Detta arbete undersöker vilken grad av fysisk sexualisering utav kvinnliga spelkaraktärer som föredras av kvinnliga-respektive manliga spelare samt vilka attribut som främst anses bidra till sexualisering/objektifiering. Arbetet tar avstamp från Laura Mulveys teori kring ”den manliga blicken” för att få en förståelse för hur ”casual”-spelare tänker när de omedvetet eller medvetet använder sig av normativa skönhetsideal och stereotyper vid skapandet av kvinnliga spelkaraktärer. 51 deltagare utförde den kvantitativa webbenkäten med tillhörande ”dress up”-spel och 4 informanter deltog i kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer. Intervjuernas syfte var att användas som komplimenterade svar till den kvantitativa webbenkäten. Resultatet uppvisade skillnader mellan män och kvinnors preferenser av sexualiseringsgrad samt att det attribut som ansågs ha en störst sexualiserande/objektifierande effekt var skoalternativen. I framtida arbete vore en korrigering utav artefakten nödvändig, mer data skulle behöva insamlas för ett generaliserbart resultat samt kompletteras med en manlig version utav ”dress up”-spelet för en utförlig jämförelse mellan könen.

Men who have sex with men (MSM) account for a majority of all men currently diagnosed with AIDS. MSM is also recognized as the largest risk category of all AIDS cases. Drug use has been shown to have a synergistic effect on the prevalence of HIV in the MSM population. The study aimed to examine the association between injection drug use, non-injection drug use, and non-drug use with sexual risk behaviors for HIV in men who have sex with men. Secondary, cross-sectional data procured from the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance System for the Atlanta Metropolitan Survey Area were used for the study. The study population was 960 participants. Using binary logistic regression analyses, the drug use categories were studied for unprotected intercourse, unprotected receptive anal intercourse and HIV status. Strong associations were seen independently for unprotected intercourse, unprotected receptive anal intercourse, and HIV status with injection and non injection drug use, but the association weakened for drug use categories when controlled for other independent factors. Taking into account current findings and findings from previous research, the importance of clinical significance over statistical significance was considered. Racial disparities were evident, in that, although the Black participants showed no increased odds for sexual risk factors or drug use, it had a higher odds for being HIV positive compared to Whites. Combining Viagra/Levitra with drugs was significantly associated with unprotected intercourse (AOR=1.9), and each individual drug showed a different degree of association with Viagra/Levitra. Further research is recommended to identify sub-populations at risk and appropriately allocate resources and channel programs and interventions.

International studies of part-time employment have shown that most part-time workers are women, and specifically married women (Rosenfeld and Birkelund 1995; Caputo and Cianni 2001). The ability to work part-time enables women who have household commitments, such as caring for children, to maintain an attachment to the labour force and to preserve job skills while also undertaking household labour (Long and Jones 1981; Rosenfeld and Birkelund 1995). In many countries, therefore, the growth in part-time employment has constituted an important component of the increase in women’s work. However, part-time jobs are often considered to be poorly remunerated, offering little or no security, limited opportunities for career advancement and few (if any) benefits (Rosenfeld and Birkelund 1995; Rodgers 2004; Hirsch 2005; Bardasi and Gornick 2008). Although empirical research on South Africa’s labour markets has expanded significantly over the post-apartheid period, particularly with the introduction of nationally representative household surveys that capture individual employment data, little is known about the characteristics of South African part-time workers, or about the nature of the work these individuals perform. Using data from a selection of South Africa’s nationally representative household surveys, namely the October Household Surveys, the Labour Force Surveys and the Labour Force Survey Panel, this thesis aims to redress this lacuna. The thesis comprises four empirical chapters. The first chapter outlines the definition of part-time employment adopted throughout the study, and it presents gendered trends in part-time employment in South Africa from 1995 to 2006. The descriptive analysis shows that most part-time workers in South Africa are women, and further, that the growth in female part-time employment has been an important part of the feminisation of the labour force in South Africa. The second chapter compares part-time and full-time wage (salaried) employment. The main analytical question addressed in this chapter is whether women are penalised for working part-time. Although hourly wages in part-time employment are, on average, lower than in full-time employment, the study demonstrates that after controlling for differences in observable and unobservable characteristics, women in part-time employment receive a wage premium. The third chapter explores heterogeneity among part-time wage workers, distinguishing between women who choose to work part-time and women who report wanting to work longer hours. Key findings of this chapter are that a wage premium persists for women both in voluntary and in involuntary part-time work; but that involuntary part-time workers have a stronger labour force attachment than voluntary part-time workers. The fourth chapter uses the distinction between part-time and full-time employment to investigate changes in the gender wage gap in employment. The results show that the total gender gap in wages among part-time and full-time workers has fallen over the years, with the greatest reduction visible for those working part-time. The final chapter summarises the main findings of the thesis and it outlines avenues for further research on part-time employment in South Africa. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2009. / UKZN Economics department; Economic Research South Africa; UKZN Doctoral Scholarship Award

