In South Africa Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) have to contend with the typical adversarial relations with a host government. In addition, MNEs operate in an environment regulated by a government policy of Redress, aimed at changing the wealth profile of the country to reflect the ethnic demographics. Policies such as Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment, Affirmative Action and Preferential Procurement are interventionist and place additional burden on the MNEs. Implementations of these regulations are often the source of conflict between MNEs and the local government. Ethno-cultural distance aggravates the strained relations between the MNE and host government. The policy of Redress effectively legislates the incorporation of local third parties that are ethno-culturally related to government into the competitive strategies of MNEs. Joint ventures with locals are an acknowledged strategy to enter foreign markets, providing for legitimisation and access to networks. The choice in strategy when dealing with the home government of either a relational or transactional approach is transferable to the MNE host government environment. Political levels have proven to be inaccessible but successful business transactions with government are abundant. The transactional approach dominates as a result of the failure to establish any relations with the host government, negating the pursuit of the relational approach. Third parties play an enabling role in successful transactions, ranging from providing access to government employees up to securing the deal and transacting with the MNE at arms-length. The absence of any social capital in successful transactions requires re-evaluation of the role of social capital in bridging barriers in business relations. Possible explanations are in the linking that the social capital of the third party with the government and MNE employees respectively has, an extremely low threshold for social capital in successful transactions, the force exerted by the need for the products or services, or, most probable, the profit motive. The distance between the government and MNE is extreme as a result of the historical strife between the ethnic groups in the country and the policy of Redress. The connotation with the social environment deters the active pursuit of social capital to gain competitive advantage. / D.B.L.

Inscrite dans le courant de recherches actuelles portant sur les déterminants des comportements en lien avec la santé, cette thèse a pour objectif de contribuer, au travers du développement d'un modèle à base d'agents, à une meilleure connaissance des relations entre le cadre de vie d'adolescents et leurs pratiques d'activité physique. Questionnant les fondements théoriques et empiriques du modèle socio-écologique qui guide la majorité des études actuelles, ce travail a conduit à l'élaboration d'un schéma conceptuel relationnel intégrant les notions de positions et dispositions sociales, ainsi que les liens entre pratiques de mobilité quotidienne et pratiques d'activités situées dans le temps et l'espace géographique. L'implémentation de ce schéma conceptuel a abouti à la réalisation de trois modèles à base d'agents de complexité croissante, dont l'originalité réside dans la non-inclusion explicite d'interactions. Ce travail, bien qu'inachevé en ce quiconcerne l'exploration des propriétés des modèles, a permis de souligner l'intérêt heuristique de la modélisation, permettant d'un côté d'ouvrir de nouvelles perspectives d'analyses, et d'un autre côté, d'offrir un retour sur les données utilisées. / Embedded in current research on determinants of health-related behaviours, this thesis develops an agentbased model to further explore and explain the links between living environment and physical activity in adolescents. Challenging the theoretical and empirical basis of the socio-ecological model that underpins most of current studies, this work leads to a relational conceptual framework that integrates social positions and dispositions with daily mobility and physical activity in both a spatial and temporal perspective. Three increasingly complex agent-based models are developped on this unusual framework that does not explicitly include interactions. Although further investigation is required to fully understand the properties of the models, the study highlights the benefits of this modelling approach that identifies new ways of thinking andanalytical opportunities and gives feedback on the data used.

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This interdisciplinary thesis studies the diverse multi-stakeholder networks that are constitutive of contemporary water governance. It examines collaborative governance networks from a relational perspective in two case study watersheds in Tanzania and Ethiopia. Collaborative and networked governance approaches are increasingly promoted to address complex water challenges, but relatively little is known about how the everyday collaborative relationships (i.e. collaboration practices) among the multiple actors involved in the development, management and use of water, shape contemporary water governance processes. In this thesis, I advance, based on intensive fieldwork data collection, a conceptual and methodological framework for studying collaboration networks pertaining to watershed management. I examine local collaborative governance networks in two watersheds, in Ethiopia and Tanzania, from a relational perspective, using complementary qualitative and quantitative social network research methods. The thesis explores the opportunities and limitations of such collaborative governance networks in their concrete functioning, thereby contributing to a more context-sensitive, and nuanced, understanding of the role of governance networks and collaborative governance approaches in the management of water and related resources.

本研究的問題意識為「為什麼國家體制有時無法成功消弭社會運動的風潮？」為了處理這個問題意識，本文採取一個「策略-關係」途徑的研究方法，並假設「社會運動若能於特定結構之下運用得宜的策略，即能持續生存發展」。因此，本研究探討台灣民主化過程之下一種特殊型態的「指向國家核心的社會運動」，分別是「反核四抗爭運動」以及「紅衫軍反貪腐倒扁運動」。 在本研究的第二章與第四章內容分別描述了這兩個特殊的社會運動興起背景以及台灣民主化的進程；而在本研究的第三章與第五章內容則分別討論這兩個社會運動採取的外部策略與策略互動。研究發現，「反核四抗爭運動」是以一種「以國家為槓桿」的外部策略；而「紅衫軍反貪腐倒扁運動」則採取一種「以大眾媒體為槓桿」的外部策略，這兩個案例在台灣民主化的不同階段之下分別成功形塑了「指向國家核心的社會運動」，共同見證了台灣民主化發展的獨特經驗，因此具有相當程度之指標性意義。 / The original research conscious of this study is” Why state machine sometimes can’t terminate social movement successfully?” In order to face this research conscious, the research adopt” strategic-relational approach”, and assume “If social movement could use suitable strategy in particular structure, the social movement could be exist and develop”. For the reason, this study wants to treat a special type of social movement, and we called social movements with “point at state core”. this study further select two social movements with “point at state core” in Taiwan’s Democratization:”Anti-fourth nuclear power plant movement” and ”Anti-corruption depose-Chen Campaign”. In Chapter 2 and chapter 4, we describe the background of social movement and democratic development in Taiwan; In Chapter 3 and chapter 5, we discuss external strategy and the interaction of the two social movement cases. This research discoveries that Anti-fourth nuclear power plant movement uses the external strategy of “as state as leverage”. On the other side, Anti-corruption depose-Chen Campaign uses the external strategy of “as mass media as leverage”. Finally, this study believes that the two social movements with “point at state core” play an important role in Taiwan’s Democratization.