This descriptive study investigates the link between religion, (institutional and private) identity (ethnic and personal) and the community (Portuguese and South African) in the context of religious and cultural pluralism. It analyses sixteen Portuguese women in Durban - nine Roman Catholics, five Protestants and two agnostic and it is executed within the framework of the theory of conditionalism or 'radical relationality', as expounded by J.S. Kruger. The religious practice, experience and identity of the participants are explored, and their social integration as well as famiIy and marital relationships (with special reference to submissiveness) are examined in the light of Catholic Feminist theology. The influence of their experiences on their religion and vice-versa, as well as the fluidity of their identities are analysed. The. results of the study highlight the paradoxical role of religion, as well as a decline in ethnic identity and Catholicism. / Religious Studies and Arabic / M. Th. (Religious Studies)

Hierdie proefskrif is 'n verkennende ondersoek na kykers se interpretasie van die seep-opera Egoli - Piek van Goud. Die basiese vertrekpunt van die studie is die teks-leserontmoeting waar gelyke status aan die boodskap ('n teks) en die ontvanger ('n kyker) gegee word. Uit so 'n ontmoeting ontstaan kykers se interpretasies. Die tweeledige ondersoek plaas die proefskrif binne die teoretiese en metodologiese raamwerk van resepsiestudie om die komplekse interaksie tussen 'n teks en die ontvanger te ondersoek. Die twee komponente word binne spesifieke historiese en kulturele kontekste geplaas, te wete die veranderende politieke en ideologiese klimaat in Suid-Afrika asook die sosio-kulturele en politieke kontekste van die deelnemers. Die deelnemers van hierdie studie is groepe bruin-, swart- en witvroue. Groeponderhoude (fokusgroepe) is met ses groepe vroue tydens hul etensuur by die werkplek gevoer. Die onderhoude is rondom die volgende temas gestruktureer: romanse, identifikasie, parasosiale interaksie, sosiale interaksie, intertekstualiteit en Egoli as 'n forum vir die uitbeelding van Suid-Afrikaanse werklikhede. Kykers se interpretasie van die temas is ontleed aan die hand van referensiele, onderhandelde en kritiese interpretasierame. Daar is gevind dat die verskillende kultuurgroepe in 'n groat mate dieselfde interpretasierame gebruik in hul interpretasie van die verskillende temas. Die opvallendste verskil tussen die groepe is die wyse waarop die deelnemers die tema Egoli as 'n forum vir die uitbeelding van die SuidAfrikaanse werklikhede vertolk: as gevolg van verskillende sosio-kulturele en politieke omstandighede in Suid-Afrika het die deelnemers waarskynlik interpretasierame ontwikkel wat aan daardie omstandighede gekoppel kan word. In die studie is aangetoon dat die hermeneutiek en resepsieteorie nuttige verklarings gee van die elemente in die seep-operateks wat kykersbetrokkenheid stimuleer en die proses van interpretasie. Die proses verloop soos volg: deelnemers het bepaalde verwagtings oor 'n program; hulle moet die uitgebeelde werklikheid(e) herken en die boodskappe dan toe-eien. Hierna word boodskappe 'n kultuur binnegedra deur middel van sosiale diskoers. Die teoretiese onderbou het voorts aan die lig gebring dat deelnemers se interaksie met en interpretasie van Egoli 'n vorm van spel is. Empiriese bewyse is gevind dat die deelnemers op speelse wyse • oor karakters 'skinder'; • spekuleer oor romantiese assosiasie; • met karakters identifiseer; en • parasosiale verhoudings met karakters aanknoop. / Text in Afrikaans / This thesis is an exploratory study of viewers' interpretation of the soap opera Egoli - Place of Gold. The basic point of departure is the text-viewer encounter where equal status is given to the message (text) and the recipient (viewer). Viewers' interpretations develop from this encounter. This dichotomous investigation places the thesis within the theoretical and methodological framework of reception study where the complex interaction between a text and the recipient is examined. The two components are placed within specific historical and cultural contexts, namely the changing political and ideological climate in South Africa, as well as the socio-cultural and political contexts of the participants. The groups participating in this study consisted of coloured, black and white women. Six group interviews (focus groups) were held with these women during their lunch-hour at the workplace. The interviews were structured around the following themes: romance, identification, parasocial interaction, social interaction,intertextuality and Egoli as a forum for the portrayal of South African realities. Viewers' interpretations of these themes were analysed according to referential, negotiated and critical interpretative frames. It was largely found that the various cultural groups use the same interpretative frames to interpret the various themes. The exception was the way participants interpreted Egoli as a forum for the portrayal of South African realities: because of different socio-cultural and political circumstances in South Africa the participants may have developed interpretation frames that could be linked to these circumstances. Hermeneutics and reception theory provide useful