On the 1st of November 2010 more than 70% of small companies on the stock market, in Sweden, have chosen to abolish the audit system; however despite this elimination some companies advocated the importance of using the audit system. The aim of the paper is to highlight and explain the underlying reasons to that the owners of small limited company chooses to retain the audit. A qualitative method was adopted which uses semi-structured interviews, a total of 13 interviews were conducted, two of them were face to face and eleven were phone interviews. The empirical results showed that there are a number of reasons behind the small companies choice of audit, serving its own cause, seriousness of the audit system, information asymmetry, the Swedish Tax Agency, the credibility of the various stakeholders, the need of advice, lack of time, lack of knowledge in economics, educational level concerning finance and sales, to name a few.

The study sought to explore and describe the breastfeeding practices of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) positive postnatal clients’ non-commitment to exclusive breastfeeding in George Mukhari Hospital, South Africa. A non-experimental quantitative design was used. Inferences drawn from the study were that HIV positive clients that opted for exclusive breastfeeding did not commit for fear of transmission of HIV to the baby and exclusive breastfeeding was stopped before the recommended 6 months. Most of the respondents’ partners did not come for counselling. There was lack of emotional support by staff after testing. Health education and emotional support of HIV positive clients has to be intensified. / Health Studies / M. A. (Health Studies)

This study sought to determine factors that militate against men’s participation in the current Zimbabwean functional literacy programme. The research utilized the case study design and the data collecting instruments included in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and observations. Twelve adults, seven males and five females aged between thirty-nine and sixty-five years of age were interviewed by the researcher on “Why men were not participating in the functional literacy programme”. No similar research had ever been conducted in Zimbabwe since the inception of the programme in 1992. The definitive findings of the study include a grounded research theory which was extrapolated from the data. After a thorough scrutiny of the data collected, it was possible to conclude that while many of the barriers to literacy participation are similar, the bread and butter issues need to be acknowledged by literacy providers when aiming to attract men into and retain them within the programme. The research also found that poverty, past negative experiences during the early school days, and stigma related issues, were the major inhibiting factors against men’s participation in the programme in the Mazowe district. Although the research had time related and operational limitations, these were however, repulsed by controls effected by the researcher. The diversity of qualitative data collecting instruments played a positive role in ensuring checks and balances in the type and authenticity of data collected. In order to retain male participants in the programme, a supportive environment is recommended. This can be achieved if voluntary literacy tutors are trained in design and delivery of instruction as well as in mobilizing strategies, so that they are sensitive to male participants’ circumstances. The income generating projects in which men are currently involved, need to be made more viable in order to boost their morale. / Educational Leadership and Management / D. Ed. (Education Management)

This paper explores the extent to which corporations currently increase the voluntary disclosures in triple bottom line (TBL) reports. Although research already has provided substantial contributions as to why and how firms apply TBL reporting, there remains limited understanding of the motivations for and against making voluntary disclosures. Drawing from literature in environmental management and accounting as well as international auditing, this work focuses on guidance, boundarysetting and external assurance for TBL reports. An inductive case study approach is applied to investigate the credibility of TBL reporting by contrasting the competing predictions from legitimacy theory and voluntary disclosure theory on voluntary disclosures. A set of firm and industry specific factors are identified that are expected to determine a firm’s level and extent of reporting. The sample comprises nine US and EU red biotechnology corporations which aligned their TBL reporting to the GRI reporting standards in at least part of their TBL reports that were published between 2000 and 2009. An initial attempt is made to systematically investigate the credibility of TBL reporting to develop the model of voluntary disclosures. The empirical findings of this case study suggest that current guidance, boundary-setting and assurance for TBL reports are not sufficient to increase the credibility, comparability and reliability of reporting. Voluntary disclosure theory can serve to provide economic motivations, while legitimacy theory is helpful to provide a legitimating motivation. The findings support the notion that the economics-based factors better explain the secrecy strategy of providing mainly soft disclosures. The increase of disclosure levels maybe is considered sufficient to respond to public pressure. This work concludes by suggesting some directions of research in the areas of boundary-setting and assurance that have academic and practical implications.

