The study of attitudes towards those with AIDS is relatively recent. Most studies have examined attitudes concerning health and medical concerns. Little research has focused on attitudes toward social and behavior concerns. The few that have focused on such attitudes have employed relatively small samples collected primarily out of convenience. The studies that have used national samples have primarily addressed public policy issues. Using national data from the 1988 General Social Survey, this paper examines the effects of personal knowledge about the AIDS virus and other attitudinal variables on four dimensions of social and behavioral concern for those with AIDS in American society. Sociodemographic variables, which prior studies have demonstrated as important predictors of attitudes toward AIDS, are included as controls in this research that presents findings from a multivariate analysis. Results suggests that the impact of personal knowledge of someone with AIDS does not strongly lead to more supportive attitudes regarding the rights of people with AIDS, except when the economic costs of AIDS care is concerned. Directions for future research are presented and discussed.

In order to pursue continuous profit and long term management, the human resources is can be consider as an important assets of enterprises.The goal of human resource development is set up for organization future development, and staff capability can also been improve from the effective execution of education and training. Moreover, human resource development is a tool of promoting manpower into organizational ability via education and training. Thus, enterprises in various countries have invested in human resource management for the improvement in the level of its development.This research has covered many areas, including, motivations of education and training , personal knowledge transfer, positive effort of personal knowledge transfer in relate to work performance and learning effectiveness, and evaluation of the result after educational training . This research is based on 281 effectively survey from staff who has been through business educational training among manufacturing, service and financial sectors in Taiwan.By applying SEM, ANOVA system on real event analysis, the result of study is shown as below. Firstly, motivations of education and training and personal knowledge transfer have generated positive effort in relating to work performance and learning effectiveness. Secondly, according to survey, motivations of education and training has positive impact on personal knowledge transfer, and at the same time, personal knowledge transfer also brings positive influence to work performance. Therefore, it also indicates that motivations of education and training has positive impact to work performance as well. Third, as known motivations of education and training have positive impact on personal knowledge transfer. On the other hand, personal knowledge transfer has brought positive influence to learning effectiveness. Therefore, it also indicates that motivations of education and training has positive impact to learning effectiveness as well.Eventually, various personal characteristics may cause different impact on motivations of education and training , personal knowledge transfer, work performance and learning effectiveness.

Internet-based and mobile technologies enable new ways of learning. They offer us new possibilities to access an enormous amount of knowledge at any time and everywhere. Among many advantages, the adaptations require a rethinking of our previous learning behaviour patterns and processes. The challenge for students is no longer to get access to information and knowledge, but to select the right one and to deal with the information and knowledge overflow. The aim of this research is to define, design and validate an advanced concept to support the contemporary learning processes. Therefore, the requirements for a new approach have been assessed, the available solutions from the related area of (personal) Knowledge Management have been investigated, and the weaknesses in the context of learning identified. The identified issues have been substantiated by university students via a quantitative survey. Besides several smaller aspects, knowledge fragmentation and the nescience of the knowledge formation process have been classified as the most critical ones. To overcome these problems, a methodological concept has been developed, and a corresponding technological design created. The chosen approach is an intelligent, independent intermediate layer, which traces the different steps our knowledge entities are going through. Based on personal and individual configurations, the system provides a comprehensive and overall observation of nearly all our knowledge work activities. It supports the building and accessing of the knowledge formation paths for every important knowledge unit, later path combination and the access to automatically generated versions of our work. Moreover, it helps the users not only to remember what they did, but also gives them some strong indications why they did it. This is achieved by combining different knowledge actions and looking at the influences they have on each other. The suggested concept has been critically proved and confirmed via a qualitative expert analysis and backed up by a quantitative survey among university students.

