<p>The study was undertaken in the coastal area of the Benguela Province in Angola. The research question can be formulated as follows: How do laws, policies and regulations influence the development of MSMEs in the coastal area of the Benguela Province? The theory of transaction cost as developed by the new institutional economists will provide the framework for the study.</p>

The purpose of the study was to analyze current procedures utilized for financing textbooks and related instructional materials by Indiana public school corporations and public school corporations in selected states. Respective practices were examined in order to determine feasible methods/alternatives for Indiana school corporations to use in overcoming the contemporary financial and administrative dilemma which existed in the 1985-86 school year.A descriptive questionnaire was developed from a review of literature and with the assistance of colleagues. Data obtained by the instrument were analyzed using frequency tabulations and percentages. Based on information gained from the study and data collected in superintendents in Indiana, solutions to financing instructional materials for Indiana school corporations were determined.Data collected supported the following conclusions: 1. Public school corporations in Indiana charge fees for textbooks and related instructional materials and are experiencing difficulties in collecting textbook rental and related fees from parents or guardians of school children.2. The use of small claims court for recovering fees is not an effective method for most public school corporations in Indiana.3. Township trustees and/or county councils should pay for textbooks and instructional materials of students whose parents or guardians are declared by the courts to be indigent.4. The current formula for determining textbook rental rates is satisfactory.5. Legislation should be adopted to permit public school corporations to increase revenue in order to finance textbooks and related instructional materials.6. To be in concert with other states in the United States and more specifically within the Great Lakes Region, public school students should be supplied textbooks and related instructional materials without charge.7. The location and size of school corporations have implications to problems existing in public school corporations when administering textbook rental programs.8. Lack of additional finance has restricted public school corporations in implementing new programs to be funded by the general fund budget.9. Based on the average rankings of ten regions, public school corporations in Regions I, II, and VI encountered the greatest difficulty in financing textbooks and related instructional materials. Public school corporations have the least problems in supplying textbooks to school students.10. Based on the average rankings of six enrollment groups, public school corporations in the smallest three groups had the greatest success in financing textbooks and related instructional materials for students.11. Additional costs for school corporations are incurred when interest is paid to publishers for overdue accounts or for installment payment programs.12. School corporations with deficit balances or significantly decreasing balances in textbook rental accounts are in. need of assistance in collecting outstanding fees from constituents and/or means of generating sufficient revenue to account for required textbooks and related instructional materials for students.

The effects of selected family characteristics on interrelated components of household asset portfolios over a three-year time period were investigated. Specifically, this study attempted to conceptually define mental accounts, to identify own-adjustment and cross-adjustment characteristics of these mental accounts, to explore influences of selected family characteristics on these mental accounts, and to examine substantial effects of income on family portfolio behavior. Based on the behavioral life-cycle hypothesis, consumer demand theory, household production theory, and the stock adjustment hypothesis, a family portfolio behavior model was formulated for studying family saving behavior as reflected in household asset portfolios. A tobit model was utilized to estimate own- and cross-adjustment coefficients of the portfolio components, and short-term and equilibrium effects of family characteristics. The data were from the Survey of Consumer Finances conducted in 1983 and 1986. Findings strongly support the mental account hierarchy hypothesis which was reflected in the own- and cross-adjustment coefficients estimated. In addition, family income and education of the household head showed positive influences on various mental accounts. Age of the household head, employment status, family life cycle stage, house mortgage, home value, other assets, and other debts showed effects on some mental accounts. Income had a substantial influence on family portfolio behavior. The behavior of middle-income families was more consistent with the hypothesis of a mental account hierarchy than the other income groups, which implies diverse preferences for asset characteristics and varying financial needs of families at different income levels. This study has contributed to the body of knowledge of family saving behavior and increased the understanding of adaptivity and dynamics of family saving behavior. The research findings could be utilized by family finance educators and consultants, financial service marketers, and public policy makers in working successfully with different family types, marketing various financial instruments, and designing effective savings policies. In addition, this study has provided empirical evidence to assess existing theoretical models and to inspire the building of new theories. / Graduation date: 1992

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the influence of selected historical, fiscal, and organizational factors on enrollment patterns in Oregon Community Colleges during the academic years 1978-79, 1981-82, and 1984-85. Oregon was selected insofar as it is one of the few remaining states which observes the principle of local control and maintains state institutional reimbursement for five categories of enrollment, including adult self-improvement. The 13 Oregon community colleges formed between 1961 and 1971 provided the population for this study. A telephone instrument was developed to gather historical data from the president of each college. Additional information was gathered from state agencies. The data collected were analyzed using stepwise regression and the determination of simple correlation coefficients. The five dependent variables were each of the reimbursable categories of enrollment. It was hypothesized that 19 separate factors, the independent variables, could have influenced the reimbursable categories. Research findings identified the following influences upon FTE by enrollment categories: 1. instructional staffing patterns for increasing transfer and vocational preparatory; 2. presidential ratings of vocational education for increasing vocational preparatory; 3. stability of property taxpayer support for increasing transfer; 4. unsuccessful budget elections for increasing developmental education; and 5. unemployment for decreasing vocational preparatory and increasing transfer. However, none of the factors considered had an impact upon vocational supplemental and self-improvement FTE categories. In addition, the completion of this investigation demonstrated that it is possible to develop a predictive model for enrollments by category. Although a number of the factors considered did not prove to be significant, the findings from this study provided an initial research model that can be used to facilitate the examination of other factors which may influence predictive enrollment modeling by category in various settings. Further studies should include consideration of additional variables, including community characteristics and population migration rates as well as the impact of local control on enrollment trends. The following variables should be subject to continuing reexamination: President's ranking and rating of enrollment categories; the impact of budgetary elections, subject to improved methodology; state funding achievement for years when funding redistributions occur; changes of chief executive officer and changes at the division and/or department level, in comparison to changes of higher level administrators. In addition, those factors which constitute barriers placed between unemployed workers and vocational training should be closely examined. / Graduation date: 1991

