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Four out of five Americans will require some postsecondary education. Therefore, a majority of population will return to a community college for retraining and personal growth (McCabe, 2003). Since the turn of this century, many studies have been conducted to examine the success and challenges of the relatively new community college system. One of the most significant challenges is the large percentage of the U.S. population requiring remedial coursework. Fifty-five percent of students entering Florida's postsecondary system require remediation. Of this large remedial population, only 51% will complete their preparatory classes. Students who do complete classes take an average of two years to finish preparatory classes and move on to college-level work. It is hypothesized that learning styles information will empower students with knowledge about their study habits and positively effect academic achievement. This research first examined the quantitative effect that learning styles information had on student achievement. The second qualitative phase of the study examined students' perceptions of learning styles information. Three Introductory Algebra (MAT 0024) courses at a large suburban community college were intensively studied during one spring semester. Due to the size of the study (N=69), results obtained in the quantitative portion were not significant enough to accept the hypotheses. Responses in focus groups showed that students generally felt that learning styles information was useful and half the class used the information to modify how they studied. Half of the students in the control group modified their study habits in response to knowing more about their learning style. Although the qualitative data was supportive of the usefulness of learning styles information in the classroom the quantitative data did not support the hypotheses that learning styles information improves achievement.

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This study provides an insight into the food waste in primary production of vegetables with links to the influencing cosmetic preferences from the consumer level. To study farmers, a qualitative approach has been chosen and a quantitative approach has been taken for the consumer. To study these complex dependency relationships in the food chain, system theory has enabled a holistic overall picture based on these two approaches. The purpose is to identify the problem to increase the understanding of the causes and origin of food waste in primary production. Furthermore, the goal is that the empirical evidence will identify some possible development potential to reduce food waste in primary production. Sweden is an import-dependent country as well as Gävleborg County where, however, there are good development opportunities seen in the arable land where an increased degree of self-sufficiency can reduce the vulnerability in the food supply chain. From this perspective there is a need for an optimized food supply chain where food waste is minimized, self-sufficiency increases and import dependency decreases. Reducing production waste is an important part of the transition towards a more sustainable food production where system efficiency improvements are required at the macro, meso and micro levels. In order to answer what the study intends to investigate, a qualitative interview survey was conducted at four local farmers in Gävleborg County. A supplementary questionnaire survey with end consumers was also established to elucidate influential cosmetic preferences, such as an oblique carrot or scurf on a potato peel. The interviews and questionnaire survey has since been anchored in a literature study. The results of the interview study of the four farmers show that the main causes of the occurrence of food waste are due to severely affected factors such as weather conditions, pests, diseases / fungal infestation and even a small number of quality quality / cosmetic preferences. None of the farmers had any established measurements methods for food waste, which makes the statistical data more difficult. The results of the survey show that there is a knowledge gap regarding crops and their origin where more information would mean that the consumer considered the product choice. The survey showed that there was a willingness to pay more to meet specific purchasing preferences where information can broaden these preferences and allow for more sustainable choices. / Denna studie ger en inblick i uppkommet svinn i primärproduktionen av grönsaker med kopplingar till de påverkande kosmetiska preferenserna från konsumentledet. För att studera jordbrukarna har ett kvalitativ angreppssätt valts och för konsumentledet ett kvantitativt tillvägagångssätt. För att studera dessa komplexa beroenderelationer i livsmedelskedjan har systemteorin möjliggjort en holistisk sammantagen bild utifrån dessa två angreppssätt. Syftet är att identifiera problematiken för att öka förståelsen om svinnets orsaker och uppkomst i primärproduktionen. Vidare är målet att det empiriska underlaget ska leda till att identifiera eventuell utvecklingspotential för att minska svinnet i primärproduktionen. Sverige är ett importberoende land och likaså Gävleborgs län där det också finns goda utvecklingsmöjligheter sett till åkerarealen där en ökad självförsörjningsgrad kan minska sårbarheten i livsmedelskedjan. Utifrån den aspekten finns behov av en optimerad livsmedelskedja där svinn minimeras, självförsörjningsgraden ökar och importberoendet minskar. Att minska produktionssvinnet är en viktig del i omställningen mot en mer hållbar livsmedelsproduktion där systemeffektiviseringar behövs på makro-, meso- och mikronivå. För att besvara det studien ämnar undersöka har en kvalitativ intervjuundersökning genomförts hos fyra lokala jordbrukare i Gävleborgs län. En kompletterande enkätundersökning hos slutkonsument har även upprättats för att belysa påverkande kosmetiska preferenser, till exempel en sned morot eller skorv på potatisskal. Intervju- och enkätundersökningen har sedan förankrats i en litteraturstudie. Resultatet från intervjuundersökningen hos de fyra jordbrukarna visar att huvudorsakerna till uppkommet svinn beror på svårpåverkade faktorer som väderförhållanden, skadedjur, sjukdomar/svampangrepp och även en mindre del kvalitetskrav/kosmetiska preferenser. Ingen av jordbrukarna hade några upprättade mätmetoder för svinnet vilket försvårar den statistiska datan. Resultatet från enkätundersökningen visar att det finns en kunskapslucka om grödor och dess ursprung där mer information skulle innebära att konsumenten övervägde produktvalet. Enkäten visade att det finns vilja att betala mer för att tillgodose specifika inköpspreferenser där information kan utöka dessa preferenser och möjliggöra för mer hållbara val.

