Determinants of student satisfaction with campus residence life at a South African university
- Botha, Ferdi, Snowball, Jeanette D, De Klerk, Vivian A, Radloff, Sarah E
- Authors: Botha, Ferdi , Snowball, Jeanette D , De Klerk, Vivian A , Radloff, Sarah E
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69277 , vital:29475 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15904-1_2
- Description: Factors outside the classroom can contribute to academic success as well as the achievement of important outcomes such as the appreciation of human diversity. Striving towards equality of residence life satisfaction is thus important for academic outcomes and for the development of well-functioning citizens. This study is based on the 2011 Quality of Residence Life (QoRL) Survey, conducted at a South African university, comprising roughly 2,000 respondents. The study investigates the association between satisfaction with QoRL and (i) residence milieu and characteristics, (ii) direct and indirect discrimination, (iii) perceptions of drug and alcohol issues in residence, (iv) safety, and (v) individual student characteristics. One main finding is that there are no significant differences in satisfaction with QoRL across racial and gender groups; suggesting significant progress in university transformation and equity goals. The general atmosphere and characteristics of residences are also important predictors of QoRL satisfaction.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Botha, Ferdi , Snowball, Jeanette D , De Klerk, Vivian A , Radloff, Sarah E
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69277 , vital:29475 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15904-1_2
- Description: Factors outside the classroom can contribute to academic success as well as the achievement of important outcomes such as the appreciation of human diversity. Striving towards equality of residence life satisfaction is thus important for academic outcomes and for the development of well-functioning citizens. This study is based on the 2011 Quality of Residence Life (QoRL) Survey, conducted at a South African university, comprising roughly 2,000 respondents. The study investigates the association between satisfaction with QoRL and (i) residence milieu and characteristics, (ii) direct and indirect discrimination, (iii) perceptions of drug and alcohol issues in residence, (iv) safety, and (v) individual student characteristics. One main finding is that there are no significant differences in satisfaction with QoRL across racial and gender groups; suggesting significant progress in university transformation and equity goals. The general atmosphere and characteristics of residences are also important predictors of QoRL satisfaction.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Patriarchy, women, land and livelihoods on A1 farms in Zimbabwe
- Chiweshe, Manase K, Chakona, Loveness, Helliker, Kirk D
- Authors: Chiweshe, Manase K , Chakona, Loveness , Helliker, Kirk D
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71204 , vital:29812 , https://doi.org/10.1177/0021909614541083
- Description: In this article, we focus on patriarchy, women, land and livelihoods on A1 farms in Zimbabwe which arose from the fast track land reform programme. There is now significant literature on A1 farms in Zimbabwe. These studies include a number of ethnographic and comparative studies but this literature does not give sustained attention to patriarchy and women. In addition, though, a small number of works have appeared based upon a more focused gender analysis. We draw upon this more focused literature and offer fresh fieldwork evidence based on recent studies undertaken by two of the authors, in Goromonzi and Mazowe districts. At times, radical socio-spatial reorganisation such as fast track may destabilise systems of patriarchy. In the case of fast track, there has been a reconfiguration of relations between men and women yet this is uneven and contradictory and remains within the confines of patriarchal structures, practices and discourses. At the same time, women have manoeuvred and negotiated at local levels to enhance their lives and livelihoods.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Chiweshe, Manase K , Chakona, Loveness , Helliker, Kirk D
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71204 , vital:29812 , https://doi.org/10.1177/0021909614541083
- Description: In this article, we focus on patriarchy, women, land and livelihoods on A1 farms in Zimbabwe which arose from the fast track land reform programme. There is now significant literature on A1 farms in Zimbabwe. These studies include a number of ethnographic and comparative studies but this literature does not give sustained attention to patriarchy and women. In addition, though, a small number of works have appeared based upon a more focused gender analysis. We draw upon this more focused literature and offer fresh fieldwork evidence based on recent studies undertaken by two of the authors, in Goromonzi and Mazowe districts. At times, radical socio-spatial reorganisation such as fast track may destabilise systems of patriarchy. In the case of fast track, there has been a reconfiguration of relations between men and women yet this is uneven and contradictory and remains within the confines of patriarchal structures, practices and discourses. At the same time, women have manoeuvred and negotiated at local levels to enhance their lives and livelihoods.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
An assessment of chlorophyll-a concentration spatio-temporal variation using Landsat satellite data, in a small tropical reservoir
- Dalu, Tatenda, Dube, Timothy, Froneman, P William, Sachikonye, Mwazvita T B, Clegg, Bruce W, Nhiwatiwa, Tamuka
- Authors: Dalu, Tatenda , Dube, Timothy , Froneman, P William , Sachikonye, Mwazvita T B , Clegg, Bruce W , Nhiwatiwa, Tamuka
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68042 , vital:29189 , https://doi.org/10.1080/10106049.2015.1027292
- Description: Publisher version , Traditional approaches to monitoring aquatic systems are often limited by the need for data collection which often is time-consuming, expensive and non-continuous. The aim of the study was to map the spatio-temporal chlorophyll-a concentration changes in Malilangwe Reservoir, Zimbabwe as an indicator of phytoplankton biomass and trophic state when the reservoir was full (year 2000) and at its lowest capacity (year 2011), using readily available Landsat multispectral images. Medium-spatial resolution (30 m) Landsat multispectral Thematic Mapper TM 5 and ETM+ images for May to December 1999–2000 and 2010–2011 were used to derive chlorophyll-a concentrations. In situ measured chlorophyll-a and total suspended solids (TSS) concentrations for 2011 were employed to validate the Landsat chlorophyll-a and TSS estimates. The study results indicate that Landsat-derived chlorophyll-a and TSS estimates were comparable with field measurements. There was a considerable wet vs. dry season differences in total chlorophyll-a concentration, Secchi disc depth, TSS and turbidity within the reservoir. Using Permutational multivariate analyses of variance (PERMANOVA) analysis, there were significant differences (p < 0.0001) for chlorophyll-a concentration among sites, months and years whereas TSS was significant during the study months (p < 0.05). A strong positive significant correlation among both predicted TSS vs. chlorophyll-a and measured vs. predicted chlorophyll-a and TSS concentrations as well as an inverse relationship between reservoir chlorophyll-a concentrations and water level were found (p < 0.001 in all cases). In conclusion, total chlorophyll-a concentration in Malilangwe Reservoir was successfully derived from Landsat remote sensing data suggesting that the Landsat sensor is suitable for real-time monitoring over relatively short timescales and for small reservoirs. Satellite data can allow for surveying of chlorophyll-a concentration in aquatic ecosystems, thus, providing invaluable data in data scarce (limited on site ground measurements) environments.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Dalu, Tatenda , Dube, Timothy , Froneman, P William , Sachikonye, Mwazvita T B , Clegg, Bruce W , Nhiwatiwa, Tamuka
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68042 , vital:29189 , https://doi.org/10.1080/10106049.2015.1027292
- Description: Publisher version , Traditional approaches to monitoring aquatic systems are often limited by the need for data collection which often is time-consuming, expensive and non-continuous. The aim of the study was to map the spatio-temporal chlorophyll-a concentration changes in Malilangwe Reservoir, Zimbabwe as an indicator of phytoplankton biomass and trophic state when the reservoir was full (year 2000) and at its lowest capacity (year 2011), using readily available Landsat multispectral images. Medium-spatial resolution (30 m) Landsat multispectral Thematic Mapper TM 5 and ETM+ images for May to December 1999–2000 and 2010–2011 were used to derive chlorophyll-a concentrations. In situ measured chlorophyll-a and total suspended solids (TSS) concentrations for 2011 were employed to validate the Landsat chlorophyll-a and TSS estimates. The study results indicate that Landsat-derived chlorophyll-a and TSS estimates were comparable with field measurements. There was a considerable wet vs. dry season differences in total chlorophyll-a concentration, Secchi disc depth, TSS and turbidity within the reservoir. Using Permutational multivariate analyses of variance (PERMANOVA) analysis, there were significant differences (p < 0.0001) for chlorophyll-a concentration among sites, months and years whereas TSS was significant during the study months (p < 0.05). A strong positive significant correlation among both predicted TSS vs. chlorophyll-a and measured vs. predicted chlorophyll-a and TSS concentrations as well as an inverse relationship between reservoir chlorophyll-a concentrations and water level were found (p < 0.001 in all cases). In conclusion, total chlorophyll-a concentration in Malilangwe Reservoir was successfully derived from Landsat remote sensing data suggesting that the Landsat sensor is suitable for real-time monitoring over relatively short timescales and for small reservoirs. Satellite data can allow for surveying of chlorophyll-a concentration in aquatic ecosystems, thus, providing invaluable data in data scarce (limited on site ground measurements) environments.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Global Handbook of Quality of Life: exploration of well-being of nations and continents
