Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

Thesis (M.F.A.)--West Virginia University, 2005. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 147 p. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 5).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--UCLA, 2008. / Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 297-321).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Berkeley, 1989. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [243]-279).

In African countries emerging from periods of violent crisis a layer of civil society practitioners and peacebuilders appear to play a critical role in mediating the inevitable disputes and tensions that arise. This treatise focuses on a sample of these mediating practitioners who perceive themselves in a variety of different ways, as peacebuilders, as conflict managers, as conflict resolution practitioners and as conflict transformation practitioners. The practitioners who participated in this study work at multiple levels to support the mediative processes that are needed in contexts of crisis and transition. They form part of a wider group of practitioners who have taken the initiative to organise insider mediators into a learning community of practitioners, under the auspices of the African Insider Mediators Platform (AIMP). This platform provides scholars with a useful research opportunity. The overall aim of this study is to explore the relationship between conflict transformation theory and the establishment of the AIMP as perceived by AIMP practitioners. It captures the perceptions that mediators have of the nature of the conflicts in which they are engaged and the influence of theoretical approaches on their practice. The treatise focuses on the perceptions of selected mediation practitioners associated with the AIMP. It draws out the conceptual lenses that are used to inform perceptions of effective mediation practice and that connect the perceptions of practitioners with the concepts contained within the conflict transformation theory. In so doing it describes the perceptions of practitioners and discusses the extent to which these perceptions resonate or deviate from theoretical conceptualisations of conflict in Africa and the theoretical frameworks that outline what constitutes an effective mediative response to this conflict. The insights into effectiveness that emerge from this approach are outlined in the treatise, drawing from background research that has informed the formation of the AIMP as well as from interviews carried out with selected mediation practitioners. The research findings suggest that there are several perceived connections between the theoretical underpinnings of conflict transformation approaches and the practice of the insider mediators involved in this study. The discussion of the data puts forward the proposition that the conceptual perceptions of the insider mediators involved in the study, in their description of elements of mediation practice and the nature of conflict, resonate strongly with the theories associated with conflict transformation thinking. In addition several additional theoretical influences appear to have been incorporated into an overall approach to discrete and collaborative mediation efforts that reinforce a strong connection between conflict transformation thinking and the practice of insider mediators. These relational connections between theory and practice are outlined in some detail in the description of the study that follows.

No description available.

No description available.

The main objective of this study was to analyze the knowledge and opinions on Xenophobia among Students in North West University, Mafikeng Campus, North-West Province, South Africa. The hypotheses tested by the research were that negative opinions about foreigners lead to inclination to xenophobia; positive opinions about foreigners lead to non-inclination toward xenophobia and that economic and sociological factors influence negative opinions about foreigners. The results of the study showed that the major source of opinions about foreigners were mostly through personal contact with foreigners possibly within the university environment as foreign lecturers and students account for a sizable percentage of the university population. The majority of the respondents knew and understood xenophobia as hatred and dislike of foreigners. Many of the respondents were of the opinion that only a few South Africans were xenophobic. Only 2.5% actually admitted to having hatred and dislike for foreigners. It was found that whereas the incIination of respondents to xenophobia decreases with increase in friendships with foreigners, it increases with increase in the opinion that foreigners must not be allowed into South Africa. Al so while inclination of respondents to xenophobia increases with increase in the opinion that foreigners are a threat to locals securing matrimonial partners; in their own words "taking away their women", surprisingly it decreases with increase in the view that foreigners are taking the jobs meant for South Africans. Previous studies have shown that attitudes toward xenophobia arc mostly associated with people with very little or no educational exposure and that fear, dislike and hatred, generally result from ignorance. This appears to be the case regarding xenophobia and negative attitudes towards foreigners in South Africa, the primary challenge identified here is education. Adult education at grass-root level has a role to play. It is recommended that citizens be given access to accurate in formation through all sorts of media such as television programmes, radio, newspapers and magazines, to dispel myths and stereotypes about migrants, immigrants and refugees. In addition, a greater sense of continental ism and international ism should be developed in the country through adult education and curriculum reform at schools and through the public pronouncements of opinion-makers. Service delivery should also be improved in the rural areas and township settlements which evidently arc the areas prone to such incidents of xenophobia. Immigration laws should be revised to provide guidelines regarding the issuance and renewal or permits, as well as implementing more stringent steps to ensure effective border control, thereby limiting and eventually curbing illegal migrants in the country. / Thesis (M. Arts) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2011

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Psychology / Master / Master of Philosophy

This paper examines the ways in which corporate social responsibility (CSR) is used by mining companies in Peru to minimize conflict between themselves and communities. It assesses the use of CSR at both the community and national levels, and concludes that there are important limitations to a reliance on the privatized management of social conflict. Most importantly, a reliance on corporations to manage conflict in which they themselves take part inherently limits the outcomes of this conflict for the communities to those which do not threaten the business interests of the companies. This paper further argues that the political organization of communities and the involvement of external actors in the conflict has an effect on the type of CSR policies enacted by the company. Thus, communities who are better organized, especially with the help of external actors, may achieve more favourable results from CSR-led negotiations with companies.