published_or_final_version / Educational Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

Acceptance sampling procedures are widely used in industry as part of the total quality control activities. The acceptance procedure is usually constructed based on a set of statistical and/or economic requirements specified by the producer and/or the consumer. After the acceptance procedure is determined, the users are interested in evaluating its statistical and economic characteristics. This dissertation presents a comprehensive approach for constructing and evaluating acceptance sampling procedures. A large variety of statistical and economic characteristics is studied, from both the producer's and consumer's viewpoints. A part of the acceptance procedure is the sampling plan. Various statistical characteristics of the sampling plan are studied. The statistical evaluation of the acceptance procedure consists of analyzing these characteristics. The economic analysis includes identification of the possible actions during the acceptance procedure and evaluation of the producer's profit and the consumer's cost functions associated with each action. Guidelines for applying the statistical and economic characteristics in the evaluation process are presented. In a real situation, sampling may be subjected to inspection errors, which can affect the statistical and economic characteristics of the acceptance procedure; so all the characteristics were restudied for an error-prone sampling inspection. The statistical and economic characteristics are used to specify sets of requirements for constructing acceptance procedures. Selection of an appropriate set is based on the needs of the user, the available data, and the conditions under which the procedure is to be applied. The concluding step is to combine the construction and evaluation methods into an overall analysis cycle of "construct-evaluate-reconstruct." Computer programs are given to facilitate application of the evaluation and construction processes. This study deals explicitly with single sampling plans for attributes. The analysis is based on the Bayesian approach in which the prior distribution is a mixed binomial with a beta weight function. However, the presented approach can be applied to any type of sampling and prior distribution. The results of the study can be used by decision makers as a tool to improve the use of acceptance procedures in a large variety of scenarios.

This investigation is concerned with the formulation of a well defined study for promoting social acceptability. The study will use the highly accepted individuals of a classroom as interaction partners with the socially isolated members in such a manner as to effectively increase the sociability of the isolated members.

Thesis (doctoral)--Friedrich-Wilhelm-Universität zu Breslau.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Breslau.

Thesis (M. Soc. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 39-51).

Ce travail de recherche porte sur les facteurs d'acceptation d'une technologie de contrôle, la vidéo-protection, par les salariés, dans les entreprises ouvertes au public. 37 entretiens ont été réalisés sur trois terrains : Commerces-Grande distribution-Bureaux; Transports, Banques-Casinos.Ce travail doctoral a révélé quatre formes d'acceptation par les salariés : compréhension, adhésion-légitimation, résignation et refus. Quatre catégories de facteurs influant sur l'acceptation ont été également identifiées : L'environnement technologique : L'acceptation dépend de l'environnement technologique de l'individu : la facilité d'usage, l'utilité perçue, la perception du contrôle et la technologie utilisée. Le processus de mise en oeuvre organisationnelle et réglementaire. L'acceptation dépend du mode de déploiement de la vidéo-protection. Le collaborateur se soumet à un contexte réglementaire, à des normes légales ou à une convention (accord mutuel), il est influencé par des facteurs de contingence et des éléments de contexte (effectif, stratégie). Il accepte en fonction de la nature juridique du contrat, de l'activité de l'entreprise et du lien psychologique avec l'employeur. L'individu : Les facteurs individuels tels que l'âge, le risque perçu, l'expérience passée du contrôle, la peur, la motivation et la capacité à intégrer le changement sont apparus. Les trois derniers se sont avérés particulièrement importants. L'environnement social. Le collaborateur accepte en fonction de la confiance qu'il porte à son management, de la culture de l'entreprise à laquelle i appartient, de l'influence du groupe de travail, de son environnement géographique de travail. / This research examines the factors of acceptance of a monitoring technology, vidéo-protection by employees in firms opened to public. 37 interviews were conducted on three kind of firms : Retail, Offices / Transportation / Banks and Casinos. This Doctoral work has helped to highlight four forms of acceptance by employees : understanding, adhesion-legitimation, resignation or rejection. Four categories of factors influencing acceptance were also identified. 1/ The technolological environment : Acceptance depends on the technological environment of the individual ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived control and technology used, as therefore crucial factors in the acceptance and the ability to conform the vidéo-protection. 2/ Process implementation : Acceptance depends on the deployment of video-protection. The employee submits a regulatory context to legal norms or convention (mutual agreement), he is influenced by contingency factors and contextual factors (workforce strategy). He accepts, depending on the legal nature of the contract, the company's business and psychological bond with the employer. The sense of justice and fairness colleced during stages of implementation, and quality of information for employees are also a significant factors of acceptance. 3/ The individual factors. Individual factors such as age, perceived risk, past experience of control, fear, motivation and ability to emebrace change have emerged. 4/ The social environment : The employee accepts regarding the confidence he brings to his management, the culture of the company to which it belongs, the group's influence and its geographical environment.

