Over the past years, the rapid transformation in social vironment and the vigorous political development have stimulated the public to raise their demand for the government¡¦s administration and service quality. In order to elevate administrative effectiveness, increase competitiveness,and satisfy the public¡¦s demand for service quality, the government has undergone government renovation, the implementation of ¡§electronic government¡¨being part of this movement. Household administration, tax collection, traffic administration, and land administration are examples of computerization. Moreover, because the government budget is limited and affairs of land administration are complicated, it took more time to computerize land administration affairs. However, it has been implemented for some time, and the ¡§effectiveness¡¨is to be evaluated. ¡@¡@This study was to evaluate the effectiveness and quality of the service rendered by the Land Affairs Administration of Kaohsiung County after it implemented computerization. There are various scale methods which can be used to evaluate performance and degree of satisfaction. This study adopted the PZB model, proposed by Parsuraman, Zeithaml and Berry¡]1985¡^to analyze the differences in the cognition of service quality among the public, land administration supervisors, and employees. The finding would serve as scientific foundation for the land affairs administration to improve its service quality. The major finding was classified into four categories: (1) Some of the 25 survey items in Gap 1 and Gap 2 of service quality were rejected, (2) All the 25 survey items in Gap 3 and Gap 5 of service quality were rejected; (3) The satisfaction gap of the public was larger than that of paralegal service and brokers, (4) After examining the variance of sex, age, and education of the public, it was found that age was the most powerful varable. ¡@¡@This study found that the land administration supervisors obtained higher average scores on emphasizing service quality than those obtained by their public and employees counterparts, indicating that the supervisors attached more importance to service quality than the other 25 survey items, indicating that the administration should work hard to make things better. In addition, the public¡¦s mean score of satisfaction the brokers, indicating that the public were less satisfied than the paralegal service with the service quality offered by the land administration. This could be caused by the public¡¦s unfamiliarity with land administration laws and operating procedures, and has produced the differences in the cognition of service quality. The land affairs administration should pay attention to this phenomenon. The performance of land affairs administration offices should be evaluated based on the viewpoint of the public in order to provide service that meets the public¡¦s expectations. To remove all the gaps is what land affairs administration offices should do first in order to improve their service quality.

Household administration is the basis of numerous administrative affairs. Generally speaking, the exercise of household data¡Ðbirth, death, marriage, divorce, adoption, guardianship, parental identification and residence changes¡Ðare basically reference to the government organizations and public and private groups. In October 1997, household administration fully implemented computerization throughout the island, and in June 1998, it passed through the government re-engineering program, with the ideas of enterprising spirit, customer-orientation, service-orientation and respect for citizens, to introduce government re-engineering to achieve the aim of new government movement. Therefore, it is more important to upgrade service quality in government agencies and to sastisfy customers¡¦ demands. However, household administration has implemented computerization for over 5 years, and the effectiveness of service quality is to be evaluated. This study was to evaluate the effectiveness and quality of public service rendered by Household Affairs Administration of Tainan City after it implemented computerization. This study adopted the PZB model, proposed by Parsuraman, Zeithamland and Berry¡]1985¡^to analyze the differences in the Cognition of service quality among the public, household administration supervisors and employees. The model developed ¡§SERVQUAL¡¨ measurement chart of service quality, serving as scientific foundation for household affairs administration to improve its service quality and draw up managerial strategy. The major findings are demonstrated as follows: 1. Gap examination: The 25 items of the survey in Gap1 and Gap2 related to service quality were rejected¡Fall the 25 items in Gap3 and Gap5 of service quality were rejected; in Gap3, employees did not feel satisfied with their service quality; in Gap5, service quality of household administration was to be improved. 