11613 research outputs found
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The prevalence of mental disorders among offenders admitted at health facilities in Bizzah Makhate Correctional Service Centre, Kroonstad, South Africa
No full textMental disorders are reportedly more prevalent in prisons than expected. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of mental disorders among offenders admitted at the health establishments in Bizzah Makhathe Correctional Centre, Kroonstad, South Africa. Structured psychiatric interviews were conducted to elicit the information. The majority of the participants were young males, black Africans with low educational levels, coming from low socio-economic backgrounds. Crimes against human beings were jointly the most common ones committed by the offenders. The lifetime prevalence of mental disorders was 54.7%. Personality disorders, followed by substance and addictive disorders were the most prominent disorders among the study sample. Other psychiatric disorders noted were depressive disorders, schizophrenia spectrum, intellectual disabilities and neurocognitive disorders, etc. It is agreed that a notable number of prisoners suffering from mental disorders goes undetected, undiagnosed and untreated. Constructs of competency to stand trial and criminal responsibility should always be observed. There is a need to conduct more empirical studies on the prevalence and incidences of mental disorders in correctional service centres in South Africa
Critical success factors for medium- and large-scale farmers in Lesotho
No full textDissertation (MBA (Business Administration))--University of the Free State, 2019Agriculture contributed 40% to Lesotho's Gross Domestic Product in 1995 and then declined to contribute only 1.8% to 2018s Gross Domestic Product. Agriculture is the backbone of the rural community of which 70% derives their income from it. There, therefore, is a need to revive and improve commercial farming in Lesotho. The objective of this study was to identify critical success factors for medium to large-scale farmers in Lesotho. The study was conducted using quantitative research and data were collected using questionnaires that were personally administered to the farmers. A sample of 100 was selected from the total population. The study found that critical success factors include capital, technology, market access, diversification, innovation, financial performance, management, marketing, and government policies and regulations. The study also found that skills such as networking, self-management, and conceptual thinking are critical for farmers. Most farmers comprehend that these factors are critical but still do not realise the importance of diversification and technology. It is recommended that farmers must consider the combination of factors that creates success for their operation or benchmark on a combination that works for other farmers with similar operations. It is also recommended that farmers diversify into farm tourism to increase sources of income and improve the rural economy. They are also encouraged to specialise in a marketable product and find a niche market for such a product. Farmers could also consider adding value to products by processing their products into different kinds of end-products. They should then package and brand those products to give them an identity and become more competitive. It is also recommended that farmers should unite nationwide to develop an application that will give them a platform to sell their products country-wide. The application would give a platform to both urban and rural farmers
A perspective on quality improvement plan implementation practices: a case study
No full textThis study aims to explore the case study’s academic line managers (heads of departments) and academic staff (senior lecturers and lectures) perceptions and experiences pertaining to the implementation of quality improvement plan practices. The problem arises from there being no clear guiding policy at the university on quality assurance, programme development, implementation, monitoring and review. The implementation of quality improvement plans (QIPs) is one of the ways in which the South African Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) and the higher education institutions (HEIs) carry out quality assurance, enhancement and improvement mandates. A qualitative inductive approach was suitable for this type of research in that it allowed the researcher to construct abstractions and ideas from analysing questionnaires and responses from interviews. The study’s findings indicate an awareness of the purpose of QIPs as a self-assessment tool to enhance the core activities of the university ensuring that there is a high standard of teaching and research activities. Thus, strategies should be designed to ensure that plans for improvement are implemented and monitored, and roles and responsibilities are defined, to ensure accountability. It is envisaged that the implementation of QIPs will lead to the creation of an appropriate organisational culture, in which the assessment process is regarded as an integral component of the institutional quality management system, through which the institution undertakes its own assessment to determine whether products, services and management processes meet the stringent requirements of HEQC
Quality of life assessment in patients with allergic rhinitis at Universitas Hospital, Bloemfontein
No full textIntroduction: Allergic rhinitis represents a global health problem that can adversely affect quality of life, impacting academic performance, social life and affecting work performance. Aims: The aims of this study were to determine the impact of allergic rhinitis on the Quality of Life of adult patients attending the Ear Nose and Throat clinic at the Universitas Academic Hospital Complex and to determine the change in the Quality of Life of patients with allergic rhinitis after one month of treatment. Methods: This was a prospective, descriptive study of patients over the age of 18 years who were diagnosed with allergic rhinitis at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at Universitas Hospital between 1 May 2017 and 30 April 2018. Clinical data was recorded on a data form and the patients completed the Juniper mini Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of life Questionnaire. Patients were reassessed after one month of treatment and again completed the Juniper mini Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of life Questionnaire. Results: 85 patients were included in the study. Patients were aged 18 to 78 years of age with the mean of 37.86 years. There were 64.7% female and 35.3% males. 50% presented with moderate- severe intermittent disease, 44% with mild persistent disease, 4% with mild intermittent disease and 2% with moderate- severe persistent disease. There was a significant improvement in quality of life following one month of treatment. The greatest improvements were in daily activities, nasal symptoms and eye symptoms. Conclusion: Allergic rhinitis adversely affected quality of life, with a significant improvement in quality of life following one month of treatment
