The core competency of the most effective organizations will be their capacity to learn in an increasingly complex and unpredictable business environment and HRD should expand its role to become a partner in the transformation of the entire organization. Organizational learning style, therefore, is an important research topic for the field of HRD (human resource development). This study had four primary purposes, which were germane to the corporations in the Republic of Korea: 1) to identify what organizational learning styles exist; 2) to identify the factors that differentiate the organizations with different organizational learning styles; 3) to identify the roles of HRD to facilitate organizational learning within the organizations in each organizational learning style; and 4) to identify the differences in the roles of HRD to facilitate organizational learning among the organizations with different organizational learning styles. The population for this study was the key informants at the corporations in the three industry areas: wholesale and retail trade; manufacturing; and hotels and restaurants. The survey instrument was delivered to 353 key informants, i.e. HR persons, at 240 corporations and 237 key informants at 166 corporations returned the survey instrument for a return rate of 67.1%. The findings of this study revealed the followings: 1) there are four types of organizational learning styles and the characteristics of each type of organizational learning style is determined by the combination of the organizations?? learning orientations, i.e. Knowledge Source, Learning Content, Dissemination Mode, and Learning Scope; 2) types of organizational culture, industry classification, and the size of an organization are the factors that differentiate the organizations with different organizational learning styles; 3) all roles of HRD are necessary for facilitating organizational learning; and 4) there are not differences in the roles of HRD to facilitate organizational learning among the organizations with different organizational learning styles.

The core competency of the most effective organizations will be their capacity to learn in an increasingly complex and unpredictable business environment and HRD should expand its role to become a partner in the transformation of the entire organization. Organizational learning style, therefore, is an important research topic for the field of HRD (human resource development). This study had four primary purposes, which were germane to the corporations in the Republic of Korea: 1) to identify what organizational learning styles exist; 2) to identify the factors that differentiate the organizations with different organizational learning styles; 3) to identify the roles of HRD to facilitate organizational learning within the organizations in each organizational learning style; and 4) to identify the differences in the roles of HRD to facilitate organizational learning among the organizations with different organizational learning styles. The population for this study was the key informants at the corporations in the three industry areas: wholesale and retail trade; manufacturing; and hotels and restaurants. The survey instrument was delivered to 353 key informants, i.e. HR persons, at 240 corporations and 237 key informants at 166 corporations returned the survey instrument for a return rate of 67.1%. The findings of this study revealed the followings: 1) there are four types of organizational learning styles and the characteristics of each type of organizational learning style is determined by the combination of the organizations?? learning orientations, i.e. Knowledge Source, Learning Content, Dissemination Mode, and Learning Scope; 2) types of organizational culture, industry classification, and the size of an organization are the factors that differentiate the organizations with different organizational learning styles; 3) all roles of HRD are necessary for facilitating organizational learning; and 4) there are not differences in the roles of HRD to facilitate organizational learning among the organizations with different organizational learning styles.

For several decades, a growing realization has evolved that a single entity often cannot address complex issues. Collaboration has been touted as an effective approach to addressing such issues and is generally defined as multiple parties jointly identifying problems, developing a shared vision for addressing those problems, and sharing resources and responsibilities for a determined solution. In spite of the growing literature regarding collaboration, the predominant focus has been on advocacy, leaving a void in the literature concerning the processes and behaviors involved in establishing community collaboration. In essence, the importance of collaboration is widely recognized; how to collaborate is not as noted. Therefore, it is essential to examine the experience of community collaboration. The purpose of this study was to investigate a collaborative community experience in the context of extension education for children, youth, and families at risk in four localities in Virginia. The following research questions were addressed: a) What has been the nature and experience of collaboration for Extension Leadership councils (ELCs) involved with children, youth, and families at risk (CYFAR) projects; b) What has contributed to successful collaboration in Extension education with the CYFAR projects; and c) What have been the challenges to collaboration for the CYFAR projects? The qualitative case study design utilized in-depth face-to-face interviews with seventeen community representatives in the selected localities involved in the experience. The interviews were tape-recorded and transcriptions were analyzed to determine themes, patterns, and common ways of thinking. Findings, which revealed that ELCs were primarily involved in situation analysis, illuminated the following perceived contributions to successful collaboration: having a process for involvement, addressing a need, commitment of those involved, leadership, and paid staff. Challenges to collaboration were identified as lack of time to commit, lack of understanding of collaboration, and pre-existing ways of thinking and acting. The results have implications for Cooperative Extension understanding how ELC involvement can occur in programming and the collaborative nature of their educational process with the community. The findings will also contribute to human service providers' understanding of contributions and challenges to collaboration and to the emerging body of knowledge on collaboration. / Ph. D.

