This article proposes that the legal relationship between humans and nonhuman animals in Canada must be redefined. It will be shown that the current Canadian legal system is based on the assumption of human superiority, which has resulted in the interests of nonhuman animals being given little to no legal consideration since at law they are merely property. This conceptualization of our relationship with nonhuman animals, and the resulting harm that it causes to them is in direct conflict with developments over the last century in science, ethics, and the laws, policies and jurisprudence of various countries. These developments support the argument that nonhuman animals are entitled to have their interests considered in law. This article proposes that the relationship in Canada be redefined to eliminate the property status of nonhuman animals, and that the new relationship should take the form of nonhuman animals being granted the status of legal persons.

This article proposes that the legal relationship between humans and nonhuman animals in Canada must be redefined. It will be shown that the current Canadian legal system is based on the assumption of human superiority, which has resulted in the interests of nonhuman animals being given little to no legal consideration since at law they are merely property. This conceptualization of our relationship with nonhuman animals, and the resulting harm that it causes to them is in direct conflict with developments over the last century in science, ethics, and the laws, policies and jurisprudence of various countries. These developments support the argument that nonhuman animals are entitled to have their interests considered in law. This article proposes that the relationship in Canada be redefined to eliminate the property status of nonhuman animals, and that the new relationship should take the form of nonhuman animals being granted the status of legal persons.

Bakgrund: Begreppet hemlöshet innefattar flera situationer. Det är svårt att veta hur många hemlösa personer som befinner sig i Sverige då hemlöshet även innefattar de som lever utan uppehållstillstånd, papperslösa och asylsökande. Hemlösa personer löper en högre risk av att drabbas av både fysisk och psykisk ohälsa och dåliga erfarenheter av vården kombinerat med en begränsad ekonomi och oklarheter vart i vården de ska vända sig kan göra att hemlösa inte uppsöker vården. Sedan 2013 har både asylsökande och papperslösa rätt till vård som inte kan anstå och enligt hälso-sjukvårds lagen ska vården ges med respekt på lika villkor. Trots detta sker det att papperlösa och asylsökande nekas vård. Syfte: Att beskriva sjukvårdspersonals upplevelse av att vårda patienter som lever i hemlöshet. Metod: Litteraturöversikt med nio vetenskapliga artiklar som valdes ut från databasen Cinahl Complete, Swepub, Pubmed, PsycINFO och Academic Search Complete. Åtta var av kvalitativ karaktär och en använde kvantitativ metod. Dessa analyserades och sammanställdes till tre huvudkategorier och fem underkategorier. Resultat: Litteraturöversikten innefattar följande kategorier: Vårdpersonalens känslor inför hemlösa patienter, Utmaningar av att vårda hemlösa patienter, Hinder i vårdandet, Hinder vid kommunikation och dokumentation, Hinder och utmaningar inför hantering av komplexa vårdbehov, Förhållningsätt i mötet med hemlösa patienter, Ett öppet sinne och en vilja att vårda och Att skapa en vårdrelation med hemlösa patienter. Resultatet visar att vårdpersonalen kan ha både positiva och negativa känslor inför den hemlösa patienten och att det uppkommer hinder i vården av hemlösa. Vårdpersonalen förhållningsätt i vården av hemlösa och skapandet av en vårdrelation kan vara svårt men anses viktigt.  Diskussion: Här diskuteras delar av alla kategorier ifrån resultatet i relation till forskning och Katie Erikssons teori om att ansa, leka och lära och konsensusbegreppet vårdande.

Older adults living with dementia are marginalized in society through the socially constructed binaries of old/young, able/disabled and ultimately us/them. These are manifested in a culture dominated by approaches towards illnesses that favor clinically inclined models of care which entail the search for cures rather than attention to the care required by and for individuals. To heighten their vulnerability, from an individual perspective, the cognitive nature of dementia often prevents people living with it from having a voice in their representation. Person-centered care is a philosophy that recognizes the importance of who the individual is and where they are situated in an effort to create a more holistic care experience. The Lodge at Broadmead is a residential care facility that has operationalized an explicitly person-centered philosophy of care. The main objectives of this project were to gain an understanding of the lived experience and implementation of person-centered dementia care from the many different perspectives contained within this facility as well as the methodological barriers associated with including people living with dementia in this type of research. To this end, one-on-one interviews and focus groups were conducted with a total of 16 staff members and leadership at The Lodge at Broadmead as well as one resident. These were informed by a 4 month period of observation in the form of volunteer work. Three main themes emerged around the implementation of person-centred care at The Lodge at Broadmead: identity maintenance, facilitating relationships, and aligning values. These themes represent the most important theoretical links between the physical and social aspects of the environment, and person-centred care’s ultimate goal of maintenance and enhancement of personhood for the residents. Drawing from my own research experience, there were several methodological challenges in undertaking the research as well which were: the institutional necessity of consent by proxy, a rigid interview approach, and not enough time spent with the residents. / Graduate / 0336 / 0351 / kyle.plumb@gmail.com

