Ex-gang members who have become help-professionals : what influences their desistance from gang involvement and their career choice? : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Work in Social Work at Massey University, Auckland Campus, New Zealand

The growing population and changing structure of New Zealand gangs have been observed since the 1950s. Well-documented international and local research provides ample information about the process of gang affiliation and gang desistance. However, there is little specific knowledge generated nationally and internationally about the phenomenon of redemption-self (Maruna, 2001), which refers to male excriminal gang members taking part in generative exercises such as mentoring youth or counselling substance users. The present study recognises the gap in the literature and aims to develop a discussion and start a dialogue about the benefits of this littleappreciated uncommon phenomenon. To provide deeper understanding of what triggered and hindered ex-criminal gang members’ adoption of redemption-self, the qualitative study design, located in the social constructionist framework has been applied. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews with six male formercriminal gang members who have been working in the social service fields in New Zealand for at least two years. Through the thematic analysis of the men’s stories four primary themes emerged, which were organised into a thematic map. The primary themes present a continuum that starts with the men’s negative childhood experiences attributing to the later stage gang affiliation. The complicated, and often, zigzagged path trajectory of gang desistance, which was triggered by internal changes and external impacts, prepare the final theme’s essence - the adoption of redemption-self. Alongside the advantages and benefits of having experience in both the gang and conventional world when service provision is conducted, the difficulties of being accepted into the field with past criminal-gang affiliation is discussed. The four primary themes’ content provides the basis of this discussion. The conclusion of the thesis draws on local and overseas programs and initiatives to formulate recommendation for policies, educational initiatives and implications for future research topics

Synergies, cooperation and syndication in venture capital game, portfolio optimization with genetic algorithms and asset auctions: essays in finance

This thesis looks at all scientific phenomenon of financial decision-making from both the empirical and theoretical side, with empirical trying to strengthen theoretical assumptions or even to expand it. In chapter 2, we propose a two-stage financing model with three players that consider the output elasticities of all parties using the Cobb-Douglas utility function. Theoretical findings in chapter 2 suggest that a higher complementary coefficient between players on both stages can lead to a higher level of effort from all three players, taking game dynamics away from the moral hazard problem and causing higher exit stage payoffs. Previous track record of the angel and VC and output elasticity of the entrepreneur, combined with the company’s shares offered the angel and VC, impact the three-player game dynamic, causing some players to reduce their efforts after specific funding rounds. Our empirical results show that VC syndication increases the average amount of funding offered to entrepreneurs as well as that syndicated ventures have a higher number of funding rounds, resulting in a higher number of possible entry-points provided by those start-ups. Our results in chapter 4 suggested that a two-point GA that minimized the risk for a given level of expected return slightly outperformed the results of the SPEA2. Compared with the previous industry standard for risk measure—Value-at-Risk, we show that both frontiers differed, especially at the low return side. The converted Value-at-Risk solutions were not evenly distributed along the efficient frontier and even inadequate for some ES values. In chapter 5, we use the game theory approach to examine the first-price package auction design for illiquid asset auctions. Our theoretical work suggests that every case that can be presented as a two or three asset game, as well as longer games that can be presented as two and three asset subgames, has a strong equilibrium if the bidders’ budgets and utilities for every asset are common knowledge

Identifying the windy sites in Arunachal Pradesh and feasibility of installing small wind power plant thereof

Wind energy is a clean, eco-friendly, renewable resource and is non-polluting. Wind is an indirect manifestation of solar energy and hence we can say that wind energy is a form of solar energy, about 1 to 2 % of the energy coming from the sun is converted into wind energy. Generation of air currents is a direct effect of the combination of two phenomenons, Circulation of hot air and Earth rotation. Accordingly winds are broadly, local winds and planetary winds. China and U.S. are the two top countries ofhaving highest capacityinstallations of wind power plant. India is one of the blessed countries having an estimated gross potential of 45,000MW power from the wind and is fifth largest installed wind power capacity in the world.This paper studies, analyzes and identifies the windy potential sites in one ofIndian Frontier Stateof Arunachal Pradesh and the papercould successfully be able to assess wind resources and identify the windy potential sites like Sela andLikabali in the state for setting up small wind power plant thereof