This thesis presents results of research I conducted during Spring 2003 through an internship with a private economic development organization (called here the TBEDO) that markets the strategically branded, seven-county region know as Tampa Bay domestically and internationally. This internship provided me with the means to conduct research about Tampa Bay's international economy and explore the elusive topic of globalization. It provided me with networking opportunities needed to "study up" on business elites and to understand what their international development agendas are, how they accomplish these objectives, whether they subscribe to the belief that the world has undergone a qualitative change called globalization, and how their global agendas are expected to impact Tampa Bay residents. My work at the TBEDO revealed that this high-profile organization has only recently begun to formulate a strategy for marketing the Bay Area internationally. Its internationally oriented activities are few in number and reflect no long-term goals, and its connections with internationally affiliated organizations are uneven. My key informant interviews with professionals working in international development and marketing allowed the exploration of issues including the consistency of my respondents' international agendas with those of the TBEDO, the relevancy of the globalization concept to the Bay Area, and my respondents' understanding of this concept. I also explore the difference between globalization as a perceived set of pressures determining how business must be done and globalization as a marketing strategy employed by business elites. More important in terms of the applied implications of this research is the impact that the international business agendas of the TBEDO and my key informants have had on the lives of Tampa Bay residents. This last component of my research provides the most important contribution to policy and the debate concerning the costs and benefits of globalization. Both the officers at the TBEDO and my interview respondents do not concern themselves with the impacts that their activities could have on Bay area residents because their jobs are in the service of a specific population: Bay area business people.

Intresset för brottsofferfrågor har vuxit sig allt starkare i Sverige under de senaste årtiondena. Socialtjänsten är den instans som har det lagstadgade ansvaret att erbjuda brottsoffer den hjälp och det stöd de behöver. Idag tyder dock mycket på att det föreligger stora brister i socialtjänstens brottsofferstöd. Det är i dessa brister som denna studie har tagit sin utgångpunkt med två primära frågeställningar: (1) varför har det varit så svårt för socialtjänsten att fullfölja sitt lagstadgade ansvar gentemot brottsoffer och (2) vad skulle behöva göras för att få socialtjänstens brottsofferarbete att fungera på ett bättre sätt än vad det gör idag? Ingen liknande kartläggning har tidigare gjorts på området.Genom åtta stycken nyckelpersonsintervjuer undersöktes dessa frågeställningar. Vid intervjuerna användes en utformad modell bestående av faktorer som inbegriper begreppet förmåga, denna har utgjort en central utgångspunkt för kartläggningen av socialtjänstens förmåga att stödja brottsoffer. Nyckelpersonerna bestod av företrädare i nyckelpositioner inom verksamheter som på olika sätt arbetar med brottsofferfrågor.Resultatet visade på att det föreligger en stor ovisshet kring dessa frågor. Det visade sig även att en majoritet av de intervjuade anser att den största problematiken beror på att det inte riktigt finns den vilja som behövs för att prioritera och förbättra brottsoffersituationen i Sverige. Därmed kvarstår också den viktiga frågan; varför är det så svårt för socialtjänsten att fullfölja sitt lagstadgade ansvar gentemot brottsoffer? Med dessa oroväckande upptäckter är det än viktigare att fler studier utförs på området. Vidare forskning bör riktas mot att ta reda på var den faktiska problematiken ligger. Därefter kan det vara lämpligt att utreda eventuella åtgärder. / Interest in crime victim issues has grown stronger in Sweden in recent decades. The social services have the statutory responsibility to offer victims of crime the help and support they need. Recent indications suggest that there are major shortcomings in the social services for crime victim support. Based on these shortcomings this study investigates two primary issues: (1) why has it been so difficult for the social services to fulfill their statutory responsibilities towards victims of crime and (2) what would be needed for the social services for crime victim support to work better than it does today? No similar study has been conducted in this area before.Through the execution of eight key informant interviews these issues were investigated by the use of a designed model constituted of various factors including the concept of ability. This concept has been a central point for the mapping of the social services’ ability to support victims of crime. The key informants consisted of representatives in key positions in operations that work with different crime victim issues.The results show that there is a great uncertainty around these issues. It was also found that a majority of those interviewed believe that the biggest problem regarding these issues is that the will and the necessary prioritization of crime victim matters are relatively low. These alarming findings show an even greater need of more studies performed in this field. Thus remains the important question; why is it so difficult for the social services to fulfill its statutory responsibility towards victims of crime? Further research should be directed at finding out where the real problem lies. Further on, suggestions for improvement should be investigated.