explanations of these elements in a soap opera text that stimulate viewers' involvement and the process of interpretation. This process proceeds as follows: participants have specific expectations regarding a programme; they must recognise the realities depicted and then appropriate the messages. Thereafter messages are incorporated into a culture by means of social discourse. A further important theoretical finding was that the participants' interaction with and interpretation of Egoli takes the form of play. It was empirically determined in this study that participants playfully • speculate about romantic association; • engage in gossip about characters; • identify with characters; and • develop parasocial relationships with characters. / Summaries in English and Afrikaans / Communication Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Communication Science)

The last Supper Jesus had with his disciples on the night before he died on the cross is the foundation of a major liturgical celebration in the Catholic Church called 'the Eucharist'. One of the major designations of the Eucharist is that it is a sacrifice. The starting point of this work is that the sacrificial character of the Eucharist is not as meaningful and relevant for Xhosa people as it should be. The way forward is to study the Eucharistic and Xhosa sacrifices, compare them and suggest ways of rendering the Eucharistic sacrifice meaningful and relevant to Xhosa the people. Although not conclusive, the New Testament gives a strong foundation for the sacrificial understanding of the Eucharist. The Eucharist, as interpreted through the Last Supper accounts, covers all the conventional intentions of sacrifice, i.e. propitiation, communion, thanksgiving and mutual responsibility. The Fathers of the Church affirm the sacrificial character of the Eucharist with varying emphases, but taken together, their understanding shows development of thought and complementarity of themes. In the Middle Ages the most pronounced intention of the . Eucharistic sacrifice is propitiation and post Tridentine theological reflection is informed by this mentality. According to modem and contemporary thought, Christ's death on the cross, which is sacrarnentally represented in the Eucharist, is not an act performed on our behalf to appease an angry God but God's act of love towards us. The emphasis is on self-offering to God as exemplified by Christ. The Xhosa people still have regard for sacrificial rituals, but modernity has modified and sometimes changed their understanding and practice of sacrifice. The principle of God's universal salvific will and the doctrine of incarnation provide theological grounds for inculturating the Eucharist. Thus the inclusion of ancestors and use of cultural symbols in the celebration of the Eucharist may render it meaningful to Xhosa people. Relating the Eucharist to Xhosa culture will revitalise the communion element in Eucharistic sacrifice, which element has been lost sight of through the centuries. Eucharistic sacrifice in its turn will help Xhosa Catholics to have a deepened understanding of sacrifice that extends beyond performance of rituals to include self-giving. / Philosophy, Practical & Systematic Theology / D.Th.(Systematic Theology)

The purpose of this study was to determine whether organisational restructuring of business units within a South African Fast Moving Consumer Goods company had any effect on the organisational climate of the organisation. An organisational climate survey was used before and after the restructuring over a two-year period. Five manufacturing plants formed part of the study; with four plants undergoing the restructuring (experimental group) and one plant being the control group, where no organisational restructuring took place within the two-year period under review. The total population consisted of 3700 employees. The samples for 2010 and 2011 were drawn from the population of the five manufacturing plants’. The sample of employees that took part in the survey from the five manufacturing plants was, in 2010, 778 versus a headcount of 1802, yielding a response rate of 21.02%, and in 2011, 904 versus a headcount of 1736, yielding a response rate of 24.43%. The research results show that organisational restructuring did have a significant impact on organisational climate; with a drop in the organisational climate from 2010 prior to the organisational restructuring, to 2011 after the organisational restructuring at four of the manufacturing plants (experimental group). Interestingly, the control group (the 5th manufacturing plant) also showed a significant drop in its organisational climate scores from 2010 to 2011; without organisational restructuring taking place. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / MCOM (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

