Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This study investigated scholarly communication guidance as a core service by the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, academic library to doctoral students, research and scholarly communication needs and skills of doctoral students and effective dissemination of research findings by doctoral students for national development. The study also explored the adoption of a research portal as part of the academic library website for scholarly communication guidance to doctoral students. A case study research design with KNUST as research site, with a mixed method approach was used. Semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, documentary analysis and a bibliometric survey of an institutional repository were employed as data gathering tools. A scholarly communication guidance model based on Costa’s proposed adaption of Garvey and Griffin’s models of scholarly communication, Wilson’s information behaviour model and Bjôrk’s scholarly communication lifecycle model was developed to frame the study.

Although there is extensive literature on supervision in the human services, there is limited research specific to the stories from supervisors in child welfare, in particular in Canada. This inquiry sought to understand how child welfare supervisors navigated through ethical dilemmas in their practice and how their approach influenced decision making. In addition, specific attention was paid on whether these practitioners used critical reflection in their approach to decision making. Findings indicated that these child welfare supervisors relied primarily on their personal moral framework. They encountered frequent dilemmas in highly complex work environments. Further, they endured ethical tensions as a result of not being able to enact their ethics amid work place barriers. These ongoing tensions often resulted in leaving these supervisors depleted emotionally and physically. Critical reflection in action was used in some cases when examining the context of the family in the process of ethical decision making. As with recent studies, this inquiry found that child welfare supervisors often stepped away from reflection in action for self-preservation and relied more heavily on reflection on action. Implications for future studies and recommendations for child welfare practice are discussed. / Graduate

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The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of supervisors‟ leadership styles (transformational, transactional and passive-avoidance) on job satisfaction in the logistics industry. This study advocates the way in which employees perceive their supervisors‟ leadership styles and their influence on job satisfaction. The fact is that employees play an indispensable role in the realisation of an organisation’s goals and therefore it would be more crucial for an organisation to have employees who are willing to go beyond what is required of them. In this study, a quantitative research method was used to investigate a sample size of 201 employees working in logistics departments in organisations situated in Southern Gauteng. In choosing a sampling method, convenience sampling method was used mainly because respondents were readily accessible and available to the researcher and also willing to participate in the study. Data were collected with the aid of a structured questionnaire and the results of the correlation analysis revealed that transformational, transactional, and passive-avoidance leadership styles are significantly and positively related to job satisfaction. Based on the findings of the empirical survey, it was revealed that a positive association was found between transformational leadership and job satisfaction. A negative correlation was found between transactional, passive-avoidance and job satisfaction. Furthermore, the regression analysis showed that a transformational leadership style positively influences job satisfaction. Therefore, it was recommended that, to address negative correlations between transactional leadership styles on job satisfaction, supervisors/managers elicit desired performance from subordinates by motivating them externally. This can be done by rewarding subordinates for behaving in the expected manner and punishing them if they deviate. It was also recommended that to address negative correlation between passive-avoidance leadership style and job satisfaction supervisors/managers ought to give subordinates autonomy to make their own decisions and be able to solve work-related problems independently. It is further recommended that since passive-avoidance leadership style is associated with unproductiveness, supervisors/managers avoid the use of such a leadership style. The study concludes by recommending that a newer style of leadership such as authentic leadership can be introduced in order to influence employee job satisfaction positively. Servant leadership style can also be applied as this may influence job satisfaction positively. The findings and recommendations of this study are important for supervisors/managers employed in the logistics industry since they provide insight regarding the styles of leadership that are more effective in influencing employee job satisfaction positively. The implications for future research offer several opportunities in the area of leadership and job satisfaction. The study used a quantitative research design whereas the use of a mixed method approach may provide more meaningful results. Since the sample size was restricted, the study could also be expanded to include employees from other departments, such as finances, human resource and marketing.

Research indicates that supportive supervision, particularly work-family specific supervision, is key to reducing employees' work-family conflict (Allen, 2001; Eby et al., 2005; Thomas & Ganster, 1995). However, little research has examined the factors that contribute to supervisors' willingness or ability to provide this support. This study examined how supervisor job stress and perceptions of work-family climate influenced employee ratings of Family-Supportive Supervisor Behaviors (FSSB) using previously-collected data from a mid-western grocery chain. It was hypothesized that supervisor job stressors would impact FSSB, supervisor perception of work-family climate would impact FSSB, and the interaction of stressors and climate would impact FSSB. None of the hypotheses were supported. Potential explanations and directions for future research are discussed.

Thesis (MPA.) --University of Limpopo, 2009. / Human Resource Development (Employer)

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2006. / Principal faculty advisor: Robert Eisenberger, Dept. of Psychology. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Texas, Aug., 2008. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oklahoma, 1989. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-122).

A sample of 304 supervisors was randomly drawn from the Durban-Pietermaritzburg metropolitan areas to investigate the relationship between quality of work life and organisational commitment. Organisational commitment and quality of work life questionnaires were used to analyse the relevant constructs. The results indicate that there is a significant relationship between organisational commitment and some quality of work life factors (organisational climate, work group processes, supervisory leadership, task characteristics, general satisfaction output, role behaviour, utilisation and future orientation). There is, however, no significant difference in organisational commitment across the biographical variables of marital status, age, length of service and span of control. Overall, the research indicates that there is a significant relationship between organisational commitment and quality of work life. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1993.