The current research used grounded theory methodology (GTM) to construct a conceptualization of personal knowledge within a knowledge management (KM) perspective. The need for the current research was based on the use of just two categories of knowledge, explicit and tacit, within KM literature to explain diverse characteristics of personal knowledge. The construct of tacit knowledge has often been explicated and debated in KM literature. The debate over tacit knowledge arose from the complex epistemological roots of tacit knowing and the construct of tacit knowledge popularized by organizational knowledge creation theory. The ongoing debate over tacit knowledge in KM literature has shed little light on personal knowledge within a KM perspective. The current research set aside the debate over tacit knowledge and pursued the construct of personal knowledge from the perspective of the knower using GTM. Thirty-seven interviews were conducted with fourteen participants. Interviews were audio recorded and coding was accomplished with the qualitative data analysis software MAXQDA. A total of eight categories were identified. These were organized into two groups. The core category being overwhelmed represented the absence of personal knowledge. The categories questioning self, seeking help, and microthinking fit under being overwhelmed. Together these categories were inverse indicators because they all decreased as knowledge acquisition progressed. The core category being confident represented the presence of personal knowledge. The categories remembering, multitasking, and speed fit under being overwhelmed. Together these categories were direct indicators because they all increased as knowledge acquisition progressed. Three significant conclusions were drawn from the current research. These conclusions led to the conceptualization of personal knowledge from a KM perspective. The first significant conclusion was the conceptualization of a process of knowing as Integrated Complexity: From Overwhelmed to Confident (ICOC). The second significant conclusion was personal knowing as first-person epistemology is a universally lived experience that includes commitments to internal and external requirements as well as a bias toward integration. The third significant conclusion was personal knowledge can be viewed as a complex adaptive system. Finally, the current research concluded that personal knowledge within a KM perspective is a complex adaptive system maintained through acts of first-person epistemology.

In an increasingly information-rich era, managing personal knowledge is becoming paramount, particularly for individuals with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), who often struggle with productivity and organisation. This master's thesis explores the design and development of a voice-to-task automation system and a simplified to-do list, specifically tailored for people with ADHD. By employing user-centred design methods and leveraging contemporary technology, the project aims to aid individuals with ADHD in managing daily information overload and enhancing productivity. The study first delves into the nuances of ADHD and the challenges faced in personal knowledge management, followed by the ideation and creation of the prototypes. The designs were iteratively refined based on user feedback, ensuring they are responsive to the needs of individuals with ADHD. The findings highlight the potential of these solutions to empower neurodiverse individuals to navigate through the age of curation and assortment, thus transitioning from the information age. The research underscores the importance of designing for cognitive diversity, opening a path for future explorations in this field.

This thesis investigates personal knowledge development in online learning environments and the impact that personal values have on it. Personal knowledge development was investigated from the perspective of Nonaka’s SECI model of organisational knowledge creation. This model served as the basis for an adapted model that conceptualises personal knowledge development in online learning at the individual level. The personal value types of the Schwartz Value Survey and the Portrait Values Questionnaire were adopted to measure personal values and their impact on personal knowledge development in online learning environments. Three data collection approaches were used. First, an exploratory study was conducted which elicited online learners’ experiences of their personal knowledge development in online learning; this study used online discussion forums for data collection. Second, a Delphi study was carried out. Experts were asked which of the ten individual-level value types by Schwartz are likely to be particularly relevant in the context of online learning. Third, an online survey was created. Its aim was to measure the impact that personal values and background variables, such as gender and age, have on personal knowledge development in online learning. A measurement instrument was devised that measures three of the SECI modes, namely Externalisation, Combination and Internalisation. This instrument measures the magnitude of online learners’ Externalisation and Combination activities as well as their level of Internalisation, i.e. the outcomes of personal knowledge development. Results of the exploratory study show that there are widely diverging experiences of personal knowledge development in online learning. The literature review suggests that the cultural situatedness of an online learning environment is an important influencing factor on personal knowledge development. The results of the Delphi study suggest that Self-Direction, Stimulation, and Achievement are particularly relevant value types in the context investigated here. Finally, the online survey confirms this view, as all three value types were found to be positively correlated with Externalisation, Combination, and Internalisation, with the exception of the Achievement-Combination relationship. A modified version of the SECI model is proposed, which extends the applicability of the original SECI model from the organisational to the individual level. It is argued that this model is suitable to describe personal knowledge development in the context of online learning. The study also contributes to closing the gap in research on the impact of personal values in the context investigated in this study. Moreover, a measurement instrument was created that can be used to measure Externalisation and Combination, i.e. personal knowledge development processes, and Internalisation, i.e. personal knowledge development outcomes.

