Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Investments Moral and ethical aspects Decision making'

The purpose of this study to investigate the morality of persons in organisations and especially the effect of organisations on the moral autonomy of persons. In addition to reviewing the literature of moral autonomy in philosophy, psychology, sociology and organisation studies and management, the thesis also examines the ontology of organisations, moral agency and the organisation as a context. Based on this knowledge, a model is developed that addresses the relations of the organisation to society and the person to the organisation in ethical decision making. From this model the thesis develops three moral decision making categories. These are: moral autonomy. Where persons are allowed to use their moral values, moral heteronomy, where the organisation provides such values and moral anomy, where there is a lack of moral deliberation and moral values. Four research propositions are developed from this model. The propositions are that people are more likely to make morally autonomous decisions in personal life dilemmas than in organisational life dilemmas. In organisational dilemmas it is proposed that the organisation will affect the morality of its members. In bureaucratic organisations, people are expected to make more anomous organisational decisions when faced with an easy and simple dilemma and more heteronomous decisions when faced with complex and difficult dilemmas. In clan organisations, people are expected to make more autonomous organisational decisions. In a market organisation, people are expected to make more anomous organisational decisions. An exploratory primary research project is undertaken to test the model and the propositions developed. People from three Australian organisations that approximate Ouchi's (1980) typology of bureaucracy, clan and market organisations participated in the research. Managers and supervisors from each organisation were asked to assess the ethical climate of their organisation using Victor and Cullen's (1987, 1988) Ethical Climate Questionnaire. They also responded to Forsyth's (1980) Ethics Position Questionnaire and resolved and justified their resolutions six organisational and six personal ethical dilemmas. These dilemmas had been assessed by two groups of MBA students for relevancy, complexity and difficulty. The analysis of the primary data reveals that the three organisations have different ethical climates. It also reveals that the respondents from the three organisations do not differ insofar as they share similarly idealistic end relativistic ethical ideologies. They do however differ in the reasoning they use to resolve organisational and in some cases personal ethical dilemmas. People In organisation Alpha, the bureaucratic organisation, are more likely to make heteronomous decisions. People from organisation Beta, the clan organisation, are more likely to make autonomous moral decisions, and people from organisation Gamma, the market organisation, are more likely to make anomous moral decisions. These findings support the research propositions developed. More importantly, some people in organisations Alpha and Gamma did not perceive some organisational dilemmas as ethical issues but only as business issues that are void of ethics. In addition, people from organisation Alpha in particular were more likely to try to avoid making a decision and suggest that someone else in the organisation should make the decision not the person facing the dilemma. The findings suggest that organisations that rely on rules and regulations are more likely to remove the responsibility from ethical decision-making, and lead to avoidance of such decisions. The implications of these findings are discussed and opportunities for further research are identified.

Emerging markets are a great point of interest to multinational companies seeking to exploit new opportunities as they realise that catering to the rich domestic markets limits their opportunities, their potential and competitive advantage. Serving the consumers that are at the bottom of the economic pyramid (BoP) presents enormous opportunity but it also comes with its unique set of challenges. These challenges require an alternative business strategy, as companies entering these markets must develop new offerings designed to meet the specific requirements of servicing the BoP consumer. This report seeks to explore why companies operating in South Africa are entering the lower income markets, and will describe the challenges encountered both internally and externally, when operating in these markets. Ten interviews at six multinational companies based in South Africa were conducted to test the research propositions derived from the literature. The results concluded that companies enter the BoP markets in pursuit of growth. A variety of secondary factors also emerged. The data revealed that these companies have created innovative alternative execution strategies to overcome the challenges encountered in this market. The report offered a descriptive model of why companies enter the BoP market, and highlights how the challenges presented by the institutional voids and institutional distance were overcome.
Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2014.
lmgibs2015
Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)
Unrestricted

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2003.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The historical development of the role of directors in public listed companies contains inherent tensions by reference to the fiduciary responsibility of directors and the method in which directors are remunerated. The nature of incentive based remuneration is such that it will compel directors, in certain circumstances, to weigh their interests against those towards whom they owe a duty of care and a moral responsibility to act with prudence and temperance. The modem day corporate environment is complex and calls for directors with strong ethical views. This assignment endeavours to identify some of the complexities that contribute towards directors finding it difficult to stay on the ethical "straight and narrow" and attempts to weigh the effect of those factors against the effect of incentive remuneration, both as detractors from ethical behaviour. Both the shareholder supremacy business model and the stakeholder approach are analysed to identify those factors present in each that may add to the ethical complexity that directors have to deal with. The advent of the stakeholder approach in particular, adds an enormous amount of complexity. The case studies deal with two South African financial services companies that have both ceased trading as a consequence of unethical behaviour. The incentive remuneration models of both companies have been found to have played a major contributing role in the decision making processes in the companies, and have contributed to the demise of these organisations. Lessons are taken from the case studies and applied against the backdrop of the various principles of ethical behaviour namely rights, utility, justice and the ethics of responsibility. The finding of this study is that there is a role for incentive remuneration of directors, provided that the ethical pitfalls that this causes are recognised and steps taken to address them. Some of these steps are identified.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die historiese ontwikkeling van die direkteursrol, en spesifiek van openbare genoteerde maatskappye bevat inherente teenstrydighede met verwysmg na direkteursvergoeding en die vertrouensverpligtinge wat op direkteure rus. Die aard van direkteursvergoeding met 'n aansporingskomponent is so dat dit 'n direkteur van tyd tot tyd in 'n posisie plaas waar hy tussen sy eie belange en die van die ander belanghebbendes in 'n maatskappy, aan wie hy dit verskuldig is om met verdrag en versigtig op te tree, moet kies. Die hedendaagse maatskappyomgewing is kompleks van aard, en vereis direkteure met sterk etiese oortuigings. Hierdie werkstuk poog om sommige van die komplekse faktore wat afbreuk doen aan 'n direkteur se vermoe om ten alle tye streng eties op te tree, te identifiseer en op te weeg teen die effek wat direkteursvergoeding speel - beide as items wat afbreuk doen aan etiese optrede. Hier word ondersoek ingestel na beide die sogenaamde "aandeelhouersmodel" asook die" belanghebbende" model waarvolgens besigheid bedryf word. Die ontsluimering van die belanghebbende model veroorsaak spesifiek 'n aansienlike hoeveelheid etiese kompleksiteit. Die gevallestudies behandel twee Suid Afrikaanse fmansiele instellings wat hul bedrywighede gestaak het as gevolg van onetiese optrede deur direkteure. Die aansporingskomponent van die vergoedingsrnodelle in daardie maatskappye blyk 'n groot bydraende faktor te wees in die onetiese besluitneming wat plaasgevind het, en wat uiteindelik tot die ondergang van die ondernemings gelei het. Laastens, word die lesse wat geleer is uit die gevallestudies, toegepas in gewysigde format, en getoets aan die hand van die verskillende beginsels wat etiese besluitneming onderhou, naamlik die beginsels van regte, regverdigheid, utiliteit en die beginsel van etiese verantwoordelikheid. Daar word tot die slotsom gekom dat daar wel ruimte vir aansporingskemas vir direkteure is, maar dat dit slegs eties regverdigbaar sal wees mits ag geslaan word op die lesse wat uit die gevallestudie voortspruit, tesame met die impementering van sekere korrektiewe maatstawwe.

