<p>Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine how the Swedish policy of neutrality has changed between the years 1990-2008. The research method used for this essay has been comparative case study, which strives to answer four research questions. Two of these questions are: Which specific occurrences have been fundamental in changing the Swedish policy of neutrality? How have the Swedish policy of neutrality and the policy of non-alignment changed between the years 1990-2008? The theoretical frame work of this study consists of Europeanization as a comprehensive theoretical perspective. In order to explain the Swedish act regarding the policy of neutrality, Logic of Consequences and Logic of appropriateness are used. The conclusion of the study points out that Sweden has become much more flexible in terms of policy of neutrality and policy of security. The years between 1990-2008 are distinguished due to the fact that the international cooperation has become much more important in the Swedish act of security. Sweden still has the policy of non-alignment, but cooperation between the states is more and more prioritized to secure peace around the world.</p>

This study investigated the efficacy of the lz person fit statistic for detecting aberrant responding with unidimensional pairwise preference (UPP) measures, constructed and scored based on the Zinnes-Griggs (ZG, 1974) IRT model, which has been used for a variety of recent noncognitive testing applications. Because UPP measures are used to collect both "self-" and "other-" reports, I explored the capability of lz to detect two of the most common and potentially detrimental response sets, namely fake good and random responding. The effectiveness of lz was studied using empirical and theoretical critical values for classification, along with test length, test information, the type of statement parameters, and the percentage of items answered aberrantly (20%, 50%, 100%). We found that lz was ineffective in detecting fake good responding, with power approaching zero in the 100% aberrance conditions. However, lz was highly effective in detecting random responding, with power approaching 1.0 in long-test, high information conditions, and there was no diminution in efficacy when using marginal maximum likelihood estimates of statement parameters in place of the true values. Although using empirical critical values for classification provided slightly higher power and more accurate Type I error rates, theoretical critical values, corresponding to a standard normal distribution, provided nearly as good results.

The Swedish Military Intelligence and Security Directorate (MUST) is a producer of knowledge, a knowledge that is fundamental for decisionmaking in foreign and security policy. The intelligence knowledge production is often held as objective, value neutral, and with the intention of ‘speaking truth onto power’. However, this study holds that such a perspective on intelligence knowledge production calls for a revision. Hence, the overall purpose of this study is to examine the characteristics of knowledge in intelligence analysis and also to investigate how that knowledge is affected by the social context of its production, the military intelligence service. The source material is of three kinds; first texts and documents, second interviews with intelligence analysts and managers, and third observations of seminars and meetings during the production process of estimates. The results are that there is a strong presence of an implicit interpretive framework that continuously influences and guides the knowledge production and thereby makes the knowledge dependent on one specific perspective contrary to the intentional objectivity within the intelligence service. Further, the study reveals that the social and discursive practices for intelligence knowledge production include a ‘logic of appropriateness’ suggesting the presence of a structured Denkkollektiv with a structured Denkstil. The actions and choices of the individuals are transformed to create conformity to the norms within the social discursive practices. Thus, the inherited frame of interpretation, as well as the socialised norm of staying within the existing accepted frames ofthinking and acting ends up to the stability and duration of the not always accurate and fruitful Denkstil. At the core of political science resides the question of how policy is shaped. Even though this study has focused merely on one organisation in a specific policy field in one country it brings insights to the knowledge and policy nexus.

