In classic academic social studies of East Europe, terms as Communism and Post-Communism are commonly used to describe the main characteristics of this geographically imagined area. This paper makes a not so frequently seen attempt to apply Post Colonial Theory for the same field. With start point in Post Colonial theoretical writers, the author wants to find a East European Post Colonial version for the internal Europe which will supply tools for a discourse analysis of the European mind map divided into West and East. The material consists of interviews with three Swedish and three Czech officials, all working with European politics in their country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The analysis is carried out with inspiration of Ernesto Laclaus and Chantal Mouffes Discourse theory.

Title: Besparingar inom Barn- och utbildningsnämnden.Seminar date: 29th of May 2009Course: Degree thesis in Business Administration, bachelor thesisAuthors: Amela Smajlovic and Sten SundfeltAdvisor: Leif HolmbergPurpose: Our purpose is to explain the cost-saving process that many municipality organisations face because of the global financial crisis.Limitations: We have limited our study to the municipality of Landskrona and Kristianstad.Method: Our study has a qualitative approach. By using open interviews we have been able to get an open dialog with our respondents.Theory: We have compared with different theories, such as Rombach?s budget-theory and Wildavsky?s role theory.Empirics: The material is based on interviews and conversations with key figures in different levels of the organisations in Landskrona and Kristianstad.Conclusions: The success of a cost-saving process depends on the engagement, awareness and how inclined to changes the persons in the organisations are. Has everybody the willingness to take responsibility fore the organisation and the changes that the surrounding world claims?.

The purpose with this study was to examine how persons giving care to their spouses with dementia experience their life situation. As information source we used a qualitative study which included halfstructured interview questions. The study took place in three municipalities in the south of Sweden. Three females and two males took part in the study and everyone had experiences of giving care to their spouces with dementia. We used a coping theory and an exchange theory.

The main purpose of this study is to take a closer look at how teachers work with writing and to examine some theories on the teaching of writing. Five teachers in two schools are included in order to get an insight in teachers? practical work with EFL writing. This has been done through classroom observations and interviews. The results show that all teachers seem to use aspects from several theories.

The topic of this essay is core value issues, how they are mediated in school and how they are practiced. I am investigating a problem concerning the existential worth of the core values-content for children, or in other words, the difficulty of reconciling the theory of the core values and their practice. This problem is portrayed by two stories. The aim of this work is to investigate how to combine the core values theory with its practice, in other words, make it meaningful. In my essay, I turn to recent research in the field to provide a background to my issue, and hereby further point to my problem.

The aim of this Masters thesis is to examine how disabled people who receive the shut-in-service in one community define service quality. The purpose is also to examine the shut-in-service and to look at the users' context. Answers are sought to the following questions: - How do users experience the service quality of the shut-in-service? - What kind of service does the shut-in-service offer to the user? - How can the user be described and which are his/her requests? The analysis is based on theory about service quality by Christian Grönroos. The theory makes a distinction between two kinds of service quality, technical vs functional quality, as experienced by the user through the profile of the organization.

AbstractThis thesis analyzes the Russian Foreign Policy Doctrine from a broad theoretical perspective, with the aim of describing and explaining the doctrine using a number of theoretical approaches. Russia's foreign policy has undergone substantial changes since Vladimir Putin became president in the year 2000, involving a radical shift in foreign policy objectives and thereby moving away from the more confrontational and distrusting policies which characterized the Boris Jeltsin regime. Putins doctrine, based on pragmatism and seeking partnership and collaboration with the West, can be described as a near revolutionary re-orientation of Russia's foreign policy guidelines, meaning a transformation of the country's self image which implies a rejection of great power status and a search for a new role in the international community.Our thesis has examined explanatory variables such as the domestic political situation in Russia, the contemporary international system and President Vladimir Putins system of beliefs in order to describe and explain the doctrine. Our results show that the doctrine is largely a product of Putins personality, values and beliefs, but also to a large extent a consequence of necessities, namely the poor Russian economy and the fact that the country no longer can withstand an all out conflict with the West involving an excessive arms race.Keywords: Vladimir Putin, pragmatism, realism, domestic politics, radical change..

The aim of this study was, that from a view of professional's understand the meanings of including horses in therapy. In order to achieve the aim of the study, qualitative method was used and therewith interviews was performed with professionals who work with equine- assisted therapy. The professionals did also have an education which allowed them to independently treat clients and besides that at least five years of experience of equine- assisted therapy. The issues of the study was to understand the professionals? view of the horses role in equine-assisted therapy, which opportunities and constraints professionals consider that equine-assisted therapy entails and also if the horse could bring something unique to therapy.

The aim with the present study was to investigate whether there is a difference between the course participants who find their way to the dog-school respective the Swedish Working Dog Association. The study have focused on four issues; why the course participants have chosen the dog-school respectively the Swedish Working Dog Association, why the participants bought their dog, if the participants are satisfied with their dogs and if it is more likely that they turn to the dog-school?s than to the Swedish Working Dog Association with their first dog? Course participants from two dog-schools and from two of the local clubs belonging to the Swedish Working Dog Association in Skaraborg, Sweden, answered a questionnaire. In total 85 answers were collected, including 60 from the course participants from Swedish Working Dog Associations and 25 from the dog school?s course.

This study examines retail atmospherics from a reality perspective. The topic "special exposure" has received research interest in the past but it has not been recognized as a critical consideration in the daily retail business. Too many retailers leave assortment decisions to thumb rules or trial and error. The highest aim of this study is in addressing that gap between theory and practice. To catch the attention of the customer is important in supermarkets because most grocery purchase decisions are made at the point of purchase.

In this study, I have examined the previous Social Democratic government?s communication with the voters, focusing on its promises during election campaigns, and the presentation of achieved results. The theories used are the mandate- and sanction theory; the first focuses on voters comparing manifestos to find the most agreeable, whilst the latter concentrates on voters evaluation the work of the previous government, to either discharge or support it. For the sanction theory to work, voters must have the necessary information to evaluate the government in progress. The question is; did the previous government provide the voters with such information?This has been done through scrutinizing the Social Democrats? election manifestos that was used between 1994 and 2006, to examine what the party promised to achieve in economics and the labor market.

The purpose of this study has been to investigate how psychosocial support for families where a parent suffers from a life threatening illness can be constructed. The intent was also to explore how the child's perspective is protected and what barriers and opportunities there are for family oriented support. The study has a qualitative approach and includes interviews with four social workers. The interviews were analyzed with a systems theory and attachment theory. The conclusions are that the whole family suffers psychological and social pressures when a parent is sick.

The aim of this Masters thesis is to examine the importance of public libraries for individuals in their everyday life and to study the differences in views between the individuals. Questions posed in this study are: What do public libraries mean to individuals? Which differences between individuals views of the public library are to be found? What is the reason for differences to occur? The analysis is based upon qualitative interviews with six persons, four women and two men between 31 and 55 years of age. The theoretical starting points are Anderson and Skot-Hansens theory of four different roles of public libraries and Bourdieus theory of lifestyle. The study acts on a hermeneutic attitude.

The study examines conceptions of identity among girls with foreign background. The aim was to study how identity is understood by the girls based on ethnicity, images of the origin, the value of gender and the meaning of the family. The theoretical approach was post-colonial theory based on Stuart Hall in combination with gender theory by Yvonne Hirdman. The study was conducted using qualitative individual interviews of open character with six girls. They were aged 17-18 years old and were born in Sweden or had lived here since the age of six.

The aim of this thesis is to analyse the conceptualisation of the social relations of class and gender within the Social Democratic Women?s Association during the period 1972 ? 1993, on the basis of their programmes for action. The analysis of the concepts is based on an ideology critical study focusing on the manifest ideology.The study is based upon the theoretical concepts of class and gender,  The class analysis is based upon the broadened concepts of class by Erik Olin Wright and Ira Katznelson. The gender analysis is mainly based upon a Marxist understanding and a critical point of view of Marxism and feminism in the context of patriarchy and capitalism.The period of the study is where the social democracy is challenged, both by radical socialism and feminist ideology and the economic crisis during the 1980?s, as well as the possible threat of an organised women?s party in Sweden.