Influence of Perceived Time and Entrepreneurial Skills Constraints on Entrepreneurship Interest among Final Year Undergraduate and Honours Students at the University of Fort Hare

Several scholarly efforts have been previously exerted in investigating student entrepreneurship interest in the developed countries, and several studies have contributed in this direction, yet little was achieved in South Africa. The main aim of this study was to empirically assess perceived time and entrepreneurial skills constraints as possible barriers to entrepreneurial interest among a sample of 366 (205 (56%) male and 161 (46%) female) final year undergraduate and postgraduate ‘honours' students of a previously disadvantaged university in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, using the survey research design, and a structured validated questionnaire. Three hypotheses were stated and tested using Multiple Regression Analysis. The results revealed that perceived time and entrepreneurial skills constraints jointly influenced entrepreneurship interest, F (2, 363) = 25.887; R2 = 0.120; p<. 01. The results further revealed that perceived time constraint independently influenced entrepreneurship interest, (β = 0.226; t= 4.108; p< .01). Likewise, the results showed that entrepreneurial skills constraint independently influenced entrepreneurship interest, (β = 0.188; t= 3.415; p< .01). The findings are valuable to the policy makers and professionals in promoting the spirit of entrepreneurship among the youth, with the consequence decline rate of joblessness

Identity Reconfiguration and the Core Needs Framework: Exit Narratives among Former Far-Right Extremists

This empirical study examines intensive interview data collected from eight (N=8) former members of white supremacist organizations in order to understand the meanings of exit – that is, disengagement and deradicalization – from the extremist’s perspective.  Using a thematic analysis approach, our findings build on the distinction in the existing exit literature between push and pull factors and the process of role exit identified by Ebaugh (1988).  These push and pull factors as well as social identity, we argue, are subsumed within a complex exit process, which includes disengagement, identity deconstruction, and transgressive and transitional relationships. For some, this process culminated in an accomplished identity reconstruction and deradicalization.  Most importantly, our findings suggest that exit is linked to entry by a developmental drive that we call the participant’s core need.  The core need was the background motivator of entry, disengagement, exit, and ultimately deradicalization.  We think that this identity reconfiguration and core needs framework may help make heterogenous exit trajectories that have remained puzzling for researchers more understandable

Actin polymerization or myosin contraction: two ways to build up cortical tension for symmetry breaking

International audienceCells use complex biochemical pathways to drive shape changes for polarization and movement. One of these pathways is the self-assembly of actin filaments and myosin motors that together produce the forces and tensions that drive cell shape changes. Whereas the role of actin and myosin motors in cell polarization is clear, the exact mechanism of how the cortex, a thin shell of actin that is underneath the plasma membrane, can drive cell shape changes is still an open question. Here, we address this issue using biomimetic systems: the actin cortex is reconstituted on liposome membranes, in an 'outside geometry'. The actin shell is either grown from an activator of actin polymeriz-ation immobilized at the membrane by a biotin–streptavidin link, or built by simple adsorption of biotinylated actin filaments to the membrane, in the presence or absence of myosin motors. We show that tension in the actin network can be induced either by active actin polymerization on the membrane via the Arp2/3 complex or by myosin II filament pulling activity. Symmetry breaking and spontaneous polarization occur above a critical tension that opens up a crack in the actin shell. We show that this critical tension is reached by growing branched networks, nucleated by the Arp2/3 complex, in a concentration window of capping protein that limits actin filament growth and by a sufficient number of motors that pull on actin filaments. Our study provides the groundwork to understanding the physical mechanisms at work during polarization prior to cell shape modifications

The use of personal digital assistants for data entry at the point of collection in a large household survey in southern Tanzania

Survey data are traditionally collected using pen-and-paper, with double data entry, comparison of entries and reconciliation of discrepancies before data cleaning can commence. We used Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) for data entry at the point of collection, to save time and enhance the quality of data in a survey of over 21,000 scattered rural households in southern Tanzania. Pendragon Forms 4.0 software was used to develop a modular questionnaire designed to record information on household residents, birth histories, child health and health-seeking behaviour. The questionnaire was loaded onto Palm m130 PDAs with 8 Mb RAM. One hundred and twenty interviewers, the vast majority with no more than four years of secondary education and very few with any prior computer experience, were trained to interview using the PDAs. The 13 survey teams, each with a supervisor, laptop and a four-wheel drive vehicle, were supported by two back-up vehicles during the two months of field activities. PDAs and laptop computers were charged using solar and in-car chargers. Logical checks were performed and skip patterns taken care of at the time of data entry. Data records could not be edited after leaving each household, to ensure the integrity of the data from each interview. Data were downloaded to the laptop computers and daily summary reports produced to evaluate the completeness of data collection. Data were backed up at three levels: (i) at the end of every module, data were backed up onto storage cards in the PDA; (ii) at the end of every day, data were downloaded to laptop computers; and (iii) a compact disc (CD) was made of each team's data each day.A small group of interviewees from the community, as well as supervisors and interviewers, were asked about their attitudes to the use of PDAs. Following two weeks of training and piloting, data were collected from 21,600 households (83,346 individuals) over a seven-week period in July-August 2004. No PDA-related problems or data loss were encountered. Fieldwork ended on 26 August 2004, the full dataset was available on a CD within 24 hours and the results of initial analyses were presented to district authorities on 28 August. Data completeness was over 99%. The PDAs were well accepted by both interviewees and interviewers. The use of PDAs eliminated the usual time-consuming and error-prone process of data entry and validation. PDAs are a promising tool for field research in Africa

Improving Newborn Survival in Southern Tanzania (INSIST) trial; community-based maternal and newborn care economic analysis.

Despite health systems improvements in Tanzania, gaps in the continuum of care for maternal, newborn and child health persist. Recent improvements have largely benefited those over one month of age, leading to a greater proportion of under-five mortality in newborns. Community health workers providing home-based counselling have been championed as uniquely qualified to reach the poorest. We provide financial and economic costs of a volunteer home-based counselling programme in southern Tanzania. Financial costs of the programme were extracted from project accounts. Ministry of Health and Social Welfare costs associated with programme implementation were collected based on staff and project monthly activity plans. Household costs associated with facility-based delivery were also estimated based on exit interviews with post-natal women. Time spent on the programme by implementers was assessed by interviews conducted with volunteers and health staff. The programme involved substantial design and set-up costs. The main drivers of set-up costs were activities related to volunteer training. Total annualized costs (design, set-up and implementation) amounted to nearly US$300 000 for financial costs and just over US$400 000 for economic costs. Volunteers (n = 842) spent just under 14 hours per month on programme-related activities. When volunteer time was valued under economic costs, this input amounted to just under half of the costs of implementation. The economic consequences of increased service use to households were estimated at US$36 985. The intervention cost per mother-newborn pair visited was between US$12.60 and US$19.50, and the incremental cost per additional facility-based delivery ranged from US$85.50 to US$137.20 for financial and economic costs (with household costs). Three scale-up scenarios were considered, with the financial cost per home visit respectively varying from$1.44 to $3.21 across scenarios. Cost-effectiveness compares well with supply-side initiatives to increase coverage of facility-based deliveries, and the intervention would benefit from substantial economies of scale