Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur maskulinitetsnormer produceras och reproduceras inom snowboardvärlden. Med snowboardvärlden och snowboardindustrin syftar jag på företag, personer, medier och andra som har inflytande inom snowboardbranschen. Genom teorier om maskulinitet och begrepp som genus och normer görs en kritisk kulturanalys av materialet som visar hur maskulinitetsnormer är något som påverkar alla snowboardåkare, oavsett kön. Materialet innefattar en beskrivning av snowboardåkningens historia,  studier av hur snowboardprodukter designas och marknadsförs och hur de både producerar och reproducerar maskulinitetsnormer. I studien visas hur exempelvis snowboardfilmer reproducerar maskulinitetsnormer samt hur den inneboende sexism som finns inom snowboardvärlden är tecken på en rådande hegemonisk maskulinitet. Studien visar även hur kvinnliga snowboardåkare-, snowboardfilmer- och snowboardtillverkare väljer att göra motstånd och förändra snowboardvärlden genom att utmana dessa normer.

This study focuses on “critical insiders” of Korean Protestantism in the twenty first century, namely those who are committed to their Protestant faiths yet are highly critical of the ways in which Protestant Christianity is taught, believed, and practiced in South Korea. Particular emphasis is given to the question of how they resist/challenge dominant institutions and popular beliefs – especially on religious authority and various moral and monetary implications of such beliefs – as well as alternative visions they offer, through media. Scholars today acknowledge the centrality of media in various religious practices. I show that the role of media is no less important for religious critical insiders, albeit in somewhat different ways; in the South Korean case, I argue that they resist dominant voices by multi-mediatizing theology. Simply put, multi-mediatizing theology is making religiously normative (i.e. theological) discourses available through multiple outlets and voices and rendering informed theological judgments dependent upon such plurality and diversity of mediated sources. I analyze Korean Protestant critical insiders’ various media movements to illustrate this point and also to explore some ramifications of this kind of resistance taking place in the South Korean context. I also incorporate into my analyses the interviews I conducted with key individuals involved in the production of two Protestant TV shows that attempted at consolidating critical insider voices. I conclude with a theoretical and theological reflection upon the media/communication aspect of the entire phenomenon of Korean Protestantism and critical insiders.

Errata inserted facing t. p. Bibliography: leaves 406-457. A comparative investigation of language usage and language attitudes in relation to Filipino/Tagalog, Philippine languages other than Tagalog and English among senior high school students and their parents in two countries, the Philippines and Australia. The study provides an historical overview of the development of national language policies in Australia and in the Philippines, focussing on the way in which multiculturalism in Australia influenced language policies, and on the reasons for the adoption of the Bilingual Education Program in the Philippines.

Critics of currently available school motivation research consistently identify shortcomings such as the lack of a theoretical basis for defining and interpreting the construct and the poor quality of instruments used to measure it. There is a dearth of reliable, valid, theoretically informed, and cross-culturally comparable standardised measures of motivation. Whilst a number of theorists have proposed that motivation may be a multidimensional construct and may also be hierarchical in nature, partly due to the lack of available multidimensional measurement instruments, there has been limited research testing such theoretical propositions. The present investigation comprised two inter-related study components. The purposes of Study 1 were to (1) develop a valid and reliable multidimensional measure of school motivation based on Maehr’s Personal Investment Theory that was robust in diverse cultural settings; and (2) test the multidimensional and hierarchical structure of school motivation to elucidate the nature and structure of student motivation cross-culturally and further extend motivational theory and research. The purpose of Study 2 was to (1) test the relation of multidimensional components of student motivation and academic achievement in cross-cultural contexts, to further elucidate the relations amongst these constructs; and (2) to identify similarities and differences in motivational profiles for different cultural groups in order to support the validity and usefulness of the multidimensional motivation instrument in educational settings. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to validate the psychometric properties of the measures, and reliability tests were conducted to establish the internal consistency for each scale. Factorial invariance analysis was conducted to examine the equivalence of the data structure across cultural groups, and structural equation modelling (SEM) was conducted to examine the structural relations between eight ISM motivation factors and four outcome measures (Math, English, GPA, School attendance). Multivariate analysis of variances was conducted to examine statistical difference among the seven cultural groups in relation to eight ISM scales. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Education. / This thesis examines the construction processes of language, culture and identities in relation to both the macro level of society and culture, as well as the micro-individual level. It argues that there is a need to understand these constructions beyond discrete notions of language, identities and culture. The thesis mobilises performativity theory to explore how exposure to a variety of practices during the life trajectory has an impact on the construction and performance of language, identities and culture. It shows how a theory of performativity can provide a comprehensive account of the complex process of, and the relationships between, hybridisation (engagement in a range of cultural practices) and monolithication (nostalgic attachments to familiar practices). The thesis also suggests that the deployment of performativity theory with a focus on individual biography as well as larger social-cultural factors may fill a gap left in some other modes of analysis such as Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Conversation Analysis (CA). Analysing data from four workplaces in Australia, the study focuses on trans-institutional talk, namely casual conversation in which people from a variety of linguistic and cultural backgrounds work together. Following the suggestion (Pennycook 2003; Luke 2002) that there is a need to shift away from the understanding that a particular language is attached to a particular nation, territory and ethnicity, the thesis shows how discrete ethnic and linguistic labels such as ‘Japanese’ and ‘English’ as well as notions of ‘code-switching’ and ‘bi-lingualism’ become problematic in the attempt to grasp the complexity of contemporary transcultural workplaces. The thesis also explores the potential agency of subjects at the convergence of various discourses through iterative linguistic and cultural performances. In summary, the thesis provides deeper insight into transcultural performances to show the links between idiosyncratic individual performances and the construction of transcultural linguistic, cultural phenomena within globalisation.

