Träning kan ses som en trend då det har blivit allt mer populärt att utföra någon form av fysisk aktivitet. Inom socialpsykologisk teori har trender förståtts som ett sätt för individer att tillfredsställa sina behov av att anpassa sig efter den sociala omgivning de lever i. Socialpsykologin har också visat att det är fruktbart att synliggöra normer genom att intervjua individer som definierar sig som normbrytare. Denna studie syftar därför till att undersöka träningstrenden ur icke-användares perspektiv genom tio kvalitativa intervjuer med individer som inte anser sig vara fysiskt aktiva. Resultatet visar att träningstrenden har en inverkan på individer som inte aktivt deltar i den då de upplever ett utanförskap. Dessutom finns det andra faktorer som tydliggör utanförskapet och individers upplevelse av det. Media och materiella ting är två sådana faktorer som båda har en stor del inom trenden. Icke-användares inställning till träningstrenden är delad på så sätt att träningens popularitet skapar förutsättningar för ett hälsosamt samhälle, samtidigt som dessa förutsättningar motarbetas då träningens popularitet medför en stress och press att prestera utefter ett ideal som är svårt att uppnå. Det innebär också en svårighet att gå emot träningstrenden då den speglar normen i samhället att vara hälsosam, vilket gör att ett icke-deltagande kan anses som avvikande från ett kollektivt handlande.

The purpose of this study is to examine librarians' reasoning regarding ethical dilemmas when meeting users. The study focuses on the librarians' views of their skills in relation to the library environment, ethical problems occurring during their workdays as well as the role of ethics among the professional skills. The empirical material has been collected through conversations with seven librarians at academic libraries in western Sweden. Three scenarios were used to prompt the librarians' reactions. The material was analyzed with the help of thematic analysis metod. One major finding is that librarians find it difficult to differentiate between personal and professional ethics. Another finding is that ethics as a skill should not be overlooked even though more practical competences are valued as more important in the daily work. The study also indicates that training ethical thinking can boost professional status, help problem solving as well as raise the quality level of work.

Canvas är den nya lärplattformen som har upphandlats bland annat på Karlstad Universitet och som har ersatt den gamla lärplattformen ItsLearning. Men genom att ersätta ett helt system med ett nytt kan det uppstå problem och brister med användandet. Syftet med arbetet är att identifiera problem som användarna upplever på lärplattformen Canvas. Genom att sedan analysera dessa problem och brister så går det att utveckla råd och rekommendationer för hur de kan åtgärdas. För att identifiera dessa problem och brister har kvalitativa intervjuer använts och de personer som blivit intervjuade är studenter och lärare på Karlstads universitet, som får svara på frågor om deras användande och upplevelser av lärplattformen Canvas. Utifrån dessa resultat går det sedan att se vad som dessa användare anser fungera bra och vad som inte fungerar bra och sedan komma med förslag på lösningar till dessa problem och råd och rekommendationer om vad som bör göras för att gå vidare. Intervjuerna som har utförts avslöjar brister inom lärplattformen Canvas, där framförallt grupper, inlämning och bedömning av uppgifter, navigation, betygssättning samt den inbyggda mailfunktionen nämns som de största problemen utav användarna. Genom att analysera svaren så ges en förklaring till varför dessa är de största problemen. I analysen delas de problem som användarna yttrar sig om upp i kategorier beroende på vilken designprincip de tillhör för att kunna ge en helhetsbild av vad för typer av problem som det finns på lärplattformen Canvas. En del av användarna yttrar sig även om helt defekta delar på Canvas, som de anser bör ha upptäckts tidigare och åtgärdats. Med hjälp av analysen går det att dra slutsatser om varför och hur problemen har uppstått och vad som bör göras för att åtgärda dessa problem och brister. En undermålig kravinsamling samt att lärplattformen är ny för många användare anses vara de underliggande orsakerna till varför användarna uttrycker sitt missnöje med Canvas

The aim of this Master’s thesis is to examine how librarians talk about users in social media. Using a method of discourse analysis based on Ernesto Laclau’s and Chantal Mouffe’s theoretical concepts it seeks to answer the following questions: How do librarians describe and comment on users in social media? In which contexts do librarians talk about users in social media? Which ideas of the relationship between the librarians and the users do the user discourses present?The study focuses on a Facebook page called “Arga Bibliotekstanten” (The Angry Library Lady) and all its posts and comments during the period of January to June 2013. This is an “open” page available for anyone to follow; at the time of the study it had approximately 1800 “followers” and 4000 “friends”, both librarians and users.The results show that librarians talk about the users in a variety of ways, but mainly concerning money, behavior and task. There is a high tolerance for negative comments about users on the page, and the dominating discourse is that of the user as a problem. In combination with the other two discourses found: the user as a task, and the user as in need of help, the idea of the relationship between the librarians and the users is one of inequality. The librarian’s role is presented either as edifying towards a badly behaved and/or badly instructed public, or as a reluctant servant obliged to cater to the user’s every need. / Program: Bibliotekarie

