Hedge funds? importance within the financial system has during the most recent years increased dramatically. These special funds are unique instruments that differ from traditional mutual funds in a variety of ways, however especially in how they expect returns. Due to the fact that hedge funds are able to hold short positions they possess the possibility to become market neutral investment vehicles.Because of this possibility to sustain positions neutral to market fluctuations, the concept of absolute returns became a unique selling point for hedge fund managers and promises of stable returns unchallenged by market conditions was assured. This research paper aims to examine the theory of absolute returns in hedge funds by examining hedge funds from the Nordic region during the last years of economic turmoil that has occurred by  analyzing the results from their strategies, partially by quantitative measurements as well as qualitative.  The results show that none of hedge fund strategies managed to deliver absolute returns over the chosen period..

The aim of the study is to examine which present conceptions of sexuality there are in treatment of substance abuse for men. The intention is to examine how staff members in these environments perceive clients? sex and sexuality as well as studying if and in that case how they work with sexuality in treatment. A qualitative method formed the methodological approach and semistructured interviews were carried out for the collection of data. Four staff members from two different treatment institutions for substance abuse were interviewed.

This report describes an interview study of Swedish elementary school teacher?s view on stu-dent influence. The objective is to find out about teachers' approach to student influence, what do they think happens with students that are allowed to influence and what are the negotiables and non-negotiables when it comes to student influence in elementary education? And do the teachers really want their students to have influence?According to the official policy documents for the Swedish school system the Swedish school shall work towards a democratic school. Not only should the students be educated about de-mocracy but they should also learn to use democratic values and processes.

In this paper I have conducted an analysis to critically examine survey questionnaire forms used in political research to measure trust and distrust. During the first step of the analysis I aimed to identify how the concepts where used in the forms. The second step involved examining if it was possible to relate the questions and items to five theoretical assumptions based on theories of trust (and distrust). The third step was to examine the quality of the forms, in relation to survey and questionnaire designs.The results of the analysis showed that the institutes that conduct the studies tended to use similar questions to measure trust. Some of the forms that where analyzed had very many questions, which could lead to exhaustion for those participating in studies.

Traumatic deaths hit relatives hard and a fast and professional encounter can make crisis management easier. The purpose of this literature review is to find partly how relatives after traumatic deaths are taken care of and how nursing staff fulfil the relatives' needs and also how nurses prepare themselves before this encounter with the realatives. The method in this study consists of a literature review. This was done through critical examining a number of articles within this area. The result shows how a nurse could encounter relatives after traumatic deaths.

The purpose of this thesis is to outline an appropriate model in order for companies to successfully act and compete physically as wholesalers at the same time as acting on the virtual market by selling directly to the end consumer. The approach of this thesis is hermeneutical and abductive with elements of hypothetically deductive approach. Our research has a qualitative research strategy based on case studies and interviews as well as on secondary data. Interviews were conducted with the case company JaymJay Wear AB as well as with other companies, so called mini cases. The secondary data consists mainly of textbooks, web sites and journals.

Problem The culture sector is characterized by qualitative goals which raise questions such as how do you measure culture and what is ?good? culture? Both the goals and the measurements tend to result in subjective judgments, which according to the theory make result control inefficient. Yet, result control is frequently used in the culture sector; which leads up to our research question: What characterizes the problems of result control in the culture sector?Purpose The aim of this study is to make a survey of how the Gothenburg Opera works with result control and follow-up. By defining how it tackles the different problems, which could arise with result control in a non-profit organisation, we aim to map how the problems regarding result control are characterized in the Gothenburg Opera.

This essay examines what happened to soldiers from Urshult in military service of Sweden during the diminished power of the country in the beginning of the eighteen century. Information of interest is taken from the soldiers? age, time of service and other annotations of interest that shows to be helpful when examining their fate.  First off, this study explains Sweden?s situation during this period of time. To get a grasp about the situation, allotment is explained as well as the most important events in the big Nordic war. This study is based on qualitative content analysis and GMRs are used as its main resource of information and consists of empiric analysis.The result of this paper shows that very few soldiers from Urshult were able to return home alive.