Extremely polymorphic genes of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) play a significant role in the function of immune system by recognizing heterogeneous particles, mainly pathogenic origin. Previous research on various vertebrate species indicates that MHC influences individual body odour and mate choice preferences. Many individuals tend to prefer MHC dissimilar partner so that warrants them an offspring resistant against wider spectrum of infections. Research on MHC-related mate preferences in humans, however, is inconclusive to date. Several studies indicate that women not taking hormonal contraceptives prefer the smell of MHC dissimilar partners while other studies have not come to this conclusion. This can be caused by the absence of potentially influencing factors like the menstrual cycle phase. The aim of this study was to test MHC-similarity mate choice preferences in odour, facial and vocal modalities. In particular, we focused on a potential effect of hormonal contraception. Furtermore, we tested preferential shifts across the menstrual cycle by comparing women's preferences in the follicular and the luteal phase in pill and non-pill users. A group of 52 women in different phases of their menstrual cycle rated odour samples, photos and vocal recordings taken from 51 men. All...

Background: Anecdotal accounts of stereotypes and/or generalisations about perceived generational differences within the workplace have become commonplace. Generational cohort theories are often used to identify generational cohorts of employees that are argued to be different, including having differing expectations, needs, preferences and even values. In addressing and/or accommodating such individual differences organisations are increasingly adopting strategies and interventions that take such generational differences amongst employees into account (Costanza & Finkelstein, 2015). Addressing generational differences within the workplace has particularly become popular in the design and implementation of total reward or remuneration and recognition strategies, policies and practices. Understanding generational and/or demographic characteristics, specifically differences, that create distinct cohorts allow organisations to design reward and recognition packages that create distinctly unique value for their employees. Offering tailored or more focused reward strategies and practices, designed with individual differences in mind are believed to enhance attraction, employee engagement and retention and so allow an organisation to bolster its competitive advantage and contribute to sustained organisational success (Snelgar, Renard, & Venter, 2013). In support of this notion, empirical studies are showing promising results for targeted reward strategies and practices. Rationale for the Research Study Effective talent management, i.e. attracting, engaging and retaining sought-after highly skilled employees is critical for the success of any organisation. However, organisations are increasingly experiencing challenges in recruiting, motivating and retaining scarce human capital, colloquially referred to as talent (Barkhuizen, 2014). Failure on the part of organisations to understand and adapt to differences in the workforce may result in them not being able to attract the talent required; keep employees motivated and engaged; and experience unintended employee turnover which is associated with notable direct and indirect costs for them (Westerman & Yamamura, 2007). Organisations, therefore, are constantly searching for new and innovative approaches to more effectively attract, retain and engage employees (Snelgar et al., 2013). There is a growing body of research (Haynes, 2011; Snelgar, Renard, & Venter, 2013) that has shown that identifying distinct reward and recognition preferences amongst cohorts of employees and targeting reward and recognition strategies accordingly, is showing promising potential in this regard. When designing and implementing targeted approaches to reward and recognition, employee cohorts are most often identified using generational cohort theory, i.e. using various established guidelines to group employees into generational cohorts that are believed to be distinctly different to one another, while those within these groups being more similar than not. Results obtained from studies using these various employee cohorts as a framework have been used to inform the design of targeted reward and recognition practices and policies. Generational cohort theory is, however, mostly grounded on a set of historical events that took place in the United States of America (USA). Despite this, the American-based framework used to identify individuals belonging to various generations has been adopted globally, both within organisations and even used in research studies published in peer-reviewed literature. However, several authors have criticised the indiscriminate use of a popular American-based generational framework, i.e. focusing on events affecting Americans arguing that this has resulted in a somewhat narrow or even skewed view generational cohorts. These authors have gone as far as to argue that the American-based generational framework may not be appropriate or ineffective outside of the USA at all (Close, 2015). Following this reasoning, they have called for alternative frameworks that create distinct generational cohorts relevant in contexts outside of America, i.e. based on different events and criteria more applicable to those contexts. Aim of the research study The aim of the present study was to investigate the reward preferences of a broad range of employees in an effort to assess whether the popular generational model of Strauss and