Fear of crime is an issue that has long been a part of mainstream society through politics and media. However, research on the specific mechanisms of fear and the effects on behavior is sparse. After considering the victim-offender overlap consistently found within the literature, the present study was based on the theory posed within Schreck, Stewart, and Fisher (2006) in which those who are low in self-control may have altered perceptions of fear or risk of crime that might increase the likelihood that the individual will be in risky locations conducive to victimization. The current study also included a novel feature in which fear of crime is measured by two separate constructs, an emotional fear response to crime as well as a cognitive risk perception of crime as suggested in Rountree and Land (1996). This study will utilize data collected from 3,692 seventh-graders in Kentucky as part of the Rural Substance Abuse and Violence Project. It is believed that this study will help to better explain the process behind school victimization in particular, not only for intervention and prevention purposes for offending behavior, but to also prevent victimization.

Im Prüfjahr 2009 erhielten 842 Tiere (davon 492 Eber der Deutschen Landrasse) einen Prüfabschluss. 39 Eber mit hervorragender Eigenleistung wurden durch den Mitteldeutschen Schweinezuchtverband e.V als Besamungseber angekauft. Der Jahresbericht dokumentiert den Prüfablauf und die Prüfergebnisse. Bei den geprüften Rassen wurden u.a. die Mast- und Schlachtleistung sowie die Fleischqualität untersucht. Die Durchführung der Leistungsprüfung erfolgt praxisnah in Gruppen mit elektronischer Einzeltiererkennung und tierindividueller Erfassung des Futterverzehrs. Es erfolgt eine kombinierte Eigenleistungs-, Geschwister- und Nachkommenprüfung mit hohem Anteil Ebereigenleistungsprüfung zur züchterisch effizienten Nutzung der Prüfkapazitäten. Grundlage der Prüfung, die seit 1995 im Lehr- und Versuchsgut Köllitsch durchgeführt wird, sind die bundeseinheitlichen »Richtlinien für die Stationsprüfung auf Mastleistung, Schlachtkörperwert und Fleischbeschaffenheit beim Schwein (Geschwister- und Nachkommenprüfung)«, die vom Zentralverband der Deutschen Schweineproduktion e.V. herausgegeben werden.

This thesis is focusing on school evaluation from the point of view of its specifics and functionality in regard to its motivation purpose. The findings regarding evaluation are shown in an independent chapter showing the positive and negative aspects of forms of assessment in practical application. Following chapter dealing with motivation describes needs in relation to school activities as well as brief explanation of causal attribution. More attention is paid to the achievement motivation, especially to characteristics of needs for achievement in relation to pupils' responses to mental stress in task situations. There are briefly mentioned some of the newer motivational theories and their application in school showing the possible modification of outer motivation to autonomy. Widely processed are methods and aspects of evaluation that support motivation and provide pupils with examples for self- assessment. Qualitative research is focused on assessment processes leading to positive motivation. Concluding proposition summarizes several recommendations for teacher in the role of evaluator. Keywords School evaluation, motivation, achievement motivation, self-appraisal.

Syftet med studien är att belysa hur elever hanterar intern och extern röst i sina gymnasiearbeten för att ge en inblick i vilken diskursiv kompetens elever kan uppvisa i slutet av sin gymnasieutbildning. Tidigare studier visar att elever och studenter har svårt för att balansera den interna och de externa rösterna för att skapa dialog i texter. Genom kvalitativ textanalys undersöks tre gymnasiearbeten med utgångspunkt i the Appraisal frameworks kategori engagemang. Texterna analyseras utifrån aspekterna dialogism, textintegration, författarintegration och röstnärvaro. Resultatet visar att eleverna använder olika sätt för att skriva in sig själva i texten, bland annat genom passiva konstruktioner och en läsarinkluderande röst. Samtliga texter visar problem med på vilket sätt externa röster integreras i akademiska texter, vilket påverkar texternas dialogicitet i form av otydliga gränser mellan den interna och den externa rösten. I likhet med tidigare forskning indikerar resultatet att undervisningen behöver lägga fokus både på hur referenshänvisningar skrivs, och på vilka sätt externa röster används i akademisk text.

