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IR 016 532

Prinsloo, R. J., Ed.Human Sciences Technology: Ways of Solving Problemsin the Human Domain.Human Sciences Research Council, Pretoria (SouthAfrica).ISBN-0-7969-1484-293157p.

HSRC Centre for Science Development, Division:Research on Science and Technology Development; P BagX41, Pretoria 0001, South Africa.Books (010) Collected Works General (020)

MF01/PC07 Plus Postage.Behavioral Sciences; Cooperation; *EducationalTechnology; Foreign Countries; *Human Resources;Problems; Quality of Life; *Science and Society;*Social Problems; *Social Sciences; TechnologicalAdvancement; Technology; Training MethodsSouth Africa

This book covers a representative sample of the typesof technology developed by the South African Human Sciences ResearchCouncil (HSRC). It is divided into five sections: (1) "Introduction"(Andries R. van den Berg); (2) "Technology for Education andTraining" (A. Cecilia Bouwer); (3) "Technology for Managing HumanResources" (Terry R. Taylor); (4) "Human Sciences Technology inManaging Problems Arising from Social Issues" (Pixie G. Oberholster);and (5) "Future Perspectives" (Roelf J. Prinsloo). The aim of thebook is to indicate social and organizational needs that could beaddressed through human sciences technology. This publication servesthree functions: to create a greater awareness of the fact that thehuman sciences need not be restricted to describing and explainingwhat is going on in society; to stimulate students in the humansciences with a listing of a wide array of technology; and to promotecooperation with other professionals and stakeholders in utilizingthe potential of the human sciences to improve the quality of life ofall South Africans. References are included with each section.(TMK)

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HUMAN SCIENCES)) TECHNOLOGY:

Ways of solving problemsin the human domain

Editor: RJ Prinsloo

2

"PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIMATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED B

J.G. Garbers

TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE:INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)."

r

Human Sciences Technology:Ways of solving problems

in the human domain

Editor: R J Prinsloo

RGN/I-ISRCCentre for Science Development

Division: Research on Science and Technology DevelopmentPretoria 1993

Edited by R J Prinsloo

Published by HSRCCentre for Science DevelopmentDivision: Research on Science and Technology DevelopmentP Bag X41Pretoria 0001

ISBN 0-7969-1484-2

HSRC Centre for Science DevelopmentDivision: Research on Science and Technology Development1993

Cover design by Ronell Lareman

Printed by

HSRC Printers134 Pretorius StreetPRETORIA0002

4

Contents

PrefaceAcknowledgementsAbout the authors

Introduction 1

A.R. van den Berg (Group : Education)

4) Technology for Education and Training 15A.C. Bouwer (Group : Education)

3 Technology forManaging Human Resources 55T.R. Taylor (Group : Human Resources)

4 Human Sciences Technology inManaging Problems Arisingfrom Social IssuesA.G. Oberholster (Group : Social Dynamics)

5 Future PerspectivesR.I. Prinsloo (Centre for Science Development)

Subject index

5

87

121

147

Preface Human Sciences Technology:Long past and short history

Human sciences technology dates back to the emergence ofmodern science in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was during thatperiod that the foundations were laid for the development ofapplications of scientific information. Examples that readilycome to mind include the precursors to psychologicalmeasurement, demographic and social formulae, educationaland instructional instruments, etc. It is only recently, however,that some scholars have begun to argue that the term"technology" as such can also be applied to this category oftransformed information and knowledge in the human sciences.

But the idea of technology in the human sciences has not yetfound unconditional acceptance. It is unfortunately not alwaysclear what lies at the root of the opposition to the term "humansciences technology". There have been a number of argumentsagainst the use of this term and some of the more important onesare the following. First, there is the ontological view that theobject of study in the human sciences (namely the person in allhis/her relationships, actions, etc.) is so unique and complex thathe/she cannot be reduced to quasknatural) scientific models,instruments, etc. This type of argument can readily be seen inhermeneutics and phenomenology. The second category ofargument against technology in the human sciences derives fromscholars engaged in the critique of culture. Some of the moreimportant contributions have been made by the Neo-Marxists(inter alia through their opposition to logical positivism), thecounterculture writings of Jaques El lul and post-modernism(equating technology with scientism and modernism). Anotherrelated type of criticism is more moral in nature in the sense thathuman sciences technology is equated with social engineeringand all the dysfunctions it has brought in its wake. A differentkind of opposition to human sciences technology can be inferred

6

from the comments made by some critics which give theimpression that they do not see human sciences technology asthe outcome of the research process, reading meanings into theterm not originally intended.

The above reference to criticism of technology in general, andperhaps more so of human sciences technology in particular,should be seen as a warning against an uncritical and naiveacceptance of human sciences technology as the ultimatesolution to some of the problems plaguing modern society.Technology should always be viewed against the backgroun6 ofthe original theory and method from which it is derived andwithin the context within which it is applied. Clearly, the humanscientist should be wary of the dangers of a "technisisticseduction" (Mouton) and the trap of confusing technology withtechnocracy. In this regard, Rossouw's succint analysis of theseconcepts can be used as a pointer. Among other things he arguesthat technique and echnology should not be equated withtechnocracy and that there is no intrinsic reason for tensionbetween the humanities (the focus of his analysis) andtechnology. His analysis further shows that the nature of some ofthe disciplines in the human sciences is such that technology canbe obtained from them.

The preceding considerations also !save a bearing on a fairlycommon criticism levelled at the human sciences, namely thatthey are too open-ended and not sufficiently concerned with theproblems associated with the implementation of researchfindings. This view of the human sciences should not be ignoredat a time when social problems in particular are threateningmany countries and funds for research are declining sharply. Oneof the many ways of addressing this dilemma could be throughthe development of research-based human sciences technology.

This was in fact the opinion of Kenneth Prewitt, pastPresident of the Socia l Sciences Research Council in the US, whenI spoke to him in 1982 about the utilization of human sciencesfindings. The same view was also held by persons like Roberta

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Miller and Lee Sechrest who were actively involved in theConsortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) which wasfounded in that year. The purpose of the consortium was topromote and lobby the case of the social sciences following thecut made by President Reagan in the federal appropriation forthe social sciences. The discussions I held with Prewitt, Miller,Sechrest and others helped shape my own views on humansciences technology in important respects.

Since its establishment, the Human Sciences ResearchCouncil (HSRC) has been actively involved in the developmentof human sciences technology in the form of the construction ofpsychological and educational tests and instruments, and thedesign of training courses, remedial packages and organisationalaudits. These activities are, however, not explicitly defined ashuman sciences technology, but rather as the application ofresearch findings. It was only after the state introduced the policyof framework autonomy, which required the HSRC to earn anincreasing portion of its budget through contract work, that itwas realized that greater importance should be attached totechnology development. The emerging view was that while theHSRC should be involved in research on nationally importantissues, the development and marketing of human sciencestechnology would be a useful strategy to address some of thepressing needs experienced by various organizations andinstitutions. This conscious attempt to promote human sciencestechnology led to the adoption of an in-house policy in thisregard.

The HSRC's policy on human sciences technology definestechnology as "an ongoing process of developing, structuring,applying, adapting and evaluating human and non-humanresources within the broad field of the human sciences to meetthe needs of society and market needs", it further commits theHSRC to

investing a portion of its resources in the developmentand/or adaptation of technology,

undertaking proper needs assessments,

ensuring the validity of the technology,catering specifically for poor communities, and

adhering to the principles of responsibility, quality,participatory methodology and sound economic policy whileit at the same time being accountable to society, respondentsand clients.

The technology policy should be read in conjunction with theresearch code, which means that all the ethical criteria applicableto research activities apply equally to the development andapplication of human sciences technology.

This book covers a representative sample of the types oftechnology developed by the HSRC. As such, it does not pretendto be a treatise on the methodology of the development oftechnology in general or of particular instances of technology. Itsaim is to indicate some social and organizational needs that couldbe addressed through human sciences technology. It follows thatthe description of examples of such technology is often brief. Inmost cases, though, reference is made to the research that led tothe development of the particular technology. Researchersinvolved in the development of technology are very sensitive tothe need to base the design of such technology on soundresearch, as wdl as the need to test empirically/and otherwise theeffectiveness (validity, relevancy, reliability) of the product.

I trust that this publication will serve at least three functions:First, that it will create a greater awareness of the fact that thehuman sciences need not be restricted to describing andexplaining what is going on in society. Important as thoseprimary scientific ftrictions are, they often fail to assist theprofessional and practitioner directly in doing something abouta problem. It is hoped that this publication will focus attention onthe often unrecognized potential of the human sciences to gobeyond description, explanation and understanding by offeringstandardized techniques, instruments and designs for

9

addressing some of the challenges which regularly confrontorganizations and society at large.

Secondly I hope that students in the human sciences will bestimulated by the wide array of technology listed in thispublication. It is important that students realize the possibilities(and limitations) of their disciplines in order to make them thinkmore creatively and innovatively about their.own professionaldevelopment.

Finally the book is intended to promote co-operation withother professionals and stakeholders in utilizing the potential ofthe human sciences to improve the quality of life of all SouthAfricans.H.C. Marais

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This book is dedicated to Dr J.G. Garbers, former President of theHSRC and to Dr H.C. Marais, Deputy President of the HSRCwho origin:illy used the term human sciences technology andwho motivated the authors to write this book.

Special thanks go to Dr Marais for his valuable comments onan earlier version of the manuscript. It goes without saying,however, tnit the responsibility for the final version rests withthe authors.

Sincere thanks and appreciation to those who, in theirvarious ways, contributed to the book at certain stages and inmany ways.

Thanks to all our colleagues at the I-ISRC who preparedcontributions at the early stages of the project. Many of thesecontributions have been incorporated in the book. It isimpossible to thank each of them individually, but specialmention must be made of:

Mrs Wendy de Klerk for her painstaking assistance with theword processing and technical preparation of earlier, as well asthe final version of the manuscript;

Dr Elisabeth Lickindorf from the Department of English,RAU for language editing some of the chapters;

Ms Norah Haussman for valuable technical advice and MrBerney Clark who provided the photographs;

Filially to my fellow authors who entharked upon thisventure with me, thank you for your patience and co-operationat times when progress was very slow.

R.J. Prinsloo

1 1

About the authors

A.C. BouwerCecilia Bouwer started as a language teacher at secondary

schools where she taught English Second Language, Latin andNorthern Sotho. She was a school psychologist with theTransvaal Education Department, and has lectured at theUniversity of Pretoria. She has been involved with research at theHSRC since 1984 and is at presentSenior Research Specialist andProgramrne Leader: Learning and Instructional Products.

Ms. Bouwer obtained the degree D.Ed. at the University ofPretoria, with a dissertation on Guidelines for an English readingprogramme for Black primary school pupils Standards 2-5.

In 1992 she received the P.M. Robbertse Medal, the HSRC'shighest internal research award, for technological innovation inthe field of teaching reading and remedial teaching.

A.G. OberholsterArie Oberholster is Deputy General Manager of the Group SocialDynamics, and was previously Executive Director cf the Institutefor Historical Research (1986-1990) and Manager of the Divisionfor Social Development (1990-1992) of the Human SciencesResearch Council. He was appointed to the ArchivesCommission in 1989 and is a member of the DevelopmentSociety of Southern Africa.

He obtained his M.A. (History) in 1970 and D.Phil. (History)in 1979. During 1990 he obtained his B.Corn, at the University ofSouth Africa.

R.J, PrinslooRoelf Prinsloo is the Manager for Research on Science andTechnology Development at the Centre for Science Developmentand was previously Executive Director of the Institute forPsychological and Edumetric Research. He obtained his M.A.(Psychology) in 1968 and D.Phil. (Psychology) in 1972 at theUniversity of Pretoria.

12

He was Chairman of the Test Commission of the RSA andChairman of the Council of the Psychological Association ofSouth Africa, and he is registered as a research psychologist withthe Professional Board for Psychology of the South AfricanMedical and Dental Council.TR. TaylorTerry Taylor is head of the Cognitive and Personality ResearchProgramme at the HSRC. He obtained his M.A. (Psychology)(cum laude) in 1977 and D. Litt. et Phil. in 1984.

He joined the HSRC in 1971 and now holds the position ofChief Research Specialist. He is responsible for the developmentof most of the tests used in industry and has a special interest infairness in job employment. He has published widely andinternationally on psychometric issues.

A.R. van den Berg.Andries van den Berg completed his tertiary education at theUniversity of Pretoria. During the sixties he started his career atthe National Bureau for Educational and Social Research (theHSRC's predecessor). He is currently manager of the Division ofEducational and Psychological Test Development in theEducation Group of the HSRC.

He specialises in the mathematical and statistical aspects ofthe development and standardization of psychological andeducational tests and has a special interest in the strength andnature of the relationship between cognitive development andsocio-economic deprivation.

He has contributed to various publications on test theory andwas one of the first persons in South Africa who contributedsignificantly to computerized item banks.

1 3

"1621111111111.11111

11INTRODUCTION

A.R. van den Berg

1 4

The concept of technologyThe application of the laws of nature" by the human race tosecure its existence has probably been in use since timeimmemorial. The very existence of humans, as with all otherforms of life, depends on the "laws of nature" and the interactionbetween the organism and the environment through themanifestation of these laws. To what degree human beings willever "understand" these laws has been debated by cosmologistsand philosophers throughout the ages. The urge of humans toknow or understand "why everything is the way it is" has ledthem to extend their inquiries not only into the depths of space,into the minute intricacies of the atom, into the complex structureof the molecules that are believed to be the building blocks of life,but also into the structure and functioning of the human brain.Human beings are social animals. Their biological make-updetermines that their basic needs can only be satisfied if theyco-operate with other humans. For this co-operation they need toheed and apply the "laws of human nature". A belief that usefullaws of human nature do in fact exist is a logical prerequisite forthe writing of this book. It is, however, vital to remember that allsuch "laws" can only be formulated in terms of probabilities.Even the basic "law" that all human beings must die has becomeless certain in the light of the transplantation of human organsand cryogenics which hold the possibility that advanced lifeforms may one day be frozen and kept dormant for an indefinitetime and later be revived by controlled thawing.

Science can be seen as an enterprise which involves method,facts, and abstract theory. Scienti fic method, often called research,is characteristically systematic and does not seek to imposepeople's desires and hopes of people upon the flux of things.Theories must be supported by logically acceptable evidence,which must be weighed carefully and tested with the canons ofnecessary and probable inference. By virtue of its method, theenterprise of science is a self-corrective process.

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In spite of the lofty ideals of science, humans do desire to;mprove their quality of life. Technology is needed for this. Whenknowledge, tools, and skills are applied to solve practicalproblems and to extend human capabilities, one may say thattechnology has been applied. In other words, technology may beviewed as that body of knowledge, skills, and systems that isutilised by humans to produce economic goods,or to developmore advanced capabilities to produce economic goods.Technology is different from science. Science is aimed atunderstanding while technology is aimed at doing, making, andimplementing.

The origin of the knowledge that is implied in the definitionof technology, comes from the combined field of science andtechnology. lt may be obtained from the body of science, fromeveryday experience, from art, from sudden insight, or from anyother source. Of course, the principles of science, whetherdiscovered or not, always underlie technology. There are,however, a great many examples where discovered technologyhas preceded or even spawned the discovery of the scientificprinciples or laws on which it is based. There is little doubt thattoday the most reliable and consistent source of relevantknowledge is research and development (R&D) that is speciallyundertaken to obtain solutions to clearly defined problems.Admittedly, it is not always clear where science ends anddevelopment with the aim to apply new knowledge begins.Because unbridled undirected search for new knowledge is notaffordable even by the most advanced economies in the world,most research today can be labelled applied research, i.e. researchaimed at obtaining knowledge that can be used in producingtechnology. However, the role of basic research to ensure thesurvival of the human race cannot be denied. At the time ofwriting, newspapers report that the USA government is aimingto increase its budget for basic research by 50 percent.

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The impact of technology on societyNearly 400 years ago Francis Bacon wrote that "knowledge ispower". Today we would say rather less poetically that science isessential for efficient technology. The human urge to know seemssometimes to have been displaced by a materialistic urge to makeuseful things. In present times those nations producing most oftheir economic goods and services using technology that isextensively based on knowledge derived from modern scienceseem to thrive economically, while nations that struggleeconomically seem to use little or none of the latest scientificdiscoveries in their technology. The nations at the top of theeconomic ladder are those at the forefront in producing scientificknowledge on which new technology may be based. The nationsat the middle of the economic ladder are those with people whoare able to understand, and build technology on scientificprinciples. The nations that rely on technology which isgenerated elsewhere to produce economic goods and servicesmay attain an acceptable general living standard. But the nationslacking citizens who are able to utilise modern technology forproduction are likely to vanish, or to enter a state in which theyhave to be benevolently or paternalistically "protected" by moreadvanced nations.

The aims of this bookThe views presented above lead to the conclusion that a nationwishing to thrive economically, or in other words, achieve agenerally high standard of living, is compelled to work for theadvancement of science and the development and use ofscientifically based technology. This book concerns thetechnology based on the human sciences, a sphere of the sciencesthat is, unfortunately, not generally regarded as producingknowledge on which technology can be based. The concept ofhuman sciences, as used here, is meant to include the fields that areoften referred to as the humanities, the social sciences, and thebehavioural sciences. The misconception that the human sciences

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cannot spawn the production of technologythat is, methods ofdoing, making and implementingoften leads to anundervaluation of the technology based on the human sciences,which in turn leads to underinvestment in the advancement ofthe human sciences. This is particularly disquieting in the light ofthe fact that the most serious problems of the day are rooted inimproper human development and dysfunctional humaninteraction.

The aims of this book therefore include the following:

(i) To give decision makers in all sectors of the economyin Southern Africa an overview of the broad spectrumof human sciences technology at their disposal forimmediate implementation, or which could beproduced at relatively short notice forimplementation. Although there are undoubtedlymany other examples of human sciences technology,it has been decided to restrict the illustrations in thisvolume to the technology which has been producedby the HSRC.

(ii)To illustrate the return of investment by thegovernment through the HSRC, in the advancementof the human sciences.

(iii) To focus on future developments in human sciencestechnology.

The role of valuesHuman beings would probably be unable to cope with thevicissitudes of life without adopting beliefs and values that canguide their actions and help them to control their emotions.Because humans are social animals with biological and materialneeds, confl icts of interest are certa in to a rise between individualsand between identifiable groups of people. Such conflicts ofinterest form the basis of politics, while values form the basis ofthe rules by which such conflicts are resolved. It should be clearlystated that political priorities in the funding, execution, and

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implementation of social sciences and technology cannot bevalue-free or divested of such conflicts of interest, particularlythose in the sphere of politics. Although political issues cannot bereduced to technical issues, the application of technology canmodify, or intensify, political issues.

There can belittle doubt that the application of technology inthe past has eased many threats to the safety and the biologicalneeds of countless people worldwide, but simultaneously manynew problems have evolved. These include long-term globalthreats from the possible greenhouse effect, the possibledepletion of the ozone layer, and pollution on land, sea, and inthe air. These threats are well-known, but other problems arisingfrom the application of technology also threaten civilization. Insome economies there are many unemployed but highly andinappropriately educated people. As a result of advances inmedical technology, the population growth in some countries isso high that local economies cannot accommodate all thenewcomers. There are also economies in which the application oftechnology has eased life so much that some people have moreleisure than they can handle responsibly.

One unexpected result of the application of moderntechnology is the growing coolness and sometimes evenantipathy toward technology. The vital wealth-creating role oftechnology is frequently forgotten and only the negativeecological effects are considered. lt is all too easy to condemndevelopment in a relatively undisturbed area if one's owntranquillity is disturbed but where one's own job or future job isnot at stake. This coolness or antipathy leads to a reluctanceamong young people to train for careers in science andtechnology.

This reluctance is enhanced by the fact that many othercareers provide better financial rewards and more social statusthan careers in science and technology. This trend may result ina shortage in the near future of the technicians and scientists whoare needed to maintain economic well-being. Possible antisocial

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behaviours in jobless people that arise from an economic slumpmay be so disastrous that civilization itself may be threatened.

Technology has at times come under attack by groups ofpeople who see the application of technology as a means bywhich certain elites can clandestinely maintain or even enhancea privileged position vis-a-vis other groups. Technology used formechanization can be mentioned here, but examples morerelevant to this discussion include the alleged use ofdiscriminatory psychological testing in personnel selectionprocedures, and the less visible but possibly more pervasive useof job evaluation procedures. A standardized job evaluationprocedure is often used to provide the most important input todetermine what remuneration should be given for different jobs.The problem is that a job evaluation procedure assigns a financialvalue to different kinds of job activities according to the valuesystem of the developer(s) of the procedure. Such accusationsshould be, and fortunately often are, taken seriously by themanufacturers and users of the relevant technology.Manufacturers and especially users must take the responsibilityfor the social consequences of using technology. They should notbe surprised when society holds them accountable for practicesthat abrogate generally accepted social values of the time.

As an example of the endeavour to create human sciencetechnology that will have little or no covert implications, theattempts by responsible test constructors to producepsychological tests that are unbiased with regard to biographicalvariables such as age, sex, language and ethnicity can bementioned. A complicating factor is that test bias cannot beempirically investigated outside the framework of a scientifictheory or model. Because of ethical restraints on experimentingwith human beings, the difficulty,if not impossibility, ofobtaining the co-operation of all experimental subjects over aperiod of time, and the probabilistic nature of human laws, it ismore difficult to choose between competing theories and modelsin the human than in the natural sciences. The very model that is

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chosen as a framework for investigating test bias may thereforeto a certain extent be determined by the investigator's own biasor world view. Competing theories in the human sciences, withtheir important consequences for technology, emphasize theneed to continue and even to escalate basic research in the humansc iences.

It is also instructive to mention a problem where basicscientific research is unl ikely to help solve the problem. The valuesystems underlying job evaluation procedures are intertwinedwith those that lie on the spectrum typified by the economicsystems of socialism at the one extreme and free enterprise at theother. Job evaluation procedures can never therefore bepolitically neutral. There are reasons why scientific endeavourmay find it formidably difficult, if not impossible, to produceobjective information which will help to solve the problem ofconflicting economic values. These reasons include thefollowing:

(i) The values in question (and tI refore also theassociated behaviour) may be changed in individualsby education, indoctrination, or intimidation.

(ii)The factors that are involved with changes in valuesand the possible interaction between these factors areunknown.

(iii) The limits and reversibility of changes in values andassociated behaviour are unknown.

Evaluating human science technologyIn a letter in a company newspaper, a graphic designer wasperturbed by what he thought was the ease with which "peoplewithout proper background" criticized the products of graphicdesigners. In another context the same person described thecolour grey as a "dignified" colour and not a "boring" one. Whatare the criteria by which technology ought to be judged?Subjective criteria such as those used by the graphic designer toevaluate colours will simply not do. Relatively objective criteria

21

based on measurements of the resultant properties of thetechnology employed are needed. Because of the complexity ofhuman behaviour, absolute consistency of results will probablynever be achieved. Sophisticated statistical sampling andinferential techniques will often be needed to decide howefficiently a given technology achieves its aims. The matter isoften further complicated by the considerable time that has toelapse before measurements of the "final" outcome can be made.Although not all technology is founded on sound scientificprinciples, confidence in a particular technology will also beenhanced if it can be shown that it is logically structured onreasonably well-established scientific principles. Technologystructured around a "black box" should always be regarded withsuspicion.

The fact that selling human science technology can befinancially profitable complicates the task of a practitioner whohas to decide between two competing technological productsthat are supposed to do the same job. Marketing strategies aresometimes designed to conceal the weak points of an instrument.Few people are trained and/or experienced in judging theappropriateness of experimental designs and statisticaltechniques used in the evaluation of technology. Scientificjournals of the social sciences help researchers to evaluate humanscience technology, but relatively untrained persons in thehuman sciences, such as managers in corporations or in publicagencies often are, have serious difficulty in making informeddecisions about what is viable technology or what is a currentsocial fad. Marketers know this and some exploit it in theirmarketing strategies: they sometimes direct their efforts to sellingto managers who have too little relevant technical or professionaltraining to evaluate the technology in question but who arestrongly attracted to the purported benefits of implementing thetechnology. Pressure may then be put on subordinates to use thetechnology. The subversive effect of mistakes of this nature

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sometimes takes a long time to manifest itself and may never beidentified as the cause of problems.

lt is obvious that the developer of human science technologyshould be aware of the needs of prospective users. The developeris usually compelled to involve end users in the development ofa product. End users have come to expect and legitimatelydemand quality products, but products are often developed in aniterative process, i.e. a process in which better versions of theproduct are produced in consecutive stages. However, the userscan also legitimately demand that the evaluation of the productshould be integrated into its development and that it should bedirected at improving as well as producing sufficientscientifically based evidence for the efficiency of the product.

