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1
Roos, Karen. "An investigation into the attitudes of male undergraduate students towards menstruation: The psychometric properties of the Menstrual Attitude Questionnaire." University of the Western Cape, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/11394/6702.
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Magister Artium (Psychology) - MA(Psych)Menstruation is an integral and normal part of human life, indeed of human existence. Instead of being celebrated as a noteworthy landmark of biological maturity in a young girl‟s life, menstruation has become an organic experience burdened with socio-cultural implications (Ussher, 2006). Existing studies suggest that males often view menstruation in a more negative light, which have shown to promote sexism and negative attitudes towards women (Marvan, Vazquez-Toboada, & Chrisler, 2013). The Menstrual Attitude Questionnaire (MAQ) was designed to assess attitudes towards menstruation among men and women and has been applied in a variety of contexts (Brooks-Gun and Ruble, 1980). Despite the extensive use of this scale in various contexts (Jarrah & Kamel, 2012; Neşe Sahin Ozdemir, 2013) there is limited information on its psychometric properties, specifically the factor structure of the instrument. For the MAQ to be meaningful when used in South Africa, it is first necessary to explore the psychometric properties of the instrument when applied to a South African sample. Participants (n = 163) for the study were young male students from the University of the Western Cape who were recruited through purposive sampling. Permission to access students was obtained from the registrar‟s office. Informed consent was obtained from participants for data collection and for use of the data for research purposes. The questionnaires were anonymous in order to protect participant identities. To further ensure confidentiality, all data was kept on a password protected personal computer. Furthermore, this study utilised a cross-sectional research design. Two self-report measures were administered: the MAQ and a demographic questionnaire. Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was used to uncover the underlying structure of the MAQ. The study found that both the EFA, as well as the forced factor solution, did not produce a meaningful pattern of loadings. All ethical guidelines stipulated by the University of the Western Cape were strictly adhered to.
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Coward, Louise. "Attitudes to nuclear defence : an investigation of processes of change in elite and non-elite belief systems." Thesis, University of Bradford, 1987. http://hdl.handle.net/10454/4241.
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The recent developments in negotiations to reduce nuclear weapons in Europe mark a watershed in attitudes towards nuclear deterrence and security. On the one side lie all the old beliefs and assumptions about nuclear defence and security that have been common parlance for the last forty years and more. On the other side lies a unique opportunity to develop a new relationship of increased mutual trust between East and West that could ultimately lead to substantial reductions in the world's nuclear arsenal. The object of this thesis is to establish how much information already exists about attitudes towards nuclear deterrence and the processes of attitude change. From there, to extend these boundaries of knowledge in the belief that if we are able to understand more exactly what people think about nuclear deterrence, why they hold these attitudes and how attitudes change then we will be in a better position to ease the transitional stage between one set of attitudes and another.
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Kotze, F. E. (Francina Elizabeth). "An investigation into the internal structure underlying the organisational diagnostic questionnaire (ODQ)." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/20903.
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Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study investigates the internal structure that underlies the ODQ. A structural model that explicates the nature of the causal linkages between the six main constructs comprising the ODQ was developed and tested. Data obtained from 273 employees in a chrome manufacturing plant was used. This research found that the proposed model offers a plausible account of the influences that exist between the six main constructs. The benefit of this structural model will be in the enhanced interpretation of the diagnostic results derived from the ODQ.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie stel ondersoek in na die interne struktuur wat onderliggend is aan die Organisasie Diagnostiese Vraelys (ODV). ‘n Strukturele model wat die onderliggende kousale verhoudings van die ses hoofkonstrukte van die ODV blootlê, is ontwikkel en getoets. Data van 273 werknemers, verbonde aan ‘n chroom vervaardigingsaanleg, is gebruik. Die navorsing toon dat die voorgestelde model ‘n aanneemlike weergawe is van die onderliggende verhoudings wat tussen die ses hoofkonstrukte bestaan. Die voordeel van die voorgestelde model lê daarin dat dit die interpretasie van resultate, wat uit die diagnose verkry is, kan verbeter.
4
Gustafson, Anders. "Interna flöden och processer på Å&R Carton : processbaserad verksamhetsanalys och förbättringsförslag för ledtidsreduktion." Thesis, Linköping University, Department of Science and Technology, 2003. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-2141.
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Denna rapport syftar till att, på Å&R Carton i Norrköping, analysera de interna flödena och processerna samt ge förslag på hur ledtider ska kunna reduceras väsentligt. Ett sätt att uppfylla syftet är att dela in verksamheten i processer genom olika metoder och kriterier förprocessbestämning. Valda metoder i rapporten är; kvalitativ ansats med hög validitet och reliabilitet, processbaserad verksamhetsanalys och procedurbeskrivning.
Genom omfattande litteraturstudier, insamlande av data i form av intervjuer, benchmarking, platsundersökningar och interna dokument har nulägesmodeller arbetats fram. Analysen av dessa visar bland annat på att såväl planeringsprocessen som inköpsprocessen idag inte fungerar värdeadderande och bör ses över. Därutöver finns också andra processer som bidrar till ett komplext flöde. Dessa behöver effektiviseras eller ändras för att korta ledtider. Vidare visar analysen på att en omfattande attitydsundersökning behövs, dels för att komma till rätta med vissa stämningar och dels för att på sikt skapa en effektiv arbetsmiljö.
Till förbättringsförslagen hör, förutom en attitydsundersökning, förslaget att utarbeta tydliga mål och strategier. Sedan måste dessa kommuniceras till samtliga anställda, till exempel genom arbetsgrupper. Vidare föreslås att Å&R Carton tittar på automatisk datafångst som ett mycket kostnadseffektivt sätt att kontrollera det totala flödet. På lång sikt bör också företaget titta på att implementera processorientering. Dock behöver företaget först och främst se till att skapa en förändringsvillig attityd för att nå framgång i sitt effektiviseringsarbete. Slutsatsen blir att Å&R Carton har stor potential att väsentligt förkorta sina ledtider om företaget hanterar situationen rätt. För att lyckas kan delar av denna rapport användas där det viktigaste är att en engagerad ledning visar vägen.
The purpose of this final thesis is to analyse the internal processes at Å&R Carton in Norrköping and give proposals to reduce time in the Supply Chain. One way to fulfill the purpose is to use Process Based Analys and split the organisation in different processes. Process Based Models have then been constructed by studying litterature, benchmarking, internal documents and making a lot of interviews. The analys shows that different processes must be changed to make the flow through the Supply Chain more efficient. The analys give us also recommendations like attitude investigations and implementation of ECR. The conclusion is that Å&R Carton have great potential to reduce time in the Supply Chain if the management are active, follow the recommendations and show the employees the way about.
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Havelka, Stefanie. "Mobile privacy and apps: investigating behavior and attitude." Doctoral thesis, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 2020. http://dx.doi.org/10.18452/21715.
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Diese Dissertation untersucht das Nutzerverhalten und die Einstellungen von Smartphone- und App-BenutzerInnen und welche Rolle die Kultur in Bezug auf mobile Privatsphäre spielt. Die zentrale Forschungsfrage lautet: Gibt es Unterschiede im Verhalten und in der Einstellung von amerikanischen und deutschen Studenten der Bibliotheks- und Informationswissenschaften in Bezug auf die mobile Privatsphäre?
Im Mittelpunkt dieser Dissertation steht die ethnographische Forschung in einem interkulturellen Umfeld. Das Forschungsdesign besteht aus halb-strukturierten Interviews, gekoppelt mit Experimenten und Beobachtungen der Teilnehmer über die Nutzung mobiler Technologien. Die Feldforschung 1 wurde (in persona) an zwei verschiedenen Orten durchgeführt: an der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Deutschland, und an der Rutgers State University of New Jersey, USA. Die Feldforschung 2 wurde (digital) über eine Online-Videokonferenzplattform durchgeführt.
