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This paper employs a quantitative approach, in which a structured questionnaire containing 90 indicator variables identified from literature was administered to a total of 266 households in South Africa. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were utilised in analysing the collected data, with goodness-of-fit based on a two-index strategy used in determining model acceptability. The SEM results showed that all eight identified exogenous (independent) factors (demographic characteristics, dwelling unit features, neighbourhood features, services provided by the government, household self-congruity, functional congruity, green building features and stakeholders' relations) had a direct positive and significant influence RLC in South Africa. The general hypothesis that the choices of households in choosing where to reside or stay are a product of the direct influence of the exogenous variables in influencing RLC in South Africa is proven. This suggested that all eight (8) variables included in the model are the most significant determinants of the RLC in South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding lay theories on the causes of economic inequality is the first step to comprehending why people tolerate, justify, or react against it. Accordingly, this paper aims to develop and validate with two cross-sectional studies the Attributions for Cross-Country Inequality Scale (ACIS), which assesses how people explain cross-country economic inequality–namely, the uneven distribution of income and wealth between poor and rich countries. After selecting and adapting items from existing scales of attributions for poverty and wealth, in Study 1, we tested the factorial structure of this initial pool of items in three countries with different levels of economic development and inequality, namely, Italy (n = 246), the UK (n = 248), and South Africa (n = 228). Three causal dimensions emerged from the Exploratory Factor Analysis: "rich countries" (blaming the systematic advantage of and exploitation by rich countries), "poor countries" (blaming the dispositional inadequacy and faults of poor countries), and "fate" (blaming destiny and luck). The retained items were administered in Study 2 to three new samples from Italy (n = 239), the UK (n = 249), and South Africa (n = 248). Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) corroborated the factorial structure of the ACIS, and Multi-Group CFA supported configural and metric invariances of the scale across countries. In addition, we show internal consistency and construct validity of the scale: the scale correlates with relevant constructs (e.g., beliefs about cross-country inequality and ideological orientation) and attitudes toward relevant policies related to international redistribution and migration. Overall, the scale is a valid instrument to assess causal attribution for cross-national inequality and is reliable across countries. By focusing on resource distribution from an international perspective, this scale will allow researchers to broaden the discussion on economic inequality to a global level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water, energy, and food are economic resources whose security and sustainability affect human livelihood. This paper is dedicated to exploring the influence of economic indicators on the security and sustainability of these resources within the water–energy–food (WEF) nexus. The research employed a quantitative approach, gathering data through a structured questionnaire from 282 WEF management professionals in South Africa. The collected data were subjected to statistical analyses, including mean score ranking, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modeling (SEM) using EQS and SPSS software. The results of this study highlight the significant impact of economic indicators on the sustainable security of WEF resources. The mean ranking revealed that there is a need to understand people's economic power for resource sustainability. The CFA and SEM analyses identify four key economic indicators that influence resource security: WEF resource pricing mechanisms, employment rates in the WEF sectors, WEF resource importation, and WEF resource exportation. In conclusion, managing economic indicators within the WEF nexus calls for strategic investment based on comparative advantage. The study provides valuable policy recommendations to support this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper demonstrates a simple methodological sequence for the statistical calculation of a context-sensitive quality of life index especially suitable for use in the Global South, i.e. lower and middle income countries. We draw on the large (n = 24,889), area-sampled, survey dataset of the fifth Quality of Life Survey (QoL V, 2017/18) of South Africa's Gauteng province, conducted by the Gauteng City-Region Observatory. Using overtly exploratory analysis, and a fully reflective conception of indicators, we apply exploratory factor analysis (EFA) in two stages to generate our model, while defending our approach methodologically and empirically and indicating its philosophical foundations. We contrast this approach to previous analyses using the QoL I (2010) data, which defined their dimensions and assign their indicators in advance, drawing on literature and indexes largely from the Global North. We ran series of EFAs on 60 longitudinally available variables from the QoL V data set. This allowed us to determine the optimal number of factors/dimensions, guided by established criteria and the interpretability of the grouped indicators. Each dimension score is calculated arithmetically, using the indicators' factor loadings as weights. Then the dimensions, weighted by their eigenvalues, are aggregated into the composite index, scaled to run from 0 to 100. The resulting seven-dimension, 33-indicator model was validated through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on the QoL V data; and its configural invariance, i.e. whether the pattern of indicators amongst the factors holds over time, was checked against the two previous QoL datasets and confirmed. This validates the ability of the approach outlined to generate a stable index. Analysis of the resulting quality of life index by race and municipality reveals trends consistent with the South African context. Overall, the White population group has the highest measured quality of life index, followed in turn by the Indian/Asian, Coloured and Black African population groups. Changes in the quality-of-life ranking of the nine municipalities comprising Gauteng province may be observed over time, using the validated previous models. The value of the exploratory approach in enabling context to influence the index construction is highlighted by the emergence of a distinct dimension of bottom-up political voice, which is relevant for democratic governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emotional awareness, emotional regulation, empathy, and resilience are key components of emotional intelligence. Twenty-first-century leaders require such competencies, and prior research establishes a positive impact of emotional intelligence on leadership and well-being. The mechanisms through which leaders develop these competencies remain unclear. Mentoring, a developmental tool linked with well-being, has not been extensively studied for its role in emotional intelligence development. The current study investigates this relationship within the context of vocational education and training in South Africa. The mentoring framework includes