to selectively reduce a ketone carbonyl group in the presence of an ester unit. In contrast, borane was found to reduce both the ketone and ester carbonyl groups. Reduction of phenacyl bromide with borane in the presence of chiral catalysts based on (R)-alaninol and (R,S)-ephidrine resulted a measure of enantioselectivity in the product. However, the configuration of the alcohol obtained in the case of (R)-alaninol was contrary to expectations based both on experimental trends observed elsewhere as well as our own theoretical predictions. The asymmetric reduction of methyl 5-bromoacetyl-2-benzyloxybenzoate was accomplished with both borane and Zn(BH4)2 in the presence of a range of chiral catalysts. Optically active products were obtained in all cases, although the optical rotations were significantly smaller in the case of Zn(BH4)2. Unfortunately, we were not successful in determining the enantiomeric excesses of these reactions. The use of a NMR lanthanide shift reagent resulted in a complex spectrum that was impossible to interpret unambiguously. This presumably arises from the presence of several Lewis base sites in the product at which complexation with the shift reagent can take place. It was also not possible to determine the optical rotation of salbutamol itself owing to the relatively small amount of material obtained. A conformational analysis of salbutamol, where NMR data was correlated with molecular modelling results, was successfully carried out and revealed a strong preference for that conformer family characterised by O–C–C–N and Ar–C–C–N torsion angles of ca. 60º and 180º, respectively. Interestingly, these conformers are found to be stabilised by OH…N rather than NH…O hydrogen bonding. This study has also confirmed the effectiveness of the MMFF94 force field for conformational analysis studies in compounds of this kind. Lastly, a relatively simple method for modelling the BH3/oxazaborolidine reduction of ketones at the PM3 semiempirical MO level of approximation was devised. This approach has provided insights into the mechanism of the reaction and has furthermore enabled us to predict the enantioselectivities likely to result from various catalysts and ketones. In comparing our theoretical and experimental findings, an anomalous result was observed in the case of (R)-alaninol; this will have to be investigated further, particularly at the experimental level. However, we believe that our approach provides a sound basis for aiding the design and screening of new, potentially better catalysts.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
Jane Austen re-visited a feminist evaluation of the longevity and relevance of the Austen Oeuvre
- Authors: Kollmann, Elizabeth
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Austen, Jane, 1775-1817 -- Criticism and interpretation , Feminist literary criticism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:10994 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/299 , Austen, Jane, 1775-1817 -- Criticism and interpretation , Feminist literary criticism
- Description: Although many might consider Jane Austen to be outdated and clichéd, her work retains an undying appeal. During the last decade the English-speaking world has experienced an Austen renaissance as it has been treated to a number of film and television adaptations of her work, including Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Mansfield Park and Sense and Sensibility. Film critics such as Bill De Lapp (1996) and Sherry Dean (1996) have commented on the phenomenal response these productions received and have been amazed by Austen’s ability to compete with current movie scripts. The reasons for viewers and readers enjoying and identifying with Austen’s fiction are numerous. Readers of varying persuasions have different agendas and hence different views and interpretations of Austen. This thesis follows a gynocritical approach and applies a feminist point of view when reading and discussing Austen. Austen’s novels - Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey, Sense and Sensibility, and Persuasion – are re-read and reevaluated from a feminist perspective in order to call attention to Austen’s awareness of women’s second-class position in her society. Women’s experiences in Austen’s time are compared to women’s experiences in society today in order to illustrate, in some way, the tremendous progress the feminist movement has made. In addition, by examining what Austen reveals about the material reality of women in her time, it is possible to explore the legacy that modern women have inherited. Literary critics such as André Brink (1998), Claudia Johnson (1988), and Gilbert and Gubar (1979) believe Austen to create feminist awareness in her novels. There are critics, however, who do not view Austen as necessarily feminist in her writing. Nancy Armstrong writes in Desire and Domestic Fiction (1987) that Austen’s objective is not a critique of the Abstract iv old order but rather a redefinition of wealth and status. In Culture and Imperialism (1993) Edward Said implicates Austen in the rationale for imperial expansion, while Barbara Seeber argues in “The Schooling of Marianne Dashwood” (1999) that Austen’s texts should be understood as dialogic. Others, such as Patricia Beer (1974), believe Austen’s fiction primarily to be about marriage since all her novels end with matrimony. My own reading of Austen takes into consideration her social milieu and patriarchal inheritance. It argues that Austen writes within the framework of patriarchy (for example by marrying off her heroines) possibly because she is aware that in order to survive as a woman (writer) in a male-favouring world and in a publishing world dominated by men, her critique needs to be covert. If read from a feminist perspective, Austen’s fiction draws our attention to issues such as women’s (lack of) education, the effects of not being given access to knowledge, marriage as a patriarchal institution of entrapment, and women’s identity. Her fiction reveals the effects of educating women for a life of domesticity, and illustrates that such an education is biased, leaving women powerless and without any means of self-protection in a male-dominated world. Although contemporary women in the Western world mostly enjoy equal education opportunities to men, they suffer the consequences of a legacy which denied them access to a proper education. Feminist writers such as Flis Henwood (2000) show that contemporary women believe certain areas of expertise belong to men exclusively. Others such as Linda Nochlin (1994) reveal that because women did not have access to higher education for so many years, they failed to produce great women artists like Chaucer or Cézanne. Austen’s fiction also exposes the economic and social system (of which education constitutes a major part) for enforcing marriage and for enfeebling women. In addition, it illustrates some of the realities and pitfalls of marriage. While Austen only subtly refers to Abstract v women’s disempowerment within marriage, contemporary feminist scholars such as Germaine Greer (1999) and Arnot, Araújo, Deliyanni, and Ivinson (2000) explicitly warn women that marriage is a patriarchal institution of entrapment and that it often leaves women feeling unfulfilled. The issue of marriage as a patriarchal institution has been thought important and has been addressed by feminists because it contributes to women’s powerlessness. Feminist scholars today find it imperative to expose all forms of power in order to eradicate women’s subordination. bell hooks comments in Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center (2000) on the importance of revealing unfair power relations in order to eliminate oppression of any kind. Austen does not necessarily express the wish to eradicate forms of power or oppression in her novels. Yet, if we read her work from a feminist point of view, we are made aware of the social construction of power. From her fiction we can infer that male power is enshrined in the very structure of society, and this makes us aware of women’s lack of power in her time. Austen’s novels, however, are not merely novels of powerlessness but of empowerment. By creating rounded women characters and by giving them the power to judge, to refuse and to write, Austen challenges the stereotyped view of woman as either overpowering monster or weak and fragile angel. In addition, her novels seem to question women’s inherited identity and to suggest that qualities such as emotionality and mothering are not natural aspects of being a woman. Because she suggests ways in which women might empower themselves, albeit within patriarchal parameters, one could argue that she contributes, in a small way, to the transformation of existing power relations and to the eradication of women’s servile position in society.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Kollmann, Elizabeth
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Austen, Jane, 1775-1817 -- Criticism and interpretation , Feminist literary criticism
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:10994 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/299 , Austen, Jane, 1775-1817 -- Criticism and interpretation , Feminist literary criticism
- Description: Although many might consider Jane Austen to be outdated and clichéd, her work retains an undying appeal. During the last decade the English-speaking world has experienced an Austen renaissance as it has been treated to a number of film and television adaptations of her work, including Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Mansfield Park and Sense and Sensibility. Film critics such as Bill De Lapp (1996) and Sherry Dean (1996) have commented on the phenomenal response these productions received and have been amazed by Austen’s ability to compete with current movie scripts. The reasons for viewers and readers enjoying and identifying with Austen’s fiction are numerous. Readers of varying persuasions have different agendas and hence different views and interpretations of Austen. This thesis follows a gynocritical approach and applies a feminist point of view when reading and discussing Austen. Austen’s novels - Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey, Sense and Sensibility, and Persuasion – are re-read and reevaluated from a feminist perspective in order to call attention to Austen’s awareness of women’s second-class position in her society. Women’s experiences in Austen’s time are compared to women’s experiences in society today in order to illustrate, in some way, the tremendous progress the feminist movement has made. In addition, by examining what Austen reveals about the material reality of women in her time, it is possible to explore the legacy that modern women have inherited. Literary critics such as André Brink (1998), Claudia Johnson (1988), and Gilbert and Gubar (1979) believe Austen to create feminist awareness in her novels. There are critics, however, who do not view Austen as necessarily feminist in her writing. Nancy Armstrong writes in Desire and Domestic Fiction (1987) that Austen’s objective is not a critique of the Abstract iv old order but rather a redefinition of wealth and status. In Culture and Imperialism (1993) Edward Said implicates Austen in the rationale for imperial expansion, while Barbara Seeber argues in “The Schooling of Marianne Dashwood” (1999) that Austen’s texts should be understood as dialogic. Others, such as Patricia Beer (1974), believe Austen’s fiction primarily to be about marriage since all her novels end with matrimony. My own reading of Austen takes into consideration her social milieu and patriarchal inheritance. It argues that Austen writes within the framework of patriarchy (for example by marrying off her heroines) possibly because she is aware that in order to survive