Statistical technology plays a significant role in humansciences technology and supports the whole process of research,from the design of an investigation to its conclusion. It includesthe sampling of data, exploratory data analysis, statisticalinference and model building, and the final interpretation ofresults. Statistics help us by providing the rules wherebyuncertainties and chance effects in human behaviour cansystematically be taken into account when making inferencesfrom data.

Statisticians find themselves in the midst of a revolution incomputer technology that favours the growth and developmentof statistical technology in the different facets of data analysis.The use of software packages as "magic boxes" can, however, bedangerous. Naive acceptance of the assumptions underlyinganalyses and the even more naive assumption that the data iserror free, may lead to decisions with unhappy consequences.The message here is clear: obtain the advice of a competentstatistician when vital decisions have to be made on inferencesfrom statistics obtained from complex statistical models,

It is often costly to draw a representative sample from ahuman target population. It is much cheaper to draw aconvenient sample. Experts in the field of sampling are

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sometimes dismayed by the statistical naivety shown bymanagers who have to spend money to obtain information fromsamples and then choose the cheapest, and often most uselessoption.

An empirical investigation in the human sciences is usuallybased on observations obtained from a sample which is drawnfrom the target population. Information obtained from thesample elements is then generalized by using methods ofstatistical inference to reach valid conclusions regarding thecharacteristics of interest in the target population. The findingsand conclusions drawn from such a sample survey will onlyapply to the population from which the sample has been drawn.However, to reach sdentifically valid results it is essential that thesample should in all relevant respects be a good approximationof the population, that is, the sample should be representative ofthe population. Efficient and cost-effective sampling proceduresdepend on what is known about the population to be sampled.Statisticians have designed a number of sampling procedures(some containing multiple stages) that will optimize theprobability of obtaining a representative sample within theconstraints of a given budget. All of these sampling proceduresinvolve random sampling at some or other stage.

The impact of human sciences technologyIn the 1990s and later, organizations in Southern Africa will beconfronted with strategic decisions on how best to revitalize theireconomic performance. Human, social, and institutional factorswill be particularly significant in this process of revitalization.

In studying the social impact of implementing any exampleof human science technology, one may on the one handdistinguish between who is influenced, individuals oridentifiable groups of people, and between what is influenced onthe other hand, for instance attitudes, wellbeing, capabilities,interactions and values. An impact study in an organization forinstance, after the introduction of a new merit assessment scheme

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2 4

or a new computer system, could provide management withinformation to counteract any negative impact or to maximallybenefit from any positive impact. Social impact studies could beundertaken by organizations themselves, or could be performedby any suitably qualified organization, such as the HSRC.

While managers are understandably concerned about theeconomic benefits to be derived from the implementation oftechnology, the benefits to be derived from the implementationof human sciences technology are not generally appreciated. Afew examples will illustrate how important such benefits may be.

Personnel selection and assessment usually involve the useof psychological and/or other tests. This is an excellent exampleof the implementation of human science technology. A study bySchmidt, Hunter, McKenzie and Muldrow (1979) shows that thewidespread use of a valid test to select computer programmerscould result in a productivity enhancement worth millions ofdollars. Van der Walt ('1989) estimated that the elimination of theweakest 10 % of first year students with the aid of a scientificallydesigned selection battery could result in an annual saving ofalmost R17,7 million, whereas the cost of developing a suitableselection battery would only be in the region of R1 oo 000.

Ergonomics (the scientific study of the efficiency of man inhis working environment) has applications in fields such asaviation and power plant design. Many lives and millions ofrands may be at risk when errors arise from the poor readabilityor interpretability of control gauges. Tornatzky and Solomon(1982) reported that the original design of the F18 Americanaircraft prevented pilots from reaching certain controls andperforming certain essential tasks. Ergonomic specialists helpedto redesign the cockpit. The resulting changes improved thesafety of the aircraft and saved the manufacturer millions o;dollars.

Survey technology is used extensively to obtain informationfor government and business organizations on the knowledge,attitudes, needs, behaviourial intentions and behaviour of

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prescribed target groups. Thrnatzky and Solomon (1982)reported that in the USA in 1978 approximately $4 billion wasspent on surveys. The information obtained was used, amongother things, for policy making, assessing market potential, andinvestment decisions.

There is a tendency, even by human scientists, tounderestimate the role of human sciences in social ci.ange. Somescientists even speculate that inventions in the human sciencesmay be important causes of social change, and also that theyprovide the tools needed by society for adapting to change.Modern society has come to depend heavily on the humansciences and its technologies. Without them, desirable socialchange will be impossible. These arguments may raise thespectre of undesirable social engineering. The only way forsociety to prevent iindesirable social engineering is to Ilse all themeans at its disposal to keep democracy alive.

References

Tornatzky, L.G., Solomon T (1982). Contributions of social sci-ence to innovation and productivity. American psychologist,37:747-755.

Schmidt, EL., Hunter, J.E., McKenzie, R.C. & Muldrow,(1979). impact of valid selection procedures on work-forceproductivity. pmrnal of applied psychology, 64:609-626,

Van der Walt, H.S. (1989). Unpublislwd memormalum on the benefitsof person, wl select tot t and Macennt r'suIIuz,fro,n 1 IS RC researchand ihveloonent. Pretoria, HSRC.

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4).1.TECHNOLOGY FOR

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

A.C. Bouwer

APO..

2 7

BEST COPY AVAILABLE

IntroductionAt present, many people undoubtedly regard the field ofeducation and training with a sense of hopelessness, seeing it as

a minefield of difficulties. The problems range from macro-levelissues such as educational policy, the provision of facilities andservices, teacher training and the curriculum, to issues morespecifically related to classroom practice, e.g. teachingtechniques, subject methodologies, the quality of textbooks andother courseware, and learning difficulties of various types.

The more severe a country's problems pertaining toeducation, the greater the need for well-researched, dependableprocedures and techniques which could bring about someimprovement in educational praxis. In fact, introducing neweducational technology into the classroo:1 has the added bonusof indirectly enhancing the quality of teaching throughproviding good examples of praxis which teachers may thenapply in other subjects and contexts. Findings by the World Bankconcerning educational intervention in the developing worldmoreover suggest that the provision of educational materials isthe most cost-effective way of improving educational quality(World Bank, 1989; cited by Liddell et al., 1990).

In Southern Africa the need for appropriate educationaltechnology in its broadest sense is felt on all levels of formaleducation, from the preprimary to the tertiary phase.Educational technology is also imperative for basic adulteducation and non-formal education and training in the job

situation.The improvement of learning and training pertains to far

more than media management, educational programmedevelopment and learning resources. The applications andimpact of educational technology could range across virtually all

educational issues from teaching praxis to the evaluation of

courseware, programmes and systems; and from thedevelopment and use of high-technology procedures to themacro issues of educational planning and provision.

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On 1 October 1990 the Group:Education was officiallyinstituted within the HSRC, marshalling an impressively largeand most knowledgeable team of educational researchers. Theexpress aim of the group is to contribute to educationaldevelopment in the country through research and development,and its vision is to promote the optimalization of education bymeans of multidisciplinary research and development. TheGroup:Education is concentrating on four broad areas, namely

learning and instructional productseducational assessmentpsychology in educationeducational systems and strategies.

Some of the most important areas of expertise now residing in theGroup: Education, are the following:

developing and evaluating textbooks and courseware forvarious skills and subjects

evaluating and adjusting the readability of textbooks forspecific grade levelsidentifying potential in pupilsdeveloping and standardizing tests and aids for learningdeveloping item banks and diagnostic tests for languages, thenatural sciences and other school subjectsapplying such instruments to improve the standards ofeducationcompiling and presenting programmes in fields such ascareer guidance, study methods, sex education and cognitiveenrichrnent

developing a curriculum, courseware and training strategyfor adult basic education

planning and evaluating education systems and curriculagathering and processing educational statisticsdeveloping educational modelsdetermining attitudes to particular issues in education

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undertaking macro-research projects in partnership withother stakeholders in education.

In addition to creating a number of specific products the HSRChas over the years accumulated a vast body of knowledge andexpertise which could prove invaluable to the country in thedesign of situation-specific and user-specific materials orprocedures, as well as in the evaluation of educational systemsand programmes. These products could be developed by theHSRC, or by other institutions using the guidelines as publishedby the HSRC.

This chapter offers a brief overview of some of the productswhich are available. It reflects the expertise in educationaltechnology which rests in the HSRC, and will also refer topublications containing guidelines which could be directlyutilized in the development of materials or procedures for theunique requirements of any education situation. Attention willfirstly be directed to technological development at the classroomor micro-level of education for children and adults, andsubsequently to applications of technology at the macro-level ofeducation.

A focus on the classroom

The role of coursewareTextbooks and other educational materials are crucial foreffective learning at any level in school or college. This holds truenot only in the formal setting of the classroom, but also forindependent learning and/or homework tasks in which specificprinciples and content must be practised or applied.

Courseware must be inviting and must present the contentsystematically and lucidly, in a way and at a level appropriate tothe particular group of learners. Both the language in the text andthe didactic approach or methodology governing theexplanations are therefore tremendously important.

In South Africa in particular, textbooks and other educationalmaterials are at present under severe criticism for their overall

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quality and the level of language usage. Much of the coursewareis thought to disregard the special needs which some pupils mayhave. For example, a large proportion of the pupils are sorelyhampered in their efforts to follow lessons because the mediumof instruction changes for them in Standard 3 from their mothertongue to one of the official languages (Van Rooyen, 1990). Theyalso lack the language proficiency required to comprehendprinted text adequately (Macdonald, 1990b). Problems such asthese underscore the importance of devising educationalmaterials locally and with great care.

In the job situation, employers in this country are faced witha mammoth training task at all levels. The field ranges fromliteracy training and basic adult education to courses inadvanced management skills, and furthermore encompasses theinterests and activities of entrepreneurs as well as those ofestablished companies. The value that custom-made trainingmodels and courseware could have in this sphere, certainly firesthe imagination.

This section will first consider the nature of the informationthat the HSRC has accrued through research, that is provingvaluable in materials and course development. Next, someeducational products that have already been created by theHSRC will be briefly introduced. The discussion will deal withthe preschool and school phases and will cover the issues ofcognitive development, instruction and learning, the use oftechnology for learning and for broader purposes, andeducational and psychological tests.

A knowledge base for materials developmentExpertise and research findings from a variety of projects anddisciplines in the HSRC are currently making an exceptionalmarriage in the field of educational materials development.Valuable information has already been gathered on issues suchas the following:

the learning needs of various social, population and agegroups

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insights concerning curriculum developmentdidactic expertise in the various school subjectsprinciples for modular instructioncriteria for the development of worksheetslearning difficulties of various types and originsexpected achievement levels per subjectsocio-economic and socio-cultural effects on learninglanguage acquisition and language problems in the mothertongue and a second languagethe use of high technology for specific learning tasks, and inspecific learning environmentsconsiderations of educational policy and provision.

Drawing from this store of information and expertise, the HSRCis clearly able to develop courses and courseware to suit theunique requirements of any institution or group in SouthernAfrica. The preliminary work still required in individual caseswould generally be limited to a needs analysis and theformulation of learning objectives for a particular course andtarget group.

Two products under development could contributesignificantly to courseware development in the country, namelythe HSRC Text Analyser and a computerized instructionaldesign data base.

In creating and evaluating English educational materials forSouth Africa, readability in terms of the requirements of secondlanguage speakers is increasingly recognized as a crucialcriterion. The HSRC Text Analyzer will enable publishers toproduce More appropriate materials for a targeted readership ata particular level. It could also be utilized as a clearingmechanism by a department of education when selectingsuitable textbooks and prescribing literature.

The data base for the computerized text analyzer comprisesa grade level word frequency list derived from a corpus of 1,2million words from educational materials currently in use in this

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country, a receptive vocabulary of lower primary school pupils,and Dale's 769 and 3 000 word lists. The items have further beencoded in terms of ten parameters which have a bearing on wordcomplexity in English, such as the degree of phonic regularity,word length, morphological structure, parts of speech, aridpossible experiential base of acquisition. For each text to beassessed, the client will specify a reading level as well as the limitsfor each parameter which he wishes to bring into consideration.All words in the text not meeting the specifications will be taggedin a printout of the text for closer editing. Word complexity is ofcourse not the sole criterion of readability and the HSRC will beoffering an editing service to complement the analysis withregard to issues of syntax and presentation.

The Computerized Instructional Design Data Base willcontain the most reliable and recent findings and information onlearning and instructional design, including text design. Themost prominent sources and experts in the field have beenidentified and this body of knowledge will form the core of thedata base. To computerize the information a commerciallyavailable utility package will be used. The data base contains 17core fields, each allowing for more specific levels of articulationthat enables the user to define information needs veryspecifically. The first five fields cater for the instructional designkeywords. The following twelve allow for specification of aparticular target group, the subject area, the particularinstructional medium/media, the instructional mode, thefindings and the sources to substantiate findings. The data basewill be utilized for consultancy purposes to provide training ininstructional design and might ultimately be marketedcommercially.

The HSRC has already created a number of educationalproducts catering for general needs. Feedback on their use alsoconstantly broadens the existing knowledge base for futurecourseware development.

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HSRC courseware

The preschool phaseThere has been growing concern about the high failure rateamong African school beginners, especially in the junior primaryschool phase. Recent statistics suggest that 24 % of South Africa'spreschool children are likely to fail their first year of formalschooling (Schwartz, 1990; cited in Liddell et aL, 1990).

The reasons for African pupils' scholastic difficulties havebeen researched from a number of perspectives, the latestincluding socio-cognitive development in the preschool phase(Liddell et al.), and language-related issues (Macdonald, 1990a;Kroes, 1987; HSRC, 1986). The data derived from this research isproving invaluable in conceptualizing and refining learning aidswhich could effectively supplement the learning experiences ofAfrican children in terms of general school readiness andlanguage acquisition, especially where learning must take placein the medium of a second language.

The vast number of African toddlers and preschoolers whoattend creches and childminding establishments while theirparents are at work, has been identified as a group of children inspecial need of exposure to enriched learning experiences. TheHSRC was contracted to put together a stock of toys which couldbe widely distributed at a low cost, to cater specifically for theirdevelopmental needs. This brief resulted in the creation of theCoke Toybox, containing sufficient activities for six to 15children, aged between two and four years, at an average cost ofa mere R37 per child. This toybox is indeed transforming manydrab and impoverished childminding settings into bright andbusy educational centres.

An extensive baseline study was conducted to ensure thatthe toybox would really suit the conditions for which it was beingdesigned. In addition to psychometric tests, the study involveddirect observations of the children at play in the childmindingestablishments, covering a range of developmental features oftheir play and measuring their spontaneous levels ofcompetence

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during play (Liddell et al., 1990). The following areas wereanalyzed:

patterns of language use in playpatterns of social interaction in playtypes of activities children engage in during free playlevels of play with objectspatterns of cognitive engrossment and attention span.

After the introduction of the toybox into crèches andchildminding establishments, a similar set of data was collectedto assess the efficacy of the materials, and further improvementsare duly being attended to.

The activities provided by the enrichment materials in thetoybox are intended to stimulate the children in 13 different areasof social/psychological/educational competence. These are:

eye-hand coordinationco-operative learningshape recognition and namingspatial concept recognition and namingcreativityattention span developmentvocabulary developmentletter recognition not stressed for two to four-year-olds,

number recognition who are still rather young for theseskilk.

colour recognition

,0 left-to-right logical sequencingproblem-solving competencegross muscle development.

Specific criteria were adhered to in selecting and developing the

materials, namely:indigenous relevancepromotion of self-discoveryhigh proportion of local contentmulticultural contexts.

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Most of the articles are produced locally, providing valuable jobopportunities for a number of people.

Following the established principles and utilizing the datacollected during this enterprise, toyboxes could now be designedto meet other unique sets of requirements. The endeavourcouldalso be extended most fruitfully to home enrichment schemesand book schemes for use in a variety of settings.

The school phaseA comprehensive analysis of the activities and interactions ofAfrican preschoolers undertaken by the HSRC hasdemonstrated that their development conforms to the norms ofsocio-cognitive development established in similar research forwestern communities (Liddell et al., in press). Consequently, thedifficulties experienced by African pupils at school cannot beascribed solely to environmental and/or developmental factors.

The findings seem to point to deficits in the school situationitself, thus emphasizing the need for better educational provisionand the upgrading of teaching skills. This opens a dramatic newfield for the creation of innovative educational procedures andmaterials in the junior primary phase. Such a course of actionwould be a hopeful one, in that a solution which utilizesmaterials and teaching procedures is obviously more feasibleand promises more immediate results than one which has todepend on changes in the actual circumstances, activities and/orculturally determined interactions of the children and theirparents.

In all school phases, language difficulties have beenidentified as a crucial factor in the performance problems ofAfrican pupils. One of the projects which specifically addressedthis question was the Threshold Project (Macoonald, 1990a).

The primary problem which the Threshold Project looked at,was the nature of the language and learning difficulties that Std3 African children experience when they change from theirmother tongue to English as the medium of instruction andlearning.

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The research aimed to describe the nature and extent of thelinguistic abilities of African children in Std 2 3 and also thenature of the children's reasoning skills, in order to enhance anunderstanding of their performance on school learning tasks.

The Threshold Project also examined the disparity betweenwhat is expected of children in Std 2 in English as a subject(English as a second language) and what is expected of thechildren when they start to use English as the medium ofinstruction.

Careful observation of the children's school-based learningexperiences gave rise to insights about how these experiences canhelp or hinder learners. As an outcome of the research, it waspossible to formulate principles which are intended to assist andinform curriculum developers.

Since the completion of the six major reports of the ThresholdProject, the work has moved into new directions. In order toshare the information acquired during file course of theThreshold Project as widely as possible, a book for a layreadership has been written (Macdonald & Burroughs, 1991).This will form part of a larger dissemination process which willinvolve visiting groups and institutions who have a stake in thefuture of education in South Africa. The aim of this process willbe as much to learn as to share what has been learned.

In order to use the insights and findings of the research, anEnglish course, starting from Grade 1 and extending right up intothe senior primary levels, is being written. The new courseenables children to slot into English as a medium of instructionat any point from Std 1. The course is task-centered, starts withchild-centered concerns and rapidly moves outwards to dealwith maths, general science and geography topics. These topicsare dealt with in such a way that they will support the formalintroduction of separate subjects at the Std 2/3 level.

Although it will primarily be for second language learners,much of the course may well be suited to the learning needs offirst-language children too. The course takes into account what

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was learned about the need to transform the learning-teachingprocess. Likewise, it has, as a basic premise, the need to activelydevelop the cognitive skills required later by what is generallytermed the content subjects. These are two of the informingprinciples gained from the research.

This work, undertaken in conjunction with a majorpublisher, is intended as part of a larger drive which recognizesthe urgency of developing outstanding learning materials in theindigenous languages of South Africa as well. The importance ofthis perspective once again derives from the insights gainedduring the research, which highlighted the interrelationship ofthe development of children's first and second languages.

As part of an on-going educational programme, theThreshold Project also offers a workshop on text-analysis andevaluation, aimed to inform publishers and other peopleinvolved with the selection of reading materials for newly literatereaders.

On a number of occasions recently the Threshold Project hasbeen asked to advise on the suitability of learning materials in thelight of what has been learned. It is hoped that this kind of servicemay help to raise general awareness about the criteria whichmake for excellence in learning materials.

The data could obviously be put to further use in devisingtextbooks on all subjects which would be sensitive to the needsof second language learners, to match their standards oflanguage and reading proficiency and the cognitive skills levelsat which they actually function. In the Threshold Project, a highlysuccessful experimental development and implementation of amodule of science education materials for Std 3 was alsoundertaken. This work not only paved the waymethodologically for similar endeavours, but also confirmed thevalue of materials which provide learners with greater support.

Another set of HSRC projects addressing language problemsin learning, concentrates on reading. Preliminary research for acomprehensive supplementary reading course for senior

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primary pupils in African schools, also undertaken inconjunction with a publisher, yielded the following baselineinformation (Bouwer, 1990a & 1991):

a needs and situation analysis of English reading in Africanschoolsguidelines for developing a supplementary English readingcourse, aimed at promoting independent performance at asufficiently advanced level to enhance learning, and in aformat which would be specifical ly suited to the teaching andlearning needs connected with reading in a second languagea qualitative evaluation of the reading skills of African pupilsin Standards 2 5

an analysis of the question taking skills of African pupils inStd 2 5, in reading-related tasksa teacher and pupil interest inventory, suggesting contentthemes and modes of presentation which would have specialappeal for senior primary African pupils.

Based on the insights gleaned from the research, thesupplementary reading course is being carefully graded tosystematically teach the essential question taking skills throughvarious question formats, while at the same time graduallyraising the level of linguistic and content complexity. The coursespecifically aims at developing the skills of independent reading,to enable pupils to read materials of various types and to transferskills learnt in the reading course to their other reading activities.

The early levels of the course are also expected to fill thesorely felt need for more reading materials for new literates. Themore advanced levels of the course could again prove useful forbridging into integrated schools and to improve reading skillsupon entering the secondary and tertiary levels of education.

High technology in education

A support for learningThe acute shortage of teachers who are adequately qualified toeducate the vast numbers of children in Southern Africa, has

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already been noted. Although the final solution to the problemobviously lies in improved teacher training and recruitment,other measures must be considered in the short term. Hightechnology is popularly thought to be a viable option, especiallyin view of the ever-increasing stock of good courseware andprogrammes becoming available.

However, the technical equipment for education has nomagical powers which could at the push of a buttonautomatically bring about mastery of academic skills andknowledge. Selecting and utilizing such teaching and learningaids effectively, require special skills. Courseware design in itselfalso poses special demands. One area which the HSRC hasinvestigated profoundly, is computer-assisted readinginstruction and remediation.

Proponents of the meaning-based view of reading tend toregard the idea of technology-assisted reading instruction withsuspicion, expecting an undue concentration on controlledreading activities. Attention to what is termed the splinter skillsof letter and word recognition is often dismissed as a reflection ofoutdated reading instruction theory, which would presumablyfail to accord the actual comprehension of text its rightful value.The problem has long been compounded by the fact that fewgood curriculum designers became involved in the developmentof read ing cou rses for the computer (Balajthy, 1988), so that muchof what is available on the market meets with expressdisapproval from the discerning teacher

However, computer courseware for reading instruction haslately demonstrated marked improvement in design, as both thetechnology and the creative ideas for harnessing its potential forinteractive learning have developed apace. Users can now affordto become increasingly critical of the programmes on offer.Excellent results may be expected if teachers follow an interactivemodel of language and reading instruction in their applicationsof the software.

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A model for computer-assisted reading instruction onlyqualifies as interactive if learners are actively engaged inmonitoring their performance in word recognition and textualcomprehension in a meaning-based, individualized andintegrated manner. The computer obviously cannot besubstituted for authentic book materials. Yet, used wisely, it couldprove invaluable to the development of the learner's decodingand comprehension skills, especially if the courseware providesliberal feedback and includes activities which require asubstantial amount of reading on screen and from books.

The feedback with regard to incorrect responses is especiallyimportant, as pupils can learn a great deal from their errors. Notonly must the readers' understanding of the particular issue beenhanced (e.g. in terms of word knowledge), but so must theirreading strategies and cognitive skills in general. Meaning-basedoptions worth considering are explanatory remarks about theparticular error, or the technique of textual reference (i.e. callingup the paragraph which contains the relevant information forre-inspection, with or without emphasis on the exact sentence).

Detailed research by the HSRC on computer-assisted readinginstruction has recently culminated in an instructional model ofgreat sophistication, as well as a report on criteria for the design andselection of courseware for computer-based reading instruction (DuPlessis & Bouwer, 1990). In addition to the impact that it has hadon cour,-.eware design within the HSRC itself, the report also haswider relevance for programme developers and teachers ofreading.

Crucial factors in the new design mainly concern thefollowing:

the communicative use of the textsthe ways in which various screen display modes areimplemented to increase reading fluencythe activity and question formats selectedthe particular questions which are setthe feedback provided in case of errors.

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The model represents a synthesis of the top-down andbottom-up models of reading instruction, thus allowing for ameaning-based approach to reading via content, as well asgiving direct attention to word recognition skills. The material iscarefully graded in terms of word structure, syntax, expressionand content.

