MCom (Cost and Management Accounting) / Department of Accountancy / The relationship between a firm’s investment behaviour, financial constraints and the level of internally generated cash flows has been a subject of extensive discussion in finance literature. The discussion revolves around the effectiveness of investment cash flow sensitivity (ICFS) as a measure of financial constraints with contradicting conclusions. Empirical literature is also not in agreement about the best firm-specific proxy to distinguish firms into financially-constrained versus financially-unconstrained ones and the effect of the 2007 to 2009 global financial crisis on the ICFS of South African firms is still to be determined. There are very limited studies that have investigated ICFS in developing economies. This is important as institutional differences and capital market developments between developed and developing economies justify a separate study of South Africa as a developing economy. This study used data drawn from 131 Johannesburg Stock Exchange listed non-financial firms for the period 2003 to 2016 to establish the most suitable criterion for distinguishing firms into financially constrained versus unconstrained, to determine the effect of the 2007 to 2009 global financial crisis on the ICFS and to determine if ICFS is a good measure of financial constraints. The data for the 131 sampled firms was obtained from the financial statements on the IRESS database. The dataset was split into constrained versus unconstrained firms using three firm specific splitting variables: firm size, cash flow holding and dividends pay-out. The data was further split into panel 1 (2003 to 2006 covering the period before the global crisis); panel 2 (2006 to 2010 covering the period including the global financial crisis period) and panel 3 (2010 to 2016 covering the post global financial crisis period). The study utilised the system generalized moments method (GMM) regression model that yields consistent estimates even with unbalanced panel data sets and the Fixed Effects estimator. The models were both implemented on STATA 15 software. Samples split based on the dividend pay-out showed the highest ICFS for financially-constrained firms before, during and after the global financial crisis period. ICFS is highest during the period including the global financial crisis years compared to samples split using firm size and cash flow holding. The study concludes that dividends pay-out is the best criterion to distinguish firms into financially-constrained versus unconstrained; the global financial crisis constrained all firms; and that ICFS can be a good measure of financial constraints. The main limitation to the study was that it used a small sample size in relation to other international studies. / NRF

