O raciocínio realizado em agentes BDI envolve essencialmente manipular três estruturas de dados representando suas crenças, desejos e intenções. Crenças de agentes BDI tradicionais não representam incerteza, e podem ser expressas como um conjunto fechado de literais ground. As restrições que indicam se um dado desejo é viável e pode ser adotado como uma intenção em agentes BDI tradicionais podem ser representadas como expressões lógicas sobre crenças. Dado que Redes Bayesianas permitem que representem-se informações com incerteza probabilisticamente, agentes BDI bayesianos as empregam para suportar incerteza em suas crenças. Em agentes BDI bayesianos, crenças representadas em Redes Bayesianas referem-se a estados de variáveis de eventos, possuindo probabilidades dinâmicas individuais que referem-se à incerteza. Os processos the constituem o raciocínio neste modelo de agente requerem mudanças a fim de acomodar esta diferença. Dentre estes processos, este trabalho concentra-se especificamente na seleção de desejos. Uma estratégia prévia para seleção de desejos é baseada em aplicar um limiar a probabilidades de crenças. Entretanto, tal abordagem impede que um agente selecione desejos condicionados em crenças cujas probabilidades estejam abaixo de um certo limiar, mesmo que tais desejos pudessem ser atingidos caso fossem selecionados. Para lidar com esta limitação, desenvolvemos três abordagens alternativas para seleção de desejos sob incerteza: Ranking Probabilístico, Loteria Viciada e Seleção Multidesejos Aleatória com Viés. Probability Ranking seleciona um desejo usando uma lista de desejos ordenados em ordem decrescente de probabilidade de pré-condição. Loteria Viciada seleciona um desejo usando um valor numérico aleatório e intervalos numéricos – associados a desejos – proporcionais às probabilidades de suas pré-condições. Seleção Multidesejos Aleatória com Viés seleciona múltiplos desejos usando valores numéricos aleatórios e considerando as probabilidades de suas pré-condições. Apresentamos exemplos, incluindo o agente Vigia, assim como experimentos envolvendo este, para mostrar como essas abordagens permitem que um agente às vezes selecione desejos cujas crenças pré-condições possuem probabilidades muito baixas. / The reasoning performed in BDI agents essentially involves manipulating three data structures representing their beliefs, desires and intentions. Traditional BDI agents’ beliefs do not represent uncertainty, and may be expressed as a closed set of ground literals. The constraints that indicate whether a given desire is viable and passive to be adopted as an intention in traditional BDI agents may be represented as logical expressions over beliefs. Given that Bayesian Networks allow one to represent uncertain information probabilistically, Bayesian BDI agents employ Bayesian Networks to support uncertainty in their beliefs. In Bayesian BDI agents, beliefs represented in Bayesian Networks refer to states of event variables, holding individual dynamic probabilities that account for the uncertainty. The processes that constitute reasoning in this agent model require changes in order to accomodate this difference. Among these processes, this work is specifically concerned with desire selection. A previous strategy for desire selection is based on applying a threshold on belief probabilities. However, such an approach precludes an agent from selecting desires conditioned on beliefs with probabilities below a certain threshold, even if those desires could be achieved if they were selected. To address this limitation, we develop three alternative approaches to desire selection under uncertainty: Probability Ranking, Biased Lottery and Multi-Desire Biased Random Selection. Probability Ranking selects a desire using a list of desires sorted in decreasing order of precondition probability. Biased Lottery selects a desire using one random numeric value and desire-associated numeric intervals proportional to the probabilities of the desires’ preconditions. Multi-Desire Biased Random Selection selects multiple desires using random numeric values and considering the probabilities of their preconditions. We present examples, including theWatchman agent, as well as experiments involving the latter, to show how these approaches allow an agent to sometimes select desires whose belief preconditions have very low probabilities.

