The aim of this study is to examine upper secondary teachers' selection processes, strategies and reasons for why literature is used to address ethical and existential issues in the EFL classroom. Additionally, it is also of interest to examine what advantages, challenges and learning outcomes are evident when addressing this specific issue. A qualitative approach was used for this study and the data was gathered through interviews with eight upper secondary English teachers. The results in the study showed the reasons for selecting literary works to address ethical or existential issues was adding new perspectives and the assets which literature offer. The results also accounted for various advantages and challenges, where pupils' development and the possibility of a free space were mentioned as advantages and language proficiency as a challenge. The learning outcomes were development of both critical thinking as well as the empathic ability.

This thesis examines the role of praying sacred curses as a means of exercising ecclesiastical discipline within the Christian church. Through a brief analysis of selected social issues challenging the church in the United States, Chapter One addresses the question concerning the appropriateness of punitive praying as a means of furthering the Gospel of Christ. The question, “Is it ever right to pray for the failure, destruction or harm of another person, especially when such prayer is made by Christians in the name of God?” guides the subject of this thesis from both theological and ethical perspectives. A word study on seven key Hebrew words used to designate a “curse” in the Old Testament is made in Chapter Two in an effort to provide the necessary background for the New Testament’s concepts and practices undergirding early Church discipline. The utilization of punitive prayers and the utterances of anathemas throughout the New Testament comprise Chapter Three and points to a significant dimension for church theology inside the community of faith. There is also evidence that such ‘killing prayers’ were used to check secular authorities hostile to the witness of the church. Perhaps the most interesting use of the sacred curse comes from the record of Jesus “cursing” a fig tree, which dies as a result. This tree seems to represent both the religious dimension of Israel and the authoritative rule of the state, each characterized by unbelief and a rejection of the message of Jesus. Chapter Four furthers the discussion concerning the ethical basis for a sacred curse, especially as reflected by the Ten Commandments, and more specifically, in the keeping of the Fourth Commandment, the Sabbath. In conjunction with this sense of discipline, the argument is made that the love of God is often exemplified through the exercise of the curse because persons so affected may be drawn to repentance and seek after God as a result. Chapter Five concludes this study with an indictment on modern theology’s seeming failure to address matters of truth in social issues presently impacting both iv church and state in the USA. This chapter calls for the use of the sacred curse on the basis of local church unity and cohesiveness, while recognizing that such unity may be impossible to achieve. Because there may be no consensus inside the church regarding the exercise of a sacred curse, there is most probably no possibility of realizing the power of such prayers as a means of correcting social issues at odds with perceived truths. / Systematic Theology & Theological Ethics / D.Th. (Theological Ethics)