This research sets out to examine how entrepreneurs experience and deal with ethical dilemmas. An entrepreneur is defined as a person who creates something of value and assumes the risk of establishing and managing a business around it. An ethical dilemma comes about when the entrepreneur must choose between alternatives and where the morally correct choice is unclear. This may be due to conflicting personal values or loyalties, tensions arising out of the realization that the moral action is not in line with his self-interest, cross-cultural conflict, or moral ambiguity. Because of the nature of entrepreneurship, the entrepreneur typically lives with ever-present threats arising from limited resources, competition, and the risk of business failure. His actions must simultaneously ensure survival, maximize profit, limit risk, counter threats, optimize the use of resources, and reward him with a feeling of satisfaction. It is hardly surprising that conflicting priorities sometimes ensue. It is also widely believed that these entrepreneurial pursuits supersede the more general need to act in morally appropriate ways. This is a phenomenological study, based on interviews with seven entrepreneurs in established service-oriented ventures. They were asked to describe their business, any dilemmas they have experienced, how they were handled, and what challenges they experience as entrepreneurs in South Africa today. Using phenomenology as my vehicle for data collection and analysis, I sought to enter the lived-worlds of my participants to discover the essence of how ethical dilemmas are experienced in the entrepreneurial milieu. The study’s findings reflect that each entrepreneur has a distinctive world-view, which is represented by a complex mosaic of virtue ethics, deontology, utilitarianism and metaethical perspectives. The permutations are numerous, thus negating the possibility of typecasting entrepreneurs. Instead this research introduces the reader to aspects of entrepreneurial reality such as the complexity of cultural diversity, the freedom to limit the amount of personal energy given to business, and the existence of a more sensitive, searching inner soul beneath the apparent hard-nosed business-oriented public image. While examining entrepreneurial dilemmas in depth, this research introduces the dilemma drum as a tool to portray the argument form of any dilemma by making explicit the ethical component inherent in every business decision and facilitating its effective resolution in a non-prescriptive way. The findings identify certain individual characteristics of participant entrepreneurs that are unlike anything in the mainstream literature, dispelling notions of the entrepreneur as a societal misfit, an essential innovator with vision and flair, or a compulsive risk-taker, while confirming success as the key motivator rather than money per se, the importance of significant others, and the influence of culture and gender. They provide fresh insights into the psyche of the entrepreneur, which include: the existence of inner conviction - marrying the concept of goal-directedness with that of making a contribution to society; exercising the virtues in order to support a delicate balance between business and ethical imperatives; learning to respect energy flow; an alternative morality based on attracting and allowing benevolent or serendipitous events to happen naturally and redefining success as ‘being able to create what is needed as and when needed’; focusing one’s energy on the telos; developing a personal marketing formula suited to a culturallydiverse society; and the anxiety associated with being out-there on one’s own. The general statement, which is ultimately distilled from the seven situated descriptions, introduces a theory of entrepreneurial ethics that presents a new and different view of the lived-world of entrepreneurship, consisting of: Firstly, the key components of entrepreneurial success – having clear goals, energy, making a contribution to society, being connected, getting others on board, and work as an extension of self; secondly, what drives entrepreneurs – goal-orientation, sense of personal excitement, inner conviction, autonomy, and external recognition of success; thirdly, the entrepreneurial ethic – concern for credibility, commitment to service, contributing to quality of life; fourthly, the nature of entrepreneurial dilemmas - conflicting responsibilities, authenticity and credibility, risk and expansion, and awareness of diversity; fifthly, how entrepreneurs deal with ethical issues in their own distinctive ways – by holding fast to authentic virtues, bowing to community expectations, avoiding friction, adopting a ‘come-what-may’ or ‘what’s in it for me’ attitude, or pursuing a higher purpose where both parties benefit; sixthly, entrepreneurs’ world -views – beliefs, goals, ways of deriving satisfaction, virtuous behaviour; pen-ultimately, the challenges facing entrepreneurs in South Africa – overcoming the legacies of apartheid, containing crime, fostering an acceptable business ethic, and facilitating reconciliation between ethnic groups; and lastly, finding the power within – that illusive entrepreneurial spirit – self-reliance, looking beyond immediate obstacles, grasping opportunities, and understanding serendipity.

The goal of this work is to explore the role of theological bioethics in influencing the formulation of existing or proposed policies dealing with treatment decisions for seriously disabled newborns in our pluralist society. Part I of the paper attempts to determine as precisely as possible what bioethics is, particularly Judeo-Christian bioethics. After comparing the latter to the Hippocratic tradition and to secular bioethics, the distinctive characteristics and potential contribution of theological bioethics are identified. The policies then examined in Part II are: medical policies formulated by physicians, bioethical policies proposed by bioethicists and legal policies enunciated by court decisions and legal writers. In each case they are evaluated in the light of a number of specific ethical tests proposed as central to Judeo-Christian bioethics. The paper concludes that Judeo-Christian bioethics has not been particularly influential in our pluralist society. A final section proposes a model treatment policy.

Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--Stellenbosch University, 2008.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Ethical decision making in business, the manifestation of business ethics in the individual, is influenced and shaped by various factors, including the external environment, organisational factors and society. In China business ethics, and consequently ethical decision making has emerged and developed mainly as a response to the economic reforms in response to globalisation. Globalisation, a product of the interaction of political and predominantly economic liberalisation, largely brought about by technological change, has become a household word since the last decade of the twentieth century. It is hailed by its advocates as a way to spread cosmopolitan values as well as better employment conditions and standards of living. Its critics, however, see it as a new wave of colonialism imposed by developed countries and multinational companies on poor countries, a synonym to exploitation and impoverishment of both people and nature. A contested issue on globalisation is concerned with its consequences as to the convergence of societies toward a uniform pattern of economic, political, and even cultural organisation, and thus to the formation of a global ethic. A change in approach towards intellectual property and the trends observed in patent applications indicate to what degree various countries have embraced the opportunities presented by globalisation. China is a prime example of a country that embraced the opportunities, and also made the required changes in policies and behaviour. Globalisation has changed the environment in which everyone is competing forever. International institutions play a significant role, and being part of treaties is paramount if countries want to play in the global market. Thus, globalisation changed the external environment that has an important influence on ethical decision making by individuals. These changes are followed by changes in countries' legal environments. As a result the rules by which companies have to play are also influenced, changing the way management should and eventually do behave, which will ultimately change the work experience gained by an individual. A change in individual factors will eventually change the ethical philosophy and the decision ideal of an individual, which also have an impact on ethical decision making. The end result is that globalisation has a profound influence on every factor that influence an individual making ethical decisions. However, these changes can take very long to start to manifest, a fact seen in the lag between policy changes and observing tangible changes in approach to intellectual property rights, as observed in China.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Etiese besluitneming deur die individu word beinvloed deur 'n wye verskeidenheid faktore, waaronder die eksterne omgewing, die organisasie waarvoor die individu werk, en ook die kultuur gemeenskap. Sake etiek in China, en dus ook etiese besluitneming het ontwikkel as die resultaat van ekonomiese beleidsveranderinge wat teweeg gebring is deur globalisering. Globalisering is die produk van die grootskaalse liberalisering van ekonomiee, aangehelp deur tegnologiese vooruitgang. Voorstanders van globalisering glo dat dit die verspreiding en groei van kosmopolitaanse waardes tot gevolg het, en uiteindelik lei tot beter werksomstandighede en lewensstandaarde vir almal. Die kritici meen egter dat dit 'n nuwe vorm van kolonialisme is waardeur ontwikkelde lande en internasionale besighede die ontwikkelende lande uitbuit. Die mate waarin globalisering lei tot die konvergensie van gemeenskappe na 'n uniforme ekonomiese, politiese en kulturele entiteit, word egter betwis. Gevolglik word daar ook gevra of globalisering lei tot die totstandkoming van 'n globale etiese kode. Lande benader die geleenthede wat globalisering bied op verskillende maniere. Hierdie verskille is duidelik sigbaar in die benadering wat gevolg word met intellektuele eiendom. Die tendense oor die afgelope paar jaar in die aantal aansoeke om patente te registreer, verskil dramaties van land tot land. China is 'n goeie voorbeeld van 'n land wat die geleentheid met beide hande aangegryp het. Nie net is beleid aangepas om voordeel uit die geleentheid te trek nie, maar mense se houding het ook dienooreenkomstig verander. Globalisering het die omgewing vir kompetisie dramaties verander. Internasionale organisasies speel 'n belangrike rol, en die ondertekening van verskeie ooreenkomste is ononderhandelbaar om ten volle deel te wees van die globale ekonomie. Globalisering het die eksterne omgewing sodanig verander dat dit nie anders kan as om 'n impak te hê op die besluitneming van individue nie. Die veranderende eksterne omgewing het noodgedwonge gelei tot veranderinge in die wette van verskeie lande. Die reels waaraan besighede moet voldoen is dus ook beinvloed, en so ook die manier waarop bestuur moet optree. Uiteindelik sal hierdie ook die ervaring van werknemers verander, en dus 'n impak hê op etiese besluitneming. Die uiteinde is dat globalisering elke faktor wat 'n impak het op etiese besluitneming beinvloed. Hierdie veranderinge kan egter 'n lang tyd neem om gestalte te vind in die optrede van organisasies en indivdue. 'n Goeie voorbeeld word gevind in China. Dit het 'n geruime tyd geneem vanaf beleid ten opsigte van intellektuele eiendom ingestel is totdat organsiasies en individue 'n verandering in gedrag en optrede begin toon het deur patente ernstig te beskou.

