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Botelho, Neto Gutenberg Pessoa. "Aprendizado por esforço aplicado ao combate em jogos eletrônicos de estratégia em tempo real." Universidade Federal da Paraíba, 2014. http://tede.biblioteca.ufpb.br:8080/handle/tede/6128.
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Previous issue date: 2014-03-28<br>Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES<br>Electronic games and, in particular, real-time strategy (RTS) games, are
increasingly seen as viable and important fields for artificial intelligence research
because of commonly held characteristics, like the presence of complex environments,
usually dynamic and with multiple agents. In commercial RTS games, the computer
behavior is mostly designed with simple ad hoc, static techniques that require manual
definition of actions and leave the agent unable to adapt to the various situations it may
find. This approach, besides being lengthy and error-prone, makes the game relatively
predictable after some time, allowing the human player to eventually discover the
strategy used by the computer and develop an optimal way of countering it. Using
machine learning techniques like reinforcement learning is a way of trying to avoid this
predictability, allowing the computer to evaluate the situations that occur during the
games, learning with these situations and improving its behavior over time, being able
to choose autonomously and dynamically the best action when needed. This work
proposes a modeling for the use of SARSA, a reinforcement learning technique, applied
to combat situations in RTS games, with the goal of allowing the computer to better
perform in this fundamental area for achieving victory in an RTS game. Several tests
were made with various game situations and the agent applying the proposed modeling,
facing the game's default AI opponent, was able to improve its performance in all of
them, developing knowledge about the best actions to choose for the various possible
game states and using this knowledge in an efficient way to obtain better results in later
games<br>Jogos eletrônicos e, em especial, jogos de estratégia em tempo real (RTS), são
cada vez mais vistos como campos viáveis e importantes para pesquisas de inteligência
artificial por possuírem características interessantes para a área, como a presença de
ambientes complexos, muitas vezes dinâmicos e com múltiplos agentes. Nos jogos RTS
comerciais, o comportamento do computador é geralmente definido a partir de técnicas
ad hoc simples e estáticas, com a necessidade de definição manual de ações e a
incapacidade de adaptação às situações encontradas. Esta abordagem, além de demorada
e propícia a erros, faz com que o jogo se torne relativamente previsível após algum
tempo, permitindo ao jogador eventualmente descobrir a estratégia utilizada pelo
computador e desenvolver uma forma ótima de enfrentá-lo. Uma maneira de tentar
combater esta previsibilidade consiste na utilização de técnicas de aprendizagem de
máquina, mais especificamente do aprendizado por reforço, para permitir ao
computador avaliar as situações ocorridas durante as partidas, aprendendo com estas
situações e aprimorando seu conhecimento ao longo do tempo, sendo capaz de escolher
de maneira autônoma e dinâmica a melhor ação quando necessário. Este trabalho
propõe uma modelagem para a utilização de SARSA, uma técnica do aprendizado por
reforço, aplicada a situações de combate em jogos RTS, com o objetivo de fazer com o
que o computador possa se portar de maneira mais adequada nessa área, uma das mais
fundamentais para a busca da vitória em um jogo RTS. Nos testes realizados em
diversas situações de jogo, o agente aplicando a modelagem proposta, enfrentando o
oponente padrão controlado pela IA do jogo, foi sempre capaz de melhorar seus
resultados ao longo do tempo, obtendo conhecimento acerca das melhores ações a
serem tomadas a cada momento decisório e aproveitando esse conhecimento nas suas
partidas futuras
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Au, Manix. "Automatic State Construction using Decision Trees for Reinforcement Learning Agents." Queensland University of Technology, 2005. http://eprints.qut.edu.au/15965/.
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Reinforcement Learning (RL) is a learning framework in which an agent learns a policy from continual interaction with the environment. A policy is a mapping from states to actions. The agent receives rewards as feedback on the actions performed. The objective of RL is to design autonomous agents to search for the policy that maximizes the expectation of the cumulative reward. When the environment is partially observable, the agent cannot determine the states with certainty. These states are called hidden in the literature. An agent that relies exclusively on the current observations will not always find the optimal policy. For example, a mobile robot needs to remember the number of doors went by in order to reach a specific door, down a corridor of identical doors. To overcome the problem of partial observability, an agent uses both current and past (memory) observations to construct an internal state representation, which is treated as an abstraction of the environment. This research focuses on how features of past events are extracted with variable granularity regarding the internal state construction. The project introduces a new method that applies Information Theory and decision tree technique to derive a tree structure, which represents the state and the policy. The relevance, of a candidate feature, is assessed by the Information Gain Ratio ranking with respect to the cumulative expected reward. Experiments carried out on three different RL tasks have shown that our variant of the U-Tree (McCallum, 1995) produces a more robust state representation and faster learning. This better performance can be explained by the fact that the Information Gain Ratio exhibits a lower variance in return prediction than the Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistical test used in the original U-Tree algorithm.
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Geißer, Florian [Verfasser], and Bernhard [Akademischer Betreuer] Nebel. "On planning with state-dependent action costs." Freiburg : Universität, 2018. http://d-nb.info/1189066688/34.
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Alexander, Serena E. "From Planning to Action: An Evaluation of State Level Climate Action Plans." Cleveland State University / OhioLINK, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=csu1470908879.
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Davis, Gloria-Jeanne Halinski Ronald S. Lynn Mary Ann. "Affirmative action implementation in Illinois public state universities." Normal, Ill. Illinois State University, 1986. http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/ilstu/fullcit?p8626589.
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Thesis (Ph. D.)--Illinois State University, 1986.<br>Title from title page screen, viewed July 14, 2005. Dissertation Committee: Ronald S. Halinski, Mary Ann Lynn (co-chairs), Charles E. Morris, Jeanne B. Morris, Thomas W. Nelson. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 90-93) and abstract. Also available in print.
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Melo, Andrés Felipe. "A state-action model for design process planning." Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2003. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.619610.
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Nichols, B. "Reinforcement learning in continuous state- and action-space." Thesis, University of Westminster, 2014. https://westminsterresearch.westminster.ac.uk/item/967w8/reinforcement-learning-in-continuous-state-and-action-space.
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Reinforcement learning in the continuous state-space poses the problem of the inability to store the values of all state-action pairs in a lookup table, due to both storage limitations and the inability to visit all states sufficiently often to learn the correct values. This can be overcome with the use of function approximation techniques with generalisation capability, such as artificial neural networks, to store the value function. When this is applied we can select the optimal action by comparing the values of each possible action; however, when the action-space is continuous this is not possible. In this thesis we investigate methods to select the optimal action when artificial neural networks are used to approximate the value function, through the application of numerical optimization techniques. Although it has been stated in the literature that gradient-ascent methods can be applied to the action selection [47], it is also stated that solving this problem would be infeasible, and therefore, is claimed that it is necessary to utilise a second artificial neural network to approximate the policy function [21, 55]. The major contributions of this thesis include the investigation of the applicability of action selection by numerical optimization methods, including gradient-ascent along with other derivative-based and derivative-free numerical optimization methods,and the proposal of two novel algorithms which are based on the application of two alternative action selection methods: NM-SARSA [40] and NelderMead-SARSA. We empirically compare the proposed methods to state-of-the-art methods from the literature on three continuous state- and action-space control benchmark problems from the literature: minimum-time full swing-up of the Acrobot; Cart-Pole balancing problem; and a double pole variant. We also present novel results from the application of the existing direct policy search method genetic programming to the Acrobot benchmark problem [12, 14].
