Background: As more individuals continuously become more conscious of the external influences of their decisions, integrating social and ethical criteria and perceived non-monetary value in their investment decisions, the interest in socially responsible investments (SRI) has escalated in the past decade. Reflecting this shift, the Swedish Pension Agency continuously increases the requirements and sustainability demands for the funds available in the premium pension selection. To investigate the underlying variables affecting the decision to invest socially responsibly, the authors of this thesis studied Swedish pension beneficiaries’ demographics, attitudes and beliefs.  Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to examine the socio-demographic and psychological determinants of pension beneficiaries' and the influence of these variables on the willingness to pay for socially responsible investments. The study will additionally explore the tendency to underestimate exponential growth in one’s pension savings.  Method: The study is conducted by collecting primary data in the form of quantitative research through an online questionnaire. Based on previous research, six hypotheses are developed. This in order to investigate the relationship between willingness to pay for socially responsible investments and several socio-demographic and psychographic variables. Additionally, to examine Swedish pension beneficiaries’ tendency to underestimate exponential growth. The data collected is analysed through a multiple linear regression model and other descriptive statistics to examine if the hypotheses are rejected or not.  Conclusion: The majority of the subjects in the study are willing to pay for SRI. Gender significantly impacts the willingness to pay for SRI, as men demonstrate a lower willingness to pay than women. Furthermore, altruistic values, concern for one’s pension savings, concern for ESG-related issues (environmental, social and governance) and perceived consumer effectiveness proves to have a significant impact on the willingness to pay for SRI. Further, the sample demonstrated a definite tendency to underestimate exponential growth.

This research study explored how intercultural communication factors such as values and communication styles might affect the interaction between Tamil asylees and their U.S. social workers. For this qualitative study, I interviewed 11 Tamil asylees and conducted a focus group with 3 U.S. social workers at an agency serving the Tamil participants. Based on the findings of this research as well as the literature review, this thesis reveals culture-specific information about Tamil asylees and highlights the implications of the research to the fields of intercultural communication, refugee studies, and social work. Findings revealed the following: culture general assumptions overshadow the complexity of values and communication styles when examined in context, refugees are a unique immigrant population and therefore should be the focus of more intercultural research, competent social workers seem to possess culture-specific and general intercultural skills, and social workers can apply the methodology of this study to learn about the values and communication styles of new refugee clients.

No description available.

Democracy plays a crucial role in building a society where people’s freedom, human rights and social well-being are assured. In that light, media plays a considerable role as a source of information that can facilitate the smooth function of democracy. Due to the factors such as the rise of social media, political mismanagement and poor administration, media and democracy face numerous challenges in many countries. There is a lack of empirical research on the challenges for media and democracy from the citizens’ perspective. This study aims to identify the contemporary challenges for media and democracy in Sri Lanka from the young citizens’ perspective. Accordingly, the research question is formulated as: “What are the contemporary challenges for media and democracy in Sri Lanka from the young citizen’s perspective?”. ‘Normative theories’ are applied to understand the conduct of media. ‘Capability approach theory’ and Hasebrink’s concept of ‘users as citizens’ are used to understand the standard of living that people can achieve. This study conducted online face-to-face semi-structured interviews with sixteen young citizens in the Gampaha district in Sri Lanka. A case study research strategy was used, and the respondents were selected through purposive sampling. Thematic analysis is used to analyse the data and the identified challenges, and the sub-factors are illustrated in a thematic map. Twenty sub-factors that negatively contribute to media and democracy were identified and classified into five main challenges. The challenges for media and democracy identified in this study will be vital for policymakers, practitioners, journalists, and researchers in this area in order to mitigate the challenges whereby a sound democracy can be facilitated. These challenges identified would also be advantageous as a resource in formulating legal policies, introducing reforms and decision-making processes.