The globally relevant, billion-dollar fashion industry has been regarded as one of the industries responsible for the greatest amount of pollution. The fast fashion industry thrives on production, often overproducing clothing at a rapid pace, according to quick trends that have fleeting lifespans. It can be said that this industry feeds the ‘throw-away culture’ seen at present, whereby consumption has increased tremendously, resulting in large amounts of clothing waste which has fulfilled its superficial purpose. Consumers purchase new trends, use it for a short period of time and thereafter dispose of the clothing items to make room for the next trend. Such a practice has negative implications for the environment, through the irresponsible manner in which waste by-products are disposed of during production of the clothing and through the mass disposal of clothing, which often ends up in landfills. There are also societal implications, whereby the fast fashion industry has been responsible for many unethical business practices that allow for poor working conditions and unfair treatment of the makers of the clothing. As a response to some of these concerns, slow fashion was born. Slow fashion intends to slow down the process of clothing production entirely and revisits the emphasis on quality over quantity, as it encourages the production and conscious consumption of clothing with longevity. As a result of the process of clothing production being slowed down, it has been suggested that the consumer would then be able to appreciate the production process in itself, as well as the clothing produced, resulting in a decreased desire to consume more, but rather to extend the lifespan of the clothing purchased. Slow fashion is synonymous with the slowing down of trends and the mindful consumption of clothing. Similarly, the voluntary simplicity movement (VSM), adopts the constructs of a life simplified, through the freeing of oneself from mental and emotional clutter, as well as material possessions. This lifestyle promotes simplicity of living and the appreciation of lived experiences instead of things, as a means to gain internal and external fulfilment. The VSM has therefore been used as the conceptual framework of this study, as both movements promote reduced consumption practices. This study was qualitative in nature and took the form of an exploratory research design, as it intended to gain information and understanding on a topic within an environment where there is limited information. Millennial slow fashion consumers made up the sampling group because millennial consumers are recognised as the most influential consumer group, with the greatest buying power, and are also most likely to adopt or support environmentally and ethically sound brands and businesses. Interviews were conducted with the participants to gain knowledge on the perceptions, attitudes and awareness of these consumers in relation to slow fashion consumption in the country. Attitude has been recognised as a motivator of behaviour and was investigated to analyse consumption behaviour, in the context of this study. The findings revealed that most participants recognised the fast fashion industry purely as a money-making scheme, which often employed reckless production practices and resulted in the consumption of clothing at a dangerous pace. They were aware of the damaging effects of the by-products of these production processes on the environment, as well as the negative social impacts as a result of unethical practices that have occurred. The participants recognised slow fashion as somewhat of an antithesis to fast fashion, whereby the focus is on quality clothing made to last a lifetime, which encompasses mindful consumption. The participants revealed that they were influenced by the aesthetic appeal of clothing as well as the convenience and ease of access in acquiring the clothing. Price sensitivity was also raised as a motivator for consumption; however, the resounding motivator was that of consumption out of necessity for the item, which is a valuable perspective for both slow fashion consumers and VSM adopters. Price sensitivity is a factor that cannot be ignored, considering South Africa is a country with an unequal dispersion of wealth and a high unemployment rate. As a result, it has been determined that slow fashion is only accessible to a certain niche market, in terms of the affordability of the items. The excessive imports of fast fashion clothing, which are often cheap and easily accessible, are said to be choking the local clothing and slow fashion industries alike. However, the most common response in terms of the hindrance of slow fashion in the country was notably a lack of information, education and awareness about slow fashion, its constructs and its availability in the country. The participants recognised slow fashion as relevant in the country, and that VI | P a g e South African consumers have the influence to make a change to the local clothing industry, if they supported local producers of slow fashion, ethical and sustainable clothing, instead of overconsuming cheap, trend-inspired, imported fast fashion clothing. As a result, the slow fashion designer was revealed as having a significant role to play, in ascertaining that such clothing is locally produced with sustainable, slow trend underpinnings. Further recommendations were expressed in the need for slow fashion designers to market their products and ethos well, and to educate and inform those around them, including their customers, about the philosophies behind and need for slow fashion. The upskilling of individuals from lower or no income households was also seen as a valuable tool to not only allow those individuals to lengthen the lifespan of their clothing by repairing it, but also to equip them with a skill that might lead to some form of employment, with the hope that the end result will be a rejuvenated local clothing and textile industry and a lowered unemployment rate. Conclusively, consumption levels could prospectively see a decrease, should the interest in slow fashion clothing increase among consumers. / Life and Consumer Sciences / M.A. (Consumer Science)

This Dissertation, written at the Department of Political Studies in the School of Social Sciences, is submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D), to the Faculty of Humanities at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, September 2017 / The purpose of this study is to examine the causes of ideological moderation in the South African party system in the post-1994 period. Previous research stresses the non-left-right feature of politics and when it recognises the centrist feature of major parties and moderation of the party system, the causes of the latter are unexplained. The deficiency in previous research is that moderation and limited left-right disagreements as fundamental causes of broader political dynamics are overlooked — moderate systems foster political consensus and democratic stability. In this study I critically examine three theoretical causal variables that account for moderation: the electoral system, the electorate, and the dominant party. This study relies on a measurement of party system fragmentation, and voter and party system polarisation, as well as an intensive qualitative assessment of the ANC. The evidence is based on a number of nationally representative surveys that measure public opinion; interviews with political party leaders and representatives, and officials from labour and business; and document analysis. The finding is that the ANC as the dominant party is the main driver of moderation in the party system. Coupled with electoral dominance, the centripetal, non-dogmatic, pragmatic and flexible tendencies that characterise the ANC permit the party to induce and stabilise party system moderation. This study: develops a causal framework for understanding moderation; builds on previous research about the centrism of major parties and the moderation of the party system (both quantitatively and qualitatively); departs from the argument about the fragmented and rightist nature of the opposition bloc and the race-based approach to the electorate; and extends the debate about the ANC by arguing that left-right movement occurs within centrist terrain, and that the party is not an amorphous or client entity but a clearly defined one. I also add to: the growing body of knowledge that finds no necessary connection between proportionalism, extremist party positioning and polarisation; the idea that party system polarisation is less reflective of voter polarisation; and concur with previous research that argues that the role of a pivotal centre party is critical for the party system. / XL2018

