Coaching and mentoring have grown rapidly in the last twenty years, reflecting increased level of interest in these fields. The widespread popularity, however, has been largely attributed to the anecdotal feedback about their effectiveness due to considerable gaps in the empirical research base. The aim of this study was to explore the role of coaching and mentoring in relation to transformational changes with particular reference to housing association mergers in the UK. As a result of constant merger activity, the largest twenty housing associations own 30% of the market share and the trend is likely to continue, making the research outcomes useful for future strategic planning of housing association mergers. This thesis includes empirical work through data gathered by semi-structured interviews and analysed by constructivist grounded theory methodology. The study found that coaching and mentoring play an important role in housing association mergers and transformational changes especially in creating a new shared identity and staff integration after housing association mergers. Integration can keep the merged housing associations together, thus reducing the merger failures in the housing associations. This study makes an original contribution to knowledge by presenting a conceptual framework. The framework incorporates different forms of coaching and mentoring, such as, one to one coaching, team coaching, executive mentoring and peer mentoring used in housing associations for the transformative learning of the housing officials.

Richard D. Thornton. / "May 15, 1957"--Cover. / Includes bibliographical references. / U.S. Army Signal Corps Contract No. DA36-039-sc-64637 Dept. of the Army Task 3-99-06-108 Project 3-99-00-100

Las empresas familiares se asocian generalmente con una forma tradicional de hacer negocios sin embargo, esta tesis presenta la heterogeneidad entre empresas familiares de primera generación mediante la construcción de una taxonomía de cuatro grupos de fundadores con relación a sus valores. Los datos cualitativos se obtuvieron a través de entrevistas en profundidad a 13 fundadores de empresas familiares líderes en Galicia, observación no participativa y la recopilación de datos secundarios sobre sus empresas y su vida empresarial y familiar. El programa de análisis cualitativo Atlas.ti se emplea para codificar los valores de los fundadores a partir de la trascripción completa de sus entrevistas. Mediante el traspaso de las tablas de contingencia obtenidas al programa SPSS y la ayuda de la técnica de escalonamiento multidimensional se exploraron visualmente las relaciones entre códigos (valores) y documentos primarios (fundadores). Posteriormente se empleó un algoritmo de clasificación jerárquico para formar la taxonomía de fundadores. Finalmente los resultados obtenidos cuantitativamente se integraron nuevamente en el programa Atlas.ti para continuar con el análisis de la influencia de los valores de los fundadores sobre sus familias, sus organizaciones y sobre la evolución y los resultados de sus empresas. Se obtuvieron diferentes modelos de comportamiento en relación con los valores de los fundadores. Los resultados muestran la importancia de identificar el sistema de valores de los fundadores como medio de entender su influencia en el comportamiento de las empresas familiares. Este perfil de valores puede ser una herramienta valiosa para los máximos responsables de la gestión en las empresas familiares y para sus consultores por la posibilidad que brinda de identificar y promover valores que añadan valor a las empresas sin comprometer el desarrollo de la empresa en la siguiente generación. / Family firms are commonly associated with a traditional way of doing business, however, this thesis shows the heterogeneity among first-generation family firms by building a taxonomy of four groups of founders based on values. Qualitative data were obtained from in-depth interviews with 13 founders of leading family businesses in Galicia (the north-west region of Spain), non-participant observation and published secondary data regarding their firms and their entrepreneurial and family life. Atlas.ti was used to codify founders' values from the full transcriptions of their interviews. By moving the codes-primary document contingency table to SPSS, it was able to visually explore the relationship between codes (values) and primary documents (family firm's founders) with the aid of Multidimensional Scaling Technique. Then it was used a hierarchical agglomeration algorithm to form a taxonomy of founders. Finally we returned to Atlas.ti and analyzed the influence of founders' values on their families, their organizations and the evolution and performance of their firms.We obtained different patterns of behaviour according to founders' values. These results point out the relevance of identifying founders' value systems in order to understand the founders' influence on family business behaviour. This value profile can be a valuable tool for family business owner-managers and advisors to identify and promote values that add value to firms without compromising next-generation family firm development.