The Comprehensive Environmental Decision Making (CEDM) paradigm developed through this research conceptualizes CEDM through a particular way of seeing a commitment to man's relationship with his environment. Previous research has explored CEDK but the idea remains ill-defined. The challenge in this research is to reestablish the guiding ideas of the government-environment-citizens matrix, while at the same time describe a meaning and means of operation suitable for environmental professionals working in industry today, where the man-environment commitment is critical to economic growth and environmental quality. In this research a meaning and means of operation begins with Lynton K. Caldwell's guiding ideas. As an avenue of implementation, government structures established through The National Environmental Policy Act and the Pollution Prevention Act provide policy reinforcement. Accepting policy as a CEDM avenue the requirements of environmental understanding, information and perception are developed through aspects of the environment and sustainable development with rational ecology ultimately providing the guideposts and criteria whereby CEDM may be judged. Citizens are those environmental professionals where an ethic is shaped through systems learning with the Environmental Management System used as a framework to establish the CEDM network of relationships in the workplace. The professional's socially binding value is hypothesized as an obligation not to do harm. With this value orientation, rational ethics and systems thinking provide guidelines that direct the professional in evaluating and optimizing policy and business structures. The CEDM paradigm is illustrated as a social choice mechanism suited to the 1990s and beyond by using case studies to apply policy directions.

The increasing impact of technology on health care has raised some important questions. This study is undertaken to examine how the predominance of a scientific approach to medicine and health care undermines other crucial aspects of the relationship between patients and care givers.
The role and function of language and its relationship to the ascription of human agency in the clinical setting is discussed. A patient's understanding and interpretation of the meaning of illness or disease requires a dialogue between patient and care giver such that the patient's agential horizons are incorporated into the decision-making process. A review is called for, therefore, of the dominance given to the technological over the human agential dimensions of decision-making in the health care environment.

This inquiry suggests a new epistemological foundation for understanding and discernment in biomedical ethics. This foundation, based on Aristotle's phronesis or practical wisdom, contains elements of the lived human experience which are seen as essential aspects of ethical, as well as medical, deliberation. The Aristotelian intellectual virtues of theoria and phronesis, used as "ideal types" of rationality, provide epistemological prejudices that structure two distinct ways of thinking. With this distinction, an alternative to certain dominant trends within biomedical ethics arises as phronesis provides more human centered prejudices for understanding. In conclusion, we shall see, using the doctrine of informed consent, that a phronetic rationality allows different, more humane meanings to come into being. Phronesis, it will be argued, provides a mode of rationality which promotes compassion and engagement in both ethics and medicine and consequently, is the more appropriate way of thinking in these important human practices.

The purpose of this project is to develop a curriculum, which will examine the ethical methods or practices used by nurses in resolving ethical dilemmas in clinical practice utilizing the Moral Decision-Making Model for staff nurses at St.Bernardine Medical Center, Five Tower North.

Safety is an important aspect of ethical, socially responsible logistics. Current U.S. motor carrier (MC) safety research topical coverage includes the effects of individual and environmental influences, carrier safety management, and regulatory compliance on carrier safety and driver fatigue/safety performance. Interestingly, little research on the subject of truck drivers' safety attitudes and behaviors exists and the underlying decision-making processes that guide drivers' safety-related behaviors have received little attention. Furthermore, researchers have not provided an integrated framework that explains individual, organizational, and regulatory factors' impact on drivers' safety decision-making and performance. Truck drivers' safety judgments, decisions, and actions must adhere to societal safety norms. To that end, ethical decision-making theory that draws from the deontological and teleological traditions in moral philosophy provides a theoretical foundation and integrated framework necessary to better understand drivers' safety decision-making processes. The current research sought to determine how drivers rely on safety norms and perceived consequences in forming safety judgments and behavioral intentions. Furthermore, the study was designed to explore how various factors (i.e., individual, organizational, and regulatory) influence drivers' safety decision-making processes. Specifically, the study sought to answer the broad question, "How do commercial motor vehicle drivers make safety-related decisions, and how do individual, organizational, and regulatory factors influence drivers' safety decision-making processes?" An experimental two-factor design (2×2) was used to manipulate safety norms (i.e., "deontologically unsafe situation" and "deontologically safe situation") and consequences (i.e., "positive consequences" and "negative consequences"). Multivariate statistical analysis revealed that drivers primarily rely on deontological evaluations in forming safety judgments. Furthermore, drivers primarily relied on safety judgments when forming behavioral intentions. Drivers' attitudes toward unsafe actions and the effectiveness of driver-related safety regulations were also influential to drivers' judgments and intentions, respectively. The empirical findings demonstrate to managers that communication and education of safety norms may be highly effective to improve safety in unique occupational contexts where employees are given high levels of responsibility with little physical supervision, and where judgment errors can have devastating consequences for multiple stakeholders.

