The thesis examines the History Workshop at the University of the University of the Witwatersrand in the context of radical South African historical scholarship. Not only is the History Workshop shown to mirror developments in radical scholarship but it is seen to guide and stimulate particular directions of research. The history of the Workshop is traced and its academic as well as popularising activities are examined. The Marxist social history approach, which was encouraged by the Workshop, is considered with reference to the social and political environment in which it emerged, and the international and local historiographical context. The issues, themes and concepts reflective of that approach are unpacked and some thought is given to their impact on Marxist categories of analysis. The History Workshop is seen to reflect and to have some influence on the direction pursued in labour and urban as well as rural history. In labour history, it pursued concerns of the social history of labour. Labour history was to take two different paths in the 1980's due partially to the influence of the Workshop group. Urban history grew rapidly as a field in the 1980's. The triennial Workshops reflected that development while the Workshop group particularly encouraged social history concerns within that field. The development of Marxist social history is seen in the change from an economistic approach in some of the papers presented at the first History Workshops to a broader social history emphasis in many of the later papers. The themes and issues arising out of urban Marxist social history are considered, as is their impact on the understanding of South Africa's urban history in general. The Workshop reflected and encouraged social history themes in rural history studies, which was another expanding field of research in the 1980's. These themes incorporated Africanist insight as well as an emphasis on oral history and local history. The Marxist social history studies, which were presented at the triennial Workshops, produced new insights into the rural history of South Africa which challenged earlier theories. The History Workshop with its materialist social history approach acted as a forum and as such, a catalyst for a radical scholarship in South Africa. The triennial workshops reflected what was happening in the terrain of Marxist social history. These Workshops, which attracted a large gathering of local, as well as foreign academics, legitimised that research and gave the Marxist social history scholars a certain standing within the local academic community. Although the study of South Africa's past may have similar directions in the late 1970's and 1980's without the presence of the Workshop, that presence gave a coherence and an added impetus to those routes of Marxist social history.

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTERS IN EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY at the UNIVERSITY OF ZULULAND, 2006. / This study examines factors contributing to school dropout among learners in a rural farm school. The researcher used the qualitative case study method as a research design. The participants in this study were ten young people between the ages of 16 and 20 who dropped out of school, four mothers of the learner participants, as well as two educators. Data was collected though the use of school records, semi-structured interviews and one focus group interview. Data analysis was done through the process of coding. The findings reveal that several factors contribute simultaneously to school dropout: personal problems, the family, economic causes, school factors, teachers and friends. The emphasis, however, lies with economic factors and school factors that include the actions of teachers. Strategies in identifying and intervening with at-risk learners are recommended. It became apparent with this research that the actions of teachers as well as inadequacies within schools need to be addressed as a priority if the problem of school dropout is to be dealt with effectively.

Thesis (M.M. (Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, Wits Business School, 2017. / This explorative study examines the decision making criteria at the screening stage by venture capital firms in South Africa. The study also probes into the decision making criteria on the personality side and whether that has any association with the “big five” characteristics. A threesection questionnaire including both Likert style type (decision making and short version of big five) and nominal questions was sent to venture capital firms. Logistic regression as well as correlation analysis was run on the data. The findings were that individual attributes (entrepreneurs’ characteristics and experience) environment, industry and macro economic environment (characteristics of product and services, characteristics of the market and financial considerations) are all positively related to venture capital firms’ decision to grant finance to an entrepreneur. Findings on the big five characteristics are that only openness to experience, consientiousness and extrarversion were seen as critical considerations by venture capital firms, but not agreeableness and emotional stability characteristics. The study findings are beneficial for entrepreneurs and venture capital firms. / MT2017

