This thesis explores the functions of laughter in Japanese communication. In orientation it contrasts markedly with previous studies and is the first study to have been based on such a large volume of data. In this paper I have focused on laughter as it serves to maintain a co-operative relationship between the participants in a conversation. I find that in the process of communication, people necessarily have to lay themselves open to others, and in doing so they become conscious of the barrier surrounding and protecting their field, i.e. their �inner world�. I hypothesise that in Japanese at least it is consciousness of this barrier that causes the occurrence of laughter in discourse. In other words, people laugh as part of the process of opening up to others, and also to show their intention to be co-operative. By laughing, people are either confirming that they belong to the same in-group, or they are pretending to belong to the same in-group in order to show co-operation. In my model, laughter is classified: A: Joyful laughter for identifying with the in-group B: Balancing laughter for easing tension C: Laughter as a cover-up. A is also divided into 3 subcategories, B into 3, and C into 2 according to the subject of the utterance and the direction of movement into the protective barrier. Two types of statistical analysis were applied to the data in order to the test the validity of the classification. Keywords: interpersonal communication; laughter; field; barrier; co-operation; joy; balancing; cover-up gender

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Nevada, Reno, 2008. / "August, 2008." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 73-84). Online version available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Wyoming, 2008. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on August 9, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 214-224).

Published also as a Thesis (Ph. D.) Princeton University. / Xerox microfiche facsimile.

Thesis (M.A. in Security Studies (Europe and Eurasia))--Naval Postgraduate School, June 2010. / Thesis Advisor(s): Yost, David S. ; Abenheim, Donald. "June 2010." Description based on title screeen as viewed on July 14, 2010. Author(s) subject terms: Democratization, international organizations, domestic politics, conditionality, membership criteria, accession. Includes bibliographical references (p. 97-108). Also available in print.

O estudo aqui apresentado teve por temática os processos de cooperação intermunicipal possibilitados pela formação e atuação de consórcios municipais, tomando como caso as ações desenvolvidas pelo Consórcio Intermunicipal de Saúde da Região do Médio Paraíba do Rio de Janeiro CISMEPA. Esses consórcio surgiu nos anos 90 a partir de uma discussão regional acerca da necessidade de realizar a programação e a pactuação da oferta de serviços entre os doze municípios que compõem essa região fluminense. Esta pesquisa se propôs analisar o processo evolutivo do CISMEPA, conhecendo sua organização técnica e administrativa, os principais projetos e serviços desenvolvidos e analisando o resultado das ações por ele implementadas. A partir da análise da articulação técnico-política regional no âmbito do SUS, espera-se agregar subsídios para o processo evolutivo da descentralização no SUS e da estratégia de regionalização. O caminho metodológico utilizado foi a análise qualitativa sobre o CISMEPA, que tomou por base a realização de pesquisa bibliográfica, estudo dos documentos oficiais do consórcio, análise da forma de execução dos projetos, entrevistas semiestruturadas com participantes do processo de elaboração, execução e acompanhamento dos projetos e observação participantes das reuniões. Os projetos desenvolvidos pelo CISMEPA foram bem sucedidos e o consórcio desempenhou importante papel não só na gestão, como também na captação de recursos. O êxito é devido, sobretudo, à forma participativa com que os projetos foram elaborados e desenvolvidos pelo grupo de gestores e técnicos. Em que pese a região ter se organizado sua PPI, o CISMEPA não logrou organizar a oferta micro e macrorregional de serviços, um dos seus objetivos iniciais. No entanto, seu mérito foi configurar-se num importante fórum de debates e pactuação, mesmo contando com baixa adesão e presença do Estado. Tal característica o potencializa como estratégia de regionalização do SUS. / This study discusses the process of intermunicipal co-opoeration created after the municipal consortiums, focusing on actions developed by the Health Instermunicipal Consortium of the Médio Paraíba Region, Rio de Janeiro (CISMEPA). This consortium appeared in the 90s, as a result of the regional discussion about the need for organization and adjustment of services offer among the twelve municipalities which form this region. This research proposes the analysis of the CISMEPA, its technical and administrative organization, main projects and services. It also assesses the results of the consortiums actions. Based on the analysis of the technical and political region articulation within the SUS, we intend to gather subsides for the ongoing process of SUS decentralization and the regionalization strategy. The methodological course was the qualitative analysis, based on bibliographical research, analysis of the consortiums legal documents, analysis of projects development, semi-structured interviews with those who helped elaborate, implement and follow all projects, and also participating observation in meetings. Projects developed by CISMEPA were successful, and the consortium played an important role not only in management but also in fund-raising. The success is mainly due to the participating way projects have been elaborated and developed by managers and technicians. Although the region has organized and elaborated its PPI, the CISMEPA did not organize the micro and macrorregional services offer, one of its first objectives. However, it became an important forum for debate and agreement, despite the low adhesion and State participation. This characteristic reinforces the CISMEPA as a strategy for the SUS regionalization.