O raciocínio realizado em agentes BDI envolve essencialmente manipular três estruturas de dados representando suas crenças, desejos e intenções. Crenças de agentes BDI tradicionais não representam incerteza, e podem ser expressas como um conjunto fechado de literais ground. As restrições que indicam se um dado desejo é viável e pode ser adotado como uma intenção em agentes BDI tradicionais podem ser representadas como expressões lógicas sobre crenças. Dado que Redes Bayesianas permitem que representem-se informações com incerteza probabilisticamente, agentes BDI bayesianos as empregam para suportar incerteza em suas crenças. Em agentes BDI bayesianos, crenças representadas em Redes Bayesianas referem-se a estados de variáveis de eventos, possuindo probabilidades dinâmicas individuais que referem-se à incerteza. Os processos the constituem o raciocínio neste modelo de agente requerem mudanças a fim de acomodar esta diferença. Dentre estes processos, este trabalho concentra-se especificamente na seleção de desejos. Uma estratégia prévia para seleção de desejos é baseada em aplicar um limiar a probabilidades de crenças. Entretanto, tal abordagem impede que um agente selecione desejos condicionados em crenças cujas probabilidades estejam abaixo de um certo limiar, mesmo que tais desejos pudessem ser atingidos caso fossem selecionados. Para lidar com esta limitação, desenvolvemos três abordagens alternativas para seleção de desejos sob incerteza: Ranking Probabilístico, Loteria Viciada e Seleção Multidesejos Aleatória com Viés. Probability Ranking seleciona um desejo usando uma lista de desejos ordenados em ordem decrescente de probabilidade de pré-condição. Loteria Viciada seleciona um desejo usando um valor numérico aleatório e intervalos numéricos – associados a desejos – proporcionais às probabilidades de suas pré-condições. Seleção Multidesejos Aleatória com Viés seleciona múltiplos desejos usando valores numéricos aleatórios e considerando as probabilidades de suas pré-condições. Apresentamos exemplos, incluindo o agente Vigia, assim como experimentos envolvendo este, para mostrar como essas abordagens permitem que um agente às vezes selecione desejos cujas crenças pré-condições possuem probabilidades muito baixas. / The reasoning performed in BDI agents essentially involves manipulating three data structures representing their beliefs, desires and intentions. Traditional BDI agents’ beliefs do not represent uncertainty, and may be expressed as a closed set of ground literals. The constraints that indicate whether a given desire is viable and passive to be adopted as an intention in traditional BDI agents may be represented as logical expressions over beliefs. Given that Bayesian Networks allow one to represent uncertain information probabilistically, Bayesian BDI agents employ Bayesian Networks to support uncertainty in their beliefs. In Bayesian BDI agents, beliefs represented in Bayesian Networks refer to states of event variables, holding individual dynamic probabilities that account for the uncertainty. The processes that constitute reasoning in this agent model require changes in order to accomodate this difference. Among these processes, this work is specifically concerned with desire selection. A previous strategy for desire selection is based on applying a threshold on belief probabilities. However, such an approach precludes an agent from selecting desires conditioned on beliefs with probabilities below a certain threshold, even if those desires could be achieved if they were selected. To address this limitation, we develop three alternative approaches to desire selection under uncertainty: Probability Ranking, Biased Lottery and Multi-Desire Biased Random Selection. Probability Ranking selects a desire using a list of desires sorted in decreasing order of precondition probability. Biased Lottery selects a desire using one random numeric value and desire-associated numeric intervals proportional to the probabilities of the desires’ preconditions. Multi-Desire Biased Random Selection selects multiple desires using random numeric values and considering the probabilities of their preconditions. We present examples, including theWatchman agent, as well as experiments involving the latter, to show how these approaches allow an agent to sometimes select desires whose belief preconditions have very low probabilities.

O raciocínio realizado em agentes BDI envolve essencialmente manipular três estruturas de dados representando suas crenças, desejos e intenções. Crenças de agentes BDI tradicionais não representam incerteza, e podem ser expressas como um conjunto fechado de literais ground. As restrições que indicam se um dado desejo é viável e pode ser adotado como uma intenção em agentes BDI tradicionais podem ser representadas como expressões lógicas sobre crenças. Dado que Redes Bayesianas permitem que representem-se informações com incerteza probabilisticamente, agentes BDI bayesianos as empregam para suportar incerteza em suas crenças. Em agentes BDI bayesianos, crenças representadas em Redes Bayesianas referem-se a estados de variáveis de eventos, possuindo probabilidades dinâmicas individuais que referem-se à incerteza. Os processos the constituem o raciocínio neste modelo de agente requerem mudanças a fim de acomodar esta diferença. Dentre estes processos, este trabalho concentra-se especificamente na seleção de desejos. Uma estratégia prévia para seleção de desejos é baseada em aplicar um limiar a probabilidades de crenças. Entretanto, tal abordagem impede que um agente selecione desejos condicionados em crenças