Studiens syfte var att undersöka hur lärare som undervisar i matematik i årskurs 7-9 använder matematiskt språk i relation till ett vardagligt samt i vilken utsträckning de använder en kombination av de två språken. Studien var kvalitativ och metoderna som använts är observation med efterföljande samtal. Syftet med studien medför att ett lärarperspektiv var givet. De observerade lektionerna och samtalen resulterade i olika kategorier av begrepp vilka sedan resulterade i en teori kring hur lärare använder de olika språken vid genomgångar. Samtliga lärare använde både matematiskt och vardagligt språk vid genomgång medan endast ett fåtal använde språken i kombination. Studien visade att lärare använder sig av både matematiskt och vardagligt språk vid genomgångar med elever, men i varierande grad. / The purpose of the study was to investigate how teachers teaching mathematics in grades 7-9 use mathematical language in relation to a everyday language as well as the extent to which they use a combination of the two. The study was qualitative and the methods used are observation with subsequent conversations. The purpose of the study implies that a teacher's perspective was necessary. The observed lessons and the conversations resulted in different categories of concepts which then resulted in a theory of how teachers use the different languages during the lecture. All the teachers used both mathematical and everyday language during the lecture while only a few used the two languages in combination. The study showed that teachers use both mathematical and everyday language during lectures with students, but in varying extent.

Title: Generalized stable distributions and their applications Author: Mgr. Lenka Slámová, MSc. Department: Department of probability and mathematical statistics Supervisor: Prof. Lev Klebanov, DrSc. Abstract: This thesis deals with different generalizations of the strict stability property with a particular focus on discrete distributions possessing some form of stability property. Three possible definitions of discrete stability are introduced, followed by a study of some particular cases of discrete stable distributions and their properties. The random normalization used in the definition of discrete stability is applicable for continuous random variables as well. A new concept of casual stability is introduced by replacing classical normalization in the definition of stability by random normalization. Examples of casual stable distributions, both discrete and continuous, are given. Discrete stable distributions can be applied in discrete models that exhibit heavy tails. Applications of discrete stable distributions on rating of scientific work and financial time series modelling are presented. A method of parameter estimation for discrete stable family is also introduced. Keywords: discrete stable distribution, casual stability, discrete approximation of stable distribution

A central concern of this thesis is the expansion, distribution and control of 'non-standard' employment in Namibia since independence. The employment relationship has assumed various historical forms under capitalism, each of which corresponds to a specific mode of regulation with distinct structural dynamics. An attempt is made to extend the regulation approach 'downwards' to account for the problem of order in the workplace and to place the employment relationship within its own regulatory framework. The point of departure in this study of the dynamics of labour regulation is the contradictory nature of labour's incorporation, allocation, control and reproduction within the labour market. The employment relationship is never only an economic exchange, but is also mediated through an institutional framework that connects the processes of production and social reproduction, and regulates conflicting interests inside and outside the workplace. This relationship, as critical realists have pointed out, is a product of the indeterminate intersection of several generative structures. The roots of these generative structures can be traced to three sets of social processes: the processes of production and the structuring of labour demand; the processes of social reproduction and the structuring of labour supply; and the forces of regulation. Non-standard employment is viewed as a particular social and spatio-temporal 'fix' for the various regulatory dilemmas generated by the standard employment relationship. This conception underscores the fact that a national system of labour regulation decisively shapes the conditions under which employers are able to casualise a part of their workforce. The differential experience across national boundaries suggests that analytical space needs to be provided for systems of labour market regulation which may either accentuate or moderate pressures for casualisation. Segmentation on the demand side of the labour market is explored through an analysis of the types of non-standard jobs created in different economic sectors. The various forms of employment 'flexibility' tend to vary in importance according to the specific manner in which a firm chooses to compete. Consequently, non-standard employees are distributed in a complex and uneven manner across industrial sectors and the occupational hierarchy, and face a diverse range of possibilities and liabilities that shape their levels and forms of participation in the labour market. By counteracting the homogenisation effects of labour law and collective bargaining, the mobilisation of cheap and disposable labour through non-standard employment contracts allows employers much greater discretion in constructing the wage-effort bargain. With non-standard employment, social and statutory regulation is weak or underdeveloped and hence managerial control is autocratic, with a significant contractual component. Although the changing social composition of the workforce associated with employment 'flexibility' poses serious challenges to the modes of organisation that have long served the labour movement, trade unions in Namibia and elsewhere have been slow to respond to the threats of casualisation. Of concern here, is the extent to which attempts to promote the security of existing union members is compatible with attempts to organise non-standard employees. This thesis shows that the unions have developed a complex amalgam of strategies in their efforts to regulate non-standard employment relationships.

