OpenUCT is the open access institutional repository of the University of Cape Town (UCT). It preserves and makes UCT scholarly outputs digitally and freely available, including theses and dissertations, journal articles, book chapters, technical and research reports, as well as open educational resources.

 

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Open Access
Battered women: self-defence and provocation
(1993) Oswell, Bennita-Simone; Leeman
The act of 'being battered' is within the realm of experience of many women and may involve not only actual physical assault but also psychologically debilitating practices, all of which occur in a society which seems to be unable to realise the extent of the problem. 'Wife beating' has always been deemed to be a personal, family problem, to be solved by the wife to the best of her abilities - it is seen as an internal family issue, not the business of neighbours or outsiders and certainly not within the purview of the police or the law. The view therefore held by friends, neighbours and the police has generally been that these women 'encourage, elicit and enjoy this type of abuse'.
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Open Access
Challenges with measures used for assessing research impact in higher education institutions
(2024) Mfengu, Andiswa; Raju, Jaya
Internationally, there has been a push for the prioritisation of research impact beyond its scholarly contribution. Traditionally, research impact assessments have focused on academic impact and quantitative measures, at the expense of researchers for whom research impact cannot be quantified. Bibliometric indicators and other quantitative measures are still the most widely used method for evaluating research impact because these measures are easy to use and provide a quick solution for evaluators. Conversely, metric indicators fail to capture important dimensions of high-quality research. Hence, in this study, we explored challenges with metric indicators. We adopted a case study of the University of Cape Town and used document analysis, a questionnaire survey to collect data from academics and researchers, as well as semi-structured interviews with a sample of academic and research staff. The findings highlight common challenges with quantitative measures, such as bias and discipline coverage, and the ability of measures to drive researchersā€™ behaviour in another direction. We propose the adoption of responsible research metrics and assessment in South African higher education institutions for more inclusive and equitable research impact assessments. Significance: ā€¢ The study highlights the importance of understanding the challenges and influence of current measures used for assessing research impact in higher education institutions. ā€¢ There is a need for higher education leaders, policymakers and funders to advocate and support responsible metrics. ā€¢ Higher education leaders, funders and policymakers need to collaborate at the national level to initiate and support research assessment reform.
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Open Access
Thin trading, non-normality and the estimation of systematic risk on small stock markets
(1994) Bowie, David Colin; Bradfield, D J
This thesis examines and extends research into two of the most important attributes of small stock markets, namely thin trading and non-normality, and how they impact on the estimation of systematic risk. Bearing these points in mind, the primary objective of the thesis is to offer concrete suggestions for selecting estimators of beta coefficients. In order to attain the objective outlined above, the first steps are to establish the extent and to model the characteristics of thin trading and non-normality. This is achieved in the thesis with the aid of empirical investigations using data from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The second step in providing concrete recommendations for beta estimation is to contrast beta estimators with a view to assessing their relative abilities to counteract the effects of thin trading and non-normality. In the thesis the comparison of both existing and modified versions of the estimators is performed both empirically and in simulation studies. In particular, the improved efficiency of robust estimators of beta coefficients is demonstrated using a comprehensive array of robust estimators (some of which incorporate the concept of bounding the influence of outlying market returns). Furthermore, the findings presented in the thesis confirm that further efficiency in the estimation of beta coefficients can be accomplished by implementing a well-known Bayesian adjustment in conjunction with the trade-totrade approach of avoiding the biases caused by thin trading. Using unbiasedness and efficiency as the necessary criteria of estimators of beta, the thesis concludes that a robust, bounded-influence version of the trade-to-trade beta estimator should be implemented on small mar~ets. A novel contribution in further modifying the proposed estimators is the consideration of flexible interval lengths over which to measure the security and market returns. The adaptive data selection procedure recommended in the thesis arises from the basic premise that there is more information in stock market prices in each month than is available at the month-end. Substantial increases in the efficiency of beta estimation are shown to emanate from the proposed procedure in an empirical evaluation using data from the JSE. A further aspect of thin trading is also considered in the thesis, namely the effect that it has on the estimation of covariances between securities. It is argued that the covariances between the return series of thinly trading securities cannot readily be estimated using a trade-to-trade approach because of the difficulties in matching the trading times of two thinly traded securities. Therefore, an aggregated coefficients estimator is more appropriate. In order to implement the aggregated coefficients estimator efficiently without sacrificing unbiasedness completely, a practical solution to the selection of the number of leading and lagged coefficients is proposed. A complication involved in using theĀ· aggregated coefficients estimator is shown to exist when there is autocorrelation in the market returns ( over and above that induced by thin trading in the component securities). An analytical' expression is therefore derived to ascertain the extent to which the aggregated coefficients estimators of covariances are biased upwards by the serial correlation. The development of the analytical expression also enables a correction procedure for the upward bias to be proposed. An extension of the methodology using a continuous-time framework is developed to widen the applicability of the technique into the well traded markets where the durations of pricing delays are generally shorter than one day. In the light of the evidence regarding the stability of beta coefficients highlighted in the thesis and in other literature, a robust, multivariate, state-space approach to beta estimation is proposed. The new information to be gained from knowing the correlations between any movements in the beta coefficients of securities from different sectors facilitates the interpretation of why and how beta coefficients vary over time. For the practitioner, the results of an empirical study conducted on the JSE demonstrate that fresh insight into the management of systematic risk in portfolios can be gained from the multivariate approach.
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Open Access
Is Sub-Saharan Africa likely to yield demographic dividends in the 21st century?
(2023) Ngcongo, Nokukhanya; Alhassan, Abdul Latif
Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has been undergoing an increase in population, which has seen the region grow from 0.55 billion people in 1990 to 1.17 billion in 2021. By 2100 it is estimated that SSA will be accounting for 35 percent of the global population - up from 14 percent in 2019. This increase in population will result in an increase of the working age population, which in turn presents an opportunity to yield demographic dividends. Demographic dividends occurs when there is a substantial increase in economic growth due to an increase in working age population. This dissertation examines the impact of the increase in (i) working age population (ii) female working age population on economic growth. In addition, the study also examines the impact of human capital and savings on economic growth, as they are co-determinants of demographic dividends. The study uses dynamic panel data from 40 countries within the region over a period of 2000 to 2018, using GDP per capita to represent economic growth while controlling for natural resources, rule of law, technology and trade openness. The Pooled Mean Group (PMG) and the two-step difference Generalised Method of Moments (GMM) were used to predict the relationship amongst the dependent and independent variables. The main findings of the study using PMG estimation are that: (i) there is a negative statistically significant relationship amongst working age population, female working age population and GDP per capita, due to the unproductive labour impact and low income levels; (ii) there is a positive and statistically significant relationship amongst human capital (education and health) and GDP per capita; and (iii) savings has a positive and statistically significant relationship with GDP per capita, however the impact is minimal due to the high dependency ratio and the population still consuming a significant portion of their income. Further to the PMG estimation, the GMM estimation was applied on the panel data to evaluate the validity and robustness of the PMG empirical results. The GMM estimator observed a similar directional relationship as the PMG amongst the main variables. An analysis was also performed on sub-regional data, which showed similar observations to the macro results of SSA. The empirical results from this study clearly highlight the significance of improving human capital in the region, as this will advance labour supply in terms of productivity, innovation and technological enhancements, which will have a positive impact on GDP per capita and increase the earning potential of the population. This will then become a catalyst for improved savings and wealth accumulation
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Open Access
Do property stokvels allow for greater economic inclusion than traditional mortgages?
(2023) Matshaka, Lethu Mzikaphalo; Alhassan, Abdul Latif
Since the dawn of democracy in 1994 South Africa has made incredible strides in diverse areas, thereby cementing its place as one of the largest and most advanced economies on the African continent. However, there are areas where progress still leaves much to be desired such as the provision of quality housing, particularly to low-income earners in the country. Since 1994, the South African Government has adopted various interventions with the aim of expediting the supply of housing to ordinary South Africans and thereby ensure a right to adequate housing as enshrined in the South African Constitution. As the housing backlog seems to be everincreasing, another increasingly popular phenomenon in South Africa is that of a property stokvel. South Africans of all class put money together for the aim of gaining access to property in some form or another. Simply put, the concept of an ordinary stokvel, where South Africans would pool money to buy groceries at the end of a given year, has been adapted to enable people to now gain access to property (as opposed to simply purchasing groceries). There were three main objectives to the study. They are: to explore the challenges faced by South Africans of a lower economic class that prevent them gaining access to traditional mortgage financing from banks in South Africa; To understand the motivations for participating in property stokvels in South Africa and; To understand which, between property stokvels and mortgage financing, is more appropriate for acquiring property in South Africa. The sample of participants was drawn from individuals who have participated in property stokvels, and qualitative, semi-structured interviews were conducted with these participants. From the thematic analysis of the interview data, the study found that that there are various challenges related to traditional housing finance applications such as a complex application process, the fear of rejection by banks, the associated anxieties, and the lack of both affordability and flexibility associated with traditional housing finance. Moreover, the study found that some of the main reasons people participate in property stokvels are property affordability and long-term investment goals, strong and effective leadership in property stokvels, their flexibility and relevance to members' needs, access to large scale opportunity, and building collectively whilst being debt free. Finally, the study highlighted various challenges associated with property stokvels such as the time it took for the property to be transferred to the participants. Notwithstanding these challenges, the study found that the benefits of property stokvels outweighed their challenges. It also found that property stokvels were more appropriate than mortgage financing, particularly for low-income earners, for purposes of gaining access to property. The study recommends that property stokvels should be used more extensively in the mainstream economy to facilitate property purchases. This is especially true for low-income groups in South Africa. It is also recommended that banks should amend their processes to ascertain how they can help property stokvels operate more effectively so as to give ordinary South Africans more widespread access to property