In Sweden, political decision-makers assume that digitalization has become part of people’s everyday lives and look at its possibilities. In 2017, a new digitalization strategy was formed by the government. The main goal is to improve the digital competence of Sweden’s residents and confidence in the digital society. Children and young people are a priority when it comes to investing in digitalization both in school and in libraries. Digital competence as well as good reading skills are considered crucial to be able to participate in society. At the same time, previous research indicates that reading ability in children is decreasing. The responsibility of improving digital competence falls on the municipalities who believe that libraries can promote digital participation by developing visitors’ digital skills. The question is whether all libraries have this possibility and can meet this need of the population and to what extent depending on the resources the libraries have and the local conditions and restrictions that exist. The research questions are: How do libraries work with digital media and e-books to reach children and young people based on libraries’ websites and library plans? How do library plans relate to local practitioners; libraries’ websites and libraries’ e-books websites? What conditions, opportunities and constraints are linked to digital media and digitalization; based on libraries’ websites and library plans? What does it mean for libraries that the municipalities have the power and emphasize certain views and discourses in the library plans? The purpose is to investigate dominant conceptions in library plans and how these are put into practice on the libraries’ websites, with a focus on children and young people. The result showed that in the library plans, digitalization and libraries were either described based on possibilities or challenges and limitations. Children and young people were described together with a wide range of media types which shows that libraries are aware that children and young people use different kinds of media. The analysis of the various websites for children and young people showed that the children’s websites of libraries can look very different in terms of both appearance and content. The best thing would be if the websites looked similar in order for children and young people to be able to receive the same service no matter which website they visit. The analysis of the websites with e-books showed that they were more similar in appearance.   This is a two years master's thesis in Library and information science.

Det offentliga rummet är ett brett begrepp som sällan beskrivs djupgående i hur det relateras till sociala frågor och kan variera beroende på hur den socioekonomiska situationen ser ut i ett område. Utformningen av det offentliga rummet har en stor betydelse för befolkningens välmående och livskvalité och är därför viktig att utveckla och sätta i kontext. Målgruppen för studien är ungdomar och syftar till deras användande av det offentliga rummet och hur det kan utvecklas i ett socioekonomiskt utsatt område, i vår studie har vi inriktat oss på Rosengård i Malmö. Studiens metoder utgörs av semistrukturerade intervjuer med ungdomar som kommer ge oss en inblick i hur de upplever sitt offentliga rum och vad de har för åsikter kring det, och ostrukturerade observationer av området. Syftet med studien är att få en ökad kunskap för den offentliga miljöns inverkan på ungdomar utifrån olika aspekter som exempelvis trångboddhet, vegetation och mötesplatser i marginaliserade områden. Studiens avsikt är att utveckla kunskap och ökad förståelse för brister och styrkor i området. Möjligheterna i Rosengårds offentliga rum är begränsade för tillfället, men har potential till stora förändringar med hjälp av ungdomarnas engagemang. Urban design kan tillämpas på många sätt och därmed bidra till social hållbarhet samt minska på klyftorna som är mellan stadsdelen Rosengård och resterande stad / Public space is a broad concept that is rarely described in depth and can vary depending on the socio-economic situation in an area. The design of the public space is of great importance for the population's well-being and quality of life and is therefore important to develop and put into context in real space. The target group for the study is young people and aims at their use of public space and how it can be developed in a socio-economically vulnerable area, Rosengård in Malmö. The study's methodology consists of semi-structured interviews and unstructured observations of the area. The purpose of the study is to gain an increased understanding of the public environment's impact on humans based on various aspects in marginalized areas. The intention of the study is also to develop knowledge of shortcomings and strengths in the district. The opportunities in Rosengård's public spaces are limited at the moment, but have the potential for major changes with the help of the young people's commitment. Urban design can be applied in many ways and thus contribute to social sustainability and reduce the gaps that exist between Rosengård district and the rest of the city.