The first research objective of this dissertation is to extend existing conceptualizations of intercultural communication competence to create a new theoretically grounded construct, the Rainbow Model of Intercultural Communication Competence. The second research objective of this dissertation is to utilize this foundation and assemble a new instrument, the 127-item Intercultural Communication Competence Inventory (ICCI). The ICCI consists of sub-scales to measure foreign language competence, non-verbal communication competence, perceptions of cultural distance, intercultural self-awareness, intercultural communication knowledge, intercultural communication skills, intercultural communication motivation, intercultural communication appropriateness, intercultural communication effectiveness, intercultural contextual relationships, and intercultural affinity. This tool is designed assist strategic international human resource management practitioners to find, select, and/or train the best possible candidates for international assignments in an efficient manner. To accomplish these goals, a quantitative research design has been adopted. In a pilot study and three subsequent studies data was collected between 2005 and 2006 when the ICCI was administered to students in 19 courses with clear intercultural education elements at eleven universities in four countries (New Zealand, Germany, United Arab Emirates, USA) to build four samples of students: self tests (N = 1014) and retests (N = 587), peer tests (N = 613) and retests (N = 529). The ICCI was used as a paper-pencil and an online questionnaire. Using this method is appropriate as it provides intercultural communication trainers with quantifiable results to differentiate candidates and to measure training effectiveness. This dissertation has produced several research findings. Each of the ICCI sub-scales is psychometrically scrutinized and results described in detail. In exploratory factor analyses most scales have supported their theoretical framework as described in the Rainbow Model of ICC. Most sub-scales show independence from a variety of biases, and demonstrate sensitivity to competence changes over time and differences between evaluators. Various hypothesized links between the scales could be verified. The entire ICCI demonstrated that, despite currently still insufficient sample sizes, its conceptual roots, the Rainbow Model of Intercultural Communication Competence, is recognizable in self and peer tests and retests. The implications of the findings of this dissertation are threefold: First, the Rainbow Model of Intercultural Communication Competence has received preliminary confirmation. Second, the ICCI has initially shown a tendency to be a practical and reliable tool for recruiting, selecting of, and conducting training needs assessments that facilitate intercultural communication training effectiveness evaluations for suitable candidates for international assignments. Third, ICCI sub-scales have demonstrated the potential to enhance selection and training efforts in a speedy and specific way to support resource-cognizant intercultural training. The reader, however, is cautioned that a variety of limitations of this study need to be acknowledged. Finally, numerous areas of future research are identified.

This study investigates behaviour in seeking and giving advice in Australian English and Indonesian. It seeks to determine the crosscultural similarities and differences in seeking and giving advice in both languages in the areas of (i) the use of language routines and strategies (ii) the influences of cultural and social aspects. Data were collected from two preliminary questionnaires and a Discourse Completion Test (DCT). The DCT was completed by Australian and Indonesian native speakers in their first language. Analysis focussed on both qualitative and quantitative aspects. Findings reveal that speakers of both languages use similar strategies in terms of politeness, directness or indirectness and Speaker-or-Hearer Oriented utterances. The realization of the language routines of advice seeking and giving in both languages is, however, different. The influence of socio-cultural features is noticeable in both languages in terms of formality, relationship of interlocutors, age and gender. The results are not always consistent with the hypotheses posed in the study. Chapter 1 provides an introduction to the Study and Chapter 2 presents the theoretical background and discusses the concept of advice. In Chapter 3 the methodology of the Study is described and the hypotheses are stated. Chapter 4 presents the results of the analysis of data and Chapter 5 sets out conclusions and recommendations.