as a woman (writer) in a male-favouring world and in a publishing world dominated by men, her critique needs to be covert. If read from a feminist perspective, Austen’s fiction draws our attention to issues such as women’s (lack of) education, the effects of not being given access to knowledge, marriage as a patriarchal institution of entrapment, and women’s identity. Her fiction reveals the effects of educating women for a life of domesticity, and illustrates that such an education is biased, leaving women powerless and without any means of self-protection in a male-dominated world. Although contemporary women in the Western world mostly enjoy equal education opportunities to men, they suffer the consequences of a legacy which denied them access to a proper education. Feminist writers such as Flis Henwood (2000) show that contemporary women believe certain areas of expertise belong to men exclusively. Others such as Linda Nochlin (1994) reveal that because women did not have access to higher education for so many years, they failed to produce great women artists like Chaucer or Cézanne. Austen’s fiction also exposes the economic and social system (of which education constitutes a major part) for enforcing marriage and for enfeebling women. In addition, it illustrates some of the realities and pitfalls of marriage. While Austen only subtly refers to Abstract v women’s disempowerment within marriage, contemporary feminist scholars such as Germaine Greer (1999) and Arnot, Araújo, Deliyanni, and Ivinson (2000) explicitly warn women that marriage is a patriarchal institution of entrapment and that it often leaves women feeling unfulfilled. The issue of marriage as a patriarchal institution has been thought important and has been addressed by feminists because it contributes to women’s powerlessness. Feminist scholars today find it imperative to expose all forms of power in order to eradicate women’s subordination. bell hooks comments in Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center (2000) on the importance of revealing unfair power relations in order to eliminate oppression of any kind. Austen does not necessarily express the wish to eradicate forms of power or oppression in her novels. Yet, if we read her work from a feminist point of view, we are made aware of the social construction of power. From her fiction we can infer that male power is enshrined in the very structure of society, and this makes us aware of women’s lack of power in her time. Austen’s novels, however, are not merely novels of powerlessness but of empowerment. By creating rounded women characters and by giving them the power to judge, to refuse and to write, Austen challenges the stereotyped view of woman as either overpowering monster or weak and fragile angel. In addition, her novels seem to question women’s inherited identity and to suggest that qualities such as emotionality and mothering are not natural aspects of being a woman. Because she suggests ways in which women might empower themselves, albeit within patriarchal parameters, one could argue that she contributes, in a small way, to the transformation of existing power relations and to the eradication of women’s servile position in society.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
Knowledge levels of school learners before and after a life skills program on rape and child abuse
- Authors: Britz, Cecelia Adonia
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Rape -- Prevention , Child abuse -- Prevention , School children -- Life skills assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11017 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/360 , Rape -- Prevention , Child abuse -- Prevention , School children -- Life skills assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Description: Due to the early age at which children are exposed to rape and child abuse, preventative programs should be implemented as early as possible. Schools provide ample opportunity to reach learners of all ages. Educators have regular contact with learners and have a key role to play in the implementation of comprehensive health and education life skills programs. Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) can link up with schools to combat abuse that affects children in South African communities. The Ubuntu Education Fund requested the Health and Development Research Institute (HDRI) of the University of Port Elizabeth to assist with the evaluation of the Mpilo-Lwazi life skills program for grade 6 to 9 learners at 5 primary and 5 secondary schools in the Nelson Mandela Metropole. The schools were selected by non-probability convenience sampling and the learners via simple random sampling. The life skills program addressed issues of HIV/AIDS, STI and rape and child abuse and the requested evaluation encompassed both the quantitative pretest-posttest assessment of knowledge plus a qualitative focus group assessment of perception of the content and presentation of the life skills program. A multiple pretest-post-test quasi-experimental research design was used. This study focused on the quantitative aspect of rape and child abuse and aimed to describe learners’ base line knowledge before receiving education in rape and child abuse life skills programs and acquired knowledge after the program had been implemented. Descriptive statistics were employed to describe the pre and post test information and the Hotelling’s T2 was used to identify variation in profiles. Posthoc t-tests established significant differences between grades. Structured questionnaires were used to achieve the aims of the research. Results of both the quantitative and qualitative findings were collated to be presented to the Ubuntu Education Fund. The results of the study were as follows: ix The results indicated that the overall level of knowledge regarding Rape and Child Abuse among the sample of grade six to nine learners was average. A small increase in knowledge was identified in the post-test. The area most successful for knowledge increase was the section relating to general information on the victims of Rape and Child Abuse. An area where knowledge actually decreased was that on reporting the rape or abuse. Knowledge of rape and child abuse alone is not sufficient to bring about change in behaviour. Changes in beliefs, such as increased awareness that rape and child abuse are prevalent in families and communities, and attitude change are necessary to facilitate the adoption of health-promoting behaviour. Future education efforts need to introduce health educators into the Rape and Child Abuse life skills program at schools in educating the learners. The format of teaching should also take into account the preferred method of presentation indicated by the learners as this would facilitate optimal intake of information.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Britz, Cecelia Adonia
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Rape -- Prevention , Child abuse -- Prevention , School children -- Life skills assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11017 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/360 , Rape -- Prevention , Child abuse -- Prevention , School children -- Life skills assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Description: Due to the early age at which children are exposed to rape and child abuse, preventative programs should be implemented as early as possible. Schools provide ample opportunity to reach learners of all ages. Educators have regular contact with learners and have a key role to play in the implementation of comprehensive health and education life skills programs. Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) can link up with schools to combat abuse that affects children in South African communities. The Ubuntu Education Fund requested the Health and Development Research Institute (HDRI) of the University of Port Elizabeth to assist with the evaluation of the Mpilo-Lwazi life skills program for grade 6 to 9 learners at 5 primary and 5 secondary schools in the Nelson Mandela Metropole. The schools were selected by non-probability convenience sampling and the learners via simple random sampling. The life skills program addressed issues of HIV/AIDS, STI and rape and child abuse and the requested evaluation encompassed both the quantitative pretest-posttest assessment of knowledge plus a qualitative focus group assessment of perception of the content and presentation of the life skills program. A multiple pretest-post-test quasi-experimental research design was used. This study focused on the quantitative aspect of rape and child abuse and aimed to describe learners’ base line knowledge before receiving education in rape and child abuse life skills programs and acquired knowledge after the program had been implemented. Descriptive statistics were employed to describe the pre and post test information and the Hotelling’s T2 was used to identify variation in profiles. Posthoc t-tests established significant differences between grades. Structured questionnaires were used to achieve the aims of the research. Results of both the quantitative and qualitative findings were collated to be presented to the Ubuntu Education Fund. The results of the study were as follows: ix The results indicated that the overall level of knowledge regarding Rape and Child Abuse among the sample of grade six to nine learners was average. A small increase in knowledge was identified in the post-test. The area most successful for knowledge increase was the section relating to general information on the victims of Rape and Child Abuse. An area where knowledge actually decreased was that on reporting the rape or abuse. Knowledge of rape and child abuse alone is not sufficient to bring about change in behaviour. Changes in beliefs, such as increased awareness that rape and child abuse are prevalent in families and communities, and attitude change are necessary to facilitate the adoption of health-promoting behaviour. Future education efforts need to introduce health educators into the Rape and Child Abuse life skills program at schools in educating the learners. The format of teaching should also take into account the preferred method of presentation indicated by the learners as this would facilitate optimal intake of information.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Labour law implications of organisational restructuring
- Authors: Grootboom, Linda Henry
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Organizational change -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11041 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/303 , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Organizational change -- South Africa
- Description: It is beyond debate that each job lost due to restructuring means a lost taxpayer, and hence lost tax revenue, more poverty and increased crime. South Africa and the world at the large have to deal with this problem head – on in view of the acute need to better the lives of people and encourage investment. Technological advancement should be embraced and used to benefit people and stimulate economies, and that is further challenge in its own right. In Chapter 8 of the White Paper on Transformation of the Public Service dated 15 November 1995 (hereinafter, the White Paper), it is said that: “The Government of National Unity has embarked upon a concerted and comprehensive programme of administrative restructuring and rationalisation (my emphasis) with the object of: (a) Creating a unified and integrated service. (b) Creating a leaner and more cost-effective service.” Various strategies are listed in the White Paper, and the fundamental approach advocated is to right size, adjust remuneration structures, retrench and contract – out services.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Grootboom, Linda Henry