La tesis consta de una breve introducción y de cuatro capítulos a los que se añade un resumen final de conclusiones. El primer capítulo ofrece una revisión detallada de los fundamentos teóricos de la teoría del capital humano (educación como mecanismo para aumentar la productividad individual) y la hipótesis de señalización (educación como señal o filtro de productividades innatas previas). En primer lugar, se define lo que se entiende por capital humano en su visión más amplia y se reflexiona brevemente sobre algunas cuestiones vinculadas. Seguidamente se exponen las principales formulaciones teóricas basadas en la teoría del capital humano. En segundo lugar, se presenta la hipótesis de señalización y se exponen las aproximaciones teóricas principales en este campo, incorporando a la revisión un enfoque de teoría de juegos. Por último, el capítulo se cierra con un epígrafe introductorio sobre algunos conceptos de psicología para ilustrar y justificar las propuestas y supuestos que se realizan en los capítulos posteriores.El capítulo segundo se dedica a realizar un compendio de los enfoques empíricos del papel de la capacidad innata y la hipótesis de señalización. La literatura al respecto presentaba una dispersión y multiplicidad de enfoques que requería, a nuestro entender, la realización de una recopilación que sirviese de guía y resumen de las aportaciones realizadas. El capítulo, además, presenta los principales problemas del contraste empírico de la teoría del capital humano así como las soluciones apuntadas en la literatura.En el tercer capítulo, la parte más novedosa de la tesis, se proponen dos medidas de la habilidad de los individuos. Estas dos propuestas se fundamentan en dos modelos teóricos originales basados en las diferencias educativas que se observan en las distintas provincias españolas bajo el supuesto de que el coste de la educación es distinto en cada provincia. Cada uno de estos modelos da paso al correspondiente contraste empírico para evaluar el efecto de la habilidad en la ecuación de salarios.A continuación se analiza en cuál es la naturaleza del rendimiento de la educación. Según la teoría del capital humano el rendimiento de la educación es el pago por los conocimientos y actitudes adquiridas durante el proceso educativo mientras que la hipótesis de señalización propone que es el pago por la señal de una mayor habilidad innata. Evaluar el peso de estos dos comportamientos es uno de los objetivos del capítulo cuarto. En este capítulo se realiza una serie de pruebas clásicas sobre la hipótesis de señalización en sus diferentes acepciones que no han sido aplicadas al caso español. Por otra parte, se inicia un estudio sobre algunos aspectos de la capacidad innata de los individuos no relacionados con su nivel educativo. Estos aspectos no han sido considerados hasta el momento y, a la vista de recientes investigaciones psicológicas y de los resultados que en esta tesis se presentan, podrían explicar parte del éxito económico de los individuos. Se estudia el distinto comportamiento salarial entre el sector público y privado, en la creencia de que la señalización y la habilidad considerada tendrán un papel distinto en cada uno de los sectores.Por último, se presentan las principales conclusiones obtenidas así como las posibles implicaciones para la política educativa. Los resultados de la investigación realizada apuntan hacia la vigencia de la teoría del capital humano en tanto que las pruebas no corroboran que la capacidad innata de los individuos sea la responsable de la totalidad del rendimiento de la educación. Además, aunque se observa algún signo de señalización concentrado fundamentalmente en la enseñanza secundaria, los resultados obtenidos parecen señalar que la educación afecta a la productividad y, por tanto, que exista un rendimiento social. / The framework of this thesis is the Economics Education area. It includes a short introduction, four central chapters and a concluding section. The first chapter offers a detailed theoretical survey of the Human Capital Theory (schooling as an individual productivity enhancing mechanism) and the Signalling Hypothesis (schooling as a signal or filter of previous innate abilities). In addition there is a section that provides some introductory concepts about psychology that are needed in the next charters. Second chapter surveys the different empirical approaches about the role of the ability and the Signalling Hypothesis in the wage setting. In addition, it is pointed out to the main problems in the empirical test of the Human Capital Theory jointly with the solutions provided in the literature. The third chapter, the newest part of the thesis, presents two measures of the individual ability based on the observed differences in education among the different Spanish Provinces and assuming that the cost of schooling is different in each of these provinces. The effects of these two measures in the wage settings are tested. In the fourth chapter results of some test of the Signalling Hypothesis not previously applied to the Spanish case are presented. Moreover, it is started a study about some individual non-academic abilities and their reward in the labour market. Public and private sector differences are studied because it is supposed that signalling and non-academic abilities might have a different role in these sectors. Finally, the conclusions are presented. The main result of this thesis point to the Human Capital Theory validity despite that some signalling effects are found in the Secondary Education. Implications for educational policy are discussed

