This thesis explores an understudied area in political communication research by examining populist communication on the social media platform TikTok. Specifically, the study focuses on content related to the Sweden Democrat party during the 2022 election. This thesis also proposes an integrated methodological and quantitative empirical framework for analyzing the multi-dimensional relationships present in political communication on digital social media. By identifying key hashtags used by followers of the party during the time of the 2022 election, including the campaigning leading up to it and the government formation following the election, new empirical data consisting of 250 TikTok videos and their accompanying information was collected. Firstly, the data was used to map SD tagged content on TikTok. Secondly, while difficult to measure, a framework was created to code and operationalize populist characteristics within the TikTok posts. Through quantitative content analysis and linear regression, the study examines the relationship between TikTok affordances and populist communication. Affordances are used to describe what an object, or in this case, a technology, can be used for and let a user do. Finally, the data collected was used to determine potential relationships supporting that populist style communication is favored by social media affordances. The results show that videos on the topic of immigration and videos from accounts with many followers were significantly related to virality. However, limitations in studying content on TikTok, due to the platform’s API were highlighted, as well as the difficulty of handling and coding video data from the platform. Overall, this study contributes to the field of political communication by demonstrating the multi-faceted relationship between media logic, social media affordances, and populist communication.

Syftet med denna studie är genom att lyssna på barns utsagor och röster få en djupare förståelse för och lyfta fram barns perspektiv på utomhusmiljön i förskolan. I studien ville vi undersöka och lyfta barns perspektiv på affordance i förskolans utomhusmiljö. Studien som utfördes är kvalitativ genom metoden mosaic approach. Den genomfördes på en förskola där totalt 18 barn var delaktiga i studiens två delar, gåturer och fokussamtal. De teoretiska utgångspunkterna för vår studie är barndomssociologiskt perspektiv och James J. Gibsons teori om affordance. Dessa perspektiv har använts i analysdelen av den insamlande empirin. Resultatet visar att förskolans utomhusmiljö har en mångsidig och variation av mjuk och hård funktionalism. Det påvisar även att barnen upptäcker breda variationer av affordance i utomhusmiljön men att olika faktorer begränsar för hur barnen får utlopp för sina handlingar. En av studiens viktiga slutsatser är att det krävs trygghet och ett flexibelt förhållningssätt hos pedagogerna att inte vara den som måste tala om hur allting ska förhålla sig. För att tillmötesgå barnens uppfinningsrikedom av utomhusmiljöns handlingserbjudanden samt för att stötta barnens kreativitet och fantasiförmåga. En annan viktig slutsats i denna studie är att barn är kompetenta meningsskapare i utformandet av utomhusmiljön i förskolan. / <p>Betyg i Ladok 230619.</p>

Social construction, social constructionism, and social constructivism are widely-discussed topics in the humanities and social sciences, particularly in fields such as gender studies, psychology, and economics. These terms refer to the idea that some objects and phenomena are created or controlled by social and cultural factors, rather than by natural causes. Examples of this include currency and laws, but even seemingly mundane objects such as the Christmas tree and the chair in our homes are dependent on social and cultural norms.The central motivation behind my research is to demonstrate that the objects around us are regulated by social norms, contrary to the belief that they have intrinsic or “natural” functions and meanings. In this thesis, I will examine product and furniture design from the perspective of social constructivism, and explore the designer’s role beyond physical form-giving.

