LTE- Long Term Evolution, marketed as 4G LTE, is a new generation of mobile-phone network which enable the mobile operator to provide significantly faster mobile broadband data rates. With the new redesign and simplification of the network architecture, 4G LTE can provide five time faster data rates than the current 3G networks. It will help the mobile operators to cope with ever growing mobile data traffic demands in a cost-effective manner. In Taiwan, the licenses for 4G LTE will be issued by the end of 2013, opening another business opportunities for the mobile industry. It’s expected that all the big mobile operators will acquire for the licenses. Telecom equipment vendor such as Nokia Siemens Networks and Ericsson are preparing for 4G LTE network trial and deployment as well. In light of the upcoming 4G LTE deployment in Taiwan, this thesis project was conduct to gain a better understanding of the current mobile users in Taiwan. The goal is to identify and understand customers’ attitudes, preferences, and satisfactions towards the current mobile carriers as well as customers’ expectations of the next generation carrier – 4G LTE. The data input of this thesis are survey data collected by on-line questionnaire from the students at National ChengChi University, and people living in Taiwan. The sample size was 872. The collected data was analyzed by SPSS, a computerized statistical program. The analysis report includes description of the sample, customers’ attitudes, and preferences of the current mobile carriers in general, satisfactions towards their current using carriers, expectations of 4G LTE carriers as well as their preferable carriers. The report also discusses the carrier switching pattern, and the factors influencing the switching behavior. After analyzing the findings of the study, the thesis report proposes that the mobile operators should deploy 4G LTE network coverage as soon as possible, concentrate on increasing mobile data service speed, maintain voice call service quality, offer a wide variety of handsets at some attractive prices and setting tariff rate competitively.

The purpose of my research study was to describe minority parents’ perceptions of how they overcame challenges, sustained involvement, and remained highly involved in their child’s education. Participants’ perceptions were viewed through the theoretical frameworks of appreciative inquiry, positive psychology (Seligman, 1998) and humanistic psychology (Maslow, 1943). A qualitative descriptive multi-case study research design applied appreciative inquiry theoretical research perspective to describe the minority parent’s perceptions of how they overcame challenges, sustained involvement, and remained highly involved in their child’s education. An appreciative inquiry theoretical research perspective centers on the positive core of experiences held by participants. The multiple case study design was selected for utilizing more than one case for evidence and data, thus strengthening the study and increasing its external validity (Yin, 2003). Data were collected through focus groups interviews, and document review. Data were analyzed using pattern matching, the constant-comparative method and CATPAC, a text analysis software designed to show relationships among words. The analyzed data revealed six findings: Six salient findings were derived from my data analysis: (1) Native American and African American parents identified involvement strategies to improve their child’s education; (2) African American parents believed there were issues related to minority relationships within the school and community; (3) Native American and African American parents set expectations for their children; (4) Native American and African American parents expressed pride in their children’s accomplishments; (5) Native American and African American parents linked family values to their role and responsibility as a parent; (6) Native American and African American parents linked teacher care and respect for their child to the child’s success. These findings validate that Native American and African American parents desire to be and can be as successful as any other minority or non-minority parents, at being involved in their children’s education. This group of highly involved parents offered several effective strategies for sustaining involvement in their child’s education. Communication strategies and recognition for what is important in dealing with school personnel has facilitated these parents in their quest to support and help their child through their educational careers. Both Native American and African American parents demonstrated that a belief system centered on the modeling of core and family values, including instilling the value of an education has proven to be effective positive acts for their children and families. A strong, positive, and optimistic belief system as well as a learned ability for effectively interacting with the school system has facilitated these parents in overcoming challenges and obstacles other minority parents often face. I hope that the findings from this study can contribute to furthering an awareness of, and inspiring future research for minority parent involvement in our schools, as well as opening doors to practice and policy changes facilitating the education of children who greatly need to achieve at higher levels in our schools. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Wichita State University, College of Education, Dept. of Educational Leadership

