This report has established that women in leadership positions in local government experience similar barriers as other women leaders in the corporate sector despite the legislative, academic and political support provided by key stakeholders. As stated in Chapter 5, women in leadership positions managed and lead faced with prejudism emanating from social customs, informal institutional values, norms and cultures like in the private sector. This means that the findings on the study –Assessment of support by key stakeholders was note effective as it was envisaged. The study drew four key challenges that affected women in local government including limited support provided by the key stakeholders. Some recommended on possible interventions along these obstacles were outlined in chapter 5. These include: I) Legislation and training which were perceived to be non effective since “Attitudinal changes cannot be dictated, mandated and legislated” van der Colff (2004). II) Lack of Networks and Mentorships. III) Negative Attitude based on patriarchy and, IV) The need for Political Parties’ to reengineer that strategy in addressing women challenges.

When fires occur in domestic or commercial buildings it is the smoke from the fire that leads to far more injury and death than the heat produced from the flames. Understanding the movement of smoke within the fire compartment and through openings in the enclosure is critical for designing buildings to prevent fire fatalities. Prediction of the movement of smoke is a complex phenomenon and is a continued focus of research throughout the world. Work has been conducted in the past on the exchange flow rates through vertical openings, but very little has been done on horizontal ceiling openings. Current smoke transport calculations are most often carried out using standard vent flow models that do not accurately take in to account the buoyancy component of the flow. The fire zone model BRANZFire was developed with a ceiling vent flow algorithm based on the work of Cooper who found there was very little data on which to base his predictions. This report aims to provide additional experimental data on exchange flow rates through horizontal ceiling openings through the use of saltwater modelling and compare this to the work previously undertaken by Cooper. Taking measurements of fire phenomena in hot and smoky environments can be difficult and expensive because the sooty environment and high temperatures involved can damage equipment and make taking accurate readings a challenge. Herein this problem is overcome through the use of a saltwater analogue system to model the conditions in a real fire scenario. The density difference created by a fire between the hot fire gases and the ambient air is replicated by using fresh and saltwater. The orientation of the experiment is inverted compared to the real life scenario as the saltwater which has the higher density is added to the fresh water. The saltwater is injected from a source on the ‘floor’ of the compartment into a tank of fresh water which generates a buoyant plume that ‘rises’ to the ceiling forming a distinct upper layer. Fluid in this layer exchanges with the ambient fluid through the ceiling opening. The saltwater is dyed and Light Attenuation (LA) is used to discern the density of the fluid and hence the amount of mixing that has occurred. This can then be used to determine the amount of exchange flow through the ceiling vent. An integral model for the descent of the interface between the hot smoky zone and the cool ambient zone has been developed and was found to perform well when compared with the saltwater experiments and another predictive model developed by Turner and Baines. The model was then developed further using mass conservation conventions to calculate the exchange flow through the ceiling opening. The exchange rate through the ceiling opening was calculated and was found to compare well with Cooper’s algorithm when an equivalent fire size of 323 kW was used but differed significantly when a fire twice this size was considered. It was found that Cooper’s method did not adequately take into account the difference in fire sizes as the exchange flow predicted was almost identical between fire sizes for a particular ceiling vent. The implications of this are that the exchange, and hence the mixing and the amount of smoke, may be under predicted using larger fires in BRANZFire and this could lead to non-conservative design.

This report has established that women in leadership positions in local government experience similar barriers as other women leaders in the corporate sector despite the legislative, academic and political support provided by key stakeholders. As stated in Chapter 5, women in leadership positions managed and lead faced with prejudism emanating from social customs, informal institutional values, norms and cultures like in the private sector. This means that the findings on the study –Assessment of support by key stakeholders was note effective as it was envisaged. The study drew four key challenges that affected women in local government including limited support provided by the key stakeholders. Some recommended on possible interventions along these obstacles were outlined in chapter 5. These include: I) Legislation and training which were perceived to be non effective since “Attitudinal changes cannot be dictated, mandated and legislated” van der Colff (2004). II) Lack of Networks and Mentorships. III) Negative Attitude based on patriarchy and, IV) The need for Political Parties’ to reengineer that strategy in addressing women challenges.