- Glatzer, Wolfgang, Camfield, Laura, Moller, Valerie, Rojas, Mariano
- Authors: Glatzer, Wolfgang , Camfield, Laura , Moller, Valerie , Rojas, Mariano
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67245 , vital:29063 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9178-6
- Description: publisher version , This handbook provides a comprehensive historical account of the field of Quality of Life. It brings together theoretical insights and empirical findings, and presents the main items of global quality of life and wellbeing research. Worldwide in its scope of topics, the handbook examines discussions of demographic and health development, the spread of democracy, global economic accounting, multi-item measurement of perceived satisfaction and expert-assessed quality of life, and the well-being of children, women and poor people. It looks at well-being in specific regions, including North and Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, South America, and Eastern and Western Europe. In addition to contributions by leading and younger authors, the handbook includes contributions from International Organizations about their own work with respect to social reporting.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Glatzer, Wolfgang , Camfield, Laura , Moller, Valerie , Rojas, Mariano
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67245 , vital:29063 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9178-6
- Description: publisher version , This handbook provides a comprehensive historical account of the field of Quality of Life. It brings together theoretical insights and empirical findings, and presents the main items of global quality of life and wellbeing research. Worldwide in its scope of topics, the handbook examines discussions of demographic and health development, the spread of democracy, global economic accounting, multi-item measurement of perceived satisfaction and expert-assessed quality of life, and the well-being of children, women and poor people. It looks at well-being in specific regions, including North and Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, South America, and Eastern and Western Europe. In addition to contributions by leading and younger authors, the handbook includes contributions from International Organizations about their own work with respect to social reporting.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Reinventing the oral word and returning it to the community via technauriture
- Kaschula, Russell H, Dlutu, Bongiwe
- Authors: Kaschula, Russell H , Dlutu, Bongiwe
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67052 , vital:29024 , https://books.google.co.za/books?id=6IpwCgAAQBAJ
- Description: publisher version , From Introduction: The aim of this article is to situate the importance of orality in rural communities within the paradigm of Technauriture, which is defined below. The chapter will also explore/describe the process of orality supported through community meetings, oral histories, and story-telling, and how it interacts with the recording process facilitated through modern technology, as well as the return of the oral material via technology. These objectives will be pursued as part of empirical data collected at Tshani, an area falling within the in Mankosi tribal authority in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. Mankosi’s twelve villages are inhabited by amaXhosa people and is situated in the Ngqeleni district in the former Transkei region. Mankosi is about 76 kilometres away from Mthatha, the major city in that area. These villages are under the Nyandeni Local Municipality and are regarded as very disadvantaged. There is poor sanitation, gravel roads, and few local people have access to electricity. Most of the villagers depend on government support grants. These include Child Support Grants, Old Age Grants, Disability Grants, and Foster-Care Grants. Furthermore, most of the community is involved in small-scale agriculture for survival. People often move, temporarily, from their village to towns in order to gain employment, including domestic work and working on the mines in the mineral rich Gauteng Province. They send cash remittances home to their families. The primary technological devices that people in the village are familiar with would be radio and the cell phone. Even television sets are relatively uncommon.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Kaschula, Russell H , Dlutu, Bongiwe
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67052 , vital:29024 , https://books.google.co.za/books?id=6IpwCgAAQBAJ
- Description: publisher version , From Introduction: The aim of this article is to situate the importance of orality in rural communities within the paradigm of Technauriture, which is defined below. The chapter will also explore/describe the process of orality supported through community meetings, oral histories, and story-telling, and how it interacts with the recording process facilitated through modern technology, as well as the return of the oral material via technology. These objectives will be pursued as part of empirical data collected at Tshani, an area falling within the in Mankosi tribal authority in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. Mankosi’s twelve villages are inhabited by amaXhosa people and is situated in the Ngqeleni district in the former Transkei region. Mankosi is about 76 kilometres away from Mthatha, the major city in that area. These villages are under the Nyandeni Local Municipality and are regarded as very disadvantaged. There is poor sanitation, gravel roads, and few local people have access to electricity. Most of the villagers depend on government support grants. These include Child Support Grants, Old Age Grants, Disability Grants, and Foster-Care Grants. Furthermore, most of the community is involved in small-scale agriculture for survival. People often move, temporarily, from their village to towns in order to gain employment, including domestic work and working on the mines in the mineral rich Gauteng Province. They send cash remittances home to their families. The primary technological devices that people in the village are familiar with would be radio and the cell phone. Even television sets are relatively uncommon.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
From linguistic determinism to technological determinism
- Kaschula, Russell H, Mostert, Andre M
- Authors: Kaschula, Russell H , Mostert, Andre M
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67062 , vital:29027 , https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-5888-2.ch447
- Description: publisher version , From Introduction: This article seeks to analyse the link between linguistic determinism, the notion that language determines our thought and the way we perceive our reality, as espoused by the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, and contemporary technological determinism. Arguably this link takes place within a global context where equal access to technology is not yet guaranteed. Ellul (1964) and Lawson’s (2004) observations create an interesting metaphor in terms of the technological beast staring down human society. The overwhelming response if we accept Lawson’s observation is complacency at best or downright naivety at worst regarding the impact of technology on our thinking. Lawson made his observation in the pre-Facebook era and subsequent literature is now much more focused on all aspects of technology within our contemporary milieu. Technology is now totally ubiquitous in the developed world and becoming more so in developing countries, albeit with a much stronger mobile bias for early technology adopters. That technology is rushing ahead of many individuals and institutions is almost an aphorism with many lagging in its wake. This lag as recognised by Brynjolfson and McAfree (2011) has wide social and economic implications for all members of society, in the case of business those that do not keep up go under. A further pertinent question revolves around how individuals who start from low technological literacy levels or do not keep pace with technological developments are impacted. Dlutu (2013) assesses for example the impact of social network sites on the isiXhosa language and culture in both a rural and urban area of South Africa. Furthermore one may then ask how this technological milieu impacts on the general aspects of the day to day lives and thinking of all members of a society. This gives rise to the concept of technological determinism which in its simplest form states ‘that technology has important effects on our lives’ (Adler, 2008, p. 537). This is far too simplistic when the contemporaneous technological developments are assessed. Adler (2008, p. 537) goes further and recognizes ‘that technology itself is socially determined…and social structures co-evolve in a non-deterministic, emergent process…the effects of any given technology depend mainly on how it is implemented which in turn is socially determined’ (Adler, 2008, p. 537). Engaging this socially determined application of technology can be advanced when the relationship with language and language determinism is considered. Moreover, it is the interplay between technology and language that gives rise to the emerging concept of a language singularity which is brought about by a form of technological determinism. This article seeks to explore the possible effects of rapid technological development on human interaction, language and culture in a ‘globalized’ world which has unequal access to literacy and technology. Furthermore, the article explores the link between language, culture, thought and technology and the type of linguistic and technological determinism that we can anticipate.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Kaschula, Russell H , Mostert, Andre M
