The relevance of individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy in the context of post-apartheid South Africa is a contentious issue. The western-centric universalist bias of this treatment approach has been criticised for not being applicable to Black South African individuals. With these criticisms in mind the appropriacy and efficacy of psychoanalytic psychotherapy was examined by focusing on three Black English-speaking South African women between the ages of 25 and 35 from the urban Western Cape. A collective case study design situated within a postmodern framework of enquiry was chosen for its capacity to incorporate both the therapist’s and the participant’s experience of the therapeutic process over time. This study focused on the analytic attitude, which comprises the basic template through which psychoanalytic psychotherapy is practised. The model used was that described by Ivey (1999) which includes five elements: generative uncertainty, abstinence, neutrality, countertransference receptivity, resoluteness and three related concepts: the task process and setting. The therapeutic dyad comprised the principal unit of analysis; by examining the interactive responses within this dyad in terms of the eight sub-units of the analytic attitude it was possible to evaluate the effectiveness of this modality. The findings showed that this model was successful with an emerging group of individuals who simultaneously hold traditional collective values and western values of individuation and self-determination. Some adjustments to abstinence and neutrality were necessary and a high degree of vigilance and self-reflection on the part of the therapist was required. It was revealed that western ideals of individualism, subject/object dualities, and taken-for-granted assumptions tend to obscure the practice of psychoanalytic psychotherapy across culture. The relational two-person model was able to accommodate cultural difference to good effect, opening the way for universalistic assumptions to be challenged and re-thought. This attitude was effective both as a treatment model and as a research tool. The participants in this study represent an emerging class of Black South Africans who are seeking different pathways for psychological concerns. The findings of this study can be generalised to a body of knowledge concerning the use of the analytic attitude in specific cross-cultural contexts in South Africa. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Psychology / unrestricted

An adolescent’s subjective experiences of mindfulness were explored in a single case study of a 17-year-old female. Data were created by means of “mindfulness sessions”, unstructured interviews, creative expression, journals and field notes. The data were analysed and interpreted using a combination of typological and interpretive analysis strategies. Findings are presented within a conceptual framework of mindfulness derived by the author from the literature review. The conceptual framework includes the following five “dimensions” of mindfulness: ‘present-centered attention and awareness’, ‘attitude and heart qualities’, ‘self-regulation’, ‘universalism of mindfulness’, and ‘mindlessness’. The adolescent’s subjective experiences of each dimension of mindfulness are presented in terms of the primary and secondary themes that emerged from the data. Emerging themes include being task-oriented, experiencing greater external than internal awareness, and enhanced sensory experiences, in terms of present-centered attention and awareness in mindfulness. In terms of the ‘attitude and heart qualities’ dimension of mindfulness, the participant experienced the themes of perfectionism and “letting go”, and an increased intention to practice mindfulness. The study found that the participant experienced self-regulation of attention in mindfulness as interest-driven, needing silence, requiring effort, and improved with awareness. The participant experienced a greater awareness of mindlessness, as well as the themes of mindfulness being applicable to everyday life, and an initial conflict as to the place of mindfulness in the contexts of science and religion. Overall findings suggest firstly that the participant subjectively experienced mindfulness as being predominantly task-oriented. Secondly, it appears that the participant experienced personal growth and development in terms of her understanding and practice of mindfulness. These findings could make a potential contribution towards qualitative research on mindfulness, and research on how mindfulness could possibly apply to an adolescent. Studies have shown mindfulness to be a potentially promising intervention and quality to be cultivated in the development of well-being. This study is thus significant in the context of positive psychology and a move towards more holistic health and well-being. Copyright / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

The Lutheran reformers Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchton had clear views about the possibility that some people will end up in a tormenting hell after death. For them, hell is a likely destiny for those who have not received the gift of righteousness from God. Other theologians have been skeptical about the idea of hell, for different reasons. For example, some think that it is impossible to combine the belief in a loving God with the thought of an everlasting punishment. Others think that those who go to heaven cannot be truly happy if they are divided from some of their family and friends, who are in hell. The purpose of this essay is to examine if it is possible to affirm universal salvation within the Lutheran tradition. To do so, I have examined different theological views on what happens after death: the belief in hell, the belief that there is no hell, and the belief that nothing happens at all after death. Some of those who believe in hell think that it is a place of everlasting agony as a punishment for sins committed on earth, some believe that hell is painful because God is the source of life and joy and therefore eternity without God is a place of misery. Some think of hell in terms of annihilation or conditional immortalism: that the souls of those who do not enter heaven are destroyed after death, or that those who do not enter heaven will not be resurrected and will stay dead. Since the purpose of this essay is to study universalism within the Lutheran tradition, I have discussed what the core of Lutheran theology is, namely justification through faith. An important question is that of predestination and free will. Those who defend the doctrine of hell often argue that people must be able to have a free choice: to choose God or not to choose God. If someone does not want to meet God after death, there must be an alternative. Traditional Lutheran theologians are skeptical about the idea that people have a free will, especially in relationship with God. They believe that the act of justification and the gift of righteousness is a gift from God, it is not something that people can chose themselves. In the discussion, a central issue is how theology can change within a tradition. My conclusion is that it is possible to be a universalist as a Lutheran if you believe that God choses to predestinate all people. The main problem is about faith: how the believer responds to God’s calling. Belief must be understood in a different way from Luther’s and Melanchthon’s views.