Titel: Finansiella målsättningar inom årsredovisningar – En kvantitativ studie av svenska börsbolag Nivå: C-uppsats i ämnet företagsekonomi Författare: Andreas Hamrén och Nils Ryngmark Handledare: Arne Fagerström Datum: 2016 – januari Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att beskriva och jämföra skillnader angående finansiella målsättningar i årsredovisningar samt hur förutbestämda faktorer påverkar dessa skillnader.   Metod: Studien har en kvantitativ metod som utgår från en deduktiv ansats. Insamlingen av data har skett från årsredovisningar, som sedan ställts mot tidigare forskning och teorier. Dokumenten har granskats med en innehållsanalys för att sedan undersökas genom korrelationsanalyser som presenteras tillsammans med resultatet. De oberoende variablerna som studien utgått ifrån är bransch, storlek, antal styrelseledamöter, lönsamhet och skuldsättningsgrad. Resultat och slutsats: Studiens resultat tydliggör flertalet skillnader och likheter gällande finansiella målsättningar. De slutsatser som dras utifrån de statistiska testerna är att storlek och skuldsättningsgrad hade signifikanta samband med antalet finansiella målsättningar. Styrelseledamöter visade ett svagare samband, medan lönsamhet inte hade någon korrelation. Den deskriptiva variabeln bransch åskådliggjorde stora skillnader mellan segmenten och gav en bild av tillhörighetens betydelse för differensen. Uppsatsen bidrag: Det praktiska bidraget ger en bild över förekomsten av finansiella målsättningar på Stockholmsbörsen samt vilka typer av mål som är vanligast förekommande. Bidraget kan ge ett förslag till nynoterade bolag i uppbyggnadsfasen angående i vilken utsträckning marknaden presenterar målsättningar. Det teoretiska bidraget kan stärka intressent- och signaleringsteorins betydelse gällande frekvensen av målsättningar. Förslag till fortsatt forskning: Förslag till vidare forskning är att komplimentera studien med intervjuer, detta för att få en uppfattning av de bakomliggande faktorerna till utformandet av målsättningarna. Ett ytterligare förslag är att inkludera exempelvis den danska börsen som är liknande den svenska för att finna avvikelser mellan företagskulturerna. Nyckelord: Finansiella målsättningar, frivillig information, framåtblickande information, årsredovisningar, asymmetrisk information, intressentteorin, signaleringsteorin / Title: Financial targets in annual reports – a quantitative study of swedish listed companies Level: Final assignment for Bachelor Degree in Business Administration Author: Andreas Hamrén and Nils Ryngmark Supervisor: Arne Fagerström Date: 2016 - January Aim: The purpose of this study is to describe and compare differences regarding the financial objectives in the annual reports and how predetermined factors influence the differences. Method: This study has a quantitative method based on a deductive approach. Data have been collected from annual reports, which are then set against previous research and theories. The documents were reviewed by a content analysis then examined by correlation analysis and presented along with the results. The independent variables of the study were industry, company size, number of board members, profitability and debt ratio. Result and conclusion: The result of the study make clear majority of the differences and similarities regarding financial objectives. The conclusions drawn on the basis of the statistical tests are that the size and debt ratio have a significant correlation with the number of financial objectives. Board members showed a weaker correlation, while profitability had no correlation at all. The descriptive variable industry illustrated the large differences between the segments and gave a picture of the importance of industry affiliation. Contribution of the thesis: The practical contribution illustrates the occurrence of financial targets on the Stockholm Stock Exchange and the types of goals that are most common. The contribution may give proposals to new listed companies in the construction phase regarding the extent to which the market presents the objectives. The theoretical contribution can give strength to the importance of stakeholder and signaling theory regarding the frequency of objectives. Suggestions for future research: Suggestions for further research is to implement studies with interviews, in order to gain an understanding of the underlying incentives of the financial objectives. A further proposal is to include, for example, the Danish stock exchange that is similar to the Swedish in order to find similarities and differences between corporate cultures. Key words: Financial objectives, goals, voluntary information, forward-looking information, annual reports, asymmetric information, stakeholder theory, signaling theory

