Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 30 of 32

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

Can B2g Portals Be Used Effectively To Stimulate Business In Smes?: A Case Analysis Of The 2cities Business To Government Portal, Ian Martinus Jan 2004

Can B2g Portals Be Used Effectively To Stimulate Business In Smes?: A Case Analysis Of The 2cities Business To Government Portal, Ian Martinus

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have many options when purchasing goods or services. These include personal contacts and networks, familiar centralised supply sources and other ad hoc means. One purchasing possibility is to buy from and sell to other businesses within a similar geographic area. The benefits of buying and selling locally may not occur to SMEs. They seek, like other consumers, to get value for money, fast and efficient service, and a reasonable level of quality. Many factors can impinge upon an SME's decision to purchase locally. It can be assumed that, given a reasonable local option, SMEs wish …


Indicators Of Community Resilience : A Study Of Communities Facing Impending Natural Disasters, Julie A. Pooley Jan 2004

Indicators Of Community Resilience : A Study Of Communities Facing Impending Natural Disasters, Julie A. Pooley

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Disasters are defined as a 'crisis event in which the demands being placed on a human system, by the event, exceed the systems capacity to respond' (Bolin, 1989, p. 62). In the literature the negative consequences of disasters are focused at the individual level and fail to take into account the context In which Individuals live and where the disaster occurred. Few studies utilize residents within a disaster community to define the factors that are relevant to their disaster experience especially in Australian settings. This present studies view of disasters places the individual within an ecological system to understand their …


Growth Trends And Water Use Efficiency Of Pinus Pinaster Ait. In Response To Historical Climate And Groundwater Trends On The Gnangara Mound, Western Australia, Lindsay Bourke Jan 2004

Growth Trends And Water Use Efficiency Of Pinus Pinaster Ait. In Response To Historical Climate And Groundwater Trends On The Gnangara Mound, Western Australia, Lindsay Bourke

Theses : Honours

In Western Australia, groundwater accounts for about 57% of Perth's water supply. The majority of this is from the Gnangara Mound, the largest superficial aquifer on the Swan Coastal Plain. Prior to the mid 1970's groundwater of the superficial aquifer reached a semi-steady state, however since this period levels have been steadily falling. This decline coincides with a dramatic change in Perth's climate, groundwater abstraction and maturation of pine plantations. The influence of pine plantations upon groundwater recharge is well understood, however there is paucity of information about groundwater use, in particular whether pines directly access shallow groundwater resources. This …


Towards An Understanding Of The Grey Nomad Consumer, Mandy Pickering Jan 2004

Towards An Understanding Of The Grey Nomad Consumer, Mandy Pickering

Theses : Honours

This exploratory study applied a grounded approach to the collection and analysis of data. The study investigated the consumption behaviours utilised by a sample of Grey Nomads who subscribed to an eco·camping philosophy and who occupied their own caravans for accommodation whilst travelling. The aim was to examine the growing phenomenon of Grey Nomads who travelled in Western Australia in order to obtain insight into the group as consumers. Thirty nine informants (n=39) were interviewed where an understanding of the primary concerns of informants could be achieved. Informants were recruited who were over 60 years of age, travelled for a …


Terrestrial Isopods (Crustacea: Oniscidea) And Biogeographical Patterns From South-Western Australia, Simon L. Judd Jan 2004

Terrestrial Isopods (Crustacea: Oniscidea) And Biogeographical Patterns From South-Western Australia, Simon L. Judd

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This thesis examines terrestrial isopod (Crustacea: Oniscidea) diversity and biogeography from south-western Australia, a region already recognised for the exceptional high biodiversity and concentrations of endemic species. A taxonomic investigation of isopods in the Western Australian Museum and material collected systematically as part of this study revealed seventy taxa, sixty of which were considered native species. The thesis provides a comprehensive review of regional taxonomic history and includes a key, complete with a set of forty characters states and taxa, illustrated by a number of photographic plates that are designed for use by specialists and non-specialists alike. Prior to this …


Cultural Hybridity And Visual Practice: Towards A Transformative-Repair Multicultural Pedagogy For Visual Arts Education, Kim Le Jan 2004

Cultural Hybridity And Visual Practice: Towards A Transformative-Repair Multicultural Pedagogy For Visual Arts Education, Kim Le

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research project examines how transitional multiculturalism, cultural hybridity and transformative-repair are practiced by a professional artist-researcher and novice artists. Transitional multiculturalism and cultural hybridity are examined through a series of artworks by a Vietnamese-born artist-researcher. This series of artwork, which reflects 35 years of creating art in both Vietnamese and Australia, demonstrate a personal engagement with issues of cultural diversity, upbringing, and related aesthetic studies. The intention of this exhibition is to chart the characteristics of the artist's expression, which is culturally hybridised. This part of the study aims to identify those artistic conventions associated with specific visual traditions …