2. Managerial strategy¡G Gap1, household administratiors should strengthen training in knowledge of speciality, ask colleagues to strive to be impartial in taking care of citizens applications, try to solve citizens¡¦ problems when they are in trouble, and come up with reward mechanisms to encourage morale to those whose telephone manners and service attitudes are good and kind. Gap2 builds up Organizational Learning, reinforces systematic thinking conception, and sets up the core value of upgrading service quality. Gap3 reinforces employees¡¦ character-building, emotional management, pressure management, communication and negotiation, and in-service training, and suggests to the superiors¡¦ time that untimely laws and regulations would be released in time. GAP5 improves in the perspectives of working environment and service facilities, positively collecting and accepting the public opinions, performing operational standardization, reinforceing control system and stressing the importance of teamwork. 2¡BAnalysis of differences¡G supervisors, employees, the public, paralegal and Li chiefs in Household administration would be influenced by sex¡Bage¡Boccupation and education of the public, it was found that occupation was the most powerful variable. 3¡BAnalysis of managerial matrix¡G B area showed an urgent need for improvement. There were 11 items, and it was the most important that household administration should offer one-stop services for the public. In managerial strategy, employees should strengthen in-service training, and combine ISO 2000 measured with six standard deviations in statistics to conduct management. Through the internet¡Bmedia and news propaganda, they should reinforce the guidance for the public on household administration laws and regulations to terminate the gaps. In showing concern, employees in household administration offices should pay much attention to the management of service quality, serve the public in the same mood and coordinate with the public¡¦s needs. In managerial strategy, they should carry out household registration and public affairs according to laws, especially seal imprint registration and reassurance¡Bissuance of ID cards, and do a good duty of a good keeper, and to take precaution to be forged, transformed and counterfeited to get rid of gaps. 4¡BThis study found that supervisors in household administration obtained higher average scores on emphasizing service quality than those obtained by their public, employees, and counter parts. The results indicated that the supervisors attached more important service quality than the other groups. The performance of household affairs administration offices should be evaluated based on the viewpoint of the public in order to provide service that meets the public¡¦s expectations. To remove all the gaps is what household affairs administration offices should do first in order to improve their service quality. In the theoretical perspective, Gap5 was the functions of Gap1, Gap2, Gap3 and Gap4 that each one of the gap was closely correlation. However, the finding was that Gap1 and Gap2 were highly negative correlation. So, the cognition between the supervisors and employees was greatly difference. To make thorough improvements was to launch the learning organization, reinforce Peter Mr. Senge¡¦s five disciplines¡Gchange mental mode, strengthen dynamic system thinking, beyond oneself, challenge oneself constantly, in-depth conversation to conduct group learning, change personal vision into the goal of organizational development and create shared vision. It finds out that the balance point of the problem upgrades the service quality and citizens¡¦ satisfaction, and creates the service-type government.

Historically, hospital institutions came out of the Middle Ages. The unfortunates who found themselves in these places included the poor, pilgrims, travelers, old and the orphaned. Started by Christians to take care of their own monks, hospitals were the epitome of charity and hospitality to its consumers. The purpose of this paper is to use the Gap Theory to explore the nurse-patient relationship within a hospitality setting. This information will be used to clarify points within patients' hospital stays that could have an effect on the patients' intent to return or recommend the institution. Four key attributes were discovered through the review of literature that can help nurses and patients enhance the therapeutic relationship. Trust, hospitableness, flexibility and activation are all attributes that must be present in this relationship for it to reach the full potential. Comprehensive trainings done often can help hospitals keep their nurses and other medical staff updated and educated on these attributes. Literature supports the possibility that hospitals would benefit from an added position: the Hospitality Ambassador. This person would be able to take on non-clinical roles to help relieve the burden of the nursing staff while providing the personalized service that patients have come to expect.

