Understanding human spatial cognition and behaviour is not something easily studied. Many factors are involved that contribute in different ways for different individuals. Navigation and wayfinding have been used as an approach, or starting point, for such studies. Spatial abilities tests have long been used as reference points to generalize to overt navigational behaviour. Care needs to be taken in generalizing from paper to behaviour to make certain that it is a valid relationship exists.<p>The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which certain psychometric spatial abilities tests are indicators of actual navigational decision making. The study was conducted in two phases. The navigational decision tasks were made up of four paths with two variables: length and number of turns. The participants were required to make a decision on which direction to go after being lead part of the way around a hallway. The choices were to either go back the way they were led or take a novel route along a previously un-travelled path (shortcut). Spatial abilities tests (MRT, PFT, and OLMT), a self-rating of SOD, and learning preference for novel environments were administered in phase two. <p>While efficient navigation was not explicitly required in the navigation tasks those participants making the most efficient decisions shared similar characteristics. Efficient navigators have a higher aptitude for mental manipulation (as measured by the MRT), express a preference for a more exploratory environmental learning style, are disproportionately male, and have a slightly higher self-rating of SOD. In addition to the collective set of four navigation decisions (one for each experimental path), path 2 demonstrated the efficient vs. non-efficient distinction quite well: in order to make the most efficient decision the individual must maintain the correct metric distance from the origin point and not be deterred by the passage of only half of the turns in the rectangular experimental environment.

För många är arbetet den mest centrala delen ilivet där de flesta av dygnets vakna timmar spenderas. Studiens syfte var attundersöka yrkesstolthet och identifikation med arbetet. Enligt KASAM- teorin, känslaav sammanhang, är meningsfullhet en viktig komponent för individens yrkesstolthet.Åtta individuella kvalitativa intervjuer genomfördes med åtta deltagare iåldrarna 40 till 65 år med varierande yrken. Ett heterogent urval användes föratt få en så stor variation som möjligt. Resultaten visade att den viktigastekomponenten för yrkesstolthet var upplevelsen av att få göra gott i mötet medandra människor samt att arbetet känns meningsfullt. Att deltagarna hade olikayrken tycktes ej vara av vikt för vilka faktorer som associerades med stolthet.Resultatet visade för samtliga deltagare att trots att den ekonomiskabelöningen upplevdes som låg i jämförelse med yrkets åtaganden inte vägde överde inre faktorer som påverkade deltagarens upplevelse av yrkesstolthet.

Sensory marketing An effective instrument for libraries?   We are living in a world of constant communication and information and because of that, marketing in general seem to have no distinctive effect. Consumers become overwhelmed by all the advertising messages. Due to this, it is clear that organizations like libraries must create a deeper and more personal connection to increase user satisfaction and foster the use of services, among both users and potential users. One way to achieve this is to make use of all the emotional elements of a product or a service. This make the user perceive the service more as an experience instead of just its functioning. By putting the five senses in focus it´s possible to create an experience and with integration of all five senses more value can be added. Previous studies on this subject are rather thin and therefore the authors found it interesting to investigate whether this phenomenon could be an effective approach for libraries.The purpose of this exploratory study is to investigate how a number of selected libraries are working with stimulation through the five human senses in their marketing. The study consists of a qualitative approach. Four personal interviews with informants from four libraries have been conducted. The conclusion of this study is that the library does not work with sensory marketing, but for some of the library's activity, sensory marketing could further develop the activities and create a greater value for both the visitors and the libraries. There are some difficulties though, when sensory experience is somewhat subjective and the library is a place for everyone.

During the last decades, sustainable development has generated a growing attention in the world.Eco-city projects, as a step towards practical application of sustainable development theories, havesprung up in various defined spaces. Besides the technical achievements in environmentalsustainability, it is also necessary to develop social sustainability in human habitats. The initialmotivation of this study was to present Augustenborg as an example for other projects to borrowexperience. Based on the PEBOSCA framework, the theoretical system of sense of community,and the interdisciplinary theories of sustainable community development, the study assessed anexisting sustainable community - Augustenborg considering the sense of community by utilizingliterature review and field study. Furthermore, residents’ needs and participation management, twotopics were discussed in an interdisciplinary way to help to optimize sustainable process incommunities.

