This thesis is set in the context of the automotive industry where launches of new products with high levels of technical innovations are becoming increasingly complex for consumers to comprehend. Car manufacturers need to understand consumer perceptions of new models so they can categorise their products form the consumer perspective, to obtain a more accurate indication as to where their products fit within the increasingly defined consumer segments. Situational and personal variables now play the most important roles in marketing. In the area of nested segmentation consumer variables are only concerned with their needs, attitudes, motivations and perceptions and overlook any previous experience, exposure or familiarity that a consumer may or may not have had with the product. It is argued here that consumers have differing perceptions of newness and that asking how new and new to whom would be valid questions for marketers when introducing new products. If car manufacturers can categorise their products in terms of newness for specific consumers based on their levels of Expertise, Involvement and Familiarity with the product, manufacturers will be able to target appropriate markets more effectively. To explore this area a mixed methods research approach was applied. This research found that the level of Involvement with the product, from a motivational aspect, gave rise to different levels of interest and enthusiasm between consumers and has a direct impact on how different types of consumers view new products. In addition the differing levels of consumer knowledge highlights the need to improve targeting of marketing communications so that manufacturers provide a better understanding of complex new products to consumers. Current mass marketing methods based on consumer demographics are no longer sufficient. This research found that a consumer s level of Expertise, Involvement and Familiarity (EIF) with a specific product can be captured using a multi-dimensional scale to measure consumer product knowledge and provide an accurate consumer segmentation tool. By offering different explanations of product innovations to these consumer segments, according to a customer's EIF, marketers will achieve more effective targeting, reduce marketing costs and increase marketing campaign response.

As technology becomes integrated into everyday life, the relationship between the human and machine must be kept in a balance. Not only does the technology have to perform its intended function, but it must do so in accordance with the dynamic parameters of the complex use environment, in a way that does not encumber the user either physically or mentally. The dissertation explores the challenges of such a scenario through an analysis of three core facets: Affordances, or the user interface cues that allow an intuitive means of operating a device; the aspect of simplicity and its effect on the use factors of the technology (while something might seem to be simple, it may actually be complex to use); and cognitive load in terms of user impact, as a result of utilizing the technology. These illustrate the challenges inherent in understanding the facets fundamental to human- machine interaction in a complex environment. The three factors will be explored first through an historical analysis of the work in each aspect. The theories at hand will be utilized to inform the creation of iterative generations of wearable sensory systems. By utilizing the systems in the field of dance, the theoretical aspects of the core factors can be gauged by actual implementation. Each implementation will be compared side by side to gauge differences in terms of movement dynamics and efficacy of execution. The study will reveal that the three core factors of affordance, simplicity and cognitive load combine synergistically to create a foundational methodology for seamless integration of technology in a complex use scenario. Furthermore, the facets of interoperability between devices in a complex use environment will be illustrated through the theory of intra-interactivity. Finally, the dissertation will illustrate the advantages of passive user interaction and its necessity in relation to the factor of cognitive load. / text

<p>The purpose of this study is to investigate how individual retirement savings are made tangible for potential customers. As case companies we have studied the marketing strategies of Handelsbanken and Swedbank.</p><p>We use Miller and Foust’s classification of services by intangibility based on attributes and benefits and Tarn’s four strategy marketing-based model in order to find out how the retirement savings are made tangible.</p><p>We find that the attributes and benefits that are used to define retirement savings depend on how the service is affiliated to life-insurance or banking services. Intangibility is coped by simplifying the products by lifting forward salient features. Complexity is overcome by explanation. Putting emphasis on flexibility is a mean to cope with the uncertainty of future income.</p>

Dans cette thèse, nous étudions plusieurs problèmes de théorie des graphes concernant la coloration et la convexité des graphes. La plupart des résultats gurant ici sont liés à la complexité de calcul de ces problèmes pour certaines classes de graphes. Dans la première, et principale, partie de cette thèse, nous traitons de coloration des graphes qui est l'un des domaines les plus étudiés de théorie des graphes. Nous considérons d'abord trois problèmes de coloration appelés coloration gloutone, coloration pondérée et coloration pondérée impropre. Ensuite, nous traitons un probl ème de décision, appelé bon étiquetage de arêtes, dont la dé nition a été motivée par le problème d'affectation de longueurs d'onde dans les réseaux optiques. La deuxième partie de cette thèse est consacrée à un paramètre d'optimisation des graphes appelé le nombre enveloppe (géodésique). La dé nition de ce paramètre est motivée par une extension aux graphes des notions d'ensembles et d'enveloppes convexes dans l'espace Euclidien. En n, nous présentons dans l'annexe d'autres travaux développées au cours de cette thèse, l'un sur les hypergraphes orientés Eulériens et Hamiltoniens et l'autre concernant les systèmes de stockage distribués.

