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ABSTRACT Title: Level: Author: Supervisor: Date: Aim: Method: Accepted price – An Analysis of Cooperation in the Real Estate Markets and its Pricing. Final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration Madeleine Gustafsson and Sofie Billstam Jonas Kågström 2012 - May The aim with this final assignment is to investigate if the introduction and the cooperation of accepted price was necessary to generate a more stable real estate market with marketable listing prices in Stockholm. The introduction of accepted price led to a cooperation with some of the most important real estate firms in Stockholm. This cooperation was opposed by a number of companies on the real estate market. This fact inspired to examine similarities and differences of being and not being part of the cooperation and thereafter comment on the outcome. The aim is to compare the pricing between companies within the cooperation of accepted price and external companies and the advantages and disadvantages of entering and not entering a collaboration. The main questions to be answered are: - Is the cooperation necessary to regulate listing prices to a marketable level? - What are the effects of higher listing prices on the Swedish real estate market? - What´s the best possible method when pricing listing price? - What are the advantages and disadvantages of entering and not entering a collaboration? The final assignment has been implemented in an abductive way. The essay is mainly based on secondary data in form of journals, websites, literature and qualitative empirical data collected trough three interviews with Erik Carlborg, Mats Uddare and Fastighetsmäklarnämnden. Quantitative empirical data has been collected trough a questionnaire sent to real estate agents working at Svensk Fastighetsförmedling in Stockholm. Theory and empirical evidence has been analyzed and linked together in the analysis chapter, where the essayists’ thoughts and opinions have been presented. Result & Conclusions: Suggestions for future research: Contribution of the thesis: Key words: The result of the study demonstrates that cooperation between competitors in the same industry in this case is positive since it does not involve a "win-lose situation". How a listing price is set can be affected by numerous factors. To conclude, it is important to keep the price at a marketable level in order to keep the real estate market stable. What the pricing is called is less significant. The pricing should only be called price. The study is delimited to two companies, Svensk Fastighetsförmedling and Karlsson&Uddare, and can therefore not represent the entire real estate market in Stockholm. The study has been limited to brokers at Svensk Fastighetsförmedling in order to compare the brokers’ views with the views of the management within the company. Since the accepted price is relatively new on the Swedish market, there is also a limitation in comparing similarities and differences over time. Suggestions for future research may therefore be to examine how the accepted price has affected the market for a longer period of time, and how the cooperation of accepted price is progressing. A larger study may also be performed where more firms and brokers could be included in order to generalize to the entire industry. This essay contributes whit the brokers’ opinion about the introduction of accepted price, which has not been examined earlier. In addition to this, the essay contributes with an analysis about cooperations and pricing, which are the main parts with accepted price. It also shows the advantages and disadvantages of being and not being part of the cooperation. Accepted price, Listing price, Time on market, competing cooperations, Svensk Fastighetsförmedling, Karlsson & Uddare.

Mid-rotation fertilization and vegetation control are some of the most common silvicultural treatments in loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantations in the southeastern United States. Competing vegetation is commonly thought to sequester fertilizer nitrogen (N) and reduce the potential growth response to a mid-rotation fertilization treatment. This experiment aims to identify what proportion of applied N fertilizer is retained in the crop tree pine foliage, and the degree to which understory vegetation is competing for this resource. Our mid-rotation loblolly pine plantation received an application of 15N fertilization (urea 365 kg/ha, at 46% N by weight, i.e. 168 kg/ha of N) and a portion of plots received an understory vegetation control (basal spray application of triclopyr; 13.6% active ingredient) treatment either before fertilization or not at all. One-year post-fertilization, 15N contents within pine foliage, leaf fall/leaf litter, forest floor, and soil were measured, as was competing vegetation presence. There was significant variation in applied nitrogen acquisition among the different ecosystem components measured, with 0-15 cm soils retaining a majority at 32-37% added 15N. Differences in fertilizer N acquisition in pine foliage between plots with and without understory vegetation control was marginally significant (p = 0.06) with pine foliage in plots without understory vegetation capturing greater 15N (4.3% greater). Red maple (Acer rubrum) and oak species (Quercus spp.) were the most common competitors but neither had a uniquely pronounced effect on pine nitrogen sequestration. My data indicate that increasing competition reduces fertilizer N foliar concentrations in crop pine trees but at a modest rate and equally across species groups. An unrefined threshold determining when fertilizer N capture in crop pine trees was affected was found at 3.1 m2/ha of competing vegetation basal area. This site will continue to be monitored over time to assess fertilizer N retention in loblolly pine each year after fertilization and evaluate the fertilizer N capture within competing vegetation. / Master of Science / Some of the most prevalent management practices for mid-rotation (age 15, i.e., roughly halfway through a crop cycle) loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantations in the southeastern United States are fertilization and vegetation control. Nitrogen (N) is consistently one of the most limiting factors to productivity. The addition of N via fertilization is therefore a common forestry practice. However, when a stand is fertilized, the added resource is partitioned and cycled throughout the ecosystem. It is presumed that the amount of fertilizer N obtained by crop trees in a plantation is dependent on the level of competing vegetation (i.e., weed-trees and shrubs) present on site. Controlling competing vegetation prior to fertilization may therefore be warranted under certain conditions. To date, the amount of competing vegetation where it begins to impact fertilizer uptake by the crop tree is unknown. This study aims to elucidate this competing vegetation threshold to better inform mid-rotation management of loblolly pine plantations. This study examined applied fertilizer N capture in ecosystem components with varying levels of understory vegetation, and found more fertilizer N in pine foliage when understory vegetation was completely removed prior to fertilization. No single understory hardwood weed species had a uniquely strong influence on crop tree productivity uptake. Plots that ranked in the upper third in competing vegetation presence did have significantly less foliar fertilizer N in the pine crop trees. Additional replication of this study would be necessary to determine a universal threshold of competing vegetation which would trigger the removal of competing vegetation prior to fertilization.

