This study was initiated by the need to develop change agent skills in a group of consultants from a large government organisation facing major challenge from a competitive market. In order to develop a program, a group of mature and experienced change agents, with around 20 years experience in a variety of different organisations in each case, was asked, through the medium of an unstructured interview, to tell the story of their own growth and development. A model of 12 factors was developed, based on recent studies of leadership, the researcher's own career experience and an analysis of a well known practitioner's biography. This model was used to analyse the content of the interview material. The study found that there were a small number of factors which distinguished the development of this group from that of leaders who had been the subject of earlier studies. These were, firstly, the primary influence of the mother as role model. for both men and women. Secondly, the influence of early confrontations with established systems of power being employed in abusive ways, which developed a commitment to preserve the freedom of individuals to participate in decisions which affect their lives. Finally, a belief in the critical part ethics, integrity and the continual practice of learning for self-awareness, plays in maintaining a sustainable career as a change agent. The conclusions for a program of development for change agents are, firstly, that prospective participants should self assess their personal experiences from childhood, their attitudes to learning and the maintenance of an integrated self as an essential for mediating between stakeholder groups. Secondly, the influence of practical experience far outweighs that of schooling or academic studies. Thirdly, change agents employ what Bateson describes as type III learning, more than any particular theoretical approach, when designing organisational interventions. The study concludes that further research into the nature of the attachment bonds formed by change agents in childhood is needed to better understand the psychological dynamics which support excellent and sustainable practice. / Master of Science (Hons)

To readjust the direction of social development and to enable sustainable learning for students at all levels, international policy emphasises the necessity to transform education systems based on a whole institution approach. The idea of involving all stakeholders in the transformation of educational environments shifts the focus of research in connection to education for sustainable development (ESD) also towards the teachers and students as protagonists of didactic situations, in order to gain knowledge on their respective potential to contribute to the desired change of learning and teaching environments. Concentrating on sustainability-related study programs at leading universities in Germany and Sweden, this comparative case study investigates how different actors in the field conceive of the role of students as change agents in higher education for sustainable development (HESD). Recent research has largely ignored learners as potential initiators of change in this regard. Taking a discourse analytical approach and referring to the concept of different educational traditions in environmental education (EE), the focus of this thesis is on didactic contracts among teachers and students, to analyse how the general organisation of learning as well as the degree to which students apply critical thinking and transformative action in class is perceived by experts, teachers and students themselves. It is investigated if and how active and critical participation on part of the students is actually seen to contribute to changing their own learning environments. The didactical perspective on students as critical change agents, shaping their own learning processes, helps to understand to what extent HESD in these two countries – both considered ‘advanced’ in implementing ESD – allows students to gain the experience of achieving change in learning, fostering their confidence to initiate change outside of academia also. The findings of this research indicate that students are generally expected and seen to act as change agents within their own learning processes. However, it is to emphasise that the degree of change agency on part of the students appears not only to differ between the examined institutions and course formats, but also to be depending on individual personality traits of students and the establishment of a critical learning culture.

This study explored the impact of commitment tactics and individual differences in personality on change-agent participation in a peer-to-peer intervention. The intervention involved approaching bicyclists on campus, discussing the importance of helmet use, and rewarding them with a coupon for a discounted helmet if they signed a promise to wear one. Change-agent volunteers (n = 82) were trained in one of three commitment conditions to explore their relative impact on approaching a set number of bicyclists. Specifically, change-agents were asked to commit to a personal goal of number of targets they would approach in private, in public to a small group of people, or in public to a large group of people. In addition, change-agents completed measures of the "Big Five" personality traits and susceptibility to social influence tactics to explore their potential influence on intervention performance variables. No statistically significant differences were found in goal attainment between the commitment conditions. However, 10% more of the change-agents making a public, group commitment met their goal when compared to those who made an individual, private commitment. No significant relation was found between the Big Five personality traits and the number of bicyclist targets approached. However, the Big Five predicted 19% of the variance in the rate of obtaining signed promise cards from bicyclists. Of the susceptibility to social influence variables, only the Ingratiation score was shown to be useful for predicting change-agent effort, accounting for 18% of the variance in the number of targets approached. The peer-to-peer intervention was not successful in increasing bicycle helmet use on campus. Limitations of the intervention in comparison to a successful helmet program are discussed. / Ph. D.