The computer facilities which are utilized in variouscombinations and forms, include the following:

various dynamic screen display modes for the reading ofprose' text against a time limit, e.g. per line with paced erasurefrom behind, per line progressively moving down the screenin simulation of a page of print, and on full screenthe tachistoscopic display mode, for flash exercises to practiseskills such as letter and word recognition, sound blending,and word discriminationthe timing facility, useful in measuring performance andmotivating the learner through self-challenge and visibleprogressa speech card, to be used, inter alia, for the self-checking ofpronunciation, spelling and verbal response exercisesthe creation of graphics, particularly valuable in supportingvocabulary development and enhancing the appeal of thelessonsfacilities for manipulating text on screen, e.g. moving text,invaluable in sequencing exercises, e.g. for chronological andlogical relationships and prioritizinghighlighting items, especially useful for emphasis duringselection procedures and as a feedback device for incorrectresponsesaltering and/or inserting items, in editing and Cloze tasksthe facility for unlimited repetition of items (any number andformat) in random or regular order, for drill-and-practiceexercisesthe branching procedure, allowing for options ofremedial/increased work per topic, skipping tasks,

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providing feedback, or even changing/escaping from speedsettings or activity formats.

Four sets of courseware for computer-assisted readinginstruction which adhere to the new model have already beenproduced in Afrikaans and an extensive English programmewith parallel strands for first and second language speakers isbeing developed.

In the Afrikaans courseware (dubbed "LEESPRET"), thereading levels overlap somewhat among sets, to accommodatespecific learning needs across a wide age range. Material forindividual children can thus be selected in a highly flexiblemanner for the double criterion of reading level and specificlearning requirements.

The aim of flexibility has been accommodated differently inthe English reading development course. "World of Words"(Wow! for short!) has a rich workbook base to provide the varietyof teachers' and learners' needs. Each chapter contains three textsrelated to a central theme, namely a story, a factual text and apoem, each with an extensive range of vocabulary andcomprehension exercises. At the junior level a fourth section,"Something interesting to do", contains activities related to thetheme the rationale being that young readers should beoffered the opportunity to apply their reading in real action. Thenarrative text further provides the base for the computerexercises.

The overall design is a good example of multipurposecourseware, adaptable for use in more than one situation. Thebook materials accompanying the computer programmes areinexpensive and may be used separately by teachers andtherapists, i.e. for the conventional modes of reading instructionand remediation. In this way the reality of the economicconstraints on materials development and educational facilitiesin South Africa has been accommodated, while yet makingadvanced technology available to those who have the means toutilize it.

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A similar approach has been adopted in creating a detailedself-help course in Afrikaans for secondary school pupils instudy techniques and critical reading. This course, "Weet enWen", aims at simultaneously developing advanced readingskills and effective study skills. Once again it finds its highestapplication in a computer-assisted version. Lessons integrateinstruction in enhanced reading fluency, comprehension skillsand appropriate reading strategies for various purposes, byapplying the principles in studies of factual content, requiring theextraction and structuring of relevant information.

Following the same model, custom-made coursewaredealing with particular themes and vocabulary items andaccommodating the specific reading needs of the target group,could be produced for any company or institution. Hightechnology support in literacy training is, for example, anenterprise deserving special consideration. A computer-assistedreading course in adult basic education will not only allowunlimited repetition and all the advantages of interactive soundand speed work to enhance letter and word recognition for latebeginners at a relatively low cost, but will also ensure aconsistently high quality of instruction, irrespective of thelanguage teaching expertise of the trainer. Throughindividualized instruction and record-keeping procedures, itwill ensure continuity by compensating for the high rate ofabsenteeism among literacy learners.

A general applicationA further area of computer application by the HSRC is that ofcareer guidance. A computer-assisted career guidance system,MENTOR, has recently been developed exclusively for SouthAfrican conditions. In view of the shortage of competent careercounsellors in the country, the MENTOR system addresses theneed for readily available relevant information for effective andindividualized counselling to several people simultaneously.MENTOR could render valuable assistance to high school pupils,currently totalling more than 100 000, students at tertiary

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institutions who are still unsure about their professional careersor who require information about financial support for theirstudies or about job opportunities, and also young adultsexperiencing career uncertainty. The system has made it possiblefor any individual to work through a well-planned careerdevelopment programme when the need arises.

The computer can store an immense amount of informationon occupations and educational and training opportunities. Thisinformation can be quickly and easily retrieved, and can be easilyupdated. The information can also be presented objectively.Carrying out search strategies is one of the best capabilities of thecomputer. The user can stipulate one or more criteria,whereupon the computer will produce a list of occupationsmatching the criteria. A variety of options can thus be exploredwith ease simply by changing the criteria.

One of the principles of career development is that the careercounsellor must be aware of the career development stage of theclient, the career development tasks in which the latter shouldcurrently be engaged, and how well the client is dealing withthose developmental tasks (Super, 1963).

The HSRC MENTOR system focuses on the careerdevelopment stage of exploration. This coincides with theadolescent and early adult years, i.e. the period when mostindividuals choose and enter an occupation for the first time(Holland, 1973). Vocational developmental tasks applicable tothe exploration stage are the following:

self-awareness (of one's abilities and limitations)the ability to make responsible decisionsawareness of resources in career explorationthe ability to relate self-knowledge to occupationalinformationthe ability to plan a career.

The HSRC MENTOR system is based on the assumption thatcertain systematic interventions can foster and streamline theprocess of career development. With the above career

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developmental tasks in mind, the following components of asystematic computerized career guidance programme weredrawn up:

self-concept clarificationtranslation of self-concept into occupational termsbroad and systematic exploration of occupationsteaching of decision-making skillsreality testing and information collection about tentativechoicesmaking choicesimplementing choices.

These components were then translated into parts or modules ofthe MENTOR system. Each section can be entered directly andused independently of the other sections. Printouts can be madeof any screen.

When the user elects to make a list of occupations to explore,several search strategies are presented, for example using theresults of the Values Scale or the South African Vocational InterestInventory (Du Toit, 1991), school subjects, level of education,starting salary, and job characteristics.

Detailed information on occupations is presented in the formof answers to six questions, which entail the following:

the nature of the work, the tools/equipment used and thework settingthe personal requirements, advantages and disadvantages ofthe occupation in questionthe school subjects, school level and educational/trainingrequirements, as well as possible ways of obtaining trainingfor the occupationemployers, areas of specialization and related occupationsthe salary range, opportunities for advancement and futureprospectsadditional sources of information on the occupation.

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MENTOR also provides general information on different types oftertiary education/training, including the addresses of thevarious institutions and the courses offered at each. The user canalso view the courses relating to a particular occupation at anynumber of institutions.

Each user signs onto the system with a unique code. Thesystem keeps a record of the results of any assessmentinstruments which the user completes, the list of occupationscurrently under consideration, and the parts of the system thathave been worked through. In this way the experience ispersonalized for the user, who feels in control not only of thesystem, but also of his/her career planning.

Educational testsIn all contexts of education and training, the evaluation of thelearners' progress forms an integral part of instruction. Testresults provide information by which to assess the standard ofthe instruction and make decisions about the learners'promotion. Without testing, instruction could become superficialand lose much of its intrinsic motivation.

Initial evaluation has been recognized as especially helpful inenhancing the quality of instruction. Assessing the learners'standard of performance at the beginning of an academic year ora particular course indicates the level at which the instructionshould commence. It may furthermore indicate relevant learningobjectives, by revealing the content and the level ofsubject-specific skills that the class could safely be expected tomaster.

Test results also identify those pupils in the class who mayrequire special attention on account of a learning difficulty.Learning difficulties of varying degrees and duration occur inevery classroom. All teachers have the responsibility to deal withthe problems of pupils who perform poorly. If timeouslyidentified, learning problems can often be solved by remedialteaching within the school. To this end, a careful assessment of

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the pupil's performance levels by means of diagnostic testing isessential, to decide upon the most sensible course of intervention.

Class tests and internal school examinations are undeniablyimportant, but this form of testing rarely meets the demands ofcomplete reliability, validity and objectivity. The standard oftesting by different teachers and in different schools may varyconsiderably, and may thus not accurately reflect the learners'performance. This could account for the dramatic drop in thegrades of some pupils when they change schools, and is also thereason why standardized tests are required for all the purposesof assessment described above. A standardized test hasscientifically normed scales, derived from the performance dataof a randomly selected sample of pupils who resemble the targetgroup with regard to all relevant characteristics. Most questionsin standardized tests have multiple-choice responses.

A multiple-choice item is a question consisting of a stem(where the question is asked or the problem posed) and anumber of options consisting of the key, or correct option, andthree distracters (incorrect options) which are clearly wrong toinformed testees but attractive to ill-informed testees.Multiple-choice items are extremely flexible and can be used totest an extensive variety of human characteristics, includingcognitive outcomes such as knowledge and the ability to thinkand make judgements. They admittedly do not directly measurethe pupil's ability to plan and formulate an extended piece ofwriting, although many of the underlying skills and thoughtprocesses can be measured in this way.

It has never been the point of view of the HSRC thatmultiple-choice questions should replace all traditional methodsof testing. The extensive use of multiple-choice questions ishowever advocated, as in many ways and contexts itundoubtedly represents a technological advance over thetraditional methods of testing. It is a considered mix of the kindsof measurement and is thought to be the most appropriatesolution to many problems in educational evaluation.

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Obviously no single test could address all the functions ofevaluation. The type of instrument must vary according to thepurpose of assessment. For small-scale and individualevaluation in the classroom, the options range throughachievement tests, proficiency tests and diagnostic tests. Thepurposes of general examinations are chiefly catered for by theitem banks.

Achievement testsAchievement tests measure the results of instruction andlearning at school. The items cover the syllabus content andassess the pupils' knowledge and insight with regard to thespecific content and skills which they may be expected to havemastered. The test results also reflect the pupils' degree ofreadiness for particular content, and predict the measure of thefututE 3uccess that they may hope to achieve in the subject (Owen& Taljaard, 1989). Initial evaluation tests, based on the syllabus ofthe previous year, have therefore developed as a special form ofachievement testing.

The following scholastic achievement tests standardized bythe HSRC are currently in use:

English First Language, Grade ii/Sub B Std 9Oral Achievement Tests in African Languages (ThirdLanguage) Std 5English Second Language, Std 1 9Standardized Achievement Test in Afrikaans First Language,Grade ii/Sub B Std 9Spelling: Afrikaans First Language, Std 3 5Afrikaans First Language Group Reading Tests, Grade 2/SubB Std 4Afrikaans First Language, Grade ii/Sub B Std 9Afrikaans Second Language, Std 5, 7, 8 and 9Afrikaans Listening Comprehension, Std 5 and 8Afrikaans Group Spelling Test, Grade i/Sub AListening Comprehension Tests in African Languages

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Initial Evaluation Test in Afrikaans, Std 2-5 and 8 (for DEP)(Third Language) Std 5 and 6Initial Evaluation Test in English, Std 2-5 and 8 (for DET*)Mathematics, Std 5 7

Mathematics (Seniors)Initial Evaluation Test in Mathematics, Std 1 10

Mathematics, Grade i/Sub A Std 4General Science, Std 5 and 7General Science, Std 9 and 10Physical Science, Std 5,7, 8HG, 9 and 10Algebra, Geometry and Trigonometry, Std 9 and 10Geography, Std 5History, Std 5Economics, Std 10HGAcademic Achievement Test for first year studentsLiteracy Tests in English Second and Afrikaans FirstLanguageBiology, Std 7,9, and 10 .

* Departnwnt tf Education and Training

Proficiency testsProficiency in a particular field of study or knowledge is definedas the level of knowledge, insight and skill that a person hasreached in that field as a result of his learning opportunities,experience, aptitudes, interests and motivation. Proficiency testsaddress the broad educational background pertaining to asubject, rather than the content delimited specifically by thesyllabus (Owen & Taljaard, 1989).

The following proficiency tests standardized by the HSRCare currently available:

Standardized Proficiency Tests Intermediate level. EnglishSecond LanguageStandardized Proficiency Tests Advanced Level. EnglishSecond Language

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Test of Basic Literacy in the main Sotho and Nguni Languages

Listening Comprehension Tests in African Languages (ThirdLanguage), Std 5

Diagnostic tests.A diagnostic test is primarily concerned with analysis and notwith measurement. The objective is not to compare a particularpupil's achievement with that of other pupils in the same gradeor age group in terms of a test score. The chief intent of diagnostictests is to sound out the pupil's mode and level of functioning ina particular subject, by noting the pupil's application of each ofthe various skills required and taught in that subject, andidentifying the points of breakdown in terms of the specificcontext, problem/task type and level of complexity involved(Bouwer, 1990b).

Afrikaans First Language Gr. 2/Sub B Std 9The rationale for a diagnostic test design could be said toresemble a check list, in that all the specific learning skillsoperating in mastering the various activities or content units inthe subject cdncerned, are represented in a graded constructionof subject-relevant tasks. The rationale for each task is formulatedin terms of the cognitive skills and learning behaviour requiredfor its execution. In interpreting the results of a diagnostic test,this information serves as a framework for understanding thepupil's style of cognitive functioning, as well as a guideline indevising an intervention strategy.

Interpreting a diagnostic test requires an in-depthknowledge of the skills and content of the particular subject, inorder to correctly infer the possible range of cognitiveimplications from the pupil's responses and test behaviour.Equal emphasis must be given to the pupil's correct responsesand errors, to compose a complete picture of the strengths andweaknesses underlying the performance.

The diagnostic tests standardized by the HSRC and presentlyin use, are:

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South African Written Language Test (Aft & Eng.,Gr.ii Std5)Test for Oral Language Production (Afr. Sz Eng., 4 y 6 m 10y 5 m)Mathematics Tests, Diagnostic, Primary Level (Std. 1 5)Diagnostic Achievement Tests in Basic Algebraic Concepts,Principles and Skills (Std 7 10)

Diagnostic Achievement Tests in Basic Geometry (Std 6 10)Diagnostic Achievement Tests in Mathematical Language(Std 6 10)

Diagnostic Tests in Basic Algebra (Std 7 -- 8)

Test for Auditory Figure-Ground Discrimination (5-10 years)Group tests and individual tests for Afrikaans reading Gr. iiStd 4).

Item banksAn item bank is a collection of items (test questions) with knownempirical propertiesat least their difficulty and discriminatingpower in relation to some defined reference group such as thepupils at a given level (e.g. Std 5 pupils) of a particular educationdepartment. As in the three types of tests already described, mostquestions in the item banks also have multiple-choice responses.

It could safely be said that no traditional examination paperis subjected to such rigorous refinement before it is used in a finalexamination, as are the items contained in the National ItemBanks. The fairness of the items is further assured by the fact thatpupils themselves help to determine their acceptability.

The items are written by teachers who are aware of thetypical level of attainment of pupils at the particulareducationallevel and have been trained in the art of item writing. Great careis taken to ensure that item bank tests cover the syllabusadequately. In all the subjects involved a specification table hasbeen developed that not only specifies the relevant content, butalso the relevant cognitive skills. Once written, the items aresubmitted to the members of an editing committee, who

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establish whether they are in agreement on the correct answer.Each item is edited according to the consensus reached by thecommittee. Clearly, writing good items is not a one-man job.

The items are then placed in experimental tests that areapplied to a nationwide sample of about 500 pupils, item analysisis subsequently performed on the data obtained in this way, inorder to select the successful items. The prime requirement is thatpupils with greater knowledge or insight (i.e. those whoseaverage mark is higher than the general average on the test)should tend to choose the correct option and those with lessknowledge or insight should tend to choose the distracters.

A question that has received much attention overseas, iswhether tests consisting of multiple-choice questions are biasedagainst different groups. Test bias can be defined as acharacteristic of a test to erroneously predict lower futureperformance on a criterion than is accurate for a particularsubgroup, although this does not mean that a test is necessarilybiased if it consistently indicates lower scores for one group thanfor another. It is actually possible for ally test to embody culturalbias. Without going into all the technicalities of test bias, thefollowing can be stated about the tests drawn from the NationalItem Banks:

Any test drawn for use by an examining body is subject toscrutiny by persons from that body who are responsible forexanlining the subject. They are expected inter alia to ensurethat no questions are asked that would be unfair to the pupilsconcerned.

Where pupils are taking the examination in a language otherthan their home language, it has been found that beingrelieved of the necessity to formulate extended answers in thesecond language does make the task somewhat moremanageable for them, as reading is easier than writing. Afairer prediction of their ability ill non-language subjectscanthus be obtained.

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The fact that items are pretested gives a degree of control overthe properties of tests drawn from the item bank that cannotbe equalled by any other means.

Other advantages of multiple-choice item bank tests include thefollowing:

Test reliability is greatly enhanced. One of thebest-established facts about multiple-choice tests is that withless examination time they produce far more reliable testscores than traditional examinations do.

Examination time is used most efficiently. When answeringmultiple-choice questions, the examinees use their time toread, think, decide and to make a little mark on an answersheet. In traditional examinations they spend their timereading, thinking and then writing a lengthy answer. Thelatter is a time-consuming, laborious process which severelylimits the number of questions that can be answered.

The principle is adaptable to new demands. Should there bean urgent need for multiple-choice tests in a subject wherethere is no item bank, it is possible to use the examinationsituation itself to refine the items. After having scored theanswer sheets, an item analysis program can be run and allitems that do not function satisfactorily can be eliminated.

item bank tests are economical to use. When large numbersof pupils have to be tested, multiple-choice questions provetheir economy. The cost of machine scoring is a little morethan R1,00 per paper. This is far less than the cost of markinga traditional examination paper. In addition the results arethen already on computer, whereas a further step is requiredto achieve this with traditional examinations. In terms of thewhole of South Africa with about 400 000 matriculants eachwriting six subjects, it could mean a saving of at least R4 800000, even before excluding the saving effected by reducing toone the number of examination papers in each subject.

One stringent requirement for the successful use ofmultiple-choice tests under examination conditions is themaintenance of strict supervision. Unauthorized persons in the

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examination room can easily divulge answers to examinees andit is also possible for examinees to use predetermined handsignals. However, a programme exists whereby one candetermine the level of probability that one candidate's answershave been copied by another.

At present the item banks consist of 500 to 1 000 items persubject and embrace the following subjects in Stds 5,6,7,8 and 10:

English First LanguageEnglish Second LanguageAfrikaans First LanguageAfrikaans Second LanguageGerman Third LanguageMathematicsPhysics and ChemistryBiologyHistoryGeographyAccountingEconomicSBusiness Economics.

The empirical properties of the items are presently expressed interms of statistics obtained on the basis of classical test theory(termed a "soft" true-score theory). This implies inter alia that thedata on each item must be interpreted relative to the referencegroup on which the items were applied experimentally. In thenear future the HSRC hopes to bring about significantimprovements to the empirical data on the items in the itembanks. All old data will firstly be recomputed using the methodsrelated to item response theory (termed a "hard" true-scoretheory). Where feasible, a second step will be executed by meansof an experimental application with appropriate repetition of thesame items at different levels, to link all the items in a particularsubject from Std 5 to 10 on a common scale.

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Item bank tests can be used in examinations in two ways:As part of the examination. The tests can be used to enhancethe reliability, validity and economy of traditionalexaminations by constituting a suitable proportion of atraditional examination paper. This could reduce the numberof papers set in a particular subject.As a moderating instrument. Item bank tests can be the onlyexternal test used in each subject to grade the internal marksof each school on a common scale.

Psychological testsThe quality of education for each learner can be considerablyenhanced by the wise application of information derived frompsychological tests. A psychological test is intended to measure(evaluate) specified aspects of an individual's personalityand/or cognitive ability. This additional information may forinstance be used to advise parents and teachers on issues such as:

sending a child to school or not, before the child has reachedcompulsory sdioolgoing agethe type of secondary school individual pupils shouldpreferably attend, and the curriculum which would probablyhelp them realize their full potentialfactors possibly related to a pupil's poor performancefactors possibly related to a pupil's problem behaviourremedial programines for a pupil with learning problemsplacing a pupil in a special education programmesuitable choices for tertiary education and/or other careerpreparations.

The psychologist has to assume the ultimate professionalresponsibility for using a test appropriate to the particularcircumstances. Test publishers in turn have the obligation toprovide relevant and accurate information about the reliabilityand validity of the tests that they publish, and the steps that weretaken to eliminate test bias with regard to variables such asgender, language and socio-economic status.

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A wide spectrum of psychological tests that have beenspecially constructed for use in educational settings, are oftenalso of value in organizational settings. Information on these isavailable in the regularly updated HSRC Test Catalogue. Thefollowing types of tests are available:

Aptitude testsIntelligence testsPersonality questionnairesInterest questionnairesProficiency tests in the official languages and mathematics.

Computers can receive, manipulate and deliver certain kinds ofinformation much faster than humans and it is therefore nosurprise to find that computers are already used on a world-widescale to administer psychological and educational tests.

The HSRC has developed user-friendly personal computersystems which enable one to compile test programmes from alarge available set of computerized tests. The system that wasdeveloped in the Education Group is called SIEGMUND, while thePsiTest was developed in the Human Resources Group. Thetestee is registered on the computer, and any one of theprecompiled test programmes can then be assigned to him/her.Thereafter all the tests in the battery can be administered bycomputer with no or minimal intervention from a supervisor.Completed tests will be scored automatically and normtransformation will be performed according to the specificationsprogrammed upon registering. The test user may also change thechoice of norm tables at any later stage. A profile of test resultscan be displayed and/or printed. If desired, the profile can becompared with any one of a number of standard profilesspecified beforehand.

The advantages of using SIEGMUND or PsiTest are such thatno highly paid professional person having to administer andscore tests on a regular basis, can afford to bypass such a system.Test responses are recorded very accurately. The timeexpenditure of professionals can be reduced to an absolute

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minimum, since test administration can be supervised by lessertrained people and scoring and norm transformation will bedone accurately, automatically and virtually instantaneously.

Adult educationThere is a rapidly-growing awareness of the importance of adulteducation, both for the growth of the individual and theeconomy. Companies and trade-unions, as well as literacyorganizations themselves, are looking for effective ways ofdealing with the many difficulties and challenges involved inoffering adults another chance to gain a basic education. Theneed for responsible answers to questions about literacy andadult education has given rise to the formation of an adulteducation division.

The adult education division began their involvement in thefield by assisting with the evaluation of existing literacyprogrammes for a number of companies. While evaluation workcontinues to come in, other areas of interest are also beingexplored: what the competencies are which would make up anadult basic education; what role the learners' own languageshould play in the acquisition of a basic education and what theoptimal role for English is in the process. Research being donein conjunction with NEPI is focusing on the nature of adultbasic curricula.

Other issues which are regarded as crucial to the future ofadult education in the country are the processes required tocreate a cadre of suitably trained teacher-facilitators. The criticalshortage of people who can train future teacher-facilitators foradults inevitably means that some form of provision needs to bedeveloped to train the people teaching future teacher-facilitators.The adult education division sees provision at both these levelsas vital to a serious commitment to adult education in SouthAfrica and is looking for constructive ways to contribute to theirdevelopment.

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Applications of educational technology on the macro-level

Data basesln education, numerous issues of policy, planning, provision andresearch depend directly on accurate and up-to-date informationon the number of pupils and teachers involved in the particularissue. Education statistics are vital to the determination of trends,the forecasting of educational statistics, and random sampling.

The HSRC plans and develops comprehensive data bases ofeducation statistics in a centralized format which allowsinformation to be retrieved as required. School statistics becomeavailable in April following the particular year, and the record ofacademic qualifications conferred by South African universitiesslightly later.

By centralizing the information from the various educationdepartments, uniformity of information is achieved. The formatis also immediately available for comparative studies. Other databases in the country are decentralized and the tiser is responsiblefor collecting information from different institutions andconverting this information to a uniform format. In the HSRCdata base the records of each educational institution moreovercontain the magisterial district codes, facilitating the supply ofinformation according to development areas.

Besides planning, developing and updating data bases forclients, the HSRC also retrieves, analyzes and/or tabulates datato meet clients' specific requirements. Publications are compiledto order. Enquiries about education and population statisticsfrom both the private and public sectors are dealt with. Clientsare advised on the interpretation of data and on the matters thatshould be taken into consideration in requests for educationalstatistics. Finally the names and addresses of educationalinstitutions can be made available on labels for educational use.

Unfortunately not all the information in the data bases isreadily available. Permission to release information for anypurpose other than educational must be obtained from thevarious education departments.

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The design and evaluation of education systemsSound educational planning and curriculum developmentdepend largely on the quality of the situation analysis conducted.This is a complex scientific exercise since education is closelyrelated to the economic, social, manpower and political issues ofa coimtry and it is impossible to evaluate education in isolationfrom these considerations (Nieuwenhuis et al., 1991). Indesigning and evaluating an education system the uniquedevelopment needs, the aspirations of the people and theconstraints on development, such as the lack of natural resourcesand land, must also be taken into account. An education systemis therefore viewed as part of a total complex of variables.