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: With the shift to an all-volunteer force and the end of the Cold War, armed forces across the globe are finding it increasingly difficult to attract, recruit and retain the right quantity and quality of recruits in the ranks. Similarly, the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has expressed difficulties with recruitment but more so with the ability to attract ‘high calibre’ recruits in order to staff a defence force that is disciplined and technologically advanced. Although this is a consequence of various economic, social and political factors, one of the greatest challenges facing recruiters is the changing work values and preferences of the new millennial generation. As the title of this thesis postulates, evidence from the West suggests a ‘clash’ in values between millennials, who are individualistic, protected, ambitious and self-centred, and the military, which requires conformity, obedience and structure. While there is a vast amount of literature regarding the all-volunteer force and youth values of military service in the West, there is no study of this kind in South Africa. In this study, I aim to fill this void by exploring young South Africans’ perceptions and experiences of military service. As there is no existing literature on the propensity to enlist in South Africa, focus groups and interviews were conducted with high school learners, Military Skills Development System (MSDS) members who have completed one year of military service and recruitment officers who come into contact with school-leavers from across South Africa. These discussions were framed around two broad questions, namely what are the work values of young South Africans and what factors attract young people to or deter them from the military job. The conclusion is reached that the SANDF is not an employer of choice because of various institutional and societal factors. The military job is largely unappealing to young South Africans, who are risk-averse, individualistic and wish to be in close proximity to their families. The culture of the military is also unattractive to the majority who are not receptive to authoritarian regimes that expect unquestioning obedience and discipline and emphasise hegemonic masculine ideals. Besides this, two societal forces have a significant impact on the ability of the ability of the SANDF to attract recruits. The decline in the prestige of the military job and the presence of an ever-growing civilmilitary gap indicate that youth are neither informed about the military nor see the military as a high status job in society. Consequently, the inability of the SANDF to meet recruitment targets can be detrimental to the ability of the SANDF to fulfil its mandate. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Sedert die verskuiwing na weermagte wat geheel en al uit vrywilligers bestaan en die einde van die Koue Oorlog vind gewapende magte wêreldwyd dit steeds moeiliker om voldoende rekrute van die regte kwaliteit te lok, te werf en te behou. Ook die Suid-Afrikaanse Nasionale Weermag (SANW) ervaar probleme met werwing, maar veral met die vermoë om ‘hoëkaliber’-rekrute te lok na ’n weermag wat gedissiplineer en tegnologies gevorderd is. Hoewel dit die gevolg van verskeie ekonomiese, sosiale en politieke faktore is, is een van die grootste uitdagings vir werwingspersoneel die veranderende werkwaardes en werkvoorkeure van die nuwe milenniumgenerasie. Soos die titel dit stel, dui getuienis uit die Weste op ’n ‘waardekonflik’ tussen hierdie generasie, wat individualisties, beskut, ambisieus en selfgesentreerd is, en die militêr, wat konformiteit, gehoorsaamheid en struktuur vereis. Hoewel daar ’n magdom literatuur oor vrywilligersmagte en jeugwaardes van militêre diens in die Weste bestaan, is geen studie van hierdie aard nog in SuidAfrika onderneem nie. Met hierdie studie wil ek hierdie leemte vul deur jong Suid-Afrikaners se persepsies en ervarings van militêre diens te verken. Aangesien daar geen literatuur bestaan oor geneigdheid om by die weermag in Suid-Afrka aan te sluit nie, is fokusgroepe gehou en onderhoude gevoer met hoërskoolleerders, MSDS-lede wat hul eerste diensjaar voltooi het en werwingsoffisiere wat met landwyd met skoolverlaters in aanraking kom. Hierdie gesprekke is afgegrens deur twee breë vrae, naamlik wat die werkwaardes van jong Suid-Afrikaners is en watter faktore jong mense na of van die militêre werk lok of afstoot. Die gevolgtrekking is dat die SANW om verskeie institusionele en maatskaplike redes nie ’n voorkeurwerkgewer is nie. Jong Suid-Afrikaners, wat risikoweersinnig en individualisties is en naby hulle familie wil bly, vind ʼn militêre loopbaan breedweg onaantreklik. Die militêre kultuur spreek ook nie die meerderheid aan nie, wat nie ontvanklik is vir outoritêre regimes wat onverbiddelike gehoorsaamheid en dissipline eis en hegemoniese manlike ideale beklemtoon nie. Hierbenewens is daar twee samelewingsfaktore wat ʼn beduidende impak het op die SANW se vermoë om rekrute te werf. Die kwynende prestige van ʼn militêre loopbaan en die teenwoordigheid van ʼn steeds groeiende kloof tussen siviel en militêr dui daarop dat jongmense nóg oor die militêr ingelig is nóg dit as ’n werk met status in die samelewing beskou. Gevolglik kan die SANW se onvermoë om werwingsteikens te behaal sy vermoë om sy mandaat uit te voer nadelig beïnvloed.