Cette recherche explore un sujet encore très peu étudié empiriquement: où en sont “l’éthique professionnelle” et la “déontologie” chez les journalistes en France? Qu’ont-ils à dire? À quelles embûches sont-ils confrontés ? Quel est le rôle des rédacteurs en chef ? En raison de la concurrence accrue, de la concentration de la propriété des médias, des changements technologiques et de plusieurs autres facteurs, « l’éthique » se situe à l’épicentre du journalisme contemporain. La thèse repose d’abord sur une analyse de contenu des points de vue d’une centaine de journalistes professionnels qui furent interviewés en face à face, dans la presse nationale, écrite et audiovisuelle, privée et publique. Elle repose également sur une observation participante : une dizaine de stages dans divers média. Elle analyse de surcroît une vingtaine de chartes ou codes de déontologie, de même qu’elle se fonde sur une brève enquête de certains directeurs d’école de journalisme. La thèse révèle la montée récente des enjeux déontologiques et la bonne volonté des journalistes et de leurs médiateurs pour faire face à cette situation. Elle montre aussi les différences entre les pratiques éthiques concrètes des différents médias, l’impuissance des écoles de journalisme à enseigner l’éthique, l’importance névralgique de l’attitude des patrons de presse envers l’éthique journalistique et parfois les difficultés des journalistes devant certains dilemmes et certaines pressions. Un des enjeux majeurs pour l’avenir est de rendre plus cohérentes les chartes ou codes écrits, les différentes formes de gouvernance de la presse et les pratiques journalistiques. / This study is an exploratory research on a topic that has been slightly studied empirically. What are the issues of “professional ethics” and “deontology” amongst French journalists? What do they have to say? What problems are they confronted with? What is the role of chief editors? Because of increased competition, the concentration of press ownership, new technologies and other factors, “ethics” has now become a central issue in journalism. The thesis is, above all, a content analysis of journalists’ points of view, as recorded in some 100 face to face interviews of journalists in the generalist, private and public French press, newspapers and broadcasters. Participant observation was also a key methodology: some 10 quite lengthy internships in several media were done. Furthermore, the thesis analyses some 20 charters and codes of ethics and conducted a brief enquiry within schools of journalism. The thesis shows that ethics is now an absolutely central issue and that journalists (and their ombudsmen) have a very good will to cope with this new situation. Yet more, the thesis also shows the difference in the concrete practices of various medias, the incapacity of journalism schools to teach ethics, the extreme importance of the attitudes of the main editors, as well as sometimes the difficulties of journalists to cope with some pressures and dilemmas. One major issue for the future is to make the written charters and codes, press governance and journalistic practices more coherent.

This thesis is based on the assumption that the intersection of moral philosophy and practical risk management is a rewarding area to study. In particular, the thesis assumes that concepts, ideas, and methods that are used in moral philosophy can be of great benefit for risk analysis, but also that practices in risk regulation provide a useful testing ground for moral philosophical theories. The thesis consists of an introduction and five articles. Article I is a review article on social and ethical aspects of radiation protection related to nuclear power generation. The paper concludes that four areas of social and ethical issues stand out as central: The first is uncertainty and the influence of value judgments in scientific risk assessments. The second is the distributions of risks and benefits between different individuals, in both space and time. The third is the problem of setting limits when there is no known level of exposure associated with a zero risk. The fourth is related to stakeholder influence and risk communication. Article II discusses ethical issues related to the proposal that doses (or risks) below a certain level should be excluded from the system of radiation protection, without any regard for the number of people exposed. Different arguments for excluding small radiation doses from regulation are examined and a possible solution to the problem of regulating small risks is proposed in the article: Any exclusion of small doses (or risks) from radiation protection ought to be based on a case-by-case basis, with the condition that the expected value of harm remains small. Article III examines what makes one distribution of individual doses better than another distribution. The article introduces a mathematical framework based on preference logic, in which such assessments can be made precisely in terms of comparisons between alternative distributions of individual doses. Principles of radiation protection and from parallel discussions in moral philosophy and welfare economics are defined using this framework and their formal properties analyzed. Article IV argues that the ethical theory of “responsibility-catering prioritarianism” is well positioned to deal with the reasonable requirements in an ethical theory of risk. The article shows how responsibility-catering prioritarianism can be operationalized using a prioritarian social welfare function based on hypothetical utilities. For this purpose, a hypothetical utility measure called ‘responsibility-adjusted utility’ is proposed, which is based on the utility that would normally be expected given circumstances outside of the control of the individual. Article V was written as a response to the Fukushima disaster. Several authors have called the Fukushima disaster a ‘black swan.’ However, the article argues that the hazards of large earthquakes and tsunamis were known before the accident, and introduces and defines the concept of a ‘black elephant,’ as (i) a high-impact event that (ii) lies beyond the realm of regular expectations, but (iii) is ignored despite existing evidence. / QC 20120816