Due to increasing interest in sustainable development, today s engineer is often tasked with designing systems that are environmentally benign over their entire life cycles. Unfortunately, environmental assessments commonly suffer from significant uncertainty due to lack of information, particularly for time-distant life cycle aspects. Under severe uncertainty, traditional uncertainty formalisms require more information than is available. However, a recently devised formalism, information-gap decision theory (IGDT), requires no more information than a nominal estimate; error bounds on that estimate are unknown. The IGDT decision strategy, accordingly, favors the design that is robust to the most estimation error while still guaranteeing no worse than some good enough critical level of performance. In some cases, one can use IGDT to identify a preferable design option without needing more information or more complex uncertainty analysis. In this dissertation, IGDT is investigated and shown to enhance decision support for environmentally benign design and manufacturing (EBDM) problems. First, the applicability of the theory to EBDM problems is characterized. Conditions that warrant an info-gap analysis are reviewed, the insight it can reveal about design robustness is demonstrated, and practical limitations to its use are revealed. Second, a new mathematical technique is presented that expands capabilities for analyzing robustness to multiple info-gap uncertainties simultaneously. The technique elicits scaling factors more rigorously than before and allows one to imprecisely express their beliefs about info-gap scaling. Two examples problems affected by info-gaps are investigated: oil filter selection and remanufacturing process selection. It is shown that limited information about uncertainty can, in some cases, indeed enable one to identify a most preferable design without requiring more information.

No description available.

Text in Afrikaans, abstract in Afrikaans and English / Suid-Afrika het ongekende verstedeliking ervaar en agtergeblewe verbruikers het hulle in gebiede in en om stede gevestig. Steeds toenemende verstedeliking veroorsaak enersyds probleme aangesien basiese infrastruktuurvoorsiening (elektrisiteit, water, en riool) ontbreek. Andersyds laat die afwesigheid van formele kleinhandelsfasiliteite in die agtergeblewe gebiede die vraag ontstaan wat hierdie verbruikers se behoefte aan afsetpunte behels. 'n Ewekansige-waarskynlikheidsnavorsingstudie met 'n steekproef van 300 huishoudings, 'n vraelys, en persoonlike onderhoude is onderneem om die agtergeblewe verbruikers in die Soshanguve gebied se behoeftes na kleinhandelsafsetpunte te bepaal. Die bevinding is dat die meeste verbruikers buite hul woongebied werksaam is, 'n gemiddelde inkomste van tot R2 000 per maand verdien, en dat taxi's die hoofvervoermiddel is. Kleinhandelsaankope word hoofsaaklik in Pretoria en Mabopane gedoen. Daar bestaan wel 'n behoefte na formele kleinhandelsafsetpunte, veral vir bederfbare produkte en kruideniersware soos voorsien deur bekende kleinhandelsintellings soos die OK Bazaars. Die ondersoek bevestig dat Soshanguve kleinhandelsbeleggingsgeleenthede bied vir verskeie kleinhandelsfasiliteite. / South-Africa experienced unknown urbanisation and disadvantaged consumers flocked to the cities. Continuous urbanisation causes infrastructural problems such as a lack of electricity, water, and sewerage facilities. The absence of formal retail outlets in these areas poses the question what retailing needs these consumers do have. A simple random probability research study with a sample of 300 households, a questionnaire, and personal interviews was used to determine the disadvantaged consumers' needs for retail outlets in the Soshanguve area. The results indicate that most consumers work outside Soshanguve, earn an average of up to R2 000 per month, and use taxi's as a means of transportation. Retail purchases are made in Pretoria and Mabopane. There is a definite need for formal retail outlets, especially for perishables and groceries as provided by retailers such as OK Bazaars. The research confirms that there are retail investment opportunities in Soshanguve for the establishment of various retail facilities. / Business Management / M. Comm. (Business Management)