本研究以1997至2001年國內高研發密度之上市上櫃公司為研究對象，探討高研發密度公司揭露非盈餘以及智慧資本相關資訊之行為。首先探討企業揭露資訊之偏好及趨勢，再分析影響企業揭露非盈餘及智慧資本資訊頻率之因素，並探討企業股價與帳面價值間之差異及股票週轉率與企業揭露智慧資本相關資訊之關聯性。 實證結果發現，公司主動揭露與盈餘有關資訊之頻率有逐年下滑的現象，而揭露非盈餘及智慧資本相關資訊的頻率則有逐漸升高的趨勢。以分組檢定結果而言，未預期盈餘為正且幅度較大的公司在揭露智慧資本資訊方面顯著較未預期盈餘為負且幅度較大的公司積極。就影響企業揭露非盈餘以及智慧資本相關資訊之因素而言，未預期盈餘、員工每人營業利益、研發密集度，以及每人配備率與揭露非盈餘及智慧資本相關資訊之次數均呈顯著正向關係，而董監事持股比率以及用人費用率則與兩項資訊之揭露次數呈顯著負相關。 此外，屬於資訊電子業以及規模較大的公司，揭露非盈餘及智慧資本相關資訊之意願較強。就企業股價與帳面價值之差異以及股票流動性而言，資訊電子業之股價淨值比及股票週轉率均較非資訊電子業為高，策略聯盟（流程資本）資訊揭露次數與股價淨值比呈顯著正（負）向關係，新產品及策略聯盟（人力資本）資訊揭露次數則與股票週轉率呈顯著正（負）相關。 關鍵字：自願性揭露、智慧資本、市價淨值比 / Based on a sample of firm listed on TSE, this thesis investigates the voluntary disclosure behavior ofR&D intensive companies in Taiwan over the period of 1997 to 2001. With an emphasis on non-earnings and intellectual capital-related disclosure policies, we first explore the disclosure behavior in terms of frequency and type of information revealed by management. We then examine whether price-to-book (P/B) ratio and stock turnover ratio reflect the disclosure of non-earnings and intellectual capital-related information. The empirical results suggest a declining trend in disclosing earnings information, with an opposite tendency in non-earnings information over the period examined. In addition, unexpected earnings and variables proxy for intellectual capital determine the disclosure behavior of non-earnings and intellectual capital-related information. Firms with operating performance far beyond market's expectation tend to disclose more intellectual capital-related information than firms with operating performances far worse than market has expected. Variables such as operating income per employee and cost of human resource (proxies for human capital), R&D intensity (proxy for innovation capital), equipment per employee (proxy for process capital) as well as the ratio of directors' shareholding are found to be significantly related to the disclosure frequency of non-earnings and intellectual capital-related information. The findings also indicate that electronics and software industries are more likely to disclose more non-earnings and intellectual capital-related information and have higher price-to-book and stock turnover ratios as compared to other industries in the sample. Firms disclose more (less) strategic alliance (process capital) information is found to have higher price-to-book ratios. Firms disclose more (less) strategic alliance and new product (human capital) information is found to have higher stock turnover ratio. It appears that more disclosure on intellectual capital-related information does not necessarily and monotonously explain the variation in both price-to-book and stock turnover ratios. Key words: voluntary disclosure, intellectual capital, price-to-book ratio, stock turnover ratio

