This study focuses on aspects of cult experiences, given by deconverted formermembers of closed religious movements. Their testimonies were published inbooks or interviews. The aims of the study were to understand the interactionbetween the religious group and its members, living in high tension towardsmainstream society and their testimonies of altered self-esteem during attraction,membership, deconversion and defection. The purpose was to understand how aperson´s self-esteem is affected by inner mechanisms of closed religiousmovements and how these experiences affects a persons identity. Another aspectwas whether there might be differences in altered self-esteem, between those whoenlisted as adults, and those who were born into the closed religious contexts.Social Identity Theory, Sigmund Freud´s and Carl Rogers models of personal egowere used as models of interpretations.

Historically the library has owned more than silent, book-filled halls; it has been a center for learning and ideas, a source of both freedom and oppression, in other words, a medium for knowledge, truth, and power. Cultures have been divided into powerful and powerless through access to the library's content; those who have - and those who do not have - access to information determine which voices are heard and which are ignored, thus determining the outcome of the future. This thesis investigates how The Book That Wouldn't Burn by Mark Lawrence portrays the relationship between knowledge and power using Michel Foucault's discourse theory. More specifically, how this relationship is manifested through the structures and norms of society, and how the library as a place and institution serves as the means by which this relationship plays out. An established classic like Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury is placed as a contrasting reference point to help deepen its thematic message of information control and cencurship. Furthermore, the agency of one of the main characters is also examined in the light of Anthony Giddens' stratification model, as an actor with the potential to move beyond the confines of the power structure. The analysis demonstrate how knowledge, truth, and power remain continuously thematically relevant within literature, and how the reality of our time may be better understood through literary contributions.

The flexibility of the labour market is considered as an instrument for increasing economic growth.Therefore has the use of flexible employment, also called atypical employment, increased. The atypical employment is characterized by insecurity in comparison with a traditional permanent full- time employment. One of the most common atypical employments is the manning employment, which is insecure whether it is permanent or not. The insecurity in the industry is based on insecure income, unpredictable working hours and poor psychosocial work environment.In order to encourage a continued increase of flexibility in the labour market while the need for security for staffing employees would be satisfied was Directive 2008:104 adopted. A certain amount of security has been achieved.

This thesis is a cultural theoretical case study of the art project (O)önskad samhällsförbättring.Via an analysis of the project, that is based on theories of power, resistance and contemporaryurban development, it examines the construction of urban space, its impact on public art including the ability of art to initiate evolvement of the urban public space.The last decades art has plaid an important role in what is called the creative city; to become attractive nodal points of the global economy, larger cities increasingly invest in art,culture and creative industry. Simultaneously the urban public space is limited to activitiesand expressions of art that are presumed to create economic growth. This introduces animpression of what is allowed and what is not allowed, possible and not possible, wished andnot wished which, as a consequence, evolves the public space. The events during the artproject and the reactions that followed enlightened these limitations. This tells a story, not only about the structuring process of the local urban space, but also important changes that are created as a simultaneous effect at different levels in society, as well locally as globally.

The key purpose of this research has been to study and understand how young people with Syriac ethnicity experience their identity, when living in two different cultures. The Syriac minority is something of a special case when it concerns establishing the identity of an individual, since syriac´s do not have an official country.To be able to do this research an interview has been done with four young students with syriac ethnicity. The four of them is attending their final year at ?gymnasiet? in Sweden which is equivalent to USA?s senior year in high school.The multicultural school is today a fact and many immigrants attending the Swedish schools today feels misplaced when they meet the Swedish culture through fellow students and society. A clash between cultures occurs and most of the students, with non-Swedish ethnicity, live some kind of dual life.

The purpose of this thesis is to explore whether male kindergarten teachers perceive additional expectations from their surroundings (such as co-workers and parents). Furthermore, we aim to understand and explain how these expectations are related to gender norms and hierarchies in society, that is social constructions concerning what men and women should do and be like. In addition, the thesis aspire to understand and explain how these constructions relate to more specific social constructions about sexual molestations in kindergarten contexts and explore how these discourses influence male kindergarten teachers in their work including which strategies they use in order to cope with them.How do male kindergarten teachers perceive additional expectations from their surroundings?How do male kindergarten teachers perceive the effects and consequences of the social constructions about sexual molestations in kindergarten contexts? Do they use coping strategies in order to attend to the expectations projected on them, and if so, what kind of strategies? The thesis is based on a phenomenological approach and conducted through interviews with six male kindergarten teachers. The interviews were directed with an interview guide in hand while allowing for spontaneous input from the interviewee.