Denna uppsats handlar om religiös slakt och hur etiskt försvarbara den judiska kosherslakten och den muslimska halalslakten är, detta utifrån ett människorättsperspektiv i jämförelse med ett djurrättsperspektiv. Uppsatsen utgår till stor del utifrån författaren Martha C Nussbaums teorier kring människors rättigheter och djurs rättigheter, där hon i båda ämnena tar upp ?the capability approach?, som handlar om vad varje människa och djur som ett minimum, för vad ett värdigt liv kräver, har rätt till. I uppsatsen finns även avsnitt om kosher- respektive halalslakt samt ett kapitel om jordbruksverkets syn på konventionell slakt och dess innebörd men också deras syn på kosher- och halalslaktI analysen, analyseras de olika delarna för att försöka hitta svar på min frågeställning. Analysen inleds med ett människoperspektiv utifrån, ?the capabilities approach?, där jag analyserar konsekvensen av ett förbud mot kosher- och halalslakt.

The aim of our thesis is to study and analyze the components and features a brand should have to provide a solid foundation for brand building. Furthermore, we show how brands can make use of trends in a brand establishment.This paper is written from a qualitative approach. Through both structured and semi structured interviews, we obtained valuable information from our respondents. Our frame of reference and empirical foundation are linked together through an abductive approach which has resulted in our analysis and conclusions.A trend brings with a set of emotional characteristics, which companies can?t influence but must adapt to.

The aim of this study is to gain an understanding of former criminals' own experience of their entry into criminality and to identify and analyze the factors they use to explain their path into criminality. To study this area, a qualitative method has been applied with five semi-structured interviews of ex-criminals from an organization that works to help and support people who have previously been involved in crime by offering employment, education, and rehabilitation in order to be further integrated into society again. To analyze the respondents' stories about their way into criminality, the theory of social bond by Hirschi has been applied and contribute with insights in later criminal acts as well as the theory has been problematized to some extent. Today, there is a lot of research on different aspects that can explain the way into criminality in different aspects, on the other hand, research has largely been measured with a quantitative approach with statistics and self-reported data. This study therefore intends to apply a qualitative approach, where ex-criminals themselves describe their path into criminality.

Internet has opened a whole new world when it comes to marketing. Because of this companies can reach out to a broader consumer audience. The idea to write this essay came to mind, when we were asked to design the website of a new registered company named Artoteket. The company?s purpose is to hire out and market art on the Internet to bigger companies such as banks, law firms and industrial company?s etc.

Sensory marketingAn effective instrument for libraries? We are living in a world of constant communication and information and because of that, marketing in general seem to have no distinctive effect. Consumers become overwhelmed by all the advertising messages. Due to this, it is clear that organizations like libraries must create a deeper and more personal connection to increase user satisfaction and foster the use of services, among both users and potential users. One way to achieve this is to make use of all the emotional elements of a product or a service.

This thesis investigates the relationship between economic growth and self-reported happiness in 45 European countries during the periods of 2011 and 2014-2022. In addition to economic growth, the effects of factors such as unemployment, health, and equality are also analyzed. Data has been collected from the World Bank and Our World in Data. To analyze these relationships, a fixed effects regression analysis and clustering are used, supplemented by tests for multicollinearity and scatter plots. The results of the study indicate that economic growth has no significant effect on happiness when our control variables are included in the analysis.

The essay focuses on the blacklisted restriction of passive sales in the block exemption to Article 101 TFEU on vertical agreements. It confirms the authors' thesis that the distinction between active and passive sales do not cause any problems in the theory, but that the reality shows the opposite. The analysis further shows that more detailed guidelines probably would not solve the problem but rather it is the objectives behind the rules and practice that causes confusion.The essay questiones whether the changes in the new guidelines for the block exemption also involves a change in the Commission's approach to the restrictions on passive sales when the same purposes as before lies behind the rules, where the goal of an integrated market is the most important. The impact of the so called "economic approach" within practice since the 1990s, when it was first introduced, suggests that changes are slow. The essay requests a greater openness to the fact that the realization of a single market and the desire to move closer to the commercial reality of companies collide.One proposed solution is given, where the rules would be designed so that 'absolute territorial protection' is prohibited, contractually and de facto, and that it is left open for companies to determine if their actions lead to this.