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Performance management, which is a core element of the New Public Management (NPM), has maintained its significance both in academic and practical perspectives for many scholars and governments, although enthusiasm for the NPM has waned since the late 1990s. There have been debates on the universality of the NPM, and the divergence argument regards the practices and trajectories of specific reforms as being shaped by the different characteristics of politico-administrative and cultural systems. Through the comparative study of performance management based on the case studies in the UK and South Korea, this thesis demonstrates that the processes of a NPM-type reform can be similar in spite of differences of politico-administrative and cultural characteristics. It examines performance management systems in the two countries in terms of the speed and nature of reform, resistance to reform, use of performance information and importance as a control mechanism. The comparison is also useful for lesson-drawing for the improvement of current systems. This research has been conducted by undertaking a wide literature review, including journal articles and government papers, and by conducting semi-structured interviews. To undertake analysis and comparison of performance management systems, the thesis looks at the Public Service Agreements (PSAs) in the UK and the Government Performance Evaluation (GPE), Financial Performance Management System (FPMS) and Performance Agreements in Korea. Case studies have been carried out with the Department of Health in the UK and the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs in Korea. The PSA system has problems generated by excessive central control and lack of participation of professionals and front-line staff. In Korea all three performance management systems are based on evaluation. Departments used evaluation as a tool of exercising control, which resulted in duplication of evaluation and excessive bureaucracy. Focus on the process-oriented evaluation has undermined the value of the systems for improving public services. Whilst the two countries display differences in the fundamental approach to performance management, there are similarities in the detailed practices and trajectories in the operation of the systems. The reason for these similarities may be attributed to the strong leadership of top politicians in both countries.

Older individuals are known to adopt a less efficient breathing strategy than young adults during exercise. Whether different strategies are adopted by young and master athletes matched for height, weight and training volume during incremental and constant running is unclear.  In the first part of this thesis, it was demonstrated that during an incremental run to exhaustion and an 8 minute constant intensity run at 90% maximal aerobic speed, master athletes regulate their breathing less efficiently than young athletes.  Major differences in breathing regulation were also observed within the young athletic group (between individuals and between tests) indicating a heterogeneity of response in this population that was, at least partly, linked to baseline expiratory flow rates. An original approach (<i>i.e. </i>using urinary levels of the lung specific protein CC16 to detect a possible disruption of the airway epithelium during exercise in young athletes) was used in the second part of the thesis.  In the first instance, an increase in urinary CC16 after a short period of hyperpnoea of dry air in all the individuals studied (<i>i.e.</i> trained and untrained subjects with and without asthma) was demonstrated.  By comparing the response of summer and winter athletes it was then established that the rise of CC16 post-challenge was independent from the usual environment in which athletes train.  Finally, it was shown that the rise of urinary CC16 is more severe after a short exercise bout performed in cold dry than hot humid air.  Together these results confirm that exercise-induced hyperventilation can have a noxious effect on the fragile airway epithelium of healthy young athletes.

When it comes to actor training in higher education, there are many practitioners from which to choose. This thesis describes the teachings of Sanford Meisner and Michael Chekhov and the benefits of combining their techniques. This thesis further explores five elements deemed necessary to every actor’s training. These elements are approached through the techniques of Meisner, Chekhov and a combination of their teachings. These five elements are explored through a workshop and performance. During the workshop, I devised and taught new hybrid exercises to approach these elements through a combination of the teachings of Chekhov and Meisner. Responses from workshop participants are included. Finally, the combination of techniques is discussed through the performance of two roles in a Virginia Commonwealth University theatre production. This thesis hopes to serve as a guide to instructors and participants looking to explore the benefits of combining the methodologies of Sanford Meisner and Michael Chekhov.