The primary aim of h s research is to evaluate crime and its effect on people from a Reformative perspective. Furthermore to develop a social work support model, according to which co-ordinated services can be provide to all people that are affected by crime in the Northwest Province as an exemplar of a rural community. The thesis consists of three sections. Section A includes in the first place a reference to the actuality of the research. It is namely clear that the level of crime in South Africa, in some instances the highest in the world, requires extensive support for the survivors of these criminal acts. Therefore, the research aim, as given above, lead to four specific objectives. Section A also explains the research methodology. The research was structured according to the Intervention research model within the qualitative research approach. Data was collected by means of a literature study, comparison of the systems of victim support in the Netherlands and South Africa and interviews using a semi-structured interview schedule. Section B consists of the four articles that form the report about the research outcomes. Each article is a report about a particular sub-project of the research and each has, as self-contained units, an own research aim, research method and report Each of these is linked with the central aim, objectives and content of the over-arching research project. The four articles are: In Article 1, 'Crime and its impact on people - a Christian perspective', crime is turned down and it is argued that the survivor of crime should be cared for within the Biblical perspective. Article 2, 'A comparison between the support systems for victims of crime in the Netherlands and South Africa', provided clear guidelines for support systems in developing communities. The formation of a h e support network and the provisioning of compensation to victims are some of these guidelines. In Article 3, 'An investigation into support available to survivors of crime in the North-West Province' it was found that a lack of specialized and professional services is present as well as the lack of co-ordination in the provisioning of the support services. An effective support system of professional services is of the utmost importance and resources, especially h a n d resources, are required to develop an attainable and sustainable support system. The fourth article 'A model for support services available to crime affected people in the North-West Province' contains the model that was developed for support to crime affected people in a rural and deep rural area of our country. The model can be illustrated by a network consisting of four panels, each including particular institutions providing particular services. In Section C a summary of the findings and recommendations of the full research project is provided. Some short-comings, based on specific restraints, are explained and the contribution of the study is provided. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Social Work))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.

Statistically speaking, only between 4% and 6% individuals can afford to retire comfortably. When this fact is combined with changes such as a longer life expectancy, disintegration of family life and increasing pressure on public resources to deal with issues such as aids, the increasing need for personal financial planning for retirement becomes clear. Firstly, a framework was set of requirements which need to be met with regard to financial planning for retirement. This includes the need to diversify the portfolio (as a method to manage the acceptable risk level), as well as principles and techniques relating to diversification. The possibility of using the services of a financial planner to aid with the retirement planning, as well as aspects to be considered in this regard were discussed. It was also demonstrated that a variety of aspects should be considered when deciding on an investment, including market expectations, general economic conditions and the investor's own research, all within a long-term framework. The final aspect considered as part of the framework, was tax. Having set the framework for successful financial retirement planning in Chapter two, a number of pitfalls to be avoided were addressed in Chapter three. These included the investor's planned annual cost of living, since this is the single most important factor which will determine standard of living during retirement. The planned age at which the individual wishes to retire specifically also needs to be taken into account, seeing that this determines the amount of time he has to build up his investment. The planned rate of return on the investment has to be realistic, but also has to at least keep up with inflation. The effect of inflation could also for example mean that adequate present planning may fall short in 20 years' time. A final aspect to be considered is the importance of taking unforeseen events, such as a potential medical disability, into account. Having set the framework of factors to be taken into account, specific investment options were addressed in the main categories of equity, bonds, property and cash, as well as a pension find, provident fund and/or retirement annuity. Less traditional options such as collector's items, financial instruments or the option to start one's own business were also addressed in more detail. Finally, a questionnaire was addressed to professional people, as represented by auditors in the Northwest Province, with the view to determine the current level of retirement planning and whether or not their expectations matched the theoretic framework as discussed in the previous chapters. Suggestions were made as per the results of the questionnaire by linking the results of the questionnaire and the theoretical framework. Gaps were also highlighted, for instance that very few people as per the sample plan to fully retire, and this changing understanding of "retirement" is not fully captured by current literature. It also seems that professional persons, as per the questionnaire, have an over optimistic view regarding their retirement and funds needed during retirement. / Thesis (M.Com. (Business and Management Accounting))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