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Grönland, Axel, and Möllerstedt Viktor Eriksson. "Robust Reinforcement Learning in Continuous Action/State Space." Thesis, KTH, Skolan för elektroteknik och datavetenskap (EECS), 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-293879.
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In this project we aim to apply Robust Reinforce-ment Learning algorithms, presented by Doya and Morimoto [1],[2], to control problems. Specifically, we train an agent to balancea pendulum in the unstable equilibrium, which is the invertedstate.We investigate the performance of controllers based on twodifferent function approximators. One is quadratic, and the othermakes use of a Radial Basis Function neural network. To achieverobustness we will make use of an approach similar toH∞control, which amounts to introducing an adversary in the controlsystem.By changing the mass of the pendulum after training, we aimedto show as in [2] that the supposedly robust controllers couldhandle this disruption better than its non-robust counterparts.This was not the case. We also added a random disturber signalafter training and performed similar tests, but we were againunable to show robustness.<br>I detta projekt applicerar vi Robust Rein- forcement Learning (RRL) algoritmer, framtagna av Doya och Morimoto [1], [2], på reglerproblem. Målet var att träna en agent att balansera en pendel i det instabila jämviktsläget; det inverterade tillståndet. Vi undersökte prestandan hos regulatorer baserade på två value function approximators. Den ena är kvadratisk och den andra en Radial Basis Function neuralt nätverk. För att skapa robusthet så använder vi en metod som är ekvivalent med H∞ - reglering, som innebär att man introducerar en motståndare i reglersystemet. Genom att ändra pendelns massa efter träning, hoppas vi att som i [2] kunna visa att den förment robusta regulatorn klarar av denna störning bättre än sin icke-robusta mostvarighet. Detta var inte fallet. Vi lade även till en slumpmässig störsignal efter träning och utförde liknande tester, men lyckades inte visa robusthet i detta fall heller.<br>Kandidatexjobb i elektroteknik 2020, KTH, Stockholm
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Juma, Monica Kathina. "The politics of humanitarian assistance : state, non-state actors and displacement in Kenya and Uganda (1989-1998)." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.365626.
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Bezuidenhout, Karen. "Compensation for excessive but otherwise lawful regulatory state action." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/96819.
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Thesis (LLD)--Stellenbosch University, 2015<br>ENGLISH ABSTRACT : Section 25 of the South African Constitution authorises and sets the limits for two forms of legitimate regulatory interference with property, namely deprivation and expropriation. The focus of this dissertation is on the requirement in section 25(1) that no law may authorise arbitrary deprivation of property. According to the Constitutional Court, deprivation is arbitrary when there is insufficient reason for it. The Court listed a number of factors to consider in determining whether there is a sufficient relationship between the purpose to be achieved by deprivation and the regulatory method chosen to achieve it.
The outcome of the arbitrariness question depends on the level of scrutiny applied in a particular case. The level of scrutiny ranges from rationality review to proportionality review. Deprivation that results in an excessively harsh regulatory burden for one or a small group of property owners will probably be substantively arbitrary and in conflict with section 25(1). Courts generally declare unconstitutional regulatory interferences with property rights invalid. However, invalidating legitimate regulatory measures that are otherwise lawful purely because they impose a harsh and excessive burden on some property owners may not always be justified if the regulatory measure fulfils an important regulatory purpose. Invalidating excessive regulatory measures may in some instances also be meaningless and may not constitute appropriate relief in vindicating the affected rights.
The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the appropriateness of alternative solutions to invalidating otherwise lawful and legitimate but excessive regulatory deprivations of property. The goal is to identify remedies that allow courts to uphold the regulatory measure and simultaneously balance out the excessive regulatory burden it imposes on property owners.
One alternative solution is to transform the excessive regulatory measure into expropriation and require the state to pay compensation to the affected owner. This approach is referred to as constructive expropriation. However, in view of the Constitutional Court’s approach to and the wording of section 25 it seems unlikely that it will adopt constructive expropriation as a solution.
Another alternative solution is for the legislature to include a statutory provision for compensation in the authorising statute. Examples from German, French, Dutch and Belgian law show that this approach balances out the excessive regulatory burden and allows courts to uphold the otherwise lawful and legitimate but excessive regulatory statute without judicially transforming the deprivation into expropriation. An overview of South African law indicates that there is legislation that includes non-expropriatory compensation provisions. In cases where the regulatory statute does not contain a compensation provision, the courts might consider reading such a duty to pay compensation into the legislation or awarding constitutional damages.
In conclusion, it is possible for the state to deprive owners of property in a manner that may result in an excessive regulatory burden being suffered by one or a small group of property owners if the regulatory purpose is necessary in the public interest, provided that the legislature explicitly or implicitly provides for non-expropriatory compensation in the regulatory statute.<br>AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Artikel 25 van die Suid Afrikaanse Grondwet magtig en stel grense daar vir twee regmatige vorme van regulerende staatsinmenging met eiendom, naamlik ontneming en onteiening. Die fokus van hierdie proefskrif is op die vereiste in artikel 25(1) dat geen wet arbitrêre ontneming van eiendom mag toelaat nie. Volgens die Grondwetlike Hof is ʼn ontneming arbitrêr as daar nie ʼn voldoende rede daarvoor is nie. Die Hof het faktore gelys wat oorweeg moet word om te bepaal of daar ʼn voldoende verhouding bestaan tussen die doel wat die staat met ontneming van eiendom nastreef en die regulerende maatreël wat vir die doel gebruik word.
Die uitkoms van die toets vir arbitrêre ontneming hang af van die hersieningsstandaard wat die howe in ʼn spesifieke geval gebruik. Die standaard wissel van ʼn redelikheidstoets tot ʼn proporsionaliteitstoets. ʼn Ontneming wat ʼn oormatige swaar las op een of ʼn beperkte groep eienaars plaas sal waarskynlik arbitrêr en teenstrydig met artikel 25(1) wees. Die howe se benadering is om ongrondwetlike ontnemings van eiendom ongeldig te verklaar, maar dit is nie altyd geregverdig om toelaatbare en andersins regmatige ontnemings wat ʼn oormatige las op sommige eienaars plaas ongeldig te verklaar nie. Die ongeldigverklaring van wetgewing wat ʼn oormatige ontneming magtig mag soms ook nutteloos wees en nie ʼn gepaste remedie wees om die eienaar se regte te herstel nie.
Die doel van hierdie proefskrif is om die geskiktheid van alternatiewe oplossings tot die ongeldigverklaring van andersins regmatige maar oormatige ontnemings van eiendom te ondersoek Die doel is om remedies te identifiseer wat die howe toelaat om regulerende ontnemings in stand te hou en terselfdertyd die oormatige las op enkele eienaars uit te balanseer.