Orientador: Sandro Tonso / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Tecnologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-20T00:46:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Gaspar_VitorTavares_M.pdf: 1010143 bytes, checksum: 0a8a1f34f32fbd337903e0eabb53e67c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / Resumo: O presente trabalho se propõe a verificar quais são as possibilidades de diálogo entre Tecnologia Social (TS) e Educação Ambiental (EA) Crítica. Partindo de um ensaio teórico sobre EA e uma revisão da bibliografia sobre TS, utilizou-se de um processo de EA realizado pelo Coletivo Educador Ambiental de Campinas (COEDUCA) para refletir sobre possibilidades de diálogo Entre TS e EA. Essa EA entende que a crise socioambiental surge devido a um modelo civilizatório gerador de exclusões e desigualdades, legitimado por formas de construir conhecimento que não dão conta de compreender a complexidade da sociedade e suas relações. Essa EA se propõe a criar espaços de diálogo nos quais pessoas se reconhecem como sujeitos políticos capazes de refletir sobre seus conflitos e buscar alternativas. A TS, por sua vez, se constitui a partir da necessidade tecnológica de empreendimentos cujos objetivos sejam a inclusão social. Pode-se entender a TS como uma tecnologia com valores adequados à produção solidária, bem como pode-se entendê-la como processos (chamados de Adequação Sociotécnica - AST) de empoderamento de atores envolvidos com produção solidária, que levam esses atores a criar suas próprias soluções tecnológicas. O diálogo entre TS e EA pode ser identificado principalmente nas seguintes formas: 1) Reconhecer que processos de EA podem contribuir com AST em empreendimentos solidários; 2) reconhecer que processos de desenvolvimento de TS podem constituir sujeitos políticos, tal qual a EA; 3) Reconhecer a TS como uma abordagem temática para processos de EA, considerando-a como um tema relevante para instrumentalizar educadores ambientais / Abstract: This work intends to investigate which are the possibilities of dialog between the fields of Critical Environmental Education (EE) and Social Technology (ST). To get these goals it was made a bibliographic research about ST and EE and an essay analyzing the dialog between EE and ST having as a background the observation of an environmental educators training process. This EE understands that the environmental crisis is a consequence of a civilizatory model that generates social inequality and exclusion and legitimate itself using a way to build knowledge that doesn't understand the complexity of social and environmental relationships. This EE seeks to create dialogue places which people can recognize themselves as being capable to understand their problems and create solutions concerning these problems. The ST seeks to make possible, for people on solidary production processes, to produce with collective values and, for this, it proposes that only a technology with these values can make it work properly and bring social inclusion. The ST can be understood in two ways, as an adequate technology to produce with solidary values, or as all the processes in which the users of technology are empowered and starts to recognize themselves as being to capable of build their own technology as their production process demand (this process of creating ST is named Sociotechnical Adequation - STA). The dialog between ST an EE can be mostly identified in three forms: 1) Recognizing that EE processes can contribute with STA in solidary works; 2) Recognizing that the process of development of ST can lead to social emancipation, as EE does; 3) Recognizing the ST as a thematic approach on EE processes / Mestrado / Tecnologia e Inovação / Mestre em Tecnologia