The architectural preservation of the Karoo’s bird of death a Cape Vulture Rehabilitation Centre: Hofmeyr| Eastern Cape
No full textThe world is facing extinction levels last experienced 65 million years ago, when the dinosaurs died out. Population growth, urbanization and deforestation have caused over 16 300 species to be classified as endangered on the International Union for Nature Conservation’s Red list. The Cape Vulture is one of the species facing extinction due to human impact. This dissertation proposes a Cape Vulture Rehabilitation centre as an architectural intervention that assists in the conservation of Africa’s only true scavenger. The intervention is focused on the rehabilitation and supplementation of the Cape Vulture population in the Hofmeyr area of the Eastern Cape. The lack of vulture rehabilitation facilities in the Eastern Cape provides the opportunity to develop an intervention that has relevance in wildlife conservation. The site is selected due to its close proximity to the existing breeding cliffs of a colony of Cape Vultures, and is situated in the Bamboes mountain range near the town of Hofmeyr. The personal interest of wildlife and experiences of the Karoo have steered the decision to focus the dissertation on Vulture conservation. The dissertation aims at creating an architectural intervention that facilitates the preservation of Cape Vultures whilst creating awareness of ecological conservation of the Karoo. The theory of Biophilia which translates to the love of living things is explored and interpreted to assist in the development of an architectural response that aids in the transformation of misconceptions surrounding vultures. The dissertation adopts explorative research methods into the topology, typology, morphology and tectonics relevant to the intervention. Challenges are identified and aims are set, research questions are developed to assist in solving said problems. The knowledge gained through analysis and the interpretation of theoretical literature guides the design development process and the ultimate synthesis of the proposed design. Finally, the proposed solution is reflected upon to determine the accomplishment and failures of the investigation process
Estimating hydraulic conductivities through the measurement of streaming potentials
No full textThe hydraulic parameters of heterogeneous aquifers are often estimated by conducting pumping (and recovery) tests during which the drawdown in a borehole intersecting the aquifer is measured over time, and by interpreting the data after making a number of assumptions about the aquifer conditions. The interpreted values of the hydraulic parameters are then considered to be average values that represent the properties of the bulk aquifer without taking into account local heterogeneities and anisotropies. An alternative and more economic approach is to measure streaming potentials in the vicinity of the borehole being tested. The streaming potential method is a non-invasive geophysical method that measures electrical signals generated by groundwater flow in the subsurface through a process known as electrokinetic coupling. This method allows data to be recorded at a high spatial density around the borehole. The interpretation of streaming potential data in terms of aquifer hydraulic parameters is facilitated by a coupled flow relationship which links the streaming potential gradient to the hydraulic gradient through a constant of proportionality called the electrokinetic coupling coefficient. In the current study, field measurements of streaming potentials were taken during the pumping and recovery phases of pumping tests conducted at two sites with dissimilar geological and geohydrological conditions. The recorded streaming potential data were interpreted by calculating the hydraulic head gradient from the streaming potential gradient, and by using the potential field analytical solution for the transient mode, which relates the streaming potential field directly to the average hydraulic conductivity. Hydraulic conductivity values estimated from the streaming potential method were of the same order as values determined from the analysis of drawdown data, with a relative error of 0.2. This study demonstrates that the streaming potential method is a viable tool to compliment pumping tests and provide a spatial representation of the hydraulic parameters
The effect of plasmin on age gelation in UHT milk
No full textAbstract not availableNational Research Foundation (NRF)Milk S
Defensibility and accountability: developing a theoretically justifiable academic writing intervention for students at tertiary level
No full textAbstract not availableThis study was inspired by the growing concern among academic lecturers that the academic writing skills of students have deteriorated steadily over the past few years. This is particularly the case as students transition from undergraduate to postgraduate studies, where they are expected to produce lengthy, complex academic papers. Why is it that students progress through their undergraduate studies and are not yet able to negotiate academic writing adequately at postgraduate level? How do the writing needs of students entering postgraduate studies compare to those of students at undergraduate level? What is it that makes academic discourse so unique, and how does it differ across fields of study? What constitutes the ability to write academically in specific academic contexts, and how can interdisciplinary collaboration aid in students’ acquisition of the disciplinary academic writing skills necessary to make a success of their tertiary studies? These are some of the questions that prompted the current study, as well as other related research, which will be addressed in chapters that follow.