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Organizational change -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11041 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/303 , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Organizational change -- South Africa
- Description: It is beyond debate that each job lost due to restructuring means a lost taxpayer, and hence lost tax revenue, more poverty and increased crime. South Africa and the world at the large have to deal with this problem head – on in view of the acute need to better the lives of people and encourage investment. Technological advancement should be embraced and used to benefit people and stimulate economies, and that is further challenge in its own right. In Chapter 8 of the White Paper on Transformation of the Public Service dated 15 November 1995 (hereinafter, the White Paper), it is said that: “The Government of National Unity has embarked upon a concerted and comprehensive programme of administrative restructuring and rationalisation (my emphasis) with the object of: (a) Creating a unified and integrated service. (b) Creating a leaner and more cost-effective service.” Various strategies are listed in the White Paper, and the fundamental approach advocated is to right size, adjust remuneration structures, retrench and contract – out services.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
Main thesis title: Onderwysers se belewing van multikulturele onderwys
- Authors: Strydom, Louise
- Date: 1999-04
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: Afrikaans
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/60003 , vital:62732
- Description: The South African Schools’ Act of 1996 terminated segregated education in South Africa. Multi-cultural education has become a reality in the new democratic South Africa. As a result of this major shift in policy, the researcher probed for an answer to the following question: “How does the teacher, especially the teacher already in service, experience this new situation regarding multi-cultural education?” To find an answer to this question, a literature study and empirical research, making use of a representative sample of respondents in the Southern Cape, were undertaken. The researcher has personally experienced the challenges of having to adapt from a mono-cultural teaching environment to a multi-cultural teaching environment at school level, hence a further interest in this research problem. Relevant terminology was highlighted and a brief historical synopsis of the course that multi-cultural education took in Western societies such as the USA, Canada, Australia and Britain was studied. These sources were utilised to draw a comparison with the South African situation. A concise synopsis of the history of multi-cultural education in South Africa was also undertaken to highlight the complexity of the educational situation presently being experienced in South Africa. The empirical research, with a target group representing teachers in the Southern Cape, was undertaken by means of a self-compiled questionnaire to make an analysis of teachers’ attitudes, expectations and perceptions of multi-cultural education as experienced in the classroom. The information obtained from the respondents indicated a generally positive attitude towards multi-cultural education amongst teachers. A great need for in-service training also became evident. xvi The researcher has thus made recommendations regarding in-service training that she thinks is of utmost importance. The practical problems that were highlighted during the research, make a vital contribution towards the successful implementation of multi-cultural education in South Africa. , Thesis (DEd) -- Faculty of Education, 1999
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1999-04
- Authors: Strydom, Louise
- Date: 1999-04
- Subjects: Port Elizabeth (South Africa) , Eastern Cape (South Africa) , South Africa
- Language: Afrikaans
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10948/60003 , vital:62732
- Description: The South African Schools’ Act of 1996 terminated segregated education in South Africa. Multi-cultural education has become a reality in the new democratic South Africa. As a result of this major shift in policy, the researcher probed for an answer to the following question: “How does the teacher, especially the teacher already in service, experience this new situation regarding multi-cultural education?” To find an answer to this question, a literature study and empirical research, making use of a representative sample of respondents in the Southern Cape, were undertaken. The researcher has personally experienced the challenges of having to adapt from a mono-cultural teaching environment to a multi-cultural teaching environment at school level, hence a further interest in this research problem. Relevant terminology was highlighted and a brief historical synopsis of the course that multi-cultural education took in Western societies such as the USA, Canada, Australia and Britain was studied. These sources were utilised to draw a comparison with the South African situation. A concise synopsis of the history of multi-cultural education in South Africa was also undertaken to highlight the complexity of the educational situation presently being experienced in South Africa. The empirical research, with a target group representing teachers in the Southern Cape, was undertaken by means of a self-compiled questionnaire to make an analysis of teachers’ attitudes, expectations and perceptions of multi-cultural education as experienced in the classroom. The information obtained from the respondents indicated a generally positive attitude towards multi-cultural education amongst teachers. A great need for in-service training also became evident. xvi The researcher has thus made recommendations regarding in-service training that she thinks is of utmost importance. The practical problems that were highlighted during the research, make a vital contribution towards the successful implementation of multi-cultural education in South Africa. , Thesis (DEd) -- Faculty of Education, 1999
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1999-04
Observed metabolic changes in male Wistar rats after treatment with an antidepressant implied in undesirable weight gain, or Sutherlandia frutescens for Type II diabetes
- Authors: Chadwick, Wayne
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Rats -- Metabolism , Non-insulin-dependent diabetes -- Research , Rats as laboratory animals
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11068 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/313 , Rats -- Metabolism , Non-insulin-dependent diabetes -- Research , Rats as laboratory animals
- Description: Type II diabetes is fast becoming a growing problem in developed countries worldwide. Traditionally the median age for diagnosis was around sixty, but recent surveys have shown that the entire age distribution curve has shifted to the left. Western countries boast the worst statistics in which type II diabetes is being reported in children under the age of ten. At such a young age the disease often goes undiagnosed for long periods of time allowing considerable damage to occur. The incidence of type II diabetes is thought to be parallel with the growing rate of obesity associated with a characteristically unhealthy western diet. Type II diabetes is an extremely expensive disease to manage, and with the rapid growth of this pandemic our country will soon feel the economic burden of this disease. It is for this reason that cheaper medication needs to be investigated in the form of traditional plants, such as Sutherlandia frutescens. Prescription medication, such as tricyclic antidepressants, may also increase body weight or appetite thereby playing a role in obesity. The cause of weight gain in such cases may go unrecognized or lead to cessation of the medication with or without the practitioner’s knowledge or approval. It is therefore necessary to investigate the causative agents responsible for the excessive weight gain. Drinking water containing extracts of the S. frutescens, metformin (a well known type II diabetes medication) and amitriptyline (a common tricyclic antidepressant) was administered to three groups of ten male Wistar rats. The control group received water without any medication. The rat’s weight and food consumption was monitored throughout the trial and their oxygen consumption was also determined. Rats were sacrificed after four months of medicinal compliance and glucose uptake, in the presence and absence of insulin, was tested in epididymal fat, liver and muscle. Fasting plasma glucose levels, lipoprotein, cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were also determined.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Chadwick, Wayne
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Rats -- Metabolism , Non-insulin-dependent diabetes -- Research , Rats as laboratory animals
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11068 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/313 , Rats -- Metabolism , Non-insulin-dependent diabetes -- Research , Rats as laboratory animals
- Description: Type II diabetes is fast becoming a growing problem in developed countries worldwide. Traditionally the median age for diagnosis was around sixty, but recent surveys have shown that the entire age distribution curve has shifted to the left. Western countries boast the worst statistics in which type II diabetes is being reported in children under the age of ten. At such a young age the disease often goes undiagnosed for long periods of time allowing considerable damage to occur. The incidence of type II diabetes is thought to be parallel with the growing rate of obesity associated with a characteristically unhealthy western diet. Type II diabetes is an extremely expensive disease to manage, and with the rapid growth of this pandemic our country will soon feel the economic burden of this disease. It is for this reason that cheaper medication needs to be investigated in the form of traditional plants, such as Sutherlandia frutescens. Prescription medication, such as tricyclic antidepressants, may also increase body weight or appetite thereby playing a role in obesity. The cause of weight gain in such cases may go unrecognized or lead to cessation of the medication with or without the practitioner’s knowledge or approval. It is therefore necessary to investigate the causative agents responsible for the excessive weight gain. Drinking water containing extracts of the S. frutescens, metformin (a well known type II diabetes medication) and amitriptyline (a common tricyclic antidepressant) was administered to three groups of ten male Wistar rats. The control group received water without any medication. The rat’s weight and food consumption was monitored throughout the trial and their oxygen consumption was also determined. Rats were sacrificed after four months of medicinal compliance and glucose uptake, in the presence and absence of insulin, was tested in epididymal fat, liver and muscle. Fasting plasma glucose levels, lipoprotein, cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were also determined.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
Occupational aspirations and gender stereotyping of Xhosa-speaking senior primary learners
- Authors: Els, Catherine
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Research , Gender identity , School children -- South Africa -- Attitudes , Xhosa (African people) -- Attitudes
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11020 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/325 , Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Research , Gender identity , School children -- South Africa -- Attitudes , Xhosa (African people) -- Attitudes