En 1950 vivían en Suramérica unos 113 millones de personas; en 2010, 393 millones, tres veces y media más. La mitad de ellos vive en la pobreza. En 2050, alrededor de 485 millones vivirán allí. Las figuras contemporáneas de dinámica poblacional global revelan que por cada nacimiento en una familia rica hay 38 en familias pobres. Es necesario, entonces, pensar en nuevos modelos de los sistemas sociales, ecológicos y económicos para analizar y sintetizar su sostenibilidad y para investigar cómo sería viable y se comportaría. Esta investigación muestra el proceso de construir un marco teórico y práctico para modelar a Suramérica utilizando dinámica de sistemas. Así mismo explora preguntas como: ¿es posible reducir la pobreza siguiendo un rumbo sostenible? ¿Cuál es el tipo de equilibrio detrás de las ideas de sostenibilidad? ¿Qué relaciones se pueden encontrar entre las escalas de espacio y tiempo de la perspectiva humana y de la sostenibilidad y las dinámicas de nuevos equilibrios sociales? ¿Cómo enriquecen esas exploraciones la comprensión de los sistemas sociales y del comportamiento humano? ¿Qué contribuciones pueden aportar a la sostenibilidad esos análisis y síntesis? ¿Cómo pueden la estructura y la dinámica de Suramérica ayudar a responder esas preguntas? El resultado obtenido sirve para descubrir posibles inconsistencias y comportamientos contrarios a la intuición en las concepciones tradicionales de pobreza, desarrollo y sostenibilidad. / Al 1950 vivien a l‟Amèrica del Sud uns 113 milions de persones; al 2010, 393 milions, tres vegades i mitja més. La meitat viu en la pobresa. Al 2050 hi viuran al voltant de 485 milions. Les figures contemporànies de dinàmica poblacional global revelen que per cada naixement en una família rica n‟hi ha 38 en famílies pobres. És necessari, llavors, pensar en nous models dels sistemes socials, ecològics i econòmics per analitzar i sintetitzar la seva sostenibilitat i per investigar com seria viable i com es comportaria. Aquesta investigació mostra el procés de construir un marc teòric i pràctic per modelar l‟Amèrica del Sud tot utilitzant dinàmica de sistemes. Així mateix, explora preguntes com ara: ¿és possible reduir la pobresa seguint un rumb sostenible? ¿Quin és el tipus d‟equilibri darrere de les idees de sostenibilitat? ¿Quines relacions es poden trobar entre les escales d‟espai i de temps de la perspectiva humana, de la sostenibilitat i de les dinàmiques de nous equilibris socials? ¿Com enriqueixen aquestes exploracions la comprensió dels sistemes socials i del comportament humà? ¿Quines contribucions poden aportar aquestes anàlisis i síntesis a la sostenibilitat? ¿Com poden l‟estructura i la dinàmica de Sud-amèrica ajudar a respondre aquestes preguntes? El resultat obtingut serveix per a descobrir possibles inconsistències i comportaments contraris a la intuïció en les concepcions tradicionals de pobresa, desenvolupament i sostenibilitat / In 1950, 113 million people lived in South America, in 2010, 393 million, three and a half times more. Half of them live in poverty. In 2050, about 485 million people will be living there. Contemporary population dynamics figures on a global average show that by each birth in a rich family there are 38 in poor families. Then it‟s necessary to think on new social, ecological and economic systems models to analyze and synthesize their possible sustainability and to research on how it is possible and behave. This research shows the process of building a theoretical and practical framework for modeling South America using system dynamics and explores questions such as: Is it possible to reduce poverty following a sustainable path? What is the kind of steady state behind the sustainability ideas? What relationship can be found between the scales of space and time of the human perspective and of the sustainability and the dynamics of the new social equilibriums? How such exploration enriches the understanding of social systems and human behavior? What contributions can be offered from such analysis and synthesis to contribute to sustainability? How can the structure and dynamics of South America helps to answer those questions? The obtained results serve to discover possible inconsistencies and counterintuitive behaviors in traditional conceptions of poverty, development and sustainability.

