Validation of the Teacher Stress Inventory (TSI) in a multicultural context: The SABPA study

The aim of this study was to validate the Teacher Stress Inventory (TSI) for use in a South African context. The process of scale validation also sheds significant light on this culturally diverse group of participants’ levels of psychological well-being and physical health, and its association with the level of stress that teachers reported. Using a cross-sectional survey design, Caucasian (n = 209) and African (n = 200) educators’ subsiding in the North-West Province of South Africa, completed the TSI, together with a number of self-report and physiological measures of stress and well-being. In contrast to the five factors of the TSI identified in US samples, statistical analysis yielded a two-factor model (i.e. General circumstance-related stress and Learner-related stress) with satisfactory reliability indices. Significant correlation with measures of psychological and physiological health also reflected positively on the criterion-related validity of the scale. The TSI proved to be a useful, brief self-report questionnaire for the assessment of teacher stress in this cohort of South African teachers.Keywords: psychological well-being; reliability; South African context; stress; Teacher Stress Inventory (TSI); validit

Intention to quit in the financial services industry : antecedents and managerial implications

CITATION: Van der Merwe, B., Malan, J. & Bruwer, R. 2020. Intention to quit in the financial services industry : antecedents and managerial implications. South African Journal of Economic and Management Sciences, 23(1):a3710, doi:10.4102/sajems.v23i1.3710.The original publication is available at https://sajems.orgBackground: A review of the literature revealed that the demanding and often challenging nature of work increases the turnover intention of employees. This trend is especially evident within the South African financial services industry. Aim: The research goal was to explore and empirically test a theoretical model identifying the most salient causes of turnover intention among sales employees employed by financial organisations operating in the South African financial service industry. Setting: The study was conducted on employees operating within the financial service industry in South Africa. Methods: The current study collected quantitative data from 102 employees of insurance or banking or investment companies, using a web-based compilation of standardised questionnaires. This followed a previous study by the research group that collected quantitative and qualitative data from 122 employees operating in an insurance environment, using a combination of an open-ended questionnaire and standardised instruments. Results: The results of the current study confirmed the significance of the paths between turnover intention and employee engagement, time wasted on non-core activities, perceived career development opportunities, and perceived supervisor support, mediated by perceived employee engagement. Conclusion: A replication of this study using a longitudinal research design is recommended in order to overcome the methodological limitations of the current study. The conceptual model developed in this study identified relationships that could be used as guidelines to effectively manage the retention of personal financial advisors in the financial service industry in South Africa.https://sajems.org/index.php/sajems/article/view/3710Publisher's versio

Mission moves

This scholarly book is the final result of a team-research project, done by ten Practical Theologians from three denominations in the Reformed tradition in South Africa. The authors posed the following research problem and-question: What would be the relationship (if any) between preaching (and the liturgy of which it is a part) and the development of missional congregations? And secondly, what kind of preaching and preacher would best serve (even facilitate) such a process of missional congregational development in preaching and worship

Mission moves

This scholarly book is the final result of a team-research project, done by ten Practical Theologians from three denominations in the Reformed tradition in South Africa. The authors posed the following research problem and-question: What would be the relationship (if any) between preaching (and the liturgy of which it is a part) and the development of missional congregations? And secondly, what kind of preaching and preacher would best serve (even facilitate) such a process of missional congregational development in preaching and worship