- Description: International research highlights conflicting results regarding factors that could play a role in the development of occupational aspirations and occupational gender stereotyping of primary school children. Some of the variables that have been identified are age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and societal influences. There has been some research emphasis on the career development of South Africans. However, studies that have been conducted have focused mainly on adolescents and adults. Furthermore, the majority of this research has focused on programme intervention and not on acquiring baseline information. There has been no research to date on the career development of South African Xhosa-speaking senior primary school children. The lack of career research on South African Xhosa-speaking children indicates the need for the present research. This study aims to describe and compare the occupational aspirations and occupational gender stereotyping (in terms of Holland’s occupational and status level typology) of male and female Xhosa-speaking senior primary school learners. The study also describes the possible gender stereotypical perceptions preadolescent children hold regarding certain occupations. A non-probability sample of 274 Xhosa-speaking children between the ages of 10 and 14 years was drawn from two primary schools in townships in the Nelson Mandela Metropole. An exploratory and descriptive research framework was utilised, with descriptive statistical procedures employed to summarise and report the data in a meaningful manner. The major findings of the present study indicate that Xhosa-speaking senior primary school children’s favourite occupational aspirations fit into Holland’s Investigative typology and high status level. Some gender differences were evident, with slightly more boys aspiring to Investigative occupations than girls. Both boys and girls demonstrated gender stereotypical perceptions regarding xiii which occupations were suitable for both genders, with boys more willing to accept girls into traditional male occupations than girls willing to accept boys into traditional female occupations. The results of the present study emphasise the need for further exploration of the occupational aspirations and occupational ge nder stereotyping of Xhosa-speaking senior primary school children. Future research needs to include other cultural and age groups in order to explore how personal and situational variables may differentially influence children’s occupational aspirations and occupational gender stereotyping.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
- Authors: Els, Catherine
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Research , Gender identity , School children -- South Africa -- Attitudes , Xhosa (African people) -- Attitudes
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11020 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/325 , Vocational interests -- South Africa -- Research , Gender identity , School children -- South Africa -- Attitudes , Xhosa (African people) -- Attitudes
- Description: International research highlights conflicting results regarding factors that could play a role in the development of occupational aspirations and occupational gender stereotyping of primary school children. Some of the variables that have been identified are age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and societal influences. There has been some research emphasis on the career development of South Africans. However, studies that have been conducted have focused mainly on adolescents and adults. Furthermore, the majority of this research has focused on programme intervention and not on acquiring baseline information. There has been no research to date on the career development of South African Xhosa-speaking senior primary school children. The lack of career research on South African Xhosa-speaking children indicates the need for the present research. This study aims to describe and compare the occupational aspirations and occupational gender stereotyping (in terms of Holland’s occupational and status level typology) of male and female Xhosa-speaking senior primary school learners. The study also describes the possible gender stereotypical perceptions preadolescent children hold regarding certain occupations. A non-probability sample of 274 Xhosa-speaking children between the ages of 10 and 14 years was drawn from two primary schools in townships in the Nelson Mandela Metropole. An exploratory and descriptive research framework was utilised, with descriptive statistical procedures employed to summarise and report the data in a meaningful manner. The major findings of the present study indicate that Xhosa-speaking senior primary school children’s favourite occupational aspirations fit into Holland’s Investigative typology and high status level. Some gender differences were evident, with slightly more boys aspiring to Investigative occupations than girls. Both boys and girls demonstrated gender stereotypical perceptions regarding xiii which occupations were suitable for both genders, with boys more willing to accept girls into traditional male occupations than girls willing to accept boys into traditional female occupations. The results of the present study emphasise the need for further exploration of the occupational aspirations and occupational ge nder stereotyping of Xhosa-speaking senior primary school children. Future research needs to include other cultural and age groups in order to explore how personal and situational variables may differentially influence children’s occupational aspirations and occupational gender stereotyping.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
Occupational medical examinations and labour law
- Authors: Lapere, Jan Noel Romain
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Employees -- Medical examinations -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Medical screening -- South Africa , Industrial hygiene -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11045 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/302 , Employees -- Medical examinations -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Medical screening -- South Africa , Industrial hygiene -- South Africa
- Description: South Africa’s Constitution and the Employment Equity Act have a major impact on the performance of medical examinations within the employment relationship. Health and safety statutes list a number of occupational medical examinations, which an employer must perform. Other legislation permits the execution of medical examinations. After listing the different statutory references to occupational medical examinations, this treatise examines under which conditions medical testing is required or permissible. The fairness of employment discrimination based on medical facts, employment conditions, social policy, distribution of employee benefits and inherent job requirement is analysed through a study of the legal texts, experts’ opinions and case studies. The particularities of the ethical and legal duties of the medical professional, performing the occupational medical examination, are also examined. Finally, a comprehensive analysis of the different forms of occupational medical examinations is compiled by combining legal and policy-related job requirements and is attached as an annexure. This is the practical result of the research in this treatise combined with the personal experience of the author.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Lapere, Jan Noel Romain
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Employees -- Medical examinations -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Medical screening -- South Africa , Industrial hygiene -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11045 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/302 , Employees -- Medical examinations -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Medical screening -- South Africa , Industrial hygiene -- South Africa
- Description: South Africa’s Constitution and the Employment Equity Act have a major impact on the performance of medical examinations within the employment relationship. Health and safety statutes list a number of occupational medical examinations, which an employer must perform. Other legislation permits the execution of medical examinations. After listing the different statutory references to occupational medical examinations, this treatise examines under which conditions medical testing is required or permissible. The fairness of employment discrimination based on medical facts, employment conditions, social policy, distribution of employee benefits and inherent job requirement is analysed through a study of the legal texts, experts’ opinions and case studies. The particularities of the ethical and legal duties of the medical professional, performing the occupational medical examination, are also examined. Finally, a comprehensive analysis of the different forms of occupational medical examinations is compiled by combining legal and policy-related job requirements and is attached as an annexure. This is the practical result of the research in this treatise combined with the personal experience of the author.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
On the mocvd growth of ZnO
- Authors: Pagni, Olivier Demeno
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Zinc oxide thin films , Metal organic chemical vapor deposition
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:11075 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/382 , Zinc oxide thin films , Metal organic chemical vapor deposition
- Description: Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a II-VI semiconductor material that offers tremendous potential as a light emitter in the blue-to-UV range. It has a wurtzite structure, and a direct band gap that can be tuned from 3.0 to 4.0 eV by alloying with Cd or Mg, respectively. In this work, ZnO thin films were grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on n-Si 2 ° off (100), amorphous glass, n-GaAs (100), and c-plane sapphire substrates. Diethyl zinc (DEZn) and tert-butanol (TBOH) were chosen as precursors. For the first time, Second Harmonic Generation Imaging was applied to the mapping of ZnO epilayers. The images obtained highlighted the polycrystalline character of the thin films, and provided insight as to the growth mode of ZnO on Si. The influence of substrate temperature on the structural properties of the epilayers was investigated by X-ray diffraction and optical microscopy. Grain sizes as high as 54 nm were measured. The optimum temperature range for this system proved to be 450 – 500 °C. The influence of the VI:II ratio during growth on the optical properties of the epilayers was studied by UV-vis-near IR spectroscopy. The lowest Urbach tail E0 parameter was measured for material grown at a VI:II ratio of 18:1. The films’ free electron concentration was shown to decrease by over two orders of magnitude, from 1019 to 1017 cm-3, as the VI:II ratio increased from 10 to 60:1. This decrease in carrier concentration with rising VI:II ratio was paralleled to the surge at 12 K of a photoluminescence (PL) emission band characteristic of p-type ZnO. The band gap energies extracted from room temperature transmission spectra ranged between 3.35 and 3.38 eV, in agreement with the value of 3.35 eV measured by room temperature PL. Moreover, variable temperature PL spectra were recorded between 12 and 298 K on ZnO grown on Si. The 12 K spectrum was dominated by a donor-bound exciton (D°X) at 3.36 eV, while the 298 K scan displayed strong free exciton emission (FX) at 3.29 eV. The width of the D°X band proved to be as narrow as 7 meV. The intensity ratio between the room temperature near-band edge emission and the defect-related green band was as high as 28:1, highlighting the optical quality of the layers deposited in this work. The electrical properties of the thin films were studied by Hall measurements (van der Pauw configuration), and a maximum room temperature mobility of 11 cm2/Vs was recorded. Furthermore, a palladium (Pd) Schottky barrier diode on ZnO was fabricated. The barrier height and ideality factor were calculated from current–voltage measurements to be 0.83 eV and 1.6, respectively. The capacitance–voltage curve of the diode yielded a carrier concentration in the depletion region of 8·1017 cm-3. This study has shown that the optical and electrical properties of ZnO depend strongly on the growth conditions employed. A suitable choice of growth parameters can yield high quality ZnO that may be used for various devices. Keywords: Hall, MOCVD, optical spectroscopy, photoluminescence, Schottky barrier diode, SH Imaging, X-ray diffraction, ZnO.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