This study compared the estimates of reliability made using one, two, three, four, five, and unlimited consecutive failures as ceiling rules in scoring a mathematics achievement test which is part of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skill (ITBS), Form 8. There were 700 students randomly selected from a population (N=2640) of students enrolled in the eight grades in a large urban school district in the southwestern United States. These 700 students were randomly divided into seven subgroups so that each subgroup had 100 students. The responses of all those students to three subtests of the mathematics achievement battery, which included mathematical concepts (44 items), problem solving (32 items), and computation (45 items), were analyzed to obtain the item difficulties and a total score for each student. The items in each subtest then were rearranged based on the item difficulties from the highest to the lowest value. In each subgroup, the method using one, two, three, four, five, and unlimited consecutive failures as the ceiling rules were applied to score the individual responses. The total score for each individual was the sum of the correct responses prior to the point described by the ceiling rule. The correct responses after the ceiling rule were not part of the total score. The estimate of reliability in each method was computed by alpha coefficient of the SPSS-X. The results of this study indicated that the estimate of reliability using two, three, four, and five consecutive failures as the ceiling rules were an improvement over the methods using one and unlimited consecutive failures.

The purpose of this study was to determine the existence of a glass ceiling effect within community colleges by examining faculty, staff and administrator's perceptions of a glass ceiling as it relates to the advancement of women at their institutions. This was done by using a cross-sectional survey administered electronically to faculty, staff and administrators in community colleges in the United States who were members of the American Association of Community Colleges. Four hundred fifty seven participants provided responses for the study. Results of ANOVA of perceptions of facilitators and barriers to advancement revealed there was a significant difference in perception between genders related to barriers to advancement, with females finding internal structural/job opportunities and organizational culture presenting more obstacles to advancement than males. Males significantly agreed more than females that a positive attitude toward women existed in their institutions. Females significantly agreed more than males that barriers hindered the advancement of women and that a glass ceiling existed in their institutions. Multiple regression analysis indicated gender was a significant predictor of perceptions of internal structural and organizational culture barriers to advancement. Work profile characteristics were not found to be significant predictors of the perception of facilitators or barriers. Logistic regression analysis indicated neither individual characteristics nor work profile characteristics were able to predict denial of promotion. These findings may be used to encourage those in authority who are able to make hiring and policy decisions to more closely examine the organizational structure, culture and climate in their institutions to foster an atmosphere conducive to productive work environments for all employees.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the factors that influence the underrepresentation of women in managerial positions in engineering sector. The study is based on the fact that there are less female leaders both in management and in engineering. Design/Methodology/Approach: The method used in order to accomplish this research is a qualitative approach. The primary data was collecting by semi-structured interviews with employees of the case company (ABB). The sample consists of ten employees, males and females, who hold different positions in the company. Findings: The empirical findings and the analysis show the factors regarding the underrepresentation of women in managerial positions. The study indicates that glass ceiling, gender stereotyping, engineering culture and balancing professional and family life, are major obstacles in women‘s career today. Limitations: I limited my study to only one engineering company therefore the results cannot be generalized for the whole engineering industry. Also, even though this study examines why women are underrepresented in engineering industry, I interviewed both male and female employees in order to illustrate both perspectives about the issue. Contribution: This study confirms the existing theories regarding the affect of underrepresentation of women in engineering industry and highlights the facts that delay women‘s advancement. Engineering culture does not encourage mentoring towards women and women are seen as outsiders in networking activities. Thus, this study gives the opportunity to managers in engineering to consider the reality about females in the sector in order to improve the current situation.

The inequality of the labour market has long been a discussed and studied topic and today we know that women earn less than their comparable male colleagues. Many studies have been conducted to find out if there is a glass ceiling effect for women in the labour market but most of these have used wages as their outcome variable. We wanted to see if women in the labour market face a glass ceiling when looking at the probability of holding a managerial position. We also wanted to see if there was any difference in the glass ceiling when comparing different countries so we studied the glass ceiling in Sweden, France and Great Britain. In order to study the glass ceiling, we use two separate probit regressions. The variable of interest in the first regression is the gender variable while in the other it is also an interaction term that shows the difference in the gender gaps between the private and public sector. The results show that there seems to be a glass ceiling effect in both France and Great Britain since the gender gap increases further up in the workplace hierarchy while the results for Sweden show that there is a gender gap throughout the workplace hierarchy. We also find that the gaps differ in the public and the private sector indicating that where you work can affect the probability of holding a managerial position.

