In my diploma thesis I intend to look into the issue of commitment in love relationships. I wonder how it is influenced by the nature of nowadays society enhancing individualism and flexibility. Commitments are based in merging our own identity with identity of our partner. But crucial is to balance it with our own autonomy and freedom. Commitment means putting certain restrictions to our future choices. I made sixteen semi-structured qualitative interviewes based on grounded theory and I looked for answers how they perceive commitments in love relationships, what meaningful partnership means to them and how they cope with comparing potential alternatives. Keywords Commitment, love, relationship, individualism, autonomy

Abstract The role of marketing in social issues has grown over the last thirty years since Kotler himself introduced the concept (Kotler & Zaltman, 1971). In the evolution of social marketing it has moved from being entirely marketing process orientated towards expanding its vision to other useful theories from the subject’s parent disciplines. Social dilemma theory, one such theory, evolved in the laboratories, computer programmes and field experiments of psychologists and economists. In 1991 marketers proposed the theory as an aid to understanding individual action in collective problems. The current study assesses the relevance of social dilemma theory for the marketing of water conservation behaviours in an emerging market. As such, it seeks to establish if the key variables were present and what, if any, impact large cultural forces, such as individualism and collectivism have on individual conserving behaviour. Individualism and collectivism were studied at the personal level of idiocentrism and allocentrism and along the sub-dimensions of horizontal and vertical individualism and collectivism. The interactions of these values on individual behaviour were studied, together with two key variables in social dilemma theory namely, perceived consumer effectiveness (PCE) and faith in others (FIO). Individual perceptions of resource abundance and attitudes towards non-marketing solutions, such as a sanctioning system, were investigated. The study was conducted among 444 teenage learners at secondary schools in Gauteng. A descriptive research design was used. The study found that there was an interaction between social dilemma variables and individualism/collectivism which did have an impact on individual conserving behaviour. Most, but not all relationships were verified. Collectivists required higher levels of perceived consumer effectiveness in order to engage in conservation actions, while individualists needed a greater sense of the co-operation of others. Faith in others and individualism/collectivism emerged as having a direct impact on consumer behaviour, while perceived consumer effectiveness was a moderator of the other variables and had no main, direct, effect on behaviour. Water was thought of as an abundant resource and in little need of conservation. Low income consumers favoured a sanctioning system to enforce compliance. The implications of the study for marketing theory and practice are discussed. -

The purpose of this study was to explore the implications of cultural dimensions on the relationship between job satisfaction facets, role stressors, and organizational commitment. Using data from 214 university employees, the moderating influence of individualistic and collectivistic orientations as expressed through four cultural dimensions (responsibility, affiliation, social welfare, and achievement) on those relationships were investigated. Results indicated that role ambiguity had a greater negative influence on affective commitment for those who were more cooperative as opposed to competitive in their achievement orientation; whereas the relationship between coworker and supervision satisfaction and affective commitment was stronger for those who endorsed an individualist achievement orientation. Responsibility was found to moderate the relationship between satisfaction with the nature of work and continuance commitment more strongly and negatively for those who endorsed a collectivist orientation. The prediction that the relationship between role stressors and normative commitment would be more negative for those endorsing a collectivist orientation of affiliation was supported. Support was also found for the more positive influence of a collectivist orientation of affiliation on the relationship between job satisfaction facets (coworkers and supervision) and normative commitment. Finally, support was found for the collectivist orientation of affiliation positively influencing the relationship of satisfaction with the nature of work with normative commitment. Cross-cultural psychology has moved towards the inclusion of cultural dimensions into the study of psychological behavior in the workplace in a two-pronged approach: refining the theory of cross-cultural industrial/organizational psychology and determining the processes by which cultural dimensions are linked to work behaviors. This study aimed to tackle both approaches by extending the empirical research that is ongoing in the area and accelerating the theoretical development.

Research has consistently demonstrated the influences of cultural orientation (Individualism/collectivism) on emotional expression when interacting with in-groups and out-groups members in face-to-face communication (e.g., Eid & Diener, 2001; Matsumoto et al., 2008; Safdar et al., 2009). The purpose of the proposed study is to investigate whether the same pattern exists in virtual communication, especially in instant text messaging. Using a mixed design, an online self-report questionnaire measuring Individualism/Collectivism and intensity of emotional expression of both positive and negative emotions will be given to a sample of 788 college students. Several universal effects are predicted, including greater emotion expression toward in-groups versus out-groups, greater overall expressivity for people with a high individualism score, and greater expressivity for positive emotions than negative emotions. It is further predicted that people with high individualism score will express more negative emotions to their in-groups, while people with high collectivism score will express more positive emotions. Lastly, it is predicted that when interacting with out-groups, people with a high individualism score will express more positive emotions, while people with high collectivism score will express more negative emotions. Implications for cultural orientation and emotion expression are discussed.

