Psychological research focusing on the relationship between self-awareness and leadership has subsequently attracted criticism, regarding both the conceptualisation and measurements used therein. Specifically, the previous use of difference scores to measure self-awareness has become associated with issues of reliability and the conceptualisation of self-awareness within the emotional intelligence paradigm has been considered a limitation. To study the relationship between self-awareness and leadership while acknowledging the need for improved methods, the current research conceptually extended self-awareness to include recognition of cognitive and social intelligence as well as emotional intelligence within the self. In addition, the current study tested a newly proposed correlational method for measuring self-awareness. The leader-follower relationship was represented by seventy two managers who were each paired with one of seventy two respective subordinate employees. Each manager rated their own cognitive, social and emotional intelligence at two points in time, two weeks apart, and their respective employee subordinate rated the manager on twelve Leader Behaviours. As predicted, the managers’ mean self-ratings were associated with employee-rated Leader Behaviour. Inconsistent with the literature and against prediction, correlational scores taken between the managers’ two self-rating times were not associated with Leader Behaviour. In addition, results were inconsistent with the prediction that difference scores between the managers’ two rating times would be associated with leader behaviour. The current study contributed to the scientific understanding of the association between social intelligence and leadership as well as the relationship between self-awareness and leader behaviour. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in reference to organisational leadership.

Measurement of the abilities of gifted children is challenging. Identifying patterns of performance for gifted children has proven elusive. The WJIII COG, a theory-driven measure, purports to provide information about a child's pattern of abilities, including areas previously not measured by other cognitive instruments. Only one study has addressed the relationship between the WJIII COG and gifted children. (Rizza, et al., 2001) The purpose of this study was to examine the WJIII COG's appropriateness for use with gifted children. Interpretive guidance when using the WJIII COG with gifted children was sought. The following question was addressed: Do children of high intellectual ability display distinct patterns of performance on the WJIII COG Stratum II variables. If so, do these patterns qualitatively differ from the performance of children of non-high intellectual ability?The participants for this study were taken from the standardization sample of WJIII COG participants (N= 3,145). The participants were divided into two groups: high intellectual ability, Group 1 (N = 389), and "other," (Group 2) (N = 2756). Group 1 participants had a GIA Standard score of 120 or above. The participants were further divided into three subgroups, determined by age: preschool, school-aged, and collegeaged. Approximately half of the sample was male. White participants were the majority of the sample (77.4 - 87.9%). Most participants were non-Hispanic (91.3 - 94.9%). Means, standard deviations, ranges, minimum values, and maximum values, were obtained. WJIII COG Stratum II variables were paired and compared. The comparisons made were ranges and point differences. Cumulative percentages of point differences were calculated at the 5, 7, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 point levels.Two primary findings emerged. The first finding was that Group 1 participants scored higher overall than Group 2 participants when averages were compared. The second finding was that no gifted profile emerged for Group 1. Although no gifted pattern emerged, there was a great deal of variability within individual student profiles for both Groups. It was suggested that further research be directed at whether subtypes of students with high abilities could be identified that would have clinical implications congruent with multidimensional theories of giftedness. / Department of Educational Psychology

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the validity of the Woodcock Johnson Tests of Cognitive Ability-Revised (WJTCA-R) in discriminating between individuals with neurological or psychiatric impairments and those without known impairment. The primary question was whether WJTCA-R Standard Battery test scores significantly differentiated between individuals with brain-damage (n = 36), depression (n = 21), and without known impairments (n = 32). Archival data obtained for the development of a new neuropsychological assessment measure utilizing the WJTCA-R was analyzed. The results of a discriminant functions analysis indicated that significant differences between the groups existed on the WJTCA-R. Based on WJTCA-R Standard Battery performance alone, participants had a 53% chance of being correctly classified into their diagnostic group. Brain-damaged individuals had the best chance of being correctly classified while correct classification of depressed individuals was only slightly greater than that obtained from random assignment. In addition to moderately supporting the use of a multi-factored, theory-driven assessment instrument, the results of this study have clinical relevance for the development of diagnosis-specific recommendations for brain-damaged and depressed individuals. / Department of Educational Psychology

The most common application of hypertext today is found on the World Wide Web, with the numbers of sites and potential users increasing continually. Hypertext systems are characterized by hyperlinks that allow users nonsequential access to the documents contained within them. Because users are not constrained to read through these documents in a linear manner, new problems may arise not found in traditional paper versions. These problems are generally characterized by a sense of being "lost" within a hypertext system. The user may not know exactly where they are or how to get where they want to be. They have lost many of the visual cues that indicate position found in ordinary texts like books. Navigational aids or overview maps have been suggested as a means to help counteract this problem. These navigational aids can take a standard table-of-contents and extend it dynamically or provide a completely new paradigm of browsing. To that extent, many new varieties of maps (including three-dimensional ones) have been developed but not thoroughly studied. As well, it may be theorized that users of differing cognitive abilities may be helped or hindered by such devices. An empirical study was performed to investigate the effect of multidimensional maps. Three different navigational aids were examined which varied the way pages are displayed along one, two or three dimensions. Two hypertext systems were also where one was roughly twice the size of the other. The participants were given a search task twice to examine performance on page revisits. Finally, three cognitive tests were given to view the effects of individual differences. These included a spatial ability, verbal ability and visual memory test. The results indicated that no performance differences existed between the different navigational aids. However, a significant interaction was present between the maps and the type of Web site; smaller Web sites benefited from the 3D navigational aid. It is theorized that an observed effect for hypertext system was due to site complexity as opposed to size. The results from the cognitive ability measures were mixed. People with low verbal ability scores took longer to locate answers. People with high spatial ability scores found more answers and had scores that were less sensitive to the type of navigational aid used. No significant differences were discovered between people of high and low visual memory abilities. / Master of Science

