published_or_final_version / Sports Science / Master / Master of Science in Sports Science

M.A. (Research Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Thesis--University of Oklahoma. / Includes bibliographical references.

D.Litt. et Phil. / The main aim of this study was to compile a career interest inventory – the Career Preference Inventory (CPI) – that would succeed in identifying the career preferences or vocational interests of learners from Grades 9 to 12. The specific objectives of the study involved an empirical examination of the content validity, construct validity, as well as reliability of the inventory. A study was also made of the structure of vocational interests of the test groups that formed part of the study. The study entailed two empirical investigations. When the inventory was administered for the first time, additional items were added to the SAVII and the test group was made up of a representative sample of 1385 Grade 9 and 12 learners in the North West Province. As a result of the item analysis that was based on this sample, 54 of the items in the questionnaire were either changed or replaced. The reliability coefficients of the subfields of the SAVII for the population involved in the first administration were acceptable and ranged between 0,747 and 0,901. After an analysis of the items in the SAVII and the selection of the most suitable items, the questionnaire – by now known as the Career Preference Inventory (CPI) – was administered once again. The reason for the second administration was to establish whether the amended items met the statistical requirements that had been set. Convenience sampling was used in this part of the study, since it was not possible to draw a representative sample of the population. The sample consisted of 1271 Afrikaans first language speakers, 2699 English second language speakers and 306 English first language speakers. Item analysis revealed that all the items were acceptable. The reliability coefficients of the fields of the CPI were also acceptable and varied between 0,714 and 0,860 for the particular test group. Test-retest reliability coefficients could be calculated for a group of 197 English second language speakers only and varied between 0,689 and 0,863. A factor analysis was made to determine the constructs or factors that emerged with regard to the CPI. Initially six factors were specified, but since the fields for Clerical-Administrative, Business, and Management manifested within a single factor, seven factors were subsequently withdrawn to establish whether the two latter-mentioned components could indeed function independently. The following fields or dimensions eventually realised: 1) Human-Communication; 2) Medical and related; 3) Technical-Scientific; 4) Practical-Handcraft; 5) Artistic; 6) Business and Management; and 7) Clerical-Administrative. The final questionnaire contains 18 fields that are described individually and that are not categorised into 6 main fields. The questionnaire is also supposed to disclose the vocational information in Career Mentor in an ordered and structured manner. The 18 fields are therefore linked to more than 500 occupations and the CPI results serve as a search strategy that unlocks the mentioned occupational database according to specific vocational preferences.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2001. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study project was aimed to evaluate a questionnaire designed by AB Reynolds and adapted by Mario Denton that is used to determine the funtionality of an organisation. The object was to determine how reliable the instrument is and if it was testing the necessary areas/processes. As the purpose·ofmost instruments is to help management determine the current position of an organisation , the management itself, the management of the employees and the workplace, it was important to validate a questionnaire by statistically analysing all the processes/factors used in the questionnaire as well as the questions. Although it was found that the twenty-one (21) organisational processes is used in the questionnaire is of major importance to all organisations, the statistical analyses reduced the processes to eight (8) namely: 1. Performance management, development, appraisal, reward and recognition 2. Effective leadership 3. Vision and mission 4. Strategy and structure 5. Communication 6. Competitor analyses 7. Customer needs 8. Core competencies The three hundred and fifty one (351) questions were also reduced to one hundred and thirty four. The validated revised questionnaire can now be used to determine an organisations health and is a two phased technique designed to assist organisational effectiveness. It will give management a foundation to use in strategic planning as it spells out the weaknesses and strengths of an organisation and also indicate area/processes of concern that will need attention. The revised questionnaire is therefore an information gathering instrument that measures the employees perception of the organisation and focuses on all facets of organisational functioning. It is a tool for continuous organisational development and improvement and will help an organisation in correcting the weaknesses identified. The questionnaire is therefore a management tool. It can be highly effective and can be used by all organisations to improve their competitiveness and ensure their survival. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die projek was daarop gemik om 'n vraelys, opgestel deur AB Reynolds en aangepas deur Mario Denton wat die funktionaliteit van 'n organisasie toets, te evalueer. Die doelwit was om vas te stel hoe betroubaar die instrument is en of dit die nodige areas/prosesse toets. Aangesien die doel van die instrument is om bestuur te help om die huidige possisie van organisasie, bestuur self, die bestuur van werknemers en die werksplek te toets, is dit noodsaaklik om so 'n vraelys te valideer deur al die prosesse/faktore in die vraelys, sowel as die vrae statisties te ontleed. Alhoewel daar gevind is dat al die een en twintig (21) organisatoriese prosesse, soos in die vraelys gebruik, van kardinale belang vir organisasies is ,het die statistiese analise dit na die volgende agt (8) prosesse verminder: 1. Prestasie bestuur, ontwikkeling, beoordeling, vergoeding en erkenning 2. Effektiewe leierskap 3. Visie en missie 4. Strategie en struktuur 5. Kommunikasie 6. Analise van mededingers 7. Behoeftes van kliênte 8. Kern vaardighede Die drie honderd een en vyftig (351) vrae is ook verminder na een honderd vier en dertig vrae. Die gevalideerde vraelys kan nou aangewend word om die gesondheid van 'n organisasie te toets en is 'n tegniek wat uit twee fases bestaan wat behulpsaam kan wees om organisatoriese effektiwiteit te bevorder. Dit sal aan bestuur 'n wegspringpunt verleen in strategiese beplanning aangesien dit die vermoëns en gebreke van 'n organisasie uitwys, asook die swak areas/prosesse wat aandag verg. Die gekorrigeerde vraelys is daarom 'n informasie insamelings instrument wat werknemers se persepsie aangaande die organisasie meet en fokus op alle fasette van organisatoriese funksionering. Dit is dus 'n instrument om organisatoriese ontwikkeling en verbetering voortdurend toe te pas, en help 'n organisasie om swakhede wat geidentifiseer is, reg te stel. Die vraelys is dus 'n bestuursinstrument wat effektief deur alle organisasies aangewend kan word om mededingend te word om sodoende hulle voortbestaan te verseker.

Submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master’s Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2016. / Background: Neck pain is a condition that is becoming more common throughout the world and most people can expect to experience some degree of neck pain sometime during their life. There is a need for early diagnosis and follow-up of neck pain to assess a patient’s level of self-rated disability due to the escalating disability burden and compensation costs associated with neck pain. For this reason, disability questionnaires are increasingly used for clinical assessment and as an outcome measurement for the treatment of neck pain. Translation and cross-cultural adaptation of disability questionnaires have thus become increasingly necessary when dealing with different cultural groups. Methods: This is a quantitative validity and reliability assessment study comparing the English versions of the Neck Disability Index (NDI) and the Quadruple Visual Analogue Scale (QVAS) to their translated Afrikaans counterparts. The first step was to translate the questionnaires into Afrikaans. The translated questionnaires were then scrutinised and critiqued by an Expert group, who are fluent in both the Afrikaans and English languages, and back translated to English in order or establish their face validity. A small pilot study was conducted with the original and translated versions of the questionnaires to establish their content validity. The translated and original versions of the NDI and QVAS were given to a study group to complete with a suitable time delay between the completions of the questionnaires. The results from the study group were statistically analysed to establish concurrent validity and reliability. Results: There were 50 participants each completing one English NDI and QVAS and one Afrikaans NDI and QVAS. The results indicate high reliability for both the Afrikaans NDI (α = 0.900) and QVAS (α = 0.883). The Afrikaans NDI and QVAS are deemed reliable compared to their English counterparts. The results indicated a significant level of concurrent validity for both the NDI and the QVAS. Both the Afrikaans versions of the NDI and QVAS were deemed reliable and concurrent validity was established. The NDI and QVAS were successfully translated and the Afrikaans versions can now be used in the Afrikaans population as viable alternatives to the English NDI and QVAS. / M

A dissertation completed in partial compliance with the requirements for a Master's Degree in Technology Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2006. / Neck pain is a common problem, globally, as well as in South Africa. Zulu is the first language of a very large proportion of the South African population, and as such, addressing the needs of this population group with respect to neck pain is a priority. Many reliable pain indexes exist in English to record the degree of disability with regards to neck pain. These are invaluable tools in aiding the health practitioner to assess the progress of treatment and the severity of the patient's disability. Two of the most credible and frequently used indexes are the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College Neck Disability Index (CMCC NDl) and the Short Form McGill Pain Questionnaire (SFMPQ). However, no such scale exists in Zulu. The purpose of this pilot investigation was, firstly, to analyze and critique the Zulu translations of the CMCC NDl and the SFMPQ in order to establish their face validity. Secondly, to establish their concurrent validity ensuring that the translated questionnaires are specific and sensitive enough to use as tools in data collection when compared to their English counterparts. Thirdly, to make recommendations for further improvement in terms of the Zulu questionnaires and lastly, to make recommendations for further studies for improvement in terms of the use of these questionnaires as research tools amongst the Zulu speaking population of South Africa. Firstly, the CMCC NDl and the SFMP questionnaires were translated into Zulu by means of a focus group. These versions were then assessed by means of a focus (or discussion) group, to assess their face validity. Changes were made to the original translations according to the recommendations of this group. These versions were then assessed with regards to their concurrent validity with the original English versions. Fifty volunteers, who were literate in both English and Zulu and who have suffered with neck pain, filled in both the Zulu and English versions of both questionnaires. / M

Submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master’s Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2016. / Background: Neck pain is a condition that is becoming more common throughout the world and most people can expect to experience some degree of neck pain sometime during their life. There is a need for early diagnosis and follow-up of neck pain to assess a patient’s level of self-rated disability due to the escalating disability burden and compensation costs associated with neck pain. For this reason, disability questionnaires are increasingly used for clinical assessment and as an outcome measurement for the treatment of neck pain. Translation and cross-cultural adaptation of disability questionnaires have thus become increasingly necessary when dealing with different cultural groups. Methods: This is a quantitative validity and reliability assessment study comparing the English versions of the Neck Disability Index (NDI) and the Quadruple Visual Analogue Scale (QVAS) to their translated Afrikaans counterparts. The first step was to translate the questionnaires into Afrikaans. The translated questionnaires were then scrutinised and critiqued by an Expert group, who are fluent in both the Afrikaans and English languages, and back translated to English in order or establish their face validity. A small pilot study was conducted with the original and translated versions of the questionnaires to establish their content validity. The translated and original versions of the NDI and QVAS were given to a study group to complete with a suitable time delay between the completions of the questionnaires. The results from the study group were statistically analysed to establish concurrent validity and reliability. Results: There were 50 participants each completing one English NDI and QVAS and one Afrikaans NDI and QVAS. The results indicate high reliability for both the Afrikaans NDI (α = 0.900) and QVAS (α = 0.883). The Afrikaans NDI and QVAS are deemed reliable compared to their English counterparts. The results indicated a significant level of concurrent validity for both the NDI and the QVAS. Both the Afrikaans versions of the NDI and QVAS were deemed reliable and concurrent validity was established. The NDI and QVAS were successfully translated and the Afrikaans versions can now be used in the Afrikaans population as viable alternatives to the English NDI and QVAS. / M

Submitted in partial compliance with the requirements for the Master’s Degree in Technology: Chiropractic, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2018. / Aim The aim of this study was to determine the concurrent validity of an isiZulu Bournemouth Questionnaire in comparison to its English counterpart. Methodology This quantitative correlational study compared the isiZulu version of the Bournemouth Questionnaire to its English counterpart, (consisting of three sections: back, neck and musculoskeletal). The study employed a design where subjects were compared to themselves. A sample of 120 volunteers over the age of 18 years, who were literate in both English and isiZulu took part in the study. Whether the participant was symptomatic or asymptomatic was not of concern. Using a randomised list, the participants were administered one of the two versions of the questionnaire to be completed first, the second and alternate questionnaire was administered after an interval of at least 20 minutes. Results Of 120 paired questionnaires, 107 completed pairs were returned, resulting in a response rate of 89.2%. Results, using Cronbach-α (α= 0.05) with subsequent testing using the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy and Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity, revealed that the questionnaires, in toto, had high levels of correlation. The relationship between the isiZulu and the English questions revealed a positive and high correlation using Kendall’s tau-b which was statistically significant (τb > 0.55, p = 0.000), although there were isolated instances of statistical difference between individual pairs of questions in respect to age, gender, site, primary language and level of education. Conclusions The study found that the isiZulu version of the Bournemouth Questionnaire showed concurrent validity with its English counterpart, and recommendations were made for the clinical application of the isiZulu version as a means of refining the interpretation of disjunct question pairs. / M