Yes / Earlier literature illustrates that the selection of the appropriate theoretical model has always prescribed as a crucial task for the research community in the information systems (IS) field. According to the authors' knowledge, there are few articles aims to review IT acceptance theories and models at the individuals' level. Thus, this paper aims to bridge this gap by presenting a critical review of ten of the most influential models/theories that have been employed in predicting and explaining the human acceptance behavior of different technologies at the individuals' level. This paper also provides a summary of their evolution, pointed out the main constructs, strengths, related fields, and criticisms based on a selected published literature appeared in IS research. This review offers a holistic view for future scholars to select appropriate constructs/models owing to their strengths and criticisms as well explanatory or predictive power. This paper concluded that the well-established and comprehensive theoretical model should consider the parsimony in the term of simplifying the model with the least constructs and the highest predictive power, also the ability to integrate the relevant context's factors (e.g., UTAUT2).

People with high norm-based rejection sensitivity have heightened anticipatory anxiety and expectation of rejection if they do not follow norms. Under threats of rejection (e.g., when personal preferences collide with group norms), they are more intended to conform to group norms to avoid social rejection (Poon et al., 2010). Thus, they are more susceptible to peer pressure for risk-taking behaviors and have less autonomy to make decision. Research also indicates that they derive their self-worth from external sources such as success in academic and work settings (Yip et al., 2009). Thus, they experience elevated anxiety for uncertain outcome and decreased self-esteem following failure. The purpose of the present research is to examine strategies that can alleviate the negative impacts of norm-based rejection sensitivity. Using a priming procedure, Study 1 experimentally examined the effects of promoting multiple routes to social acceptance. Participants of experimental group read stories of public figures who gained social acceptance through multiple routes such as ego strength and morals. Those stories reminded them that even if they did not follow group norms, they could still gain social acceptance through different virtues. After that, they indicated their reactions in some hypothetical scenarios involving threats of rejection and failure. As expected, those who read stories of public figures (vs. tourist spots) were less intended to conform under group pressure, more autonomous in deciding whether or not to conform, less anxious about the repercussions of non-conformity, and more inclined to expect social acceptance despite non-conformity. Since participants who read stories of public figures may still base their self-worth on social acceptance, Study 2 aimed to remind them that others’ approval was not required for one’s self-acceptance. Using the same priming procedure as Study 1, participants of experimental group read life stories of ordinary people whose self-worth was not contingent on others’ approval. Those stories could remind them that others’ approval was not required for one’s self-acceptance. Results showed that participants of experimental group were less intended to conform, more autonomous, and less anxious about the repercussions of non-conformity. Furthermore, they reported less decline in self-esteem following social rejection. In Study 2, those who learnt not to base their self-worth on others’ approval might be still susceptible to greater negative affect following failure in academic and work settings. Therefore, Study 3 went one step further to promote unconditional self-acceptance. Using the same experimental paradigm, participants of experimental group read a passage highlighting the idea that everyone is intrinsically valuable regardless of whether one is self-efficacious and popular. As expected, in additional to the aforementioned psychological benefits, participants being primed with unconditional self-acceptance were less anxious about failure, less likely to blame themselves for failure, and less likely to experience loss of self-worth following failure. The three experiments shed lights on the psychological mechanisms through which multiple routes to social acceptance and self-acceptance temporarily alleviate the negative impacts of norm-based rejection sensitivity. Further studies can examine whether continuous acceptance-based and mindfulness-based interventions have long-term benefits for people with high norm-based rejection sensitivity. / published_or_final_version / Psychology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Thesis (M.A.)--Briercrest Biblical Seminary, 1997. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 136-149).