This thesis analyzes the political economy of oil in the post-Soviet Kazakhstan. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan, which is one of the newly independent states of the former Soviet geography, became very popular in the international arena with its hydrocarbon riches. There have been discussions in the scholarly and international political agendas that the country will suffer from the so called &ldquo / curse&rdquo / that is associated with the producing states. This dissertation looks at the political, economic and social dynamics associated with the post-Soviet environment in Kazakhstan and the impact of oil revenues on each one of those domains. It discusses Kazakhstan&rsquo / s political economy by engaging three relevant literatures on the issue. To this end first it is argued that the rentier state model which has been developed based on the experiences of other oil producing states is useful to understand the political economy of post-Soviet Kazakhstan, however it fails to explain its dynamics fully. Therefore, the dissertation engages with post-Soviet transformation as well as critical geopolitics literatures to overcome some of the gaps in the rentier state model. It has been argued that while analyzing the political economy of oil in Kazakhstan it is possible to identify three major trends with regard to the impact of oil revenues on the post-Soviet environment. The first one of those post Soviet trends is the consolidation of pre-existing institutions and structures. Second one is the restructuring of pre-existing institutions and third one is the creation of new institutions that was not present during the Soviet environment.

In this study the mechanisms that control attention in natural scenes was examined. It was explored whether familiarity with the environment makes participants more sensitive to changes or novel events in the scene. Previous investigation of this issue has been based on viewing 2D pictures/images of simple objects or of natural scenes, a situation which does not accurately reflect the challenges of natural vision. In order to examine this issue, as well as the differences between 2D and 3D environments, two experiments were designed in which the general task demands could be manipulated. The results revealed that familiarity with the environment significantly increased the time spent fixating regions in the scene where a change had occurred. The results support the hypothesis that we learn the structure of natural scenes over time, and that attention is attracted by deviations from the stored scene representation. Such a mechanism would allow attention to objects or events that were not explicitly on the current cognitive agenda.

ABSTRACT SEX DIFFERENCES IN VISUAL REACTION TIME: EFFECT OF SPORT PARTICIPATION AND DRIVING Tanyel, Emine &Ouml / zge M.S., Department of Physical Education and Sport Supervisor: Y. Do&ccedil / . Dr. Sadettin Kirazci July 2007, 84 pages The purpose of this study is to investigate whether sport participation and driving has any effect on the differences between sexes in visual reaction time (RT). There were three groups (control, exercise, driver), and 20 males and 20 females in each group. The sport participation group was athletes from taekwondo were training at least for five years, minimum three days per week throughout the year. The driver group was males and females were working as representatives of companies and driving at least 20.000 km. annually for the last four years. Each participant was asked to read and sign informed consent and information form at the beginning of the study. Participants were measured three times for simple visual RT, simple visual RT with movement, two and three visual choices RTs for both hands. Descriptive statistics was performed for the four measures according to the groups and sexes. Group and sex differences were examined with MANOVA. The result indicated statistically significant interaction between sex and group for both hands in favor of males for most of the comparisons. Significant differences were also found between three groups and between two sexs for both hands. This study indicated that long term sport participation requiring visual information and driving extensively shorten visual reaction of the participants compared to their counterparts who were not acting in sport and driving.

This study aimed to reveal the effect of cinematherapy on perfectionism and related Early Maladaptive Schemas and investigates the contribution of participants&rsquo / identification with the film and recall of the film on this process. 34 university students from Psychology Department at Middle East Technical University participated in the study. The participants completed a demographic information form, Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, three Early Maladaptive Schema (Emotional Inhibition, Unrelenting Standards-Hypercriticalness, Approval Seeking-Recognition Seeking) items from Young Schema Questionnaire, Film &Ouml / zdeSleSme &Ouml / l&ccedil / egi (an identification scale developed for this study), and Film Recall Test (specific for the selected film) at pre-, post-, and a 10 days follow-up. There were two groups in this study, the first group only watched the selected film and completed assessment devices. The second group watched the selected film and then got a briefing about perfectionism. ANOVAs were conducted to assess differences on perfectionism and related schemas at different time intervals and between groups. According to results, watching the selected film had an effect on participant&rsquo / s perfectionism. Moreover, cinematherapy had no effect on perfectionism related schemas when they were analyzed together. However, it was found that watching the selected film had a temporary effect on Emotional Inhibition schema. A regression analysis was conducted to investigate the association between identification, recall of the film and perfectionism. According to regression analysis, identification with the film and recall of the film had no association with the participants&rsquo / perfectionism. The findings, and their implications with suggestions for future research and practice, were discussed in the light of relevant literature.

ABSTRACT STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR A GYPSUM PLASTERBOARD PRODUCING COMPANY &Ouml / zaydin, Elif M.Sc. Department of Industrial Engineering Supervisor: Prof. Dr. &Ccedil / aglar G&uuml / ven October 2007, 118 pages This thesis creates a specific methodology for strategy development while drawing on approaches reported in the literature. The analysis is done at a company that produces gypsum, gypsum board, and related products. A sequential planning method is used where an environmental analysis is conducted in order to define the features of the environment that the company operates in. Then a capability analysis reveals the strengths and weaknesses of the company. For strategy development, this thesis introduces a position index that is used to discuss and differentiate alternative positions. Strategic options for a position are determined by common methods and results from the analyses. The evaluation is conducted with company management, and finally a future position is determined considering company objectives.

The purpose of the present study was to examine the underlying mechanism of memory distrust as a function of repeated checking in a nonclinical student sample. Recent literature proposes that repeated checking increases familiarity with the material checked. Then, familiarity makes the recollections less vivid and detailed. Afterwards, this condition promotes distrust in memory. Before the experimental phase of the study, Padua Inventory- Washington State University Revision (PI-WSUR) and demographic information form were applied to the 381 students (232 female, 149 male) university students. Then, 84 students were selected according to their PI-WSUR scores. The students scored half standard deviation below the mean of the group were assigned to the low OCD group (N= 42) and the students scored half standard deviation above the mean were assigned to the high OCD group (N= 42). In the experimental phase of the study, an interactive computer animation was developed to test repeated checking behavior. Before the experiment, participants were randomly assigned to two groups: primed with feedback group and primed with no feedback group. In the experiment, participants were all asked to carry out checking rituals on a virtual gas ring. Each participant performed turning on, turning off and checking processes for 15 trials. However, half of the participants in the primed with feedback group were given feedback indicating that the checking activity was successful and complete and half of the participants in the primed with no feedback group were not given any feedback. The data are analyzed by 2 (Group: Low OCD group - High OCD Group) X 2 (Feedback condition: Primed with Feedback Group - Primed with no Feedback Group) Between Subjects ANOVA. Results showed that participants in the primed with feedback group had significantly higher scores on both memory confidence for the last checking trial of the gas rings and overall outcome confidence for all fifteen checking trials than participants in the primed with no feedback group. There was no significant group main effect and interaction effect (group x feedback condition) for the level of memory confidence and overall outcome confidence. There were also no significant group and feedback condition main effects and interaction effect for the level of vividness and detail of the recollections of the last checking behavior. Results are discussed in the light of the related literature.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between false memory and trait anxiety, depression and personality characteristics with emotionally valenced material (positive, depression related, threat related and neutral). Participants were 131 Middle East Technical University students. Four groups (depressed, anxious, mixed and control) were formed in order to differentiate the effects of trait anxiety and depression. Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Trait Form of State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-I) were administered. In order to measure false memory creation, a variant of Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm was used. It was hypothesized that the anxious group would produce more false memories for threat related words as compared to other groups. In addition, the depressed group was expected to display higher levels of false memory for depression related words as compared to other groups. One-way MANOVA was used to analyze the data. The results showed that there was a group difference only in terms of threat related words&rsquo / accuracy. Also people were categorized as &ldquo / low&rdquo / and &ldquo / high&rdquo / in the six personality characteristics as measured by Big Five Questionnaire. It was hypothesized that people high in openness to experience would commit less false memories as compared to people low in the trait. This was true for only positive material. Further, other personality characteristics were analyzed in order to discover the relationship between false memory and personality. The results were discussed in terms of relevant literature.