Syftet är att analysera hur lärare arbetar med kartläggning i undervisningen bland nyanlända elever med kort eller ingen skolbakgrund i vuxenutbildningen, samt hur kartläggningen används i undervisningen. Syfte är dessutom att undersöka hur samverkan fungerar mellan elev och lärare samt mellan lärare och andra professioner.   Studiens empiriska material består av fyra djupintervjuer med sex lärare inom vuxenutbildningen. Lärarna i studien arbetar med kartläggning av nyanlända med kort eller ingen skolbakgrund. Det empiriska materialet har analyserats dels utifrån tidigare forskning och dels utifrån teoretiska begrepp med inspiration från socialkonstruktivistiskt perspektiv. De analysbegrepp som använts är kommunikation och organisation, samverkan, lärande och identitet i syfte att skapa en bild av hur teori och praktik möts och formas för att stödja den enskilda individens lärande och utveckling.  Studiens resultat visade på att informanternas skolor har svårt att konkretisera arbetssätt och arbetsmetoder inom kartläggning av svårigheter på organisationsnivå. Orsaken kan vara att skolorna slits mellan statens förväntningar och rådande möjligheter att utforma undervisningen. På gruppnivå används kartläggningsresultat främst till nivåplacering och i liten utsträckning till individanpassning av undervisningen på grund av besparing av stödfunktioner. Målgruppen nyanlända, med kort eller ingen skolbakgrund, är en grupp som behöver mycket stöd och hjälp i sin språkinlärning därav är specialkompetenser inom vuxenutbildning en viktig utvecklingsfråga som behöver lyftas på makronivå.

Magister Legum - LLM

O estudo aqui apresentado teve por temática os processos de cooperação intermunicipal possibilitados pela formação e atuação de consórcios municipais, tomando como caso as ações desenvolvidas pelo Consórcio Intermunicipal de Saúde da Região do Médio Paraíba do Rio de Janeiro CISMEPA. Esses consórcio surgiu nos anos 90 a partir de uma discussão regional acerca da necessidade de realizar a programação e a pactuação da oferta de serviços entre os doze municípios que compõem essa região fluminense. Esta pesquisa se propôs analisar o processo evolutivo do CISMEPA, conhecendo sua organização técnica e administrativa, os principais projetos e serviços desenvolvidos e analisando o resultado das ações por ele implementadas. A partir da análise da articulação técnico-política regional no âmbito do SUS, espera-se agregar subsídios para o processo evolutivo da descentralização no SUS e da estratégia de regionalização. O caminho metodológico utilizado foi a análise qualitativa sobre o CISMEPA, que tomou por base a realização de pesquisa bibliográfica, estudo dos documentos oficiais do consórcio, análise da forma de execução dos projetos, entrevistas semiestruturadas com participantes do processo de elaboração, execução e acompanhamento dos projetos e observação participantes das reuniões. Os projetos desenvolvidos pelo CISMEPA foram bem sucedidos e o consórcio desempenhou importante papel não só na gestão, como também na captação de recursos. O êxito é devido, sobretudo, à forma participativa com que os projetos foram elaborados e desenvolvidos pelo grupo de gestores e técnicos. Em que pese a região ter se organizado sua PPI, o CISMEPA não logrou organizar a oferta micro e macrorregional de serviços, um dos seus objetivos iniciais. No entanto, seu mérito foi configurar-se num importante fórum de debates e pactuação, mesmo contando com baixa adesão e presença do Estado. Tal característica o potencializa como estratégia de regionalização do SUS. / This study discusses the process of intermunicipal co-opoeration created after the municipal consortiums, focusing on actions developed by the Health Instermunicipal Consortium of the Médio Paraíba Region, Rio de Janeiro (CISMEPA). This consortium appeared in the 90s, as a result of the regional discussion about the need for organization and adjustment of services offer among the twelve municipalities which form this region. This research proposes the analysis of the CISMEPA, its technical and administrative organization, main projects and services. It also assesses the results of the consortiums actions. Based on the analysis of the technical and political region articulation within the SUS, we intend to gather subsides for the ongoing process of SUS decentralization and the regionalization strategy. The methodological course was the qualitative analysis, based on bibliographical research, analysis of the consortiums legal documents, analysis of projects development, semi-structured interviews with those who helped elaborate, implement and follow all projects, and also participating observation in meetings. Projects developed by CISMEPA were successful, and the consortium played an important role not only in management but also in fund-raising. The success is mainly due to the participating way projects have been elaborated and developed by managers and technicians. Although the region has organized and elaborated its PPI, the CISMEPA did not organize the micro and macrorregional services offer, one of its first objectives. However, it became an important forum for debate and agreement, despite the low adhesion and State participation. This characteristic reinforces the CISMEPA as a strategy for the SUS regionalization.

The continued growth of world commerce has led to the advance of the permanent establishment principles. These principles are, however, constantly challenged by the developments of e-commerce. This thesis considers the taxing of a permanent establishment and the influence of e-commerce on the concept of a permanent establishment. In 2000, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (“OECD”) developed and introduced guidelines on how to deal with e-commerce in the context of a permanent establishment. Since the OECD guidelines on e-commerce were issued, the permanent establishment principles have come under further scrutiny. The latest development came about in 2013 with the release of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“BEPS”) Action Plan. This Action Plan addresses the intention of the OECD to deal with the taxing of the digital economy. With the development of e-commerce and the result of e-commerce creating intangible boundaries between countries, the concept of a virtual permanent establishment has emerged. This has resulted in the need to tax a presence of an enterprise in a jurisdiction where no actual physical connection can be established. Various authors have made suggestions on how to ensure that an economy in which business is being carried on is correctly compensated for in the form of taxes. The source of income is the driving force for the imposition of taxation today. The main goal of this thesis was to explore the alignment of the concepts of a permanent establishment and e-commerce in the digital economy. This study therefore examined the concepts of both permanent establishments and e-commerce, and explored authors’ views and suggestions on how to deal with the inter-related effects of these two concepts. The relevant Action Points in the OECD Action Plan were also considered. / Maiden name: Venter, Michelle