The prevalence of HIV/AIDS is increasing with immense influence and pressure on the grandparents as primary caregivers and the main supporters of orphans in families. The grandparents are faced with biophysical, socio–economic and psychosocially challenges and lack of support from the community of Koster in the North–West Province of South Africa. Caring for AIDS orphans who have lost their parents due to AIDS and of whom some are infected is an enormous challenge. There should be a partnership between the grandparents, the community, public sector and private sector to assist the grandparents who care for AIDS orphans. Therefore, there are recommendations made by the researcher as tools for health–care workers in order to support the grandparents as they care for AIDS orphans. The objectives of this research were to explore and describe challenges faced by the grandparents in caring for AIDS orphans in Koster, and how their needs could be met by making recommendations for effective support of the grandparents. A qualitative, explorative and descriptive design was used which enabled the research to understand the challenges faced by grandparents in caring for AIDS orphans and how their needs could be met. Semi–structured interviews were conducted to obtain the data. The population studied in this research consisted of the grandparents caring for AIDS orphans in Koster in the North–West Province, South Africa. Voluntary purposive sampling was used to select participants with the assistance of mediators who are working for the Non– Government Organizations dealing with HIV and AIDS in Koster. The sample size was determined by data saturation, which was reached after 15 interviews. Data analysis was carried out simultaneously with data collection. In consensus discussions, the researcher and the co–coder reached consensus on the main, sub and further sub–categories. From the research findings, four main categories were identified namely; the challenges faced by the grandparents, perceptions of the grandparents on how their need could be met, the impact of the challenge and coping mechanisms. It could be concluded that the grandparents are faced with diverse challenges in caring for AIDS orphans. In order to address these challenges the community and government must be fully involved. The basic, psychosocial, socio–economic and biophysical needs can be addressed through support system. / Thesis (M.Cur.)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011.

The purpose of this essay is to describe what difficulties and challenges are for teachers of religious education at upper secondary school. The essay is written from a teacher's perspective, where the focus is on the teacher's perceptions of the difficulties and challenges of teaching religious education. The methodology for the collection of information was done through qualitative interviews. Previous research shows that one of the challenges in the teaching profession is the interpretation of the curriculum, and then which of those is correct. The essay shows that the biggest challenges that teachers experience in the subject of religious education is the students' prejudice against different religious groups, and also the difficulty of getting students to understand the purpose of what is being taught. I have examined how teachers handle these difficulties and challenges as well as the didactic choices that are at the forefront of the teachers' strategies.

While extensive research has been done on technology-mediated learning (TML) in North America, such research is not easily transferable to the Caribbean, as there are notable socio-cultural and economic factors that affect such methods of course delivery. Limited research has been recorded about TML within a Caribbean context. This study employed a qualitative research methodology to gain an understanding of the individual and collective experiences of Jamaican educators who are using technology-mediated learning within the classroom. The methodology employed solicited the participation of one group of educators for this research. The two approaches that were used to collect data were group interviews and one-on-one interviews. The findings revealed that while faculty were keen on leveraging the available technology, there were still faculty, student and institutional challenges that were being encountered, ultimately affecting the effectiveness of the technology used to complement the teaching and learning process. / Adult Education

国立情報学研究所で電子化したコンテンツを使用している。

Representing four-fifths of businesses worldwide, family businesses are a prevailing form of business organizations. Their importance has brought on several studies concerning their development and behavior. Drawing on Gersick et al’s three-dimensional developmental model, this study examines the development of a Taiwanese family firm. Gersick et al’s three-dimensional developmental model develops a typology based on the dimensions of ownership, family and business. Through one-on-one in-depth interview of a Taiwanese textile manufacturer, this study finds that the founder’s character is an important factor that triggers challenges that family firms must face. With this unique factor, it is found that the family firm has employed an informal communication mechanism through close family members acting as third party liaisons to minimize communication conflict. Furthermore, through the application of quality management certifications, the firm has formalized organizational procedures and policies. Close affiliation with government aided institutions allows the firm to offer a comprehensive training program to attract and develop new talent. All these serve as future guidelines for family firms to overcome challenges in their developmental process.