Digitaliseringens framväxt har förändrat hur tjänster erbjuds på marknaden. Det blir allt vanligare att kunder interagerar med teknologi i servicemöten istället för med servicepersonal, en teknologi som benämns self-service technology (SST). Tidigare forskare har beskrivit flera övergripande anledningar till att företag väljer att implementera SST, exempelvis; reducerade kostnader, ökad produktivitet, ökad kundnöjdhet och lojalitet samt för att nå nya kundsegment. Tidigare forskning har bedrivits kring vilka faktorer som påverkar attityder till och tillfredsställelse med SST i olika kontexter, vilka visat sig föregå användning av SST. Förekomsten av SST inom casual dining-restauranger är dock en relativt ny företeelse, där forskning kring konsumenters attityder och tillfredsställelse saknas. Restauranger av casual dining-karaktär kan definieras som en typ av restaurang som ligger mellan snabbmatsrestaurang och finrestaurang.  Syftet med denna studie är att utvidga den befintliga forskningen inom self-service technology (SST) till casual dining-restauranger. Mer specifikt är syftet att undersöka applicerbarheten av tidigare SST-forskning på en relativt ny och unik restaurangkontext, för att kartlägga vilka faktorer som påverkar konsumenters attityder till och tillfredsställelse med SST i denna kontext. Vidare är syftet att undersöka om det finns betydande skillnader mellan hur faktorerna påverkar attityd respektive tillfredsställelse. Att sammantaget kartlägga detta kan ge praktisk användbar information till chefer för casual dining-restauranger som står inför beslutet att utforma och implementera liknande SSTs i sina verksamheter. Studiens syfte mynnade ut i följande frågeställning:  Vilka faktorer påverkar konsumenters attityder till, och tillfredsställelse med, self-service technology i casual dining-restauranger?  För att besvara forskningsfrågan genomfördes en fallstudie av restaurangkedjan Pinchos. Totalt 20 hypoteser formulerades kring valda faktorers eventuella påverkan på restaurangbesökares attityd till och tillfredsställelse med SST i casual dining-restauranger. För att undersöka dessa hypoteser genomfördes en kvantitativ undersökning i form av en internetdistribuerad enkät. Totalt 169 respondenter besvarade enkäten. Enkla och multipla linjära regressionsanalyser genomfördes därefter för att analysera empirin.  Resultatet visar att faktorerna: användbarhet, enkelhet vid användning, nöje, pålitlighet samt support vid behov uppvisar ett signifikant positivt samband med såväl attityd till som tillfredsställelse med SST i casual dining-restauranger när de studeras enskilt. Studien visar vidare att faktorerna behov av interaktion med personal samt avsaknad av personlig service uppvisar ett signifikant negativt samband med såväl attityd till som tillfredsställelse med SST i denna kontext. Studien visar således att samtliga faktorer påverkar både attityd och tillfredsställelse. Faktorerna ekonomisk kompensation och technology readiness visade inget signifikant samband med varken attityd eller tillfredsställelse när de studerades enskilt. Faktorn kontroll analyserades ej då enkätfrågorna relaterade till denna faktor uppvisade för låg intern konsistens.

A videotape playback treatment was investigated in the present study with regard to its effects on acceptance of responsibility for conflict in distressed couples. Three major hypotheses were tested. The first hypothesis that subjects given videotape playback of their pretherapy sessions would show a significant increase in self-attribution was supported.The second hypothesis that subjects who received videotape playback of their pretherapy sessions would show a significant increase in the frequency of self-attributional statements was also supported. Results of the present study did not support the final hypothesis that following a significant increase in self-attribution. It was concluded that videotape playback may provide an effective means of facilitating acceptance of responsibility for conflict in distressed couples. The implication for practitioners is that videotape playback could accelerate the marital therapy process through facilitation of the acceptance of responsibility.

