M.A. (Information & Knowledge Management) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.A. (Counseling Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.A. (Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.Tech. (Architectural Technology) / In a small opening by the edge of a ridge a solitary worshipper– dressed in her full uniform – kneels. Her hands clasped tightly together and lips vigorously moving in prayer. A cluster of people - dressed in white - sit atop a rocky outcrop. One man stands addressing his followers: women on the right and men on the left. Over time his speaking ceases and the sitting people stand and join together in song, clapping hands stretched to the sky. There are numerous ‘frontiers’ – gaps - in the City of Johannesburg where people gather for different purposes. Some gatherings are religious, some social, some a combination. This dissertation will attempt to describe the narrative and spatial story of the Highlands Ridge as a ‘frontier’ site, while investigating the possibility of how an architecture could interact with these sacred anomalies.

D.Litt et Phil. (Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.A. (Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

M.A. (Anthropology) / The global organic food industry has experienced incredibly high growth rates over the past twenty years. In many parts of the world the formal retail of organic food sourced consumers from an already established informal trade. The formalisation of organic food thus necessitated engagement with and monetisation of the ‘organic ethos’ inherent in the informal trade, and played an important part in the popularisation of ethical consumption. This has stimulated many larger discussions about the relationship of humankind, and industry, with the natural world, and has contributed to debates surrounding how to study the forces directing the evolution of agro-food economies. This study contributes to these debates by framing them within the South African context. Through a twenty three month mixed methods study rooted in participant observation and guided by the tenets of constructivist grounded theory, this investigation of the formal organic food industry aims to achieve both theoretical and practical goals. On a practical level, it suggests reasons for the unique growth and composition of the industry witnessed in South Africa, while contributing to global debates surrounding the meaning of organic. On a theoretical level, it suggests that Dixon’s conception of the Cultural Economic Model may overcome some of the analytical divides witnessed in agro-food theory, ultimately contributing to a more balanced, humanised account of the forces directing the shape and shift of food economies.

The purpose of the study was to conduct an evaluation on the effectiveness of the change communications distributed to the occupants of Barclays Towers West, Barclays Africa‟s first green building, in ensuring the sustainability of the change after the move into the building. In addition, recommendations are made to improve the change communications directed towards the building occupants to ensure the sustainability of the change and for future moves to green buildings. The research paper is made up of the following three distinct sections: Section One – Evaluation Research Report: this section outlines the organisational and research context for the study, the objectives of the research and rationale for conducting the research. A brief overview of the key theories and models on change communication that were utilised in the study are discussed, and definitions of important terms are presented. The research methodology is also described which includes an explanation on the evaluation research approach utilised as well as the use of both qualitative and quantitative data in the study. In addition, the results from the research conducted are presented, based on three data collection methods utilised: document analysis, semi-structured interviews and a survey. The results are then analysed and discussed in relation to the literature reviewed on change communication. Recommendations are made on improvements that can be made to the change communications to ensure the sustainability of the change. Section Two – Literature Review: the literature, theories and important concept definitions of organisational change management, change sustainability, change communication and green buildings which are relevant for the research topic and have been used as the theoretical base of the study are explored in this section. A key component of the literature review is the description of the change communication theories and models: communication theory, Armenakis, Harris and Field (2007) Model, and the Barrett (2002) Model. An understanding of the theories and models is imperative, as the effectiveness of the change communications after the move into Barclays Towers West is assessed based on the elements of the change communication theories and models. Section Three – Research Methodology: the research methodology for the study is described in this section. Specifically, the research aims and objectives, the research paradigm, the population and sampling, data collection, data analysis and ethical considerations are outlined. A key component of the section is the explanation on how the data was collected and analysed in the study and the sequence. The post move communications and artefacts and meeting presentations were collected first. The qualitative data was analysed and used to determine the questions for the semi structured interviews. Semi-structured one on one interviews were then conducted. The qualitative data and the change communication theories and models used in this study were used to determine the questions for the online survey. An online survey tool was used to administer a predominantly five point Likert scale questionnaire with an invitation to participate emailed to the building occupants. The quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistical analysis. Research Findings: The key research findings revealed that the messages communicated to the occupants after the move into the building have been mainly focused on operational matters and rarely on educating occupants on the green aspects of the building. A large majority of the survey respondents were aware of the building facilities, details and required behaviour. However it was found that the occupants, Line Managers and Senior Management are not displaying the required behaviour for a green building and do not know how to use some of the building facilities. A major gap was found in communicating with people moving into the building. In addition it was found that some of the information communicated to occupants is outdated. Written communications are used extensively and face to face communication is rarely used to communicate with the occupants. As a result, a number of changes are required to improve the effectiveness of the change communications to the occupants of Barclays Towers West. The improvements include communicating to new occupants; utilising additional communication channels; focusing communication messages on educating occupants on the strategic objectives for the building; rationale for building features and facilities; how to use the facilities and the impact of their behaviour on the building objectives being achieved.

