published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Architecture

published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Architecture

Thesis (M.Arch.)--University of Hong Kong, 2002. / Includes special study report entitled : Art and garden in health care design. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print.

published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Architecture

published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Architecture

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Technology Degree: Operations and Quality Management, Durban University of Technology, 2012. / Over the last decade the institutional framework within which most universities in South Africa operate has undergone major transformation forcing the higher education sector to become more competitive in its approach to attracting and retaining quality students. Against this background, service quality has been put forward as a critical determinant of competitiveness. The purpose of this study therefore was to identify best practice in terms of postgraduate studies and research development and support service delivery in the South African (SA) and Australian (Aus) contexts in order to inform the development of a quality model for postgraduate or research centres (PG/RCs) for universities of technology (UoTs) in SA. Underpinned by the Gap Model of service delivery and an adapted SERVQUAL instrument, this study sought to determine perceptions and expectations of service quality across five dimensions, namely: tangibles; reliability; responsiveness; assurance; and empathy. Questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used to gather data from PG/RC staff and postgraduate and research students in SA. Various gaps between students’ perceptions and expectations indicating dissatisfaction with PG/RC services particularly among the SA students were identified. The findings revealed that the SA UoTs lag behind the Aus UoTs in terms of communicating their services and forms of support to students and providing satisfactory services according to student expectations. The findings further suggested that issues such as service quality planning and monitoring, establishing recovery mechanisms for service failures, and student-driven service design and standards need to be high on the agenda at higher education institutions to ensure service quality control. All five dimensions of SERVQUAL indicated a negative score or quality gap suggesting that the SA PG/RCs need to urgently the gaps that exist at their institutions; key recommendations were thus made to improve the gaps identified. Based on the literature reviewed, best practice gleaned from the findings of this study, and benchmarking with the Aus UoTs; this study proposed a centralized and decentralized PG/RC model for SA UoTs to provide service quality to its ‘customers’.

