Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Humanities School of Social Sciences Department of Anthropology, University of the Witwatersrand, August 2017 / This study engages with recent works on entrepreneurship and microfinance in the developing world as it seeks to understand youths’ interactions with microfinance initiatives in a specific African context. Using the case of urban Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, I apply the theory of value to question the notion that ‘entrepreneurship’ can be separated from other aspects of cultural and social lives in the community. By providing business grants and entrepreneurship training, microfinance institutions assume that youth from poor backgrounds will also be able to start their own business, sustain it and succeed financially. However, this relationship is not well established and need to be further explored empirically and ethnographically. Through ethnographic observation of three material sites, namely family, market, and the project that provided a business grant to 52 secondary school graduates, I look at how youth, as potential entrepreneurs in the context of limited access to formal education and employment in urban areas, make choices on the use of money in relation to entrepreneurship investments, daily livelihoods, and future plans. The general framework that informs youth entrepreneurship programs posits that the lack of capital, skills, business knowledge and poor policy framework explains, to a larger extent, why business ventures are not successful among youth living in poverty. However, this research indicates that family dynamics, youth aspirations, belief systems, and nature of interventions programs are factors that influence youth engagements with entrepreneurship and the outcome of their business ventures. / XL2018

A report on a research study presented to The Department of Social Work School of Human and Community Development Faculty of Humanities University of the Witwatersrand In partial fulfilment of the requirements For the degree Master of Arts in Social Development March, 2019 / The increasing number of unemployed graduates is of great concern worldwide. In countries, such as Zimbabwe, the economic crisis is so persistent that many Zimbabwean students migrate to South Africa to complete degrees in the hope of securing employment soon after completing their degrees. However, they too are currently facing challenges related to unemployment. In order to explore this phenomenon, the research design was explorative in nature. A phenomenological study was thus conducted to explore the experiences of unemployed Zimbabwean graduates. The theoretical framework underpinning the study were the social exclusion theory and capability theory. The sampling method utilized in the study was non-probability, purposive sampling. The sample of participants in this study consisted of twelve unemployed Zimbabwean graduates. The research instrument used was an interview guide. Individual interviews were conducted with participants to gather data. Data were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The findings indicated that unemployed Zimbabwean graduates face many challenges in the South African context which disempower them from reaching the goal of obtaining job-satisfying employment. Based on conclusions reached, recommendations are made related to addressing the problem-situation constructively. In relation to social development, the study contributes to the current debates on migration and unemployment, especially addressing issues including policy recommendations on the intervention strategies to be provided to address issues of unemployment amongst graduates. / MT 2020

The on-going global economic difficulties and the subsequent increases in unemployment have led the UK government to look at innovative ways of reintegrating unemployed people back into work. Nowhere is this more critical than in the area of youth unemployment, which in the UK is steadily rising for young people aged 16-24 years who are not in employment, education or training (NEET). As part of this strategy work-integration social enterprises (WISEs) have become providers of employment enhancement programmes (EEPs) that aim to improve the employability of NEETs, in part due to the 'added value' that WISEs are seen to bring to such programmes. However, this perception, along with the requirements of public funding contracts, creates a pressure on WISEs to demonstrate such 'added value' through rigorous evaluation procedures. However, there is little academic research that both attempts to measure WISE performance in relation to 'outcomes' and to understand how organisational type and structure affects this. This research study takes a comparative, multi-case study approach to study three separate work-integration organisations delivering EEPs to NEETs. Two of these organisations are WISEs and the other organisation is a 'for-profit' private company utilised in this study as a comparison group. In order to provide a rigorous measure of outcome, all participants completed three different self-efficacy scales and engaged in individual semi-structured interviews with researchers before and after engagement in their respective programmes (Time 1 & Time 2). Results from the qualitative analysis of the interviews and the statistical analysis of the questionnaire data are triangulated to evaluate the outcome from all three programmes, providing the participant perspective alongside changes in self-efficacy. In addition, semi-structured interviews and focus groups were held with the owners and staff at the organisations respectively, in order to elicit understanding of how the differing aims, values and structures present at each organisation impacted upon the delivery of the programmes and hence upon the outcome benefits experienced by the NEETs. The results of the research provide an opportunity to compare and contrast programmes delivered by social enterprises with that of a 'for-profit' company in order to give an insight into programme and outcome differences based upon the orientation of the delivery organisation. Results revealed no significant difference between the outcome benefits experienced by the NEETs at the WISEs and those NEETs present at the for-profit comparison group. However, analysis of the effect of the organisational aims, values and structures upon the delivery of EEPs, suggests that the 'added value' offered by WISEs, whilst not immediately evident in the outcome data, came from the induction policies that they operated and their willingness to work with more socially excluded individuals.

