Globally, increased length-of-life trends parallel the rise in reported levels of loneliness. Social connectedness is associated with a 50% reduced risk of premature mortality, and research has shown there is a moderately strong association between people who are lonely and people who have an unmet desire to belong. As so, urban planners and designers continually try to understand place relationships within communities to better the health and welfare of future generations. This thesis acknowledges there is a gap of understanding how the built and natural environment play a role in an increased sense of belonging, thus contributing to an alleviation of reported feelings of loneliness and potentially increasing length and quality of life. Utilizing the ‘Blue Zone’ island of Ikaria as a case study, where residents commonly live well beyond 90 and 100 years, this thesis aims to better understand connections between longevity and the physical environment for the longest-lived, cataloguing how these connections influence feelings of belonging. The research consists of a site visit to Ikaria, Greece, where data was collected over the period of five days, employing interview and field observation methods. Drawing from key concepts within environmental psychology and placemaking, the work critically explores the perceptions of Ikarian elders and the public space they regularly inhabit, as well as their role in contributing to sense of place and feelings of belonging. The conclusion offers suggestions on how urban planners might take these findings into consideration, as it is of great importance for planning professionals to better understand individual perceptions of their environment, which may help prevent alienation and increase overall wellbeing.

No description available.

De senaste åren har antalet människor som tvingats på flykt från sina hemländer ökat markant med cirka 17 miljoner jämfört med 2011. Ett antal av dessa flyktingar är barn under 18 år som skiljts från sina föräldrar och som sökt sig till Sverige i hopp om att få en tryggare tillvaro samt ett bättre liv. Sveriges kommuner har ansvaret för det praktiska mottagandet och socialnämnden har det yttersta ansvaret för de ungas hälsa, vilket innebär att personal runt de ensamkommande unga måste kunna identifiera om de unga far illa. Tidigare forskning har uppmärksammat att ensamkommande unga utestängs och utsätts för rasistiska fördomar samt bristande tolerans för deras kultur och språk. Tidigare forskningsstudier har dock gett en delad bild av hur ensamkommande unga reagerar när de möts med diskriminering och vardagsrasism och därför har denna studies syfte varit att undersöka de ensamkommande ungas upplevelser och reaktioner i sådana situationer. Studien har haft en kvalitativ forskningsstrategi och induktivt angreppssätt. Åtta ensamkommande unga, mellan 17 till 18 år, deltog i studien och som datainsamlingsmetod användes semistrukturerade intervjuer. De två övergripande teman som genererades var de ungas tankar om det svenska samhället och de ungas tankar om hur omgivningen bemöter dem. Vid analysen användes hermeneutisk meningstolkning och teorier om rasifiering och vardagsrasism. Slutsatserna från studien var att ensamkommande unga bemöts med uteslutslutning och samhälleliga negativa föreställningar om deras kultur och identitet samt att de i viss mån utsätts för olika former av rasistiskt motstånd. Studien visar även att de ensamkommande unga har reagerat med känslor av frustration, besvikelse, maktlöshet, utanförskap och rädslor i kontakt med svenskar. / The number of people forced to be refugees have increased tremendously in the last few years. Some of these refugees are minors under the age of 18 who are separated from their parents and families and come to Sweden in the hope of getting safer and better life. Sweden has municipalities and social welfare boards which are responsible for the reception of the minors and the minors’ health respectively. For these units to give proper help to the unaccompanied minors, they must be able to identify if the minors are exposed to bad situations. Previous researches have shown that unaccompanied children are exposed to discrimination and racial stereotyping in addition to less tolerance to their culture and language. These researches, however, have different picture of how the unaccompanied minors react when they face discrimination and daily-racism. Therefore, this research studied unaccompanied children with the purpose of finding out their experience and reaction related to discrimination. The study has followed a qualitative research strategy with inductive approach. Eight unaccompanied minors between 17–18 years old participated in the study and data was collected through semi-structured interviews. The two overall themes generated were the minors thought about the Swedish society and their though about how this society meets them. The collected data was analyzed using hermeneutic interpretation and theories of racialization and daily-racism. The study reached to the conclusion that the unaccompanied children faced exclusions, societal misconception about their culture and identity and to some extent exposure to different forms of racial resistance. The study also showed that the unaccompanied minors have reacted with feelings of frustration, disappointment, powerlessness, alienation and fear towards the Swedish society.

