Reputation systems have the potential of improving the quality of on-line markets by identifying fraudulent users and subsequently dealing with these users can be prevented. The behaviour of participants involved in e-commerce can be recorded and then this information made available to potential transaction partners to make decisions to choose a suitable counterpart. Unfortunately current reputation systems suffer from various vulnerabilities. Solutions for many of these problems will be discussed. One of the major threats is that of unfair feedback. A large number of negative or positive feedbacks could be submitted to a particular user with the aim to either downgrade or upgrade the user's reputation. As a result the produced reputation does not reflect the user's true trustworthiness. To overcome this threat a variation of Bayesian Reputation system is proposed. The proposed scheme is based on the subjective logic framework proposed Josang et al. [65]. The impact of unfair feedback is countered through some systematic approaches proposed in the scheme. Lack of anonymity for participants leads to reluctance to provide negative feedback. A novel solution for anonymity of feedback providers is proposed to allow participants to provide negative feedback when appropriate without fear of retaliation. The solution is based on several primitive cryptographic mechanisms; e-cash, designated verifier proof and knowledge proof. In some settings it is desirable for the reputation owner to control the distribution of its own reputation and to disclose this at its discretion to the intended parties. To realize this, a solution based on a certificate mechanism is proposed. This solution allows the reputation owner to keep the certificate and to distribute its reputation while not being able to alter that information without detection. The proposed solutions cater for two modes of reputation systems: centralised and decentralised. The provision of an off-line reputation system is discussed by proposing a new solution using certificates. This is achieved through the delegation concept and a variant of digital signature schemes known as proxy signatures. The thesis presents a security architecture of reputation systems which consists of different elements to safeguard reputation systems from malicious activities. Elements incorporated into this architecture include privacy, verifiability and availability. The architecture also introduces Bayesian approach to counter security threat posed by reputation systems. This means the proposed security architecture in the thesis is a combination of two prominent approaches, namely, Bayesian and cryptographic, to provide security for reputation systems. The proposed security architecture can be used as a basic framework for further development in identifying and incorporating required elements so that a total security solution for reputation systems can be achieved.

Zugl.: Hamburg, Universiẗat, Diss., 2007.

This study investigated predictor variables of the Counselor Rating Form dimensions of expertness, attractiveness, and trustworthiness using the predicted variable of therapy outcome, measured by Goal Attainment Scaling and postcounseling scores on the Counselor Rating Form. One hundred-fifteen mental health center outpatients agreed to participate. Forty subjects (25 females and 15 males) met all criteria and were labeled "completors." An additional 30 subjects, labeled "dropouts," enrolled but did not meet criteria. These subjects' data were considered in a separate analysis for prediction of treatment continuation. All subjects rated their own need for therapy before their initial interview. After the initial and final interviews, both the subject and the counselor completed the Counselor Rating Form, rating their perceptions of the counselor1s behavior during that session. The Goal Attainment Scaling was used to generate both pre- and postcounseling outcome scores on each subject's individual, personalized goals.

A main focus of this thesis is a relationship between government debt and rating of a respective country. The first chapter forms a theoretical basis and deals with a general characteristics of rating for all economic subjects, introduction of the three most important rating agencies and last but not least with government debt. The theoretical part is followed by a description of government debt's development and rating of the Czech Republic. An application part of the thesis conducts a basic analysis of relationship between government debt and rating and subsequently the core analysis using a specific framework from a rating agency.

Public sector management has, through the years, been characterised by a hierarchical system whereby red tape and bureaucracy were the order of the day. Towards the latter part of the apartheid era, management had complete autonomy in the functioning of the human resource management, financial management, operations and so on, of government organisations. Top management, and to a large extent middle management, in most governmental departments comprised predominantly people classified as White. With the launch of the New Democratic Government in 1994, new legislation in the form of the Labour Relations Act of 1995, the Basic Conditions of Employment Act of 1997 and the Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, was instituted. This transformation heralded an about-turn and rethink by government about policies and strategies governing employees and the workplace; for example, the Labour Relations Act of 1995 restricts the concept of unfair labour practices by employers. The employee’s interest was considered in the new legislation, and is currently part of employee wellbeing programmes initiated by government and incorporated into work schedules. In addition, government has launched strategies such as “Batho Pele” (put people first) and “a home for all” (a Western Cape Provincial Government initiative to improve the image of government) to improve service delivery to communities. The above-mentioned political and legislative changes increasingly required a shift from an autocratic to a team-orientated leadership style and from an exclusively task-orientated to a people-orientated organisational culture. The study explored whether management styles, organisational culture, job satisfaction and job performance have changed in the Provincial Government Western Cape (PGWC) after the advent of democracy in South Africa in 1994. The specific research questions that were pursued included (i) has there been a shift from autocratic to a team-orientated management style in the PGWC?, (ii) has there been a shift from a task-orientated to a people-orientated v organisational culture in the PGWC?, (iii) what were the levels of job satisfaction among the employees, and (iv) how did these changes (if any) in organisational culture, management styles and job satisfaction impact the perceived job performance of these employees. The sample consisted of 100 managers selected from various departments in the PGWC. The empirical results indicated that there has been a shift to a team-orientated management style; that there has not been a shift from a task-orientated to a people-orientated organisational culture; that the perceived levels of job satisfaction and job performance levels are high; and that job satisfaction, especially as it relates to a challenging job content and job fit (in terms of personality, ability and skills), was the main determinant of the perceived job performance of the managers in the PGWC. The managerial implications of these empirical results are discussed and recommendations are proposed on the grounds of these discussions.