Een alternatiewe oplossing is om die oormatige ontneming te omskep in onteiening en die staat sodoende te verplig om aan die eienaar vergoeding te betaal. Hierdie benadering staan bekend as konstruktiewe onteiening. Gegewe die Grondwetlike Hof se benadering tot en die bewoording van artikel 25 is dit onwaarskynlik dat die howe konstruktiewe ontneming as ʼn oplossing sal aanvaar.
ʼn Ander alternatiewe oplossing is vir die wetgewer om ʼn statutêre bepaling vir vergoeding in die magtigende wetgewing in te voeg. Voorbeelde uit die Duitse, Franse, Nederlandse en Belgiese reg toon aan dat hierdie benadering ʼn oormatige las kan uitbalanseer en die howe toelaat om die andersins geldige en regmatige ontneming in stand te hou sonder om dit in onteiening te omskep. ʼn Oorsig van Suid Afrikaanse reg dui aan dat daar wetgewing bestaan wat wel voorsiening maak vir sodanige vergoeding. In gevalle waar die magtigende wetgewing nie vergoeding voorsien nie kan die howe oorweeg om ʼn vergoedingsplig in die wet in te lees of om grondwetlike vergoeding toe te ken.
Hierdie proefskrif kom tot die gevolgtrekking dat dit grondwetlik moontlik is vir die staat om eienaars van eiendom te ontneem op ʼn wyse wat soms daartoe kan lei dat enkele eienaars ʼn oormatige swaar las moet dra, mits die ontneming ʼn belangrike openbare doel dien en die wetgewer uitdruklik of implisiet voorsiening maak vir vergoeding.
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Wu, Weiqiao. "Family formation in contemporary urban China a state-action model /." access full-text online access from Digital Dissertation Consortium, 1993. http://libweb.cityu.edu.hk/cgi-bin/er/db/ddcdiss.pl?9508273.
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Douglas, Caroline C. "The functional significance of action-state orientation in athletic performance." Thesis, Loughborough University, 2005. https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/2134/14409.
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This thesis investigated the functional significance ofthe personality construct of action-state orientation (Kuhl, 1981), which is suggested to mediate the efficiency of the volitional approach taken to overcome the difficulties associated with goal initiation, maintenance and completion under competitive pressure. The role of volition, defined as 'the act of deciding upon a course of action and initiating it' [Syn. Will] (German Dictionary of psychology, 1934, p.283) in sport has emerged from unequivocal findings taken from coaches and athletes regarding the effectiveness of goal setting as a performance enhancement strategy (Burton, Weinberg, Yukelson & Weigand, 1998; Weinberg, Burton, Yukelson & Weigand, 2000). Further research exploration of goal setting practices concluded that the most realistic explanation for the lack of goal attainment when utilising goal setting is the lack of an adequate 'action plan' (Burton, Naylor & Holliday, 2000). Whilst goal setting is a process of motivation that ends with a decision to act (Beckmann, 2002; Heckhausen, 1991; Kuhl, 1987), the processes of goal initiation and completion are related to action plans and goal striving, which are issues of volition (Kuhl, 1984; Latharn 2000). Volitional competence is determined by the opposing personality dispositions of action- versus state-orientation. Action-orientation is characterised by an efficient present focus on action and making plans under pressure, whereas state-orientation is associated with an increased propensity to ruminate over real or imagined failure and the state the individual is in, rather than focus on the task at hand (Kuhl, 1994a). Study 1 explores the performance strategies and coping skills utilised by action- and state-oriented athletes under competitive pressure. Scores on the Athlete Coping Skills Inventory (ACSI-28; Smith, Schultz, Smoll & Ptacek, 1995)demonstrated a significantly higher usage of goal setting, relaxation and imagery as well as better emotional control and lower levels of negative thinking in the actionoriented group. Results from the Test of Performance Strategies (TOPS; Thomas, Murphy & Hardy, 1999) showed comparable scores between action- and stateoriented athletes in the areas of self-talk and coachability. A similarity which highlights an increased propensity in state-oriented athletes to submit to external control and the beliefs of others in preference to their own personal judgement. Study 2 documents the impact of 5-month intervention with endurance athletes to enhance volitional functioning and self-access to their personal wants, needs and beliefs utilising Personality Systems Interaction theory (PSI; Kuhl, 2000a), which contends volition efficiency is facilitated by positive affect. Eight out of eleven baseline state-oriented athletes scores on the Volitional Components Inventory (VCI; version 6, US-I; Kuhl & Fuhrmann, 1998) showed significantly improved differences in 23 out of a total 35 areas of volitional functioning, including enhanced levels (p<O.05) of emotional control, initiating and self-determination. Significantly decreased scores (p<O.05) in areas including inhibition and fear of failure were also shown. Study 3 presents follow-up interviews with intervention programme athletes to specifically investigate personal experiences and perceptions of behaviour change. Qualitative exploration indicated more pronounced use of avoidance coping strategies related to self-awareness and the adoption of mental skills in three athletes who showed no improved volitional competency. These athletes demonstrated inappropriate and performance impairing methods of enacting their intentions. Overall, results suggest that volitional efficiency is related to the ease of access to personal beliefs, needs and wants as these self-related constructs provide goals with the dynamic properties of being self-determined and intrinsicallymotivated. Goal pursuit can be severely debilitated by intentions that lack energising and protective qualities because limited self-awareness and the use of denial create a situation where intentions are never actually associated with the constructs that govern motivational meaning and action initiation. It is necessary that athletes learn to trust their own judgements and function quickly and correctly when under competitive pressure. If athletes do not develop the ability to appropriately access the mechanisms that enable them to overcome the difficulty of goal enactment, their performance can be compromised. A key implication for professional practice is the need to develop easily adhered-to self-monitoring tools and functionally relevant affect regulation training programmes. Future research directions including the furthering of both the issues of theoretical understanding and the role played by volition in sport are presented.
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Campbell, Johnnie Faye. "Executive Succession in Community Action Agencies in a Southern State." ScholarWorks, 2018. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/5683.
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Without adequate succession planning (SP) for executive directors, nonprofit organizations risk losing their mission and direction and their ability to sustain the quality of program and services and maintain superior leadership. The purpose of this study was to determine the degree to which SP was being developed and implemented in community action agencies (CAAs) in a southern state. This study also focused on the challenges that these organizations experienced from not implementing SP. This single case study design was based on the theoretical framework of organizational change, using Lewin's 3-stage model. Identified through purposive and snowball sampling, 17 participants from 5 CAAs in a southern state were interviewed using semi structured questions. Both primary interview data and secondary data were analyzed through constant comparison and the identification of themes and patterns, and verified through triangulation, member-checking, and pattern-matching. Secondary data consisted of succession plans, annual reports, bylaws, boards of directors' minutes, IRS 990s, and strategic plans. Findings revealed that 3 of the CAAs under study had a succession plan in place, while 2 did not. The challenges that these CAAs experienced from not implementing SP focused on 5 primary themes: organizational identity, sustainability, salaries, governance, and leadership development. The implications for social change include informing the southern state's CAA leaders, funders, and other stakeholders about the importance of developing written succession plans, integrating SP with leadership development and executive transitioning practices, and the long-term benefits of having these plans in place.