O presente trabalho busca analisar, compreender e explicar, sob a perspectiva de uma crítica marxista e de uma teoria estruturalista genética, a itinerância da voz narrativa de António Lobo Antunes (GOMES, 1993; SEIXO, 2001) na construção de uma forma contemporânea para o romance histórico português. Para tanto, apresenta o romance de Lobo Antunes como partícipe de uma poética do romance histórico português contemporâneo e, nesse sentido, como forma narrativa dinâmica (LUKÁCS, 2011/1.ed.1955; GOLDMANN, 1972; JAMESON, 2007; ANDERSON, 2007; EAGLETON, 2006; WATT, 2010) relacionada, dialeticamente, às condições históricas, geográficas e sociais impostas pela colonialidade portuguesa (WALLERSTEIN, 1983; QUIJANO, 2002; BRAUDEL, 2009; GROSFOGUEL, 2008), materializada, esteticamente, a partir de dois eixos construtivos: de um lado, a partir da mobilização e da ressignificação de recursos estéticos legados pelas vanguardas modernistas e, de outro lado, a partir da vocação para problematização das identidades e do pertencimento lusos. Esta proposição é demonstrada com uma análise compreensiva e uma explicação estruturalista genética da poética desenvolvida por Lobo Antunes para o romance histórico português contemporâneo e a sua aplicação na conformação de duas de suas obras epigonais: As Naus (1988) e Comissão das Lágrimas (2011). / The presented paper tries to analyze, comprehend and explain, under a marxist aesthetic and a genetic structuralistic theory, the moving of the narrative voice of António Lobo Antunes (GOMES, 1993; SEIXO, 2001) in the construction of a contemporary form to the Portuguese historical novel. Therefore, it presents Lobo Antuness novel as a participant in a poetics of contemporary Portuguese historical novel and, in this sense, as a dinamic narrative form (LUKÁCS, 2011/1.ed. 1955; GOLDMANN, 1972; JAMESON, 2007; ANDERSON, 2007; EAGLETON, 2006; WATT, 2010) related, dialectically, to the historical, geografical and social conditions imposed by the Portuguese coloniality (WALLERSTEIN, 1983; QUIJANO, 2002; BRAUDEL, 2009; GROSFOGUEL, 2008) and that materializes, thereby, from two constructive axes: in one hand, on the mobilization and on the resignification of aesthetic resources bequeathed by the modernist vanguards and, on the other hand, in the vocation for problematization of the luso identities and belongingness. It demonstrates this proposition, with a comprehensive analysis and with a genetic structuralistc explanation of Antuness poetics to the contemporary Portuguese historical novel and its application in the conformation in two of his ensuing works: As Naus (1988) and Comissão das lágrimas (2011).