Importance of rating/credit rating agencies' role has recently significantly increased. Rating has become an integral part of the financial, capital markets. Yet this market (i.e. credit rating market) is not subject to regulation (the market works on the basis of a self-regulation principle) which is the fact widely used as a basis for the criticism of this industry in the light of recent events in the financial markets (the collapse of Enron, Parmalat, and other companies, lately followed by a collapse of the subprime mortgage market). The paper outlines the (monopoly) structure of the rating industry in the U.S. and the EU, discusses the new roles of rating in the regulation (e.g. regulation of the banking sector, BASEL II) as well as potential barriers for the market entry. The paper also addresses potential conflicts of interest and lack of regulation which can be observed in the industry.

This thesis deals with the activity of rating agencies and the sovereign rating in-fluence on debt service of the Czech Republic. In the theoretical part there is described the rating concept and its importance for society. Next there is described the history of the most significant rating agencies, so-called "The Big Three". The second part of this thesis is dedicated mainly to the sovereign rating of the Czech Republic that is compared with the sovereign ratings of other countries of the EU. Finally, I analyze whether there is a connection with the determinativ of the level of dependence between sovereign rating and interest on new government bonds, GDP, and state debt.

M.A. (Business Management) / With the raise of competition in the Gabonese health industry and increased costs, most health service providers in Gabon have become under pressure to deliver good service quality. This also relates to the military hospital in Libreville in Gabon striving to provide adequate health services to its patients. The cost for hospitals to attract patients through several means such as providing good service quality has become crucial. Patient loyalty and retention can have an important financial advantage for a hospital, thus it has become essential for hospitals to create a sustaining relationship with their patients. The question of assessing service quality presents itself. This study investigated service quality at a military hospital in Libreville in Gabon. It was the objective of this study to establish if there is a difference in how patients rate doctors and nurses on the service quality dimensions. This research was quantitative and descriptive in nature. Theory relating to service quality and patient satisfaction was provided. The population for the study consisted of patients who were at least 18 years old, males and females, who have experienced medical services and stayed over at the military hospital for at least one night. A self administered questionnaire was designed based on the theoretical literature illustrated in the study. The questionnaire assessed various elements that were identified through the literature review. The questionnaire was based on a set of statements linked to the literature theory, and a 7-point Likert scale which enabled respondents to choose from seven different alternatives ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. A number of statistical analysis techniques were undertaken to achieve the objectives of the study, such as factor analysis. The conclusion and findings of the research assisted in explaining the objectives of the study and the results of the statistical analysis were found to reject the hypotheses that there is no significant difference in how patients rate the reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy of doctors and nurses and to reject the hypothesis that patients do not have a positive perception of the tangible aspects of a military hospital in Libreville, Gabon. In terms of the doctors’ services, patients felt a need for more privacy in terms of the confidentiality of their treatment, a need for more individual attention, a need to be heard, and to trust doctors. Therefore such needs could be addressed through improved compassion, communication and understanding of doctors during the diagnosis of the problem. The feeling expressed was that doctors should pay more attention to patients’ problems and share with them their experience. Doctors at the military hospital should develop more work ethic where patients’ records and cases should never be discussed with anyone without patients’ permission. The military hospital should employ highly trained and qualified doctors to address the trust issue with patients. Lastly, consultation time may need to be reviewed to add some extra time to better address patients’ needs during their consultation with doctors. In terms of the services delivered by nurses towards patients, the latter were of the opinion that there was a need for more individual attention from nurses. Such individual attention could include greater information sharing when a patient is treated, friendlier communication to install greater trust and respect. Such needs could be addressed through improved patience, compassion and understanding by nurses during their dealings with patients. Nurses should also develop more work ethic regarding patients’ records, and cases should never be discussed with anyone without their permission. Officials in the hospital should hire highly trained and qualified nurses to address the issue of trust in patients and consultation time may need to be reviewed to add some extra time to better address patients’ needs during their dealings with nurses.

This study tests whether criteria variance in five job-facet satisfactions and performance rating explained by selected demographic and personality variables is significantly greater than by the selected demographic variables. This study offers a useful procedure for treating job-satisfaction data and predictor variables and measures the significance in predictability between criteria variance accounted for by variables not generally found in personnel files and those usually found there. It was found that job satisfactions and performance rating differ both in terms of predictability and functional relationships with Predictor Sets.

This research is a replication of part of Dr. Catherine Price's dissertation study "An Empirical Study of Professional Association Meetings from the Perspective of Attendees" (1993). The paper presented is a research study in the area of meeting/conference attendee preferences. This research tested which attributes of meeting selection were of importance to a particular population. Dr. Price (1993) identified four variables as important attributes for attendees in their selection of a meeting. They were: a) education, b) leadership, c) networking, and d) professional savvy. The primary hypothesis was directed at confirming the validity of these attributes. Four factors emerged in the analysis of this study. Three factors were identical to the Price (1993) study. These factors were: a) education, b) leadership, and c) networking. The fourth factor that emerged was named potpourri. Ultimately, this study attempted to be significant in assisting meeting planners in the preparation of more effective meetings. / Master of Science