Student Beliefs About Learning In Religion And Science In Catholic Schools, Philip F. Cox Jan 2004

Student Beliefs About Learning In Religion And Science In Catholic Schools, Philip F. Cox

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The focus of this study is the impact of student perception of the validity of content on student learning. It is proposed that, if the content of a subject is perceived by students as being different to the content of another subject, a result of this perceived difference is that students will treat their learning in these subjects differently. To test this proposal, student beliefs about items from the content of the religious education course are compared with student responses to items of content of their science course. A sample of 1418, year 11 students from nine co-educational Catholic secondary …


Facilitating Teacher Professional Learning : Analysing The Impact Of An Australian Professional Learning Model In Secondary Science, Rachel Sheffield Jan 2004

Facilitating Teacher Professional Learning : Analysing The Impact Of An Australian Professional Learning Model In Secondary Science, Rachel Sheffield

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In education, innovations are frequently introduced to promote changes to the curriculum, teachers' practice, and the classroom environment, however, these initiatives are often implemented without sufficient evaluation to monitor their impact and effectiveness in bringing about the desired changes. This thesis analyses the impact of a teacher professional learning program on lower secondary science teachers' practice. It examines the relationship between teachers' concerns about the strategies incorporated in the Collaborative Australian Secondary Science Program (CASSP) and teachers' ability to understand the strategies, on their ability to utilise those strategies in the classroom. It also seeks to determine teachers' beliefs about …


Outcomes Of A Participatory Approach To Interpretive Planning In The Shark Bay World Heritage Area, Western Australia, Kelly J. Chapman Jan 2004

Outcomes Of A Participatory Approach To Interpretive Planning In The Shark Bay World Heritage Area, Western Australia, Kelly J. Chapman

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This thesis examines a participatory approach to interpretive planning, employed in the Shark Bay World Heritage Area, Western Australia. At the project outset relations between the conservation agency responsible for administering World Heritage and the local community were strained, and complicated by a history of conflict over the World Heritage listing and subsequent management of the area. A participatory approach to interpretive planning was adopted in the hope that doing so would achieve the following: improved relations between polarised stakeholder groups, increased community support for the plan and its implementation, and improved access to the variety of knowledge pools within …


An Examination Of Fathers' Satisfaction With The Legal System: Exploring The Concept In Relation To Fathers' Experience With The Family Law Court Of Western Australia, Janelle M. Hawes Jan 2004

An Examination Of Fathers' Satisfaction With The Legal System: Exploring The Concept In Relation To Fathers' Experience With The Family Law Court Of Western Australia, Janelle M. Hawes

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Although the importance of fathers' post divorce contact with their children has been linked with a better outcome for the children and is valued by society, studies in the United States and Australia have suggested that up to 30 percent of fathers do not maintain regular contact with their children post divorce. To date, the literature has focused mainly on demographic variables and some personal characteristics of the father. An area, which has been neglected, is the influence of fathers' perception of legal proceedings and rules on their contact with their children post divorce. This study aimed to explore the …


Experiences Of Anglo-Burmese Migrants In Perth, Western Australia : A Substantive Theory Of Marginalisation, Adaptation And Community, Simon D. Colquhoun Jan 2004

Experiences Of Anglo-Burmese Migrants In Perth, Western Australia : A Substantive Theory Of Marginalisation, Adaptation And Community, Simon D. Colquhoun

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The experience of migration and adaptation of ethnically mixed migrants; like the Anglo-Burmese migrants, has received little attention. This group began migrating to Australia, in particular Western Australia, in the 1960s due to changing socio-political circumstances in Burma. The examination of cultural issues in psychological research has operated in a number of different perspectives including cross-cultural psychology, cultural psychology and more recently, community psychology in Australia. The development of community psychology in Australia has led to the development of a community research approach by Bishop, Sonn, Drew and Contos (2002). This approach requires the exploration of the substantive domain using …


In Vitro Propagation Of Some Western Australian Seagrasses, Julia Wilson Jan 2004

In Vitro Propagation Of Some Western Australian Seagrasses, Julia Wilson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The development of a successful protocol for micropropagating seagrass provides a valuable tool for seagrass-restoration programs and a facility to study their biology (especially their physiology). This work reports on some of the culture requirements of some seagrasses that are commonly found in Western Australia: Posidonia coriacea, P. sinuosa, P. australis and Halophila ovalis. The protocol developed for H. ovalis allows very rapid multiplication and sustainable growth of cultures while the protocol developed for Posidonia requires further development. The culture of Posidonia cariacea proved to be problematic however experimental media that provided insights into its culture conditions. The carbohydrate source …