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67062 , vital:29027 , https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-4666-5888-2.ch447
- Description: publisher version , From Introduction: This article seeks to analyse the link between linguistic determinism, the notion that language determines our thought and the way we perceive our reality, as espoused by the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, and contemporary technological determinism. Arguably this link takes place within a global context where equal access to technology is not yet guaranteed. Ellul (1964) and Lawson’s (2004) observations create an interesting metaphor in terms of the technological beast staring down human society. The overwhelming response if we accept Lawson’s observation is complacency at best or downright naivety at worst regarding the impact of technology on our thinking. Lawson made his observation in the pre-Facebook era and subsequent literature is now much more focused on all aspects of technology within our contemporary milieu. Technology is now totally ubiquitous in the developed world and becoming more so in developing countries, albeit with a much stronger mobile bias for early technology adopters. That technology is rushing ahead of many individuals and institutions is almost an aphorism with many lagging in its wake. This lag as recognised by Brynjolfson and McAfree (2011) has wide social and economic implications for all members of society, in the case of business those that do not keep up go under. A further pertinent question revolves around how individuals who start from low technological literacy levels or do not keep pace with technological developments are impacted. Dlutu (2013) assesses for example the impact of social network sites on the isiXhosa language and culture in both a rural and urban area of South Africa. Furthermore one may then ask how this technological milieu impacts on the general aspects of the day to day lives and thinking of all members of a society. This gives rise to the concept of technological determinism which in its simplest form states ‘that technology has important effects on our lives’ (Adler, 2008, p. 537). This is far too simplistic when the contemporaneous technological developments are assessed. Adler (2008, p. 537) goes further and recognizes ‘that technology itself is socially determined…and social structures co-evolve in a non-deterministic, emergent process…the effects of any given technology depend mainly on how it is implemented which in turn is socially determined’ (Adler, 2008, p. 537). Engaging this socially determined application of technology can be advanced when the relationship with language and language determinism is considered. Moreover, it is the interplay between technology and language that gives rise to the emerging concept of a language singularity which is brought about by a form of technological determinism. This article seeks to explore the possible effects of rapid technological development on human interaction, language and culture in a ‘globalized’ world which has unequal access to literacy and technology. Furthermore, the article explores the link between language, culture, thought and technology and the type of linguistic and technological determinism that we can anticipate.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Teaching Mandarin in schools is another slap in the face for African languages
- Kaschula, Russell H, Nosilela, Bulelwa, Heugh, Kathleen, Hendricks, Monica, Maseko, Pamela
- Authors: Kaschula, Russell H , Nosilela, Bulelwa , Heugh, Kathleen , Hendricks, Monica , Maseko, Pamela
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67042 , vital:29023 , https://theconversation.com/teaching-mandarin-in-schools-is-another-slap-in-the-face-for-african-languages-48505
- Description: publisher version , It’s said that behind every powerful language is an army and money. Consider the case of English. In South Africa, as in its other colonies, the British arrived with the Bible in one hand and the breech-loader in the other. Behind them was the English language, military might and money. British missionaries wanted to convert Africa’s indigenous “heathens” to Christianity; to clone little English people on the continent through the medium of English. Next came the Afrikaners, descended from the Dutch. Their slaves created a “kitchen” language out of Dutch and called it Afrikaans. White Afrikaners appropriated it as their own and it became the language of apartheid. One of the tipping points of white rule was the 1976 Soweto uprising – a furious, powerful response to the news that Afrikaans would become a compulsory medium of instruction. Now there is a new potential coloniser on South Africa’s linguistic block. From 2016, Mandarin will be taught in the country’s schools as a Second Additional Language. This new government policy will see African languages bumped even further down the educational pecking order.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Kaschula, Russell H , Nosilela, Bulelwa , Heugh, Kathleen , Hendricks, Monica , Maseko, Pamela
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67042 , vital:29023 , https://theconversation.com/teaching-mandarin-in-schools-is-another-slap-in-the-face-for-african-languages-48505
- Description: publisher version , It’s said that behind every powerful language is an army and money. Consider the case of English. In South Africa, as in its other colonies, the British arrived with the Bible in one hand and the breech-loader in the other. Behind them was the English language, military might and money. British missionaries wanted to convert Africa’s indigenous “heathens” to Christianity; to clone little English people on the continent through the medium of English. Next came the Afrikaners, descended from the Dutch. Their slaves created a “kitchen” language out of Dutch and called it Afrikaans. White Afrikaners appropriated it as their own and it became the language of apartheid. One of the tipping points of white rule was the 1976 Soweto uprising – a furious, powerful response to the news that Afrikaans would become a compulsory medium of instruction. Now there is a new potential coloniser on South Africa’s linguistic block. From 2016, Mandarin will be taught in the country’s schools as a Second Additional Language. This new government policy will see African languages bumped even further down the educational pecking order.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
The ebb and flow of the separation of powers in South African constitutional law – the Glenister litigation campaign
- Authors: Krüger, Rósaan
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71103 , vital:29784 , https://doi.org/10.5771/0506-7286-2015-1-49
- Description: This article considers the application of the doctrine of separation of powers by the South African judiciary in a series of judgments flowing from applications and appeals concerning the disbanding of a specialised crime-fighting unit, the Directorate of Special Operations (‘DSO’, colloquially known as ‘the Scorpions’) and the establishment of another unit, the Directorate of Priority Crimes (‘DCPI’, colloquially known as ‘the Hawks’) through legislative enactment. It traces the judiciary’s stance on the separation of powers in the different stages of the litigation - before, during and after the conclusion of the legislative process. It does so against the background of South African precedent on the doctrine and in the light of a perceived power imbalance between the branches of government. Ultimately, it questions the appropriateness of the current understanding of the doctrine of separation of powers in the context of a dominant-party democracy.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Krüger, Rósaan
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/71103 , vital:29784 , https://doi.org/10.5771/0506-7286-2015-1-49