individual, peer group, and key performance area mentoring. In previous research on this mentoring framework, leaders perceived emotional well-being as the most important outcome of mentoring and development, constituting another vital factor. Data were collected from a treatment group of leaders who have participated in the mentoring framework and a control group of leaders and lecturers (N = 139). The present study used exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis to validate the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test within this context. In the next step, we employed descriptive analysis to answer which mentoring type was best perceived to support emotional intelligence. Using the Mann-Whitney U test, we tested for significant differences in the identified factors between treatment and control group. Mediated and moderated mediation analyses explored variables such as gender, occupational role, organization, and work sector. Results indicate a six-factor structure of emotional intelligence, with significant differences observed between groups in the factor empathy difficulty. Peer group mentoring emerged as an effective method for emotional intelligence development among leaders. The perceived importance of emotional intelligence for one's job position, the organization, and the work sector mediated five of the six factors. The moderated mediation analyses showed an indirect effect of gender, where being male was associated with more trustworthy visionary and empathy. The findings underscore the significance of peer mentoring practices and organizational factors in nurturing emotional intelligence, highlighting its value for personal and organizational well-being. Overall, the study sheds light on developing emotional intelligence at all organizational levels to support individual and collective well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Joint ventures (JVs) serve as a viable tool in mitigating some of the challenges posed to the effective delivery of construction projects. However, JVs are highly susceptible to failure in most developing countries. Therefore, this study seeks to unravel the critical factors influencing the failure of JVs in the South African construction industry. Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative approach was adopted for the study using a well-structured questionnaire as the instrument for data collection. Respondents for the study were built environment professionals in Gauteng province in South Africa. Data elicited from respondents were analyzed using a four-pronged process which included descriptive statistics, one sample t-test, exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. Findings: Resulting from the analysis conducted, four critical components emerged as the major factors influencing the failure of JVs in the South African construction industry, which are inefficient financial framework, divergent organizational culture, poor project governance and inadequacies from project stakeholders. Practical implications: The outcome of this study presents a roadmap for stakeholders in the construction industry with the requisite knowledge of the critical factors leading to the failure of JVs, consequently providing a clear path for the successful delivery of JV mandates. Originality/value: Evidence from literature suggests that several studies have been conducted on the various aspects of JVs in the South African construction industry; however, none has focused on the leading factors attributed to the failure of JVs. Also, the findings of this study cultivate a good theoretical platform for future studies on JVs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fatalities, injuries, and illnesses continue to occur in the construction industry (CI), despite efforts made by clients, designers, and contractors. The lack of collaboration between these project actors and construction health and safety agents (CHSA) remains a challenge for both construction professionals and academics. Given the urgent need for CHSA to collaborate with other construction project members, this study proposes a model for improving CHSA collaboration and its influence on health and safety (H&S) performance. The exploratory sequential mixed method, which included a Delphi study and a questionnaire survey, was adopted. H&S experts were purposively sampled. A three-round Delphi study was conducted to identify the factors, and these factors were categorized into 9 main factors developed from a review of the literature and the input of 15 H&S experts, 14 of whom completed all 3 iterations. Stratified sampling was used to gather quantitative data. A total of 257 questionnaires were returned, of which 213 responses were usable for analysis. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 was conducted and resulted in 6 main factors. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to establish the validity and reliability of constructs, and finally, path analysis in EQS version 6.4 was used to analyze the results of the questionnaire survey and evaluate the goodness of model fit. The findings were that mutuality, trust, institutional support, project context, and common purpose contribute to CHSA collaboration. Additionally, the influence of project context, common purpose, and CHSA collaboration on H&S performance were found to be statistically significant. The study's implication is that in order to improve H&S performance, clients, designers, and contractors may not limit the participation of CHSA on the project. The implication for the CI is that by promoting CHSA collaboration, the likelihood of CHSA influence could increase and H&S performance could improve on construction projects. The study revealed that collaboration should be considered for improving H&S performance. The study is limited to respondents who met the selection criteria to participate in the Delphi study and questionnaire survey. Any registered persons who did not receive regular communication and announcements would have not participated. Despite the requirements of the South Africa Construction Regulations 2014 that CHSA should be part of the construction project team, more studies should be conducted to investigate the CHSA level of involvement on the project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of the tourism sector has been highlighted and featured in various studies indicating not only the economic but also social and environmental benefits. There is a need for a measurement instrument for regional tourism destination competitiveness. This measurement instrument could gauge a destination's regional potential for tourism development and competitiveness; and be able to compare regions. To conduct an instrument development and validation, both PLS-SEM for confirmatory factor analysis and SPSS were utilised for exploratory factor analysis. A purposive sampling approach were used for both study areas, Sedibeng and Fezile Dabi district municipal regions, in which pilot studies were executed through a survey between July to September 2020. The reliability of the measurement instrument was confirmed with Cronbach's Alpha (α) for both samples having a value above 0.70. The EFA confirmed the validity of the measurement instrument for the three-dimension and 16-items of the measurement instrument. This study recommends using the measurement instrument as a practical tool to analyse regions regarding the development and competitiveness of a tourism destination compared to other destinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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