The mortality is historically one of the most important demographic indicator and definitely reflects the maturity of each country. The objective of this diploma thesis is the comparison of mortality rates in analyzed countries around the world over time and among each other using the principle component analysis that allows assessing data different way. The big advantage of this method is minimal loss of information and quite understandable interpretation of mortality in each country. This thesis offers several interesting graphical outputs, that for example confirm higher mortality rate in Eastern European countries compared to Western European countries and show that Czech republic is country where mortality has fallen most in context of post-communist countries between 1990 and 2010. Source of the data is Human Mortality Database and all data were processed in statistical tool SPSS.

This paper develops and applies a Bayesian approach to Exploratory Factor Analysis that improves on ad hoc classical approaches. Our framework relies on dedicated factor models and simultaneously determines the number of factors, the allocation of each measurement to a unique factor, and the corresponding factor loadings. Classical identification criteria are applied and integrated into our Bayesian procedure to generate models that are stable and clearly interpretable. A Monte Carlo study confirms the validity of the approach. The method is used to produce interpretable low dimensional aggregates from a high dimensional set of psychological measurements. (authors' abstract)

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The thesis discusses the tools commonly used by developers in exploratory environments of languages Smalltalk and Self. These languages free their users from using plain unstructured source code. Moreover, they contain tools with richer features. The thesis consists of an analysis, a design proposal, and a description of Object Viewer, a Self based tool designed for languages C and C++. The tool graphically displays fragments of a program (objects and pointers) and allows for manipulating them during debugging. The conclusion consists of a summary and a recommendation for additional new features.

In an everchanging world where information flows freely and we are continually awash with new truths, we need to equip our children and our youth with the ability to face it with confidence and knowledge. To understand values such as democracy and the equal value of all, reflection and argumentation must take place in the room. Our young people must be able to communicate, critically examine and take a position on arguments. Our young people also need to be able to create trusting relationships and develop other pro-social skills. The school is an arena that has the mission to educate and equip our young people with these skills. The educational system must therefore create opportunities for our pupils to become part of their word not just a person in the world. Key to philosophical dialogue as a method, on which this intervention study is based, is the common exploration of different perspectives and arguments. To listen to and show respect for the thoughts and opinions of others but still, in a constructive way, dare to challenge each other's thoughts and ideas. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether a series of six conversations, based on the model of philosophical dialogue, contributed to students experiencing an increased sense of participation in conversations with each other and the teacher. To investigate this, the special education authority's (SPSM) definition of participation was used through the six aspects of the participatory model (Delaktighetsmodellen), accessibility, belonging, autonomy, recognition, engagement, and co-operation. The study involved two intervention groups and two control groups; the two intervention groups participated in the philosophical dialogue series. Before the intervention started, the groups conducted a pre-survey and after the intervention was completed, a final survey was carried out. The results of the surveys were analyzed and after that a respondent validation was carried out with some of the participants. In comparison with previous studies, this study is considered a short intervention. The results of this study showed that even a short series of philosophical dialogue had a bearing on students' sense of participation. Not for the intervention group as a whole but for some of the participants. Participants described that with these dialogues they have gotten to know each other better and gained an increased sense of security. The participants also told us that it has been fun to talk to each other and to listen to other people's opinions and share their own with others. / I en föränderlig värld där informationen flödar fritt och vi översköljs av nya sanningar kontinuerligt krävs det att vi rustar våra barn och ungdomar att möta den med tillförsikt och kunskap. För att förstå värden som demokrati och allas lika värde måste reflektionen och argumentationen ta plats i rummet. Våra unga måste kunna kommunicera, kritiskt granska och ta ställning till argument. Våra unga behöver också kunna skapa tillitsfulla relationer och utveckla andra prosociala färdigheter. Skolan är en arena som har uppdraget att utbilda och rusta våra unga med dessa färdigheter. Skolan måste därför skapa möjligheter för våra elever att bli delaktiga i sin omvärld. Centralt för metoden filosofiska samtal, som denna interventionsstudie bygger på, är det gemensamma utforskandet av olika perspektiv och argument. Att lyssna till och visa respekt för andras tankar och åsikter men ändå, på ett konstruktivt sätt, våga utmana varandras tankar och idéer. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om en serie på sex samtal, baserade på modellen filosofiska samtal, bidrog till att eleverna upplevde en ökad känsla av delaktighet i samtal med varandra och läraren. För att undersöka detta användes specialpedagogiska skolmyndighetens definition av delaktighet genom Delaktighetsmodellens sex aspekter, tillgänglighet, tillhörighet, autonomi, erkännande, engagemang, och samhandling. I studien deltog två interventionsgrupper och två kontrollgrupper, de två interventionsgrupperna deltog i den filosofiska samtalsserien. Innan interventionen startade gjorde grupperna en förenkät och efter att interventionen avslutades genomfördes en slutenkät. Resultatet av enkäterna analyserades och efter det genomfördes en respondentvalidering med några av deltagarna. I jämförelse med tidigare forskning är denna studie att betrakta som en kort intervention. Resultatet av denna studie visade att även en kort serie med filosofiska samtal har betydelse för elevers känsla av delaktighet. Inte för interventionsgruppen som helhet men hos några av deltagarna. Deltagare beskrev att de i och med dessa samtal hade lärt känna varandra bättre och fått en ökad känsla av trygghet. Deltagarna berättade också att det var roligt att få samtala med varandra och att få lyssna på andras åsikter och få delge sina egna till andra.