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis discusses the value of medical futility as an action guide for neonatal endof- life decisions. The concept is contextualized within the narrative of medical progress, the uncertainty of medical prognostication and the difficulty of just resource allocation, within the unique African situation where children are worse off today than they were at the beginning of the last century. parties actively engage in an interactive deliberation for a plan of action. Both parties ought to accept moral responsibility. Such a model of deliberation has the added advantage of transcending the limitations of the participants to arrive at a higher-level solution, which is considered more than just a consensus. It has been argued that medical progress has obscured the basic need for human compassion for the dying and for their loved ones. The literature furthermore reports that the quality of end-of-life care is unsatisfactory for both patients and their families. It is within this context that the concept of medical futility is positioned as a useful action guide. As we do not have the luxury of withdrawing from the responsibility to engage in the deliberation of end-of-life decisions, such responsibility demands an increasing awareness of ethical dilemmas and a model of medical training where communication, conflict-resolution, inclusive history taking, with assessment of patient values and preferences, is focussed on. The capacity for empathetic care has to be emphasized as an integral part of such approach. Finally, in this thesis, the concept of medical futility is tested and applied to clinical case scenarios. It is argued that the traditional medical paradigm, with its justification of an 'all out war' against disease and death, in order to achieve utopia for all, is outdated. Death in the neonatal intensive care unit is increasingly attributed to end-of-life decisions. Futile treatment could be considered a waste of scarce resources, contradicting the principle of nonmaleficence and justice, particularly in an African context. The ongoing confidence in, and uncritical submission to the technological progress in medicine is understood as a defence and coping mechanism against the backdrop of the experience of life's fragility, suffering and the inevitability of death. Such uncritical acceptance of the technological imperative could lead to a harmful fallacy that cure is effected by prolonging life at all cost. What actually occurs, instead, is the prolongation of the dying process, increasing suffering for all parties involved. The historical development of the concept of medical futility is discussed, highlighting its applicability to the paradigmatic scenario of cardio-pulmonary resuscitation. Particular attention is given to ways in which the concept could endanger patient-autonomy by allowing physicians to make unilateral, paternalistic decisions. It is argued that the informative model of the patient-physician relationship, where the physician's role is to disclose information in order for the patient to indicate her preferences, ought to be replaced by a more adequate deliberative model, where both
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis bespreek die waarde van mediese futiliteit as 'n maatstaf vir aksie in gevalle van neonatale 'einde-van-lewe' besluite. Die konsep word gekontekstualiseer binne die wêreldbeskouing van mediese vooruitgang, die onsekerheid van mediese prognostikering en die probleme wat geassosieer IS met regverdige hulpbrontoekenning; spesifiek binne die unieke Afrika-situasie. Dit word aangevoer dat die tradisionele mediese paradigma, met regverdiging vir voorkoming van siekte en dood ten alle koste, verouderd is. Sterftes in neonatale intensiewe sorgeenhede word toenemend toegeskryf aan 'einde-van-lewe' besluite Futiele behandeling sou dus beskou kon word as 'n vermorsing van skaars hulpbronne, wat teenstrydig sou wees met die beginsels nie-skadelikheid ('nonmaleficence') en regverdigheid. Die volgehoue vertroue in en onkritiese aanvaarding van aansprake op tegnologiese vooruitgang lil geneeskunde, kan beskou word as verdediging- en hanteringsmeganisme in die belewenis van lewenskwesbaarheid, lyding en die onafwendbaarheid van die dood. Sodanige onkritiese aanvaarding van die tegnologiese imperatief kan tot 'n onverantwoordbare denkfout, naamlik dat genesing plaasvind deur verlenging van lewe ten alle koste, lei. Wat hierteenoor eerder mag plaasvind, is 'n verlenging die sterwensproses en, gepaard daarmee, toenemende lyding van all betrokke partye. Die historiese ontwikkeling van die konsep van mediese futiliteit word bespreek met klem op die toepaslikheid daarvan op die paradigmatiese situasie van kardiopulmonêre resussitasie. Spesifieke aandag word gegee aan maniere waarop die konsep pasiënte se outonomie in gevaar stel, deur die betrokke medici die reg te gee tot eensydige, paternalistiese besluitneming. Die argument is dan dat die informatiewe model, waar die verhouding tussen die dokter en pasiënt gebasseer is op die beginsel dat die dokter inligting moet verskaf aan die pasiënt sodat die pasiënt 'n ingeligte besluit kan neem, vervang moet word met 'n meer toepaslike beraadslagende model, waar sowel die dokter as die pasiënt aktief deelneem aan interaktiewe beraadslaging oor 'n aksieplan. Albei partye word dan moreel verantwoordbaar. So 'n model van beraadslaging het die bykomende voordeel dat dit die beperkings van die deelnemers kan transendeer. Sodoende word 'n hoër-vlak oplossing - iets meer as 'n blote consensus - te weeg gebring. Die argument word ontwikkel dat mediese vooruitgang meelewing met die sterwendes en hul geliefdes mag verberg. Verder dui die literatuur daarop dat die kwaliteit van einde-van-lewe-sorg vir sowel die pasiënte as hul familie onaanvaarbaar is. Dit is binne hierdie konteks dat die konsep van mediese futiliteit kan dien as 'n maatstaf vir aksie. Medici kan nie verantwoordelikheid vir deelname aan beraadslaging rondom eindevan- lewe beluitneming vermy nie, en as sodanig vereis die situasie toenemende bewustheid van sowel die etiese dilemmas as 'n mediese opleidingsmodel waann kommunikasie, konflikhantering, omvattende geskiedenis-neming, met insluiting van die pasient se waardes en voorkeure, beklemtoon word. Die kapasiteit vir empatiese sorg moet weer eens beklemtoon word as 'n integrale deel van hierdie benadering. Ten slotte, hierdie tesis poog om die konsep van mediese futiliteit te toets en toe te pas op kliniese situasies.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2003.
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ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The Tsitsikamma Forest, in the most southern part of the Eastern Cape, is part of the Cape Floral Kingdom, one of six such Kingdoms in the world. It has the richest area of plant bio-diversity and fauna in the world which are rare and endemic to the area. The deep gorges, temperate forests, un spoilt oceans and various other features such as the famous Bloukrantz River Bridge, where the world's highest bungi jumps take place are factors that have become the main source of job-creation and income for tourism and its inter-related activities. However, this ecosystem is also home to about 480 families who live in low-income housing at Stormsriver. This settlement which was relocated from the shack area of Coesa, nearby, has an unemployment index of 67% and a similar poverty index. In addition, the Stormsriver Village nearby has a population of about 300 families, mainly older retired white folks. The area is administered by the Koukamma Municipality which is an amalgam of several smaller municipalities viz., Clarkeson, Kareedouw, Stormsriver, Woodlands, Eerste River, ]oubertina and Bloukrantz. Waste reduction and the disposal thereof has always been a major concern to local authorities and the Koukamma Municipality is obviously faced with the same challenge. The authorities have resorted to the concept of landfill sites, which has proven to be the cheapest solution to date. But, with this option comes the problems of health risks to the poorer people who converge on the dump sites in search of food, the harm to children searching through rubbish heaps and the various legal repercussions emanating out of this practice. The option of open-burning and its related effects on human life and forest fires rules it out as an option. Transporting waste out of the area is also very costly. It was then resolved by the Koukamma Municipalities that the possibility of installing an incinerator at Stormsriver would be an option to be investigated. The reasoning behind the selection of this site was the concern of high unemployment in the Stormsriver area and extreme poverty and this venture would in some small measure create jobs, put food on the table and break the poverty cycle. The process of incineration gives rise to emissions such as dioxins and furans which is known to cause cancer, asthma and tuberculosis, if subjected in high doses over a long period of time. It is also regulated by the Atmospheric Pollution Act 45 of 1965. The important moral debate at the core of this problem is the whole question of humans rights and should these be violated solely because the subjects do not belong to an affluent class and should be shown less respect and have their health jeopardised by the toxic air from incineration. Or, should the people's poverty index rise further due to lack of employment. The question that also begs here is whether the well-being of the entire ecosystem, especially the rare and endangered plants and animals take preference over the well-being of the people of Stormsriver, given that the emissions from the incinerator will impact on the animal, bird and plant life, including that of water, soil and air. This would also put into jeopardy the income generated by Tourism and the jobs inherent in it for the locals and would threaten the area's sustainability. The various moral views of philosophers have been canvassed in order to come to a holistic understanding. I have in this vein looked at the views of ethicists such as Tibor Machan, who believes that animals and other organisms do not have any rights and are there purely for human consumption. Then the views of Peter Singer and Tom Regan have also been included, in which consideration is shown to animals. Others such as AIda Leopold, J. Baird Callicott and Paul Taylor whose thinking extends to that of not just showing respect for a single entity but allows for equal respect for all members of the biotic community, have also been. considered. Various solutions have thereafter been considered and amongst those are the relocation of the incinerator out of the Stormsriver, moving the plant to the industrial zone at Kareedouw, transporting the waste out to Port Elizabeth, dumping and finally the 'Do Nothing' option. Using Paul Taylor's "respect for nature" ethics as a guide, I have come to the conclusion that the installation of a waste-reduction incinerator at Stormsriver, Tsitsikamma, may be supported subject to a set of serious riders and conditions in that firstly, the health of the immediate and surrounding inhabitants should not be affected in any way whatsoever. Secondly, the well-being of the non-human environment which must include air, soil, water and plant life, including the animal and bird life must not be harmed in any way. In this way all members of the biotic community will be shown equal respect, thus creating a viable and sustainable community
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die Tsitsikamma Woude, in die mees suidelike deel van the Oos-Kaap, is deel van die "Cape Floral Kingdom", een van ses sulke woudgebiede in die wêreld. Dit beskerm die rykste area van plant bio-verskeidenheid asook fauna wat skaars is in die wêreld en slegs daar gevind word. Die diep bergpasse. gemagtigde woude en ongerepte oseaan, tesame met die beroemde Bloukransrivier brug waar die wêreld se hoogste bungi spronge plaasvind is faktore wat bygedra het dat werkskepping en inkomste hoofsaaklik uit toerisme en verwante bedrywe afkomstig is. Hierdie eko-sisteem is ook die tuiste vir ongeveer 480 gesinne wat in sub-ekonomiese huise in Stormsrivier woon. Hierdie gemeenskappie wat vanaf die naby geleë Coesa hervesig is, het 'n werkloosheid sowel as armoede syfer van 67%. Bykomend is daar die Stormsriver nedersetting daar naby met 'n bevolking van 300 families, hoofsaaklik ouer, afgetrede blankes. Die gebied word bestuur deur die Koukamma Munisipaliteit wat in 'n samesmelting van 'n hele paar kleiner munisipaliteite is o.a Clarkson, Kareedouw, Stormsrivier, Woodlands, Eerste Rivier, ]oubertina en Bloukrans. Die vermindering van afvalstowwe asook die verwydering daarvan was maar altyd 'n groet kopseer vir die plaaslike owerhede en dit geld nou ook vir die Koukamma Munisipaliteit. Die owerhede het besluit op die konsep van afvalstortings areas omdat dit die goedkoopste oplossing tot nou toe is. Met hierdie opsie kom egter die probleem van gesondheids risiko's vir die armer gemeenskappe (mense) wat op hierdie stortings terreine toesak op soek na kos, die beserings wat kinders opdoen wat die gemors deursoek asook die wettige terugslag wat hierdie praktyk totgevolg het. Die gevaar van oop vure en die effek wat dit sou hê op mense en die woud self maak dat hierdie opsie nie oorweeg word nie. Ook is dit te duur om afvalstowwe uit die gebied uit te vervoer. Die Koukamma Munisipaliteit het toe besluit om die instállering van 'n verbrandingsoond by Stormsrivier te ondersoek. Die rede om hierdie gebied te kies was die hoë werkloosheid syfer en armoede in Stormsrivier. Hierdie besluit sou werkskepping, kos op die tafel en die verbreking van die armoede-siklus tot gevolg hê. Die proses van verbranding het aanleiding gegee tot die nuwe gevare van skadelike afval produkte van dioksiede en furane wat kanker, asma en tuberkulose tot gevolg het as mense vir lang periodes aan hoë dosisse blootgestel word. Hierdie uitstraling word ook deur die "Atmosferiese Besoedelingswet 45 van 1965" gereguleer. Die belangrike morele debat wat die kern van hierdie probleem vorm is die vraag na menseregte en of die menseregte geskend kan word bloot omdat die mense in die gebied nie aan 'n gegoede klas behoort nie moet daar minder respek aan hulle getoon word en moet hul gesondheid in die weeg skaal geplaas word deur die giftige lug as gevolg van die verbrandering van afvalstowwe, of moet werkloosheid verder styg as gevolg van die gebrek aan werk? Die ander vraag wat gevra moet word is of die welvaart van die hele ekosisteem, veral die van skaars en bedreigde plante en diere voorkeur moet geniet bo die welvaart van die mense van Stormsrivier gegee die feit dat die uitstraling van die verbrandingsoond ook 'n inpak gaan hê op die diere, voëls en plant lewe inkluisend op water, grond en lug. Dit sal ook die inkomste wat uit Toerisme voort gebring word, en die werksgeleenthede vir die plaaslike mense wat daarmee gepaard gaan, in die weegskaal plaas asook die gebied se standhoudendheid bedreig. Die verskeie standpunte van filosowe is na gekyk ten einde tot 'n holistiese verstaan van die situasie te kom. Langs hierdie weg het ek dan na die etiese standpunt van Tibor Machan gekyk. Tibor Machan glo dat diere en ander organismes geen regte het nie en dat hulle daar is vir die uitsluitlike gebruik deur mense. Die standpunte van Peter Singer en Tom Regan, wat 'n mate van sorgsaamheid teenoor diere toon, is ook in ag geneem. Andere wie se standpunte in ag geneem is, is Aldo Leipold,J. Baird Callicot and Paul Taylor. Hulle denkrigting maak voorsiening daarvoor dat respek nie net aan 'n enkele entiteit getoon moet word nie, maar aan almal wat in 'n biotiese gemeenskap saamwoon. Verskeie oplossings is hierna oorweeg onder andere die verskuiwing van die verbrandingsoond buite Stormsrivier na die industriële gebied in Kareedouw, die vervoer van die afval na Port Elizabeth, storting asook die "Doen Niks" opsie. Ek het as etiese riglyn Paul Tayor se "respekteer vir natuur" gebruik en het tot die slotsoom gekom dat die iristallering van 'n afval verminderings verbrandingsoond te Stormsrivier ondersteun kan word met ernstige voorbehoude en voorwaardes deurdat, eerstens, die gesondheid van die onmiddelike en omliggende inwoners op geen manier hoegenaamd aangetas moet word nie. Tweedens, die welvaart van die nie-lewende omgewing met inagneming van lug, grond, water en plantlewe, insluitende die diere en voëls moet op geen manier geskaad word nie. Op hieride maruer sal almal wat deel uitmaak van die biotiese gemeenskap gelyke respek betoon word wat die daarstelling van 'n lewensvatbare en standhoudende gemeenskap tot gevolg sal hê.

