The objective of these article is to evaluate different kinds of methodological tools thatmeasure the levels of congruence of the competition within de multi-level party systems, unders- tanding this last one as the levels of similitude that are experimented by the different districts where political parties compete. It starts from the premise that every party system is multi- level because in that system exists competition in different institutional levels (and in different districts simultaneously). The relevance of multi-level appears when national elections and subnational elections dynamics are not necessarily equals, and it is required to overcome the methodological traditional nationalism that it has been experimented until the moment in the research agenda about parties and party systems. The review of the concept of «congruence» is not exhaustive, and it seeks to systematize the contemporary literature to observe de similarities and differences in national and subnational electoral dynamics, and the consequences of the use of each measurement tool for the identified dynamics. / El objetivo de este artículo es evaluar diferentes herramientas metodológicas para medir los niveles de congruencia de la competencia de los sistemas de partidos multinivel, entendida esta como los niveles de similitud que experimentan entre los diferentes distritos donde compiten los partidos. Se parte de la premisa de que todo sistema de partidos es multinivel, ya que existe competencia en distintos niveles institucionales (y en diferentes distritos de manera simultánea). La relevancia de la lógica multinivel se da en que la dinámicas en las elecciones nacionales y subnacionales no son necesariamente iguales y requieren superar el tradicional nacionalismo metodológico que ha experimentado hasta el momento la agenda de investigación sobre los partidos y los sistemas de partidos. La revisión del concepto de congruencia no es exhaustiva y busca sistematizar la literatura actual para observar las similitudes y diferencias en las dinámicas electorales nacionales y subnacionales, y las consecuencias del uso de cada instrumento de medición sobre las dinámicas que se identifican.

Background: The increased attention to the subject of sustainable development within the fashion industry is frequently explained by how the fashion industry has become global, connecting brands, producers, manufacturers, businesses, and consumers across the entire globe. This has further led to the need for new constellations of global multi stakeholder collaborations. In 2009, a rather remarkable collaboration was announced; Patagonia and Walmart are pairing up to fight for a sustainable apparel, footwear, and textile industry. The collaboration is called The Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) and is today representing nearly half of the entire volume of global production for apparel and footwear. Purpose: The purpose of this research is to identify key decision points and actions in the development of SAC and the Higg Index. The aim is to understand how to create a foundation for sustainable development within the fashion, apparel and textile industry on a global scale. Methodology: The research has been conducted through an exploratory case study of qualitative character, focusing on the development process of SAC and the Higg Index. The data has been collected through in-depth interviews with participants having prior knowledge, insight, participation, and experience of the development process of SAC and the Higg Index. Further the data has been analyzed through an inductive thematic analysis. Result & Analysis: Several interesting themes arrived in the result. However, these were narrowed down to four key factors for the development process of SAC and the Higg Index; Industry collaboration through democratic organizational culture, Getting the right people on the bus, then teaching them how to drive it, Trustworthy standards, communication and transparency throughout the supply chain, and Striving for global sustainable development = good for business. Research Limitations & Suggestions for Future Research: Due to the exploratory character of the study, conclusions have been drawn with caution and has rather aimed to focus on the contribution of new insights, a deeper understanding and increased knowledge of the development of SAC and the Higg Index. The main suggestion for future research is to conduct a study which includes the perspective of the manufacturers and workers within the supply chain. This type of study could assist with gaining further insights of obstacles and potential solutions for how to globally adopt the Higg Index within all levels of the supply chain in the most successful way.