房屋貸款借款人對於其所負貸款債務的處分有兩種潛在風險行為，分別是提前清償及違約。這兩種借款人風險行為不管是對金融機構的資產管理，或是對近年在財務金融領域的不動產證券化而言，都是相當重要的探討議題，原因在於提前清償及違約帶來了利息收益與現金流量的不確定性，進而影響不動產抵押債權的價值。也就是為貸款承作機構、證券化保證機構及證券投資人帶來風險。 借款人決定提前清償及違約與否，除了與借款人自身特性及貸款條件有關外，尚受到隨時間經過而不斷變動的變數所影響，亦即許多影響因子並非維持在貸款起始點的狀態，而是會在貸款存續期間動態調整。進一步影響借款人行為，而這類變數即為時間相依變數(time –dependent variables，或time-varying variables)。因此，本研究利用便於處理時間相依變數的比例危險模型(Proportional Hazard Model)來分析借款人提前清償及違約風險行為，觀察借款人特徵、房屋型態、貸款條件及總體經濟等變數與借款人風險行為的關係。 實證結果顯示，借款人特徵部分的教育程度對提前清償及違約風險影響最為明顯，教育程度越高，越會提前清償，越低則較會違約。房屋型態則透天厝較非透天厝容易提前清償及違約。貸款條件中的貸款金額及貸款成數皆與違約為正相關，亦即利息負擔越重，借款人違約風險升高。總體經濟方面，借款人對利率變動最為敏感，反映利率代表借款人的資金成本，是驅動借款人提前清償及違約的財務動機與誘因。