志願服務成為一種趨勢，也是熱門的研究議題，而退休老人作為志工服務的人力提供者，是不可忽視的一股力量。近年來，老年志工議題越來越受重視，實際探究老人志工服務場域，關注到其中女性老人志工參與的特殊性。據此，本論文的研究目的在於：一、探討女性老人志工志願服務參與經驗；二、瞭解參與志願服務對於女性老人志工的影響和改變，以及女性老人志工對於擔任領導角色的經驗；三、提供志工人力資源管理者作為老年志工人力規劃之參考，並補充志願服務參與在女性志工經驗之特殊性。 本研究使用質性取向的研究方法，以台北市內湖區公所志工隊為研究對象，採用半結構式的深度訪談法進行資料蒐集，共計訪談八位年齡55歲以上的老年女性志工（包括曾任隊長等幹部職務者4名），主要的研究結果如下： 一、老年志工因為受到朋友的呼喚、對於服務他人的熱情而開始了服務生涯，在實質上的服務工作，則是因著服務機構的指派，提供不同的服務內容，並且隨時改變調整。 二、擔任志工後的改變，人力資本方面影響個人健康、知識技能的學習成長等；社會資本方面加深人際網絡擴展，增加社會接觸，改善人際關係；文化資本方面幫助瞭解志願服務的價值，肯定付出的力量；情感面上則影響個人擁有團隊歸屬感，及更積極、知足的生命態度。 三、女性老人志工認為幹部或領導角色必須擔負決策責任及團隊溝通橋樑，好的領導者懂得溝通和傾聽，處事圓滑，具責任感且願意付出，以及具備解決問題與發號施令的能力。這些特質能力與性別沒有直接關連，但男性的生命經驗可能較習慣扮演領導角色。 / Voluntary has become a trend, also a hot research topic. Elderly retirees as volunteer service providers, is a force to be reckoned with. In recent years, elderly volunteers and related issues got more and more attention. While exploring the elderly volunteer service field, we see women have their specialty in the elderly volunteer area. Accordingly, the purposes of this study are as following: first, to explore the elderly female volunteers’ participation experience in voluntary service; second, learn the influences and changes to the elderly female volunteers after participating in volunteer service, as well as the experience of being in leadership roles; third, to provide volunteer human resource managers as a reference for the elderly volunteer manpower planning, and the particularity in women volunteers. This study employs qualitative research approach, and data collection is gotten from the volunteer team of Neihu District Office, Taipei City, including semi-structured in-depth interviews with eight aged 55 years or elderly female volunteers (including 4 former captains or cadre members). The study findings are listed below: First, the elderly volunteers start their services because of the calling from friends, and their passion of helping people. Service work they do was assigned and adjusted by the service organization. Second, the change after being volunteer includes, in human capital aspect, affects individual health and knowledge skill learning. In social capital aspect, expands interpersonal network and social contact. In culture capital aspect, helps to understand the value of volunteer service. Emotionally, affects individuals to have sense of belonging, and more positive attitude toward life contentment. Elderly female volunteers believe cadre members must take leadership role or decision-making responsibility. Good leaders know how to communicate with a sense of responsibility and willingness to pay, and have problem- solving abilities. Also they need to know how to give orders. These capabilities and qualities not directly related to gender, but men, according to their life experience, may be more familiar with playing a leading role.