This research is concerned with some aspects of the retrieval of information from database systems by casual, naive computer users. A "casual user" is defined as an individual who only wishes to execute queries perhaps once or twice a month, and a "naive user" is someone who has little or no expertise in operating a computer and, more specifically for the purposes of this study, is not practiced at querying a database. The research initially focuses on a specific group of casual, naive users, namely a group of clinicians, and analyzes their characteristics as they pertain to the retrieval of information from a computer database. The characteristics thus elicited are then used to create the requirements for a database interface that would, potentially, be acceptable to this group. An interface having the desired requirements is then proposed. This interface consists, from a user's perspective, of three basic components. A graphical model gives a picture of the database structure. Windows give the ability to view different areas of the database, physically group together items that come under one logical heading and provide the user with immediate access to the data item names used by the system. Finally, a natural language query language provides a means of entering a query in a syntax (that of ordinary English) which is familiar to the user. The graphical model is a logical abstraction of the database. Unlike other database interfaces, it is not constrained by the model (relational, hierarchical, network) underlying the database management system, with the one caveat that the graphical model should not imply any connections which cannot be supported by the management system. Versions of the interface are implemented on both eight-bit and sixteen-bit microcomputers, and testing is conducted in order to validate the acceptability of the interface and to discover the level of graphical model which the users find most acceptable. The results of this testing are reported and further areas for research suggested.

Submitted by Fabio Sobreira Campos da Costa (fabio.sobreira@ufpe.br) on 2016-04-12T13:09:12Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) Dissertação Veronica Vargas.pdf: 5204634 bytes, checksum: 3ec7586f5e6c9ba277e9039225fe71a9 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-12T13:09:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 1232 bytes, checksum: 66e71c371cc565284e70f40736c94386 (MD5) Dissertação Veronica Vargas.pdf: 5204634 bytes, checksum: 3ec7586f5e6c9ba277e9039225fe71a9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-07-24 / CAPEs / Pesquisas recentes com empresas desenvolvedoras de jogos no Brasil mostram a dificuldade que elas enfrentam no que se refere à captação de recursos para financiar seus empreendimentos. Isso mostra a deficiência dos gestores em matéria de modelos de negócios. No aspecto acadêmico, os estudos da área de jogos, em sua maioria, também estão relacionados apenas ao artefato em si, carecendo de estudos sobre a forma como eles são inseridos no mercado de forma rentável e sustentável economicamente. Tratando aqui os jogos como um produto com foco no segmento dos casuais sociais mobile voltados para o mercado de entretenimento, entende-se que o desafio dos Game Designers vai além da configuração. A partir da ferramenta de concepção de jogos "Game Design Canvas" e com auxílio de Metodologias de Design, a apresentação de um novo Canvas é o objeto de estudo deste trabalho, com o intuito de auxiliar a concepção não apenas de jogos, mas a definição de sua cadeia de valor. Para tanto, são explorados os conceitos de: modelos de negócios, Metodologias de Design, jogos e um retrospecto sobre a evolução das estratégias de comercialização de jogos. Finalmente, para demonstrar a aplicação da extensão do Design Thinking Canvas, um exemplo prático do jogo Bubble Witch Saga 2 é apresentado. Como resultado deste trabalho, foi desenvolvida uma ferramenta com aplicação prática para construção de modelos de negócios de jogos. / Recent researches with companies developers of games in Brazil show the difficulty they face in relation to fund-raising to finance their ventures. This shows the deficiency of managers on business models. In the academic field, studies of the games area, mostly, are also related only to the artifact itself, lacking studies about how they are inserted into the market of an economically profitable and sustainable way. Considering here the games as a product with focus on the segment of social casual mobile facing the entertainment market, it is understood that the challenge of Game Designers goes beyond setting. From the design tool of games "Game Design Canvas" and with the help of Design Methodologies, the presentation of a new Canvas is the object of study of this work, in order to help the conception not only of games, but the definition of its value chain. For this, the concepts explored are: business models, Methodologies of Design, games and a retrospect about the evolution of marketing strategies of games. Finally to demonstrate the application of the extension of the Design Thinking Canvas, a practical example of Bubble Witch Saga 2 game is shown. As result of this work, a tool with practical application for building of game business models was developed.