A new development has evolved in Sweden where is more common that individuals chose to study higher educations at universities and colleges. At the same time, society has evolved to become increasingly characterized by individualization and acceleration. This study aims to illustrate different attitudes towards higher education among individuals who either wish or do not wish to study. The study has a sociological approach, and the basis for analysis is, above all, theories of individualization. The study shows that common attitudes towards higher education exist among both individuals who either wish or do not wish to study. The effects of individualization have contributed to an increasing pressure around the idea that the individual should educate himself rather than if he wants it (Rosa, 2013). At the same time there is an idea that education should be planned within a specific age to be able to live a desirable and stable life after 30 years old. Individuals are socialized through school into an idea of making themselves employable and learning to think and act in a certain competitive spirit. Many also argue that higher education will automatically result in a safer future and above all with more choices in life.

<p>I denna uppsats använder jag Johannes Anyurus diktsamling <em>Städerna inuti Hall,</em> i en sociologisk diskussion kring samtiden. Min teoretiska utgångspunkt ligger i Anthony Giddens texter kring det senmoderna samhället.</p><p> </p><p> Med syftet att se hur Giddens och Anyurus resonemang kring samtidsindividen skiljer sig åt, samt att utreda om, och hur, sociologin kan lära av poesin, ställer jag frågan: Hur kan senmoderniteten , så som Giddens diskuterar den, spåras i Anyurus <em>Städerna inuti Hall</em>?</p><p> </p><p>För att besvara min fråga definierar jag först vad Giddens menar att senmoderniteten innebär, för att sedan visa på några specifika sätt som han menar att senmoderniteten påverkar individen. Därefter skapar jag ett verktyg för att söka senmoderniteten, så som Giddens beskriver den, i poesin<em>.</em></p><p> </p><p> Jag finner på en strukturell nivå att det finns stora likheter mellan de två, men på individnivå diskuterar Anyuru och Giddens skilda samhällen. Dess perspektiv och världssyn skiljer sig på flera punkter betänkligt. Framförallt finner jag Anyurus sätt att diskutera själen intressant. Mitt arbete pekar på att det finns skäl för sociologin att reflektera över själens roll för individen, även om vi utgår från den själen endast som en idé. Där vilar en möjlighet för sociologin att utvecklas och ytterligare fördjupa sina kunskaper kring samtiden.</p>

<p>En kvalitativ studie om konflikter mellan separerade föräldrar och samhällsförändringar som har bidragit till att konflikter mellan dessa föräldrar har ökat. De frågeställningar som har använts är: Går det att urskilja några specifika målgrupper som nyttjar erbjudandet om samarbetssamtal? Vilka orsaker kan det finnas till att föräldrar uppsöker hjälp i form av samarbetssamtal? Finns det några specifika samhällsförändringar som har bidragit till att konflikter mellan separerade föräldrar har ökat? En semistrukturerad intervjumetod har använts för att intervjua familjerättsekreterare i deras roll som samtalsledare. Litteraturstudier har utförts om samhällsutvecklingen.</p><p>En narrativ analysmetod har använts för redovisning av resultatet. Resultatet visar bl.a. att föräldrarna befinner sig i kris samt att föräldrarna tänker olika om vad som är barns bästa efter separationen vilket kan leda till svårare konflikter. Resultatet visar även att antalet småbarnsföräldrar i konflikt har ökat. Utvecklingen av gemensam vårdnad, växelvis boende och jämställdhet är några samhällsförändringar som har bidragit till att öka konflikter mellan separerade föräldrar. Slutsatsen visar på att individualismens inträde och ökning i samhället är den främsta samhällsförändringen som har påverkat konflikterna mellan separerade föräldrar.</p>

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Social media on the internet allows both public and private actors to communicate with each other. The aim of this qualitative study is to explore the relationship between the public and the private in social media on the internet, specifically with emphasis on the identities which are shaped in this relationship. The social media explored in this study is the micro blog Twitter. Data was collected from the pages of three public and private actors on Twitter, specifically with concern to their interaction with public and/or private actors. The data was analysed with support in sociological theories on modernity, identity, self-identity, socialisation and Erving Goffman's theories on everyday expression. The results show that expressions of public identities from public actors are interwoven with expressions of private identities in the interaction with private actors. One of the study's main findings is the individualisation of public actors on Twitter in the interaction with private actors. Sometimes, the authority is shifted from the public actors to the private actors, which support the theory of the individualisation of public actors on the micro blog Twitter.