There is increasing emphasis on the outcomes of research in terms of its impact on wider society. However in the social sciences the ways in which research is taken up and used, discussed, shared and applied in different policy, practice and wider settings is complex. This thesis set out to investigate the ways in which social research was used by various non-academic actors, and to explore what impact it had in order to develop methods for understanding and assessing impact. The research investigated what research impact is, how it occurs, and how it might be assessed. The research was in two phases: firstly, a case study of a research partnership between a research centre and a voluntary organisation; and, secondly, the development and seeking feedback on a framework to assess impact. The care study employed two main approaches: forward-tracking - from research to policy and/or practice - and backward tracking - from policy back to research. Both phases were conducted through a practitioner-research approach, bringing experience of working with the projects involved into the heart of the research model. The study found many ways the research from the partnership had been used in different sectors by different actors. Impacts from the research were harder to identify. In cases where there were clear impacts, the actors involved had adapted research to fit the context for research use in order to create impact. Research users continued to draw on the research for many years after publication, creating further impact as new policy or practice agendas arose. The framework used a 'pathways to impact' model to develop a theory-based approach to assessing impact and to create categories for data collection. The ways in which research might impact on policy and practice are many and cannot be easily predicted. Concepts from complexity theory, particularly a focus on relationships, an understanding of context and the concept of emergence have been useful in framing the picture of impact generated from this research. Any assessment of impact from social research needs to acknowledge that many actors are involved in the process of research being taken up and used, and impact cannot be achieved from the supply side alone. Partnership research, between an academic and voluntary sector organisation, facilitated the use and impact of the research in many ways. The thesis reconceptualises ideas about how research impacts on society, suggesting the concept of 'contribution' is more accurate and useful than attribution. It also adds to the body of empirical work on the processes of impact, and in particular of the role of research partnerships in increasing impact. It suggests that process-based approaches to assessing impact that acknowledge complexity may be fruitful in developing impact assessment methodology.

Företag inom en koncern kan vid utvecklande av immateriella tillgångar använda sig av cost contribution arrangements för att dela på kostnader och risker samt slippa korslicenser eftersom alla företag i ett CCA får rätt att nyttja tillgångarna. Hur stor del av vinsten som ska fördelas mellan företagen beror på hur mycket de bidrog med vid starten och fördelningen måste överensstämma med armlängdsprincipen. I 14 kap 19 § IL finns en regel som innebär att fördelningen kan korrigeras om det inte överensstämmer med vad ett oberoende företag gått med på under samma förhållanden. OECD:s riktlinjer för internprissättning är vägledande för svensk rätt och den reviderade versionen från 2010 har haft svagheter som företag kunnat utnyttja för att komma undan med oriktiga vinstöverflyttningar till länder med låg skattesats. OECD kom år 2015 ut med den slutgiltiga BEPS-rapporten där åtgärdspunkt 8-10 har som syfte att motverka oriktiga vinstfördelningar genom otillbörliga överflyttningar av risker och immateriella tillgångar mellan företag i intressegemenskap. Åtgärdspunkterna kommer troligtvis göra företag mindre benägna att, samt ge dem mindre möjlighet att, skatteplanera genom att oriktigt flytta vinster till lågskatteländer. Åtgärdspunkterna kommer dock troligtvis medföra fler tvister och nya tolkningsproblem. Målet med åtgärdspunkt 13 är att försäkra att företagen tar hänsyn till de krav som finns för att en transaktion ska vara armländsmässig samt underlätta för Skatteverket att avgöra om transaktionen överensstämmer med armlängdsprincipen. Åtgärdspunkten har fått kritik eftersom den lägger en stor börda på företagen, men OECD hävdar att den på sikt kommer att förenkla för företagen. De nya dokumentationskraven kommer att underlätta för Skatteverket att göra en internprisbedömning och minska möjligheterna att komma undan med felaktiga prissättningar.

Over the past three decades, employer-sponsored 401(k) plans have grown in popularity as they have proved to be a valuable benefit employers can provide to employees and tax-deductible expense that employers can easily account for on their books. However, a major concern around these plans is that they have come to take the place of traditional pension plans offered by employers, forcing employees to assume full responsibility for their retirement savings. This paper evaluates the overall effectiveness of 401(k)s at the top 50 companies in the Fortune 100, examining participation rates, account balances, and employer contributions. It concludes that employees that have 401(k)s at these 50 companies fare much better than the average American with regard to retirement savings. Nonetheless, the substitution of traditional pensions with 401(k) plans by companies in the United States is problematic. Employees, which previously could rely on a company pension in retirement, are unintentionally delaying retirement due to a lack of savings. Furthermore, a growing number of workers without retirement savings will certainly put a strain on Social Security funds in the coming decades.

