This thesis uses the ?What's the problem?-approach developed by Carol LeeBacchi. This approach studies how the problem that a certain policy is supposedto take care of is represented. Each representation will rest upon certainassumptions and will accordingly support certain solutions while other solutionswill be considered less suitable to the problem as it is represented.The thesis therefore evaluates the competing problem representations forgender mainstreaming in Sweden. The theory chapter explores two developmentpossibilities for gender mainstreaming, based on diversity and deliberativedemocracy.

In this paper I argue that the development of innovation ideas within the financial system of scientific research might have a counterpart within the financial system of the social sciences and the arts. The ideas of innovation share a common way to evaluate science in terms of how well it can contribute to economic growth. In the past two decades a similar development can be observed within Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (RJ), one of the largest external financiers of the social sciences and the arts in Sweden. The idea of evaluating research used by the innovation ideas has grown popular within RJ, only it seems they evaluate research in terms of how well it fits into an international research community rather than how much it can contribute to economic growth as is the case within the innovation ideas. By examining the different ways of financing research that RJ has used during the last 2 decades, this paper aims to introduce a new perspective in which it is possible to understand the development within this type research funding as a part of a bigger system of development..

This paper examines the ideological content of the compulsory school policy of the Swedish Liberal Party. The aim of the study is to investigate whether the Liberal Party does really represent a liberal policy for the compulsory school, or if it is more accurately described as conservative. The analysis is carried through by two separate critical examinations of the Liberal Party motion on school politics to the parliament and the Conservative Party motion on school politics to the parliament respectively. A comparison is then made between the ideological contents of the two documents. The specific party policies are linked to universal definitions of liberalism and conservatism with the help of an analytical tool consistent of a series of educational philosophies.

The aim of this thesis is to investigate and analyse the debate of ideas on gender equality policy during 1998 - 2011. The questions raised in this thesis are; which gender equality policy ideology has prevailed during 1998 - 2011, and which ideological orientation have the different ministers of gender equality expressed during the same period of time? I have conducted the study by analysing government publications and debate articles against a ideological framework consisting of different types of feminist theory. In order to get a result as representative as possible, I have only used the material from each of the ministers during their time in office. The research method that I have used when analyzing the material is qualitative text analysis.

This paper has bearing on the subject of foreign policy analysis and decision-making,but is nonetheless important to peace and conflict studies due to its emphasis onnuclear weapons and deterrence.I have constructed a theoretical framework for the analysis of foreign policydecision-making that I set out to test on a crucial case. The framework iscrosscutting, and takes into consideration four levels of analysis: the system-,regional-, state-, and individual level. It is centred on a key decision maker, andapplies a cognitive approach for determining his or hers belief system through whichthe inputs from the other levels are filtered in order for the decision maker toconstruct a perception of reality, from which the decision is then formulated within.The framework is applied to North Korean and its leader Kim Jong Il. It sets outto explain his behaviour in the matter of their claimed nuclear weapons program, andhis decision to conduct a nuclear weapons-test, getting inside his head trying to figureout why he chose to do it and for what reasons.The conclusion indicates that the basic structure of the framework and its generalapplicability is sound, but that it needs further testing in order to make it perfectly solid..

The proportion of women entrepreneurs in Sweden is, as in many countries, smaller than the proportion of men entrepreneurs. Sweden has therefore created political measures with the ambition to increase women entrepreneurship. However, knowledge about the determinants of women entrepreneurship is needed in order to enable the promotion of it and, at the same time one can question the treatment of women entrepreneurs as a homogenous group. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the determinants of women entrepreneurship and whether these determinants fluctuate regionally. If this proves to be the case, a more spatial/individual approach should be used, when creating measures to promote entrepreneurship.

The Common Agricultural Policy has been a burning topic for debate for severaldecades. According to the CAP:s opponents it's effects include pollution, market distortionsand not least a huge expense for the European union.In this study we seek to explain why the CAP has remained almostunreformed since it's constitution in the 1950:s. The means by which we do so isa case study where we analyze the CAP by using three different theories; liberalinter-governmentalism, realistic trade theory and new institutionalism.In the final chapter we conclude that the theories complement each other. Newinstitutionalism explains the rigidity of the CAP. The liberal perspective explainsthe origin and the logic behind the policy whereas the realistic point of view putsthe policy in the light of an international economic theory and recognizes nationalpolicy makers roll in the inflexibility of the CAP..