Pain is a growing national public health problem that contributes to spiraling health care costs and significant societal burden in the United States. It is the most common reason for seeking health care services, and is the leading cause of disability (CDC, 2008). Inadequately treated pain has profound social, psychological, economic, and physiological consequences for patients, their families, and society (American Pain Society, 2009).A community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach was used for this project to develop a knowledge base about issues associated with chronic pain and its treatment among Native American people in Winslow, AZ. Mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) were used to gain insight into the local factors that contribute to the self-management and treatment of chronic pain.The results of a provider survey indicated that there are negative psychological traits toward patients with chronic pain such as authoritarianism, intolerance of ambiguity, reliance on technology, and locus of control which are factors that are known to negatively influence pain care (Weinstein et al, 2000). Lack of knowledge regarding pain and pain management along with perceptions and fears related to drug regulatory agencies were additional factors that were found, constituting additional barriers. Patient participants were generally dissatisfied with the pain care practices at Winslow Indian Health. Patient reported treatment goals that included relief of pain, improved quality of life, the ability to return to work, the ability to perform household chores, and the ability to participate in more physical leisure activities.This results of this practice inquiry indicate there is a disconnect between patient and provider views and expectations around pain treatment and the need for further studies to determine the best ways to address chronic pain at the local level. The development of a pain management program is recommended to address the unmet needs of patients with chronic pain. Education in pain management is recommended for healthcare providers, including information regarding the benefits of non-pharmacologic therapies for pain management. The practice inquiry also supports the need for new policies at the local, tribal, and national levels to address pain as a growing public health issue.

In some recent papers, the weight based statistical bounds have arguably explained time complexity better than the count based mathematical bounds. This is definitely true for average case where for an arbitrary code it is difficult to identify the pivotal operation or pivotal region in the code for taking the expectation and/or when the probability distribution, over which expectation is taken, becomes unrealistic over the problem domain. In worst case, it can certify whether a mathematical bound is conservative or not. Here we revisit the results on Bubble sort in sequential mode and make an independent study of the same algorithm in parallel mode using statistical bound

Does high products complexity &amp; production cost drive high customer involvement in product development? Author: Ellen Wendel Tutor/Examiner: Sarah Philipson   Background   The purpose of this thesis first arose when interviewing the CEO and the chief of product development of a Swedish wood company. The lack of communication between the two of them and the overall information flow within the company seemed to me brutally bad. When leaving that company a question popped up: Do a low production cost/unit and/or a low product complexity on an industrial market result in low customer involvement?   Problem focus/hypotheses   Product failure is costly and time consuming; doing it right the first time can keep a company alive and give it competitive advantages, Matzler et al (1997). Customer involvement has proven to increase the chances for a successful product launch, von Hippel (1988), Lagrosen (2005), Pitta et al (1996) and Matzler et al (1997). With the assumption that customer involvement can affect product development in a positive way, any conditions that might drive customer involvement in product development would be of interest. This thesis investigates three hypotheses concerning how product complexity and production cost drive customers involvement; H1: High product complexity positively predicts the use of high customer involvement in the product development. H2: High production cost positively predicts the use of high customer involvement in the product development. H3: High production cost and high product complexity together positively predicts the use of high customer involvement.   Method   The main study was executed with surveys sent per e-mail. The investigated populations are wood component suppliers and machine suppliers. The suppliers were chosen to get a vast range of product complexity and production cost. The hypotheses were analyzed with chi-square statistics and percentages.   To get a basic understanding of the industry, I first made a pre-study; interviewing two suppliers and telephone interviewing the head of glued edge pine panel issues at the Swedish Wood &amp; Furniture Association.   Findings   Hypothesis 1 I conclude that higher product complexity leads to higher customer involvement on both industries. This result gives more validation to the emerging theory stated by Richard et al (2004). Hypothesis 2  This thesis validates hypothesis 2 among wood suppliers. I suggest future research to validate a possible theory the states that higher production cost drive higher customer involvement. Hypothesis 2 is not accepted on the machine supplier industry since the results were inconclusive. No overall pattern was found.  However, the result indicates that the hypothesis might be correct up until a certain level of complexity, after which the relationship is negative. Hypothesis 3   I consider hypothesis 2 to be validated on the wood supplier market. I suggest future research to validate a possible theory the states that higher production cost and product complexity and production cost combined drive higher customer involvement. The thesis result indicates that hypothesis 3, on the machine supplier market, might be correct up until a certain level of complexity and production cost combination, after which the relationship is negative. Hypothesis 3 cannot be accepted for the machine supplier industry since the results are inconclusive. General findings from the hypotheses All three hypotheses indicate a positive prediction that product complexity, production cost and the two variables combined will drive the behavior of “usage or no usage” of customer involvement, regardless of industry. / <p>Opponenter: Elna Hägglund och Frida Tillmar</p>