University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities / Department of Government and Public Administration

LEVELS OF BURNOUT AND JOB SATISFACTION IN LARGE-SCALE AGRIBUSINESS Hugh Patrick Bosley August, 2004 39 pages Directed by: Richard Miller, Reagan Brown, and Steve Haggbloom Department of Psychology Western Kentucky University Abstract This research examined organizational sources and levels of Burnout and Job Satisfaction of a large scale agribusiness (n=300) by administering the Maslach Burnout Inventory – General Survey, the Hoppock Job Satisfaction Blank, the Areas of Work Life Survey, and demographic questions. This study provided normative sample data for the agribusiness sector, found a good degree of fit between the agribusiness sample data and existing industry norms, and determined the relationships between burnout and job satisfaction for the agribusiness sector followed known patterns of other industries. Recommendations are made for future normative research to be conducted on a larger and more diverse sample size, in order to better draw conclusions for the industry as a whole.

Given the growth of households headed by women, one of the biggest social concerns is the high poverty level within these households. Studies have shown that individuals living in female-headed households are more likely to be in poverty than those in other types of households due to women's disadvantaged position in the labor market. However, the disadvantage of women in the labor market does not necessarily lead to poverty within households headed by women. The livelihood of female-headed households is determined by contextual factors as well as the labor market condition, because the labor market, family and welfare policies all contribute to family well-being within a particular national context. Using both quantitative and qualitative method, I examine various components that are associated with social and family life of Mexican female heads and single mothers: living arrangements, household practices, the labor market, and welfare policy. Interview data with Mexican single mothers provide this research with basic research questions as well as evidences supporting the findings of quantitative analyses about the association between poverty and those women. Quantitative data analyses show that kinship network is important resources of welfare of female-headed or single-mother households in Mexico. First, the prevalence of female-headed households in Mexico is associated with gender-specific migration, increased economic opportunities for women, and marriage-market conditions. Second, Mexican female heads have household income relatively higher than or equivalent to that of male heads, and this peculiarity is attributed to the financial support to female-headed households provided by family networks, and to the selection process of single mothers. Third, extended family members residing with mothers affect their time allocation, and the effects vary by the gender of the extended family member and the mothers' marital status. / text

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Master / Master of Science in Real Estate and Construction

This thesis follows a neo-institutional economics approach to analyse the economic nature of contractual arrangements in the Hong Kong construction industry. It explains that subcontracting can reduce transaction costs: (1) using piece-rate contracts to replace time-wage contracts to save the high costs of monitoring; and (2) using subcontractors as intermediaries to perform tasks at a lower transaction cost due to their comparative advantages in gathering price information, specific knowledge and resources. The above assertions are evaluated in terms of three refutable hypotheses using statistics published by the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong SAR Government. Hypothesis I: To be employed with short term contracts is not preferred by the construction workers than to be employed with long term contracts; Hypothesis II: A subcontractor is not more commonly used in construction works of higher values than in those of lower values; Hypothesis III: A subcontractor is not more commonly used in construction works by ordinary trades than in those by special trades. In Table 1 summarizes the test results for each hypothesis and states their wider theoretical implications. The three hypotheses are all refuted. The message is that subcontracting is neither an inefficient contractual arrangement nor a means of exploitation by the upstream contractors. It is rather the result of the free choice of the contracting parties, as a matter of constrained maximization in a private property rights system, seeking to reduce transaction costs. Table 1. Summary of Tests Results for Hypotheses I, II and III Hypotheses Regarding Subcontracting in the Hong Kong Construction Industry Test Results Theoretical Implications Hypothesis I To be employed with short term contracts is not preferred by the construction workers than to be employed with long term contracts. Hypothesis refuted. The construction workers prefer being employed with piece-rate contracts or casual daily wage contracts. Hypothesis II A subcontractor is not more commonly used in construction works of higher values than in those of lower values. Hypothesis refuted. A subcontractor is more commonly used in construction works of higher values and by ordinary trades. Subcontracting is not a matter of random choice but for reducing transaction costs. Subcontracting decision would depend on the characteristics of the construction works. Hypothesis III A subcontractor is not more commonly used in construction works by ordinary trades than in those by special trades. Hypothesis refuted. A subcontractor is more commonly used in construction works of higher values and by ordinary trades. Subcontracting is not a matter of random choice but for reducing transaction costs. Subcontracting decision would depend on the characteristics of the construction works. / published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

This dissertation seeks to investigate the grading system and its effect on the private property development right of historic buildings in Hong Kong. Unlike the statutory nature of declaring a monument, the grading system is an administrative and internal measure that is mainly referred to the Antiquities and Monuments Office and Antiquities Advisory Board, and has no statutory significance. It could be understood that statutory measures, like declaring a monument, has an effect on development rights in the way that development parameters imposed under statutes have an effect on a given site; however despite the administrative nature of the grading system, there is a very strong perception among property owners and development that historical building gradings also have an effect on development rights. This dissertation will introduce the notion of and conflict between private property development rights and heritage conservation. Case studies from the local Hong Kong context will be used to illustrate the frustrations property owners face when trying to determine the future of their graded historic buildings. The dissertation will conclude using uses overseas case studies to provide some pointers on the way forward for the local heritage conservation system. / published_or_final_version / Conservation / Master / Master of Science in Conservation