The aim of this thesis is to examine the ideal of the male explorer around the turn of the twentieth century. With the Stockholm-based gentlemen's club Travellers Club as a point of departure, and the network who preceded them, I examine how the ideal is constructed through several travelogues published between 1896-1923. The stories are based on five different scientific expeditions, made by men whose common denominators are that they all were members of Travellers Club, with an additional chapter framing the internal culture within the club at the time. With a postcolonial perspective as the main theoretical framework and a posthumanist perspective as a small addition, I have analysed the prevailing culture. The study is based on articles from Swedish daily press, books written by the travelers, and the club's archive material. All source material concerns the specific expeditions, except for the books dealing with the club’s own activities. The analysis shows that the ideal was constructed in relation to representations of “the other”, as well as through encounters with animals and nature. The ideal was closely tied to whiteness and upper class identity. The characteristics most prominent in the ideal were bravery, dominance, control, diligence, and a distinct form of humour characteristic of the Travellers Club. Furthermore, the ideal rested on white and Western norms shaped by the structures of the global colonial network. 

This study examines the short-term stock market reaction to announcements of horizontal

acquisitions carried out by publicly listed companies in the Nordic region during the period

2013–2025. The purpose is to analyze whether acquisition announcements give rise to

abnormal returns (AR) and cumulative abnormal returns (CAR) for the acquiring firm within

an event window of −5 to +5 days around the announcement date. The study applies a

quantitative event study methodology, where normal returns are estimated using

OLS-regression against the VINX Benchmark Index (SEK). The sample consists of 64

horizontal acquisitions, and statistical significance is tested using a t-test at the 5%

significance level.

The results show that acquiring firms, on average, exhibit a positive abnormal return on the

announcement day, with an AAR of 1.58%, which is the highest value within the event

window. However, since the result is not statistically significant, this should be interpreted as a positive tendency in the sample rather than as a statistically confirmed market reaction. Therefore, the findings suggest that the market may react positively to acquisition

announcements, but the evidence is not strong enough to reject the null hypotheses. The

result is analyzed based on the efficient market hypothesis and behavioral finance.

During the night between 29 and 30 October 1998, a fire broke out during a discotheque party in Backaplan, Gothenburg, resulting in the deadliest contemporary fire in Swedish history. Sixty‑three young people aged 12–20 died, the majority of them between 14 and 18. The fire was later revealed to have been deliberately set by four youths who were convicted of arson in 2000, in what became one of the largest criminal trials in Sweden at the time. This study examines the Gothenburg discotheque fire through the lens of memory culture, analysing how Swedish society has remembered and interpreted the event over time and in which contexts this memory has been reproduced. The source material consists of news articles from Aftonbladet, Expressen, Göteborgs‑Posten, and Svenska Dagbladet published between 1998 and 2025, complemented by two separate interviews with survivors who now work in an organisation dedicated to preserving the memory of the event and maintaining the memorial site. Methodologically, the study combines qualitative and quantitative approaches, text analysis and semi‑structured interviews. The theoretical framework draws on memory‑cultural perspectives inspired by Jan and Aleida Assmann and Astrid Erll.

The results show that the Gothenburg discotheque fire can be understood as a national trauma that engaged multiple parts of society, both emotionally and politically, and initially received international attention. Media discussions addressed issues such as fire safety, survivor testimonies, racism, segregation and the fact that many victims had an immigrant background. These themes contributed to the early formation of a memory culture that has remained relatively stable over time. At the same time, debates such as those concerning “immigrants and Swedes” have become less prominent, and media coverage of the fire has decreased, raising concerns about how future generations will remember the event and what this means for its memory culture. Overall, the study provides insight into how memory culture develops over time in a Swedish context and how the Gothenburg discotheque fire continues to be situated within contemporary history and new societal issues.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur förskollärare beskriver arbetet med högläsning i relation till förskolans fysiska miljö, samt hur samspelet mellan miljö, pedagogiska förhållningssätt och interaktiva processer bidrar till att främja barns språkutveckling, delaktighet och lek. Studien utgår från en kvalitativ forskningsansats där semistrukturerade intervjuer genomförts med sex förskollärare verksamma vid tre förskolor. Det insamlade materialet har analyserats med hjälp av tematisk analys.

Resultaten visar att högläsning beskrivs som ett centralt pedagogiskt verktyg för att stimulera barns språk, fantasi och förståelse, där pedagogens sätt att iscensätta läsningen och bjuda in till dialog framträder som avgörande. Samtidigt framkommer att den fysiska miljön skapar olika förutsättningar för dessa interaktioner. Tillgängliga och inspirerande läsmiljöer, där böcker är synliga och lättillgängliga, möjliggör spontana läsaktiviteter och stödjer kopplingar mellan högläsning och lek. Resultaten visar även att barns delaktighet stärks när de ges möjlighet att påverka val av litteratur och aktivt delta i samtal under läsningen, vilket ytterligare förstärker samspelet mellan miljö, pedagog och barn.

Resultaten analyseras genom de teoretiska linserna affordance-teori, sociokulturellt perspektiv och begreppet den tredje pedagogen, vilket bidrar till en fördjupad förståelse för hur fysiska och sociala aspekter samverkar i barns meningsskapande. Studien synliggör betydelsen av medvetna didaktiska val i kombination med en genomtänkt fysisk miljö för att skapa rika möjligheter till interaktion och därigenom stödja barns litteracitetsutveckling i förskolan.

Denna studie undersöker hur Magdalena Andersson och Ulf Kristersson framställs i svenska politiska intervjuer som handlar om Nato under perioden 2022-2025, med särskilt fokus på om det finns könsrelaterade skillnader i hur de bemöts av journalister. Studien syftar på att analysera hur frågor formuleras och riktas till de båda politiska ledarna, samt hur deras positionering i intervjuerna kan förstås ur ett genusperspektiv.   Det empiriska materialet består av åtta videobaserade intervjuer från etablerade svenska medieaktörer, där fyra intervjuer fokuserar på Magdalena Andersson och fyra på Ulf Kristersson. Materialet analyseras genom kvalitativ diskursanalys och samtalsanalys, med fokus på frågekonstruktioner, teman, avbrott och samtalskontroll.  Resultatet visar att det finns tydliga könsrelaterade skillnader i hur politikerna bemöts. Magdalena Andersson får oftare frågor som kräver legitimering, självkritik och personliga förklaringar, medan Ulf Kristersson i större utsträckning möts av frågor som är strategiska och framåtblickande där han får möjligheten att hamna i en position som en handlingskraftig ledare / statsminister.  Studien visar därmed hur journalistiska intervjuer kan bidra till att reproducera genusnormer kring politiska ledarskap, särskilt inom säkerhetspolitiska frågor.  

This study aims to describe and analyze stock market reactions to company-specific media coverage on Nasdaq Stockholm, with particular focus on whether market reactions differ depending on the tone of the news and the macroeconomic environment in terms of inflation and interest rates. The study is based on the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH), the Stock Duration Model, risk compensation theory, and behavioral finance perspectives such as psychological biases and limited attention.

To investigate this, a quantitative event study is conducted based on 50 company-specific news publications from Dagens Industri during the period 2021-2025. The sample consists of ten listed OMXS30 companies. By analyzing abnormal returns (AR), average abnormal returns (AAR), cumulative abnormal returns (CAR) and cumulative average abnormal returns (CAAR), the study examines how the stock market reacts to positive and negative news under different inflation and interest rate conditions. 