Abstract Purpose - The purpose of this study is to extend the current understanding of NCE and its antecedents. Design/methodology/approach - A deductive approach was used to confirm the proposed model of NCE using structural equation modeling. Data was collected online using self-selection questionnaires, resulting in 252 responses used in the quantitative analysis. Seven hypotheses were tested in the analysis.  Findings - The primary findings of the study is that perceived injustice acts as an antecedent of cognitive and affective NCE, which in turn drive behavioral NCE. Accordingly, the proposed tri-dimensional framework of NCE, consisting of a cognitive, affective, and behavioral component, was supported. Negative service quality disconfirmation was not supported as an antecedent of NCE.  Originality/value - The originality of the paper lies in the testing of NCE and the proposed drivers as a unique construct, which has not previously been tested in quantitative research.

Due to increasing skill and awareness of overall functions in programs such as Excel, an increasing number of analysts at real estate firms and consultancies have started developing "desktop" versions of valuation models used for professional appraisal of property value. Due to personal preferences, differences in schools and professional backgrounds, these so called desktop models vary in quality, robustness, accuracy, design and user friendliness. Professional software suites are not suitable either, as they are expensive, hard to learn, hard to adapt to specific needs of the business, outdated design and need of additional IT resources. At a multinational Real Estate consultancy such as Jones Lang LaSalle, requirements on tools used for professional opinions on questions as important as property value, are rigorous. Therefore, decision was made to develop a new DCF model which would be closely monitored by management and have a prismatic approach meaning that the model would satisfy the needs of more than one division at Jones Lang LaSalle. When reviewing existing models and practices at the company, the result became a tailored DCF valuation model that was focused on increasing efficiency of appraisers at Jones Lang LaSalle. Aside from being robust and technically sophisticated, the result also suited the specific needs of Jones Lang LaSalle in terms of features and user interface. Development of the model involved several divisions to ensure that the needs were met for Research & Valuation, Capital Markets, Corporate Solutions and Asset Management at Jones Lang LaSalle.

Bicycle-sharing programs are a new trend in urban transportation. The main difference of a bicycle-sharing program with a regular bicycle rental is that is possible to get a bicycle in one station and return it in any other station. There are many models of bicycle sharing, each model with its pros and cons. This study analyzes the bicycle-sharing models in order to build a proposal of a bicycle-sharing program suitable for Brazilian median cities. The study begins with an overview of bicycle transportation, followed by the analysis of different bicycle-sharing programs. The last chapter formulates a proposal of a bicycle-sharing program suitable for Brazilian median cities. This study uses both quantitative and qualitative methods. The analysis includes a case study on the bicycle-sharing program in Stockholm. This case study is based on interviews with the manager of the program in the company in charge, and with the responsible official in Stockholm municipality. A questionnaire was moreover handed out to users of the program. This case study is complemented with a questionnaire sent by email to managers of bicycle-sharing programs in some cities around the world, this in order to provide more examples on how bicycle sharing can be organized. Finally, another case study was carried out in a Brazilian median city in order to evaluate the local awareness concerning bicycle transport, and the possibility of implementing a bicycle-sharing program there. A questionnaire was handed out to a sample of the local population and an interview was made with the local transport authority. The analysis of all data results in a proposal for a bicycle-sharing program suitable for the Brazilian context. The proposal comprises the choices of bicycles, stations, equipment related to the hiring process and service vehicle. It includes a complete financial appraisal with the necessary capital for implementing and managing the program. It shows that it is possible to build an affordable bicycle-sharing program adapted to Brazilian median cities. The program will create job opportunities and can contribute to a changed view of bicycle transportation in these cities. The proposal could also be applied in countries with the same characteristics as Brazil.