Submitted by Celso Magalhaes (celsomagalhaes@ufrrj.br) on 2017-05-15T14:05:56Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2016 - Michelle Aparecida Mallet Monteiro.pdf: 5301006 bytes, checksum: e7e3c19b83120f25a179a03b598fb461 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-05-15T14:05:56Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2016 - Michelle Aparecida Mallet Monteiro.pdf: 5301006 bytes, checksum: e7e3c19b83120f25a179a03b598fb461 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-06-09 / The economic development in Brazil is strictly related to the solution of its social problems, among which the housing deficit that has been fought by the implementation of the federal Program Minha Casa Minha Vida (PMCMV). Since 2009, the program has settled 20,000 families in housing units in the range of 0 to 10 minimum wages, in the categories of resettlement and lottery. This work seeks to investigate the process of deterritorialization of dwellers, made effective by the City of Rio de Janeiro, from Favela de Acari, a squatter community, to a new housing complex financed by PMCMV and built in the neighborhood of Cosmos, after the torrential rains of 2009 that dislodged the population from the margins of Acari River. The main objective is to investigate the resettlement process, since the removal of the families from risk areas, independently from its will or choice. The resettlement occurs within a rational of real state expansion by the Federal Bank Caixa, main operator of the Program that finances developers and builders that select under valued land in order to reduce the budget and maximize profit. From the empirical experience in the social groups? deterritorialization and reterritorialization process from Acari to Cosmos, and the use of those concepts, as well as appropriation and belongingness, this research will reflect on the housing policies conduction, not only as a means of the national housing deficit reduction, but also on the building of the conditions for effective and comprehensive appropriation and sense of belonging of dwellers in their new places, focusing on the people?s needs and improvement of their quality of live. / O desenvolvimento econ?mico do Brasil est? diretamente ligado ? solu??o dos seus problemas sociais, dentre os quais o d?ficit habitacional que vem sendo combatido com a implementa??o do Programa Minha Casa Minha Vida (PMCMV). Desde 2009, o programa j? disponibilizou 20.000 unidades habitacionais para usu?rios das faixas de 0 a 10 sal?rios m?nimos, nas categorias de reassentamento e sorteio.. O objetivo principal ? investigar o processo de desterritorializa??o, desde a retirada das fam?lias das ?reas de risco ou de ?reas de interven??es urban?sticas e reassentadas em outras ?reas, independentemente de sua vontade ou escolha. O reassentamento se d? a partir de uma l?gica de expans?o imobili?ria financiada pela Caixa Econ?mica Federal (CEF) que ? a gestora operacional do Programa e financia as empresas construtoras que selecionam lugares menos valorizados de modo a reduzir o or?amento e maximizar os lucros. A partir da experi?ncia emp?rica no processo de reassentamento de grupos sociais de Acari a Cosmos e da aplica??o de conceitos de desterritorializa??o, apropria??o e sentido de pertencimento, esta pesquisa busca refletir sobre a condu??o da pol?tica p?blica, n?o apenas como meio de redu??o do d?ficit habitacional nacional, mas na cria??o de condi??es para um pertencimento e apropria??o efetivos dos moradores em seus novos lugares, com o foco direcionado ?s necessidades das pessoas e a melhoria de sua qualidade de vida.

Background: Insomnia is a robust correlate of suicidal ideation and behavior. Preliminary research has identified thwarted belongingness (c.f. social disconnection) as an explanatory link between insomnia and suicidal ideation. Objectives: This study replicates and extends previous findings using both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs in four demographically diverse samples. Additionally, the specificity of thwarted belongingness was evaluated by testing anxiety as a rival mediator. Method: Self-report measures of insomnia symptoms, thwarted belongingness, suicidal ideation and behavior, and anxiety were administered in four adult samples: 469 undergraduate students, 352 psychiatric outpatients, 858 firefighters, and 217 primary care patients. Results: More severe insomnia was associated with more severe thwarted belongingness and suicidality. Thwarted belongingness significantly accounted for the association between insomnia and suicidality, cross-sectionally and longitudinally, beyond anxiety. Notably, findings supported the specificity of thwarted belongingness: anxiety did not significantly mediate the association between insomnia and suicidality, and insomnia did not mediate the relation between thwarted belongingness and suicidality. Limitations: This study relied solely on self-report measures. Future studies incorporating objective sleep measurements are needed. Conclusion: Findings underscore the utility of assessing and addressing sleep disturbances and social disconnection to reduce suicide risk.