The results show that company-specific media reporting generates clear and statistically significant market reactions on the publication day (day 0), supporting the view that the market largely reacts in line with the semi-strong form of EMH. At the same time, the findings indicate that investor reactions are also influenced by behavioral finance mechanisms such as limited attention and psychological biases. Furthermore, the study shows that negative news generates stronger and more persistent market reactions than positive news, and that the macroeconomic environment affects the market's sensitivity to media reporting. Particularly strong and statistically significant reactions are observed during periods characterized by high inflation, while the strongest negative market reaction occurs during periods of low inflation and low interest rates. 

Overall, the study contributes to a deeper understanding of the interaction between media reporting, investor behavior and macroeconomic conditions in the Swedish stock market. 

Wetland restoration has become a central priority in European environmental policy as theEuropean Union intensifies efforts to address biodiversity loss, climate change and water quality degradation. This thesis examines how stakeholder engagement in wetland restoration is conceptualised within key EU policy frameworks and how Swedish national, regional and municipal policy documents interpret and operationalise these expectations. The study addresses a critical gap in existing research, which has extensively documented the ecological functions of wetlands and the importance of participation, but has not systematically analysed how participatory ambitions are framed across policy levels or how EU expectations are translated into national policy instruments. Using qualitative document analysis supported by deductive and inductive coding, the study analyses EU strategies, directives and regulations alongside Swedish legislation, environmental objectives, agency guidelines, regional documents and municipal plans.The findings show that ecological priorities dominate policy framing at all levels, with wetlands consistently described in terms of biodiversity, hydrological regulation, nutrient retention and climate mitigation. Social and cultural dimensions, although explicitly articulated in EU frameworks, are only weakly integrated into Swedish policy documents. Stakeholder engagementis clearly defined in EU policy, particularly in the Water Framework Directive and the Nature Restoration Regulation, but Swedish documents provide general references without operational detail, resulting in inconsistent articulation across governance levels. Alignment between EU and Swedish frameworks is strong for ecological objectives but partial for participatory requirements,with notable gaps in policy translation, funding structures and landowner incentives.The thesis contributes to environmental policy research by clarifying how participation is framed across policy levels and by identifying structural gaps that shape the institutional foundations of wetland restoration in Sweden. The findings highlight the need for clearer policy articulation, deeper integration of social and cultural dimensions and more coherent translation of EU participatory expectations into Swedish policy instruments to support more inclusive and effectiverestoration outcomes.

Denna uppsats undersöker hur rädsla konstrueras i textbaserad nyhetsrapportering genom en fallstudie av det högmedialiserade sommarstugemordet i Arboga 2016. Syftet är att kartlägga förekomsten av rädslobaserade gestaltningar (fear-based frames) och analysera hur dessa realiseras språkligt och narrativt i en svensk rikstäckande kvällstidning (Expressen) respektive en lokaltidning (Arboga Tidning). Genom en metodtriangulering bestående av kvantitativ innehållsanalys av 342 artiklar och en kvalitativ textanalys av sex strategiskt utvalda artiklar, belyser studien mediernas rädsloskapande mekanismer. Resultaten visar att samtliga sex rädslogestaltningar förekommer i materialet, men med en markant skillnad i intensitet mellan tidningarna. Expressen uppvisar en konsekvent rädslomättad rapportering driven av en sensationalistisk logik, medan Arboga Tidning i högre grad balanserar rädslan med informativa och neutrala gestaltningar. Genom den fördjupade kvalitativa analysen identifierades även en ytterligare gestaltning som tillägg till det existerande ramverket: systemkritisk rädslogestaltning, vilken adresserar rädslan för att samhällets skyddsnät sviker. Studien konkluderar att journalistiken kring sommarstugemordet i Arboga fungerar som en rituell process där narrativa grepp såsom in medias res och sekvensering används för att kontrollera läsarens emotionella kurva, samt att rädslan legitimeras genom expertutlåtanden för att förena sensationalism med objektivitetsideal.

 Queerbaiting, att exploatera queer kultur har under senare år gått från att diskuteras främst i relation till fiktiva tv-serier till att även appliceras på verkliga och offentliga individer som uppfattas använda eller antyda queera uttryck utan att tydligt identifiera sig som en del av gruppen. Samtidigt kan samma individ av andra uppfattas som tydlig i sitt uttryck. På sociala medier skapas omfattande diskussioner kring individers identitet, där olika perspektiv och tolkningar synliggörs. Denna studie undersöker därför hur publiken skapar och förhandlar betydelser kring queerbaiting genom en kritisk diskursanalys med Harry Styles som fallstudie, för att undersöka hur tolkningar uttrycks, motiveras och förhandlas i publikens egna diskussioner. Materialet består av videor, diskussionstrådar samt tillhörande kommentarsfält från sociala medieplattformar där omfattande diskussioner förs. Teorierna Gender Trouble av Judith Butler (1999) och Textual Poachers av Henry Jenkins (2013) används för att belysa perspektiv från både queerstudier och publikstudier. Resultatet visar att anklagelser om queerbaiting i hög grad formas genom publikens behov av att skapa begriplighet kring identitet och uttryck. Tolkningarna utvecklas genom kollektiva processer där användare förhandlar frågor om autenticitet, identitet och legitimitet, samtidigt som behovet av tydliga kategorier återkommande fungerar som utgångspunkt i förståelsen av queerhet. Användarnas försök att utmana normer kring sexualitet och identitet verkar samtidigt bidra till att nya föreställningar och gränser kring legitim queerhet skapas.

This study examines how influencers on TikTok affect young women’s consumption behavior within the fashion and beauty sectors, with a particular focus on perceived credibility. The study is based on Source Credibility Theory, Parasocial Relationship Theory and Buyer Behavior Theory. A qualitative research strategy was applied through semi-structured interviews with nine women aged 18–24 who actively use TikTok.The findings show that influencers can affect consumption behavior through inspiration, repeated exposure and perceived authenticity. Factors such as trustworthiness, expertise, relatability and transparent product reviews were identified as central for how credibility isperceived. The results also indicate that repeated exposure to products and influencers on TikTok contributes to the development of parasocial relationships, which can strengthen trustand influence purchasing decisions. At the same time, the study shows that participants were critical toward influencers who promoted products too frequently or appeared overly commercial. Recommendations from friends and family were often considered more trustworthy than influencer recommendations.The study concludes that influencers on TikTok play an important role in shaping young women’s purchasing decisions and consumption patterns within fashion and beauty, primarily by influencing how products are discovered, evaluated and discussed in digital environments.

This thesis explores how Roma experiences of the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) are remembered, narrated, silenced, and represented in postwar BiH. Based on qualitative interviews, fieldwork observations, and museum visits conducted in BiH between December 2025 and February 2026, the study examines how memories of war continue to shape experiences of belonging, recognition, and identity among Roma individuals in postwar BiH. Drawing on perspectives connected to narrative identity, articulated silence, stigma, and public memory, the analysis explores both personal narratives of war and the limited visibility of Roma experiences within museums and institutional representations of the past. The findings illustrate how memories of war are negotiated through silence, inherited narratives, fragmentation, and struggles over public recognition. The thesis contributes to ethnological discussions concerning memory, silence, marginalization, and public memory in post-conflict societies. 

Denna studie beskriver och analyserar hur investeringar i automatiserade lager påverkar den finansiella situationen för företag inom den svenska dagligvaruhandeln, med särskilt fokus på förändringar i kostnadsstruktur och lönsamhet. Studien motiveras av den ökade förekomsten av kapitalintensiva automationsinvesteringar inom branschen, i kombination med osäkerheten kring i vilken utsträckning de förväntade effektivitetsvinsterna och kostnadsbesparingarna faktiskt realiseras i praktiken. Studien tillämpar en kvalitativ och komparativ forskningsdesign baserad på tolv semistrukturerade intervjuer med respondenter från Coop, Axfood och ICA, som samtliga varit involverade i investeringen eller driften av respektive företags automatiserade lager. Det empiriska materialet analyseras tematiskt i förhållande till en teoretisk referensram bestående av kapitalstrukturteori (Modigliani-Miller och avvägningsteorin), neoklassisk investeringsteori, real options-teorin samt begreppet operativ hävstång.

Resultaten visar att samtliga tre företag har genomgått en strukturell förändring av sin kostnadsbas, där rörliga personalkostnader i hög utsträckning har ersatts av fasta kostnader i form av avskrivningar, leasing, energi och löpande systemrelaterade driftskostnader. Denna förändring har ökat den operativa hävstången och gjort lönsamheten mer beroende av tillräckliga volymer. Även om lönsamheten bedöms röra sig i förväntad riktning, fördröjs realiseringen av de förväntade ekonomiska effekterna genomgående av uppstartskostnader, implementeringsutmaningar och oförutsedda händelser såsom den globala halvledarbristen. Studien visar vidare att utfallet av denna typ av investeringar i hög grad beror på det enskilda företagets finansiella styrka, finansieringsstrategi samt förmåga att bevara flexibilitet i genomförandet. Studiens bidrag ligger i att tillföra ett finansiellt perspektiv på investeringar i lagerautomation utifrån företagens egna erfarenheter och bedömningar, vilket kompletterar tidigare forskning som främst fokuserat på operativa och strategiska aspekter.

The professional football transfer market has developed into an important financial arena where clubs invest in young players with the expectation of future economic returns. The purpose of this study is to analyse and describe transfer-related economic returns from investments in young football players, and to examine whether players signed below their estimated market value generate higher ROI than players signed at or above estimated market value.

The study applies a quantitative research strategy and is based on secondary data from Transfermarkt. The sample consists of 191 player investments from ten European football clubs during the period 2015–2025. Transfer-related economic return is measured through Return on Investment (ROI), at both player and club level. To provide a more nuanced perspective, inflation-adjusted ROI is also calculated at club level. In addition, a one-tailed independent samples t-test is used to examine whether the average ROI is significantly higher for players signed below estimated market value than for players signed at or above estimated market value.

The results show that all clubs in the sample generated positive ROI at club level, indicating that investments in young football players can generate transfer-related economic returns. This positive return also remains after adjusting for inflation, although the level of return decreases.

Although players signed below estimated market value showed a higher average ROI in the sample, the t-test does not show that this difference is statistically significant. The findings therefore suggest that young football players can function as value-generating investment assets in a transfer-related sense, while such returns are shaped by uncertainty and cannot be explained solely by the initial transfer price in relation to estimated market value.

Syftet med uppsatsen är att studera innehållet i lokaltidningen Östra Sörmlands Posten- Den positiva lokaltidningen. Forskningsfrågan avser att undersöka vilka mönster av positiv, negativ och neutral nyhetsframställning som kan identifieras i Östra Sörmlands Posten. Delfrågorna behandlar artiklarnas tonalitet, ämnen och vilka av Harcup och O´Neills nyhetsvärderingsfaktorer som kan urskiljas i artiklarna. Genom en kvantitativ innehållsanalys analyserades 255 nyhetsartiklar i Östra Sörmlands Posten. De teoretiska ramverken för studien är teorin om medielogik och nyhetsvärderingsteorin. 

Studiens resultat visar att majoriteten av artiklarna var positiva. Detta tyder på att innehållet speglar tidningens motto "Den positiva lokaltidningen". Viss minoritet av artiklarna är negativa och neutrala, vilket påvisar att den positiva tonaliteten inte är helt genomgående. Resultatet av vilka nyhetsvärderingsfaktorer av Harcup och O`Neill som kunde identifieras i nyhetsartiklarna, visar att nyhetsvärderingsfaktorn goda nyheter framträdde i 89 av de 108 positiva nyhetsartiklarna. Den näst förekommande nyhetsvärderingsfaktorn i de positiva nyhetsartiklarna var exklusivitet, som kunde identifieras i 87 positiva nyhetsartiklar, följt av underhållning, i 40 av de positiva nyhetsartiklarna. Bland de negativa nyhetsartiklarna var samtliga dåliga nyheter. Exklusivitet och maktelit var vanligast bland de neutrala nyhetsartiklarna. 

Titel: Nu slåss dom igen! Eller så kanske de låtsas vara trollkarlar?

En kvalitativ studie om förskollärares deltagande och positionering i barns utelek

Barns utelek har en självklar plats i förskolans vardag. Trots det finns det fortfarande begränsad kunskap om hur förskollärarna själva beskriver sitt deltagande i barns utomhuslek. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur förskollärare beskriver sitt deltagande i barns utelek, hur de överväger när de går in i leken eller avstår samt hur utemiljön påverkar deras möjligheter att delta. Studien bygger på sex semistrukturerade intervjuer med förskollärare från tre förskolor i en storstadsregion i Sverige. Empirin analyserades med tematisk analys. Studien tar sin teoretiska utgångspunkt i pedagogisk positionering, där fyra analytiska positioner används som stöd i analysen: guidat deltagande, att tillhandahålla material, att initiera eller sätta upp aktivitet och lekpartner.

Resultatet visar att förskollärares deltagande i barns utelek inte handlar om ett enkelt val mellan att vara med eller stå utanför. I stället beskriver förskollärarna sitt deltagande som något som förändras beroende på situation, barns signaler och vad som händer i leken. Förskollärarna beskriver att de ofta närmar sig leken genom att ställa frågor, bekräfta barnen och vara fysiskt nära. De försöker läsa av barns initiativ och beskriver också att de ibland väljer att inte gå in i leken, särskilt när de bedömer att deras närvaro kan störa det som redan pågår. Resultatet visar även att utemiljön skapar möjligheter och hinder för förskollärares deltagande. Stora ytor, naturmaterial och möjlighet till rörelse öppnar för lek och samspel. Samtidigt beskriver förskollärarna att krav på överblick, säkerhet, bemanning och ansvar för barngruppen kan göra det svårt att stanna kvar länge i leken som lekpartner.

Slutsatsen visar att förskollärares deltagande i barns utelek behöver förstås som en professionell och situationsbunden avvägning. Barnens initiativ och utemiljöns villkor påverkar hur deltagandet formas. 

Under de senaste decennierna har styrningen av offentlig sektor genomgått betydande förändringar, från New Public Management (NPM) med fokus på resultatstyrning och kontroll till tillitsbaserad styrning (TBS) som betonar professionellt handlingsutrymme och förtroende. Trots reforminitiativ visar tidigare forskning att TBS sällan ersätter befintliga styrformer utan snarare implementeras parallellt med dem. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur tillitsbaserad styrning implementeras i skolor inom Huddinge och Tyresö kommun och i vilken utsträckning det innebär en faktisk styrningsförändring eller en symbolisk anpassning. Studien utgår från en kvalitativ forskningsdesign med ett deduktivt angreppssätt. Det empiriska materialet består av fem semistrukturerade intervjuer med en rektor, en verksamhetsutvecklare och tre lärare, kompletterat med en sekundär dokumentanalys av Huddinge- och Tyresös styrdokument. Den teoretiska referensramen utgörs av ny institutionell teori med fokus på begreppen legitimitet, tvingande isomorfism och löskoppling samt New Public Management som används för att förstå vilka styrningsmekanismer som kvarstår. Resultatet visar att TBS till viss del innebär en verklig förändring, framför allt genom ökat kollegialt samarbete, dialog och professionellt handlingsutrymme. Samtidigt kvarstår tidigare styrformer genom dokumentationskrav, uppföljning och resultatstyrning vilket pekar på att reformen i hög grad samexisterar med NPM-inspirerade strukturer. Från ett ledningsperspektiv framstår TBS som ett förhållningssätt och en långsiktig kulturförändring medan lärarna upplever att deras vardag fortfarande präglas av administrativa krav som begränsar det handlingsutrymme reformen utlovar. Studien drar slutsatsen att TBS i praktiken fungerar både som styrningsförändring och som symbolisk anpassning, beroende på var i organisationen man befinner sig. 

Studiens syfte är att undersöka och jämföra lokala och rikstäckande redaktioners etiska resonemang rörande namnpublicering i mordfall. Vidare ämnar studien undersöka hur journalisterna ser på den egna professionen och ansvaret som tillskrivs den journalistiska rollen. Det teoretiska ramverket utgörs av professionsteorin tillsammans med de teoretiska perspektiven om närhetens dilemma, konsekvensneutralitet och socialt ansvar. Studiens insamlingsmetod är kvalitativa intervjuer tillsammans med analysmetoden tematisk analys. Med hjälp av metoden avser studien fånga djupare resonemang, egna erfarenheter och identifiera mönster. Resultatet visar att de lokala journalisternas resonemang präglas av vilken skada det kan innebära för den utpekade, dennes anhöriga, hur stort allmänintresset är och en försiktighet under pågående juridisk process. De rikstäckande mediernas resonemang präglas av hur allvarligt brottet är, huruvida det kan ses som samhällsförstörande, hur stort allmänintresset är, samt övervägningar av eventuella publicistiska skador för den utpekade eller dennes anhöriga. Respondenterna uppvisade en medvetenhet om professionens makt och därmed journalistikens ansvar, att det krävs starka etiska riktlinjer för att upprätthålla och stärka professionen. Studiens slutsats är att närhet och avstånd till rapporteringen till viss del kan påverka de etiska överväganden journalister ställs inför vid en eventuell namnpublicering i mordfall.

This study aims to investigate possible differences in investment decisions and risk-taking between age groups based on financial experience and individuals' perceptions of risk. Previous research focusing on investment decisions shows that individuals tend to follow the life-cycle hypothesis, where savings and investments are influenced by the individual's phase in life. At the same time, further research indicates that the life-cycle hypothesis alone cannot explain variations in investment behavior. Against this background, the study aims to deepen the understanding of the underlying factors that influence individuals' financial decisions.

The study is based on theories within traditional financial theory and behavioral finance and is conducted with a quantitative research approach in the form of a survey. A total of 156 survey responses were collected from investors in order to capture the respondents' perceptions of which factors influence their investment decisions. To answer the research question, four hypotheses were formulated as guidance. The analysis was conducted using correlation analysis, regression analysis, multivariate analysis and descriptive statistics.

The results show that age alone cannot explain variations in investment behavior, but that investment decisions are influenced by several different factors, including financial experience, financial knowledge and individuals' perception of risk. In addition, the study finds that rational decision-making has a positive association with diversification, while financial experience is correlated with an increased propensity to take financial risk. However, neither age nor previous experienced financial losses alone can explain differences in risk-taking, which goes against central assumptions within both the life-cycle hypothesis and parts of behavioral finance theory.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine how a group of seven endometriosis patients in Sweden experience and perceive encounters with the Swedish healthcare system, and how power and resistance operate within these encounters. The study focuses on how medical authority shapes the understanding of pain and the body, along with how patients navigate, resist, and negotiate these power relations in their everyday lives. This thesis has been executed by utilising semi-structured qualitative interviews with seven endometriosis patients, autoethnographic methods in the shape of the author’s own experiences as an endometriosis patient, and observing two of the larger endometriosis support groups on the social media platform Facebook. The theoretical framework used in this thesis is a Foucauldian inspired perspective on medical epistemology, discipline, and power, as well as phenomenology. Theories of epistemic injustice and hermeneutical marginalisation are also used throughout the thesis. 

A short summary of the analysis includes how patients frequently experience their symptoms being minimised, questioned, or misunderstood in healthcare settings. Healthcare professionals exercise medical authority through epistemic power, and retain an interpretative prerogative in relation to patients’ symptoms and pain. The study further demonstrates how patients adapt their behaviour and how they display symptoms to appear credible in the eyes of medical professionals. However, the patients show how various forms of resistance are present in their endeavours to navigate the healthcare system. Patients are not only subjects to disciplinary practises, but actively challenge them.

Abolition and the Nordic discusses the connections of abolitionism and the Nordic, uncovering how abolitionist ideas circulated through Nordic societies in newspapers, literature, theatre, music, visual culture, and political debate from the late 18th century to mid 20th century. Furthermore, it reveals the contradictions embedded within these discussions, and the complexities of condemning slavery while still reproducing racial hierarchies.

Colonial history remains an important part of the Nordic legacy that has long been ignored, as the Nordic countries have often imagined themselves as morally removed from Europe’s colonial violence.

This anthology brings together history, literary studies, art history, and music studies and initiate an urgently needed conversation about abolition’s forgotten legacies in the Nordic region.

Workplaces are increasingly digitalized, changing how labor is organized, managed and monitored. This study examines algorithmic management within food and grocery logistics, focusing on how it affects warehouse workers’ agency and what resistance strategies emerge in response. This study is based on a theoretical framework consisting of digital taylorism, the panopticon, the autonomy paradox, the Job-Demands-Resources model and workplace resistance. Using a qualitative research approach, eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with warehouse workers in the sector. 

The findings show that algorithmic management significantly limits workers’ agency through technically locked workflows, detailed instructions and continuous performance measurement. Workers describe how the system determines what should be done, in what order and within what timeframe, making them feel like an “autopilot” or “robot”. Digital measurability creates a panoptic control system in which the manager’s physical presence becomes less important, as work is monitored through data and performance metrics. In response, workers develop informal resistance strategies, including manipulation of time and system data, collective concealment of breaks, and prioritizing quantity over quality and ergonomic guidelines. The study shows that these strategies can be understood as attempts to reclaim agency in a work environment characterized by high levels of control.

The study concludes that algorithmic management within food logistics reinforces centralized control rather than creating real flexibility for workers. The promised flexibility therefore appears largely illusory.

 Digitalization and the increasing availability of data have led to a growing use of Business Intelligence (BI) as support for decision-making in organizations. However, previous research shows that the benefits of BI are not automatic, particularly in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) where organizational resources, technical capabilities and analytical competencies are often limited. Against this background the aim of this study is to examine how small and medium-sized enterprises use BI to support decision-making in digital marketing.

The study adopts a qualitative research approach based on eight semi-structured interviews, six of which were in-depth interviews, conducted with participants holding different roles within SMEs. The participants represent businesses operating within retail, e-commerce and fitness-related services, and have responsibilities related to marketing, sales, and data-driven activities. The empirical material has been analyzed using thematic analysis, guided by a conceptual framework grounded in a socio-technical perspective in which technical systems, organizational structures, and human actors are understood as interdependent components of a shared work system.

The findings show that BI is used in diverse ways depending on organizational context, participants’ roles and available resources. In some SMEs, BI primarily functions as a tool for monitoring and follow-up through predefined reports while in others data is actively used to adjust campaigns, pricing, and channel strategies in close connection to ongoing digital marketing activities. Data quality emerges as a contextual and situational concept, where stability and consistency are prioritized in some settings, while timeliness and actionability are critical in others. System integration is experienced both as an enabler and a constraint, depending on the degree of centralization and user’s insight into how data is generated and combined. Furthermore, the study shows that user’s autonomy in relation to Self-Service BI (SSBI) varies significantly and is shaped by the interaction between technical complexity, organizational responsibilities and individual competencies.

The analysis demonstrates that BI’s ability to support decision making in digital marketing is shaped through the interaction between technical systems, organizational structures and users’ everyday work practices. BI use emerges as a socio-technical phenomenon where the potential of BI systems is realized or limited through organizational practices, work processes, and human interpretation. The study contributes to existing research by providing an in-depth understanding of how BI is used in practice within SMEs and by highlighting the conditions under which BI can function as a meaningful support for decision-making in digital marketing. The study also shows that limited financial resources and time constraints often force users in SMEs to compensate for shortcomings in system integrations, data quality and analytical support through manual work practices.

In this essay, I explore what happens to a person’s ability to remain in contact with themselves when demands for professionalism, control, and intelligibility begin to shape the relationship to one’s own experience. Drawing on concrete experiences from the library sector, as well as from other situations in which the sense of control and orientation begins to weaken, I approach the friction that arises when a person can no longer fully sustain the image of themselves as coherent and capable.

With support from theorists such as Rahel Jaeggi, Simone de Beauvoir, Eugen Fink, and Arlie Russell Hochschild, the essay examines how alienation, emotional labour, and self-regulation take shape within professional practices marked by demands for measurability and consensus. What gradually emerges is how the idea of professionalism increasingly risks revolving around performance and the ability to appear intelligible and composed, even as contact with one’s own experience begins to weaken.

By approaching these experiences hermeneutically, inspired by Hans-Georg Gadamer, and by understanding the essay itself as method in line with Theodor W. Adorno and Lotte Alsterdal, I explore friction as a hermeneutic opening rather than a problem to be solved. At the same time, friction is not understood as inherently liberating, but as something that can both open and close the relationship to oneself, others, and the world.

The essay thus moves toward an understanding of practical knowledge in which judgement and contact are not grounded in control or certainty, but in the capacity to remain present within that which cannot yet be fully understood.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att studera hur syriska och ukrainska flyktingar skildras i reportage publicerade i Svenska Dagbladet och Dagens Nyheter under 2015 och 2022 för att undersöka om det finns skillnader i hur grupperna framställs. Med metoderna narratologi, massmedieretorik och bildanalys undersöker jag textberättelsernas form och budskap samt hur reportagefotona bidrar till denna berättelse. Analyserna visar att reportagen om syriska flyktingar har en tendens att skildra flyktingarna utifrån, med afferenta perspektiv, medan reportagen om ukrainska flyktingar i större utsträckning skildrar flyktingarna inifrån, med efferenta perspektiv. Vidare skildras de syriska flyktingarna huvudsakligen som offer, några gånger som skurkar och en gång som hjältar. Även de ukrainska flyktingarna skildras huvudsakligen som offer och en gång som hjältar, men de skildras också på mer nyanserade och komplexa sätt än syriska flyktingar. Samtidigt är inslagen av medmänsklighet mer framträdande i skildringarna av syriska flyktingar. Utifrån gestaltningsteori kan framställningarna av flyktingarna som offer, hjältar och skurkar tolkas som ett uttryck för medielogikens dramatisering. Med hjälp av Halls representationsteori kan man konstatera att de skillnader som uppvisas mellan hur grupperna skildras har drag av stereotypisering och andrafiering. Utifrån Levinas ansvarsmoral kan man vidare konstatera att uttrycken av medmänsklighet inte förekommer i lika stor utsträckning inför båda flyktinggrupperna.  

 The purpose of this study is to examine how firms’ financial performance changes before and after an Initial Public Offering (IPO), focusing on Swedish companies listed on Nasdaq Stockholm between 2014 and 2017. The study adopts a quantitative approach, measuring financial performance using Return on Equity (ROE) and Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT). By analysing these measures two years before and two years after the IPO, the study provides a comparison of how firm performance evolves during the transition from private to public ownership. 

The data collection is based on secondary data from Retriever Business and the sample consists of 96 companies, which after deletion became 58. A paired sample t-test is applied to determine whether the changes in financial performance are statistically significant. The study follows a deductive approach and is grounded in theories of information asymmetry, signalling theory, underpricing and agency theory, which are used to explain why financial performance may change in connection with an IPO. 

The findings show that EBIT shows a statistically significant change, indicating that operational performance is affected by the IPO. In contrast, ROE does not show a significant change, suggesting that returns on equity remain relatively stable. This can be explained by the fact that ROE is influenced by both operational performance and capital structure, meaning that changes in underlying operations are not always reflected clearly in this measure. 

The study contributes to a deeper understanding of how IPOs affect financial performance in a Swedish context and highlights the importance of using multiple performance measures. From a practical perspective, the results suggest that investors should consider several complementary financial metrics when evaluating IPO firms, as relying on a single measure may provide an incomplete picture of firm performance. 

Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine whether the profitability and capital structure of Swedish real estate companies changed during the period following the financial crisis of 2008 and the gradual introduction of stricter credit conditions, using 2010 as an analytical breakpoint. The study analyzes 73 Swedish real estate companies during the period 2005–2015 and compares the development in 2005–2009 with the development in 2010–2015. Profitability is measured through return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE), while capital structure is measured through the debt-to-equity ratio and the interest coverage ratio. The study is based on secondary data from Retriever Business and is analyzed using descriptive statistics, paired t-tests, correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression. The results show that ROE and the debt-to-equity ratio decreased on average after 2010, while ROA remained more stable over time. However, the paired t-tests show that the differences between the two periods are not statistically significant at the five percent level. The regression results do not provide clear support that the period after 2010 itself explains changes in either ROA or ROE. However, the results show that the interest coverage ratio has a positive relationship with ROA, and that the interaction between leverage and the period after 2010 has a negative relationship with ROE. This indicates that the relationship between leverage and return on equity is more negative after 2010. The study concludes that the results show certain descriptive changes in the profitability and capital structure of Swedish real estate companies after 2010, but that these changes should be interpreted with caution. Since credit conditions are not measured directly, the study cannot establish a causal relationship between stricter credit conditions and profitability. The study contributes by highlighting how the key financial ratios of capital-intensive companies may be associated with changing financing conditions, while emphasizing the importance of distinguishing between statistical relationships and causal effects. 

Denna studie undersöker hur svenska nyhetsmedier riktade till barn anpassar krisnyheter till målgruppen. Undersökningen jämför hur Lilla Aktuellt och SvD Junior rapporterat om krishändelserna terrorattentatet på Drottninggatan 2017, masskjutningen i Örebro på Campus Risbergska 2025 samt Rysslands invasion av Ukraina 2022. 

Studien är en kvalitativ innehållsanalys med inspiration av gestaltningsanalys samt Aare och Rehnbergs (2026) analysmodell som kallas En analysmodell för sakprosaberättelser som är baserat på aspekterna innehåll, form och budskap. Uppsatsens teoretiska perspektiv är  krisjournalistik, gestaltningsteorin och dagordningsteorin.

Resultatet visar att båda mediernas krisrapportering har många likheter som exempelvis att de informerar om vad som har hänt, tar upp mänskliga reaktioner samt lägger stort fokus på känslor som oro och rädsla och hur dessa kan hanteras. Studien har identifierat gestaltningsramar där mänskligt intresse-ramen och trygghetsramen är de mest framträdande. 

Slutsatsen är att båda medierna tar hänsyn till målgruppen genom att kombinera information med att anpassa språket genom att förenkla ord och ha ett personligt och vägledande tilltal. De fungerar därmed inte endast som nyhetsförmedlare utan också som vägledande aktörer som hjälper barnen att förstå. Det som skiljer medierna åt är att Lilla Aktuellt tar in mer personliga berättelser från drabbade för att göra rapporteringen mer nyanserad och känslomässig, medan SvD Junior har en mer förklarande rapportering med fokus på att rapportera på ett neutralt sätt och lyfter mer strukturella och samhälleliga aspekter.

 Investing capital involves a trade-off between risk and return, which can cause uncertainty for retail investors, particularly during volatile market conditions. By diversifying assets, this uncertainty can be reduced. A central question is, therefore, which investment strategy should be used to achieve the highest possible risk-adjusted return. Concurrently, there is an ongoing debate regarding the function of gold in reducing risk exposure during uncertain market conditions, yet there is a lack of research on its specific effect on the Swedish market. Modern Portfolio Theory (MPT) is a fundamental economic theory often considered the ideal standard for portfolio diversification, forming the foundation of several economic models, including the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). However, MPT faces significant criticism regarding its vulnerability to estimation errors, driven by its reliance on vast amounts of historical data. As a reaction against the complexity of this theory, naive portfolio diversification   has emerged, where an equal allocation of assets is often argued to outperform more complex models in practice. Consequently, the debate continues over which diversification strategy is the most rational for retail investors in terms of risk-adjusted return.  The purpose of this study is to examine and identify the portfolio with the highest risk-adjusted return based on the theoretical modern portfolio (MPT), naive diversification   or asset allocation strategies on the Swedish stock market during the period 2020–2025. Utilizing a quantitative and deductive research design, the study aims to determine the effective portfolio based on risk-adjusted return within the study framework. The research focuses on asset allocation involving OMXS30GI, savings account interest rates, and gold to identify the theoretically optimal diversification strategy compared to a market index during market volatility for a retail investor. A total of ten portfolios is constructed based on theoretical calculations and asset allocations with a progressively increasing share of gold.The study cannot find a statistically significant result that shows the most effective diversification strategy and portfolio in terms of risk-adjusted returns based on selected assets and time period. However, a pattern can be identified based on the study´s results and framework regarding gold´s positive effect on risk-adjusted return, skewness and kurtosis. From a retail investor perspective, the study demonstrates that simpler portfolio strategies, such as naive diversification and basic asset allocation, can statistically perform equivalently to complex theoretical models.

Reports on dwindling trust levels in the media have led to the notion of a trust crisis in journalism. Media trust in the context of the digital landscape has previously been researched quantitatively and with a source centric perspective. Greece is an outlier when it comes to low trust in the media and high use of alternative media sources in Europe. This study therefore aimed to understand Athenians perceptions of news and practices of being informed within this low-trust media environment to theoretically and empirically contribute to the research field. With a qualitative research design, the findings are based on 8 semi-structured interviews with dwellers of Athens where the underused method of the walk-through was implemented. Findings show that audiences’ perceptions of bias, corruption and overt political parallelism lead to a strong aversion to trusting mainstream media. Informants navigated the media landscape with skepticism, utilizing mental evaluation, fact-checking, cross-validation and peer review. Three categories of source selection were found, all coinciding with allocated source trust. The study suggests that trust can be understood as a spectrum ranging from deep skepticism to complete trust. Factors on a societal and individual level define the location of individuals on this spectrum. 

Scarcity-based marketing strategies, such as limited-time offers and signals of restricted product availability, are widely used in digital retail environments to influence consumer purchase decisions. Concurrently, Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) – a psychological apprehension of missing out on valuable opportunities – has proven relevant for understanding consumer behaviour in e-commerce. However, the relationship between these two phenomena remains insufficiently explored.  This study aims to examine how scarcity-based strategies function as external stimuli, how they activate a consumption-related form of FOMO, and how this mechanism influences consumer purchase decisions. A qualitative approach is adopted, drawing on sixteen semi-structured interviews. The Stimulus–Organism–Response (S-O-R) model serves as the analytical framework, with scarcity-based strategies as the stimulus, FOMO as the organism, and purchase decisions as the response.  The findings show that scarcity cues activate FOMO characterized by urgency, fear of loss, and reduced information processing, in the majority of cases, leading to accelerated decision-making and impulse purchases. Supply-based scarcity is perceived as more credible and influential than time-based scarcity. The study introduces a distinction between FOMO as a decision accelerator, where a well-founded purchase is expedited, and FOMO as a decision creator, where the purchase would not have occurred without the stimulus. A key finding is that awareness of scarcity strategies as marketing techniques does not protect against their psychological effects. 

The purpose of this study is to examine which factors influence consumers’ decisions to boycott within the fast fashion industry. The study is based on previous research regarding consumer boycott, political consumption, and the gap between attitude and behavior in sustainable consumption. Focus is placed on the importance of economic, ethical, environmental, political and social factors in consumers’ boycott behavior and how these can explain the discrepancy between attitude and behavior.  The study was conducted using a quantitative method in the form of a survey. A total of 122 respondents over the age of 18 participated. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive statistics to identify patterns and relationships between different factors. The findings show that ethical factors, especially working conditions, are the strongest driving forces behind consumers’ willingness to boycott within fast fashion. At the same time, price appears to be the main obstacle preventing consumers’ from changing their actual behavior. Many respondents state that they are willing to boycott companies that act unethically, yet they continue purchasing from criticized companies. This indicates a clear gap between consumers’ attitudes and their actual behavior. Furthermore, the results show that environmental, political and social factors also influence consumer behavior, although they are not as significant as ethical concerns and economic factors. 

This study examines how employees at Willys perceive and describe good leadership in their everyday work. The purpose of the study is to investigate which qualities and behaviours employees associate with good leadership, and how the store environment and the conditions of retail work influence their understanding of leadership. The research question is: What characterizes good leadership according to employees at Willys?

The study is based on a qualitative method using semi-structured interviews with employees at Willys. Through the interviews, the employees’ own experiences and descriptions of leadership were highlighted. The empirical material was analysed thematically, where recurring patterns in the respondents’ answers were identified and related to previous research and leadership theories.

The results show that good leadership, according to the employees, is mainly characterized by clarity, support, respect, fairness, trust and situational adaptation. Leadership is not primarily understood as a fixed personality trait of the manager, but as something that becomes visible through concrete actions in everyday work. The employees emphasize that a good manager needs to create order, clarify priorities, be available when needed and support employees in difficult situations. Respectful communication, fair distribution of responsibility and trust in employees’ competence are also described as central aspects of good leadership.

The study also shows that the store environment is important for how good leadership is understood. Since the work is characterized by time pressure, customer contact, varied tasks and cooperation, the practical and relational aspects of leadership become particularly important. The conclusion is that good leadership at Willys can be understood as practical, relational and situational leadership that needs to be adapted to the work situation, employees’ experience and the specific conditions of the store environment.

This study examines how value-based management interacts with established work roles and norms in grocery stores. The purpose is to understand how organizational values are interpreted, adapted and expressed in everyday retail work, and whether they contribute to changing, reinforcing or reproducing existing norms and work practices. The study is based on a qualitative research design with eight semi-structured interviews with employees and managers from different grocery chains. 

The theoretical framework combines institutional theory, role theory and organizational control theory. These perspectives are used to analyze value-based management as a form of social and normative control, while also considering how work roles and the practical conditions of grocery stores shape its actual impact. The findings show that value-based management does not primarily transform everyday work in a fundamental way. Instead, organizational values tend to reinforce norms that are already embedded in the work roles, such as service, responsibility, helpfulness and customer focus. 

The study also shows that practical work requirements, such as time pressure, efficiency demands and limited staffing, often take priority over organizational values. Values are therefore interpreted based on situations and adapted to the practical conditions of the workplace. Leaders play an important role in translating and concretizing values in daily work, but this also means that value-based management can vary depending on how individual leaders communicate and prioritize these values. 

The conclusion is that value-based management in grocery stores functions more as a weak and situational form of control than as a direct mechanism for changing work practices. Its significance emerges in relation to established roles, existing norms and the practical conditions of everyday retail work. 

This study examines how preschool teachers work with reading aloud to promote young children's language development, as well as how they reason about the importance of reading aloud in preschool activities. The study is based on a sociocultural perspective and relies on qualitative interviews as well as observations in preschool settings. The results show that preschool teachers use reading aloud as a deliberate pedagogical tool through dialogue and interaction with the children. Reading aloud is used to develop children's vocabulary, language comprehension, and communication skills, while also contributing to social interaction and a sense of community within the child group. The preschool teachers describe reading aloud as a central part of teaching. The study also shows that preschool teachers' conscious organization of reading aloud affects how children are given the opportunity to participate, interact, and develop language in meaningful contexts. Reading aloud emerges as an important part of the activities and as a central tool for supporting young children's language.

Denna studie undersöker hur Dagens Nyheter, Svenska Dagbladet, Aftonbladet och Expressen gestaltar de två nya partiledarna Simona Mohamsson (Liberalerna) och Anna‑Karin Hatt (Centerpartiet) i samband med deras tillträden under 2025. Genom en kvalitativ innehållsanalys av totalt 24 artiklar analyseras hur variablerna erfarenhet, rekryteringsprocess, kön och härkomst framträder i rapporteringen.  Studien utgår från gestaltningsteorin och medielogik som analytiska ramverk.  Resultatet visar att mediernas gestaltning skiljer sig markant mellan de två partiledarna. Rapporteringen om Simona Mohamsson präglas i hög grad av referenser till hennes bakgrund och identitet, samt av en beskrivning av en utdragen och osäker rekryteringsprocess. I rapporteringen om Anna‑Karin Hatt dominerar däremot framställningar av lång politisk och organisatorisk erfarenhet, samtidigt som rekryteringsprocessen skildras som mer stabil och förutsägbar. Variabeln kön förekommer endast indirekt för båda partiledarna.  

 The purpose of this study was to examine how preschool teachers’ use of drama as a method is expressed in educational situations, with a particular focus on didactic objectives, embodiment, and artefacts. The study is based on research questions regarding how drama is expressed in educators’ teaching, which expressive and material tools are used, how these are used, and what didactic purposes can be identified.The study draws on qualitative, non-participant observations of preschool practitioners at five different preschools, including two preschool teachers and three childcare workers. The empirical material was analysed using thematic analysis, supported by an observation protocol developed from the research questions. The theoretical framework of the study consists of the concepts of artefacts, anthropomorphism, and aesthetic doubling.The results show that drama is used as a didactic method in preschool education, where various mediating tools are used in teaching. Educators use drama in their teaching through a combination of artefacts, role-playing, as well as physical and verbal expressions. Artefacts are used for communicative purposes and appear central to educators’ use of drama. Furthermore, the results show that educators employ various dramatic elements such as aesthetic doubling and anthropomorphism, in their communication of content. The use of drama varies across educators and teaching situations, and occurs in teaching with children of different ages.In conclusion, the study shows that drama in preschool can be understood as a didactic method in which teaching takes place through educators’ embodiment using artefacts, the body, and the voice. The method can be both explicitly and implicitly didactic, and operates in the borderland between play and education. 

This thesis aims to engage with the concept of the political subject, and thus with the political understood as, or through, such a subject. The question that structures this engagement is one posed by Jean-Luc Nancy in 1988: Who comes after the subject? Faced with this question, I traverse three interpretative moments. First, I provide a reading of the conceptual tension between an “overcoming” of the subject and an affirmation of some who. Here, I argue that this tension articulates the stakes of a particular political and theoretical moment – one that is confronted by the aporias and conundrums of our political vocabulary without thereby being granted the means to maneuver without it.  Second, I turn to the work of Nancy and his colleague and friend Philippe Lacoue-Labarthe, in order to provide a reading of the motif of the “political subject” – a motif which is recurrent in their work, but never systematically developed. I argue that the political subject is to be understood as a political configuration of the pre-political and essential ground of the political itself, which – in being conceived as pre-political – circumscribes what, how, and for whom, the political can play out. Third, I turn towards attempts found in Adriana Cavarero, Sylvia Wynter and Nancy himself at making sense of the “who” of the political without re-inscribing it in the abovementioned structure. Through this reading, I come to argue that this might be possible by conceiving of this who not as a new essence, but as an excess which – given the relational and mimetic field necessary for articulating a pre-political essence in the first place – can never ultimately be contained in the model of the subject.

This thesis examines how Nerikes Allehanda’ s coverage of Nora municipality changed after the closure of the local editorial office and the centralisation of news production to Örebro.

The study is based on a quantitative content analysis of 193 articles published in 2017 and 2025. By comparing coverage before and after the closure, the thesis analyses changes in volume, genre, topic selection, text length, byline, interviews and indicators of local journalistic presence.

The theoretical framework combines perspectives on local journalism as democratic infrastructure, journalism’s democratic functions and the concept of distance decay. These perspectives make it possible to analyse not only whether Nora is still covered, but also how the character and democratic function of the coverage have changed.

The results show that Nora has not disappeared from Nerikes Allehanda’ s news flow. However, the coverage has become less reporter-driven and more dependent on external forms of content, such as reader submissions and automated texts. The number of articles written by Nerikes Allehanda reporters decreased from 98 in 2017 to 48 in 2025. The study also shows fewer articles with interviews and fewer articles with images taken by a reporter in connection with the news event. At the same time, the share of longer articles increased, and municipal politics received more attention in 2025 than in 2017.

The findings suggest that centralisation does not necessarily lead to a total news desert, but to a more selective and uneven form of local coverage. While the forum function is partly strengthened through more debate articles and reader submissions, the reporter-driven news and scrutiny functions appear to be weakened. The thesis therefore argues that the democratic significance of local journalism cannot be measured only by whether a municipality is covered, but also by how the journalism is produced, whose voices are included and which parts of local life are made visible.

Performance measurement and follow-up are central aspects of how modern organizations control and organize work. Through goals, key performance indicators and continuous follow-up, organizations communicate what is considered important. At the same time, this may lead to certain tasks becoming more visible than others, which can influence how employees prioritize and act in their daily work. This study examines how performance measurement and follow-up affect employees’ priorities and work behaviors in the retail sector, with a focus on the clothing and electronics industries.

The purpose of the study is to investigate how performance measurement and follow-up, as control mechanisms, shape employees’ daily work. The study is based on a qualitative research approach using semi-structured interviews with ten respondents working as sales employees or store sales assistants. The empirical material was analyzed through thematic analysis, supported by theories on performance measurement, control systems, goal displacement, and March’s concepts of the logic of consequence and the logic of appropriateness.

The findings show that performance measurement is clearly integrated into everyday work. Sales targets, key figures, campaigns and add-on services are continuously communicated through meetings, systems and follow-up processes. As a result, measurable goals become recurring reference points in employees’ work. Tasks directly linked to measurable outcomes, especially sales, tend to be prioritized over less measurable tasks such as customer service, relationship-building, store maintenance and support for colleagues.

The study also shows that employees adapt their work behavior according to what is measured. In the electronics industry, this is reflected in a focus on add-on sales, insurance and subscriptions, while the clothing industry is characterized by sales targets and campaign goals. However, the impact of performance measurement is not one-sided. Clear goals can create structure and motivation, but may also be experienced as pressure and control. Overall, the study contributes to a deeper understanding of how performance measurement and follow-up function as active control mechanisms that shape priorities, interpretations of work and everyday work practices in retail organizations.

Elektroniskt avfall (e-waste) är ett av vår tids snabbast växande miljöproblem, och hanteringen försvåras av att produkter sällan är designade för att kunna demonteras på ett lönsamt och skonsamt sätt. Trots att Design for Disassembly som designprincip är väl etablerad i forskningen når den sällan fram till industriell praktik. Denna studie syftar till att skapa förståelse för varför detta gap kvarstår, och hur det tar sig uttryck i logistikföretagens operativa hantering av e-waste.Studien tillämpar en abduktiv ansats med systematic combining och bygger på fyra semistrukturerade intervjuer med aktörer från både design- och returlogistiksidan. Materialet analyseras genom reflexiv tematisk analys med ett tvärvetenskapligt teoretiskt ramverk bestående av resurshierarkin, Design for Disassemblys fyra fysiska demonteringsegenskaper, Mestre och Coopers close the loop-strategi, Papaneks Function Complex samt Borja de Mozotas Design Value Model.Resultaten visar att logistikföretagens enskilt största operativa hinder utgörs av irreversibla sammanfogningstekniker som omöjliggör oförstörande demontering och pressar aktörerna mot fragmentering. Detta är ett problem som förstärks av svaga avsättningsmarknader för begagnade komponenter som utgör ett parallellt och självständigt hinder. På tillverkarsidan handlar problemet inte om teknisk okunskap utan om en inbyggd beslutslogik där sluthanteringskostnader är osynliga i företagets ekonomiska incitament, ett mönster som i empirin fångas av att tillverkare strukturellt fastnar på differentiator-nivån i Borja de Mozotas (2003) värdemodell. Studien identifierar vidare informationsasymmetrin som ett formatproblem snarare än ett flödesproblem. Den information som utbyts via producentansvaret är för generell för att vara användbar i designprocessen. Design, incitament och information är sammanlänkade nivåer som förstärker varandra och kräver samordnade åtgärder.

Digitalization and e-commerce have increased competition for independent bookstores. In a market characterized by low prices, high accessibility, and algorithm-based recommendations, physical independent bookstores need alternative strategies to remain competitive. Relationship marketing has therefore become increasingly important, where customer relationships, personal service, and social experiences are used to create value.

The purpose of this study is to examine how Swedish independent bookstores use marketing strategies to compete with online bookstores. The study is based on theories of relationship marketing and Porter’s competitive strategies.

The study was conducted using a qualitative research design with an abductive and comparative approach. Empirical data was collected through semi-structured interviews with owners of nine independent bookstores in Sweden. The empirical data was analyzed through thematic and comparative analysis.

The results show that the bookstores mainly compete through values that are difficult to replicate digitally. Personal customer interactions, book recommendations, events, book clubs, and author talks are used to create customer loyalty and engagement. The physical bookstore also functions as a social and cultural meeting place. Social media is primarily used to strengthen customer relationships and promote the business. The findings also show that the bookstores have different views on digitalization and online commerce.

The study shows that the competitive advantage of independent bookstores is largely based on the experience surrounding books and reading. Through relationship-building activities and local connections, the bookstores create customer value that extends beyond price and accessibility.

Purpose: This study examines how artificial intelligence (AI) is discursively constructed in international and national policy documents, and how these representations relate to power structures linked to class, gender, and ethnicity within organizational contexts. 

Method: Drawing on critical discourse analysis and an intersectional framework, the study analyzes 31 publications issued between 2018 and 2025 by institutions such as the OECD, ILO, EU, UNESCO, and UN Women. 

Empirical data: The analysis identifies three dominant patterns: 

The Discourse of Neutrality, in which AI is portrayed as objective, efficient, and apolitical obscuring the political and historical roots of inequality. A Digital Class System, where technical competence is assigned symbolic capital and legitimacy, while algorithmic surveillance reinforces employer control and reduces employee autonomy. Equality as Representation, where gender equality is reduced to numerical representation without power analysis, and racism is often replaced by colour-blind indicators (income, education, geography) or encoded through proxy variables. 

Conclusions: In summary, AI systems are described not merely as advanced technologies, but as mechanisms that reinforce and legitimize existing hierarchies, rather than functioning as neutral infrastructures. The study introduces an intersectional power matrix for AI in organizations (Symbol/Role/Governance) and argues for governance that promotes equality, design models that redistribute power beyond training initiatives and ethical guidelines. 

Limitations include a narrow time frame and exclusive focus on policy texts; future research should therefore combine discourse analysis with ethnographic and quasi experimental approaches within workplace practices. Furthermore, future research should examine the phenomenon in additional communicative contexts, particularly within media communication, such as news reporting and other forms of public information dissemination. 

The development of technology has continued at a rapid pace, which has made it possible for companies to use online marketing methods to capture consumers' attention. Today's digital society and the high degree of online shopping have in turn meant that consumers are daily flooded with marketing in its various forms. One such strategy that is widely used and appears regularly is scarcity marketing. This study aims to create an understanding of how consumers experience that scarcity marketing online affects their purchasing behaviour. 

The purpose of the study thus has created space for a qualitative research approach where semi-structured interviews were the method chosen in the survey. The interviews were in turn conducted with 10 respondents, who belong to generation Z and have experience of online shopping in the fast fashion industry.

The results from the study show that experiences of scarcity marketing and its impact on purchasing behaviour can be viewed from different perspectives. In part, the results show that consumers can experience time pressure and stress when exposed to scarcity marketing. These people believe that the emotions evoked and the rational limitation that they also highlight, lead to impulse purchases. According to some of these respondents, these impulse purchases can in turn give rise to regret afterwards, while some of the respondents highlight the right of the return as an ulterior motive in the decision-making process. In part, the results show that online scarcity marketing is not perceived to have an impact on purchasing behaviour among consumers as the marketing method is seen through and as a sales ploy. In addition, it is stated that scepticism also prevails towards scarcity marketing among some of these people.

The study thus contributes to the increased awareness among consumers about how online scarcity marketing affects their purchasing behaviour, as well as providing a consumer perspective that may be of relevance to companies. The study also paves the way for future research on the subject.