Michaela Polányi's Theory of Personal Knowledge (1891-1976) attempts to cope with the objections of the critical period of philosophy in which the ideals of science are set to be objectively unbiased and empirically grounded knowledge. The reason for this is the distrust of the subjectivistly conceived influence of the tradition and authority of the major research ancestors. Polanyi, however, points out that such ideals disregard the important constitutions of the knowledge of personal character, without which knowledge would not be possible. That is why it responds to these objections by trying to rehabilitate them and putting them in proper contexts. It points out the role of personal judgment that makes an intuitive estimation of the fertility of a research project within the given competencies. It highlights the role of the expertise and knowledge, which operate thanks to capturing the researcher in the tradition of the branch. And last but not least, it emphasizes the role of intellectual enthusiasm that helps the creative and original way to solve the problem. However, according to Polanyi, these constituents can perform their role properly only if the researcher establishes close contact with reality within an act he describes as contemplative submersion into the problem. This cognitive act should protect the entire cognitive process from the risk of subjective distortion. Polanyi also discovers two dimensions of knowledge. The first dimension is called tacit (unspecific). This dimension affects all cognitive processes that take place outside the apparent focal awareness of the cognitive person, yet they essentially influence the understanding of the ability to integrate in the mind of the cognitive person not only the individual elements of knowledge but also their interrelations. It helps to estimate the limits and possibilities of research. The second dimension is fiduciary-programmed knowledge, which points out that all knowledge is based on the commitment of faith to the reality of the cognitive object, to personal abilities of the cognitive person, and to the research community, and the principles of its research. It turns out that faith is not an obstacle to scientific knowledge, but a prerequisite for discovery. That is why Polanyi's theory of human knowledge is also considered in the field of the defense of the relevance of religious epistemology. Polanyi does not make the distinction between secular and religious epistemology as critics of religion. Both types of knowledge, according to him, are constituted by the same cognitive abilities that are applied in the same reality. The difference lies more in a different perspective and in the subject of interest. This thesis focuses on selected chapters of religious epistemology, where the original objections and proposals for their resolving solutions are well evident. These are, above all, the possibilities and limits of God's experience of knowledge, the role of reason and belief, and the possibilities of personal realization of knowledge within the religious tradition and the Authority Church.

Eleven participants living with non-insulin-requiring Type 2 Diabetes (T2DM) discussed their self-monitoring blood glucose (SMBG) experience. All had been recently diagnosed (< 2 years) and treated for diabetes with a self-regulating SMBG guideline for primary care practice. Their digitally-recorded interviews and photographed logbooks were analyzed thematically and interpreted through the lens of numeracy literature to answer 2 questions: 1. What is the meaning of SMBG among people with non-insulinrequiring T2DM? 2. How do people with non-insulin-requiring T2DM perceive the function of SMBG in diabetes self-management? The meanings of SMBG were patient competence, "It is easy, just a little pin prick"; patient control, "I can control it. It doesn't control me"; and patient security, "It is not that way anymore." Three periods of lived time were observed: Diagnosis "The numbers say I have diabetes"; "I just can't figure out why it does that"; and Routine "I make my numbers." Prominent numeracy functions emerged by time period. During Diagnosis primary numeracy functions included comparing SMBG results to target values. Participants expressed this experience as, "I am some kind of O.K." During applied numeracy functions included taking medication correctly. SMBG readings were experienced as a clue to the diabetes mystery, sometimes confusing the participants, "I just don't know why it does what it does," or answering questions, "Now there is no question marks." Numbers motivated some people for action "The numbers get me out a walking" or restraint "If I didn't have the numbers, I would be tempted to cheat." During Routine interpretive numeracy functioned to aid the evaluation of the efficacy of participant's health behavior change. Numbers had taken on meaning helping a person to "know where I am at." Clinical implications are suggested including adjustments to the selfregulating SMBG guideline for primary care practice. Findings are discussed in relation to personal knowledge processes (Sweeny, 1994) and related SMBG research. Participants concluded that routine SMBG is essential to maintaining and restraining health behavior. This study provides a model for use of SMBG in diabetes selfmanagement and patient perspectives on SMBG during the 2 years following T2DM diagnosis.

