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The purpose of the study is to determine the attitudes of teachers and students towards vocational education in the Senior Secondary School phase. The population for the study constituted senior secondary school teachers and standard eight (Grade ten) learners of the Kokstad region in the Eastern Cape Province. 270 teachers and 540 students in the nine districts of the Kokstad region, made up the samples for this research which was conducted in 27 schools. Three schools per district were purposively drawn. The use of questionnaires and interviews provided findings on attitudes towards vocational education. The research was pilot tested in two schools. The objectives of the pilot test were two fold: - to test the appropriateness of the items in the questionnaire and clarity of the wording; - to test the relevance of the open-ended questions, and whether their purpose in eliciting from teachers and students the reasons for their attitudes towards vocational education, was achieved. After each pilot testing session, items in the questionnaire were discussed and rephrased to enhance clarity. Questionnaires were dispatched timeously to both teachers and students with a fair response. Data analysis led to findings, implications and recommendations. One of the findings was that both teachers and students had positive attitudes towards vocational education in secondary schools. They recommended greater inclusion of vocational subjects in the curriculum. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with key officials in the Department of Education in the Kokstad Region. Findings from the interviews indicate that the educationists that were interviewed favoured more curricular inclusion of the vocational subjects. Career guidance was recommended as a necessity by the head of the Psychological Services so as to help students in the choice of subjects for their future careers. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of Durban-Westville, 1999.

The present study explored the attitudes and the expectations that educators have towards learners who are deprived by poverty. The influence of the educators' race and gender on these attitudes and expectations was explored as well as the relationship between indigent learners and their educators. The challenges that face educators on a daily basis, make teaching a particularly daunting task. In addition educators have the complex task of teaching learners who come from a diverse range of home backgrounds. These stressors combine to create a complicated learning environment. The interplay between home environmental risk factors, teacher support and learner achievement and performance is of utmost importance for eventual school success and a positive self-perception for the learner. This study was conducted by using a survey questionnaire which was completed by 53 educators (Indian and African), and semi-structured interviews with 12 indigent learners. The researcher was able to determine the emergent attitudes and expectations of educators according to the educator's race and gender. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 indigent learners to determine their relationship with their teachers and their self-perceptions. The responses to the interviews were qualitatively analysed. The findings of this study have indicated that generally, educators have positive attitudes towards indigent learners. They are supportive of these learners and try, in most instances, to plan lessons in a manner that would benefit the disadvantaged learner. With regard to race and gender, African male educators were the highest number that perceived indigent learners negatively, while African female educators appear to be the most sympathetic and held the least negative views on indigent learners. Results also indicated that the majority of educators had formed pre-conceived expectations about learner's abilities based on variables such as the home background, knowledge of siblings performances in school, dress and speech. Although African male educators had the most negative attitudes towards indigent learners, they (African male educators) also held the highest expectations of indigent learners as compared to Indian female educators who held the lowest expectations. This means that African male educators believe that indigent learners have the potential and perform relatively well in the classroom despite their poverty status. The results of the semi-structured interviews, which were qualitatively analysed, indicated that generally, the indigent learners who were interviewed, were happy at school, had friends and enjoyed a good relationship with their teachers. These learners appeared to always try hard with their schoolwork and held high career aspirations. Based on these findings, it appears that generally, the indigent learners who were interviewed had positive self-esteem based on positive relationships with their educators. The findings of this research were discussed in relation to previous findings from international literature. The study was concluded with recommendations to educators on monitoring and controlling expectance effects and bias on the achievement and social behaviour of learners. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Durban-Westville, 2003.

A connection is often drawn between the way the media represent ethnic minorities and the way majorities perceive them. This paper seeks to investigate further this link by drawing parallels between media portrayal of ethnic minorities in Bulgaria and the majority's attitude towards them. In addition it introduces the results of an online survey in which 250 people took part that directly studies the effects of negative media portrayal on the subject's attitude towards ethnic minorities in Bulgaria.

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This dissertation builds on two recent developments in attitude research, first the distinction made between two types of attitudes, i.e., explicit (deliberate, controlled) and implicit (unconscious, automatic) attitudes, and second, that made between two types of attitude conflicts, i.e., ambivalence (conflict between strong explicit positive and negative evaluative basis of the same attitude object) and duality (conflict between explicit and implicit attitudes). It uses the context of food for both its theoretical and empirical developments because there were reasons to expect that, in Western cultures, explicit attitudes are often ambivalent (i.e. positive on taste but negative on health dimensions), but might also be dual (e.g. for restrained eaters, resulting from the motivated overriding of positive attitudes toward tempting but forbidden food). / A first study (N = 199) focuses on the differences between ambivalent and dual attitudes and the influence of these conflicts on spontaneous and deliberate behavior. Results demonstrate that holding dual and ambivalent attitudes are two different constructs, although both ambivalence and duality lead to a subjective experience of conflict. Also, attitudes are weaker when ambivalent (i.e. less accessible, less stable and held with less certainty), and duality is a moderator at high levels of ambivalence, with explicit attitudes being even less accessible but nonetheless more certain when dual. Finally, the influence of, on one hand, both implicit and explicit attitudes in driving spontaneous choice and, on the other hand, the explicit attitude in determining deliberate choice (behavioral intention as proxy) is corroborated. It also appears that the influence of the implicit attitude on spontaneous behavior is increased in presence of an attitude conflict. In a second study (N = 120), the hypothesis that the existence of dual attitudes stems from inhibitive processes is tested in the context of restrained eating, through a cognitive load manipulation. Results demonstrate that the influence of the implicit attitude on spontaneous choice is stronger for restrained eaters when cognitive capacities are impaired. The second study also highlights that implicit attitudes are stable and resistant to change despite direct experience manipulations (i.e. comparative and repeated tasting). Theoretical, methodological and practical contributions are discussed.