Traditional healers are one among professionals that are viewed as the most significant people in African Society. They are accorded the highest esteem because of the role they play in saving people’s lives and promoting cultural aspects such as ukuhlonipha amasiko in isiZulu. It should be remembered that this word ukuhlonipha which means to respect, is used across cultures to maintain peace within family and society. It all depends on which culture promotes it more than others. It is sociolinguistic truism that ukuhlonipha is essentially linked to the ubuntu philosophy of African people. However, traditional healers more than other people follow ukuhlonipha culture in numerous ways, especially when they meet, being consulted and during traditional ceremonies. They serve and promote what in IsiZulu is known as ukuhlonipha, which to the uninitiated and sometimes even to the scholars of this philosophy is a mystery. It is for this reason and others that people view them as the soul of society. This study looks at relevant sociolinguistic theories especially the politeness theory to analyze most of the hlonipha features shown by traditional healers, apprentice and people during consultation. / African Languages / M.A. (African Languages)

This study is on standard isiXhosa in a multilingual classroom and includes an interpretation of both urban and rurual learners’ literary texts. An attempt is made to examine a selection of isiXhosa texts in order to interprete the state of affairs of the isiXhosa language in the 21st century. Organization of the study This dissertation was organized in the following manner: Chapter one includes an introduction to the study, its aims and objectives as well as the research methodology. Since the isiXhosa language is the focal point of the study, it is discussed in some depth. In chapter two, the researcher concentrates on the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) "Imibono yethu". Imibono yethu is an anthology of learners' writings. The learners were invited to enter a competition by using various genres, e.g. short stories, poems, one-act dramas, rap songs, kwaito, essays, and melodic poems. The researcher wanted the learners to use whatever genre inspires them, to put it colloquially, "what turns them on!" Any aspect of the urban lifestyle could be explored within the theme of each entry and fell under the following headings: • Standard language. • Standard isiXhosa. Chapter three investigates non-standard language varieties with special reference to isiXhosa and the language policy of South Africa. In this chapter, a comparison was drawn between non-standard language and standard language. vi In chapter four, the researcher discusses the overall findings of the competition, comparing the results emanating from the Eastern Cape and Gauteng. Chapter five deals with achievement of the objectives and highlights of the research. / African Languages / M.A. (African Languages)

This study is a cultural investigation into rape, with specific focus on the role of African men. With more than 70 000 cases of rape and sexual violence reported in a year in South Africa, and estimations that this may reflect one ninth of the actual number only, South Africa has been labelled the “rape capital” of the world. The study seeks to explain the root causes of rape, its ontological make-up and possibilities for resolving the issue by identifying cultural aspects, factors and manifestations that either justify or sanction rape. Four concepts, namely, rape, masculinity, culture and rage, serve as the thematic lens for identifying and interrogating cultural conditions through multidisciplinary and Africancentred perspectives. The analyses contained in the study are based on a mapping process involving comparing the data from a wide range of literature and also focus group interviews. Highlighting the multi-layered complexities of rape as phenomena, the study then outlines recommendations for transformative work in research, cultural institutions, communities, families and men / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Philosophy of Education)

Thesis (MPhil (Sociology and Social Anthropology))--Stellenbosch University, 2008. / The NGO sector is continuing to diversify, experiencing increasing competition from the for-profit market and pressure from the state looking for support through service delivery. There are growing internal and external calls for the development of appropriate evaluation methods within NGOs, intended to provide a much needed transparency, and to monitor and evaluate the sector’s accountability, legitimacy, and credibility – the very politics of its image and identity. As a result many NGOs are adapting their strategic behaviour to increase their efficacy to meet these new challenges. Professionalization or corporatization is said to be transforming NGOs into new regimes of efficiency, leading to their absorption of increasingly commercial practices. How professional NGOs go about their business has become as important as what they do. Using an ethnographic approach and participant observation, this study reveals the many constraints and opportunities one such NGO faced as it employed strategies to professionalize, and the various forms of organising it exhibited in its political, economic and social context. I explore the social interface between the organisation and its environment, and again between the staff members and the organisation itself. The study explores the connectedness between the broader context and the local experience, which in turn informs the NGO’s shifting strategies. An ‘embedded’ understanding provides insight into the evolution of social processes