This research surveys the Swiss missionaries' management of social transformation in South Africa (1873-1973). It has as its major focus the management of schools, hospitals and churches as the primary institutions of social change in society. The researcher's realisation that more often than not, the changes brought to bear on proselytes by the change forces take time to manifest themselves vividly induced him to extend the scope to include the dawn of the new political dispensation in this country in 1994. This need not surprise the readership as the triadic approach, which is synonymous with historical analyses compels researchers to avail readers of what happened in the past, present as well as what is likely to occur in future. In other words, readers will encounter the ethnic nationalism engineered by different change agents in this country and the repercussions thereof, and the schism within the Swiss Mission in South Africa/Evangelical Presbyterian Church in South Africa that started in 1989 and became reality in 1991. Finally, the thesis also appraises readers of what should be done in periods of rapid social change. / Educational Studies / D.Ed. (History of Education)

The family roles and responsibilities are still allocated along the gender lines. Women assume primary child care and household roles despite working fulltime. They suffer from work-family conflict as they battle with these competing demands. A phenomenological approach was adopted for this study. The existing literature was used in defining work-family conflict, looking at different work-family theories; development of gendered defined roles, motherhood and demands brought on by women working fulltime. The semi-structured interview was used for data collection. The themes which emerged showed that women experience strong emotions associated with raising children whilst working. There is compromise on quality time dedicated in each role. Women assume sole custodian over their children’s upbringing. Women enter into a second shift after work. Having a career and children, is made easier through adoption of strong coping strategies and mechanisms. The conclusions and recommendations were made for future a research and organisational practices. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial and Organisational Psycology))

