Determining the Influence of Organizational Culture on Employee Performance: The Moderating Role of Self-Efficacy

The study assessed the influence of organizational culture on employee performance, while the moderating effects of self-efficacy. The study used questionnaire based survey to collect data from the employees of the industries / factories in Gaddun, Haripur, Rawalpindi and Islamabad. The study applied descriptive statistics, correlation and stepwise regression to analyze the collected data. Results indicate that organizational culture has positive while self-efficacy has negative effects on employee performance. The study suggests to executive managers to adopt supportive culture for creating greater organizational output. Keywords: Organizational Culture, Employee Performance, Self-Efficac

Mechanical tensile testing and metallurgical investigation of the residual properties of stainless steel reinforcing bar after exposure to elevated temperatures

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonThis thesis examines the behaviour of stainless steel reinforcing bar following exposure to elevated temperature. Stainless steel reinforcement in concrete is an increasingly popular structural solution for a variety of applications where corrosion resistance, excellent mechanical properties and long life-cycles with little maintenance are required. Prior to this work, there was no information available in the published literature on the post-fire properties of stainless steel reinforcing bar, although this data is vital for an engineer wishing to study the structural integrity of a reinforced concrete component or system following a fire. Accordingly, this thesis presents a detailed analysis and discussion on both the tensile and metallurgical behaviour of stainless steel reinforcement, following exposure to various levels of elevated temperature of up to 900°C and also three different cooling methods, rapid-cooling in water, natural-cooling in air and slow-cooling in a furnace. The study includes austenitic stainless steel reinforcement in grades 1.4301, 1.4401 and 1.4436 as well as both hot-rolled and cold-worked duplex stainless steel bars in grade 1.4362, with a comparative carbon steel B500B grade also assessed. Within the post-fire temperature segment of this thesis, an increase in strength of up to 15% is noted in the stainless steel following cooling after elevated temperature exposure, with consistent responses between the different cooling methods. The austenitic grade reinforcement in particular presented a very stable microstructure across the various testing regimes, whilst the duplex reinforcements manifested a more unstable microstructure in the post-fire temperature testing. In the final part of this thesis, elevated temperature tests are conducted under isothermal conditions on austenitic grade 1.4301 and duplex grade 1.4362, to study how their mechanical behaviour evolves with increasing levels of temperature exposure. The study covers the most common stainless steel reinforcing bar grades available on the market and focuses on recreating practical and realistic fire scenarios where possible. The tests conducted show how the current design standards, currently based on carbon steel, are inadequate for efficient design of stainless steel RC structures and could benefit from independent guidance. To conclude, this thesis presents independent recommendations and guidance for engineers to assist in calculating the structural integrity of a component or system following a fire

Determining the Effects of Mobbing on Organizational Commitment: A Case of Educational Sector in Pakistan

Mobbing is an activity where group of people behave negatively against a person to enforce him/her in an unsecure position to push out of the organization. The study assessed this behavior by collecting data through questionnaires based survey from the employees of universities in Pakistan. Questionnaires were circulated among 400 employees of the universities but the response rate was 73.25%. The study found out that mobbing and organizational commitment has significant relationship. It was also noted that affective commitment and intention to leave organization (ILO) have significant relationship with mobbing in education sector. Keywords: Mobbing, Organizational Commitment, Educational Secto

Determining the Influence of Psycholigical Capital on the Ethical Behavior of Sales Force: A Case of Telecom Sector

The study assessed the influence of psychological capital on the ethical behavior of sales force in telecom sector of Pakistan. The study used quantitative approach to collect data through questionnaires based survey. The collected data were analyzed through descriptive statistic and stepwise regression. Results of the study indicated that psychological capital has significant effects on the ethical behavior of sales force in telecom sector. Keywords: Psychological Capital, Ethical Behavior, Sales Force, Telecom Secto

Difference in Cultural Adjustment of Domestic and International Student Sojourners in Higher Education Institutions

In reputed institutions of higher education students come from all over the country for gaining rich experience of learning. Not only Pakistani students from various regions enter in these institutions but also international students get admission in various academic programs. These students encounter various problems related to adjustment in a new environment. Their reaction to these problems and ability to adjust may affect their academic performance. The study mainly aimed at exploring the differences in the ability of domestic sojourners and international students to adjust in a new environment. The sample consisted of 347 students out of which 237 were Pakistani sojourners and 110 were international students. The instrument used for data collection includes Cultural Adjustment Scale which consisted of 22 items. The results revealed that ability to adjust in a new culture positively correlates with academic performance of both local and foreign sojourners. However, the difference between cultural adjustment scores of the two groups was not statistically significant. It is recommended that the institutions should provide sojourner students necessary support so that they would be able successfully complete their academic endeavor

