M.A. (Sociology) / An analysis of the position of women in the labour field prior to the Industrial Revolution, indicates the important role she fulfilled and the active participation she had in the economic life of the community. The dual role of caring for the family and economic activity was fused into one and exercised at home. The Industrial Revolution coupled with the technological development of that era resulted in pertinent changes which affected all facets of society. One of the more important changes which greatly influenced female labour proved to be the separation of labour and the family. Although, initially women and children worked in factories, their labour was exploited and in due course a movement was started to phase the women and children out of the factories and to relocate the women and children in the home. As a result of the foregoing, women lost an important part of their participation in economic activities which essentially relocated their activities to that of homemaker and childcare. The women of the middle class developed a sense of futility as a result of inter alia the decrease in the number of children and the development of household appliances, which drastically reduced her home workload and eased her homework. These events resulted in the development of the emancipation movements whereby women again regained amongst others a bigger share in economic activity. Through this movement the women in the first instance succeeded at reinstating the unmarried women into the labour field and thereafter the married women. In the South African context too, the women increasingly entered the labour field. It appears from statistical data that not only is there an increase in the number of women in the labour field but a further increase of married women to the labour field. The married woman who returns to the labour force experiences a number of problems, one of which, is as a result of the addition of a work role to her existing roles. This assumption of the additional role influences her work sphere, the husband-wife relationship, the parent-child relationship as well as external relationships beyond the family core, all which may become problematic and could influence marital integration negatively. Research in other countries indicate that the support which the husband gives to the wife forms an important aspect .of the manner in which the wife deals with the aforementioned problems and which may effect the marital integration. Further studies indicated that a more equalised division of the home workload results in better time management by the wife. As a result of these findings the question arose as to the position in this regard within the Republic of South Africa. The data were gathered by means of a questionnaire, which included biographical information and Likert type questions with the view to measuring work involvement and work satisfaction, marriage integration, time management and support of husband to working wife. It was completed by 250 respondents, who were working married mothers with dependent children and who were selected by means of snowballing.The questionnaires were completed by the respondents on their own and the data obtained were statistically analysed. Five instruments were developed which together with the biographical data were subjected to hypothesis tests, with the following results: There is a high correlation (r= ,7556; P= ,000) between the support of the husband for the working wife and the quality of marital integration which is experienced indicating that an increase in support increases the level of marital integration. The support of the husband for the working wife (r= ,1651; P= ,009) together with the marital integration scale (r= ,1692; p= ,007) correlates positively with time management. These variables, showing a high positive correlation namely positive time management (r= ,3813; p= ,000), support of the husband for the wife (r= ,1599; p= ,011) and marital integration (r= ,1533; p= ,015) further correlate positively to work involvement and work satisfaction. The findings reflect that the more positive the support of the husband is, the better the quality of marital integration appears to be as well as time management together with increased work involvement and work satisfaction. It appears therefore that there are a number of interwoven variables which indicate that the working life of the wife is not fully detached from her family life and the relationship between the husband and the wife.

M.Com. (Business Management) / The current competitive climate within the South African banking industry has put pressure on banks to either find new revenue streams mainly through innovation, or to achieve existing cost efficiencies. South African banks have increasingly looked to advancements in new technology, innovation and service distribution channels as a solution for attaining sustainable competitive advantage. The primary objective of this study was to investigate and assess the independent variables (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived cost, perceived privacy/ security and knowledgeability/ awareness) that influence the adoption of electronic banking channels in order to inform banks’ channel migration strategy decisions. The study attempts to close the gap in electronic banking adoption theory that exists within a South African context. The significance of the study is that due to a majority of electronic banking adoption research and models being conducted internationally, an attempt is made to investigate and apply these models within a South African context. Based on a survey conducted among 211 respondents, the above mentioned independent and dependent variables under study were examined. The analyses revealed significant demographic and behavioural findings between the independent variables that influence consumer adoption of electronic banking channels. The perceived privacy/security variable was found to be responsible for the highest frequency of branch visits by clients mainly due to the perception that electronic banking channels are not safe to use. The independent variable, perceived usefulness, was found to have the strongest positive correlation with the adoption of electronic banking channels. These results imply that in addition to the importance of addressing privacy and security concerns associated with electronic banking, banks need to focus on improving consumer usefulness and value perceptions in their electronic banking offerings.

