Pesquisas em que se procura investigar a relação entre os fatores ambientais e o comportamento dos consumidores são ainda embrionárias no Brasil, o que constitui uma oportunidade para estudos que relacionam o comportamento de compra dos consumidores com as questões ambientais. Nessa perspectiva, o objetivo da presente pesquisa foi verificar se existe correlação entre os construtos: conhecimento ecológico, afeto ecológico, preocupação ecológica, normas subjetivas e o comportamento de compras verdes. Na busca do alcance dos objetivos propostos, adotou-se uma metodologia caracterizada pela pesquisa exploratória, utilizando-se o método transversal simples no processo de coleta dos dados. Foram adotados no estudo dados secundários, provenientes de artigos, livros, dissertações, teses e internet, além de dados primários, coletados com a aplicação de questionários à população-alvo. Partindo-se de uma amostragem aleatória estratificada, essa população foi constituída pelas mulheres acima dos 18 anos, por representarem consumidoras potenciais de produtos cosméticos. No tratamento dos dados dos 500 questionários validados, contemplouse a utilização do coeficiente Alpha de Cronbach e da técnica multivariada de análise fatorial exploratória. Um modelo de regressão múltipla foi testado para explicar o comportamento de compra de cosméticos ecológicos. Os resultados deixam evidências de que as variáveis Normas Subjetivas (NS), Afeto Ecológico (AE), Preocupação Ecológica (PE) e Conhecimento Ecológico (CE) foram consideradas estatisticamente significantes para explicar as variações em Comportamento de Compra de Cosméticos Ecológicos (CCCE), com um R2 de 0,555. Entre as variáveis demográficas testadas, verificou-se que apenas a faixa etária e a classe social exercem influência moderada sobre a variável dependente. Tais resultados sinalizam similaridade entre os resultados obtidos na mensuração da correlação múltipla entre as variáveis independentes, a variável dependente e aqueles observados na teoria sobre a influência da primeira sobre o comportamento de compra de produtos ambientalmente corretos. Os resultados desta tese oferecem uma compreensão adicional sobre os fatores que afetam o processo de decisão de compra do consumidor. Considera-se, portanto, que este trabalho constitui um avanço no estado da arte das pesquisas sobre a relação entre os fatores ambientais e o comportamento dos consumidores, uma vez que foram investigados aspectos não contemplados em estudos anteriores. / Research which seeks to investigate the relationship between environmental factors and the consumer behavior is still embryonic in Brazil, which is a unique opportunity for those studies that relate the purchasing behavior of consumers to environmental issues. In this perspective, the goal of this research was to ascertain whether there is correlation between the following constructs: ecological knowledge, ecological affection, ecological concern, subjective norms and green purchase behavior. In pursuit of achieving the proposed objectives, a methodology characterized by exploratory search was used, adopting the simple transverse method in data collection process. In the study, secondary data from articles, books, dissertations, theses and the internet were used, in addition to the primary data, collected with the application of questionnaires to the target population. Based on a stratified random sampling, the population was constituted by women over 18 years old, since they represent potential consumers of cosmetic products. Regarding the data processing of 500 validated questionnaires, the use of Cronbach\'s Coefficient Alpha and multivariate exploratory technique of factor analysis were contemplated. A multiple regression model was tested to explain the behavior of buying ecological cosmetics. The results produce evidence that Subjective Norms (SN), Ecological Affection (EA), Ecological Concern (EC) and Ecological Knowledge (EC) variables were considered statistically significant to explain the variations in Purchase Behavior of Ecological Cosmetics (PBEC), with an R2 of 0.555. Among the demographic variables tested, it was found that only the age and social class exercise moderate influence over the dependent variable. Such results indicate similarity among the results obtained in the measurement of multiple correlations among independent variables, the dependent variable and those observed in theory concerning the influence of the former over the purchasing behavior of environmentally correct products. The results of this thesis offer additional insight about the factors that affect the purchase decision process. Therefore, it is considered that this work is an advance in the state of the art of research about the relationship between environmental factors and the consumer behavior, since aspects not covered in previous studies were investigated.