The aim in education systems development is to providepragmatic recommendations with regard to the specificsituation, for strategies to develop an education system whichwould satisfy the needs of the client. Guidelines are thenprovided for the development of the system, and priorities aredetermined for its implementation. In developing an educationsystem, a multidisciplinary approach is adopted and furthercombined with various system-planning strategies.

Considerations such as the following are dulyaccommodated:

all educational legislation and the principles on which thelaws are basedthe execution of the said laws and principles, in terms ofproviding education and training at all levels (formal,non-formal, and informal; basic and post-basic)financingmanagement.

The HSRC has accumulated an impressive body of knowledgeon the evaluation and development of education systems andcurriculum development through projects related to thedevelopment of a national tmining strategy (NTB/HSRC, 1991),the evaluation of the education systems of departments ofeducation (Nieuwenhuis et al., 1991), and the evaluation of

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specific programmes and curricula (Van der Merwe et al., 1991).The infrastructure and skill have been developed to undertakethis type of research and development work for clients in theformal and non-formal education field.

The evaluation of educational certificatesThe HSRC evaluates South African and overseas certificates inaccordance with the HSRC Act (Act No. 23 of 1968). Evaluationsare performed at the request of employers, employees,prospective students and other persons or institutions who needthis information for appointing individuals or admitting them totraining institutions.

At present more than 6 000 applications are dealt with eachyear. These include certificates issued almost anywhere in theworld from the United States of America in the west, to HongKong in the east; and from Scandinavia in the north, to theSeychelles in the south. A network of co-workers overseas hasbeen established to handle the large number of evaluations.

Approximately 50 % of all requests for evaluation aresubmitted .by employers. At present a large number ofevaluations are performed for Namibia for persons who haveobtained certificates in other countries as exiles and who haverecently returned to the country. This may also happen in SouthAfrica once exiles begin to return. Certificates obtained innon-formal education in South Africa are also evaluated. In theabsence of an accrediting body, this service is in great demand.Courses on offer in non-formal education are also evaluated withthe aim of determining the status of these courses.

Evaluations are based on internationally accepted principles,which include:

the accreditation/status of the training institution whichissued the certificate

the minimum admission requirement for the course takenthe minimum duration of the coursethe content of the course

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the examination requirements of the course.

ConclusionThe quality and scope of its education are central to thedevelopment and well-being of any country. Extensive andinnovative technological development is essential if thenumerous problems of praxis and provision inSouth Africa areto be solved.

The particular circumstances in the RSA obviouslydetermine what would qualify as appropriate educationaltechnology. The products and procedures must not only, in termsof their content and methods, suit the unique requirements of avaried population with divergent learning and teaching styles,needs and academic levels, but must also take the economic andpractical constraints of limited financial and human resourcesinto account. Carefully conceptualized and highly creativematerials development is therefore urgently required for allfacets of education in South Africa.

Locally developed products and expertise would obviouslybe preferable to most that could be obtained elsewhere, andcould be expected to guarantee greater success at a considerablylower cost. The HSRC is committed to the task.

References

Balajthy, E. (1988). Computers and instruction: Implications ofthe rising tide of criticism for reading instruction. Reading re-search and instruction, 28:49-59.

Bouwer, A.C. (1990 a). A proposed English reading programme forblack primary school pupils in Std 2 . 5. Pretoria: HSRC.

Bouwer, A.C. (1990 b). The diagnostic evaluation of languageskills. In: Basic edumetrics (Educational testing, measurement andevaluation). Part 1. Pretoria: UNISA.

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Bouwer, A.C. (1991). Content and reading levels for black pupils inStd 2 5. Guidelines for a reading development kit. Pretoria:HSRC.

Du Plessis, J.A.E. & Bouwer, A.C. (1990). Die rekenaar as hulpmid-del in leesonderrig. Pretoria: HSRC.

Du Toit, R. (1991). South African vocational interest inventonj. Pre-toria: HSRC.

Holland, J.L. (1973). Making vocational choices: A theory of careers.Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall.

HSRC (1986). The role of language in black education. Education Re-search Programme. Pretoria: HSRC. (Report No. 6)

Kroes, H. (1987). Comparative evaluation of lower primanj Englishcourses in black education. Phase 1: Theoretical evaluation. Preto-ria: HSRC.

Liddell, C., Masilela, P., Rapodile, J. & Strydom, N. (1990). Ef-fects of a play-based enrichment package on the play patterns andcognitive,competence of black South African children in day care.UnpubliShed report. Pretoria: HSRC.

Liddell, C., Kvalsvig, J., Shydom, N., Qotyana, P. & Shabalala,A. (in press). An observational study of 5-year-old blackSouth African children in the year before school. Internationaljournal of behavioral development.

MacDonald, C.A. (1990 a). Crossing the threshold into standardthree. Main report of the Threshold Project. Pretoria: HSRC.(Soling-16)

MacDonald, C.A. (1990 b). English language skills evaluation. A fi-nal report of the Threshold Project. Pretoria: HSRC. (Soling-17)

MacDonald, C. & Burroughs, E. (1991). Talk and learn and think.Bilingual primanj education in South Africa. Johannesburg:Maskew Miller Longman.

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Owen, K. & Taljaard, J.J. ed. (1989). Handbook for the use of psycho-logical and scholastic tests of IPER and the NIPR. Pretoria: HSRC.

Super, D.E. (1963). Vocational development in adolescence andearly adulthood: Tasks and behaviours. In: Super, D.E. et al.Career development: Self-concept theory. Princetown, N.J.: Col-lege Entrance Examination Board.

Van Rooyen, H. (1990). The disparity between English as a subjectand English as the medium of learning. A final report of theThreshold Project. Pretoria: HSRC. (Soling-20)

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TECHNOLOGY FOR

MANAGING HUMAN RESOURCES

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T.R.Taylor

It is almost a cliché to say that an organisation's most valuableresource is its workforce; cliché or not, this statement isundoubtedly true. As everyone knows we have a shortage ofskilled manpower in this country. Managing human resources istherefore very demanding: the emphasis lies not only on effectiveutilisation but also (much more than in First World societies) on

. the development of these resources. And as we move into a newera in South Africa, the emphasis on development will no doubtgrow stronger.

There are many facets to the management of humanresources. These include: recruitment and selection; staffdevelopment and advancement; organisation development;industrial relations; and human resource plan»ing. All humanresource activities a re aimed at one of or both the following goals:improving the effectiveness and productivity of the organisation,and improving employees' level of satisfaction with their jobs.These two goals might appear to be incompatible, but this is notnecessarily so: individuals who are given the opportunity todevelop their potential (and thus give their best to theorganisation) are usually those who are the happiest.

The human resources manager should strive for the highestlevels of equity in the workplace and eliminate all practiceswhich might be discriminatory. This is not easy to do, but is anessential part of our move towards a more just society in SouthAfrica; in any case, removing discrimination and optimisingfairness serves both the goals mentioned above.

In the following sections of the chapter, we examine thetechnologies which are available to the H R practitioner in hismain fields of activity to enable him to achieve the goals oforganisational effectiveness and worker satisfaction.

Recruitment and selectionIn order to fulfil current and projected human resourcerequirements in an organisation, staff has to be recruited. Somemanpower needs can be satisfied by recruiting from within the

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organisation and giving individuals the necessary training, butany company which maintains its size or expands has to draw onthe external labour market. The type of applicants that anorganisation attracts depends on its recruitment practices. Forinstance, if it advertises in a single newspaper, it is likely to limitits applicants to the segment of the population which reads thisnewspaper. This clearly has implications for employment equity.

Once candidates have applied for vacant posts, procedureshave to be applied to select the most suitable applicants. If theorganisation practises affirmative action, then further constraintsare imposed on the selection procedure. A wide variety ofmethods of gathering information are used for the purposes ofselection, including the curriculum vitae, biographicalquestionnaire, interview, and cogn itive and personality tests. Theinformation collected on a candidate is integrated in some wayin order to make a selection decision.

Most large organisations, and many of the smaller ones,make use of psychometric tests as part of their selectionprocedure. In fact, apart from the interview, tests are the mostwidely used selection aid. There are several reasons for thepopularity of tests, the most important being the following. Testsgive information which is more objective than that obtained frommost other selection techniques, and a person's performance canbe quantified and compared with that of a reference group, suchas other applicants for a particular job. Most tests are reasonablysimple to administer and are not too time-consuming. Finally,and most importantly, tests have been shown to predictperformance on the job or training course with fair accuracy.

The effectiveness of a test as a predictor of a work oreducational criterion (i.e., its predictive validity) depends on anumber of factors, including its accuracy and consistency ofmeasurement (its reliability) and its relevance to the criterion inquestion. One cannot simply use any test for a given selectionapplication. The test must be appropriate for the applicantpopulation to which it will be applied and have satisfactory

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psychometric propertie ,n this population; aad it must measurepsychological character ;tics which are important to successfulperformance on the joL r training course 1 or wl,ich it is beingused as a selection instt irrent.

In order to meet Ce varied needs of test wers, the HSRCmarkets a wide range of pencil-and-paper I ::sts, each designed tomeasure a specific psychological characteristic, in a specificeducational range. Alsi these tests have been standardised andvalidated on South African samples and each is supplied with amanual which indicat es suitable applications for the test anddescribes how to administer it.

I n South Affica tests used ill the human resources domain areclassified into three categories or levels: A, B, and C. A-tests aremainly proficiency am ability 'ests which are straightforward toadminister; B-tests are mainly a!)titudeand abi lity tests which aremore demanding to admintster; and Ctests are mainlypersonality tests and individual intelligence tests. The use of allpsychometric tests must be supervised by a registeredpsv '1ologist, and the interpretation of results done by him or her.Hov. ever, the psychologist is not required to actually administertests, and may delegate this task to suitably qualified individualssuch as psychometrists and psychotechnicians. In the case ofA-tests, the minimum qualification for an administrator is matricplus the successful completion of a short A-test user's course.

Tests have been classified into three categories and differentadministration requirements set in order to make testing asaccessible as possible to organisations, without compromisingstandards of testing. As the majority of tests are A-level and thusare not highly demanding of a psychologist's time, mostorganisations can do testing in a cost-effective way. Costs canbefurther cut by hiring psychological expertise on aservices-rendered basis rather than employing a psychologistfull-time (however, larger organisations normally have one ormore full-time psychologists on their payroll). Psychologists in

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private practice as well as in the employ of the HSRC areavailable to perform a supervisory service.

Computerised testsPsychometric tests have traditionally been administered in apaper-and-pencil medium; but in 1979 the then NationalInstitute for Personnel Research (NIPR), in close cooperationwith Eskom, began developing a computerised testing systemthat ran under the mainframe PLATO system. The test materialwas displayed on the computer screen and the subject respondedby touching the screen itself (all PLATO monitors have thisfacility). Although the PLATo-based NIPR Testing Systemworked successfully for several years, the drawbacks ofadministration through a mainframe became apparent.Mainframe systems can be expensive to run and are prone to"crashing". By the second half of the 1980s, PCs had becomeubiquitous and very affordable; thus the decision was made atthe NIPR to develop a PC-based testing system.

Two cornputerised systems intended for a wide range ofapplications are now marketed by the HSRC, one produced bythe Human Resources Group (the Psi Test system) and one by theEducational Group (SIEGMUND). In both systems the subjectenters his responses by pressing specific keys on the keyboard.This task has been designed to be simple; experience with akeyboard does not give a testee an advantage. Psi Test is beingsold to corporations for use on Local Area Networks and toindividual psychologists with stand-alone PCs. SIEGMUNDincorporates the more frequently used aptitude and intelligencetests. In both systems, the number of usages of programs isautomatically monitored and the charge to the user is calculatedon this basis.

In both systems access is controlled, and the chance ofconfidential information falling into the wrong hands is minimal.This is one of the advantages which computerised systems haveover conventional testing methods. COMputerised systems have

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other advantages, including the following: automatic anderror-free scoring, automatic conversion of raw scores to normedscores, reduced demand on testing personnel, greater flexibilityin testing timesTand the availability of additional scores, such asthe length of time taken to answer each item.

The HSRC also markets another, specialised, system knownas ART-90. This system is used to determine wb-Aher anindividual is likely to be a high risk on the road. Although theART-90 is not used, and is not likely ever to be used, as a screeninginstrument to decide whether a person is to be awarded a drivinglicence, it nevertheless has a number of applications. For instanceit can be used to determine whether an individual is fit to driveafter an accident in which he sustained brain damage; and it canbe used to select professional drivers.

ART-90 comprises a microcomputer through which thetesting is controlled and a console which incorporates a varietyof stimulus and response apparatus, including a flicker-freemonitor, banks of coloured lights, various press-buttons, andfoot-pedals. The system includes several tests which have beenshown to be related to road behaviour; each makes use of adifferent configuration on the console. The test administratorselects the tests he wishes to apply id the executive programcompiles this into a battery. A typk uattery may consist of thefollowing tests: sensory-motor co-ordination, choice reactiontime, performance of multiple tasks under time stress, andintelligence. In addition, a paper-and-pencil personality test maybe included in the battery.

There is a future for both conventional and computerisedtesting. Computerised testing has the advantages listed above,but conventional testing is the only viable option when largegroups of people have to be tested simultaneously.

SimulationsMost tests measure underlying psychological characteristics,whether these be of a cognitive or non-cognitive nature. Before

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assigning a test battery for a particular selection application, thepsychologist should make an analysis of the tasks whichcomprise the criterion (whether this be a job or trainingprogramme). He should then assign those tests which measurethe abilities that seem to be required in th( execution of thecriterion tasks.

For certain criterion activities, however, it is difficult toidentify the critical abilities. In these activities, a whole welter ofskills interact in a complex way, and merely measuring certain ofthese abilities does not lead to effective prediction of the person'slikely performance. Running a small business is an example ofsuch an activity. In cases such as this, simulating the criterionactivity in the assessment situation can lead to much moreaccurate predictions of the criterion than applying a battery oftests.

A "game" which requires the player to run an imaginarysmall business has been devised by the HSRC: it is known as the"BIZ Game". A version of this game involving retail selling hasproved particularly successful in distinguishing successful fromunsuccessfulbusiness people. In a research exercise undertakenin conjunction with the Urban Foundation, the game wasadministered to two groups of business people; one groupcomprised individuals with a proven track record of success, andthe other individuals who were only just surviving in thebusiness world. The former group made much more money inthe game than the latter (Boeyens, 1989). This version of the gameis used by the Urban Foundation to shortlist loan applicants. Alater version of the game is controlled by a microcomputer andcan be used for both selection and training. This game involvesboth manufacturing and retailing. The player has to make a widevariety of decisions, such as what workshops and shops to buy,how much raw material to buy, how many manufacturingassistants and shop assistants to hire, whether to take loans andhow much to borrow, how much to spend on advertising, howmuch to stock shops, and which lines to concentrate on. At the

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end of the game, the computer prints out a whole range ofinformation, from which an analysis of the player's performancecan be made. This information can then be used to make aselection decision (with regard to granting a loan), or can be fedback to the player as part of a training programme. The playermight then be asked to play the game a second time in order todetermine the degree to which his skills have improved after theintervention.

Using information in a fair way to make selection decisionsThe quality of decision-making in selection varies in terms ofaccuracy and fairne. Accuracy concerns the degree to which thefollowing two errors are minirnised: rejecting individuals whowould have been successful on the job if they had been given thechance to do it, and accepting individuals who turn out to beunable to do the job even at the minimum acceptable level ofcompetence. The selection psychologist should obviously striveto minimise both types of error, but under certain circumstancesit might be more important to minimise one type of error at tileexpense of the other. (An example is selecting airline pilots,where it is essential to minimise the second type of error.)

Fairness is a concept which is usually, but not exclusively,applied to recognised groups (e.g., blacks and whites, womenand men) rather than to individuals. In the selection context agiven group might regard itself as unfairly treated if it feels (asarticulated by some spokesperson or representative body) thatits members are being prejudiced in the selection process andtherefore are uilder-represented in the workforce of theorganisation in question. The concept of fairness is complex,especially because there is no single, universally accepted, "fair"way of making selection decisions. One person's fair is another'sfoul. Just as people have not managed to agree on a single "best"ethical system, so they have not managed to agree on a best wayof selecting candidates for jobs.

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The lack of consensus in this domain does not absolveemployers from adopting a particular fairness position ornegotiating one with its employees. An organisation shouldespouse a particular system so that employees or prospectiveemployees know the sort of organisation they are dealing withand so that selection procedures can be formalised andregularised. Various models of fairness exist, classifiable intothree main categories: unqualified individualism, qualifiedindividualism and quota. The nature of these models as well astheir advantages and disadvantages have been presented inHSRC publications (Holbum, 1991; Taylor, 1990). Holbum andalso Donald, Veldsman, Donald, Cook, Chemel and Taylor (1990)present step-by-step methodology for implementing fairnessmodels.

An issue closely associated with fairness is that of test bias.Although tests are probabiy the most objective tools available toselection specialists, they are not perfect. The possibility alwaysexists that a test is harder for a given group of individuals to dofor reasons -that are unrelated to the ability being measured.Many. tests assume certain cultural knowledge. Suppose that aquestion (called an "item") in a test of numerical ability iscouched in the context of a rugby game and assumes a basicknowledge of the game (for instance, the number of pointsscored in a try). An item of this type would be likely to be moredifficult for certain groups to do simply because rugby is notreally part of their culture. Such a question would be biased.

Questions as obviously biased as this seldom appear inpublished tests; but more subtle cultural factors sometimes docause bias. For the past few years, tests published by the HSRChave been subjected to bias research, and relatively few itemshave been identified as biased on the sophisticated tests of itembias which have been applied; an exception is in the personalitydomain, where bias may be more prevalent (Owen, 1989; Taylor

Boeyens 1991). Non-verbal tests (for instance reasoning tests

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which make use of diagrammatic stimulus material) generallyshow little evidence of item bias.

There is a second form of bias known as predictive bias,which concerns the re;ationship between test scores andperformance on the criterion (which may be an aspect of work ora training course). This relationship between the predictor (thetest) and the criterion can be described by a graphical line knownas a regression line. There are three critical parameters of this line:its slope, intercept with the vertical axis, and the error ofmeasurement. Predictive bias might be somewhat moreprevalent than item bias. In the USA p redictive bias has generallybeen found to favour less privileged groups; there is noguarantee, however, that the same will be found in South Africa.Test-using organisations are advised to check whether there isany evidence of predictive bias in their particular applications.Many organisations do not have the technical skills to do theanalyses required; however the HSRC is able to do the requiredanalyses on a consulting basis. Also, the HSRC has madeavailable a computer program known as NTS which runs on a PC;this is a user-friendly package which performs all the commonpsychometric analyses, including bias analysis.

Development and advancementSelection is of course only the first step in managing personnel.Once appointed, an individual has to be developed to be usefulto the organisation. The purpose of this process is twofold: toutilise the person's potential optimally, and to make theindividual's career as rewarding as possible. Thereby the needsof both the company and the individual are served. Theorganisation benefits by taking the needs of the individual intoaccount as much as possible (but obviously this has to be donewithin the constraints of organisational functioning), because asatisfied worker is more likely to give of his best and to be loyalto the organisation.

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There are several personnel management proceduresconcerned with staff development. We shall deal with a few ofthe main ones below.

TrainingWhen an individual comes into an organisation, he brings withhim certain basic knowledges, skills, abilities and other attributes(KSAos) which are of value to the company. However, theorganisation has specific needs in this regard, and no individualcoming into a company is ever perfect for the organisation'srequirements. Therefore the organisation has to put certainknowledges, skills, etc. into the individual. This must be done, ofcourse, within the constraints of the individual's potential, andtake into account, to as great an extent as possible, his ownaspirations.

Larger organisations employ training personnel who designmany of their training programmes. However, the in-housetrainers might not be in a position to create certain more specialistmaterial, especially that which is designed on psychologicalprinciples. Three packages of this type which are marketed bythe HSRC are briefly described in the following sections.

The 6M packageThis package is intended to teach basic business principles toindividuals with low levels of education, and who may havecome from a background where they had little contact withbusiness concepts. The six "Ms" are: Men, Money, Materials,Market, Machines, and Management the most importantelements of business activity. The package has beenprogressively developed over more than a decade (it started lifeas the 3M simulation) and has established an impressive trackrecord. Over 500 companies have implemented it with verypositive results in most cases assessed in terms of changedattitudes, increased productivity, and reduction in industrialaction and in wastage. Research has shown that many workers atlower levels in the hierarchy are remarkably ignorant about a

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number of aspects of business. For instance, some think that rawmaterials are free so why worry if much of it is wasted! Othersbelieve that the managing director takes all the profits forhimself. Many do not understand, or are distrustful of, theconcept of profit. The 6M is designed to correct misconceptionsand give trainees art overall view of the functioning of a business

the interaction of the six Ms. Then they have a better idea ofwhere they fit in the process and how their work contributes tothe success of the company; they also realize the importance ofcompetitiveness and efficiency in a free enterprise economy andhow this relates to their own job security and material wellbeing.The motivational implications of such a training exercise areself-evident.

A version of the program is custom-built for eachorganization that decides to implement it. Both text and materialsare developed to represent accurately the organization inquestion; this aids comprehension on the part of trainees andhelps them to "project" themselves ,into the exercise. Theprogram makes use of scale models' to illustrate the businessenvironment, and in particular the six Ms. There is also a modelto represent the opposition. The dynamics ofbusiness activity arecreated by moving materials from one location to another. Theprogram is administered by an instructor who is thoroughlytrained to present it in a professional fashion and to promotecomprehension. At the end of the program, understanding isassessed with a short test.

Some of the improvements that have been achieved as aresult of the implementation of the 6M are very impressive. Forinstance, a chemical company in Natal experienced a 25%reduction in the incidence of output that had to be reworked; andaccident rate among payroll employees dropped by over 30%. Ina construction company in the Transvaal, absenteeism reducedfrom 13% to 2,6%; attendance on Monday following paydayincreased from 26% to 89%; and worker's compensation claimsfor accidents reduced from R28 000 in 1988 to R500 in 1989. There

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are many more cases of dramatic improvements as a result of theimplementation of the 6M.

Supervisor and management coursesAn area where there is a great need for training is in supervision.This need extends from the lowest level to the highest. The HSRCoffers several courses to improve the quality of supervision andmanagement. At the lowest level, there is a course for illiterate orsemi-literate team leaders. This course covers a wide range oftopics, including the following:

objectives and structure of the organization in questionfunctioning and composition of the trainee's departmentplanning and organizing workcontrol (cost, production, etc.)problem solving and decision makingcommunicationmotivation and human relationsselection, placement, and labour utilizationinducting staffinstructing staffdiscipline and handling grievancessafety and health of employees.

A companion and somewhat more sophisticated course insupervision has been created for literate first line supervisors. Inaddition to the topics listed above, this course also includes amodule on industrial relations.

Mentoring packageAt levels higher than first line supervision, mentoring becomesan effective means of preparing people for advancement. Amentor is a manager or experienced person, regarded by theorganization as an expert and top-rate performer, who becomesinvolved in an interpersonal relationship with a more junior orless experienced person, the purpose of this relationship being todevelop the less experienced person, or "advancee". The

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relationship between the two is the business equivalent of therelationship between a professor and a postgraduate researchassistant.

The third "player" in the mentoring situation is theadvancee's supervisor, who is often not the same person as thementor. The HSRC has created course material to guide thementoring process; one set of material is written to be relevant tothe advancee and a second set is designed to guide the mentorand also the supervisor. Apart from clarifying the roles of mentorand advancee and other relevant concepts, the Fogrammeincludes a number of exercises (many of them done in groups)which are intended to help the players to be more effective intheir roles and hence to facilitate the mentoring process. Thefollowing is an example, drawn from the mentor/supervisorcourse material, which is intended to improve counselling skills.The mentors are brought together as a group and then dividedinto pairs. Each participant is then asked to think of a typicalsituation in which his advancee might seek help from him. Onemember of each pair then role-plays the situation with hispartner (who takes the part of the advancee). Thereafter thepartners swop roles and do another role-play. Finally, eachrole-play is enacted in front of the whole group who givefeedback on a number of dimensions, including genuineness,understanding, clarity, simplicity and concreteness. Advanceesdo similar exercises appropriate to their situation.

The course is done in the organization and extends over aperiod of about eight months. During this period there areseveral two-to-four day training sessions for mentoi 5. andadvancees.