- Description: This article considers the application of the doctrine of separation of powers by the South African judiciary in a series of judgments flowing from applications and appeals concerning the disbanding of a specialised crime-fighting unit, the Directorate of Special Operations (‘DSO’, colloquially known as ‘the Scorpions’) and the establishment of another unit, the Directorate of Priority Crimes (‘DCPI’, colloquially known as ‘the Hawks’) through legislative enactment. It traces the judiciary’s stance on the separation of powers in the different stages of the litigation - before, during and after the conclusion of the legislative process. It does so against the background of South African precedent on the doctrine and in the light of a perceived power imbalance between the branches of government. Ultimately, it questions the appropriateness of the current understanding of the doctrine of separation of powers in the context of a dominant-party democracy.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Learning style of Chinese event management students
- Louw, Mattheus J, Louw, Lynette, Li, Yanxia
- Authors: Louw, Mattheus J , Louw, Lynette , Li, Yanxia
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69167 , vital:29438 , https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110366778-028
- Description: There is a demand for social development in China by establishing, inter alia, a framework focusing on the employability of university graduates and developing self-directed learners. The key to achieving this would be to gain a better understanding of how learning styles, as one of the cognitive factors, contribute towards academic performance in order to provide meaningful learning experiences.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Louw, Mattheus J , Louw, Lynette , Li, Yanxia
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/69167 , vital:29438 , https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110366778-028
- Description: There is a demand for social development in China by establishing, inter alia, a framework focusing on the employability of university graduates and developing self-directed learners. The key to achieving this would be to gain a better understanding of how learning styles, as one of the cognitive factors, contribute towards academic performance in order to provide meaningful learning experiences.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2016
LCT in mixed-methods research: evolving an instrument for quantitative data
- Maton, Karl, Howard, Sarah Katherine
- Authors: Maton, Karl , Howard, Sarah Katherine
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66479 , vital:28954
- Description: publisher version , A mantra of social science declares a fundamental divide between the quantitative and the qualitative that involves more than methods. According to this depiction, the two methodologies are intrinsically associated with a range of ontological, epistemological, political and moral stances. Each of these constellations of stances is strongly integrated, such that choice of method is held to involve a series of associated choices. Each constellation is also strongly opposed to the other, along axes labelled positivism/constructivism, scientism/humanism, conservative/critical, old/new, among others. These ‘binary constellations’ (Maton 2014b: 148-70) offer a forced choice between two tightly-knit sets of practices that are portrayed as jointly exhaustive and mutually exclusive. So widespread is this methodological binarism that many scholars ‘are left with the impression that they have to pledge allegiance to one research school of thought or the other’ (Johnson and Onwuegbuzie 2004: 14). A competing mantra disclaims this divide. Distinctions underpinning the picture of binary constellations have been regularly dissolved. Arguments that one deals with numbers, the other with words, one studies behaviour, the other reveals meanings, one is hypothetico-deductive, the other inductive, one enables generalization, the other explores singular depth, among others, have been repeatedly undermined (e.g. Hammersley 1992). Indeed, the death of the divide is frequently declared. Calls for ‘transcending’ (Salomon 1991) or ‘getting over’ (Howe 1992) the quantitative-qualitative debate and arguments for mixed-methods research (Brannen 2005; Johnson and Onwuegbuzie 2004) are recurrent. These calls highlight how the methodologies offer complementary insights for research and demonstrate that eschewing either methodology on principle is unnecessarily renouncing potential explanatory power. However, the call to mixed-methods research remains more breached than honoured. Methodological monotheism remains dominant – studies of education and society typically adopt either quantitative or qualitative methods. As we shall discuss, the former is typically associated with the influence of psychology and the latter is often claimed as emblematic of sociology. Studies utilizing the sociological frameworks on which Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) builds have echoed this pattern by overwhelmingly adopting qualitative methods. Accordingly, Part I of this volume begins by exploring how LCT concepts can be enacted in qualitative research (Chapter 2). However, LCT is not limited to one methodology and a growing body of mixed-methods research is engaging with both qualitative and quantitative data. In this chapter we illustrate how this research works and the gains it offers. For resolutely qualitative researchers, the prospect of reading anything quantitative, even in mixed-methods research, may be unenticing. However, it would be a mistake to pass over this chapter, for several reasons. First, we offer insights into research practice that might surprise such scholars. As Bourdieu argued, ‘methodological indictments are too often no more than a disguised way of making a virtue out of necessity, of feigning to dismiss, to ignore in an active way, what one is ignorant of in fact’ (Bourdieu and Wacquant 1992: 226). Our aim is to contribute towards removing this reason for one-sidedness. We show, for example, how quantitative methods confound their common portrayal as neat, straightforward and procedural; they are complex and involved and require craft work and judgement. Our focus is, therefore, more practical than metaphysical. We shall not enter seemingly endless debates over whether the ‘quantitative-qualitative divide’ refers to paradigms, epistemologies or methods and whether these are complementary or incommensurable. Rather, we discuss the development of an instrument for enacting LCT concepts in quantitative methods and ground this account in real examples of mixed-methods research. Specifically, we trace the evolution of an instrument for embedding specialization codes within questionnaires through its creation for research into school music and then its development within studies of educational technology. Given that mathematics can be off-putting to the noviciate, we minimize discussion of statistics and explain measures in lay terms. Second, this is much more than a story of quantitative methods. The evolution of the instrument both shaped qualitative methods and was shaped by the data they generated, offering insights into how qualitative research can more fully engage with LCT. Its development also involved intimate dialogue with theory that shed fresh light on LCT itself, making explicit the ‘gaze’ embodied by the framework (Chapter 1, this volume). We shall highlight wider lessons learned about the craft of enacting LCT in research, lessons of direct relevance for studies using any methods. Third, we shall illustrate the explanatory power offered by using quantitative and qualitative methods together, such as providing a robust basis for detailed findings, identifying wider-scale trends typically inaccessible to qualitative methods that provide a context for their data, and facilitating knowledge-building through greater replicability across contexts and over time. For example, the technology studies built directly on the music studies to cumulatively develop the instrument and generated probably the largest data set in code sociology: 97,386 responses (83,937 student and 13,449 staff surveys) on the organizing principles of academic subjects, alongside 20 in-depth qualitative case studies of secondary schools. This offers a foundation of substantial breadth and depth for making claims about knowledge practices across the disciplinary map and a firm basis on which future research into disciplinary differences can build. Moreover, the quantitative instrument itself can be adopted or adapted in new studies, further enabling cumulative knowledge-building. Given these substantive, methodological and theoretical gains, it is perhaps surprising there exists any temptation to skip past discussion of mixed-methods research. This reflects the methodological character of the fields in which LCT emerged. We thus begin by briefly illustrating how the sociological frameworks on which the theory builds have become distanced from quantitative methods.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Maton, Karl , Howard, Sarah Katherine
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66479 , vital:28954
- Description: publisher version , A mantra of social science declares a fundamental divide between the quantitative and the qualitative that involves more than methods. According to this depiction, the two methodologies are intrinsically associated with a range of ontological, epistemological, political and moral stances. Each of these constellations of stances is strongly integrated, such that choice of method is held to involve a series of associated choices. Each constellation is also strongly opposed to the other, along axes labelled positivism/constructivism, scientism/humanism, conservative/critical, old/new, among others. These ‘binary constellations’ (Maton 2014b: 148-70) offer a forced choice between two tightly-knit sets of practices that are portrayed as jointly exhaustive and mutually exclusive. So widespread is this methodological binarism that many scholars ‘are left with the impression that they have to pledge allegiance to one research school of thought or the other’ (Johnson and Onwuegbuzie 2004: 14). A competing mantra disclaims this divide. Distinctions underpinning the picture of binary constellations have been regularly dissolved. Arguments that one deals with numbers, the other with words, one studies behaviour, the other reveals meanings, one is hypothetico-deductive, the other inductive, one enables generalization, the other explores singular depth, among others, have been repeatedly undermined (e.g. Hammersley 1992). Indeed, the death of the divide is frequently declared. Calls for ‘transcending’ (Salomon 1991) or ‘getting over’ (Howe 1992) the quantitative-qualitative debate and arguments for mixed-methods research (Brannen 2005; Johnson and Onwuegbuzie 2004) are recurrent. These calls highlight how the methodologies offer complementary insights for research and demonstrate that eschewing either methodology on principle is unnecessarily renouncing potential explanatory power. However, the call to mixed-methods research remains more breached than honoured. Methodological monotheism remains dominant – studies of education and society typically adopt either quantitative or qualitative methods. As we shall discuss, the former is typically associated with the influence of psychology and the latter is often claimed as emblematic of sociology. Studies utilizing the sociological frameworks on which Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) builds have echoed this pattern by overwhelmingly adopting qualitative methods. Accordingly, Part I of this volume begins by exploring how LCT concepts can be enacted in qualitative research (Chapter 2). However, LCT is not limited to one methodology and a growing body of mixed-methods research is engaging with both qualitative and quantitative data. In this chapter we illustrate how this research works and the gains it offers. For resolutely qualitative researchers, the prospect of reading anything quantitative, even in mixed-methods research, may be unenticing. However, it would be a mistake to pass over this chapter, for several reasons. First, we offer insights into research practice that might surprise such scholars. As Bourdieu argued, ‘methodological indictments are too often no more than a disguised way of making a virtue out of necessity, of feigning to dismiss, to ignore in an active way, what one is ignorant of in fact’ (Bourdieu and Wacquant 1992: 226). Our aim is to contribute towards removing this reason for one-sidedness. We show, for example, how quantitative methods confound their common portrayal as neat, straightforward and procedural; they are complex and involved and require craft work and judgement. Our focus is, therefore, more practical than metaphysical. We shall not enter seemingly endless debates over whether the ‘quantitative-qualitative divide’ refers to paradigms, epistemologies or methods and whether these are complementary or incommensurable. Rather, we discuss the development of an instrument for enacting LCT concepts in quantitative methods and ground this account in real examples of mixed-methods research. Specifically, we trace the evolution of an instrument for embedding specialization codes within questionnaires through its creation for research into school music and then its development within studies of educational technology. Given that mathematics can be off-putting to the noviciate, we minimize discussion of statistics and explain measures in lay terms. Second, this is much more than a story of quantitative methods. The evolution of the instrument both shaped qualitative methods and was shaped by the data they generated, offering insights into how qualitative research can more fully engage with LCT. Its development also involved intimate dialogue with theory that shed fresh light on LCT itself, making explicit the ‘gaze’ embodied by the framework (Chapter 1, this volume). We shall highlight wider lessons learned about the craft of enacting LCT in research, lessons of direct relevance for studies using any methods. Third, we shall illustrate the explanatory power offered by using quantitative and qualitative methods together, such as providing a robust basis for detailed findings, identifying wider-scale trends typically inaccessible to qualitative methods that provide a context for their data, and facilitating knowledge-building through greater replicability across contexts and over time. For example, the technology studies built directly on the music studies to cumulatively develop the instrument and generated probably the largest data set in code sociology: 97,386 responses (83,937 student and 13,449 staff surveys) on the organizing principles of academic subjects, alongside 20 in-depth qualitative case studies of secondary schools. This offers a foundation of substantial breadth and depth for making claims about knowledge practices across the disciplinary map and a firm basis on which future research into disciplinary differences can build. Moreover, the quantitative instrument itself can be adopted or adapted in new studies, further enabling cumulative knowledge-building. Given these substantive, methodological and theoretical gains, it is perhaps surprising there exists any temptation to skip past discussion of mixed-methods research. This reflects the methodological character of the fields in which LCT emerged. We thus begin by briefly illustrating how the sociological frameworks on which the theory builds have become distanced from quantitative methods.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2016
LCT in qualitative research: creating a translation device for studying constructivist pedagogy
- Maton, Karl, Chen, Rainbow Tsai-Hung
- Authors: Maton, Karl , Chen, Rainbow Tsai-Hung
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66465 , vital:28952
- Description: publisher version , This chapter addresses how Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) can be used to overcome this divide in qualitative research. Specifically, we discuss how to develop an ‘external language of description’ or translation device between theory and data. We ground our discussion in the example of a major study that enacted the LCT concepts of specialization codes (Chapter 1, this volume) to explore how constructivist pedagogy shapes the educational experiences of students (Chen 2010). First, we elaborate on Bernstein’s notion of an ‘external language’ – its rationale, its role in research, and ways it has been interpreted – to clarify the nature of a ‘translation device’. Second, we introduce the study we use to exemplify how such a device can be evolved. Third, we analyse the evolving process of that study. There are few published examples of ‘external languages’; there is even less public discussion of how they can be developed. Publications typically reveal the products of research; here we reveal the process as well as the product, to make explicit part of the craft of LCT (Chapter 1, this volume). We analyse the study as an unfolding narrative, focusing on how relations between theory and data were negotiated in the development of an external language of description. Last, we introduce the resulting translation device, discuss how it enables dialogue between theory and data, and consider the nature of the process more generally. We should emphasize that this chapter is intended to be neither a definitive guide nor a template for enacting LCT. More widely, it aims neither to normatively define how theory and data should be related nor to restrict diversity in how this can be achieved. As we discuss, there are several interpretations of ‘external languages’, and, as other chapters in this volume illustrate, there are many ways of using LCT and developing translation devices. Rather, by focusing in detail on one study we hope to shed some illustrative light on how the framework can be used in qualitative research to generate explanatory power through fostering dialogue between theory and data.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Maton, Karl , Chen, Rainbow Tsai-Hung
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66465 , vital:28952
- Description: publisher version , This chapter addresses how Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) can be used to overcome this divide in qualitative research. Specifically, we discuss how to develop an ‘external language of description’ or translation device between theory and data. We ground our discussion in the example of a major study that enacted the LCT concepts of specialization codes (Chapter 1, this volume) to explore how constructivist pedagogy shapes the educational experiences of students (Chen 2010). First, we elaborate on Bernstein’s notion of an ‘external language’ – its rationale, its role in research, and ways it has been interpreted – to clarify the nature of a ‘translation device’. Second, we introduce the study we use to exemplify how such a device can be evolved. Third, we analyse the evolving process of that study. There are few published examples of ‘external languages’; there is even less public discussion of how they can be developed. Publications typically reveal the products of research; here we reveal the process as well as the product, to make explicit part of the craft of LCT (Chapter 1, this volume). We analyse the study as an unfolding narrative, focusing on how relations between theory and data were negotiated in the development of an external language of description. Last, we introduce the resulting translation device, discuss how it enables dialogue between theory and data, and consider the nature of the process more generally. We should emphasize that this chapter is intended to be neither a definitive guide nor a template for enacting LCT. More widely, it aims neither to normatively define how theory and data should be related nor to restrict diversity in how this can be achieved. As we discuss, there are several interpretations of ‘external languages’, and, as other chapters in this volume illustrate, there are many ways of using LCT and developing translation devices. Rather, by focusing in detail on one study we hope to shed some illustrative light on how the framework can be used in qualitative research to generate explanatory power through fostering dialogue between theory and data.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Legitimation code: building knowledge about knowledge-building
- Authors: Maton, Karl
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66444 , vital:28950
- Description: publisher version , Education and knowledge have never been more important to society, yet research is segmented by approach, methodology or topic. Legitimation Code Theory or 'LCT' extends and integrates insights from Pierre Bourdieu and Basil Bernstein to offer a framework for research and practice that overcomes segmentalism. This book shows how LCT can be used to build knowledge about education and society. Comprising original papers by an international and multidisciplinary group of scholars, Knowledge-building offers the first primer in this fast-growing approach. Through case studies of major research projects, Part I provides practical insights into how LCT can be used to build knowledge by:-enabling dialogue between theory and data in qualitative research-bringing together quantitative and qualitative methodologies in mixed-methods research-relating theory and practice in praxis-conducting interdisciplinary studies with systemic functional linguistics Part II offers a series of studies of pressing issues facing knowledge-building in education and beyond, encompassing:-diverse subject areas, including physics, English, cultural studies, music, and design-educational sites: schooling, vocational education, and higher education-practices of research, curriculum, pedagogy and assessment-both education and informal learning contexts, such as museums and masonic lodges Carefully sequenced and interrelated, these chapters form a coherent collection that gives a unique insight into one of the most thought-provoking and innovative ways of building knowledge about knowledge-building in education and society to have emerged this century. This book is essential reading for all serious students and scholars of education, sociology and linguistics.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Maton, Karl
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66444 , vital:28950
- Description: publisher version , Education and knowledge have never been more important to society, yet research is segmented by approach, methodology or topic. Legitimation Code Theory or 'LCT' extends and integrates insights from Pierre Bourdieu and Basil Bernstein to offer a framework for research and practice that overcomes segmentalism. This book shows how LCT can be used to build knowledge about education and society. Comprising original papers by an international and multidisciplinary group of scholars, Knowledge-building offers the first primer in this fast-growing approach. Through case studies of major research projects, Part I provides practical insights into how LCT can be used to build knowledge by:-enabling dialogue between theory and data in qualitative research-bringing together quantitative and qualitative methodologies in mixed-methods research-relating theory and practice in praxis-conducting interdisciplinary studies with systemic functional linguistics Part II offers a series of studies of pressing issues facing knowledge-building in education and beyond, encompassing:-diverse subject areas, including physics, English, cultural studies, music, and design-educational sites: schooling, vocational education, and higher education-practices of research, curriculum, pedagogy and assessment-both education and informal learning contexts, such as museums and masonic lodges Carefully sequenced and interrelated, these chapters form a coherent collection that gives a unique insight into one of the most thought-provoking and innovative ways of building knowledge about knowledge-building in education and society to have emerged this century. This book is essential reading for all serious students and scholars of education, sociology and linguistics.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
The Personal Wellbeing Index in the South African isiXhosa translation: a qualitative focus group study
- Moller, Valerie, Roberts, Benjamin J, Zani, Dalindyebo
- Authors: Moller, Valerie , Roberts, Benjamin J , Zani, Dalindyebo
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67125 , vital:29034 , https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0820-6
- Description: publisher version , International scholars who rely on the Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) to compare cross-cultural quality of life have often been confronted with the problems of nuances getting ‘lost in translation’. This qualitative study explored the meaning of the isiXhosa version of the PWI in focus group discussions with native speakers. Participants in the study discussed how they understood and rated their lives on each item in the index. The discourse conveyed the different shades of meaning associated with the PWI items of life satisfaction and eight domains of life. The study found that PWI items related to material well-being, living standards, achievements in life and future (financial) security were best understood. The PWI items referring to personal relationships and community connectedness were seen as nearly identical in meaning. Both translation and cultural factors may be responsible for the conflation of these two items. Noteworthy is that the PWI item on religion and spirituality was seen to embrace both Christian and traditional African beliefs and practice, without prejudice. A new item on daily activities was piloted with good results. The focus group study also showcased the manner in which discussants worked with the rating scale and drew on social comparisons when evaluating global and domain satisfactions. It is concluded that cognitive testing of PWI items in different translations will serve not only to appraise the validity of PWI ratings across cultures, but importantly also opens a window on what makes for a life of quality in a particular social setting.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Moller, Valerie , Roberts, Benjamin J , Zani, Dalindyebo
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67125 , vital:29034 , https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0820-6
- Description: publisher version , International scholars who rely on the Personal Wellbeing Index (PWI) to compare cross-cultural quality of life have often been confronted with the problems of nuances getting ‘lost in translation’. This qualitative study explored the meaning of the isiXhosa version of the PWI in focus group discussions with native speakers. Participants in the study discussed how they understood and rated their lives on each item in the index. The discourse conveyed the different shades of meaning associated with the PWI items of life satisfaction and eight domains of life. The study found that PWI items related to material well-being, living standards, achievements in life and future (financial) security were best understood. The PWI items referring to personal relationships and community connectedness were seen as nearly identical in meaning. Both translation and cultural factors may be responsible for the conflation of these two items. Noteworthy is that the PWI item on religion and spirituality was seen to embrace both Christian and traditional African beliefs and practice, without prejudice. A new item on daily activities was piloted with good results. The focus group study also showcased the manner in which discussants worked with the rating scale and drew on social comparisons when evaluating global and domain satisfactions. It is concluded that cognitive testing of PWI items in different translations will serve not only to appraise the validity of PWI ratings across cultures, but importantly also opens a window on what makes for a life of quality in a particular social setting.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Unfulfilled promises: the implementation of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act in South Africa
- Mwambene, Lea, Kruuse, Helen
- Authors: Mwambene, Lea , Kruuse, Helen
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/129175 , vital:36227 , DOI:10.1093/lawfam/ebv009
- Description: The Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 1998 (the Act) regulates all matters in relation to customary marriages in South Africa. The Act was specifically enacted to recognize customary marriages as valid, but was also passed to address gender inequality by regulating various customary marriage aspects, the most important being registration and proprietary consequences. This article reflects on the findings of a qualitative study on the registration and proprietary consequences of customary marriages conducted in two rural sites in the Eastern Cape (the former Ciskei and Transkei) and one urban site in the Western Cape (Khayelitsha). These findings show two important issues. First, that access to resources upon death of a spouse or divorce is often premised on successful registration of the marriage, which seldom occurs. Secondly, that the continued patriarchal nature of customary marriages stands in the way of realizing gender equality, particularly in relation to the proprietary consequences of a marriage. As a result, we make possible recommendations of how the Act’s objectives can be met.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Mwambene, Lea , Kruuse, Helen
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/129175 , vital:36227 , DOI:10.1093/lawfam/ebv009
- Description: The Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 1998 (the Act) regulates all matters in relation to customary marriages in South Africa. The Act was specifically enacted to recognize customary marriages as valid, but was also passed to address gender inequality by regulating various customary marriage aspects, the most important being registration and proprietary consequences. This article reflects on the findings of a qualitative study on the registration and proprietary consequences of customary marriages conducted in two rural sites in the Eastern Cape (the former Ciskei and Transkei) and one urban site in the Western Cape (Khayelitsha). These findings show two important issues. First, that access to resources upon death of a spouse or divorce is often premised on successful registration of the marriage, which seldom occurs. Secondly, that the continued patriarchal nature of customary marriages stands in the way of realizing gender equality, particularly in relation to the proprietary consequences of a marriage. As a result, we make possible recommendations of how the Act’s objectives can be met.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
A quantitative analysis of microplastic pollution along the south-eastern coastline of South Africa
- Nel, Holly A, Froneman, P William
- Authors: Nel, Holly A , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68032 , vital:29187 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.09.043
- Description: Publisher version , The extent of microplastic pollution (< 5 mm) in the southern hemisphere, particularly southern Africa, is largely unknown. This study aimed to evaluate microplastic pollution along the south-eastern coastline of South Africa, looking at whether bays are characterised by higher microplastic densities than open stretches of coastline in both beach sediment and surf-zone water. Microplastic (mean ± standard error) densities in the beach sediment ranged between 688.9 ± 348.2 and 3308 ± 1449 particles·m− 2, while those in the water column varied between 257.9 ± 53.36 and 1215 ± 276.7 particles·m− 3. With few exceptions there were no significant spatial patterns in either the sediment or water column microplastic densities; with little differences in density between bays and the open coast (P > 0.05). These data indicate that the presence of microplastics were not associated with proximity to land-based sources or population density, but rather is governed by water circulation.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Nel, Holly A , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68032 , vital:29187 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.09.043
- Description: Publisher version , The extent of microplastic pollution (< 5 mm) in the southern hemisphere, particularly southern Africa, is largely unknown. This study aimed to evaluate microplastic pollution along the south-eastern coastline of South Africa, looking at whether bays are characterised by higher microplastic densities than open stretches of coastline in both beach sediment and surf-zone water. Microplastic (mean ± standard error) densities in the beach sediment ranged between 688.9 ± 348.2 and 3308 ± 1449 particles·m− 2, while those in the water column varied between 257.9 ± 53.36 and 1215 ± 276.7 particles·m− 3. With few exceptions there were no significant spatial patterns in either the sediment or water column microplastic densities; with little differences in density between bays and the open coast (P > 0.05). These data indicate that the presence of microplastics were not associated with proximity to land-based sources or population density, but rather is governed by water circulation.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Modification and application of the decentralised wastewater treatment technology for greywater treatment to reduce water needs
- Authors: Ngqwala, Nosiphiwe P
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/103714 , vital:32290
- Description: Expected release date-April 2017
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Ngqwala, Nosiphiwe P
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/103714 , vital:32290
- Description: Expected release date-April 2017
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Hsp40 Co-chaperones as drug targets: towards the development of specific inhibitors
- Pesce, Eva-Rachele, Blatch, Gregory L, Edkins, Adrienne L
- Authors: Pesce, Eva-Rachele , Blatch, Gregory L , Edkins, Adrienne L
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66335 , vital:28937 , https://doi.org/10.1007/7355_2015_92
- Description: publisher version , The heat shock protein 40 (Hsp40/DNAJ) family of co-chaperones modulates the activity of the major molecular chaperone heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) protein group. Hsp40 stimulates the basal ATPase activity of Hsp70 and hence regulates the affinity of Hsp70 for substrate proteins. The number of Hsp40 genes in most organisms is substantially greater than the number of Hsp70 genes. Therefore, different Hsp40 family members may regulate different activities of the same Hsp70. This fact, along with increasing knowledge of the function of Hsp40 in diseases, has led to certain Hsp40 isoforms being considered promising drug targets. Here we review the role of Hsp40 in human disease and recent developments towards the creation of Hsp40-specific inhibitors.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2016
- Authors: Pesce, Eva-Rachele , Blatch, Gregory L , Edkins, Adrienne L
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/66335 , vital:28937 , https://doi.org/10.1007/7355_2015_92
- Description: publisher version , The heat shock protein 40 (Hsp40/DNAJ) family of co-chaperones modulates the activity of the major molecular chaperone heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) protein group. Hsp40 stimulates the basal ATPase activity of Hsp70 and hence regulates the affinity of Hsp70 for substrate proteins. The number of Hsp40 genes in most organisms is substantially greater than the number of Hsp70 genes. Therefore, different Hsp40 family members may regulate different activities of the same Hsp70. This fact, along with increasing knowledge of the function of Hsp40 in diseases, has led to certain Hsp40 isoforms being considered promising drug targets. Here we review the role of Hsp40 in human disease and recent developments towards the creation of Hsp40-specific inhibitors.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2016
The natural history and conservation of Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphins (Sousa plumbea) in South African waters
- Plön, Stephanie, Cockcroft, Victor G, Froneman, P William
- Authors: Plön, Stephanie , Cockcroft, Victor G , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68207 , vital:29219 , https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.amb.2015.08.005
- Description: Publisher version , Although most knowledge on the biology of Sousa plumbea has primarily come from South African waters, a number of research gaps remain on the natural history and status of the species in the region. Research on two populations in South African waters for which some historical data exist may aid in highlighting long-term changes in the biology and natural history of this little known coastal delphinid. Recent studies on the age, growth and reproduction of animals incidentally caught in shark nets in Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, yielded a lower maximum age estimate of 24 (previously 46) growth-layer-groups (GLGs), sexual maturity of 7.5 and 8 GLGs in males and females (previously 12–13 and 10 GLGs, respectively), an ovulation rate of 0.2 and a 5-year calving interval (previously 0.3 and 3-year calving interval) than previously reported. These differences may be due to a difference in the interpretation of GLGs between observers or a predominance of young males being caught in the shark nets. Stomach content analysis revealed a change in the relative proportions of the main prey items over the past 25 years, but no difference in species richness or diversity was found between the sexes. No change in trophic level was recorded between 1972 and 2009. Field studies in Algoa Bay, Eastern Cape, conducted 16 years apart indicated a decline in the mean group size (from 7 to 3 animals), a decline in the maximum group size (from 24 to 13 animals), an increase in solitary individuals (15.4–36%), and a change in behaviour from predominantly foraging (64–18%) to mainly travelling (24–49%). The observed changes are suggestive of a change in food availability, resulting in a range shift or a potential decline in numbers. These studies indicate the importance of long-term studies to monitor population changes and their possible causes. A number of threats, such as shark nets, pollution (noise and chemical), and coastal development and disturbance, to the humpback dolphin populations in South Africa have been identified. Urgent action is required to ensure continued existence of the species in South African waters.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Plön, Stephanie , Cockcroft, Victor G , Froneman, P William
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68207 , vital:29219 , https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.amb.2015.08.005
- Description: Publisher version , Although most knowledge on the biology of Sousa plumbea has primarily come from South African waters, a number of research gaps remain on the natural history and status of the species in the region. Research on two populations in South African waters for which some historical data exist may aid in highlighting long-term changes in the biology and natural history of this little known coastal delphinid. Recent studies on the age, growth and reproduction of animals incidentally caught in shark nets in Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, yielded a lower maximum age estimate of 24 (previously 46) growth-layer-groups (GLGs), sexual maturity of 7.5 and 8 GLGs in males and females (previously 12–13 and 10 GLGs, respectively), an ovulation rate of 0.2 and a 5-year calving interval (previously 0.3 and 3-year calving interval) than previously reported. These differences may be due to a difference in the interpretation of GLGs between observers or a predominance of young males being caught in the shark nets. Stomach content analysis revealed a change in the relative proportions of the main prey items over the past 25 years, but no difference in species richness or diversity was found between the sexes. No change in trophic level was recorded between 1972 and 2009. Field studies in Algoa Bay, Eastern Cape, conducted 16 years apart indicated a decline in the mean group size (from 7 to 3 animals), a decline in the maximum group size (from 24 to 13 animals), an increase in solitary individuals (15.4–36%), and a change in behaviour from predominantly foraging (64–18%) to mainly travelling (24–49%). The observed changes are suggestive of a change in food availability, resulting in a range shift or a potential decline in numbers. These studies indicate the importance of long-term studies to monitor population changes and their possible causes. A number of threats, such as shark nets, pollution (noise and chemical), and coastal development and disturbance, to the humpback dolphin populations in South Africa have been identified. Urgent action is required to ensure continued existence of the species in South African waters.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Shadow of the Sun – the distribution of wellbeing in Sub-Saharan Africa
- Roberts, Benjamin J, Gordon, Steven Lawrence, Moller, Valerie, Struwig, Jare
- Authors: Roberts, Benjamin J , Gordon, Steven Lawrence , Moller, Valerie , Struwig, Jare
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67235 , vital:29062 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9178-6_23
- Description: publisher version , Despite the enthusiasm that prevailed during sub-Saharan Africa’s initial wave of independence, representations of quality of life in the region over the last half-century focused on themes that typically characterize failed states: maladministration, violence and conflict, disease, impoverishment and suffering. Although considerable hardship persists, the subcontinent experienced impressive economic growth over the last decade. This, together with increasing gains from state-led social spending, has prompted a new narrative that speaks of promise and opportunity. Against this backdrop, the chapter reviews quality of life in the region using select objective and subjective wellbeing measures. The results confirm the general pattern of recent social progress, though lingering deprivation, inequality and often difficult political conditions. While this situation is reflected in relatively low life satisfaction evaluations, it is also accompanied by a resolute optimism that attests to the resilience of the region’s citizens in the face of adversity. The chapter also assesses the influence of certain objective conditions on subjective wellbeing at the macro-level.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Roberts, Benjamin J , Gordon, Steven Lawrence , Moller, Valerie , Struwig, Jare
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , book
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67235 , vital:29062 , https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9178-6_23
- Description: publisher version , Despite the enthusiasm that prevailed during sub-Saharan Africa’s initial wave of independence, representations of quality of life in the region over the last half-century focused on themes that typically characterize failed states: maladministration, violence and conflict, disease, impoverishment and suffering. Although considerable hardship persists, the subcontinent experienced impressive economic growth over the last decade. This, together with increasing gains from state-led social spending, has prompted a new narrative that speaks of promise and opportunity. Against this backdrop, the chapter reviews quality of life in the region using select objective and subjective wellbeing measures. The results confirm the general pattern of recent social progress, though lingering deprivation, inequality and often difficult political conditions. While this situation is reflected in relatively low life satisfaction evaluations, it is also accompanied by a resolute optimism that attests to the resilience of the region’s citizens in the face of adversity. The chapter also assesses the influence of certain objective conditions on subjective wellbeing at the macro-level.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
Local institutions, actors, and natural resource governance in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park and surrounds, South Africa
- Thondhlana, Gladman, Shackleton, Sheona E, Blignaut, James
- Authors: Thondhlana, Gladman , Shackleton, Sheona E , Blignaut, James
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67689 , vital:29130 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2015.03.013
- Description: Publisher version , Crafting local institutions to allow more effective decision-making in the management of and access to natural resources in and beyond parks has long been considered key to collaborative governance. South Africa, in particular, has vigorously pursued collaborative governance as a desired approach to managing natural resources as evident in the new arrangements for previously restricted parks. However, though the discourse of collaborative governance has occupied conservation thinking and practice globally, few studies have looked at the interplay between local institutions, actors and collaborative governance involving indigenous hunter–gatherer communities in Southern Africa. In response, we assess the local actors and institutions that were put in place to facilitate collaborative governance of natural resources in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park and its surrounds in South Africa. Our findings show that though collaborative governance has a practical appeal, it is hampered by lack of participation in decision-making, information dissemination, transparency, trust and accountability, power relations, divergent interests and unequal access to natural resources. The findings also draw our attention to issues of heterogeneity, even within indigenous communities assumed to be homogenous by local conservation authorities as reflected in land settlement agreements in co-managed parks. We argue that collaborative governance arrangements need to reflect and be understood within the broader background of complex local realities.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015
- Authors: Thondhlana, Gladman , Shackleton, Sheona E , Blignaut, James
- Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/67689 , vital:29130 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2015.03.013
- Description: Publisher version , Crafting local institutions to allow more effective decision-making in the management of and access to natural resources in and beyond parks has long been considered key to collaborative governance. South Africa, in particular, has vigorously pursued collaborative governance as a desired approach to managing natural resources as evident in the new arrangements for previously restricted parks. However, though the discourse of collaborative governance has occupied conservation thinking and practice globally, few studies have looked at the interplay between local institutions, actors and collaborative governance involving indigenous hunter–gatherer communities in Southern Africa. In response, we assess the local actors and institutions that were put in place to facilitate collaborative governance of natural resources in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park and its surrounds in South Africa. Our findings show that though collaborative governance has a practical appeal, it is hampered by lack of participation in decision-making, information dissemination, transparency, trust and accountability, power relations, divergent interests and unequal access to natural resources. The findings also draw our attention to issues of heterogeneity, even within indigenous communities assumed to be homogenous by local conservation authorities as reflected in land settlement agreements in co-managed parks. We argue that collaborative governance arrangements need to reflect and be understood within the broader background of complex local realities.
- Full Text: false
- Date Issued: 2015