behind the production of everyday life within the professional NGO, exploring how it arrives at a certain coherence in the face of multiple realities at the local level. Development literature is used as a point of departure before applying anthropological theory as a lens through which to interpret the research questions. I place the NGO in a historical context and depict the political nature of the state-NGO relationship within a contract culture and competitive market. Discourses around surviving the embedded contradictions within accountability and legitimacy are explored. I reveal the pains of institutional and cultural evolution within the organisation under the push to professionalize as staff search for meaning and agency in everyday practice. And finally, I describe how the professional NGO negotiates an identity through both the external and internal politics of representation. There is no simple trajectory for professional NGOs. I find instead a competitive fight for survival and increasing dependence on political and economic savvy. The professional NGO has to constantly re-define and re-affirm its mission, while staff members weather the effects of this ongoing change and are forced to continually reconcile the very meaning of their work and identity to make sense of this experience. As an organisational study this contributes to an understanding of one professional NGO’s survival strategies in context, its organisational culture as an activity, and individual sense-making and identity formulation in the local setting. This study hopes to reveal what is gained and lost through employing the strategy to professionalize, and add to a growing body of research narrating the evolution within the NGO sector, informing questions currently being asked by state, business, and civil society groups.

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The occupation of policing is one that is traditionally associated with men and regarded as a masculine sphere. The South African Police Service (SAPS) is no exception. My thesis seeks to investigate how masculinity is experienced by male and female officers in the SAPS in one specific police station in the Western Cape. Connell’s (1995) three-fold model of the structure of gender in society is used to understand masculinity, along with her distinction between hegemonic and subordinated forms of masculinity. According to this model, gender is structured through power relations, production relations and cathexis. Through an analysis of organisational police culture operating at three levels - formal, institutional and ‘canteen’ (or informal) – I explore the experiences of police officers in this regard. Each of these levels offers a different arena of analysis for understanding the culture of policing in the South African context. In my discussion, I highlight that although Connell’s model of how masculinity is constructed is useful for understanding the dynamics of police culture across these different levels, the experience of masculinity by both male and female police officers has to be understood as a complex process. The idea of a simple hegemonic masculinity is too limiting in understanding gender dynamics and relationships within the institution. My thesis also argues that, within the confines of the SAPS, there is a need to value certain traits perceived as ‘masculine’, such as physical strength, while also taking into consideration the value of other attributes generally perceived as ‘feminine’, such as compassion. The acceptance of a more androgynous police service, with more space for personnel to move between socially accepted gender roles and expectations, is needed. The valuing of these traits should not be gender-specific, but should create opportunities for officers to be able to display both ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ traits and engage in ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ duties, regardless of their gender. The field research was located at a single police station, referred to as The Dorp Police Station. A qualitative, case study methodology was employed, drawing extensively on in-depth interviews with individual officers along with limited informal and participant observation at the police station. Content analysis of the online version of the official police journal provided an additional source of data for the study. The study also involved an engagement with general and South African literature on masculinity, policing and police culture. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die beroep van polisiëring word tradisioneel beskou as manlike bedryf. Die Suid-Afrikaanse Polisiediens (SAPD) is geen uitsondering nie. My tesis poog om ondersoek in te stel oor hoe ‘manlikheid1’ deur beide manlike en vroulike beamptes in die SAPD by spesifiek polisiestasie in die Wes-Kaap ervaar word. Connell (1995) se drievoudige model van die struktuur van gender in die samelewing word deur die loop van hierdie tesis gebruik om ‘manlikheid’ te verstaan. Tesame hiermee word daar onderskeid getref tussen ‘hegemoniese2 en ondergeskikte vorme van ‘manlikheid’. Volgens hierdie model is gender gestruktureer deur magsverhoudinge, produksieverhoudinge en Cathexis. In hierdie tesis ondersoek ek die ervaringe van polisiebeamptes rakende die drie vlakke - formele, institusionele en ‘kantien’ of informele kultuur - waarop polisiekultur in organisasies funksioneer. Elkeen van hierdie vlakke bied ander gebied van analise wat beter verstandhouding van die polisiekultuur in die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks bied. In my bespreking beklemtoon ek dat, alhoewel Connell se model rakende die konstruksie van manlikheid in die samelewing nuttige hulpmiddel is om die dinamika van polisiekultuur oor die bogenoemde vlakke te verstaan, moet daar in ag geneem word dat die ervarings van ‘manlikheid’ van mans en vroue in die polisie komplekse proses behels. Die idee van eenvoudige ‘hegemoniese manlikheid’ is te beperk vir die verstaan van gender dinamika en die verhoudings in die instansie. My tesis beweer ook dat daar behoefte in die SAPD is om waarde te heg aan eienskappe wat as ‘manlik’ beskryf word, soos bv. fisiese krag. Terselfdetyd word daar ook waarde geheg aan eienskappe wat as ‘vroulik’ beskou word, soos bv. deernis. Daar is behoefte vir die aanvaarding van meer androgene polisiediens met meer geleentheid en ruimte vir lede om tussen sosiaal aanvaarbare genderrolle en -verwagtinge te beweeg. Die waardering van hierdie eienskappe behoort nie gender-spesifiek wees nie, maar moet eerder geleenthede skep vir lede om beide ‘manlike’ en ‘vroulike’ pligte te voltooi, ongeag van hul gender. Die veldwerk is gedoen by enkele polisiestasie, waarna verwys word as Die Dorp Polisiestasie. Kwalitatiewe metodologie wat wat gevallestudie behels is gebuik tydens die studie. Daar is gebruik gemaak van indiepte onderhoude met individuele beamptes asook beperkte informele deelnemende waarneming by die polisiestasie. Aanvullende bron van data vir die studie was gevind in die vorm van inhoudsanalise van die amptelike aanlynpolisiejoernaal. Daar is ook in diepte gekyk na die algemene Suid-Afrikaanse literatuur rakende ‘manlikheid’, polisiëring en polisiekultuur.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / Leadership has always been, and always will be, central to human affairs, whether from a political, societal, religious, business or any other view. Both the need for leadership in managerial jobs and the difficulty of providing effective leadership in these jobs has grown considerably more, to include even lower level managerial, technical and professional employees. An important objective of this research report was to investigate the Eastern Cape Department of Health’s (ECDoH’s) current business practices and culture, as perceived by its leadership and management. The aim was to understand and document reasons for perpetual underperformance and to suggest ways of transforming the organisation’s culture and practices into a high performing organisation on a sustainable basis. To achieve the above objectives, this research report uses the Beehive Model of Organisational Renewal, developed by Christo Nel of the Village Leadership Consulting, which looks at seven elements of workplace practices that are benchmarked against international best practices. These seven elements are strategy execution, change leadership, structure, business discipline, talent creation, rewards and recognition and stakeholder value. The Beehive Model of Operational Renewal assumes that it is possible for any organisation to achieve greatness, to be a high performing organisation based on the conditions that success is by choice and not by accident; it is a long and winding journey and requires full executive acceptance, commitment and resolve to achieving a high performance organisation (HPO) status. The reviewed literature shows that cultures within successful organisations have characteristics of adaptability, alignment with external factors and the organisation’s vision and mission, and are biased towards action. It also suggests that when people are listened to, respected, supported and appreciated, in exchange they tend to go the extra mile in executing their jobs, even lifting the performance of individuals previously written off as mediocre. Depending on the desired type of culture, people behaviours, organisational symbols and systems will have to be modified to suppport and entrench the values of that organisation. Establishing a culture in an organisation is primarily a leadership role and culture and leadership are viewed as two sides of the same coin which cannot be separated. Literature suggests that long-term organisational change in the public sector is complex and problematic, because of the many stakeholders and short-term orientation of many political stakeholders. Change is particularly difficult because it has to overcome a longstanding tradition, uncertaintly and doubt amongst many people, fear of job loss and inertia and much Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za iv resistance, both visible and subdued. Healthcare staff all over the world face the challenge of a rapid introduction of technology in the form of electronic patient records, computerbased decision support tools and hospital information networks which are changing the traditional ways of doing things. Managing organisational culture is viewed as an essential part of the health system reform in most countries, where evidence shows that it will be