A research project submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MA in Psychology in the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 20 June 2018 / This study explores the relationship between multilingualism and working memory. Multilingual advantages in various executive functions have been established, but little is known about whether multilingual advantages extend to working memory capacity and functioning, or about the effect of speaking more than two languages. In a sample of 189 multilingual young adults in South Africa, this study used a multiple regression design in which numerous aspects of multilingualism - balance in proficiency across and within languages, the age of acquisition of additional languages, and speaking a third language - could be compared with one another while controlling for socio-economic status. Four aspects of working memory (verbal storage, verbal processing, visuospatial storage and visuospatial processing), measured using the Automated Working Memory Assessment (Alloway, 2007), acted as the dependent variables in respective regressions while independent variables measuring multilingualism, including the continuous measures of balance in reading, speaking and understanding proficiency across languages, were based on self-report information from the Language Experience and Proficiency Questionnaire (LEAPQ; Marian, Blumenfeld, & Kaushanskaya, 2007). Balance in proficiency emerged as a strong predictor of the verbal processing component of working memory, while no aspect of multilingualism significantly predicted visuospatial working memory. Combined with other results, this finding suggested that the effect of multilingualism on working memory may not follow the pattern observed in other tasks where multilinguals are advantaged in domaingeneral executive functions (like inhibitory control) but disadvantaged in linguistic tasks. Multilinguals’ experience in storing and processing linguistic information may lead to advantages (possibly through managing attention) that are specific to this kind of information. Keywords: bilingual advantage, executive function, multilingual advantage, trilingualism, working memory ! / GR2019

Submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Philosophy of Arts in Psychology. / This thesis involved a psychological study of the shamanic trance states of South African shamans. Literature on shamanism has marginalized or neglected Africa. The aim of this study was to establish the main elements unique to South African shamanic trance states, as well as to establish common factors with other traditions of shamanism. The developmental aspect of the South African trance states was investigated in order to highlight and explore possible pathological or transcendental aspects of such trance states.(Abbreviation abstract) / Andrew Chakane 2020

This report gives an overview on issues surrounding sustainable water management practices, specifically, rainwater harvesting (RWH), for low income households in South Africa. The agenda for sustainable development in South Africa has over time, downplayed the importance of Rainwater Harvesting. However, the South African Region is already a water scarce area, experiencing environmental and other threats to its limited water resources such as rapidly increasing demand for water from a growing population and economic sectors. A purely qualitative research method was used to conduct this Research Report which demonstrated that Rainwater Harvesting across the world can bring immense socio-economic and environmental benefits such as increased food security, improved sanitation and quality of the natural environment. A key question of this Research Report was to establish whether Rainwater Harvesting could be feasible for use in Low-income households in South Africa. This research revealed that the DoH and DWAF can constitute projects for Rainwater Harvesting for Low-income households in their programmes.

This study examines the economic sense in policies that promote or aim to attract more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by specifically focusing on the determinant of FDI and how they impact the economic growth of South Africa. The study empirically identifies and investigates the determinants of FDI on South African economic growth as well as FDI attraction and its correlation with economic growth over the period 1994 to 2010 through the utilization of Cointegration and Error-Correction Model to identify the variables in explaining FDI in South Africa. This study analysis trends and the determinants of FDI as well as their impact on the South African economy. FDI is seen as the means of providing the needed capital injection to stimulate growth in the host economy. FDI can as well result in increased employment rate, managerial skills and technological increase. Multinational Corporation (MNC) should agglomerate in such a way that is consistent with country specific externalities. There is somewhat weak evidence that FDI generates positive spillover effects to the host country. In instances where FDI generates positive productivity spillovers for domestic market economy, FDI subsidies and incentives should be warranted particularly where they have been proven to have a catalytic role in FDI attraction. The study also indicates a positive and significant impact of reform on FDI in South Africa. The study considers trade Openness, GOP per capita as well as the Cost of labour variables on explaining FDI inflows. All variables indicate correct signs and are statistically significant except for cost of labour. There is some mild evidence that labour cost impedes FD I inflows. The infrastructure levels as well as other variables are directly related to FDI. In its endeavour to attract FDI , the host country undertakes various policy incentives to attract foreign investors. All these outcomes have important implications for improving the national economy which can be helpful in the allocation of funds and resources much needed for FDI attraction. This study clearly emphasizes the role of policy in FDI attraction as well determining short-run and long-run growth in South Africa by firstly providing the macroeconomic background. Secondly, it reviews FDI literature on its determinants and related policies undertaken in South Africa. It further establishes a linear empirical relationship between these determinants, and variables to determine the direction of the causality as well as contribute to the debate on the relationship between FDI and growth through regression analysis. It assesses the growth implications of FDI in South Africa and the regional economic implications by subjecting FDI to Granger causality tests within the cointegration framework. The results suggest that in the host country, there exist a positive correlation between FDI and economic growth. In relation to other developing countries as well as the size of the economy, South Africa still receives low levels of FDI inflows with exception of 1997, 2001 and 2005. The major contributors are financial sector, mining and manufacturing sectors. One can conclude that the South African government should consider encouraging capital-intensive FDI through capacity building and further development of skilled labour force. The empirical analysis indicates that openness, the rate of exchange as well as the financial development and improved labour costs are important long run determinants of FDI . The study sets up further research that may be helpful in exposing the South African economy with greater FDI potential as well as indentify regional specific interventions needed to improve certain conditions to receive more FDI. The effects of trade liberalization imply that African countries require African specific solution. Policies that have been successful in other countries may not suggest that they equally successful in African countries. / Thesis (M. Commerce in Economics) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2012