本研究旨在應用競值架構探討國民小學校長領導行為、學校組織文化與學校組織效能之間的關聯性。研究採用調查研究法，以台灣地區公立國民小學教師為對象，總共發出1060份問卷，問卷回收率為89.91％，有效問卷回收率則為84.81％。正式問卷回收之後，分別以單因子單變量變異數分析、單因子多變量變異數分析、集群分析、區別分析、皮爾森積差相關、迴歸分析（簡單、多元及調節迴歸）、階層線性模式及結構方程模式等統計方式對回收資料進行分析。 本研究獲得以下九項結論： 一、國民小學校長領導行為在競爭行為層面上的表現最突出。 二、國民小學組織文化特性趨向層級節制和朋黨組織文化。 三、國民小學學校組織效能在內部過程模式上的表現最佳。 四、校長領導行為、學校組織文化與學校組織效能之間具有正向關聯。 五、校長領導行為表現愈佳及複雜性愈高，有助於塑造學校組織文化與提升 學校組織效能。 六、學校組織文化的特性愈強及複雜性愈高，能促使學校組織效能之表現愈 佳。 七、校長領導行為與學校組織文化之趨同程度愈高，學校組織效能之表現並未 愈佳。 八、校長領導行為與學校組織效能之關聯是否受學校組織文化所調節，須視學 校組織文化之分析層次而定。 九、校長領導行為可透過學校組織文化的中介作用，正向影響學校組織效能。 本研究分別就實務應用及未來研究兩方面提出如下建議： 一、實務應用方面 （一）以競值架構之量表診斷學校組織行為 （二）展現兼容並蓄之領導作風 （三）提升領導行為之複雜性 （四）著重組織文化之型塑 （五）營造兼容並包的組織文化 （六）各種組織效能模式應兼籌並顧 二、未來研究方面 分別就研究對象、研究變項、研究方法、統計分析方法以及行為複雜性之檢測方式等方面，對未來的研究提出建議。 / The purpose of the study was to investigate the relationships among principal’s leadership behavior, school organizational culture, and school organizational effectiveness by utilizing competing values framework. The research method this study adopted is survey research. Data were collected from 1060 teachers of elementary schools in Taiwan. The response rates were 89.91％; the usable rates were 84.81％. The collected data were analyzed by using the statistical methods of one-way ANOVA, one-way MANOVA, cluster analysis, discriminant analysis, Pearson product-moment correlation, regression analysis (simple regression, multiple regression, and moderated regression), hierarchical linear modeling, and structural equation modeling. The conclusions of this study are: 1.Among all of the dimensions of principal’s leadership behavior, “Compete” is the dominant in the elementary schools. 2.Among all of the dimensions of school organizational culture, “Hierarchy” and “Clan” are the dominant in the elementary schools. 3.Among all of the dimensions of school organizational effectiveness, “Internal Process” is the dominant in the elementary schools. 4.There are positive relationships among principal’s leadership behavior, school organizational culture, and school organizational effectiveness. 5.The principals with better leadership performances and higher behavioral complexity tend to shape school organizational culture and enhance school organizational effectiveness. 6.The schools with stronger organizational cultures and higher cultural complexity could improve school organizational effectiveness. 7.The hypothesis that the higher the congruence between principal’s leadership behavior and school organizational culture is, the better the school organizational effectiveness is could not be supported. 8.Whether the relationship between principal’s leadership behavior and school organizational effectiveness could be moderated by school organizational culture depends on the level of analysis of school organizational culture. 9.The principal’s leadership behavior could positively affect school organizational effectiveness through the mediated effect of school organizational culture. In addition, this study provides suggestions respectively on the aspect of practical application and future study.

Disposant d’un jeu de données sur des infections nosocomiales, nous utilisons des techniques de vraisemblance empirique pour construire des bandes de confiance pour certaines quantité d’intérêt. Cette étude nous amène à renforcer les outils déjà existants afin qu’ils s’adaptent à notre cadre. Nous présentons dans une première partie les outils mathématiques issus de la littérature que nous utilisons dans ce travail de thèse. Nous les appliquons ensuite à diverses situations et donnons de nouvelles démonstrations lorsque cela est nécessaire. Nous conduisons aussi des simulations et obtenons des résultats concrets concernant notre jeu de données. Enfin, nous détaillons les algorithmes utilisés. / The starting point of this thesis is a data set of nosocomial infectionsin an intensive care unit of a French hostipal. We focused our attention onbuilding confidence bands for some parameters of interest using empiricallikelihood techniques. In order to do so, we had to adapt and develop somealready existing methods so that they fit our setup.We begin by giving a state of the art of the different theories we use.We then apply them to different setups and demonstrate new results whenneeded. Finally, we conduct simulations and describe our algorithms.

The purpose of the study was to construct a psycho-social model for team cohesion at a financial institution. The financial institution had been in existence for 127 years, and had faced significant challenges throughout its history of acquisitions and mergers to establish working teams that would give it a competitive edge in global financial markets. The research objective was to develop a psycho-social model for team cohesion by investigating the interrelationships and overall relationships amongst the independent constructs (self-worth, personality preferences and conflict resolution styles) and the relevant outcome (team cohesion). Furthermore, the study also scientifically tested the possible moderating effect of the employees’ socio-demographic characteristics (race, gender, age, level of education, job level and tenure) on the fostering of team cohesiveness. A quantitative cross-sectional survey design approach was selected and applied to a simple probability sample (N = 463) using standardised, valid and reliable measuring instruments. The population consisted of permanent employees, and the results revealed significant relationships between the construct variables. The canonical correlation indicated a significant overall relationship between the contingencies of self-worth domains, personality preferences and conflict resolution styles, and the team cohesion-related dispositions of cohesiveness and engaged. The structured equation modelling indicated a good fit of the data between the individuals’ contingencies of self-worth domains (family support, God’s love, virtues, competition, work competence, physical appearance and pleasing others), the accommodating conflict resolution style, an extraversion personality preference, and team cohesion. Hierarchical moderated regression showed that race, age, educational level and job tenure significantly moderated the relationship between the participants’ psycho-social attributes and team cohesion. Tests for significant mean differences revealed significant differences in terms of the socio-biographical variables. On a theoretical level, the study deepened understanding of the antecedent constructs (self-worth, personality preferences and conflict resolution styles) and team cohesion construct. On an empirical level, the study produced an empirically tested psycho-social model for team cohesion. This study will add significant practical, valuable knowledge to the organisation in managing the future establishment and enhancement of team cohesion, and when integrating new team members to the environment during organisational restructuring and re-alignment after acquisitions and mergers, without negatively affecting organisational effectiveness. These findings invariably provided new insight in managing and understanding inherent interpersonal conflict among employees in the workplace and the enhancement of team cohesion practices, thus adding to the existing body of knowledge in the fields of Consulting Psychology and Industrial and Organisational Psychology, more specifically in financial organisations. / Psychology / D. Phil. (Consulting Psychology)

