This is a study about the transition process and the consolidation of power in Belarus. In this paper the concept of "authoritarian state building and the sources of regime competitiveness in the fourth wave" is the major theory used. After giving a description of the theory‟s concepts a short historical background of Belarus follows. Chapters four describes and explain the political situation in Belarus during five periods. After each period I analyze the situation on the basis of the suppositions from the theory. The thesis also tries to explain the conditions needed for an authoritarian regime to be established. The result of the concluding discussion shows that the major theory in this thesis presents important factors that can help to explain why and how the autocratic rule in Belarus has been consolidated.

The labyrinth seal is a non-contact annular type sealing device used to reduce the internal leakage of the working fluid which is caused by the pressure difference between each stage in a turbomachine. Reducing the leakage mass flow rate of the working fluid through the labyrinth seal is desirable because it improves the efficiency of the turbomachine. The carry-over coefficient, based on the divergence angle of the jet, changed with flow parameters with fixed seal geometry while earlier models expressed the carry-over coefficient solely as a function of seal geometry. For both compressible and incompressible flows, the Reynolds number based on clearance was the only flow parameter which could influence the carry-over coefficient. In the case of incompressible flow based on the simulations for various seal geometries and operating conditions, for a given Reynolds number, the carry-over coefficient strongly depended on radial clearance to tooth width ratio. Moreover, in general, the lower the Reynolds number, the larger is the divergence angle of the jet and this results in a smaller carry-over coefficient at lower Reynolds numbers. However, during transition from laminar to turbulent, the carry-over coefficient reduced initially and once the Reynolds number attained a critical value, the carry-over coefficient increased again. In the case of compressible flow, the carry-over coefficient had been slightly increased if radial clearance to tooth width ratio and radial clearance to tooth pitch ratio were increased. Further, the carry-over coefficient did not considerably change if only radial clearance to tooth width ratio was decreased. The discharge coefficient for compressible and incompressible flows depended only on the Reynolds number based on clearance. The discharge coefficient of the tooth in a single cavity labyrinth seal was equivalent to that in a multiple tooth labyrinth seal indicating that flow downstream had negligible effect on the discharge coefficient. In particular, for compressible fluid under certain flow and seal geometric conditions, the discharge coefficient did not increase with an increase in the Reynolds number. It was correlated to the pressure ratio, Pr. Moreover, it was also related to the fact that the flow of the fluid through the constriction became compressible and the flow eventually became choked. At low pressure ratios (less than 0.7), Saikishan’s incompressible model deviated from CFD simulation results. Hence, the effects of compressibility became significant and both the carry-over coefficient compressibility factor and the discharge coefficient compressibility factor needed to be considered and included into the leakage model. The carry-over coefficient compressibility factor, phi, had two linear relationships with positive and negative slopes regarding the pressure ratios. This result was not associated with the seal geometry because the seal geometry ratios for each instance were located within the nearly same ranges. Further, the phi-Pr relationship was independent of the number of teeth regardless of single and multiple cavity labyrinth seals. The discharge coefficient compressibility factor, psi, was a linear relationship with pressure ratios across the tooth as Saikishan predicted. However, in certain flow and seal geometric conditions, Saikishan’s model needed to be modified for the deviation appearing when the pressure ratios were decreased. Hence, a modified psi-Pr relationship including Saikishan’s model was presented in order to compensate for the deviation between the simulations and his model.

The prevalence of and increase in unplanned pregnancies (UPs) and the termination of pregnancy (TOP) amongst tertiary students (TSs) have been found to have a detrimental impact on students, their significant others, and tertiary institutions. UPs amongst TSs have been mentioned as one of the factors contributing to the problem of high dropout rates, which calls for an investigation of this phenomenon and strategies to address it. Despite the need for support to TSs who find themselves in the predicament of an UP and/or TOP, a lacuna has been found with specific reference to practice guidelines from the ambit of social work to assist service providers (SPs) in the provision of psychosocial support services to the said students. To explore and describe the experiences, support, and support needs of TSs presenting with UPs and/or TOPs from the perspectives of these students and the SPs rendering services to them, as well as to gather suggestions from them to inform practice guidelines for psychosocial support, the qualitative research approach, designs, and methods of data collection were used to collect data from six TS- and 23 SP-participants that were purposively recruited. Presenting the findings against the backdrop of Schlossberg’s Transition Process Model (Schlossberg, 2011 & 1981), adopted as theoretical framework for the study, the following emerged: Experiencing an UP and/or TOP is a traumatic crisis event for TSs, which rings in a transition resulting in imminent and fundamental changes in their academic and social life, relationships, outlook on life, and self-image, as well as a smorgasbord of feelings and emotional reactions such as shock, denial, guilt, shame, loneliness, depression and anger following this event. The UP-crisis is arrested by deciding how to manage it (either through parenting, foster care, adoption, or TOP). This decision-making process is perceived as difficult with the formal and/or informal convoy of support, or lack thereof, having a decisive influence on the outcome of how the UP is managed. Apart from TS-participants’ appraisal of the support that they received in dealing with this life event, they articulated several support needs and suggestions for themselves and other TSs alike. The SPparticipants also offered several suggestions on how psychosocial support to a TS confronted with this phenomenon should be provided. The suggestions from both participant groups informed the practice guidelines to assist SPs in providing psychosocial support to TSs presenting with an UP and/or TOP. These guidelines focus specifically on how to establish a helping relationship with a TS presenting with the concern of an UP and/or a TOP, and how to assess and intervene in the situation, the self, the support, and the (coping) strategies surrounding the TS’s UP and/or TOP. In addition, recommendations for university policies on student pregnancies, social work practice, and further research were made. / Social Work / D. Phil. (Social Work)