Ensamhet och bristen på tillhörighet bland människor i det moderna samhället är ett utbrett och växande problem. Strävan efter individualitet och självuppfyllelse präglar individer i det moderna individuella samhället – ett samhälle där friheten och möjligheterna även genererar i rädsla, ångest, otrygghet och existentiell ensamhet (Bauman, 2002). Längtan efter gemenskap och samhörighet, efter en koppling till kollektivet leder människan till ett sökande som ibland kan bli livsfarligt. Syftet med denna studie har varit att belysa samt få en ökad förståelse för den process som sker då individer i det moderna samhället söker sig till kända farliga grupperingar såsom sekter genom att besvara frågeställningarna: varför lockades de tidigare sektmedlemmarna till sekten? Hur upplevdes tiden i sekten av de tidigare medlemmarna? Hur kan ett sektmedlemskap förstås med utgångspunkt i teorier gällande tillhörighet och trygghet i det individualiserade samhället? Det teoretiska ramverk som tillämpats vid analysen av empirin är Zygmunt Baumans (2002) teori om det individualiserade samhället, Anthony Giddens (1999; 2010) teorier om ontologisk trygghet och försvagningen av traditioner i den globaliserade skenande världen, Robert Putnams (2001) teori om avsaknaden av kollektivet samt David Riesmans (1999) teori om den moderna människan som gruppstyrd. Metoden är kvalitativ och empirin utgörs av massmedieprodukter i form av inspelade intervjuer tillgängliga via internet. Resultatet av studien visar att människor söker sig till sekter då erbjudandet om tillhörighet, gemenskap och svar på existentiella frågor lockar mer än de fria valen. Sektmedlemskapet medförde dock efter en tid ett större lidande än det tidigare sökandet och den existentiella ångesten gjorde, vilket fick medlemmarna att sakna det de först ville komma ifrån – det enskilt betungande identitetssökandet. Resultatet utifrån denna studie pekar dock på att kollektivet alltid är starkare än den enskilda individen. / Loneliness and the lack of belonging among people in the modern society is a widespread and growing problem. The pursuit of individuality and self-fulfillment characterizes individuals in the modern individual society – a society where freedom and opportunity also generates anxiety, insecurity and existential loneliness (Bauman, 2002). The longing for community and togetherness, a connection to the collective, leads the individual towards a search that sometimes become dangerous. The purpose of this study has been to elucidate and gain a greater understanding of the process that occurs when individuals in modern society decides to join known dangerous groups such as cults by answering the research questions: why were the former cult members attracted to the cult? How was the time in the cult experienced by the former members? How can a cult membership be understood on the basis of theories of belonging and security in the individualized society? The theoretical framework used in the analysis of the empiricism is Zygmunt Bauman's (2002) theory about the individualized society, Anthony Gidden's (1999; 2010) theories of ontological security and the weakening of traditions in a globalized world, Robert Putnam's (2001) theory of the absence of the collective and David Riesman's (1999) theory of the individual as group controlled. The method is qualitative, and the empiricism consists of mass media products in the form of recorded interviews available on the Internet. The results of the study show that people join cults when the offer of belongingness, fellowship and answers to existential questions attract more than free elections. However, the cult membership, after a while, caused more suffering than the previous search and existential anxiety did, which caused the members to miss what they first wanted to escape from - the burdensome individual identity search. However, according to this study the result shows that the collective is always stronger than the individual.