I den dagliga vården möter sjuksköterskan ständigt situationer som har ett etiskt perspektiv. En utvecklad personlig etisk förmåga och en god kännedom om egna och andras värden är en betydelsefull del vid dessa möten. För att kunna möta etiska problem måste också den egna och patientens sårbarhet uppmärksammas och reflekteras. Sårbarheten kan ses som en tillgång, men kan också upplevas som en påfrestning som leder till känslomässig stress och ohälsa. På grund av denna påfrestning är det betydelsefullt att identifiera de situationer som sjuksköterskan uppfattar som etiskt problematiska samt beskriva upplevelsen av dessa för att kunna ge patienten en bättre vård. Syftet med studien var att beskriva sjuksköterskans upplevelser av etiska situationer och problem inom omvårdnaden. Studien genomfördes som en litteraturstudie där 18 vetenskapliga artiklar bearbetades och analyserades. Resultatet visar att sjuksköterskor drivs av en vilja att göra det bästa för patienten, och när inte denna vilja kan följas upplevs etiska situationer och problem. De upplevde underbemanning, bristande kompetens och oetiskt beteende hos kollegor som faktorer som gav upphov till etiska situationer och problem. Trots en medvetenhet om vad som är rätt och fel i en situation, begränsades sjuksköterskan av olika faktorer att bedriva god vård med patienten i fokus. För att öka den etiska medvetenheten krävs etisk reflektion samt forskning om hur sjuksköterskan använder etiska teorier, principer och riktlinjer i den vardagliga omvårdnaden. / In everyday health care the nurse is constantly confronted with situations presenting ethical issues. A developed personal ethical ability and a good knowledge of one´s own and others´ values is an important part in dealing with such situations. To be able to meet ethical issues the vulnerability of one´s own and of the patients´ must also be noticed and reflected upon. The vulnerability can be seen as an asset, but can also be experienced as a strain which leads to emotional stress. Because of this strain it is important to identify the situations that nurses experience as ethical complicated along with describing the experience of these situations. The aim of this study was to describe the nurse´s experience of ethical situations and issues in nursing practice. The study was conducted as a literature review where 18 research articles were processed and analyzed. The results showed that the nurse is compelled by a desire to do what is best for the patient. When this desire cannot be followed, ethical situations and issues arise. Nurses experienced understaffing, lack of competence and unethical behavior among colleagues as factors leading to ethical situations and issues. Despite a consciousness of what is right and wrong in certain situations, the nurse was limited by different factors in providing quality care with the patient in focus. Reflection of ethical issues and further research on how the nurse uses and applies ethical theories, principles and guidelines in the daily nursing practice, are all needed, in increasing ethical awareness. Awareness, in turn, leads to a “platform of courage” in confronting ethical issues.

The diploma thesis deals with the elucidation of the importance of ethics in social work. It focuses on important theoretical knowledge in the field of ethics and ethical concepts and its aim is to point out the possibilities of using ethical values, theories or virtues in professional practice. The work is focused on the presentation of important ethical concepts and ethical values, the contemporary form of social work, the personality of the social worker, the level and importance of education, and various examples of possible ethical problems or ethical dilemmas that can occur in the practice of social work. This thesis is based on the assumption that current social work is in a crisis and its setting requires change.

The final thesis deals with the substantiation of primary prevention programmes in primary schools in the Czech Republic, which are carried out by external employees in non-profit organizations. The first part is characterized by contemporary youth in the context of the society. The second part is devoted to high-risk behavior. This section describes the different forms of high-risk behaviour and factors that affect its origin. The third section describes the historical context of primary prevention, principles of effective primary prevention and the implementation of primary prevention programmes in Czech schools. The fourth section examines the ethical issues. The individual interests of persons involved into primary prevention are described here. The last part deals with the individual principles of effective primary prevention and evaluate the real level of fulfillment of these principles. The effectiveness and conclusion of this work is based on the results of evaluating these programmes. The conclusion applies to the evaluation, importance and relevance of the identified aspects of primary prevention programmes in schools.