This thesis provides a behavioural perspective to the problem of collusive tendering in the construction market by examining the decision making factors of individuals potentially involved in such agreements using marketing ethics theory and techniques. The findings of a cross disciplinary literature review were synthesised into a model of factors theoretically expected to determine the individual's behavioural intent towards a set of collusive tendering agreements and the means of reaching them. The factors were grouped as internal cognitive (the individuals' value systems) and affective (demographic and psychographic characteristics) as well as external environmental (legal, industrial and organisational codes and norms) and situational (company, market and economic conditions). The model was tested using empirical data collected through a questionnaire survey of estimators employed in the largest Australian construction firms. All forms of explicit collusive tendering agreements were considered as having a prohibitive moral content by the majority of respondents who also clearly differentiated between agreements and discussions of contract terms (which they found to be a moral concern but not prohibitive) or of prices. The comparisons between those of the respondents that would never participate in a collusive agreement and the potential offenders clearly showed two distinctly different groups. The law abiding estimators are less reliant on situational factors, happier and more comfortable in their work environments and they live according to personal value and belief systems. The potential offenders on the other hand are mistrustful of colleagues, feel their values are not respected, put company priorities above principles and none of them is religious or a member of a professional body. The research results indicate that Australian estimators are, overall law abiding and principled and accept the existing codification of collusion as morally defensible and binding. Professional bodies' and organisational codes of conduct as well as personal value and belief systems that guide one's own conduct appear to be deterrents to collusive tendering intent and so are moral comfort and work satisfaction. These observations are potential indicators of areas where intervention and behaviour modification can increase individuals' resistance to collusion.

This dissertation examined the extent to which interests and values of diverse stakeholders were considered through participation-oriented decision-making. It covered the An' Yang Stream restoration case in South Korea, which has been judged a successful stream management endeavor led by public-private partnership governance. This research utilized a mixed methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative methods. It addressed the extent to which the collaborative and participatory decision-making processes incorporated diverse stakeholder values and visions. The relevant data on stream restoration was collected through nominal group technique (NGT), analytic hierarchy process (AHP), semi-structured interviews, observations at collaborative stakeholder meetings and workshops, and documentation review. My research concluded that integration of all interests was not achieved. These interests might have potentially affected the extent to which stakeholders' values are incorporated or not in participation-oriented collaborative stakeholders' partnerships by utilizing interest-based facilitation techniques, such as joint-fact-finding or principled negotiation. At the same time, my findings expatiate the catalyzing roles of the public media within stream restoration decision-making governance.

The association between ethical decision-making and substance use has not been clearly defined. In the Australian context, particular psychological classifications of substance abuse and dependency prevail. Likewise, sociocultural determinants specify a legalistic framework for ethical considerations about substance use. Personal ethical decision-making concerning substance use is subsumed by the State through legislative controls, such as the public constraints on tobacco use. The normative context determines that the presence of appropriate ethical decision-making skills equates with lawful or prosocial behaviour. Government enacts legislation about substance use because there is a belief that certain individuals cannot exert self-control. Absence of self-control leads to anti-social behaviours such as substance abuse, with the potential for consequential harm to other citizens. Paradoxically, legislation presumes that the individual who abuses substances through apparent absence of self-control is capable of exercising appropriate ethical decision-making skills. What if this presumption were not true for the majority of substance dependent persons? This study addresses the issue of ethical decision-making skills. It reviews the biopsychosocial context that determines the formal ethical position, identifying the developmental processes in childhood that influence a person's acquisition of cognitive capacities for ethical decision-making. Utilising a purpose designed social psychological instrument (Human Values Questionnaire), a comparison is made between two sociological groups to determine whether a measurable difference in ethical decision-making skills exists. Health service providers were the first group, representing the coincidence of low levels of substance abuse and appropriate ethical decision-making. Health service consumers attending a substance abuse clinic were the second group, representing the coincidence of high levels of substance abuse and inappropriate ethical decision-making. Results from the Human Values Questionnaire display a statistically significant difference in ethical decision-making skills between health service providers and consumers. However, statistically significant differences occurred for other social psychological measures, supporting a perspective which questions the presumption that substance abusers have effective cognitive capacities for appropriate ethical decision-making. Psychosocial development may be impeded in the majority of cases of substance dependency. Outlawing substance abuse behaviours may not address aetiological factors and represent a form of sociocultural re-victimisation. In this context, legalistic frameworks cannot be expected to reduce levels of substance dependency and related harms. In contrast, the results of this study show that therapeutic interventions which concurrently enhance the substance dependent person's cognitive capacities and mood state will improve social psychological function. This implies that sound ethical decision-making occurs as a consequence of effective psychoeducation, not the sociocultural imposition of legal prohibitions.

This thesis seeks to demonstrate, by way of a multidisciplinary study, that consent is, despite its legal definition which refers to the free and enlighted expression of individual will, in fact, at times limited if not eliminated, by social considerations, arising from the medical, economic and legal context. These considerations reflect what one might call the social norm. An appropriate understanding of consent serves, therefore, to express the social norm as a constraint, which, in turn, acts as a measure of what it means to belong in society. Thus, while consent is often presented as the fundamental principle to be respected in biomedical research, it is in reality, merely one principle to respect among others. These limitations connected to consent are exacerbated in emergency situations where consent is sometimes reduced to mere signature, and in some cases it has been recognized that research can be undertaken without the subject's prior consent.