[Preface]:In 1862 Grahamstown acquired the dignity, pride and responsibility of full municipal status by its own Act of Incorporation. Ibis Act marked the consolidation of Grahamstown's era of local government by its vigorous and far-sighted Municipal Board of Commissioners, which was established in 1837 and has been examined in depth in K.S. Hunt's thesis on Grahamstown municipal government up to 1862. Clearly, the year 1862 is the logical beginning for a further study of Grahamstown's changing position in the Eastern Cape and its development in the practice of local government during the crucial decades of the 1860's and 1870's. But the choice of 1882 to mark the end of this thesis is in some ways arbitrary. 1882 does not appear to be a turning point, a year of major significance in either the history of Grahamstown or of the Colony as a whole. Besides the convenient time-span of twenty years, there are various factors which, taken together, explain why 1882 is a useful date of demarcation from which to take stock and review Grahamstown's economic, political, social and municipal position after two vital decades in its history. In the civic sphere,the opening of Grahamstown's Town Hall made tangible,in solid Victorian design,a long held ambition of the City Councillors. Buildings, in Victorian attitudes, throughout the British Empire, were regarded as very important civic symbols. One can learn much of Grahamstown Victorian attitudes from the lengthy process of attaining a Town Hall. A much more elaborate ceremony surrounded the opening of the Jubilee Tower, an occasion for assessing the influence of Grahamstown's Settler heritage on the development of the town. Municipal problems concerning finance, water and "native" locations remained thorny questions as they had throughout the period 1862-32. Generally 1882 was a year of transition for Grahamstown and the Colony as a whole. Economically it appeared to start prosperously but 1882 actually marked the beginning of a severe depression which lasted until 1386. It is important to consider how Grahamstown’s economic development relates to the overall economic picture of the Cape Colony at this juncture. Though ostrich feather prices remained high in 1882, the ensuing depression was caused partly by the rapid overexpansion of the industry but most important of all, by a reaction to an inflated era of confidence during the diamond boom years of the 1870's and their consequent easy Bank credit plus intense speculation. Politically 1882 also appeared a year of transition. How to maintain the uneasy peace after the Basuto war remained a constant challenge to Scanlen's ministry. The beginnings of active party conflict in the workings of responsible government were evident only in embryo. The rapid growth of the Afrikaner Bond was to change this. Specifically in relation to the practice of local government in the Cape Colony, the General Municipal Act No. 45 was passed during the Parliamentary session of 1882, enabling any town to seek incorporation. The query is raised as to how far the modus vivendi of the Grahamstown municipality helped frame the clauses of this general Municipal enabling Act. For these various reasons, as well as the additional one that twenty years was found to offer a manageable research unit, 1882 has been decided on as the limit of this thesis. This thesis aims, through a careful examination of Grahamstown's economic, political but particularly civic development, to determine and trace the nature of the Grahamstown community's response to the challenge of the gradual isolation of the 1860's and 1870's. Grahamstown's civic history provides fascinating insights into the structure of the entire community and its attitudes and values. Study has been made of the following major primary sources for the history of Grahamstown 1862-1882: the Grahamstown Municipality records, complete except for incoming letters and housed in the Cape Archives, und the Grahamstown newspapers for the period. The most prolific as well us the most valuable newspaper source of the period is The Grahamstown Journal, a newspaper with a tradition firmly bound up with the formulation of frontier as well as Grahamstown thought, kingpin of the network built up by the successors of Robert Godlonton, the "architect of frontier opinion". It has to be treated with caution as a source because of this very bias. The Council Minutes themselves, meticulously recorded in the Town Clerk's copperplate Victorian script, are scrupulously objective, recording blandly proposers, seconders and fates of motions. What might appear the bare bones of a detailed study of the municipal records yet reflects the economic climate of the town, political opinions, class and race attitudes, civic pride, concepts of public health and charity. The newspapers are a vital addition to the Municipal records themselves. The weekly meetings received faithful, accurate and very copious coverage from press-representatives present at every ordinary meeting. Indeed these reports give a vivid immediacy to the meetings and reveal opinions, pressure groups and lines of conflict within the Council, on issues important and trivial. These, at times lively and enlivening, sometimes stormy meetings, are reported with an authenticity which makes one suspect that often words of speeches were given verbatim - personalities of the Councillors certainly emerge distinctly. Full newspaper coverage is also given to the meetings of the Albany Divisional Council. The annual reports of the Civil Commissioners and Resident Magistrates, which appear in the Parliamentary Blue Books of the period, provide some valuable economic comment on the vicissitudes of life in the eastern frontier districts from 1862-1882. Such information builds useful background for a study of Grahamstown's economic and social development. Efforts have been made to locate probable sources of family papers of one of the most influential Grahamstown families of the period, the Wood family, but to no avail. If any exist they would without doubt have given interesting insight into the business connections of leading Grahamstown men and possibly given an indication of how far civic and political connections linked with religious and family influences in Victorian Grahamstown. Jim's Journal, manuscript in Cory Library, is a record of letters sent home to England by James Butler, while on a visit to the Cape,1876-79 for his health. He provides illuminating glimpses into the day to day life of Grahamstown from a Quaker viewpoint. Taken together, these sources provide considerable insights into the life and times of Grahamstown in the second half of the nineteenth Century. A municipal study examines an area in its totality: it encompasses a study of minutiae within the context of general trends. This fact alone suggests that there are many sources on the history of Grahamstown which have not yet been discovered, but this assessment is submitted on the basis of a thorough study of those which are currently available.