Bakgrund: Sepsis är ett allvarligt tillstånd med hög risk för mortalitet och drabbar miljontals människor världen över. Att som sjuksköterska tidigt kunna identifiera tillståndet innebär större chans till adekvat behandling och mindre lidande för patienten. Sjuksköterskan ansvarar för säker vård och god omvårdnad, där kunskap och klinisk intuition utgör en viktig del i observationen av patienten. Syfte: Syftet var att undersöka vilka faktorer som kan påverka sjuksköterskans identifiering av sepsis.MetodEn allmän litteraturöversikt valdes som metod. Relevanta artiklar hämtades ur databaserna PubMed och Cinahl Complete. Datainsamlingen gjordes på tolv originalartiklar, där majoriteten av studierna var av kvantitativ design. Samtliga artiklar genomgick kvalitetsgranskning och analyserades enligt relevant kurslitteratur. Resultat: Två huvudteman identifierades: arbetsmiljöfaktorer och kunskap hos sjuksköterskan. Två underkategorier till arbetsmiljöfaktorer framkom: kommunikation inom vårdteamet och vikten av mätverktyg och observationer. Hög arbetsbelastning, bristande kunskap och kommunikation samt otillräcklig användning av mätverktyg vid observationer, var faktorer som hindrade identifieringen av sepsis. Arbetslivserfarenhet, god kunskap och självförtroende samt adekvat användning av mätverktyg visade sig vara främjande faktorer. Slutsats: Mätverktyg, kommunikation, kunskap och arbetsmiljö var faktorer som påverkade sjuksköterskans identifiering av sepsis. Sjuksköterskan bör ges rätt förutsättningar för att tidigt kunna identifiera sepsis. En god arbetsmiljö och kommunikation i vårdteamet skulle kunna minska sjuksköterskans etiska stress, höja arbetsmoralen och leda till en mer säker vård. Kontinuerlig kompetensutveckling på arbetsplatsen kan också öka sjuksköterskans självförtroende. En god arbetsmiljö, kunskap, kommunikation och adekvat användning av mätverktyg är således av största vikt för sjuksköterskans identifiering av sepsis. / Background: Sepsis is a common condition with a high risk of mortality, affecting millions of people worldwide. As a nurse, being able to identify the condition early means a higher chance of adequate treatment and less suffering for the patient. The nurse is responsible for safe care and good nursing, where knowledge and clinical intuition are an important part of the observation of the patient. Aim: The aim was to investigate the factors that influence nurse´s identification of sepsis.MethodA general literature review was chosen as the method. Data collection was based on the PubMed and Cinahl Complete databases. Twelve original articles were selected, where most of the studies were of quantitative design. All articles underwent quality review and were analyzed according to relevant course literature. Results: Two main themes were identified: work environment factors and nurse knowledge. Two subcategories to work environment factors emerged: communication within the care team and the importance of measurement tools and observations. High workload, lack of knowledge and communication, and insufficient use of measurement tools during observations were factors that hindered the identification of sepsis. Work experience, good knowledge and confidence, and adequate use of measurement tools were found to be facilitating factors. Conclusion: Measurement tools, communication, knowledge, and work environment were factors that influenced nurses' identification of sepsis. Nurses should be given the right conditions to identify sepsis at an early stage. A good working environment and communication within the healthcare team could reduce nurses' ethical stress, increase morale and lead to safer care. Continuous professional development in the workplace could also increase nurses' confidence. A good work environment, knowledge, communication, and adequate use of measurement tools is shown to be of great importance for nurses’ identification of sepsis.

As the Internet continues to evolve, without providing any performance guarantees or explicit feedback to applications, the only way to infer the state of the network and to dynamically react to congestion is through end-to-end measurements. The emph{available bandwidth} (avail-bw) is an important metric that characterizes the dynamic state of a network path. Its measurement has been the focus of significant research during the last 15 years. However, its estimation remained elusive for several reasons. The main contribution of this thesis is the development of the first estimation methodology for the avail-bw in a network path using end-to-end measurements. In more detail, our first contribution is an end-to-end methodology, called SLoPS, to determine whether the avail-bw is larger than a given rate based on the sequence of one-way delays experienced by a periodic packet stream. The second contribution is the design of two algorithms, based on SLoPS, to estimate the mean and the variation range, respectively, of the avail-bw process. These algorithms have been implemented in two measurement tools, referred to as PathLoad and PathVar. We have validated the accuracy of the tools using analysis, simulation, and extensive experimentation. Pathload has been downloaded by more than 6000 users since 2003. We have also used PathVar to study the variability of the avail-bw process as a function of various important factors, including traffic load and degree of multiplexing. Finally, we present an application of avail-bw estimation in video streaming. Specifically, we show that avail-bw measurements can be used in the dynamic selection of the best possible overlay path. The proposed scheme results in better perceived video quality than path selection algorithms that rely on jitter or loss-rate measurements.

It is generally acknowledged that the share price of listed companies is not usually a true reflection of the value imbedded in the said companies. The main purpose of this study is to explore the correlation between selected performance measurement tools, namely Return on Equity (ROE) and Economic Value Added (EVA®), and the share price of companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The study is a quantitative one as it uses data extracted from McGregor BFA database to investigate the relationship between the variables studied. Correlation and linear regression analyses were used in determining such relationships. This study found that there is a synergy in using ROE and EVA® as performance measurement tools and that their interaction explains 8.06% of the movement in the share price of listed companies, all things being equal. Hence it is recommended to identify and study possible synergies between other performance measurement tools. / Management Accounting / M. Phil. (Accounting Sciences)

It is generally acknowledged that the share price of listed companies is not usually a true reflection of the value imbedded in the said companies. The main purpose of this study is to explore the correlation between selected performance measurement tools, namely Return on Equity (ROE) and Economic Value Added (EVA®), and the share price of companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The study is a quantitative one as it uses data extracted from McGregor BFA database to investigate the relationship between the variables studied. Correlation and linear regression analyses were used in determining such relationships. This study found that there is a synergy in using ROE and EVA® as performance measurement tools and that their interaction explains 8.06% of the movement in the share price of listed companies, all things being equal. Hence it is recommended to identify and study possible synergies between other performance measurement tools. / Management Accounting / M. Phil. (Accounting Sciences)