This paper reports on the investigation of ICT adoption of tourism SMMEs in Ngaka Modiri Molema District of the North West Province in South Africa. Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to 200 tourism enterprises with the response rate of 68%. The results indicate, that the level of adoption of ICT is highly influenced by the perception of ICT adoption of tourism SMMEs. Most of the tourism SMMEs use ICT for business purpose and factors such as size of enterprise; location of enterprise; knowledge among owners; improvement of business performance in terms of revenue and financial resources and initial ICT costs have an impact on ICT adoption by tourism enterprises. / Thesis (MBA) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2011

The study is based on the time series analysis of stock prices in South Africa. It uses the data covering the period 1980Q1 to 2010Q4 to test the effect of inflation on stock prices. The analysis is done using Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag Model (ARDL). First, we investigate time series properties of data. The unit root test results reveal stock prices (SP), interest rate (IR), economic growth (GOP) and real effective exchange rate (EXCR) are integrated of order zero -1(0), while the growth of money supply (MS) and inflation were found to contain unit root. The Augumented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) test and the Philips-Perron (PP) tests were used to test for unit root. Causality test suggests that causation runs from inflation to stock prices. Cointegration test shows that there is cointegration and as such, Error Correction Model (EC) is done to establish short-run and long-run dynamics. The study shows that inflation does contribute negatively to stock prices. / Thesis (MBA) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2011

The USA's financial and economic crisis spilled over and resulted into a "global" financial crisis (GFC) that impacted several developed and developing countries. Regarding the latter, trade affairs have been identified as being a major growth component for the economies of developing countries. In particular, numerous studies have highlighted the importance and benefits of international trade on a country's path to promote economic growth rates. In lieu of the above, the main aim of this study is to assess the impact of this crisis on the South African steel trade industry, with special emphasis on the periods 'before', 'during' and 'after' the GFC. Through efficient targeting of a specific sector and its industry within the South African economy, government entities would be able to determine the extent that they could gain effective targeting and allocation of resources. Past research papers, relevant theoretical frameworks and data have been taken into consideration to form the basis of our analyses. In essence, we analysed the South African economy as a whole and tried to identify its relationship with the trade industry during this study period. Therefore, a composition of South Africa's economic activities and an economic profile was also determined and discussed. In addition. we implemented Porter's competitive strategy and diamond theory, to identify whether the South African steel trade industry has a competitive advantage. From the analyses we concluded that the steel trade industry of South Africa was adversely impacted in 2009. the 'during' period of the GFC and showed the 'after' period as the recovering period for the industry. Evidently, there is a positive correlation between the steel trade industry of South Africa and the country's economy ' before', during' and after' periods of the GFC. This positive correlation can be contributed to the trade sector's influence on the economy's overall state, as imports and exports have been identified as a key aspect to economic growth, and vice versa. Identified recommendations include the need for more research on the South African steel trade industry's competitors, in order to realize possible opportunities for the industry itself and realize increased growth patterns, as well as extensive promotion that could lead to amplifying trade flows benefiting the South African economy. / Thesis (M.Com. (Economics) North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, 2012