This study aims to examine how adolescents with diabetes describe and value their experience of participating in a support group and how they describe the issues of being a teenager with diabetes. This is a qualitative study and we have interviewed three young women who have been participating in a support group. The results of the interviews were analyzed through a phenomenological method and then compared to earlier research and interpreted through symbolic interactionism and Erikson's development-theory, which were our theories of choice. Our findings support earlier research when stating that support groups are important and necessary for adolescents with chronic illnesses. Our interviewees stated that they think that one of the most important benefits of support groups is to meet other people in their situation; same age and same chronic illness..

The study examines the meaning of having a dog in the workplace of personnel who work with therapy. The purpose was to examine the personnel?s view of dogs in their work envi-ronment. The study uses two theories. One is ?psychosocial work environment? and the other theory used is ?symbolic interactionism?.

This thesis examines the experience value of the wolf and wolf hunting presented in mediaduring December 17, 2009-Feruary 15, 2010. I analyze news articles, editorials and letters tothe editor in three newspapers. In order to investigate the experience value of the wolf and thewolf hunt, I have with inspiration from a model employed in the assessment of experiencevalue of tangible cultural heritage, developed a model which I use to analyze the mediamaterial according to the criteria of aesthetic value, identity value, value of tradition andsymbolic value. In order to analyze the results of the analyze, I employ experimental andsociocultural theory and method, which means that I assume the experiences of the wolf andthe wolf hunt as related to a social and cultural perspective that partly depends on how weidentify ourselves and what kind of experiences and understandings we have of the landscapeand large carnivores. Since media affects how we perceive our surroundings and the wolfhunting attracted much attention in media, I found it interesting to examine how the wolf andthe wolf hunt were displayed in news articles and letters to the editor.

The aim for this study was to examine betweenship as a phenomenon by focusing on identity. There is not very much research done on betweenship. I have used a qualitative phenomenological approach, based on four qualitative interviews. The four interviewees were all experiencing betweenship. To analyze their stories I used two theoretical frameworks; identity and affinity groups.

The purpose of this study was to explore the state of female prostitution in the city of Tehran, and besides, analyze the elements that can lead women to harlotry in Iran. This research is based on three sources of information: firstly, interviews with three harlots in Tehran and I got help of a semi-structured interview guide. Secondly, I discussed prostitution with conscious resources that worked within the public services in Tehran and had experienced of working with female prostitutes. Thirdly I analyzed texts and reports about prostitution in Iran. The data from interviews are tied to two theories: symbolic interactionism and feminism.

Many archaeologists have been intrigued by how often symbolic houses of varying forms are used on the burialgrounds of the Scandinavian Bronze Age. Some scholars even claim that to deal with the dead did not mean to set them apart from the world of the living during this period. Since several examples show that there seem to be an active connection between the ship-setting and different types of symbolic houses, this study seek to demonstrate and interpret how the ideology behind these symbols vary between three regionally different Swedish areas: Halland, Småland and Gotland. The purpose is to show that the way chosen to shape the symbols materially not only had fundamental impact on the organization of the burialground itself, but also on how the surrounding world came to comprenhend and use them. This study suggests that even though the special shapes of the graves and the gravefield itself can carry meaning, the materialization of the monuments can be interpreted as incorporated in a practice of remembrance in where the individual shaping of the grave most probably formed part of a greater story..

This thesis examines the experience value of the wolf and wolf hunting presented in mediaduring December 17, 2009-Feruary 15, 2010. I analyze news articles, editorials and letters tothe editor in three newspapers. In order to investigate the experience value of the wolf and thewolf hunt, I have with inspiration from a model employed in the assessment of experiencevalue of tangible cultural heritage, developed a model which I use to analyze the mediamaterial according to the criteria of aesthetic value, identity value, value of tradition andsymbolic value. In order to analyze the results of the analyze, I employ experimental andsociocultural theory and method, which means that I assume the experiences of the wolf andthe wolf hunt as related to a social and cultural perspective that partly depends on how weidentify ourselves and what kind of experiences and understandings we have of the landscapeand large carnivores. Since media affects how we perceive our surroundings and the wolfhunting attracted much attention in media, I found it interesting to examine how the wolf andthe wolf hunt were displayed in news articles and letters to the editor.

This essay is about a debate concerning the magazine Axess, feminism and antifeminism - in relation to a issue of Axess called To a new feminism. The theoretical foundation of this essay is Pierre Bourdieu and his field theories. The battles taking place in this particular field concerns the positioning of feminism and antifeminism in the way we culturally interpret these in our society. The essay shows that the magazine Axess (at least in the first edition of 2012) links feminism with a very prominent symbolic capital in a culture context. This discussion can at times seem confusing, and this is probably due to the fact that Bourdieus symbolic capital can be a very abstract concept. The journalist and author Maria Sveland writes about the development of a culture moving towards accepting antifeminism (and also xenophobia). She expresses the opinion that this, to a high degree, is due to actors in the culture domain with a big amount of trust in the public eye has moved towards expressing anti-feministic (and xenophobic) views.

