Master-Arbeit Univ. St. Gallen, 2008.

Three experiments were conducted to investigate the hypothesis that young infants? failures to search for occluded objects arises, not from deficiencies in their object representations, but from limitations in experience with the physical world. Successful means-end search is typically found at 8 months of age and is traditionally taken as the hallmark of object permanence. However, recent evidence suggests that infants much younger than 8 months of age are able to represent and reason about objects that are no longer visible. In Experiment 1, successful means-end search was found for 8. 5-, but not 6. 5-month-old infants in a traditional task, but younger infants showed successful search ability when the task was made familiar to them in Experiment 2 (i. e. , when the toy and occluder are first presented as a single composite object), and when they were given the opportunity to watch a demonstration of the solution to the task in Experiment 3. These results are taken as evidence for the ?experiential limitation? hypothesis and suggest that young infants are more apt at solving manual search tasks than previously acknowledged.

Three experiments were conducted to investigate the hypothesis that young infants? failures to search for occluded objects arises, not from deficiencies in their object representations, but from limitations in experience with the physical world. Successful means-end search is typically found at 8 months of age and is traditionally taken as the hallmark of object permanence. However, recent evidence suggests that infants much younger than 8 months of age are able to represent and reason about objects that are no longer visible. In Experiment 1, successful means-end search was found for 8. 5-, but not 6. 5-month-old infants in a traditional task, but younger infants showed successful search ability when the task was made familiar to them in Experiment 2 (i. e. , when the toy and occluder are first presented as a single composite object), and when they were given the opportunity to watch a demonstration of the solution to the task in Experiment 3. These results are taken as evidence for the ?experiential limitation? hypothesis and suggest that young infants are more apt at solving manual search tasks than previously acknowledged.

For young infants, knowledge of physical objects and animate agents seems highly rigid, with no information combined across domains. Adult cognition, however, is more flexible. In this thesis, I use a special category of object—a tool—that can only be reasoned about appropriately if information is combined across domains. Using this special case, I examine whether older infants are capable of integrating functional information about the tool while making inferences about the intent of the tool-user. Experiment 1 shows that infants can reason about complex means-end sequences involving tools; and Experiments 2 and 3 both show that under some circumstances, infants can take into account functional information about the tool when making these sorts of inferences. Together, these studies extend previous findings about how infants understand complex means-end sequences, and demonstrate that by 13 months, infants are already combining knowledge across domains. / Thesis (Master, Psychology) -- Queen's University, 2007-08-28 11:26:07.974

Housing preferences are unique to each individual. Nevertheless, there are certain similarities between the residential needs within the same demographic groups. This research will focus on the students’ housing preferences. The aim is to understand the factors affecting the decision-making process regarding the choice of housing by students in Lublin, Poland. The findings provide guidelines for the future student housing (re)development in the local area. The theoretical concepts used are The Theory of Basic Human Values and The Means-End Chain Theory. They assume that when making decision, the consumer is affected by his/her core values. The research strategy uses qualitative approach. It consists of both primary and secondary data. The first includes conducting interviews with 15 students. The second is based on the literature review and the official documents available at the official local government’s website. The limitations of the research are the bias of authors’ interpretation and exclusion of the students attending smaller, private universities, which may give an inadequate picture for the generalisation of the population. The findings are that the location, finance, privacy continue to be the key determinants in students’ housing choices. Moreover, students value the ability to personalise their rooms and having no noise distractions. They are also attracted to the attributes that improve their sleeping quality. The new generations of students value happiness and have high expectations. Thus, people responsible for the future (re)developments should keep those in mind, when designing the accommodation for students. The implications and guidelines are at the end of each section of data analysis. / Bostadspreferenser är unika för varje individ. Dock, finns det vissa likheter i bostadsbehov inom samma demografiska grupper. Denna studie fokuserar på studenternas boendepreferenser. Syftet är att förstå de faktorer som påverkar beslutsprocessen kring val av bostad för studenter i Lublin, Polen. Resultaten ger ett förslag till framtidsutvecklingen för studentboende i lokalområdet. De teoretiska begreppen som används är Theorin av grundläggande mänskliga värderingar och The Means-End Värdekedja. De innebär att när beslut fattas då påverkas konsumenten av sina grundläggande värden. Forskningsstrategin är baserad på kvalitativ metodologi. Den använder både primär och sekundär data. Den första inkluderar intervjuer med 15 studenter. Den andra baseras på litteraturöversikten och de officiella dokumenten som finns på den offentliga kommunens hemsida. Forskningsbegränsningarna här bias som kommer ifrån författarnas tolkning och resultatet är begränsat med syn på eleverna som går på privata universitet, vilket kan ge inte tillräcklig bild för generaliseringen från den statistiska populationen. Slutsatser är att lokaliseringen, finansieringen och integriteten fortsätter att vara de viktigaste determinanterna i studenternas bostadsval. Dessutom värderar eleverna förmågan att anpassa sina rum på individnivå och inte ha bullerstörningar. De lockas också till de attributen som förbättrar deras sömnkvalitet. De nya studentgenerationerna uppskattar lyckan och har höga förväntningar. Således bör personer som är ansvariga för framtidsutvecklingen tillämpa dem när de utveckla studentboende. Slutsatser och förslaget på de nya riktlinjerna finns i slutet av varje dataanalyskapitel.

