Exploring the effectiveness of in situ upgrading on improving the quality of life : a case study of Slovo Park informal settlement

Abstract: Globally, the urban population is predicted to reach 6.5 billion by 2050. Various studies have shown that in sub-Saharan Africa approximately 14 million people migrate to urban areas every year. Of this number, about 61.7% live in informal settlements. It was predicted that the developing countries alone will constitute about 80% of the global urban population by 2030. Informal settlements have been a recurring problem in South Africa. Failure to eradicate informal settlement in South Africa has shifted the focus to an attempt to improve the quality of life for residents of informal settlements. This study is inspired by the introduction of Upgrading Informal Settlement Programme as an intervention to eradicate informality in human settlements. Thus, the study is set out to explore the effectiveness of in situ upgrading in improving the quality of life of beneficiaries living in informal settlement, studying Slovo Park informal settlement...M.Eng. ( Sustainable Urban Planning and Development

Life satisfaction and the mediating role of character strengths and gains in informal caregivers

Introduction: Being an informal caregiver can have both negative and positive consequences for well-being. Within the framework of he stress process model, few studies have examined values and perceived gains of caregiving as mediating variables of life satisfaction. Aim: To explore the role of character strengths and perceived gains as mediators in the association between life satisfaction and primary and secondary stressors in informal caregivers of persons with dementia. Method: Participants were 112 informal caregivers. Hierarchical regression, correlation and mediation analyses were performed. Results: Lower life satisfaction was associated with being female, unmarried, caring for someone with greater cognitive impairment, a higher level of stress, having restricted leisure time and perceiving financial difficulties. Hope mediated the associations between perceived stress and both life satisfaction and perceived gains of caregiving. Discussion: Hope is a key strength and its lack is one pathway through which stress may cause low satisfaction and low perceived gains from caregiving. Implications for practice: Without hope, it is difficult for caregivers to generate goals and be motivated to achieve them. Nursing and care staff should aim to promote a sense of purpose and achievement among informal caregivers so as to foster a more positive caring experience

The cost of providing care by family and friends (informal care) in the last year of life: A population observational study

Introduction: Little is known about replacement costs of care provided by informal carers during the last year of life for people dying of cancer and non-cancer diseases. Aim: To estimate informal caregiving costs and explore the relationship with carer and decedent characteristics. Design: National observational study of bereaved carers. Questions included informal end-of-life caregiving into the 2017 Health Survey for England including estimated recalled frequency, duration and intensity of care provision. We estimated replacement costs for a decedent’s last year of life valuing time at the price of a substitutable activity. Spearman rank correlations and multivariable linear regression were used to explore relationships with last year of life costs. Setting/participants: Adult national survey respondents – England. Results: A total of 7997 adults were interviewed from 5767/9612 (60%) of invited households. Estimated replacement costs of personal care and other help were £27,072 and £13,697 per carer and a national cost of £13.2 billion and £15.5 billion respectively. Longer care duration and intensity, older age, death at home (lived together), non-cancer cause of death and greater deprivation were associated with increased costs. Female sex, and not accessing ‘other care services’ were related to higher costs for other help only. Conclusion: We provide a first adult general population estimate for replacement informal care costs in the last year of life of £41,000 per carer per decedent and highlight characteristics associated with greater costs. This presents a major challenge for future universal care coverage as the pool of people providing informal care diminish with an ageing population

the case of rural Ethiopia

Thesis(Master) --KDI School:Master of Public Policy,2020This study work was based on the idea of “consumption smoothing theory” which was demonstrated based on “life-cycle model of consumption” and the main aim of the study was, analyzing the effect of informal credit on household welfare. Following two stage least square regression analysis by taking average number of informal borrowing participant households within community as an instrumental variable for informal credit in order to avoid endogeneity, the study found that informal credit and households welfare have positive relationship. Each thousand Birr 1 received in the form of informal credit improves welfare expenditure of household by about 4.3 percentage, ceteris paribus. This result was consistent with pervious works of (Kati.S, 2010; Cuong.V.N & Marrit.vanden.B, 2011).1. Introduction 2. Literature Review 3. Data and Methodology 4. Descriptive Statistics, Result Presentation and Discussion 5. Checking Robustness of the result 6. Conclusion and RecommendationmasterpublishedHabitamu Asifawu TONCH

Aged care in Australia: part I – policy, demand and funding

As population ageing means more people will require care and support, this research brief looks at demand and funding of formal and informal care. Introduction For a proportion of people, a long life comes with chronic illnesses, disability, or physical or cognitive decline. Some of them will require different levels of intervention to get on with their daily life. Aged care (known outside Australia as long term care, elder care, or social care) is the set of institutions that offers care interventions for the elderly in absence of cure. Population ageing means more people will require care and support. Much of it will be provided informally by family, but increasingly it will take the shape of formal aged care. Policy stakeholders in many countries have taken notice. Those in Australia are no exception – a landmark review in 2011 by the Productivity Commission has led to what will be a decade-long set of reforms. And many stakeholders are participating in a public and private discourse about the evolution of the system (see part 1 in brief 2 for summary of groups). In this setting, it is crucial to encourage an informed debate about the building blocks of an effective care system. This is one of two briefs offering an accessible overview of aged care policy in Australia, combining a broad range of data and latest insights, and capturing the ongoing conversation between policy and academia, particularly relating to CEPAR research. This first top-down research brief introduces the policy setting and looks at demand and funding of formal and informal care. The second brief takes a bottom-up approach by considering practical issues relating to the industry, workforce, access and quality of care