Thesis (MPhil (Education Policy Studies))--University of Stellenbosch,2009.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study explores leadership and productive school culture, and focuses on school leadership at selected schools in the Nzhelele West Circuit in the Limpopo Province. Leadership plays a pivotal role in the functioning of any organisation, be it in business or in education, and the concept of leadership has become more prominent over the last decade, and there are various debates around its meaning and what it entails. In order to develop a better understanding of leadership, a literature review is conducted. This review highlights the differences between leadership and management, and explores different leadership styles. With regards to productive school culture, this study indicates that schools may look alike in terms of their physical structure, composition of staff members and purpose of their existence, but may differ drastically on how they operate. This kind of culture represents the common shared values, rituals, ceremonies, stories and an internal cultural network that values heroes, such as an extraordinary teacher. I conclude that school culture and school leadership are inseparable issues because cultural management remains the responsibility of the school leadership This study finds that leadership is of vital importance in all organisations, and that the meanings of the concept of leadership have changed over years. Further, administering schools in a democratic fashion still pose tremendous challenges to the school leadership as a whole. It seems as if the schools which are part of this investigation still struggle to adjust to a democratic dispensation. This research therefore concludes that school leaders need to ensure that they are both good managers and effective leaders. They must also ensure that the culture at their schools is conducive for teaching and learning. Keywords: leadership, management, schools, leadership styles, productive school culture.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die studie behels leierskap en produktiewe skool kultuur, en ondersoek skool leierskap by verskeie skole in die Nzhehele-Wes kring in die Limpopo Provinsie. Leierskap speel „n belangrike rol in die funksionering van enige organisasie, en die konsep het meer prominent geword oor die afgelope dekade. Daar is ook verskeie debate rondom die betekenis van die konsep. Met die doel om „n beter begrip van leierskap te verkry, is „n literatuur studie voltooi. Die literatuur studie dui op die verskille tussen leierskap en bestuur, en verskeie leierskap style word ondersoek. Met betrekking tot produktiewe skool kultuur toon die navorsing dat skole dieselfde mag lyk ten opsigte van hul fisiese struktuur, personeel samestelling, en die doel van hul bestaan, maar mag drasties verskil in hulle funkionering. Dié tipe kultuur verwys na gemeenskaplike waardes, rituele, seremonies, stories en „n interne netwerk wat helde, soos buitengewone leiers, vereer. My gevolgtrekking is dat skool kultuur en skool leierskap onskeibaar is omdat die kulturele bestuur nog steeds the verantwoordelikheid van die skool leierskap is. Die studie bevind dat leierskap van kardinale belang in alle organisasies is, en dat die betekenis van die konsep “leierskap” oor jare baie verander het. Verder bied demokratiese skool administrasie nog steeds baie uitdagings aan skool leiers. Dit wil voorkom asof skole in die ondersoek ook probleme ondervind om aan te pas by „n demokratiese bedeling. Hierdie ondersoek kom tot die gevolgtrekking dat skool leiers moet poog om beide goeie bestuurders en effektiewe leiers te wees. Hulle moet ook verseker dat die kultuur by hul skole leer en onderrig ondersteun. Sleutelwoorde: leierskap, bestuur, skole, leierskap style, skool kultuur.

There is a conceptual knot at the intersection of moral responsibility and action theory. This knot can be expressed as the following question: What is the relationship between an agent's openness to moral responsibility and the intentional status of her behaviour? My answer to this question is developed in three steps. I first develop a control-backed account of intentional agency, one that borrows vital insights from the cognitive sciences – in the form of Dual Process Theory – in understanding the control condition central to the account, and demonstrate that this account fares at least as well as its rivals in the field. Secondly, I investigate the dominant positions in the discussion surrounding the role of control in moral responsibility. After consideration of some shortcomings of these positions – especially the inability to properly account for so-called ambivalence cases – I defend an alternative pluralist account of moral responsibility, in which there are two co-extant variants of such responsibility: attributability and accountability. The latter of these will be shown to have a necessary control condition, also best understood in terms of a requirement for oversight (rather than conscious or online control), and in terms of the workings of the dual system mechanism. I then demonstrate how these two accounts are necessarily related through the shared role of this kind of control, leading to my answer to the original question: if an agent is open to moral accountability based on some activity or outcome, this activity or outcome must necessarily have positive intentional status. I then apply this answer in a consideration of certain cases of the use of the Doctrine of Double Effect.

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Corporate fraud and other harmful practices might find support in accounting. For managers and preparers of financial statements the presence of rules that allow discretion in the choice of practices for recognition and measurement could encourage opportunistic behavior. Opportunistic behavior occurs when someone deliberately departs from the faithful representation of the economic event to benefit himself or others, generating a biased information. The subjects are influenced in their choice by a number of reasons, which may be internal or external nature. The external reasons are derived from capital markets, regulation, contracts, among others, while the internal are connected to the emotions, psychological profile, etc. The objective of this research was to determine whether opportunistic behavior in accounting choices is influenced by emotions and the personality trait of machiavellianism. A questionnaire was developed and 505 valid responses from students in their final year undergraduate and postgraduate were collected. With regard to the data processing, univariate and bivariate descriptive analysis of the variables, factor analysis for the development of the constructs of emotions and machiavellianism, and finally, multinomial logistic regression were performed to study the relationship between accounting choices and the demographic profile the constructs of emotions and machiavellianism. For the emotions, it was observed that while the negative promotes, the positive inhibit opportunistic behavior on accounting choices. About machiavellianism, the results indicate that amorality promotes and the desire to control inhibits opportunistic behavior on accounting choices. Based on the research findings we can infer that internal motivation should be observed, to the extent that positive emotions if promoted by market regulators and academia, and negative, if avoided, may contribute to inhibit corporate fraud.
Fraudes corporativas e outras pr??ticas lesivas podem encontrar suporte na contabilidade. Para gestores e preparadores das demonstra????es financeiras a presen??a de normas que permitem a discricionariedade na escolha de pr??ticas de reconhecimento e mensura????o pode favorecer o comportamento oportunista. Considera-se comportamento oportunista aquele que deliberadamente distancia da representa????o fidedigna do evento econ??mico para benef??cio pr??prio ou de terceiros, gerando uma informa????o com vi??s. Os sujeitos s??o influenciados no momento da escolha por uma s??rie de motiva????es, as quais podem ser de cunho interno ou externo. As de cunho externo s??o provenientes do mercado de capitais, da regula????o, de contratos, entre outros, enquanto as de cunho interno s??o ligadas ??s emo????es, perfil psicol??gico, etc. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi verificar se o comportamento oportunista nas escolhas cont??beis ?? influenciado pelas emo????es e pelo tra??o de personalidade do maquiavelismo. Para a operacionaliza????o de tal pesquisa foi desenvolvido um question??rio e coletadas 505 respostas v??lidas de alunos do ??ltimo ano de gradua????o e de p??s-gradua????o. No que concerne ao tratamento dos dados, foram realizadas an??lise descritiva univariada e bivariada das vari??veis, an??lise fatorial para o desenvolvimento dos constructos de emo????es e maquiavelismo e, por fim, uma regress??o log??stica multinomial para estudar a rela????o entre as escolhas cont??beis e o perfil dos respondentes, os constructos de emo????es e maquiavelismo. Os resultados obtidos indicaram que emo????es afetam o comportamento oportunista em escolhas cont??beis, sendo que as negativas promovem enquanto as positivas inibem. Sobre o maquiavelismo, os resultados indicam que amoralidade promove e desejo de controle inibe o comportamento oportunista em escolhas cont??beis. Com base nos resultados da pesquisa ?? poss??vel inferir que as motiva????es internas devem ser observadas, na medida em que as emo????es positivas, se promovidas pelos reguladores de mercado e academia, e as negativas se forem evitadas, podem contribuir para inibir fraudes corporativas.

