According to the works of the French philosopher Émile Durkheim (1964), much of today\'s modern society is founded on the basic tenets of professionalization. Yet the significance of professionalism is often taken for granted and lost in ambiguity. The aim of this study is to thus identify and understand the perceptions of professionalism, with the context of the case being the accounting community at the University of Sao Paulo. A series of open-ended interviews were performed with ten participants with varying levels of academic and market work experience. The data was then coded and analyzed to look for categorical emerging themes and patterns among the responses. Findings indicate a highly diverse set of views regarding how professional status is attained and how professionalism is demonstrated. The close association between the results and existing professions literature signal a wider acceptance and societal internalization of professional principles. Professionalism in Accounting was found to be relative to a variety of factors including market work experience, professional characteristics, and career goals. Comparisons were also made between various professional environments including FEA vs. other colleges, Accounting vs. other fields and Brazil vs. other countries. These comparisons suggest an influence of environment on professional standards and the demonstration of professional behavior. Further research is needed to study how perceptions of professionalism may differ among other professional accounting groups and how the professional transformation process in accounting education may be improved to better prepare accounting graduates before entering the field. / De acordo com as obras do filósofo francês Émile Durkheim (1964), grande parte da sociedade moderna de hoje baseia-se nos princípios básicos da profissionalização. No entanto, o significado de profissionalismo é muitas vezes tida como certa e perdido em ambiguidade. O objetivo deste estudo é identificar e, assim, compreender as percepções de profissionalismo, com o contexto do caso, sendo a comunidade de contabilidade da Universidade de São Paulo. Uma série de entrevistas abertas foram realizadas com dez participantes com diferentes níveis de experiência acadêmica e mercado de trabalho. Os dados foram então codificadas e analisadas para procurar categóricas temas emergentes e padrões entre as respostas. Os resultados indicam um conjunto altamente diversificado de pontos de vista a respeito de como status profissional é atingido e como profissionalismo é demonstrado. A estreita associação entre os resultados ea literatura existente profissões sinalizar uma maior aceitação social e internalização de princípios profissionais. Profissionalismo em Contabilidade foi encontrado para ser em relação a uma variedade de fatores, incluindo experiência de trabalho no mercado, características profissionais e objetivos de carreira. Comparações também foram feitas entre vários ambientes profissionais, incluindo FEA vs. outras faculdades, Contabilidade vs. outros campos e Brasil contra outros países. Essas comparações sugerem uma influência do ambiente sobre os padrões profissionais ea demonstração do comportamento profissional. Mais pesquisas são necessárias para estudar como as percepções de profissionalismo pode ser diferente entre outros grupos profissionais de contabilidade e como o processo de transformação profissional em educação contábil pode ser melhorado para melhor preparar os formandos de contabilidade antes de entrar no campo.