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

A heliostat field control system

Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2014.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The ability of concentrating solar power (CSP) to efficiently store large amounts of energy sets it apart from other renewable energy technologies. However, cost reduction and improved efficiency is required for it to become more economically viable. Significant cost reduction opportunities exist, especially for central receiver system (CRS) technology where the heliostat field makes up 40 to 50 per cent of the total capital expenditure. CRS plants use heliostats to reflect sunlight onto a central receiver. Heliostats with high tracking accuracy are required to realize high solar concentration ratios. This enables high working temperatures for efficient energy conversion. Tracking errors occur mainly due to heliostat manufacturing-, installation- and alignment tolerances, but high tolerance requirements generally increase cost. A way is therefore needed to improve tracking accuracy without increasing tolerance requirements. The primary objective of this project is to develop a heliostat field control system within the context of a 5MWe CRS pilot plant. The control system has to govern the tracking movement of all heliostats in the field and minimize errors over time. A geometric model was developed to characterize four deterministic sources of heliostat tracking errors. A prototype system comprising 18 heliostats was constructed to function as a scaled down subsection of the pilot plant heliostat field and to validate the chosen control method and system architecture. Periodic measurements of individual heliostats’ tracking offsets were obtained using a camera and optical calibration target combined with image processing techniques. Mathematical optimization was used to estimate model coefficients to best fit the measured error offsets. Real-time tracking error corrections were performed by each heliostat’s local controller unit to compensate for a combination of error sources. Experimental tracking measurements were performed using the prototype system. Daily open-loop RMS tracking errors below one milliradian were obtained, thereby satisfying the project’s primary objective. The thesis concludes that high tracking accuracy can be achieved using the control method proposed here. This could potentially lead to a reduction in heliostat cost, thereby lowering the levelised cost of electricity for CRS plants.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Gekonsentreerde sonkrag se vermoë om groot hoeveelhede energie effektief te stoor onderskei dit van ander hernubare energie tegnologieë. Kostebesparing en hoër effektiwiteit word egter vereis om dit ekonomies meer lewensvatbaar te maak. Beduidende kostebesparingsgeleenthede bestaan wel, spesifiek vir tegnologieë vir sentraal-ontvangerstelsels (central receiver system (CRS)) waar die heliostaatveld 40 tot 50 persent van die totale kapitaalbestedings uitmaak. CRS aanlegte gebruik heliostate om sonlig op ’n sentrale ontvanger te reflekteer. Heliostate met ’n hoë volgingsakkuraatheid word vereis om hoë sonkragkonsentrasieverhoudings te laat realiseer. Dit maak hoë werkstemperature moontlik vir effektiewe energie-omsetting. Volgingsfoute kom hoofsaaklik voor a.g.v. die heliostaat se vervaardigings-, installasie- en instellingstoleransies, maar hoë toleransie-vereistes verhoog gewoonlik die koste. Daar is dus ’n manier nodig om volgingsakkuraatheid te verbeter sonder om die toleransie-vereistes te verhoog. Die primêre doel van hierdie projek is om ’n heliostaat aanleg kontrole-stelsel te ontwikkel binne die konteks van ’n 5 MWe CRS toetsaanleg. Die kontrole-stelsel moet die volgingsbeweging van al die heliostate in die aanleg bestuur en ook met verloop van tyd volgingsfoute verminder. ’n Geometriese model is ontwikkel om die vier bepalende bronne van heliostaat volgingsfoute te karakteriseer. ’n Prototipe stelsel met 18 heliostate is gebou om as ’n funksionele skaalmodel van die toetsaanleg heliostaatveld te dien en om die gekose kontrole-metode en stelselargitektuur geldig te verklaar. Periodieke metings van die individuele heliostate se volgingsafwykings is verkry deur ’n kamera en optiese kalibrasie teiken te kombineer met beeldprosesseringstegnieke. Wiskundige optimering is gebruik om die model se koëffisiënte te skat om die beste passing te bepaal vir die gemete foutafwykings. Intydse volgingsfoutregstellings is deur elke heliostaat se plaaslike beheereenheid gedoen om te vergoed vir ’n kombinasie van foutbronne. Eksperimentele volgingsmetings is uitgevoer met die prototipestelsel. Daaglikse ooplus RMS volgingsfoute onder een milliradiaan is verkry, en sodoende is die projek se primêre doel behaal. Die tesis maak die gevolgtrekking dat hoë volgingsakkuraatheid behaal kan word deur die gebruik van die beheer-metode soos hier voorgestel. Dit kan potensieel bydra tot kostebesparing in die heliostaatveld van CRS aanlegte om sodoende die geykte koste van elektrisiteit te verminder

Strategic environmental assessment for sustainable urban design: case study Ekurhuleni