This thesis seeks to understand the past and present state of engineering education and to plot a course for its future evolution. This research is limited to engineering education as it has taken place in North American universities during the last half of the 20th century. Within this context, broad trends are described. The description is supplemented with a case study of a unique and innovative engineering programme. The trends and case study form the foundation of a synthesis, and alternative vision, for higher education and engineering education. The intended audience of this thesis includes those who teach, design curriculum, or administer engineering education programmes. The description of the current state of engineering education contains analyses of the state and of the gaps within it. Both of these analyses are based almost exclusively on publicly available documentation. The present state of engineering is drawn from accreditation criteria. Critiques of the current state and suggestions for future change are drawn from reports commissioned by groups affiliated with professional engineering. The discussions identify recurring themes and patterns. Unlike the analysis of the literature, the case study merges interview evidence and personal experience with the available documentation. The synthesis and visions continue the trend away from formal sources towards experiences and beliefs. Engineering education research is in its infancy and shows few signs of maturing. There is no documented, common framing of engineering education nor have there been any efforts in this regard. Few sources address broad issues and those that do lack theoretical rigour. The visions for engineering education are simple amalgams of visions for the profession and for general higher education. The Department of Systems Design Engineering has enjoyed great past successes because of its unique vision that combines the theories of systems, complexity, and design with the discipline of engineering. Its recent decay can be traced to its faculty having collectively lost this vision. The original vision for Systems Design Engineering holds promise as a means to reinvent and reinvigorate both the engineering profession and engineering education. For this renaissance to be successful a theoretically rigorous research programme assessing the past, present, and future of engineering and engineering education must be developed.

South African schools face many challenges as they are inundated with dysfunctional behaviour. The research on South African schools indicates that behavioural challenges such as disobedience, swearing, truancy violence and bullying are evident in many school contexts. From a reductionist, individualist approach, the focus when addressing these challenges is often on causal factors and dysfunctional individuals rather than on ways in which people relate and interact in schools. It is however evident from a social ecological perspective, that in order to facilitate social change, we need to understand people’s experiences of social interaction in schools as an important context for the enhancement of wellbeing. The first phase of the PhD project is a base‐line exploration of the learners’, educators’ and parents’ experiences of relating and interacting in school communities. A qualitative phenomenological investigation was applied in combination with a cross‐sectional descriptive survey design. 1170 learners, ages ranging from 11 to 18 years, 150 parents and 85 educators, from 12 South African schools, participated in the research. The participants completed written assignments that were analysed through the application of global analysis followed by thematic analysis. The findings indicated that enabling ways of relating and interacting were patterned by active engagement and acknowledgement of people. Disenabling social interaction was patterned by disengagement and disregard for people. The findings indicated that both enabling and disenabling ways of relating and interacting, play a crucial role in the enhancement of mental wellbeing in schools, and suggest that schools need to focus more seriously on the ways in which people in schools relate and interact on the everyday micro‐levels of social interaction, as suggested by complexity theory. The second phase of the study comprised a more in‐depth investigation into nurturing and restraining relationships between parents, learners and educators in a school community. A single instrumental case study design was applied to gain an indepth understanding of the complex dynamic interactions between the members of the school community. All the learners and educators in the school were involved during the work sessions. Nominal group technique was applied to obtain information about their perceptions of relationships in the school community. The work sessions were followed by focus group interviews with 18 educators, 40 learners, the management team, six members of the administrative and terrain staff and two parents. A thematic analysis of the data indicated that nurturing relationships could be understood with reference to connectedness: respect, care and transparent communication; whilst restrained relationships could be understood with reference to limited connectedness between people: abuse of power, shifting of responsibility and disrespect for one another. The findings indicated the need for a sensitive, empathic and non‐patronising approach to people in school communities that acknowledge that restrained relationships are inevitably part of the human interaction and understand schools in terms of inter‐subjective recursive processes that pattern the relationships between the members of the school community. In the third phase, the findings of the first two stages of the study were integrated with theoretical perspectives and critical reflections on the findings to conceptualise a relationship‐focused approach to the co‐construction of an enabling school community. The approach encompasses the facilitation of continuous conversations using identified facets of interrelatedness as focal points for the understanding of being together in school communities on a meta‐level. It is recommended that the implementation of a relationship‐focused approach conceptualised in this study, should be considered as an alternative approach for dealing with the challenges associated with human behaviour that currently prevail in schools. Further research on the implementation of the approach in schools is recommended. / Thesis (Ph.D. (Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2011

There has been an ongoing debate on quality and what constitutes quality improvement in healthcare for several decades. Several authors identify that defining quality is an important part of that debate, yet recognise that quality is defined differently by different interests (Caper, 1988; Harteloh, 2003). Harteloh's distinction between quality as a property (a descriptive approach) and quality as a category of judgment (a prescriptive approach) has influenced the conception of quality as a property of participation emerging in this research. This is in stark contrast to the wide spread prescriptive approach set out in published accounts of quality and quality improvement. In the mainstream management literature, conventionally organisations are understood as systems and this conceptualisation underpins many published considerations of quality. In this way of thinking, those involved in leading quality improvement are thought to operate as autonomous individuals who design improvement tools and control improvements according to plans. It is taken for granted that it is possible for a powerful individual to step out of the organisational system and treat it as an object for manipulation and change, following the diagnosis of problem areas and gaps. Yet at other times that autonomous individual becomes part of the system and is subject to manipulation and change by others. As with much of the literature of change management, this approach sets "thought" before "action". In other words, "thought" is understood as the formulation of a plan and "action" is the implementation of that plan. In this thesis, it is my contention that this way of thinking leads to a privileging of the more mechanical and cybernetic elements of quality improvement - such as tools and techniques of waste elimination and fault detection, and, of particular interest in this thesis, the use of national targets in the public sector. My research is underpinned by a complex responsive processes perspective (Stacey, Griffin and Shaw, 2000). Central to this theory of human interaction is the importance of understanding everyday experience from the perspective of inquiring into “…just what is it that we are doing in our groups or in our organisations that leads to emergent patterns that are our experience…” (Stacey, 2003c: 32). In this thesis, I take up a key question raised by Stacey (2006) concerning how those working in the public sector institutions are operationalising central government governance requirements. I explore my experience of working locally with nationally determined performance targets for access to emergency care. I argue for consideration of quality improvement as a cult value along the lines defined by Mead (1923). In conceptualising quality improvement in this way, my inquiry focuses on what happens as we try to make sense of the ways in which our daily activities are being influenced by competing ideologies, by power relations that are played out, and by the enabling and constraining aspects of going on together in patterns of conversation. These are the complex social processes of working with targets I refer to in the title of this thesis. It is my contention that this perspective draws attention to quality as a property of our own participation as managers, rather than the more usual exhortations to look for the next tool for instilling quality into the organisation. As such, I argue that this research makes an important contribution to the ongoing debate on quality, as well as managerial practice. I propose that the participative and socially reflexive nature of the qualitative methodology involved provides a practical example of Mode 2 research, addressing what MacLean, MacIntosh and Grant (2002) identify as a current gap in the literature. Finally, I posit a potential contribution to policy making seeking to address a growing recognition from some policy makers regarding what is now being seen as an increasing problematic reliance on traditional, modernist assumptions of programmatic change.