A infecção pelo vírus da imunodeficiência humana (HIV) e a aids caracterizam-se como problemas de saúde pública, com incidências e prevalências elevadas em populações chaves. No Brasil a principal via de transmissão em indivíduos com 13 anos ou mais de idade é a sexual, porém, há uma tendencia de aumento na proporção de casos em homens que fazem sexo com homens nos últimos dez anos. Há escassa literaura sobre a vulnerabilidade ao HIV nas populações que vivem em região de fronteira, particularmente nas do Brasil e, mais ainda, na fronteira do Brasil com a Guiana Francesa. O estudo teve como objetivo analisar a vulnerabilidade ao HIV/Aids na dimensão programática em um município de fronteira do Brasil com a Guiana Francesa. Trata-se de um estudo descritivo, estudo de caso, tendo sido entrevistados dez depoentes: os gerentes e profissionais de saúde de Unidades Básicas de Saúde, os coordenadores das ações em DST/HIV do município de Oiapoque, o gestor local do hospital estadual, do laboratório de fronteira, os coordenadores municipal e estadual do Programa de DST/Aids e um representante de organização não governamental local envolvida com a prevenção e assistência ao portador do HIV/Aids. Também foram analisados os planos estadual e municipal de saúde, as atas de reuniões da comissão transfronteiriça Brasil-Guiana Francesa, os acordos internacionais e financiamentos para a região de Oiapoque no contexto do HIV/Aids, no período de 2012-2015. Os instrumentos de coleta de dados foram roteiros de entrevistas semiestruturadas, com questões norteadoras aos participantes, e roteiro para análise documental. As entrevistas foram gravadas, mediante consentimento dos participantes, realizadas pelo pesquisador nos meses de março a abril de 2016. Os conteúdos transcritos das entrevistas e obtidos nos documentos foram estudados pela análise de conteúdo, orientada pelo conceito da vulnerabilidade, com ênfase à dimensão programática. Como resultados se destacaram seis categorias: Expressão do compromisso dos governos; Participação e controle social; Atuações dos trabalhadores na atenção em HIV; Articulações multissetoriais das ações; Acesso aos serviços e insumos e Composição da rede de serviços. Conclui-se que há vulnerabilidade programática na medida em que o compromisso dos governos estadual e municipal no combate ao HIV é limitado, evidenciado nos planos de saúde estadual e municipal e pela escassez de investimentos financeiros no combate a doença; a participação e o controle social no enfrentamento da epidemia não têm ocorrido de forma eficiente, pois somente uma organização não governamental mantida com recurso externo tem ação efetiva em Oiapoque nas ações de prevenção; que o envolvimento dos profissionais das unidades básicas não se efetiva, com concentração de atividades na figura do profissional enfermeiro; que a articulação multissetorial para o desenvolvimento de ações de combate ao HIV não tem se concretizado, pois o setor saúde tem atuando isoladamente; que preservativos e testes diagnósticos são oferecidos, mas o tratamento e o acompanhamento dos casos não são realizados no município, sendo estes realizados em Macapá ou em Saint Georges e, por fim, a rede de serviços na atenção ao HIV e à aids não está plenamente organizada. / Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and AIDS are characterized as public health problems, with high incidence and prevalence in key populations. In Brazil, the main route of transmission in individuals aged 13 years and over is sexual, but there is a tendency to increase the proportion of cases in men who have sex with other men in the last ten years. There is little literature on the vulnerability to HIV in populations living in the border region, particularly in Brazil, and even more on the Brazilian border with French Guiana. The study aimed to analyze the vulnerability to HIV/Aids in the programmatic dimension in a border municipality of Brazil with French Guiana. It is a descriptive study, a case study, and ten deponents were interviewed: managers and health professionals from Basic Health Units, coordinators of STD / HIV actions in the municipality of Oiapoque, the local manager of the state hospital, the border laboratory, the municipal and state coordinators of the STD / Aids program and a representative of a local non-governmental organization involved in HIV/Aids prevention and care. It has also been analyzed the state and municipal health plans, the minutes of meetings of the cross-border commission Brazil-French Guiana, the international agreements and funding for the region of Oiapoque in the context of HIV/Aids in the period 2012-2015. The data collection instruments were semi-structured interview scripts, with questions guided to the participants, and a script for documentary analysis. The interviews were recorded with the consent of the participants, carried out by the researcher from March to April, 2016. The transcribed contents of the interviews and obtained in the documents were studied by content analysis, guided by the concept of vulnerability, with emphasis on the programmatic dimension. As a result, six categories were highlighted: Expression of the commitment of governments; Participation and social control; Workers\' actions on HIV care; Multisector articulation of actions; Access to services and inputs and Composition of the service network. It was concluded there is programmatic vulnerability to the extent that the commitment of state and municipal governments in the action against HIV is limited, evidenced in the state and municipal health plans and by the scarcity of financial investments in actions against the disease; the participation and social control to face up the epidemic have not occurred efficiently, because only a non-governmental organization keeping with external resources has effective action in Oiapoque in the prevention actions; that the involvement of the professionals of the basic units isnt effective, with concentration of activities in the figure of the professional nurse; that the multi sector articulation for the development of actions to combat HIV hasnt materialized, because the health sector has been working in isolation; that condoms and diagnostic tests are offered, but the treatment and follow-up of the cases are not done in the municipality, these are being realized in Macapá or in Saint Georges and, finally, the service network in HIV and aids care isnt fully organized.