Essentially, the thesis addresses two converging issues: the international trend and quest for greater accountability, resulting in an emphasis on measuring the impact of academic literacy interventions, and how that interfaces with the challenge of the massification of higher education, and the arrival of underprepared students on its threshold.
The sections that follow outline the features of the current South African higher education context that serve to inform the research problem, the respective aims and the methodology of this particular study, together with a related impact assessment research study conducted by the researcher
The role of experiental avoidance in the relationship between perceived stress and emotional distress in a sample of university students
No full textThe pervasiveness of mental health difficulties among students globally, and the negative effects thereof have become a cause for concern. The problem is compounded in South Africa, where a number of socioeconomic factors and a history of racial inequality create significant barriers to academic success for much of the student population. Experiential avoidance (EA) has been identified as a transdiagnostic process across a number of clinical and community populations. Consequently, the current study sought to investigate (1) whether a relationship exists between perceived stress, EA and emotional distress among South African university students, (2) whether demographic differences (gender and ethnicity) are apparent with regard to EA, emotional distress and perceived stress, and (3) whether EA mediates the relationship between perceived stress and emotional distress. A multicultural sample of South African undergraduate university students was drawn (n =1121; female = 79.9%; black = 42.5%; white = 49.1%; coloured = 8.5%; mean age = 19.9 years; SD = 1.26 years). The participants completed measures of EA (Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II), emotional distress (General Health Questionnaire) and perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale). Descriptive statistics, between-groups multivariate analysis and regression analyses were employed to analyse the data. The results of this study indicate that a significant and positive correlation exists between perceived stress, EA and emotional distress. No gender differences were found with regard to the study variables. However, racial differences were apparent with regard to perceived stress and emotional distress, with black and coloured participants reporting significantly higher levels of stress and emotional distress than their white counterparts. The regression analyses revealed that perceived stress and EA accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in emotional distress reported by the total sample (42.5%) and the white participants (46.1%), as well as the black and coloured participants (62.1%). Moreover, EA was found to partially mediate the relationship between perceived stress and emotional distress in the total sample, as well as in the white and black/coloured subsamples. These findings lend further support to EA as a transdiagnostic construct and suggest that interventions targeting EA might prove useful in alleviating emotional distress among university students, irrespective of their sociocultural background
Conflict and cooperation: "new farmers" in Zimbabwe, 2000-2015
No full textEnglish: This thesis explores the Fast Track Land Reform Program (FTLRP) in Mashonaland Central Province, Zimbabwe from 2000 to 2015. It investigates the impact of continuous lawlessness and new farmer relations on productivity and land use after the implementation of the FTLRP. It argues that the FTLRP ushered in an unprecedented shift in Zimbabwe’s agriculture landscape which radically transformed society, as new farmers walked into commercial land without structured or sustained support. The thesis explores how the political strategy adopted by the government from the year 2000 onwards to acquire land from the white owners continued to haunt the new farmers as there was no effort by the government to reconstitute institutions and laws that would guarantee respect and protection of property after the invasions. The