Im Gegensatz dazu, was die Autorin dieser vorliegenden Studie prognostizierte, kommt es zu folgenden Ergebnissen in dieser Studie: Bei den Probanden können fast keine kulturellen Unterschiede im Verhalten und in der Einstellung zur mobilen Privatsphäre festgestellt werden. Stattdessen werden in Bezug auf die mobile Privatsphäre ähnliche Einstellungen unter den Studienteilnehmenden festgestellt. Zum einen die Selbstzufriedenheit, zum anderen das Gefühl der Hilfslosigkeit und schließlich Pragmatismus scheinen, deutsche und amerikanische Studierende gleichermaßen zu beeinflussen. Das Ergebnis wurde aber ursprünglich nicht so erwartet, da eigentlich zu Beginn der Studie davon ausgegangen wurde, dass der unterschiedliche Kenntnis- und Bewusstseinsstand zur mobilen Privatsphäre in beiden Kulturen zu unterschiedlichen Reaktionen führen würde. Dennoch bieten die Ergebnisse dieser Studie sicher nachfolgenden WissenschaftlerInnen interessante Impulse und eine gute Ausgangsbasis für weitere Studien.This dissertation examines the role of culture, mobile privacy, apps, and user behavior and attitude. The core research question is: Are there differences in the mobile privacy behaviors and attitudes of American and German library and information science students? This dissertation uses ethnography as its research methodology since culture is at the heart of ethnography. Furthermore, ethnographers try to make sense of behavior, customs, and attitudes of the culture they observe and research. This ethnographer aims to portray a thick narrative and transforms participants' mobile privacy attitude and behavior into a rich account. The research design is comprised of semi-structured interviews, coupled with experiments and participant observations about mobile technology use. Fieldwork 1 was conducted in two different sites: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Germany, and Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, USA. Fieldwork 2 was conducted via an online video conferencing platform. Contrary to what this researcher predicted, the findings have revealed that there are nearly no cultural differences in mobile privacy behavior and attitude. Similar attitudes, such as mobile privacy complacency, mobile privacy learned-helplessness, and mobile privacy pragmatism, seem to impact German and American students equally. The findings provide support for further research recommendations, and in conclusion, this researcher highlights three contributions this study makes to the scholarly literature.
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Ndlala, Muziwandile Mfanufikile. "An investigation of student’s attitude and effects on pornography." Thesis, University of Zululand, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10530/1252.
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Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University of Zululand,
South Africa, 2012.The major aim of this study was to investigate the attitude of University of Zululand students towards pornography as well as the effects that pornography might have on their social and academic wellbeing. The study was conducted at the University of Zululand. A total number of 203 participants took part in this study. The questionnaire served to investigate the attitudes of students towards pornography and the effects that porn might have on their social and academic wellbeing. A statistical analysis of the results was conducted and the results indicated that students view pornography for various reasons which include, but are not limited to the following: sexual education, as a stimulant for arousal, as a tool to conform to peer-pressure. Effects of pornography viewing varied from negative to positive. It was also assumed and supported by literature that pornography viewing takes place at an early onset, which places a great responsibility on parents, teachers, care-givers and media to play a more active role in the management of pornography through; practical ways of empowering individuals and parents at early stages of development. Teaching youngsters on critical viewing of content they view on the internet. Promoting programmes with positive sexual content. The need for parental guidance on internet usage; computer to be placed in central places at home, in schools and in other public areas.
7
Abbott, Tracey M. "An investigation of the antisocial attitudes construct." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2000. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk2/ftp01/MQ52337.pdf.
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Abbott, Tracey M. (Tracey Mary) Carleton University Dissertation Psychology. "An Investigation of the antisocial attitudes construct." Ottawa, 2000.
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9
Walden, Lisa Walden. "Interprofessional Education: An Investigation of Healthcare Students' Attitudes and Why These Attitudes Exist." University of Findlay / OhioLINK, 2017. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=findlay1501710247064227.
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Pappagallo, Isabella. "Numerical investigation of magnetic only attitude control for small satellites." Master's thesis, Alma Mater Studiorum - Università di Bologna, 2019. http://amslaurea.unibo.it/18306/.
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The subject of the thesis research is the study of the attitude control for small satellites actuated by only magnetorquers, which presents interesting control challenges due to the time-variance and underactuation of the system. It is indeed known that for underactuated systems, the presence of external disturbances can lead to system instability. Even if the problem of finding a robust non-linear global controller has been already investigated, there is still room for improvements.
In this regard, the present work proposes a solution in which the elements of the averaging theory for a system subjected to exogenous input can be combined with that of the sliding mode control theory based on a classical optimal sliding manifold, providing the feedback system with robustness against disturbances. The proposed approach is applied to design an Earth-pointing attitude control system for the ESEO spacecraft in Low Earth Orbit.
The results of simulations suggest that the sliding mode control as robust control feedback provides good performances in the presence of external disturbances, measurement noises, and inertia uncertainties.
11
Bayindir, Hatice. "An Investigation Of Students." Master's thesis, METU, 2003. http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12604909/index.pdf.
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This thesis aims to examine students&rsquoattitudes towards brain-based applications in the English Composition II course. For this purpose, a case study was carried out with a group of 23 first year students at the Department of Foreign Language Education at Middle East Technical University in the second half of the 2002-2003 academic year. After receiving writing training with a brain-based methodology for ten weeks, the students were given an attitude questionnaire which aimed at identifying their attitudes towards brain-based applications in the course. One week later, the iv researcher also conducted interviews with 10 of the 23 students separately to investigate students&rsquo
attitudes towards brain-based applications in the course further. The analysis of the data collected through the attitude questionnaire indicated that 93 % of the students showed significant positive attitudes towards the brain-based applications, while only 1 % of the students had negative attitudes towards the brain-based applications. The analysis of the results of the interviews also revealed that all students had positive feelings about the brain-based applications. Accordingly, the results indicated taking this composition course resulted in highly positive feelings such as confidence, relaxation, or being valued in the students. All students found writing meaningful and relevant to themselves. They stated to have acquired various skills during the course such as writing skills, computer skills, teaching skills, emotional intelligence, and an awareness of needs. They found these useful and meaningful for their lives in general, as students, and as teachers as part of their future profession.
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Nollen, Nicole Lynn. "A preliminary investigation of heterosexuals' attitudes toward bisexuality." Virtual Press, 1997. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1045631.
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Three-hundred eight students from the Introductory Psychology participant pool at Ball State University took part in a preliminary investigation of heterosexuals' attitudes toward bisexuality. The study found that heterosexual men and women expressed more positive responses toward heterosexuals than toward lesbian, gay male, and bisexual individuals, but did not distinguish between homosexual and bisexual persons. Sex differences were found for acceptance of lesbians, gay men, and bisexual men and women but not for affective responses to these individuals. More specifically, male and female participants' affective responses to homosexual and bisexual target individuals were similar; however, on questions pertaining to acceptance, female participants rated all persons similarly whereas male participants rated heterosexual men more favorably than homosexual or bisexual men. It was also found that beliefs about bisexuality as a real orientation or as homosexual denial were in fact related to participants' responses to the bisexual target individual, whereas beliefs that bisexuality is a transitional or transitory orientation were not.Department of Psychological Science
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Zhang, Qi. "Attitudes beyond the inner circle : investigating Hong Kong students' attitudes towards English varieties." Thesis, University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10443/1712.