Background Studies on course and outcome of schizophrenia coming from low income countries are increasingly becoming important to challenge the existing dogma claiming good outcome in these countries. Besides clinical course and outcome, mortality is considered a very important outcome measure for schizophrenia. Culture and tradition play a significant role in the manifestations of severe mental illnesses (SMI). Khat is a culturally accepted plant endemic to Eastern Africa, which is chewed by people for its stimulating effect. It is believed that Khat influences the course and outcome of schizophrenia although systematic studies are scarce. Patients with SMI continue to chew khat despite advice from their doctors to desist. Reasons for this behavior were not fully investigated before. Objectives              -     To describe the 5-year clinical course and outcome and mortality of schizophrenia in Butajira. -       To explore traditional views on psychosis in the semi-nomadic Borana population. -       To describe the perceived causes and preferred treatment for SMI in the semi-nomadic Borana population -       To explore reasons for khat chewing behavior in people with SMI in Butajira. Methods The studies were done in two sites: Butajira and Borana. The Butajira study involved screening, using CIDI and Key Informants (KIs), of more than 68,000 adults aged 15-49. Of these, 321 people were diagnosed with schizophrenia and were followed-up for five years to look into their clinical course and outcome, including mortality. A qualitative study involving 37 men with SMI and 30 female caregivers was conducted in Butajira to study reasons why patients continue to chew khat despite their physicians’ advice against it. The Borana study of a remote semi-nomadic population in southern Ethiopia, used qualitative methods involving 56 KIs to identify descriptions of psychosis, perceived causes and preferred treatment in the community. Cases identified by the KIs also underwent SCAN interview for confirmatory diagnosis.   Results The five year follow-up of schizophrenia patients showed that 45% of participants were continuously symptomatic with 30.3% having had continuous psychotic episode. About 20% had experienced continuous remission. Being single (OR = 3.41, 95% CI = 1.08-10.82, P = 0.037), on antipsychotic treatment for at least 50% of follow up time (OR = 2.28, 95% CI = 1.12-4.62, P = 0.023), and having a diagnosis of paranoid subtype of schizophrenia (OR = 3.68, 95% CI = 1.30-10.44, P = 0.014) were associated with longer period of remission. A total of 38 (12.4%) patients, thirty four men (11.1%) and four women (1.3%) died during the 5-year follow-up period. The mean age (SD) of the deceased for both sexes was 35 (7.35): 35.3 (7.4) for men and 32.3 (6.8) for women. The most common cause of death was infection, 18/38 (47.4%) followed by severe malnutrition, 5/38 (13.2%) and suicide 4/38 (10.5%). The overall SMR was 5.98 (95% CI = 4.09 to 7.87): 6.27 (95% C I = 4.16 to 8.38) for men and 4.30 (95% CI = 1.02 to 8.52) for women. Patients residing in rural areas had lower mortality with adjusted HR of 0.30 (95% CI = 0.12-0.69) but those with insidious onset had higher mortality with adjusted HR 2.37 (95% CI = 1.04-5.41). Treatment with antipsychotics for less than 50% of the follow-up time was also associated with higher mortality, adjusted HR 2.66 (1.054-6.72). In the Borana study, the incongruity between local and psychiatric concepts in the CIDI lay mainly in the fact that KIs described characteristics of marata (madness) in terms of overt behavioral symptoms instead of thought disturbances. Following the focus group discussions, participants identified 8 individuals with schizophrenia and 13 with a psychotic mood disorder, confirmed by SCAN interview. Supernatural causes such as possession by evil spirits, curse, bewitchment, ‘exposure to wind’ and subsequent attack by evil spirits in postnatal women; bio-psycho-social causes such as infections (malaria), loss, ‘thinking too much’, and alcohol and khat abuse were mentioned as causes of SMI. The preferred treatments for severe mental illness included mainly traditional approaches, such as consulting Borana wise men or traditional healers, prayer, holy water treatment and, finally, seeking modern health care. Regarding khat and SMI in Butajira, reasons given by patients as well as caregivers were more or less congruent: social pressure, a means for survival by improving function, combating medication side effects, to experience pleasure and curbing appetite.  