This study aims to investigate the determinants of capital structure in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia and their effect on firms’ performance. The study addresses the following primary question: What are the factors that influence the capital structure of SMEs in Malaysia? The sample of this research is SMEs in the east coast region of Malaysia. Adopting a positivist paradigm, the research design includes a preliminary study comprising 25 interviews with the owner-managers of SMEs, which is analysed using thematic analysis. The results are used to finalise the conceptual framework for the main study, which takes the form of a self-completion questionnaire survey. Usable responses were received from 384 firms, giving a response rate of 75.3%. The survey data is analysed using a series of binomial logistic regression models. Results reveal that there was no indication for the impact of owner’s education and experience on capital structure decisions. Other owner-related factors, firm characteristics, management performance and environment were found to relate to all types of capital structure. Both complete and partial mediating effects are also discovered in this study. The results provide evidence to support the pecking order hypothesis (Myers, 1984; Myers and Majluf, 1984), agency theory (Jensen and Meckling, 1976) and culture model of Schwartz (1994). It appeared that owner-managers in Malaysia do not strive to adjust their capital structure towards some optimal debt ratio, which is contrary to the static trade-off theory (DeAngelo and Masulis, 1980) of capital structure. This study makes several important contributions to the existing studies of capital structure. This research led to the development of a model of capital structure determinants by integrating factors related to owner-managers, firms, culture, and environment. This study incorporates methodological triangulation that may mitigate the problem of the difficulties in accessing financial data of SMEs in Malaysia. This study also provides meaningful insight into the financing preferences of the owner-managers with relevant implementations to academics, business practitioners, financial providers and policymakers. The research findings should assist owner-managers in making optimal capital structure decisions as well as help the policymaker in making an appropriate policy on the financing.

This PhD thesis investigates power relationships within a corporate Finance Department employing a Foucauldian approach to explaining corporate hierarchies and resistance and the implications.Research was conducted in the form of a case study and observation of a corporate finance department, referred to as the 'Finance Department', at the 'Company', referred to as such for confidentiality purposes. The Company is a large Dutch based mail and logistics entity that operates internationally across over 200 countries and has its corporate head office just outside of Amsterdam. The Company's Finance Department was in the throws of change, particularly around hierarchies as a result of the reengineering process with the purpose of creating efficiencies. The aim of the research was to evaluate the power relationships that existed within the hierarchies between management and workers who worked either for the Finance Department or closely with it, and to analyse the outcomes of these power relationships in terms of resistance.The case study is a Foucauldian insight into the different individuals who worked either within the Finance Department or closely with it, with an evaluation of their roles and how their differing power structures impacted upon the workflow within the Finance Department.The outcome of this research is an evaluation of those individuals and their relationships at a particular point in time, which was impacted by so many different factors. The research could give readers an understanding of power relationships and framework for contextual Foucauldian evaluation.The significance of the contribution arising from this particular piece of research is that it involves the combination of a case study method with a Foucauldian perspective. The combination of these two elements allows the research to be done both from the top down and also from the bottom up. Increasing in use as a research tool (Hamel, 1992), the case study contributes uniquely to our body of knowledge of individual, organisational, social and political phenomena (Yin, 1994). The Foucauldian perspective plays an important part in terms of an understanding of power, despite the fact that it is often difficult to fully comprehend the meanings behind Foucault's work (McHoul & Grace, 1993).

This study explores the reasons for why aboriginal parents decide for their children to cross district to school with a specific focus on three school district of Paiwaness tribes in Pingtung County. The area we research is undeveloped and the researcher is himself Paiwanese. It aims to explore why aboriginal parents choose to leave the school in tribes, discover the problems that parents and children encounter , how they handle the problems and the adaptations for children. The study adopts semi-structured questionnaire to conduct in-depth interviews. Purposive sampling was used to identify interviews and there were ten aboriginal parents were interviewed. The conclusions of the research are as the following:. 1.The main reasons for crossing district schooling include lack of peer-learning competitive in tribes, adaption in mainstream society and parents¡¦ positive discipline. 2.Poor marketing strategy of tribal school administrator, and local indigenous teachers¡¦ background and their negative image within daily lives affected parents¡¦ trust toward tribal school. 3.The decision of cross district schooling for children is influenced by parents¡¦ learning experience and opinions of family numbers. 4.The main consideration of cross district schooling for parents is to get household register of school district easily without comparing the ideas between the two different kinds of schools. 5.The problems they faced include driving the children to school, cultural learning of Paiwanese and learning tribal lives. But the main solution is passive pattern for parents. 6.The results of cross district school choice are satisfied mostly with parents¡¦ expectation but there is still a gap.