Structured physical activity (SPA) is one type of physical activity in which preschool aged children participate (e.g., soccer programs). Given that SPA often occurs at community-based locations, such as at a field or hockey rink, primary caregivers, who are often times mothers, must transport their preschool aged children to the scheduled SPA. Although studies have examined social cognitions important to individuals participation in their own scheduled physical activity, no study to date has focused on the social cognitions of mothers that may be related to the transportation of their preschool aged children to SPA. The purpose of this two-study dissertation was to use self-efficacy theory to develop and examine the reliability and validity evidence of measures to assess mothers social cognitions (i.e., self-regulatory efficacy to overcome barriers and to schedule/plan; outcome expectations including likelihood and value) that may be related to transporting their children to SPA. A literature review, focus group elicitation with nine participants (Mean age = 35.25 years; SD = 3.57), and feedback from three expert judges and 10 participants were used to develop items for each of the measures in Study 1. The reliability of the measures was then investigated in Study 1 using data from 31 participants (Mean age= 33.50 years; SD = 5.79) to examine initial internal consistency and then 64 participants (Mean age= 32.87 years; SD = 4.48) to further examine internal consistency and temporal stability. Findings revealed some evidence for the content and construct validity, internal consistency, and temporal stability of the measures. To continue the construct validation of the measures, it was important to continue to examine the reliability evidence of the measures and other aspects of validity, including concurrent and predictive validity. In Study 2, data from 93 participants (Mean age= 34.88 years; SD = 5.04) were used to examine evidence of the criterion-related validity (i.e., concurrent and predictive) of the developed measures. Results revealed convergence of the measures that assessed similar constructs (i.e., self-regulatory efficacy to schedule/plan and to overcome barriers; outcome expectations: likelihood and value). However, evidence of the divergence of the self-regulatory efficacy measures from the outcome expectation measures was less consistent. Results also revealed that the self-regulatory efficacy beliefs and outcome expectations measures were not significant, independent predictors of transportation to SPA. These predictive validity findings as well as the divergence findings may have been due to the type of mothers who participated in the study (i.e., highly experienced in transporting children to SPA). Findings from the present series of studies suggest a need for continued exploration of the measures, including research with a more diverse sample. Collecting further reliability and validity evidence of these measures to compare it with the evidence from the present studies would contribute to the ongoing construct validation of these measures.

Syftet med föreliggande studie var att fördjupa sig i begreppet psykologiska kontrakt. Vilka är de outtalade och underförstådda förväntningarna och löftena som finns mellan arbetstagare och arbetsgivare på en arbetsplats? Hur ser arbetet ut för att åskådliggöra skyldigheter och förväntningar och vad sker när dessa inte uppfylls? Sex deltagare från sex olika organisationer intervjuades. För att få olika perspektiv på det psykologiska kontraktet intervjuades både arbetsgivare och arbtestagare. Resultaten visade att arbetsgivare och -tagare hade en samstämmig uppfattning av vad som förväntas av dem och vad de förväntar sig att få i utbyte. Dessa förväntningar och skyldigheter diskuteras framförallt på utvecklings- eller medarbetarsamtal. Resultaten visade även att reaktionerna på kontraktsbrott beror på situationen vilket styrker Conway och Briner (2002) som menar att kontraktsbrott och även handlingar som går utöver det psykologiska kontraktet sker på en daglig basis och är en del av organisationens liv. / The purpose of this study was to get a deeper understanding of the concept of psychological contracts. Which are the unspoken and implicit expectations and promises that exists between employees and employers in the workplace? How do organisations illustrate these obligations and expectations and what happens when they are not met? Six participants from different organizations were interviewed. To get different perspectives on the psychological contract both employers and employees were interviewed. The results showed that employers and employees have congruent perceptions of what is expected of them and what they expect to get in return. These expectations and obligations are discussed mainly on individual development or performance meetings. Results also showed that the reactions to contract breach depends on the situation, which proves Conway and Briner (2002) who argue that the breach of contract and also acts that go beyond the psychological contract is done on a daily basis and is a part of an organization's life.

Until recently, the role of auditors in the 2008 financial crisis had largely been overlooked by regulators and the general public. Though not responsible for the meltdown, accounting firms have been criticized – and sued – for failing to warn investors about problems at financial institutions before the crisis. Auditors can and should take steps to improve their function as independent overseers in the financial world. But there also is a gap between the expectations of auditors and their true responsibilities. As Lord Justice Lopes at the Court of Appeal in England famously said more than a century ago: The auditor “is a watchdog but not a bloodhound.” This thesis examines the so-called expectations gap and recommends ways to improve the audit quality of financial institutions.

Japanese fathers residing abroad have not been given much attention in Japanese scholarship. In this study, I examine how Japanese fathers in the United States negotiate between Japanese and American cultural expectations regarding fatherhood. Relying on a symbolic interactionist perspective, and through qualitative research involving in-depth interviews with 24 Japanese fathers who live in the United States for business, I focus on the men's culture, conduct, and self-identification. My interviews suggest that Japanese fathers who temporarily stay in the United States usually adhere to Japanese culture and, accordingly, live up to Japanese expectations of fatherhood. Thus, paternal modifications influenced by expectations from close associates are due not to their embracing American fatherhood, but rather to their "situational adjustment." Ultimately, this is a study of cognitive boundaries and of how people decide to internalize cultural expectations different than their own.