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Registered nurses, while carrying out their professional roles, regularly encounter situations with ethical components. While there are research findings reporting the types of ethical challenges nurses face, their level of involvement in ethical decision-making, and reasoning processes used, how nurses actually deal with situations that challenge them personally has not been specifically explored. The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychosocial processes that can explain how registered nurses reason and make decisions when faced with ethical situations that challenge their personal values and belief systems. A grounded theory approach was used to conduct the study, allowing a substantive theory to be developed. Twenty-three nurses, currently working in metropolitan or regional areas in New South Wales, volunteered to participate in the study. Two methods of data collection were utilised, the first being semi-structured, in-depth interviews which were audio taped then transcribed. The second method used hypothetical vignettes with associated questions to which the participants were invited to anonymously return written responses. Data were managed by means of the computer program NVivo 2, while constant comparative analysis using open, axial and selective coding, as outlined by Strauss and Corbin (1998), was performed. The substantive theory which emerged from the data explains the processes used by nurses when they have to deal with ethical challenges to their personal values and beliefs. The basic psychosocial process (core category) of protecting client autonomy reveals a pattern of moral reasoning that gives priority to the client’s self-determined choices. This subsumes the key processes (subcategories) of: (1) being self-aware, (2) determining duties to other/s versus self, (3) engaging self as protector, and (4) restoring self from tension or anguish, which link to each other and to the core category to explain the various sub-processes used when protecting client autonomy is considered a priority. Findings in the study revealed that nurses who give primacy to client autonomy believe they should not impose their own preferred choices on to clients. Yet the emphasis on client autonomy is also paradoxical, since it may come at the cost of compromise and even denial of the nurses’ own autonomy and their deeply held values and beliefs. When they become aware that their personal values and beliefs are being challenged, they are at times prepared to compromise their own values or beliefs, yield to constraints, or put themselves at risk in order to protect the autonomy of clients. Such actions can leave nurses experiencing ethical tension or anguish for which they need to seek support. Opportunities to find appropriate support are not always available to them in the work environment. The findings in this study have important implications for both nurses and the nursing profession. The pattern of moral reasoning shows generosity and nurses’ commitment to their caring and advocacy roles. However, when nurses are regularly prepared to compromise their own values or beliefs because they give priority to protecting client autonomy, there is a risk they may be left with a sense of loss to their personal worth and in their ability to be moral agents. Further, in some situations it may occur out of complacency because they simply accept that it is the client’s choice, absolving the nurse of further moral responsibility. Appropriate support systems need to be available to nurses to help them deal with the consequences which may occur as a result of giving preference to clients’ choices, over their own.

Thesis (M.S.)--Miami University, Dept. of Family Studies and Social Work, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 56-60).

Aim: There is a growing body of literature that recognizes the importance of Social Enterprises (SE) to improve the welfare of society. Few empirical studies have attempted to investigate what are the challenges SEs face and how they manage them. A number of researchers have reported that SEs often have a negative connotation. The aim of this study is to investigate challenges social enterprises face in Sweden.Method: The study adopted a Qualitative approach. Primary data is gathered by interviewing 10 managers of social enterprise from 5 different SEs in Sweden. The interview was made in three different locations, Gävle, Uppsala and Tierp. De-coding the qualitative research data through content analysis, an interpretive analysis was used classifying the data concerning responses by highlighting important messages.Findings and Conclusion: SEs face diverse challenges: Funding, Public Image, Sales, Network and Cooperation, Governance/Structure, Leadership and Management. One of the more significant finding to emerge from this study is that, the foundations-access to finance is one of the critical challenges on which the fate of each SE depends. Most of the times, societies do not acknowledge the role of social enterprises and the values they bring to the society. From this, SEs cannot attract support of any kind. SEs lack the understanding and significance of marketing. Making people understanding SEs’s role, would provide them with a positive public image and thereafter support.Suggestions for future research: The study has a small sample size and results cannot be generalizable. A natural progression of this work is to analyse: Challenges on SEs with focus on Society, The impact of Society on SEs, Public identity of SEs and importance of Society.Contribution of the thesis: Dependency on fundraising, grants and donations are heavily connected with widespread lack of understanding the impact of SEs on society. SEs managers should apply different marketing tactics to communicate their role in welfare of the community.