I Sverige bedrivs en stor del av all forskning vid universitet. Det finns dock även forskningsinstitut; organisationer som helt inriktar sig på forskning. I takt med dagens moderna kunskapssamhälle så har kunskapshantering som ämne vuxit sedan 1990- talet. En viktig fråga inom kunskapshanteringen är hur kunskap och erfarenheter från projekt kan dokumenteras och arkiveras för att senare återanvändas i framtida arbeten. Anledningen till att vi valde kunskapshanteringen i just forskningsinstitut är att de är projektintensiva organisationer och att vi inte hittade några tidigare studier om det sambandet. Syftet med undersökningen är att analysera hur kunskapshanteringen ser ut i sex utvalda forskningsinstitut och för att lyckas så har två frågeställningar besvarats. Frågeställningarna är hur kunskap som skapas i projekt hanteras och hur instituten strukturerat sin kunskapshantering. För att svara på frågeställningarna genomfördes kvalitativa intervjuer med varsin anställd på sex svenska forskningsinstitut som arbetar med forskningsprojekt av olika slag. Den insamlade empirin analyserades med hjälp av kunskapsterminologi och utefter två teman: metoder och verktyg samt interaktion. En del av syftet var att undersöka om särskilda metoder och verktyg för kunskapshantering förekom i forskningsinstituten. Efter genomförd analys kan vi konstatera att typen av arbetsuppgifter spelar stor roll i kunskapshanteringen där skillnaden mellan de två samhällsvetenskapliga instituten och de övriga tekniska och naturvetenskapliga är tydlig. Förekomsten av de utvalda metoderna och verktygen för kunskapshantering skiljer sig, men de är till stor del frånvarande från de analyserade instituten där exempelvis endast hälften dokumenterar projekterfarenheter och arkiverar dem för framtida användning. De medvetna och strukturerade valen av kunskapshantering varierar mellan instituten, men den mänskliga interaktionens roll har visat sig vara väsentlig för att hantera projektrelaterad kunskap. / In Sweden, a large part of all research is conducted at universities. However, there are also research institutes; organisations wholly focused on research. Keeping up with today’s modern knowledge society, knowledge management as a subject has grown since the 1990’s. A key issue in knowledge management is how knowledge and experience from projects can be documented and archived for later use in future projects. The reason we chose knowledge management in research institutions is that they are project-intensive organizations and that we did not find any previous studies of the relationship between the two. The purpose of the study is to analyse what the knowledge management looks like in six selected research institutes and to achieve this two questions have been answered. The questions are how knowledge created in projects is managed and how the institutions have structured their knowledge management. In order to answer the questions qualitative interviews were conducted with a staff member from six Swedish research institutes of various kinds. The collected empirical data was analysed using knowledge terminology and by using two themes: methods and tools and interaction. Part of the purpose was to investigate if specific methods and tools for knowledge management were used in the research institutes. After completing the analysis, we can conclude that the type of assignment plays a major role in knowledge management where the difference between the two social science institutes and the other technical and natural sciences ones is clear. The presence of the selected methods and tools for knowledge management differs, but they are in large part absent from the analysed institutions where, for example, only half of them document project experiences and archive them for future use. The conscious and structured choices of knowledge management vary between the institutes, but the role of social interaction has shown itself to be essential for the management of project-related knowledge.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2004 / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The overarching aim of this study is to analyse what researchers in South African higher education institutes and science councils mean by the term 'utilisation'. In specific terms, this aim is interpreted as determining what researchers mean when they indicate that their research findings are being utilised. The data used to conduct this analysis is taken from a national survey conducted to establish the extent to which research findings in South Africa are utilised. The Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies - now called the Centre for Research on Science and Technology - conducted the survey for the National Advisory Committee on Innovation (NACI). This study for NACI involved a questionnaire survey of research being conducted with universities, technikons and science councils, and a telephone survey of a sample of research and development managers in 116 companies. As a researcher in the Centre, I played an active role in this two-fold survey component of the research process. Besides coding the questionnaire for the NACI survey, for the purposes of my study I did additional coding of the questionnaire data. This involved coding 1052 responses to an openended question using a software package. After exporting this data to Microsoft Excel, I further coded the data into one of three categories: Mode 1, Mode 2 and a combination of Mode 1 and Mode 2. This 'new variable' created, formed part of the quantitative analysis since it was correlated with the following variables: the 'trigger' or 'driver' behind the research; the expected outcome of the project or study; the scientific field of the project; the project's or the study's science culture; the source of funding of the study, the modes of dissemination of the results and the intended beneficiary(ies) of the research. Results of the qualitative analyses reveal a profile for projects exhibiting features of Mode 1, Mode 2 or a combination of Mode 1 and Mode 2 knowledge utilisation. With Mode 1 we see that research was likely to be utilised within the discipline, was conducted for the benefit of the researcher's peers and it expanded on existing knowledge - all indicating that Mode 1 knowledge utilisation is predominantly associated with fundamental research. With Mode 2 we see that research was produced primarily for its use value and included the user's interests - indicating that Mode 2 knowledge utilisation is predominantly applied, commissioned and/or strategic. Projects that exhibited both features of Mode 1 and Mode 2 were both indicative of fundamental and applied research. Besides the quantitative analyses also showing the same result mentioned above, it was also discovered that the majority of the projects exhibited features of Mode 2, with one third of the projects exhibiting features of Mode 1 and a small proportion of projects as comprising both modes of utilisation. This was a very interesting finding because it is no longer just speculation that a shift is occurring to more applied, strategic research. The analysis revealed that this shift is a reality. The correlations of mode of utility with the seven other variables produced a range of results that expanded on the features of Mode 1 and Mode 2 type of knowledge production and verified that each mode had qualities unique to itself. My recommendations to researchers in South African research institutes concerns conducting the type of research which will be more relevant to the needs of South African society at large. To funding bodies and programmes of South Africa, the suggestion is to become more informed about the dissemination and intended utilisation strategies that they fund. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die doel van hierdie studie is om 'n analise te doen van die begrip "navorsingsbenutting", soos verstaan deur navorsers binne die publieke Suid Afrikaanse navorsing- en ontwikkelingsektor. Data wat verkry is van 'n landswye ondersoek na die aanwending van navorsingsuitsette binne die publieke sektor, soos onderneem deur die Sentrum vir Interdissiplinêre Studies, is geanaliseer. As 'n lid van die navorsingspan wat die studie onderneem het, was ek aktief betrokke by die proses wat onder meer 'n vraelys-ondersoek ingesluit het na navorsingsprojekte wat in swang is aan SA universiteite, tegnikons en wetenskapsrade. Vir die doel van die studie het ek 1052 response wat die resultaat was van 'n oop vraag in die vraelys in drie kategorieë gekodeer naamlik Modus 1, Modus 2 asook Modus 3, 'n kombinasiekategorie met die benaming "modus van aanwending". Die kwalitatiewe analise het getoon dat in die geval van modus 1, die navorsing mees waarskynlik binne die dissipline en tot die voordeel van die navorser se eweknieë aangewend sal word en dat dit in die meeste gevalle 'n uitbreiding van bestaande kennis behels - 'n aanduiding dat modus 1 navorsing hoofsaakilk verbind kan word met fundamentele navorsing. In die geval van modus 2 blyk dit dat navorsing primêr berus op die utiliteit- of aanwendingswaarde daarvan. Dit vertoon 'n noue verband met die gebruiker se behoefte of belangstelling en is hoofsaaklik toegepaste, kontrak of strategiese navorsing. Projekte wat aspekte van beide modi 1 en 2 vertoon, het tegelykertyd gedui op fundamentele en toegepaste navorsing. Die kwantitatiewe analise het aangedui dat die meerderheid projekte eienskappe van modus 2 vertoon het, met 'n derde van die projekte wat eienskappe van modus 1 vertoon het. 'n Klein hoeveelheid projekte het aspekte van beide modi 1 en 2 vertoon. Hierdie analise het aangetoon dat 'n verkuiwing inderdaad plaasgevind het vanaf fundamentele na meer toegepaste en strategiese navorsing. Die korrelasie van die modus van aanwending met sewe ander veranderlikes, het 'n reeks resultate tot gevolg gehad wat die eienskappe van modi 1 en 2 verder uitgebrei het. Dit het ook bygedra tot die bevestiging van die spesifieke eienskap van elke modus en unieke aspekte van elke modus aangetoon. Aanbevelings word ten slotte gedoen met die oog op 'n keuse vir meer relevante navorsing binne die publieke sektor gemeet aan die kriteria van die navorsingsbehoeftes van die breër Suid Afrikaanse gemeenskap. Aanbevelings m.b.t. disseminasie en navorsingsaanwendingstrategieë van navorsing wat deur befondsingsliggame befonds word, word ook gemaak.