The purpose of this master's thesis is to discuss how young people view their possibilities of exercising power and influence in Swedish society and politics. To accomplish this we have used several different sorts of relevant material. As an introduction, we review the development of the Swedish research concerning youths, with focus on the development in the last two decades of the twentieth century. We continue with a study of important Swedish youth-political documents, especially of the Government Bill På ungdomars villkor: Ungdomspolitik för demokrati, rättvisa och framtidstro On the terms of the youth: Youth-policy promoting democracy, justice and hopes for the future. The Bill is the foundation of a new youth-policy in Sweden.

The Regional Forestry Board in Värmland- Örebro needs increased knowledge on silviculture in broad- leaved forests. This thesis is an inventory of naturally regenerated broad leaved forests, and the results from the inventory have been compared with The Regional Forestry Board?s demands on regeneration results. The result of this inventory was that the regenerated sites were suitable for broad leaved trees, but only half the number of the stands fulfilled the demands of regeneration results of The Regional Forestry Board, mainly because of gaps in the stands. The gaps in the stands were mainly caused by lack of soil preparation and seed trees..

The purpose of this research is to examine some historical aspects of Robert Putnam?s thesisabout voluntary associations and social capital. According to a micro perspective theory ofsocial capital the trust and reciprocity required and created by associations is important toexplain the disparity between institutional performance and socioeconomic development ofsocieties. The social patterns governing this therefore set a precedent for the future. Using themutual sickness benefit societies in Sweden as variable for voluntary associations around1884, the essay discusses the possible links between social capital, associations and long termeconomic development.

I Sverige har det pågått en fyra decennier lång regiondebatt om hur den regionala förvaltningen ska organiseras. Denna debatt har resulterat i ett beslut om en försöksverksamhet med regionalt självstyre i fyra län från 1 juli 1997 till 31 december 2002. I den regionala försöksverksamheten som ytterligare har förlängts till 2006 ingår Kalmar, Gotland, Skåne och Västra Götaland. De två sistnämnda regionerna är mitt undersökningsmål. Syftet med denna uppsats är att lyfta fram de väsentliga faktorer/element som kan relateras till och förknippas med regional identitet.

The aim of this paper is to empirically examine the ideological trends and positioning of the Swedish liberal party with the Danish social liberal party. This paper also aims to analyze the reasons behind the trends. By examine the development in these two Nordic liberal sisterparties, this paper contributes to our understanding of why and how party change is initiated. The paper commences with an intuitive notion that the Swedish party has in fact, made a lurch towards the right, during the past ten to fifteen years while the Danish party has retained their social-liberal position in the centre of the Danish political spectrum. The questions then asked are: can this hypothesis be verified empirically? If so, how can this phenomenon of divergence, be explained?The method used in this thesis is process-tracing and the empirical material does to a large extent rely on interviews with central agents as they are specified in the theory of each party.

Regional säkerhetskomplex-teori är en central del av Köpenhamnsskolan, och den beskriver säkerhet som något som sker framför allt på en regional analysnivå. Teorin kan beskrivas som en blandning mellan neorealism och konstruktivism, sett ur ett regionalistiskt perspektiv. I den här uppsatsen försöker jag ta reda på vad den här teorin tillför till förståelsen av säkerhetspolitik, utöver vad vi lär oss av konventionell neorealistisk eller liberal teori. Detta gör jag genom två fallstudier där de olika teorierna jämförs med varandra och deras förklaringskraft studeras. Min ena fallstudie handlar om Europa, den andra om den post-sovjetiska sfären med fokus på Ryssland. Jag drar slutsatsen att regional säkerhetskomplex-teori har både för- och nackdelar jämfört med dominerande teorier.

Starting at the end of the Cold War, this publication assesses the impact of the upheavals in Eastern Europe and the atrophic Soviet Union on the Swedish doctrine of neutrality with its 200 year old tradition. Since the end of world war two the proximity of the Soviet Union had constituted the major impetus for upholding a position of neutrality and as this vanished a pressure for change was created. This essay works with a theoretical framework delineated by Kjell Goldmann and under this disposition, the Swedish tradition of neutrality, governmental positions, opposition and four major influential newspapers are studied. The standings of each variable are canvassed in an attempt to explain the development of Swedish security policy during the crucial years of 1988-1992..

Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine if the Swedish policy of foreign affairs has been changed due to the Swedish enter as members in the European Union. The research method used for this essay has been a comparative case study between the Swedish and Norwegian declared policy of foreign affairs and it strives to answer the research question, which is if the Swedish declared policy of foreign affairs has been changed in character due to the Europeanization. The theoretical framework of this study consists of Europeanization as a comprehensive theoretical perspective. I order to answer the research question a classification schedule has been elaborated to examine the objectives of the Swedish and Norwegian declared policy of foreign affairs. The analytical method of this part has been a quantitative and qualitative approach.