South African middle adolescents are exposed to environments riddled with potential adversities which are pervading into their lives, adding to their challenges inherent to their developmental stage. Resilient behaviour requires changes with each developmental phase and varies on a continuum of less optimum resilience to optimum resilience based on the middle adolescent’s developed modalities. Middle adolescents spend a significant time in school and therefore it is an appropriate context to foster, enhance and develop emotional-; social- and cognitive resilience competencies. There are limited psychological assessment instruments for the South African population that can be used to appraise the level of resilience modalities in middle adolescents as well as ways of enhancing and developing these resilience modalities in the school context. The aim of this ethnographic study is to describe and explore the process of how to appraise, develop and enhance the modalities of resilience of the South African middle adolescent in the school context. The research is conducted from a combined qualitative and quantitative approach which is seen as complementary to each other in a dominant-less-dominant model. The purposeful sampling consists of thirty 14-year old heterogeneous and multi-cultural participants in a private inner-city school. The data collecting strategies comprise of an open-ended question, observations and the newly developed Resilience Enhancement Kit and the Resiliency Scale. The gender specific results regarding the middle adolescents’ responses in the pre- and post tests (Resiliency Scale) after administering the Resilience Enhancement Kit indicated that there was an increase in their level of resilient functioning and therefore appears to be successful in enhancing resilience modalities. There is a discrepancy in the perception of teachers and middle adolescents’ regarding their resilient functioning. It is recommended that Educational Psychologists train teachers in administering the Resiliency Enhancement Kit and scale to incorporate it in the school curriculum. / Thesis (Phd (Educational Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

The manager is a leading figure in the success of the private sector, an individual who has many tasks and areas of responsibility, one of which is performance appraisals (PA). This study uses the following definition of PAs coined by Fletcher (2001, p. 473) "a variety of activities through which organizations try to assess employees and develop their skills, improve performance and distribute rewards." Performance appraisal is one of the most used recipes in the Human Relations sector. The recipe that is used within organizations has a historically long connection back to the 1970s when the recipe first began to be implemented. Despite the fact that it is a well-known and well-used recipe, there are divided opinions about whether PAs are effective and legitimate.  Studies have shown that there are three variables that can affect the effectiveness of PAs, in those variables we find the most significant for this study as the appraisers role in the PAs. The problem formulated was; How do managers perceive performance appraisal? With this study we aim to understand first line managers' perceived reality of performance appraisal. Previous studies show that the inefficiency of employee interviews can depend on three different variables. The main factor in the variables lies with the appraiser, such as, managers. This study provides a deeper insight into the role of first-line managers at Scania and their experience of PAs, the purpose is to gain an understanding of their perceived reality of the phenomenon as an effective instrument.   When conducting this study, we have used an abductive approach, where we used a qualitative method. Ten semi-structured interviews have formed the basis for the collection of empirical data. Each of the respondents who participated in the study was selected through subjective selection. The interviews were conducted through video link, recorded and transcribed. Prior to the analysis, a coding was performed that resulted in three themes; process, experience and relationship. The empirical material together with the theories formed the basis for the analysis, which then led to the final analysis that revolves around employee conversation venn diagram that visualize the purpose of the study.  A common perception among all participants was that they had a positive mindset towards the instrument and the guidelines provided by the organization, Scania. The study concluded that first line managers perceive PAs as a good instrument that is being used in their daily process. Furthermore, they perceived the reality of the phenomenon were based on the following key variables; Balance, Communication and Responsibility. Additionally, the study confirmed that the managers perceive PAs as an effective tool for their own daily use. Finally, we found that the human factor in PA is perceived to be of great importance for managers in their managers culture. / Chefen är en ledande figur för den privata sektorns framgång, en individ som har många uppgifter och ansvarsområden, varav ett av dem är medarbetarsamtal. Denna studie använder sig av följande definition av medarbetarsamtal som är myntad av Fletcher (2001, s. 473) “a variety of activities through which organizations seek to assess employees and develop their competence, enhance performance and distribute rewards.”. Medarbetarsamtal erkänns som ett viktigt och användbart HR-recept som används inom organisationer och har historiskt sett en lång koppling ända till1970-talet där receptet först började implementeras. Trots att det är ett så pass känt och välanvänt recept så finns det delade meningar kring om medarbetarsamtal är effektivt och legitimt. Tidigare studier visar på att ineffektiviteten av medarbetarsamtal kan vara beroende av tre olika variabler. Den tyngsta faktorn i variablerna ligger på bedömaren, såsom chefen. Detta ledde tillstudiens frågeställning; Hur upplevs medarbetarsamtal av chefer? I denna studie ges en djupare inblick i första linjens chefsroll på Scania och deras upplevelse av medarbetarsamtal, syftet är attfå en förståelse för deras upplevda verklighet av fenomenet medarbetarsamtal. I genomförandet av denna studie har en abduktiv ansats använts, där vi använt oss av en kvalitativmetod. Tio semistrukturerade intervjuer har legat till grund för empiriinsamlingen, där respondenterna som deltog i studien valdes ut genom ett subjektivt urval. Intervjuerna genomfördes via videolänk, spelades in och transkriberades. Inför analysen genomfördes en kodning som mynnade ut i tre teman; process, upplevelse och relation. Materialet tillsammansmed teorierna utgjorde grunden för analysen, vilket sedan ledde till slutanalysen som kretsar runt medarbetarsamtals-venndiagram som visualiserar studiens syfte.  I studien kom vi fram till följande slutsatser. Den första slutsatsen är att balans, kommunikation och ansvar är tre nyckelbegrepp som beskriver chefernas upplevda verklighet av medarbetarsamtal. Den andra är att medarbetarsamtal som fenomen upplevs som ett effektivt verktyg för den enskilda chefen. Den tredje och sista slutsatsen visar att den mänskliga faktorns roll i medarbetarsamtal upplevs vara av stor vikt för chefer i deras chefskultur.

