In an ever changing global economy, higher education experiences accountability issues in educating the workforce. Graduates require the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the global workplace. For graduates to have the opportunity to attain this understanding and expertise, it is critical to identify what influences curriculum development to create a curriculum that meets workplace needs. The purpose of this study was to contribute to a better understanding of curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs. More specifically what impacts the curriculum and if skill standard(s) and/or competency list(s), are used when developing program-level curriculum for higher education fashion merchandising programs. Descriptive research examined the internal and external influences and standard(s) and/or competency list(s) used in curriculum development. Electronically, an invitation to participate and the survey instrument were sent to faculty in apparel and textile programs across the United States. Data were collected from 96 apparel and textile faculty. Data revealed internal influences, more so than external influences, impacted curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs. The largest percentage and extent of internal influence on curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs was faculty background; program mission was also a major internal influence. The largest percentage and extent of external influence on curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs was marketplace/employers. No statistically significant relationship was found between the participants' type of institution (undergraduate and graduate granting) and internal and external influences. However, more research is called for to examine the specific internal influence of program mission and the external influence of marketplace/employers. Current curriculum influences, skill standard(s) and/or competency list(s) used, and type of institution were examined in this research study. The study proposes that the higher education fashion merchandising curriculum is influenced, in varying degrees, by internal and external influences and that skill standard(s) and/or competency list(s) from many sources are used in curriculum development. Undergraduate or graduate institutions were not differentially influenced by internal or external factors.

Abstract The purpose of this essay is to shed light on why the democratic developments in Botswana and Zimbabwe, despite their many similarities, have gone in very different directions. By the time of their respective independence, both countries proclaimed themselves democratic states. However, only Botswana succeeded in the transition, while Zimbabwe soon fell back into an autocratic regime. The method used is a comparative case study. By comparing the cases Botswana and Zimbabwe in according to five selected democratic variables, this method makes it possible to explain why only Botswana succeeded. The research questions are: How have Botswana’s and Zimbabwe’s respective democratic transitions happened? What factors have influenced and guided the direction of the democratic development in Botswana and Zimbabwe? The following democratic variables will guide the comparison: “Economic development”, “Market economy”, “Strong middleclass”, “External influences” and “Political leaders dedicated to democracy”.                 The results show considerable differences between the democratic transitions of Botswana and Zimbabwe as regards all the selected democratic variables. The comparative method thus proved to be an effective tool to explain the democratic development in the two countries investigated in this case study. However, these factors potentially just scratch the surface and, in a theory-developing spirit, more democratic factors can broaden the explanation even more.

[pt] As transições ocorridas no sul europeu durante a década de 1970 originaram inúmeras investigações sobre suas origens, causas, desenvolvimento e possíveis efeitos sobre as estruturas e práticas políticas vigentes ao final do processo. Ao mesmo tempo, a transformação dos regimes português, grego e espanhol, revelaram uma importante dimensão internacional que incentivou diversas análises sobre este aspecto freqüentemente ignorado pelos estudos referentes a processos de transição democrática. O presente trabalho objetiva contrapor as teses de Laurence Whitehead e Philippe Schmitter à luz do caso espanhol, procurando demonstrar que a proposta analítica apresentada por Schmitter é a mais adequada para o entendimento da influência internacional no processo de democratização ocorrido na Espanha na década de 1970. / [en] The democratic transitions in the European South during the decade of 1970 has originated innumerable inquiries on its origins, causes, development and possible efects on the structures and pratical effective politics to the end of the process. At the same time, the transformation of Portuguese, Greek and Spanish regimes has disclosed an important international dimension tha stimulated diverse analyses on this aspect frequently ignored by the studies concerning the procecss of democratic transition. This works seeks to contrapose the thesis of Laurence Whitehead and Philippe Schmitter in view of the Spanish case, having in view to demonstrate that the analitical proposal of Schmitter is the most appropriate to understand the international influences in the democratizations process happened in Spain in the 1970 decade.

| 1 Abstract The aim of the thesis is the contentual and procedural analysis of customers purchase behavior. Both analyses point out several internal and external factors, which play their role in customer's decision making process. The result of this process is or is not the purchase of the product. The combined research enables to identify the factors and determine their importance. In the qualitative research part parameters of the research are set based on semi-structured interviews. The parameters are then quantitatively measured according to their importance, after that they are analysed by means of factor analysis and via comparison the statistically important differences in decision making process among several target groups. Considering also the external factors influencing the sales process the perception of the same parameters by salesmen is researched as well, because they are a part of the customers decision making process and whose expectations also actively affect the process. The discovered factors were then compared with the Maslow's hierarchy of needs. From the other results of the research the conclusion was drawn that there do exist statistically important gender differences, differences between perception of the customers needs among various owners of sales points and among salesmen....

Internationellt resande är en uppskattad och naturlig del av livet för många människor som lever i Sverige idag. Resande kan vara avslappnande, äventyrligt och en härlig upplevelse men det kan även innebära risker. Brottslighet, hälsoproblem, politisk instabilitet och terrorism är alla reala risker som turister kan råka ut för på sina resor. En risk innebär en osäkerhet om, och i så fall när det kan inträffa och det går inte att förutsäga. Denna osäkerhet innebär att turister får förlita sig på sin uppfattning av hur riskabelt det är att exempelvis besöka en destination med hög brottslighet. Personers riskuppfattning i samband med internationella resor har fastställts påverkas av yttre faktorer och inre faktorer. Personer motiveras även av olika faktorer till att resa och har olika åsikter och preferenser för vad de vill uppleva på sina internationella resor. En del av denna skillnad mellan turister har förklarats med att personer har olika behov av att uppleva nya, spännande och äventyrliga händelser på sina resor. Andra motiveras istället av att ta det lugnt och på ett säkert sätt uppleva vad destinationen och turistindustrin kan erbjuda. Turister kan särskiljas i två extremer. En extrem är människor som motiveras av äventyr och överraskningar, så kallade noveltysökare. Den andra extremen är människor som vill ta det lugnt och resa på ett tryggt sätt så kallade familiaritysökare. Personer kan även motiveras av delar en blandning från båda dessa extremer och kan då kallas för neutrala resenärer.   Uppsatsens syfte är att undersöka riskuppfattning vid internationella resor samt att undersöka om det efter en indelning av respondenterna i novelty-familiaritysökande grupper går att fastställa några skillnader i hur riskabla de upplever att riskerna är under internationella resor. För att undersöka detta utförs en kvantitativ enkätundersökning. Med det teoretiska ramverket och den kvantitativa enkätundersökningen har slutsatser dragits utifrån uppsatsens syfte och frågeställningar.   Respondenterna i undersökningen upplever att terrorism, politisk instabilitet, brott och hälsoproblem utgör risker under internationella resor. Terrorism var den risk som i högst grad påverkade respondenternas beslut rörande resande. Med sambandstester fastslogs att det finns samband mellan respondenternas uppfattning rörande riskerna och deras relations till yttre och inre påverkan.   Respondenterna kunde utifrån deras preferenser och motivation för internationellt resande delas in i de tre grupperna familiaritysökande, neutrala resenärer och noveltysökande. Respondenternas tillhörighet i turistgrupperna och deras svar på hur riskabelt de upplever att de fyra riskerna är, sambandstestades. Utifrån detta går det att fastställa att noveltysökande turister upplever att riskerna terrorism, politisk instabilitet och hälsoproblem utgör en lägre risk under internationella resor än vad de familiaritysökande turisterna gör. Detta ger stöd till tidigare forskning som fastställt att ett sådant samband existerar.

L’objet de cette thèse en science politique est de dégager, à partir de l’histoire politique du Rwanda et de ses influences ou relations extérieures africaines et internationales (notamment avec le Burundi, la RD du Congo, l’Ouganda, l’Allemagne, la Belgique, la France, le Royaume-Uni, les États-Unis, l’ONU, l’UE, l’UA), les causes de l’effondrement de l’État rwandais (lors du génocide de 1994) et les pistes de solutions qui pourraient aider à sa reconstruction et/ou reconstitution. Cela pourrait aussi servir d’exemple à d’autres pays (notamment d’Afrique, d’Asie et d’Amérique latine) qui utilisent l’appartenance ethno-raciale et/ou régionale de la population, la mobilisation des gens sur base de leurs identités réelles ou supposées, la politisation des races ou des différences, la racialisation de la politique, le copinage politique ou tout simplement les ‘’voies négatives’’ de l’ethnopolitique comme fondement intellectuel ou label idéologique du pouvoir. Une réponse durable aux sanglants affrontements et aux crises politiques incessantes qui agitent le Rwanda et le Burundi pourrait être un projet politique autre qu’ethno-racial (basé plutôt sur la paix, la démocratie et le développement humain), la séparation géographique de type "Hutuland" et "Tutsiland" « par des moyens pacifiques et par voie d'accord », (selon les accords d'Helsinki de 1975 de l’OSCE dans le prolongement de la Charte de l’ONU sur le droit des peuples à disposer d’eux-mêmes de 1945, art.1 et de 1966, art.1) dans le scénario de l’ancien Ruanda-Urundi, mais avec chacun une seule communauté, et l’intégration régionale à l’instar de l’Union européenne, tout en respectant le droit international. / The purpose of this PhD thesis in political science is to pinpoint, based on the political history of Rwanda and its external influences or relations at african and international level (particularly with Burundi, the DR of Congo, Uganda, Germany, Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, the UN, the EU and the AU), the causes of the collapse of the Rwandan state (during the 1994 genocide) and the potential solutions that could help to rebuild and/or reform it. This could also serve as an example to other countries (particularly those in Africa, Asia and Latin America), which use the ethno-racial and/or regional affiliation of the population, the mobilization of people based on their real or supposed identities, the politicization of races or differences, racialization of politics, political cronyism or quite simply the “negative ways” of ethnopolitics as an intellectual basis or ideological label of power. A sustainable response to the bloody conflicts and endless political crises afflicting Rwanda and Burundi could be a political project rather than an ethno-racial one (based more on peace, democracy and human development), geographical separation in the style of "Hutuland" and "Tutsiland" “by peaceful means and through agreement” (according to the 1975 Helsinki Accords of the OSCE in the extension of the UN Charter on the right of peoples to self-determination in 1945, Art.1 and 1966, Art.1) in the setting of the former Ruanda-Urundi, but each with a separate community and regional integration in a manner similar to that of the European Union, while respecting international law.