Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2006. / Title from title screen (site viewed April 26, 2007). PDF text: viii, 185 p. : ill. UMI publication number: AAT 3230063. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University

M.Com. (Business Management) / The knowledge economy developed out of the need for more complex products and services. The workers who are able to create such complex products and services are called knowledge workers. The term knowledge worker refers to the fact that the worker needs to be able to deal with large amounts of information, analyse and then generate knowledge out of this vast wealth of data and then be able to use this knowledge to create the necessary products and services to provide a competitive advantage for the organisation. Organisations have also become more streamlined, getting rid of hierarchical layers of managers in an effort to become agile, more responsive to market demands. As a result, traditional careers that were hierarchical in nature were abandoned. Organisations now rely on each individual to take responsibility for their own career development. The issues and factors associated with such a boundaryless career system needs to be investigated to ensure that the career needs of knowledge workers are understood if they are to contribute to the sustainable competitive advantage of their organisations. The demand for knowledge workers are on the increase, yet little is known with regards to their career perceptions and attitudes. This research study focused on exploring the issues and factors affecting the career development of knowledge workers. The reliance on knowledge workers creates interesting problems for organisations as management is no longer the only career option available. Specialisation and dual career ladders are required to ensure that the knowledge residing in the minds of knowledge workers are not lost. The first part of the research focused on a qualitative approach, focusing on a literature review of knowledge, knowledge workers and lastly, the career development of knowledge workers. A questionnaire was developed based on issues and factors that the literature review uncovered. The survey was administered in the form of an online Internet survey...

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L’objet de cette recherche est de décrire de manière détaillée la façon dont les travailleurs sociaux élaborent leur jugement de la nécessité d’aider. Le travail s’intéresse plus particulièrement aux admissions en Centre d’Hébergement et de Réinsertion Sociale (CHRS). En effet, face à une demande croissante d’hébergement, les travailleurs sociaux de ce secteur se voient dans l’obligation de faire un choix entre plusieurs candidats. Or, les critères définis par le droit sont loin d’être suffisants pour construire un ordre de priorité. Les trois premières parties présentent le cadre théorique et permettent de formuler les hypothèses directrices. Les trois autres parties sont consacrées à la présentation des résultats de trois enquêtes empiriques menées auprès de travailleurs sociaux qui exercent en CHRS et d’étudiants en travail social. La recherche met en lumière les critères d’admission utilisés par les travailleurs sociaux pour élaborer leur évaluation de la nécessité d’accueillir une personne en CHRS d’insertion. Elle hiérarchise ces critères et montre que certains d’entre eux définis par la loi ont moins d’importance que des informations intra subjectives. Elle vérifie si la formation professionnelle participe ou freine à ce phénomène. Cette thèse permet de comprendre comment les travailleurs sociaux participent inconsciemment à la mise en place de dispositifs qui aident en priorité les personnes les moins en difficulté de la catégorie ciblée. / The purpose of this research is to provide a detailed description of how social workers reach a decision with regard to the need to provide help. The work is of particular interest for admissions in Centres for Emergency Housing and Social Reintegration. In fact, faced with an increasing demand for housing, social workers in this field are forced to choose from among several candidates. However, the criteria defined by law are far from being sufficient to determine an order of priority. The first three parts discuss the theoretical framework and enable the main hypotheses to be set out. The other three parts are devoted to the presentation of the results of three empirical inquiries conducted with social workers in Centres for Emergency Housing and Social Reintegration, and with students in social work. The research explains the admission criteria used by social workers to determine the need to provide housing for a person in a reintegration centre. It prioritises these criteria and shows that some of them, defined by law, are less important than intra-subjective information. The research determines whether professional training plays a role in or acts as a curb on this phenomenon. This thesis provides an understanding of how social workers unconsciously participate in the development of systems which give priority to helping those persons in the target population who are least in need of help.

The need for this research stemmed from the fact that in today’s new world of work, organisations and markets are demanding new skill sets, innovative approaches to delivery and increasingly higher performance levels. The impacts of globalisation, technology and the demand for knowledge have brought a new era in economies and organisations, resulting in new career realities. The purpose and direction of a knowledge worker’s career is no longer confined to a single employer boundary. Therein lies the opportunity for individuals to understand, manage and leverage this dynamic context for career progression and growth through the accumulation and implementation of relevant and valued career capital. This research investigated the components of career capital, the process of formation, differentiating features and their interrelationship for knowledge workers. A conceptual de jure model of career capital (Figure 6) was created from the concepts extracted from the literature review. This model was intentionally utilised as a discussion framework in the qualitative in-depth interview stage conducted with 18 respondents across the knowledge workers, human resource practitioners and recruitment specialist samples. The outcome allowed for the validation and enhancement of the de jure model. The de facto model of career capital (Figure 8) emerged from the research findings and was found to represent an integrated view of the components of career capital that are recognised in the new economy, thereby validating the literature review and contributing new insight. The outcome of this research could facilitate knowledge workers in enhancing their career capital stature in the market, making them more competitive and valued as employees. In addition, the research could provide an insightful platform for management in overseeing the new breed of workers in knowledge-based economy. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