Der zielorientierte Umgang mit Wissen bildet eine zentrale Herausforderung für Unternehmen und deren Mitarbeiter. Deren Kompetenzentwicklung ist für die Unternehmen unter dem Aspekt der Wettbewerbsfähigkeit ein lohnendes Ziel. Diese Arbeit stellt ein Werkzeug zur Messung von Kompetenzen im Persönlichen Wissensmanagement vor. Auf einer Literaturstudie basierend wurde ein Kompe-tenzkatalog erstellt und mit Hilfe einer Befragung von Fachleuten aus dem Berei-chen Informations- und Wissensmanagement validiert. Dieser Kompetenzkatalog findet Eingang in einen Referenzrahmen für Kompetenzen für Persönliches Wis-sensmanagement. Zur Bestimmung der Niveaustufen Experte, Könner und Kenner im Persönlichen Wissensmanagement wurde ein Messwerkzeug erarbeitet und anhand von zwei Gruppen auf Gültigkeit überprüft. Die eine Gruppe bestand aus Mitarbeitern Ex-zellenter Wissensorganisationen, die andere aus interessierten Mitarbeitern aus nicht-explizit wissensorientierten Unternehmen. Es konnte nachgewiesen werden, dass beide Gruppen in acht Einzelkompetenzen signifikante Unterschiede besa-ßen. Auch für weitere Kompetenzen konnten Messdimensionen aus den Rück-meldungen der Umfrage hergeleitet werden. In einigen Fällen allerdings konnten die Niveaustufen Könner und Kenner nicht unterschieden werden. / The target-oriented intercourse with knowledge is a central challenge for compa-nies and their employees. With the aspect of competitiveness, a rewarding aim for the companies is to work on their skill development. This paper introduces a tool to measure the skills in personal knowledge management. Based on literature studies, a catalogue of competences was created, which was validated by inter-views with experts in information and knowledge management. The catalogue of competences conforms to a reference framework for competences for personal knowledge management. Measuring tools for the determination of the levels of expert, master and initiate in personal knowledge management were developed and their validity was checked on the basis of two groups. The first group was composed of employees of “Exzellenter Wissensorganisation”, the other group was composed of interested employees of companies with no explicit orientation for information and knowledge management. It was possible to verify that both groups showed signif-icant differences in eight single skills. Even for other skills dimensions of meas-urement could be deduced from the interviews. In some cases the levels of master and initiate could not be distinguished.