While capitalism can be held responsible for many of the numerous social and environmental issues that haunt us today, corporations hold great power and possibilities to compensate for the damage they cause. A solution can be the implementation of Creating Shared Value (CSV), which builds on identifying societal needs and approaching these as business opportunities. By doing so, value can be created for society whilst driving business results. The purpose of this thesis is to examine what factors influence the implementation of CSV in companies operating in Sweden. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews with experts who have worked with CSV. Factors that influence the implementation of CSV policies and practices, as well as factors that influence whether these lead to the desired goal of shared value creation have been extracted. The findings suggest that the public’s prevailing distrust towards companies’ engagement in solving social issues is the most noteworthy barrier for implementation of CSV, while managerial buy-in and understanding of the concept represent the strongest enabler. Getting lost in rhetoric and belief in the concept as well as focusing too strongly on measuring procedures illustrate the two greatest risks for implemented CSV policies and practice to become decoupled from the end goal of shared value creation.

The tension between fashion and sustainability has been recognized, as it has been argued whether fashion can be sustainable. This is due to the several ethical dilemmas the fashion industry is facing, including not only environmental but also social problems. These issues have gained an increasing amount of consumers' attention during the last years. Even if these problems are recognized, consumers are still having an attitude-behaviour gap towards sustainable consumption, where positive attitude does not reflect on actions. Therefore, this study takes a deeper look into the consumption behaviour of sustainable fashion consumers and aims to clarify, what motivates to purchase sustainable fashion products. With the help of a means-end theory, this exploratory research aims to understand consumers' values behind their purchasing behaviour. The empirical data was collected using an existing sustainable fashion company's customer base in the Netherlands, as their customers have already shown interest towards sustainable fashion. This study is based on nineteen qualitative in-depth laddering interviews, lasting around 25 minutes. The data resulted in several means-end chains that presented which attributes, consequences and values motivate and influence on consumers' purchasing of sustainable fashion. After collecting the data, content analysis was conducted and as a result emerged four dominant motivational themes that motivate consumers to buy sustainable fashion products: self-expression, protect the future, contribution as well as help, care and responsibility. These motivational themes show what consumers value when they make sustainable fashion purchases. In the end, the results of this research are contributing to the holistic understanding of sustainable fashion consumption as well as give insights to the under-researched topic of motivations to purchase sustainable fashion. / <p></p><p></p>

<p>‘Internationalisation of higher education’ is considered a significant issue in many countries.One effective way to achieve internationalisation is by having an exchange study program. Thisis something which has been promoted by universities all around the globe. It has been foundthat the experience of studying abroad is beneficial to the students. There has been a trend ofincreasing number of students going to study abroad. In Sweden, Jönköping InternationalBusiness School (JIBS) is one of the most internationalised business schools that promoteexchange studies extensively. To promote study abroad it is important to know what motivatesand influences the students to go on exchange. There has been previous research oninternationalisation and push-pull factors of student mobility which acted as a guideline for thisthesis. Thus it was appealing to study the reasons behind the phenomenon of students goingabroad for exchange studies.The purpose of this paper is to explore the push-pull factors influencing student’s destinationchoice for exchange study abroad. JIBS is the institution where the case study was conducted.The empirical data have been gathered by using a qualitative approach combining face-to-faceinterviews and focus groups with international exchange students and Swedish students. Toanalyse the findings, theories relating to marketing communications in service and productattribution were used.The results derived from the empirical findings show the push-pull factors which motivatestudents to go on exchange. The initial push factor is the promotion and encouragement tostudents for studying abroad by the university. Exchange studies helps to enhance students’personal development with intercultural communication, practicing language skills andtravelling. These skills and experiences add value to their CV.On the other hand the pull factors which the students take into consideration for deciding ontheir host countries and institutions are geographic location, weather, culture, and the economicand social position of the country. Living cost and the education system which includeslanguage used, courses offered, perceived image, communication and cooperation andrecommendations are factors influencing the choices of a student’s decision on the destinationfor studying abroad. The authors in this thesis summarised their findings in a model of pushpullfactors which is specialised only for exchange students. The process of considering thesefactors leads to the outcome of choosing the destination for studying abroad. The authorsbelieve the results of this study can be applied on other universities for further research andmay be appropriate for its own case to focus on areas where it needs to improve.ii</p>