As inhabitants on the earth and as designers in societies, we always think and try to make the world better, to be sustainable. Regarding everyday life in city, to enhance social sustainability, it is revealed that walkability and diversity mean a lot to livability and lovability. Building façades affect peoples’ walking behavior (Choi, 2012), and an area has better be with a good mix of residence and commerce etc. So in this study, focusing on shops which everyone has access to, I tried to seek a hint how to encourage shop owners to make the façades lively by themselves. Why by themselves is related to the idea of bottom-up urbanism that came up from a people- first point of view. The main theory used is affordance theory, originally defined as “what it offers the animal, what it provides or furnishes” (Gibson, 1979, p.127). With this, the study considered three affording-afforded relationships, that is, architects-shop owners, shop owners-shop owners, and the whole environment around façades- pedestrians, only the former two were investigated this time though. Using pixel analysis with photos, arrangement of elements around façades, its tendency, and whether cluster by elements exists or not were studied. After the investigation done, the study was concluded suggesting to reflect the result of observation on peoples’ behavior with affordance, and perhaps to make a design guide as a feedback from the world of everyday tactics to that of strategy, that are supposed to be closer, to make them in a loop to go on.

Är ett kuddrum att föredra på en förskola? Det finns många föreställningar om vad ett kuddrum ger barnen och personalen på en förskola. Kaos eller subjektskapande? Måste det vara antingen eller? Genom att lyfta blicken och titta igen kan man se något annat. Intervjuer och observationer i en barngrupp med barn i åldrarna 1-5 gjorde oss uppmärksamma på hur deras verklighet kan te sig på deras förskola. Utifrån den posthumanistiska idén har vi analyserat barns vistelse i ett kuddrum och lyckats se bortom den höga ljudnivån och de fartfyllda lekarna som kan uppstå i kuddrummet. Med hjälp av begreppen performativ agens, intra-aktivitet och affordance fick vi upp ögonen för barnens blivande och vad inredningen i ett materialfattigt rum som ett kuddrum kan ge.Utifrån dessa begrepp har vi lyckats se flera fördelar med kuddrummet, framförallt barns subjektskapande i de intra-aktioner som kan uppstå i barnens vardag på förskolan.

The study sheds light on pupils individual plans of development and portfolios from the perspective of children. It has an ethnographic standpoint. It was carried out on children and pupils in pre-school, pre-school class and third grade. By further investigating how children and pupils use their individual development plans and portfolios, in which settings and to whom they communicate them, this study is able to grasp the discourse that is created around the instrument itself. This study is also interested in and aims to find the theoretical frame, in essence, which envelops both the construction of childhood and children’s own activities within the limitations and opportunities that this structure offers. By focusing on micro, hereby meaning the thoughts and perceptions of children and pupils themselves, and on macro, such as the structure around the children and pupils, the aim of finding the previously mentioned theoretical space is fulfilled. The study was carried out by means of an ethnographic method, with conversations, interviews, surveys, observations and filming. The results show that children and pupils view their individual developmental plans and portfolios as an affordance, both in a physical sense and as an offer of a symbolic space, a space shared by others but with the same significance for all. It is also apparent that the children and pupils use their individual development plans to ascertain their positions, to show who they are.

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka huruvida designen och innehållet på en mindre förskolegård bidrar med begränsningar eller möjligheter till det sociala samspelet. Ett etnografiskt förhållningssätt har använts som metod och innefattar deltagande observationer samt medföljande observationer, så kallade go-alongs. Det insamlade materialet har sedan analyserats med hjälp av två teoretiska begrepp, och de är agens och affordance. Resultatet av studien visar att designen på förskolegården påverkas av storleken och framför allt friytan av densamma och att detta sedan påverkar vilket innehåll som möjliggörs. Innehållet i sin tur har visat sig bidra med både begränsningar och möjligheter till det sociala samspelet, vilket i denna studie handlar om den fria leken på förskolegården. Resultatet av denna studie tillsammans med den tidigare forskning som finns inom området men även de riktlinjer och rekommendationer från myndigheter är samstämmiga när det gäller designen och dess innehåll på en förskolegård. Nämligen att alla förskolegårdar bör vara stora nog för att möjliggöra en design vars innehåll är så varierat som möjligt för att bidra med mer möjligheter än begränsningar till det sociala samspelet fri lek.

