Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1998. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [161]-180).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 1999. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 269-293). Available also in a digital version from Dissertation Abstracts.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University / The purpose of the present study is to investigate the relationship between patental social mobility and (a) subjects' status aspirations, (b) perceived parental status expectations. The subject population utilized consisted of 263 male students in the final year of junior high school. Two major hypotheses were tested by this investigation. Hypothesis I was that the level of subjects' status aspirations would be found to be a positive monotonic function of the extent of parental social mobility. Hypothesis II was that the level of perceived parental status expectations would be found to be a positive monotonic function of the extent of parental social mobility. [TRUNCATED]

352 pages / What can be called the conventional view concerning the operation of family, kinship and other ascriptive ties during social change in non-Western countries is subjected to an extensive critique. The conventional view typically characterizes social organization in non-industrial areas as primarily subject to ascriptive principles. Social values are conceptualized as "tradition," "primitive," or "custom-bound," and it is asserted that an emphasis on family ties and ascription is part of an integrated set of phenomena found in non-industrial areas. With respect to industrial societies, the conventional view asserts that ascriptive principles do not operate to any important degree. These societies are described by concepts such as "modern," "civilized" or "individualistic," and it is argued that an emphasis on individual achievement and competition are part of an integrated set of phenomena found in more developed societies. The conventional view stresses the interrelatedness of all parts of society and therefore societies at different levels of development must have different social structures and social values. In this view, social change becomes a shift from phenomena which characterize the "traditional" society to phenomena which characterize the "modern" society. Since these two societies are in opposition at so many points it is asserted that the shift is generally sudden and dramatic. This dissertation criticizes the conventional view for its assertion that societies can be divided into these two types and that social change generally can be conceived of as a transition between these types. Societies with different levels of technology may in fact have similarities in their social organization. Social relationships are regular and recurrent but the same regularity may be found at different technological levels. In addition to offering a unique theoretical synthesis, the dissertation offers empirical data on the existence of achievement orientations among tribal peoples. A total of 1330 workers were sampled at four rubber plantations in Liberia, West Africa. The majority can be described as achievement oriented. Variables reflecting the conventional view, e.g. "modernization," "industrialization," and "urbanization" were used in an attempt to explain these findings. Specifically studied were education, work experience, "adaption to wage-labor," self-conception and urban experience. Achievement orientation was not positively related to any of these variables. Instead, this dissertation accounts for the existence of an achievement orientation among tribal people by showing that the amount of achievement orientation varied by tribe. Two factor analyses and a cluster analysis show that although a basic similarity existed among the tribes, i.e. all stress achievement, men from three Kwa-speaking tribes in our sample, the Kru, Krahn, and Grebo, were more achievement oriented than men from the other seven tribes. This variation by language group suggested that an explanation for the existence of achievement responses should be sought in the social structure of the tribes. Historical and ethnographic data showed that the Kwaspeaking group have a distinctive history of occupying coastal jungle areas and governing themselves through decentralized political authority. They did not have secret societies nor did they congregate in dense populations. The Mande and West Atlantic-speaking peoples had been pushed toward the coast by expansionary pressures from the interior. These latter peoples were relatively more stratified, had secret societies, were more likely to have farmed, and had a centralized political authority. The existence of centralized authority and secret societies probably weakened individual achievement emphases. This evidence shows the existence of achievement orientations among tribal peoples and provides an explanation for it that contrary to expectations of the conventional view does not make reference to modernization.

The HIV and AIDS pandemic has resulted in 14 million children being orphaned worldwide. In Lesotho alone, where this study was carried out, there are about 180 000 of these children (UNAIDS, 2007). Teachers, especially in Lesotho‘s primary schools need to be equipped to better deal with the challenges that result from having these children in their classrooms. At the Lesotho College of Education, where I have worked for 12 years as a teacher educator, pre-service and in-service student teachers are not trained to offer care and support to orphans and vulnerable children. They experience problems in the classroom emanating from the needs of these children. This study followed an action research design to find ways to support teachers to better deal with the issues they face as a result of having orphans and vulnerable children in their classes. Using a qualitative approach, educators perceptions, feelings, attitudes and experiences in dealing with orphans and vulnerable children in their schools were identified, and it became apparent that educators were negatively affected on a personal and professional level. It was concluded that the development of resilience in educators would help them to better cope with orphans and vulnerable children in their classes. The chosen intervention Resilient Educators Programme (REds) was implemented and evaluated and findings revealed that it was beneficial in increasing educator resilience. Recommendations, based on the findings of the study, were made for future teacher education in this area.

A national probability sample of over 4,000 American women was surveyed to determine the variables associated with magnitude of satisfaction with life. A life satisfaction index was constructed from the women's responses to satisfaction with five domains of life. Satisfaction with community, leisure, friends, and family were measured on a seven-point scale. Work satisfaction, which was measured on a four-point scale, was weighted to give it comparable status with other components of the index.

Magister Philosophiae (Land and Agrarian Studies) - MPhil(LAS) / Following Bryceson's article, 'De-agrarianisation in Sub-Saharan Africa: Acknowledging the Inevitable', and other related writings in the volume Farewell to Farms, rural development has become a contested academic and policy domain. One side of the debate is characterized by 'agrarian optimism', mirrored in various state policies and advice from the World Bank; the other side is typified by the de-agrarianisation thesis, which is sceptical regarding the agrarian path to rural development, because it doesn't accord with dominant trends. The main reasons given for the trend of de-agrarianisation are: unfavourable climatic trends, economic adjustments, and population growth. While the de-agrarianisation thesis seems to be a sensible proposition, it has failed to attract many disciples, evidenced by the continuation of current policy directions towards the agrarian optimistic path. The purpose of this study was to assess the applicability of the de-agrarianisation thesis in the Gokwe-Kabiyuni area of Zimbabwe, during a time when the nation went through climatic, economic and political crises. The idea was to assess the influence of such an environment to smallholder farmers in terms of livelihood strategies by observing trends in climate, education, occupation, and crop yields over the period. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used to establish whether the de-agrarianisation process can be noted in two villages over the period 1990-2008. A comparative analysis of the experiences of smallholder farmers in these two villages revealed the existence of a cultivation culture and differential agrarian resilience depending on natural resource endowment and levels of infrastructural development, notwithstanding the involvement of the villagers in non-farm activities to diversify their livelihood portfolios. / South Africa

No description available.

Gender inequality and women empowerment constitute one of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agreed to, by United Nations in 2000. The South African 2010 country report on MDGs shows an increase in the share that women have in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector. It further states that in the Eastern Cape Province, women accounted for more than half of employees in the non-agricultural sector. This study conducted evaluated gender differences in terms of wage employment in a semi-urban village in the Eastern Cape. Findings show that gender differences in wage employment still exist, in favour of males.

No description available.