The purpose of this study was to examine the phenomenon of resilience by means of a literature review (to obtain a theoretical view) and empirical research, particularly to understand why some adolescents with Intellectual disability (ID) were resilient. Firstly, my motivation was curiosity (as teacher of many years of adolescents with ID) about why some youths coped better with the daily challenges that ID brought than some of their peers with ID. Secondly, there was a gap in the existing literature. Although there were studies that, among others, reported the rights of adolescents with ID to quality service provision, the risks that they and their parents/caregivers could expect daily, and challenges and coping skills for teachers/parents and caregivers who worked with these learners every day, I could not locate any South African studies, and only five international studies, that reported the protective resources/processes in adolescents with ID. The purpose of the study was to hear the voices of the adolescents themselves regarding what they, from the reality/context of their life-world, viewed as that which supported them, intrinsically as well as extrinsically, towards resilience. I also asked the teachers (as secondary informants) who worked with the adolescents with ID every day to complete a questionnaire about what (risks as well as protective resources), in their opinion, had an influence on the resilience of these adolescents with ID. I did this qualitative case study with the help of 24 primary informants (that is, adolescents with ID) who all attended schools for the physically and severely intellectually disabled in Gauteng province, South Africa, and 18 of their teachers. On account of the limited literacy of the adolescents with ID, I used a visual participatory research method, namely, draw-and-talk. This involved the primary informants drawing what made them “strong” in life. This was followed by informal conversations where the adolescent informants explained what they had drawn and why. The findings of this study were in agreement with existing literature that reported that resilience was a dynamic, socio-ecological, transactional process between the adolescent with ID (obtaining and using protective resources) and his/her surrounding environment (the ability of the community to supply these resources that could serve the adolescent with ID as buffer against daily risks). The findings included previously non-reported protective processes, namely a supportive social ecology that treated the adolescent as an agentic being (providing opportunities for socially appropriate choices and dreams for the future after school life) and the importance of providing safe spaces for adolescents with ID to be nurtured (children’s homes and/or school hostels). The study also considered what resilience processes there were in the currently existing schools for the physically and severely intellectually disabled. These considerations were aimed at teachers with the hope that they would support teachers and schools to support the adolescent with ID towards resilience. In summary, the study hoped to capacitate teachers, parents, and caregivers to better understand the adolescent with ID and to be aware of how they could support the youth to be resilient. / MEd (Learner Support)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

Research regarding employee well-being has generally been neglected in the non-profit organisation (NPO) sector. In many aspects NPOs function similar to for-profit organisations, but face challenges such as more financial restraints. Despite these difficulties, many people choose to work at and remain employed with NPOs. The NPO sector is expanding at a rapid pace and therefore needs to recruit and retain people more effectively without spending too many resources. The objective of this study was to investigate the role of psychological capital (PsyCap) in the decision to work in the NPO sector, and determine further reasons to choose and remain with this sector. An explanatory sequential mixed method design was used with an availability sample (N=108) of employees at an NPO in the social services sector in Gauteng and North West provinces. In the quantitative study, the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ) was used as measuring instrument. The qualitative study entailed semi-structured interviews with participants with lower (n = 8) and higher (n = 8) PsyCap. The results indicated that NPO employees had a higher level of PsyCap. Differences with regard to their preference to work at an NPO were found between individuals with higher and lower levels of PsyCap, specifically pertaining to the reasons for joining an NPO, motivation, meaning, fulfilment and viewing their work as a calling. No clear inconsistencies with regards to rewards and the choice of working in the NPO, public and private sectors were found among individuals with higher and lower PsyCap. The main reasons influencing the decision to work at an NPO were altruism, type of rewards, job satisfaction, organisational factors, positive social influence, and experiencing their work at an NPO as a calling. The study addresses the lack of research on employee well-being in the NPO sector and extends PsyCap research to NPOs. Characteristics of employees who choose to work in NPOs are emphasised. Recommendations for the organisation and suggestions for future research are presented. / MA (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

