This study investigated foundation phase educators’ perceptions of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The educators’ views on the causes, appropriate interventions and incidence rates of ADHD were examined. A sample of 140 foundation phase educators from mainstream private and public schools participated in the study. The educators completed a self-developed questionnaire that had been piloted by the researcher. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data, in conjunction with t-tests to ascertain the differences in responses between public and private school educators. Thematic content analysis was used to identify the main categories and themes that emerged form the open-ended questions. The results revealed that the educators had a limited understanding of ADHD, in terms of what it is as well as its causes. In addition, it emerged that the educators preferred medication as the intervention method despite being aware of additional intervention methods. A comparison of the private and public school educators’ results indicated no significant difference in the educators’ perceptions regarding the cause, interventions or incidence rate of ADHD. These findings are discussed in relation to empirical studies and suggestions for future research are presented.

Thesis advisor: Thomas J. Chemmanur / Thesis advisor: Arthur Lewbel / The dissertation aims to investigate the role of asymmetric information in capital structure, investment, compensation of mortgage servicers, and bond and equity returns. Specifically, I evaluate the impact of credit ratings on debt issuance and investment of private and public firms, as well as the effect of asymmetric information on compensation of loan servicers in the mortgage backed securities market. Further, I study the relationship between ratings issued by investor and issuer-paid credit rating agencies and equity analyst recommendations. Finally, I evaluate the effect of the aforementioned signals on bond and equity returns as well as firm leverage and investment decisions. Chapter one in the dissertation is the first study to empirically evaluate the effect of credit ratings on capital structure and investment for private U.S. firms, relative to equivalent public firms. I find that private firms constrain debt issuance and investment by 4.5 and 6.5 percentage points more than public firms, respectively, when their credit ratings are on upgrade or downgrade thresholds. Consistent with these results, private firms that become public through an IPO constrain debt issuance by 10 percentage points before going public, if their ratings are on an upgrade or downgrade boundary. The second chapter studies the impact of asymmetric information between mortgage sellers and servicers on mortgage servicer compensation. We proxy for asymmetric information using the decision to retain mortgage servicing rights, which creates a principal-agent problem between sellers and servicers. Using loan-level data on Fannie Mae-insured, full documentation mortgages, we first find that loans in which sellers retain servicing rights default and foreclose at a significantly lower rate, and lose less in foreclosure than those in which they are not retained. Since it is more costly to service non-performing loans, these ex-post differences in default rates should be reflected in servicer compensation. However, using Fannie Mae MBS pool-level data, we find no difference in servicing fees for pools in which servicing rights are retained relative to pools in which they are not retained. In order to identify the impact of seller/servicer affiliation on servicing fees, we exploit a post-crisis regulatory change which altered the incentive to retain servicing rights for small sellers of MBS relative to large sellers. Finally, in the third chapter, we evaluate the information flows to the stock and bond markets of issuer versus investor-paid rating agencies and equity analysts. Equity analysts' forecasts and ratings assigned by issuer-paid credit rating agencies such as Standard and Poor's (S&P) and by investor-paid rating agencies such as Egan and Jones (EJR) all involve information production about the same underlying set of firms, even though equity analysts focus on cash flows to equity and bond ratings focus on cash flows to bonds. Further, the two types of credit rating agencies differ in their incentives to produce and report accurate information signals. Given this setting, we empirically analyze the timeliness and accuracy of the information signals provided by each of the above three types of financial intermediary to their investor clienteles and the information flows between these intermediaries. We find that the information signals produced by EJR are the most timely (on average), and seem to anticipate the information signals produced by equity analysts as well as by S&P. We find that changes in leverage are associated with lower EJR ratings but higher equity analyst recommendations; further, credit rating changes by EJR have the largest impact on firms' investment levels. We also document an "investor attention" effect (in the sense of Merton, 1987) among stock and bond market investors in the sense that changes in equity analyst recommendations have a higher impact than either EJR or S&P ratings changes on the excess returns on firm equity, while EJR rating changes have a higher impact on bond yield spreads than either S&P ratings changes or changes in equity analyst recommendations. Finally, we analyze differences in bond ratings assigned to a given firm by EJR and S&P, and find that these differences are positively related to the standard proxies for disagreement among stock market investors.

This paper explores private investments in public equity (PIPE) deals as a means of alternative firm financing. Poorly performing companies often look towards PIPEs to quickly raise capital when traditional means of financing are limited. This study provides an analysis on both the discount and premia that PIPEs are issued at, as well as the performance of firms after the deal announcement. Overall, this study finds that successful PIPEs from the investor’s perspective are issued at a discount of close to 17%, and unsuccessful PIPEs are issued at an average of a 15% premium. I find substantial cumulative abnormal returns of 9% over a three-day period due to positive information shocks. Overall, this thesis corroborates past research in the field.