History Of Costume : The Consumption, Governance, Potency And Patronage Of Attire In Colonial Western Australia, Damayanthie Eluwawalage Jan 2004

History Of Costume : The Consumption, Governance, Potency And Patronage Of Attire In Colonial Western Australia, Damayanthie Eluwawalage

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This dissertation represents a new' departure in the study of dress in colonial Western Australia, focusing on the rationale behind individual and collective clothing practices in the new society. As a study of significant social and cultural practices, rather than an account of fashion, this research contributes to the understanding of previously disregarded elements in colonial Western Australian ethno-economic and social histories. The study investigates the internal and external influences which impacted upon colonial inhabitants' ways of dressing, their societal attitudes and social demeanour. The research compares the influences on attire and finery in colonial Western Australian society with the …


Teaching Twice Exceptional Children: Gifted With Learning Difficulties: Professional Development And Provision In A Montessori School, Elaine Lewis Jan 2004

Teaching Twice Exceptional Children: Gifted With Learning Difficulties: Professional Development And Provision In A Montessori School, Elaine Lewis

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study seeks to investigate the teaching of gifted children in a Montessori school, with particular reference to gifted students with learning difficulties in writing. A review of the literature on the Montessori method of education and on provision for gifted children, shows considerable philosophical and practical overlap in these two fields. However, it appears that this theoretical overlap is not necessarily realised in practice. Furthermore, although considerable research has been conducted on the characteristics, identification and classroom provision for the gifted, very little has been undertaken on the actual provision for gifted children in Montessori schools or gifted children …


A Softer Side To Men, Michael J. Lenney Jan 2004

A Softer Side To Men, Michael J. Lenney

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

“I am on time. It’s the afternoon of my medical for life-insurance suitability. The AMP building in Sydney is my destination. I arrive with about twenty minutes to spare. I don’t remember the receptionist. I don’t remember the faces of the doctors who attended me that day. All I can remember is that I could see the clouds passing over the glass ceiling as my blood pressure was taken several times. The first doctor took my blood pressure three times before seeking another opinion. The second doctor confirmed his fears. I was in the “too high” risk category. At the …


Early Education : Experiences And Perceptions Of Minority Group Parents And Young Children, Judith Candy Jan 2004

Early Education : Experiences And Perceptions Of Minority Group Parents And Young Children, Judith Candy

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In Australia there has been little research into the experiences and perceptions of education of parents from different minority groups whose young children attend school in this country. This study investigated the experiences that overseas born parents from non-English speaking backgrounds have of their own and their children's education in countries outside Australia, experiences of their children's early education in Australia, as well as those of their young children between 6 and 9 years of age attending school in this country. Despite marked differences in educational policies and practices operating in the participants' countries of origin, almost all parents in …


Aquatic Programmes And Swimming Activities In Health And Physical Education : A Case For Differentiation, P. R. Whipp Jan 2004

Aquatic Programmes And Swimming Activities In Health And Physical Education : A Case For Differentiation, P. R. Whipp

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research study provides a 'snap-shot' of the current status of teaching aquatic programmes in Western Australian secondary schools. This study also encapsulates the thoughts and feelings of the teachers and the students engaged in these programmes, scrutinises the outcomes of existing programmes and advances practical recommendations to address the problems identified. The study was conducted within a contemporary context where little innovation in aquatic education has accompanied the Australian and state-wide curriculum development based on outcomes-focused education. The research was underpinned by a conceptual framework which conforms to the principles of constructivist learning (Kirk & Macdonald, 1998; Wittrock, 1978; …


Work Intensification And Professionalism : A Study Of Teachers' Perceptions In The State School System In Western Australia, Niall B. Richardson Jan 2004

Work Intensification And Professionalism : A Study Of Teachers' Perceptions In The State School System In Western Australia, Niall B. Richardson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The past two decades have witnessed the introduction throughout much of the Western world of what has become known as economic rationalism, and for some commentators, as economic liberalism. Grounded in neoclassical economic theory, and with close kinship to the Taylorist and Fordist principles of the early decades of the twentieth century, the vision of economic rationalism has led to measures which have tended to favour the business sector in Australia. Throughout the 1990s, the focus has been on the notions of competitiveness, competition, productivity, efficiency, and profit, while the notions of the individual, and of social justice and equity, …