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The development of Hong Kong English has triggered a number of concerns amongst the local population with respect to its status. However, despite the prominence of research into attitudes towards language variation within sociolinguistics, very few studies focus on the Hong Kong context. Furthermore, while previous research has demonstrated that native English speakers tend to have more positive attitudes towards Standard English varieties as far as status is concerned, whereas non-standard varieties are usually evaluated more highly in terms of solidarity, we lack information about the attitudes of Hong Kong Chinese people with respect to different English varieties (particularly the local non-standard variety). This quantitative study sets out to investigate the attitudes of 44 Hong Kong university students with respect to eight varieties of English speech, i. e. educated Hong Kong English accent (HKed), the broad Hong Kong accent (HKbr), Received Pronunciation (RP), General American (AmE), Australian English (AusE), Tyneside English (TynE), Philippine English (PE) and Mandarin-accented English (ME). This study employed a range of direct (e. g., interviews) and indirect (e. g., the verbal-guise test) techniques of attitude measurement in order to obtain in-depth information regarding such perceptions. The results suggest that Hong Kong informants actually have relatively positive attitudes towards HKed - especially in terms of solidarity. Moreover, ME was evaluated comparatively highly, indicating that it might potentially develop into a ubiquitous `China English'. The finding that AmE was rated even more highly than RP provides grounds for suggesting that the replacement of RP by a General American accent could already be underway. Overall, though, Hong Kong informants prefer HKed since it is a variety close to RP. Therefore, although the results demonstrate that a certain amount of linguistic self-hatred does exist in Hong Kong, it is not extended to HKed and the broadness of local accents does indeed appear to play a role in Hong Kong people's language attitudes. Surprisingly, the ability to identify an accent, as well as a range of social variables tested had no significant effect on informants' attitudes towards the eight varieties of English under investigation. The thesis concludes with discussion of these findings with respect to the pedagogical implications they have for the choice of linguistic model in English language teaching both within the Hong Kong population and indeed with regard to other Chinese communities.
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Awuah-Baffour, Robert. "Investigation on kinematic determination of highway geometric characteristics by attitude GPS." Diss., Georgia Institute of Technology, 1997. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/21657.
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Miller, Jennifer. "The influence of attitude: a sociological investigation of Reintegrative Shaming Theory." Thesis, Kansas State University, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/2097/4601.
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Master of ArtsDepartment of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work
Michelle Bemiller
John Braithwaite developed the theory of reintegrative shaming in 1989. His hope was to develop a theory that better explained the complexities of crime such as the age curve, and high number of male offenders. Building from Braithwaite’s work, this thesis utilizes Reintegrative Shaming theory to explore how attitudes influence the reintegrative shaming process, and whether or not women, are more susceptible to shaming than men, as hypothesized by Braithwaite. It seeks to understand the role attitude plays in the reintegrative shaming process. This thesis hypothesizes that a reintegrative shaming punishment will positively impact an offender’s attitudes towards law, deterrence, law enforcement officials, and so on. Further, Braithwaite hypothesized that interdependent and communitarian individuals will be more susceptible to the impact of punishment (shaming); this relationship is also tested. Using data from the Reintegrative Shaming Experiments (RISE) in Australia, this thesis specifically studies the impact of sex and shaming punishment on attitudes towards the law and deterrence attitudes. In addition, information from RISE is used to test the relationships between interdependency and sex, and communitarianism and sex. The findings suggest mixed support for Reintegrative Shaming theory.
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Havelka, Stefanie [Verfasser]. "Mobile privacy and apps: investigating behavior and attitude / Stefanie Havelka." Berlin : Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 2020. http://d-nb.info/1216877289/34.
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Kemel, Emmanuel. "Attitudes towards uncertainty with monetary and time consequences : experimental investigations." Thesis, Paris 1, 2014. http://www.theses.fr/2014PA010087.
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Yildiz, Veysel. "Investigation Of The Change In Sixth Grade Students." Master's thesis, METU, 2008. http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/3/12610255/index.pdf.
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Teaching mathematics is now gaining more importance, as the new
elementary mathematics school curriculum has been adapted to Turkish
Educational System. One of the main goals of the curriculum reform is to
increase elementary school students&rsquoproblem solving abilities in mathematics (Koç
, ISiksal &
Bulut
2007). In this study, the aim is to investigate the change in sixth grade students&rsquo
problem solving abilities, attitude towards problem solving and attitude toward mathematics after mathematics instruction based on Polya&rsquo
s problem solving steps. The sample of this study consisted of 53 sixth grade students from an elementary school in Istanbul. The participants consist of a class selected conveniently among all the sixth grade classes in the school. In these selected classes, mathematical problems are solved according to the Polya&rsquo
s problem solving steps by following different problem solution techniques during the semester.At the end of this study, the three main results were found: 1) Instruction based on Polya&rsquo
s step has significantly affected students&rsquo
problem solving abilities in a positive way, 2) students&rsquo
attitudes towards problem solving has changed in a positive way, 3) students&rsquo
attitudes towards mathematics is enhanced by the instruction based on Polya&rsquo
s problem solving steps.
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Crider, Iris M. "An investigation of attitudes toward and knowledge about menstruation." Virtual Press, 1987. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/494970.
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While much research has been done to broaden the understanding of the menstrual cycle, there appears to be no study that has focused upon the professional's attitudes and knowledge regarding menstruation. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to study the attitudes toward and the knowledge of menstruation held by those of the psychological and medical professions. Sex differences in these areas were also explored.The subjects were practicing psychologists and counselors (50), graduate-level counseling psychology practicum students (33), medical interns and residents (25), and undergraduate students (85). A 4 x 2 multivariate design was utilized with groupings by population and sex. Dependent variables were scores on The Menstrual Attitude Questionnaire and The Menstrual Knowledge Test. The main effects were tested in a multivariate sense. Univariate statistics were used to interpret significant simple effects. All findings were interpreted at alpha level p<.05.Three of the four null hypotheses were rejected. Analysis of the data revealed significant differences among all groups in menstrual attitudes (p<.000). The male and female attitudinal responses were significantly different in all but the practicing psychologists and counselors group (p<.000). The undergraduate student group displayed significantly less knowledge regarding menstruation than the other groups (p<.000). There were no significant differences in the knowledge levels between sexes (p<.386).For the most part, the undergraduate group held more extreme attitudes toward and less knowledge regarding menstruation than the other groups. This suggested that a combination of life experience and additional education promotes an adjustment toward more positive attitudes and an increase in knowledge regarding menstruation. Of particular importance was the indication that the medical profession may be more negatively biased toward women who experience difficulty during menstruation than the psychological profession. However, the belief that women should deny the negative aspects of menstruation and act as if the difficulties experienced are not bothersome, existed to sane degree in all groups.It was recommended that training programs in psychology and medicine include intensive education regarding the influence of menstruation upon women and that a more comprehensive assessment tool be developed to measure knowledge about menstruation and treatment for menstrual related problems.
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Black, Anne-Marie L., and res cand@acu edu au. "Attitudes to Reading: An Investigation Across the Primary Years." Australian Catholic University. School of Education, 2006. http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/digitaltheses/public/adt-acuvp136.17052007.
