Thesis (M. Environmental Management)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

We live in the Anthropocene – an age where humans dominate natural systems – and there is ample evidence that our current practices degrade the capacity of natural systems to provide us with natural resources. How we, as humans, organize and learn, in communities and among state and other societal actors, constitute a decisive factor for both local management of natural resources and the functioning of the planet Earth. In other words, the outcome of learning has become a matter of governance across multiple levels. This thesis studies the role of social learning in governance of natural resources, asking the following three overarching questions: i) What are the institutional barriers limiting better environmental governance at different scales? ii) Is there a causal connection between social learning and better environmental governance? iii) What are the normative challenges with better environmental governance or social-ecological resilience being linked to the adaptive capacity of actors to learn socially? The primary method is semi-structured in-depth interviews. Papers provide results on institutional barriers such as competency traps and show how customs and current practices and collaborations limit better environmental governance. It is found that social learning might, and might not, lead to better environmental governance, and the causal connection between social learning and better environmental governance is found to be rather weak, with both variables depending on other factors. Enabling policy, a mandate to make broad assessments, or an engaged leader facilitating social learning, are examples of factors that explain the existence of both social learning and outcomes in terms of better environmental governance. It is concluded that since conditions for, and facilitation of, social learning are so important, research should focus more on what initiates social learning and how social learning can be mainstreamed across multiple levels of governance / At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Submitted: Paper 4: Submitted; Paper 5: Submitted.

The role of the principal in Sweden has undergone significant changes over the past two decades.  Task and responsibility has been decentralized from the national level to o the local school board affecting principals´ everyday life. At the same time a new inspection system for all schools has been introduced.  These changes puts focus on how principals implement and report political decisions within established guidelines. For many principals it is a balancing act to achieve the national goals within a local context. All the above include for the principal important work with evaluations of quality in different processes in the school, especially those related to teacher performance and children’s grades and results. In the mid 1990’s a debate about the lack of evaluations and school improvement in Swedish schools started, and as a result the Government decided in 1997 that every school should write a quality assessments and that the school board should write a summery for the whole school district. Many schools had problems in the beginning with the working processes around quality assessments, and many schools view this national law only as a top-down control decision from the Government and were not able to see the school improvement part of the law. The aim of this study is to describe how principals take responsibility for the quality assessment regulation and to analyze how they act and lead their schools in relation to quality assessments. In this study, results are presented from survey data, done with 131 principals who attended the National Principal Training Program at Umeå University. A theoretical model which discusses four leadership styles is used as a theoretical background. This model has an organizational frame. After making an argument for the importance of each of these styles for understanding principals work with quality assessments, two strands are examined. First, leadership styles are described from a principal perspective and factor analysis is used to investigate if these styles can illustrate principals´ work with quality assessments. Second, important factors explaining different ways in which principals tackle the work with quality assessments is highlighted. These factors are affected by different laws and regulations and even some time local political decisions and policies which here is understood as structure and culture, and personal background, for example the principals´ age, sex, education and experience.  Based on the empirical results, my theoretical conclusion is that the four leadership styles used are relevant for understanding how principals work with quality assessments.  The study also shows that structure and culture are important factors when it comes to explaining how principals´ work with quality assessments.  Personal background, however, are not shown as important in this study.