ABSTRACT Botanic Garden User Outcomes: A Means-End Investigation Christopher Lee Wassenberg This study explored the outcomes that Leaning Pine Arboretum users experience from visiting the botanic garden. Understanding visitor motivations and benefits has been a focus in the field of outdoor recreation, and the subject of a number of botanic garden and green space visitor studies. Previous studies have found that visiting a botanic garden can serve as a coping strategy for dealing with and reducing life stress (Holbrook, 2010; Kohlleppel, Bradley, & Jacob, 2002; Maller, Townsend, Pryor, Brown, & St Leger, 2005) and that visiting public outdoor green spaces led visitors to experience greater exposure to natural spaces and to have meaningful experiences with others (Burgess, Harrison, & Limb, 1988). This study employed means-end theory (Gutman, 1982) to investigate the link between garden attributes and user outcomes. In-person interviews were conducted with 83 garden visitors during the summer of 2011. Researchers coded the interview data to identify participants’ reported attributes, consequences, and values. Intercoder reliability was conducted to ensure validity of the results. Coded data were entered into the Laddermap (Gengler & Reynolds, 1995) computer software program to be analyzed. Implication matrixes were created to determine the number of times concepts were linked. From the implication matrixes, hierarchical value maps (HVMs) were developed to display the results graphically. HVMs show the strength of links between attributes, consequences, and values, and were used to compare results from different visitor groups within the study. These groups included males and females, students and non-students, and first time and return visitors. The findings revealed that participants felt that the botanic garden and plants were the most meaningful garden attributes. These garden attributes led participants to experience the consequences new experiences and learning stress and relief and relaxation. Having experienced these meaningful consequences allowed participants to reach the most frequently mentioned values: transference and improved quality of life. The study found important links between attributes, consequences, and values, including the consequences escape and stress relief and relaxation, and the consequence new experiences and learning, and the value transference. Important differences were also found between the attribute, consequence, and value chains of multiple visitor groups. Botanical garden and arboretum mangers may use this study to improve visitor experiences and outcomes. A better understanding of visitor benefits and outcomes can help managers understand the needs of current visitors, potential visitors, and potential garden supporters. In turn, garden visitors who have better experiences may be more inclined to provide funding or other support to conserve and preserve their local gardens. Based on the results garden managers should maintain a broad range of healthy, well-displayed plants; exert high-levels of detail to all aspects of garden operations; continue to provide opportunities for full visitor immersion; and offer unified, accessible interpretation of garden spaces and plants. Additionally, these results may be used to validate funding requests and guide allocation of funding. Keywords: Botanic garden users, outcomes, means-end theory, Leaning Pine Arboretum

‘Internationalisation of higher education’ is considered a significant issue in many countries.One effective way to achieve internationalisation is by having an exchange study program. Thisis something which has been promoted by universities all around the globe. It has been foundthat the experience of studying abroad is beneficial to the students. There has been a trend ofincreasing number of students going to study abroad. In Sweden, Jönköping InternationalBusiness School (JIBS) is one of the most internationalised business schools that promoteexchange studies extensively. To promote study abroad it is important to know what motivatesand influences the students to go on exchange. There has been previous research oninternationalisation and push-pull factors of student mobility which acted as a guideline for thisthesis. Thus it was appealing to study the reasons behind the phenomenon of students goingabroad for exchange studies.The purpose of this paper is to explore the push-pull factors influencing student’s destinationchoice for exchange study abroad. JIBS is the institution where the case study was conducted.The empirical data have been gathered by using a qualitative approach combining face-to-faceinterviews and focus groups with international exchange students and Swedish students. Toanalyse the findings, theories relating to marketing communications in service and productattribution were used.The results derived from the empirical findings show the push-pull factors which motivatestudents to go on exchange. The initial push factor is the promotion and encouragement tostudents for studying abroad by the university. Exchange studies helps to enhance students’personal development with intercultural communication, practicing language skills andtravelling. These skills and experiences add value to their CV.On the other hand the pull factors which the students take into consideration for deciding ontheir host countries and institutions are geographic location, weather, culture, and the economicand social position of the country. Living cost and the education system which includeslanguage used, courses offered, perceived image, communication and cooperation andrecommendations are factors influencing the choices of a student’s decision on the destinationfor studying abroad. The authors in this thesis summarised their findings in a model of pushpullfactors which is specialised only for exchange students. The process of considering thesefactors leads to the outcome of choosing the destination for studying abroad. The authorsbelieve the results of this study can be applied on other universities for further research andmay be appropriate for its own case to focus on areas where it needs to improve.ii