<p>The devastation caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus/ Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is having a major impact on both the social and economic environment in South Africa. HIV/AIDS hits at the core of the businesses structure - the bottom line. In the absence of a cure for the disease or an effective vaccine, the challenge for all the stakeholders is how to successfully contain and limit the impact of the disease. Intervention programmes such as awareness, knowledge sharing and sero-prevailance testing have the potential to limit HIV/AIDS infections and reduce high-risk behaviours. Whilst education and awareness programmes have been relatively successful in highlighting the dangers of HIV infection, perception, attitudes and behaviours of employees towards HIV/AIDS have dampened voluntary HIV screening initiatives. Many South African organisations have commendable HIV/AIDS education and awareness programmes, however, a concerning fact is that employees are reluctant to avail themselves to voluntary HIV/AIDS testing. Stigmatising attitudes toward persons living with HIV/AIDS may reduce people&rsquo / s willingness to have themselves tested for the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). This may increase the risk of transmission. It may also lead to increased absenteeism in the workplace, and workdays lost resulting from excessive sick.<br /> <br /> The aim of the study was to establish what the perceptions and attitudes are of employees at different levels of the organisation with regard to HIV/AIDS testing. A further aim was to identify possible reasons for the poor employee response to voluntary HIV/AIDS testing. It was thus important for this research to gauge employee knowledge, attitude and behaviour toward HIV/AIDS in order for organisations to develop strategies for effective HIV/AIDS counselling and testing programmes.<br /> <br /> The data for this study was collected by means of a self report questionnaire. The questionnaire was administered to a sample of employees across all levels of the organisation using the convenient sample approach to identify the respondents. Two hundred and forty six (246) out of a total of 600 questionnaires distributed were returned, making the response rate a credible 41%.<br /> The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was used to analyse the data obtained from the questionnaire. Both inferential and descriptive statistical approaches were used to analyse the data. The Analyses Of Variance (ANOVA) was used to determine whether differences exist in the perceptions and attitudes of employees at different levels and groupings in the organisation. Additionally post hoc tests (i.e. the Scheffe test) were applied to all comparisons of means after the analysis of variance.<br /> <br /> The findings of this research are important for the role of HIV/AIDS testing and awareness/preventions strategies implemented in South Africa. It provides more insight as to why employees resist HIV/AIDS testing. It can furthermore assist organisations in developing strategies for implementing effective HIV/AIDS awareness and/or prevention programmes. More specifically, the findings identified ways in which organisations can redesign their intervention programmes so as to encourage a greater number of employees to submit to voluntary HIV/AIDS testing.</p>

La tesi affronta la questione delle motivazioni che possono spingere la persona a donare gratuitamente il proprio tempo a favore di un’organizzazione di volontariato. Tanto la tematica del nonprofit quanto quella della motivazioni al lavoro (che costituiscono i due punti focali dell’elaborato) sono trattati in un’ottica multidisciplinare presentando una breve rassegna dei principali contributi di studiosi afferenti ad ambiti scientifici eterogenei. Nell’ultima parte del lavoro viene presentata una ricerca condotta su 292 volontari della provincia di Monza e Brianza provenienti da tre associazioni di volontariato diverse per ambito di intervento e target di riferimento: ABIO, AUSER, Protezione Civile. Tramite un questionario, costruito partendo dallo studio di Carpenter e Myers (2007), si è analizzata la rilevanza di diverse categorie motivazionali che, secondo le precedenti ricerche condotte, possono avere una qualche influenza sulla scelta di essere un volontario (e di continuare ad esserlo): l’altruismo puro e impuro, la reputazione, la carriera, la socialità, la propensione al rischio e al risparmio, la religiosità, la familiarità, l’essere stato invitato esplicitamente da amici e conoscenti. L’ultima parte presenta i risultati dell’analisi dei dati da cui si evince la presenza di fattori self-oriented ed other-oriented che sostengono ed alimentano l’impegno prestato dai lavoratori non retribuiti . / This thesis deals with the volunteers's motivations and their effort in NGO. Through a survey we have analysed some motivational variables which could have a certain influence on the decision of being a volunteer. Referring to previous researches on this topic, We have inquired into: altruism and impure altruism, reputation , career, social concerns, risk, religiosity , familiarity , having been expressly invited by friends.