Self-developmentThe HSRC also offers self-development courses for managers.There are two of these. The first has as its target group linemanagers or middle managers who are interested in advancingtheir careers. This course, which extends over three days, can be

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divided into three parts. The first part covers managementdevelopment in South Africa. It looks at the current position ofmanagement development in the country and pays specialattention to the changing role of the manager, new challengesmanagers have to face and factors influencing managementdevelopment. The second part concentrates on managementskills. It places emphasis on interpersonal and conceptualmanagerial skills such as problem-solving, decision-making,planning, organizing and controlling, as well as effectivecommunication and assertiveness. The final part coversself-evaluation and career development. Each trainee gathers awide variety of information about his skills. The techniques usedinclude feedback from questionnaires, practical exercises,interaction with the rest of the group, and interaction with theinstructor. This self-evaluation is followed by a SWOT analysis(analysis of strengths, weaknesses: opportunities and threats)which serves as the basis for setting career goals. These goals areset for a term of three to five months, after which progress isevaluated.

The other self-development course is intended for theimmediate supervisors and other seniors of managers who havecompleted the course described above. The rationale of thiscourse is that the successful implementation of knowledge andskills acquired during a training exercise is dependent on thesupport of colleagues, and especially seniors. The goal of thecourse is therefore to inform seniors of the input given tosubordinates during the course in self-development and careerplanning as well as to investigate their role in the careerdevelopment of their subordinates. Like the other course, thisone has three parts; these parts, however, are covered in only twodays. The first part is aimed at developing an awareness in thesenior of his supportive role for his subordinates and of thefactors in the organization that promote or hinder thedevelopment of human resources. In the second part,attention ispaid to the mentoring relationship, the stages of the mentoring

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process, and critical mentoring skills. In the final part of thecourse the seniors receive an overview of the input which theirsubordinates received, along with a complete manual.Thereafter, seniors meet their subordinates in a workshopsituation where the subordinates' development needs arecollectively examined (on the basis of the SWOT analysismentioned above). This is used to establish career goals for the

subordinates.

Career developmentAlmost all employees need to feel that their careers are goingsomewhere. Few people are willing to do the same job year afteryear without any prospect of advancement or of learning newskills and facing new challenges. Doing a job is a developmentalexperience: as time passes the incumbent acquires competencies,and the feedback which he receives from supervisors and others,as well as his personal evaluation of his performance, has animpact on his goals, aspirations and self-image. At some point heis likely to feel the need for a career move in order toaccommodate his evolving conception of himself and his career.

Career development ultimately depends on theorganisation: it has the power to promote or shift personnel, andto re-design (or enrich) jobs the individual obviously alsoplays a role in developing hi-711.Rn career, for instance in showingwillingness to take on new challenges and utilizing everyopportunity to acquire skills, knowledge and experience whichare useful for careers at higher levels in the hierarchy. Careerdevelopment is a complex process because it involves taking intoaccount a number of factors, some organisation-centred, someemployee-centred. Some of the former are: organisationalefficiency, constraints imposed by job hierarchies, rules andrequirements for promotion, manpower needs, and trainingopportunities; and some of the latter are: personal aspirations,abilities, and developmental potential. There may beorganisational requirements which impose unnecessary

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constraints on career development. An example is a staffing rulewhich stipulates (for no good reason) that an individual must bein job x for at least 5 years before he may be considered forpromotion to job y.

Career development cannot be done effectively in theabsence of information. This information falls into variouscategories: information about staffing policies, about jobstructures, about person specifications for given jobs, about jobopportunities, and about the job incumbent himself. Theinformation should be available to individuals who makedecisions on the job incumbent's career (supervisors, thepersonnel officer, career development specialists, etc.) and also tothe job incumbent. An individual feels more in control of hiscareer if he has access to career-relevant information. Theinformation about the incumbent is largely of a psychologicalnatu re and therefore shou Id be obtained by a psychologist skilledin career development. The techniques necessary to obtain thisinformation are sophisticated, and many organisations requirethe assistance of specialist career development consultants. TheHSRC has in fact developed an entire procedure of careerdevelopment and offers this as a service to organisations(Christierson, 1979).

Before seeing the job incumbent, the career developmentspecialist obtains all relevant information from the clientorganisation, including a detailed job description andorganogram. A test battery is assigned, usually consisting of bothcognitive and non-cognitive assessment instruments. Thespecialist then goes through all the information collected on theindividual in order to plan the basic material to be covered in aninterview with the incumbent. This interview, which usuallylasts at least an hour, is the most skilled part of the procedure.Once this is over, the speciali5t is then in a position to offer expertadvice to the client organisation on how best to utilise the personto the benefit of both individual and organisation.

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Feedback to the company is given in the form of a detailedreport of several pages. This report covers a brief background ofthe job incumbent's work history, an evaluation of his cognitiveskills and potential, emotional maturity and personalitycharacteristics; all this information is integrated and related to theopportunities available in the organisation, taking into accountspecific organisational constraintQ or requirements. On this basis,a set of recommendations is made on the most promising optionsfor developing the individual's career.

Performance managementA person's advancement in an organisation depends largely onhis performance, or rather on his manager's evaluation of hisperformance. Performance is not a function only of factors withinthe employee: depending on the way in which he is managed,hewill be more or less productive. Productivity can be optimisedthrough a system of co-management, in which the individualand his supervisor mutually agree on a set of goals to be achievedin a given period of time. The responsibility for achieving thesegoals is also joint: the organisation provides facilities,opportunities, support and encouragement; and the individualputs in the effort and applies his skills and knowledge.

Evaluation or appraisal of performance is a critical part ofperformance management. Yet the procedure is often not takenseriously and may even be viewed with cynicism. Manyorganisations simply go through the motions of doingperformance appraisals every six or twelve months; managersand their subordinates may be engaged in a kind of unarticulatedconspiracy to get it over with, with minimum fuss andrepercussions for all concerned. There are two sets of reasonswhy performance appraisal may become the Cinderella ofpersonnel management procedures in an organisation:

1. The appraisal method is not sufficiently objective, isnot job-relevant, or has other serious measurementshortcomings.

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2. It is not linked to career development, rewards(whether these are positive or negative), or goalsetting: in other words it is not integrated with otheraspects of career management.

These shortcomings may lead to accusations of unfairness, andin addition can have implications for work motivation.

In order to assure job relevance and objectivity, performanceappraisals should be based on the actual content of the job, thetasks and responsibilities which the incumbent has to perform.Performance on each of these is evaluated against clearlyspecified benchmarks; the evaluations are then integrated into anoverall score, preferably taking the importance of each task intoaccount. The performance appr2.isal, therefore, should not bedone in the absence of a job analysis and job description.

A performance appraisal is normally thought of as aretrospective activity: it looks at the performance of theindividual over an assessment period which has just come to anend. But this is also an appropriate time to set goals for the future.These goals should be set with the aims of overcomingweaknesses in the individual's performance (as identified in theappraisal), and of preparing the individual for future job roles.Both incumbent and supervisor should be involved in thegoal-setting process. The degree to which the incumbentachieves the goals (taking into account organisationalconstraints) should be evaluated as part of the next performanceappraisal. Also, the appraisals should have a real impact on theindividual's compensation and career opportunities.Performance appraisal is then integrated into an overall processwhich justifiably can be called performance management.

One of the great advantages of effective performancemanagement is that it is highly motivating. The reasons for thisare the following:

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1. The job incumbent is better informed as to what isrequired of him to do his job effectively and to preparehimself for jobs higher up the hierarchy.

2. He participates in setting his own goals and thus ismore committed to them.

3. He can see the that the appraisals have a definiteimpact on his career: goals become a part of futureappraisals and appraisals have a marked effect oncareer advancement.

Performance management is therefore a complex process whichrequires sophisticated tools; these are available from the HSRC.

Organisation DevelopmentOrganisation development (OD) as a distinct concept has a fairlyshort history; the term entered the lexicon of uganisationalspecialists only in the 1960s. It is defined as follows by French andBell (1973, p. 15):

Organisation development is a long-range effort to im-prove an organisation's problem-solving and renewalprocesses, particularly through a more effective and col-laborative management of organisational culture withspecial emphasis on the culture of formal work teamswith the assistance of a change agent, or cataiyst, and theuse of the theory and technology of applied behaviouralscience, including action research.

"Problem-solving processes" means the way theorganisation goes about diagnosing and making decisions aboutthe opportunities and challenges of its environment. As a ruleOD is not successful if attempted entirely from within; anexternal expert the "change agent" who has no axe to grindand no empire to defend, and who is in a better position to seethe big picture, is required to guide and motivate the process.However, this expert never takes over: the organisation itself

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must assume responsibility for the changes which areintroduced.

Action research is a crucial component of the renewalprocess. The basic steps of action research are the following:

1. Preliminary diagnosis

2. Data gathering from the client group

3. Data feedback to the client group

4. Data exploration by the client group

5. Action planning based on the findings and intendedto serve the purposes of OD

6. Action.

The acquisition and interpretation of organisational informationis therefore central to OD, for othenvise the process of change isblind and is bound to fail in its purposes.

Survey methodsThe HSRC has survey methods that can be used to pinpointdysfunctional processes in an organization and scan the humanrelations climate at all levels of the organization. These surveyscan give an early warning of issues requiring attention frommanagement before morale problems develop. And they can beused as a baseline from which to evaluate the effects of OD.Particular applications where the surveys are useful are: as afoundation for strategic planning; labour-managementnegotiaticns, and staff development.

The surveys sample staff and management attitudes andperceptions in some or all of the following areas:

RecruitmentSelectionInductionTrainingPerformance appraisalCareer development

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Management and supervisionCommunicationDiscrimination or favouritismGrievance handlingIndustrial relationsRemuneration and benefitsHealth and safetyOverall job satisfactionOrganizational climate.

The surveys can take the following forms:In-depth interview surveys providing both qualitative andquantitative informationSelf-completion questionnairesFocused in-depth or questionnaire surveys intended to bedirected only at certain segments of staff or at certainfunctions within the organisation.

The decisions as to what form a survey should take, which issuesshould be included, and which topics should receive specialfocus, are made by the survey organisation after extensiveconsultation with the client company. The findings of the surveycan form the basis of the action research and transformationalprocess. Further surveys may be taken at a later stage, for OD isnot a once-off intervention.

Organisational structureOrganisational change often necessitates organisationalrestructuring. The restructuring may involve large units such asdivisions, but often also smaller structures such as job ladders,job families, individual jobs, or even tasks which form a part of ajob.

Even in stablecircumstances it is necessary that structures beadequately specified. In particular it is important that the contentof each job in the organisation be analysed and described. Thisinformation is required for a number of purposes. The jobincumbent must have a document which describes his

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responsibilities; selection and placement cannot be done withoutinformation on the content of the job; performance managementalso cannot be done effectively without it.

In circumstances where organisational structures are beingchanged, the need for detailed job information is even greater.Jobs and job hierarchies cannot be modified to optimise workefficiency and worker satisfaction unless a detailed analysis ofwork is made. The HSRC has a number of techniques designedfor this purpose, ranging from task analysis, through job analysis,to methods for describing jobs and job families.

A special form of job analysis is required for thedetermination of salary structures: job evaluation. The HSRC'sjob evaluation package is known as the "Q" method. It iscertainly not the only one on the market; there are otherwell-known techniques such as the Peromnes and Hay systems.In the Q method, jobs are ordered on a continuum by taking threefactors into account: decision making complexity, the controlsunder which the individual works, and contact with people.Information on these three factors is integrated to order jobs onan interval scale; this ordering in turn is used to determinesalaries. The developers of the Q method were aware that theusefulness of a job evaluation system is very much dependent onthe quality of information that is used as an input; therefore theygave attention to the development of more objective and reliableprocedures for obtaining information (Van Rooyen & Verwey,1981).

Managing changeThe change which occurs in organisational development isdestabilising and can lead to chaos if not managed effectively; itcan also be very stressful for all involved. Managing change isespecially demanding at present because the environmentoutside the organisation political, social, economic is also ina state of flux. It is essential that managers acquire skills formanaging change; otherwise change will manage them.

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Mane ers participating in an OD exercise know that changeis fundamental to the process, but nevertheless might not beequipped to handle it emotionally, conceptually, or both. Changecan affect organisational values, climate and culture, and this canbe threatening. From a cognitive point of view, change demandsof managers that they think more diagnostically andanticipatively.

Expert intervention might be required to assist managers tocope with change. The HSRC has a program which involvesmanagers at all levels in the organisation. It aims at creating anawareness in the manager of the importance of cultivating anumber of perspectives or orientations and moving flexiblybetween them as the situation demands. Managers areencouraged to spend more time planning and attending tomotivational problems wl iich might arise in staff as a result of the

change process.

Industrial RelationsThe issue of industrial relations had a rather low profile in SouthAfrica until the mid-seventies. The balance of power was verymuch on the side of management, and labour was largelypowerless. But with the legalization of black trade unions and theslow but sure disintegration of the main pillars of apartheid, thissituation began to change. Today the balance of power hasshifted to the extent where negotiation has replaced a "baasskap"approach on the part of management, and all large organizationsrealize the need for management to pay attention to industrialrelations and to put mechanisms in place to accommodate awhole range of management-labour problems that can arise.Without such mechanisms, industrial strife is likely to result.

The HSRC has several products that can assist organizationsto improve industrial relations or reduce the probability thatrelations will degenerate to the point where strike or otherindustrial action will occur. We shall discuss these briefly below.

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Survey and other investigative methodsWe have already mentioned these methods as an essentialcomponent of organisation development; they also have animportant application in industrial relations. Surveys can bedesigned to investigate issues specifically relevant to workrelations. These surveys can involve open- or closed-endedquestionnaires or face-to-face interviews using a structured orsemi-structured format.

Surveys of this kind are diagnostic: they make it possible topinpoint sources of unhappiness, frustration, or anger. Once thishas been done, it is then possible to implement steps to remedythe specific problems that have been identified.

Other investigative methods can also be applied: for instancean analysis of the organizational structure to determine whetheradequate upward and downward channels of communicationsexist to handle grievances and disseminate information; and anevaluation of remuneration packages to determine whetherthese are market-related for all categories of work. Onceproblems have been pinpointed, these can be addressed.

Negotiation techniquesSkills in negotiation are critical to the peaceful and successfulresolution of disputes. Unfortunately, too few people who arecalled upon to negotiate actually have effective negotiation skills.

The HSRC has done an in-depth study of negotiation and hasdeveloped a taxonomy of the critical elements of negotiation. Anegotiation process can be split up into these elements, and canbe effectively summarized using them. The style of skillednegotiators, as reflected in such a summary, differs markedlyfrom the styles of unskilled individuals; and the summary makesit possible to identify where these differences lie.

This methodology forms the basis of an HSRC trainingprogram in negotiation skills (Nieuwmeijer 1988). One is notsimply "born" with such skills: they can be taught. With training,

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an indifferent negotiator can be turned into a much moreeffective one.

Training in aspects of industrial relations for first-line supervi-

sorsOne normally thinks of industrial relations as undertaken byrepresentatives of the labour force and senior members ofmanagement. This is largely true, but it should not be forgottenthat top management are not the first to encounter or becomeaware of problems in the workplace. The first person in the chainof command who encounters these problems (and who might bein a position to resolve them before they become too serious) isthe first-line supervisor. Inept handling of such problems by afirst-line supervisor can exacerbate them. It is thereforeimportant that first-line supervisors have some knowledge ofsound industrial relations practice, and to this end the HSRC hasincorporated modules in its first-line training manual that dealwith industrial relations and grievance handling issues.

These modules do not try to turn the first-line supervisor intoan industrial relations negotiator, but present a perspective thatis relevant to his position and discuss his role in resolvingindustrial relations problems. Topics covered include:

What is a grievance?

What steps should the first-line supervisor take whenconfronted with a grievance?

What is a grievance procedure?

What is meant by industrial relations?

The first-line supervisor's role in industrial relations

Structures of industrial relations

The trade union in the company

The first-line supervisor's role in dealing with trade unionrepresentativesWhat the first-line supervisor should do in a strike.

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Industrial Relations FilmAn effective grievance procedure can be a sort of lightningconductor in reverse (in other words, upward directed), and canprevent the whole organizational structure from catching alightor being destroyed. Unfortunately both management andworkers do not always realize this. Industrial action can arisebecause there are no structures and processes to handlegrievances or because these are not used properly.

For this reason, the HSRC commissioned the well-knowndirector Kevin Harris to make a film on the effects of poorlyhandled grievances. The film Indabaye Grievance is the storyof a migrant worker in the building industry. One of a groupsharing a room in a hostel has lost his job through conflict withhis supervisor. The main character, Sam, then tells of hisexperiences with good and bad supervisors (illustrated by scenesat work) and how the tension between him and a bad supervisorbuilds up to a fight and a strike. Getting nowhere with the strike,the workers negotiate with management for their reinstatementand the setting up of a grievance procedure. There is anothercrisis with the supervisor but this time the grievance procedureis used.

What sets this film apart is that the action is seen from theworkers' point of view. Kevin Harris used employees andmanagers instead of professional actors, resulting in a storywhich employees have described as highly realistic. As much ofthe dialogue is in Sesotho, a narrator explains what is takingplace. Two versions of Indaba ye Grievance are available, one withnarration in English and the other in Zulu. It is available in 16 mmfilm and video formats.

Although the film is mainly intended to be shown toworkers, managers often benefit from seeing it, as it gives thema different perspective on the management-workforce interface.The film is intended to be supplemented by group discussions inorder to get the most benefit from it. A guide in the form of a slimbooklet is provided by the HSRC to help facilitators to run group

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discussions. The film is first run right through and then isrestarted and stopped at a number of points. The audience is split

into smaller groups and at each pause these discuss some aspect

of the film. Questions put by the facilitator focus the groups onissues relevant to industrial relations, especially the grievance

procedure.Although the film is by no means a propaganda tool for

either workers or managers, it is intended to make viewers thinkabout the negative implications of not trying to resolve problems

or conflicts through negotiation; it is also intended to highlightthe crucial role that effective grievance-handling mechanismsplay in the resolution of dissatisfactions that inevitably arise in

the workplace.The effect of the film on viewers was evaluated by Godsell,

Hall and Tomaselli (1985).

Human Resource PlanningHuman resource planning is concerned with strategies to obtainsufficient manpower in the future. To do this, projections arerequired as to manpower supply and demand in variousemployment categories; these in turn are dependent on a wide

variety of factors ultimately all socio-political events in theworld. Of course it is quite impossible to take everything into

account; the art of making accurate projections is to create amodel of the future which takes the most important factors into

account and assigns realistic values and weights to these.Manpower projections and planning can be done on a

number of levels, from national to individual organisations. Atthe national level, planning involves taking a macro look at thefuture manpower needs of the country with regard to the typeand level of skills required and geographical areas where jobsdemanding given skills will be cited. This information can then

be used to plan the type, location and quantity of variouseducational institutions.

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The HSRC is involved in developing such macroperspectives, as well as translating these into scenarios and plansof action for given sectors of the economy, industries, orindividual organizations. A three-phase conceptual model isemployed. The phases are: situation analysis, the development ofalternative strategies, and the formulation of a strategy fordeveloping human resources.

During phase 1 a detailed analysis is done of the maincomponents of human resource planning, namely demand andsupply, taking demographic, technological, job level, economic,political, social, and skill factors into account. This analysisenables an estimate to be made of future demand, and anevaluation of the capacity of training institutions and facilities tosatisfy the projected demand.

The model of supply and demand as conceptualized in phase1 forms the basis of phase 2, the development of alternativescenarios and strategies to address various scenarios. These arederived by making different assumptions for critical factors,including those listed above. Some of the scenarios mightindicate a serious imbalance between the supply and demand ofhuman resources; such scenarios obviously have implications fordecision makers at national and organizational levels.

In the third phase, the most plausible scenario is identifiedand a strategy worked out in detail to address it. The mostimportant part of this strategy is the setting in motion of steps todevelop the manpower that appears to be required in the future.Part of this process could be the identification of shortcomings inexisting formal and non-formal educational systems, and theformulation of proposals to redress these shortcomings. After themacro analysis has been completed, the implications can bedetermined for structures at lower levels, including the micro(organisational) level. An organisation can take these intoaccount when performing its own human resource planningexercise.

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ConclusionIn this chapter we have covered the most important aspects ofhuman resource management: recruitment and selection,development and advancement of employees, the "people"aspect of organisational development, industrial relations, andhuman resource planning. All these domains are complex andrequire specialised knowledge if they are to be managedeffectively and fairly. This expertise is not alv ys present in theorganisation, especially medium and smaller organisations whocannot afford to retain highly specialised personnel on a full-timebasis.

Managing these domains also requires sophisticated "tools",which as a rule are not developed in-house, either due to thetime-consuming nature of the development, or to lack ofexpertise in the organisation.

The HSRC has a wide range of know-how on humanresource management and also a number of very usefultechnologies ranging from psychological tests to techniques forconducting negotiations with unions. It can therefore offer acomprehensive and balanced approach to solving most humanresource problems.

References

Boeyens, J.C.A. (1989). Identifying entrepreneurs by means of asimulation game. South African Journal of Science, 85, 79-80.

Christierson, V.A.B. (1979). A framework for vocational cowtsellingwithin the organisational context. CSIR Special Report Pers 294.lohannesburg: National Institute for Personnel Research.

Donald, C., Veldsman, C., Donald, F., Cook, J.T., Chemel, C.S.,& Taylor, T R. (1990). Turning fairness in selection and place-ment into practical company policy. South African Journal ofLabour Relations, 14, 52-77.

French, W.L. & Bell, C.H. (1973). Organisational demlopmein . Lon-don: Prentice-Hall.

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Godsell, G., Hall, R.S., & Tomaselli, KG. (1985). A report on theindustrial relations film Indaba ye Grievance. Special ReportPers 392. Johannesburg: National Institute for Personnel Re-search.

Holburn, P.T. (1991). Selection decisions: The quest for fairness.Group Human Resources Report C/Pers 424 (anHSRC/NTB report). Pretoria: Human Sciences ResearchCouncil.

Owen, K. (1989). Test and item bias: the suitability of the Junior Apti-tude Tests as a common test battery for white, Indian, and blackpupils in Standard 7. Institute for Psychological and EdumetricResearch Report P-96. Pretoria: Human Sciences ResearchCouncil.

Nieuwmeijer, L. (1988). Negotiation: Methodology and training.Pinetown: Owen Burgess.

Taylor, T.R. (1990). Are you testing fairly? Report BIZ1. Johannes-burg: National Institute for Personnel Research.

Taylor, T.R. & Boeyens, J.C.A. (1991). The comparability of thescores of blacks and whites on the SAPQ: An exploratorystudy. South African Journal of Psychology, 21, 1-11,

Van Rooyen, J. & Verwey, A.M. (1981). Poswaarderingshandleid-ing: NIPN Q-metode. Johannesburg: National Institute for Per-sonnel Research.

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HUMAN SCIENCES TECHNOLOGY

IN MANAGING PROBLEMSARISING FROM SOCIAL ISSUES

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IntroductionWhat the Human Sciences Research Council shares with alldevelopment agencies is its commitment to the establishmentand maintenance of the optimally functioning society. Thiswell-being is to a large extent related to

(a) social health, that is a society's willingness and abilityto care for the less fortunate, such as children withproblems, the poor and the aged, the victims of crimeand drug abuse and social outcasts;

(b) political and constitutional stability, which is aprecondition for economic growth and socialdevelopment;

(c )socio-economic development, that is the planning,creation and mantenance of the physical,socio-economic and cultural infrastructures needed toenhance the quality of life; and

(d) social interaction and communication, which in ahighly stratified society, are conducive to theassessment of needs, the reaching of agreements,effective consultation and co-operation, and themanagement of conflict.

Social welfare and securityIn the pursuance of the HSRC's social welfare objectives, infer dila

the promotion of social well-being and community safety,programmes and prevention techniques have been developedand empirically tested to address some of the social issues thatneed urgent attention. Social issues that have received particularattention are alcohol-related problems and crime.

This chapter was compiled fmm contributions made by Drs S.A Snyman, G.A

Thiele, RC. Kok, C.P de Kock, B. de Villiers, DR Conradie, Prof. W.R Mostert, Mmes L.

Rocha-Silva, M. Steyn, G.E. du Plessis, A. Meyer-Weit,, EM. Shurink, L. Smit and Mr N.

Boersama.