For young people today the ability to read and interpret text seems to be of decreasing standard. This bachelor thesis is trying to find patterns among five different library patrons, all adults and most of them readers for life. The specific aims are, through their individual stories, to find out what made and helped them become readers of literature for enjoyment and pleasure. How do they look upon themselves as readers, how do they find their reading and finally which role does it play in their everyday lives. Five semi-structured interviews have been conducted in a qualitative way and been put through a thematic-narrative analysis.The avid readers of this study all read throughout their lives and almost right from the beginning read a lot. Not all of them have been read aloud for as children in their home-environment. In various ways they share their reading with others and they all find ways to incorporate their reading interest socially in their lives. Most of the avid readers are members of various reading communities and throughout the practice of reading they seem to have developed successful strategies and knowledge in finding new reading. The search for reading material is mostly done outside the physical library building. Important sources for reading suggestions are close friends, relatives and media. Most of them identify one specific grown up as important for getting further and helping them developing as readers. That person does not necessarily have to be a parent. / Program: Bibliotekarie

This bachelor thesis is about communication problems and treatment during the reference interview. The purpose was to investigate the reasons of why users’ information needs are not always understood by the librarian and what to do about it. I have also investigated what kind of skills that can be useful for librarians to have and how a librarian can act in a way that makes the user feel welcome during the reference interview. The method I used was a literature study and an own study through interviews of library users. The theories I used was Taylor’s information need theory and Argyle & Dean’s equilibrium theory. The result I found was that a librarian can ask a user open questions like how the user plans to use the information in order to find out more about what kind of information needs she has. To make the user feel welcome the librarian can invite her to return if she does not find the information by herself or ask her if she is satisfied with the information the librarian found for her. It is often appreciated by the users if librarians are friendly, have patience, smile, have eye contact during the interview and show that they are really interested in helping the user. / Uppsatsnivå: C

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate peoples experience when listening at audio books. During recent years the use of audio books has increased significantly. With that knowledge and the fact that this is an almost unexplored area within Library- and Information science our interest grew even stronger. The thesis is based on two different theories. To be able to place audio books in a context we have applied a media- consumption perspective by asking questions like when, where and how the media-consumption takes place. When analysing peoples experiences from the content of audio books we used Sten Furhammar’s model of reading. The question posed in this study is: What experience can audio books give to our respondents? We limited the examination by only including adult audio book listeners. To answer the question we interviewed audio book borrowers at a public library. The results of the examination shows that people often prefer to listen to audio books while doing something else. Some are using it because they have a dysfunction e.g. reduced sight. The audio book can give relaxation, help endure monotonous work or simply be used for amusement. For some it is even enriching and developing. We also concluded that the audio book listener confronts more choices than a reader of a written text does. An audio book user must not only find a technique that suites them and the situation but also find a narrator that attracts them. / Uppsatsnivå: C

The purpose of this Master’s thesis is to investigate how public library users consider the knowledge of the librarians and to examine what the users expect from the librarians. To begin with, we contemplate our own view of the librarians, their knowledge and what help we expect at the library. Realising that we do not expect particularly much from librarians, although we have studied to become librarians for two years, we assume that the regular library user does not expect much either. This assumption resulted in our decision to investigate this particular question. To gather information about how library users regard librarians and their knowledge, we handed out questionnaires to the users at a public library and interviewed five library users about their opinion on the knowledge of librarians and about how they view librarians in general. The results from these inquires were analyzed according to the hermeneutic methodology and compared to literature relevant for the subject. In conclusion we find that library users think that librarians mostly know practical work, like sorting and lending books and other media. Users also think that librarians know about literature, information seeking and that they are service minded. What the library users in our study wanted help with was finding books, information seeking, finding study material and practical tasks, such as interlibrary loans. The users think of librarians as calm, helpful and professional. / Uppsatsnivå: D

The purpose of this Master’s thesis is to examine what the data from recent Library- and Information Science studies tell us about the importance of school libraries in a student perspective. Our theoretical framework is built upon Elisabeth Tallaksen Rafste’s concept about the values of school libraries to students. Our aim is to investigate how students between the ages of 15 and 18 use and experience school library. The method used was a literature study where we collected the students’ experiences of their school library from the data parts in our sources. Our sources consist of Master’s theses from the years 1998 to 2006. The study shows that the students’ use of school library is closely linked to the resources spent on it. School libraries with limited operating hours are typically used as a resource for tuition-related purposes only: a place for work and book-borrowing. However, in school libraries with generous operating hours, in addition to spending more time there, pupils also used the library space for leisure related purposes. The use of it as a social meeting place was more common in schools that lacked common rooms. Available common rooms made school library more work- and education oriented. The librarian was of great importance to the students as a resource for all kinds of information related questions and for creating a study enabling environment by maintaining peace and quiet. In conclusion, the use of school library depends on the resources spent on the library. Generous operating hours, good stock and manning will result in wider use of library facilities and resources, while students will appreciate its existence to a greater extent. / Program: Bibliotekarie

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate reading habits among parents of preschool children who do not use the public library. Another aim has been to investigate why these parents don’t use the library and if there is anything the library can do to change this. Little research had earlier been done on this subject. The theoretical framework consists of two different models. One is Andersson´s and Skot-Hansen´s model of the four different roles of the public library. The other is Jochumsen´s and Hvenegaard Rasmussen´s model of social space and lifestyles. To answer my questions I have carried out interviews with five parents. In order to find interviewees I first distributed a questionnaire via different preschools. The results show that some of the parents read relatively often and that they all read aloud to their children on a daily basis. They have all been library attenders at some point in life. The reason for not using the library presently varies. Some parents prefer to buy books so that they do not need to think about returning them. Some of them are also discouraged by their image of the library as a place where you must be quiet. These parents also tend to forget that the library exists or believe that it mainly targets other demographic groups. The library can address some of these problems and some not, for instance by developing marketing strategies, implement technical applications that send reminders in advance when books are due back and a more inviting environment.