Promoting gender equality and equity remain an important goal for schools in South Africa, and strides have been made in many areas to reduce inequalities. Local and international legislative and policy frameworks create a context within which unfair discrimination can be curtailed, but these, albeit important, are not entirely sufficient, and inequities persist based on perceptions regarding motherhood and teaching. There is a need to address practices at grassroots level, where historical stereotyping and procedures have become entrenched in the system. For female teachers to experience meaningful equality, these underlying issues need to be addressed and this cannot be achieved through legislative processes. What is required is that the whole process of socialisation into sex roles needs to be addressed. This study sets out to analyse and describe the world of mother teachers, and to explore how entrenched assumptions, cultural values and beliefs impact on the meaningful construction and harmonisation of the dual role of mother and teacher. The professional woman who becomes a mother finds herself faced with the dual role of mother and professional and the result is that conflicting and complementary dimensions emerge that makes the pressure to meet all expectations overwhelming. These mother teachers consistently try to be what they think ‘others’ want them to be and, therefore, they often have not come to terms with who they are. Their life become a life to please ‘others’ and because they cannot please everybody, they experience feelings of failure. This study came to understand that the mother teachers’ will experience ambivalence and discomforts concerning their attempts to balance their personally constructed multiple roles successfully when they do not accept themselves fully as women with special talents, competencies and attributes. Supportive behaviour from the state, school principals and fathers is needed. However, mother teachers themselves are the main source for self-actualisation. Unfortunately, when mother teachers cannot accept themselves for who and what they are, no support system will be able to help them to feel successful about being both homemakers and professionals. I was interested in what each participant’s experiences of motherhood and teaching were; how she expressed herself in conveying these experiences; and consequently, the meaning she attached to her experiences. The research problem, and the nature of the information sought, suggested the use of three distinct methods, namely (1) the narrative interview; (2) reflexive journal entries; and (3) observational field notes. After these three data collection methods had been conducted, coding of the information gathered took place to facilitate analysis and interpretation. From the findings, I believe that these mother teachers will only find themselves and fulfil their place in society once they are able to redefine their own perceived role expectations of society when fulfilling personally constructed multiple role expectations. / Dissertation (MEd (Educational Management, Law and Policy))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Education Management and Policy Studies / unrestricted

Questionnaires were sent by mail and e-mail to 143 members of the Sociological Practice Association. The purpose of the questionnaire was to measure the role expectations as qualities (competencies), role expectations as actions, and role enactments of the respondents'. An additional goal was to examine how respondents perceived their work to be sociological in nature, and how they saw their work as different from the practices of social workers, counselors, and psychologists. The first question that was addressed was, “Do sociological practitioners have clear and unambiguous role expectations for their work as practitioners?” The data showed that most role expectations measured as competencies were clear and unambiguous, and only a few were ambiguous and unclear. The second question addressed was, “Do sociological practitioners perceive their role enactments to differ from other helping professionals such as social workers, counselors, and psychologists?” The data showed that sociological practitioners do perceive their role enactments to be different because of their use of sociological theory and their focus on social structures. The final question asked was, “How do sociological practitioners perceive their work as sociological in theory, methods, or both?” The data showed that sociological practitioners perceive their work as sociological based on their use of sociological theory. Most respondents reported that they used common scientific methods, and few reported the use of psychological theory.