The overarching aim of this dissertation is to study divergences in assessments of social assistance in Swedish social welfare offices. ‘Assessments’ here refers to whether applications for social assistance are granted or not, as well as the size of subsidies. Another aim with the dissertation is to explore whether differences in assessments have changed over time. A primary focus in this study is the importance of elements of changing character, e.g. varying organizational and individual conditions. Among these elements, the main focus is on the relation between organizational factors and professional discretion among social workers. Primary data used for the study has been assembled among social workers (n=121) in eleven municipalities in the northern Stockholm area. The main section of the questionnaire used for assembling data consists of six vignettes, each describing a different situation. Data is supplemented with secondary material that derives from a similar study conducted in 1994. Overall, findings show considerable divergences in the way social workers make their assessments. Some of the divergences are explained by different organizational conditions, e.g. varying levels of specialization and size of caseloads. Individual factors, such as sex, age and varying professional characteristics, e.g. work experience, influence the assessments only to a limited degree, while attitudes among social workers play a larger role. The study also indicates a substantial decrease in generosity over time. This might to some extent be explained by changed and elaborated set of regulations in the sphere of social assistance. Further, the individual divergences in assessments have increased over time. A plausible interpretation of the results is that an increasing number of regulations combined with professional discretion, entails a larger scope for social workers’ opinions and individual screening among rules.

Syftet med studien var att beskriva vårdpersonalens uppfattning om risker för undernäring och preventivt arbete hos personer 70 år och äldre, på olika vårdnivåer och inom en kommun. Studien hade en beskrivande design och tolv vårdpersonal deltog, varav fyra sjuksköterskor från en medicinavdelning, två sjuksköterskor, en sjukgymnast och en arbetsterapeut från en hälsocentral samt två sjuksköterskor, en enhetschef och en sjukgymnast från ett äldreboende inom en kommun. Intervjuer användes vid datainsamlingen. Data analyserades genom kvalitativ innehållsanalys och bildade kategorierna Tillstånd som utgör en risk för undernäring, Säkerställa näringsintaget, Ett strukturerat arbetssätt samt Samverkan och ansvar. Som risker för undernäring beskrevs sjukdomar, funktionsnedsättning samt förlorad uppfattning om vikten. Att säkerställa näringsintag innefattade mat, mellanmål och måltidsmiljö. Ett strukturerat arbetssätt handlade om riskbedömningar, åtgärder samt utvärdering. Vidare beskrevs samverkan inom och utanför den egna yrkesgruppen, vårdnivåer och ansvaret omkring arbetet med näringsfrågorna. Vårdpreventivt arbetssätt upplevdes spara tid, tydliggöra vad som skall göras och möjliggöra utvärderingar. Läkarens medverkan i det preventiva arbetet behöver klargöras och rutiner för spridning av arbetssättet till andra enheter formas. Vidare behövs beslut om hur näringstillstånd och behov ska dokumenteras och rapporteras för att säkerställas mellan vårdnivåerna / The purpose was to describe nursing staffs’ perceptions of risks for malnutrition and preventive efforts thereof, for patients 70 years and older, at different care levels within one municipality. Descriptive design was used and twelve participants included; two district nurses, one physiotherapist and one occupational therapist from a health care centre, two registered nurses, one unit director and one physiotherapist from a nursing home in the municipality and four registered nurses from an internal medicine hospital ward. Interviews and qualitative content analysis was used resulting in four categories Conditions of risks for malnutrition, Ensuring nutritional intake, Structured way to work and Collaboration and responsibilities. The participants’ described diseases, disabilities and lost of apprehension concerning weight constituting malnutrition risks. Meals and meal environment influence nutritional intake. Risk assessments, interventions and evaluations mirrored structured way of working. Collaboration with colleagues, other professionals and care levels were highlighted together with responsibilities. Physicians’ participation in malnutrition preventions needs clarification. Improvements like documentation of the nutritional status among the elderly and reports between the different levels of care are needed to ensure safe nutritional care.

