In this paper we discuss the role of new technologies, and computers in particular, in lives of families in Australia. We report on part of a project that provided children families with computers and connection to the Internet. There is an increasing awareness that living in the 21st century involves using and interacting with a range of new technologies, also referred to as information and co...

Data were gathered from 45 doctoral students through focus groups, observations, and written and oral re ̄ ections to ascertain their perceptions of a speci® c teaching process (the Scholarly Writing Project), which was designed to assist these students in learning how to do academic writing. It was found that preparing and receiving critiques from professors and peers was perceived to be the mo...

As an IT Manager of nine years in a small healthcare organisation, which has transitioned from a minimal base of IT to fully fledged systems in place, I have discovered two structures which have helped enormously in this transition. These structures are firstly, the focus group, which looks at the IT requirements of the business, and secondly the user group, or a group of super users, which hel...

Both academic institutions and businesses are exploring a shift from face-to-face instruction to distance learning. However, without the foundation of a systematic instructional design process to guide course development relevant factors might be overlooked. A study conducted with graduate students in the Human Development program at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago was designed to i...

This article analyses state-society relations in Ethiopia with particular emphasis on the post-1991 period. The objective of the study is to identify and analyse the fundamental factors of state-society relations at the national level: property rights, political representation, and the urban-rural elite cleavage. The article views state-society relations at the local level with reference to per...

While the advent of technology has revolutionized how businesses operate and how work is done, it has also opened up new avenues and opportunities for individuals to misbehave. This study focused on cyberloafing—the act of employees using their companies’ Internet access for personal purposes during work hours. Using the theoretical framework offered by research on neutralization techniques, we...

This study reports the findings of 6 focus groups conducted with male and female managers working in information technology (IT) at three different companies. The views the managers shared regarding the barriers that men who work in IT face that their female counterparts do not are presented. The themes which emerged in the analysis are viewed through the lens of gender schema theory. In this s...

“I am just a stereotype” sang Terry Hall in 1980. Ariola records took them in and made the band The Specials a world success. How will that process go in 2014? Will they put it on You Tube for free? Do they need a record company? Will they have less or more fans, earn less or more money? Focus group interviews with 90 people between the ages of 15 and 25 were successfully employed to create 20 ...