In this thesis I argue that the category Near-Death Experience (NDE) emerged in the late-twentieth century, and is structured by the discourses of 'Medicine' and 'Science', and the wider discursive factors of the 'Spiritual Marketplace'. Within NDE literature, the experiences of people coming out of their bodies in Operating Theatres, and then travelling to other realms, are considered to have parallels in the accounts of mystics, shamans, and religious visionaries of other cultures and other times. Against this, I argue that the category of the NDE does not "articulate the same field of discourse" (Foucault, 1969:24-25) as these other religious accounts. NDE researchers sift through these accounts in search of a common thread, but miss the wider social fabric of the religious narratives they seek to excavate, as well as the discursive location that structures their own research. In order to reposition this debate within its own history of ideas, I argue that the category "NDE" is itself dependent on the Operating Theatre for its emergence and initial appeal, and it is the Operating Theatre that makes the discourse of NDEs possible. Within the last 120 years, there have been many attempts to intersect science with anomalous experiences on the fringes of human consciousness: Psychical Research categorised deathbed visions in a wider schemata that was interested in how the fringes of the subconscious mind might yield evidence of another reality; contemporary Parapsychology looked at third-person accounts of deathbed visions recounted to Nurses and Doctors across the globe. Neither of these iscourses had the crossover into the wider 'public sphere' that Raymond Moody's book Life After Life (1975) did, a book that recounts first-person accounts of normal people, caught in extreme medical emergencies, who come out of their bodies, witness the medical teams' attempt to resuscitate them, visit a heavenly realm, and return to tell people about it. What is unique about the NDE is not the vision of a world after death, but the context in which this vision occurs. In Chapter 2 I explore that context by arguing that Psychical Researchers' investigation of mediums, apparitions, and deathbed visions sought to prove that posthumous existence of the Other (that is, one's relatives or friends who had passed on to the other side), and indirectly the Self. (Conversely, NDE research, seeks to prove the existence of the Self, and indirectly, the Other.) In Chapter 3 I examine how Medicine and the Modern Hospice Movement shaped the conditions of emergence of the category 'NDE'. The removal of 'death' from the public sphere into the private sphere of the West meant that death became something exotic. The idea that death was a defeat for modern medicine lead to the emergence of the modern Hospice movement, which opened up a space for the visions of those close to death to be recounted in the public sphere. The recounting of such experiences encapsulates a narrative that includes the Surgeon's intervention, the technology used in the Operating Theatre, and of the everyday man or woman talking about their visions, all of which gives these experiences a cultural currency that sets them apart from other religious and/or New Age accounts. In chapter 4 I recognise that, for these experiences to have an appeal, they must have a market to appeal to. Thus, I examine the 'Spiritual Marketplace', and argue that the NDE researchers fundamentally misread the appeal of their life after death accounts. NDE researchers felt that they had uncovered publicly verifiable evidence for life after death, which they expected to shake the foundations of Western society. Instead, these accounts were read as a curio in the privacy of the spiritual consumer's home, an interesting account that suggested death might not be the end of existence, but little else. When their vision of a spiritual revolution failed to materialise, the founders of the NDE movement fell into a bitter war about the precise signification of the category NDE, thus giving an indication of the fundamental indeterminacy of the category. In chapter 5 I explore how NDE research intersects with the discourse of "Science". I therefore examine the construction of science, the function of science, and the limits of science in NDE literature. I begin by examining how the narratives of science permeate NDE literature, and how all sides implicitly reinforce a binary of Science/Religion that emphasises the former as objective and neutral, and the latter as irrational belief. I then argue that, ultimately, NDEs happen at the very limits of human experience in a realm far outside of what can be answered by direct scientific observation; the debate tells us more about the different metaphysical presumptions present than it does about whether or not science can answer the question 'is there life after death?" In chapter 6 I argue that, in the discourse surrounding NDEs, death and mysticism become entwined as the 'exotic other'. I therefore examine how the categories 'death' and 'mysticism' are themselves both bound up in a particular web of signification. The NDE secures its own identity against an understanding of death born in clinical medicine and, latterly, Freudian psychoanalysis: death becomes a point, after which there is an unknown. Similarly, the NDE inherits an understanding of Mysticism that can be traced back to William James. Nevertheless, the understanding of 'death' throughout history is not fixed but fluid, depending on a myriad of cultural and social discourses. Similarly, the modern psychological definition of 'mysticism' as an ineffable, subjective experience is extremely narrow in comparison to the accounts of mystics in the Middle Ages. When the understanding of these two categories changes, the emphasis upon securing 'evidence' for life after death evaporates. This point is missed in contemporary NDE research that assumes that its own desire to find evidence of life after death is reflective of a universal need for humans to believe in religion: whilst NDE researchers believe that they have finally uncovered a window on to another world, I have argued that this is, in fact, a mirror of their own particular predilections and desires.