Thesis (MDF)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / This research was an investigation of the impact of the youth development fund in the Plumtree district - a case study from 2010 to 2012. The study intended to show the impact of the fund on the major problem of youth unemployment. In this study, 40 youth entrepreneurs who benefited from the fund were used as research subjects. The main research instrument was a questionnaire. It focused on the situation before the funding in 2010 and after the funding in 2012. The research established that there was a significant increase in employment, training became more widespread and there was a backlog in payment of national taxes. From these findings, the study recommended that funding be increased, training be maintained and tax awareness campaigns be started.

青年失業問題是目前世界各國所關心的主要議題之一，從1970年代開始先進國家已開始意識到青年失業問題的嚴重性。根據國際勞工組織估計，目前世界上至少有7,100萬青年處於沒有工作的狀態，全球的青年失業率在2007年高達11.9%。而台灣的整體失業率與青年失業率從1996年開始攀升，2009年2月的青年失業率已高達14.56%，創歷年最高，且青年為各年齡組群中失業率最高的一群，若青年失業問題持續惡化，勢必對社會造成不良的影響，增加社會成本。 面對越來越嚴重的青年失業問題，國際組織與先進各國均提出許多建議或政策來因應，本研究將探討國際組織ILO與OECD對青年就業政策之觀點，並以德國、英國、美國、香港、丹麥與荷蘭為例，借鏡其青年就業政策，以掌握世界主要工業國家之趨勢與對策。 台灣近年來隨著失業問題越來越嚴重，雖然政府開始注意到青年的失業問題，並已初步實施多面項的方案，但經由本研究分析與國際發展趨勢相較，發現目前台灣的青年就業政策還是有許多仍待補強之處。最後本研究將以國際的經驗當作借鏡，提出以下七點相關建議，以作為未來相關政策參考之方向： 一、應重視技職教育的發展，擴大投資技職教育。 二、提升正式教育過程中的就業力養成教育，並增加青年體驗職場的機會。 三、加強職業指導，培養正確的就業價值觀。 四、積極的消極勞動市場政策。 五、提供青年個人化的深度就業諮詢輔導服務，多關注弱勢青年。 六、建立職業訓練評估制度，完善規劃訓練課程以符合市場需求。 七、整合相關部會，制訂一套完整、長期性、針對性的青年就業促進方案。 / Nowadays the problem of youth unemployment is one of main topics that every countries concern. Since 1970s, the developed countries have realized the severity of the problem of youth unemployment. According to ILO estimates, there has at least 71 million youths unemployment in the world at present. The global youth unemployment rate reaches as high as 11.9% in 2007. And then Taiwan's overall unemployment rate and the youth unemployment rate have soared since 1996, the youth unemployment rate has reached as high as 14.56% in February of 2009. Youths have the highest unemployment rate among others.There will be negative impacts on society, if the problem of youth unemployment worsens continuously. Facing more and more serious problem of youth unemployment, the international organization and the advanced countries put forward a lot of suggestions or policies. This research will introduce ILO and OECD on youth employment policies of the opinion. In order to understand how to deal with the problem of youth unemployment in the advanced countries, this research will take Germany, Britain, US, Hong Kong, Denmark and Holland as the example, and introduce their youth employment policies. Because the unemployment problem is more and more serious in Taiwan, the government has begun to notice the problem of youth unemployment, and has implemented multi-surface policies. But this research found that there are still some things need to be improved in Taiwan’s youth employment policies. Finally I will put forward some suggestions from with the experience of foreign countries, in order to help the government resolve the problems of youth unemployment.