Å arbeide som miljøarbeider i psykisk helsevern er krevende, og kan føre til utmattelse, utbrenthet og sykemeldinger. Dette forskningsarbeidet har som tema hvordan veiledning kan være helsefremmende for de som deltar. Med utgangspunkt i Aaron Antonovskys teori om salutogenese og sense of coherence, på norsk opplevelse av sammenheng, har jeg undersøkt hvordan veiledning kan bidra til en slik opplevelse av sammenheng. Gjennom en kvalitativ studie med dybdeintervju av tre miljøarbeidere som arbeider i psykisk helsevern, har jeg sett på hvordan elementer i veiledning bidrar til opplevelse av begripelighet, håndterbarhet og mening. Jeg har hatt et spesielt fokus på narrativer og nyskriving av historien, som en måte å skape sammenheng i tilværelsen. For analysering av datamaterialet har jeg brukt både en Voice Centred Relational- metode og Interpretativ Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Studien viser at det er betydningsfullt for opplevelse av sammenheng å få hjelp til å sette ord på erfaringer og å reflektere over egen person og praksis. Det er også betydningsfullt å være i deltager i en gruppe. Forskningen min viste at i tillegg til veiledningsgrupper var det et viktig supplement at miljøarbeiderne også får kollegaveiledning og kollegial bistand i avdelingen der de jobber. Forskning som kunne vært interessant i kjølvannet av denne studien, men som det ikke har vært mulighet for å gjøre innenfor oppgavens rammer er om kjønn har betydning for hvordan veiledning oppleves, og veiledning som kompetansehevende verktøy. / Working as a social worker in mental health care is demanding, and can lead to exhaustion, burnout and sick leave. This thesis is based on a qualitative research project where the main topic is how counseling can be health enhancing for those who participate. Empirical basis are in-depth interviews with three social workers working in mental health care. The research material is viewed through the lenses of Aaron Antonovsky’s theory on salutogenesis and sense of coherence. Analysis the data I have used both Voice Centred Relational method and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The aim has been to examine how counseling can contribute to a sense of coherence. More specifically I have looked at how elements in counseling contribute to experience of comprehensibility, manageability and meaningfulness. I have had a special focus on narratives and rewriting of one's history as a way to create coherence in the existence. The study shows that to articulate experiences and reflect on own person and practice is an important contribution in creating and maintaining sense of coherence. It is also significant to participate in a group. My research showed that in addition to counseling groups, colleague counseling and collegial assistance in the department where they work, is an important supplement for the social workers that participated in the study. In the wake of this study I find it would be both interesting and useful to do research into the role of gender in counseling: to take a look at how men and women experience counseling, and its use as a tool for increasing competency. This lies outside of this project and cannot be investigated at this time.

Embedded SRAM memory is a vital component in modern SoCs. More than 80% of the System-on-Chip (SoC) die area is often occupied by SRAM arrays. As such, system reliability and yield is largely governed by the SRAM's performance and robustness. The aggressive scaling trend in CMOS device minimum feature size, coupled with the growing demand in high-capacity memory integration, has imposed the use of minimal size devices to realize a memory bitcell. The smallest 6T SRAM bitcell to date occupies a 0.1um2 in silicon area. SRAM bitcells continue to benefit from an aggressive scaling trend in CMOS technologies. Unfortunately, other system components, such as interconnects, experience a slower scaling trend. This has resulted in dramatic deterioration in a cell's ability to drive a heavily-loaded interconnects. Moreover, the growing fluctuation in device properties due to Process, Voltage, and Temperature (PVT) variations has added more uncertainty to SRAM operation. Thus ensuring the ability of a miniaturized cell to drive heavily-loaded bitlines and to generate adequate voltage swing is becoming challenging. A large percentage of state-of-the-art SoC system failures are attributed to the inability of SRAM cells to generate the targeted bitline voltage swing within a given access time. The use of read-assist mechanisms and current mode sense amplifiers are the two key strategies used to surmount bitline loading effects. On the other hand, new bitcell topologies and cell supply voltage management are used to overcome fluctuations in device properties. In this research we tackled conventional 6T SRAM bitcell limited drivability by introducing new integrated voltage sensing schemes and current-mode sense amplifiers. The proposed schemes feature a read-assist mechanism. The proposed schemes' functionality and superiority over existing schemes are verified using transient and statistical SPICE simulations. Post-layout extracted views of the devices are used for realistic simulation results. Low-voltage operated SRAM reliability and yield enhancement is investigated and a wordline boost technique is proposed as a means to manage the cell's WL operating voltage. The proposed wordline driver design shows a significant improvement in reliability and yield in a 400-mV 6T SRAM cell. The proposed wordline driver design exploit the cell's Dynamic Noise Margin (DNM), therefore boost peak level and boost decay rate programmability features are added. SPICE transient and statistical simulations are used to verify the proposed design's functionality. Finally, at a bitcell-level, we proposed a new five-transistor (5T) SRAM bitcell which shows competitive performance and reliability figures of merit compared to the conventional 6T bitcell. The functionality of the proposed cell is verified by post-layout SPICE simulations. The proposed bitcell topology is designed, implemented and fabricated in a standard ST CMOS 65nm technology process. A 1.2_ 1.2 mm2 multi-design project test chip consisting of four 32-Kbit (256-row x 128-column) SRAM macros with the required peripheral and timing control units is fabricated. Two of the designed SRAM macros are dedicated for this work, namely, a 32-Kbit 5T macro and a 32-Kbit 6T macro which is used as a comparison reference. Other macros belong to other projects and are not discussed in this document.