Howe (1991) is relevant and/or as effective in a non-American context, as well as to possibly find support for alternative perspectives or approaches to identify distinct generational cohorts in organisations that may be more appropriate and/or effective when designing reward offerings for different cohorts of employees. Given time and cost constraints, South Africa was chosen to investigate this claim given that it is a developing economy (vs the USA being a developed economy) and has a different set of notable events that have shaped its history to that which is applicable to the USA. Given the aim of the present study, an exploratory research design was considered most appropriate to investigate generational cohort theory within a non-American context as a framework to identify employee groups/cohorts that have distinctly different total reward preferences. For the purposes of the present study, it was decided that a quantitative approach would be followed as it is most useful to draw conclusions or inferences related to the total reward preferences of employee groups/cohorts. The present study followed a non–probability or convenience sampling approach with a realised sample of 169 respondents. The majority of respondents were Coloured and were further female, with majority of attaining a qualification post matric. Main results and findings A one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) revealed no statistically significant difference between the generational groups based on the popular generational model of Strauss and Howe (1991), nor for a proposed generational cohort framework that was designed for the purposes of the present study and which was based on notable South African historical events. Following a data-driven exploratory approach, cluster analysis, on the other hand, yielded three distinct generational cohorts based on their perceived reward preferences for typical total rewards elements. Significant differences in the total reward preferences of respondents born after 1994 and those before 1994. Choice-based modelling (choice-based conjoint analysis) revealed that most respondents considered financial rewards as being the two most preferred total reward elements for them, including remuneration (guaranteed pay) followed by benefits and then non-financial rewards (work-life balance being the most preferred non-financial reward preference). Theoretical and Practical Implications Numerous research studies have made use of the popular American-based generational model to identify the reward preferences of cohort groups, without taking into account context-specific variables. There is further a dearth of empirical research that has been conducted to investigate generational cohort theory specifically, while none were found that were conducted in developing economies, such as South Africa. The present study address this gap in current literature. The use of choice-based modelling or choice-based conjoint analysis, furthermore, makes a methodological contribution given that this method is seldom found in total reward preference studies. This method was shown to identify total reward preferences that could not be determined using a field-survey or questionnaire. Choice-based modelling is different to typical survey approaches in that it is better able to replicate human decision making, i.e. assessing relative importance of attributes and levels based on combinations of choices and related sacrifices that humans deal with when making a choice-decision. In terms of the practical contribution of the present study, the results provide insights for organisations that may be incorporated when designing differentiated total reward strategies to accommodate and/or address the needs of the different generational groups.

Background: E-commerce has experienced tremendous growth in the past few years. At the same time, the Covid-19 pandemic has swept across the world. As a result, many people became enforced to stay more at home because of restrictions and lockdowns, resulting in an even larger increase for the e-commerce industry, and some changes in consumer behavior. In relation to this, the last-mile delivery industry has seen demand shock as a result of the increased volumes within e-commerce. Purpose: The purpose of this paper aims to answer two research questions: How have Swedish e-consumer behaviors and preferences towards delivery services changed due to the Covid-19 pandemic? And how will Swedish e-consumer behaviors and preferences towards delivery services change after the Covid-19 pandemic? Method: With the research questions in mind, an exploratory inductive study was developed using qualitative and quantitative data. As a result, an interview and a survey were developed. The interview provided first-handed insights from the industry to better give an understanding of the challenges of the pandemic and the effect on consumer preferences. The survey on the other hand investigated consumer preferences regarding five different LMD service offerings: home delivery iiwithout signature, home delivery with signature, delivery to service points, delivery to parcel lockers, and pick-up at web shop's physical store. Another aspect of the survey is that the consumer preference is explored before, during, and after the pandemic.  Conclusion: The findings of this study conclude that Covid-19 has significantly impacted peoples' preferences regarding last-mile delivery preferences. As a general conclusion, consumers prefer delivery methods which reduce human contact as well as travel distance. The findings of this study will provide the industry with meaningful insights as well as contributing to the existing knowledge of last-mile delivery.