In recent years, energy efficiency in the built environment has been attracting considerable interest to mitigate energy consumption. A number of scientific studies indicate that rising air pollution, decreasing biodiversity, ocean acidification and other adverse effects on humans and the environment in recent decades are due to greenhouse gas emissions, and a substantial share of the emissions can be attributed to energy usage in residential buildings. Investments in energy-efficient technologies have been made to alleviate such human induced causes contributing to the emissions, but they are still far from widespread, calling for a thorough understanding of individuals' decision-making processes to promote further adoption of energy efficiency investments. Although personality has been widely recognised as an explanatory factor of behaviour, a rigorous discussion of it in the context of energy efficiency investments is missing. As such, to understand the role of personality traits in making high-cost energy efficiency investments in residential buildings, this research applies a multidisciplinary approach to derive theoretical models that are evaluated in subsequent empirical investigations using quantitative methods and data from the UK and Germany. The findings suggest three ways through which personality can influence energy efficiency investments. The first is an indirect impact of personality traits through risk preferences, in which the significance of the personality effects depends on the financial subsidy context. The second is an indirect effect of personality traits through environmental concern. The third way suggests an impact of personality traits through their importance for individuals' capability and willingness to consider peer behaviour.

Sexual violence is experienced by a number of North American women who, after being victimized, can develop a series of physical, psychological and financial consequences. As such, it is necessary to develop policies and programs that can better prevent this type of violence. This study aims to determine if the contents of the 2015 Ontario Health and Physical Education Curriculum at the 9th grade level includes central themes and components that are detailed in the literature to be needed to deter sexual violence perpetration. Through the development and application of a theoretical framework of knowledge, this research project conducted a deductive qualitative content analysis on the 2015 Ontario Health and Physical Education Curriculum. Information used to evaluate the Curriculum includes central themes identified in the literature as being pertinent to the prevention of sexual violence and the use of the social norms theory. Overall, it was determined that while the 2015 Ontario Curriculum addresses most literature themes associated with sexual violence perpetration and school-based programming, it contains certain limitations that will likely make it a less effective program.

This study examines the relationship between public opinion about the environment and the introduction of congressional legislation on environmental issues. Using public opinion data gathered by the General Social Survey from 1977 to 2002, this work examines correlations between how the public views the environment in each and the number of bills introduced in the U.S. House and Senate addressing environmental issues. The findings indicate that there is a correlation between overall concern felt in the public and congressional action on certain aspects of environmental protection. The results also highlight the potentially disturbing finding that the race and economic class of a respondent play a role in the level of correlation between respondents' concern for the environment and congressional action on environmental issues.

Following the mass shooting at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, institutions of higher education appeared to restructure themselves and change the way that they worked with students who may pose a risk to self or others. They formed committees, sometimes known as Communities of Concern, to help review these concerns and respond appropriately. The purpose of this study was to examine how the Community of Concern Committee at the University of Kentucky was developed following the incident at Virginia Tech. Particular attention was focused on the change and learning that took place. Using the frames of single-loop and double-loop learning, this study examined six oral history accounts of the development of the Community of Concern Committee at the University of Kentucky. The oral histories coupled with historical documents provided a timeline of events related to the development of the committee. In addition, the oral histories revealed a complex learning process which blended single and double-loop learning to guide this institutional change. The comparison between this incident and other legal issues within higher education was explored as well as the opportunity to expand this exploration outside of the current case study.

Theoretical and empirical evidence indicate a possibility that reading certain types of historical texts could improve different constructs of empathy that include theory of mind (ToM), empathic concern (EC), and historical perspective-taking (HPT).The objective of this study was to compare the effect of reading a collection of primary documents in comparison to a historical narrative on ToM, HPT, and EC for adolescents in an eighth-grade history class. Students were randomly assigned to read either a historical narrative or a collection of adapted historical documents with approximately the same length, and reading level. This researcher controlled for student comprehension scores, ToM scores, estimated amount of reading frequency, gender, and age. Post reading, students were assessed on ToM, EC, and HPT using age-appropriate and valid measures. The results demonstrated no statistical difference for individuals assigned to read either text as measured by ToM, EC, and HPT. Individuals with higher comprehension abilities in the historical document group were more likely to read for a longer period of time than individuals with high comprehension abilities in the narrative group. Empathic emotions for the narrative group were significantly correlated with higher HPT. The researcher argues that better ToM assessments need to be developed for adolescents and the relationship of reading historical texts and empathy for adolescents should be a topic of future research.

The first observations of Florida burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia floridana) occurred in the 19th century on historical dry prairie habitat in south central Florida. These early observations documented the ecology of burrowing owls in rural environments. Since then the vast majority of research on this subspecies has been undertaken in suburban and urban environments during the breeding period. The research undertaken on burrowing owls in suburban and urban environments includes determining natal dispersal distance, assessing female fecundity, mate fidelity, territory fidelity, date of juvenile and adult dispersal from breeding habitat, date of clutch initiation, nesting success, density of breeding pairs, causes of mortality, prey preference, and minimum annual survival of fledglings, juveniles, and adults. Very little research has been undertaken on burrowing owls in rural environments. The purpose of this thesis was to elucidate the behavior and ecology of burrowing owls in a rural environment. The topics researched in this thesis include home range in breeding habitat, dispersal distance to post-breeding habitat, location of post-breeding habitat, behavior during the breeding period, diet of rural versus urban owls, and the evaluation of three methods to trap burrowing owls. The results of this thesis indicate that, during the daytime, juvenile burrowing owls utilized habitat very close to the main and satellite burrows during the breeding period. At night juvenile owls foraged in an extensive saw palmetto patch surrounding the breeding habitat. The predominant prey of both rural and urban burrowing owls during the breeding period was insects. Dispersal of juvenile burrowing owls from breeding habitat coincided with the flooding of the breeding habitat during the rainy season.

Tidigare forskning har visat att det existerar en vidspridd oro för de miljöproblem vi idag står inför. Trots detta agerar de flesta människor inte i linje med sin oro, vilket skapar en diskrepans mellan en attityd och konkret handlande, där det även existerar stora variationer mellan länder. Med bivariata korrelationsanalyser ämnar denna uppsats att finna den eller de samhällsfaktorer som till högst grad kan förklara detta gap. Resultaten visar att den sociala tilliten inom ett land till högst grad förklarar varför vissa länders oro inte resulterar i konkret miljövänligt handlande. Sociala utgifter, BNP per capita, institutionell kvalitét är även betydelsefulla faktorer för att förklara detta gap. Denna uppsats fann inget stöd för att politisk tillit påverkar styrkan i sambandet mellan miljöoro och miljövänligt beteende.

This thesis examines whether the secular institutions of American higher education should address students questions of meaning, purpose, wisdom, and human destiny. That is, it investigates the place of the normative analysis of religious experience and behavior within the public university. I use the work of Ninian Smart, Russell T. McCutcheon and Ivan Strenski to illustrate the case against the inclusion of theology and spirituality in the academic study of religion. In their view, theology is at best an artifact, like ritual or religious art and not an academic discipline. Conversely, I use the work of Paul Tillich, John Dunne, and Darrell Fasching to argue for the emergence of an academic theology that can play an important role in the contemporary university. In their view, theology and spirituality address the questions appropriately raised by the humanities, and can be done as long as confessional and apologetic strategies are rejected. I will show how their theories help us understand the nature of the academic study of religion to be inclusive of theology and spirituality, and so respond constructively to the negative views of Smart, McCutcheon and Strenski. My thesis is that, contrary to Smart, McCutcheon and Strenski, theology and spirituality are essential to the academic study and teaching of comparative religions in state universities. If higher education is to achieve the ideals of a liberal arts education and to offer more than the aims of a technical-vocational college curriculum, I maintain that the university education should address students' questions of meaning, purpose, wisdom, and human destiny and not just their need for technical skills. This should be offered under the umbrella of the humanities, including the religious studies department and is best represented in an academic theology that can inspire students to live a life that facilitates a cross-cultural and inter-religious ethic of human dignity.

<p>The aim of this thesis is to find out if there is a gap between the formalization level and the realization level in the Namibian school system. Moreover, our aim is to figure out how we, as visiting teaching students, interpret the relationship between steering documents and the teaching in the classroom. In turn, the aim was used to formulate three different research questions: What can we experience while observing in the class room/at school? What do the interviewed teachers express concerning our asked questions? What are the main differences between the two latest steering documents?</p><p>The reason why we decided to do a study about the school system in Namibia is because it is a young country, it was proclaimed independent in 1990. Therefore we think it is interesting to study how the school system and its political steering documents have developed over the years.</p><p>Our theoretical framework includes the concept of curriculum, reconceptualism and cultural issues. Our focal point has been on the following three perspectives, democracy, gender and learner centred education.</p><p>The method we used in this study is triangulation, in this case analyzing political steering documents, interviewing teachers and other people connected to the school and finally class room observations. The attitudes to the three above mentioned perspectives vary amongst the interviewed personnel This study as come to the conclusion that there is a gap between the formalization level and realization level.</p>