För verksamheter som arbetar processorienterat är det viktigt att kunna mäta och följa upp verksamhetens processer för att få svar på var man står i nuläget och hur framtida mål kan uppnås. Vid mätning av processer måste man dessutom veta vad som ska mätas, varför man gör det och göra det på rätt sätt. Ett sätt att mäta verksamhetens prestation är med Key Performance Indicators (KPI), mätetal som tagits fram för att möta verksamhetens målsättningar. LFV är ett statligt verk som ansvarar för flygtrafiktjänster i Sverige, och det är på avdelningen för Teknikuppdrag som denna studie utspelar sig. LFV har krav på sig från EU att reducera sina kostnader för flygtrafiktjänster med 2,4 % årligen fram till 2019, vilket öppnar upp för effektiviseringsåtgärder som kan bidra till besparingarna. Studien går ut på att kartlägga och ta fram relevanta KPIer för orderprocessen för produkten flygmätning, för att möjliggöra uppföljning av processen. För att finna lämpliga KPIer har en omfattande litteraturstudie genomförts, därtill har intervjuer med representanter från LFV utförts. Studien resulterade i en ny, korrigerad, processkarta för produkten flygmätning, samt i tre stycken KPIer som kan användas för att följa upp processen. Dessa tre KPIer är Ledtid, Leveransprecision och Andel felfria transaktioner. Utöver detta har även processens design uppmätts enligt mätetal speciellt utformade för detta.

This study is going to investigate the energy performance of a temporary building on campus and analyze it thoroughly to identify the trends on energy consumption. Then, it is going to select the best strategy that can improve its performance in this region. Next, a prototype design of a high energy performance building is going to be proposed to the university authorities to be constructed in the permanent campus in the second phase and, identify a list of the best strategies that are more appropriate for the climate of the city. Finely, a comparative study is going to be conducted by using energy analyses software (eQUEST) to find out the annual saving of the proposed design over the existing building.

The problem with which this investigation is concerned is that of determining the effect of neurological impairment on the Rorschach performance of children.

Abstract The Fourth Level of Theatrical Awareness By Greg Scurria, MFA A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts in Theatre Pedagogy at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, Master of Fine Arts in Theatre Pedagogy Virginia Commonwealth University, 2010 Major Director: Dr. Noreen C. Barnes, Director of Graduate Studies, Theatre Department This text is a partial record and narrative of the production of John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men that opened on May 1st 2009 for a three day run ending May 3rd 2009 and Shel, a collection of Shel Silverstein short plays and poems, which opened on September 18th for a three day run that ended September 20th. It also covers the work done by a small group on Yazmina Reza’s The God of Carnage during the Spring of 2010. The text details the creative process of the two productions while also examining two hypotheses that grew out of that work. It will examine the heightened sense of ownership experienced while working on Of Mice and Men and the subsequent unsuccessful attempt to recreate that atmosphere during Shel. The other hypothesis involves the discovery of the fourth level of theatrical awareness and how it can be used to help actors. The fourth level of theatrical awareness exists outside of the traditional character based exploration of text. Students who examine the text using the fourth level attempt to view the play in its entirety without character bias. Actors using the fourth level look at shape, major themes of the play, and spatial awareness in order to analyze the play using a directorial eye. The possible applications of this work will be discusses as well as concerns about its use. The attempts to apply this fourth level of theatrical awareness in Shel will be discussed, as well as the attempts to find practical applications for the fourth level while working with The God of Carnage. Finally, this paper will outline a plan for implementing the fourth level of theatrical awareness in a production and highlight other areas of exploration involving dramaturgical investigation. As a whole, it will trace the growth and transformation of these ideas and plot a plan to continue expanding on them in the future.

Styling the Sound: Vocal Coaching The Big Knife explores the journey from research, to rehearsal and finally concludes with a post-production evaluation of the Theatre VCU production of Clifford Odets’s The Big Knife, directed by Tawnya Pettiford-Wates. In Chapter 1 I discuss the process I went through in preparing myself, the director and actors for the demands of the production. This section of the thesis focuses on the research aspect of the work I did. Chapter 2 focuses on the auditions for the show, first read-through and rehearsal process. Also, the one-on-one time spent with actors is also analyzed in this chapter. Finally, I discuss the evolution of the show during public performance and how I felt as the show drew to a close.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the Test-Taking Strategy would improve performance on math curriculum-based assessments of students with disabilities, and if students reported an increased sense of math self-efficacy as a result of learning the Test-Taking Strategy. The Test-Taking Strategy uses mnemonics to teach strategies to help students successfully navigate through assessments. This study used an experimental, single-subject, multiple-probe, multiple base-line design (Horner & Baer, 1978). The design featured multiple participants, and followed the design features of quantitative research (Horner & Baer, 1978, McMillan, 2004, & Mitchell & Jolley, 2004). The Test-Taking Strategy did result in improved performance on CBA (math quizzes) for some of the students in this study. However, some students did not increase performance on math CBA (math quizzes). Findings also indicated most students did not report an increased sense of math efficacy. Results of this study and the impact of these findings are discussed.