This research explores the meaning that older persons ascribe to the friendships in which they engage. Previous research mostly focuses on the strain that the older population places on the self-reliant community. The older person is faced by many challenges, such as sickness, loss of social and emotional support and death. Friendships serve as a support for physical and emotional needs which could not always be addressed by the family. The aim of this research is to explore the type of friendships in which older persons prefer to engage and the meanings they assign to it. A qualitative study was identified as the most appropriate method and focus groups and personal interviews were used as methods of data collection. Data was analysed by means of thematic content analysis. Findings indicated that different types of friendships exist and that different meanings were attached to friendships. Meaning in friendships is promoted by trustworthy friends who are able to form a deepened level of connection through the support and the compassion they are able to give each other. The experience of connection in friendships is furthermore enhanced through mobility, proximity and technology that facilitate better emotional as well as physical support for the older individual. Informal friendships with younger people ensure that older people are more mobile and are able to maintain their friendships. It is also a great source of support in cases where family members are not able to provide support, due to whatever reason. Further exploration of the value of friendships is recommended, so as to plan more specific intervention strategies. Some insights have already been gathered in this study concerning the way in which mobility, proximity and modern technology can make it possible to sustain a friendship. Further studies could explore ways to empower older people through providing better mobility, proximity and the use of modem technology. Such studies may also explore the needs which an old age home fulfils, such as improving the residents' access to one another, for mutual support. Proximity might be a solution for the immobility experienced in the older community, and when older people are taught to use modern technology they will be enabled to maintain their friendships better. / Thesis (M.A. (Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

Since smart homes will be more and more popular in the future, the needs of finding a friendly, comfortable and smart interface between users and home environments are growing. However, conventional interfaces have reached their limits. So, this paper describes a new concept of interface in a home environment. This work is distinguished by building a separable smart robot. A smart phone is used as a brain, and a robot car is used as a body. With the system, people will be allowed to carry the robot's brain when they are out of their home. In this case, the brain can not only be a normal smart phone, but also can monitor parameters such as the temperature at home. On the other hand, when people are at home, they will be allowed to put their phones on the robot car. By invoking the system, they will have an assist-robot. This assist-robot will act as a new interface in the smart home by following people and recognizing their voice commands in order to take notes, to read notes and to control smart home devices. This thesis also implements face recognition to improve the communication between users and the interface. Test results show that our proposed system is well accepted.

This research examines the population of formerly incarcerated people as activists in the Formerly Incarcerated and Convicted Persons Movement. Applying a Personal Authority Framework, this work examines the role of race within organizing, the limitations of the voices of formerly incarcerated people, the role of the ally within the movement, the power that formerly incarcerated people do have and how they use it, and the necessary aspects and attributes of a movement. I conducted fourteen in depth interviews with formerly incarcerated individuals and their allies, all of which self-identified as activists. Given that the prison populations in the United States is the highest in the world, as is the populations of formerly incarcerated people, this work demonstrates the important role of activism in their lives and the importance of their personal stories and authority for an activist movement to be successful.

In this work author analyses social functions of law and their realization in Lithuania. Social destination of law and separate ranges of social functions of law are analyzed separately. Author highlighted the key problems of person`s socialization in Lithuania. In his opinion they are closely connected to implementation of social functions of Law. Analyzing the work of Lithuanian “Seimas” it is amplified that there must be a tight link between society and legistrator which is in the form of open dialogue with domination of reciprocal trust and understanding. Studying the problems of implementation of social functions of Law in system of courts, first of all is amplified that courts as institutions responsible for legality’s consolidation in the country, implementation of social functions of law is more restricted than law – creative parties. After realizing the fact of human rights breach in society and some kind of deflections from stable life settled in society, the court (judge) cannot remove risen problems by himself. An initiative of society’s citizens for endeavouring the justice is needful. Overlooking the problems of implementation of social functions of Law in LR “Seimas” controllers activity, author states that controllers without the help of law – creative party can not eliminate deflection that was discovered in the rule. Discovering a deflection as a statement of fact is not enough for aiming to affect positively the processes of socialization that run in... [to full text]