The purpose of this study is to examine the actual political conditions that exist for the Iranian women. What is the political reality of the Iranian women and how can they exert political influence within the political system that exists in Iran today. This is done to see how the Iranian women's potential political influence affects Iran's democratic status. This will be answered through the overall research question: What opportunities do the Iranian women have to influence policy? This overall question is then split into three smaller research questions:1) What formal possibilities to political influence do the Iranian women have?2) What real possibilities to political influence do the Iranian women have?3) How have women in Iran tried to exert political influence outside the institutional framework?This will be done through a qualitative text analysis where texts concerning the Iranian women?s political influence are examined.

In May 2008, the Swedish Government proclaimed several proposals in order to increase the status of the teaching profession. One of the proposals was that each teacher should be obligated to obtain a "teaching license" to be allowed to teach. The license/certification will guarantee that the teacher has the sufficient knowledge of pedagogy and subject obtained from University. The existing teachers who do not hold a proper certification today will be given a certain time period to attain one. The teachers that are certificated teachers but that are giving lessons in subjects not certificated in will be given a chance to obtain the proper knowledge of the subject.

Can the need for inclusion result in certain social norms remain unchallenged, and over time become hard to identify? To ?fit in? and be accepted in different social contexts we have to behave according to the dominating rules and conventions. We accept characteristics and make use of attributes specific for the group we want to be a part of. When we accept these attributes we contribute to keep the concept of them alive. Further on these attributes will be picked up by the next person who wants to become a part of that specific context.

This essay deals with the subject of the use of news medium amongst the students inKarlstads University. The presentation of the problem is about illustrating the or thosemedium that is the most used amongst the students, and also which one, ore which onesof the news medium the students puts largest trust in. This subject was chosen with thepurpose to illuminate patterns and attitudes of and to news medium, to make it easierfor eventual research in the future to connect these patterns and attitudes with theparticipation in political elections. The subject in question is interesting because of thefact that the news medium is one of the largest sources of information for the citizensknowledge?s about the society, and the citizen?s attitude to the news medium mightpossibly have the ability to affect people?s commitment in politics.

This is an essay about unemployment in Trollhättan during the period 1880-1910. In my essay I write about what was made to help the ones who were unemployed. I ask the questions: What did the society, the workers and last but not least the unemployed themselves do?My conclusion is that some things were done. For example were The Labor Unions in their growth and economical support from them and the county could help some people.

The aim ofthis study was to examine how economic growth affects the level of democracy inauthoritarian states. Some of these states have experienced high economicgrowth. However, one can discuss how it affects the country?s democratization-process.For that reason this study was needed to contribute to a clarification of howeconomic growth can affect authoritarian rule and democratization. This wasdone through an examination of the development in China.

Despite the fact that men dominate substance abuse research and that most programs to target substance abuse therefore are developed by and for men, very little is known about the fact that substance abusing men can also be parents. Mothers are up until today regarded as the most important parent even though society is changing and fathers are taken a more active part in childrearing. The average father today still spends significantly less time with his children than the average mother does and marginalised drug abusing fathers often disappear from their families altogether. The goal and purpose of this paper has been that through a qualitative analyses of written sources and qualitative interviews with healthcare professionals and social workers recognise how marginalised drug abusing fathers interests of taking part in their children's lives are met by healthcare, treatment and child protection agencies and how we can understand marginalised fathering as an extension of how we view ordinary fathering. I wanted to examine if there are any specific actions taken in involving these men as fathers and how we can understand their situation.

The object of this paper is concerned with the subject youth and politics. The aim of the paper is to study what influence our today modern societies has between two social landscapes, Greece and Sweden and try to give an explanation to why young peoples political engagement is different in the two countries. To fulfil my aim of this paper I have used a few questions, these questions will give me an insight in how young people look at politics, what their interests are and if they feel that they can and ought to act political. The theoretical starting points I?ve used I?ve chosen with reflection to look at the social landscape we live in and its changes over time.

In preparation for the autumn term in 2011, the Swedish elementary school adopted new syllabuses regarding, inter alia, the civic education (Sw. Samhällskunskap). The civic education has traditionally been a disciplinary subject with a main purpose of mediating democratic values as well as providing generalorientation in the society. Generally, the civic education intends to reflect the world in which people live in, being a complex society which to a large extent is regularly affected by global aspects and developments.      The purpose of this study is to review all the elementary school?s syllabuses relating to the civic education with specific focus on the globalisation perspective.