Los objetivos de la tesis son en primer lugar, el análisis del alcance de los datos disponibles y su grado de validez para proporcionar una visión de la realidad del comportamiento innovador de las empresas españolas. En segundo lugar la definición de un modelo de análisis que pueda ser de interés para la sistematización de los estudios y la posible definición de política de apoyo a la I+D. Finalmente evaluar el potencial que tiene el tratamiento regionalizado de los datos de la encuesta de innovación a partir del estudio del caso de Cataluña y su comparación con los resultados agregados no regionales. / The objectives of the thesis are in the first place, the analysis of the reach of the data available and their degree of validity to provide a vision of the reality of the innovating behavior of the Spanish companies. Secondly the definition of an analysis model that can be of interest for the systematization of the studies and the possible definition of policy of support to the R+D. Finally to evaluate the potential that has the regionali treatment of the data of the survey of innovation from the study of the case of Catalonia and its comparison with the results of the set of Spain.

Agricultural cooperatives (ACs) are major players in the European Union, where they account for 40-60% of agricultural trade and thus are key actors in articulating rural realities and in shaping the sustainability credentials of European food and farming. Cooperatives, regardless of the sector they operate in, are expected to work for the benefit of their members, show concern for their communities (including sustainable development) and promote cooperative economies. This research analyses to what extent this is happening in the case of ACs. Evidence of how unsustainable and unequal farming in Europe is despite such a strong AC presence raises questions on the role and practices of these cooperatives. Despite their grassroots origins, concerns from civil society and a handful of scholars suggest there is an increase in top-down approaches and corporatisation trends in the sector. This research examines ACs in Spain and the UK (in the context of the EU/CAP framework), examining how the sector has evolved in both countries since its beginnings and analysing trends and factors shaping their current development. Using case study methodology, data from document analysis and 41 interviews with AC members, academics, policy makers and industry and civil society representatives are presented. The findings reveal the two countries have very different farming cooperative sectors, but their largest ACs are adapting to the EU policy context and the increasing concentration of power in the food system by following similar growth and corporatisation strategies. A reaction from social movements is however taking place both in Spain and the UK, where new innovative cooperative models are emerging. Thus, ACs can be placed in a continuum of alterity depending on the degree of embeddedness in industrial or more sustainable food practices. ACs can become disjointed and have their least political components co-opted by the dominant food system (as they fit its logistics model, trade requirements and help concentrate produce). Going beyond the economic perspective that dominates the study of ACs, this research also places a focus on emerging innovative multi-stakeholder governance models. The strategies used to protect their alterity as well as the diverse understandings of food sustainability that different types of cooperatives have and how they reproduce these through their practices are analysed. Given the insufficient explanatory potential of existing theories to accommodate a wide range of realities labelled as cooperatives in food and farming, a new theoretical framework was developed based on the findings of this research. The multilevel framework unravels the different dimensions that constitute cooperatives and their degree of alterity and commitment to sustainable food practices and the wider cooperative movement.