TEACHERS’ PERCEPTION OF SCHOOL GOALS AND APPROACHES TO INSTRUCTION: EFFECTS ON STUDENTS’ ACHIEVEMENT GOALS

Secondary school is considered to be the gateway for development of other sectors of education. It provides students the opportunity for quality education and a platform from which to proceed to higher education or vocational work. It has been a challenge for secondary schools to incorporate relevant skills, knowledge, and experience in the teaching-learning process as to address students’ needs. Some students learn English better than others even if they are given the same opportunities. The present study intended to make contributions in clarifying the findings regarding effects of goal orientations on students’ academic achievement in the subject of English. This study aimed to determine the effect of teachers’ goals and approaches to instruction on student achievement goals in the subject of English at secondary level. Main objectives of the study were to Survey the teachers’ perceptions of school goal structures for students, investigate the effects of teachers’ perceptions of school goal structures and their approaches towards instruction on students’ achievement goal orientation and to determine the kind of approaches teachers had towards instruction. It is a survey research and it was conducted in conventional classrooms in government Higher Secondary schools in district Peshawar. The sample consisted of 224 male and female teachers. The Patterns for Adaptive Learning Scale (PALS) developed and revised by Midgley et al, (2000) was used for the study. Descriptive statistics and correlation analysis were applied to identify teachers’ goals and approaches to instruction and its relationship with students’ achievement goal orientation. It was concluded that teachers’ perception of school goal structure was not significantly correlated with students’ achievement goal orientation. Teachers had low mastery approaches to instruction. Gender differences were found as more female teachers had high mastery approaches to instruction than male teachers

Parameter Identification and Hybrid Synchronization in an Array of Coupled Chaotic Systems with Ring Connection: An Adaptive Integral Sliding Mode Approach

This article presents an adaptive integral sliding mode control (SMC) design method for parameter identification and hybrid synchronization of chaotic systems connected in ring topology. To employ the adaptive integral sliding mode control, the error system is transformed into a special structure containing nominal part and some unknown terms. The unknown terms are computed adaptively. Then the error system is stabilized using integral sliding mode control. The controller of the error system is created that contains both the nominal control and the compensator control. The adapted laws and compensator controller are derived using Lyapunov stability theory. The effectiveness of the proposed technique is validated through numerical examples

Factors influencing buying behavior of fashion clothing brands in Johor and Wilayah Persekutuan

This study has focused on the issues in buying behavior of consumers toward the fashion clothing brands, as in Malaysian society, the fashion clothing brands are facing very hard time. Many fashion clothing brands have ended up their business and closed their shops. Hence, this study has emphasized on determining the right information, issues, gap of knowledge by evaluating the influence of social advertising, individual factors and brand image on the buying behavior of consumers along with the mediating role of brand image towards the fashion clothing brands based on the theory of reasoned action and technology of acceptance model. The theory of reasoned action and TAM model were selected due to the suitability of theoretical consideration. This study has collected data through questionnaires based survey from the consumers of fashion clothing brands in the State Johor and the Wilayah Persekutuan in Malaysia. This study has selected a sample size of 129 respondents based on G-Power and applied convenience-sampling technique to collect data through mall intercepts approach. Initially, a pilot study was conducted to ensure the accuracy and reliability of questionnaire and then progressed towards main study. The collected data have analyzed using SPSS and structural equation modeling through smart partial least square. The findings have revealed a positive significant relationship of social advertising, individual factors, and brand image with the buying behavior of consumers toward the fashion clothing brands in the State Johor and Wilayah Persekutuan at Malaysia. The findings have also revealed a positive significant relationship of social advertising and individual factors with the brand image among consumers. In addition, the results have shown that brand image mediates the relationship between social advertising, individual factors and the buying behavior of consumers. The results of this study have interesting implications for marketing research. Firm can better understand the market trend and consumers buying behavior by developing two ways communication. Firm can also stabilize their consumers and build the brand image using social advertising, and can enhance their marketing intelligence by using these factors

Synchronization and antisynchronization protocol design of chaotic nonlinear gyros: an adaptive integral sliding mode approach

A novel control protocol design, via integral sliding mode control with parameter update laws, for synchronization and desynchronization of a chaotic nonlinear gyro with unknown parameters is the focus of this work. The error dynamics of the actual system are substructured into nominal and uncertain parts to employ adaptive integral sliding mode (AISM) control. The uncertain parameters are estimated via devised adaptive laws. Then the disagreement dynamics are guided to origin via AISM control. The stabilizing controller is also designed in terms of nominal control along with a compensating component. The control and the parameter update laws are constructed to ensure the strictly negative derivative of a Lyapunov function. Graphical results related to synchronization, desynchronization, and chaos suppression are displayed to demonstrate the potential of the proposed control