In this study ? Just a girlfriend who lives far away? ? I interview fifteen girls about their experiences with computer mediated relationships. From a queer theoretical perspective I examine how these girls do and talk about their relationships, in relation to norms about relationships and sexuality as well as notions about online and offline.My aim is to discuss in which ways the performing of these relationships both reproduce and challenge norms about relationships and sexuality. The girls I interview attempt in different ways to show that doing relationships online is just as ?normal? as doing them offline.

The aim of this study is to through six interviews, with six experienced, social workers?, in three cities, understand how the child?s position in the Swedish child protective services? enquiries has change, and the factors behind it. The aim is also to compare if the social workers? view of the child?s position in the enquire has change accordingly to Socialstyrelsens intentions of BBIC. The theoretical approaches that was used is the new institutionalism, the Shier?s pathways to participation and the term discretion.

The aim of this study was to examine the occurence of norms in court cases regarding the Swedish law of support and service for disabled (Lag 1993:387 om stöd och service till vissa funktionshindrade) with the help of a discourse analysis method. More specifically its aim was to examine and identify norms in the different dictums/statements that were to be found in the court cases regarding the supportive institution "contact person" according to the Swedish law "LSS" with the help of a norm science approach. The aim was also to examine when the applicant was found to be entitled to a contact person according to the LSS-law. To be able to do this, the author studied thirty-four different court cases. In these cases six themes were found, that indicated the occurence of norms.

In 1992, the European Union began institutionalizing the cooperation against terrorism within the EU structure. Since then, this cooperation has gone through a number of changes. From a historical institutionalistic point of departure we explain these changes by identifying sources of institutional resilience and institutional change. Based on these results, we were able to pose hypotheses of when and what category of change was most likely to take place.The results show that the cooperation against terrorism within the EU was most likely to remain stable because of strong sources of institutional resilience. If change would occur through an increase in the sources of institutional change, it was most likely to be of a less extensive category.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to present an overview of the Swedish listed companies and their compliance with the Code and its normative rules for independent decision-making. Methodology: The authors have read and delved into the Swedish Code of Corporate Governance. The authors have chosen to study the enforcement of the code based on independent bracing guidelines. The study was conducted through a combined quantitative and qualitative approach. The study is based on primary data collected in the form of companies' corporate governance reports, which have been supplemented by structured interviews.Frame of reference: Swedish ownership structure and concentrated ownership, self regulation and normative guidelines, institutional theory and earlier research on this topic.Empirical foundations: A comparison of the selected companies has been based on the independence rules of the Swedish Code of Corporate Governance. A specific company has been presented with the company's application of the code, interviews have also been done with this company to increase the understanding of the empirical basis further.Conclusions: There are several flaws with the code and how it is applied today.

The purpose with this master thesis is to analyze how the Swedish County Administrative Board (Länsstyrelsen) acts in an environment that changes fast with more regional actors than ever before. There are also proposals regarding new public authorities and eventually a reduction of the Swedish County Administrative Board.By studying a report issued by the Board in December 2005 the aim is to find their intentions and actions for the future. By using three diverse theoretical concepts - the public organisation, the instrumental perspective and two separate perspectives from new institutionalism - the expectation is that I will have the possibility to analyze the intentions of the organisation in many different ways.In this case study I also want to take into consideration the central discourses in the regional debate, shall we decentralize or shall we keep on having a strong state even in the future? What kind of regional policy does the Swedish County Administrative Board prefer?The result shows that the Swedish County Administrative Board struggles for a strong state even in the future, but it does not propose any huge changes. In many ways it seems like they act as they are supposed to - as an instrument for the government - but despite that it is obvious that the Swedish County Administrative Board tries to show that it has the traditions and knowledge.

The main purpose of the study was to collect normative data for Lundamaterialet,revised version, divided into phonology and grammar, for childrenaged 4:6-5:11. Another aim was to explore how children aged 3:0-5:11 had acquiredprepositions and different forms of comparison. 195 children with typicallanguage development participated. The children were divided into six groups,116 children from the three oldest groups participated in the normative data. Theresults showed an increasing mean value with age for both phonology and grammar.The older children had acquired the prepositions and the forms of comparisonbetter than the younger ones.

The purpose of this essay is to examine the construction of the norm-breaking characters Saga from the young adult novel Tusen gånger starkare written by Christina Herrström and Pippi Longstocking from the books written by Astrid Lindgren. In order to do this I have applied queer theory as well as theories of narrative in my analysis.To be able to study the breaking of norms, it has been essential to first examine the way the norm itself is manifested in the books. Because of this I have chosen to begin my analysis with an examination of two other characters who by their normative behavior contrasts against Pippi and Saga, namely Signe and Annika. The understanding of the normative discourse that Signe and Annika represent is crucial in understanding the way Saga and Pippi later turn against it.After that I examine in which ways Saga and Pippi breaks prevalent norms and how they as characters are constructed as being different. Subsequently I study the effects of Saga?s and Pippi?s norm-breaking, taking focus on how it influences Signe and Annika.Finally I discuss the view of Saga and Pippi as subversive characters, and however the books can be said to have a subversive effect.