The need to improve on the quality and equity in education has been a direct challenge for the Department of Education in the South African post-apartheid era. The Department of Education, in agreement with the Education Labour Relation Council, implemented the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) as a quality management system, consisting of three programmes, aimed at enhancing and monitoring performance of the education system. The Integrated Quality Management System was the focus of this study and, in particular, the attitudes of educators towards Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation. The research was guided by the following three main research questions: What are the attitudes of educators towards Developmental Appraisal as an evaluation policy for accountability purposes? What are the attitudes of educators towards Classroom Observation as a practice for staff development with a developmental purpose? and To what extent do the attitudes of educators influence the implementation of Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation? Several factors influencing the implementation of Integrated Quality Management Systems were identified from literature and were selected for the study, namely the objectives, prevalence and frequency, benefits and difficulties of Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation. These were conceptualized in terms of three opposing dimensions using the Cube Model of Evaluation: internal and external, pull and push and bottom-up and top-down, all of which have varying degrees of tensions between them. Thus a point of balance on this three-dimensional continuum has to be delicately managed. The findings of this study, which resulted from analysing data collected from forty-four educators by means of questionnaires and semi-structured interviews, revealed the following: the overall conclusion regarding the educators' perceptions on the policy objectives of Developmental Appraisal is that the majority of the respondents tended to agree with the policy objective of Developmental Appraisal. However, one should take note of participants who did not agree, which illustrates the tension between policy and implementation and the possible resistance of educators. The findings of this study further revealed that initially educators were 'threatened' by Internal and External Evaluation and Developmental Appraisal, weighing heavily on the Performance Management aspect, which could be seen as manifesting a resistance to change. However, over time and through deeper understanding, there has been a shift in attitude once educators realised the developmental function of Developmental Appraisal in informing teaching and learning which consequently plays a major role in educators' professional development. In addition, this may have a positive effect on the implementation of Developmental Appraisal in future. However, the aspect of pressure, represented in the adapted model, is aimed at accountability of the various stakeholders within the schools to the Department of Education to ensure that quality education is provided. This suggests that there was a shift in the educators' attitudes from one of resistance to top-down directives to compliance and even a willingness to participate in the process of Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation. This could be a result of the monetary reward attached to performance. There was also a growing realisation of the potential effect on teaching and learning, which has resulted in the policy being viewed in a more positive light. However, there was concern about the lack of support, resources and facilities from the Department of Education, which resulted in the policy not being properly implemented. Finally, the findings of this study bring another dimension to the issue of the politics of resistance towards Integrated Quality Management Systems, in that rejection of evaluation is not against the system per se; educators as represented by the South African Democratic Teachers' Union (SADTU) want appraisal to be an essential part of their development and not a mechanism for enforcing control or imposing a 'police unit' on educators. Copyright / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Curriculum Studies / unrestricted