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Students’ attitudes to reading and the texts they choose to read impact on literacy achievement and willingness to engage with literacy-related activities in the primary years of schooling. This study was conducted in an urban Catholic school in Queensland in Years 1 to 7. Students’ developing attitudes to reading and the perceptions of these attitudes held by their teachers were examined. An adapted version of the Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (McKenna & Kear, 1990) and Teacher Checklist (Young, 2003) was utilized. Results from the study indicate older students’ attitudes towards recreational reading (in primary school) are not significantly different to younger students’ attitudes. Female students however, show more positive attitudes to recreational reading than male students. Older students’ attitudes towards academic reading are more negative overall and female students showed significantly more positive attitudes than their male peers. Students’ choice of texts varied across the year levels with the most preferred reading materials being chapter books, children’s magazines and comics. Teachers’ perceptions of students’ enjoyment of reading in class correlated significantly with students’ own perceived level of reading achievement. Teachers perceive that as students’ level of reading enjoyment increases, their level of academic reading achievement also increases. Five recommendations are made from the findings of this study. First, recreational reading engagement needs to be publicly promoted and positively celebrated within the school community. It was found that for students to be motivated and see the value of engaging in reading they must be immersed in a school classroom environment that offers a range of recreational activities and opportunities. Second, a structured approach to literacy sessions (literacy block) needs to be established and implemented with students across all primary year levels. This enables students to be scaffolded in their literacy learning and so develop positive attitudes towards themselves as academic readers. Third, it is recommended that guided reading occur as a key instructional approach to the teaching of reading across all primary year levels. This may serve to increase students’ motivation and interest in reading a range of text types and may provide a source of information for the teacher in relation to students’ engagement with reading. Fourth, a range of text types need to be purchased and made available for students to read independently and for teachers to use in class shared reading activities across all primary year levels. Students should be exposed to various text types throughout their primary years of schooling. Finally, the teaching of reading needs to be ‘data-driven’ rather than based on teachers’ perceptions of students’ reading needs. Periodic assessments of students’ reading achievement should occur to provide these data for teachers. The recommendations from this study align with priorities and recommendations included in current Commonwealth and State documents. Directions for future research also are suggested especially for qualitative data collection. This methodology, if included, would glean more in-depth data concerning students’ attitudes to reading and the perceptions held by their teachers. Investigating students’ attitude towards and use of digital literacies also would provide a greater understanding of primary-age students’ attitudes towards reading in the 21st century.
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Stevenson, Judith L. "An investigation of attitudes and attentional biases in trichotillomania." Thesis, University of Glasgow, 2018. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/31012/.
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Trichotillomania (TTM) is a body focussed repetitive behaviour (BFRB) characterised by the repetitive pulling out of one’s hair. It is a moderately new disorder having only been classified in 1987 and it is under-researched relative to other psychological disorders. This thesis investigates TTM by presenting a series of experiments designed to further understand attitudes towards, and attentional biases in, TTM. The experiments in this thesis address 3 central issues: stigmatising attitudes towards TTM; attentional bias pertaining to the experience of shame in TTM; and attentional bias towards hair-related stimuli in TTM. Experiment 1 investigated differences in ratings of stigma towards perceived controllable (TTM, compulsive skin-picking) and perceived uncontrollable (alopecia, psoriasis) hair-loss and skin-lesioning conditions in a TTM and control group. The main findings indicated that stigma ratings varied as a function of group: the public rated perceived controllable conditions with higher stigma than perceived uncontrollable conditions while TTM participants rated these conditions equally. Experiment 2 used a modified emotional Stroop task using shame-related words to investigate the affective correlate of shame in individuals with TTM and a control group. TTMs did not demonstrate different response latencies to shame-related words, relative to other word types or the control group, indicating no evidence of attentional bias towards shame-related linguistic stimuli. Experiments 3, 4 and 5 focussed specifically on disorder-stimuli (i.e., hair-related) linguistic stimuli in a series of lexical paradigms. Experiment 3 was a lexical decision task and Experiment 4 was a modified Stroop task: these paradigms investigated response latencies towards hair-related words in TTMs and a control group. The main findings for both experiments showed that TTMs do not demonstrate an attentional bias towards hair-related words, relative to other word types and the control group. Experiment 5 investigated higher-level judgements of hair-related words in a word rating task. The findings revealed a group-by-word-type interaction for arousal ratings: TTMs rated hair-related words higher in arousal than body image and neutral words, and these ratings were higher than those of the control group for hair-related words. No group-by-word-type interaction for valence ratings was found. This indicates that TTMs rate hair-related words as more arousing but not more positive or negative, than other word types, relative to individuals without TTM. Finally, Experiment 6 utilised a modified dot probe paradigm to investigate attentional bias towards hair-related images. Our findings showed that TTMs disengage more slowly from hair-related images at a longer stimulus duration compared to neutral images, relative to control participants. This evidence is consistent with an attentional bias characterised by maintained attention towards hair-related stimuli in individuals with TTM. In conclusion, this thesis has presented evidence indicating that TTM (and other BFRBs) are associated with higher public stigma ratings than comparable perceived uncontrollable conditions. Results have also shown an attentional bias towards hair-related images but not words. This represents an important contribution towards the understanding of the processing of disorder-related stimuli in TTM. This may have implications for the maintenance mechanisms potentially involved in the hair-pulling condition.
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Galloway, Nicola. "An investigation of Japanese university students' attitudes towards English." Thesis, University of Southampton, 2011. https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/345128/.
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As a global language, English has spread to the extent that non-native speakers now outnumber native speakers. In the last few decades, a body of research literature has emerged demonstrating the decreasing global relevance of native English speakers, and calling for a re-evaluation of English Language Teaching (ELT) practices, in order to better prepare students for using English as a global lingua franca. However, students’ needs and attitudes towards English and ELT must be fully investigated before curriculum changes can be suggested. Many attitude studies conclude that students favour native varieties of English. However, such research often uses single research methods and very few relate attitude studies to ELT. Further research is required regarding students’ attitudes towards English, the factors influencing these attitudes and how they relate to ELT. Moreover, few studies have investigated these proposals in any depth or explored the impact of course instruction in the global uses of English on students’ attitudes. This thesis is an investigation of Japanese university students’ attitudes towards English and English teachers in relation to the use of English as a lingua franca (ELF). In order to widen the scope of understanding, this research employed a mixture of quantitative and qualitative measures to obtain data about the participants and their attitudes. Thus, questionnaires, interviews and focus groups were used. Following the introduction, chapter two and three provide a literature review. Chapter four outlines the methodology, and the results are presented in chapters five, six and seven. Chapter eight presents a discussion of the results and the implications of this study for teaching English are discussed in chapter nine. The findings suggest that English is seen as a language belonging to native English speakers and those students want to learn native English. However, the results highlighted that a number of factors influence students’ attitudes. The findings also demonstrated that the study of Global Englishes influenced students in a number of ways, including their motivation for learning English, attitudes towards varieties of English and attitudes towards English teachers. It encouraged them to question notions of ‘standard English’, was helpful for future ELF communication and raised their confidence as English speakers. In sum, the findings of this study provide an empirical basis for a re-evaluation of ELT and suggest that Global Englishes Language Teaching is something that should be further investigated.
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Alderman, Delton R. Jr. "An Investigation into Attitudes towards Recycling CCA Treated Lumber." Diss., Virginia Tech, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/27506.
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This research examines the effects of evaluations, beliefs, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control on the contractor's decision intention to recover used CCA lumber. The purpose of this research was to determine the factors that affect recovery. This research proposes that a contractorâ s decision intention to recover is affected by evaluations, beliefs, subjective norms, and perceived barriers to recovery.
The study included a mail questionnaire that was sent to over 2,800 contractors. The questionnaire was used to collect both demographic data and an evaluation of the factors believed to affect the recovery of CCA treated lumber. Data was collected primarily through the mail survey, where participants rated the factors believed to affect the recovery of spent CCA lumber.