Volunteering is an important subject in today's society. The society as well as the volunteers themselves profit from volunteering. This thesis handles the topic of young people and volunteering. It deals with the opinion of young people about volunteering as well as with the motivations and barriers young people have in connection to volunteering. There has been a qualitative research conducted within this thesis. The method of focus group was used for it. Young people between 16 and 19 years were the target group of the research. Besides motivation and barriers it focused as well on the channels through which people get information about volunteering. There are recommendations concerning the promotion of volunteering between young people in the final part of the thesis. Those conclusions are aimed mainly for the European Year of Volunteering 2011.

Nowadays is smoking still tolerated social phenomen in this country, despite belongs to the biggest killer in a human history and every day year die 5 milion people for this. Especially dangerous is smoking among young people, because they aren't grown up physical or mentally and therefore is smoking for them so dangerous. 78% of the adult smokers, started smoke before sixteen. In this paper I present the statistics from actual researches and additional analyses of smokers. In comparison with other european states is Czech republic on the second places in number of young smokers. The influence of social environment is crucial for if people started smoke or not. The government should protect smokers and non-smokers due to the effect of smoking in public places. In the Czech has tobacco industry strong position and there is no political will to change it although people want it.

This study is a qualitative text analysis of the state's public inquiry (SOU 2018:57) according to Carol Bacchi's (2009) Foucault-influenced analysis tool: "What's the Problem Represented to be?" (WPR) which is based in poststructuralist theory. The policy's incentives are the international measurements of fourth-grade and 15-year-olds' reading comprehension, PIRLS and PISA respectively. Quantitative measurements in large population groups are generally stated as motives for initiating policies in contemporary welfare states. The starting point in this study is class as class aspects tend to be toned down in today's society despite the fact that parents' level of education has an approximately as strong connection with basic reading skills and in the long run school results as with the variables gender and Swedish/foreign background together. Based on class the purpose of the study is to investigate how the state's public inquiry, which addresses all children's and young people's reading, assumes that the spread of reading comprehension has increased for decades between socioeconomic groups of children and young people in Sweden alongside with school segregation. The conclusion is that the policy's represented "problem" is a decreasing reading interest in all student groups including the middle class which can affect personal finances and Sweden's position in competition between OECD-countries. The "problem" is furthermore that not all parents have similar resources or attitudes to their children's reading comprehension and reading habits, basically culture and education, as the ideal middle class parent. According to the WPR method "problem" representations within policies result in effects for people, and thus a large share of the population: the group of children, young people and their parents who are highlighted in the study tend, from the position from which the policy is produced, "the bourgeois gaze", to disappear and at the same time to be singled out through the neoliberal and neo-philantrophic discourses that underpins it.

Thesis (M. A. (Social Work)) -- University of Limpopo, 2019 / Background: Alcohol abuse amongst the youths is one of the major problems the world is facing today, especially in rural communities where most young people are unemployed and have little to do with their time. Aim: This aim of the study is to understand risk factors contributing towards alcohol abuse amongst the youth of Solomondale community. Methods: This study adopted a qualitative research approach to explore risk factors that contribute to the prevalence of alcohol abuse amongst the youth of Solomondale community of Ga-Dikgale Traditional Authority, Limpopo Province. Exploratory research design was used in this study. The population of the study was youths of Solomondale community between the ages of 14 and 35 who consume alcohol. The researcher used a non-probability sampling method through the application of a snowball sampling technique. The technique suggested that each person may be asked to provide information that may suggest how other respondents maybe located for semi-structured face-to-face interviews. Data saturation was reached at respondent number six. Data was analysed through thematic content analysis. Findings: The findings of this study are anticipated to have the capacity to assist in the prevention of alcohol abuse at a rural community level. The findings of the study revealed that the physical availability of alcohol in a community has the potential to create an opportunity for youth to indulge in alcohol. They further revealed that children/youth learn more from observations of the adults’ behaviour, and therefore, if adults drink in front of a young person, that person is likely to drink when they shift away from that adult. Moreover, according to the respondents, generally the unavailability of a parent in a child’s life has negative effects towards their upbringing, which ultimately creates unfavourable social conditions that may lead to alcohol abuse by such persons. Finally, domestic violence has not been found to have effect on any form of alcohol abuse amongst the youth of Solomondale community. viii Recommendations: This study has made a number of recommendations. Alcohol and other substance abuse call for preventative and intervention measures in rural communities. Issues such as educating the parents and guardians on how to improve their parenting skills in relation to alcohol consumption and the dangers thereof can go a long way if taken into consideration. The government of the Republic of South Africa should come up with programmes that are culturally relevant and appropriate aimed at keeping young people off the streets, and at developing their skills in order to enhance their wellbeing and ultimately communities in the country. / University of Limpopo