Thesis advisor: Ted I. K. Youn / Independent professional schools were a significant part of higher education in the United States until the rise of universities at the beginning of the 20th century. In the 21st century, the overwhelming majority of professional schools are indeed affiliated with universities; however there are a growing number of professional schools in variety of fields that are independent. The institutional perspective from organizational theory suggests these schools, like all organizations, must be creating and maintaining legitimacy in order to survive. This multiple case study explores how independent professional schools of acupuncture and Oriental medicine (AOM) demonstrate legitimacy over time. Analysis was focused on temporal patterns, correlations, and interdependencies between and/or among particular legitimizing activities within institutions, and global patterns of legitimizing activities across different institutions. Data were analyzed with specific reference to the possibility that there are multiple alternative paths to legitimacy outside of isomorphism with educational myths and structures. Findings included identification of higher education, health care, context, the profession, and business as the five arenas in which AOM schools signal their legitimacy, as well as general patterns of signaling to these arenas across all institutions over the past twenty years. Signals in each arena ebb and flow between relatively narrow limits, and it is not possible for schools to increase their signals in all areas simultaneously. Over time, the business and academic signals are generally increasing, contextual and professional signals decreasing, and health care remains fairly stable. This research marks an initial effort bring scholarly awareness both to schools of acupuncture and Oriental medicine to independent professional schools as a group. It offers support for the idea that there are multiple avenues for demonstrating legitimacy, and suggests a model for the arenas in which legitimacy operates for independent professional schools. In addition, this research articulated the concept of multi-liminality as both a characteristic of independent professional schools and an important feature for future research. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2012. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

O Brasil é um país movido pelo agronegócio. Dados da sua balança comercial indicam que o setor agro contribuiu com US$ 82,9 bilhões no ano de 2013 (BRASIL, 2014), no entanto, apesar de sua grandeza, no Brasil, muito ainda deve ser estudado e melhorado. Tendo em vista as ameaças que afetam o agronegócio brasileiro e sua grande importância econômica é necessário trabalhar constantemente na melhoria da sua competitividade, cenário onde a Gestão Estratégica surge como importante ferramenta. Um método de Gestão Estratégica específico para Sistemas Agroindustriais foi proposto por Neves (2008), porém não possui especificidades relacionadas à abrangência geográfica. Visto que os estados podem ser caracterizados como uma \"união\", contando com características específicas e concorrentes bem definidos, seus direcionamentos e ações devem ser tomados unificadamente, sendo justificável que seus sistemas agroindustriais sejam organizados conjuntamente, por meio de um planejamento próprio. O presente trabalho busca responder à seguinte pergunta: Dentro das suas especificidades, é possível gerir estrategicamente os sistemas agroindustriais de um estado? Qual pode ser o método para tal? Para tanto, lança mão de uma pesquisa exploratória qualitativa que analisa um estudo de casos múltiplos onde o método GESis proposto por Neves (2008), com algumas adaptações, foi aplicado em cinco cadeias produtivas do estado de Goiás. Os estudos de caso contaram com entrevistas em profundidade com interlocutores das cadeias estudadas e, após finalizados, foram conduzidas entrevistas com aqueles que participaram da elaboração e aplicação do plano finalizado no estado. Como resultado, foi proposto um método de gestão estratégica para cadeias produtivas em estados que conta com 13 etapas. O trabalho identificou que existe uma grande lacuna no setor agropecuário brasileiro quando se trata de ações coletivas sendo que o sucesso da implantação do método é altamente dependente da ação conjunta de seu setor alvo. / Brazil is a country driven by agribusiness. Its trade balance data indicates that the agriculture sector contributed with US$ 82,9 billion in 2013 (BRASIL, 2014), however, in spite of his greatness, in Brazil, much remains to be studied and improved. In view of the threats affecting the sector and its economic importance, its necessary to work constantly on improving its competitiveness, scenario where the Strategic Management emerged as an important tool. A specific method for Agribusiness Strategic Management Systems was proposed by Neves (2008), but does not include specifics related to the geographic scope. Since states can be characterized as a \"union\", with specific characteristics and well defined competitors, their direction and actions must be taken together, being justified jointly actions for organization of their agribusiness systems through a proper planning. This paper seeks to answer the following question: Within its specifics, is it possible to manage strategically the agribusiness systems of a state? What can be the method for it? To do so, the study makes use of a qualitative exploratory study that analyzes a multiple case study where the method proposed by Neves GESis (2008), with some adaptations, was applied in five chains in the state of Goiás. The study cases used in-depth interviews with representatives of the studied chains and, after finalized, were conducted interviews with the ones who participated in the plan development and implementation in the state. As a result, it was proposed a method of strategic management for productive chains in states that has 13 steps. The study identified that there is a large gap in the Brazilian agricultural sector when it comes to collective action and the successful implementation of the method is highly dependent on the target sector joint actions.