The study shows that rice water has a strong inhibitory efficacy against various AGEs and the bran layer of rice is mainly responsible for its anti-glycation activity. There are many unknown bioactive compounds in bran with anti-glycation potential. Thus, stable bioactive compounds responsible for anti-glycation of rice bran are yet to be identified. The clinical data suggests that DBR or SARFR when compared with polished rice, contributes to health promotion, including skin condition, by reducing the indigestibility of brown rice and ensuring nutrition, which facilitates continuous intake. / 博士(理学) / Doctor of Philosophy in Science / 同志社大学 / Doshisha University

Background: In today's society, there is more pressure to be sustainable and not least in the financial world. Several agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, have been created to steer countries towards more sustainability. When it comes to the economy, several SRI strategies have been developed to serve the same purpose. However, the problem that emerges is that investors who invest sustainably and use these strategies can lose returns and thus depart from their main goal of maximizing profits.   Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how SRI strategies are used by investors when constructing their portfolios in terms of profit maximization. The paper will thus conclude if the underlying motivation behind the choice of strategy is affected by maximizing profit.   Method and implementation: By conducting a qualitative study and interviewing several fund managers at the largest banks and fund companies in Sweden, the authors aim to answer the research question. The answers provided by the respondents are presented and analyzed in the empirical section and linked to the study's theory.   Conclusion: In this study, there is clearly shown that by investing, according to SRI, a professional investor is still able to profit maximize. The authors, therefore, see that the new way of being rational as an investor is to include SRI strategies. The relationship with being both sustainable and profit-maximizing can be seen as a significant motivating factor. The same can be said about reduced ESG risk and creating legitimacy towards customers. Furthermore, a combination of strategies can be seen as a way to create an optimal portfolio by the investors. This further proves that sustainable investing is the most rational way of investing and a way to achieve an investors main goal to profit maximize.

Sustainability is more relevant than ever and has forced the pension industry to acknowledge new types of responsibilities during the last decades. Sustainable pension is based on the investing strategy, social responsible investment (SRI), which implies that pension funds should not solely focus on a good return of their investment, but also care for the social and economical welfare. Research has been conducted on the area of SRI and pension during the last decades but a gap has been identified as to how this research was eventually communicated to the customers. This thesis addresses this in two parts for the target group business customers. Firstly, to meet future demands in the pension industry, a better knowledge is needed of how the business customers understand what sustainable pension really is. This thesis aims to address this by answering the question “What are business customers’ understandings of sustainability and pensions?” Secondly, customers increasingly ask what impact their money is having on sustainability. In answer to this demand, a prototype with a concretization of sustainable pension savings was developed and evaluated, following a Human-Centered Design process throughout the thesis project. Interviews were conducted with pension experts and business customers. Results showed that business customers do not make a connection between sustainability and pension, that sustainability is diffuse and hard to understand in the financial setting, and that pension is too far from the operative business and perhaps the employees’ own responsibility. When explained, the belief was that sustainable pension is something positive. But preconceived notions about it being expensive and non-lucrative are factors that discourages. The final evaluation of the prototype was done with a user test that featured three of the four business customers from the interviews. Results pointed to that the business customers think that sustainable pensions became more understandable, that sustainable pension became more concrete, that it was interesting, fresh and that it broke new ground. The user test also revealed that rebound effects is a potential risk with sustainable pension, as participants expressed that they feel better and compensated with their own CO2 emission after they learned about the positive effects of a sustainable pension. / Hållbarhet är mer relevant än någonsin och har tvingat pensionsbranschen att erkänna nya typer av ansvar under de senaste decennierna. Hållbar pension är baserat på investeringsstrategin, ”social responsible investment” (SRI), som medför att pensionsfonder inte enbart ska fokusera på god avkastning, utan även ta hänsyn till social och ekonomisk välfärd. Forskning har utförts på området SRI ihop med pension under de senaste decennierna och ett kunskapsglapp har blivit identifierat kring hur denna forskning sedermera har kommunicerats vidare till kunderna. Den här avhandlingen adresserar det här i två delar för målgruppen företagskunder. För det första, för att möta framtida krav i pensionsbranschen, behövs det en bättre kunskap för hur företagskunders förståelse för hållbar pension är. Den här avhandlingens mål är att ta sig an detta genom att besvara frågan: ”Vad är företagskunders förståelse för hållbarhet och pension?”. För det andra, kunder frågar allt mer frekvent vilken skillnad deras pengar gör för hållbarhet. För att svara på detta har en prototyp med konkretiseringar av hållbar pension utvecklats och utvärderats. Prototypen följde en Human-Centered Design process genom hela projektet. Intervjuer utfördes med pensionsexperter och företagskunder. Resultat visade att företagskunder inte kopplar hållbarhet till pension, att hållbarhet är diffust och svårt att förstå i en finansiell kontext, och att pension är alldeles för långt från den operativa verksamheten och möjligtvis den anställdes eget ansvar. När det förklarades, upplevdes hållbar pension som någonting positivt. Men förutfattade meningar att det skulle vara dyrt och icke lukrativt är faktorer som avskräcker. Den slutgiltiga utvärderingen av prototypen gjordes med ett användartest med representanter från tre av de fyra företagen från intervjuerna. Resultaten pekade på att företagskunder tyckte att hållbar pension blev mer lättförståeligt, att hållbar pension blev mer konkret, att det var intressant, fräscht och att det bröt ny mark. Användartestet avslöjade också att ”rebound effects” är en potentiell risk med hållbar pension, då deltagarna uttryckte att det kändes bättre och att de blev kompenserade för deras egna CO2 utsläpp efter att de fick veta de positiva effekterna av hållbar pension.