Competitiveness and gaining a sustainable competitive advantage are very important factors when analysing the success of companies involved in the aviation industry in South Africa. The success of these companies will depend on their ability to maintain technological capabilities in the areas of human resources and product development. Global aviation currently is concentrated in a few countries, with the USA being the largest contributor to an industry which is regarded as one of the fastest globalizing industries in terms of market structure and production systems. In South Africa, companies have managed to develop skills in aviation manufacturing. The opportunities that will be created, owing to changes in global production chains, will enable South African companies to establish themselves further as global suppliers. The aviation industry contains high risks, especially because it is considered to be the industry which acts as a driver for innovation. Complexity of production, the capital-intensive nature and high risks involved in developing new products and services have linked the industry to inevitable political influence and support. The industry can broadly be divided into two main sectors: military and commercial. Analysts predict that opportunities in the global aviation markets in future will increase considerably. This is attributed to more Asian, African and Latin-American regions capitalizing on opportunities that exist mainly within the commercial sector. They will form strategic alliances which will enable them to perform on low-cost platforms and offer exceptional services to major players in the aviation sector. To capitalize on these opportunities, companies need to analyse their external and internal environment. The main objective of this study is to analyse and to evaluate the competitive environment of a selected aviation company, to ensure that the best strategy is chosen and adopted and to confirm that the company can create and sustain a competitive advantage over competitors. The planning tools utilized in this study are the PEST and SWOT analyses. Both have been used in the strategic planning process of many other firms. These analyses have proved to be the key element needed to formulate an action plan to be and to stay competitive in the aviation industry. This study evaluates both of these planning tools and applies them to the company chosen for this case study. / MCom (Management Accountancy), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

The main focus of this study was on making recommendations towards the refinement of REds that should increase its effectiveness in supporting educators affected by the HIV and AIDS pandemic towards coping resiliently with the challenges of the pandemic. The educators are affected by_ learners, colleagues, family members who are HIV positive or dying from AIDS-related illnesses, or teaching orphans and vulnerable learners made by HIV/AIDS pandemic. To achieve this aim, I followed a pm-experimental pre-test-post-test design. Within this design, I used qualitative methods of data collection, to comment on how successful REds was in encouraging participant resilience and to comment on how REds could be refined. Ten affected educators volunteered to take part in this study, being three males and seven females. Their ages ranged from 35-56 and they were all primary school educators. All the participants came from one school in the Eastern Free State province (Thabo Mofutsanyana district). REds was implemented in Thabo Mofutsanyana district because this is where I live and work and the school is accessible to me. The participants were all esothospeaking and adhered to Sesotho culture. They all taught AIDS orphans and vulnerable children. My findings from this study documented that participants seem to have benefitted from their participation in REds. In general the participants reported more resilient management of the challenges brought in by the HIV/AIDS disaster and although this cannot be finally linked to their participation in REds, participants in general they made such a link. REds need to be refined witl1 regard to content, language and activities that will do more to encourage assertiveness. / M.Ed., North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2010

The purpose of this study was to examine the phenomenon of resilience by means of a literature review (to obtain a theoretical view) and empirical research, particularly to understand why some adolescents with Intellectual disability (ID) were resilient. Firstly, my motivation was curiosity (as teacher of many years of adolescents with ID) about why some youths coped better with the daily challenges that ID brought than some of their peers with ID. Secondly, there was a gap in the existing literature. Although there were studies that, among others, reported the rights of adolescents with ID to quality service provision, the risks that they and their parents/caregivers could expect daily, and challenges and coping skills for teachers/parents and caregivers who worked with these learners every day, I could not locate any South African studies, and only five international studies, that reported the protective resources/processes in adolescents with ID. The purpose of the study was to hear the voices of the adolescents themselves regarding what they, from the reality/context of their life-world, viewed as that which supported them, intrinsically as well as extrinsically, towards resilience. I also asked the teachers (as secondary informants) who worked with the adolescents with ID every day to complete a questionnaire about what (risks as well as protective resources), in their opinion, had an influence on the resilience of these adolescents with ID. I did this qualitative case study with the help of 24 primary informants (that is, adolescents with ID) who all attended schools for the physically and severely intellectually disabled in Gauteng province, South Africa, and 18 of their teachers. On account of the limited literacy of the adolescents with ID, I used a visual participatory research method, namely, draw-and-talk. This involved the primary informants drawing what made them “strong” in life. This was followed by informal conversations where the adolescent informants explained what they had drawn and why. The findings of this study were in agreement with existing literature that reported that resilience was a dynamic, socio-ecological, transactional process between the adolescent with ID (obtaining and using protective resources) and his/her surrounding environment (the ability of the community to supply these resources that could serve the adolescent with ID as buffer against daily risks). The findings included previously non-reported protective processes, namely a supportive social ecology that treated the adolescent as an agentic being (providing opportunities for socially appropriate choices and dreams for the future after school life) and the importance of providing safe spaces for adolescents with ID to be nurtured (children’s homes and/or school hostels). The study also considered what resilience processes there were in the currently existing schools for the physically and severely intellectually disabled. These considerations were aimed at teachers with the hope that they would support teachers and schools to support the adolescent with ID towards resilience. In summary, the study hoped to capacitate teachers, parents, and caregivers to better understand the adolescent with ID and to be aware of how they could support the youth to be resilient. / MEd (Learner Support)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