Nonverbal communication interface for collaborative virtual environments

Nonverbal communication is an important aspect of real-life face-to-face interaction and one of the most efficient ways to convey emotions, therefore users should be provided the means to replicate it in the virtual world. Because articulated embodiments are well suited to provide body communication in virtual environments, this paper first reviews some of the advantages and disadvantages of complex embodiments. After a brief introduction to nonverbal communication theories, we present our solution, taking into account the practical limitations of input devices and social science aspects. We introduce our sample of actions and implementation using our VLNET (Virtual Life Network) networked virtual environment and discuss the results of an informal evaluation experimen

A Proposed Adult Education Program And Its Needs For The Timpson School And Nearby Communities

INTRODUCTION Adult education is a process by which all adults may develop their talents and abilities to the extent that contribute most to the welfare of both themselves and others. There has always been some form of adult education. The nature of man was such that his environment, both natural and social became an educational force. This informal education was suitable to the simple and informal life of the past. But as society became more highly organized and complex, the gap between the informal education provided by the environment became wider and wider. The changes became so rapid and complex that even the formal education provided the youth was not adequate to the demands of adult life. So special agencies and programs were provided to supplement the education received by adults in their childhood and youth and to provide retraining to meet the demands of an ever-changing society. Any program of adult education to be worthy of the name must have flexibility. It must be ready to carry on any type of activities in terms of the traditional classroom setup or otherwise. It must be ready to provide its services anywhere and at any time needed. It must be able to furnish teachers\u27 experience in terms of the activity for which they are needed

Learning about evolution : the influence of an educational visit and intervention on teachers' knowledge and attitudes.

The focus of my study is on how an informal science institution such as Maropeng Visitors Centre may influence teachers’ knowledge about evolution and attitudes towards the teaching of evolution. This study was conducted because the South African government has introduced the topic of evolution in the FET (Grade 10 to 12) Life Sciences curriculum. The introduction of this topic is perceived as a challenge since the majority of Life Sciences teachers were not well trained on how to teach the new curriculum and in particular the topic of evolution (Ngxola and Sanders, 2008; Stears, 2006). To ensure that the Learning Outcomes mentioned in the policy guideline are achieved, teachers are encouraged to use informal science institutions (Nduna-Watson, 2007). There are several science centres and museums that are visited by thousands of teachers and learners in South Africa and this includes Maropeng Visitors Centre, Sterkfontein Cave, Sci-Bono Discovery Centre, Transvaal Museum, the National History Museum and others. Two theoretical frameworks were used as a guide in the development of the questionnaires and personal meaning mapping. The two theories are constructivism and attitudes towards science. Data was collected from the Grade 11 and 12 Life Sciences teachers who attended workshops at Maropeng Visitors Centre. The results revealed that some teachers showed knowledge gains in aspects of evolution and their attitudes towards teaching evolution have changed to positive irrespective of their personal beliefs. However, there were other misconceptions that were not changed by the visit. These included views about the origin or life which related to creationist accounts, and interpretations of the phrase “survival of the fittest”. This study recommends an intensive content-based workshop is essential before teachers visit the museum or informal science institutions

What Can We Learn from the Caregivers of Adults with Dementia? A Qualitative Study

Introduction: In the US today, there are approximately 6.5 million people age 65 or older living with Alzheimer’s Disease or other dementias. This number is expected to increase to 12.7 million by 2050. Dementia imposes debility and frailty upon those effected, which is progressive and often follows an unpredictable trajectory. This places significant burdens on their informal caregivers, negatively impacting financial security, emotional and physical health, and overall quality of life. Informal caregivers are a heterogeneous group of partners, spouses, adult children, family members and others. Purpose: This qualitative study explores the experiences, worries and concerns of informal caregivers of older adults with dementia, in order to describe improved policy and service delivery models that could provide efficient and sustainable solutions to their challenges. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven informal caregivers. Transcripts of these interviews were analyzed using the Grounded Theory analytic process referred to as the Constant Comparison Method, consisting of coding, memoing and theorizing. Results: Nine sub-categories and three categories were identified from analysis and data comparison The three categories were “Difficult day-to-day experiences and activities,” “ Inner thoughts and suffering” and “Hoping to make a difference. The final theme emerged as “Informal caregiving for older adults with dementia is a condition.” Some literature has referred to this as “caregiver stress” or the Caregiver Syndrome. Conclusion: Informal caregivers of older adults with dementia experience significant physical, and emotional stresses that result in concerns about their overall wellness. This in-turn impacts their ability to function as sustainable caregivers for their family members at home. Lack of reliable in-home personal care supports, patient companionship and respite result in excess worry, stress and loss of quality of life for the caregiver. Over a trajectory of years, inherent in the dementia diagnosis, informal caregivers are likely to encounter negative physical and mental health outcomes. Without changes in both policy and reimbursement through home health, hospice, palliative care and community-based resources, this condition of caregiver stress or “syndrome” will contribute to the ongoing challenges of caring for an ever-increasing number of vulnerable elderly individuals

Gendered dynamics of transnational social protection

Social protection refers to resources and strategies to deal with social risks, such as poverty or obligations and needs of care, which might impede the realization of life chances and well-being. Previous research has shown that migrants are particularly affected by challenges when accessing or providing social protection, because of unfamiliar welfare regulations in the immigration country and their family and friends being located in various locations, calling for an investigation of gendered dynamics in transnational spaces. In this issue we aim to advance these vital debates by elucidating the social consequences of the articulation and organization of formal and informal social protection across borders for different actors involved through a joint investigation of gender and transnationality as key dimensions of social inequality. More specifically, the papers collected in this issue are devoted to investigating the link of formal and informal dimensions of transnational social protection and showing its impact on unequal life chances of mobile people in Europe. This introduction frames the articles collected in this issue from an inequality perspective, thereby pointing to the ways in which gender and transnationality interact with other dimensions of inequality in the field of social protection, which currently constitutes one of the most vital issues in the field of migration scholarship