How is research and science being used in political debate? An idea analysis of the debate about försäkringsmedicinskt beslutsstöd (decision tool in healthcare security)This is a case study on different types of research use (utilization) The aim of this paper is to examine how the politicians make use of expertise and research in the parliamentary debate surrounding the decision tool in healthcare security (försäkringsmedicinskt beslutsstöd). The aim is also to find out to what extent different types of research use are present in this debate. In this case study the qualitative method of idea analysis is being used on the empirical material. The tool of analysis is based upon the theories of research use by Amara et al.

Discussions of structural racism has now moved to the forefront of the Swedish society, and many researchers have sought to understand what form it takes, how it is manifested, how it is exploited and challenged. At the core of this debate we find the media, and its logic embedded with mechanisms of simplification and polarization.Media is our key source of knowledge and information, why it also affects our norms, beliefs and preconceptions. Media thus has the power to mediate, amplify or challenge how we conceptualize the world, and subsequently our (unconscious) racist beliefs.To investigate how media content is influenced by underlying colonial or racist assumptions and stereotypes thus becomes a way to investigate our understanding of reality.In accordance with postcolonial thought, structural and symbolic racism is embedded in language and hidden in images, and surface in the form of domination and feminization, and the portrayal of the subaltern ?Other? as passive and irrational.This paper thus departs from postcolonial theory and media logic to undercover hidden patterns of structural, symbolic and historically contingent racism in one of Sweden?s most prominent in-depth foreign TV-magazines, namely Korrespondenterna.Adopting Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), this paper explores to what extent racist and colonial stereotypes are reproduced and/or challenged in Korrespondenterna?s representation of Sub-Saharan Africa.In line with postcolonial theory it is found that historically contingent racialized stereotypes are prevalent in Korrespondenterna, and that tendencies of portraying Africa and Africans as passive, feminine and irrational are prevailing.It is thus argued that media logic, imbedded with mechanisms of simplification, polarization and intensification, contributes to the use of colonial stereotypes in media, and thus to the mediation of structural and symbolic racism..

This essay is about a debate concerning the magazine Axess, feminism and antifeminism - in relation to a issue of Axess called To a new feminism. The theoretical foundation of this essay is Pierre Bourdieu and his field theories. The battles taking place in this particular field concerns the positioning of feminism and antifeminism in the way we culturally interpret these in our society. The essay shows that the magazine Axess (at least in the first edition of 2012) links feminism with a very prominent symbolic capital in a culture context. This discussion can at times seem confusing, and this is probably due to the fact that Bourdieus symbolic capital can be a very abstract concept. The journalist and author Maria Sveland writes about the development of a culture moving towards accepting antifeminism (and also xenophobia). She expresses the opinion that this, to a high degree, is due to actors in the culture domain with a big amount of trust in the public eye has moved towards expressing anti-feministic (and xenophobic) views.

This essay is about a debate concerning the magazine Axess, feminism and antifeminism - in relation to a issue of Axess called To a new feminism. The theoretical foundation of this essay is Pierre Bourdieu and his field theories. The battles taking place in this particular field concerns the positioning of feminism and antifeminism in the way we culturally interpret these in our society. The essay shows that the magazine Axess (at least in the first edition of 2012) links feminism with a very prominent symbolic capital in a culture context. This discussion can at times seem confusing, and this is probably due to the fact that Bourdieus symbolic capital can be a very abstract concept. The journalist and author Maria Sveland writes about the development of a culture moving towards accepting antifeminism (and also xenophobia). She expresses the opinion that this, to a high degree, is due to actors in the culture domain with a big amount of trust in the public eye has moved towards expressing anti-feministic (and xenophobic) views.

This study is about how teachers of history at different upper secondary schools in Uppsala think and talk about the role language plays in the classroom and in education in general. In order to find this out, interviews were carried out with five teachers of history at four different upper secondary schools in Uppsala. This study has an analysis of the statements by and interviews with the teachers in a wide context by using a previous study carried out in Uppsala, which categorizes the upper secondary schools of Uppsala into a social field based upon what assets their students have. These assets are estimated by using Bourdieu?s theory of symbolic, social and cultural capital.

With self-hypnosis as a method, I work with levels of consciousness in relation to practice. Focus lies in the relation between a language of materials and an inner experience. How do material expressions function as mediums of a spiritual matter between a beholder and me? The trance functions as a space for a spiritual contact/communication. Abstract images of crystalline glaze on ceramic tiles are direct results of these acts.

The aim of this thesis is to develop two idealtypes of politics to help serve as instruments in understanding and analysing the view on politics held by top civil servants in the municipality of Lund Sweden. The two ideal types developed here are symbolic sense making politics and rational instrumental politics. These two ideal types were applied to material from a qualitative survey to help bring out clear results and to help with the interpretation of the material The results of the study showed that the two idealtypes could not help to clearly categorize the civil servants views on management by objectives. But while categorizing the top civil servants views the important features of policy documents the ideal types were helpful. By using the ideal types I came to the conclusion that the view on policy documents was mainly characterized by sense making politics.