The cross-scientific field of Equine Assisted Interventions (EAI) for human health, education and wellbeing is wide, varied, and rapidly growing with an expressed need of increased knowledge. Interventions involving horses are used to address a variety of difficulties and suggested as an alternative option for children and youth in need of support, who for different reasons do not or cannot benefit from traditional therapeutic or educational contexts or settings. Research thus far has mainly investigated outcomes while systematic knowledge about processes and characteristics of these interventions is still lacking. The purpose of the study was to increase knowledge and understanding of EAI for children and youth by exploring key factors and interaction in a Therapeutic Horsemanship groundwork program for disadvantaged Young People. The research was of an exploratory nature, with qualitative research methods and an ethnographic approach where data was collected through a field study based on participant observation and semi-structured interviews. Data was analysed by Reflexive Thematic Analysis. Results show that the interaction can be understood as a triad consisting of child, practitioner(s) and horse. Key factors in the intervention can be understood through eight interrelated themes, divided into Framework Themes and Content Themes. The Framework Themes are Concept, Environment and Activity. The Content Themes are Safe Spaces, Communication is Key, Positive Perceptions, Helping Horses and Learning for Life. These themes interrelate, enabling and affecting the intervention and interaction in the triad. To understand processes in the intervention, findings were interpreted through Experiential Learning Theory and the Biophilia Hypothesis. Results show the significance of the whole concept and the equine environment, and that learning can be identified throughout the intervention. Through interaction, cooperation and training with the horse, the Young Person learns, acquires and develops awareness, competences and skills which can eventually be transferred to their everyday life, thus providing increased social competence and ability to handle difficulties. The intervention can be summarised as being child-centred, horse-focused and action-based. Findings suggest a significance of working exclusively with rescue horses,and that EAI based on groundwork activities can offer a novel and positive experiential learning experience for young people. Findings further suggest that the experiential learning process in EAI may be directable to address various issues, and that EAI/groundwork therefore could be a suitable option for children and youth for whom more traditional or conventional settings for education or therapy are not an option. / Det tvärvetenskapliga fältet hästunderstödda insatser (HUI) för mänsklig hälsa, lärande och välbefinnande är snabbt växande med ett behov av ökad kunskap. Tidigare forskning har huvudsakligen rört eventuella effekter och resultat, medan det saknas systematiserad kunskap om såväl processer som insatsernas karaktär. Studiens syfte var att öka kunskapen om hästunderstödda insatser genom att utforska nyckelfaktorer och interaktion i ett program baserat på markarbete med häst för utsatta barn och ungdomar. Studien var av utforskande karaktär, med en kvalitativ forskningsmetod och ett etnografiskt angreppssätt där datainsamling skedde genom en fältstudie baserad på deltagande observation och semistrukturerade intervjuer. Data analyserades genom Reflexiv Tematisk Analys. Resultaten visar att interaktionen kan förstås som en triad bestående av barn, praktiker och häst. Nyckelfaktorer i interventionen kan förstås genom åtta teman fördelade på två grupper; Ramverksteman: Concept, Environment och Activity, samt Innehållsteman: Safe Spaces, Communication is Key, Positive Perceptions,Helping Horses och Learning for Life. Dessa teman samverkar, möjliggör och påverkar insatsen och interaktionen i triaden. För att förstå processer i insatsen tolkades resultaten genom Experiential Learning Theory och The Biophilia Hypothesis. Resultaten visar en signifikans av hästens miljö, samt att upplevelsebaserat lärande kan identifieras genom hela insatsen, vilken kan sammanfattas som barncentrerad, hästfokuserad och aktivitetsbaserad. Resultaten visar vidare en signifikans av att arbeta uteslutande med hästar som omhändertagits eller omplacerats på grund av tex vanvård, samt att lärande kan identifieras genom hela insatsen och förefaller kunna riktas/anpassas efter olika behov och syften. Hästunderstödda insatser i form av markarbete kan ses som en lämplig metod att erbjuda upplevelsebaserat lärande, och upplevas som en ny och positiv erfarenhet för utsatta barn och ungdomar för vilka mer traditionella insatser inte är ett alternativ. Genom interaktion och samarbete med hästen lär sig, förvärvar och utvecklar barnet/ungdomen medvetande, kunskap och kompetenser vilka kan överföras till deras dagliga liv och leda till bland annat ökad social kompetens och förmåga att hantera svårigheter.