Extrapolation indicates that nearly 2.4 million cubic meters of treated lumber were removed in 1999 from the demolition of decks. It was also discerned that only two of the respondents recovered used CCA lumber on a full-time basis. Additionally, there appears to be a lack of knowledge regarding the chemical components of CCA treated lumber, the proper disposal methods, and handling of the product. This has profound strategic implications for not only the wood treating industry but other industries as well.
The second phase of the research utilized ordinary least squares regression and a structural equation modeling program to model the factors concerning the contractors' decision intention to recover. The findings indicate that contractor beliefs and components of perceived behavioral control are the primary drivers in the contractor's decision intention to recover. Regarding beliefs, the findings indicate that contractors have a minimal belief that the recovery of the CCA lumber is necessary. This indicates that a marketing communications program should be developed to address the necessity and benefits of recovery.
Recovery facilities and programs were found to be nonexistent and will have to be developed in order to facilitate recovery. Concerning programs, the overwhelming response was that some type of financial incentive would have to be incorporated to initiate recovery. In conjunction with the development of programs, recovery facilities will have to be developed that are convenient for the contractor to dispose of the used lumber.Ph. D.
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Lindén, Anton. "Is green the new black? : An investigation of underlying factors that may influence Generation Y consumers’ purchase behaviour of sustainably produced clothes." Thesis, Umeå universitet, Institutionen för psykologi, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-136744.
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The emergence and success of fast fashion companies have had a negative impact on the environment. A questionnaire based on the Theory of planned behaviour was distributed to 122 respondents (mean age 26,16) through Facebook to investigate underlying factors that may influence young consumers’ purchase behaviour of sustainably produced clothes. The results show that a positive attitude toward the consequences of sustainable consumption is the best predictor of purchase intention (r =.69), which in turn is connected to purchase behaviour (r = .61). The younger consumers are valuing price and design higher than the older consumers, while the older are valuing quality and sustainability higher than the younger consumers (X2 (1) = 7,91, p < .01).Fast fashion företagens uppkomst och framgångar har haft en negativ inverkan på miljön. Ett frågeformulär baserat på Theory of planned behaviour distribuerades till 122 respondenter (medelålder 26,16) genom Facebook för att undersöka vilka underliggande faktorer som kan influera unga konsumenters köpbeteende utav hållbart producerade kläder. Resultaten visar att en positiv attityd till konsekvenserna utav hållbar konsumtion är den starkast förutsägande faktorn för en intention att handla hållbart producerade kläder (r =.69) vilket i sin tur är kopplat till köpbeteende (r =.61). De yngre konsumenterna värderar pris och design högre än de äldre konsumenterna medan de äldre värderar kvalitet och hållbarhet högre än de yngre konsumenterna (X2 (1) = 7,91, p < .01).
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Gunay, Banihan. "Investigation of low lane discipline on uninterrupted multilane traffic flows." Thesis, University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.311194.
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El, Bennani Fauzia Khalil. "Librarianship as a profession : an investigation of Libyan librarians' attitudes." Thesis, McGill University, 2000. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=36921.
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The purpose of this study is to investigate the attitude of Libyan professional librarians towards their profession. The study also seeks to compare attitudes of Libyan professional librarians from culturally diverse rural and urban communities toward librarianship as a profession. The diversity here refers to the distinctive characteristics of the two communities, which include social life style, values, hierarchies of values and attitude. It is also the purpose of this research to compare the attitudes of Libyan male and female professional librarians towards their profession. Another purpose of this study is to investigate if working in different types of libraries such as academic, public and special will have a different effect on Libyan professional librarians' attitudes towards their profession.The population of this study consisted of all Libyan librarians who at the time were employed in academic and special libraries, and all Libyan librarians who at the time were employed in public libraries that are located in the Tripolitanian area.
Thornton's scale to measure librarians' attitudes towards librarianship was selected to be used in this study. In order to determine whether the instrument (scale) items possess the desired qualities of measurement and discriminability when used in different settings (Libyan libraries) and with different subjects, (Libyan librarians) and in order to revise and debug the scale by diagnosing and correcting failings, if any, the following steps were taken: (1) Refinement of the instrument (interviewing subjects). (2) Validation of the instrument, (construct validity). (3) Reliability of the instrument. (Split half). (4) Translating the instrument into Arabic. (5) Pilot study.
A computer utilizing (SPSS) Statistical Package for Social Science was used for analyses and comparison.
The study's major findings indicated that: (1) Libyan librarians working in libraries located in urban communities have a significantly higher positive attitude towards their profession than those who work in libraries located in rural communities. (2) Libyan rural librarians' gender has no significant effect on librarians' attitude towards their profession. (3) Libyan female librarians working in libraries located in urban communities have a significantly higher positive attitude towards their profession than Libyan male librarians working in libraries located in urban communities. (4) Libyan male librarians working in libraries located in urban communities have a significantly higher positive attitude towards their profession than Libyan male librarians working in libraries located in rural communities. (5) Library location has no significant effect on Libyan female librarians' attitude towards their profession. (6) Library type has no significant effect on Libyan librarians' attitude towards their profession. (7) Libyan librarians have positive attitudes towards their profession.
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Collins, William C. "An empirical investigation of the DFIT framework for measuring DTF and DIF in a polytomous satisfaction scale." Diss., Georgia Institute of Technology, 1996. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/28923.
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Strathman, Alan. "Investigation of the influence of need for cognition on attitude- behavior consistency /." The Ohio State University, 1992. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1487760357821656.
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Al-Saud, Afra T. J. "Sex differences in attitude towards mathematics: an investigation in Iraqi secondary schools." Thesis, Aston University, 1985. http://publications.aston.ac.uk/10627/.
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Yuanxin, Ma, and Pittana Noichangkid. "Bored with Ads? : A Study Investigating Attitude towards Social Media Advertising." Thesis, Umeå universitet, Handelshögskolan vid Umeå universitet, 2011. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-44402.
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Bandomir, Christina. "An investigation of attitudes regarding sexual intimacy in the workplace." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2001. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk3/ftp04/MQ56302.pdf.
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Boul, Lorraine A. "Male midlife : an investigation into men's experiences, attitudes and perceptions." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2002. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.251296.
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Villa, Michelle Lynn. "Attitudes on deception in mother-child dyads a preliminary investigation /." To access this resource online via ProQuest Dissertations and Theses @ UTEP, 2008. http://0-proquest.umi.com.lib.utep.edu/login?COPT=REJTPTU0YmImSU5UPTAmVkVSPTI=&clientId=2515.
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Rogers, Sarah Jane. "Investigation of Science Education Attitudes in Alternative High School Settings." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2010. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/2525.
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This study compared the attitudes of administrators, teachers and students in school settings for at-risk students. Students are considered at-risk if they are not academically successful. Teacher and student science education attitudes were analyzed by survey data and categorization of teaching practices. Additionally, data from classroom videotapes and teacher interviews was collected to support and triangulate survey data. Study participants were selected from two school settings for at-risk students 1) public alternative schools (PAS) and 2) private residential treatment centers (RTC). When the survey questions were analyzed by school type and teacher classification several differences were found between 1) teacher responses, 2) students responses and 3) the difference between student and teacher responses. However, when students were analyzed by their teachers' teaching classification no significant differences were found for any of the survey questions or question groupings.
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Al-Matawah, Jamal Ahmed. "An investigation of driver attitudes towards road safety in Kuwait." Thesis, University of Southampton, 2008. https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/73295/.