Pathways to becoming a college student are as numbered and varied as college students themselves. For some people, the pathway to college is marked by barriers, such as negative messages received by the student regarding their abilities to attend college and/or the likelihood that they will get to attend college. On one hand, research suggests that children and adolescents internalize these negative messages, which then have the potential to block achievement in higher education. On the other hand, the general body of resilience research suggests that youth can overcome challenges and defy negative influences, as did the participants of the current study. However, little is known about this process of achievement in the face of negative predictions. Consequently, the current study used qualitative grounded theory methodology to explore the experience of defying negative messages received about becoming a college student. In unstructured interviews, fourteen undergraduate students described their experience of receiving negative messages about their abilities to attend college or the likelihood that they would get to attend college, as well as their subsequent experience of becoming college students in the face of these messages. Based on the literature regarding resilience, negative prediction defiance, and the effects of expectations on academic competence, an ecological model of overcoming negative messages was proposed in which micro, meso, and macrosystemic influences were hypothesized to play a role in encouraging or discouraging college attendance. Although participants came from diverse demographic backgrounds and experienced varied types of negative messages, all of their narratives shared major components, which comprise the theory proposed in the current study. These components are sources of negative messages, perceived underlying influences on sources, reasons to defy the message, facilitators of defiance, and barriers to defiance. This theory was compared to existing theories regarding resilience, negative prediction defiance, and the effects of expectations on academic competence. Additionally, research and policy implications are discussed that highlight the importance of providing youth who may be at-risk to receive negative messages with support in their families, schools, and communities.

This study investigates whether the parent-adolescent relationship is related to the academic, social, and personal-emotional expectations of adjustment and actual adjustment to college during the transition to college. The mother-adolescent relationship was more consistently linked to college adjustment than the father-adolescent relationship both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, and students identified their parents and especially their mother amongst the first people who they go to for support. More African Americans than students from other ethnic backgrounds and more dormitory residents than commuters identified their mother as their first supportive figure, suggesting that the students’ living arrangements and their cultural backgrounds need to be taken under consideration when studying this transitional period.

Research in the area of academic writing has demonstrated that writing varies significantly across disciplines and among genres within disciplines. Two important approaches to studying diversity in disciplinary academic writing have been the genre-based approach and the corpus-based approach. Genre studies have considered the situatedness of writing tasks, including the larger sociocultural context of the discourse community (e.g., Berkenkotter & Huckin, 1995; Bhatia, 2004) as well as the move structure in specific genres like the research article (e.g., Swales, 1990, 2004). Corpus- based studies of disciplinary writing have focused more closely on the linguistic variation across registers, with the re-search article being the most widely studied register (e.g., Cortes, 2004; Gray, 2011). Studies of under-graduate writing in the disciplines have tended to focus on task classification (e.g., Braine, 1989; Horowitz, 1986a), literacy demands (e.g.,Carson, Chase, Gibson, & Hargrove, 1992), or student development (e.g., Carroll, 2002; Leki, 2007). The purpose of the present study is to build on these previous lines of research to explore undergraduate disciplinary writing from multiple perspectives in order to better prepare English language learners for the writing tasks they might encounter in their majors at a US university. Specifically, this exploratory study examines two disciplines: psychology and chemistry. Through writing task classification (following Horowitz, 1986), qualitative interviews with faculty and students in each discipline, and a corpus-based text analysis of course readings and upper-division student writing, the study yielded several important findings. With regard to writing tasks, psychology writing tasks showed more variety than chemistry. In addition, lower division classes had fewer writing assignments than upper division courses, particularly in psychology. The findings also showed a mismatch between the expectations of instructors in each discipline and students’ understanding of such writing expectations. The linguistic analysis of course readings and student writing demonstrated differences in language use both between registers and across disciplines.

The purpose of this paper has been to describe the project manager's experience of the customer relationship in customer order projects. A qualitative interview study has been conducted in which seven project managers were interviewed. A thematic analysis resulted in four overall themes. The results showed the importance of a clear, responsive and open communication as well as a large degree of customization to meet the customer the best way as possible. The experience was also characterized by a dynamic relationship and the importance of the customer's expectations. The project manager's characteristics and experience were very important in all themes and had a significant part in establishing and maintaining customers’ trust. / Syftet med uppsatsen har varit att beskriva projektledarens upplevelse av kundrelationen i kundorderprojekt. En kvalitativ intervjustudie har använts som undersökningsmetod där sju stycken projektledare har intervjuats. Analys av materialet har genomförts med en tematisk analys där fyra övergripande teman framkommit. Resultatet visade på kommunikationens betydelse av att vara tydlig, lyhörd och öppen samt en stor grad av anpassning för att bemöta kunden på bästa sätt. Upplevelsen präglades dessutom av en dynamik i relationen och där kundens förväntningar var betydelsefulla. Projektledarens egenskaper och erfarenhet spelade en stor roll i samtliga teman och visade sig vara viktiga i att etablera och bevara kundens förtroende.