Today a growing number of countries around the world are strengthening their international work for women's rights by pursuing a feminist foreign policy. There is however no internationally accepted definition of feminist foreign policy, and feminism as a concept includes several different orientations. The purpose of this research is thus to examine and compare underlying perspectives that influence European Feminist Foreign Policy, and what this might entail. Based on a qualitative and comparative content analysis, and by using an ideal-type analytical approach as a tool of analysis, this study examines the feminist as well as human rights perspectives which form the basis of three European countries' strategic Foreign Policy documents – France, Spain, and Sweden. This research finds that the foreign policy documents, besides slight differences, are similar in both their feminist and human rights ambitions. Firstly, they all share a focus on an overall liberal feminist ambition that prioritises women's participation and economic empowerment. Secondly, they are characterized by a universalist approach to the pursuit of women's human rights, with limited space for the influence of other perspectives.

Studien syftar till att undersöka olika målgruppers mottaglighet och uppfattning av Motiverande samtal (MI) utifrån ett universalistiskt och kulturrelativistiskt perspektiv. Bakgrunden är att MI är en frekvent använd samtalsmetod som används i det lösningsfokuserade sociala arbetet samt att en forskningslucka identifierats kring hur MI faktiskt tas emot och uppfattas av olika målgrupper. Studien avser analysera MI utfört i olika kontexter och utifrån både kulturrelativism och universalism. För att undersöka detta har en scoping review gjorts där 35 akademiska artiklar inom forskningsområdet valdes ut och sedan analyserades tematiskt. De fem teman som identifierats är mottaglighet och uppfattning av MI bland olika målgrupper, betydelsen av handledning och utbildning för olika målgruppers inställning till MI, MI:s påverkan för relationsbyggande och dess betydelse för mottagligheten och uppfattningen hos olika målgrupper, potentialen MI har i kombination med andra insatser för olika målgruppers mottaglighet och uppfattning, samt ökad mottaglighet och förbättrad uppfattning genom målgruppsanpassning av MI. Det huvudsakliga resultatet har varit att ett antal aspekter utifrån dessa teman bör beaktas och kan förstås bättre utifrån de två nämnda teoretiska perspektiven. Övergripande förefaller MI mottas och uppfattas väl av olika målgrupper, men flera studier tyder ändå på att resultatet av MI interventioner inte får en långvarig påverkan. / The study aims to investigate the receptivity and perception of different target populations of Motivational Interviewing (MI) from a universalist and cultural relativistic perspective. The background is that MI is a frequently used conversational method used in the solution-focused social work and that a research gap has been identified around how MI is received by different target groups. The study intends to analyse MI performed in different contexts and based on both cultural relativism and universalism. To investigate this, a scoping review has been made where 35 academic articles in the research area were selected and then analysed thematically. The five themes identified are receptivity and perception of MI among different target populations, the importance of guidance and education for different target populations attitude to MI, MI's impact on relationship building and its significance for receptivity and perception in different target populations, the potential MI has in combination with other initiatives for the receptivity and perception of different target populations, as well as increased receptivity and improved perception through target populations adaptation of MI. The main result has been that several aspects based on these themes should be considered and can be better understood from the two mentioned theoretical perspectives. Overall, MI seems to be received and perceived well by different target populations, but several studies still indicate that the results of MI interventions do not have a long-term impact.

Rabindranath Tagore, Nobel Prize winning Bengali poet and polymath, is an eminent figure in the history and culture of modern India. As the Indian Independence Movement grew in the early twentieth century, Tagore used his renown to establish a university in the rural community of Santiniketan: Visva-Bharati, “where the world meets in a single nest.” All of Tagore’s efforts — artistic, educational, and social — were informed by a universalist philosophy that he developed based on the Upanishads. Tagore’s philosophy facilitated unity between all creation, including harmony between the peoples of humanity and between humanity and the natural world. The architecture of Santiniketan is a tangible manifestation of Tagore’s philosophy. Designed under his direction by his associates Nandalal Bose, Rathindranath Tagore, and Surendranath Kar, Tagore’s residences at Santiniketan, in particular the houses Udayan and Shyamali, illustrate Tagore’s universalism in two primary ways. The designs unify a diverse set of traditions within a Modernist framework, and provide for maximum interaction between indoor and outdoor spaces. Udayan is a synthesis of Indian, Japanese, Javanese, and European designs, finding commonalities in the traditions through abstraction and modern materials. Shyamali also draws from a variety of influences and, in service to a connection between man and nature, the design blurs the boundaries between indoors and outdoors by using the natural material of mud. The architecture of Santiniketan, because it is a product of Tagore’s unique values, does not fit easily within the major trends of Modernist architecture in India or beyond. It is best evaluated as a single thread in the contrapuntal nature of Modernism.