Thesis (DPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2004
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Researchers in Social Sciences have generally encountered problems in ensuring data quality when dealing with topics that are regarded as sensitive. This thesis reports on an investigation into the methodology used for research projects around sensitive issues in education in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. Data consists of twelve interviews with individual principals (each interview schedule containing semi-structured question items from ten categories) and a thirty-three item self-report questionnaire survey administered to one hundred and fifty principals drawn from two hundred and seventy two secondary schools over the course of an academic year (2002) and conducted in the Limpopo Province of South Africa .. Results reveal nine major categories of sensitive issues in school management on which principals have difficulty in providing information to researchers: school policy, school financial issues, moral or social relations issues, learner and educator disciplinary issues, working conditions, absenteeism, developmental appraisal, educator unions, and religious matters policy issues. Principals have also reported on the various reasons why they regard each of the aspects as sensitive, thereby making it difficult for them to provide information around. Of these, moral issues were considered the most sensitive. The major reasons given were: confidentiality, intrusion of privacy, fear oflegal sanction, threat to work and violation of the rights of the individual. Analysis of the different sensitive issues also show that certain biographical characteristics - age of the principal and years of experience as principal - are significant mediators in principals' perceptions of sensitive issues in school management. That is to say, these contribute to principals' assessment of their emotional, physical and psychological well-being. Sensitivity is a problem when collecting data for research purposes. It warrants the attention of all those involved in social science research. The findings in this study point to the issues in school management that are highly sensitive to provide information suggesting that data collected would therefore not be of a high quality.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Menige navorsers in sosiale wetenskappe het oor die algemeen probleme teëgekom met die versekering van data kwaliteit in sensitiewe onderwerpe. Hierdie tesis raporteer oor 'n ondersoeke in die metodologie gebruik vir navorsing projekte rondom sensitiewe onderwerpe in onderwys in die Limpopo Provinsie in Suid-Afrika. Data bestaan uit twaalf onderhoude met individuele prinsipale (elke onderhoud se skedule bevat se gestruktureerde items van tien katagorieë) en 'n drie-en-dertig item (self-report) vraelys wat onder 150 prinsipale uitgedeel is, waarvan 272 sekondêre skole oor 'n tydperk van 'n akademiese jaar (2002) gebruik was in die Limpopo Provinsie van Suid Afrika. Die resultate toon nege hoof onderwerpe in skoolbestuur waar prinsipale dit moeilik vind om informasie aan navorsers te verskaf: skoolbeleid, finansiële onderwerpe, moraliteite of sosiale verhoudinge, leerder en onderwyser dissiplinêre onderwerpe, werkverhoudinge, afwesigheid, personeelontwikkeling, onderwysunies, en godsdienstige sake. Prinsipale raporteer om verskeie redes waarom hulle elk van die aspekte as sensitief beskou. Onder hierdie is morele sake as die sensitiefste geklasifiseer. Die hoofredes hiervoor is gegee as vertroulikheid, inbreuk van privaatheid, vrees vir wettige sanksies, dreigemente in die werk en skending van die regte van die indiwidueel. Analiese van die verskillende sensitiewe sake toon aan dat verskeie biografiese eienskappe - ouderdom van die prinsipaal - is oorsake in die prinsipaal se persepties in die prinsipaal se sake onder die skool se bestuur. Dit se met ander woorde bogenoemde dra by tot die prinsipaal se emosionele en fisiese geestelike toestand. Sensitifiteit is 'n probleem wanneer data vir navorsing doeleindes verkry word. Dit regverdig die aandag van die mense betrokke in sosiale wetenskap navorsing. Die bevinding in hierdie studie verwys na sake in skoolbestuur wat hoogssensitief is om informasie te voorsien, en stel voor dat die data verkry is nie van hoë standard is nie.

Thesis (LLD (Public Law))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The unique and intimate relationship that exists between a medical practitioner and his/her client is possibly one of the most important relationships that can come into being between any two people. This relationship is characterised and influenced by the qualities and attributes specific to the nature and historical development of medical care, as well as medical science in general. The doctor-patient relationship is also influenced by the social dynamics of a particular community, environmental factors, technological advances and the general social and commercial evolution of the human race. With regard to medical care and health service delivery, the doctor-patient relationship is furthermore vital to the quality of the care provided, as well as to the outcomes and relative success of the specific medical intervention or treatment. One of the distinct characteristics of the doctor-patient relationship is the power imbalance inherent in this relationship. The medical practitioner has expert knowledge and skill, while the patient finds himself or herself in an unusually dependent and vulnerable position. It is because of this important role that the doctor-patient relationship still plays in health service delivery today; the susceptibility of the relationship to a variety of influences, and the characteristic power imbalances inherent in this relationship, that a study of the doctor-patient relationship in South African medical- and health law is necessary. The characteristic power imbalances will be considered from a legal perspective in this dissertation. This study provides a comprehensive source of the doctor-patient relationship from a legal perspective. Where relevant, references are made to theories and principles from other disciplines, including sociology, economy and medical ethnomethodology. The prevalence and consequences of power imbalances in the doctor-patient relationship are identified and discussed with the aim of bringing these to the attention of both the legal fraternity, and medical practitioners. Specific problem areas are identified and solutions are offered, including the following: • The adverse consequences of power imbalances inherent in the doctor-patient relationship on the medical decision-making process are considered from various perspectives. With regard to these adverse consequences, the doctrine of informed consent is analysed and evaluated in great detail. • The influence of paternalistic notions in health service delivery; the business model of health service delivery and the effects of managed care and consumer-directed health care on the doctor-patient relationship and health service delivery in general are also analysed from a legal perspective, and specifically with regard to the power imbalances inherent in this relationship. • The role of autonomy, self-determination and dignity, as well as the principles of beneficence in medical practice, are reconsidered in an attempt to provide a solution for redressing the power imbalances inherent in the doctor-patient relationship. • The fiduciary nature of the doctor-patient relationship and the special role of trust in the relationship are emphasised throughout the dissertation as the focal point of departure in the doctor-patient relationship and the main constituent in any legal endeavor to redress the power imbalances inherent in it.
AFRIKAANS OPSOMMING: Die unieke en intieme verhouding wat bestaan tussen ‘n mediese praktisyn en ‘n pasiënt is wêreldwyd waarskynlik een van die belangrikste verhoudings wat tussen twee persone tot stand kan kom. Hierdie verhouding word gekenmerk en beïnvloed deur kwaliteite en eienskappe eie aan die besonderse aard en historiese ontwikkeling van gesondheidsorg, sowel as die mediese wetenskap in die algemeen. Die dokter-pasiënt verhouding word verder beïnvloed deur die sosiale dinamika van ‘n bepaalde gemeenskap, omgewingsfaktore, tegnologiese vooruitgang en die algemene sosiale en kommersiële ontwikkeling van die mensdom. Op die terrein van gesondheidsorg en mediese dienslewering is die dokter-pasiënt verhouding voorts ook sentraal tot die kwaliteit van die mediese sorg wat verskaf word, sowel as die uitkomste en relatiewe sukses van die spesifieke mediese behandeling. Een van die kenmerkende eienskappe van die dokter-pasiënt verhouding is die magswanbalans wat daar tussen dokter en pasiënt bestaan. Die mediese praktisyn beskik oor deskundige kennis en vaardighede, terwyl die pasiënt hom- of haarself in ‘n ongewone, afhanklike en kwesbare posisie bevind. Dit is dan veral weens die besondere rol wat hierdie verhouding steeds in hedendaagse gesondheidsorg speel, die beïnvloedbaarheid van hierdie verhouding deur ‘n verskeidenheid faktore, sowel as die kenmerkende magswanbalans inherent in die verhouding, dat ‘n ondersoek na die dokter-pasiënt verhouding in die Suid-Afrikaanse mediese reg noodsaaklik is. Hierdie kenmerkende magswanbalans sal vanuit ‘n regsperspektief verder in hierdie proefskrif ondersoek word. Hierdie studie bied ‘n omvattende bron van die dokter-pasiënt verhouding benader vanuit ‘n regsperspektief, terwyl verwysings na teorieë en beginsels van ander dissiplines soos die sosiologie, ekonomie en mediese etnometodologie ook waar nodig ingesluit word. Die voorkoms en gevolge van ‘n magswanbalans in die dokter-pasiënt verhouding word verder geïdentifiseer en bespreek ten einde dit onder die aandag te bring van beide regslui en medici. Spesifieke probleemareas wat geïdentifiseer is en die oplossings wat daarvoor aan die hand gedoen is sluit die volgende in: • Die nadelige gevolge van die bestaan van ‘n magswanbalans in die dokter-pasiënt verhouding op die mediese-besluitnemingsproses word bespreek vanuit verskillende persepktiewe. Met betrekking tot hierdie nadelige gevolge, word die leerstuk van ingeligte toestemming in besonder geanaliseer en geëvalueer. • Die invloed van ‘n paternalistiese benadering tot gesondheidsorg, die besigheids-model van gesondheidsorg, en die effek van bestuurde- en verbruikersgedrewe gesondheidsorg inisiatiewe op die dokter-pasiënt verhouding en die verskaffing van gesondheidsdienste in die algemeen word ook vanuit ‘n regsperspektief ge-analiseer. Spesifieke aandag word in dié verband gegee aan die invloede van hierdie benaderings en perspektiewe op die magswanbalans inherent aan die dokter-pasiënt verhouding. • Die besondere rol van autonomie, selfbeskikking en menswaardigheid, asook die beginsels van weldadigheid in gesondheidsorg, word heroorweeg in ‘n poging om ‘n meer gelyke distribusie van mag in die dokter-pasiënt verhouding te verseker. • Die fidusiêre aard van die dokter-pasiënt verhouding en die besondere rol wat vertroue in hierdie verhouding speel, word in hierdie proefskrif beklemtoon en word voorts as die basis van die dokter-pasiënt verhouding beskou. Vertroue, as ‘n kenmerk van die dokter-pasiënt verhouding, behoort ook die fokuspunt te wees van enige poging om die magswanbalans in die dokter-pasiënt verhouding aan te spreek.