Abstract Promotion of private participation is catalogized as concession model of construction means. The process is the authority to select the private sector that has the best professional knowledge and capability and to transfer the properties to the selected private sector and confer the private sector the concessionary. The private sector then is responsible to finance, construction, operation during the concessionary period. The revenue of the operation and the ancillary business that concessioned by the government will cover the cost of operations and construction. After the concession period, the rights and operations will be transferred to authority. The spirit of private participation is in the process of the private participation. The involvement of private sector injects the flexibility and energy that the government lack of. The private sector also shares the cost of construction that is some financial burden of the government. For this kind of approach, the private sector needs more flexibility and own operations freedom and shares most of the risks. As for the supervision of the government, in general, the less the better. Because the private sector makes its own construction and operations strategies and sales management. In other words, the private sector shall has the independence. The interference of the government shall be limited to minimum, even for the public interest, to prevent the incompatibility of the two sectors and the negative effect of the promotion of the public construction.. However, the supervision logic is excluding the cases that the government financing most of the cost and the interest of the public. This paper argues that the public construction with private participation approach shall be case dependent, from the administration point of view. For the high public interest and high financing project, The government based on his authority and responsibility shall be supervised intensively to ensure the quality and safety of the public construction. One of the issues that the paper raised is the supervision role of the authority. This paper argues how the authority to be a good supervisor. How the authority does his responsibility and accomplish his mission and take appropriate measures to ensure the good quality of the public service continuously. For research methodology, the reference analysis is adopted. The theory and system of private participation are discussed. As for case study, reference and interview are adopted. The supervision and management of private participation of Kaohsiung mass rapid transit by government is analysed to bridge the theory and practice. The characteristics of this project is low self-financing rate. The government financing the rest part of the cost, which is about 80%of the cost. In this project the government also guarantees the forced buy out price, which states clearly in the tri-party contract. This make the financial risk is all on government. The way of taking risk is more likely the OT approach. From the interview, the implementation of the project reveals that anti-supervision game, multi-supervision and management system. Also the different sectors has different understanding of the project. The legal position of the supervision role of the authority is the legitimate to supervise and take appropriate actions. The public sector acts according to laws and safeguards the public interest. The authority has the righteous to supervise, the legal stance. Another role of the authority is also the party of the contract to protect his interest in his investment, which is stemming from the contract, the legal rights from the private sector. During the construction and operations period, the authority shall review and supervised. The legal measures for authority includes the supervision of operations, the restrictions of concessionary, the dispositions of the assets of the construction and operations, The review of the operations fare and changes. The rights stemming from contracts includes setting the standards of the operations facility, the review of the design drawings and schedules and construction quality and subcontracting, the public tendering of parts of the governments financing. For the combinations of both supervision measures includes financial supervision and the acceptance of important contract subcontracting. If the delay of schedule, serious construction quality, serious operations problems, and breach of contract happens, the authority, for the public interest, shall coerce request the private sector to amend in due time, stop all or part of construction and operations abolish the permissions of construction and operations or coerce takeover operations or buyout to ensure the project. As for the rights stemming from contract includes risks sharing, the conditions that the intervention of the financing institutions, suspending all or part of the construction or operations, cease of contract, insurance and bond, mechanism of loyalty and fund. In this study, the legitimate of the supervision role of the authority is discussed and aims to have a robust structure of private participation of public construction system to achieve the goal of promoting public service standard and accelerating development of social economy when promoting privatization of public construction.