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Statistics show that the fatalities rate per 10,000 vehicles in the State of Kuwait is about three times that in the UK, and the number of traffic accidents in Kuwait is increasing each year. In 1992, there were 16,017 traffic accidents, with 279 killed. By 2005, the number of accidents had increased to 56,235 with 451 fatalities, although the size of the vehicle fleet was only 1,134,042. This thesis presents the findings of a study of a substantial road accident database for Kuwait and a supplementary questionnaire survey to further understand related driver behaviour. Police accident reports relating to fatality and injury for the year 2002 were collected from the General Investigation Administration at the Ministry of the Interior to obtain an overview of the situation. Human behaviour and driver error were considered to be the main contributory factors, as has been found elsewhere. A questionnaire survey was undertaken to obtain a more in-depth understanding of driver behaviour and attitudes towards traffic regulations, which might relate to road accidents, and the potential acceptability of remedial measures. The questions were developed to suit the traffic environment and culture in Kuwait, and 1,528 questionnaires were completed. Analysis has shown that there are significant associations between accident involvement and other contributory factors. A road accident prediction model was developed, linking behaviour and attitudes with a number of factors such as age, sex, nationality, education level, marital status, driver education, driver training, usual speed on motorways, number of dangerous offences per year, years of driving experience, and drivers’ perceptions of the effectiveness of enforcement on total accident rate. The Generalised Linear Model (GLM) approach was used. It was found that driver attitude towards traffic regulations, enforcement, the number of critical traffic violations, nationality and age were significant contributory factors. The results will be used to influence future policy towards driving education, training and enforcement in Kuwait.
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Kantor-Fish, Sandra. "Influences on paternal attitudes toward child rearing an exploratory investigation." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1987. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/189.
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Almotairi, Mishal. "Investigating Kuwaiti teachers' and head teachers' attitudes towards inclusion." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2013. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/4327/.
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The purpose of this study is to investigate the attitude of Kuwaiti primary teachers and head teachers toward including pupils with disabilities in mainstream schools and classrooms in the State of Kuwait. The two-part study utilises a ‘two methods approach’ to reveal the attitudes of teachers and head teachers in primary mainstream and special schools toward pupils with disabilities and including them in mainstream classrooms. The first study was a questionnaire-based survey of 560 teachers and head teachers currently working in the 209 mainstream and special primary schools in Kuwait. The questionnaire used was the Mainstream Attitude Survey (MAS) developed by Alghazo (2000). Results showed a mixed attitude towards inclusion of pupils with disabilities, and that, overall, teachers were quite negative about the concept. Teachers from mainstream schools were more supportive of inclusion than special school teachers and, male teachers were more supportive than female teachers. The second study involved interviews with 30 teachers, head teachers and 4 decision makers. These revealed nuances of opinion with respondents from both school types supporting inclusion from two main positions. The first emphasised that inclusion was an ethically sound movement; the second emphasised inclusion would be socially beneficial to society and the development of all pupils. Of those who were negative towards inclusion, criticisms were mostly based on the idea that while there were likely to be social benefits of inclusion, these benefits were not significant enough to justify placing the academic achievement of mainstream pupils at risk.
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Schrider, Laurie. "Anti-Fat Attitudes and Weight Bias Internalization: An Investigation of How BMI Impacts Perceptions, Opinions and Attitudes." Scholar Commons, 2016. http://scholarcommons.usf.edu/etd/6382.
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Americans hold negative and judgmental attitudes towards obese and overweight individuals and these anti-fat attitudes and weight stigma have become a damaging form of discrimination. The internalization of weight bias and anti-fat attitudes contributes to negative health outcomes including: feelings of devalue, self-hate, anxiety, depression, body dissatisfaction and eating disturbances. The purpose of this study was to investigate weight bias internalization in individuals who perceive themselves as overweight as well as to examine differences in anti-fat attitudes among normal and overweight individuals. A sample of 202 male and females completed an online survey that assessed anti-fat attitudes via the Anti-Fat Attitudes Scale (AFAS). Individuals classified as overweight also completed an assessment of bias via the Weight Bias Internalization Scale (WBIS). A one-way analysis of variance indicated no significant difference on the AFAS between individuals categorized as normal and overweight (p = 0.10). Follow-up analyses based on gender indicated a significant difference for females (p =0.004) but no difference for males (p = 0.93). Correlation analysis of BMI and WBIS scores among individuals categorized as overweight yielded a weak and nonsignificant correlation coefficient (p = 0.06) for the entire sample and separate analyses of males and females. Contrary to the study hypothesis, current findings indicated those who perceived themselves as overweight or obese, regardless of their BMI, internalized the weight bias stigma similarly, thus not supporting this study’s hypothesis. Evidence from this study suggests bias and anti-fat attitudes not only come from those who are underweight or normal weight, but that overweight and obese individuals have the same negative opinions, stereotypes and prejudice against their peers.
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Betts, Bronwyn Marie. "An investigation into the influence life history has on attitude to lifelong learning." Thesis, University of Bristol, 2009. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.520195.
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Kowalchuk, Scott Allen. "Investigation of Nonlinear Control Strategies Using GPS Simulator And Spacecraft Attitude Control Simulator." Diss., Virginia Tech, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/29547.
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In this dissertation, we discuss the Distributed Spacecraft Attitude Control System Simulator (DSACSS) testbed developed at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University for the purpose of investigating various control techniques for single and multiple spacecraft. DSACSS is comprised of two independent hardware-in-the-loop simulators and one software spacecraft simulator. The two hardware-in-the-loop spacecraft simulators have similar subsystems as flight-ready spacecraft (e.g. command and data handling; communications; attitude determination and control; power; payload; and guidance and navigation). The DSACSS framework is a flexible testbed for investigating a variety of spacecraft control techniques, especially control scenarios involving coupled attitude and orbital motion.
The attitude hardware simulators along with numerical simulations assist in the development and evaluation of Lyapunov based asymptotically stable, nonlinear attitude controllers with three reaction wheels as the control device. The angular rate controller successfully tracks a time varying attitude trajectory. The Modified Rodrigues Parmater (MRP) attitude controller results in successfully tracking the angular rates and MRP attitude vector for a time-varying attitude trajectory. The attitude controllers successfully track the reference attitude in real-time with hardware similar to flight-ready spacecraft.
Numerical simulations and the attitude hardware simulators assist in the development and evaluation of a robust, asymptotically stable, nonlinear attitude controller with three reaction wheels as the actuator for attitude control. The MRPs are chosen to represent the attitude in the development of the controller. The robust spacecraft attitude controller successfully tracks a time-varying reference attitude trajectory while bounding system uncertainties.
The results of a Global Positioning System (GPS) hardware-in-the-loop simulation of two spacecraft flying in formation are presented. The simulations involve a chief spacecraft in a low Earth orbit (LEO), while a deputy spacecraft maintains an orbit position relative to the chief spacecraft. In order to maintain the formation an orbit correction maneuver (OCM) for the deputy spacecraft is required. The control of the OCM is accomplished using a classical orbital element (COE) feedback controller and simulating continual impulsive thrusting for the deputy spacecraft. The COE controller requires the relative position of the six orbital elements. The deputy communicates with the chief spacecraft to obtain the current orbit position of the chief spacecraft, which is determined by a numerical orbit propagator. The position of the deputy spacecraft is determined from a GPS receiver that is connected to a GPS hardware-in-the-loop simulator. The GPS simulator creates a radio frequency (RF) signal based on a simulated trajectory, which results in the GPS receiver calculating the navigation solution for the simulated trajectory. From the relative positions of the spacecraft the COE controller calculates the OCM for the deputy spacecraft. The formation flying simulation successfully demonstrates the closed-loop hardware-in-the-loop GPS simulator.