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Ewing, Gabriel. "Knowledge Transfer from Expert Demonstrations in Continuous State-Action Spaces." Case Western Reserve University School of Graduate Studies / OhioLINK, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1512748071082221.
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Begon, Jessica. "Policy without paternalism : a capability approach to legitimate state action." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2013. http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/5412/.
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There has long been a conflict at the heart of theories of distributive justice between a concern to allow individuals autonomy and avoid paternalism, on the one hand, and a concern to promote individual well-being, on the other. The capability approach attempts to tread this line, by providing individuals with certain central capabilities or opportunities: these preserve a space for individual freedom and choice, yet ensure that all individuals have access to those things that are considered central for a flourishing life. Further, ‘all individuals’ is meant expansively, aiming to accommodate the experiences and needs of many groups that are often ignored. However, the perfectionist roots of the capability approach have led to concerns being raised that it cannot successfully protect autonomy and promote inclusivity, and that it will, instead, justify paternalism. I contend that, in particular, Martha Nussbaum's influential account of capabilities falls prey to just this objection. In my thesis I defend a version of the capability approach that is strictly anti-paternalist, and accommodates a variety of non-standard human experiences. I argue that this focus on autonomy need not be bought at the expense of individual well-being, and that encompassing atypical experiences need not be bought at the expense of accommodating more standard conceptions of the good. I advocate an understanding of capabilities as opportunities to exercise control in certain domains of our life, in contrast to Nussbaum’s construal of capabilities as opportunities to perform (or not) particular valuable functionings. I test my theory against a number of cases that have traditionally provide challenging for anti-paternalists, and theorists of justice more generally – including physical disability, conditions such as asexuality and Asperger’s Syndrome, and voluntary slavery and amputation – to demonstrate that my theory is better able to accommodate such unusual preferences and needs, without paternalism.
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Husain, Jonelle Henry. "Diversity in Action: Protesting Abortion in Mississippi." MSSTATE, 2006. http://sun.library.msstate.edu/ETD-db/theses/available/etd-04092006-142806/.
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Abortion remains a controversial contemporary social issue, spawning disparate and strongly held opinions among the American public. Pro-life activists play a central role in opposing abortion, mobilizing a disinterested public to public activism, and collectively working to restrict abortion access. This study focused on pro-life activism in Mississippi, the state with the most restrictive laws governing abortion, abortion clinics, and abortion doctors. Contrary to previous studies and media portrayals that homogenize pro-life activists and public pro-life activism, I find that diversity, rather than consensus, characterizes Mississippi pro-life activists who engage in public activism and direct action to stop abortion. Specifically, this study focuses on the diversity in turning points that propel activists into public activism, the multivalent ways activists construct abortion as a moral problem, and the ways activists create and use strategies of action to disseminate their worldviews and to stop abortion.
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Nimis, Sara Rose. "Mythologies of a developmental state ambition and action in Nasser's Egypt /." Connect to this document online, 2005. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc%5Fnum=miami1126661827.
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Thesis (M.A.)--Miami University, Dept. of Political Science, 2005.<br>Title from first page of PDF document. Document formatted into pages; contains [1], ii, 71 p. Includes bibliographical references (p. 66-71).
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Solevid, Maria. "Voices from the welfare state : dissatisfaction and political action in Sweden /." Gothenburg : Department of Political Science, University of Gothenburg, 2009. http://gupea.ub.gu.se/dspace/handle/2077/20821.
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Nimis, Sara Rose. "MYTHOLOGIES OF A DEVELOPMENTAL STATE: AMBITION AND ACTION IN NASSER’S EGYPT." Miami University / OhioLINK, 2005. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=miami1126661827.
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Bartlett, Kathy Mann. "Professional learning community within a state education organization : an action research study /." Thesis, Connect to this title online; UW restricted, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/7745.
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Burnett, Colin Michael-Lee. "Striated muscle action potential assessment as an indicator of cellular energetic state." Thesis, University of Iowa, 2012. https://ir.uiowa.edu/etd/2830.
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Action potentials of striated muscle are created through movement of ions through membrane ion channels. ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels are the only known channels that are gated by the intracellular energetic level ([ATP]/[ADP] ratio). KATP channels are both effectors and indicators of cellular metabolism as part of a negative feedback system. Decreased intracellular energetic level alters the gating of KATP channels, which is reflected in alterations of the action potential morphology. These changes protect the cell from exhaustion or injury by altering energy-consuming processes that are driven by membrane potential. Assessing the effects of KATP channel activation on resting membrane potential and action potential morphology, and the relationship to cellular stress is important to the understanding of normal cellular function. To better understand how muscle cells adapt to energetic stress, the monophasic action potential (MAP) electrode and floating microelectrode were used to record action potentials in intact hearts and skeletal muscles, respectively. Intact organs provide a more physiological environment for the study of energetics and membrane electrical phenomena. Utilizing these techniques, a stress on the intracellular energetic state resulted in greater and faster shortening of the duration of cardiac action potentials, and hyperpolarization of the membrane of skeletal muscle in a KATP channel dependent manner. Motion artifacts are a limitation to studying transmembrane action potentials, but the MAP and floating microelectrode techniques uniquely allow for reading of action potential morphology uncoupled from motion artifacts. The use of the floating microelectrode in skeletal muscles is a novel approach that provides previously unavailable data on skeletal muscle membrane potentials in situ.
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Heppner, Kristy M. "Acylation state determines the action of ghrelin on energy and glucose metabolism." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2013. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1380556886.
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Shankland, Michael. "Climate change, collective action, and state compliance : obstacles on the road to Copenhagen." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/1598.
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Climate change is a type of prisoner’s dilemma. Reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are a public good and are costly to provide. Consequently, nation-states generally have done little to curb their emissions. Countries could be encouraged to reduce their emissions if the international community of states were to sanction, or the world were to shame, states that did not act. However, financial and technological aid is more likely to induce states to impose tougher restrictions on GHG emissions.
In order for Copenhagen to precipitate major action on climate change the treaty must either compel countries to fulfill their obligations or assist states in transitioning their economies away from fossil fuels toward alternative energy sources. If the treaty fails to do both of these things then we can only hope that the largest producers of greenhouse gases either take steps to reduce their emissions voluntarily or are forced to take action in response to domestic pressure from their citizens and/or sub-national governments. Otherwise, we will have no choice but to adapt to an increasingly warmer planet and the consequences thereof.
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Coffield, Judi L. Di Pietrantonio. "An evaluation of the action team process in a state department of education." Access to citation, abstract and download form provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company; downloadable PDF file 1.27 Mb., p, 2006. http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&res_dat=xri:pqdiss&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:3220629.
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Zelt, Susan C. Ricketts Thomas C. "Moving from perception to action in the United Health Foundation's State Health Rankings." Chapel Hill, N.C. : University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2006. http://dc.lib.unc.edu/u?/etd,322.