Child sexual abuse is a burning issue raising concern because of the statistics which indicate that one in five children are victims of some kind of abuse. The protective program, the “Underwear Rule” was launched by the European Council in order to inform and equip parents, caregivers and children towards this sensitive issue. The program is addressed to all European countries in the exact same form and content, with only differentiation the language. This study tries to examine theoretically and empirically the applicability of the “Underwear Rule” to Greek parents, in the sense that each country has its own cultural background and cast of mind, which differentiate the acceptance and the applicability of the Rule. This relates mainly to prior research of Kirana exploring Greek parents’ perspective towards sexual education, as well to Babatsiko’s research about developing national protective programs corresponding to local and cultural demands. An interview study has been carried out, focusing on parents’ point of view about the Underwear Rule. The analysis is based on the subjective experiences and thoughts of seven parents whose children are in the age-target group covered by the Underwear Rule. The parents’ interviews have been analyzed thematically. Overall this study argues that The Underwear Rule is a good protective program, but parents would like improvements and enrichment in order the burning topic of child sexual abuse to be covered more effectively

This PhD thesis investigates power relationships within a corporate Finance Department employing a Foucauldian approach to explaining corporate hierarchies and resistance and the implications.Research was conducted in the form of a case study and observation of a corporate finance department, referred to as the 'Finance Department', at the 'Company', referred to as such for confidentiality purposes. The Company is a large Dutch based mail and logistics entity that operates internationally across over 200 countries and has its corporate head office just outside of Amsterdam. The Company's Finance Department was in the throws of change, particularly around hierarchies as a result of the reengineering process with the purpose of creating efficiencies. The aim of the research was to evaluate the power relationships that existed within the hierarchies between management and workers who worked either for the Finance Department or closely with it, and to analyse the outcomes of these power relationships in terms of resistance.The case study is a Foucauldian insight into the different individuals who worked either within the Finance Department or closely with it, with an evaluation of their roles and how their differing power structures impacted upon the workflow within the Finance Department.The outcome of this research is an evaluation of those individuals and their relationships at a particular point in time, which was impacted by so many different factors. The research could give readers an understanding of power relationships and framework for contextual Foucauldian evaluation.The significance of the contribution arising from this particular piece of research is that it involves the combination of a case study method with a Foucauldian perspective. The combination of these two elements allows the research to be done both from the top down and also from the bottom up. Increasing in use as a research tool (Hamel, 1992), the case study contributes uniquely to our body of knowledge of individual, organisational, social and political phenomena (Yin, 1994). The Foucauldian perspective plays an important part in terms of an understanding of power, despite the fact that it is often difficult to fully comprehend the meanings behind Foucault's work (McHoul & Grace, 1993).

This thesis presents an empirical research that aims to explore insight generation in discrete-event simulation (DES) studies. It is often claimed that simulation is useful for generating insights. There is, however, almost no empirical evidence to support this claim. The factors of a simulation intervention that affect the occurrence of insight are not clear. A specific claim is that watching the animated display of a simulation model is more helpful in making better decisions than relying on the statistical outcomes generated from simulation runs; but again, there is very limited evidence to support this. To address this dearth of evidence, two studies are implemented: a quantitative and a qualitative study. In the former, a laboratory-based experimental study is used, where undergraduate students were placed in three separate groups and given a task to solve using a model with only animation, a model with only statistical results, or using no model at all. In the qualitative study, semi-structured interviews with simulation consultants were carried out, where participants were requested to account examples of projects in which clients change their problem understanding and generate more effective ideas. The two separated parts of the study found different types of evidence to support that simulation generates insight. The experimental study suggests that insights are generated more rapidly from statistical results than the use of animation. Research outcomes from the interviews include descriptions of: the phase of a simulation study where insight emerges; the role of different methods applied and means used in discovering and overcoming discontinuity in thinking (for instance, the role of consultant s influence in problem understanding); how some factors of a simulation intervention are associated with the processes of uncovering and overcoming discontinuity in thinking (for example, the role of clients team in the selection of methods used to communicate results); and the role of the model and consultant in generating new ideas. This thesis contributes to the limited existing literature by providing a more in depth understanding of insight in the context of simulation and empirical evidence on the insight-enabling benefits of simulation based on an operational definition. The findings of the study provide new insights into the factors of simulation that support fast and creative problem solving.

No / Little is known about the career decisions qualified nurses make, although it is clear that some areas of practice are more popular than others. This qualitative descriptive study considers one common area, surgery, and explores the motivation for decisions made by Registered Nurses (RNs) to work in this area. A sample of 16 RNs working within surgical areas participated in semi-structured interviews, using a thematic interview schedule. Findings were analysed using the framework suggested by Morse and Field. Analysis of findings indicates that all participants actively chose to work within surgery and that this was because of the pace and turnover of surgical work, personal satisfaction at the recovery of patients; the close links between this type of work; and participants' original aims when first entering nursing and participants' preference of surgery to other areas of nursing work. Participants actively rejected working in areas where patients were likely to suffer from chronic long-term conditions where recovery was unlikely and felt that these areas were likely to be depressing and unrewarding. These findings suggest that participants actively chose to work with 'healthy' patients in preference to those who may be considered 'ill', and this is closely linked to the identified need of participants to be able to 'make patients better'. Participants were reluctant to work in areas where they would be unlikely to achieve this aim.