Co-branded products emerge when two or more brands combine their forces to create a new product with its own identity. More and more companies use cobranding strategy to reduce the risks inherent in creating new products. Moreover, consumers evaluate some of those products favorably. Understanding of consumers&rsquo / perceptions of co-branded products is important for learning the importance of product design on these products. This thesis explores the reasons why consumers perceive one of the partner brands of a co-branded product more dominant than the other and presents the outcomes of a survey study carried out for that purpose. The thesis comprises a two-part literature review on co-branding and brand dominance. The survey study comprises a questionnaire that is filled out by 48 Dutch participants. Through such a study the reasons of consumers&rsquo / perceptions of partner brand dominance were revealed / the strong influence of the fit between a partner brand and the co-branded product and product design on consumers&rsquo / perceptions of a dominant partner brand was evidenced. Moreover, the implications of gaining such an insight about the reasons of partner brand dominance for designers and brand owners were discussed.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of core self-evaluations (CSEs) and core external-evaluations (CEEs) on performance evaluations. It was hypothesized that people with higher levels of CSEs and CEEs would be more lenient in their performance ratings, when rating neutral performance. The second hypothesis of the study was that people with higher and lower CSEs would engage more in halo when rating neutral performance compared to people with average levels of CSEs. It was further hypothesized that CEEs would moderate the relationship between CSEs and performance ratings given. A total of 129 students from the Middle East Technical University participated in this study. They were given the core self- and external-evaluations scales, as well as two distractor scales (PANAS and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale). They were later assigned randomly to either the neutral or the good performance vignette conditions, and asked to rate the performance of a departmental secretary whose performance was described in the vignette using two different performance rating forms that included the relevant performance dimensions and behaviors of the secretary. The first one of these forms is the Behavior Observation Scale (BOS) and the second one is the Graphic Rating Scale (GRS). The results showed that CSEs did not have a significant effect on the performance evaluations given. When the mood of the participants was controlled, however, people who had higher CSEs gave lower performance ratings to neutral performance than people who had lower CSEs, with the GRS as the rating form. Thus, the first hypothesis was not supported and even an opposite effect emerged. The second hypothesis found no support, as the standard deviations of the performance ratings given by people with high, low or average CSEs did not differ significantly from each other for the neutral performance vignette condition, even when the mood of the participants was controlled. However, the standard deviations of the ratings given by participants with average CSEs were higher than that of the participants with low and high CSEs for the good performance vignette condition. Hypothesis three was not supported either, as CEEs were not found to moderate the relationship between CSEs and the performance ratings.

For the purpose of achieving gender equality in education, this study analyses the transformative power of the elementary school teacher candidates on society. The theories in the field of sociology of education have been used as a starting point for the study. Based on the feminist pedagogies of different strands of feminism, feminist critical pedagogy has been presented to achieve gender equality in education. The transformation of curriculum and the hidden curriculum are elaborated to achieve a non-sexist education. After the depiction of the situation Turkey holds in the field of women&rsquo / s education, the research conducted in three universities using feminist methodology and interview method is presented. With a view on their gender socialization, gender perceptions of the teacher candidates are analyzed. The ways their lives both inside and outside the household are affected by patriarchal hegemony are depicted and their ideas on education and the reproduction of gender through education are analyzed. The new generation of teachers holds low transformative power to transform the inequalities in society. However, the females in the group are leading their own individual struggles that lead to changes in their close circles. The simplified notion of patriarchy they have makes them blind to the reproduction of it by women and supports the bias against feminists. The fact that they are open to change and yet detached from civil society is reason to conclude that in the short run the most influential results can be obtained through the institutional changes at teacher training programs and schools.