Grocery retailing can be recognized as a market with high competitive pressures which requires a focus on the customers and operational efficiencies to stay competitive. Distribution centers play a vital role in grocery retailing since they constitute a significant part of the total cost of logistics. To reach an overall profitability in a company, an effective and efficient distribution is needed. Grocery retailing and distribution challenges has been discussed previously in literature for compact countries whereas a limited focus has been on elongated countries. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate challenges within a grocery retailing distribution operating in an elongated country with numerous sparsely populated areas located far away from the distribution centers. Thus, this thesis aims to contribute to literature considering the detected research gap. This study is developed with an inductive research approach, which aims to generate meanings from the semi-structured interviews in order to identify challenges within a grocery retail distribution to develop theory and generalized conclusions. Furthermore, the thesis follows a qualitative research direction where a single case study has been conducted. Analyzing and comparing the findings revealed 15 challenges in a grocery retail distribution. The main challenge found during this research was the insufficient filling rate of the pallets and trucks when transporting products between distribution centers and the last mile delivery. Furthermore, 9 possibilities to address the challenges with an overall goal of reducing the total cost of logistics was detected for this research.

Background: A family caregiver is a person living close to an individual in need of care. Being a relative of an Alzheimer’s patient involves switching roles from being a family member to a care giver.  Studies have shown that it’s usually spouses and children especially daughters who offer care to their love ones in their homes. Family caregivers are faced with physical, psychological, emotional, social, and financial strain. Aim: The aim of this literature study was to describe the experiences and challenges of family caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s disease. Method: A literature study was conducted, and 11 original articles were selected from the databases PubMed and CINAHL; the selected articles went through a quality analysis with the help of a protocol for quality assessment of qualitative articles. Results: Caregivers viewed their needs as irrelevant and secondary to the needs of the person with dementia. The challenges that come with the role put a lot of strain on the caregiver. Caregivers weren’t prepared to carry out their roles due to lack of support from formal care. A lack of awareness and knowledge about dementia in the community was the leading cause of social stigmatization. Conclusion: With help from formal care, the caregiver doesn’t have to feel like their needs are secondary to their relative’s needs. Nurses, family caregivers and people with Alzheimer's disease are required to work hand in hand in order to achieve their common goal of good health. / Bakgrund: En anhörigvårdare är en familj medlem som vårdar närstående med vårdbehov. Att vara en närstående till en Alzheimers patient innebär att byta roller från att vara familjemedlem till vårdgivare. Studier har visat att det oftast är makar och barn, särskilt döttrar som erbjuder vård till sina närstående i hemmet. Familj vårdgivare står inför fysisk, psykologisk, emotionell, social och ekonomisk belastning. Syfte: Syftet med denna litteraturstudie var att beskriva erfarenheter och utmaningar av familj vårdgivare av personer med Alzheimers sjukdom. Metod: En litteraturstudie genomfördes, 11 original artiklar hämtades från PubMed och CINAHL och genomgick en kvalitetsgranskning med hjälp av en checklista för kvalitativa artiklar. Resultat: Närstående som vårdade den demenssjuke tolkade sina behov som sekundär till den personen med demens. Utmaningarna med rollen la stor belastning på vårdgivaren. Familj vårdgivare var inte beredda att utföra sina roller på grund av brist på stöd från formell vård. Brist på medvetenhet och kunskap om demens i samhället var den främsta orsaken till social stigmatisering. Slutsats: Med hjälp av formell vård behöver närstående inte känna att sina behov är sekundära till närståendes behov. Sjuksköterskor, närstående och personer med Alzheimers sjukdom är skyldiga för att kunna uppnå sitt gemensamma mål för god hälsa.