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Thesis (DrPH)--University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2006.<br>Title from electronic title page (viewed Oct. 10, 2007). "... in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Public Health in the Department of Health Policy and Administration in the School of Public Health." Discipline: Health Policy and Administration; Department/School: Public Health.
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Brett, Armand George. "Stages of affirmative action and diversity policy in the California State University system." Scholarly Commons, 1992. https://scholarlycommons.pacific.edu/uop_etds/2944.
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Demographic changes in California have made the goal of a more culturally diverse faculty extremely important to the future of higher education. Confounding issues associated with affirmative action policy seemed to be contributing to a stalling of progress. This study sought to identify a range of conceptions and approaches used in dealing with affirmative action and to assess the work of affirmative action directors regarding their dealings with faculty and the hiring process. Value conflict and political sensitivity discovered during preliminary research led to the use of a qualitative, key-informant, semi-structured interview approach with assurances of anonymity placed in the forefront. Interviews were conducted with five affirmative action directors and ten department chairs on five California State University campuses. The data were analyzed to develop categories then re-analyzed to test emergent theory. Four ideological stages associated with the evolution of affirmative action emerged from the data. This framework is used to organize the complex issues and show that some of the problem stems from divergent conceptions of affirmative action. Also found was a significant amount of miscommunication. Affirmative action directors did not seem sufficiently aware of the common ground they shared with faculty relative to solving the diversity problem. A range of sub-issues associated with the structure and culture of a complex university are also identified. These sub-issues illustrate three things: variations of purpose between affirmative action directors and faculty; views of affirmative action directors toward faculty; and a legitimacy problem which depends on the administrative placement of affirmative action directors, their administrative style and their credibility with faculty. The four stage framework helps to show that while faculty appear to be reconceptualizing quality to meet the diverse cultural needs of a drastically changing student clientele, affirmative action policy adjustments are failing to keep pace. For the purpose of minimizing conflict and streamlining transition, recommendations include changes in affirmative action directors' jobs. Also recommended is: use of the framework to study other universities; and alternation of the type of procedures used in this research with quantitative methods to refine the framework or develop others.
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Vasconcellos, Ana Maria de Albuquerque. "A state-sponsored socio-environmental development programme in action : the ProAmbiente, Amazonia, Brazil." Thesis, Swansea University, 2008. https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa42639.
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The thesis seeks to demonstrate the space of interaction that has emerged between federal government and rural communities during the implementation of a state- sponsored socio-environmental development programme at community level in Brazilian Amazonia. This thesis seeks to show how demands from the grass-roots has scaled up to public policy, incorporated changes and has scaled down to local communities during the implementation process. Secondly, it investigates how a state-sponsored development programme - using a popular participation approach, carried out by federal government and intermediated by NGOs - interacts with, and impacts on, local communities. The research deals with: (1) the socio-political context that influenced the creation of a socio-environmental development programme for rural communities in Brazilian Amazonia; (2) the route of identification, incorporation and changes of rural communities' priorities within the programme; and (3) the impacts of the programme actions on rural communities. The ProAmbiente (a socio-environmental development programme for rural family-based production) was chosen for examination as a case study because it seeks to implement a new logic of production in rural Amazonia conceptualised by federal government as productive conservation. This concept seeks to provide a link between the growth of production in the rural economy and the conservation of the environment. Through a methodology involving three levels of qualitative analysis (macro-, intermediary- and local-level), the study reconstitutes the socio-political context that influenced the creation of the ProAmbiente, describes the mechanisms of interaction between the federal government and the rural communities, points to the factors that have facilitated and/or hampered the implementation of the ProAmbiente, reveals contradictions within the ProAmbiente implementation and shows the impacts of the programme on the rural communities. Using material from communities, the NGOs and the governmental sources, research was conducted in Brasilia (capital of Brazil), Belem (capital of Para state) and six rural communities (three communities located in the munidpio of Soure and three located in the municipio of Concordia do Para), within Para state. The research shows that the interaction between social movements, NGOs and political parties is an important mechanism to press federal government for the construction of a development programme. From this interaction it was possible to incorporate local people's voices and scale up rural communities' demands for the creation of a public space for interaction between local people and the federal government. However, the research reveals that once the state encompasses local people's demands and creates a development programme, the development model absorbs multi-actor interests that change local people's proposals. In the case of the ProAmbiente, the external pressure for conservation of the environment resulted in the creation of the concept of productive conservation to develop livelihoods that should be mediated by local people's culture and knowledge. However, the research shows that, although the ProAmbiente recognises local people's culture and knowledge, in practice these issues are not viewed as a priority in the programme's actions. The research concludes that the ProAmbiente and similar programmes that pay individual families for environmental protection should not be conducted in isolation but in conjunction with the complementary programmes that address local people's needs for educational, health and land titling services.
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Busch, Nathan Edward. "Assessing the optimism-pessimism debate, nuclear proliferation, nuclear risks, and theories of state action." Thesis, National Library of Canada = Bibliothèque nationale du Canada, 2001. http://www.collectionscanada.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk3/ftp05/NQ63761.pdf.
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Syrett, Stephen Jeremy. "Capital state and local action : the emergence of local economic initiatives in central Portugal." Thesis, University of Exeter, 1991. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.293599.
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Oezler, Hayrettin. "State and business in Turkey : issues of collective action with special reference to MUSIAD." Thesis, University of Strathclyde, 2001. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.366818.
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Cavalcanti, Débora de Barros. "Fighting for a place in the city : social practices and state action in Maceió, Brazil." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 2009. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/3820/.
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Our understanding of urban poverty has been broadened during the last decade to focus less on economic characteristics and to include concepts such as exclusion, vulnerability, and violence. The spatial components of poverty have received less attention despite concepts such as the right to the city entering the academic and policy reform agenda. This thesis explores the dynamics of spatial and social integration by surveying the everyday life of precarious settlements in a mediumsized city in North-East Brazil. A qualitative approach that links poverty, mobility, social networks and state action is employed to argue that informal settlements are spatial traps where the individual perspective and exploitative relationships surpass collective approaches. The use of life stories and interviews with residents in three settlements and with planners are used to deconstruct preconceptions and show how the fight for a place in the city takes shape. For the most part the state is absent from the poor's lives. This absence has some advantages in that the Brazilian state has a record of infringing human rights that leads to a loss of economic, social and spatial links. However, the lack of adequate intervention and community organisations means residents employ in their daily round various tactics including violence, opportunism, and economic and political bargaining to challenge the state and society to rethink the politics of invisibility and what I term as the territorialisation of poverty. The generational legacy of vulnerability and exclusion in the everyday life of the urban poor reveals the difficulties of implementing the right to the city when faced with the worst practices of state and social organisations. Continued mobility and spatial segregation, vulnerability and exclusion reveal that beyond a rhetoric of a right to the city the fight for a place in the city is not over.
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Gustus, Christine H. "E-Mentoring an Educator in a State School for the Deaf| An Action Research Study." Thesis, Lindenwood University, 2017. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=10284660.