ABSTRACT This thesis offers a feminist cultural analysis of the popular Indonesian television serial (sinetron) Misteri Gunung Merapi (Mysteries of Mount Merapi). It investigates the television text in relation to its various contexts within the social and cultural transformations of contemporary Indonesia. Misteri Gunung Merapi has been produced since 1998, shortly after the financial crisis and the fall of the New Order regime. Since it was first broadcast by the Indosiar television station, it has ranked among the top-rating television programs in Indonesia, and I am interested in its success in this era of social transformation. The purpose of my study is to examine the significance of this success, including exploring the possibility that it is due to the serial’s engagement with recent issues in contemporary Indonesian culture, in particular the changing roles of women. The discussion falls into three main parts: a consideration of the contexts of socio-cultural change and the globalisation of the television industry within which the sinetron is produced; an examination of the way the sinetron draws on traditional theatrical performance, popular memory and supernatural belief; and a study of its representation of women and gender issues within the action-adventure genre to which it belongs. In the context of the television industry, this sinetron’s production signals the changing character of the industry, from state control to free market. In the socio-cultural context, as state control grew weaker and civil society flourished, the flow of globalization became more visible, foregrounding conflicts between Islamic and secular groups, often over the roles and representations of women. As a sinetron kolosal-laga or epic, the series tells historical and legendary stories in such a way that they speak to contemporary Indonesia as it is in the process of reinventing itself. Misteri Gunung Merapi draws on the narrative and dramatic conventions of both traditional theatrical performance and internationally popular genres of action cinema; it constructs popular memory to raise issues about the present; and it employs popular fascination with the supernatural to invoke the mixture of spiritual traditions that has always characterised Javanese culture, in particular. Focussing on the emergence of warrior women in film and television in both the Hollywood action-adventure and Kung Fu/wuxia genres, the thesis investigates the construction of female fighters on screen. I suggest that the sinetron does not share the same problems of gender representation that feminist criticism has identified in either of these genres. Four areas of analysis - heroism, body, power, and the camera - demonstrate that there is a different concept of gender in Indonesia which is illuminated in this sinetron’s representations of women and gender issues.

The main objective of this thesis is to illustrate the benefits of using a cultural studies approach in the field of health communication research in Thailand. In this thesis I apply a cultural studies approach to examine the construction of meanings involving drug use and abuse in Thai television advertisements and dramas. The thesis has as its focus analyses of television texts and audience responses. The major arguments advanced in this thesis are that: (a) the causes of drug use and abuse are complex; (b) drug use and abuse, particularly given the 'risk culture' and 'risk society' of the post-modern world, are products of individual social and cultural contexts; (c) cultural studies assist us to better understand the cultural dimension of human behaviour, including the causes of drug use and abuse; and so (d) by adopting a cultural studies approach to the design and production of health promotion campaigns, such campaigns may be made more effective. The thesis argues that in designing health promotion campaigns, health professionals should be concerned to better understand the complexity of their audiences and the manner in which members of those audiences construct meanings and make sense of texts. Should they do so, the designers of health promotion campaigns may, thereby, develop a more sophisticated understanding of what is necessary to contribute to changing audience behaviour. This, in turn, may assist them to improve the design and effectiveness of future health promotion campaigns. The principal tool drawn from cultural studies used in this thesis is textual analysis. This research method involves making an educated guess at some of the most likely interpretations that might be made of a text. In addition, it demonstrates the complexity of the process of making media texts. The texts analysed in this study are selected from two genres of television: television advertisements and television dramas. I analyse television advertisements used in health promotion / drug prevention campaigns broadcast in Thailand in the period from 1990 to 2004 and two well known Thai television dramas entitled Kam See Than Don: KSTD (1999) and Num Poo: NP (2002).

<p>Titel: Friends – Vänskap i förändring? En studie huruvida en TV- serie förändras</p><p>Författare: Pär Källman och Rickard Karlsson</p><p>Dokument: C- uppsats</p><p>Utbildning: Medie- och kommunikationsvetenskap, höstterminen 07</p><p>Institution: Sektionen för Hälsa och Samhälle </p><p>Högskola: Högskolan i Halmstad</p><p>Handledare: Eva-Lotta Frid</p><p>Examinator: Malin Nilsson</p><p>Sammanfattning:</p><p>Vi har gjort en utvecklingsstudie i syfte att ta reda på om dramaturgi, dialog och karaktärsdrag, i TV-serien Vänner förändrats under de tio år som den producerades. Utifrån en kvalitativ hermeneutisk utgångspunkt har vi gjort en textanalys av serien. Vi har hämtat inspiration från diverse c-uppsatser från tidigare år och från narratologin och hermeneutiken.</p><p>I vår frågeställning vill vi veta om dramaturgin, dialogen, och karaktärerna på något sätt utvecklats eller förändrats under seriens lopp. Vi fördjupade oss i tre avsnitt ur serien, ett från första säsongen, ett från femte, samt ett från den tionde och sista. </p><p>Resultatet av vår analys visar att serien utifrån våra forskningsperspektiv består, snarare än förändras. Vi hade en teori om att serien på något sätt förändrats för att kunna ligga rätt i tiden och kunna behålla sin publik men i huvudsak skedde ingen större utveckling.</p>