Conclusion Schizophrenia runs a chronic and non-remitting course and was associated with very high premature mortality in Butajira. Continued treatment with antipsychotics has been a consistent predictor of favorable outcome and reduced mortality. Case identification in studies of psychotic disorders in traditional communities are likely to benefit from combining structured interviews with the key informant method. Planning mental health care in traditional communities needs to involve influential people and traditional healers to increase acceptability of modern mental health care. Patients with SMI chewed khat for some important reasons that clinicians need to consider in their management.

The objective of the study is to identify how micro-enterprises can be integrated into local value chains by using the so-called "value chain approach". The "value chain approach" has become a relatively popular approach among donor agencies and NGOs engaged in Private Sector Development in recent years, being based on insights from studies on global value chains. The study includes investigation into the following points: 1) Which business linkages exist among micro-enterprises and with enterprises of different sizes and sectors, and how are they related to the upgrading process of micro-enterprises? 2) What influence does the legal status of micro-enterprises have on the development of business linkages and on the upgrading process? 3) How can the development of business linkages and the upgrading process (and, therefore, the integration into value chains) be supported and enhanced within the framework of PSD? The empirical study was conducted in Uganda. It includes a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches: (1) a questionnaire-based survey among micro-entrepreneurs, and (2) expert or key informant interviews, using a semi-structured interview guideline. The study provides an assessment of the relevance and applicability of the "value chain approach" to micro-enterprises and local value chains in the context of a developing country characterised by low levels of industrialisation, as well as policy recommendations for practitioners (from public and private sectors, as well as donor community, NGOs and civil society). Furthermore, the study highlights the importance of the issue of informality of micro- and small-scale enterprises. (author's abstract)

The objective of this study was to develop an understanding of the effects of the construction of hydro dams on nearby communities. The construction of the 400 megawatt Bui dam (8o16I 42II N, 2o143I 9 I I W) in Ghana has inundated seven communities and nearly a quarter of Bui National Park, including the destruction of community resources that provide for the livelihood needs of the people living near the dam. The dam led to the resettlement of seven communities, coordinated by the Bui Power Authority. Concerns expressed about the resettlement process indicate some weakness in stakeholder consultations relating to the resettlement, as well as weakness in the development of opportunities to address the anticipated effects of the Bui dam, including effects on community assets. These issues were examined through a study of how the construction of Bui Dam was perceived by local communities representing several ethnic-linguistic groups, including the Ewe, Mo, and Nafana. A mixed methods approach was used in the research, including document analysis, quantitative interviews of 329 households, key informant interviews with 22 households, and case studies of four families, including two families each from resettled and non-resettled communities. Data was obtained from 13 nearby communities, 7 of which had been relocated because of the dam. The study considered examined how the Bui Dam was perceived to influence seven capital assets: cultural; natural; social; human; political; physical; and financial. Overall, people perceive these capital assets to be decreasing in most aspects as a result of the Bui Dam, with some variability among households. This variability was explored through analysis of a number of predictor variables: relocation, ethnicity, livelihood type, age, and gender. Villages not relocated tended to perceive effects less negatively, as did people of Nafana ethnicity, and those who rely mainly on a farming livelihood. Gender and age had little effect: gender mediated effects on some aspects of social and political capital, while age affected only some aspects of cultural capital. Further analysis through the use of multiple regression analysis was