Competitive advantage for any organisation relies on the output of knowledge workers. The more motivated the knowledge worker the more likely they are to perform. This research explores the links between motivation and performance and creates a better understanding of which motivational factors would fall within the ambit of the psychological contract. The secondary portion of the research was to clarify if different types of knowledge workers performed in response to motivation in the same way. The research was done through in-depth interviews of knowledge workers in the 4 defined clusters. A total of 26 interviews were conducted. A questionnaire using open ended questions was used to guide the interview. The interviews were recorded, and the key themes in the results were captured, transformed and analysed, after which a ranking process was done on the results. The findings were analysed from various perspectives. The research found that there are differences in the groups studied from a number of perspectives, such as; motivation and performance scores, the motivation factors, the factors that act against performance, the organisational and individual duties as would be ‘held’ in the psychological contract. The research found that most of the factors that motivate are in the psychological contract. The findings strongly recommend that management needs to fully understand and manage the unique motivators of each individual knowledge worker in order to obtain maximum performance and hence competitive advantage. / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

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This research entails a case study on the investigation of illegal farm evictions in the Great Kei Local Municipality of the Eastern Cape. The study was propelled by the plight of people living and working on farms in South Africa who are always victims of illegal farm evictions. Such evictions in many an instance violate their basic human rights protected by South Africa’s constitution and many other international conventions. It is hoped that the findings and recommendations of the research will have a profound impact on how illegal farm evictions in future will be handled by those championing the rights of people living and working on farms. Similarly, there is hope that this study will create an interest in others to new broader issues of human rights protection. A closer look at concepts like constructive evictions is necessary because of their traumatic nature to their victims. The study is divided into five chapters. 1. Introduction This chapter provides a background, the purpose of the study, specific objectives or research questions, hypotheses or assumptions of the study, the significance of the study, justification or rationale of the study, delimitation of the study, literature review, methodology, ethical considerations, and the limitations of the study. 2. The history of farm evictions in South Africa This chapter gives an outline of farm evictions in South Africa from both the colonial and apartheid 3. The culture of human rights in South Africa This chapter examines the institutions and instruments that influence the human rights culture in South Africa. It focuses on the legislative framework of human rights. 4. Farm evictions in the Great Kei Local Municipality of the Eastern Cape This chapter discusses farm evictions in the Great Kei Local Municipality and South Africa in general between December 2001 and December 2006. A case study of the same municipality is the nucleus of this research. 5. Conclusion The evaluation, findings, and recommendations of the study form the greater part of the chapter.

Youthful offenders are usually persons who are struggling with severe social and emotional problems; who are either isolates or associate mainly with anti-social persons, and as a consequence, cut themselves off, and are cut off from persons who could assist them to identify with more normal social goals and values. This thesis is a descriptive analysis of a programme developed for such "clients", giving specific attention to the introduction of group work and related social work services at the Young Offenders' Unit, a correctional institution in British Columbia. The original leisure-time programme hoped to gain the interest and cooperation of youthful offenders; instead, they withdrew into their housing units. In response to this, a social group work service is provided, and counsellors (both men and women) are assigned to work directly in the housing units. The transitional aspects of such a programme, in a correctional setting, presents peculiar problems; therefore, descriptive detail is given in order to highlight two major shifts in focus: (1) The function of the counsellors; (2) The diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of activities, over and above their leisure-time value. The essential group work task of gaining the acceptance of delinquent youths is analyzed, and specific examples are given which illustrate how group activities of all kinds provide the tools whereby counsellors observe, study, and diagnose the interaction in each group and between groups. As a result, helpful roles emerge which make it possible for counsellors to assist the groups and their individual members towards socially acceptable behaviour. Because the youthful offender will eventually return to the community, the study points out how the delinquent is able to gain a growing trust in adults as he identifies with his counsellor, and how this furthers his eventual integration into society. The kinds of activities which are helpful to this end are illustrated. The study recognizes that segregation of youthful offenders in a separate building, and assigning counsellors to work directly with groups, helps the delinquent to substitute patterns of mature social relationships in the place of immature, anti-social patterns of relationship. But the traditional institution of concrete and stone, with steel bars and gates poses serious limitations, in that it perpetuates, arid sometimes re-inforces the youthful offender's emotional isolation from the community. The concept of a more 'open type' institution is presented, as one answer to this problem, facilitating the whole process in bridging the gap between the institution and the community, after-care, etc. The need for trained staff continues as an essential part of such a programme. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate