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This thesis analyses how and why culture and geography influence the allocation and licensing of the radio frequency (RF) spectrum in different nations. Based on a broad comparative study of 235 countries, an inter-disciplinary approach is used to explore regulatory frameworks and attitudes toward risk. In addition, detailed case studies of the UK, France, the US and Ecuador provide deeper insights into the main contrasting regulatory styles. Three alternative sociological theories are used to analyse and explain the results for both the in-depth and broad brush studies. The Cultural Theory of Mary Douglas and co-workers is first used to categorise countries in terms of perceptual filters. The empirical findings indicate some countries to be apparently exceptional in their behaviour. The theory of Bounded Rationality is used to investigate and explain these apparent irrationalities. Finally, Rational Field Theory shows how beliefs and values guide administrations in their RF regulation. A number of key factors are found to dominate and patterns emerge. The European RF harmonisation is unique. Following European unification, wireless regulation is divided into two major camps (the EU and the US), which differ in their risk concerns, approach to top-down mandated standards, allocation of RF spectrum to licence-exempt bands and type approval process. The adoption of 3G cellular (UMTS versus CDMA2000) and digital TV standards (DVB-T/ATSC/ISDB-T) around the world reflects geopolitical and colonial influence. The language of a country is a significant indicator of its analogue TV standard (SECAM/PAL/NTSC). Interestingly, the longitude of a country to a fair extent defines RF allocation: Africa and West Asia follow Europe, whereas the Americas approximate the US. RF regulation and risk tolerability differ between tropical and non-tropical climates. The collectivised/centralised versus the individualised/market-based rationalities result in different regulatory frameworks and contrasting societal and risk concerns. The success of the top-down European GSM and the bottom-up Wi-Fi standards reveal how the central-planning and market-based approaches have thrived. Attitudes to RF human hazards and spurious emissions levels reveal that the US, Canada and Japan are more tolerant of these radiation risks than Europe. Australia, Canada, New Zealand, UK and USA encourage technological innovation. A practical benefit of this study is that it will give regulators more freedom to choose a rational RF licensing protocol, by better understanding the possibly self-imposed boundaries of cultural and geographical factors which are currently shaping allocation. Academically, there is utility in undertaking a cultural and geographic analysis of a topic that is mostly the domain of engineering, economic and legal analysts.

This study investigates how Christianity impacts on the way owner-managers of small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) conceptualise their worlds of business practice. The context for the research is the more general issue of how civil society and its institutions influence economic activity and how they might provide a counterbalance to the potentially negative impacts of 'unrestrained' self-interested economic behaviour.The study is based on qualitative interviews with SME owner-managers in Germany and the U.K. who regard themselves as practising Christians. Using a socio-psychological approach, the data analysis yielded a range of linguistic and conceptual resources that are peculiar to Christian discourse and that have the potential to influence business activity in rather distinctive ways. This book outlines the effects that these Christian resources can have on these owner-managers and how they may be linked to specific business practices. Attention is drawn to the fact that Christian conceptual resources can be interpreted and exploited in different ways, which leads to differences in how Christian owner-managers apply their faith to their business.Furthermore, the study maps out the - often interacting - influence of other discursive contexts and resources. The specific influence of the SME context will be discussed and some differences with regards to the two national contexts in which the research was conducted will be highlighted. The book also addresses how the socio-psychological approach that was chosen for this study may be used for investigations into the impact of other civil society contexts.

This qualitative case study explored the impact of mentoring on professional advancement among African Americans healthcare professionals. A nonrandom purposeful sample was used to identify 21 African American hospital decision makers employed in the specialty areas of nursing, medicine, pharmacy, and administration. Two central research questions were used to explore the role of mentoring on professional advancement and the participants' perception of the importance of mentorship and empowerment on their professional advancement. Data was analyzed using Moustakas (1994) modified van Kaam method of analysis. Results of the study showed that mentoring plays an important role in the professional advancement of African American hospital professionals. Additionally, the study participants believed that mentoring empowers African Americans for professional advancement.

Vertical and horizontal expansion of irrigated agriculture to feed the increasing population has contributed to excessive groundwater withdrawal and affected the availability of water in terms of both quality and quantity. To sustain agricultural growth, strategic measures should be adopted to reduce water consumption while minimizing adverse effect on yield. The effect of deficit irrigation on wheat yield was studied in three consecutive years (2002-03 to 2004-05) in field and pot. Ten irrigation treatments were imposed in a randomized complete block (RCB) design covering full deficit, no deficit at all, single deficit at different stages, and alternate deficits. Water deficit was created by withholding irrigation at different growth stages. The results indicate that deficit irrigation strategies affected all aspects of plant growth (leaf area index, chlorophyll content, root growth, nutrient uptake, plant height) adversely. Yield attributes were affected by deficit irrigation treatments although they are not statistically significant in all cases. Differences in grain and straw yield among the partial- and no-deficit treatments were small, and statistically insignificant in most cases. When compared within single-deficit treatments, the grain yield reduction was in the order to water deficit at phases: CRI> maximum tillering > booting - heading >flowering- soft dough. The crop coefficient (kc) under different ET0 methods for early, crop development, middle, and late period ranged from 0.54 to 0.96, 0.95 to 1.36, 1.2 to 1.62, and 0.68 to 1.05, respectively. On average, yield response factor (ky) for early, maximum tillering, booting-heading, and flowering-soft dough stages was 0.27, 0.21, 0.25, and 0.17, respectively. The sensitivity index (?i, of Jensen model) for early, vegetative, booting-heading, and flowering-soft dough phases was 0.35, 0.22, 0.31, and 0.14, respectively. From the evaluation of yield, irrigation amount, irrigation water productivity, relative water savings, relative yield reduction, and maximum profit under limited water resource condition, it can be concluded that when limited quantities of water is available, preference should be given to irrigate first at CRI (if one irrigation is available), then at CRI and booting-heading (if two irrigations are available), and next at CRI, maximum tillering and booting-heading (if three irrigations are available) stages of growth.

The purpose of the study was to examine, through narrative, contributing factors which lead to burnout in three Hispanic middle school teachers in a school in South Texas that is predominantly Hispanic. Burnout, in this work, was understood to be the experience of excessive stress and anxiety which accompanies teachers' inabilities to cope with environmental stressors present in their workplaces. While this term served to introduce the study, the participants defined their experiences of burnout in their own words (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000; Merriam, 1998). While the exact impact of teacher burnout on student achievement is unknown, it is clearly detrimental for the well being of the individual teacher and presumably to those around him or her, including students. Different factors such as teacher's attitudes towards perceived stressors, administrative support, classroom discipline, and physical environment were characterized.The researcher additionally used personal experiences and reflections in conjunction with existing scholarship on the subject in order to illuminate the stories. Stories were framed within different contexts (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000).The research in large part followed the narrative thread of the responses that the participants provided, resulting in the themes of the study. Teachers candidly discussed their thoughts and opinions about stressful factors. Although the stories of each of the teachers included different reasons for burnout, within which the temporal nature of burnout was revealed, as well as the angst of teachers trying to relate their careers to their lives, it was apparent that burnout is an essential problem in this Hispanic teaching community. From this work, scholars and practitioners should be able to gather a sense of what a few bilingual South Texas teachers experience in their workplaces.