undertaken to determine the relative influence of each of these predictor variables. Overall, each multiple regression analysis was significant, with high R squared values ranging from 0.761 to 0.260. The most powerful predictor was whether communities had been relocated or not (“relocate”), which was significantly related to each capital asset, with beta values ranging from 0.826 to 0.418. “Livelihood” was the next most important predictor variable, significantly related to all capital assets and with beta values varying from 0.520 to 0.231. “Ethnicity” was a significant predictor for four of seven capital assets, with beta values ranging from 0.133 to 0.055. “Gender” was a significant predictor variable for two of seven capital assets (social capital, with a beta value of 0.084, and political capital, with a beta value of 0.119). “Age” was a significant variable for just one capital asset (cultural), with a beta value of 0.038. In summary, this study is consistent with other studies that have examined the effect of dams on the livelihoods of nearby communities in that for most households the consequences have been negative, although not as severe for those households that were not forced to relocate, people of Nafana ancestry, or people who rely mainly on farming. The presence of Bui National Park may have moderated these negative effects somewhat, through employment provided in the park; and through ecosystem services such as vegetative cover in the park supporting cloud formation and rain occurrence / Graduate / 0366 / 0534 / 0628 / jonesarthur2002@yahoo.co.uk

Work process knowledge (WPK) is a concept for systems-level knowledge of the workplace and has been shown to be most important in organisations requiring multi-functional working. Most of the previous body of knowledge on WPK has focussed mainly on manufacturing industries; there has been less investigation of WPK in the service sector and none in the visitor attraction (VA) industry, an important employer in Scotland. The VA industry is extremely dynamic and many businesses are rapidly moving towards multi-functional team working, driven by an urgent need to develop quality, customer-focussed strategies to survive in an over-supplied and very competitive market. This study identifies the nature of WPK in Scottish VAs, what relationship WPK has to customer service, how WPK in this service sector differs from selected published studies in manufacturing and other service sector contexts and what factors affect the development of WPK in VAs. Following recruitment of a number of VAs using an online questionnaire and subsequent site visits, six sites were selected for case study, on the basis that they demonstrated most evidence of multi-functional working and staff with developed WPK. The research design was comparative case studies of the work processes and knowledge within these six VAs, based on a social constructivist framework, using the methods of key informant interviews and shadowing. Although these six sites represent a cross-spread of attractions in terms of types, location and size, they nonetheless show strong similarities in their basic business structure. The data show that WPK is an essential element of workers’ roles and a vital requirement in providing good customer service. Although VA managers do not use the term ‘work process knowledge’, they nonetheless recognise the importance of having staff with a wider view of their business and are actively encouraging its rapid development. Multi-functionality and job rotation are main ways of developing WPK but sites also use key workers with job roles that help develop high levels of WPK, who are then used as a staff resource. The main factor contributing to the development of WPK is communication, especially of systems-level information. Cultural information-sharing is an essential pre-condition for the development of WPK in this context. Other determining factors are flexibility, employee biographies, seasonality issues, how weddings and functions are handled on-site and the size and complexity of the site. WPK is the foundation on which good customer service is based and elements of it deliver customer service. It is the closely integrated nature of the employee-customer relationship that has such a profound effect on WPK development in this service sector industry and is essentially what differentiates it from previously published studies. The identification of the customer as a hitherto unrecognised key driver of WPK is the most important contribution to knowledge made by this work.