For the most part, academic literature neglects the psychological impact of public gardens and the landscape on human well-being. Literature about botanical gardening and urban landscape design provide the foundation of contemporary public gardening practices. Largely overlooked, however, is a discussion of the relevance of such gardens to visitors. Public gardens, however, can play an important role in fostering a sense of place in communities, in both historical and contemporary contexts. In this study, the impacts of such gardens are considered through Canadian experiences using perceptual lenses offered by diverse writers whose work can be found in bodies of literature related to history, geography, non-fiction, and poetry. Concepts such as ‘place-making’ which can foster ‘home-making’, for example, are intriguing and worthwhile areas of inquiry in understanding the role of public gardens in the urban landscape. This research explores the importance of ‘home’ in gardens. It also considers the importance of gardens to an individual’s internal (psychological) and external (social) home, particularly for those currently involved as volunteers at public gardens. The concept is related to stewardship and how being a steward of the garden home is key to being a steward of one’s internal home. The animating question here concerns the role that cultivated gardens might play in an individual’s connection to landscape. This topic is explored through an examination of volunteer programs (popularly known as Friends of the Garden programs) using grounded theory to explore the perceptions and perspectives of volunteers who work in three public gardens in Ottawa, Kitchener, and Toronto, Ontario. The subject of gardens and their interrelationship to people lends itself to an interdisciplinary methodological approach encompassing studies in landscape ecology, geography, history, planning, design, and psychology, among others. The qualitative methods approach used in this thesis involves an in-depth examination of secondary literature, as well as field work involving semi-structured interviews, and narrative methods. Further, this research explores the role these gardens play with respect to the unique Canadian sense of place and well-being found within urban public gardens. The findings of the research reveal differing perspectives of volunteers with respect to “sense-making” and the ways in which they engage with each other and with the urban public gardens where they work. In addition, the findings revealed the crucial role played by the volunteer as stewards of the garden. The volunteers see these gardens as sanctuaries and view their own role as serving the greater good of their communities for reasons that go beyond political and economic considerations; they are based on intrinsic sets of values. The research revealed that volunteers frequently possessed strong connections to childhood experiences spent in natural settings with their families. These experiences helped to stimulate a shared belief amongst gardeners that the very act of gardening is itself a valued and valuable “way of life”. Furthermore, volunteers are often retired and older; as such, they volunteer in the gardens as a way to contribute to the world to make it more beautiful and meaningful for others and to pass those gardens down to future generations. Gardens are seen as ways to re-create home from one’s childhood past; volunteers often link their present experience in the garden with a sense of connection and belonging in similar terms used to describe their home (as a country, a house, or a valued place). These findings demonstrate that there is a strong sense of place that is both acquired and fostered through engagement with urban public gardens. The findings also raise the possibility that public gardens play an important role in fostering sense of place in visitors. This, in turn, can contribute to a sense of home or belonging, and stewardship of communities and natural surroundings. This research contributes to an understanding of the role that public gardens play as valuable places that make important contributions to social and ecological well-being.

Understanding human spatial cognition and behaviour is not something easily studied. Many factors are involved that contribute in different ways for different individuals. Navigation and wayfinding have been used as an approach, or starting point, for such studies. Spatial abilities tests have long been used as reference points to generalize to overt navigational behaviour. Care needs to be taken in generalizing from paper to behaviour to make certain that it is a valid relationship exists.<p>The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which certain psychometric spatial abilities tests are indicators of actual navigational decision making. The study was conducted in two phases. The navigational decision tasks were made up of four paths with two variables: length and number of turns. The participants were required to make a decision on which direction to go after being lead part of the way around a hallway. The choices were to either go back the way they were led or take a novel route along a previously un-travelled path (shortcut). Spatial abilities tests (MRT, PFT, and OLMT), a self-rating of SOD, and learning preference for novel environments were administered in phase two. <p>While efficient navigation was not explicitly required in the navigation tasks those participants making the most efficient decisions shared similar characteristics. Efficient navigators have a higher aptitude for mental manipulation (as measured by the MRT), express a preference for a more exploratory environmental learning style, are disproportionately male, and have a slightly higher self-rating of SOD. In addition to the collective set of four navigation decisions (one for each experimental path), path 2 demonstrated the efficient vs. non-efficient distinction quite well: in order to make the most efficient decision the individual must maintain the correct metric distance from the origin point and not be deterred by the passage of only half of the turns in the rectangular experimental environment.

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The aim of this study was to examine the relations between sense of coherence (SOC), perceived social support and mood, the study also included gender and civil status in the analysis. In the analysis mood was the dependent variable. The study included 81 respondents, all students from Växjö university, who answered a survey with three parts: SOC 13, Mood Adjective Checklist (MACL), and an own constructed instrument that measured perceived social support. The result showed that those with a high SOC tended to have a greater mood. High scores on perceived social support also were related to a greater mood. No significant interaction effects was found between SOC and perceived social support. In the whole sample SOC was the strongest predictor for MACL. Women reported higher social support from friends than men, but this variable had no effect on women’s MACL. Among men the perceived social support from friends was the strongest predictor for MACL.