cujas probabilidades estejam abaixo de um certo limiar, mesmo que tais desejos pudessem ser atingidos caso fossem selecionados. Para lidar com esta limitação, desenvolvemos três abordagens alternativas para seleção de desejos sob incerteza: Ranking Probabilístico, Loteria Viciada e Seleção Multidesejos Aleatória com Viés. Probability Ranking seleciona um desejo usando uma lista de desejos ordenados em ordem decrescente de probabilidade de pré-condição. Loteria Viciada seleciona um desejo usando um valor numérico aleatório e intervalos numéricos – associados a desejos – proporcionais às probabilidades de suas pré-condições. Seleção Multidesejos Aleatória com Viés seleciona múltiplos desejos usando valores numéricos aleatórios e considerando as probabilidades de suas pré-condições. Apresentamos exemplos, incluindo o agente Vigia, assim como experimentos envolvendo este, para mostrar como essas abordagens permitem que um agente às vezes selecione desejos cujas crenças pré-condições possuem probabilidades muito baixas. / The reasoning performed in BDI agents essentially involves manipulating three data structures representing their beliefs, desires and intentions. Traditional BDI agents’ beliefs do not represent uncertainty, and may be expressed as a closed set of ground literals. The constraints that indicate whether a given desire is viable and passive to be adopted as an intention in traditional BDI agents may be represented as logical expressions over beliefs. Given that Bayesian Networks allow one to represent uncertain information probabilistically, Bayesian BDI agents employ Bayesian Networks to support uncertainty in their beliefs. In Bayesian BDI agents, beliefs represented in Bayesian Networks refer to states of event variables, holding individual dynamic probabilities that account for the uncertainty. The processes that constitute reasoning in this agent model require changes in order to accomodate this difference. Among these processes, this work is specifically concerned with desire selection. A previous strategy for desire selection is based on applying a threshold on belief probabilities. However, such an approach precludes an agent from selecting desires conditioned on beliefs with probabilities below a certain threshold, even if those desires could be achieved if they were selected. To address this limitation, we develop three alternative approaches to desire selection under uncertainty: Probability Ranking, Biased Lottery and Multi-Desire Biased Random Selection. Probability Ranking selects a desire using a list of desires sorted in decreasing order of precondition probability. Biased Lottery selects a desire using one random numeric value and desire-associated numeric intervals proportional to the probabilities of the desires’ preconditions. Multi-Desire Biased Random Selection selects multiple desires using random numeric values and considering the probabilities of their preconditions. We present examples, including theWatchman agent, as well as experiments involving the latter, to show how these approaches allow an agent to sometimes select desires whose belief preconditions have very low probabilities.

In this master thesis we investigate Mobile Internet with the help of a user perspective and discuss the problems of Mobile Internet today. As the Internet revolution evolves into the Mobile Internet revolution the need for usable and desirable wireless services is increasing. Designing web based services for mobile devices and mobile users is significantly different than designing web based services for desktop use. Not only are there differences in the underlying technology but also, and perhaps most important, in the way people use the services. Our main purpose in this thesis is to investigate the occurrence of Mobile Internet from a user’s perspective, to present a definition of Mobile Internet and provide a deeper understanding of the phenomenon. The main objective is to present a theoretical framework regarding Mobile Internet usage and to investigate which user related factors to consider when developing services adapted for mobile use. / Webpage available at http://www.student.bth.se/~tecr.

This study sought to gain a better understanding of how participants made decisions regarding placement for their first-born children for the prekindergarten year. The purpose of this research, to explore participants' decision-making process, was guided by the following research question: "How do parents make decisions to select placements for their children during the prekindergarten year?" The secondary research questions were the following: "What experiences do parents want their children to have during the prekindergarten year?"; "How do parents get information about programming for the prekindergarten year?"; and "How do parents assimilate information and make a final decision?" This research utilized an interview study to capture the stories of parents as they reflected on the decisions they made for their child's prekindergarten year. Sixteen mothers representing 18 children participated in this qualitative study. Participants were selected because, at the time of the study, they were currently parents of a public school kindergarten student, who is their oldest child. This criterion produced a population of parents who had already made the decision about their child's prekindergarten year, had made this decision recently, and were first-time decision makers regarding prekindergarten programming. Participants' children were kindergarteners in one of three elementary schools in the same school district in