This dissertation focuses on the development of the DSACSS facility including the development and implementation of a closed-loop GPS simulator and evaluation of nonlinear feedback attitude and orbit control laws using real-time hardware-in-the-loop simulators.Ph. D.
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Yang, Jung-Ha. "An Investigation of the Relationships among Consumer Characteristics, Attitude, and Purchase Intention in Apparel Mass-customization." Diss., Virginia Tech, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/77132.
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Mass-customization is a form of consumer-centric business practice, which is a hybrid of customization and mass-production (Gilmore & Pine II, 1997). It is the use of flexible processes and organizational structures to produce individually customized apparel products at the low cost of a standardized mass-production system (Hart, 1995). Very limited academic consumer research has been conducted in the area of apparel mass-customization. The purposes of the study were (a) to investigate consumers' purchase intentions of mass-customized apparel, (b) to examine the relationships among consumer characteristics, perceived usefulness, perceived behavioral control, attitude toward using apparel mass-customization, and purchase intention of mass-customized apparel, and (c) to identify the predictors of the overall purchase intentions and those of the purchase intentions of specific types of mass-customized apparel (i.e., design, fit and personalization mass-customized apparel). A conceptual model was developed, and eight hypotheses were generated to test the proposed relationships among the variables. A questionnaire was developed as the instrument of collecting data. A national sample of 474 male adults was recruited by a market research company. Statistics such as descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and stepwise multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the collected data. The results indicated that more than half of the respondents were willing to purchase mass-customized dress shirts. The relationships among consumer characteristics, perceived usefulness, perceived behavioral control, attitude toward using apparel mass-customization, and purchase intention of mass-customized apparel were confirmed, and the predictors of the overall purchase intention and of the purchase intention of specific types of mass-customized apparel were identified. Based on the results, in-depth discussions and related marketing implications were provided.Ph. D.
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Duisberg, Stephanie. "High school heritage learners of Spanish: An investigation of language attitudes." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/289789.
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This study explored language attitudes of high-school-level heritage learners of Spanish. Five varieties of Spanish and English, namely, standard Mexican, non-native and local Southern Arizona Spanish, code-switching, and Chicano-accented English were presented to heritage learners using audio-recorded voice samples. Evaluations were recorded on semantic differential scales designed to reflect two distinct attitude dimensions, solidarity and socio-intellectual status/prestige. In addition to quantifying language attitudes, the study attempted to establish correlations with demographic factors. Demographic surveys and student interviews further yielded information to develop a current description of heritage learners in a formal, classroom setting. Teacher interviews provided insights into program structure and teacher preparation. The ultimate pedagogical goal of this investigation was to define implications for heritage language instruction and for the preparation of teachers for this relatively new, yet growing field. A total of 238 students from programs for Spanish heritage learners in ten schools encompassing four districts, public and private, took part in the study. Structure and practices of heritage programs were found to differ widely, with teachers exercising considerable discretion over curriculum. Students were found to be 90% recently arrived or second-generation students of Mexican, mostly Sonoran, background. Students expressed largely instrumental motivation for their pursuit of Spanish in school and 85% planned to pursue higher education. Results indicate significant differences in students' attitudes between the normative and vernacular language varieties tested. In this academic setting, students' attitudes reflected a distinct preference for more standard varieties. The English test variety was ranked below these and above the vernaculars. Student-participants also showed sensitivity to fine distinctions in register and style. Gender of both speaker and listener were shown to affect language attitudes. Students' habits of language use, in particular the extent of outside reading and radio listening in Spanish, were significantly correlated with more positive language attitudes toward standard varieties. These habits also correlated with higher proficiency levels. These results engendered three salient implications for teaching and teacher preparation: the need to enhance students' outside reading and listening habits, the need to extend students' familiarity with divergent speech styles, the necessary inclusion of sociolinguistic underpinnings in teacher preparation.
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Teklos, Panayiotis. "An investigation into pupils' attitudes towards secondary music education in Cyprus." Thesis, University of Hull, 2011. http://hydra.hull.ac.uk/resources/hull:5821.
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The focus of this study was on the identification of pupils’ attitudes towards music education in secondary schools of Cyprus. There is a growing body of literature about the Cypriot music education scene, although the majority of studies to date have concentrated on primary school settings with less attention given to the secondary sector; thus, the purpose of this study was to address the current gap in the Cypriot music education literature as well as to contribute more generally towards research in the field of music education. A theoretical model was constructed in the light of previous literature in the field and in response to Bronfenbrenner’s influential ecological theory about child development. The model highlighted the influence of personal, social and educational aspects on the formation of pupils’ attitudes and was used in the creation of the research instrument as part of the empirical enquiry within this thesis. A Pancyprian questionnaire was carried out with a sample of 2996 pupils aged between 12 and 18 years of age representing all of the districts of Cyprus in both Gymnasium and Lyceum schools. The questionnaire focussed on gathering pupils’ perceptions about secondary music education and the subject of Music in school. Different personal and demographic factors were cross-examined in the data, including the effects of gender, district, experience, school type and school grade. Overall, pupils’ attitudes were largely negative, since almost half of the participants provided unenthusiastic and unfavourable responses towards school Music (45.9%), while there was more positive feedback about private music tuition in Cyprus (69.3%). Pupils’ attitudes were based on personal beliefs and views about the subject as well as levels of interest and knowledge gained from music lessons. The study showed that significant relationships exist among five key variables in the creation of pupils’ attitudes, so female pupils, experienced pupils, Gymnasium pupils (especially those within Grade A) and pupils from the Larnaca district were more positive towards the subject of Music, in comparison with others.
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Hodgkinson, Elizabeth Anne. "Images of engineering : an investigation of gender and attitudes towards engineering." Thesis, University of Plymouth, 2003. http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/1637.
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The research presented in this thesis used a mixed method approach to investigate the attitudes of sixth-form students in two British cities, towards engineering as a career, with the aim of finding out which factors encourage or discourage young people from becoming engineers, and whether these differ for males and females. The study can be set in the context of the declining popularity of engineering as a career choice for males and the continuing under-representation of females, for whom engineering is a non-traditional career choice. The principal research hypothesis was that negative images of engineering discourage girls and many boys from considering it as a career, with a particular focus on whether engineering and the school subjects closely related to it, are considered to be more appropriate for males than for females. The study was informed by a social science realist framework, in which 'attitudes' were not accorded the status of fixed attributes of individuals, but were understood as indicators of the underiying social construction of meanings and ideologies. It was found that the students in this study had made subject and career choices that conform to traditional gender patterns. The intention to pursue engineering as a career was highly dependent upon sex, with males being almost seven times as likely to consider it as a career than females. Although the students did not consciously subscribe to sexstereotyped views of subjects and occupations, these were inadvertently reproduced through the students' constructions of meaning. Initiatives to increase female participation in engineering have been based on overly voluntaristic conceptions of choice, whereby women are seen to straightforwardly reject the masculine image of engineering. However, this research suggests that understandings of both gender and engineering can be better understood as less intentionally constituted in 'discourses', which reinforce the association between engineering and specific forms of masculine identity, to exclude most women and many men.
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Martins, Cristiana Bertazoni. "Antisuyu : an investigation of Inca attitudes to their western Amazonian territories." Thesis, University of Essex, 2007. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.437149.
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Chandra, Aditi S. M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. "Investigation of causes and structure of social attitudes concerning nuclear radiation." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/92094.
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Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, 2014.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 140-144).