Thesis (MSc)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Birth to Twenty (BTT) study involves the monitoring of the health status and related factors of urban-born children from birth until age twenty. When the cohort reached age 13 years in 2003, nutrition knowledge assessment was identified as an important new priority and a nutrition knowledge questionnaire was required for these purposes. Subsequently a valid and reliable nutrition knowledge questionnaire was developed for the BTT study. This process started with the development of a conceptual framework of nutrition-related issues facing urban South African adolescents and identification of related nutrition concepts. A pool of potential questionnaire items reflecting the concepts was subsequently developed. These items were evaluated by an expert panel to ensure content and face validity before being structured into a questionnaire. The resulting 88-item questionnaire was completed by adult and adolescent samples, each age group comprising subgroups of those likely to have good nutrition knowledge and those likely to have poor nutrition knowledge. The data obtained from the completion of the questionnaire by these groups was used to refine the questionnaire through the determination of difficulty and discriminatory indices of the items, and the deletion of items that did not meet the stated criteria. The construct validity of the remaining 63 items was assessed using the same data set. To assess the internal consistency reliability (ICR) of the 63-item questionnaire it was completed by an adolescent sample population considered to be representative of the BTT cohort, after which the questionnaire underwent further steps of refinement. The result was a 60-item questionnaire of which the ICR and construct validity was reassessed and found to be satisfactory. However, to ensure the accurate interpretation of scores obtained by testees, the development of a performance-rating scale was necessary. A norm-referenced performance-rating scale (norms) was developed by administering the nutrition knowledge questionnaire to a sample population similar to the BTT cohort (norm group) and transforming their performance scores to z-scores. The z-scores ranges were then categorised into stanines, thereby resulting in a norm-referenced performance-rating scale that can be used to rate the performance of the BTT cohort. The validity of the norms was assessed by administering the nutrition knowledge questionnaire to three validation groups that comprised groups who were expected to obtain different performance-ratings on the questionnaire based on their varying levels of nutrition knowledge. The validation groups performed as expected, with significant differences in performance-rating profiles found among the three groups, indicating the validity of the norms. The study was successful in developing a reliable and valid nutrition knowledge questionnaire for use on the urban adolescents who participate in the BTT study. A norm-referenced performance-rating scale for use with the questionnaire was also successfully developed. The questionnaire and norms will be useful in assessing nutrition knowledge as well as in comparing the changes in knowledge of the BTT cohort as they move from lower to higher school grades. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die “Birth to Twenty” (BTT)-studie behels die monitering van die gesondheidstatus en verwante faktore van kinders wat in stedelike gebiede gebore is van geboorte tot twintigjarige ouderdom. Toe die kohort in 2003 dertienjarige ouderdom bereik het, is die evaluering van die voedingkennis van die kinders as ‘n belangrike nuwe prioriteit geïdentifiseer. ‘n Toepaslike voedingkennisvraelys is vir hierdie doeleindes benodig en gevolglik is ‘n geldige en betroubare vraelys vir gebruik in die BTT-studie ontwikkel. Hierdie proses is begin deur die ontwikkeling van ‘n konseptueleraamwerk oor voedingverwante vraagstukke wat stedelike Suid-Afrikaanse adolessente in die gesig staar, asook die identifisering van verwante voedingkonsepte. ‘n Poel van potensiële vraelysitems wat die konsepte reflekteer is daarna ontwikkel. Die items is eers deur ‘n paneel van kenners evalueer om inhoud- en gesigsgeldigheid te verseker alvorens dit in ‘n vraelys omskep is. Die produk was ‘n vraelys wat 88 items ingesluit het wat vervolgens deur volwasse en adolessente groepe voltooi is. Die groepe het subgroepe ingesluit van diegene met verwagte goeie voedingkennis en diegene met verwagte swak voedingkennis. Die data wat tydens hierdie stap gegenereer is, is gebruik om die vraelys verder te verfyn deur die bepaling van die moeilikheids- en diskriminatoriese-indekse van die items. Die items wat nie aan vooraf gestelde kriteria voldoen het nie, is weggelaat. Die konstrukgeldigheid van die oorblywende 63 items is bepaal deur dieselfde datastel te gebruik. Om die interne-konsekwensie-betroubaarheid (IKB) van die vraelys te bepaal, is dit deur ‘n steekproef van adolessente, wat verteenwoordigend van die BTT-kohort is, voltooi. Hierna is die vraelys verder verfyn. Die uitkoms was ‘n 60-item vraelys waarvan die IBR en konstrukgeldigheid weereens bepaal is. Dit is gevind dat dié twee indikatore van geldigheid en betroubaarheid bevredigend is. Om akkurate interpretasie van die punt wat deur ‘n respondent vir die toets behaal te verseker, is die ideal om ‘n skaal te ontwikkel wat gebruik kan word om dié punt te takseer. ‘n Norm-gebaseerde prestasietakseringskaal is ontwikkel deur die voedingkennisvraelys deur ‘n steekproef wat verteenwoordigend is van die BTT-kohort (normgroep), te laat voltooi. Die prestasiepunte is getransformer na z-tellings wat vervolgens getransformeer is na stanneges, wat ‘n norm-gebaseerde prestasietakseringskaal opgelewer het wat gebruik kan word om die prestasie van die BTT-kohort te takseer. Valideringsgroepe met verskillende vlakke van voedingkennis, wat dus na verwagting verskillend getakseer behoort te word indien die norme toegepas word, het die voedingkennisvraelys voltooi om die geldigheid van die norme te bepaal. Dié valideringsgroepe het soos voorspel presteer, met betekenisvolle verskille in die prestasieprofiele van die verskillende groepe. Hierdie resultate dui daarop dat die norme geldig is. Die ontwikkeling van ‘n geldige en betroubare voedingkennistoets vir gebruik in die BTT-studie is suksesvol in hierdie studie deurgevoer. ‘n Norm-gebaseerde prestasietakseringskaal vir gebruik saam met die vraelys is ook suksesvol ontwikkel. Die vraelys en norme sal van waarde wees vir die evaluering van die voedingkennis van die BTT-kohort. Dit sal ook met sukses gebruik kan word om die verandering in die voedingkennis van die kinders soos wat hulle ouer word, te bepaal.