Abstract This narrative-biographical study focuses on stories told by teachers working in Lapland about their work and life. The key concept of the study is 'place', which is conceptualised as subjectively experienced place in line with humanistic geography. The research data consisted of interviews of seven teachers working in Lapland, including two Saami and five Finnish teachers. Two main research questions were addressed: I How do teachers tell about place? II What is teachers' manner of knowing from the viewpoint of place? The results revealed an inside view of 'place', which reflects the dweller's perspective towards place. The informants' stories highlighted five place-related sentiments: concern, commitment, sense of home, recognition and appreciation. At the general level, teachers felt concern about the contradiction between the south and the north. They also felt concern about the future of their pupils, schools and villages. Commitment and sense of home were enhanced by a place-related lifestyle and nature as well as an opportunity to do subjectively meaningful things. The teachers described their sentiment of belonging to a place in a way that reflected recognition and appreciation. For an individual, recognition related to everyday phenomena and interpersonal relations played an important role, but recognition by different groups and society was also significant. The autobiographical story by one of the Saami teachers clearly indicated the significance of local knowledge for teachers' work. Personal local knowledge is tacit knowledge based on experience and constitutes an important aspect of teachers' practical knowledge. The focus of this autobiographical story did not involve only the teacher but also the community, the people, the place and the culture that the teacher felt herself to be part of. Saami ancestry defined this teacher's mode of existence in a crucial way. Since she shared the cultural background of her pupils, she understood their everyday school life well. She had an important role as an intermediary at the interface between two cultures. Overall, Finnish teachers work in notably different schools and different conditions. It is important to listen to many different stories, because stories told by marginal actors may serve an emancipatory function for future teachers. Based on the findings, one of the challenges of teacher education is to develop ways of working whereby students can critically evaluate their autobiographical and personal knowledge. Personal experiential background is a valuable resource, which should be taken into account in teacher education already. / Tiivistelmä Tässä narratiivis-elämäkerrallisessa tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan Lapin kouluissa työskentelevien opettajien kertomuksia työstä ja elämästä. Tutkimuksen keskeinen käsite on paikka, joka käsitteellistetään humanistisen maantieteen näkökulmasta koetuksi paikaksi. Tutkimuksen aineistona on seitsemälle Lapissa työskentelevälle opettajalle tehdyt haastattelut. Haastatteluissa on mukana kaksi saamelaista ja viisi suomalaista opettajaa. Päätutkimuskysymyksiä on kaksi: I Millaiseksi opettajat kertovat paikan? II Millainen on opettajan tietämisen tapa paikan näkökulmasta? Tutkimuksen tuloksena syntyi kuva paikasta sisältä päin, sellainen, joka ilmentää asukkaan näkökulmaa paikkaan. Opettajien kertomukset toivat esiin viisi paikkatunnetta: huolen, sitoutumisen, kodintunteen sekä tunnustuksen ja arvostuksen tunteet. Yleisellä tasolla huoli liittyi koettuun vastakkainasetteluun etelän ja pohjoisen välillä. Opettajat tunsivat huolta myös oppilaidensa, koulujensa ja kyliensä tulevaisuudesta. Sitoutumisen ja kodintunnetta vahvistivat paikkaan liittyvä elämäntapa ja luonto sekä mahdollisuus tehdä mielekkäiksi koettuja asioita. Opettajat kuvasivat paikkaan kuulumistaan tavalla, jota voidaan ymmärtää tunnustuksen ja arvostuksen käsitteiden avulla. Tärkeässä osassa yksilön kannalta olivat arkipäivän ilmiöihin ja läheisten ihmisten välisiin suhteisiin liittyvä tunnustus, mutta myös