The managing concept of improving quality of work life has attracted attention of the researchers and practical managers gradually. The purpose of this study is to apply this concept on disposal of real estates by public and private sectors. Through discussion of relevant literature and experimental surveys, we used registrars of land administration authorities and land administration clerks of Land Administration Personnel¡¦s Association as subjects. The variables are quality of work life (including measurement perspectives such as learning development, dignity in work, nature of job, evaluation on promotion, working environment, salary and bonus, family leisure, and interpersonal interaction), attribute of individuals, city and county, and job satisfaction (including internal satisfaction, external satisfaction and overall satisfaction). In this study, the real estate operators¡¦ quality of work life, job satisfaction and the correlation between them were discussed. The return rate of questionnaires was 93% in this study. We carried out our study based on the 374 valid questionnaires with the descriptive statistical analysis, reliability analysis, independent sample T-test, one-way ANOVA analysis and Pearson¡¦s product moment correlation analysis. The important results of our research are as the following: 1.The average of quality of work life and job satisfaction is higher than the median value. This indicates that the real estate operators in both the public and private sectors recognized their perceptual experience in quality of work life and were quite satisfied with their jobs. While marriage, age and educational degree of the real estate operators in the public sector might create appreciable differences in their perceptual experience in quality of work life. 2.Differences between public and private sectors and between city and county and analysis on such differences: With respect to the perceptual experience in quality of work life and the overall job satisfaction, both the public and private sectors and the city and county have a degree of satisfaction above average. However, in terms of the degree of satisfaction, the private sector is higher than the public sector; Kaohsiung County is higher than Kaohsiung City. The parts that got the highest points and had the same perspective are nature of job and learning development. The part getting the lower points and having consistent perspective is family leisure. However, evaluation on promotion is the part in which the public sector had the lowest perceptual experience. In private sector, the lowest perceptual experience fell in salary and bonus. 3.Correlation between quality of work life and job satisfaction: In the public sector, the highest positive correlation exists between interpersonal interaction and the overall job satisfaction. In the private sector, the highest positive correlation is between family leisure and the overall job satisfaction. Based on the study results and the review of literature, we submit some suggestions on policies to public and private real estate dealers and their competent authorities, real estate operators at the basic level, and subsequent researchers for their reference in practical management.

This study explores how young Maltese women give meaning to the music they listen to and how this music is incorporated in everyday discourses and identities within the differing local contexts of their lives. This area of research has not attracted the attention of researchers and this study starts to fill this gap. The research was carried out in Malta, a post-colonial island with a population of approximately 400,000 people. Through purposive sampling and snowballing, 20 in-depth interviews were carried out with young Maltese women aged 16-34, from different social backgrounds. By looking at young Maltese women’s identities through their engagements with music, this study shows how girls experience the tensions between the opposing forces of Maltese traditional music and more modern globalised musical forms. Music was found to be a means of conspicuous leisure as well as a means of maintaining social difference and distinction. Musical taste and the social practices associated with that particular music was found to be a primary indicator of social class for Maltese girls. The significance of this study lies in the exploration of a topic that has not yet been properly researched. It combines the Maltese context and the gendered nature of identity formation in Malta’s music scene. The framework of categorisation of respondents is also significant since rather than categorising respondents according to the music they listen to, it categorises respondents through the ways in which they engage with their music. By developing Willis’s (1978) analytical framework, participants were placed into four categories of Fully Committed, Committed, Active Drifters and Passive Drifters. For each category, the most prominent characteristics of participants’ music identities are analysed. These include their understandings of social and cultural capital, structure and agency, negotiations of social boundaries and identity formation. The idea of distinct music subcultures is questioned as, in their everyday lives, young women in Malta rarely conform with distinct cultural groups but form parts of multiple groups within the contexts of their lives. Moreover, processes of hybridization seem to have erased what might have been understood as a subculture’s distinguishing characteristics. These have often become adopted and eventually absorbed by mainstream culture making distinct subcultures problematic. The findings of the research imply tensions between traditional and modern lifestyles that are, in turn, associated with different strata of social class.

Diss. (sammanfattning) Stockholm : Karolinska institutet, 2008. / CD-ROM: Titel från titelskärmbild. Även utgiven som CD-ROM.