La procréation médicalement assistée (PMA) permet à beaucoup d’individus infertiles de concevoir un enfant qui leur est génétiquement lié. Cependant, des données scientifiques émergentes suggèrent que la PMA pourrait entraîner des risques épigénétiques pour les futurs enfants. Conformément à l'hypothèse des origines développementales de la santé et des maladies, la PMA pourrait augmenter le risque de développer des maladies à apparition tardive par des mécanismes épigénétiques, car l’hyperovulation, les méthodes de fécondation et la culture embryonnaire pourraient nuire à la reprogrammation épigénétique de l'embryon. De tels risques épigénétiques soulèvent des enjeux éthiques pour toutes les parties prenantes: les futurs parents et enfants, les professionnels de la santé, et la société. Ce mémoire se concentre sur les questions éthiques soulevées par la prise en compte de ces risques lors de l'utilisation de la PMA. Pour mettre en lumière ces enjeux, nous utilisons l’approche principiste. Nous argüons qu'une tension éthique peut émerger entre le respect de l'autonomie procréative des parents d’intention et le devoir de minimiser les risques pour les enfants potentiels. Une seconde tension éthique peut émerger entre le droit des parents d’intention de faire un choix éclairé, et la réticence que peuvent avoir les professionnels de la santé de communiquer l’information sur les risques épigénétiques de la PMA, étant donné la validité incertaine de ces informations. Nous explorons aussi le risque de conflits d’intérêts pour les cliniciens des cliniques de PMA. Nous soutenons que les parents d’intention et les professionnels de la santé ont la responsabilité partagée de promouvoir les meilleurs intérêts du futur enfant. Nous plaidons pour que plus de recherche soit faite sur les effets de la PMA sur la santé des futurs enfants, pour que soient énoncées des lignes directrices priorisant le recours à des techniques moins risquées au niveau épigénétique, et pour que d’autres lignes directrices guident les professionnels de la santé dans la communication des risques épigénétiques associés à la PMA. Enfin, nous suggérons que cette communication se fasse dans le cadre d’une approche centrée sur le patient. Nous explorons aussi l’apport d’une approche narrative pour aborder les tensions éthiques soulevées par l’approche principiste. / The use of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) allows many coping with infertility to conceive. However, an emerging body of evidence suggests that ART could carry epigenetic risks for those conceived through the use of these technologies. In accordance with the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) hypothesis, ART could increase the risk of developing late-onset diseases through epigenetic mechanisms, since superovulation, fertilization methods and embryo culture could impair the embryo’s epigenetic reprogramming. Such epigenetic risks raise ethical issues for all stakeholders: prospective parents and children, health professionals, and society. This thesis focuses on ethical issues raised by the consideration of these risks when using ART. To highlight these issues, we use the principlist approach. We argue that an ethical tension can emerge between respect for the reproductive autonomy of prospective parents and the duty to minimize the risks for potential children. A second ethical tension can emerge between the parents' right to make an informed choice about the use of ART, and the reluctance of health professionals to communicate epigenetic risk given its uncertain validity. We also explore the risks of conflicts of interests for health professionals in ART clinics. We argue that prospective parents and health professionals have a shared responsibility to promote the best interests of the future child. We also argue in favor of further research on the effects of ART on the health of future children, and in favor of clinical guidelines that prioritize the use of techniques that carry less epigenetic risk and that assist health professionals in communicating the epigenetic risks associated with ART. Finally, we suggest that this communication be done within the patient-centered approach. We also explore the contribution of a narrative approach to address the ethical tensions raised by the principlist approach.