A partir da análise do romance Sombras da Romãzeira, do escritor paquistanês Tariq Ali, a dissertação aborda a importância da civilização árabe na construção da cultura espanhola antes do período de Reconquista e o processo de expulsão de judeus e mouros, em virtude do fundamentalismo religioso cristão. / This work has the purpose to analyse the first Tariq Ali´s Islam Quintet Novel Shadows of the Pomegranate tree, according to the historical process of Reconquest, the Moorish cultural contribution in Spanish society and the presence of Catholic Fundamentalism in the Inquisition period of this nation.

In October 2012, the United Kingdom adopted nation-wide automatic enrolment into workplace pension schemes. Automatic enrolment on the current scale is a major undertaking but it is also an untested policy and it is important that we understand how individuals are adapting to these radical changes in pension provision. There is currently a lack of research into the dynamic decision-making processes that lie behind some individuals' deviation from workplace pension scheme default settings. This exploratory study investigates the importance of financial planning, social relations, and the role of the employer to default adherence and deviation. The embedded case study comprises qualitative interviews with 25 middle-income employees of a large UK utility company. Participants were selected on the basis of socio-economic similarity but had variable behavioural responses to the default settings of their workplace pension scheme. The study uncovered different motives underpinning individuals' reaction to membership defaults, contribution defaults, and investment fund defaults. Continued membership following automatic enrolment was driven by social pressures. Subsequent to enrolment, individuals tried to achieve a balance between current expenditure and saving for retirement. Property ownership and mortgage debt redemption were prioritised over additional pension scheme investment. The life-stage of the individual influenced how they reacted to the contribution default settings - default adherence appeared to be linked to unsettled personal lives and career insecurity. Motives for increasing contributions were household formation, parental ageing, and relationship breakdown. Saving strategies were influenced by parental accumulation of retirement assets and parental financial literacy. Employer-matching contributions were implicated in participants' willingness to increase pension contributions beyond the minimum default; investment in share option schemes was offered as justification for limiting contributions to the maximum match. Employer endorsement effects, driven by trust in the employer's intentions, were strongly implicated in fund default adherence and in investment diversification strategies: participants pointed to the employer's promotion of the pension scheme and employer-provided financial seminars. Advice from older colleagues was also cited as influential in directing retirement savings behaviour. The research concludes that the employment context is crucial to understanding how middle-income employees react to the default settings in their workplace pension scheme.

<p>A contribution that is to be repaid and has been made by a shareholder should be considered disposed when the receiving company is declared bankrupt. Converting such a contribution to one that is not to be repaid should mean that the contribution is disposed to its marketvalue. It is then considered that the shareholder makes a new contribution that is not to be repaid. Hereby, the shareholder will probably make a capital loss, which should be deductible.</p>

A contribution that is to be repaid and has been made by a shareholder should be considered disposed when the receiving company is declared bankrupt. Converting such a contribution to one that is not to be repaid should mean that the contribution is disposed to its marketvalue. It is then considered that the shareholder makes a new contribution that is not to be repaid. Hereby, the shareholder will probably make a capital loss, which should be deductible.

Resurfice Corp. v. Hanke, [2007] 1 S.C.R. 333, 2007 SCC 7, creates a new causation doctrine in Canadian negligence law that is available to plaintiffs only in exceptional cases. Under this doctrine, negligence and the possibility of specific factual causation may be sufficient to satisfy the causation requirements of a cause of action in negligence. Proof of specific factual causation on the balance of probability is not required. The justification for this doctrine is fairness and justice. The application of the doctrine does not produce a decision that the negligence did cause the injury. Where the requirements of the Resurfice doctrine are satisfied, the causation requirements of the cause of action are deemed to be satisfied despite the finding that factual causation was not established on the balance of probability. The authorities cited are current to June 21, 2012.

Resurfice Corp. v. Hanke, [2007] 1 S.C.R. 333, 2007 SCC 7, creates a new causation doctrine in Canadian negligence law that is available to plaintiffs only in exceptional cases. Under this doctrine, negligence and the possibility of specific factual causation may be sufficient to satisfy the causation requirements of a cause of action in negligence. Proof of specific factual causation on the balance of probability is not required. The justification for this doctrine is fairness and justice. The application of the doctrine does not produce a decision that the negligence did cause the injury. Where the requirements of the Resurfice doctrine are satisfied, the causation requirements of the cause of action are deemed to be satisfied despite the finding that factual causation was not established on the balance of probability. The authorities cited are current to June 21, 2012.

My motivation to write this thesis is based on the controversy surrounding the Social Security system that has recently infiltrated the media. Through my research, I have discovered the debate concerning Social Security is not a recent development but has existed since the 1930’s. Many sources are warning citizens to no longer count on Social Security as they most likely will not receive benefits until a extremely old age if they receive benefits at all. Current retirees are fearful of either a decrease in benefits or not receiving the money they contributed to the system through the years of employment at all. Proposals and options for overhauling the system have moved to center stage in politicians’ agendas and numbers of solutions have surfaced. Unfortunately, this debate is creating a huge divide between party lines in Congress. Some argue for more government control while others advocate privatization. The goal for this thesis is to perform a cost/benefit analysis of the two ideologies and determine which is more practical and realistic for both the government and the people.