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / A presente dissertação apresenta as transformações que proporcionaram a emergência do campo de estudos das masculinidades, resultado das transformações ocorridas na sociedade e na academia a partir do movimento feminista. Com o acesso das mulheres às diferentes esferas da sociedade, a superioridade masculina foi abalada, gerando a crise do modelo de masculinidade tradicional. As fissuras na masculinidade tradicional evidenciaram a existência de masculinidades alternativas. Olhares sobre as masculinidades desde uma perspectiva interdisciplinar permitem identificar três modelos de interpretação das masculinidades. São modelos construídos a partir da perspectiva da análise e não do conteúdo específico das pesquisas. Identificamos também três dimensões recorrentes nas leituras. Embora sejam complementares, foram separadas a fim de proporcionar uma visão mais detalhada sobre cada dimensão. Os estudos sobre as masculinidades centram sua atenção nos signos sexuais da identidade masculina, relacionando as outras dimensões ao falocentrismo e à libido dominandi. Por fim, sistematiza o modo como a teologia tem trabalhado com as masculinidades, fim de identificar qual o papel que a experiência ocupa no fazer teológico. / This dissertation presents the transformations which provided the rise of the study field of manliness, result of transformations which happened in society and academy and were started by the feminist movement. With the access of women to different spheres of society, the masculine superiority was affected, generating the crisis of model of traditional manliness. The fissures in traditional manliness had evidenced the existence of alternative manliness. Glances on manliness since an interdisciplinary perspective allow us to identify three models of interpretation of manliness. They are models built since the analysis perspective and not since the specific content of researches. We also identified three appealing dimensions in the readings. Although they are complementally, they were separated in order to provide a more detailed vision on each dimension. The studies about manliness center its attention in sexual signs of masculine identity, relating the other dimensions to the phallus centrism and the libido dominandi. Finally, it systematizes the way as theology has been working with manliness, in order to identify which is the role that the experience occupies in theological studies.

The purpose of this study was twofold: firstly to explore the parenting experiences of lesbian parents rearing children and secondly with a specific focus on parenting styles that may be present within lesbian families. The conceptual framework for this study was the ecosystemic model of Urie Bronfenbrenner. During the research I followed a qualitative approach, secured in an interpretative paradigm. A case study research design was utilised to gain a better, richer and deeper understanding. Data collection involved using semi structured questionnaires, parenting style worksheets and vignettes. Participant selection was a combination between snowball and non-probability sampling methods, including four lesbian families with children between the ages of four and twelve years. Data analysis consisted of identifying themes and subthemes. Several main themes emerged subsequent to the thematic data analysis. The first theme was the parenting styles within lesbian families namely; warm, involved and tolerant parenting style as the main styles. The second theme was family rules, values and norms. The third theme was discipline strategies that were used within the lesbian families. The fourth theme was the experiences and lastly a theme on how the participants saw themselves with regards to sameness or being different than other families was identified. Based on the findings I concluded that there are three main parenting styles that emerged within these lesbian families and that there are several experiences, both positive and negative, that have influences on how lesbian mothers rear their children. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2014. / lk2014 / Educational Psychology / MEd / Unrestricted

Thesis (Ph. D. (Psychology)) --University of Limpopo, 2019 / South African has constitutional protection for the human rights of all its citizens. However, black lesbians in South Africa suffer physical, emotional and psychological abuse. This qualitative study aimed to elicit the social and emotional experiences of black lesbians living, as same-sex partners, in a township setting. The design of the study was exploratory in nature and used a purposive sample of ten couples (twenty women). The investigation was underpinned by Social domain theory (SDT) which allowed for an understanding of the judgements people make in different social settings. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with each couple in order to collect data. The data were analysed using thematic content analysis (TCA) which gleaned ten themes namely, age and sexual orientation, suicide, education, lack of support, hate crimes, substance abuse, stigma, mental health, parenting and discrimination. In the discussion it was found that these themes echoed those in other local and international studies. However, corrective rape is peculiar to South Africa and was experienced by some participants in the study. In one case a brother, with the mother’s support raped his sister repeatedly. This took place in a country which has a progressive constitution and laws. Social norms in the township allows black lesbian couples to suffer this type of abuse and have daily experiences of discrimination and stigmatisation. Recommendations included a quantitative more far reaching study (as well as longitudinal studies) and more workshops and campaigns spreading knowledge about sexuality.