M.Ed. (Education Management) / In this dissertation it is endeavoured to explore and discuss the problem of student alienation from an educational management view point. Such perspective inevitably aims at the special task of the management team and particularly to that of the management leaders of schools up to counteraction of student alienation. At first the question of the necessity of successful management for meaningful educational instruction and study events is raised. It is also indicated that student alienation and organization climate fall within the field of educational management because they link with staff-student and classroom- affairs as management areas. Management committees are ever conscious of the alarming trend of alienation in schools. By clearing up this trend it is not only endeavoured to point out how it is manifested at school, but to draw the attention of management committees to the importance of creating a healthy climate for counteracting student alienation in the school environment. One dimension of organization climate that is particularly connected with student alienation is the reigning discipline policy. Specific accent is put on democratic ideas of co-responsibility and involvement of management committees, staff and students by discipline policy development. Odd basic-, organizational and operational principles that can be taken as guide lines for management leaders. are discussed. In totality, management committees and -leaders are to be made conscious of the urgent problem of student alienation by means of this dissertation.

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This study was designed to investigate the relative contributions of cognitive level, age, and verbal ability to the prediction of children's concepts of health and illness. The rationale for the study was based on the premise that children's cognitive developmental level would have relevance when preparing programs for child health education. The sample consisted of 40 subjects ranging in age from 5 to 13 years who were already participants in the Preadmission Preparation Programs Study, a research project being conducted at B.C.'s Children's Hospital in Vancouver. There were 10 children selected from each of four age groups: 5-6; 7-8; 9-10; and 11-13. The subjects were administered a Health Questionnaire and a battery of Piagetian tasks representing both the concrete operational and formal operational stages of cognitive development. Verbal ability was measured by the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test - Revised (PPVT-R). In a stepwise multiple regression equation, with level of health concept as the criterion variable and cognitive level, age, and verbal ability as the predictor variables, it was hypothesized that, (1) cognitive level would be a stronger predictor of level of health concept than the predictors of age and verbal ability, (2) cognitive level together with age would be a stronger predictor than either index on its own, and (3) verbal ability would account for a significant portion of the variance with regard to level of health concept over and above that already accounted for by cognitive level and age. The expected entry sequence into the prediction equation was cognitive level on step 1, age on step 2, and verbal ability on step 3. The results indicated that all three predictor variables, taken individually, were significantly correlated with the criterion variable; however, the expected entry sequence of variables into the prediction equation and the expected net effect of combined variables were not supported by the data analyses. Age was selected for entry on step 1 and verbal ability was selected for entry on step 2; cognitive level was not selected to enter the prediction equation. When forced into the equation on step 3, cognitive level contributed a negligible additional amount of variance to the efficacy of prediction. Although cognitive level correlates highly with level of concept, when the effects of age are partialed out, the contribution of cognitive level is not significant. Given some of the limitations of the study, small sample size and restricted range of scores for level of health concept and for the Piagetian assessment, it was suggested that in a further study with a greater representation of formal operational thinkers, there may be more support for the hypotheses. Directions for future research were discussed in terms of conducting a similar study with a sample that has a good representation of both concrete and formal operational thinkers so that the prediction strength of cognitive level can be tested within a restricted age limit. Another suggestion was that research focus on the interaction of specific cognitive concepts with health concepts to provide a greater understanding of the developmental sequence of conceptualization of health and illness. Implications for child health education were discussed in terms of knowledge of cognitive developmental level enabling medical personnel to communicate more effectively with children and plan appropriate intervention strategies for them. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