This thesis reviews theories about migration, relocation and residential choice focusing on middle-class migrants as the target group within the Swedish context. I argue that middle-class migrants represent an increasing group of migrants within the European Union since the economic crisis of 2008. This time period has seen increased migrant fluxes mainly from Southern to Northern European states. The middle-class migrants have particularities that distinguish them from traditional mass migration. This study aims to learn more about their reasons to move to another country (in this study, Sweden) and their process of settlement (and integration) within the urban context in Stockholm) assessing which factors affect their residential choices. On the basis of qualitative methods, I assess the results of the research interviews of a convenient sample of 9 middle-class newcomers to Stockholm, with previous literature. Results of this study suggest that individual residential choices are related to socio-demographic variables, lifestyle, taste and previous personal experiences. Nevertheless, residential choices and the process of settlement and territorial integration are also limited due to the nature of the housing market, the institutional context, tenure choice, sources of information and economic constraints. In short, the middle-class immigrants represent a small group, which is heterogeneous in terms of culture, race, profession, level of education, country of origin, languages, that shows preference for diversity and the inner city. They do not show preference for co-ethnic or cultural concentration, neither tendency to segregation at the neighborhood scale.

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Effekterna av covid-19 pandemin har ytterligare accelererat den utveckling som skett i samhället under en längre tid. Allt mer av den privata och yrkesmässiga vardagen sker numera digitalt, där distansarbete blivit normen för många. Arbetslivet är möjligen det område som har påverkats allra mest av pandemin och medfört att en stor del av företagen tvingats ställa om sin verksamhet. Den ökade digitaliseringen har gjort att människor kan arbeta från i stort sett var som helst i världen och att en fysisk arbetsplats inte längre är fullkomligt nödvändig. När många företag skär ned på sina kontorslokaler och uppmanar till ökad flexibilitet, så kvarstår dock fortfarande behovet av att ha en fast punkt och en plats där socialt utbyte sker. Coworking spaces är en kontorsform som växt sig allt starkare i takt med detta eftersom det möjliggör både flexibilitet och social interaktion i ett paket. Flera undersökningar pekar nu mot att efterfrågan och tillväxten på coworking spaces kommer att vara hög framöver. Samtidigt är detta ett relativt outforskat fenomen och det saknas studier om vad som gör dessa framgångsrika. Syftet med denna studie är därför att öka förståelsen för hur coworking spaces kan stärka sitt värdeerbjudande, och därigenom attrahera fler användare. Mer specifikt är studien avgränsad till att studera coworking spaces i Västerbotten, vilket bidrar till att nytt geografiskt område undersöks. Genom kvalitativa intervjuer med såväl användare som värdar, ämnar studien bidra med stöd och vägledning för coworkingföretagen. Resultatet visar att företagens nuvarande värdeerbjudande till viss del skiljer sig från användarnas preferenser, vilket kan vara både intressant och insiktsfullt för företagen. Vidare visar resultatet att flertalet aspekter värdesätts annorlunda i jämförelse med tidigare studier, vilket tyder på att användarnas preferenser kan skilja sig världen över. För coworkingföretagen blir det därför viktigt att fortsätta studera användarnas preferenser i den miljön de verkar i, för att på så sätt utveckla sitt värdeerbjudande än mer framöver. En del i utvecklingen bör vara att sprida konceptet coworking och medvetengöra fler personer om dess värde och aktualitet i den allt mer flexibla verkligheten. Genom att göra detta finns det goda möjligheter till att fler personer väljer att gå den vägen och göra coworking spaces till sin arbetsplats i framtiden.