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This dissertation reports on an exploratory study investigating the landscape of reading promotion projects in South Africa. The study identifies, categorises and describes reading promotion projects. Reading promotion projects are important in that they promote access to reading and improve reading comprehension. The literature review deals with reading, reading promotion and the approaches to reading promotion used by reading promotion projects worldwide. These projects use different methods in the promotion of reading. The two main approaches to reading promotion identified are the reader-centred and book-centred. Methods used to promote reading include mobile libraries, reading campaigns and reading clubs. This study discusses reading promotion projects in South Africa using the content analysis method. Documents concerning reading promotion projects in the country were identified and analysed, using content analysis.The findings indicate that reading promotion projects exist in South Africa. Seventy seven reading promotion projects were identified and analysed. Findings reveal that most projects were managed by local or international non-governmental organisations. The beneficiaries are mostly school going children. These projects use a variety of methods to promote reading with the most common methods being mobile libraries and book donations. The study concludes that the picture of reading promotion in South Africa is bleak. There is little government support, haphazard funding, projects are unevenly distributed, and there is no research in the field. Unless there is support for reading promotion from the highest level of government in South Africa, reading promotion will remain bleak. Copyright / Dissertation (MIS)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Information Science / unrestricted

<p>Purpose of visit is one of the main determinants of destination choice. Assessing the fulfillment of travelers’ desires could thus gauge the tourism potential of a country from the perspective of travelers. The main reasons for traveling are relaxation, pleasure and entertainment, social interaction, opportunity to meet a romantic or sexual partner, educational opportunity, self-fulfillment, wish fulfillment, shopping, business, holiday, health, and transit. Meanwhile, academic research on satisfying the curiosity about a destination remains underdeveloped. The concept of curiosity is central to motivation and curiosity as a personality trait plays a significant role in the behavior of a traveler.</p> <p><br></p> <p>The goal of this dissertation was to examine the tourism potential of a destination from the point of view of travelers interested in exploring new horizons and perspectives to better fulfill their expectations and increase customer satisfaction. The purpose of this study is three-fold: (1) conceptualize destination curiosity; (2) develop a scale for destination curiosity; (3) examine the impact of destination curiosity as a major driver of international travel. For the latter, a set of integral relationships across different measurement items associated with destination curiosity and the cultural identity dimension of place identity is instituted in an SEM model in which the dependent variable is international visit intention. </p> <p>For this purpose, this study coined the term destination curiosity (hereafter, DC), which was defined as the travel enthusiasm that is reflective of a curious behavior to explore and seek fulfillment in acquiring knowledge through the actual travel experience at the destination. Aligned with Berlyne’s definition of curiosity and exploratory behavior, who is the most influential contributor to the concept of exploratory behavior, the two main dimensions of curiosity continue to be perceptual curiosity, which is more emotionally driven, and epistemic curiosity, which is information seeking behavior and cognitively driven.