This ethnographic field study examined six female home economics teachers' conceptions of Family Life Education (FLE) curriculum, the perceived influences on these conceptions and the relationship of the conceptions to classroom practice. Data from classroom observations, interviews and selected documents were analyzed using a framework of conceptual categories from the literature of curriculum and of FLE, and two emergent analytic categories ("tensions and constraints" and "images of FLE curriculum practice"). Six curriculum conceptions were labelled according to the teachers' beliefs about the aims and purposes of FLE. Similarities were related to the nature of FLE subject matter, while differences suggested differing views of the educational enterprise. Although the teachers indicated that multiple factors had influenced their beliefs about FLE curriculum, all considered life experiences to have had the greatest impact, suggesting that the curriculum conceptions were personally derived and represent the teachers' personal visions of FLE curriculum. The considerable consistency between the teachers' articulated beliefs and their classroom practice in this study implies that curriculum conceptions were significant influences on curriculum practice and confirms the belief in the field that the teacher is the FLE curriculum. Contextual factors (such as the institutional nature of schooling) appeared to mediate some beliefs and may have contributed to some inconsistencies between beliefs and practice and to the emergence of some unarticulated beliefs. For the most part, these factors were related to the subject matter itself and indicate that FLE teachers may experience some unique influences on their practice. The images of curriculum practice provide insight into the role of beliefs in the translation of FLE curriculum in the classroom. Of particular significance was the extent to which these images reflected the influence of personal life experience. These images also situate teachers' beliefs about FLE curriculum within the classroom and indicate that teachers' beliefs interact with both the students and the subject matter of the curriculum. This interaction contributes to the character of the curriculum in use and suggests that while teachers' beliefs do play a central role in the translation of curriculum, other factors may also exert an influence. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

This thesis investigates the relevance of individualisation theory in the attitudes of 18 to 30 year olds living in Britain. It tests four theories of couple relationships that can be located in this debate; two prominent theories of individualisation (Beck and Beck-Gernsheim, 1995; Giddens, 1992), a theory of social exchange (Rusbult, 1980) and a socio-cultural theory of romantic love (Giddens, 1992; Jackson 1993; Burkitt 1997). In considering how these four theories might be relevant to the attitudes of 18 to 30 year olds two different ways are explored. The first is concerned with how the theories might be relevant to the attitudes of 18 to 30 year olds as a social group in terms of which theory seems most reflective of the attitudes of this population as a whole. The second is concerned with how the theories might be relevant as psychological types, to explore whether different types of attitude could be identified in the 18 to 30 age group and whether the models in any way map onto these types. The study also explores how attitudes towards relationships might differ between different demographic and socio-economic groups in the 18 to 30 population. The research design has four elements; the first involves exploratory interviews with six relationship counsellors, the second involves the analysis of data from the National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (1990, 2000), the third involves the creation and validation of a self-completion attitude instrument, the fourth involves the analysis of the primary data collected via this instrument from a representative sample of 18 to 30 year olds living in Britain. One of the main statistical techniques used in analysing the survey data (both Natsal 1990, 2000 and the primary data) is cluster analysis. This is used to identify groups who have similar attitudes to one another and therefore investigate whether one can distinguish between different attitude types. The key findings of this research indicate that, in the attitudes of this age group at least, traditional values and desires pervade. While there have been some shifts that indicate a loosening of traditional values and desires, on the whole young adults seem to desire traditional relationship forms, namely monogamous live-in partnerships, and value qualities consistent with them, namely fidelity and longevity. Further, this research shows evidence for both a theory of romantic love and individualisation theory as attitude types. Finally, it shows that measures of age, sex, religiosity, ethnicity, country of origin, class and education are all associated with attitudes towards relationships.

Because of the lack of authoritative secondary material on the Mirror, the need for deeper study into the content of the Mirror appears necessary. In order to fill this need, this study has been undertaken to provide basic information about the Mirror's subject matter and the attitudes of its contributors.

Fifty teachers and forty-five probation officers participated in this study which was designed to elicit their opinions on critical risk factors that lead youth to criminal behavior. Risk factors identified included: dropping out of school, participating in gang activity, poverty, using drugs (or just the availability of drugs), parental involvement in criminal activity, and the lack of parental supervision.

Non-verbal communication is a pervasive form of information sharing which has been shown to influence human behavior from infancy. To date, few empirical investigations have explored the mechanism or mechanisms by which the observed non-verbal reactions of an audience can influence message-based persuasion. Within the current dissertation, pilot data suggest that observing different types of non-verbal reactions to a persuasive message can affect attitudes. Four studies then explore two possible mechanisms by which audience non-verbal reactions could influence attitudes in a message-based persuasion paradigm. Results suggest that audience non-verbal reactions can influence attitudes by serving as a cue or heuristic or by biasing how message arguments are interpreted. Results are relevant to parties interested in affecting people's attitudes and behavior; especially as subtle non-verbal cues become more frequently communicated through technology such as network television and videoconferencing.