a Midwest city. Results showed that participants used the prekindergarten year to prepare their children and themselves for kindergarten. They gathered information from four main sources: friends, family, the child, and themselves. Participants valued their own intuition or opinion as the most important source of information. Participants' personal opinions were most valued because they needed to feel confident about a placement that they thought would fit their children's needs. Participants' decision-making was influenced by pre-school location, logistics (i.e. transportation), and preparation for kindergarten, hours, cost, and the first impressions of participants. Three major themes emerged from the interviews concerning participant selection of a prekindergarten placement: (a) parental desires for the prekindergarten year; (b) sources of information about prekindergarten programs; and (c) factors that influenced the decision-making process. Two deciding factors were location and participants' first impressions. When a participant decided against a placement due to location or first impressions, the placement was eliminated from further consideration. Participants were willing to work around other decision-making factors, but l these two critical factors ended further consideration of a placement. These findings contribute to existing research on parents' decision-making process of choosing their child's prekindergarten year by extending the research on childcare choices to include choices made specifically for the prekindergarten year. This research identifies key elements for parents including a transitional year for the parent, parents as a source of information , and critical influences on the decision-making process

The purpose of this study is to explore professionals’ view on why men purchase sexual services with a focus on heterosexual prostitution where the man is the buyer and the woman is the seller. To achieve the studys’ purposes and to be able to examine professionals’ views a qualitative approach is taken with semi-structured interviews. Six professionals who work or have been working in the organisation KAST (Buyers of sexual services, own translation), who are situated in Malmö, Gothenburg and Stockholm, have been interviewed. To get wider empirical data, a leading researcher within the subject of matter has also been interviewed. Furthermore, the study is based on current and historical research that shows that prostitution is a subject influenced by traditional views, countries regulations and globalisation with changing fields. Previous research has showed that a main focus has been on women who sell sexual services, the man who exploits prostitutes and his causes are less explored. The theoretical approach of this study is the theory of sexual scripts. The result has been analysed through three different levels that the theory gives, which are a structural perspective, an interpersonal level and an individual level. The aim is to get a holistic view on the subject and have a more social constructed approach. Several explanatory models are used in the study to make it possible to further understand men’s reasoning to buy sexual services. The findings of this study show that professionals’ views on why men purchase sexual services differ and there is not just one reason behind men’s causes. This demonstrates the complexity behind the field of prostitution and shows that one can’t categorise the type of man who purchases sexual services.

As residential mobility recursively links individual life courses and the characteristics of places, it is unsurprising that geographers have long sought to understand how people make moving decisions. However, much of our knowledge of residential mobility processes derives from cross-sectional analyses of either mobility decision-making or moving events. Comparatively few studies have linked these separate literatures by analysing how residential (im)mobility decisions unfold over time within particular biographical, household and spatio-temporal contexts. This is problematic, as life course theories suggest that people frequently do not act in accordance with their underlying moving desires. To evaluate the extent to which residential (im)mobility is volitional or the product of constraints therefore requires a longitudinal approach linking moving desires to subsequent moving behaviour. This thesis develops this longitudinal perspective through four linked empirical studies, which each use British Household Panel Survey data to analyse how the life course context affects the expression and realisation of moving desires. The first study investigates how people make moving decisions in different ways in response to different motivations, triggers and life events. The second study harnesses the concept of ‘linked lives', exploring the extent to which the likelihood of realising a desire to move is dependent upon the desires of a person's partner. The third study analyses the biographical dimension of mobility decision-making, investigating how the long-term trajectories of life course careers are associated with particular mobility biographies. The final empirical chapter develops these insights, exploring the duration and abandonment of moving desires. Taken together, these studies test and extend conceptual models of mobility decision-making by empirically engaging with neglected facets of life course theories. Fundamentally, the thesis uncovers how aggregate mobility patterns are produced by the interactions between individual choices and multi-scalar constraints.