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<p> The purpose of this qualitative action research study was to explore the benefits and challenges of e-mentoring an adult learner in a rural state school for the deaf that taught children with hearing loss to listen and speak. This school lacked the benefit of a spoken language programs for deaf children. This study focused on e-mentoring the Lead Teacher/SLP, in order to enhance her understanding of language development in children with hearing loss and improve her ability to use diagnostic teaching, in order to implement strategies that would allow the children in this specialized classroom to continue to develop spoken language. Through use of synchronous and asynchronous e-mentoring, I assisted the mentee as she developed a plan specifically focused on providing her with the skills needed to lead/direct the program independently, in order for it to continue successfully. The mentee and supervisory/administrative staff were participants of this study. The mentee participated in the e-mentoring process twice each month, for 30-45 minutes per session, for one academic school year. </p><p> The mentee typically guided the topic of the e-mentoring session by asking for assistance in a particular instructional area. On alternate weeks, I was in contact with the mentee via email, text, and/or phone. After e-mentoring, I completed a journal entry with my thoughts about the session and the mentee responded to questions about the e-mentoring experience. At the conclusion of the academic year, I conducted a focus group with the supervisors and administrators of the spoken language program asking for input about this new program. Secondary data were collected from vocabulary and concept tests on the children attending the program using. Results from the journaling and responses to questions and focus group were coded and analyzed for emerging themes. One major themes was Change, with subthemes of opportunities, e-mentoring the spoken language program, progress of the children, perceptions of the program, increase in enrollment, and scheduling. Other major themes included Andragogy and e-mentoring, Teaching Strategies, and Technology. The results of this study may be important to administrative personnel in state schools for the deaf, interested in initiating a spoken language classroom.</p><p>
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Dorscht, Axel Carleton University Dissertation Political Science. "Concerted action: labour's corporatist strategy in the Federal Republic of Germany, 1967-77." Ottawa, 1988.
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Owen, Catherine Anne May. "'Obshchestvennyi Kontrol' [public scrutiny] from discourse to action in contemporary Russia : the emergence of authoritarian neoliberal governance." Thesis, University of Exeter, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10871/15887.
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This thesis explores the emergence and proliferation of public consultative bodies (PCBs) in contemporary Russia. Created by the government and regulated by law, PCBs are formal groups of NGO leaders, academics, journalists, entrepreneurs and public figures selected by the state, that perform advisory, monitory and support functions to government departments and individuals at federal, regional and municipal levels. The concept of obshchestvennyi kontrol’ (public scrutiny) is employed by Kremlin to refer to the dual activities of oversight and assistance, which PCBs are intended to enact. First appearing ten years ago with the foundation of the Federal Public Chamber in 2004, there are now tens of thousands of PCBs in operation across the country. This thesis constitutes the first systematic analysis of PCBs in English. It uses a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) approach in order to explore the extent to which the portrayal of PCBs in government discourse corresponds to the practices enacted through these institutions in three regional case studies of Moscow, St Petersburg and Samara. It finds that although PCBs are presented by federal and regional leaders as means for citizens merely to assist the authorities in the performance of tasks decided by the state, in practice PCBs can enable citizens modestly to influence policy outcomes and occasionally to shape public agendas. They therefore cannot be dismissed as mere ‘window dressing’ for the authorities. The thesis shows that PCBs were created as part of the market reform of the Soviet-era public sector, in which processes of privatisation, outsourcing and decentralisation reduced the state’s ability to make public policy without input from domestic non-state actors. It argues that the limited participation in governance afforded to citizens through PCBs exemplifies practices of ‘authoritarian neoliberal governance’, a concept that captures the attempts by the state to control policy outcomes produced through new public participatory mechanisms arising from the marketization of state bureaucracy. Although the thesis focuses on the case of Russia, the concept of ‘authoritarian neoliberal governance’ raises the question of the existence of commensurable mechanisms in other non-democratic polities.
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Thorén, Katarina H. "Activation Policy in Action : A Street-Level Study of Social Assistance in the Swedish Welfare State." Doctoral thesis, Växjö universitet, Institutionen för vårdvetenskap och socialt arbete, 2008. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:vxu:diva-2474.
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Work-related activation policies are currently developing in most western welfare states. Sweden is no exception and activation policies were introduced in the 1990s in many municipal social services organizations in Sweden. The Swedish form of activation policies requires social assistance recipients to participate in mandatory activation program in return for financial support. This dissertation investigates the street-level implementation practices of activation policies within the context of the Swedish welfare state. The purpose of the study is to examine how street-level workers in the municipal social service systemtranslate activation policy into practice in their interactions with the clients and what factors that structure their implementation practices. The research project is a multiple-case study that examines the street-level practices in two municipal social service settings in Sweden, Skärholmen city-district in Stockholm municipality and Osby municipality and their local activation programs. The data collection consists of observations of the staffs’ daily operations, interviews with local politicians and other key personnel, and the analysis of formal policy and program documents. Theoretically this dissertation builds on the street-level bureaucracy perspective (Lipsky, 1980), which suggests that organizational working conditions shape street-level workers implementation practices through their development of informal coping strategies. But this study extends the street-level buraucracy approach by including political-institutional factors and normative assumptions about public support and social assistance recipients into the analysis. Findings from the study suggest that street-level implementation practices entail a number of informal coping strategies that removes activation policy from formal policy goals. Implementation practices entail, for example, mass referrals instead of individual assessments and tailor-made solutions. Clients were sorted and categorized on the basis of moral perceptions about behavioral deficits instead of employment needs. These informal practice strategies were the results of both coping strategies and normative assumptions that interacted with the organizational context in which these practices took place.
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Pham, Thi Lan Phuong [Verfasser]. "Higher Education Governance in Vietnam: University Action, the State and Changing Relationships / Thi Lan Phuong Pham." Kassel : Universitätsbibliothek Kassel, 2013. http://d-nb.info/1044442298/34.
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Cheng, Gang [Verfasser], and Jianwei [Akademischer Betreuer] Zhang. "State-Action Gist based In-hand Manipulation Learning from Human Demonstration / Gang Cheng. Betreuer: Jianwei Zhang." Hamburg : Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Hamburg, 2013. http://d-nb.info/1038789826/34.
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Heim, Steve [Verfasser], and Alexander [Akademischer Betreuer] Badri-Spröwitz. "Viability in State-Action Space : Connecting Morphology, Control, and Learning / Steve Heim ; Betreuer: Alexander Badri-Spröwitz." Tübingen : Universitätsbibliothek Tübingen, 2020. http://d-nb.info/1212025008/34.
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Llopard, Ivan. "Programming embedded manycore : refinement and optimizing compilation of a parallel action language for hierarchical state machines." Thesis, Paris 6, 2016. http://www.theses.fr/2016PA066157/document.