本研究主要目的在根據落差理論建構大學校院輔諮中心輔導服務品質指標與輔導服務品質影響因素，並編製「輔導服務品質量表」及「輔導服務品質影響因素量表」以探討大學校院輔諮中心輔導服務品質現況。依此目的，本研究首先對專家學者、學務長、輔諮中心主任與學生等23人進行訪談，歸納出大學校院輔諮中心的輔導服務品質包含六大指標：「有形性」、「可靠性」、「反應性」、「保證性」、「體貼性」、「認同性」。影響輔導服務品質有四個影響因素，管理階層認知向度、品質承諾向度、輔導服務人員之知能與態度與宣導與溝通向度。 　　本研究以德懷術專家諮詢編製輔導服務品質量表與輔導服務品質影響因素量表。 　　本研究以問卷調查法探討輔導服務品質與影響因素之間的關係與大學校院輔諮中心輔導服務品質的評估。研究對象為98所大學校院輔諮中心的379位輔導老師，與24所學校的1343名學生。資料分析的方法為t考驗、單因子變異數分析、逐步多元迴歸分析。 　　主要研究結果如下： 　　第一，不同背景輔導老師方面：(一)公立學校和私立學校的輔導老師對於其所服務學校輔諮中心的輔導服務品質與輔導服務品質影響因素的評估沒有差異。(二)一般大學和技職院校輔導老師對於其所服務學校輔諮中心的輔導服務品質與其影響因素的評估沒有差異。僅在影響因素的組成因素「員工適配」方面有差異。(三)北一區、北二區、中區以及南區四區大學校院輔諮中心的輔導老師對於其所服務學校輔諮中心的輔導服務品質與輔導服務品質影響因素的評估沒有差異。僅在輔導服務品質指標的「有形性」方面有差異。(四)男性和女性輔導老師對於其所服務學校輔導服務品質的評估沒有差異，但是對影響因素的評估有差異。(五)不同年資輔導老師對於其所服務學校輔諮中心輔導服務品質與輔導服務品質影響因素的評估沒有差異。(六)不論是主任、專任輔導老師、專任心理師、資教輔導老師對於其所服務學校輔導服務品質的評估沒有差異。在影響因素方面，輔導主任的評估都較其他老師較好。(七)不論輔導老師的背景為輔諮專業、相關科系或是非輔諮專業，對於其所服務學校輔導服務品質與輔導服務品質影響因素的評估沒有差異。在影響因素方面組成因素方面有差異。(八)不同教育程度的輔導老師對於其所服務學校輔導服務品質與輔導服務品質影響因素的評估有顯著差異。 　　第二，不同背景學生方面：(一)男學生和女學生對於其所就讀學校輔導服務品質的評估有差異。(二)公立學校和私立學校學生對於其所就讀學校輔諮中心的輔導服務品質的評估沒有差異。(三)不同性質學校學生對於輔導服務品質的評估有差異。(四)不同年級學生對於輔導服務品質的評估有差異。(五)有接受輔導服務經驗的學生比無接受輔導服務經驗的學生對輔諮中心輔導服務品質的評估較好。 　　第三．輔導服務品質指標與輔導服務品質影響因素組成因素之間的關係。(一)「品質承諾」、「控制力」對於輔導服務品質的「有形性」較具有預測力。(二)「員工適配」、「目標設置」、「加強宣導」、「工作標準化」與「學生需求調查」對於輔導服務品質的「可靠性」較具有預測力。(三)「員工適配」、「水平溝通」、「加強宣導」、「學生需求調查」、「監控系統」與「工作標準化」對於輔導服務品質「反應性」較具有預測力。(四)「員工適配」、「控制力」、「加強宣導」、「水平溝通」、「監控系統」與「學生需求調查」對於輔導服務品質「保證性」較具有預測力。(五)「員工適配」、「加強宣導」、「工作標準化」對於輔導服務品質「體貼性」較具有預測力。其中「員工適配」為主要預測變項。(六) 「品質承諾」、「加強宣導」、「水平溝通」、「團隊合作」與「目標設置」對於輔導服務品質的「認同性」較具有預測力。 　　最後，根據研究結果對輔導實務工作及未來相關研究提出建議以供參考。 / The main purpose of this research was to construct fundamental indicators of counseling service quality, develop an inventory of counseling service quality, and assess counseling service quality of university counseling centers. This research was conducted under three processes. First, semistructured interviews of professional scholars, deans of student affairs, directors of counseling center and students were conducted. Six indicators of counseling service quality were obtained from analyzing the responses as follows: tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy and identification. The determinants of counseling service quality involved managers’ perception of students’ expectations, management commitment to service quality, counselors’ competence and attitude, as well as propagation and communication. Several specific criteria emerged for each of the determinants. Second, the inventory was constructed under the framework of literature review and Delphi method. The inventory was finally sent to 379 counselors and 1343 students from 24 universities in Taiwan. The data was analyzed by t-test, one-way ANOVA, and stepwise regression. Our findings are summarized below: First, regarding counselors of different backgrounds: (1) No differences were found between the public and private university counselors in perceived counseling service quality. The same results were found between counselors of differing seniority. (2) The perceived “employee-job fit” of university counselors was better than that of those from vocational university. (3) The perceived tangibility of the first district in northern universities was greater than that of southern universities. (4) There were disparities in the assessment of determinants of counseling service quality between male and female counselors. The same was true with counselors of different professional backgrounds. (5) The perceived counseling service quality of the director and counselors with doctorate degrees from the university counseling center was better than that of other counselors. Second, students with different backgrounds: (1) The perceived counseling service quality was different between males and females, universities and technological universities, different grades, and possessing or not possessing prior counseling