Dans cette thèse nous avons étudié une problématique clé en marketing : la relation entre le marketing lui-même et les besoins et désirs de consommation. Pour étudier ce sujet, nous avons pris le champ de l'eau potable en France comme objet de recherche. Afin d'étudier comment les actions du marketing ont transformé l'eau, qui est un besoin humain, en désir de consommation, nous avons utilisé deux thèories/méthodologies différentes et complémentaires: la praxéologie sociale de Pierre Bourdieu et l'analyse critique de discours. En nous appuyant sur les trois catégories clés "Champ, Capital et Habitus" développées par Bourdieu, nous avons construit et analysé la formation, le fonctionnement et la structure contemporaine de l'offre et de la demande dans le domaine de l'eau potable en France. La analyse critique du discous a été utilisée afin d'évaluer comment le discours marketing des entreprises de l'eau, qui est apparu sous différentes formes (stratégie de publicité, produit, prix, bouteilles et étiquettes, événements, relations publiques, Internet, etc.), a transformé la signification de l'eau avec le développement de marques phares en France. Enfin, nous portons un regard critique sur le rôle du marketing dans la société contemporaine, notamment sur son influence sur les besoins et désirs ainsi que les conséquences sociales de cette influence. / Nesta tese estudamos um tema essencial ao marketing : a relação do próprio marketing com as necessidades e desejos de consumo. Para estudar esse assunto, escolhemos o campo da água potável na França como objeto de pesquisa. A fim de estudar como as ações de marketing transformaram a água, uma necessidade humana, num desejo de consumo, utilizamos duas teorias/metodologias diferentes e complementares: a praxiologia social de Pierre Bourdieu e a Análise Crítica de Discurso. Apoiando-nos nas categorias-chave “Campo, Capital e Habitus” desenvolvidas por Bourdieu, construímos e analisamos a formação, o funcionamento e a estrutura contemporânea da oferta e da demanda por água potável na França. A Análise Crítica de Discurso foi utilizada a fim de avaliar como o discurso de marketing das empresas de água, que foi desenvolvido em diferentes frentes de atuação (estratégia de publicidade, produto, preço, embalagem e etiquetas, eventos, relações públicas, Internet, etc.), transformou o significado da água, por meio do desenvolvimento de marcas notórias na França. Por fim, adotamos uma visão crítica quanto ao papel do marketing na sociedade contemporânea, principalmente a respeito de sua influência sobre as necessidades e os desejos, assim como sobre as conseqüências sociais dessa influência. / In this thesis we analyse a marketing’s key subject: the relationship among the marketing itself and consumer needs and desires. To study this subject we have chosen the potable water field in France as research object. Aimed at studying how marketing actiosn have transformed water, a human need, in a consumer desire, we have used two different and complementary theories/methodologies: Pierre Bourdieu’s social praxeology and critical discourse analysis. Based on the keycategories “Field, Capital and Habitus” developed by Bourdieu, we constructed and analysed the development, the funcionning and the contemporary structure of potable water offer and demand in France. Critical discourse analysis was used to evaluate how water companies’ marketing discourse, which was developed though different forms (publicity strategy, product, price, bottle and label, evenments, public relations, Internet, etc.), has transformed water meaning though the development of notorious brands in France. We also adopt a critical vison about marketing’s role in the contemporanean society, mainly about its influence over needs and desires, as well about the social consequences of this influence.

Dans cette thèse nous avons étudié une problématique clé en marketing : la relation entre le marketing lui-même et les besoins et désirs de consommation. Pour étudier ce sujet, nous avons pris le champ de l'eau potable en France comme objet de recherche. Afin d'étudier comment les actions du marketing ont transformé l'eau, qui est un besoin humain, en désir de consommation, nous avons utilisé deux thèories/méthodologies différentes et complémentaires: la praxéologie sociale de Pierre Bourdieu et l'analyse critique de discours. En nous appuyant sur les trois catégories clés "Champ, Capital et Habitus" développées par Bourdieu, nous avons construit et analysé la formation, le fonctionnement et la structure contemporaine de l'offre et de la demande dans le domaine de l'eau potable en France. La analyse critique du discous a été utilisée afin d'évaluer comment le discours marketing des entreprises de l'eau, qui est apparu sous différentes formes (stratégie de publicité, produit, prix, bouteilles et étiquettes, événements, relations publiques, Internet, etc.), a transformé la signification de l'eau avec le développement de marques phares en France. Enfin, nous portons un regard critique sur le rôle du marketing dans la société contemporaine, notamment sur son influence sur les besoins et désirs ainsi que les conséquences sociales de cette influence. / Nesta tese estudamos um tema essencial ao marketing : a relação do próprio marketing com as necessidades e desejos de consumo. Para estudar esse assunto, escolhemos o campo da água potável na França como objeto de pesquisa. A fim de estudar como as ações de marketing transformaram a água, uma necessidade humana, num desejo de consumo, utilizamos duas teorias/metodologias diferentes e complementares: a praxiologia social de Pierre Bourdieu e a Análise Crítica de Discurso. Apoiando-nos nas categorias-chave “Campo, Capital e Habitus” desenvolvidas por Bourdieu, construímos e analisamos a formação, o funcionamento e a estrutura contemporânea da oferta e da demanda por água potável na França. A Análise Crítica de Discurso foi utilizada a fim de avaliar como o discurso de marketing das empresas de água, que foi desenvolvido em diferentes frentes de atuação (estratégia de publicidade, produto, preço, embalagem e etiquetas, eventos, relações públicas, Internet, etc.), transformou o significado da água, por meio do desenvolvimento de marcas notórias na França. Por fim, adotamos uma visão crítica quanto ao papel do marketing na sociedade contemporânea, principalmente a respeito de sua influência sobre as necessidades e os desejos, assim como sobre as conseqüências sociais dessa influência. / In this thesis we analyse a marketing’s key subject: the relationship among the marketing itself and consumer needs and desires. To study this subject we have chosen the potable water field in France as research object. Aimed at studying how marketing actiosn have transformed water, a human need, in a consumer desire, we have used two different and complementary theories/methodologies: Pierre Bourdieu’s social praxeology and critical discourse analysis. Based on the keycategories “Field, Capital and Habitus” developed by Bourdieu, we constructed and analysed the development, the funcionning and the contemporary structure of potable water offer and demand in France. Critical discourse analysis was used to evaluate how water companies’ marketing discourse, which was developed though different forms (publicity strategy, product, price, bottle and label, evenments, public relations, Internet, etc.), has transformed water meaning though the development of notorious brands in France. We also adopt a critical vison about marketing’s role in the contemporanean society, mainly about its influence over needs and desires, as well about the social consequences of this influence.