The issue leading to this study is the purported lack of short-term consideration of climate change materiality on investment portfolios. The on-going research argument deliberates the roles and motives of institutional investors in considering environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, including climate change, in investment decisions. The purpose of this study was therefore to explore the underlying motives of South African institutional investors for the incorporation of climate change in their short-term investment decision-making. The study was conducted through a qualitative, exploratory enquiry, whereby seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with institutions in the South African asset management industry. Participants’ views were analysed and indicated the following themes: The state of climate change awareness and the incorporation of ESG and climate change in investment decision-making; tactical valuation of assets using ESG/climate change screening and methods of monitoring ESG/climate change practices; and motives, incentives and constraints of responsible investment (RI) practices to incorporate climate change. These are supported by business conditions that enable consideration of climate change in investment analysis. Industry practitioners can lead by implementing RI to include climate change in order to attract potential clients to their portfolios.
Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2014.
zkgibs2015
Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)
Unrestricted

Four studies were undertaken to assess the role of moral identity in ethical decision making. The first two studies attempted to use two primes of moral identity to determine whether, when a person's moral identity is threatened, they undertake moral cleansing or compensatory behaviour, whereas where a person's moral identity is salient they have a strong self-worth and will consequently use moral licensing to act less ethically. Both studies were unsuccessful in supporting this hypothesis. Discussion of the results suggested that the approach within the research methodology was too complex. Based on this result, a third study attempted a simplified approach to assessing influences on ethical decision making. Specifically, Study 3 assessed the role of in-group and out-group judgements comparative to judgments of the self. The results suggested that in some circumstances, a person may change their own behaviour depending on what a colleague or non-colleague might do. The final study used this result to assess the impact of an observer on participants' ethical decision making. The results confirmed that the value of donations to charity could be influenced by both the presence of another person and that person's status relative to the participant. The implications for the ethical decision making field, along with future research in this area, are discussed.

There has been a vast amount of academic research done in the field of employee satisfaction and the resulting impact of this dimension on employee innovation output and institutional entrepreneurship. However, there is a dearth of literature on how to retain employees and their tacit knowledge in firms. This study, therefore, seeks to identify Institutional Entrepreneurship (IE) as a key pivot point of strategy, that firms can exploit when endeavouring to actively improve employee retention levels. In this interpretation, the researcher seeks to make a distinction between generally entrepreneurial companies and employee driven innovation or intrapreneurship within companies. There appears to be an appealing synergy that the fostering of institutional entrepreneurship initiatives can offer business strategists. By incorporating plans for IE into core strategy, they could potentially create sustainable competitive advantage from new business innovations. What this report aims to show is that businesses that make a concerted effort at fostering IE can also protect their current competitive advantage contained in the tacit knowledge of their workforce. This all happens in a climate that is better equipped to deliver organic growth. The main objective of the research is to establish that there is a relationship between the propensity for an employee to remain in a firm in the near future and their perceptions of whether or how strongly their firm supports IE. A secondary objective is to explore whether this association is stronger among young employees, specifically those who are from the cohort that has been defined as ‘the millennials’, with an assumption that this relationship, therefore, will become more important in future. This research report has set out to prove that by orchestrating strategies to improve institutional entrepreneurship, firms can enjoy the benefits of increased employee retention in conjunction with increased organic growth.
Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2014.
lmgibs2015
Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)
Unrestricted

This study is focused on improving understanding around moral decision-making as a critical component of managerial decision-making, considering that many decisions involve a basic conflict between selfishness versus fairness (Forgas & Tan, 2013). Changing factors in the business environment is influencing managerial decision-making, making this ‘the perfect time’ for increased research into managerial decision-making (Milkman, Chugh, & Bazerman, 2009). As this working environment within which managerial decisions are being made is changing, understanding decision-making is increasingly becoming fundamental to the study of management in organisations (Taggart et al., 1985). Within such a changing economy, the key factor is the increased reliance on intellectual abilities over either physical effort, or natural resources. Yet, ‘where there is effective management, that is, application of knowledge, we can always obtain the other resources’ (Drucker, 1993). When then considering such management actions and specifically the role of employees within such an economic structure, the primary deliverable of a knowledge worker is a good decision (Milkman et al., 2009). The importance of a ‘good decision’ is therefore paramount in the current knowledge economy, and those industries which depend heavily on the ‘application of knowledge’. In exploring this topic, this research study explores predominantly four fields of study. The first is decision-making in the most fundamental sense, by understanding the different systems whereby decision-making occurs. This is contextualised by focussing on managerial decision-making and highlighting a particular instance of moral decision-making. The premise is that although moral decision-making is a subset of managerial decision-making, the human processes involved in the decision making is universal and findings should accordingly be transferrable to the whole discipline of decision-making. In expanding the area of moral decision-making the notion of fairness, norm violations and negative reciprocity is explored. This provides a context within which to study moral decision-making. Concepts such as the universal acceptance of fairness are discussed, as well as an equally universal desire to punish norm violations through negative reciprocity. Existing research on this disconnect between the intent to punish and the physical execution of this intent is explored with the conclusion that personality type offers some indication, but that additional research around this topic is required. It is in Moral decision-making: Personality Type as influence on Moral Intuitionism Len Marais 13403797 Page iii addressing this weakness in current academic research that this research study aims to make a contribution. The approach to this research is to do personality type assessments of voluntary subjects where after a moral decision is posed to them and their responses captured. By studying the relationship between these personality types, and traits, as well as the decision made inferences can be drawn on the extent to which personality type is an influence on moral decision-making. Finally the environment of management consulting is introduced. This working environment exhibits many of the characteristics which define the knowledge economy. The study concludes by answering the research question, ‘Is Personality Type, or its decomposed traits, an accurate predictor of moral decision-making’?, in the positive: Yes, there is statistically significant proof that a strong, linear relationship exists between moral decision-making, as defined by the decision to enact revenge, and the Sensing personality trait, as measured by the Jung Typology Test™.
Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2014.
lmgibs2015
Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)
Unrestricted

The debate surrounding whether genuine moral dilemmas exist or is a longstanding one. Proponents of the existence of genuine moral dilemmas like Ruth Barcan Marcus and Bernard Williams have appealed to the moral residue argument as a means of proving that moral dilemmas exist. Opponents like WaIter SinnottArmstrong, Patricia Greenspan, and Terence McConnell, however, have denied its efficacy on the basis that the moral residue argument begs the question on two counts: Firstly, by assuming that rationally irresolvable conflicts of commitments exist, and secondly, by assuming that agents who experience moral residue have necessarily done something wrong. I argue in this thesis that there is a way that the moral residue argument can be salvaged and provide a more precise account of appropriate moral residue - an account that simultaneously overcomes the objections. Specifically, I argue that the moral residue argument, when interpreted in terms ofthe independent standard of integrity, can provide an account of appropriate moral residue that can explain what the agent has done wrong, and that is neither too strict nor overlooks the fact ofthe agent's harsh self-assessment and moral residue. In so doing I show how the specific accounts of appropriate moral residue assumed in the objections are flawed and miss the force of the point about moral residue. By examining two case studies - Williams Styron's Sophie 's Choice, and Euripides' Jphigenia at Aulis - I show that it can be established independently that both Sophie and Agamemnon do something wrong and would do something wrong no matter how they acted in their respective situations. Through Lynn McFall's conception of integrity I show that Sophie and Agamemnon would undermine their integrity regardless ofwhich oftheir alternative they chose to act on. In so doing I establish that their moral residue is appropriate and would be appropriate had they acted on their other alternative. By this means I demonstrate how - when interpreted in terms of the independent standard of integrity - the moral residue argument can support the existence of genuine moral dilemmas.
Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2003.