M.Phil.The urban environment, as a concentration of human industrial activity, has an ecological footprint extending well beyond its geographic borders. The reactive nature of Environmental Impact Assessment methodologies focuses on impacts in the natural environment, and mitigation thereof, rather than the causes, and since cities incorporate only limited natural resources, their impact on the larger environment is easily overlooked within the urban setting. Urban design and planning aims to guide urban development, and in order for such development to occur sustainably in the natural, built, social and economic environments, a strategic approach to environmental assessment must be followed. This study explores the merits of a strategic environmental assessment as a pro-active methodology to guide urban master-plan development at precinct level towards more sustainable urban layout and form. The Civic Precinct of the newly formed Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, to be established within the heart of Germiston, South Africa, serves as a case study. Having contextualized strategic assessments in an urban environment on the basis of a literature review, the study defines the development vision on the basis of higher-tier strategic documents and planning frameworks formulated for Ekurhuleni. Screening explores the legal parameters, and serves to define a vision specifically for sustainability of the Civic Precinct. Scoping has been conducted with reference to existing research data available from highertier studies and GIS databases, and at precinct-specific level fieldwork has provided both qualitative and quantitative status quo data, which have been transferred onto maps to highlight resources and constraints. At an applied level this study has yielded direct outcomes: i) A matrix of criteria for sustainability in the urban environment has been generated from the United Nations Agenda 21, and the Plan of Implementation from the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg, 2002), supplemented by assessment criteria of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighbourhood Development Rating System. The matrix forms a generic checklist for planners and designers, applicable also in other urban renewal projects. ii) The review of higher-tier planning documentation for Ekurhuleni, supplemented by fieldwork, has provided a comprehensive set of qualitative and quantitative data relating to the environment of the Ekurhuleni Civic Precinct. iii) By relating the results of the fieldwork, through a SWOT analysis, to the predetermined criteria for sustainability, a project-specific set of sustainability guidelines has been formulated. These guidelines are direct design informants for the master-plan, and become specifications for sustainability of individual projects to be implemented in the context of the master-plan. Through these outcomes the case study demonstrates that an adapted strategic environmental assessment methodology offers an effective tool for pro-active focus on sustainability in lower-tier, pre-implementation urban planning and design processes. The study, however, also indicates that the geographic confines of an urban precinct may be too restrictive to do justice to all dimensions of sustainability which make up an urban system, and suggests that application of the SEA methodology should be explored at the broader level of the local spatial development plan, where the SEA methodology may be more economically applied. The local spatial development plan offers a more appropriate level at which to conduct strategic environmental assessment, since it offers a broader scope for strategic consideration of the interconnectedness of all spheres of sustainability, while still permitting sufficient detail in the outcomes to make a concrete difference to the sustainability of an urban design when implemented

'n Profiel van stedelike wit Afrikaans-sprekendes in die postapartheidera: politieke houdings en persepsies

The purpose of this study was to investigate the social identity of a group of urban Afrikaans-speakingwhites. Variables such as their degree of political conservatism, political identity, and their attitudetowards the political changes in the country were investigated. The study was conducted approximatelythree years after the 1994 general election. Findings show that the majority of the sample hold predominantly negative attitudes towards the socio-political changes in the country, and perceive themselves to be politically rather conservative. They prefer a culturally based ethnic identity to a politically basedone. They perceive that there is more of a threat to their well-being as group members (i.e. safety, securityand discrimination) than to the survival of their group identity and language

Politocracy: An assessment of the coercive logic of the territorial state and ideas around a response to it

Politocracy: An assessment of the coercive logic of the territorial state and ideas around a response to it by Koos Malan Translated by Johan Scott 2012 ISBN: 978-1-920538-10-1 Pages: xii 356 Print version: Available Electronic version: Free PDF availabl

Variance in employee engagement : a qualitative analysis amongst public school teachers in the Cape Winelands education district

CITATION: Vermooten, N., Malan, J. & Boonzaier, B. 2020. Variance in employee engagement : a qualitative analysis amongst public school teachers in the Cape Winelands education district. SA Journal of Industrial Psychology, 46:a1568, doi:10.4102/sajip.v46i0.1568.The original publication is available at https://sajip.co.za/index.php/sajipPublication of this article was funded by the Stellenbosch University Open Access FundOrientation: The Global Competitiveness Index Report 2017 – 2018, which ranks the quality of 124 countries’ education system, positioned South Africa 114th. Challenges with the quality of basic education offered in many public schools across South Africa are attributed to the lack of employee engagement amongst teachers. Research purpose: The aim of this study was, firstly, to identify the most salient antecedents of variance in employee engagement amongst teachers and, secondly, to explore the relational dynamics that exist amongst these antecedents. Motivation for the study: The study was motivated by the intention to inform human resource practices and interventions that can be adopted to facilitate optimal teacher engagement and subsequently performance. Research approach/design and method: A modified version of the interactive qualitative analysis (IQA) methodology was adopted to generate and collect primary qualitative data, but the data analysis was performed in accordance with the prescribed methodology. Initial (n = 37) and follow-up (n = 28) individual interviews were conducted amongst teachers from 12 mainstream public schools in the Cape Winelands education district. Main findings: Teacher-level, school-level, community-level and societal-level determinants were identified that explain variance in employee engagement amongst teachers. Practical/managerial implications: Human resource practices and interventions that may nurture employee engagement amongst teachers are recommended. Contribution/value-add: This study identified the most salient antecedents of variance in employee engagement amongst teachers in the Cape Winelands District and the findings allow for a number of recommendations regarding interventions to facilitate teacher engagement and ultimately performance.https://sajip.co.za/index.php/sajip/article/view/1568Publisher's versio