In an increasingly digital world, virtual work becomes more common every year. Additionally, virtual work has suddenly become the reality for a large part of the world’s population due to the coronavirus pandemic. Therefore, a study on virtual teamwork is currently of high relevance. The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding and provide knowledge on enablers and constraints for communication, collaboration and belongingness in virtual teams as well as ICTs impact on the virtual teamwork. The study has a phenomenological research design with a qualitative approach. Empirical data has been collected by studying three transnational, virtual teams by conducting six semi-structured individual interviews. The sample was selected through a strategic selection. A thematic analysis has been conducted to compile and analyze the data, which thereafter has been set in relation to the theoretical framework of the study. The enablers found in the results were flexibility and availability for communication, clearly defined roles, high level of both task- and relationship based communication as well as depth of relationships, trust and shared understanding for collaboration, and responsibility, seeing into team members homes and virtual social team activities for belongingness. Additionally, ICTs were found as a main enabler for all themes. The identified constraints were time dispersion for all three themes, as well as virtuality as a whole. Additionally misunderstandings was identified for collaboration and lack of natural and spontaneous social conversation for belongingness. Furthermore, the findings implicate that ICTs with characteristics of richer type in relation to media richness are preferred most of the time to enable a better virtual work climate regards to communication, collaboration and belongingness. However, some criteria for media richness cannot be fully utilized in virtual teams due to time dispersion. Lastly, findings implicate that the choice of ICT based on previous experience, rather than linked to suitability, might hinder an optimal model of ICT usage for a well-functioning virtual team. / I en allt mer digitaliserad värld blir virtuellt arbete vanligare varje år. Virtuellt arbete har dessutom hastigt blivit verklighet för en stor del av världens befolkning på grund av coronapandemin. Därför är en studie om virtuellt teamarbete av hög relevans i dagens samhälle. Syftet med denna studie är att få en djupare förståelse och ge kunskap om möjliggörare och begränsningar för kommunikation, samarbete och tillhörighet i virtuella team samt ICTs inverkan på virtuellt teamarbete. Studien har en fenomenologisk forskningsdesign med ett kvalitativt tillvägagångssätt. Empirisk data har samlats in genom att studera tre transnationella, virtuella team genom genomförandet av sex semi-strukturerade, individuella intervjuer. Intervjupersonerna valdes ut genom ett strategiskt urval. En tematisk analys har genomförts för att sammanställa och analysera data, som sedan satts i förhållande till det teoretiska ramverket för studien. De möjliggörande faktorer som hittades i resultaten var flexibilitet och tillgänglighet för kommunikation, tydligt definierade roller, hög nivå av både uppgifts- och relationsbaserad kommunikation och relationsdjup, förtroende och delad förståelse för samarbete, samt ansvar, att få en inblick i teammedlemmarnas hem och virtuella sociala teamaktiviteter för tillhörighet. Dessutom identifierades ICT som en övergripande möjliggörare. De identifierade begränsningarna var tidsskillnader för alla tre teman samt virtualitet i helhet. Utöver detta var missförstånd identifierat för samarbete och brist på naturlig och spontan social interaktion för tillhörighet. Dessutom visar resultaten på att ICTs med egenskaper av rikare typ i förhållande till media richness oftast föredras för att möjliggöra ett bättre virtuellt arbetsklimat när det gäller kommunikation, samarbete och tillhörighet. Vissa kriterier för media richness kan dock inte utnyttjas fullt ut i virtuella team på grund av tidsskillnader. Slutligen visar studiens resultat på att val av ICT baserat på tidigare erfarenhet, snarare än kopplat till lämplighet, kan hindra en optimal modell för användning av ICT för ett väl fungerande virtuellt team.

No description available.

Parental involvement has been found to be a significant influence in determining whether adolescents are more likely to succeed academically (Georgiou & Tourva, 2007). Amongst other influences, parental involvement has been shown to impact the ability to resist negative peer influence. Additionally, having a sense of belongingness influences the probability that an adolescent will aspire to achieve higher educational aspirations (Bouchard & Berg, 2017). However, researchers have yet to examine the combination of the importance of belongingness and the impact of positive peer influence on adolescents' educational aspirations. The present study aimed to investigate whether parental involvement had a significant effect on peer influence and belongingness on adolescents’ educational aspirations after controlling for gender and socioeconomic status. This study analyzed data collected as part of the NICHD-SECCYD comprehensive longitudinal study. Specifically, the effects of peer influence and belongingness on educational aspirations were analyzed in AMOS27, using a path analysis model with parental involvement as a predictor variable. Although, the results did not support that sense of belongingness has a significant influence on educational aspirations for self-concept in English and math, it did have a significant influence on self-concept. Furthermore, positive peer influence did not have a significant influence on educational aspirations for self-concept in English, math and sports. Additionally, results did not support sense of belongingness and peer influence as a mediator between parental involvement and educational aspiration. Nevertheless, findings supported that positive parental involvement does have a significant influence on educational aspirations.