An individual's perception of radiation, termed as "Radiation Attitudes" in this work, is vital for understanding the stakeholder relationship dynamics for acceptance of controversial nuclear technology projects. Attitudes towards nuclear technology have been found to be different from those towards other technologies perceived as hazardous, such as hydraulic fracturing, genetic engineering or biohazard facilities. Even within the subset of nuclear technology, different applications invoke different reactions. Medical uses of the technology are generally viewed as positive, whereas nuclear power plants and radioactive waste management facilities can sometimes cause fear and anxiety in the minds of some people. This work explains the causes and structure of Radiation Attitudes, and the dynamics of the various factors influencing them. A historical analysis of the narratives concerning nuclear technology was used to identify the complex, social, political, cognitive and technological factors that played a significant role in the formation of Radiation Attitudes. A system dynamics approach was utilized to construct causal loop diagrams depicting the cause-effect relationships and interdependencies between the identified variables. Qualitative interviews were conducted to test the causal relationships hypothesized in the model for Radiation Attitudes. The purpose of the interviews was to understand individual beliefs that result in a particular Radiation Attitude, the bases for these beliefs, and the process of their formation. The interviews enabled verification of the variables and relationships in the model, and the identification of the most significant interdependencies and links. The hypothesized model for Radiation Attitudes correlated well with the information inferred from the interviews, making the first stage of validation a success.
by Aditi Chandra.
S.M.
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Sugarman, Sophie. "An investigation into parents' attitudes to their children having imaginary companions." Thesis, University College London (University of London), 2013. http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/10017997/.
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Imaginary companions (ICs) are a relatively common feature of childhood, yet the views of parents regarding their children's creation of and engagement with ICs are relatively unexplored. This study explored the attitudes of parents towards ICs and the factors that relate to variation in views. This study is comprised of two phases. Phase 1 examined the views of mothers and fathers of primary school aged children using a self-completion questionnaire. 228 mothers and 31 fathers participated. Of these 259 parents, 63 had a child with a current or previous IC and 196 had a child without an IC. Phase 2 further examined the views of 12 mothers who had all experienced the phenomenon with their children, using semi-structured interviews. Results indicated that in general, parents held mainly positive or neutral views of ICs. They perceived there to be both advantages and disadvantages for their child, they had some concerns, and would be most inclined to ignore the behaviour. Context was found to also relate to the views of parents, and they would be more inclined to join in with the pretence in private than in public. Experience of ICs was associated with the views of parents, and parents with experience of ICs consistently reported more positive views for all attitudes measured. Child age was also found to impact on the views of parents, who were all less accepting of their children's ICs with increasing child age. It was hypothesised that parents' views may therefore play a part in older children keeping their ICs a secret from others. Furthermore, religious affiliation was also found to result in some variation in parent views. Mothers interviewed all expressed positive views of their children's IC, identifying a number of developmental benefits afforded to the child and identifying their experience to have been positive, thus positively shaping their views of ICs. Their positive views were however found to be conditional upon a number of factors, including the age of the child, the IC being used appropriately, and there being no negative social impact. Whilst the mothers had few concerns for young children with ICs, their concern was found to grow with increasing child age and the prospect of the IC not disappearing after middle childhood. The implications of the study for educational psychology, education and childcare professionals are discussed.
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Fang, Fan. "An investigation of attitudes towards English accents at a Chinese university." Thesis, University of Southampton, 2015. https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/382585/.
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The English language has spread across the globe to become an international language. With the growing number of speakers of English, it has been claimed that English is no longer the sole property of its native speakers but is a global lingua franca (ELF). Under these circumstances, it is natural that various language ideologies have formed, pervaded with ideological debates. In the last two decades, scholarly research has urged reform and re-evaluation in the field of English language teaching (ELT). However, in practice, most ELT approaches remain stigmatised to the standard or ‘authentic’ native speaker English paradigm. This overlooks the fact that English is more often used by non-native speakers than native speakers. In addition, the functional role of the language is routinely ignored when it comes to the classroom practice of language teaching. As people’s attitudes towards the English language and ELT display substantial intransigence, despite the rapidly-changing linguistic realities, it is necessary to investigate how university teachers and students perceive this international language in relation to language pedagogy. Until now, research based on the ELF paradigm has been relatively rare, particularly in the Chinese context. This thesis draws upon Chinese university students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards their own and other English accents in the ELF framework. The research adopted a mixed-methods approach in order to obtain the desired level of detail. First, a questionnaire was sent to students to generate quantitative data to help understand students’ attitudes about accents more broadly. With the aim of providing rich data description, interviews and focus groups were also employed, with both student and teacher participants. From the analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data, the findings suggest that both student and teacher participants display complex and uncertain attitudes. In general, students did not feel satisfied with their own English accents and would like to refine them to match native speakers of English more closely, but they did not expect other people to sound native-like; this result may reflect the notion of ‘being strict with oneself while relaxed with others’ that has been identified as prevalent in Chinese culture. Teachers display two primary outlooks: on the one hand, they recognised the global spread of English and noted the importance of their own identities when using the language. On the other hand, a number of them still believed they should improve their English accents because they serve as professional pronunciation role models to students. A key finding of the research is that, despite the rooted native-oriented ideology, both students and teachers expressed the necessity of exposure to different accents. In sum, the research findings demonstrate various and complex accent attitudes in relation to the participants’ identity construction. Based on the implications of the research, the thesis concludes with a proposal for teaching pronunciation based on the ELF framework – Teaching of Pronunciation for Intercultural Communication (ToPIC) – as a pronunciation praxis to respond better to the current linguistic landscape of English. Research limitations and possibilities for further research are discussed at the end of the thesis.
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Hyun, Soeun. "An investigation of the pricing attitudes and practices of Korean business." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 1988. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/45163.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this study was to explore issues related to the development of
pricing strategies. Important questions addressed included the importance of this topic
and a description of how prices are set or why prices are set. Also, the concern of
whether these issues are general across major types of pricing decisions, or specific to
certain pricing decisions was investigated. Particularly, this study reviewed the
descriptive survey research or case studies that have been done to determine how
businesses make price decisions, and their key pricing policies and procedures.
While Korea is recognized as one of the most rapidly industrializing countries, marketing and marketing research have not been fully developed, and, furthermore, there has been little research on pricing. Therefore, this study reports on a survey with 303 Korean business people about their pricing attitudes and practices in order to obtain information about Korean businesses and help them improve their pricing strategies by suggesting ideas based on price theory and previous price research.
The basic results of the survey indicate that although pricing has been generally recognized as an important area in marketing by Korean business people, it has not been examined as a way to influence demand in advanced market environments. While it is revealed that Korean consumers are price sensitive and Korean business situations are competitive, Korean businesses seem to have offered similar products with a relatively rigid pricing approach based on production costs. Their pricing strategies appear not to be related to the other elements of the marketing mix. However, promotional pricing, mainly as discounts, was regarded to be important to gain a competitive edge. In terms of actual price setting in industry and firms, many Korean businesses assume the characteristics of a price taker rather than price maker. Their primary short run pricing objective was to meet existing competition. However, the major basis of their pricing policies was either competitive situation or pricing what the market will bear.
This study provides a general view on the type of issues that should be considered
in pricing, and evaluates the pricing practices of Korean businesses in comparison to
those of more advanced countries. The study is also of value to Korean business people
because it offers them information on how prices are set in various industries, and the
attitudes and opinions of business people about the pricing function.
Master of Science
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Tarnoff, Karen Ann. "Students' attitudes toward unions and employment rights issues: a preliminary investigation." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 1993. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/40629.
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