Research regarding employee well-being has generally been neglected in the non-profit organisation (NPO) sector. In many aspects NPOs function similar to for-profit organisations, but face challenges such as more financial restraints. Despite these difficulties, many people choose to work at and remain employed with NPOs. The NPO sector is expanding at a rapid pace and therefore needs to recruit and retain people more effectively without spending too many resources. The objective of this study was to investigate the role of psychological capital (PsyCap) in the decision to work in the NPO sector, and determine further reasons to choose and remain with this sector. An explanatory sequential mixed method design was used with an availability sample (N=108) of employees at an NPO in the social services sector in Gauteng and North West provinces. In the quantitative study, the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ) was used as measuring instrument. The qualitative study entailed semi-structured interviews with participants with lower (n = 8) and higher (n = 8) PsyCap. The results indicated that NPO employees had a higher level of PsyCap. Differences with regard to their preference to work at an NPO were found between individuals with higher and lower levels of PsyCap, specifically pertaining to the reasons for joining an NPO, motivation, meaning, fulfilment and viewing their work as a calling. No clear inconsistencies with regards to rewards and the choice of working in the NPO, public and private sectors were found among individuals with higher and lower PsyCap. The main reasons influencing the decision to work at an NPO were altruism, type of rewards, job satisfaction, organisational factors, positive social influence, and experiencing their work at an NPO as a calling. The study addresses the lack of research on employee well-being in the NPO sector and extends PsyCap research to NPOs. Characteristics of employees who choose to work in NPOs are emphasised. Recommendations for the organisation and suggestions for future research are presented. / MA (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