Accomplishing desired benefits from investments in planned change is problematical for organizations, their leaders and the change agents charged with delivery. This is despite a well-developed literature, replete with advice on how change should be achieved. Examination of this literature shows the primary focus on change agents and their practices. This research widens the focus by observing the influence of change agents, change recipients and line managers on organizational routines undergoing planned change. It examines the interplay between stability and change in organizational routines, adopting a social practice perspective, and the routine intended to change as the unit of analysis (Feldman and Pentland, 2003, 2005). The research builds on claims that to understand the patterns of action within routines requires the internal dynamics – the claimed duality between ostensive (in principle) and performative (in practice) aspects - to be examined. A research method to operationalize the study of this claimed duality was devised following the principles of Strong Structuration (Stones, 2005). This method enabled a unique conceptualization of the study of routine dynamics, focused on planned change from the perspective of multiple, interdependent actors. Two cases of change agents following the advice in the planned change literature were explored. In one case, stability of the routine persisted when change was intended. In the other, change was relatively easy to achieve irrespective of change agent actions. The primary contribution is the demonstration of how the attitudes to change of change recipients, line managers and change agents influence the internal dynamics of routines undergoing planned change. Other contributions pertain to the method of ‘unpacking’ organizational routines and its potential for shaping future practice. This research does not offer new ‘normative’ advice but instead sensitizes planned change practitioners to the level of analysis they need to carry out to ensure that their interventions are suitably designed.

Drawing upon punctuated equilibrium theory, stakeholder salience theory and status quo bias theory, this research develops a framework for dealing with organisational change recipients’ resistance to change. Due to the effects on the organisational environment of political, legal, and technological triggers, organisations need to change in order to survive, remain competitive and prosper. However, deploying a given organisational change, and in particular radical change, is challenging for change managers. A major reason for this is change recipients’ resistance to change. Therefore, this research advances understanding of how to cope with change recipients’ resistance in times of organisational change, and specifically radical planned change i.e. reorientation. To do so, this research develops a framework that incorporates the salience level of change recipients in relation to reorientation program, which has not been considered in prior studies, in association with the modes and causes of their resistance to change to identify relevant strategies that address their resistance to change. The research methodology adopted for the research is qualitative case study. The findings are derived from 30 semi-structured interviews along with relevant documents from two cases (14 interviews from Case A and 16 interviews from Case B) that implemented an organisational reorientation program. The findings reveal that the three attributes of stakeholder salience theory (i.e. power, legitimacy, and urgency) are inadequate to identify the salience of change recipients in relation to change. In addition to these attributes, a further attribute is required, which defines the extent to which change recipients are affected by change namely the attribute of impact. Furthermore, the findings introduce seven strategies (negotiation and agreement, education, implicit coercion, persuasion by peers, two-way communication, facilitation, and rewards) that are effective for overcoming the resistance to change of recipients who belong to six salience classes and resist change for different reasons and to various levels. These findings make a theoretical contribution to each of the theories employed in the research, punctuated equilibrium theory, stakeholder salience theory, and status quo bias theory, as well as the extant literature regarding strategies to cope with change recipients’ resistance to change. The findings have implications for practice by introducing a diagnostic tool that change managers can use to explore the modes and causes of change recipients’ resistance as well as their levels of salience in relation to change.

Learning Management Systems (LMS) is a widespread information system used in many Higher Education Institutes (HEI) in order to facilitate educational efforts. The system can be used for support in campus courses; courses conducted on the Internet and of course a mixture of these usages. This study attempts to understand the process of the implementing an LMS at a specific HEI. The HEI has made several implementations over the last 6 years, but decided to implement a new LMS during 2018. The focus of the study is the perceived effects on teachers in the implementation and the role a group of so-called Ambassadors played in the implementation. The study applied a social constructivist approach, mixing interviews, observation and survey as methods for data collection from teachers and implementation project management at the HEI. The study applied thematic analysis in order to analyse the collected data. The analysis built on five themes, Ambassadors, Implementation, Major concerns, Pedagogy, and System Literacy. Findings suggest that time management issues created the major effect on the daily work of teachers and that the group of Ambassadors in their role acted as a form of change agents, thus influencing the implementation project positively. Findings also suggested that only a few teachers took the opportunity to apply new pedagogical features to their teaching, in connection with the implementation. Finally, findings suggested that, in line with previous research, that the LMS is not used fully, as some teachers tends to use only minor functionalities in the LMS.