Dans cette thèse nous avons étudié une problématique clé en marketing : la relation entre le marketing lui-même et les besoins et désirs de consommation. Pour étudier ce sujet, nous avons pris le champ de l'eau potable en France comme objet de recherche. Afin d'étudier comment les actions du marketing ont transformé l'eau, qui est un besoin humain, en désir de consommation, nous avons utilisé deux thèories/méthodologies différentes et complémentaires: la praxéologie sociale de Pierre Bourdieu et l'analyse critique de discours. En nous appuyant sur les trois catégories clés "Champ, Capital et Habitus" développées par Bourdieu, nous avons construit et analysé la formation, le fonctionnement et la structure contemporaine de l'offre et de la demande dans le domaine de l'eau potable en France. La analyse critique du discous a été utilisée afin d'évaluer comment le discours marketing des entreprises de l'eau, qui est apparu sous différentes formes (stratégie de publicité, produit, prix, bouteilles et étiquettes, événements, relations publiques, Internet, etc.), a transformé la signification de l'eau avec le développement de marques phares en France. Enfin, nous portons un regard critique sur le rôle du marketing dans la société contemporaine, notamment sur son influence sur les besoins et désirs ainsi que les conséquences sociales de cette influence. / Nesta tese estudamos um tema essencial ao marketing : a relação do próprio marketing com as necessidades e desejos de consumo. Para estudar esse assunto, escolhemos o campo da água potável na França como objeto de pesquisa. A fim de estudar como as ações de marketing transformaram a água, uma necessidade humana, num desejo de consumo, utilizamos duas teorias/metodologias diferentes e complementares: a praxiologia social de Pierre Bourdieu e a Análise Crítica de Discurso. Apoiando-nos nas categorias-chave “Campo, Capital e Habitus” desenvolvidas por Bourdieu, construímos e analisamos a formação, o funcionamento e a estrutura contemporânea da oferta e da demanda por água potável na França. A Análise Crítica de Discurso foi utilizada a fim de avaliar como o discurso de marketing das empresas de água, que foi desenvolvido em diferentes frentes de atuação (estratégia de publicidade, produto, preço, embalagem e etiquetas, eventos, relações públicas, Internet, etc.), transformou o significado da água, por meio do desenvolvimento de marcas notórias na França. Por fim, adotamos uma visão crítica quanto ao papel do marketing na sociedade contemporânea, principalmente a respeito de sua influência sobre as necessidades e os desejos, assim como sobre as conseqüências sociais dessa influência. / In this thesis we analyse a marketing’s key subject: the relationship among the marketing itself and consumer needs and desires. To study this subject we have chosen the potable water field in France as research object. Aimed at studying how marketing actiosn have transformed water, a human need, in a consumer desire, we have used two different and complementary theories/methodologies: Pierre Bourdieu’s social praxeology and critical discourse analysis. Based on the keycategories “Field, Capital and Habitus” developed by Bourdieu, we constructed and analysed the development, the funcionning and the contemporary structure of potable water offer and demand in France. Critical discourse analysis was used to evaluate how water companies’ marketing discourse, which was developed though different forms (publicity strategy, product, price, bottle and label, evenments, public relations, Internet, etc.), has transformed water meaning though the development of notorious brands in France. We also adopt a critical vison about marketing’s role in the contemporanean society, mainly about its influence over needs and desires, as well about the social consequences of this influence.