AbstractIn this thesis we analyze how institutions describe the dichotomy between ?problem? and ?resource? when dealing with young adults. We also analyze the consequences of this dichotomy as it involves the younger generation's participation and group identity in today's society. Dichotomies and New Institutionalism Theory is the base for this case study completed in Malmö, Sweden. We have done eight qualitative interviews with politicians and employees in Malmö municipality and a quantitative content analysis of reference documents from both the Malmö and Swedish governments.

The purpose of this essay is to highlight the conceptions that exist in school towards homosexuality. My overall essay questions are: What rules does the school have to apply concerning homosexuality? What approach do the professors have towards young lesbian women and kind of support is offered to the group? In order to answer these questions I interviewed a professor and a young lesbian female. One of the surveys that has been made, as a normative order, about heterosexuality in the last decade is known as queer theory.One of the theories that in surveys investigates homosexuality as a normative order is known as ?queer theory? and it is the one I decided to use in this essay.Inspired by feminist research, gay and lesbian studies and the poststructuralist theory, the queertheory focuses on some peoples way of organizing sexuality is privileged, sanctioned and is perceived as normal, while others are seen as deviant, abnormal and therefore unwelcome.

Klimatkonventionens ramverk, om att stabilisera graden av växthusgaser i atmosfären på en nivå som minskar människans påverkan på den globala uppvärmningen, fick i Kyoto 1997 ett protokoll som innebar bindande krav för ratificerande länder. Kyotoprotokollet trädde i kraft 2005 med resultatet att samtliga OECD-länder, exklusive USA och Australien, accepterade differentierade åtaganden om att sammantaget minska sina växthusgasutsläpp. Undersökningen utgår från detta faktum och med en jämförande studie mellan Sverige och Australien, genom teorin liberal institutionalism, syftas till att frambringa ett svar på huruvida Kyotoprotokollet är ett effektivt internationellt samarbete ur implementeringssynpunkt. Det empiriska materialet är hämtat från lagtexter och policydokument. Resultat och analys visar att Kyotoprotokollet är effektivt i avseendet att det har bidragit till uppkomsten av en omfattande universell diskussion som har påverkat även ett icke-ratificerande land som Australien att mer aktivt minska sina växthusgasutsläpp.

The aim of this essay is to study constructions of femininity and sexuality in Sara Stridsberg?s novel Darling River (2010). The analysis is based on queer theory and the term ?skev? ? a variation of ?queer? that allows one to focus on additional forms of normativity apart from sexual desire ? and examines how the characters of the novel are challenging the heteronormative framework by performing gender and sexuality in non-normative, subversive ways. In short, I discuss how the relationship between femininity, body and destiny is being portrayed, how the characters question heteronormativity by overdoing femininity, and by being unable (unwilling) to perform adult femininity.

This essay is a study of how teachers in social studies relate to three central curriculum concepts; cultural diversity, swedish culture and common cultural heritage.Through unstructured interviews, I have taken part of two practicing school teachers interpretations and understandings of the concepts and their practical approach for teaching about identity. An area mentioned in the core content of the courses Social studies 1a1 and Social Studies 1b.The conclusion of my study is that teachers interpret the key concepts in a transparent manner. It is believed that the main task is to problematize the concepts rather than define them. In contrast to this, the practical teaching is largely based on normative values. An open discussion and a normative practice can be said to balance right on the border between the schools values ??and the demands of the curriculum on transposition of the current culture..

Over the past twenty years, the cooperation within the European Union (EU) has strengthened and expanded with both more number of Member States and stronger influence on international politics. The unique character of the Union and its ability to enforce peace and humanitarian intervention has attracted attention in political science. This prominent position of the Union is perceived by many scholars who often hold this derived from the Union's influence in international relations. Various terms have been used to define the powers of the Union. The British researcher Ian Manners states that the unique identity of the Union in the international arena is formed by its normative power.  An important policy area within the Union is the environmental cooperation.

The overarching goal of this paper is to explain the intensive occurrence of partnerships ? regarded as a specific organizational structure ? in the formulation and implementation of Regional Growth Programs.By using theoretical concepts from new institutionalism, the paper tries to examine the explanatory capacity of this theory in the specific case of partnerships. The basis is a skeptical stance towards the conventional interpretation that views partnerships as rational organizational tools. Hence, the purpose of the paper is also to compare our own institutional explanation with the conventional.The paper finds that the occurrence of partnerships can be understood as the effect of an intensive institutional pressure. The government has, in what we regard as the institution for regional development, prescribed the partnership as a rational solution ? a rationalized myth - to the regional growth problem.