I have made interviews with a teacher and with pupils from the lower grades in a school dominated by pupils with Swedish as their second language, about the role and effects of assessment with particular focus on the subject of mathematics. I have also studied the policy documents (“kursplanen”) for the subjects of Swedish and mathematics. The formulations of the learning goals in Swedish are differentiated, so that the demands are somewhat lower for pupils with Swedish as their second language. In mathematics, however, the learning goals are the same for all pupils, and they include the ability to communicate mathematical concepts in meaningful and relevant situations. The language of this communication is supposed to be Swedish, and the cultural code necessary to find the situation meaningful and relevant is often Swedish. The textbooks in mathematics for the early grades are oriented towards the learning goals, and contain many problems formulated in plain Swedish language, and with meaning and relevance often oriented to assumed fruit distribution habits among culturally Swedish children. This creates a problem with assessments in mathematics for many pupils with Swedish as their second language. They often feel that the assessments in mathematics are unfair, if they already know the numerical system and could have solved the problem, had it been given to them in a more simplified language. There is a risk that these pupils give up on the subject of mathematics too early, and for linguistic and cultural reasons. My research has shown that some of these pupils even question the mathematical ability of their teacher, because they can so easily check the numerical results on their pocket calculators, and at the same time find the verbal explanations of the teacher so difficult to understand. The problems resulting from the discrepancy between the learning goals in Swedish and mathematics, are aggravated by the recently introduced national tests in the third grade, witch give an official stamp on the use of summative assessment in the form of mathematical tests that includes verbally and culturally demanding problems. What the individual teacher in mathematics can do under these circumstances, is exploiting the rights and demands for individualization of learning to the outmost for pupils with Swedish as their second language. Children who in the future are going to use their mathematical skills and abilities professionally in the Swedish society certainly have to learn the appropriate words, as well as the cultural codes for the Swedish way of formulating mathematical problems. But their roads to achieving these particular goals in the national learning plan for mathematics, will in various ways be different from that of pupils with Swedish as their first language. The advent of national tests in mathematics in the third grade makes it even more important for the teacher to focus on the use of formative assessments, that make temporary allowance for the pupils present shortcomings in the linguistic and cultural understanding of mathematics, while at the same time setting up personal and individualized learning goals, aimed at overcoming these shortcomings.

Watersheds in Canada are under increasing threats due to the cumulative environmental effects from natural and anthropogenic sources. Cumulative effect assessment (CEA), however, if done at all is typically done on a project-by-project basis. This project-based approach to CEA is not sufficient to address the cumulative effects of multiple stressors in a watershed or a region. As a result, there is now a general consensus that CEA must extend from the project to the more regional scale. The problem, however, is that while the science of how to do watershed CEA (W-CEA) is progressing, the appropriate institutional arrangements to sustain W-CEA have not been addressed. Based on a case study of the South Saskatchewan Watershed (SSW), this research is aimed to identify the institutional requirements necessary to support and sustain W-CEA.<p> The research methods include document reviews and semi-structured interviews with regulators, administrators, watershed coordinators, practitioners, and academics knowledgeable on cumulative effect assessment and project-based environmental assessments (EAs). The findings from this research are presented thematically. First, participants perspectives on cumulative effects, the current state of CEA practice, and general challenges to project-based approaches to CEA are presented. The concept of WCEA is then examined, with a discussion on the need for linking project-based CEA and W-CEA. This is followed by the institutional requirements for W-CEA. The Chapter concludes with foreseeable challenges to implementing W-CEA, as identified by research participants.<p> The key findings include that cumulative effect assessments under project-based EAs are rarely undertaken in the SSW, and the project-based EA approach is faced with considerable challenges. The project-based EA challenges suggested by interview participants are similar to the ones discussed in the literature, and are primarily related to the lack of guidance to proponents regarding boundaries of assessments and thresholds, the lack of data from other project EAs, and the lack of capacity of both proponents and regulators to achieve a good CEA under project EA. These challenges could be addressed by establishing regional objectives at a broader scale, which could provide better context to project-based approaches. Further, interview results revealed several opportunities for the government to take the lead in implementing and sustaining W-CEA, but a multistakeholder approach is essential to W-CEA success. The results also suggest that the establishments of thresholds and data management are necessary components of W-CEA, but that the need for legislation concerning such thresholds and W-CEA initiatives is not agreed upon. At the same time, research results emphasize that the coordination and education among various stakeholders will be difficult to achieve. The lack of financial commitment, political will, and difficulties in establishing cause-effect relationships currently impede the implementation of W-CEA.