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It is widely accepted that the provision of accessible andaffordable services for add ressing alcohol-related problems is notonly a necessary, humane, life-improving and life-savingopportunity for those experiencing such problems, but couldhave a long-term impact on containing the cost of health care. Inorder to plan rational preventive and treatmentprogrammes thatare likely to yield the desired outcome, service deliverers needinformation on the nature and the extent of the alcohol intake ofthe people they serve, and on the nature and magnitude of thealcohol-related problems that are manifested among them.Researchers in the HSRC have therefore developed and in someinstances adapted techniques and devices for scientificallycollecting some of the alcohol-related information needed foreffective service delivery in preventing and treatingalcohol-related problems:

The Khavari Alcohol Test (KAT), for example, is aquantity-cum-frequency technique to determine alcoholintake. The test, adapted by an HSRC researcher to suit SouthAfrican circumstances, is more precise than most of the otherindices used for this purpose. Consequently the KATfacilitates a detailed, statistical and empirical differentiationof various types of drinkers in terms of the quantity and thefrequency of their intake of various alcoholic beveragesinstead of the traditional classification of drinkers into fairlyarbitrarily predefined nominal classes, such as light,moderate and heavy drinkers. In this way the KATovercomes the limited generalizability and therefore therestricted scientific usefulness of traditionalquantity-cum-frequency measures of alcohol intake. Apartfrom enabling a beverage-by-beverage analysis of thefrequency, quantity and quantity-cum-frequency of alcoholintake, the KAT measures the variation in a person's intakepattern over a particular period. The KAT has anotheradvantage - it includes items on alcohol intake that parallelthose used in most other quantity and frequency indices ofalcohol use. The KAT is as useful in community studies as in

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clinical face-to-face assessments of the nature and extent ofalcohol intake. Indeed, since the beginning of the 1980's theKAT has been successfully used among a variety ofdemographic categories in the HSRC's periodic nationalupdates on drinking practices in the RSA. These updatesprovide preventive agents in the field of alcohol-relatedproblems with essential baseline information.To assist in scientifically estimating the magnitude ofalcohol-related problems in a community, theJellinek-Walsh-Ledermann-Khavari formula (technique) wasdevised by an HSRC researcher. This technique is based onthe argument that a multifaceted measuring instrumentovercomes to some extent the inherently biased nature ofdata collection methods. Indeed, this model assumes thatsome validity may be claimed for data collected in variousindependent ways and showing similar trends. A set ofrnnItisource data (estimates of the incidence ofalc(, ol-related mortalities, admissions to alcohol-relatedrehabilitation/treatment centres, taxed sales of alcoholicbeverages and self-reported level of alcohol intake in acommunity) is analyzed by means of the technique. Theparticular trends are subsequently identified. This formulaassists policy makers in monitoring the adequacy oftreatment facilities in the RSA and in prioritizing the needs in

this respect.Another device, that has been developed by an HSRCresearcher, can be used to prevent the misuse of alcohol anddrugs. The technique is called the Rocha-Silva model and isrooted in general sociological theory and based on SouthAfrican sociological research on deviant drinking. It providesa general psychosocial framework for understanding theonset/continuation of alcohol/drug taking andconsequently of alcohol/drug-related problems. It coincideswith the World Health Organization's public health model ofthe prevention of alcohol/drug-related problems, andspecifically die latter model's assumption that the extent ofthe demand for and accessibility to alcohol/drugs in a

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community will correspond with the extent ofalcohol/drug-related problems. In fact, the Rocha-Silvatechnique provides a national and international basis fordecision making in prevention research. The techniqueprovides a basis for making rational decisions concerningwhat to research, how to interpret research data and whatshould be given attention in prevention programmes. Thistechnique has been used effectively by the HSRC to assistnational preventive agents in the public and private sector inthe RSA to act pro-actively and cost-effectively by rationallyidentifying and addressing priorities in the field ofalcohol/drug-related problems.

The continuous rise in crime and delinquency rates necessitatedthe development of accountable and effective techniques for themeasuring, monitoring and implementation of scientificallysound data aimed at developing assistance programmes andprevention strategies in the field of social security. The followingmodels were designed:

VICTIMLINE is a time-limited intervention model that wasdeveloped by researchers of the HSRC, other experts in thisfield and trained volunteers, to provide the emotionalsupport, information and referral needed to preventlong-term psychosocial problems experienced by crimevictims who did not have the benefit of timely victimologicalsupport. This model thus makes provision for a better deal forthe victims of crime within the framework of systematicevaluation and developmental research. In South Africa,apart from fragmented programmes for battered women andfor the victims of child abuse and rape, little attention hasbeen given to the needs of victims of other crimes. The sharpincrease in the crime rate and the escalation of violent crimesin the 1980s necessitated an expansion of services for allvictims of crime in this country. The development researchand utilization model is used as a basis to set specificstandards for the scientific analysis, development, evaluationand distribution of service6 according to the needs of theconsumers of the service. Process evaluation (ongoing

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evaluation and modification are undertaken until the victimsupport model has proved to be practical and the desiredaims have been reached) and outcome evaluation (wherebythe overall effectiveness of this model is measured) areintegral parts of VICTIMLINE.CRIMEPAT was developed by HSRC researchers toanalyze thepatterns of crimes in South Africa with the aim of developingtargeted crime prevention programmes in the community.This technique facilitates the scientific construction of aprofile of the offender (age, cultural background, previousoffenses, occupation, etc.), of the victim (age, cultural group,gender, socio-economic level, etc.) and of the circumstancesin which the specific crime occurred (the framework of tirneand place, behaviour of the offender before and during thecrime, the means used by the offender to commit the crime,the reaction of the victim, the crime itself, thebehaviour of theoffendei and of the victim after the crime, the cost of the crimeto the victim, etc.). Such profiles are crucial to understandingthe pattern of specific crimes (murder, rape, serious assault,common assault, etc.). This understanding facilitates theidentification of high-risk situations in which crime can easilytake place and for the development of targeted situationalcrime prevention programmes.

CRIMEPAT therefore has important implications for thestudy of victimization and for the development ofprogrammes aimed at preventing specific crimes (e.g. thesexual abuse of children). This technique puts its users in line

with one of the most promising future trends in crimeprevention strategies, namely the utilization of crime data toanalyze local crime patterns in order to develop targetedcommunity crime prevention programmes.PEERS has been developed by HSRC resea rchers as anexperimental strategy for the resocialization of marginalizedyouth. Because of the long-standing and ongoing breakdownof family life, school and community life in township areasthe majority of the South African youth will not be able todevelop into productive adults unless they receive

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immediate help. The vision of a democratic, just South Africais clouded by a looming crisis involving millions (more than12 million) of marginalized young people. Because theybecame socialized in an environment of criminal and politicalviolence, these youngsters grew up unsupervised andwithout respect for the values and norms of conventionalsociety. PEERS is based on the findings of HSRC researchersthat the marginalization or disconnectedness of youngpeople from society often leads to juvenile delinquency andcrime. These youngsters are often excluded from a networkof support that is vital to the development of social skills andmoral values. Young people need to feel secure in theirrelationships and have to have a "sense of belonging" in theworld before they can accept responsibility for their own livesand those of future generations.

PEERS is a comprehensive and cost-effective strategydeveloped to help young people to rehabilitate marginalizedpeers themselves. This programme consists of the followingelements:the provision of special opportunities for meaningfuldevelopment;the development and/or replacement of informalpsychological support networks and;the provision of interpersonal skills training to enableyoungsters to fulfil their responsibilities and to utilize thesupport systems available to them. PEERS aims at trainingyoung people as lay counsellors in their own communities.This programme is based on the assumptions that youngpeople have positive strengths which if nurtured can producebeneficial results for themselves and their communities andthat peer groups have the strongest influence on the values,attitudes and behaviour of other youngsters.

PEERS is aimed at empowering the youth to becomeinvolved in a comprehensive strategy for the construction ofa new value system necessary to the development of ademocratic society by:

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creating an understanding of oneself and of others, e.g. ofone's own survival, protection and development needs andrights, and teaching respect for the rights of other individualsand groups;understanding the value that groups hold for personalgrowth;teaching self-awareness and transactional analysis;learning about the dynamics of helping and about helpingskills;perceiving human needs and gaining self-understanding;responding to the feelings of others and cultivating tolerancefor and the accommodation of other cultures;learning about the community and identifying communityresources;developing and strengthening informal psychosocial supportnetworks and the peers' sense of belonging;learning and teaching interpersonal skills, e.g.communication, decision-making, active listening, honestyabout one's own feelings and handling confrontation andinterpersonal conflict.CRIMESTOP was designed by HSRC researchers as a blueprintfor primary prevention of crime on a micro (potentialvictim or household), meso (community) and macro (policy)level. Because crime and the fear of crime could potentiallydisrupt the whole process of creating an equal and justsociety, a national crime prevention policy for South Africashould be a priority. Local crime prevention strategies haveuntil now been aimed largely at the (pre)offender and not atthe (potential) victim. The recent upsurge in the crime ratesuggests that these responses, based largely on the actions ofthe official criminal justice system, have failed to address thecrime problem effectively. South Africans are beginning torealize, as most citizens in overseas countries do, that avictim-oriented approach may be more useful in theprevention ocrirne. Crime control can no longer be regardedas the sole responsibility of the police, the conventional court

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and penal system, but should be the responsibility of everypotential victim and of society as a whole. Crime shouldtherefore be addressed as a community problem and crimeprevention be regarded as part of the fibre of community life.Such a strategy should include the following elements:a national council for crime prevention aimed at developingco-operation between ministries, local government, police,voluntary organizations and the private sectora national crime monitoring system developed through thesystematic collection, analysis and interpretation of formaland informal crime datathe development of local crime prevention programmes byresearchers in collaboration with concerned communitymembersmedia campaigns geared at informing and training the publicin its civic responsibilitiesthe systematic evaluation (of process and outcome) ofprogrammes and strategies to prevent crime.

The use of self-help principles should make it possible to developa perspective that may place the blame for crime on factors suchas the legal and education system, but lays the responsibility forsolving the problem on the shoulders of the individual (victim)personally. It is argued that extending the "blame the system"perspective may diminish the individual feelings ofself-determination so necessary for empowerment.

Empowerment is one of the most crucial and highly valuedbenefits that members can attain by participating in self-helpgroups and organizations. Empowerment can be described asthe process of increasing personal, interpersonal and politicalpower thus enabling individuals or collectives to improve theirlife situation.

Personal empowerment increases energy, motivation,effective coping, problem-solving skills, decision-making power,self-esteem, self-sufficiency and self-determination. Collectiveefforts te fight the discrimination against and oppression of the

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majority represent the social and political empowernient in

self-help organizations. Types of action include:Self-help groups that focus on strengthening familyfunctioning and structure;Self-help organizations founded by women;Self-help special interest groups that share a commonexperience, concern or interest,Self-help groups that seek social change and the mobilizationof individual and community resources; andNeighbourhood-based groups for community development.

Community health issuesThe process of change being experienced in South Africa hasonce again focused attention sharply on the extent and quality ofthe community services provided in various fields by thegovernment and by private and other organizations to improvethe quality of life of all people, especially those who are poor,deprived and disadvantaged. However, little attention is givento the relevance of research or the ways in which research mightinform policy makers and decision makers on the relevance,quality and impact of these community services. Authoritativeresearch and information on existing services at a national,regional and local level are essential for effective planning orpolicy formulation, for the effective integration of services andfor making choices about prioritizing the demands on the limitedavailable human, institutional and financial resources. Althoughsome energy has been devoted to research on some of theseservices, there is an urgent need for a coherent picture of thestrengths and weaknesses of many community services andespecially of the impact of these services.

A technique has been developed for the a:,sessment of healthservices, aimed at establishing these strengths andweaknesses and at providing guidelines for the improvementof the services. The assessment is based on the strengths,weaknesses and improvement strategies for healthprogrammes, as laid down by the WHO. The specific aspects

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of health services that the technique addresses include theorganization and structure of the service, the monitoring andevaluation of its functions, and the selection, training,functions, support, supervision and working conditions ofthe various levels of personnel.

The methods used are of both a qualitative and aquantitative nature and include questionnaires and interviewschedules which can be administ-!red according to the needsof a specific health service.

The opinion questionnaires are used for personnel whoare not directly involved in a specific health service, but whoare involved at other levels (for instance in the training orselection of health personnel) or who are dependant on theservice. These questionnaires are suitable for personal ortelephone interviews and for postal surveys.

The interview schedules are used when interviewingpersonnel who are directly involved in a health service.Interviews are conducted either on a one-to-one basis or infocus groups. The survey instruments are adapted to thespecific needs of a particular service.

Feedback of the findings is given by means ofan oral andwritten report and includes suggestions for strategies toimprove the service.The HSRC has developed a technique for the formativeevaluation of health guidance (education) material which canbe adapted for printed material, pictorial media and theelectronic media (radio, television, films and videos). For allmaterial the effect of the media product on the target group isinvestigated in terms of the following factors: its ability toattract attention, its comprehensibility, how well it can berecalled, the credibility of the source and message, itsacceptability, the effect of the message and the effectiveness ofthe production elements. The readability of the printedmaterial is evaluated by means of readability tests. Thepictorial media are also evaluated in terms of the function ofvisual presentations whereas the evaluation of the electronic

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media takes into account factors such as the presentation andtechnical variables, the organization of content and subjectmatter and performer characteristics.

The survey instruments include questionnaires andinterview schedules. These are adapted to suit individualmedia products. The techniques used for data gatheringinclude focus group interviews, individual in-depthinterviews, self-administered questionnaires, gatekeeperreviews and the use of the Programme Evaluation AnalysisComputer (PEAC) system. These are used in the combinationbest suited for a particular subject and target group.

Verbal and written reporting includes a summary of theresults of the survey as well as recommendations for theimprovement of the media product,A technique has also been developed by the HSRC for thedevelopment and evaluation of health educationprogrammes. The technique includes the following elements:needs assessment, process evaluation (including formativeevaluation and monitoring) and outcome evaluation. Thetechnique is based on community participation throughout.

In the needs assessment stage the target group isconvened and the characteristics of the target group areexamined, for instance the group's demographic factors;knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, practices regarding the healtheducation subject; culture (norms and values); use of andpreference for particular means of coinmunication; the abilityto process information (including functional literacy andlistening skills). Existing materials (if available) are examinedin terms of subject matter, production techniques andrelevance for the target group in order to makerecommendations regarding their use and/or adaptations toand the development of new material.

During process evaluation the extent to which thedelivery goals of the programme are being met is assessed.Intervention and evaluation issues are systematically

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identified and resolved by researching the interventionsactually delivered, the difference these interventions make,and the intervention variations found to be the most effectiveones. When long-term intervention is carried out,measurements are done at intervals to ensure that theintervention is undertaken by the most suitable people, to theproper target group, in the ways most suitable to the groupand at the optimal time. Monitoring of the programme isperformed on an ongoing basis.

During the outcome evluation the consequences of theprogramme are examined iii terms of specific indicators.Then recommendations are made for the improvementand/or expansion of the programme.

Appropriate techniques for the collection of qualitativeand quantitative data have been developed for the differentstages of the evaluation. The techniques used includequestionnaires (self-administered, postal surveys), interviewschedules (focus groups and individually), direct observationtechniques and monitoring techniques. These techniques areused individually or in combination and are adapted inaccordance with the target group and the health educationsubject.

The abovementioned procedures are adapted to facilitatethe process and outcome evaluation of existing healtheducation programmes.

Long-term involvement with indices of socio-economicwelfare has enabled researchers in the HSRC to improve themethodology and the calculation of indices of child survival(child health). It is possible to give a comprehensive picture ofchild health due to the refinement in measuring instrumentsand the use of an already extensive databank of informationfrom respondents in all geopolitical areas of the country.Because problems in obtaining reliable data on infantmortality are often encountered in the field, it is felt thatanalyses of the chances of child survival and of health indices

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following certain interventions can be used to give acomprehensive picture of the health status of communities.Developments in this regard form part of technology inprimary health surveys in the Southern A flican context.

DevelopmentThe development of people requires not only assistance to butalso the empowerment of the people at whom the assistance isaimed. Assistance can be of a purely technical (e.g. engineering)nature. Empowerment, however, requires the full participationof the people affected. This participation should be an activeprocess whereby the beneficiaries not only share the benefits butalso influence the direction and implementation of thedevelopment project.

The HSRC has developed a technique which treatscommunity participation as an integral part of data collectionand analysis. This may be described as the technology ofcommunity participation.

Whatever one's philosophy about democracy, the idea of publicparticipation in planning and development is here to stay. Onecan say that community participation is not only 'fashionable',but has become an essential component of effective planninganddevelopment. Human behaviour is increasingly beingrecognized as an important variable that needs to be taken intoconsideration in development planning. Therefore, successfuldevelopment projects are not only technologically but alsosocially approprialL nnes.

There are at least five reasons for encouraging communityparticipation in planning and development. These reasons arethe following:

(a) Community participation helps planners anddevelopment agencies gain insight into localconditions and the needs and preferences of the localpeople. This is the pragmatic rationale for communityinvolvement, because without such basic information

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to help determine affordability levels and identifycommunity needs and preferences correctly, plans anddevelopment actions are unlikely to succeed.

individuals and groups in the community are morelikely to accept and be committed to plans if they havebeen involved in their preparation. Participation alsomakes it more probable that the members of thecommunity will regard an improvement/facility astheir own, and will therefore maintain it better (i.e.take collective responsibility for it). The absence ofcommunity participation may, in fact, lead to thecreation of expensive white elephants that areboycotted by the community because its memberswere not adequately consulted.

(c) lt is considered a basic democratic right of people to beinvolved in matters affecting their own circumstances.This would subscribe to the notion that'planning/development is for people.'

(d) Community participation is also necessary duringproject implementation so that informationconcerning the progress of the project can be providedin order to identify problems and constraints, such ashow many and who are the people that benefit fromthe project.

(e) Direct participation in monitoring and evaluation mayalso reduce the possibility of the mismanagement ofresources by making the development agency'spersonnel accountable to the community. Projectefficiency (determined by the degree to which thecommunity assists in the planning andimplementation of a project) and effectiveness (thedegree to which the community assumesresponsibility for the design and implementation ofaproject) may therefore be greatly enhanced by

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participation, which empowers the community totake over some of the project's managerial andoperational responsibilities.

However, it would be naive not to acknowledge that there issimply no easy way of achieving true public participation, andcommunity participation will not always be considered suitable.For example, participation is often unsuited to capital-intensiveprojects, because the development agency making a largeinvestment in a community may not be willing to relinquishsome of its control over the project. Participation also requiresflexibility, and may therefore be incompatible with thedecision-making culture of bureaucratic and hierarchicalorganizations. Furthermore, participation tends to betime-consuming and often requires considerable human andorganizational skills.

Apart from the abovementioned restrictions on fullcommunity participation, there are at least four other majorproblems that allegedly bedevil participation in planning anddevelopment, namely: (a) a lack of public interest; (b) theignorance of the public; (c) the communication gap betweenplanners/development agencies and the public and (d) unduedelays.

These supposed problems can be overcome by adopting anumber of basic principles, which include the following:

(a) People need to be directly interested in adecision-making issue and they need to believe thatthey can influence the outcome.

(b) True participation involves a genuine two-wayinterchange of views and preferences.

(c) People - irrespective of their educational, social oreconomic background cannot make meaningfuldecisions, either individually or collectively, if they donot know what alternatives are available to them.

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(d) Communication with the community should takeplace in plain language, cutting out theoretical orprofessional jargon, thereby allowing more people tohave a better understanding and therefore be able tocontribute to the planning and development process.

(e) Effective community participation depends on (i)mutual trust and (ii) the degree of the client'scommitment to truly participatory interaction withthe community. No real participation can take placeunless both these basic conditions are met.

(f) Communities can act quickly unless they are beingconfronted with afait accompli. Undue delays are oftenmore the result of incorrect approaches than theinability of the community to make decisions.

(g) Community participation should not only entailindirect participation through representatives, butshould also focus on direct participation of themembers of the community themselves. Thisprinciple means that meetings with communityleaders are not always sufficient. The techniques toimprove community participation are therefore veryimportant.

No single technique for community participation is likely to beadequate if one needs to consult directly with the members of acommunity; a combination of several techniques is usuallyrequired. In practice this means that two or more of the followingwill be used in combination:

information documentationexhibitionsmedia coverage, audio and visual materialidea competitionsreferendumsquestionnaire surveys, in-depth and focus group interviews

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public meetings and hearingsself-help manualsplanning and development aidextension servicesdelphi technique applicationsnominal group methodsworkshops.

All these methods are potentially useful, although each hasspecific limitations and drawbacks. The optimal combination("mix") of methods for a specific purpose will depend on aproper evaluation of the circumstances surrounding a particularsituation and the needs of the client and stakeholders.

Community participation takes many forms and containsprocedures which depend on the particular situation. Theseprocedures may entail the following steps (which may notnecessarily follow chronologically as indicated here):

(a) Contacting various individuals in the community andhaving the leaders pointed out, in an attempt toidentify organizational affiliations, the completeleadership situation in the community and the role ofother organizations

(b) Meetings with all the relevant organizations andleadership structures within (or which operate onbehalf of) the community, and negotiating the terms ofthe planned community participation procedures

(c) Information gathering and feedback by means of twoor more of the methods listed above, and the drawingof preliminary conclusions

(d) Meetings with the organizations and leaders to discussthe preliminary conclusions and to revise them ifnecessary

(e) Feedback to the community to discuss revisedconclusions (if any), and meetings/workshops to find

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compromises between the preferences of thecommunity and those of the leaders and otherorganizations, and to reach agreement on theprocedures to be followed during implementation

(f) Implementation of the conclusions (in closeconsultation with the community, leaders andrelevant organizations), accompanied by monitoring(the process whereby information is gathered - moreor less continuously on the project's performance inrelation to its inputs and objectives), ongoingevaluation (continual analysis of the outputs, effectsand development impacts of the project) and feedback

(g) Ex post evaluations (analyses of the [overall] outputs,effects and impact of the project after its completion)and feedback to all interested parties.

The HSRC provides advice on and assistance with the selectionof the most appropriate combination of methods and theirimplementation during community participation.Multidisciplinary teams are made up to suit the needs of everyparticular project, thereby ensuring that the best available pool ofknowledge and experience is placed at the disposal of the clientand other stakeholders.

Social Impact Assessment (SIA) is a relatively newmultidisciplinary field that has been developed in response to the1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of the USA. SIAis an assessment technique complementary to, or an integral partof, Environmental Impact Assessment. It is aimed at theidentification and determination of the nature, magnitude andsignificance of the possible effects or impacts resulting fromproposed development actions. In particular SIA is concernedwith the effects of development actions on the well-being of thepopulation concerned, and with the accompanying alteration ofthe social environment.

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S1A is generally viewed as anticipatory research for assessingplanning needs with regard to technological development andthe potential social impacts associated with such development.Central to this process is the identification of mitigation optionsand the assessment, in advance, of alternative courses of action(forecasting). Ideally, SEA entails employing a systematicapproach using sophisticated analytical techniques to determinethe direct and indirect effects, as well as the positive and negativeimpacts accruing to development activities. In addition SIAshould facilitate the identification and assessment of newdevelopment opportunities that may result from developmentprojects.

Social Impact Assessment incorporates multiple judgmentcriteria including both time and space scales. Validity isenhanced through the application of quantitative and qualitativeresearch techniques and the triangulation of research methods inorder to minimize judgmental biases.

The particular SIA approach adopted by the HSRC teamstrongly emphasizes integrated resource management. Thisapproach endeavours to promote the effective integration ofdevelopment actions through a process of negotiated agreement,as well as through the democratization of decision making tobenefit all participants and stakeholders.

S1A has the potential for enhancing democratic participationin the policy-making process. There is a growing realizationamong researchers at the HSRC that SIA should be incorporatedat the early stages of project planning and in fact should be partand parcel of the project design. This could assist both plannersand implementing agents in ensuring that their actions arepeople-friendly. Moreover, the incorporation of SI A as an integralpart of the planning process could facilitate the establishment ofa mediation process whereby the extent and magnitude ofsocio-economic dislocation could be ameliorated, as well ascreating the opportunity for the affected population to influencethe course of their own future.

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The Social Impact Assessment technique as developed by theHSRC consists of the following components:

(a) Profiling:<, To identify all stakeholders (agents, beneficiaries, victims)

who are at risk/may have an interest in the proposeddevelopmentTo elicit from all stakeholder groups their views/opinions onthe proposed development, as well as their respective claims,concerns and issues in this regardTo identify existing interest configurations and to determinethe information requirements for adequately addressing apossible conflict of interests

(b) Data collection:

To determine the number of individuals/households, as wellas the range of social categories, groups, institutions andorganizations that will be affected by the proposeddevelopmentTo identify the nature and extent of the socio-economicimpacts associated with the proposed developmentTo generate reliable data with the aim of testing theplausibility and relevance of stakeholder claims, concernsand issues

(c) Projections:

To determine the magnitude and significance of thesocio-economic impacts associated with the proposeddevelopment on the affected and/or host populationsTo identify alternative development options and positiveimpacts associated with the proposed development -,

(d) Assessment:

To investigate viable mitigation options or alternativedevelopment policies, and to compare the anticipatedimpacts of the alternative options and policies

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To assess which alternative is best in terms of the significanceof the socio-economic impacts and the alternative's viabilityin terms of regional integrationTo identify areas for further research and to augment existingdata if necessary

(e) Evaluation:

To disseminate relevant information to all stakeholder groupsby means of draft reports to, and workshops with, recognizedrepresentativesTo seek the opinion of government bodies and public bodiesthat have special interests/responsibilities with regard to theproposed developmentTo facilitate discussion with stakeholder groups in order togenerate consensus and to formulate a negotiated agreement

Generally, cognizance is taken in the evaluation of developmentprogrammes of the material and the non-material productsaccruing to projects. Evaluation programmes, however, are oftenone-off events, narrowly focused on economic and financialreturns in order to satisfy the demands of sponsors or donoragencies, while little attention is given to the social dimension ofdevelopment projects.

Social development is concerned with the degree ofintegration of a project's material products with non-material(qualitative) processes such as the following:

critical and active local participation and collective effortdemocratic organization and collective responsibilitycritical consciousness/awareness and self-confidencelocal initiative, motivation and innovationefficient local institutions and leadershipself-reliance and self-determinationinternal cohesion and group solidarity.

The HSRC is currently reframing its existing Social DevelopmentEvaluation Programme (SDEP) which is specifically designed forthe assessment of social development programmes with

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diversified project activities. The SDEP aims at incorporating amultidisciplinary and multimethod technique, and with itsemphasis on proportionate accuracy, the SDEP is designed to becost-effective and time-saving.

The SDEP addresses the following project performance andimpact issues:

expressed beneficiary needsprogramme objectivesbeneficiary participationintermediate effectsdifferential impactproject sustainability.

The SDEP is particularly well--equipped for the assessment of theintermediate effects and differential social impacts of adevelopment programme/project, and provides a valuable toolfor assessing the following:

contextual constraints: systems dependence/resistancedifferential impact: socio-economic differentiation and socialstratadistribution: number and range (spatial/social) ofbeneficiariesaccess/equity bias: accessibility; affordability; adequacyinternalization: critical awareness; motivation;self-confidencecollective effort: group solidarity; self-reliancelegitimacy: appropriate levels of local ownership and controlcontinuation: effective local leadership aid localorganization.

The population projection technique is an essential tool forplanning the future needs in nearly every aspect of humanendeavour. At the macrolevel, facilities for school enrolment,entrants into the labour market, old-age pensioners and militarytraining, can be planned and constructed. At a regional level thegrowth of local populations, e.g. in towns and suburbs, should be

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predicted in order to plan the extension of services such as watersupply, sewerage, electricity supply, roads and public transport.Business and industry use population projections to determinethe volume of production and the location of markets.Projections are made for national population growth as well asfor population growth in smaller geographical areas. Projectionsare also made for special categories of people, e.g. schoolenrolment in certain geographical areas, entrants to universities,prison populations, the number of hospital beds needed, andtarget populations for specific media campaigns.

Various methods have been developed for makingprojections for different types of populations. The demographerknows which method should be used for a specific population.The main activities when making a projection are the analysis ofall the relevant data, the study of historical trends and factorsrelated to these trends, and the adjustment of defective data.Clearly the construction of population projections is the result ofintensive research on the subjects.

With the advent of computer software packages for the useof population projections, anybody who can operate a PC canconduct these projections. This factor should always be kept inmind by the user of such data. If the user is not certain of thequality of specific projections, a knowledgeable demographershould be consulted.

Social interactionThe success and even survival of any organization, be it abusiness or a political, non-profit or government institution,depend largely on effective internal communication within theorganization and with stakeholders on the outside. The need todiagnose and remedy weak links in the Communication system,especially in a socially, culturally and economically highlystratified society is therefore obvious. Decision makers whodepend on public lpinion, consumer atti tu des and reactions, and

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the effective transfer of messages, have at their disposalsophisticated technology to obtain the required information.

Continuous Response Measurement (CONREm) is a tool formeasuring immediate second-by-second reactions toaudiovisual material among specific target audiences. CONREMcan provide valuable information to anyone involved inproducing or displaying audiovisual products. This is especiallythe case if there is a need for feedback from prospective targetaudiences about matters such as their general liking for theproduct, specific preferences regarding scenes, situations,techniques or actors featured in the product, or theirunderstanding of the text or visuals. Small groups of people(maximum 25 at a time) are shown a video of an audiovisualproduct, such as a TV programme or advertisement, and theirreactions are monitored from second to second by means of amicrocomputer system. These reactions are immediatelytransformed into a graph that shows visually how the group as awhole reacted at every point in the p rogramme or advertisement.

The CONNEM apparatus consists of 25 hand units that eachtransmit a uniquely coded radio signal (the reactions of theaudience members) to a receive!' linked to a small portableIBM-compatible laptop computer. These signals are shown as agraph on the computer monitor, and are simultaneously storedas data that can be printed out. Besides the continuous recordingof responses in the form of a quantitative graph on the laptop PC,additional qualitative information can be obtained by means ofgroup discussions. Questionnaires can also be used to obtainindividual responses or opinions from audience members. Thepresentation of the findings depends on the client'srequirements. Usually the findings are presented in the form of areport containing not only a written account of the aim of thestudy, the specific methods used and a summary of the mostimportant results, but also the CON REM graph and, if applicable,the charts describing the questionnaire data and a write-up of thegroup discussions.

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CONREM can give an immediate idea of an audiovisualproduct's strong and weak points (for example which sectionwas most popular, or which parts the audience did notunderstand). This method, together with focus group interviewsand questionnaires, can be used to test the effectiveness ofestablished TV programmes or advertisements. lt can also beused on pilot TV programmes as an early warning regardingviewers' probable reactions to a new series. This pretesting ofprototype products, also known as formative evaluationresearch, can help producers or manufacturers to make moreeffective final products and also prevent unnecessaryexpenditure on unpopular or ineffective audiovisual material.

Communication audit is a scientifically based technique toanalyze the internal and external communication of anorganization. This technique is aimed at providing a descriptionof the organization's communication needs, communicationpolicy and communication practices. The range and depth of acommunication audit are largely determined by the size andcomplexity of the organization as well as by the specificcommunication needs and requirements within theorganization. The most effective way of conducting acommunication audit is to engage the services of a consultant.This is not an absolute requirement since in-house personnel canbe taught to do it. However, there are various merits to enlistingthe services of a consultant. The advantages include theexperience gained from working with other organizations, theundivided attention that can be given to the organization and therelative objectivity of the consultant. Experience has found thatthe most effective communication audit is one in which theconsultant and personnel from the organization combine forces.

Content analysis is a technique developed to studysystematically and objectively the contents and characteristics ofcommunication. The HSRC offers a training module in contentanalysis which can be adapted to a client's specific needs.Content analysis can be used by anyone who is interested in

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obtaining a reliable and valid overview of what is beingcommunicated (usually by the mass media) to the public or to asegment of the public. This would in the first place includepolitical, business or other decision makers who would like toknow what the media's reaction is to their own actions or tocurrent events. The results of a content analysis could in suchcases be used to help plan future actions. The method can also beuseful to people who need to keep abreast of the trends in themedia coverage of specific topics. Similarly, knowledge of thepublic agenda (those topics that the public consider as mostimportant with regard to a particular event) set by the massmedia could be crucial to public figures such as candidatesseeking election to public office. Content analysis can yieldinformation to organizations and persons who enjoy frequentmedia coverage and who are concerned about their mediaimage. Finally, content analysis can help decision makers andacademics who are concerned with long-term social planningthat has to take into account the interaction between mediacontent and trends in society.

The process of change in South Africa has once again focusedattention sharply on the extent and quality of communityservices that are provided in various fields by the governmentand by private and other organization to improve the quality oflife of all people, especially those who are poor, deprived anddisadvantaged. However, little attention is given to the relevanceof techniques by which research might inform policy makers anddecision makers on the relevance, quality and impact of thesecommunity services. Authoritative information on the existingservices at a national, regional and local level is essential foreffective planning, policy formation, the effective integration ofservices and the choices made about prioritizing the demands onlimited available human, institutional and financial resources.Although some energy has been devoted to these services, thereis an urgent need to provide a coherent picture of the strength

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and weaknesses of many community services and especially ofthe impact of these services.

Political and constitutional issuesThe TiSRC's objectives with regard to the evolution of anaccepted political system, political empowerment and optimalsociopolitical stability require the development of techniques tomonitor and analyze public opinion, conflict and violence.

South Africa, like many other countries in the world today, isundergoing constitutional adaptation and renewal. In theprocess of constitutional development, attention is frequentlygiven to the experiences that other countries have with specificmechanisms. This entails investigating the constitutions ofdifferent governments in order to examine and possibly learnfrom their functioning. So far the constitutions of other countrieshave been available only in document form and consequently,comparing the laws of various constitutions has been laboriousand time-consuming.

The HSRC's Centre for Constitutional Analysis hasdeveloped a technique that analyzes all democratic constitutionsby means of a comprehensive questionnaire and that capturesthe data on computer. Experts in political science andconstitutional law have completed the questionnaires. Severalforeign experts and more than 30 local researchers have beeninvolved part time in the project. The questionnaire containsmore than 1 000 questions compiled by constitutional experts.Each constitution is therefore analyzed on the basis of uniformquestions, and then the data obtained in this way are captured oncomputer. Consequently, users can gain easy access throughtheir computers to information that was formerly inaccessible.The database as well as the text of each constitution are filed oncompact disk. This means that the user can shift directly from aspecific question to the text of the constitution in order todetermine how a particular section is worded. The questionsused as the basis for analyzing the constitutions cover a wide

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variety of fields, including the composition of the parliament andcabinet, the powers of regional and local governments, theprotection of human rights and the cornpetencies of the courts.The technique therefore greatly facilitates the comparison ofconstitutions. It not only has advantages for students andresearchers, but will also be indispensable to countriesundergoing constitutional reform. The product will be marketedlocally and internationally on CD RoM.

South Africa has experienced unprecedented levels ofpeaceful and violent forms of protest during the last two decades.In fact, the level of violence during this period was so high thatSouth Africa is generally regarded as one of the most violentsocieties in the world today. Since October 1984 more than 10 000people lost their lives during incidents of political violence. Animportant characteristic of violent and non-violent forms ofprotest in South Africa is the extent to which political sentimentsimpel political violence. The complexity of protest and violencemakes it imperative to analyze forms of protest in South Africa.Such analyses will contribute to a better understanding of thecharacteristics and dynamics which underlie these forms ofcollective action.

With a view to gaining a better understanding of conflictphenomena, an extensive measuring instrument was developedby the Centre for Conflict Analysis in collaboration withcolleagues in the United States. This instrument has recorded ingreat detail the characteristics of each and every incident ofcollective action violent and non-violent in South Africasince 1970. Information is recorded on more than 60 variables,which include the location in time and space, the duration of,participants in and perceived causes of the event. Anotherversion of this measuring instrument has been used in a study ofcollective action in the US since the 1950s.

Labour unrest can hardly be divorced from other forms ofpolitical protest in South Africa. This is especially true for theperiod before 1990 when black political organizations were

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banned by the South African Government. Since labour unionsprovided the only legal way that blacks in South Africa couldformally organize, black labour unions played a major role asinstruments for addressing political issues. The unbanning in1990 of organizations which primarily cater for the politicalaspirations of blacks in South Africa may undermine the politicalrole of labour unions.

In order to trace the changes in the dynamics of labour unrestin South Africa, the Centre for Conflict Analysis of the HSRC haSdeveloped another extensive measuring instrument. The studyunderlying this instrument supplements the Centre's researchinto other forms of collective action referred to above. The labourunrest instrument records information on more than 60variables, including the company and industry in which thestrike or work stoppage occurred, the date when it occurred, thenumber of workers involved and the cause of the strike or workstoppage.

ConclusionHuman society is complex and multifaceted and so too are theproblems that ensue when essential societal structures andsystems break down or malfunction. The social sciences havetaken great strides in unravelling the intricacies of socialdynamics. Scientific knowledge alone, however, is not enough toremedy the ailments of society. It has to be converted intoappropriate problem-solving procedures and techniques andthese in turn should be applied with great sensitivity and theactive participation of the people affected. These areprerequisites for the development of viable social sciencestechnology aimed at sustainable solutions for the many ills insociety, such as alcoholism and drug-related problems, crime,family disintegration, underdevelopment, and political, socialand labour-related conflicts.

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References

Bamberger, M. (1988). The role of community participation in devel-opment planning and project management. Washington: WorldBank.

Dietz, T. (1987). Theory and method in Social Impact Assess-ment. Sociological Inquiny, 57(4

Finsterbusch, K. (1985). State of the art in Social Impact Assess-ment. Environment and Behavior, 17(2).

Freudenbutg, W.R. (1986). Social Impact Assessment. Annual Re-views Inc.

Howitt, R. (1989). Social Impact Assessment and resource devel-opment: Issues from the Australian experience. AustralianGeographer, 20(2).

Rifkin, S.B. (1986). Lessons from community participation inhealth programmes. Health Policy and Planning.

Rocha-Silva, L. (1982a). An analysis of South African sociologicalresearch on alcoholism - general conclusions and implica-tions for treatment. South African Journal of Sociology, 13(1).

Rocha-Silva, L. (1982b). Estimating the incidence of alcoholism:Validity considerations. Humanitas, 8(1).

Rocha-Silva, L. (1987a). The prevalence of alcohol-related prob-lems among whites in the RSA. Some multisource data. Inter-national Journal of the Addictions, 22(10).

Rocha-Silva, L. (1987b). Towards a more detailed measurementof quantity and frequency of alcohol intake of Whites in theRepublic of South Africa. South African Journal of Sociology,18(4).

Rocha-Silva, L. (1989). Drinking among elderly non-institutionalizedwhites it' Pretoria: Practices, context of drinking and reasons fordrinking. Pretoria: HSRC.

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Rocha-Silva, L. (1991). Alcohol and other drug use by residents ofmajor districts in the self-governing states in the RSA. Pretoria:HSRC.

Shie!ds, M.A. (1975). Social Impact Studies. An expository analy-sis. Environment and Behavior, 17(3).

United Nations. (1980). Local level planning and rural development.Bangkok: UN Asian and Pacific Development Institute.

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IntroductionThe purpose of this book is amongst other things to introduce theconcept of human science technology (HST) to the SouthAfricanacademic community, decision makers and public.

This does not imply that "technology" in the human sciencesis a novel concept. Kenneth Prewitt (1981), at the time thePresident of the Social Science Research Council in New York,used it as early as 1980 in his annual report

numerous well-established industries now market tech-nologies that are derived from social science research:demographic projections, programmed language in-struction, standardized educational and psychologicaltesting, behaviour modification, man-machine systemdesign, political polling, consumer research and markettesting and management consulting.

Reiss, in Smelser (1986) Behaviour and Social Science: fifty years ofdiscovery referred to it as "social and behavioural scienceinventions", while Gerstein in the same book used the term"technical inventions". Elsewhere in his book Reiss referred to"the behavioural and social sciences and their technologies".

Reiss in Smelser (1986) singles out the following four "socialinventions" or HST as the ones that have had the greatestimpact on society, namely: human testing, sample surveys,quality control methods and cohort analysis. These should beseen against Ogburn's list of five social inventions drawn up in1934, namely: the minimum wage law, the juvenile court,Esperanto, instalment selling and group insurance. The "hard"technologies that Ogburn in 1934 regarded as having had majorinfluences on society were the ship, the airplane, the internalcombustion engine and the elevator without the elevator,high-rise buildings would not have been possible (Smelser,1986).

Reiss goes on to make the important observation that,relative to the natural sciences, the lower scientific prestige of thebehavioural and social sciences rests in part on their not studying

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the social impact of their inventions (Smelser, 1986). Reiss'sobservation suggests the possibility that the social sciences havebeen so obsessed with analyzing the consequences of the "hard"technologies that they never realized they were themselvesproducing HST, which in turn was exerting major influences onsociety.

As far as South African HST is concerned, the previouschapters have indicated that local social scientists have mademajor contributions to,in particular, two of the technologies thatReiss mentions, namely, human testing and sample surveys.South African psychometric and edumetric tests comparefavourably with those available elsewhere in the world, inrespect of novel tests and also of adaptations of well-la-townoverseas instruments. Contributions to sample surveys haveincluded South African breakthroughs such as aerialphotography, which was used extensively during the 1991census, as well as new methods of surveying income andexpenditure.

Classification of technologiesAlthough scientific change often occurs through strong advancesin a single established discipline, today new knowledge appearswith increasing frequency at the boundaries of disciplines. It is inthe interaction between domains of knowledge that many of themost productive areas of research are found.

To complicate matters, the boundaries between science andtechnology have become increasingly blurred. Activities of aparticular researcher may often involve science as well astechnology. Some disciplines such as engineering, medicine andagriculture might even be more technological than scientific.

Engelbrecht (1991) provides a useful framework fordistinguishing between science and technology. He states thatthe important question to ask is not what is being done bysomeone involved in science and technology but why it is being

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done. If the aim is to understand the world, he calls it science; ifit is to control the world or society, he calls it technology.

Engelbrecht (1991) bases his reasoning on the fact that theGreek word techne refers to weaving and historically, people haveworked in the sphere of practical skills in producing sometangible product. The Latin word scientia derives from cuttingand drawing distinctions, whereas the German wordWissenschaft refers to having insight and to the cognitive act of"understanding". Activities that have as their goal a particularproduct or even a certain state of affairs may broadly bedesignated as "technology". (Note that the product in such casesneed not be tangible.)

The following diagram (Figure 1) of Engelbrecht's (1991)provides a useful illustration of the framework and the linkagesbetween the various components. Radnitzky (1991) also drawsattention to the fact that technologies can be classified intodifferent categories according to the theoretical frameworkunderlying the technology concerned. This links up withEngelbrecht's views about the interdependence of technologies.

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According to Radnitzky (1991) a major distinction would be, first,whether the technology was of an artisan type, based onobserved correlations that could not be explained. Engelbrechtdefines this type of technology as technology built on directexperience. The Bessemer technology in steel production is atypical example, because it was not based on a theory that couldexplain why it failed in certain cases. Because of the relativelypoor development of theory building in the social sciences, it canbe speculated that a large percentage of HST would be of theartisan type.A second classification of technologies would be based onscience, implying that the general principles could be explainedin terms of a theory. A classic example is that of the developmentof nuclear technology from atomic theory (Radnitzky, 1991) or, inthe case of the social sciences, mental tests based on itemresponse theory which is a statistical theory of mental test scores(Lord and Novick, 1974).

Frank Press, President of the National Academy of Sciencesof the USA (1992), underlined the importance of R&D when hesaid during a colloquium on S&T policy in Washington thatscience would drive technology. He also said that spin-offs willhave to be gained from research not only in areas that have stillundiscovered applications, but also in those that have obviouscommercial and industrial applications.

Technology can also be distinguished from art since, inprinciple, anyone can learn the expertise pertaining to atechnology but, by contrast, art typically depends on theuniqueness of the artist's personality.

Rad nitzky states that it has become common practice to thinkof technology primarily in terms of engineering technologies.The concept of technology, however, also makes provision for atypological description of technologies such as medicaltechnologies, social technologies, etc. It is based on an analysis ofthe goals or values to be realized by means of the technologyconcerned. Research methodology can, for instance, be seen as a

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technology that facilitates the advancement of knowledge(Radnitzky, 1991).

According to Mauer (1992), HST can also be classifiedaccording to the extent that expert knowledge is needed to usethe specific technology As can be seen from Figure 2, certaintechnologies need a great deal of expertise whilst others haccilyneed any. The more compl icated techniques will generally be themost expensive ones to apply.

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FIGURE 2 DEVELOPMENT OF HUMAN SCIENCES TECHNOLOGY (HST)

The value of HST in socio-economic developmentPouris (1991) claims that S&T is the most important factor in

socio-economic development affecting internationalcompetitiveness, economic growth, productivity andemployment. He also refers to Solow who won the Nobel Prizefor Economics in 1987 for his studies on the factors underlyingthe doubling of work in gross output per hour that the USA

enjoyed between 1909 and 1949. Solow showed that technologydirectly affects the creation of wealth. Of all the factors that might

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have been responsible (e.g. capital output rates, rate of savings orthe rate of growth in the work force) So low estimated that 88 %of the economic growth was attributable to "technical change inthe broadest sense".

Pouris (1991) also argues that technology is the major factorresponsible for improvements in productivity. Since World WarII new technology has been responsible for nearly half of allincreases in productivity, more so than those due to increasedcapital, better education, or any other single factor. One should,naturally, not be so naive as to think that HST would have anequivalent impact, but on the other hand one should once againheed Reiss's observation that HST has had a greater impact thanscientists in this field have themselves realized.

The impact of S&T development on the economic growth ofa country remains somewhat nebulous. It has been pointed outthat adequate financial provisioning for science requires aprogressing economy, not necessarily the other way round. Inother words, it is difficult to say which comes first a strongscience leading to economic prosperity or economic prosperityleading to a strong science. It is more likely a combination of bothfactors interacting one upon the other.

The capacity of the human sciences in South Africa to pro-duce technologyUndisputed knowledge ("empirical regularities" [Prewitt, 1981])in the human sciences is more difficult to acquire and to establishthan in the natural sciences. Its translation into technology is a farmore cumbersome and uncertain undertaking.

However, important issues need to be addressed by thehuman sciences in South Africa. These include upgrading thehuman sciences, improving the quality of students who enrol forstudies in the human sciences and enhancing the quality of thetraining they receive. The current situation suggests that thehuman sciences might be attracting too many students and thattoo many human science students are of very average ability.

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The quality of research done in the human sciences shoulddemonstrate to the public that the country needs such scientiststo help solve our pressing problems which, incidentally aremostly human problems and therefore ought to be addressed bysocial scientists. However, present day problems are socomplexthat no single discipline can possibly hope to solve them all. Amultidisciplinary approach is essential. Such an approach doesnot necessarily imply co-operation with other social scientistsonly, but also co-operation with scientists from other sciencecultures such as the natural sciences and the medical sciences.

Prospective students ought to be informed about thepossibilities of combining subjects from e.g. the natural as well as

the human sciences in their curricula. The prewnt barriersbetween the human sciences and the natural and other sciencesshould be lowered, and a flow of students among the variousfaculties encouraged. Marais (1990) observes that social scientistsin -the USA are involved in multidisciplinary projects withnatural scientists much more frequently than is the case in SouthAfrica. This suggests that the social sciences in the USA might be

more readily accepted by the natural and other science culturesthan they are in South Africa. Unfortunately, the lowering of thebarriers between faculties will be an extremely difficultmanoeuvre. Nevertheless there can be no doubt about thepositive results that can e obtained by making it easier forstudents to combine subjects from different faculties. If at thesame time the curricula of the human sciences (and perhaps,more specifically, the humanities) are adapted to include moreskills that can be used in industry, such as problem-solvingability, logical reasoning and analytical thinking, this will ensurethat these students will find it easier to obtain employmentbecause of a broader background.

Garbers (1988) also referred to the problem of numeracy inthe human sciences when he remarked

there is an urgent need for human sciences researchers tomaster more sophisticated numerical skills. The reason

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is obvious. The multivariate character of all human andsocial phenomena can be ordered by means of qualita-five methods, but more particularly by multivariate sta-tistical techniques (p.142).

Generally speaking, the upgrading of the mathematical andstatistical skills of researchers in the human sciences to moresophisticated levels will have to receive attention if progress is tobe made.

The role of centres of excellence in the creation of HSTResearch cited by Jackson and Rushton (1987) refers to a

phenomenon which indicates that "evocative environments"seem to attract brilliant people. The better the research that aninstitution undertakes, and the more proficient its personnel, thebetter are its chances of attracting other creative persons.Evocative environments apparently do not often exist in thehuman sciences; they have to be created, properly funded andstaffed by creative people under dynamic leadership.

There are various successful models that could be utilized toproduce such centres. Mention is made of two kinds, namely,centres for advanced study in the humanities and social sciences,and centres for collaborative research.

Centres for advanced study provide an opportunity for agroup of talented scientists in the human sciences and sometimesa few from selected disciplines in the natural and medicalsciences to spend a year together in an evocative environmentcondusive to the development of new technologies, theories,models and the undertaking of high level research.

Collaborative research centres are usually created by poolingthe research power and infrastructural resources of a fewuniversities, to work on a specific practical problem in the humansciences with adequate funding guaranteed for a couple of years.

A complicating factor is the fact that human problems are somuch part of everyday life that they are not regarded asprovocative and challenging enough for research. Such a

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situation might be further reinforced by our education system,for example, in the research orientation of teaching the naturalsciences which involves experiments to prove theories,development of new technology in comparison with teachinghistory, languages, etc. Students in the human sciences should beexposed to training in research at an earlier stage preferablyfrom the first year onwards. The present system of introducingresearch rather abruptly at the master's level without propertraining is not the best way to inculcate an interest in scienceand technology

HST and the implementation of research findingsScientific findings may often take from ten to 20 years to beimplemented (Heller, 1986). There is evidence that this periodmight in some cases have been even longer in the humansciences. Dempster (1988) in the American Psychologist refers tothe so-called spacing effect, in other words, the finding that for a

given amount of study time, spaced presentations (regularreview of study material over a fairly long period) yieldsubstantially better learning than do massed presentations(crammed sessions of all the material over a short period). Thisphenomenon is one of the most dependable and replicablefindings in experimental psychology. It was first discovered byEbbinghaus in 1885 (Dempster, 1988) but is nevertheless hardlyever used or referred to by educators. It is obvious thatsomething needs to be done to shorten the "Dempster effect" or

the period between discovery and the implementation of theresearch findings in the human sciences. An implicit problem inDempster's statement is that a profusion of solid findings in thehuman sciences may not be known to people who would be keento implement the results.

Furthermore, knowledge in the human sciences is generallyspeaking not likely to be so compelling or authoritative that itleads inevitably to implementation. Knowledge in the human

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sciences does not easily lend itself to conversion into replicabletechnologies (Weiss 1979).

Caplan (1990) also warns that the "better mouse-trap" theoryof utilization usually does not work. (The "better mouse-trap"theory maintains that if you build a better mouse-trap the worldwill beat a path to your door.) The hard fact is that there is noguarantee that this will happen. A further constraint is that theworld of the researcher and the world of the user are separateworlds with different and conflicting values that have to bereconciled. In addition, the organizational climate of institutionsmight be such that new knowledge cannot be implementedwithout creating serious problems. Implementation should bedone cautiously and requires knowledge of the inner workingsof the organization.

The human sciences also have to cope with the D.1.Y.S.S.S.

or the "do-it-yourself social science syndrome" (Heller, 1986). Allpeople consider themselves experts in the human sciences.Research findings originating from the natural sciences aretherefore more readily implemented than findings from thehuman sciences. Kenneth Prewitt (1981) said:

Ironically, the social sciences seldom get full credit fortheir theoretical accomplishments, because the discover-ies, once labelled, are quickly absorbed into conventionalwisdom. This is easily demonstrated: note the number ofso-called social science concepts common to our vocabu-lary: Human capital, gross national product, identity cri-ses, span of control, the unconscious, price elasticity,acculturation, political party identifica tion referencegroup, externalities. Obviously, the phenomena revealedthrough such concepts existed, prior to the relevant re-search, just as DNA, quarks and the source of the Nileexisted prior to their discovery. Yet concepts generated.through research are discoveries that make phenomenaintelligible and accessible that previously were inaccu-rately or incompletely understood (Editorial: Science).

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There is evidence, however, that the period between discoveryand application has in the meantime been dramaticallyshortened, especially as far as the "hard" technologies areconcerned and that the Japanese are twice as fast as the USA inbringing new technology to the market (AAAS, 1992).

It is also estimated that the ftrst competitor to bring a newproduct to the market generally captures 80 % of the market(AAAS, 1992). Researchers in the human sciences will have totake note of this and realise that they are in the technologybusiness themselves. As soon as they realise this, there is likely to

be an improvement in the implementation of research findingsand an increase in technology development in these sciences.

Paradigm shiftsIt is not uncommon for well-known companies, who dominatedthe international markets for years and whose products mayhave been household names, to find themselves suddenly introuble. Mention can be made of just two such incidents(Pistorius, 1992): Some years ago National Cash RegistersCompany (NCR) was forced to fire 20 000 of its employees andto write off stock to the value of $140 000 000. What went wrong?It would appear that, although the company sold mechanicalelectrical registers for years, they were out of touch with themodern technological developments that resulted in themanufacture of electronic equipment by their competitors,which rendered NCR's range of products obsolete.

The same happened to the manufacturers of Swiss watches.Switzerland dominated the manufacture and marketing ofwatches for 60 years but they had to lay off 77 % of their workforce (50 000 people) when their share of the market dropped to10 % with the introduction of quartz watches manufactured inJapan. They had been aware of the development of quartzwatches but they never thought that there might be a market for

them. This was a serious error of judgment.

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In order to form a better picture of what went wrong, it mightbe instructive to look at the life cycle of just about any product.This cycle can be represented by the well known S-shape curvein Figure 3 (Pistorius, 1992). The typical sales pattern accordingto the curve is for it to set off at a slow pace, then gain momentumand after a period, level out to an asymptote.

When the product reaches an asymptote, the manufacturersusually endeavour to boost the sales by trying to improve thequality of the product. They sometimes manage to extend its lifespan by doing so, as pointed out in Figure 3.

0

A

Market saturanon !ever

TIMEFIGURE 3. TYPICAL PRODUCT CYCLE (Pistorius, 1992)

An illustration of what happens when an innovative newproduct hits the market is also seen in Figure 4,

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0

A

Market saturation tevet

Product Irnproventent

Product cycle

Par adigm Shill

TIMEFIGURE 4: PRODUCT CYCLE, PRODUCT IMPROVEMENT AND

PARADIGM SHIFT (Pistorius, 1992)

The examples of electronic cash registers and quartz watchesbeing replaced by innovative new products are illustrations of aphenomenon that is known as a paradigm shift.

A paradigm shift occurs when new technology which isdeveloped is so radically neN in principle that it completelychanges all existing rules, so that all parties have to start fromscratch again (Pistorius, 1992). In terms of HST, a paradigm shiftcan be illustrated by paper and pencil tests of psychological traitsbeing replaced by computerized tests and these in turn being

replaced by computerized adaptive tests.Computerized adaptive tests are based on modern item

response theory (Lord and Novick, (1974)), which is morepowerful than traditional classical test theory and couldtherefore open the door for technological innovation. From a set

of items for which the item response model holds each individualtaking a test can be given a subset of different items, but the testresults would be comparable because the scores for differentsubsets of items are on the same scale. Item response theory is

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also an illustration of HST based on an elegant mathematicalmodel.

Technological innovationWhat can industry do to stay ahead of new developments?According to a CSIR report (1991) the traditional science-pushmodel (Figure 5), has been replaced by themore complicated butmore realistic chain-linked model (Figure 6), which emphasizesthat technological innovation is a process characterized by manyand continuous interactions and feedback. It is not a singleoperation.

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SCIENCE-PUSH MODEL

[ RESEARCH 1 DEVELOPMENT PRODUCTION MARKETING 1

MARKET-PULL MODEL

FIGURE 5. LINEAR MODELS OF TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION

142

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RESEARCH

C C C C

POTENTIAL INVEST DETAILED REDESIGN MTH BUI EMARKET AND/OR DESIGN AND AND

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0, 0, 0, 0,

C: central chain ot Innovationf feedback loopsF: strong feedback loOP1: links through existing knowledge and returnD: direct link between research and Innovation/designI: suppor t of scientific research by Instruments, machines, technology, proceduresS: support of direct .'esearch and of monitoring underlying sciences

FIGURE 6. CHAIN-LINKED MODEL OF TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION

Pistorius (1992) says that it is easier to accommodate changeif it is accepted that the normal state of affairs is one of rapidchange and turbulence rather than one of slow incremental

change.Sudden paradigm shifts should be avoided by creating a

climate for technological innovation that is based on ongoingdiscovery and market exploitation. A "discovery" can be defined

as the creation of new ideas, processes, or services while"innovation" could be described as new products, processes andservices that are accepted successfully by the markets. In otherwords, it can be said that innovation is equal todiscovery as well

as market exploitation.Economists estimate that 50-70% of economic growth can be

attributed to innovation. The figure for South Africa is only 20%

(Pistorius, 1992).For producers of technology to survive, it is essentail to

manage innovation successfully. One should never wait for theinevitable to happen. The future should be anticipated. New

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BEST COPY MAPLE

ideas should continuously be monitored and new products triedout. Opportunities should be identified, problems should besolved, prototype solutions should be tried out, and productsshould be developed, marketed commercially and diffused inthe markets.

Technology transferTisdell (1981) says that most of the ideas used in innovations

by firms come from outside their firm. The movement ofindividuals between organizations is the greatest single source oftransfer (20,5%). Education plus literature accounted for 18,5%,personal contacts 9%, visits abroad 7% and conferences 2,5%.

Tisdell (1981, p.91) goes on to say:

Possibly the majority of innovations arise from a littleunderstood process of movement of people: throughsmall firms being acquired by larger firms or licensinglarger firms or acquiring licences from them: by staffleaving one company and joining another and alsothrough the so-called spin-off process where an individ-ual leaves a large company, university or laboratory(some times because he cannot get his ideas imple-mented) to set up his Own business, perhaps to succeedspectacularly, perhaps to fail and possibly in either eventto sell out to a larger firm.

Ln the case of technology being transferred from one countryto another, and especially in the case of third world countries,there should be a minimum of scientific expertise at the receivingend (Gaillard, 1991). Furthermore much of the knowledge andtechnology conceived in the developed countries cannot beapplied directly to the developing countries withoutmodification and adaptation. There are always problemsconnected to knowledge appropriation and technology transferthat can only be solved through on-site science in other words,on-site scientists (Gaillard, 1991).

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Management of technologyThe complexity of the process of managing technology has up tonow been neglected and its importance underestimated.

This should no longer be the case. World-renownedinstitutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT) has introduced a master's degree in TechnologyManagement (TM). Some South African universities'engineering faculties are following suit with the introduction ofunder-graduate courses in TM. The main components of TMwould be

the analysis of technology

the eval uation of the impact of technology on the markets andsocietythe management of R&D and the various research projects in

terms of R&D

a well-defined and clear technology policy

The challenges of the 90's and the 21st century require TM toreceive more attention if the needs of the country are to bemet.

Ideological issuesAlthough ideological issues are usually interpreted to mean thegovernment policy that decides which research should befunded, as well as the problems that arise when doing researchsponsored by or involving a government department (especiallywhen the findings were or could be critical of governmentpolicies and practices), the term has other connotations. Forinstance, "scientism" as such can be interpreted as an ideologyprofessing to be objective, always pursuing the truth andpointing the way to happiness. It is sometimes said that thecurrent ideology of science and technology is an ideology ofsalvation. A large portion of the public believe that the world'sproblems can be solved by scientists and technologicalinnovation.

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On the other hand, fears of a technocratic take-over of thepublic's lives should be counteracted by bringing technocraticdecision-making back into public debate. It is essential thatscientists and technologists be involved in this public debate, andthat it addresses important issues of the social values and normswhich play a role in technocratic decision-making.

Ethical considerationsHans Lenk (1991) claims that the ethical and moral questionsrelating to science and technology are usually problems ofresponsibility. These responsibilities can be grouped under threeheadings, namely: action responsibility, role and taskresponsibility and universal and moral responsibility.

Action responsibility means accepting responsibility for theresults and consequences of one's own actions. It also refers to thequestion of accountability frequently in respect of negativeexamples, as for instance the quality of technological productsand safety. Negative causal responsibility is also emphasized.Professionals are, for example, responsible for ensuring highstandards in their work and for avoiding mistakes intechnological functioning, failures, poor quality work, etc.

Accountability may also refer to what is sometimes calledpolitical correctness. It is a complex issue with differentmeanings, but according to one interpretation boils down to thefact that certain research topics could injure the feelings of certaingroups and should be avoided. The human sciences arevulnerable here, but so are disciplines such as human geneticsprojects. Typical topics, to name but a few, would be natureversus nurture issues, experiments in human engineering, socialengineering and projects objectionable to particular religiousdenominations.

Types of role and task responsibilities mean fulfilling a roleor assuming responsibility for a task (e.g. in a job for which therole player usually bears a responsibility regarding acceptable oroptimum role fulfilment or task completion). These role duties

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may be assigned in a formal way or be more or less informal.When representing a corporation or an institution the roles maybe legally ascribed.

Universal and moral responsibilities: moral responsibilitymay be brought into play by a special type of action and inconnection with a special role, but it tends to be universal. It is notpeculiar to a particular person or role, but applies to everyone in

the same situation and/or role. Morality and moralresponsibility are universal. Moral responsibility isindividualized in the sense that it cannot be delegated,substituted, replaced, or removed from the particular person (orcorporation/institution). It cannot be diminished or divided up,nor can it dissolve or vanish by being borne by a number ofpeople. In this sense it is irreplaceable and irreducible.

Formal training in ethical issues: There is a general complaintthat universities tend to neglect ethical issues. This applies tomost disciplines. The various professions such as medicine, law,psychology, etc. usually function according to strict ethical codesbut many of the other sciences seem to disregard these issues.Certain principles are applicable to science and technology ingeneral and should receive more attention in the training of

students.It could therefore be argued that university curricula should

include ethical programmes for their students. The followingissues should receive attention in the execution of research:integrity and accuracy; appropriate skills; fabrication;falsification; plagiarism; errors of judgement or errors in theinterpretation of results; questionable research practices; therights of the researched and researchers; intellectual propertyrights; publishing and when not to publish, etc.

HST in African contextThe situation in South Africa can no longer be seen in isolation

from the rest of Africa. Forje (1989) draws attention to the fact thatthe development of "S&T" in Africa as a whole is in a sorry state.

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Poverty and political instability have taken their toll and hardlyany money is available for S&T. Few African states seem torealize that economic and social development depend on S&T.Researchers in the natural sciences receive very littleencouragement and those in the human sciences are more oftenthan not better paid than their colleagues in the "hard" sciences.This unfortunately leads to an influx of students studying thehuman sciences in universities and consequently aggravates thesituation (Forje, 1989 p.87).

Forje (1989, p.87) describes the situation as follows:The rush for the humanities and unemploymentamongst graduates is a common trend in all Africancountries. Many factors contribute to this. Generally, uni-versity education in Africa has not been coupled withcommensurate expansion of the private and public sec-tor dominated economies, leading inevitably to increas-ing unemployment and the social destabilization thatgoes along with it. The slow increase in the number ofscientists and engineers/technicians can also be attrib-uted to the way the government's scholarship awardpolicy system favours the humanities relative to otherdisciplines. Such disparity kills interest in lower rankeddisciplines; administrators are usually highly gradedand well paid.

Africa urgently needs expertise from other countries to assist it incombating its numerous problems while at the same timeproviding opportunities for these African countries to developtheir own expertise. In this respect it was encouraging to learnthat influential African scientists, such as Tindiroubona (1991)and Nyongo (1992) warned that science should not be regardedas a Western idea and a luxury for developing countries.Tindimubona (1991) summed it up as follows: "While borrowingfrom external sources is beneficial, no society has ever developedon imported know-how without mobilizing its indigenouscapacity to generate S&T and to harness them as internal enginesof growth."

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ConclusionWorldwide political changes are creating opportunities forglobal collaboration in science and technology as well as for theexploitation of science and technology. (The CSIR report [1991]refers to the globalisation of technology.)

A healthy balance should be found between technologicaldevelopment and research. Engelbrecht (1991) talks about asymbiosis between science and technology, and warns thatdirected fundamental research should not be abandoned infavour of technology. He states that there is a strong connectionbetween directed fundamental research, applied research andtechnology which is analogous to the roots, the branches and thefruit of a tree. No fruit is possible without the roots. Technologycannot flourish outside an environment of dynamic scientificactivity.

Stronger competition will lead to a shorter period betweendiscovery and application, to accelerated adaptation and toshorter time before commercial innovation occurs.

Increased use will be made of multidisciplinary teams, inother words the ilse of researchers in the human sciences, thosespecializing in technology production, designers and salespeople. A new breed of scientist in the human sciences wih haveto be trained in future to perform the roles of sodal engineers andsocial technologists. The days of hobby-horse research, andresearch for the sake of research no matter how irrelevant, haveprobably gone for the time being. Cost-effective relevant researchthat can be implemented by way of technology and that has animpact on society will be the norm.

Closing remarkAs pointed out at the beginning of this chapter, the purpose ofthis book is to propagate the term HST and to make researchersin the human sciences aware of the fact that they are actuallyproducing technology. This, in fact, should be regarded as apassing phase. In terms of the S&T paradigm, the human

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sciences form part of the universal world of science. Science isscience be it natural or medical or social. The same applies totechnology. It is not necessary to distinguish between naturalscience technologies and HST. If the human sciences were to takeup their rightful place alongside the other sciences we shouldsimply talk about technology. Anything added to this term issuperficial and unnecessary.

References

American Association for the Advancement of Science. (1992)Colloquium on science and technology policy: 16-17 April 1992,Washington: AAAS.

Caplan, N. (1990). Knowledge conversion and utilization. Semi-nar: Planning of research for implementation. Pretoria: HSRC.1990.

CSIR. (1991). Science and Technology Policies and Economic Develop-ment: A revirw of international experience. Pretoria: CSIR (PolicyStudies No. 1).

Dempster, EN. (1988). The spacing effect: a case study in the fail-ure to apply the results of psychological research. Americanpsychologist, 43:627-634.

Driskell, J.E. & Olmstead, B. (1989). Psychology and the mili-tary: research applications and trends. American psychologist,44:43-54.

Engelbrecht, C.A. (1991). Science and technology: a symbiosis.In: C.S. de Beer (ed.). Ideology and knowledge utilization, (pp.1-31) Pretoria: HSRC.

Forje, J.W. (1989). Science and technology in Africa. Northern Ire-land: Longman.

Gaillard, J. (1991). Scientists in the third world. Kentucky: Univer-sity Press.

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Garbers, J.C. (1988). The challenges in respect of research andsupply of manpower in the human sciences. Paper read atconference: People for research and development. Pretoria:HSRC.

Gerstein, D.R. (1988). The behavioural and social sciences: achieve-ment and opportunities. Washington:National Academy Press.

Heller, F. (1986). The use and abuse of social science. London: Sage.

Jackson, H. Rushton, J.P. (eds) (1987). Scientific excellence: originsand assessment. London: Sage.

Lenk, H. (1991). Types of responsibilities. In: De Beer, C.S. (ed.).Technique in society: promises and challenges (pp.1-10). Pretoria:HSRC.

Lord, F.M. & Novick, M.R. (1974). Statistical theories of mental test

scores. Reading: Addison Wesley.

Mauer, K.F. (1992). HSRC technology policy. Pretoria: HSRC.

Marais, H.C. (1990). Wetenskapbestuur in 'n veranderende omgew-ing. Pretoria: Sentrum vir Wetenskapontwikkeling, RGN.

Nyongo, A. (1992). Research not a luxury. Discoveny and Innova-

tion, Vol.4, no. 1.

Ogburn, W.F. (1954). Trends in social science. Science 79:257-262.

Pistorius. C.W.I. (1992). Tegnologiese innovasie. Lesing, Univer-siteit van Pretoria, September 1992.

Pouris, A. (1991). Science for policy: Perspectives on the institutionalframework. Pretoria: Scientometric Advisory Centre, FRD.

Prewitt, K. (1981). Usefulness of the social sciences. Science. Feb-ruary 19812 vol. 211, no. 4483.

Radnitzky, G. (1991). Technology transfer as a problem of scien-tific theory and political order. In: C.S. de Beer (ed.). Technique

in society: promises and challenges (pp.82-101). Pretoria: HSRC.

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Smelser, N.J. (1986). Behavioural and social science: fifty years of dis-covery. Washington: National Academy Press.

Tindimubona. A.R. (1991). Science culture in Africa. S.A. journalof science, 87.

Tisdell, C.A. (1981). Science and technology policy. London: Chap-man.

Weiss, C.H. (1979). The many meanings of research utilization.Public administration review, 25:426-431.

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Aachievement tests 38advancement ofhuman sciences 6alcohol-related problems .. .. 89a pplied research 4appraisal of performance.. .. 73aptitude testS 46ART-90 60assessment of healthservices 97

basic adult education 17

behavioural sciences 5bias research 64BIZ game 62

career development 71

career development stage . 34

career guidancecareer-relevant information 72Centre for ConflictAnalysis 116

centres of excellence 129

chain-linked model 135

classroom practice 17

cognitive development 20

cognitive enrichment 18

cohort analysis 123

Coke Toybox 23

communication audit 113

community health issues . 97computer courseware 29

computer technology 11

computer assisted careerguidance system 33

Subject Index

computer-assisted readinginstruction 29computerised adaptive tests . 134computerised tests 66content analysis 113

Continuous ResponseMeasurement (c0NRF.NI 112cost-effective sampling 12creation of wealth 126creativity 24

crime control 95crime victims 92CRTMEPAT 93OurnEsror 95

data bases 48decision-making 63Dempster effect 130diagnostic tests. . . . 18, 37, 38, 40dynamic screen display modes3l

economic performance 12education and training 17educational a ssessmen t 18

educational intervention 17educational materials 19

educational materialsdevelopment 20educational policy 17, 21

educational praxis 17educational statistics 18educational systems andstrategies 18educational technology 17

educational tests 36empirical regularities 127ergonomics 13

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147

ethical considerations 139ethical restraints 8experimental designs . 10expert knowledge 126

fairness 63fairness models 64

high technology in education 28home enrichment schemes. 25HR practitioner 51HSRC Text Analyser 21human behaviour 10human resourceplanning 57, 83human sciences technology ... 6human testing . 123

identifying potential 18ideological issues 138implementation of researchfindings 130industrial relations 79ini ti al evaluation 36innovative educationalprocedures 25instrument . 11

intelligence tests 46interest questionnaires 46item banks 18, 38, 41item response model 134item response theory 125

Jell i nek-Walsh-Ledermann-Khava ri formula 91job analysis 78job evaluation procedures .. .. 8juvenile delinquencyand crime . 94

148

n 1

Khavari Alcohol Test (KAT) 90

language difficulties 25language proficiency 20language usage 20learning and instructionalproducts 18learning needs 20LEESPRET 32linguistic abilities 26literacy training 20

macro-level issues 17managing change 78managing human resources . 57management of technology. . 138manpower projections andplanning 83marginalised youth 93marketing stategy 10mathematical model 134medical technolgies 125MENTOR 33mentoring package 68model building 11modern society 14multi-disciplinary approach . 128multiple-choice responses .. 37

Nnational crimeprevention policy 95needs analysis 21negotiation skills 80negotiation techniques . 801\11PR Testing system 60non-formal education 17non-verbal tests 64numeracy in thehuman sciences 128

aorganisation developmeEl, 75, 78organisational efficiency . . . 71

organisational structure 77

paradigm shifts 132

PEERS 93pencil-and-paper tests 59performance appraisal 74performance management. . 73Peromnes and Hay systems 78personnel selection andassessment 13personnel selection procedures 8PLATO system 60poltical andconstitutional ability 89

political andconstitutional issues 115

population projectiontechnique 110

predictive bias 65preschool phase 20, 23priorities 6process evaluation 92productivity 57,73proficiency tests 38, 39Programme Evaluation AnalysisComputer (PEAC) 99PsiTest 46, 66psychological testing 8psychological tests 45psychometric tests 59psychometrists 59psychotechnicia ns 59

"Q" method 78quality control methods . . . . 123

readability of textbooks 18

reading 27reading level 32recruitment and selection .. 57reliability 58research and development(R&D) 4research findings 20research methodology 126Rocha-Silva model 91

science and technology .. . 4, 123science-push model 135scientific journals 10

scientific method 3scientific principles 5scientific theory 8second-language speakers . . . 21

selection battery 13

self-developement 69sex education 18

SIWN4UND 46simulations 61

skilled manpower 57skills 4social and behavioural scienceinterventions 123

social change 14

Social Development EvaluationProgramme (SDEP) 109

social health 89Social Impact Assessment (S116social impact studies 13

social interaction 111

social interation andcommunication 89social issues 89social sciences 4

social technologies 125

specific learningrequirements 32

staff development andad va ncement 57

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standardised tests 37standards of education 18statistical technology 11

statistical theory of mental testscores 125study methods 18study techniques and criticalreading 33supervisor and managementcourses 68supplementaryreading course 27survey methods 76survey technology 13SWOT analysis 76

Tteaching praxis 17technology transfer 137technological innovation 135technological product; 10technology 4

150

Technology Management (11438technology of communityparticipation 101textbooks 21the 6M package 66theory building in the socialsciences 125Threshold Project 25toybox . 23typological descriptions oftechnologies 125

validity 58Values Scale 35victim-oriented approach . .. 96V ICTMILI NE 92violent crimes 92vocabulary development 24

"World of Words" 32

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HSRC,,s(U.inchtCOUNCILRESEARCH

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