La vie privée est une notion jurisprudentielle, consacrée récemment par le législateur. Pourtant, elle n’est pas clairement définie. Elle s’inscrit dans un contexte éminemment variable. Par conséquent, son domaine et son régime juridique sont complexes à déterminer. Cependant, des notions telles que l’intimité, l’identité et la personnalité permettent de mieux cerner le concept de vie privée.L’évolution de la société et l’accroissement des nouvelles technologies ont des incidences sur la vie privée. Mise en péril, celle-ci doit être mieux protégée. Les juridictions françaises et la Cour européenne des droits de l’homme tentent de répondre à cette nécessité.Si la vie privée fait l’objet d’un droit au respect, son contentieux ne se cantonne pas seulement à un aspect défensif. Elle participe à l’épanouissement personnel de l’individu.Néanmoins, la protection de la vie privée est relative dans la mesure où elle se heurte à des intérêts antagonistes, tels que l’intérêt général et divers intérêts particuliers.Cette étude apportera des réponses sur la manière dont la vie privée est appréhendée par le droit. / Privacy is a jurisprudential notion, recently established by the legislator. Nevertheless, it’s not yet clearly defined. Privacy lies within an utterly variable context. Consequently, its domain and legal system are difficult to determine. However, notions such as intimacy, identity and personality help apprehending the concept of privacy.The evolution of society and the spreading of new technologies have impacts on privacy. Jeopardized, it has to be better protected. French courts and European Court of Human Rights are attempting at this necessity.If privacy is subjected to a right of respect, its dispute isn’t limited to defense. Privacy also contributes to personal development.Yet, right of privacy is relative insofar as it draws antagonist interests, such as general interest and various particular interests.This study contributes to apprehending privacy with regard to the Law.

競爭風險之下對邊際分配的估計，是許多領域中常遇到的問題。由於主要事件及次要事件互相競爭，只要一種事件先發生即終止對另一事件的觀察，在兩事件同時發生的機率為0之下，連一筆完整的資料我們都無法蒐集到。除非兩事件互為獨立或加上其它條件，否則會有邊際分配無法識別的問題。但是獨立的條件在有些情況下並不合理，為解決相依競爭風險之邊際分配無法識別的問題，可先假定兩事件發生時間之間的關係。 由於關聯結構定義出兩變數間的結合關係，我們可利用關聯結構解釋兩事件發生時間之間的關係。假定兩變數之相關性參數為已知，且採用機率積分轉換的觀念，本論文討論了Zheng 與 Klein提出的關聯結構-圖形估計量，是否會依設限程度、相關性強度和關聯結構形式的不同，以致估計能力有別。 / The problem of estimating marginal distributions in a competing risks study is often met in scientific fields. Because main event and secondary event compete with each other, and a first occurring event prevents us from observing another event promptly, the intact lifetimes or survival times are unable to be collected in the circumstances that the probability of both lifetimes coinciding is 0. Unless lifetimes being independent or adding other conditions, there is a problem that the marginal distributions are non-identifiable. But the condition of independence is not always reasonable, we may assume the relation between lifetimes has some special form Because the copula defines the association between two variables, it can be employed to explain relation between lifetimes. Assuming that the dependence parameter in the copula framework is known, and adopting the concept of the probability integral transformations, this thesis has demonstrated whether the estimating abilities of the copula-graphic estimator, that Zheng and Klein put forward, are different in rates of censoring, intensities of dependence, and forms of the copula.