About 50-70 % of all change initiatives fail and one reason for this is soft barriers, which mainly depend on people. These barriers are challenging to manage because individuals react to change in different ways. Due to these difficulties, companies look for help from consultants, who are perceived to have wide knowledge about change. Hence, the authors have studied the change process and the soft barriers from an external change agent perspective by interviewing nine experienced consultants. The results indicate that no phase in the change process is prominently more problematic than another, instead each phase is the outcome of prior phases. If the critical barriers in each phase are considered the change can be successful. Several soft barriers to change have been identified; lack of goals and vision, no demand for measurements and follow-ups, and a too large and homogenous project group without relevant competence or a clear driver of the change. Additionally, the findings suggest that top management is specifically problematic due to that they are often not united, are impatient and struggle with power and politics. Thus, the study indicates that resistance often starts from the top, which affects the rest of the organization and the outcome of the change.

Reducing racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare are ongoing concerns. A paucity of data on healthcare seeking behavior among older Black women has hampered efforts to make culturally responsive healthcare services available to this population. Little is known about how older Black women's expectations and perceptions of care affect their patterns of health behavior.This study explored sociocultural contexts of health behavior with fifty Black women, aged 40 and older, in Tucson, Arizona by examining what prompts these women to seek services, identifying key factors affecting their access to and utilization of healthcare, documenting their experiences in healthcare settings and how these interactions influence their healthcare-seeking behavior. If effective healthcare service access and utilization are to be encouraged among older Black women, an informed understanding of the role cultural difference plays is essential.This research has three purposes: to provide a forum for discussion of culturally relevant strategies and models for prevention of disease and promotion of wellness in Black communities; to provide perspectives on older Black women's health issues for policymakers and administrators in public health sciences; and to gain insight and document reasons for selected health behaviors among this population. Research funding from the NIH/ NIA has helped to establish this small multi-disciplinary data set on a specific race, gender and age sub-population group for future research and development of community resource partnerships; including public health education and effective healthcare service delivery with intervention / promotion efforts targeting older Black women.Findings: Older Black women's poorer health status reflects the cumulative effects of inadequate health care due to various discriminatory experiences and their mistrust of the health care system. Mistrust, expectations of racial bias, perceived cultural insensitivity, and lack of effective communication within healthcare settings were found to be barriers to their healthcare-seeking behavior. Neither healthcare providers nor older Black women can address these issues alone. Working towards more trusting relationships within healthcare settings is critical in beginning to address avoidable inequities in health status experienced by older Black women.This research is applicable to such disciplines as Sociocultural/Medical Anthropology, Health Education, Public Health, and Africana/Ethnic Studies.

Despite the existing fragmentation amongst social change agents serving women on Vancouver's downtown east side, they are seeking fresh and innovative ways to work together to communicate their social change needs and to alleviate social problems facing their clients. Using appreciative inquiry to elicit stories of successful collaborations with alternative media, I collected narratives from seven change agents and then employed narrative analysis to understand what agents considered positive experiences and expressions. I found that successful collaborations are primarily ad hoc and are driven by: the organization's source of funding, the organization's viewpoint towards media, and the trust held towards the media outlet. Enabling factors for successful collaborations with media include: a viewpoint that media coverage is integral to an organization's success, dedicated resources to pursue collaborations with the media, and a high level of respect and admiration for the intended media partner.

Curriculum development and change poses a range of challenges with regard to curriculum role teachers are to play when such a change takes place. The purpose of this study was to investigate the curriculum development role of teachers as key agents in curriculum change. In evaluating the curriculum development role of teachers as key agents of change, it was imperative to look at the curriculum development role with regard to the development phases and the seven roles as outlined in the Revised National Curriculum Statement and it became evident that there was a need to make certain as to whether teachers were empowered for their curriculum development role by looking at their level of empowerment. This investigation was prompted by school teachers who were and are de–motivated and lack direction as to what their actual role is in curriculum development for the changing curriculum in South Africa is. The literature study established the importance of teacher development in the South African context. Curriculum development or change as variously defined, relates to teachers' knowledge, skills, attitudes and values in reaching the aim of teaching and learning. In investigating the problem at hand, it was imperative to look at the methodology that would best suit the problem. A qualitative approach was selected where focus group interviews were administered at four schools in the district. It was established that the role which teachers play as curriculum developers in the changing curriculum of South Africa is pivotal and that change cannot be successfully attained if teachers' roles are not clear and if teachers' development is not initiated before and during change process and curriculum development. This research therefore draws a conclusion that teacher involvement and development in curriculum development is imperative if South Africa is to realize its education goals. / Thesis (M.Ed.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.