The purpose of the study is to understand the complex relationship between audit firm culture and audit quality within the unique context of Sri Lanka. Solely dependent on insights provided by a group of auditors the research identifies key factors that influence the culture of audit firms and its impact on the quality of audit services. The study highlights the fundamental role of ethics and professionalism as main components of audit firm culture in Sri Lanka. The auditors operate as per code of ethics promoting independence and transparency which is essential in developing trust and reliability in financial reporting and audit services. Work-life balance is another critical cultural aspect that significantly influences audit quality. Lack of emphasis on personal well-being and work-life balance will negatively impact auditors' performance and job satisfaction. The hierarchical structures in Sri Lankan society are also seen in audit firms, affecting business culture. Therefore, open communication within audit teams and senior management is essential for knowledge sharing and conflict resolution. The implementation of modern technology, improving technical skills, and regular training in accounting and auditing standards have been identified as vital factors in ensuring audit quality. Furthermore, the study recognizes that competitive remuneration and the recognition of professional auditors play a substantial role in retaining and motivating staff as equal opportunity audit firm culture ultimately enhances audit quality. The Sri Lanka’s regulatory influence and audit framework highlights the importance of adherence to ethical and professional standards where practicing audit firms influences its culture and improve audit quality. The interaction of the above factors forms the culture within audit firms in Sri Lanka, subsequently impacting the quality of audit services. Addressing these aspects Sri Lanka can enhance its audit quality and create a reliable financial reporting environment

No description available.

Cela fait plusieurs années que le conflit au Sri Lanka s’est officiellement terminé. Pendant près de 20 ans, l’armée et les Tigres de Libération de l’Îlam tamoul se sont affrontés. Durant les années de conflit, le gouvernement sri lankais a instruit plusieurs commissions d’enquête et de vérité afin de faire face aux abus et aux violations des droits humains. Celles-ci n’ont pas exaucé les promesses de vérité et justice dont elles étaient porteuses. Il en va de même pour les commissions étant apparu à la fin du conflit. Cette recherche a pour but l’analyse de la primauté du droit au Sri Lanka à l’issue des différents mécanismes se rapportant à la justice transitionnelle dans le pays. Plus précisément, nous procédons à un travail de définition de la primauté du droit qui s’attache aux échecs du gouvernement dans sa tentative de faire face à l’héritage du conflit. En conclusion, nous fournissons une définition de la primauté du droit capable de revaloriser la justice transitionnelle dans le pays, et dont les caractéristiques sont fondées sur une approche holistique du contexte. / It has been almost several years since the conflict in Sri Lanka officially ended. For nearly 20 years, the army, and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Îlam fought. During the years of conflict, the Sri Lankan government initiated several commissions of inquiry and truth commissions to address human rights abuses and violations. These commissions have not kept their promise of truth and justice. The same is true for the commissions that emerged at the end of the conflict. The purpose of this research is to analyze the rule of law in Sri Lanka through the various transitional justice mechanisms in the country. Specifically, we proceed to define the rule of law as it relates to the failures of the government to address the legacy of the conflict. In conclusion, we provide a definition of the rule of law capable of enhancing transitional justice in the country and whose characteristics are based on a holistic approach to context.