Magister Legum - LLM / Euthanasia is controversial topic that attracts conversations on grounds of fundamental human rights and freedoms. The opinions of legal scholars are inconsistent because while some view euthanasia as a gross violation of one’s human rights, others argue that it should be regarded as a fundamental human right. Extending the ‘right to die’ to children is more controversial because they are considered to be a vulnerable demographic and generally presumed to be legally incompetent to exercise their rights autonomously. The State aims to protect children by restricting their rights rather than enhancing their autonomy and including them in the discussion. To that end, children are often excluded from decision-making on the understanding that they are legally incompetent and cannot comprehend the consequences of their decisions.

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The construction industry is inherently multidisciplinary and has adopted many intellectual and technical business improvements from other industries in an effort to optimize productivity. In construction, management inactivity is the root cause of 30% of non-productive time. This has created an opportunity and need for standardized and structured repeatable procedures for new managerial strategies. A theoretical framework for Organizational Intelligence (OI), which encompasses the procedural ability of an organization to efficiently process, support, measure and reason through management issues, is proposed. The elements of organizational intelligence are divided into three types of intellectual capital: Human Capital, Organizational Capital, and Relational Capital. The performance of an organizational activity depends on the quality of these capitals that are available within an organization. An organization's Human Capital (HC) is the human resources within the organization that can be deployed to acquire and apply its knowledge to perform, respond, or control designated work with available organizational assets. Organizational Capital (OC) refers to the assets available to the organization to support the performance of organizational activities Relational Capital (RC), which combines human capital and organizational capital to perform, is needed specific organizational activities. In addition, the research uses human cognitive abilities as the basis of a fundamental structure from which to form new organizational cognitive abilities that are capable of presenting management processes as critical value creations. Organizational cognitive ability is suggested to define appropriate organizational resources in order to integrate and determine a rational selection of applicable technologies and improvements. This ability can develop knowledge with interconnected variables, namely intellectual capital, managerial process, and performance, all of which support organizational intelligence. From the theoretical framework for OI, a prototype (Intelligibility Learning Model), which determines the role of relationships in an organization's operation and use of resources, is formulated. A case based research then applies the prototype to a managerial process in the construction industry. The case research demonstrates that the Intelligibility Learning Model (ILM) could be use effectively by industry decision makers to improve performance of organizational activities. The identification and application of a theoretical framework constitutes the foundation of a new managerial theory, Organizational Intelligence Management. It thus provides a fundamental foundation that explains how the construction processes, knowledge, skills, and resources used for managerial activities function. This theory contributes and establishes a better understanding of management, from organizational resources through to final production. / Ph. D.

In this thesis, a literature review was conducted in order to analyze the numerous sources that investigated the effects memory games may have on participants. Each study covered different scopes and methods in the field of cognitive improvement, which gave way to a variety of results used to create a comprehensive literature review. The experiments included in the literature review gathered evidence to find the effect that “brain” games had on memory and cognitive skills. An explanation and analysis were made on the brain’s deterioration as it ages and the varying amounts of plasticity it contains. The overall perspective gained from the literature review allowed for a better understanding of the results of the surveys conducted for this thesis. The distinctive ways to encourage and improve brain health were researched, and a particular focus was placed on memory games regarding brain health factors. Overall, the benefits identified covered an increase in working memory, skills, and processing speed. However, there was an indication that the improvements were only for the tasks at hand. When research was conducted on transferable activities, there was little to no proof of the transferability of measured improvements. During the research portion of the thesis, a survey was conducted that involved 90 participants from the age of 60 and older on their perception of brain games. The results of the 9-question survey showed statistically significant correlations between the amount of times individuals had played memory games and their perception of both the simplicity and effectiveness of these games. Participants who had played games more frequently viewed the games as both more effective and simpler. Similarly, participants with more education perceived the games as being simpler. The male participants in this study were found to play memory games more frequently than the women. Overall, the correlations drawn from the results of the survey promote the enriched discussion on the subject of memory games and cognitive improvement.

No description available.

The purpose of the present study was to attempt to reconcile the seemingly overwhelming body of empirical evidence arguing for the preeminence of general cognitive ability in relation to specific abilities with the general resistance of the majority of Industrial-Organizational psychologists to such a position. The contention of the present study was that the primary evidence used to support the view that specific abilities are of little importance relative to general cognitive ability did not faithfully represent the classic selection model and was based on tenuous assumptions about the operationalizations of general and specific cognitive abilities. By virtue of being defined in un-interpretable terms with respect to content or function, prior operationalizations of specific abilities did not lend themselves to logical and theoretical relationships with job specific job performance. The general thesis of the present study was that if a "construct oriented approach" that is largely based on this classic selection model were implemented, a composite of psychologically interpretable job related specific abilities would prove equivalent or even superior to general cognitive ability in the prediction of job performance. Results suggest implementation of the construct oriented approach demonstrates potential for the value of this approach with respect to balancing criterion related validity and social equity. / Ph. D.