Resilience, in an organizational sense meaning the ability to withstand crises and disturbances, has become a keyword during the last ten years. It is associated with established activities like risk and crisis management and business continuity planning or with strategic management, but it allows for new perspectives and insights into the conditions for doing business. Applied to the whole supply chain it also provides tools for managing and aligning the logistics flows in an appropriate way. But why is resilience essential for success or survival? In context to the Swedish textile and clothing (T&amp;C) industry, the average number of firms that went bankrupt during the recent crisis (2007-09) escalated twofold compared to the average over 2000-10 due to tremendous pressure on the Swedish credit system. The structural industrial statistics also plummeted in these crisis years aggravating other inherent or internal problems as a ’ripple effect’. The small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) were the most affected of all, facing major threats to their financial performance and ultimately to their survival, at times of economic crises. In such a context, study of organizational resilience (ORes), to survive and thrive becomes increasingly significant. To address this issue the thesis concentrates on understanding the resilience development process through crisis strategic planning in context to Swedish textile-related SMEs amidst economic crises. It investigates and answers how resilience development can be considered as a precursor for business success, how to develop and monitor resilience, and identifies its antecedents and key strategic initiatives and their differential degrees of influence. No prior studies describing organizational resilience and crisis strategic planning in an integrated processual approach using both short-term and long-term strategies through planning and adaptation were found in the literature. The thesis adopts a critical realist-grounded theory (CR-GT) approach along the metaphysical level as the structure for the resilience development process follows a causal relationship between the object (the organization), its structure (competences and strategies), the causal power (crisis strategic planning) for attaining an event/outcome (resilience) in a particular context (economic crisis). For addressing this issue of devising an outcome-based processual approach, a multivariate financial indicator called the Altman’s Z-score (used basically for calculating bankruptcy potential in firms) was used for quantifying resilience. For investigating the causal mechanism epistemological relativism along the grounded theory approach was chosen for theory generation. A mixed methodology was adopted based on quantitative statistical analyses, at first, followed by a detailed qualitative work based on surveys, interviews, case studies and secondary data for data triangulation. Analysis of data was conducted through certain thematic coding principles. A four-step hermeneutic spiral was followed by systematically combining the pre-understanding, empirics and extant literature to develop a theoretical framework through constant modification. Overall, the resilience development was highlighted along a processual framework adopted along the CR-GT view of causation. The findings are manifold. Firstly there is a need to develop economic resilience in SMEs to shift from just component-view to a more holistic systemic view of organizations, upheld by an integrated crisis strategic planning (CSP) approach, for facing dynamic environments. Secondly, the CSP process prescribed in the thesis is quite integrated and holistic, taking a view from all angles, viz. organizational structure (capabilities and strategies), processual approach etc. Such a resilience development process through CSP is based on a six-step process: (i) identification of environmental context, (ii) impact analysis, (iii) leadership analysis, (iv) capability analysis, (v) formulation/selection and implementation of strategies, and (vi) evaluation and review of strategic options, utilizing a suite of strategic tools and techniques and is particularly simple for application in an SME setting. Third, operationalization of such a causal mechanism based upon implementation of strategic tools is based upon using a multivariate financial indicator like Altman’s Z-score to outline the relation between ORes and business ‘health’, thus quantifying it. Finally, in order to develop a resilient organization it is important to engage and utilize effectively the key resources and assets (financial, material, social, networks) by developing dynamic capabilities (strategic and operational flexibilities, redundancy, robustness) and organizational learning (culture, employee wellbeing, attentive leadership and decision-making). These competences must be employed for the appropriate strategy development (selection, implementation, and evaluation) framed on both growth and continuity strategies, both planned and adaptive in nature. The research develops a holistic analytical framework of organizational structure for resilience development based on these two criteria. It also tests this framework for Swedish textile-related SMEs amidst economic crises. The findings in this contextual delimitation suggest that the resilient SMEs possess better financial resources, relational networks, operational &amp; strategic flexibilities. The economically resilient firms mostly showed planned resilience in economic crises based on long-term strategies through business continuity planning (BCP) and in terms of growth strategies through market penetration, diversification and transformational initiatives. These firms also showed better short-term crisis management (CM) through higher operational flexibility while the less resilient ones lacked in strategic readiness due to resource scarcity. This is beneficial for firms to understand the key areas in which to invest and develop a multistrategic CSP model, categorizing firms along different resilience types – planned or adaptive. / <p>Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Science in Technology to be presented with due</p><p>permission for public examination and criticism in Festia Building, Auditorium Pieni Sali 1, at Tampere University of Technology, on the 11th of October 2013, at 12 noon.</p>

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Psychology / Clive J. A. Fullagar / Entrenched within the sphere of positive psychology, the present series of studies takes a progressive approach to understanding and furthering the practical application of constructs subsumed within the subfield of positive organizational behavior (POB). The progression begins with Study 1, which analyzes the factorial structure and psychometric footholds of the primary measurement instrument for Psychological Capital (PsyCap), one of the newer positive psychological constructs. This study suggested that both the measurement of this construct in addition to its factor structure may need to be reevaluated in order to best conceptualize the multifactorial nature of this variable. In turn, Study 2 involves resilience, one of the four aspects of PsyCap, and suggests that it may play an important role in molding employees’ work experiences. Specifically, Study 2 explores the relations between workload and eudaimonic and hedonic well-being over a two-week period, finding that workload is negatively related to eudaimonic well-being, but, interestingly, positively related to hedonic well-being. However, hypotheses suggesting that resilience and role salience may independently moderate workload’s relations with eudaimonic and hedonic well-being were not supported. Finally, recognizing the potential value of these positive psychological constructs (resilience and well-being in particular) for employers and employees alike, Study 3 aimed to develop interventions capable of increasing individuals’ positive personal resources, whereby they may enhance their ability to endure work challenges and even thrive in the face of such challenges. Findings indicated that the intervention targeting resilience did not result in significant differences between a control group and the intervention group. The intervention targeting well-being resulted in no differences in hedonic well-being, but did evidence differences on the personal growth aspect of eudaimonic well-being. Overall, these three studies taken together speak to the applicability of positive organizational behavior constructs in the workplace, and how such constructs might be enhanced in employees.

