In this thesis, the impact of collective ratings on customers? perception of a product is examined. The empirical data comes from an experimentally designed survey where the effect of collective ratings is measured in the setting of a traditional advertisement for a feature film. In contrast to what previous research would suggest be to the expected outcome, the authors of this paper concludes that in comparison with alternative designs of advertisements, there are no measurable advantages of including collective ratings in advertisements from the marketers point of view. We find two explanations to the result: (1) people tend to self-report that they are more influenced by collective ratings than they actually are, and (2) the advertisement which lacked a rating could be as attractive due to cultural interpretations of white spaces..

The purpose of this thesis was to study the functions that music have in relation to the formation of identity, and research how this fits into the music subject in the school environment in Sweden. My questions were; (1) what role does music has in the formation of identity? (2) how does gender stereotyped musical identities take form? (3) what is the problems or risks with music education in relation to formation of identity? (4) how does the curriculum for the Swedish school relate to the functions that music have in relation to the formation of identity? I have done an analysis on three writers who focuses on theories about music in relation to the development of identity, to give perspective to the individual?s music reality. The first one is the Swedish musicology professor Börje Stålhammar, the second one is the Norwegian music therapist and professor Even Ruud, and the third one is the Brittish music senior master Nicola Dibben. I have compare their thoughts and found a great unanimity in many aspects.

Sverige har gått från ett monokulturellt samhälle till ett mångkulturellt samhälle. En allt större del av Sveriges befolkning består av människor med olika kulturella och etniska bakgrunder. Det senaste decenniet har kombinationen av en åldrande befolkning med varierad etnisk och kulturell bakgrund ställt nytt krav på svensk hälso- och sjukvård. Detta innebär att sjuksköterskor kommer att träffa människor från olika kulturer och med olika vård behov. Med detta i beaktande är det betydelsefullt att belysa vikten av kulturell omvårdnad och kulturkompetens i mötet med patienten.

Min uppsats handlar om längtan och syftet är att visa att och hur längtan spelar en roll i våra liv. Jag försöker i uppsatsen att göra längtan konkret genom att visa hur längtan finns och deltar i vår vardag. Detta gör jag med hjälp av litteratur, två djupintervjuer och texter skrivna av 13 åttondeklassare.Jag försöker inte ge några svar i min uppsats utan mer skapa en diskussion och ge läsaren något att tänka vidare på. Kanske längtans olika former och betydelse och hur något så naturligt men svårt att definiera tar plats i oss. Jag kommer att ta upp hur vi formar vår längtan bland annat beroende på vår ålder och livssituation, men också vad längtan gör med oss och vilka influenser vi får från vår omgivning..

The purpose of this thesis is to evaluate the present importance of liberal education in the Swedish "folkhögskola" by studying its expressions in the teaching of literature and fiction. I have interviewed teachers at four different schools about their opinions of liberal education, literature and cultural heritage, means of instruction, and influence of their students. Liberal education in this thesis is considered as a process. Starting from our own experiences we meet something strange to us and while absorbing this in our experiences we change. But its purpose also is to convey the canon of Western literature.

Inbjuden av Gustaf III, den franska teaterdekoratören, konstnären och arkitekten Louis Jean Desprez, i Sverige 1784-1804, förnyade teaterdekorationen på Operan. Genom att analysera Desprez? teaterdekorationer med inspiration från de abstrakta konstnärerna Mondrian, Malevich och Rothko, utvecklar uppsatsen ett nytt tolkningssystem som tillsammans med traditionell tolkning innebär en djupare tolkningsmetod. Detta visar att Desprez? teaterdekorationer var viktiga för Gustaf III:s kulturpolitik.

Bakgrund: Samarbetet mellan svenska och kinesiska företag har ökat avsevärt i takt med att allt fler svenska företag etablerat sig på den kinesiska marknaden. Detta har lett till ett ökat affärssamarbete mellan de två parterna där nya relationer byggs upp och utvecklas för att få större marknadsandelar.   Problematiskt är dock att det finns tydliga kulturella skillnader mellan Kina och Sverige som medför att det finns många utmaningar som kan påverka affärsrelationen. Syfte: Syftet är att utreda vilka utmaningar som kan förekomma i affärsrelationer mellan svenska och kinesiska företag samt vilka kulturella drag dessa grundar sig i. Teori: Den teoretiska grunden utgår från teorier som redogör för kulturella skillnader mellan Sverige i Kina. Fokus ligger vid att få förståelse för de mest betydande kulturdragen inom ländernas affärskulturer för att på så sätt urskilja vilka utmaningar som kan förekomma. Vidare förklaras vilka egenskaper som är viktiga för affärsrelationer samt hur relationerna har förändrats över tid. Metod: Det tillvägagångssätt som använts bygger en kvalitativ undersökning i form av djupgående semistrukturerade intervjuer.