In the United States, school music groups perform in some sort of music festival every year. Most festivals are competitive in some way, but non-competitive festivals exist as well—even if they are not as well known. The purpose of this study is to observe an elementary school choir as they prepare for and participate in the “America Sings!” festival—a non-competitive music festival—in Washington, D.C. on May 4–5, 2014. This investigation sought to answer the following research questions: 1) What guides the decision to participate in the “America Sings!” festival?; 2) For the choral director, what personal experiences and past musical backgrounds shape the teacher’s feelings and attitudes about participating in an “America Sings!” festival?; 3) What are the benefits and challenges of attending an “America Sings!” festival?; 4) Does the service component of the “America Sings!” festival affect the participants?; 5) Does attending a non-competitive festival affect the self-reported attitudes of students and their teacher?; and 6) What range of student behaviors can be observed during their preparation for and performance in the “America Sings!” festival? Using qualitative case study, this study employed direct observation of the entire choir as well as recorded interviews with six students and their teacher. After data analysis, open coding, and theme construction, common themes began to emerge into two groups: pre-trip (performing, comparing types of festivals, preparation, service projects, and John Jacobson) and post-trip (benefits and challenges, performing, learning, John Jacobson, the “America Sings Effect”, and comparing types of festivals). These themes are presented, the research questions are answered, and recommendations are made for future researchers as well for those in the profession.

Background: Tough competition, time- and resource constraints, and changing consumer demands in the video game industry requires business models that can cope with the pressure.    Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to use business model framework in order to better understand how independent video game developers develop their business models. We aim to contribute to the development of business model literature within the context of independent video game development by further the understanding of how a business model framework can be utilized in this new context.   Method: A case study method was used, focusing on a single-case and interviews with participants from the case company.   Conclusion: We further develop the BMC by proposing to divide the BMC for independent video game developers into a pre-release and post-release BMC to better describe the business model for an independent video game developer and the business model evolution from pre-release to post-release.

The Kenyan society is patriarchal, has an alarming rate of deforestation where rural farmers, especially women, are highly affected by climate change. There is little research on companies operating in dry areas with a mission to address poverty, ecology and women. The objective of this study was therefore to understand how an investment model can alleviate poverty in rural Kenya and what the consequences of doing so are for the local community. This was answered using a qualitative research approach presented in an ethnographic case study, conducting 29 interviews. The field research took place at three different locations at Better Globe, an agroforestry company operating in dry areas who mainly employ and work with women in rural Kenya. Our research, analysed through an ecofeminist lens, demonstrates that the local community benefits on several areas; access to water, employment, firewood and grass, microfinance, training and education. However, there is a big power distance within the company and a high dependency from the workers as Better Globe is the sole big employer in the region. We welcome further research between the merging of ecofeminism and business, operating within the structures of the patriarchal and capitalist society.

This research focuses on the language environment of children with Down syndrome (DS) in primary and secondary classrooms. In contrast to much of the previous work in this area, the study takes both qualitative and quantitative approaches to data collection. In particular, it highlights teachers’ speech rates and speech strategies in relation to children’s individual listening comprehension. Previous research shows that the listening comprehension of children with DS may be limited by deficits in phonological loop capacity and hearing loss. However, most of this previous research has used quantitative measures to compare the memory performances of children with DS with their typically developing or mental agematched peers. This has tended to result in conclusions that regard children with DS as a homogeneous group. This study, however, aims to consider each child with DS as an individual and to explore in depth the relationship between their listening comprehension and teachers’ speech rates and speech strategies in classroom settings. The study was conducted in 2 stages, both using case-study approach to investigate individual children’s interactions with their class teachers (CTs) and teaching assistants (TAs). The Stage 1 research was conducted with three case-study children in four distinct phases and used an inductive approach to collect data. Phase one observed each child in their classroom environment, involving the interactions between teaching staff and the case-study child. Phase two identified the child’s language ability by using standardised language assessments. Phase three then assessed the impact of speech rates on children’s understandings and, finally, Phase four tested the research validity by representing the stories with a counter-balanced design. The results of the Stage 1 research suggested that the use of the slow speech rate improves the children’s listening comprehension although there were clear indications that there would be more significant benefit if they could be given more time to process information. The Stage 2 research focused on speech strategies, with an emphasis on clustered speech and a deductive approach was adopted. Six additional children with DS were assessed by the BPVS and WISC-IV to investigate further speech rate but also in the context of speech strategies. This further examined whether clustered speech could be beneficial to improving the children’s listening comprehension. The findings show that the clustered speech strategy can improve the listening comprehension of all of the children in this phase, particularly at the slow normal speech rate. The key benefit of this strategy is that it can be used to offset problems in processing information that the children experience because of their limited memory capacity. The outcome of my research can provide teaching staff with knowledge that will enable them to enhance the listening comprehension of children with DS.