Over 200 million women and girls alive today have been victims of Female Geni-tal Mutilation / Cutting, and another 3,6 million are at risk every year. This tradi-tional practice is widespread and has gained a lot of attention from Non-governmental organizations, scholars and medical professionals around the world, stating warnings about the harmful effects. Yet, the prevalence and continuance are still not regressing in a desirable rate. Many countries have enacted legislative actions against the practice, among these countries is the West African nation of The Gambia. The purpose of this qualitative study is to examine and analyse what experiences and perceptions NGOs in The Gambia have with using legislative ac-tion against FGM /C, how their work has changed due to the legislation as well as examine their perception on local community attitudes towards the law. This has been done using the theories of Cultural Relativism vs Universalism and through selected concepts within Hofstede's Theory of Cultural Dimensions. This study will theorise what happens when a law representing western norms and values gets implemented in a society where culture, traditions and the collective group is high-ly important. Our findings show that The Gambia, in particularly local communi-ties, holds a strong cultural relativistic mentality and is characterized by a collec-tivistic culture in which the power distance is high. This society puts emphasis on collective identity, solidarity and collective decisions as well as traditional heritage and cultural values. Implementing a law that promotes western values thus brings problems and a lack of efficiency.

AbstractThis thesis examines convergence and increased efficiency in European healthcare systems after 1950 and beyond. The countries that is included in the study are Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. The purpose that has been answered is, from an economic-historical perspective, contribute to a higher knowledge to European health care systems historical growth, expansion, and structural reforms, and then to analyze in more depth the period 1950 and forward. The questions that have been answered are how European universal and conservative healthcare systems have developed and if it has been a convergence between different models in recent decades. Another question that has been answered if there are any differences in system efficiency measured as the ability of the different systems to affect healthcare-related mortality.At the beginning of the 20th century, the construction of the European countries healthcare systems began. However, it was not until after World War II that the expansion took place and a therefore even a strong increase of cost as a share of GDP.In Europe, two different healthcare models dominate the Nordic universal model and a social insurance system where Germany is the best example. In the Nordic countries, all citizens were included, and the financing was through the tax. In that model, the state was ultimately the guarantor of the individual’s welfare. In the conservative model, different groups could have different insurance solutions for their welfare.The thesis shows a strong convergence of these two models. The collective tax collective has an increasingly important role in both models. Nowadays, there are no major differences on that point. Today, public funding accounts for about 75–80 percent of the total health care costs in both tax- and insurance-financed systems. On the other hand, there are differences in the fact that the social insurance systems are operated by actors other than the region or state. Social insurance systems also tend to provide more equal care in terms of how care is consumed between different socioeconomic groups. In other respects, system efficiency is similar, even though Sweden probably has a lower system efficiency in terms of the resources used.Keywords: Keywords: Universalism, Social insurance systems, Health care, Health care expenditures and Economic history

Background: Taking into consideration that multinational corporations (MNCs) need to not only act on a global level, but also with local adaptation, there is a need of filling out the existing gap in the theory of management control in the subject of divisionalisation.  Purpose: The research investigates the gap in the theory of management control with the lens of glocalization in order to answer and understand why MNCs do divizionalize. Methodology: Qualitative case-study based on semi-structured interviews with seven respondents with the role of global and local managers in a MNC.  Findings: The findings interpret that a MNC do divisionalize based on the seven reasons; Replication, Uniqueness, Monetary, Entrepreneurship, Agility, Sense-making and Support. Which are interpreted in the perspective of common sense and necessary tension within the organization. A contribution that is applying the glocalization perspective to the management control theory.

Save the Children Fund (SCF) was at its foundation in 1919 a value-driven organization. The values, or guiding principles, of the founding generation are the lens through which I look at the history of SCF, and the associated histories of war and peace, human rights and NGO-state relations. These guiding principles are identified as universalism, utilitarianism and optimistic pacificism. They can be understood as a paradigm to which the social community which made up the founding generation of SCF gave their assent. The first chapter locates the founding generation within the political culture of the anti-war movement. Succeeding chapters detail the metamorphosis of SCIF from a'contentious social movement into a respectable national organization. As soon as the organization adopted a national rather than a universal orientation, the coordinates of all its guiding principles shifted. In particular the optimistic pacificism of the founding generation was replaced by pessimistic defencism. It was not until after the Cold War that SCIF began to realign itself with its original guiding principles. The three guiding principles are found to be of continuing relevance. Universalism has been reasserted as a positive creed leading SCF to seize political opportunities to reach out to children from all sides. The organization has adopted a utilitarian perspective that affirms the dynamic role of young people in generating their own futures. Lastly, the primacy attached to peace by war-affected people has underlined SCFs urgent mission to uphold an optimistic belief in the possibility of peace. / Vera Steele Studentship in Peace Research