Sweden is today a country with ethnic, cultural and religious diversity. My aim in this study is to study what view of Islam and Muslims that students at a Catholic school in Stockholm have. The reason why Catholic schools are interesting to study is that previous research has showed that Muslim students around Europe often attend catholic schools as they are regarded as more tolerant towards religion. This study is based on a questionnaire and personal interviews with upper secondary students at the Catholic school in Stockholm. The result is compared with previous research on students of the same age group (12-15 years). The results of the survey show that the majority of students have a positive attitude towards Islam and Muslims, but that there is a small group at the Catholic School who have negative attitude towards Islam and Muslims. The negative attitude increases when it comes to the Muslim’s rights, for example the right to build mosques in Sweden. The results also show that students with parents with higher education are more tolerant than students with parents with no academic education. I have used Mattias Gardell’s definition of Islamophobia to analyze the result from the survey and interview among the students at the Catholic school. When using this definition, we can see that the students have some islamophobic thoughts about Muslims and Islam. The results indicate that the school needs to actively work with this question in a more constructive way. One of my suggestions are that they need to talk more about Islam and Muslims during the lessons so the students gain knowledge about the religion but also create situations where non-Muslims and Muslims meet. In this way, students can integrate with each other. This study only shows the attitudes among the students at this Catholic School.

Bakgrund: I Sverige vårdades år 2011 drygt 7700 personer på sjukhus för självskador. Självskadebeteendet används ofta som en copingstrategi för att hantera och lindra psykisk smärta och ångest, men kan även vara ett rop på hjälp. Handlingarna väcker ofta starka känslor, såsom ilska, maktlöshet och antipati, hos sjukvårdspersonal. Patientgruppen upplevs ofta svår att ge bra vård till och patienterna utsätts för mycket tvångsvård och tvångsåtgärder. Syfte: Syftet är att belysa hur patienter med självskadebeteende upplever bemötandet i vården. Metod: Studien, en kvalitativ innehållsanalys med induktiv ansats, har utförts medelst analysering av tre självbiografier skrivna av personer med ett tidigare självskadebeteende. Resultat: Självbiografiförfattarnas upplevelser av bemötandet i vården delades in i två huvudkategorier; positiva respektive negativa upplevelser. Under positiva upplevelser utkristalliserades fyra kategorier; Trygghet och tillit, Erhålla information, Bli tagen på allvar och känna sig förstådd respektive Omtanke och stöd. Under huvudkategorin negativa upplevelser hittades kategorierna Utlämnad och maktlös, Ej bli tagen på allvar och ej känna sig förstådd, Ej känna sig värdig vård samt Bristande information. Slutsats: Bemötandet inom vården är avgörande för relationen mellan vårdare och vårdtagare. Då patienterna hade positiva upplevelser av bemötandet grundlades en tillitsfull relation. Ett dåligt bemötande bidrog till ett vårdlidande för patienterna. Klinisk betydelse: Resultatet kan ge vårdpersonal en ökad kunskap och bättre förståelse för vad i bemötandet som upplevs positivt respektive negativt av patienten. Detta kan leda till ett förbättrat och mer professionellt bemötande av dessa patienter, vilket är viktigt för ett gott tillfrisknande. / Background: During 2011 more than 7700 people were hospitalized for self-injuries in Sweden. Self-injury behavior is often used as a coping strategy to manage and relieve mental pain and anguish, but can also be a cry for help. The actions often generate strong emotions, such as anger, powerlessness and antipathy, among health care staff. This group of patients is often perceived difficult to provide good care for and the patients are exposed to many coercive measures. Purpose: The purpose is to illustrate how patients with self-injury behavior experience their treatment. Method: The study, a qualitative content analysis with an inductive approach, has been performed by analyzing three autobiographies written by persons with a previous self-injury behavior. Result: The patients/authors experiences of their treatment were divided into two main categories; positive and negative experiences. Under positive experiences four categories crystallized; Security and trust, Receive information, Be taken seriously and feel understood and Care and support. Under the main category negative experiences four categories were developed; Left out and powerlessness, Not be taken seriously and not feel understood, Not feel worthy of care and Lack of information. Conclusion: The treatment in health care is critical to the relationship between caregiver and care recipient. When the patients´ had positive experiences of the treatment from the staff a trusting relationship was founded. A bad attitude contributed to patients suffering. Clinical significance: The results may give health care professionals a better knowledge and understanding of the treatment that is perceived positively or negatively by the patient. This can lead to an improved and more professional treatment of these patients, which is important for a good recovery.

Background: Advertising channels in today's marketplace are becoming more limited with the development of ad-free sources of entertainment. The phenomenon of product placements is therefore becoming one of the most important sources for advertising in media. Especially film productions have turned into a canvas for companies to display their brands upon. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the case of product placements in Hollywood blockbuster movies. In particular, brand recognition and audience's ac-ceptance of a brand’s presence in movies were examined. Method: A mixed method approach was applied in order to fulfill the purpose of this thesis and answer research questions. A questionnaire in the form of a handout and focus group discussions were used to collect quantitative and qualitative data from audiences consisting of international students. The questionnaires were handed out after the movies had been shown in a setting resembling that of a movie theater, meaning that respondents were not aware of the study beforehand and were therefore not biased. The focus group discussions gave us information needed in answering the second research question and getting more insights of the practice. Conclusions: Our research showed that product placements in movies lead to brand recognition, and audience’s acceptance of a brand’s presence is influenced by congru-ency of product placement in movies. This outcome resulted from the combination of four determining factors: movie genre, execution factors, appropriateness in the movie setting and brand characteristics.

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