A country’s competitive advantage is linked to its educational outcomes. South Africa, as a developing country wants to shift from being a resource based economy to being a knowledge based economy. To enable such a shift, schools must be able to graduate learners who are adequately prepared for the demands of institutions of higher learning. Schools, therefore, must become centres of excellence and a culture of performance must be prevalent in schools. The National Development Plan as outlined by the National Planning Commission (2011) identified education as one of the pillars from which South Africa’s economy will be driven. However, recent studies have rated South Africa’s education system as one of the worst among middle income economies and sometimes even worse than many low-income African economies. To bridge that gap, there is a need to drive schools to be centres of excellence. This study sought to identify factors that influence a performance culture in schools. In order to achieve this objective, literature was scanned and five factors that influence a performance culture were identified (organisational school climate, teacher attitude, school managerial processes, organisational school value and organisational school structure). These factors were initially identified and used by Marcoulides and Heck (1993) in a corporate organisation and later adopted for testing in a school setting by Gomez, Marcoulides and Heck (2012). A school in Johannesburg East district was sampled through convenience sampling and data was collected through a questionnaire which was administered to the principal, teachers and staff, school governing board members, parents and alumni of the school. The total sample was 120 and a total of 94 questionnaires were returned giving a response rate of 78 percent. Descriptive statistical techniques were performed to establish the mean and standard deviation of perceptions among the respondents. Inferential statistical techniques were used to measure and ascertain reliability through Cronbach’s alpha, comparisons of responses through t-testing and ANOVA, association through correlation and hypotheses were tested through multiple regression analysis. All the variables were found to be valid and reliable. Furthermore, statistical results revealed that in the sampled school, even though all the five factors had an association among each other, only organisational school culture and organisational school value had an association to the dependent variable, performance culture. Organisational school value, however, was found to be the only variable of great influence to performance culture at the sampled school. The ideologies and activities that represent the values, therefore, influence the performance culture of a school.

In recent years, there has been increasing concern that gender bias has prevented women from advancing as rapidly and as frequently as men into management positions. Although the number of women managers has increased, they may experience difficulty moving into upper management positions. The purpose of our research was to study employee gender perception of key variables of women and the positions held in high technology companies. In this research, phenomenological research method was chosen, because the aim of it is to determine what the experience means for the people who have experienced it. Based on the collected data, answers and experiences, structural analysis was done in order to find out the major phenomena of gender perceptions. A number of variables uncover the perception of aspects of policy and gender and barriers that may affect female employees' opportunities for advancement. Using a sample of 30 full-time employees from Company A, the results indicated that position held was significantly different for male and female employees. The results also indicated that neither male nor female employees appeared to notice the apparent perceptions apparently as a glass ceiling within their company and the Implications discussed and recommendations provided. With reference to the Empirical research, this paper increases the knowledge about women’s career development and provides recommendations how to deal with it. It is also expected that this thesis will be helpful to all women who are in the labour market for their career development and advancement.