What would happen if, the systems we deal with everyday, and the situations we find ourselves in, could trigger us to give something to someone else? This work started by exploring the theme of  money systems and social structures and the ambition to find alternatives for our current economic system, which has failed in several ways. People all over the world are already coming up with alternatives that can supplement and stabilize our money-monoculture and that give new meaning to currency.This research investigates a particular alternative economic system called the gift economy, which has great potential to build meaningful relations and re-establish a sense of  community. Since the gift economy has been mainly researched by anthropologists and ethnographers in the last century, my focus is on implementing its principles in society today. Through literature review, case studies and a series of  design projects, this thesis articulates possible ways of  triggering a gift economy. With a special coin, a concept for a bar and by linking the local bakery to Konstfack, we may start to understand what giving really means, how it can benefit us, in what way it can build more meaningful relationships and how it can offer an alternative way of  thinking than what currently drives our economic system

The purpose of this study was to investigate factors that influence resilience after trauma among internally displaced persons in Kiambaa village, Uasin Gishu County, Kenya. The rationale, the problem statement, the objectives as well as the research questions and the theoretical framework were presented in chapter one. The theoretical concepts of Richardson’s “meta-theory of resilience and resiliency” and Joseph and Linley “organism valuing theory” guided this study. The problem statement posited revealed that when people experience tragic events such as violence they get traumatized. Despite this, there are individuals who are able to adopt and bounce back with minimal disruptions to their lives, a factor referred to as resilience. Chapter two presented related literature by reviewing empirical research studies on the internal and external factors that contribute to resilience after trauma. Chapter three discussed the methodology of the study. The study adopted a mixed design approach. The target population for this study was 50. It comprised all individuals who were victims of the fire tragedy at Kiambaa village. Twenty two respondents for this study were selected from the target population using purposive and snow ball sampling techniques. Questionnaires and unstructured interview schedule were the main tools of data collection. The Big Five Inventory (BFI) by John, Donahue, & Kentle, (1991) personality were used to classify respondents’ personalities.The 25 item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale 25 (CD-RISC-25) (used with permission) (Connor, & Davidson, 2003) was used to measure the resilience levels of the respondents. Means and Standard deviations were computed to quantify the amount of variation or dispersion of resilience among the respondents. Responses from research tools were cleaned, coded and entered into Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for analysis. Descriptive data were organized into themes and categories and presented according to the objectives of the study. Pearson product moment correlation analysis, Chi square correlation analysis and Spearman rank correlation analysis were computed to establish the relationships between study variables. Chapter four presented findings in form of tables, cumulative frequency counts, graphs and charts. The major findings of the study were as follows: The internal factors that contribute to resilience in individuals were age, gender and personality. However, gender had a greater influence on individuals’ resilience levels. Other factors included personality and age. The main external factors that contributed to resilience in individuals of the fire tragedy at Kiambaa were spirituality and social support. The results of a Pearson correlation analysis confirmed a strong positive correlation between social support and resilience of individuals (r=0.835, p<0.05). Chapter five presented conclusions arising from the findings which indicated that age, gender, personality, spirituality and social support are significant internal and external factors that influence resilience levels of individuals. The study recommends that there is need for professionals working with traumatized individuals to be more familiar with these factors that contribute to resilience. The researcher also recommends that there is need to extend the present study by including other potentially important variables such as a wider range of psychosocial resources or health-related variables. Understanding the influence and importance of these variables may help to clarify the role of resilience in post-disaster adaptation. In addition, the researcher recommends that there is need to further extend the study to investigate the relationship between psychological resilience and another positive outcome, such as posttraumatic growth (PTG). / Psychology / Ph.D. (Psychology)