government adopted a strategy that ignored existing laws that countered occupations and enacted laws to protect the occupiers. As such, the new farmers were vulnerable to the same anarchic political climate that had been faced by their white counterparts during the farm seizures. The thesis, therefore, argues that from the inception of the FTLRP to as late as 2015, insecurity occasioned by the general lawlessness commonplace at the time shaped the manner in which new farmers related to each other and was a major constraint to increased productivity. It contends that farmers had to cope with a new set of challenges that required major configurations in relations. The result was that the lawlessness, coupled with loopholes inherent within government policy on land allocation and resettlement, shaped the nature of relations that emerged in the new farming landscape. The thesis offers a comprehensive account of land use patterns and conflict among newly resettled farmers. It examines how the FTLRP brought about clashes amongst new land occupiers in the new agrarian terrain. It assesses how these struggles impacted on productivity and land use. The thesis also acknowledges the fact that relations amongst the farmers have not only been confrontantional but have also been characterised by instances of cooperation. It, investigates how new farming patterns and demands have called upon the farmers to conjure up innovative ways of relating to each other especially in the context of the fragility occasioned by the lawlessness that pervaded the period. This thesis, therefore, considers relations amongst the new farmers and persistent lawlessness as crucial in assessing land use and production in the resettlement areas.Afrikaans: Hierdie verhandeling ondersoek die Versnelde Grondhervormingsprogram (Fast Track Land Reform Programme – FTLRP) tussen 2000 en 2015 in Zimbabwe se Mashonaland-sentraal provinsie. Dit analiseer die uitwerking van aanhoudende wetteloosheid en verhoudings tussen nuwe boere op produktiwiteit en grondbebruik na afloop van die implementering van die FTLRP. Daar word aangevoer dat die FTLRP ongekende verandering in Zimbabwe se landboulandskap ingelei het – dit het die samelewing drasties verander. Nuwe boere het hulself meteens sonder struktuur of volgehoue ondersteuning op kommersiële grond bevind. Die verhandeling ondersoek die nagevolge van die regering se post-2000 politieke strategie om grond van wit eienaars te bekom en wys dat nuwe boere ly onder die regering se versuim om weer lewe in bestaande instellings en wetgewing, wat die integriteit en beskeriming van eiendom na afloop van die grondrekwisisie sou waarborg, te blaas. Die regering het ‘n strategie gevolg wat bestaande wette teen grondbesetting ignoreer, en wetgewing ingestel wat die grondbesetters beskerm. As gevolg hiervan is die nuwe boere vir dieselfde anargiese politieke klimaat, waarmee hulle wit eweknieë gedurende die besettings te kampe gehad het, vatbaar. Hierdie verhandeling voer aan dat, van die ontstaan van FTLRP tot so laat soos 2015, die algemene wetteloosheid wat op daardie stadium so alledaags was, die onderlinge verhoudings tussen nuwe boere beïnvloed en ook die verhoging van produktiwiteit verhoed het. Die gevolg hiervan was dat wetteloosheid, tesame met die skuiwergate binne regeringsbeleid oor grondtoekenning en hervestiging, bepalend vir verhoudings binne die nuwe landboulandskap was. Die verhandeling bied ‘n omvattende verduideliking van patrone van grondgebruik en verhoudings tussen nuuthervestigde boere. Die manier waarop die FTLRP botsings tussen nuwe grondbesetters in die nuwe landbouomgewing teweeg gebring het, word ondersoek. Die impak wat hierdie konflik op produktiwiteit en grondgebruik gehad het, word geëvalueer. Die verhandeling erken egter ook dat die verhoudings tussen boere nie net vyandig was nie, maar ook deur samewerking gekenmerk is. Daarom ondersoek dit hoe nuwe landboupatrone en -eise die boere genoop het om vernuwende verhoudings te ontwikkel, veral in die lig van die wetteloosheid van hierdie periode. Begrip van die verhoudings tussen nuwe boere en die voortslepende wetteloosheid is onontbeerlik in die evaluering van grondgebruik en produksie in hervestigde areas