experience. (2) No differences were found between public and private university students in perceived counseling service quality. Third, the relationship between counselor service quality indicators and factors of counselor service quality: (1) The criteria of management commitment to service quality and perceived control were the two major factors in predicting the tangibility of counseling service quality. (2) The criteria of “employee-job fit”, goal-setting, propagation-enhancement, task standardization, and student request investigation were the five major factors in predicting the reliability of counseling service quality.3. The criteria of “employee-job fit”, horizontal communication, propagation-enhancement, student request investigation, supervisory control systems, and task standardization were the six major factors in predicting the responsiveness of counseling service quality.4. The criteria of employee-job fit, perceived control, propagation-enhancement, horizontal communication, supervisory control systems, and student research orientation were the six major factors in predicting the assurance of counseling service quality. (5) The criteria of employee-job fit, propagation-enhancement, and task standardization were the six major factors in predicting the empathy of counseling service quality.(6) The criteria of management commitment to service quality, propagation-enhancement, horizontal communication, teamwork and goal-setting were the four major factors in predicting counseling service quality. Based on the results of this study, we have proposed some suggestions and provided reference materials for the counseling profession as well as for the pursuit of further research in this area.

Text in Afrikaans, abstract in Afrikaans and English / Suid-Afrika het ongekende verstedeliking ervaar en agtergeblewe verbruikers het hulle in gebiede in en om stede gevestig. Steeds toenemende verstedeliking veroorsaak enersyds probleme aangesien basiese infrastruktuurvoorsiening (elektrisiteit, water, en riool) ontbreek. Andersyds laat die afwesigheid van formele kleinhandelsfasiliteite in die agtergeblewe gebiede die vraag ontstaan wat hierdie verbruikers se behoefte aan afsetpunte behels. 'n Ewekansige-waarskynlikheidsnavorsingstudie met 'n steekproef van 300 huishoudings, 'n vraelys, en persoonlike onderhoude is onderneem om die agtergeblewe verbruikers in die Soshanguve gebied se behoeftes na kleinhandelsafsetpunte te bepaal. Die bevinding is dat die meeste verbruikers buite hul woongebied werksaam is, 'n gemiddelde inkomste van tot R2 000 per maand verdien, en dat taxi's die hoofvervoermiddel is. Kleinhandelsaankope word hoofsaaklik in Pretoria en Mabopane gedoen. Daar bestaan wel 'n behoefte na formele kleinhandelsafsetpunte, veral vir bederfbare produkte en kruideniersware soos voorsien deur bekende kleinhandelsintellings soos die OK Bazaars. Die ondersoek bevestig dat Soshanguve kleinhandelsbeleggingsgeleenthede bied vir verskeie kleinhandelsfasiliteite. / South-Africa experienced unknown urbanisation and disadvantaged consumers flocked to the cities. Continuous urbanisation causes infrastructural problems such as a lack of electricity, water, and sewerage facilities. The absence of formal retail outlets in these areas poses the question what retailing needs these consumers do have. A simple random probability research study with a sample of 300 households, a questionnaire, and personal interviews was used to determine the disadvantaged consumers' needs for retail outlets in the Soshanguve area. The results indicate that most consumers work outside Soshanguve, earn an average of up to R2 000 per month, and use taxi's as a means of transportation. Retail purchases are made in Pretoria and Mabopane. There is a definite need for formal retail outlets, especially for perishables and groceries as provided by retailers such as OK Bazaars. The research confirms that there are retail investment opportunities in Soshanguve for the establishment of various retail facilities. / Business Management / M. Comm. (Business Management)

<p>The purpose of this dissertation is to provide a proper treatment for two groups of logical paradoxes: semantic paradoxes and set-theoretic paradoxes. My main thesis is that the two different groups of paradoxes need different kinds of solution. Based on the analysis of the diagonal method and truth-gap theory, I propose a functional-deflationary interpretation for semantic notions such as ‘heterological’, ‘true’, ‘denote’, and ‘define’, and argue that the contradictions in semantic paradoxes are due to a misunderstanding of the non-representational nature of these semantic notions. Thus, they all can be solved by clarifying the relevant confusion: the liar sentence and the heterological sentence do not have truth values, and phrases generating paradoxes of definability (such as that in Berry’s paradox) do not denote an object. I also argue against three other leading approaches to the semantic paradoxes: the Tarskian hierarchy, contextualism, and the paraconsistent approach. I show that they fail to meet one or more criteria for a satisfactory solution to the semantic paradoxes. For the set-theoretic paradoxes, I argue that the criterion for a successful solution in the realm of set theory is mathematical usefulness. Since the standard solution, i.e. the axiomatic solution, meets this requirement, it should be accepted as a successful solution to the set-theoretic paradoxes.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Les travaux de la présente thèse portent sur le recalage de modèles dynamiques d’aubes de turbinecomposites à matrice céramique. Ils s’inscrivent dans le cadre de la quantification d’incertitudes pour la validation de modèles et ont pour objectif de fournir des outils d’aide à la décision pour les ingénieurs desbureaux d’études. En effet, la dispersion importante observée lors des campagnes expérimentales invalidel’utilisation des méthodes de recalage déterministe. Après un état de l’art sur la relation entre les incertitudeset la physique, l’approche de Vérification & Validation a été introduite comme approche permettantd’assurer la crédibilité des modèles numériques. Puis, deux méthodes de recalages stochastiques, permettantde déterminer la distribution statistique des paramètres, ont été comparées sur un cas académique. La priseen compte des incertitudes n’élude pas les potentielles compensations entre paramètres. Par conséquent, desindicateurs ont été développés afin de détecter la présence de ces phénomènes perturbateurs. Ensuite, lathéorie info-gap a été employée en tant que moyen de modéliser ces méconnaissances. Une méthode derecalage stochastique robuste a ainsi été proposée, assurant un compromis entre la fidélité du modèle auxessais et la robustesse aux méconnaissances. Ces outils ont par la suite été appliqués sur un modèle éléments / This work is focused on the stochastic updating of ceramic matrix composite turbine blade model. They arepart of the uncertainty quantification framework for model validation. The aim is to enhance the existing toolused by the industrial decision makers. Indeed, consequent dispersion was measured during the experimentalcampaigns preventing the use of deterministic approaches. The first part of this thesis is dedicated to therelationship between mechanical science and uncertainty. Thus, Verification and Validation was introduced asthe processes by which credibility in numerical models is established. Then two stochastic updatingtechniques, able to handle statistic distribution, were compared through an academic example. Nevertheless,taking into account uncertainties doesn’t remove potential compensating effects between parameters.Therefore, criteria were developed in order to detect these disturbing phenomena. Info-gap theory wasemployed as a mean to model these lack of knowledge. Paired with the stochastic updating method, a robuststochasticapproach has been proposed. Results demonstrate a trade-off relationship between the model’sfidelity and robustness. The developed tools were applied on a ceramic matrix composite turbine blade finiteelement model.