This study examines the attitude towards news from young, Swedish students in the age between 13 - 15 years old. To regularly take part in news reports and be interested in what is happening in the world is important to be a part of a democratic society. The aim of the study, was with the help of the users and gratification theory and the news values theory, investigate the news habits and attitude towards news among the students with the age of 13 - 15 years. This study has been performed through a quantitative survey, where 330 students participated and answered 16 questions.  The result of the study shows that young students know the importance of following the news, but they don’t prioritize it in their daily use of media. Even if they spent more than three hours per day on their phone - the most frequent answer was that they read or watched news content less than ten minutes per day. With the knowledge of the users and gratification theory, the basic needs become more satisfied with the use of social media and entertainment content instead of news. Young students consume news from social media, Youtube and TikTok - but they do not trust them as much as they trust traditional media. The most common news source is through family and friends, which shows that young people rarely search for news themselves. Instead they let the news find them, which could be problematic in the future.

Min studie handlar om hur personal på HVB–hem arbetar med motivation för att öka barn och ungas delaktighet i sin behandling under placeringstiden. Syftet med studien var att fånga upp personalens upplevelser och perspektiv av hur man arbetar med motivation och delaktighet för de placerade barnen. Till min studie har jag genomfört sex semistrukturerade intervjuer med personal som arbetar på HVB–hem som jag därefter bearbetade med metoden tematisk analys. Till min analys har jag använt mig av teorierna empowerment och självbestämmande teorin. Resultatet visar att personal har olika tolkningar gällande arbetet med motivation och delaktighet och att man kopplar detta till olika praktiska moment som att påverka sin vardag genom husmöte och i sitt veckoschema. Vidare visar resultatet att motivation och delaktighet hör ihop och att båda behövs för att ungdomarna ska kunna göra en förändring och att behandlarnas verktyg för motivationsarbetet är belöningssystem. Resultatet visar att det finns flera hinder i arbetet som till exempel ifall ungdomen är SoL eller LVU- placerad och att personalen upplever sig begränsade utifrån de lagar som HVB–hemmen styrs utav. Ett annat hinder i arbetet som framkommer i resultatet är att ungdomar riskerar att utveckla fler riskbeteenden när de placeras tillsammans med andra ungdomar på HVB–hem. Gemensamt för alla informanter är att alla har utbildning och kompetens för arbetet men att personalen behöver fortsatt vägledning kring arbetet med öka barnens motivation och delaktighet i sin behandling. / My study is about how staff at out of care homes work with motivation to increase children and young people´s participation in their treatment during the placement period. The aim of study was to capture the staff´s experiences and perspectives of how to work with motivation and participation for the placed children. For my study, I have conducted six semi-structured interviews with staff who work at out of care homes whick I then processed using the thematic analysis method. For my analysis, I have used the theories of empowerment and self-determination theory. The results show that staff have different interpretations of the work with motivation and participation and that this is linked to different practical ascpects in order to influence their everyday life through house meetings and in their weekly schedule. Furthermore, the results show that motivation an participation are associated and that bot hare needed for the young people to be able to make a change. The motivational tools for the staff is a reward system. The results show that there are several obstacles in the work, such as if the young person is SoL or LVU – placed and that the staff feel limited based on the laws that the out of care homes are obligated by. Another obstacle in the work that the results show is that young people are at risk of developing more risky behaviors when they are placed togheter with other young people. Common to all informants is that they all are educated and have competence for the work, but that the staff needs guidance reagarding the work for increasing the children´s motivation and participation in their treatment.