Environmental Correlates And Associations Of Tuart (Eucalyptus Gomphocephala) Decline, Todd A. Edwards Jan 2004

Environmental Correlates And Associations Of Tuart (Eucalyptus Gomphocephala) Decline, Todd A. Edwards

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Tuart (Eucalyptus gomphocephala DC.) is an ecologically and culturally important tree species that grows across a narrow 400 km long coastal belt, from the Sabrina River south of Perth, to Jurien Bay in the north. Unfortunately, Tuart is also a species under considerable threat due to clearing, lack of recruitment and canopy decline. Canopy decline is of particular concern, being increasingly reported throughout the Tuart distribution. Despite this, previous studies of Tuart have generally been limited to localised canopy decline events. This two-phased study firstly involved an assessment of Tuart canopy condition at 46 sites across the species distribution. At …


Cast(E) In Between: A Mixed-Descent Family's Coexistence In The West Kimberley 1944-1969, Jacinta Solonec Jan 2004

Cast(E) In Between: A Mixed-Descent Family's Coexistence In The West Kimberley 1944-1969, Jacinta Solonec

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This thesis investigates the social and racial dynamics of life in the West Kimberley between 1944 and 1969. It identifies three groups defined by their racial characteristics which co-existed on the land: full-descent, mixed-descent and Gudia. It argues that despite many people in these different groups being related to each other, their lives followed different trajectories as a result of government policies and laws which defined people by their degree of Aboriginality. These racial categories were reflected in the social and economic relations of full-descent, mixed descent and Gudia people. Coexistence of these groups is analysed by focusing on one …


Investigation Of The Replacement Of Margaret River Hairy Marron Cherax Tenuimanus (Smith) By Smooth Marron C. Cainii Austin, John J. Bunn Jan 2004

Investigation Of The Replacement Of Margaret River Hairy Marron Cherax Tenuimanus (Smith) By Smooth Marron C. Cainii Austin, John J. Bunn

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The Margaret River hairy marron, Cherax tenuimanus (Smith, 1912) (Decapoda: Parastacidae) is critically endangered due to the introduction of the widespread marron, C. cainii Austin, 2002. This project investigates the rapid replacement of C. tenuimanus with studies important to its conservation. The ability to identify correctly in the field C. tenuimanuss, C. cainii and hybrids was investigated by linking morphology and marker allozyme loci. C. tenuimanus was readily identified in the field and errors were conservative; no genetically identified hybrids or C. cainii were field identified as C. tenuimauus during tissue samples collection. A prototype field identification guide has been …


The Impact Of Corporatisation And Management Reform On The Role And Working Life Of Managers In An Australian Electricity Utility: A Triangulated Study, 1994-2002, Desmond E. Lehmann Jan 2004

The Impact Of Corporatisation And Management Reform On The Role And Working Life Of Managers In An Australian Electricity Utility: A Triangulated Study, 1994-2002, Desmond E. Lehmann

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

For decades electricity has been a critical source of energy for all major industries, nationally and internationally. In 2002 the Australian electricity supply industry had assets in excess of $86 billion and accounted for more than 1.4 percent of gross domestic product. It is a major employer with more than 33,000 people serving more than 8 million customers. This study explores the impact of corporatisation and management reform on the role and working life of managers within the broader context of this industry. It is an industry identified by academics, commentators and the business media over the past two decades …


Is A Knowledge Based Value Network An Effective Model For Implementing E-Government?, Greg Robins Jan 2004

Is A Knowledge Based Value Network An Effective Model For Implementing E-Government?, Greg Robins

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Is a knowledge based value network an effective model for implementing e-government? E-Government is a vision of how public sector organisations will govern, serve citizens, and interact with business partners, their employees, and other Government organisations. The “e” in e-Government represents a move to fully integrated, secure, on-demand accessible electronic Government that will: • improve integrated service delivery • provide universal citizen access • begin to enhance traditional Government structures and processes • support new Government products and services by relying on the emergence and convergence of new technologies • improve effectiveness Electronic commerce (e-commerce) has fundamentally changed the way …


Kimberley Women : Their Experiences Of Making A Remote Locality Home, Elaine Rabbitt Jan 2004

Kimberley Women : Their Experiences Of Making A Remote Locality Home, Elaine Rabbitt

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In previous histories of Western Australia, pre-dominantly written from a male Eurocentric viewpoint, scant attention has been drawn to the everyday lives of country women. The study described in this dissertation explores the responses of women to the challenges of relocation and settlement within a remote locality in the Kimberley region of Western Australia.