a complex, multi-level, and uncertain process, requiring strategies unfolding over a period of years. For any change to be successful, it requires leadership – in fact, it is argued that leaders drive change from the top, through people and with people. Successful change is about leadership getting involved in driving the change at grass roots level, being authentic, honest and transparent. Leaders must balance the natural resistance people have to change with the time and space people need to reflect and accept the change and the directives that the leaders use to put pressure on the employees. In healthcare, many techniques have been employed to bring about changes to quality healthcare delivery. These include total quality management (TQM), lean management, learning organisation, business process reengineering and some leaders have used external consultants to influence change. None of these techniques was found to be successful without good leadership and a culture that embraces these changes. Arguably, people are the only competitive advantage any organisation has. Given that people are the executors of strategy, it is imperative that they get involved in its development. The use of systemic ways of developing strategy and making sure of its implementation using the balanced score card and strategy maps, is recommended. Linking company values and culture to the strategy leads to far greater organisational success. In most organisations human resources (HR) practices are still in the traditional back office. In the new economy, HR practices need to be transformed to deliver a new proposition, which adds value to the bottom line of the business by satisfying all stakeholder requirements, aligning people to performance and increasing organisational capabilities for sustainable performance. In the last decade, New Public Sector Management (NPSM) has emerged as a major reform strategy applied in varying degrees in a growing number of public sector organisations. Its main focus is to improve service delivery and to give rise to new management practices in the public sector. It emanates from a continued dissatisfaction with the performance of traditional public sector leadership and bureaucracy, reinforced by claims that the private sector is more efficient. Three building blocks for NPSM are described to reform public sector and these are responsibility, accountability and performance. In transforming public Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za v sector organisations, managers have to explicitly introduce policies within each building block – these policies contain leverage to influence clarity of purpose, agreements, power over decision-making, individual and team performance, and customer accountability. There are strong arguments to encourage clinicians to change their mindset and be retrained to lead the healthcare reform around the world. Some of the arguments are that clinicians are in the frontline, making decisions that determine quality and efficiency of care, having the technical knowledge to make sound strategic choices about longer-term patterns of service delivery. Clinicians are typically intelligent, well-trained and caring people who expressly choose this career to cure and comfort. A growing body of research supports the assertion that effective clinical leadership lifts the performance of health care organisations, as evidenced in a study which found that hospitals with the greatest clinician participation in management scored about 50% higher on important drivers of performance than hospitals with low levels of clinical leadership did. In another study, it was found that in 11 cases of attempted improvement in services, organisations with stronger clinical leadership were more successful, while another found that Chief Executive Officers (CEO) in the highestperforming organisations engaged clinicians in dialogue and in joint problem-solving efforts. The research findings show that the ECDoH is entrenched in the old economy values, meaning that business practices that were examined using the Beehive Model are rated in the risk/poor class. All seven elements scored in this poor class, with changed leadership, structures and talent creation constituting the poorest performers. This implies that the organisation is led from the top, leaders use power over others, there is widespread compression and incompetency at all leadership levels. It is unlikely that a single political head in the form of the Member of Executive (MEC) or a change in the head of department (HoD) will bring about the required astronomical transformation of the ECDoH. Only when the collective begins to accept the current predicament, can a total buy-in and commitment to high performance status begin. Finally, it is recommended that the ECDoH leadership transform their mindsets and adopt the new economy values of leading the organisation. They need to leverage on their positions of power to co-create a new culture, learn and adopt new change leadership skills, and transform the organisation’s HR proposition inside out. The executives are urged to consider funding a three to five year project of organisational renewal, using the Beehive Model and its related tools, to bring about sustainable change in the ECDoH.