Antimicrobial resistance is a significant global health problem. Misuse of antibiotics is associated with antimicrobial resistance which presents clinicians with treatment challenges and increases the complexity of the decision making process related to the selection of appropriate antibiotic therapy. Antibiotic resistant organisms can often lead to nosocomial infections (NIs) and undoubtedly causes patient harm and increases healthcare costs. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), at least 70% of the nosocomial infections are caused by antibiotic-resistant organisms. In addition to the problem of inappropriate prescribing, the decreased production of antimicrobial agents over the past 25 years has restricted the arsenal of available antimicrobial agents. The combination of inappropriate antibiotic prescribing practices and reduced research and development of new antimicrobial agents have promoted concerns that society may soon return to a pre-antibiotic era. Addressing the attitudes and behaviours that contribute to inappropriate antibiotic prescribing is a potentially effective and immediate solution to the growing antimicrobial resistance problem. Modifying clinicians' prescribing behaviour with antibiotic decision guidelines and highlighting the problematic side of this issue can promote judicious antibiotic prescribing practices. Representing the existing data regarding the use and misuse of antimicrobials in a Lebanese hospital can support and encourage initiating and complying with antibiotic stewardship programs and prescription guidelines. Purpose: The objectives of this study were to determine current levels and trends in prescribing antibiotics to patients in a Lebanese hospital, (2) to identify the factors that physicians considered when deciding to start antibiotics, (3) to explore whether antimicrobial use (empiric, prophylactic, targeted) will change when physicians fill out a form to document why they prescribed antibiotics, (4) to explore whether an increase in bacterial resistance occurs when antimicrobial consumption increases, (5) to explore the clinicians' perception towards antimicrobial use and antimicrobial stewardship program pre- and post- implementation of an antibiotic assessment form, (6) to explore the effect of the implemented antimicrobial stewardship intervention combined with hand hygiene (HH) on healthcare associated infection rate (HAIs) in the hospital. One-year retrospective study in a Lebanese hospital was conducted to determine the percentage of patients who received antimicrobial treatment and to identify the inappropriateness of their use in different hospital departments. A 12-months intervention was then implemented during which all attending physicians were asked to fill an antimicrobial assessment form (AAF) to document their rationale for starting antimicrobial therapy. In addition, this AAF was used to identify factors physicians considered when deciding to prescribe antimicrobials. Data from the AAFs suggested that physicians in the hospital often considered elevated C-reactive protein, elevated white blood cell counts, and elevated temperatures when deciding to start antimicrobial therapy. Data showed that antibiotic consumption and the median duration of empiric and targeted therapies decreased significantly during the intervention period when compared to the pre-intervention period. Antibiotic appropriateness was also increased significantly after the intervention was conducted. In addition, a better understanding of antimicrobial stewardship strategies was also noted by physicians after the implementation of the intervention. On the basis of these results, AAF filling was a successful intervention to reduce antibiotic use and to urge physicians to refer to antibiotic guidelines when initiating an antimicrobial agent. However, additional measures such as automatic stop orders and computer decision support may be easier and useful for reducing the duration of therapy in hospitals.

53 Abstract Application of MiFID directive on activities in universal bank MiFID or Markets on financial instruments Directive, is extensive and key European financial market regulation. Introduced into the laws of all the Member States many new applications and employed a large number of companies. The content of this work is to first clarify the concept of a universal bank, the bank and the reason why the Directive applies to them. Furthermore, analysis of specific activities and procedures, which are due to the introduction of the Directive into law occurred mainly by retail investors, the current clients of universal bank. Most attention is devoted to investor protection, mainly test the appropriateness and suitability, performance instructions for the customer. The following chapter is devoted to issues of organizational changes, the new rules required. Part of the text is devoted to the transposition process in individual countries and especially in the Czech Republic. Another chapter is concerned with problems that frequently appear in the application and in the last chapter outlines recent developments, particularly in the new draft directive, revising MiFID after almost five years of operation, which is just being born on the soil of the European Union. The conclusion is the finding that changes in...

The diploma thesis experimentally examines the influence of the discourse of international relations schools on decision-making of its actors. The hypothesis presumes that the extent of actors' cooperation is influenced by the discursive framing in which the dilemma is presented. The experimental model has been constructed on the basis of iterated prisoner's dilemma which is presented through discursively influenced narratives as an evolving international relations situation. These narratives, representing an independent variable, have been derived from concrete schools of international relations - realism, neoliberalism and constructivism. Participants of the experiment were assigned to particular experimental treatment on the basis of random assignment. The experiment confirmed a statistically significant difference between decision-making of participants assigned to the realist and neoliberal experimental treatment, fulfilling the condition of random assignment which was controlled through control variables. Understanding of the decision-making process was further enriched by a qualitative analysis of interviews with selected experiment participants; the analysis deals especially with the strategy selection process and the strategy application. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