Women's Perceptions Of Safety : Cctv In An Inner City Setting, Kate Hancock Jan 2004

Women's Perceptions Of Safety : Cctv In An Inner City Setting, Kate Hancock

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

To date, most research on closed circuit television (CCTV) has come out of the United Kingdom (UK) where the growth of CCTV has reached immense proportions with wide support and funding from the Home Office. There are 33 systems operating in Australia, with the focus of this research on the first system installed in Perth, Western Australia in 1991. There is a dearth of information on CCTV in Australia, and little research looking at the link between CCTV, women’s safety and fear of crime. The literature on fear of crime shows that women are more fearful than men even though …


Meeting The Challenge : The Female Carers' Perspective Of Managing Dyspnoea, Kim A. Skett Jan 2004

Meeting The Challenge : The Female Carers' Perspective Of Managing Dyspnoea, Kim A. Skett

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The aim of this descriptive, explorative study was to describe the lived experience of informal carers providing care within the home, to a family member who has lung cancer and the symptom of dyspnoea. Many studies have highlighted the stressors associated with care provision, but no studies have focused on the experience associated with caring for a family member who is dyspnoeic. Ten carers were interviewed regarding their experiences of providing care to the family member during the palliative phase of the illness and while the family member was experiencing the symptom of dyspnoea. Analysis of the initial data highlighted …


Learning To Belong: A Study Of The Lived Experience Of Homeless Students In Western Australia, Simone Glasson-Walls Jan 2004

Learning To Belong: A Study Of The Lived Experience Of Homeless Students In Western Australia, Simone Glasson-Walls

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This is a phenomenological study of the lived experiences of homeless young people in Western Australia. Its focus is the reasons why homeless young people leave education, although many of them make a serious effort to complete post-compulsory schooling. The study was qualitative, and was designed as an in-depth analysis of the experiences of five young people aged between 15 and 17, all attending the same school. Data collection consisted of two in-depth interviews with each participant, and a focus group discussion with all five. Although the study’s focus as the issue of homelessness and schooling, it quickly expanded when …


An Action Research Investigation Into New Ways Rural Women In Western Australia Can Increase Their Involvement In Government Decision-Making, Teresa Maiolo Jan 2004

An Action Research Investigation Into New Ways Rural Women In Western Australia Can Increase Their Involvement In Government Decision-Making, Teresa Maiolo

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This research investigates the role of information communication technologies (ICTs) in the promotion of rural women's participation in governmental decision-making. The origins of the research lie in apparent discrepancies between the Australian government’s high-level, policy commitment to increase rural women's involvement in government decision-making and the continuing barriers to their participation as demonstrated by researchers such as Elix and Lambert, (1998); and Wilkinson and Alston, (1999). This research deploys a feminist action research methodology to explore new ways to increase rural women's involvement in government decision-making in Western Australian. The first phase of the research, a phenomenological field study, investigated …


Cognitive Processes Involved In The Onset And Course Of Postnatal Distress From The Antenatal Period To Six Months Postpartum: New Findings, And Implications For Future Research, Anne Pratt Jan 2004

Cognitive Processes Involved In The Onset And Course Of Postnatal Distress From The Antenatal Period To Six Months Postpartum: New Findings, And Implications For Future Research, Anne Pratt

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Although studies have explored the epidemiology of Postnatal Depression (PND) and other mood disorders occurring in the postnatal period, there is some evidence to support the argument that there may be different subsets of women suffering from low mood, around the time of childbirth (Warner, Appleby, Whitton, & Faragher, 1997). Some new mothers may be responding to the inherent, but often understated, stressors of the childbirth experience itself and the period that follows it, linked to dysfunctional maternal attitudes. Others may have pre-existing dysfunctional cognitions before the birth arising from other factors, and therefore already be vulnerable to a mood …


A Study Of 1st And 2nd Year Catholic University Students' Perceptions Of Their Senior Religious Education Classes In Catholic Schools In Western Australia, Leslie G. Saker Jan 2004

A Study Of 1st And 2nd Year Catholic University Students' Perceptions Of Their Senior Religious Education Classes In Catholic Schools In Western Australia, Leslie G. Saker

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of 1st and 2nd year university students of their years eleven and twelve religious education classes at a Catholic school. A secondary purpose was to understand students’ acceptance or non-acceptance of official Catholic Church doctrine/dogma and why. Four research questions were asked to direct the study. 1. Are Catholic schools in Western Australia carrying out the mandate for their existence, that is, the Catholic education of their students? 2. Did students perceive their religious education classes as aiding their religious development? 3. Are students accepting or rejecting important doctrinal …