- Authors: Pagni, Olivier Demeno
- Date: 2004
- Subjects: Zinc oxide thin films , Metal organic chemical vapor deposition
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:11075 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/382 , Zinc oxide thin films , Metal organic chemical vapor deposition
- Description: Zinc oxide (ZnO) is a II-VI semiconductor material that offers tremendous potential as a light emitter in the blue-to-UV range. It has a wurtzite structure, and a direct band gap that can be tuned from 3.0 to 4.0 eV by alloying with Cd or Mg, respectively. In this work, ZnO thin films were grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on n-Si 2 ° off (100), amorphous glass, n-GaAs (100), and c-plane sapphire substrates. Diethyl zinc (DEZn) and tert-butanol (TBOH) were chosen as precursors. For the first time, Second Harmonic Generation Imaging was applied to the mapping of ZnO epilayers. The images obtained highlighted the polycrystalline character of the thin films, and provided insight as to the growth mode of ZnO on Si. The influence of substrate temperature on the structural properties of the epilayers was investigated by X-ray diffraction and optical microscopy. Grain sizes as high as 54 nm were measured. The optimum temperature range for this system proved to be 450 – 500 °C. The influence of the VI:II ratio during growth on the optical properties of the epilayers was studied by UV-vis-near IR spectroscopy. The lowest Urbach tail E0 parameter was measured for material grown at a VI:II ratio of 18:1. The films’ free electron concentration was shown to decrease by over two orders of magnitude, from 1019 to 1017 cm-3, as the VI:II ratio increased from 10 to 60:1. This decrease in carrier concentration with rising VI:II ratio was paralleled to the surge at 12 K of a photoluminescence (PL) emission band characteristic of p-type ZnO. The band gap energies extracted from room temperature transmission spectra ranged between 3.35 and 3.38 eV, in agreement with the value of 3.35 eV measured by room temperature PL. Moreover, variable temperature PL spectra were recorded between 12 and 298 K on ZnO grown on Si. The 12 K spectrum was dominated by a donor-bound exciton (D°X) at 3.36 eV, while the 298 K scan displayed strong free exciton emission (FX) at 3.29 eV. The width of the D°X band proved to be as narrow as 7 meV. The intensity ratio between the room temperature near-band edge emission and the defect-related green band was as high as 28:1, highlighting the optical quality of the layers deposited in this work. The electrical properties of the thin films were studied by Hall measurements (van der Pauw configuration), and a maximum room temperature mobility of 11 cm2/Vs was recorded. Furthermore, a palladium (Pd) Schottky barrier diode on ZnO was fabricated. The barrier height and ideality factor were calculated from current–voltage measurements to be 0.83 eV and 1.6, respectively. The capacitance–voltage curve of the diode yielded a carrier concentration in the depletion region of 8·1017 cm-3. This study has shown that the optical and electrical properties of ZnO depend strongly on the growth conditions employed. A suitable choice of growth parameters can yield high quality ZnO that may be used for various devices. Keywords: Hall, MOCVD, optical spectroscopy, photoluminescence, Schottky barrier diode, SH Imaging, X-ray diffraction, ZnO.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2004
On using AMOS, EQS, LISREL, Mx, RAMONA and SEPATH for structural equation modeling
- Authors: Peprah, Syvester
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Latent variables , Multivariate analysis , Mathematical statistics -- computer programs
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11082 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/279 , Latent variables , Multivariate analysis , Mathematical statistics -- computer programs
- Description: Structural Equation Modeling is a common name for the statistical analysis of Structural Equation Models. Structural Equation Models are models that specify relationships between a set of variables and can be specified by means of path diagrams. A number of Structural Equation Modeling programs have been developed. These include, amongst others, AMOS, EQS, LISREL, Mx, RAMONA and SEPATH. A number of studies have been published on the use of some of the applications mentioned above. They include, amongst others, Brown (1986), Waller (1993) and Kano (1997). Structural Equation Models are increasingly being used in the social, economic and behavioral sciences. More and more people are therefore making use of one or more of the Structural Equation Modeling applications on the market. This study is performed with the aim of using each of the Structural Equation Modeling applications AMOS, EQS, LISREL, Mx, RAMONA and SEPATH for the first time and document the experience, joy and the difficulties encountered while using them. This treatise is different from the comparisons already published in that it is based on the use of AMOS, EQS, LISREL, Mx, RAMONA and SEPATH to fit a Structural Equation Model for peer influences on ambition, which is specified for data obtained by Duncan, Haller and Portes (1971), by myself as a first time user of each of the programs mentioned. The impressive features as well as the difficulties encountered are listed for each application. Recommendations for possible improvements to the various applications are also proposed. Finally, recommendations for future studies on the use of Structural Equation Modeling programs are made.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2000
- Authors: Peprah, Syvester
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Latent variables , Multivariate analysis , Mathematical statistics -- computer programs
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11082 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/279 , Latent variables , Multivariate analysis , Mathematical statistics -- computer programs
- Description: Structural Equation Modeling is a common name for the statistical analysis of Structural Equation Models. Structural Equation Models are models that specify relationships between a set of variables and can be specified by means of path diagrams. A number of Structural Equation Modeling programs have been developed. These include, amongst others, AMOS, EQS, LISREL, Mx, RAMONA and SEPATH. A number of studies have been published on the use of some of the applications mentioned above. They include, amongst others, Brown (1986), Waller (1993) and Kano (1997). Structural Equation Models are increasingly being used in the social, economic and behavioral sciences. More and more people are therefore making use of one or more of the Structural Equation Modeling applications on the market. This study is performed with the aim of using each of the Structural Equation Modeling applications AMOS, EQS, LISREL, Mx, RAMONA and SEPATH for the first time and document the experience, joy and the difficulties encountered while using them. This treatise is different from the comparisons already published in that it is based on the use of AMOS, EQS, LISREL, Mx, RAMONA and SEPATH to fit a Structural Equation Model for peer influences on ambition, which is specified for data obtained by Duncan, Haller and Portes (1971), by myself as a first time user of each of the programs mentioned. The impressive features as well as the difficulties encountered are listed for each application. Recommendations for possible improvements to the various applications are also proposed. Finally, recommendations for future studies on the use of Structural Equation Modeling programs are made.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2000
Ostrich calpastatin purification and partial characterization of the liver inhibitor
- Authors: Roman, Henry James
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Calpastatin , Protease inhibitors , Ion exchange chromatography , Ostriches
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11090 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1015522
- Description: The isolation and purification of calpastatin from ostrich liver is presented, along with its physicochemical and kinetic properties. By using extraction from liver, ion-exchange chromatography on DEAE-Toyopearl, heating to 90 °C for 10 min and rechromatography on Toyopearl Super-Q 650 S, ostrich calpastatin was isolated and purified from ostrich liver. The purified intact calpastatin showed homogeneity on SDS-PAGE (Mr of 105.6 K). Amino acid analysis showed that ostrich calpastatin resembled that of rabbit liver and human erythrocyte calpastatin. An N-terminal sequence could not be obtained because the N-terminus was found to be blocked by an as yet unknown amino acid residue. The Mr values of degradative forms of ostrich liver calpastatin were determined to be 56 K and 90 K. By using PAG-IEF the pI of the intact form was determined to be 5.1. Ostrich liver calpastatin behaved characteristically like other calpastatins during kinetic analysis. Calpastatin inhibited calpain from pH 6 to 9 and was found to be unaffected by temperatures as high as 100 °C. Calpastatin also inhibited calpain activity at Ca2+ concentrations ranging from 1 to 10 mM. The inhibitor was shown to be phosphorylated because after incubation with alkaline phosphatase there was a decrease in inhibitory activity. No inhibitory effects were detected against other proteases such as chymotrypsin and trypsin, with both proteases inactivating calpastatin completely. Ostrich liver calpain was shown to have a pH optimum of 7.5 and a temperature optimum of 30 °C. In terms of its thermodynamic properties it resembled that of other ostrich proteases; DH, DS and DG being 47.07 kJ/mol, -91.1 J/mol/K and 74.237 kJ/mol, respectively. Ostrich liver calpain showed a Km of 0.14 % (w/v). The enzyme was active at both milli- and micro-molar concentrations of Ca2+. Ostrich liver calpastatin showed many physical, chemical and kinetic properties similar to those of other known calpastatins.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2000
- Authors: Roman, Henry James
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Calpastatin , Protease inhibitors , Ion exchange chromatography , Ostriches
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11090 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1015522
