The beginning of the twenty-first century found American society sharply divided and American culture in the midst of tumult; the driving forces behind these changes being individualism, multiculturalism and the politics of gender and sexual orientation. As a result, social structure and what were once traditional values have been abandoned for political correctness. With reports of personal crimes committed on juveniles on school property on the rise, clearly, these shifts away from tradition have trickled down from society at large to the sphere of the public school. Students no longer are using traditional socially accepted norms and values as viable guides to their behavior (Hudak, Ander & Allen, 1980), but violence, which has become a way of attaining respect and self worth as well as material possessions. Some of the most disturbing reports that have been brought to the public's attention are those of students assaulting and robbing one another at knife and gunpoint for clothing. The conceptual framework was that of appearance perception. Clothing and appearance are extremely important to children in their efforts to compete as well as to successfully fit in with their peers. Many school reform efforts have implemented school uniform policies as a way of building a sense of unity and belonging among students, as well as a way of controlling behavior. However, despite the numerous studies that have attempted to show that nonverbal communication may form impressions of personality, character traits, and intelligence, none have focused on school uniforms and their reflection of the personal values of the wearers. This study determined the uniform preferences of uniform-wearing students for middle school children, and described the five terminal values that these students attributed to uniformed students. This research also determined whether there were significant differences between the probabilities of males and females having the same perceptions of the terminal values attributed to uniformed students, because research has shown that these perceptions have a direct effect on style preferences. The sample was comprised of 85 students between 18 and 21 years, who attended a military institute of higher education in which they were required to wear uniforms on a daily basis. Respondents completed a three-part questionnaire, which consisted of: (1) Rokeach Value Survey, (2) demographics questions, and (3) wearer preference measure. The instrument was pilot tested for content validity before it was administered to the sample. Data were analyzed using Pearson Chi-squares and frequencies. The chi-square tests revealed no significant differences in the probability of males and the probability of females selecting the same terminal values for uniformed students. Examination of frequencies determined design criteria for males and females uniform design as well as the five core terminal values attributed to uniformed students. / Master of Science

This study assesses consumer behavior toward online shopping in Saudi Arabia by studying the factors that affect whether or not they shop online. The sample consisted of 206 Saudis approached using the “snowball” technique. Participants were all above eighteen and Internet users. Participants were asked to give the frequency of their online shopping transactions using a four-point Likert scale. They used a seven-point Likert scale to rate their opinions about trends affecting electronic commerce, companies’ marketing approaches, and other aspects of online shopping. Participants also were asked about their feelings regarding traditional and online shopping using a nine-point bipolar scale. Using the Six Dimensional Achievement Motivations Scale, they were asked to describe themselves, and finally, they were asked to rank the Rokeach Terminal Values based on their importance. The version of the Rokeach Value System used in this study is the one shortened to nine terminal values, by Munson & McQuarrie, 1988, since it reflects better relevance to consumption. Results show that, when compared to traditional shopping, participants have relatively negative perceptions of online shopping. In addition, participants’ demographics and values related to their online shopping frequency, while their achievement motivations were less related. The major limitation of this research is that it was conducted in only one city, Jeddah. Therefore, additional research should be carried out in other cities with larger samples. The research results suggest that businesses in Saudi Arabia should use online shopping as a second channel to distribute their products in addition to their physical stores. This thesis makes a distinctive contribution to the literature, as it is the first to examine the correlation between the Rokeach Value System (1973); the Six Dimensional Achievement Motivation Scale (Jackson, Ahmed, and Heapy, 1976); and online shopping behavior in the world, let alone Saudi Arabia.

Paskutiniais dešimtmečiais vyko žymūs pokyčiai visose socialinio gyvenimo sferose. Tai paskatino žmones orientuotis į naujas vertybes. Ypatingai daug galimybių pasirinkimui atsirado jaunai besivystančiai asmenybei. Sporto vieta visuomenės gyvenime užima vis reikšmingesnę vietą. Tai kartu kaip laisvalaikio praleidimo priemonė ar savo tikslų realizavimo forma. Aktyvia fizine veikla, kryptingu sportu, kai pradedama sistemingai siekti sportinių rezultatų, pradedama užsiėminėti paauglystės laikotarpiu, todėl susidomėjimą šiuo moksliniu tyrimu paskatino problema, kad fizinis aktyvumas nepakankamai išnaudojamas vertybių formavimuisi vyresniajame mokykliniame amžiuje. Tyrimo objektas – ryšys tarp fizinio aktyvumo ir vyresniojo mokyklinio amžiaus mokinių vertybinių orientacijų. Tyrimo tikslas – atskleisti fizinio aktyvumo poveikį vyresniojo mokyklinio amžiaus mokinių vertybinėms orientacijoms. Tyrimo uždaviniai:  Išskirti veiksnius, įtakojančius vertybinių orientacijų formavimąsi.  Nustatyti ryšį tarp fizinio aktyvumo ir vyresniojo mokyklinio amžiaus mokinių vertybinių orientacijų.  Išryškinti skirtingo fizinio aktyvumo mokinių vertybines orientacijas lyties skirtumų aspektu. Tyrimo metodai: teorinė analizė ir apibendrinimas (mokslinės literatūros šaltinių apžvalga), anketinė apklausa, matematinė statistika. Tyrimo hipotezės: 1) fizinis aktyvumas turi nevienodą poveikį skirtingos lyties mokinių vertybinėms orientacijoms; 2) fiziškai aktyvūs, t. y. sportuojantys mokiniai labiau... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Significant changes have being continuing in all social life spheres during latest decades. This has encouraged people to orient to new values. Especially lots of possibilities to choose appeared to the young developing person. Sport is covering over and over the more meaningful place in the life of society. Sport is both the way of leisure and the form of anyone’s ambitions realization. At the teenagers’ age it is started to go in for sports as in the active physical work, focused sport when it is started systematically to reach results in sport. Because of this the problem that physical activeness is used incompletely to values’ formation in senior school age induced the interest in this scientific inquiry. The object of this work is the connection between physical activeness and senior school age students’ values’ orientations. The aim of the survey is to disclose the impact of physical activeness on the senior students’ values’ orientations. The tasks are as follows:  To set apart factors which influence the formation of values’ orientations.  To establish the connection between physical activeness and senior students’ values’ orientations.  To distinguish the students’ of different physical activity values’ orientations from the sex differences’ aspect. The methods of survey: the theoretical analysis and conclusion finding (the survey of nonfiction), questionnaire, mathematical statistics. The hypotheses of the survey: 1) physical activeness has different impact... [to full text]