EU formas av sina kriser och utgör summan av de lösningar man funnit för kriserna. Så skrev en av EU:s pionjärer, fransmannen Jean Monnet, i sina memoarer. Historien har givit honom rätt. Den ekonomiska krisen i spåren av coronapandemin är den senaste i raden av kriser som historiskt har avlöst varandra. Hur den europeiska integrationen fördjupas i framtiden återstår att se, men vad som är uppenbart är att EU:s återhämtningsfond Next Generation EU markerar ett skifte i EU:s ekonomiska styrning. Men hur kan det gå till när den europeiska ekonomiska integrationen fördjupas?  Genom en utfallsförklarande processpårning söker studien svar på hur nyinstitutionella teorier kan förklara varför Sverige röstade för Next Generation EU i juli 2020, trots tidigare motstånd mot avgörande delar av stödpaketet. Aspekter av förhandlingarna har tidigare undersökts, men forskning saknas kring Sveriges agerande som medlemsland, och inom ramen för den frugala fyran bestående av Österrike, Nederländerna, Sverige och Danmark. Studien prövar historisk institutionalism, rational choice institutionalism och sociologisk institutionalism för sig. Resultatet visar Sveriges spårberoende och att coronapandemin som ett potentiellt kritiskt moment påkallade förändring. Sverige agerande genom preferensmaximering för att tillgodose sina behov, men lämplighetslogiken påverkade vissa avgörande preferensförändringar. De nyinstitutionella teorierna förklarade förtjänstfullt olika aspekter av utfallet, men ingen enskild teori kunde ensamt förklara utfallet. Därför kombinerades teorierna och de luckor som uppstått kunde täppas till.

Pragmatics is part of communicative competence. In order to communicate successfully, pragmatic competence is of vital importance. Although pragmatics has played a significant role in L2 learners' communicative competence, pragmatics still has not been commonly taught in the classroom. The present research investigates the efficacy of instruction in pragmatics in the advanced Chinese language class has on the production and appropriate use of apology strategies, and examines the correlation between exposure in a Chinese Speaking Community (CSC) and pragmatics development. The subjects include 55 students in their third-year of college-level Chinese, divided into four classes at Brigham Young University. The study uses an experimental design in which the participants are assigned either to an explicit instruction group or an implicit instruction group. Participants in both groups also report their experience in a CSC. Results of this study show which as a whole improved their apology performance over the 8-week instruction, as rated by Chinese native speakers. Results reveal no significant difference between the explicit and implicit instruction groups, suggesting that explicit and implicit approaches were both effective methods in facilitating pragmatic competence. In addition, we also found no statistically significant difference between the CSC and Non-Chinese Speaking Community (NCSC) group in their pragmatic development. The findings of the present study indicate that pragmatic knowledge may emerge from classroom instruction, regardless of explicit or implicit instructional approaches; and living in a Chinese speaking communities do not necessary aid or accelerate the development of pragmatic competence.

Despite having access to volumes of information, women newly diagnosed with breast cancer report a moderate level of distress related to their diagnosis, treatment, life expectancy, threat to current roles, and life-changing surgery and treatment choices. Web sites designed to teach people strategies to reduce distress are readily available online. The online format may be useful and practical for women who can access the site at their convenience, learn the components of the interventions at their own pace, and practice the strategies in the comfort of their home. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an online Mind-Body web site (http://www.www.preparingforyoursurgery.com) designed to reduce distress related to surgery for its usability, practicality, and appropriateness for women newly diagnosed with breast cancer. Results of this study will be used to either adopt use of the web site into standard of care at our cancer center or explore development of a similar web site to meet the needs of women newly diagnosed with breast cancer. Women recently diagnosed with breast cancer, who had breast cancer surgery in the past 60 days, were asked to evaluate an online Mind-Body web site and then respond to an online questionnaire measuring the web site usability, practicality, and appropriateness. Thirty-one women evaluated the web site and completed the online survey. The majority of women agreed the web site is useful, practical, appropriate, and would recommend to others. There was no significant relationship between age, income, level of education, frequency of Internet use, or experience with Mind-Body techniques and women who agreed the web site is useful, appropriate, or practical compared to women who were neutral or disagreed the web site iii is useful, appropriate, or practical. The results of this study suggest the web site could be introduced to women newly diagnosed with breast cancer at our cancer center regardless of age, income, education, frequency of Internet use, or experience with Mind-Body techniques.