</p> <p><br></p> <p>Having addressed both the affective and cognitive drivers of curiosity to conceptualize DC, sensation seeking, novelty experience, need for cognition, and perceptual curiosity were incorporated into the approach. DC was conceptualized according to Fine's clockspeed model (1998). Fine’s model is related to the rate of change and includes two dimensions: process control (integrality-modularity) and decision control (slow-fast clockspeed). By incorporating this model, both the complexity and diversity dimensions of DC were considered. Therefore, DC was conceptualized in a way that illustrates how the existing or potential competitive advantages of destinations can influence the destination choices of travelers when they travel to explore new horizons and perspectives. In this study Fine’s clockspeed model—as a supply chain model defined to be used by suppliers/organizations—is incorporated in conceptualizing destination curiosity, as personality trait of a traveler, with the lens of demand expectation. </p> <p><br></p> <p>As for developing a scale through a rigorous approach via higher-order factor modeling, a scale was developed to measure DC. Delphi method was used to purify the initial measurement items that were adopted from the perceptual curiosity scale (Collins, Litman, & Spielberger, 2004), the need for cognition scale (Cacioppo & Petty, 1982), the desire for novelty scale (Pearson, 1970), and the sensation seeking scale (Zuckerman, Kolin, Price, & Zoob, 1964) in the travel context. In addition, EFA and higher-order factor modeling were incorporated to develop a scale. </p> <p><br></p> <p>Finally, to ensure the predictive validity of the developed scale, another study was designed to examine the mediating effect of DC on the impact of the cultural identity (dimension of brand identity) of a country on international visit intention. Motion pictures, mega-events, or gastronomy arguably act as instigators; while established brand persistence, geopolitics, or the existence of stereotypes about a destination act as inhibitors when it comes to one’s willingness to travel to another country. Therefore, Turkey was chosen for the context and a scenario was defined that addressed all the mentioned elements. The cultural identity of a destination was considered a proper antecedent for examining the mediating effect of DC on international visit, as the desire to enjoy unique pleasant experiences is likely to be universal. Meanwhile, culture is undoubtedly a unique attribute of any destination, whether a destination affiliated with thousands of years of fame or a non-major tourist destination which has sustained its culture. The significant mediating effect of DC in that study shows its importance in destination marketing.</p> <p><br></p> <p>The DC is arguably critical for the improvement of relations between nations. The more people travel to explore new horizons and perspectives, the more they will understand each other. In the same vein, for travelers with a high level of DC, traveling is a means of nourishing their soul that can eventually improve the well-being of the global society.</p>

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to explore the consumer resale behaviour of Millennial consumers in the context of personal luxury goods in order to identify the motivational drivers and barriers of reselling. Prior discussions about resale behaviour have focused on disposition behaviour, the relation of resale behaviour and purchasing, as well as meanings associated with reselling personal luxury goods. Yet, only few studies have approached consumer resale behaviour from the perspective of possessing, thus neglecting the significance of resale barriers. Consequently, this paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of resale behaviour motivations by exploring the phenomenon from the view of the whole consumption cycle, consisting of purchasing, possessing and disposing. Design/methodology/approach – This research employed a qualitative, exploratory approach, including thematic analysis using empirical data from semi-structured interviews with ten European Millennials. Consumer resale behaviour was examined in the context of personal luxury goods. Findings – Results indicate that personal luxury goods are reluctantly disposed, but chiefly resold when given away. The motivations to resell or not to resell personal luxury items are exhibiting three types of reasoning: utilitarian, hedonic and social motivations. Based on the categorisation of resale drivers and barriers, the authors propose a conceptual model to show the individual motivations. Highly notable is the phase of possession, which has a strong influence on the decision of whether to engage in reselling or not. Originality/value – The paper discusses the relevance of each phase of the consumption cycle when studying consumer resale behaviour motivations. More, it challenges the ‘end of ownership’ approach and suggests luxury brands to consider the weight of possessing if applying such business models.

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