- Description: The isolation and purification of calpastatin from ostrich liver is presented, along with its physicochemical and kinetic properties. By using extraction from liver, ion-exchange chromatography on DEAE-Toyopearl, heating to 90 °C for 10 min and rechromatography on Toyopearl Super-Q 650 S, ostrich calpastatin was isolated and purified from ostrich liver. The purified intact calpastatin showed homogeneity on SDS-PAGE (Mr of 105.6 K). Amino acid analysis showed that ostrich calpastatin resembled that of rabbit liver and human erythrocyte calpastatin. An N-terminal sequence could not be obtained because the N-terminus was found to be blocked by an as yet unknown amino acid residue. The Mr values of degradative forms of ostrich liver calpastatin were determined to be 56 K and 90 K. By using PAG-IEF the pI of the intact form was determined to be 5.1. Ostrich liver calpastatin behaved characteristically like other calpastatins during kinetic analysis. Calpastatin inhibited calpain from pH 6 to 9 and was found to be unaffected by temperatures as high as 100 °C. Calpastatin also inhibited calpain activity at Ca2+ concentrations ranging from 1 to 10 mM. The inhibitor was shown to be phosphorylated because after incubation with alkaline phosphatase there was a decrease in inhibitory activity. No inhibitory effects were detected against other proteases such as chymotrypsin and trypsin, with both proteases inactivating calpastatin completely. Ostrich liver calpain was shown to have a pH optimum of 7.5 and a temperature optimum of 30 °C. In terms of its thermodynamic properties it resembled that of other ostrich proteases; DH, DS and DG being 47.07 kJ/mol, -91.1 J/mol/K and 74.237 kJ/mol, respectively. Ostrich liver calpain showed a Km of 0.14 % (w/v). The enzyme was active at both milli- and micro-molar concentrations of Ca2+. Ostrich liver calpastatin showed many physical, chemical and kinetic properties similar to those of other known calpastatins.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2000
Outsourcing for competitive advantage : an evaluation of an owner driver proposition in a South African removals company
- Authors: Coleman, Belinda
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Contracting out -- South Africa , Storage and removal trade -- Subcontracting -- South Africa , Trucking -- South Africa , Benchmarking (Management) -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11002 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1015540
- Description: The aim of the research was to assess what competitive advantage a Removals company could expect to gain by outsourcing its driver function to owner drivers. An extensive literature review identified key outsourcing issues. The literature was related to a case study of Stuttaford Van Lines (SVL), a company that is experiencing problems with its current independent contractor driver arrangements and that needs to review its outsourcing decision. In order to learn from best practice in the field of outsourcing to owner drivers, a benchmarking exercise was undertaken at South African Breweries (SAB). The benchmarking exercise identified six key issues that contributed to the success of the SAB owner driver scheme. These points, together with others identified from the literature, were integrated into a recommended outsourcing implementation process for SVL. The research found that it is possible for SVL to outsource the driver function to owner drivers and that such a scheme can be expected to improve customer service levels. The success of the scheme will depend on the selection of the drivers and how effectively it is managed. It was found that it would not be profitable for SVL to outsource to owner drivers using the compensation model proposed. Cost reduction is however only one of the factors to consider in an outsourcing decision.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2000
- Authors: Coleman, Belinda
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Contracting out -- South Africa , Storage and removal trade -- Subcontracting -- South Africa , Trucking -- South Africa , Benchmarking (Management) -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11002 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1015540
- Description: The aim of the research was to assess what competitive advantage a Removals company could expect to gain by outsourcing its driver function to owner drivers. An extensive literature review identified key outsourcing issues. The literature was related to a case study of Stuttaford Van Lines (SVL), a company that is experiencing problems with its current independent contractor driver arrangements and that needs to review its outsourcing decision. In order to learn from best practice in the field of outsourcing to owner drivers, a benchmarking exercise was undertaken at South African Breweries (SAB). The benchmarking exercise identified six key issues that contributed to the success of the SAB owner driver scheme. These points, together with others identified from the literature, were integrated into a recommended outsourcing implementation process for SVL. The research found that it is possible for SVL to outsource the driver function to owner drivers and that such a scheme can be expected to improve customer service levels. The success of the scheme will depend on the selection of the drivers and how effectively it is managed. It was found that it would not be profitable for SVL to outsource to owner drivers using the compensation model proposed. Cost reduction is however only one of the factors to consider in an outsourcing decision.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2000
Personality traits of patients participating in a group programme at a private psychiatric day clinic
- Authors: Oakes, Elizabeth Jean
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Personality assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , NEO Personality Inventory -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Psychotherapy -- Outcome assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11028 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/331 , Personality assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , NEO Personality Inventory -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Psychotherapy -- Outcome assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Description: The current trend in psychiatric health care is towards comprehensive primary healthcare for all South Africans. This has been has been achieved by the restructuring of the National Health System (NHS) into national, provincial, district, and community levels, which provide outpatient and inpatient care at primary, secondary, and tertiary care levels. Assessment and treatment in the form of physical and psychosocial interventions form an integral part of psychiatric care. The value of personality assessment and, in particular, the potential for matching patient personality types with effective treatment options, may play a role in facilitating effective health care in the future. An overview of the literature indicates that little research has been done regarding the area of personality traits of psychiatric patients in South Africa. This study aims to explore and describe the personality traits or profile of individuals attending a private psychiatric day care facility in The Nelson Mandela Metropole (i.e., Parkwood Day Clinic). The sample consisted of 196 participants (104 male and 92 female) who attended a group programme from April 2000 to April 2001. As part of the programme, patients were required to com plete a series of pencil-and-paper measures. The questionnaires selected for this study included a biographical questionnaire, which was used to describe the biographical variables of the sample with regard to gender, age and marital status, and The Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) (Costa & McCrae, 1992a), which was used as a measure of personality. The NEO PI-R is considered a concise measure of the five major domains of personality and some of the more important traits that define each domain. Together, the five domains Neuroticism (N), Extraversion (E), Openness (O), Agreeableness (A) and Conscientiousness (C), and the six facets within each domain, allow for a comprehensive assessment of adult personality. xiv An exploratory, descriptive method was used in the study, and the data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics, including correlations, cluster analysis, and multivariate analysis of variance. Key findings include the following: Results from the NEO PI-R domains showed a personality profile of very high scores for N, and average scores for E, O, A, and C. Within the sample, cluster analysis revealed five distinct personality profile clusters. For the biographical variable gender, significant differences were found between males and females on N, with the majority of males scoring in the category of Very High and High, and the majority of females scoring in the Average category. For the variable age, the results indicated significant differences on A, with participants in the young adulthood group scoring significantly lower on A than participants in the middle adulthood group. For marital status, on the domain of O, significant differences were found between the divorced or widowed and the married, with the married scoring in the Low category and the divorced or widowed in the Average category. On the domain of C, significant differences were noted between the singles group and the currently or previously married groups, with the single group tending to score lower on C than both other groups. These findings reveal a need for further research into personality traits and psychiatric samples, as consideration of personality traits based on the profile established, may be useful in matching patients’ characteristics with optimal treatment options.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Oakes, Elizabeth Jean
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Personality assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , NEO Personality Inventory -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Psychotherapy -- Outcome assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:11028 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/331 , Personality assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , NEO Personality Inventory -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Psychotherapy -- Outcome assessment -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth
- Description: The current trend in psychiatric health care is towards comprehensive primary healthcare for all South Africans. This has been has been achieved by the restructuring of the National Health System (NHS) into national, provincial, district, and community levels, which provide outpatient and inpatient care at primary, secondary, and tertiary care levels. Assessment and treatment in the form of physical and psychosocial interventions form an integral part of psychiatric care. The value of personality assessment and, in particular, the potential for matching patient personality types with effective treatment options, may play a role in facilitating effective health care in the future. An overview of the literature indicates that little research has been done regarding the area of personality traits of psychiatric patients in South Africa. This study aims to explore and describe the personality traits or profile of individuals attending a private psychiatric day care facility in The Nelson Mandela Metropole (i.e., Parkwood Day Clinic). The sample consisted of 196 participants (104 male and 92 female) who attended a group programme from April 2000 to April 2001. As part of the programme, patients were required to com plete a series of pencil-and-paper measures. The questionnaires selected for this study included a biographical questionnaire, which was used to describe the biographical variables of the sample with regard to gender, age and marital status, and The Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) (Costa & McCrae, 1992a), which was used as a measure of personality. The NEO PI-R is considered a concise measure of the five major domains of personality and some of the more important traits that define each domain. Together, the five domains Neuroticism (N), Extraversion (E), Openness (O), Agreeableness (A) and Conscientiousness (C), and the six facets within each domain, allow for a comprehensive assessment of adult personality. xiv An exploratory, descriptive method was used in the study, and the data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics, including correlations, cluster analysis, and multivariate analysis of variance. Key findings include the following: Results from the NEO PI-R domains showed a personality profile of very high scores for N, and average scores for E, O, A, and C. Within the sample, cluster analysis revealed five distinct personality profile clusters. For the biographical variable gender, significant differences were found between males and females on N, with the majority of males scoring in the category of Very High and High, and the majority of females scoring in the Average category. For the variable age, the results indicated significant differences on A, with participants in the young adulthood group scoring significantly lower on A than participants in the middle adulthood group. For marital status, on the domain of O, significant differences were found between the divorced or widowed and the married, with the married scoring in the Low category and the divorced or widowed in the Average category. On the domain of C, significant differences were noted between the singles group and the currently or previously married groups, with the single group tending to score lower on C than both other groups. These findings reveal a need for further research into personality traits and psychiatric samples, as consideration of personality traits based on the profile established, may be useful in matching patients’ characteristics with optimal treatment options.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
Physiological and non-physiological induction of gastrointestinal differentiation
- Authors: Brauns, Seth Clint Aron
- Date: 1999
- Subjects: Gastrointestinal system -- Differentiation , Gastrointestinal system -- Physiology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11089 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1015521
- Description: The human colonic carcinoma cell lines HT-29 and Caco-2 both exhibit structural and functional differentiation under appropriate culture conditions. HT-29 can be induced to differentiate by treatment with short-chain fatty acids or acetoacetate. Caco-2 cells differentiate spontaneously upon contact inhibition. In this study HT-29 cells were treated with 5 mM acetate, propionate, butyrate and acetoacetate (physiological inducers) to assess their effects on the expression of carbonic anhydrase 1, sucrase-isomaltase and alkaline phosphatase which are reported to be markers of gastrointestinal differentiation. The maturation induction observed was compared to that of the spontaneous differentiation observed in Caco-2 cells. Assays were performed over an 18 day period. Results showed a close correlation (p < 0.05) between HT-29 and Caco-2 cell on days 4 and 12. These results indicate that differentiation reported in both cell lines is comparable and can be used as a basis for further comparative studies. In addition, parallel experiments to the above were conducted using a selection of nine rationally designed cyclic dipeptides (CDPs) potential drug entities which were chosen as non-physiological inducers. The results showed that the cyclic dipeptides were able to induce the gastrointestinal phenotype as observed in HT-29 cells treated with physiological inducers. Studies on the effects of energy-related metabolism in HT-29 and Caco-2 cells as induced by physiological and non-physiological inducers indicated that energy metabolism is a significant role player in gastrointestinal differentiation. The results reported show a decrease in ATP concentrations indicating that the cyclic dipeptides, like physiological inducers, affect the energy state of the HT-29 cells and thus may effect the differentiation of these cells. A positive correlation was found between histone phsophorylation and differentiation confirming that histone phsophorylation was partly responsible for the decrease in ATP concentrations. It is suggested that the induction of differentiation in HT- 29 cells could be either due to non-specific transcription of genes by activation of a chromatin switch or specific by the activation of signal transduction pathways based on the flux of ATP through the cells. Differential display RT-PCR is probably the most sensitive method that could be used to validate the suggestion of either a nonspecific transcription of genes or a specific differentiation reported for HT-29 cells.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1999
- Authors: Brauns, Seth Clint Aron
- Date: 1999
- Subjects: Gastrointestinal system -- Differentiation , Gastrointestinal system -- Physiology
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11089 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1015521
- Description: The human colonic carcinoma cell lines HT-29 and Caco-2 both exhibit structural and functional differentiation under appropriate culture conditions. HT-29 can be induced to differentiate by treatment with short-chain fatty acids or acetoacetate. Caco-2 cells differentiate spontaneously upon contact inhibition. In this study HT-29 cells were treated with 5 mM acetate, propionate, butyrate and acetoacetate (physiological inducers) to assess their effects on the expression of carbonic anhydrase 1, sucrase-isomaltase and alkaline phosphatase which are reported to be markers of gastrointestinal differentiation. The maturation induction observed was compared to that of the spontaneous differentiation observed in Caco-2 cells. Assays were performed over an 18 day period. Results showed a close correlation (p < 0.05) between HT-29 and Caco-2 cell on days 4 and 12. These results indicate that differentiation reported in both cell lines is comparable and can be used as a basis for further comparative studies. In addition, parallel experiments to the above were conducted using a selection of nine rationally designed cyclic dipeptides (CDPs) potential drug entities which were chosen as non-physiological inducers. The results showed that the cyclic dipeptides were able to induce the gastrointestinal phenotype as observed in HT-29 cells treated with physiological inducers. Studies on the effects of energy-related metabolism in HT-29 and Caco-2 cells as induced by physiological and non-physiological inducers indicated that energy metabolism is a significant role player in gastrointestinal differentiation. The results reported show a decrease in ATP concentrations indicating that the cyclic dipeptides, like physiological inducers, affect the energy state of the HT-29 cells and thus may effect the differentiation of these cells. A positive correlation was found between histone phsophorylation and differentiation confirming that histone phsophorylation was partly responsible for the decrease in ATP concentrations. It is suggested that the induction of differentiation in HT- 29 cells could be either due to non-specific transcription of genes by activation of a chromatin switch or specific by the activation of signal transduction pathways based on the flux of ATP through the cells. Differential display RT-PCR is probably the most sensitive method that could be used to validate the suggestion of either a nonspecific transcription of genes or a specific differentiation reported for HT-29 cells.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 1999
Possible crosstalk between signal transduction pathways in the induction of differentiation in HT-29 cells
- Authors: Jamie, Hajierah
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Cellular signal transduction , Cell differentiation
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11096 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1019684
- Description: The investigation into the mechanisms by which compounds such as butyrate induce differentiation in HT-29 cells, is lacking. The colonic carcinoma cell line, HT-29, undergoes differentiation induction in the presence of butyrate and acetoacetate. The Caco-2 cell line spontaneously differentiates on contact inhibition. In this study, a signal transduction pathway involving ATP, cAMP, Ca2+ and the transcriptional factor CREB was investigated following suggestions that the energy state of the cell and diffferentiation are linked. The activity of the MAP kinase cascade, including possible crosstalk that may exist between these pathways was determined. The HT-29 cells were exposed to 5 mM acetoacetate, butyrate, DMSO and propionate. The results of this differentiation induction were compared to Caco-2 and HeLa cells, which are cervical carcinoma cells. It was found that ATP levels are decreased on differentiation induction in HT-29 cells, which, in turn affected the cAMP concentrations. Theoretically, the inducers do not have any effect on PDE 4 activity, and may facilitate the interaction between cAMP and PKA. Influx of Ca2+ into the cells was inhibited to a degree by the inducers, which was possibly overcome by crosstalk between the cAMP and Ca2+ pathways. CREB activation, lineage-specific gene expression, ERK activity and c-myc expression were all dependent on both the inducers used and the cell-type. PKA played a major role in CREB activation in acetoacetate- and butyrate -induced HT-29, Caco-2 and HeLa cells, while a2+/Calmodulin-dependent kinases I/IV may have a secondary role. Alkaline phosphatase expression in HeLa cells was independent of CREB. Evidence that crosstalk between the MAP kinase cascade and the REBactivation pathways exist, was illustrated by increased CREB activation on ERK inhibition in acetoacetate- and butyrate-induced HT-29 and HeLa cells. Also, the role that ERK played in the cells differed with inducer and cell-type. The dependence of cmyc expression on c-jun and c-fos, appeared to be differentiation induction- and celltype specific. Results from this study indicate the potential use of acetoacetate and butyrate as anti-cancer compounds.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2000
- Authors: Jamie, Hajierah
- Date: 2000
- Subjects: Cellular signal transduction , Cell differentiation
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MSc
- Identifier: vital:11096 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1019684
- Description: The investigation into the mechanisms by which compounds such as butyrate induce differentiation in HT-29 cells, is lacking. The colonic carcinoma cell line, HT-29, undergoes differentiation induction in the presence of butyrate and acetoacetate. The Caco-2 cell line spontaneously differentiates on contact inhibition. In this study, a signal transduction pathway involving ATP, cAMP, Ca2+ and the transcriptional factor CREB was investigated following suggestions that the energy state of the cell and diffferentiation are linked. The activity of the MAP kinase cascade, including possible crosstalk that may exist between these pathways was determined. The HT-29 cells were exposed to 5 mM acetoacetate, butyrate, DMSO and propionate. The results of this differentiation induction were compared to Caco-2 and HeLa cells, which are cervical carcinoma cells. It was found that ATP levels are decreased on differentiation induction in HT-29 cells, which, in turn affected the cAMP concentrations. Theoretically, the inducers do not have any effect on PDE 4 activity, and may facilitate the interaction between cAMP and PKA. Influx of Ca2+ into the cells was inhibited to a degree by the inducers, which was possibly overcome by crosstalk between the cAMP and Ca2+ pathways. CREB activation, lineage-specific gene expression, ERK activity and c-myc expression were all dependent on both the inducers used and the cell-type. PKA played a major role in CREB activation in acetoacetate- and butyrate -induced HT-29, Caco-2 and HeLa cells, while a2+/Calmodulin-dependent kinases I/IV may have a secondary role. Alkaline phosphatase expression in HeLa cells was independent of CREB. Evidence that crosstalk between the MAP kinase cascade and the REBactivation pathways exist, was illustrated by increased CREB activation on ERK inhibition in acetoacetate- and butyrate-induced HT-29 and HeLa cells. Also, the role that ERK played in the cells differed with inducer and cell-type. The dependence of cmyc expression on c-jun and c-fos, appeared to be differentiation induction- and celltype specific. Results from this study indicate the potential use of acetoacetate and butyrate as anti-cancer compounds.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2000