Science and technology (S&T) disciplines at universities are still largely dominated by men, and few women are found in the highest employment ranks. Using the faculty data from Utah State University, this thesis explores the factors that help explain the difference in career trajectory between men and women in the S&T colleges. While there were few women in S&T colleges prior to the 1990s, more women have been hired since then, and the lower ranks of the faculty corps are starting to reflect the gender composition of the doctoral degree holders in the different fields. This is not the case for full professors and leadership positions, where women are still underrepresented. Analysis of the university careers of faculty in S&T colleges revealed that in the absence of formal guidelines, promotions to full professor were inconsistent, but men were generally promoted faster, especially when hired as associate professors. However, conscious measures by the university to make the promotion process more transparent and formalized reduced the variability in time to promotion to full professor for all faculty and minimized differences between men and women. Recognition of faculty achievement through awards still shows gender bias. Women proportionally receive less awards, especially in recognition of research activities. This study illustrates that clear guidelines reduce gender bias in decisions and improve gender equity in the academia.

This PhD thesis investigates power relationships within a corporate Finance Department employing a Foucauldian approach to explaining corporate hierarchies and resistance and the implications.Research was conducted in the form of a case study and observation of a corporate finance department, referred to as the 'Finance Department', at the 'Company', referred to as such for confidentiality purposes. The Company is a large Dutch based mail and logistics entity that operates internationally across over 200 countries and has its corporate head office just outside of Amsterdam. The Company's Finance Department was in the throws of change, particularly around hierarchies as a result of the reengineering process with the purpose of creating efficiencies. The aim of the research was to evaluate the power relationships that existed within the hierarchies between management and workers who worked either for the Finance Department or closely with it, and to analyse the outcomes of these power relationships in terms of resistance.The case study is a Foucauldian insight into the different individuals who worked either within the Finance Department or closely with it, with an evaluation of their roles and how their differing power structures impacted upon the workflow within the Finance Department.The outcome of this research is an evaluation of those individuals and their relationships at a particular point in time, which was impacted by so many different factors. The research could give readers an understanding of power relationships and framework for contextual Foucauldian evaluation.The significance of the contribution arising from this particular piece of research is that it involves the combination of a case study method with a Foucauldian perspective. The combination of these two elements allows the research to be done both from the top down and also from the bottom up. Increasing in use as a research tool (Hamel, 1992), the case study contributes uniquely to our body of knowledge of individual, organisational, social and political phenomena (Yin, 1994). The Foucauldian perspective plays an important part in terms of an understanding of power, despite the fact that it is often difficult to fully comprehend the meanings behind Foucault's work (McHoul & Grace, 1993).

Išanalizavus pagrindinius Lietuvos valstybinį socialinį draudimą reglamentuojančius įstatymus, nutarimus, kitus normatyvinius aktus bei įvairią su darbo tema susijusią literatūrą ir atitinkamus statistinius duomenis darbe atsakyta į darbo tikslui pasiekti išsikeltus uždavinius bei suformuotą hipotezę. Apžvelgus XIX a. pabaigoje susiformavusias socialinės apsaugos Bismarck’o ir Beveridge tradicijas bei Gosta Espin-Anderssen išskirtus tris socialinės apsaugos modelius (liberalusis, konservatyvusis ir socialdemokratinis) nustatyta, kad Lietuvos socialinio draudimo modelis turi ir konservatyviojo, ir liberaliojo modelio bruožų. Kadangi, Lietuvoje vis plečiama pensijų sistema, kurioje ateityje valstybė suteiks tik minimalią (bazinę) pensiją, o didžiąją dalį pensijos žmogui turės uždirbti naujai į rinką įsilieję dalyviai - pensijų fondai. Darbe pabrėžta, kad teoriniai socialiniai apsaugos modeliai šiandiena nei vienoje valstybėje grynu pavidalu neegzistuoja, todėl būtina išskirti ir papildomą mišrų socialinį modelį, turintį kiekvieno darbe aptartų modelio bruožų. / Having analysed the main laws, decisions and other normative acts regulating the Lithuanian state social insurance as well as various literature and appropriate statistical data related to the topic of the paper, the work contains answers to the suggested hypothesis and the tasks set to achieve the aim of the paper. After covering Bismarck and Beveridge’s social security traditions, formed at the end of the 19th century, and three social security models distinguished by Gosta Espin-Anderssen (the liberal, conservative and social-democratic models), it was established that the Lithuanian state social insurance has some features of both the conservative and the liberal models. As in Lithuania the system of pensions is being developed in which the state will give only a minimum (basic) pension in the future, and the biggest part of the pension for a person will be earned by the participants which came to the market newly, i.e. by pension funds. In the work it is stressed that theoretical social security models do not exist in any state in their pure form nowadays, therefore it is also necessary to distinguish an additional mixed social model, containing some of the features of the discussed models. The model of the Lithuanian state social insurance was started to be formed as early as in 1926 after promulgating the Law of the Chief Social Insurance Board. World Wars I and II, changing German and the czarist Russian government had influence on the formation of the social... [to full text]