The aim of this thesis is to study what conceptions of literature that are present in the teacher magazine Svenskläraren between the years 1985 and 2012. In other words: what is the underlying view on literature's value as a teaching aid and why should we study it in school? I relate my analysis to previous research about the use of fiction in education. A critical methodology has been used to study the material. In my results I distinguish three conceptions of literature that are present in Svenskläraren.

Power, Criminality and the gamble about bordering normality. From theperspective of Foucault. This study is about how criminality becomes a strategy of power used by the individual to overcome difficulties and gain advantages. This strategy of power sets loose a process of identity formation within the individual that gives shape to his own norms which are opposite to the one of the society. The individual norms and the normative society cooperate with one another in a cultural teamwork.

Företagsförvärv och fusioner (F&F) är numera en vanlig strategi för att skapa snabb tillväxt och förbättra företagets konkurrensfördelar: under 1990-talet slog branschen rekord både vad gäller antalet transaktioner och deras värde (Mendenhall & Stahl, 2005). Det är dock ett väl känt problem att så mycket som 50-80% av dessa företagsförvärv och fusioner misslyckas på olika sätt och att de positiva effekterna då uteblir (Orrbeck, 2006 och Cartwright & Cooper, 1996). Ett misslyckat förvärv eller fusion kan leda till stora förluster för företaget, i värsta fall till konkurs. Dessutom blir en onödigt långdragen integrationsprocess efter en F&F kostsam och kan skada företaget på olika sätt. För att undvika att orsaken till ett sådant misslyckande är så kallad kulturell inkompatibilitet, vilket enligt en tidigare studie utgör det största hindret för att integrationen mellan företagen skall lyckas (Watson Wyatt 1998/99), bör företagens organisationskultur utvärderas inför en eventuell F&F.

Adjustment to acquired hearing loss can be understood as a process of learning and change where the point of departure is the subjective apppraisal of a person?s hearing loss in a social and cultural context. The aim of the study was to describe women?s thoughts, emotions and actions prior to audiological rehabilitation, since these are considered important for the ongoing process of adjustment and for the planning of rehabilitation. A phenomenographical approach was used in order to describe the variation in the women?s attitudes before attending rehabilitation.

The Sub-Saharan countries have for a long time struggled with poverty and conflicts which might have proven hostile for investors. The analysis aims to see if there is a significant correlation between foreign direct investments (FDI) and economic growth and which cultural and institutional factors seem to be significant in this correlation. Considered are also other variables and their influence that might explain what motivates and gives incentives for foreign direct investments (FDI) and are used in the construction of a regression analysis. This to see whether there is an effect on the economic growth in relations to FDI. The results show that FDI is of significance to the economic growth in the region and the study shows that corruption seems to be the most significant institutional factor in the correlation with effect on economic growth and the ability to attract FDI..

The purpose of this study is to investigate the tendencies among pupils concerning their attitudes towards History and some of the stated goals in the present and in the proposed course plan of History, since there is, probably, a change coming in 2011. The study is built on questionnaires answered by one hundred pupils at a Swedish upper-secondary-school. The results point to the fact that most of these pupils like history, but still they do not wish to make it an obligatory subject, which is a government proposal at the moment. Furthermore, the answers about sources, democracy, the use of History and the consciousness about History, have a clear tendency; there have been too little education about these areas during the pupils former nine years in school, still the pupils think that these are important areas to work with. Moreover, this study shows a disheartening picture when it comes to pupils knowledge of their cultural heritage. Only half of the pupils know which century Gustav Vasa lived in and just a third know what year universal suffrage was introduced in Sweden, two facts that ought to be set in most Swedes? mind..

The essay, which is solely theoretical to its form, presents a critical view upon the unproblematized usage of the concept of ethnicity in the Swedish mass media discourse. Theories of critical discourse analysis and post colonial nature is applied to and used to analyze what ethnicity really means. The essay also provides an insight in the functions and power of mass media in Sweden today to understand why ethnicity is so widely used, and what consequences it may bring upon the systematically excluded "other" and the society as a whole..

The aim for this bachelor thesis is to find an answer for the placement of Migration and Vendel period graves on preexisting house constructions in Sweden. The reason behind these graves being built on their respective places will be analyzed, discussed and compared with similar finds in Scandinavia, where a wide contact net had been established during this time. Different kinds of social and religious meanings and functions with the grave mounds will also be taken into consideration during the discussion and analysis. The actual findings in the graves will be not be a part of this thesis, as the aim is to focus more on the grave itself as a cultural and social symbol for the people, and the values it had, during the time period it was built..