Procedural fairness in unprotected strike dismissals
- Authors: Nel, Werner
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Strikes and lockouts -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Employees -- Dismissal of -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , South Africa. Labour Relations Act -- 1995
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11049 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/314 , Strikes and lockouts -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Employees -- Dismissal of -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , South Africa. Labour Relations Act -- 1995
- Description: The Labour Relations Act contains a definition of a strike which reads as follows: “’strike’ means the partial or complete concerted refusal to work, or the retardation or obstruction of work, by persons who are or have been employed by the same employer or by different employers, for the purpose of remedying a grievance or resolving a dispute in respect of any matter of mutual interest between employer and employee, and every reference to ‘work’ in this definition includes overtime work, whether it is voluntary or compulsory.” The Labour Relations Act offers strikers special protection against dismissal if they conform with the Act and its provisions. Hence the distinction between those strikes and protest action in compliance with the Act, namely ‘protected’ strikes and protest action, and those strikes and protest action in violation of the Act, namely, ‘unprotected’ strikes and protest action. Participation in an unprotected strike is one form of misbehaviour. The Labour Relations Act expressly prohibits the dismissal of employees engaged in a lawful strike. Employees engaged in strike action contrary to the provisions of the Labour Relations Act may be dismissed since their strike action is deemed to be a form of misconduct. The dismissal of striking employees must be both substantially and procedurally fair.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Nel, Werner
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Strikes and lockouts -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Employees -- Dismissal of -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , South Africa. Labour Relations Act -- 1995
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11049 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/314 , Strikes and lockouts -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , Labor laws and legislation -- South Africa , Employees -- Dismissal of -- Law and legislation -- South Africa , South Africa. Labour Relations Act -- 1995
- Description: The Labour Relations Act contains a definition of a strike which reads as follows: “’strike’ means the partial or complete concerted refusal to work, or the retardation or obstruction of work, by persons who are or have been employed by the same employer or by different employers, for the purpose of remedying a grievance or resolving a dispute in respect of any matter of mutual interest between employer and employee, and every reference to ‘work’ in this definition includes overtime work, whether it is voluntary or compulsory.” The Labour Relations Act offers strikers special protection against dismissal if they conform with the Act and its provisions. Hence the distinction between those strikes and protest action in compliance with the Act, namely ‘protected’ strikes and protest action, and those strikes and protest action in violation of the Act, namely, ‘unprotected’ strikes and protest action. Participation in an unprotected strike is one form of misbehaviour. The Labour Relations Act expressly prohibits the dismissal of employees engaged in a lawful strike. Employees engaged in strike action contrary to the provisions of the Labour Relations Act may be dismissed since their strike action is deemed to be a form of misconduct. The dismissal of striking employees must be both substantially and procedurally fair.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
Provocation as a defence in English and South African criminal law
- Authors: Krause, Samantha
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Provocation (Criminal law) -- South Africa , Provocation (Criminal law) -- Great Britain
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11044 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/310 , Provocation (Criminal law) -- South Africa , Provocation (Criminal law) -- Great Britain
- Description: In the past 20 years the defence of provocation has shifted from the periphery of South African law to a fully developed defence available to those who kill when provoked. Not only is the defence available to the provoked, but it has been extended to those who kill when subjected to emotional stress. However, the defence is mirred in controversy and bad decisions. Not only has the precise nature of the defence not been clarified, but this lack of clarity has been exacerbated by confusing decisions of our courts. This confusion is partly a result of the development of the defence of incapacity, particularly its extension to cases involving provocation and mental stress, and partly a result of its application in practice. Three major problems have plagued the provocation defence. Firstly, the courts have confused the defence of sane automatism with that of non-pathological incapacity. Secondly, there has been an implied use of an objective test in determining criminal incapacity where the enquiry has clearly been a subjective one. Thirdly, it has been held that the problem may not so much be the subjective aspect of provocation, but rather its application. The real problem seems to lie in the theoretical confusion as to the precise meaning of lack of “selfcontrol”. Lastly, on occasion the courts have failed to distinguish lack of capacity from diminished responsibility. Thus, in order to gain clarity concerning this “grey” area of the law these problems have created, it is necessary for South African law to consult more authoritative sources to receive guidance for the problems identified. One of those sources that has been consulted is that of English law. English law, however, deals with the defence of provocation in a different manner. Raising a defence of provocation here does not result in an acquittal but rather in a reduction of the charge to manslaughter. However, the English law on provocation is also 7 plagued by various problems. Firstly, there is the issue of cumulative provocation. Generally, there is little difficulty in cases where there is no “immediate trigger”. Secondly, the fundamental flaw with the current test of the reasonable man is that the courts have had to swing between the two aims of taking a compassionate view of human frailty while endeavoring to maintain an objective standard of the reasonable man. Lastly, it can be said that the problem with the proportionality requirement is that it makes the provocation defence dependant upon the assessment of the accused’s conduct after he or she lost his or her selfcontrol rather than on his or her giving way to passion and losing control in the first place. It is clear that from the problems identified in both South African law and English law concerning the defence of provocation the courts in each jurisdiction will have to pay careful attentio n to the problems highlighted and apply the law in such a way so as to ensure clarity and legal certainty.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2003
- Authors: Krause, Samantha
- Date: 2003
- Subjects: Provocation (Criminal law) -- South Africa , Provocation (Criminal law) -- Great Britain
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:11044 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/310 , Provocation (Criminal law) -- South Africa , Provocation (Criminal law) -- Great Britain
- Description: In the past 20 years the defence of provocation has shifted from the periphery of South African law to a fully developed defence available to those who kill when provoked. Not only is the defence available to the provoked, but it has been extended to those who kill when subjected to emotional stress. However, the defence is mirred in controversy and bad decisions. Not only has the precise nature of the defence not been clarified, but this lack of clarity has been exacerbated by confusing decisions of our courts. This confusion is partly a result of the development of the defence of incapacity, particularly its extension to cases involving provocation and mental stress, and partly a result of its application in practice. Three major problems have plagued the provocation defence. Firstly, the courts have confused the defence of sane automatism with that of non-pathological incapacity. Secondly, there has been an implied use of an objective test in determining criminal incapacity where the enquiry has clearly been a subjective one. Thirdly, it has been held that the problem may not so much be the subjective aspect of provocation, but rather its application. The real problem seems to lie in the theoretical confusion as to the precise meaning of lack of “selfcontrol”. Lastly, on occasion the courts have failed to distinguish lack of capacity from diminished responsibility. Thus, in order to gain clarity concerning this “grey” area of the law these problems have created, it is necessary for South African law to consult more authoritative sources to receive guidance for the problems identified. One of those sources that has been consulted is that of English law. English law, however, deals with the defence of provocation in a different manner. Raising a defence of provocation here does not result in an acquittal but rather in a reduction of the charge to manslaughter. However, the English law on provocation is also 7 plagued by various problems. Firstly, there is the issue of cumulative provocation. Generally, there is little difficulty in cases where there is no “immediate trigger”. Secondly, the fundamental flaw with the current test of the reasonable man is that the courts have had to swing between the two aims of taking a compassionate view of human frailty while endeavoring to maintain an objective standard of the reasonable man. Lastly, it can be said that the problem with the proportionality requirement is that it makes the provocation defence dependant upon the assessment of the accused’s conduct after he or she lost his or her selfcontrol rather than on his or her giving way to passion and losing control in the first place. It is clear that from the problems identified in both South African law and English law concerning the defence of provocation the courts in each jurisdiction will have to pay careful attentio n to the problems highlighted and apply the law in such a way so as to ensure clarity and legal certainty.
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- Date Issued: 2003