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Afin de gérer la complexité des systèmes embarqués modernes, les langages de modélisation proposent des abstractions et des transformations adaptées au domaine. Basées sur le formalisme de machines à états hiérarchiques, connu sous le nom de Statecharts, ils permettent la modélisation du contrôle parallèle hiérarchique. Cependant, ils doivent faire à deux défis majeures quant il s'agit de la modélisation des applications à calcul intensif: le besoin des méthodes unifiées supportant des actions avec parallélisme de donnée; flots d'optimisation et génération de code à partir des modèles trop généralistes. Dans cette thèse, nous proposons un langage de modélisation étendu avec une sémantique d'actions parallèles et machines à états hiérarchiques indexées, spécialement adapté pour les applications à calcul intensif. Avec sa sémantique formelle, nous présentons un flot de compilation optimisante pour le raffinement des modèles en vue d'une génération du code efficace avec parallèlisme de donnée<br>Modeling languages propose convenient abstractions and transformations to handle the complexity of today's embedded systems. Based on the formalism of \acrlong{hsm}, they enable the expression of hierarchical control parallelism. However, they face two importants challenges when it comes to model data-intensive applications: no unified approach that also accounts for data-parallel actions; and no effective code optimization and generation flows. In this thesis, we propose a modeling language extended with parallel action semantics and hierarchical indexed-state machines suitable for computationally intensive applications. Together with its formal semantics, we present an optimizing model compiler aiming for the generation of efficient data-parallel implementations
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SEIPLE, JENNIFER SUSANNE. "BROWNFIELD REDEVELOPMENT POLICY: A CASE STUDY OF OHIO'S VOLUNTARY ACTION PROGRAM." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2001. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin991132885.
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de, Azambuja Ricardo. "Action learning experiments using spiking neural networks and humanoid robots." Thesis, University of Plymouth, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/10026.1/10767.
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The way our brain works is still an open question, but one thing seems to be clear: biological neural systems are computationally powerful, robust and noisy. Natural nervous system are able to control limbs in different scenarios with high precision. As neural networks in living beings communicate through spikes, modern neuromorphic systems try to mimic them by using spike-based neuron models. This thesis is focused on the advancement of neurorobotics or brain inspired robotic arm controllers based on artificial neural network architectures. The architecture chosen to implement those controllers was the spike neuron version of Reservoir Computing framework, called Liquid State Machines. The main goal is to explore the possibility of using brain inspired neural networks to control a robot by demonstration. Moreover, it aims to achieve systems robust to environmental noise and internal structure destruction presenting a graceful degradation. As the validation, a series of action learning experiments are presented where simulated robotic arms are controlled. The investigation starts with a 2 degrees of freedom arm and moves to the research version of the Rethink Robotics Inc. collaborative humanoid robot Baxter. Moreover, a proof-of- concept experiment is also done using the real Baxter robot. The results show Liquid State Machines, when endowed with an extra external feedback loop, can be also employed to control more complex humanoid robotic arms than a simple planar 2 degrees of freedom one. Additionally, the new parallel architecture presented here was capable to withstand noise and internal destruction better than a simple use of multiple columns also presenting a graceful degradation behaviour.
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Georgeou, Nichole. "Tense relations the tradition of Hōshi and emergence of Borantia in Japan /." Access electronically, 2006. http://www.library.uow.edu.au/adt-NWU/public/adt-NWU20060926.101344/index.html.
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Guindo, Salah. "Action publique et valorisation de la culture." Thesis, Perpignan, 2015. http://www.theses.fr/2015PERP0022.
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L’Etat africain n’a, depuis les indépendances, jamais manqué de qualificatifs. Tantôt qualifié de « mou », tantôt de « dictatorial », d’état « ventre » ou encore d’Etat « acculturé » ou « déculturé ». Face aux échecs de l’action publique en Afrique, au développement d’une « culture d’apathie » chez les populations, comment mettre en lien cette action publique et les enjeux de la valorisation de la culture ? De quels instruments axiologiques et juridiques disposons-nous aujourd’hui pour réconcilier les politiques publiques en Afrique avec leurs bénéficiaires et ce faisant, donner à ces derniers les « capabilités » leur permettant de choisir et de construire leurs voies propres ? Tels sont les principaux questionnements de cette thèse qui rassemble les outils internationaux à la lumière du cadre malien. La thèse utilise une approche interdisciplinaire des droits fondamentaux et place la valorisation de la culture comme une exigence pour l’Etat. Elle propose une approche transversale de la culture dans la conception et la mise en oeuvre de l’action publique afin de construire de « vraies » démocraties<br>The African State, since the independences hasn’t ever been short of qualifiers. Sometimes it has been qualified of « soft », sometimes of « dictatorial » of state « stomach », of State « acculturéd » or « déculturized ». Facing the failures of the public action in Africa, the development of an « apathy culture » in the populations, how can we tie in this public action to the differents issues (polical, economic and social) of culture valorization ? Which axiological and legal tools do we have at our disposal today to help reconcile the public policies in Africa with their beneficiaries, there by give them the "capabilités" allowing them to choose and to construct their own ways ? Such are the main questionnements of this thesis that gathers the international tools for the purpose of the Malian case’s study. The thesis uses an interdisciplinary approach of the fundamental rights and set culture valorization as a state’s requirement . It proposes a transversal integration of culture in the conception and the implementation of public policy to construct an « true » democracies
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Keuning, Helen Ho. "Wilhem von Humboldt's The limits of state action and implications for U.S. government involvement in health care." Theological Research Exchange Network (TREN), 1997. http://www.tren.com.
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Pillai, Poonam 1963. "The state and collective action : successful adjustment by the Tamil Nadu leather clusters to German environmental standards." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/69426.
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Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2000.<br>Includes bibliographical references (leaves 70-73).<br>In the existing literature on industrial districts, collective action has mostly been conceptualized in terms of cooperation between firms organized as clusters. Few studies have looked at the role of the State in enabling firms to respond collectively to external pressures. In this thesis, I examine the case of the traditional, labor-intensive, predominantly small firm leather clusters of Tamil Nadu (India) to illustrate the role of the State in enabling quick, widespread and longterm compliance by the clusters to German quality standards. I argue that while joint action between firms was crucial in triggering certain kinds of government action, it alone cannot explain how compliance to the German bans was achieved and sustained. Indian central government agencies intervened in three specific ways. First, the central government's past policies, often criticized for being inefficient, had the surprising impact of compelling leading leather exporters to act collectively at the time of the German bans. Secondly, in the aftermath of the German bans, two Indian central government ministries took regulatory actions which were significantly different from the German regulations in that they banned production of chemicals (prohibited for import and sale within Germany), by targeting input suppliers and not tanners or leather exporters. Finally, a traditional supply-side central government research and development institute upgraded itself to act in a demand driven way. The focus of this thesis is to look at how the impact of these government actions played out in the context of the Tamil Nadu leather clusters and enabled them to adjust and sustain compliance. By focusing on the role of the State in helping small firms to act collectively, my thesis contributes to a neglected theme in the industrial districts literature. In addition, it throws light on two important debates in this literature, namely, (i) the conditions under which government agencies mediate crises facing industrial clusters and (ii) conditions under which small firm clusters can sustain compliance beyond the initial moments of crisis.<br>by Poonam Pillai.<br>M.C.P.
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Johansson, Viktor Alberto. "Navigating the Eastern Mediterranean : Interest-formation & State-action: Egypt, Israel, Turkey & the Republic of Cyprus." Thesis, Linköpings universitet, Statsvetenskap, 2018. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-148686.
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This study examines interest-formation and state-action in the Eastern Mediterranean countries of Egypt, Israel, Turkey and the Republic of Cyprus. In seeking answers to the questions on how interests of the respective countries can be explained, particularly within the area of natural gas, and possible consequences of different regional approaches, the study draws upon ideas in classical, structural, neoclassical realism and constructivism. The theoretical diversity enables the study to focus on international, state and domestic levels by way of qualitative content analysis as the selected methodology. The findings suggest that Egypt, Israel and Cyprus possess corresponding views in their regional outlook; including natural gas as a means for stability and economic growth, but also that these views contrast significantly with Turkey’s regional perspective. Additional findings show that interest-formation in all four states, despite coherence among Egypt, Israel and Cyprus, differentiates to a large degree. The chief reason is that interest-formation appears to occur within international, state and domestic levels. Regarding the second question, the study finds that the different and often conflicting regional approaches on natural gas of Cyprus and Turkey, which are based upon fundamentally different premises, pose risk for heightened tensions between both Cyprus, Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
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Plummer, Teresa. "Participatory action research to examine the current state of practice in the wheelchair assessment and procurement process." Thesis, NSUWorks, 2010. https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_ot_student_dissertations/12.
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"Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Occupational Therapy Department, College of Allied Health and Nursing, Nova Southeastern University."
The author explored the current state of practice and the essential elements in the wheelchair assessment and procurement process. Obtaining the correct wheelchair is a complex process, involving the client, family, practitioners, suppliers, manufacturers, policy makers and insurers. This study utilized a qualitative research approach using Participatory Action Research (PAR) and a Delphi consensus approach to garner input from 155 individuals who have experience in the field of wheelchair assessments. While wheelchair users account for 1% of the United States population over the age of 6, they experience oppression, unemployment, and activity limitations. The findings of this study suggest that the wheelchair assessment process be theoretically based on empowerment and reflect a client-centered process.
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Hunter, Christopher L., Jennifer S. Funderburk, Jodi Polaha, David Bauman, Jeffrey L. Goodie, and Christine M. Hunter. "Primary Care Behavioral Health Model (PCBH) Research: Current State of the Science and a Call to Action." Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University, 2017. https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu-works/6739.
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The Primary Care Behavioral Health (PCBH) model of service delivery is being used increasingly as an effective way to integrate behavioral health services into primary care. Despite its growing popularity, scientifically robust research on the model is lacking. In this article, we provide a qualitative review of published PCBH model research on patient and implementation outcomes. We review common barriers and potential solutions for improving the quantity and quality of PCBH model research, the vital data that need to be collected over the next 10 years, and how to collect those data.
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Esienumoh, Ekpoanwan. "Prevention of maternal mortality : a community action research in Bakassi Local Government Area, Cross River State, Nigeria." Thesis, University of Manchester, 2011. https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/prevention-of-maternal-mortality-a-community-action-research-in-bakassi-local-government-areacross-river-state-nigeria(58396b9b-aeaf-4f5c-b3ae-a841dad8e6ca).html.
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Maternal mortality in Nigeria is one of the highest in the world. The rate is higher in the rural communities than in the urban. Given the complexity of causes of maternal mortality, it appears that the community is an important resource that is frequently overlooked. The contribution of which could be explored through collaboration with professional healthcare providers, to bring about reduction in maternal mortality. This study, proposed to empower members of the community to take action to prevent maternal mortality. Action research design was utilised, comprising cycles of fact-finding, planning/action, and evaluation with the aim of working towards a change in the status quo. In collaboration with the action research group, data were generated through 29 interviews, 8 focus group discussions and observation of 7 persons. Women of childbearing age were interviewed to gain understanding of their knowledge, attitude and practice towards maternal mortality. Focus group discussions were carried out with a cross section of the community. Observations were undertaken of skilled and traditional birth attendants (TBAs) in their places of practice. Altogether, there were 86 general participants and 12 action research group members in the study. Thematic data analysis and critical reflection were undertaken with emphasis on data which promote learning and change. The study revealed childbirth fallacies as evidenced in the causes of maternal deaths being attributed to superstitious beliefs. Other findings included religious beliefs/practices, birth practices, negative attitudes, lack of money, lack of transportation and health facilities issues as contributory factors. These findings were critically reflected upon by the action research group and actions based on the findings, aimed at empowering the people to take action to prevent maternal deaths were undertaken. The actions included community education, TBA training and development of a common forum between skilled birth attendants and TBAs. Participatory evaluation was undertaken from the perspectives of the participants to identify what made sense to them from the actions. Findings included some degree of empowerment and emancipation of the people evidenced in the acquisition of new knowledge which led to the repudiation of certain superstitious beliefs. Other findings include resumed utilisation of the service of skilled birth attendants at the local health facility by the women. The findings of this study have demonstrated implications for practice, policy and research to prevent maternal mortality in Bakassi LGA, Nigeria. Conclusion drawn is that, the community is an important resource which if mobilised through the process of action research, would be empowered to take action to prevent maternal mortality. The process will also foster the collaboration between skilled birth attendants and traditional birth attendants to improve maternal health care in the rural community.
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Woldetsadik, Lia. "Instituting Collaborative Planning: government systems, trust and collective action in Ethiopia." Doctoral thesis, Universite Libre de Bruxelles, 2020. https://dipot.ulb.ac.be/dspace/bitstream/2013/305111/3/doc.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
More democratic planning processes are acknowledged to facilitate several positive outcomes including acceptance, support, better solutions and ownership, which are even more critical in developing countries where resource limitation is debilitating. But the paradox lies in needing to institute more democratic planning processes inside less democratic systems. In seeking explanations as to why collaboration in planning is lacking in urban Ethiopia, the research adopts a different analytical perspective that conceptualizes the state not only as a direct participant through its different agencies but also as the main architect of social structure. As the state in less democratic systems is stronger in shaping society, the contextualization of sense-making in the wider environment of the South requires focusing on the influence of government systems to discover associations and patterns that determine the structure of planning processes. Adopting flexible and pragmatic methodological procedures, methods and techniques that balance what is possible with epistemological interest, the research introduces a different lens to planning that links trust, collective action and cooperation with confidence in government by taking into consideration the embeddedness of actors within the framework of existing realities. Through the case of Amdework, the thesis presents implications on planning by the different attributes of the state and state-society relations. It shows how and to what extent partial and undemocratic government systems create power asymmetry, impede the development and the integrity of organized civil society, affect social capital such as trust, cooperative norms and the motivation to participate in collective action. These in turn penetrate planning processes by destroying the basic level of trust, balanced power of participants and democratic culture, and the we-intention for joint action. And through five more cases that focus on conceptions and cooperation at the micro-level (in the autonomous community of Awra Amba, the foreign NGO spearheaded joint action of the BuraNest initiative, and different projects in or related with Addis Ababa), it provides empirical evidence that planning, whether government entities are direct participants or not, also heed to pressures exerted by the overall of intuitional/political environment where the state rules rather than governs.<br>Doctorat en Art de bâtir et urbanisme (Architecture)<br>info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished