This thesis aims to develop a theory in the under researched field of international comparative cultural policy studies. lt does so by combining theories from the fields of political scienceand cultural studies, researching how and to what extent the concepts of culture of different states have an impact on the way cultural policies are constructed.The thesis uses this theoretical development in order to research a specific problem, namely the perceived possibility that Swedish and German cultural structures are slowly converging. Two recent official policy documents from each country are the objects of study. Through comparative idea analysis and with Michiel S. D Vries theories on decentralization, the thesis explains the convergence between the countries by differing cultural views between them.

Abstract Title: We are equal. A study of Cultural differences and professionalism in international projects.Level: Thesis for Master Degree in Business Administration.Author: Zahra AhmadiSupervisor: Lars EkstrandDate: 2012-05The purpose of my study is to analyze and examine it well-educated people can reduce the Cultural differences in interaction with other actors around the world. Part of aims study surveys and analyzes to understand how educated people can communicate and facilitate communication in order to achieve the goals and motivation in international collaboration. Problems can arise from Cultural differences in connection with that persons face in society and in international collaboration. In this study, I assume theoretical framework that exists in cultural and communication theme and professionalism to find common objectives within educated groups.Method: The purpose of this study, I have chosen to use a qualitative approach.

Increasing immigration to Sweden has transformed a culturally homogeneous society into a more heterogeneous one. As a consequence intercultural communication and interaction have been increasing. Child health care agencies have encountered these increases. The aim of this study was to examine what the health care professionals experienced and communicated in these intercultural environments. Eight interviews with child health care nurses were carried through at four child health care centers in the south of Sweden.

The aim of this study was to examine why young females develop self-harm behaviour. We also wanted to look at the differences between young females born in foreign countries and young females born in Sweden and investigate if there were any differences regarding the reasons for developing self-harm behaviour and the actual extent of the self-harm behaviour within the group. We used a qualitative method and performed interviews with nine professionals that work with young females with self-harm behaviour. To be able to analyse our qualitative interviews we used concepts such as modernity, anomie, safety and Cultural differences in the bringing up of children. The results of this study shows that self-harm behaviour is a symptom of excessive anxiety, which can be caused by a number of reasons, such as childhood trauma or great demands in modern society.

The aim of this thesis is to map the intellectual base, and identify the general research interests, of Cultural Policy studies. In addition to this the thesis also aims to trace the uses of theoretical and conceptual approaches within the identified research interests. This is done by analysing citations from 130 articles published in the leading scientific journal International Journal of Cultural Policy between the years 2002-2007 using the bibliometric method author cocitation analysis (ACA). The results of the ACA confirm the overall notion that the research field of cultural policy studies is an ambiguous one, even when it?s studied with a quantitative method specialised in uncovering hidden structures within a given field as ACA.

 Introduction and research question: In the global media field, global expansion has become more common and is a way for media companies to reach out to a broader audience. Both advantages and disadvantages come with a global expansion and there are several Cultural differences that have to be considered. This thesis will deal with the Cultural differences and discuss how a Swedish media company efficiently goes about establishing in Vietnam. This leads us to this thesis' research question: How does a Swedish media company succeed in Vietnam? Purpose: This thesis' purpose is to find out what media companies do to successfully acclimate to the Vietnamese culture and the important aspects of the Cultural differences to consider.Delimitation: In order to present a thesis with greater depth and acquire a deeper understanding, the study is limited to examine Swedish media companies and what intercultural aspects are important to consider when establishing in Vietnam. Method: The research we have done is based on interviews, which we thought could give us the accurate information and a good base to stand on.

Abstract Title: We are equal. A study of Cultural differences and professionalism in international projects.Level: Thesis for Master Degree in Business Administration.Author: Zahra AhmadiSupervisor: Lars EkstrandDate: 2012-05The purpose of my study is to analyze and examine it well-educated people can reduce the Cultural differences in interaction with other actors around the world. Part of aims study surveys and analyzes to understand how educated people can communicate and facilitate communication in order to achieve the goals and motivation in international collaboration. Problems can arise from Cultural differences in connection with that persons face in society and in international collaboration. In this study, I assume theoretical framework that exists in cultural and communication theme and professionalism to find common objectives within educated groups.Method: The purpose of this study, I have chosen to use a qualitative approach.

The aim of this study has been to explore local cultural policy documents in some municipalities in the geographical region of Västra Götaland. Do the municipalities have these kinds of documents for their local cultural activities, and how are they designed? These are questions which the study has focused on. The study has been concentrated on the library activity in the local cultural policy documents. The research has been a comparative one.

This essay aims at understanding the experience of the use of ayahuasca, and similarities and differences between interview protocols and socio-cultural identities. The work is based on field studies conducted in the Peruvian Andes, in the village of Pisac September to November 2009. What has emerged is that the experience does not seem to be dependent on cultural manifestations as much as it is dependent on general human cognition. Theories have been applied on an empirical phenomenological descriptive study. Various brain activities, along with mental mechanisms contribute to a deeper understanding of the findings in the descriptive analysis.It seems that the Cultural differences, which I have classed as typological in the phenomenological study, mostly are expressions of meaning for the informants.

The National Arts Council[1] has made an evaluation on obstacles and success factors for the interaction between culture and school. In the evaluation report they concluded that teachers and cultural workers have different views on culture and knowledge which creates confusion in their interaction. Thus I became interested to investigate teachers and cultural workers views on culture, aesthetics, and the knowledge that they think the students / children / young people should get from culture and aesthetics. This work is based on qualitative interviews with four teachers and four cultural workers. I compare their views with each other and link it to different research perspectives on culture and aesthetics in school to get an understanding of the similarities and differences in their approach, and what implications it can have in the school?s learning processes. In this work, from a didactic point of view, I found that when the teachers and cultural workers are talking about culture, the why-perspective differs.

This thesis studies private equity firms' implementation of management control systems in their portfolio companies and whether the systems are affected by cross-national differences. A comparative case study examines five different private equity firms to derive if there are any differences between the private equity firms' management control systems in the United States, Europe and China. The empirical observations are categorized according to the framework developed by Merchant (1985) and further developed by Merchant and Van der Stede (2003). Theory on the effect of multinationality on management control systems, also developed by Merchant and Van der Stede (2003), are used to explain possible findings. The applied theory includes the cultural dimensions developed by Hofstede (1984) and Hofstede and Bond (1988).

The purpose with this essay is to compare two classes in an international school during their mathematic lesson. The international school offers education to their pupils in two languages; in Swedish and in English. Through this study I want to find out how teachers are working with language and communication during school hours. I will compare the work of two teachers and two classes to find out the differences and similarities between their work methods concerning language and communication during mathematic lessons.The main questions for the essay:How do the teachers work with language and communication in this school during the mathematic lessons?What similarities and differences are there between the two teachers in matter of methods of working with language and communication during the mathematic lessons?The research is based on interviews with the teachers and also on observations in the classroom during mathematic lessons.

The purpose of this study has been to examine what approach and experience pedagogues at pre-schools, with a limited amount of nationalities, have regarding cultural promoting work in pre-schools. The concept ?cultural promoting? mainly regards the children's cultural backgrounds. The first question formulation focussed on the what the concepts ?cultural promoting? and ?cultural diversity? meant to the pedagogues.

The aim of this study was to examine how social workers relate to unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, regarding their cultural background and potential social issues. In order to achieve a more profound and comprehensive view of the social workers views regarding the separated children, we selected to execute semi structured interviews with social workers. These interviews were aimed at those social workers who performed assessments and investigations concerning unaccompanied children. We completed nine interviews which we recorded and transcribed in a strict manor. When we analyzed the empirical material, certain themes where identified as more protuberant and thus we our selection was based on what we regarded as the most relevant topics, in accordance to the aim of the study.

The purpose of this study is to examine modern constructions of Jane Austens work in films and in books on history of literature. The theoretical framework contains sociology of literature, cultural studies and film theory. I compared Jane Austens books Emma, Pride and prejudice and Sense and sensibility with three film versions from recent years. In the books on history of literature I studied, I found three different attitudes towards history of literature, which also influenced the interpretation of Austens novels. The stories in Austens books and in the films are similar.