This research sought to explore the effects of a postmodern career life story intervention on a sample of eight disadvantaged grade 12 learners. A qualitative research design using pre and post intervention interviews was used to explore whether the participants reevaluated or reinterpreted their responses to the interview questions in light of the intervention. The results of the study indicated that the participants experienced increased self-understanding, self-esteem, initiative and hope, optimism and empowerment through the intervention. The participants appreciated the time and space to be able to reflect on their lives. It appears as if all the various components of the life story intervention had a powerful impact on the participants. Writing life stories and using art materials appeared to be a method that was effective with disadvantaged grade 12 learners.

Masters thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities School of Human and Community Development Discipline of psychology for the degree of Master in Educational Psychology University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2016 / The study sought to give voice to the subjective experiences of NEETs (youth not in employment, education or training), often viewed as risk taking, apathetic and a strain on the economy and to think about their identities differently. The aim was also to provide ways to forge new versions of themselves in the future, allowing the participants an opportunity to ‘read the world’ differently and to think about new possibilities, through recollecting the past and exploring their present place in the world. This study utilised participatory action research and narrative inquiry to explore the experiences of a group of NEETs in a township in South Africa, and together with the researcher were involved in active engagement with their social worlds, through photographic documentation and in-depth interviews. The data were analysed using thematic and narrative analysis. The focus of the narrative analysis was to understand the meaning that the participants made of their own experiences, and the thematic and visual analysis focussed on understanding their context, their interaction with place and people in forming their identities, and the opportunities and versions of identities that they thought were possible in the future. The significance of these findings points to the past and the effects of South Africa’s history on youth identity. However, despite the structural constraints that impact on youth growing up in disadvantaged townships, and the impact that these constraints have on their identities, these youth have found ways to challenge the stereotypes that define their lives, and in different ways offer glimmers of hope for their futures. Their identities, though impacted by their interaction with their environment and the people in their context, are remarkably complex and encouraging. Furthermore, this study provided insight into the issues facing ‘at risk’ youth, and allows for new possibilities for their issues and concerns to be addressed. / GR2017

Thesis (MTech. degree in Education) - Tshwane University of Technology, 2006. / The primary objective of this study was to find out about the employability of school leavers. In order to conduct this study the researcher applied quantitative and qualitative approaches as methods of collecting data. The study was conducted among learners, school leavers (employed and unemployed), SMT members and HRD staff of the sampled schools and company respectively. It is clear from the study that:

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1993. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 83-89).

Orientadores: Marcio Pochmann, Marcelo Weishaupt Pronti / Acompanha 1 anexo v. 2 Anexo Metodológico / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Filosofia e Ciênias Humanas / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-17T16:07:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Mesquita_MarcosRoberto_D.pdf: 3218236 bytes, checksum: f9e93a41893f5e527ca64d4424f6a095 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011 / Resumo:O presente estudo discute a inserção dos jovens no mercado de trabalho e a relação da juventude trabalhadora com a Justiça do Trabalho no Brasil do início do século XXI, com um enfoque especial nos estagiários. Aborda-se também o conceito sociológico de juventude, as condições encontradas pelos jovens no mercado de trabalho e a situação daqueles que procuraram à Justiça Trabalhista, com base na literatura especializada. Ao mesmo tempo em que se leva em conta a precariedade enfrentada por muitos jovens trabalhadores, inclusive entre os estagiários. Foram utilizadas como fontes de pesquisa: entrevistas com diversos atores (jovens que procuraram a Justiça do Trabalho, estagiários, dirigentes sindicais, Juízes e advogados trabalhistas), além da análise de processos trabalhistas movidos por estagiários em dois Tribunais Regionais do Trabalho: 2ª Região (São Paulo) e 4ª Região (Rio Grande do Sul) / Abstract: The research describes the insertion of young's employees in the labor market and the relation of those with Labour Justice in Brazil, with special approach in the training field, in the beginning of the Century XXI. It also approaches the concept of youth; the conditions experimented for younger people in the labor field and the sociological situation of those who had turned to the Justice and it was supported on specialized literature. In the same hand the research takes into account the precarious environment faced for many young workers, including during training stages. As a source for this research was used interviews with people (young persons who looked into the Employment Justice as an alternative, trainees, Syndical leaders, Judges, and Attorneys), besides the analysis labor process moved by training in two Regional Labor's Court: 2ª Region (São Paulo) and 4ª Region (Rio Grande do Sul) / Doutorado / Trabalho, Politica e Sociedade / Doutor em Ciências Sociais