This study will focus on explaining the dynamics of Saudi Arabia’s national security. In explaining these dynamics, the study will consider two of Buzan’s frameworks for analysing national security. Further enhancement will be given by conceptualising specific assumptions about Saudi Arabia’s national security – these will be based on the manner in which certain features are utilised within the Saudi state. Semistructured interviews will be utilised to examine the findings from the adapted frameworks. By studying the state’s domestic, regional and international concerns, as well as the specific threats that each level pose with regards to several security sectors (including the: social, political, economic, militant and environmental), this study will provide a distinctive analysis of national security within the Saudi state. Initially, this study acknowledges that only a few studies have been conducted into Saudi Arabia’s national security; furthermore, these have focused on the internal perspective by considering Saudi national security in terms of its military and strategic partnerships. Secondly, the study proposes that Saudi Arabia is unique (and unlike any other state) as it holds various important social and religious aspects that are not fully understood by external sources. Consequently, this study conceptualises Saudi national security from the internal perspective by considering the Saudi state’s specific features.

The issue of standards for household latrines is complex because discussions related to standards for latrines in literature from the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector tend to focus on the negative aspects of standards and highlights cases where the miss-application of standards in the past has caused problems. However, despite concerns about the constraints that standards can seemingly impose, there is an acknowledgement that standards can play a more positive role in supporting efforts to increase access to household latrines. The World Health Organisation has long established and widely recognised standards for water supply quality and quantity but there are no equivalent standards for sanitation services and there is currently no guidance that deals with the topic of standards for household latrines. Household latrines are a small component of the wider sanitation system in a country and by considering how standards for household latrines operate within this wider sanitation system the aim of this research is to understand what influences standards can have on household latrines and explore how the negative perceptions about standards and latrine building can be overcome. The development of guidance on how to develop well written standards is the core focus of this research. This research explores the factors that can influence the development and use of a standard for household latrines in Rwanda using three data collection methods. Document analysis using 66 documents, including policies and strategies, design manuals and training guides from 17 countries throughout Sub-Saharan Africa was used in conjunction with the Delphi Method involving an expert panel of 27 from Rwanda and 38 semi-structured interviews. The research concludes that perceptions about standards for household latrines are fragmented and confused with little consensus in Rwanda on what need a standard should meet and what role it should play. The study has found that the need for a standard must be considered in the context of the wider sanitation system otherwise it can lead to duplication of efforts and increased confusion for all stakeholders. The study also found that there is an assumed link between standards and enforcement of standards through regulation and punishments which creates the negative perceptions about standards in Rwanda. However, despite this aversion to standards, there are still intentions to promote the standardisation of latrine technologies and designs, led by national government in Rwanda and in other Sub-Saharan African countries. The contribution to knowledge of this research includes a decision process presented at the end of the study which can be used by decision makers who are interested in developing a standard for household latrines. The decision process acts as a tool for outlining how a standard can operate within the national sanitation system. This understanding provides decision makers with the basis for continuing the debate on what a well written standard looks like in the national context and supports the development of a standard that is fit for purpose and provides a positive contribution to the sector.

Denna studie hade som syfte att undersöka olika individers föreställningar och uppfattningar om terrorism. För att undersöka detta ämne har semistrukturerade intervjuer genomförts med sex olika individer. Studiens första huvudresultat och även den viktigaste slutsatsen var att olika individer har olika uppfattning om vad terrorism är och hur det ska definieras, men att den gemensamma idén är att målet eller syftet är det som avgör om det rör sig om terrorism. De flesta intervjupersonerna ansåg att både fysiskt och psykiskt skadade människor kan vara offer för terrorism. Huvudresultatet gällande terrorister handlade om föreställningar kring terroristers utseende, till exempel “stort skägg” och “muslimer”. Vad gäller medias framställning av terrorism upplevde de flesta intervjupersoner att media vinklar och utelämnar information, samt har en viss påverkan på deras uppfattning om terrorism. Intervjupersonerna nämnde också en ökad rädsla och oro för terrorism, något som dock inte påverkade deras vardagliga rutiner och handlingar. / This study has exanimated different individuals’ conceptions and perceptions of terrorism. To examine this issue we have done semi-structured interviews with six different individuals. The first main result of the study and the most important conclusion was that different individuals had different perceptions about what terrorism is and how it should be defined. Most of the interviewees counted both physically and psychologically harmed people as victims of terrorism. The main result when it comes to conceptions about terrorists looks was that terrorists have “big beard” and were “Muslims”. When it comes to medias representation of terrorism most of the interviewees believed that media angle and leave out information, and that this had some influence on their perception of terrorism. The interviewees also mentioned an increased fear and concern about terrorism, something that did not affect their daily routines and activities.