With the gradual upgrade of fresh food consumption in China, the integration of online platforms and retail entities has brought more convenient and diverse fresh food consumption experiences to customers. This thesis is to explore how the customers loyalty in Chinese fresh e-commerce are affected by online and offline customer experience. This paper draws on strategic experience modules and situation experience theory and proposes three influencing factors respectively according to the two situations of online and offline. Specifically, this thesis analyzes the impact of the aesthetic experience, online service experience, and virtual community sense experience, environmental experience, service staff experience and community sense experience on customer loyalty. As a leader of fresh e-commerce, Hema Fresh has achieved great success especially during this epidemic and has been recognized by Chinese customers. This study collects 298 online questionnaires from Hema Fresh’s customers in China and uses SPSS for regression analysis to test these six factors. Empirical results show that enhancing customer aesthetic experience, online service experience, environmental experience and community sense experience can improve customer loyalty of fresh e-commerce in China, but our results do not show that virtual community sense experience and service staff experience can enhance customer loyalty. Meanwhile, this study finds that the effects of online and offline situations on customer loyalty of fresh e-commerce are different. By providing the experience and background of Chinese fresh e-commerce, it enriches the research on fresh e-commerce. Also, this study explores different types of customer experience impact on customer loyalty from the online and offline situations of customer consumption, contributing to the research on customer experience and provides implications for Chinese fresh e- commerce to improve customer loyalty.

Hjärtstopp anses vara den vanligaste dödsorsaken i världen. Varje år lider cirka 24 800 personer av akut hjärtinfarkt och 5800 personer dör med akut hjärtinfarkt som den underliggande eller bidragande orsaken till dödsfall i Sverige. För varje minut som går efter en hjärtstopp minskar chansen att överleva med 10 procent före behandlingen, vilket innebär att en snabb start av hjärt-lungåterupplivning och hjälp av en defibrillator kan öka personens chanser att överleva. Att överleva hjärtstillestånd kan påverka mental, fysisk och kognitiv hälsa. Omvårdnad är sjuksköterskans ansvarsområde. Syfte: Syftet med litteraturstudien var att sammanställa patienternas erfarenheter av att ha överlevt en hjärtstopp. Metod: Litteraturstudien genomfördes med en kvalitativ metod, baserat på 10 vetenskapliga artiklar som sökts i databaserna Cinahl, PubMed och PsycINFO. Kvalitetsstudierna granskades och analyserades med Fribergs (2017) modell. Resultat: Innehållsanalysen visade att patienter som har överlevt hjärtstillestånd upplevt fysiska förändringar, känslomässiga förändringar och förändringar i vardagen. Slutsats: Att överleva en hjärtstopp väcker tankar och känslor och resulterar i att livssituationen förändras. Den nya livssituationen påverkar patientens vardag och därför är det viktigt att sjuksköterskan fångar denna patientgrupp genom kontinuerlig information, omtänksam konversationer, stöd och så bra eftervård som möjligt. Att tillgodose patienternas behov och öka deras känsla av hanterbarhet kan leda till mindre lidande och bidra till en mer positiv livssituation. Ett antal patienter ansåg att det var mycket viktigt att få tillräckligt med information och stöd från vårdpersonalen. / Cardiac arrest is considered the most common cause of death in the world. Each year, approximately 24,800 people suffer from acute myocardial infarction and 5,800 people die of acute myocardial infarction as the underlying or contributing cause of death in Sweden. For every minute following a cardiac arrest, the chance of survival is reduced by 10 percent before treatment, which means that a rapid onset of heart and lung rescue and the help of a cardiac starter can increase the chance for the person to survive. Surviving a heart failure may affect mental, physical as well as cognitive health. Nursing is the nurse's area of responsibility. Aim: The purpose of the literature study was to compile patients' experiences of surviving a cardiac arrest. Method: The literature study was conducted with a qualitative approach, based on 10 scientific articles that were searched in the databases Cinahl, PubMed and PsycINFO. The quality studies were reviewed and analyzed via Friberg's (2017) model. Results: The content analysis showed that patients who have survived cardiac arrest experienced physical changes, emotional changes and changes in everyday life. Conclusion: Surviving a cardiac- arrest awakens thoughts and feelings and results in a lifechanging situation. The new life- situation affects the patient's everyday life. By meeting the patient's needs and increasing their sense of manageability, this can lead to less suffering and contribute to a more positive life situation. A number of patients experienced that getting enough information and support from the healthcare staff was of great importance to them.