Barn idag tillbringar en stor del av deras barndom på förskolan och mycket av dagarna där spenderas i utemiljöerna. Att förskolan ska erbjuda och sträva efter att barnen ska mötas och behandlas på jämlikt vis är en viktig fråga inom förskolan men det krävs kunskap och förståelse för hur jämlikt tolkas och användas. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka om de lekredskap och ytor som förskolans utemiljö erbjuder påverkar barns lek ur ett genusperspektiv.    Studien baseras på en kvalitativ metod genom intervjuer av två förskollärare samt deltagande observation av sex barn som visat och berättat om vad och hur de leker i förskolans utemiljö. För att tolka och analysera min insamlade empiri så utgick jag ifrån barndomssociologiska teoretiska begrepp som kamratkultur, tolkande reproduktion och det miljöpsykologiska begreppet affordance.    Resultatet av min studie visar på att utemiljön på förskolan inte är så genusneutral som den oftast antas vara. I intervjuerna som gjorts framkom det att grupper av barn tar sig an utemiljön och dess innehåll olika beroende på könstillhörighet. Studien vill bidra till kunskap om hur utformningen av förskolans utemiljö kan påverka barnens lekar ur ett genusperspektiv.

The introduction of a game mechanic is an aspect of a game that - when done right - goes almost unnoticed by the player. When it is done incorrectly however, it can become a large point of frustration in the player. The goal of this study is to discover how to introduce a game mechanic that guides the player through the game's musical score. The research question asked was: "Based on player experiences, how should a non-diegetic musical guidance mechanic be introduced in a video game?" This study uses design science as a foundation and uses a survey to gain a broad overview of the general preferences given by participants. Two versions of a prototype were developed which was played by 11 participants who were then asked about their experience. In both versions, the player was tasked with finding the magic flutes scattered across a city by listening to the music. The flute was stereo panned to the left or right speaker, corresponding the direction of the flute in the game world. The versions contained two different methods of introduction and the participant was asked in a semi-structured interview afterwards whether they enjoyed the method they received. One version contained a detailed introduction that described how the guidance mechanic worked, the other version did not. The interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis to extract common themes in the answers given. The results were varied, but the majority said that they preferred to learn by themselves, without a detail introduction. This method let the player think for themselves and led to a greater sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when figuring out what to do. For a game such as this where the objective is to somehow find something, they believed that it is better to not give the answer away too freely. Not many ethical concerns where found for this study, though the one that was found is important to acknowledge. Players with aural impairments cannot play this game the way it is intended, by listening to the musical score, since they have difficulties with sound. This is a flaw that should be studied and solved or mitigated in future studies.

The Circular Economy is a growing research field and policy agenda. Yet, integrating the social dimensions of sustainability into the Circular Economy remains a challenge. The significance of reactions to an implemented Circular Economy is poorly understood.  Contrary to the narrative that consumer demand shapes supply, affordance theory stresses the significance of considering the exogenous physical context that shapes user decisions. Building on affordance theory and insights from the social sciences, this study develops an agent-based model, TransportTransform, to analyse the interactions of the individual-, meso-, and system-levels. The agent-based model connects individual mobility choices with network decision-making mechanisms. Looking at user decision-making on transportation modes, the model yields insights into the interaction of mode occupancy and social norms to assess system patterns of user behaviour. The model design was informed by eleven interviews with researchers in the field and is initialized with data from an empirical survey conducted in Germany. The TransportTransform agent-based model confirms the importance of affordances as an important factor in modal choice. Model results show the relevance of including habitual behaviour when modelling transport mode choice, with the car being the most popular mode, followed by biking and public transport. Incorporating mode occupancy significantly reduces car usage, offering potential policy avenues for redirecting mode capacities towards desired modes. The impact of social norms on mode choice was less pronounced, highlighting the need to further explore norm internalisation and the indirect effects of social norms in future model iterations. The study emphasizes the need for further model expansions to better understand the impact of Circular Economy policies on user decision-making. Overall, the study highlights the importance of considering the social dimensions of sustainability in the Circular Economy and provides a valuable framework and implemented agent-based model for analysing user behaviour in this context.