This research examines the effects of the changes taking place within the field of credit unions (CU) in Glasgow. It examines the ways in which competing hierarchical and social accountabilities are implicated in and affected by these changes. In recent decades policy makers in the UK have looked to credit unions to help tackle issues of poverty and social inclusion. However, credit unions in the UK have tended to disappoint in terms of their growth and stability, and there have been notable failures. Some influential parties – including local councils, HM Treasury, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and the Association of British Credit Unions Limited (ABCUL) – have argued that the way to avoid future failures, achieve a high growth rate, and ultimately meet aspirations in terms of poverty alleviation and social inclusion, is to transform credit unions to implement a more commercialised model. Such a model potentially clashes with the traditions and ethos of some sectors of the credit union community, and thus it faces resistance. The value- rational approach of this research is inspired by the work of Bent Flyvbjerg who provided a modern interpretation of the traditional Greek concept of phronesis and applied it to research with the aim of making social science really matter. Four value-laden questions permeate this research: (1) Where are we going? (2) Who gains and who loses? And by which mechanisms of power? (3) Is this desirable? (4) What should we do? The research analyses developments in the Glasgow credit union (CU) field; it also studies the accountability practices of CUs with a particular focus on a community-based Glasgow CU that has traditions and values which are not easily reconciled with the commercialisation agenda and the demands of modern financial regulatory authorities. The research uses interviews, observations and secondary data sources to answer its research questions. The analysis is classified into both macro and micro levels. On the macro level analysis, the research found that power defines a new reality where accountability has been shifted from people and values to rules and authorities. On the micro level, the analysis shows that neither trust nor accountability work effectively alone; instead, an intelligent integration of trust and accountability is needed to sustain the viability and ethos of the community-based CU.

A Xile, la mineria subterrània construeix més de 70.000 metres de labors horitzontals a l’any, la qual cosa significa una inversió superior als 70 milions de dòlars en el mateix període. Per altra banda, considerant la importància operativa que té aquest tipus d’infraestructures, atès que serveix d’accés als cossos mineralitzats i preparació de les unitats d’explotació, fa que la planificació prengui vital importància. El present treball proposa una metodologia de simulació mitjançant el mètode de Monte Carlo i pretén ser un recolzament a la planificació, permetent d’obtenir una estimació més certa dels temps de construcció d’aquest tipus d’infraestructures, considerant la metodologia de construcció mitjançant perforació i voladura. Per a l’ús del mètode de Monte Carlo, s’identifiquen les operacions unitàries que comprenen el cicle de construcció del túnel mitjançant perforació i voladura, i se’ls hi assignen distribucions de probabilitat, les que mitjançant la generació de nombres aleatoris fa possible simular el temps total de construcció. Els resultats obtinguts mitjançant la metodologia plantejada es contrasten amb un cas real, on es pot observar que els terminis obtinguts per la simulació s’ajusten millor als temps reals de construcció del túnel que els planificats mitjançant mètodes convencionals. A més, aquesta metodologia ha estat emprada per poder obtenir la millor configuració de la jornada de treball, segons allò permès per la legislació laboral xilena, amb la finalitat de minimitzar el temps de construcció del túnel. Per últim, ha estat simulada la construcció dels túnels d’injecció 11 i 12 de la mina Chuquicamata Subterránea, aconseguint evidenciar les bondats del mètode en el moment de tenir una estimació de la finalització de la construcció de les obres. / En Chile se construyen más de 70 km anuales de túneles mineros con una inversión superior a 270 millones de dólares. Dada la importancia que tiene este tipo de infraestructuras, ya que sirve de acceso al mineral, la planificación es vital. El presente trabajo propone una metodología de simulación mediante el método de Monte Carlo que pretende servir de apoyo a la planificación, permitiendo obtener una estimación más certera de los tiempos de construcción de este tipo de infraestructuras. Mediante el método de Monte Carlo se identifican las operaciones unitarias que comprenden el ciclo de construcción del túnel mediante perforación y tronadura, asignándoles distribuciones de probabilidad, para que mediante la generación de números aleatorios sea posible simular el tiempo total de construcción. Los resultados obtenidos mediante se contrastan con un caso real, observando que los plazos obtenidos mediante la simulación se ajustan mejor a los tiempos reales de construcción del túnel que los planificados mediante métodos convencionales. Se utilizó esta metodología para obtener la mejor configuración de la jornada de trabajo y su duración, según la legislación laboral de Chile. Por último, se simuló la construcción de los túneles de inyección 11 y 12 de la mina Chuquicamata Subterránea, logrando evidenciar las bondades del método en el momento de tener una estimación de la finalización de las obras. / Every year approximately 70,000 meters of tunnels with different sections are excavated in Chile for underground mining and civil works. The investments involve approximately 70 million dollars per year. In the mining industry this kind of infrastructure is very important as they serve to access the ore zones and prepare the ore excavation. This work proposes a simulation algorithm based on Monte Carlo method that can provides the best estimation of the opening excavation times considering the classic method of drilling and blasting. To use the Monte Carlo method, the unit operations involved in the underground excavation cycle is identified and is assigned to them probability distributions which, by means of the generation of random numbers, make it possible to simulate the total excavation time. The results obtained by this method are compared with a real case where it can be seen that the times obtained by the simulation fit better the real tunnel construction times than those planned by means of conventional methods, and they also allow getting scenarios that can be important decision parameters at the time of planning a project of this kind.