Diversos fatores contribuem para o crescimento do papel da criança como um agente influente no processo de tomada de decisão da família, tais como aqueles relacionados ao fácil uso e interação com a tecnologia e suas diferentes formas e gadgets, além das recentes mudanças demográficas e na estrutura familiar, com a diminuição do número de crianças por família, pessoas optando por ter filhos com mais idade, pais e mães trabalhando fora, e o aumento dos rendimentos da população no Brasil, entre outros. Embora este fenômeno seja conhecido, ainda há muito para ser descoberto e entendido em relação à dinâmica que acompanha esse processo de influência reversa. Esse estudo pretende aprofundar-se nas especificidades de cada família, no estilo parental e estrutura familiar, analisando como tais questões podem impactar no processo de influência reversa entre gerações, especialmente a que flui dos filhos em direção aos seus pais. Devido ao trabalho de investigação proposto, optou-se por realizar uma pesquisa exploratória qualitativa de orientação interpretativista, partindo de uma revisão de literatura abrangente acerca do tema proposto e a partir daí com a condução de entrevistas em profundidade com 21 famílias, envolvendo pais e filhos pré-adolescentes, na idade de 10 a 14 anos, totalizando 57 entrevistas individuais. Entre os resultados encontrados destacam-se uma tendência das famílias serem mais abertas às opiniões e sugestões dos filhos, e a crescente participação desses não só na busca por informações e escolhas, mas em um peso efetivo no momento da tomada de decisão pelos pais. Outro achado trata do poder dos filhos no que se refere a consumo privado, ou seja, produtos ou serviços de interesse direto deles. Por outro lado, já se percebe também, a maior participação dos filhos no processo de compra e tomada de decisão a cerca de produtos de valores agregados, mais caros, e de uso público/familiar, fato esse enfatizado por emoções como a culpa, especialmente entre famílias com pais ausentes de fato (por motivo de viuvez ou separação dos pais) ou em função da absorção do trabalho, criando um distanciamento e uma necessidade de criação de um mecanismo compensatório. Filhos únicos também têm um papel importante nesse processo, assim com a influência de terceiros. / Many different factors contribute for the growth of children’s role as influential agents in the family decision-making process such as technology in its most different shapes, and how easy is for the children to manage them, besides the recent changes in demographic and household structures with a decrease of number of children per family, people having children later in life, parents working out of home, the increasing medium income population in Brazil, where this work took place and so forth. Although this phenomenon is known, there is a lot to discover and understand in terms of dynamics that comes along with it. This study seeks a deeper understanding into the specificities within each family like parental style and family structure, looking for responses about how these matters can also shape this process of intergenerational influence, specially the “Reversal Intergenerational Influence” which flows from children to their parents. Due the investigation work proposed, it was decided to conduct a qualitative research under interpretative guidance, starting from a comprehensive literature review regarding the proposed theme followed by 21 in-depth interviews conducted among families including parents and their children, tweens within 10 to 14 years old, giving a total of 57individual in-depth interviews. Among the findings the families openness to their children ´opinions tendency stands out, besides their growing participation in the whole family decision making process, from information search, and choices, until the real moment of purchase decision making. Another finding is related to children´s power, about private consumption, that means, products and services which they have direct interest on them. On the other hand, it is also already perceived the growing participation of children on purchase decision making process of expensive products and public/family products. This fact is emphasized by emotions like guilty, especially among families with absent parents (by widowhood or divorce) or due parents work absorption, creating a gap and a need for creating a compensatory mechanism. Unique child also plays an important role in this process as third-party influence as well.

Diversos fatores contribuem para o crescimento do papel da criança como um agente influente no processo de tomada de decisão da família, tais como aqueles relacionados ao fácil uso e interação com a tecnologia e suas diferentes formas e gadgets, além das recentes mudanças demográficas e na estrutura familiar, com a diminuição do número de crianças por família, pessoas optando por ter filhos com mais idade, pais e mães trabalhando fora, e o aumento dos rendimentos da população no Brasil, entre outros. Embora este fenômeno seja conhecido, ainda há muito para ser descoberto e entendido em relação à dinâmica que acompanha esse processo de influência reversa. Esse estudo pretende aprofundar-se nas especificidades de cada família, no estilo parental e estrutura familiar, analisando como tais questões podem impactar no processo de influência reversa entre gerações, especialmente a que flui dos filhos em direção aos seus pais. Devido ao trabalho de investigação proposto, optou-se por realizar uma pesquisa exploratória qualitativa de orientação interpretativista, partindo de uma revisão de literatura abrangente acerca do tema proposto e a partir daí com a condução de entrevistas em profundidade com 21 famílias, envolvendo pais e filhos pré-adolescentes, na idade de 10 a 14 anos, totalizando 57 entrevistas individuais. Entre os resultados encontrados destacam-se uma tendência das famílias serem mais abertas às opiniões e sugestões dos filhos, e a crescente participação desses não só na busca por informações e escolhas, mas em um peso efetivo no momento da tomada de decisão pelos pais. Outro achado trata do poder dos filhos no que se refere a consumo privado, ou seja, produtos ou serviços de interesse direto deles. Por outro lado, já se percebe também, a maior participação dos filhos no processo de compra e tomada de decisão a cerca de produtos de valores agregados, mais caros, e de uso público/familiar, fato esse enfatizado por emoções como a culpa, especialmente entre famílias com pais ausentes de fato (por motivo de viuvez ou separação dos pais) ou em função da absorção do trabalho, criando um distanciamento e uma necessidade de criação de um mecanismo compensatório. Filhos únicos também têm um papel importante nesse processo, assim com a influência de terceiros. / Many different factors contribute for the growth of children’s role as influential agents in the family decision-making process such as technology in its most different shapes, and how easy is for the children to manage them, besides the recent changes in demographic and household structures with a decrease of number of children per family, people having children later in life, parents working out of home, the increasing medium income population in Brazil, where this work took place and so forth. Although this phenomenon is known, there is a lot to discover and understand in terms of dynamics that comes along with it. This study seeks a deeper understanding into the specificities within each family like parental style and family structure, looking for responses about how these matters can also shape this process of intergenerational influence, specially the “Reversal Intergenerational Influence” which flows from children to their parents. Due the investigation work proposed, it was decided to conduct a qualitative research under interpretative guidance, starting from a comprehensive literature review regarding the proposed theme followed by 21 in-depth interviews conducted among families including parents and their children, tweens within 10 to 14 years old, giving a total of 57individual in-depth interviews. Among the findings the families openness to their children ´opinions tendency stands out, besides their growing participation in the whole family decision making process, from information search, and choices, until the real moment of purchase decision making. Another finding is related to children´s power, about private consumption, that means, products and services which they have direct interest on them. On the other hand, it is also already perceived the growing participation of children on purchase decision making process of expensive products and public/family products. This fact is emphasized by emotions like guilty, especially among families with absent parents (by widowhood or divorce) or due parents work absorption, creating a gap and a need for creating a compensatory mechanism. Unique child also plays an important role in this process as third-party influence as well.