erilaisten ryhmien ja yhteiskunnan taholta tuleva arvonanto. Tutkimuksen tuloksena avautui saamelaisen opettajan minäkertomuksen kautta persoonallisen paikallisen tiedon merkitys opettajan työssä. Persoonallinen paikallinen tieto on kokemukseen perustuvaa, hiljaista tietoa ja muodostaa yhden tärkeän osan opettajan praktista tietoa. Minäkertomuksen keskiössä ei ollut vain kertova opettaja itse, vaan myös yhteisö, toiset ihmiset, paikka ja kulttuuri, joihin opettaja tunsi kuuluvansa. Saamelaisuus määritti opettajana olemisen tapaa keskeisellä tavalla. Koska opettajalla oli samankaltainen kulttuuritausta oppilaidensa kanssa, hän ymmärsi näiden kouluarkea hyvin. Hänellä oli tärkeä, välittävä merkitys toimiessaan koulussa kahden kulttuurin rajapinnalla. Koululaitoksemme opettajat toimivat hyvin erilaisissa kouluissa ja erilaisissa olosuhteissa. Monenlaisten kertomusten kuuleminen on tärkeää, koska marginaaleista esitetyt kertomukset voivat toimia vapauttavina kertomuksina tuleville opettajille. Tutkimuksen tulosten perusteella opettajankoulutukselle voidaan asettaa haasteeksi kehittää työtapoja, joiden avulla opiskelijat voivat arvioida kriittisesti omiin kokemuksiinsa perustuvaa elämäkerrallista ja persoonallista tietoa. Persoonallinen kokemustausta on arvokas resurssi, joka tulisi pystyä ottamaan huomioon jo opettajankoulutusvaiheessa. / Čoahkkáigeassu Dán narratiiva-eallingeardedutkamušas Raija Erkkilä guorahallá Lappileana skuvllaid oahpaheaddjiid muitalusaid barggu ja eallima birra. Dutkamuša guovddáš doaba lea báiki, mii meroštallojuvvo humanisttalaš geografiija geahččanguovllus vásihuvvon báikin. Dutkamuša materiálan leat čieža Lappileanas bargi oahpaheaddji jearahallamat, main leat fárus guokte sápmelaš ja vihtta suopmelaš oahpaheaddji. Váldodutkangažaldagat leat guokte: I Makkárin oahpaheaddjit muitalit báikki? II Makkár lea oahpaheaddji diehtima vuohki báikki geahčcanguovllus? Dutkamuša boađusin šattai govva báikkis siskkobealde, mii čájeha ássi geahččanguovllu báikái. Oahpaheaddjiid muitalusat bukte ovdan vihtta báikedovdamuša: fuolla, čatnaseapmi, ruovttudovdamuš sihke dovddasteami ja árvvusatnima dovddut. Almmolaš dásis fuolla laktásii vásihuvvon vuostegeahčái mátti ja davi gaskkas. Oahpaheaddjit ledje fuolastuvvan maiddái sin oahppiid, skuvllaid ja giliid boahttevuođas. Čatnaseami ja ruovttudovdamuša nannejedje báikái laktáseaddji eallinvuohki ja luondu sihke vejolašvuohta bargat áššiid, maid vásihedje jierpmálažžan. Oahpaheaddjit govvidedje iežaset báikái gullama vugiin, man sáhttá áddet dovddasteami ja árvvusatnima doahpagiiguin. Dehálaš oasis individuála geažil lei dovddasteapmi, mii laktásii árgabeaivvi ihtagiidda ja lagaš olbmuid gaskavuođaide. Dehálaš lei maiddái dovddasteapmi, mii bođii sierralágan joavkkuin ja servodagas. Dutkamuša boađusin rahpasii sápmelaš oahpaheaddji mun-muitalusa bokte persovnnalaš báikkálaš dieđu mearkkašupmi oahpaheaddji barggus. Persovnnalaš báikkálaš diehtu lea vásáhussii vuođđuduvvi jávohis diehtu ja dat duddjo ovtta dehálaš oasi oahpaheaddji praktihkalaš dieđus. Mun-muitalusa guovddážis ii lean dušše muitaleaddji oahpaheaddji ieš, muhto baicca searvvuš, eará olbmot, báiki ja kultuvra, maidda oahpaheaddji dovddai iežas gullat. Sápmelašvuohta mearridii oahpaheaddjin leahkima vuogi guovddáš lági mielde. Go oahpaheaddjis lei seammálágan kulturduogáš iežas oahppiiguin, son áddii bures dáid skuvllaárgga. Sus lei dehálaš, sirdi mearkkašupmi doaimmadettiin skuvllas guovtti kultuvrra rádjedásiin. Min skuvlalágádusa oahpaheaddjit doibmet hui iešguđetlágan skuvllain ja iešguđetlágan diliin. Máđggalágan muitalusaid guldaleapmi lea dehálaš, go marginálain muitaluvvon muitalusat sáhttet doaibmat boahtte oahpaheaddjiide beasti muitalussan. Dutkamuša bohtosiid vuođul oahpaheaddjiskuvlemii sáhttá bidjat hástalussan ovddidit bargovugiid, maid vuođul oahppit sáhttet árvvoštallat kritihkalaččat eallingearddi ja persovnnalaš dieđu, mii vuođđuduvvá sin iežaset vásáhusaide. Persovnnalaš vásihanduogáš lea dehálaš riggodat, man galggašii sáhttit váldit vuhtii juo oahpaheaddjiskuvlenmuttus.