Объектом исследования явилась самотрансценденция личности. Предметом исследования стало ценностно-смысловое содержание самотрансценденции личности у женщин на этапе взрослости (30-60 лет). Магистерская диссертация состоит из введения, двух глав, заключения, списка литературы (70 источников) и приложений, включающих в себя бланки применявшихся методик. Объем магистерской диссертации 157 страниц, на которых размещены 26 рисунков и 8 таблиц. Во введении раскрывается актуальность проблемы исследования, разработанность проблематики, ставятся цель и задачи исследования, определяются объект и предмет исследования, формулируются гипотезы, указываются методы и эмпирическая база, а также этапы проведения исследования, научная новизна, теоретическая и практическая значимость работы. Первая глава включает в себя обзор иностранной и отечественной литературы по теме самотрансценденции и ценностно-смысловой сферы личности. Представлен раздел, посвященный исследованию существующих психодиагностических методик изучения самотрансценденции личности, и обзору проводившихся эмпирических исследований. Выводы по первой главе представляют собой итоги по изучению теоретического материала. Вторая глава посвящена эмпирической части исследования. В ней представлено описание организации и методов проведенного исследования и результатов, полученных по всем использованным методикам: опроснику терминальных ценностей (И.Г. Сенин); тесту смысложизненных ориентаций (Д.А. Леонтьев); тесту экзистенциальных мотиваций (В.Б. Шумский, Е.М. Уколова, и др.) и анкете «Самотрансценденция личности» авторской разработки. Также в главе представлен описательный и сравнительный анализ результатов исследования. Выводы по главе 2 включают в себя основные результаты эмпирического исследования. В заключении в обобщенном виде изложены результаты теоретической и эмпирической частей работы, а также выводы по выдвинутым гипотезам, обоснована практическая значимость исследования и описаны возможные перспективы дальнейшей разработки данной проблематики. / The object of the study was the self-transcendence of personality. The subject of the study was the value-semantic content of self-transcendence of personality in women at the stage of adulthood (30-60 years old). The master's thesis consists of an introduction, two chapters, a conclusion, a list of literature (70 sources) and an appendix, which includes the forms of the applied methodologies. The volume of the master's thesis is 157 pages, on which are placed 26 figures and 8 tables. The introduction reveals the relevance of the research problem, the development of the problematics, the purpose and objectives of the research are set, the object and the subject of research are determined, the basic and additional hypotheses are formulated, the methods and the empirical base are specified, as well as the stages of the research, the scientific novelty, the theoretical and practical significance of the work. The first chapter includes a review of foreign and domestic literature on the topic of self-transcendence and the value-semantic sphere of personality. A section is presented devoted to the study of existing psychodiagnostic methods for studying self-transcendence of personality, and a review of empirical studies conducted. Conclusions on the first chapter are the results of the study of theoretical material. The second chapter is devoted to the empirical part of the study. It provides a description of the organization and methods of the study and the results obtained using all the methods used: questionnaire of terminal values (I.G. Senin); test of meaningful life orientations (D.A. Leontiev); test of existential motivations (V.B. Shumsky, E.M. Ukolova, and others) and the questionnaire "Self-transcendence of personality" of the author's development. Also, the chapter presents a descriptive and comparative analysis of the results of the study. The findings of Chapter 2 are the main results of the empirical study. In conclusion, brief results of the theoretical and empirical parts of the work are presented, as well as conclusions on the hypotheses. The practical significance of the study is substantiated and possible prospects for further development of the problematics are described.

This study assesses the loyalty behaviour of consumers in fast-food restaurants in Saudi Arabia by studying the antecedents and the consequences of loyalty behaviour. The sample consisted of 231 Saudis and non-Saudis living in Saudi Arabia. They were approached using the “snowball” technique. Participants were all over the age of eighteen, and they were customers of Al-Baik restaurants. Data was collected through a face-to-face questionnaire, and analyzed using SPSS software. Specifically, Cronbach’s Alpha test, Pearson correlation coefficient, Spearman correlation coefficient, and multiple regression analysis were used. Results show that significant relationships exist between the antecedents and the consequences of loyalty behaviour. It is also indicated that participants’ personalities and values were significantly related to the loyalty behaviour of consumers in Saudi Arabia. The major limitation of this study is that it was conducted in only one city, Jeddah. Therefore, additional research should be carried out in other cities with larger samples. The research results offer compelling evidence that Saudi loyalty behaviour differs from Western behaviour. Therefore, it suggests that international fast-food operators in Saudi Arabia should take local factors into account when formulating marketing strategies, such as the role of women and youth in Saudi society. This thesis makes a novel contribution to the literature, as it is the first to model the antecedents and the consequences of loyalty behaviour of consumers in a single study. It is also the first to study contributed to the literature to examine the relation between the Six Dimensional Achievement Motivation Scale (Jackson, Ahmed, and Heapy, 1976), Rokeach Value System (1973), and loyalty behaviour of consumers.