published_or_final_version / Politics and Public Administration / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

The purpose of this research project is to analyse the opportunities and challenges that the foreign and security policy research institutes face in transnational cooperation across wider Europe. By specifically examining the capacities of non- and quasi-governmental actors to operate and cooperate at transnational level, the research informs the choices presented by the ongoing restructuring of the foreign and security policy sphere. The increasing deterritorialisation of foreign and security policy issues calls for transnational or multinational approaches to resolve them. As nation states fall short of the appropriate capacities, it is of interest to investigate how non- and quasi-governmental actors can contribute to transnational interaction. Therefore, their tools and capacities to operate and cooperate in the transnational sphere need to be established in the first place. In this context a broader geographical focus is chosen in order to study a more differentiated situation, instead of the already relatively integrated case of the European Union. The thesis first studies cooperation among research institutes in broader terms under consideration of their socio-political environment. It outlines differences in their organic development dependent on the geographic affiliation of the institutes, and identifies their tools as well as several defining characteristics. This is followed by an analysis of the fieldwork, discussing processes, opportunities and challenges in transnational cooperation as perceived by staff in research institutes. Subsequently, the thesis takes a more detailed look at applied cooperation among research institutes. Here it traces patterns and formats of interaction, and then delves into a case study on project- based cooperation that provides functional insights regarding research institutes cooperation across borders. In studying cooperation among research institutes from various perspectives, the research enables to investigate the integration among the different narratives. The study integrates a range of issues and concepts in an original manner, therefore it contributes to several significant debates. On the face of it, the thesis adds to the identification of a role for non- and quasi-governmental actors in an increasingly deterritorialised foreign and security policy sphere, using the example of research institutes. To address this aspect, the study considers both the broader implications of socio-political and economic interrelations for cooperation, as well as the detailed functional level of interaction. Moreover, based on the choice of geographical focus, the research project contributes to the literature on EU-Russia relations. Herein it adds to the extant literature by offering a perspective which acknowledges the implications of high politics but emphasises the role of non- and quasi-governmental actors. Beyond that, the thesis contributes to the theoretical debate on foreign and security policy in choosing a non-traditional approach to examine a non-traditional issue. Post-structuralism serves to facilitate a critical review of the construction of cooperation among Russian and EU-based public policy research institutes.