The enduring question of why apparently ordinary individuals participate in the systemic perpetration of mass violence hallmarks genocide studies, and it arose yet again when the multifarious atrocities faced by civilians in the Yugoslav Wars of 1991–1995 were apparent. With explanations resting on notions of “ancient hatreds” having been denounced in favour of ones that emphasise the role of emotions like fear and resentment, ethnic myths and symbols, and competition on group and individual levels of society, there remains some issues with these approaches; they cannot account for what motivates variations in behaviour by on-the-ground perpetrators nor can they describe the process by which violence develops in tandem on micro- and meso-levels, while still accommodating macro-level causes for conflict. In this thesis, symbolic interactionist and social constructivist theories of social roles and social norms are applied in the search for finding the motives for violent behaviour by perpetrators in the Yugoslav Wars of 1991–1995 to establish a more complete understanding the dynamics of individual decision-making and collective action in the context of violence. A directed qualitative content analysis is conducted of testimony provided by twenty-nine on-the-ground perpetrators and by select witnesses. This testimony was collected from the Hugo Valentin Centre’s database of court transcripts from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. The research revealed that the (dis-)organisation of the perpetrating groups’ social structures, as well as the presence, or lack thereof, of both role strain and role conflict were deciding factors in motivating violent behaviour.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Special Education, Counseling and Student Affairs / Linda P. Thurston / This qualitative case study with multiple participants explored how the perception of campus climate and gender role expectations contributes to Latinas’ persistence at a two-year Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) in the Midwest. Guided by the work of Hurtado and Carter (1997) and social support theory (Sarason & Sarason, 1985), various aspects of the college experience both inside and outside the classroom were examined. In-depth interviews were conducted in order to gain insight into those viewpoints that influenced the desire to enroll and persist in college and how these perspectives shaped commitment and sense of belonging to the institution. Prominent themes that emerged were: the significance of family support and the need to stay close, the impact of student identity and the importance of positive faculty-student interaction. The results indicated that immigration status, the desire to make family proud, and support from family and instructors that offered words of encouragement served to motivate students to persist and graduate. Additional prominent findings revealed that the perception regarding academic environment including the need for positive academic advising experiences, involvement in organizational memberships, particularly with the Hispanic American Leadership Organization (HALO) and activities that embrace the diverse student population and incorporate varying perspectives affect perceptions of campus climate and commitment to the institution. Participants identified those programs and services on campus that best serve the needs of Latinas and have the most impact on a positive college experience. The results contribute to the research addressing campus climate and sense of belonging for Latino/a students overall, and offers unique insights from the perspective of Latinas attending a two-year HSI that is lacking in the body of literature. Implications for practice and future research are identified.

The relationship between politicians and civil servants is ambiguous and potentially problematic in democratic terms. The aim of the thesis is to examine this relationship in the Swedish core executive, Regeringskansliet. More specifically, the analysis emphasises the respective role expectations of the two groups when interacting with each other. The thesis is based on two extensive qualitative interview studies with politicians and senior civil servants, one carried out in the early 1980’s and one undertaken more recently. Hence it also offers an opportunity to analyse whether these expectations have changed or remained stable during the last decades. The findings reveal that the role expectations of politicians and civil servants to a high extent correspond, and have remained relatively stable over time. The relationship between politicians and civil servants is based on norms such as (conditional) trust, delegation and yet relatively close interaction. If so, politicians are unloaded by the civil service in order to handle their external responsibilities. Although relatively informal, a passive hierarchy of roles ensures the superiority of politicians and more specifically of the minister. Civil servants adapt to roles taken by politicians, although providing guidance to the politicians on how to behave in office. The division of labour is not based on the different tasks performed in the policy-making process. Instead, politicians assume responsibility for all actions and decisions – also those undertaken by the civil servants – within the ministries, while civil servants offer politicians protection and security. Taken together these results indicate that the institutionalised norms that surround the relationship between politicians and civil servants are highly powerful. Nevertheless, the thesis also reveals tendencies towards a departure from these norms, suggesting that this relationship is to some extent fragile and exposed to various attempts at reform.

This thesis explores the relationship between a pastor’s personal ministry identity and the church role expectations that he encounters in the local church within which he ministers and takes place in the context of the discipline of “Building up the local church”. It is the hypothesis of this thesis that many Baptist pastors within the Baptist Union of Southern Africa are compromising the integrity of their own personal ministry identities in an attempt to meet the church role expectations of their local churches. The study considers firstly the nature development of personal identity in general as a precursor to understanding the nature of development of a personal ministry identity. At least six key elements are identified as being important in the development of an authentic personal ministry identity namely, spiritual gifting, personality, natural talentsabilities, divine call, congregational influence and finally passion. Pastoral ministry can be understood as an interface of expectations between the church role expectations of the church and the pastor’s expectations derived from his personal ministry identity. The consequences of this interface of expectations may be both positive and negative and may include role confusion, conflict, collusion or congruence. Role negotiation and renegotiation may be used to address some of the negative consequences of this interface. Empirical research results obtained as part of the study that explored the relationship between a pastor’s personal ministry identity, church role expectations and the current approach to ministry, clearly indicate that church role expectations are far more influential on current pastoral practice than are the personal ministry identities, indicating that the identities of these pastors have been undermined by church role expectations. A correct understanding of the Biblical view of self-denial and self-esteem would result in a greater freedom on the part of pastors to resist the undermining of their personal ministry identities. Copyright 2005, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Baston, GA 2005, Rediscovering pastoral identity : the influence of church role expectations in undermining a pastor’s personal ministry identity, MA(Theol) dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-06172005-101131 / > / Dissertation (MA (Theology))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Practical Theology / unrestricted

Within the helping professions there are contrasting epistemological views regarding the role of the helping professional, which have direct influences on learning support practices. Despite these views, it remains unclear what parents expect when seeking learning support for their children. This qualitative study explored parents’ constructions of the role of the helping professional in learning support. It specifically addressed parents’ expectations of the helping professional, what they value in their interactions with helping professionals as well as their understandings of their own roles in consultation and intervention for learning support. A case study approach was employed to gain access to participants. Specifically, three parents of children attending a school for Learners with Special Educational Needs [LSEN] were included as participants. These parents had had experiences with various helping professionals, both at the school and in private practice settings, in the course of seeking assistance for their children. It was thus thought that they would be able to provide in-depth perspectives as to their ideas of the role of helping professionals who assist children experiencing difficulties due to their exposure and experiences with helping professionals. Initial data collection was undertaken via semi-structured interviews with the participants. A content analysis of the interviews was subsequently employed to elicit affinities for use during a further modified form of Interactive Qualitative Analysis [IQA] with the contributors to the study. In total, fourteen affinities were generated and included Parental expectations, Professional characteristics, The helping process, Parents’ role, Status of the helping professional, Professional approach, Parents’ personal experiences, Parents’ emotions, Assessment, Recommendations, Stigma, a Team approach, parent-professional Interaction and Values. These affinity descriptions were corroborated and expanded on with the participants and the relationships amongst the affinities where then hypothesised by the participants themselves. A central outcome of the study was the research participants’ social representations of helping professionals. These representations comprise the thematic elements representing the participants’ discourse about the role of helping professionals in learning support and provide the participants’ in-depth ideas of the relationships amongst these elements. / Dissertation (MEd (Educational Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

Occupational roles are constantly changing in today's society. Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is a new EU directive that sets requirements for companies sustainability reporting, which may change the occupational role of HR managers. The aim of the study is to investigate if, and in that case, what changes in the occupational role the implementation of CSRD has led to in terms of tasks and role expectations and whether it has resulted in a changed role identity . In order to study whether there has been a change in the occupational role of HR managers, qualitative interviews have been conducted. The theoretical framework is based on the concepts: tasks, role expectations and role identity. The study's results show that the occupational role of HR managers has changed in some respects. A few new aspects have been added to the existing role, but the occupational role has not changed into a completely new role. The results also show that the changed occupational role has not lead to a changed identity. / Yrkesroller förändras ständigt i dagens samhälle. Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) är ett nytt EU-direktiv som ställer krav på företags hållbarhetsrapportering vilket kan förändra HR-chefernas yrkesroll. Syftet med studien är att undersöka om och i så fall vad implementeringen av CSRD har lett till för förändringar i HR-chefers yrkesroll gällande uppgifter och rollförväntningar och om det resulterat i en förändrad rollidentitet. För att studera om det har skett en förändring av HR-chefers yrkesroll har kvalitativa intervjuer genomförts. Den teoretiska referensramen baseras på begreppen: uppgifter, rollförväntningar och rollidentitet. Studiens resultat visar att HR-chefers yrkesroll har förändrats i vissa avseenden. Yrkesrollen har inte förändrats till en helt ny roll utan det har tillkommit vissa nya aspekter till den befintliga rollen. Resultatet visar även att förändringen av yrkesrollen inte lett till en förändrad identitet.

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The purpose of this study was to provide an examination of the relationships between general education teachers, special education teachers, and paraprofessionals and the influences of these relationships on students with disabilities. This study was conducted through the process of semi-structured interviews with general education teachers, special education teachers, and paraprofessionals working in two Tennessee school districts. The researcher found that communication practices, training, perspectives, time, role expectations, development of partnerships, and the creation of supportive environments affect the development of working relationships among special education teachers, paraprofessionals, and general education teachers. The researcher found that these relationships influence the experiences of students with disabilities in a significant and meaningful way. The researcher provides recommendations for current practices to promote the development of successful working relationships and provides suggestions for future research.