Den svenska gymnasieskolan ska uppmuntra och fostra elever till att bli aktiva samhällsmedborgare, samtidigt som elevernas rätt att engagera sig på olika sätt i nutiden debatteras. Ungas möjligheter att göra sina röster hörda är enligt forskningen låg, samtidigt som tidigare forskning inte fokuserat på elevernas syn på medborgerligt engagemang. Därav har följande studie som syfte att undersöka hur unga definierar och värderar medborgerligt engagemang. Studien har genomförts kvalitativt, genom semistrukturerade fokusgruppsintervjuer. Photo-elicitiation har använts för att skapa det diskussionsunderlag som intervjun utgick ifrån. Föreliggande studies resultat synliggör att ungdomar ser medborgerligt engagemang som i första hand en frivillig, positiv och icke-egoistisk aktivitet. Dessutom uppfattar eleverna att engagemanget kan värderas både positivt och negativt utifrån deltagarens syfte och val av engagemangsformer. Studien synliggör att de unga till viss del skildrar medborgerligt engagemang likt tidigare forskning, även om de öppnar upp för en till viss del ny förståelse av vad som kan innefattas och vad som är den huvudsakliga kärnan enligt eleverna. Enligt föreliggande studies resutalt av elevernas uppfattningar, så synliggör eleverna en bild av att det framförallt är barn, studenter och äldre som engagerar sig mest , medan vuxna i medelåldern varken har tid eller energi att engagera sig i samhället. Eleverna betonar det lilla och det fysiska engagemanget, samt till viss del att sprida information om samhällsproblem, även om de önskar att man engagerar sig för att lösa dessa och inte enbart prata om dem. / One of the goals stated in the curriculum for the Swedish upper secondary school is to foster students into becoming active citizens. At the same time, young peoples' possibilities to engage in contemporary society, is being debated. Young peoples' possibilities to make their voices heard, are according to research restricted. At the same time, research has not focused frequetly or primarly on students' view on civic engagement. Therefore, this study aims to investigate how young people defines and values civic engagement. This study has been conducted through semi-structured foucs group interviews with students in upper secondary school. Each participant was at the time of the interviews currently taking a course in social studies. Photo-elicitation has been used to create the discussion material that the interview was based on. The results of the present study indicate that the participants view civic engagement as primarly a voluntary, positive, and non-selfish activity. Moreover, they tend to value different kind of civic engagement as good or bad, depending on the form and the purpose of the activity. This study makes clear that young people in some ways understand civic engagement as the former research defines it, but they clearly show what types of engagement that are the most meaningful and important for them. According to this study's participants: children, students, and elderly are the most engaged citizens, while the adults don't have either time or energy to engage in society. The students describe the small and the physical forms of engagement as important, as well as the forms that encourage and informs other people. But they also want those people to engage to solve problems and not only talk about them.