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This thesis aims to fill in the gaps in our knowledge of the experiences of immigrant live-in caregivers in Canada as a means to better understand the role of social networks and how this is informed by intersectionality theory. More specifically, based on 34 qualitative interviews with current and former live-in caregivers, this dissertation explores the migration, working, living and integration experiences of immigrant live-in caregivers in Ontario, Canada. In particular, I focus on: 1) their experiences with processes of decision making, migration and finding a job with a particular focus on role of social networks in these processes; 2) the impact of the type of care on live-in caregivers’ working and living experiences as well as the role of networks in the process of their adaptation to life in Canada; and 3) their integration experiences (with a particular focus on role of social networks in these processes). Although some researchers relied on some sociological perspectives in their studies focusing on live-in caregivers in Canada, none of the previous studies used these in conjunction with social network theory. My research shows that while social network theory is useful in considering the role of social networks in migration, living and integration experiences of LCP workers, it is not sufficient to come to a complete understanding of these issues. On the basis of my findings, I conclude that one should combine social network theory and intersectionality when exploring such issues with regards to not only LCP workers in particular, but also immigrant workers in general. By bringing such new empirical and theoretical insights, my dissertation contributes to the body of previous research on experiences of LCP workers in Canada and more broadly to the literature on domestic workers in an international context, immigration research focusing on social networks and sociological theory. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Bakgrund Globalt sett är stroke den ledande orsaken till dödsfall och funktionsnedsättningar. De fysiska och kognitiva funktionerna efter en stroke är välstuderade, men desto mindre är känt om dessa patienters sexuella hälsa och tillfredsställelse i sviterna av en stroke. Under rehabiliteringsfasen är sexualiteten ofta en förbisedd domän efter en stroke. Det föreligger flera hinder på vägen som förhindrar patienterna och deras partners att få adekvat rehabilitering vad beträffar den sexuella hälsan. En av dessa hinder är att det råder en brist på ett biopsykosocialt tillvägagångssätt i den kliniska praxisen och forskningen som adresserar frågor om sexualiteten efter en stroke. Syfte Syftet var att belysa patienters och deras partners upplevelser av att leva med sexuell dysfunktion relaterat till stroke.  Metod En icke-systematisk litteraturöversikt bestående av tio originalartiklar med både kvalitativ och kvantitativ metodansats. Sökningar efter artiklar gjordes i databaserna PubMed och CINAHL. De utvalda artiklarna genomgick en kvalitetsgranskning utifrån Sophiahemmet Högskolas bedömningsunderlag för vetenskaplig klassificering och kvalitet, vilket dokumenterades i en matris. En integrerad analys användes för att sammanställa och analysera resultaten. Resultat I sammanställningen av resultatet identifierades tre huvudkategorier: Psykologiska faktorer relaterat till stroke och sexuell hälsa, Fysiska faktorer relaterat till stroke och sexuell hälsa och Sociala relationer och nätverk relaterat till stroke och sexuell hälsa. I resultatet framkom att stroke hade en omfattande påverkan på den sexuella hälsan och medförde vanligtvis negativa förändringar både för patienten och dennes partner. Detta ledde till emotionella prövningar och påfrestningar i relationen. Patienter upplevde att befintligt stöd från sjukvården inte mötte deras uttalade behov för att hantera den sexuella hälsan efter stroke. Slutsats Resultatet talar sitt tydliga språk om att sexuell hälsa onekligen är en viktig del att beakta för en människas allmänna hälsa. Resultatet framhäver att sexuell dysfunktion är vanligt förekommande, men tillräckliga insatser och stöd saknas från hälso- och sjukvården beträffande den sexuella hälsan i strokerehabiliteringen. Detta betonar vikten av fortsatt forskning och en ökad prioritering av sexuella hälsa inom strokerehabiliteringen. / Background Stroke is a prevalent cause of both mortality and disability on a global scale. Despite this, the sexual well-being and contentment of patients in the aftermath of a stroke are frequently disregarded during the rehabilitation process. Several obstacles exist that prevent patients and their partners from obtaining sufficient rehabilitation, including the absence of a comprehensive biopsychosocial approach in both clinical practice and research. Aim The aim was to illuminate the experiences of patients and their partners living with sexual dysfunction related to stroke. Method A non-systematic literature review consisting of ten research articles with both a qualitative and quantitative methodological approach. The searches for articles were made in the databases PubMed and CINAHL. The selected articles underwent a quality review based on Sophiahemmet University's assessment document for scientific classification and quality, which was documented in a matrix. An integrated analysis was used to compile and analyze the results. Results Three main categories were identified in the results: Psychological factors related to stroke and sexual health, Physical factors related to stroke and sexual health, and Social relationships and networks related to stroke and sexual health. The results concluded that stroke had a substantial impact on sexual health, leading to negative changes for both the patients and their partner. The consequences often resulted in emotional distress and strains in the relationship. Furthermore, the patients expressed dissatisfaction with the existing healthcare support, as it did not adequately meet their needs for managing sexual health after stroke.  Conclusions Sexual health is undeniably an important part of a person's general health. The results highlight that sexual dysfunction is common, but there is a lack of sufficient efforts and support from the health care system regarding sexual health in stroke rehabilitation. Therefore, it is critical to pursue further research in this field and prioritize sexual health in stroke rehabilitation to meet the unfulfilled requirements of patients and their significant others.