This thesis examines the role of praying sacred curses as a means of exercising ecclesiastical discipline within the Christian church. Through a brief analysis of selected social issues challenging the church in the United States, Chapter One addresses the question concerning the appropriateness of punitive praying as a means of furthering the Gospel of Christ. The question, “Is it ever right to pray for the failure, destruction or harm of another person, especially when such prayer is made by Christians in the name of God?” guides the subject of this thesis from both theological and ethical perspectives. A word study on seven key Hebrew words used to designate a “curse” in the Old Testament is made in Chapter Two in an effort to provide the necessary background for the New Testament’s concepts and practices undergirding early Church discipline. The utilization of punitive prayers and the utterances of anathemas throughout the New Testament comprise Chapter Three and points to a significant dimension for church theology inside the community of faith. There is also evidence that such ‘killing prayers’ were used to check secular authorities hostile to the witness of the church. Perhaps the most interesting use of the sacred curse comes from the record of Jesus “cursing” a fig tree, which dies as a result. This tree seems to represent both the religious dimension of Israel and the authoritative rule of the state, each characterized by unbelief and a rejection of the message of Jesus. Chapter Four furthers the discussion concerning the ethical basis for a sacred curse, especially as reflected by the Ten Commandments, and more specifically, in the keeping of the Fourth Commandment, the Sabbath. In conjunction with this sense of discipline, the argument is made that the love of God is often exemplified through the exercise of the curse because persons so affected may be drawn to repentance and seek after God as a result. Chapter Five concludes this study with an indictment on modern theology’s seeming failure to address matters of truth in social issues presently impacting both iv church and state in the USA. This chapter calls for the use of the sacred curse on the basis of local church unity and cohesiveness, while recognizing that such unity may be impossible to achieve. Because there may be no consensus inside the church regarding the exercise of a sacred curse, there is most probably no possibility of realizing the power of such prayers as a means of correcting social issues at odds with perceived truths. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / D.Th. (Theological Ethics)

This essay examines if The Witcher: The Last Wish can be used as a pedagogical tool for interdisciplinary literary seminars about current issues and events in students’ daily lives and society between the Swedish upper secondary school courses English and Religious studies. Additionally, the study investigates if literary seminars about how The Witcher: The Last Wish can broaden the students’ understanding of religious practices in daily lives and what effect their religion has on their relation to ethical and existential issues. In the Swedish educational system, every course should incorporate the overarching value-based curriculum which includes value-based topics such as: democratic principles, human rights, and current issues and event that the students face in their daily lives or in society. The results of the essay showed that several ethical issues are portrayed in the book that can be used as material for interdisciplinary literary seminars between Religious studies and English studies. The ethical issues were of the sort that connects to events in society or in students’ daily lives. Additionally, there were parts of the book comparable to Christianity and Hinduism which are both cultural phenomena in English speaking countries thus making these parts possible to use as material for interdisciplinary literary seminars between Religious studies and English studies as well. The results were retrieved using close reading and pedagogical text analysis on The Witcher: The Last Wish. / Denna uppsats undersöker om The Witcher: The Last Wish kan användas som ett pedagogiskt verktyg i ämnesövergripande litteratursamtal om aktuella problem och händelser i samhället och elevers dagliga liv mellan de svenska gymnasieämnena Religion och Engelska. Dessutom undersöker uppsatsen om litteratursamtal om The Witcher: The Last Wish kan bredda elevers förståelse av religiösa sedvänjor i det dagliga livet och vilken effekt deras religion har på deras relation till etiska och existentiella problem. I det svenska skolsystemet måste alla kurser integrera den övergripande värdegrunden vilken inkluderar värdebaserade ämnen som: demokratiska principer, mänskliga rättigheter och aktuella problem och händelser som elever möter i sitt dagliga liv eller i samhället. Resultatet i uppsatsen visar att det finns flera etiska problem föreställda i boken som kan användas som material i ämnesövergripande litteratursamtal mellan gymnasieämnena Engelska och Religion. De etiska problemen var ämnen som relaterar till händelser i samhället eller till elevers dagliga liv. Dessutom fanns det delar i boken som gick att jämföra med Kristendomen och Hinduismen vilka båda är kulturella fenomen i Engelskspråkiga länder, vilket gör det möjligt att använda de delarna också till att ha ämnesövergripande litteratursamtal mellan gymnasieämnena Religion och Engelska. Resultaten upptäcktes genom att använda närläsning och pedagogisk textanalys.