The research presented in this thesis demonstrates the qualitative modelling of an advanced service delivered by a Product Service System (PSS) through the use of a socio-technical systems-based approach. The created model represents dependencies between functions and organisations, and can be used as basis for a quantitative cost model. Focus is on how one particular example of advanced services, namely availability is delivered in an industrial context. Following a review of multi-disciplinary literature and the outline of a suitable methodological approach, a detailed case study of the delivery of an exemplar piece of avionics equipment by BAE Systems and GE Aviation to the UK Royal Air Force is described. This research shows that the delivery of avionics availability through a PSS has organisational, contractual and functional facets that overlap and influence each other. Multiple qualitative models represent the investigated setting, from a functional and from an organisational perspective. Top-level functions ‘Analysis & Optimisation’, ‘Administration’ and ‘Delivery’ are identified. The results show distinctive similarities and differences between GE Aviation and BAE Systems including a variety of parallel contracts, organisational segmentation and tensions between relationships and contractual obligations. The findings suggest that understanding a PSS as a socio-technical system is crucial for modelling the PSS and the cost associated with it. This is particularly important when the aim is to continuously control and manage costs rather than the creation of a one-off forecast. The contribution of this work to the existing body of knowledge, primarily within the domain of cost engineering is twofold: First the creation of qualitative models of an existing PSS delivering avionics availability to show “what is a PSS”, and second a methodologically robust approach that takes into account the sociotechnical character of PSS to demonstrate “how to know about PSS”.

Submitted by Mariana Dornelles Vargas (marianadv) on 2015-03-19T19:42:20Z No. of bitstreams: 1 olhar_sensivel.pdf: 517578 bytes, checksum: 0c1c46cc8dfc1522244da1e6d5c3d70b (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-19T19:42:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 olhar_sensivel.pdf: 517578 bytes, checksum: 0c1c46cc8dfc1522244da1e6d5c3d70b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010 / Nenhuma / Tendo como foco principal questões envolvendo a criança e suas possibilidades frente a experiências de leitura, o trabalho foi produzido a partir do acompanhamento de experiências desenvolvidas no Literatório (Chapecó/SC) - projeto que une no mesmo espaço literatura e encantamento. O texto inicialmente apresenta reflexões em torno da história da infância, bem como acerca da importância da prática de contar histórias ao público infantil. A opção metodológica foi baseada em "estudo de caso", valendo-se de observações in loco, e entrevistas com crianças e professoras do primeiro ano do ensino fundamental. Além disso, entrevistas com sujeitos envolvidos na criação e gestão do Literatório. Os resultados permitem verificar que tal iniciativa com certeza vem oportunizando o gosto pela literatura entre as crianças que o frequentam, com efeitos visíveis percebidos pelas professoras em sala de aula. Entretanto, sua abrangência ainda é restrita, exigindo políticas públicas que permitam ampliar tais possibilidades para maior número de crianças, e até mesmo à população em geral. / Having as main focus issues involving the child and her possibilities concerning reading experiences, the work was produced from the accompaniment of experiments developed in the Literatório (Chapecó/SC) - a project that unites in the same space literature and enchantment. The text first presents reflections on the history of childhood, as well as about the importance of the practice of telling stories to child audience. The methodological option was based on "case study", drawing on in loco observations, and interviews with children and teachers of the first year of elementary school. In addition, interviews with subjects involved in the creation and management of the Literatório. The results allow verifying that such a move certainly has been developing the taste for literature among the children who attend it, with visible effects perceived by the teachers in the classroom. However, its coverage is still limited, demanding public policies that allow such possibilities to expand for a bigger number of children, and even to the population in general.