Diversos fatores contribuem para o crescimento do papel da criança como um agente influente no processo de tomada de decisão da família, tais como aqueles relacionados ao fácil uso e interação com a tecnologia e suas diferentes formas e gadgets, além das recentes mudanças demográficas e na estrutura familiar, com a diminuição do número de crianças por família, pessoas optando por ter filhos com mais idade, pais e mães trabalhando fora, e o aumento dos rendimentos da população no Brasil, entre outros. Embora este fenômeno seja conhecido, ainda há muito para ser descoberto e entendido em relação à dinâmica que acompanha esse processo de influência reversa. Esse estudo pretende aprofundar-se nas especificidades de cada família, no estilo parental e estrutura familiar, analisando como tais questões podem impactar no processo de influência reversa entre gerações, especialmente a que flui dos filhos em direção aos seus pais. Devido ao trabalho de investigação proposto, optou-se por realizar uma pesquisa exploratória qualitativa de orientação interpretativista, partindo de uma revisão de literatura abrangente acerca do tema proposto e a partir daí com a condução de entrevistas em profundidade com 21 famílias, envolvendo pais e filhos pré-adolescentes, na idade de 10 a 14 anos, totalizando 57 entrevistas individuais. Entre os resultados encontrados destacam-se uma tendência das famílias serem mais abertas às opiniões e sugestões dos filhos, e a crescente participação desses não só na busca por informações e escolhas, mas em um peso efetivo no momento da tomada de decisão pelos pais. Outro achado trata do poder dos filhos no que se refere a consumo privado, ou seja, produtos ou serviços de interesse direto deles. Por outro lado, já se percebe também, a maior participação dos filhos no processo de compra e tomada de decisão a cerca de produtos de valores agregados, mais caros, e de uso público/familiar, fato esse enfatizado por emoções como a culpa, especialmente entre famílias com pais ausentes de fato (por motivo de viuvez ou separação dos pais) ou em função da absorção do trabalho, criando um distanciamento e uma necessidade de criação de um mecanismo compensatório. Filhos únicos também têm um papel importante nesse processo, assim com a influência de terceiros. / Many different factors contribute for the growth of children’s role as influential agents in the family decision-making process such as technology in its most different shapes, and how easy is for the children to manage them, besides the recent changes in demographic and household structures with a decrease of number of children per family, people having children later in life, parents working out of home, the increasing medium income population in Brazil, where this work took place and so forth. Although this phenomenon is known, there is a lot to discover and understand in terms of dynamics that comes along with it. This study seeks a deeper understanding into the specificities within each family like parental style and family structure, looking for responses about how these matters can also shape this process of intergenerational influence, specially the “Reversal Intergenerational Influence” which flows from children to their parents. Due the investigation work proposed, it was decided to conduct a qualitative research under interpretative guidance, starting from a comprehensive literature review regarding the proposed theme followed by 21 in-depth interviews conducted among families including parents and their children, tweens within 10 to 14 years old, giving a total of 57individual in-depth interviews. Among the findings the families openness to their children ´opinions tendency stands out, besides their growing participation in the whole family decision making process, from information search, and choices, until the real moment of purchase decision making. Another finding is related to children´s power, about private consumption, that means, products and services which they have direct interest on them. On the other hand, it is also already perceived the growing participation of children on purchase decision making process of expensive products and public/family products. This fact is emphasized by emotions like guilty, especially among families with absent parents (by widowhood or divorce) or due parents work absorption, creating a gap and a need for creating a compensatory mechanism. Unique child also plays an important role in this process as third-party influence as well.