This research surveys the Swiss missionaries' management of social transformation in South Africa (1873-1973). It has as its major focus the management of schools, hospitals and churches as the primary institutions of social change in society. The researcher's realisation that more often than not, the changes brought to bear on proselytes by the change forces take time to manifest themselves vividly induced him to extend the scope to include the dawn of the new political dispensation in this country in 1994. This need not surprise the readership as the triadic approach, which is synonymous with historical analyses compels researchers to avail readers of what happened in the past, present as well as what is likely to occur in future. In other words, readers will encounter the ethnic nationalism engineered by different change agents in this country and the repercussions thereof, and the schism within the Swiss Mission in South Africa/Evangelical Presbyterian Church in South Africa that started in 1989 and became reality in 1991. Finally, the thesis also appraises readers of what should be done in periods of rapid social change. / Educational Studies / D.Ed. (History of Education)

The family roles and responsibilities are still allocated along the gender lines. Women assume primary child care and household roles despite working fulltime. They suffer from work-family conflict as they battle with these competing demands. A phenomenological approach was adopted for this study. The existing literature was used in defining work-family conflict, looking at different work-family theories; development of gendered defined roles, motherhood and demands brought on by women working fulltime. The semi-structured interview was used for data collection. The themes which emerged showed that women experience strong emotions associated with raising children whilst working. There is compromise on quality time dedicated in each role. Women assume sole custodian over their children’s upbringing. Women enter into a second shift after work. Having a career and children, is made easier through adoption of strong coping strategies and mechanisms. The conclusions and recommendations were made for future a research and organisational practices. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / Thesis (M.A. (Industrial and Organisational Psycology))

It is widely acknowledged that poverty has declined globally over the last few years. In fact, this idea has become so ingrained in our society that it is almost taken for granted and assumed as an incontestable fact. The question that remains unanswered is where all the poor are now. Are they living a prosperous life or are they tinkering on the edge of poverty? This research study focuses on the precarious non-poor, who are the people surviving just above Upper Bound Poverty Line used by Statistics within South Africa. Although they are not ‘officially poor’ they are still a group that is often overlooked or ignored within the global development community since they are not poor enough to warrant intervention yet not secure enough to demand action. As the research study will show through using a mixed-method approach, they are far from being prosperous and in fact, still struggling to survive. The quantitative findings are based on a statistical analysis of the General Household Survey (2011) that overlaps with the latest Income and Expenditure Survey (2011). It gives valuable background to the problem that was also used during the qualitative phase of the research study to inform the sample choice and interview guide. The quantitative analysis shows that the precarious non-poor is not a unique problem, and as a group, they are found across South Africa. The qualitative findings are based on in-depth interviews conducted in Cape Town, Western Cape and Newcastle, KwaZulu Natal. Framed by the capability approach, set out by Amartya Sen, and a focus on basic capabilities such as employment, education and housing, the results show that the precarious non-poor lack access and choice in terms of capabilities and the opportunity to realise them into functionings. The precarious non-poor in this study are mostly employed within insecure, uncertain or underpaying jobs, underpinned by a social support program, living in neighbourhoods where they feel unsafe while trying to secure a better future for themselves and especially their children. In fact, they are probably no better off than their poor counterparts with prosperity remaining out of reach. / Sociology / Ph. D. (Sociology)

The war on poverty is South Africa's priority and challenge. Many poverty alleviation programmes have been established in South Africa in an effort to overcome poverty. However, poverty alleviation projects have had little impact on the poverty profile of the country. Poverty continues to be pervasive, intractable, and inexcusable. The purpose of this study was to gain insight into the personal definition of poverty as constructed by the poor themselves. In this study the researcher's main argument was that sustainable poverty reduction calls for effective strategies based on clear and consistent concepts and approaches. Different ways of understanding poverty lead to different ways of dealing with it. A common and clear understanding of poverty helps build a common agenda with development partners, linking specific causes of poverty in each setting with sustainable policies and action. A qualitative study was conducted with fifteen (15) poverty-alleviation projects participants from three (3) different projects. Data was collected with the use of an interview guide. The participants' responses revealed that poverty, like beauty, is in the eyes of the beholder. The participants attached varying and interesting meanings to explaining the concept of poverty. The study also shed some light on the current state of the poverty-alleviation projects. / Social Work / M.A. (Social science)