Authoritarianism, Conspiracy Theories and Covid 19 Pandemic in Serbia

By placing two key narratives about the origin and the implications of Covid-19 in the global context, the author analyzes their media representations in Serbia in order to highlight their potential correlation with widely understood authoritarianism. Conspiracy theories in Serbia are present in several interrelated and interdependent forms: 1. Theory of experimental totalitarianism; 2. Economic-political conspiracy; 3. Theory of the Third World War/New Order. Tensions and conflicts between the proponents of the official and unofficial versions of pandemic are visible, mostly on social media, and resemble other forms of filtering and dosing aggression against labeled enemies. In the moments of social crisis this becomes one of the basic characteristics of the authoritarian structure of personality. “Enemies” are stigmatized by various formulations, from “the masters of the new order”, to “the servants of the world pharmacomaphy.” Therefore, the aim of this paper is to make an overwiew of the most common conspiracy theories about Covid 19 in Serbia and to analyze them in the frames of theories that emphasize the importance of dogma within the authoritarian personality structure

The Geography of Childhood and Affective Archetypes: A DiscursiveMythological Approach to the Representations of Serbia in British and American Interwar Travel Accounts

One of the key representations of Serbia between the two world wars in British and American travel accounts is the one about a child. Set in the context of Orientalism and postcolonial tradition this representation is usually interpreted as infantilization that reflects the marginalization and symbolic position of Serbia and the Balkans outside the mainstream of world politics and economy. As the academic discourse is mostly occupied with orientalism and postcolonialism, this paper focuses on symbolic and mythological potential of the discourse analysis about Serbia—“the child of Europe.” The paper analyses three forms of infantilization of Serbia in the interwar travel accounts, while each chapter is dedicated to specific form of infantilization: 1. Serbia as an orphan of Europe; 2. Serbs as medieval people (unspoiled by civilization and vital); 3. Their “temperament” reveals cultural, and thus, political immaturity. The analysis is based on Darren Kelsey’s discursive-mythological approach and it draws a conclusion about the interconnection between the child’s image, culture, historical circumstances, internal/external representation and affective archetypes

Authoritarianism, Conspiracy Theories and Covid 19 Pandemic in Serbia

By placing two key narratives about the origin and the implications of Covid-19 in the global context, the author analyzes their media representations in Serbia in order to highlight their potential correlation with widely understood authoritarianism. Conspiracy theories in Serbia are present in several interrelated and interdependent forms: 1. Theory of experimental totalitarianism; 2. Economic-political conspiracy; 3. Theory of the Third World War/New Order. Tensions and conflicts between the proponents of the official and unofficial versions of pandemic are visible, mostly on social media, and resemble other forms of filtering and dosing aggression against labeled enemies. In the moments of social crisis this becomes one of the basic characteristics of the authoritarian structure of personality. “Enemies” are stigmatized by various formulations, from “the masters of the new order”, to “the servants of the world pharmacomaphy.” Therefore, the aim of this paper is to make an overwiew of the most common conspiracy theories about Covid 19 in Serbia and to analyze them in the frames of theories that emphasize the importance of dogma within the authoritarian personality structure

Irreducible Decomposition of Products of 10D Chiral Sigma Matrices

We review the enveloping algebra of the 10 dimensional chiral sigma matrices. To facilitate the computation of the product of several chiral sigma matrices we have developed a symbolic program. Using this program one can reduce the multiplication of the sigma matrices down to linear combinations of irreducilbe elements. We are able to quickly derive several identities that are not restricted to traces. A copy of the program written in the Mathematica language is provided for the community.Comment: 28 pages, Mathematica Program sigmavector10D.nb is included. Submitted ot CP