This thesis examines how mothers of children labeled ‘learning disabled’ negotiate with educational professionals as advocates for their children. Previous scholarship has not adequately addressed the role that parents, particularly mothers of children labeled ‘learning disabled’ play in the education of their children. Through analyzing the ways in which these educational practices shape people’s experiences and identities, we can gain a deeper understanding of the ways in which labeling processes are experienced, managed, constructed, negotiated and/or resisted. This subject was explored through in-depth interviews with six mothers, using interviewing practices informed by standpoint methodology. My analysis follows two major themes. The first theme deals with the contradictory nature of psychoeducational assessments in the classrooms of the educational system. I demonstrate how psychoeducational assessments act as a set of rules, regulations and rights. I demonstrate how the mothers in my study used these as tools for empowerment and resistance to educational structures and discourses of normalcy. I also demonstrate the limitations of these texts to secure the educational interest and rights of children labeled ‘learning disabled’. The second theme deals with transformation processes. I ask, how do mothers of children labeled ‘learning disabled’ change as a result of negotiating their child or children’s ‘learning disability’. I demonstrate how being a parent of a child labeled ‘learning disabled’ is outside the sphere of ‘regular’ parenting and the sphere of the formal educational system and the economic, social and health-related consequences of such negotiations.

ABSTRACT TECHNICAL AND APPLIED FEATURES OF FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENTS AND BEHAVIOR INTERVENTION PLANS by Shannon M. Hawkins When conducted correctly, functional behavior assessments (FBAs) can help professionals intervene with problem behavior using function-based interventions. Despite the fact that researchers have shown that effective interventions are based on function, recent investigators have found that most behavioral intervention plans (BIPs) are written without regard to the function of students’ problem behaviors as documented in their FBAs. This study was conducted to examine the overall technical adequacy of FBAs and BIPs within one educational system to evaluate reliance on the outcomes of FBAs in the development of BIPs. The technical and applied features of a randomly selected sample of 134 FBA/BIPs of students with disabilities, ages 3-21 years, who were receiving services due to their severe emotional and behavioral disorders (SEBD) or autism spectrum disorders (ASD) within the Georgia Network of Educational and Therapeutic Services (GNETS) were analyzed. In addition, similarities and differences between function-based strategies specified in BIPs were examined. Logistic regression was used to reveal the probability that a given behavioral function can predict which intervention(s) might be chosen. A series of chi-square tests of independence and a multinomial logistic regression model were used to examine how BIP component variables, demographic variables, behavioral function variables, and behavioral intervention variables related to each other statistically. Components described as critical in research literature for conducting FBAs and developing BIPs were absent from a significant number of the student files. Results suggest few of the prescribed interventions were likely to be related to function. The findings extend research on FBAs and BIPs, particularly as they are used with students with SEBD and autism, documenting that a significant number of BIPs are developed without regard of the function of the problem behavior.

Behavior rating scales are commonly used as part of the evaluation process throughout the field of psychology. Behavior rating scales help assess social, emotional, and/or behavioral problems in children, adolescents, and teens. Behavior rating scales indicate the severity of problem behaviors compared to a normative sample. Four scenarios were developed that varied scores on a behavior rating scale and the amount of other information that supported a specific diagnosis. A rating of the likelihood of a diagnosis was requested to see how much influence behavior rating scale scores have on diagnostic decision-making. Each of the four scenarios was sent to 200 school psychologists across the country for a total of 800 potential participants. An overall response rate of 37.5% was achieved. The findings revealed that behavior rating scales do have some influence on school psychologists’ diagnostic decision-making. However, school psychologists put more weight on other supporting information, such as classroom observations and teacher and parent reports, than on behavior rating scale scores when making a diagnostic decision.