In the first chapter, I examine the effect of social learning on social norms of cooperation. To this end I develop an 'anti-social learning' game. This is a dynamic social dilemma in which all agents know how to cooperate but a proportion are informed and know of privately profitable but socially costly, or uncooperative, actions. In equilibrium agents are able to infer, or learn, the payoffs to the actions of prior agents. Agents can then learn through observation that some socially costly action is privately profitable. This implies that an informed agent behaving uncooperatively can induce others to behave uncooperatively when, in the absence of observational learning, they would have otherwise been cooperative. However, this influence also gives informed agents an incentive to cooperate - not cooperating may induce others to not cooperate. I use this model to give conditions under which social learning propagates cooperative behaviour and conditions under which social learning propagates uncooperative behaviour. In the second chapter, I present a co-authored model of a self-fulfilling price cycle in an asset market. In this model the dividend stream of the economy's asset stock is constant yet price oscillates deterministically even though the underlying environment is stationary. This creates a model in which there is rational excess volatility - 'excess' in the sense that it does not reflect changes in dividend streams and 'rational' in that all agents are acting on their best information. The mechanism that we uncover is driven by endogenous variation in the investment horizons of the different market participants, informed and uninformed. On even days, the price is high; on odd days it is low. On even days, informed traders are willing to jettison their good assets, knowing that they can buy them back the next day, when the price is low. The anticipated drop in price more than offsets any potential loss in dividend. Because of these asset sales, the informed build up their cash holdings. Understanding that the market is flooded with good assets, the uninformed traders are willing to pay a high price. But their investment horizon is longer than that of the informed traders: their intention is to hold the assets they purchase, not to resell. On odd days, the price is low because the uninformed recognise that the informed are using their cash holdings to cherry-pick good assets from the market. Now the uninformed, like the informed, are investing short-term. Rather than buy-and-hold as they do with assets purchased on even days, on odd days the uninformed are buying to sell. Notice that, at the root of the model, there lies a credit constraint. Although the informed are flush with cash on odd days, they are not deep pockets. On each cherry that they pick out of the market, they earn a high return: buying cheap, selling dear. However they don't have enough cash to strip the market of cherries and thereby bid the price up. The final chapter is on identifying the role of privilege in determining inter- generational mobility. The intergenerational elasticity of income is the standard measurement economists use for intergenerational mobility. It is not clear how we should interpret intergenerational elasticities. Particularly, high intergenerational elasticities could either reflect inequality of opportunity or the importance of genetically heritable characteristics in determining genes. Behavioural geneticists have long been using a twin based variance decomposition method, the ACE model, to estimate the genetic heritability of various characteristics. It is not clear, however, what this approach implies for intergenerational mobility of equality of opportunity. I develop a novel method that extends the methodology used in behavioural genetics to identifying how much of the intergenerational elasticity of income is determined by the presence (absence) of environmental privileges associated with being children of high (low) earners. Using this approach we can examine the counterfactuals of giving a poorer child the environment of a richer child; equalising the privileges associated with family income; and equalising the family environmental factors not associated with parental income. Furthermore, this method allows us to identify how good parental income is as a measure of family environment. The model I develop nests the behavioural genetics model allowing us to relax some of the identifying assumptions used in the standard ACE model. Finally, I apply this method to data on the income elasticities between American males of different types of relation: fraternal twins, identical twins and father-son relationships. The results of this application suggest that a 1 percent increase in the privilege associated with parental income increases child income by about 1 tenth of a percent. Equalising, to the mean, the environmental privileges across the population results in about a 30 percent drop in the intergenerational elasticity of income and a 5 percent drop in the variance of income across the population. These results must be treated tentatively as the twin data comes from a separate survey to the data on intergenerational elasticities.