<p>Uppsatsen syftar till att skapa en större förståelse för hur omorganisationer påverkar de anställdas inställning och engagemang till sitt arbete. Studien utfördes inom en del av industrin som hade varit inbegripna i ett projekt vars övergripande syfte var att höja de anställdas arbetsengagemang för att på det sättet uppnå en högre produktivitet.</p><p>Studien utfördes genom kvalitativa intervjuer vilka analyserades och tolkades genom en metodik som inledningsvis var inspirerad av Grounded Theory. Studien har också kompletterats med en teoretisk referensram utifrån det empiriska materialet. Den bärande teoretiska ramen utgår ifrån Max Webers rationalitet som till viss del kompletteras med Karl Marx`alienationsteori.</p><p>Resultatet från studien visar att det undersökta ALF- projektet inte upplevdes ha påverkat de anställdas arbetssituation i någon högre grad. Studien belyser olika faktorer som bidragit till den upplevelsen. Studien påvisar att företagets och de anställdas skilda målsättningar tillsammans med ett likartat rationellt handlande bidrar till att engagemanget och inställningen till förändringsarbetet varierar hos de anställda.</p>

<p>The aim of this study was to investigate how a workplace should be formed to promote health according to the employees. The study was made in IKEA handla hemma in Älmhult, Sweden. The aim of the study was to find out why people experience health at their workplace environment, from a salutogenetic point of view. The study is based on 12 strategically selected interviews and where analysed according to Grounded Theory. This resulted in a model where the core category was “The prevailing spirit of the organisation” and the five main categories was “That the organisation creates favourable conditions to promote health”, “That there is a god atmosphere amongst the colleagues and the bosses”, “The personal point of view about health”, “The relationship to goals and responsibility” and “The personal point of view about their surroundings”. The result shows that it’s important to look upon health in its entirety. Health isn’t stronger than its weakest point. The findings should work as a guide in the on going work with the employees at IKEA handla hemma. For the future it would be interesting to do a study in a workplace with worse health and then compare them with each other.</p>

Cette recherche a pour objectif d'élaborer un cadre d'évaluation de la performance d'institutions de micro-financement. Ces institutions sont mises en place pour répondre au besoin de financement de micro-entreprises initiées par des populations pauvres pour satisfaire leurs besoins de base. Ces micro-entrepreneurs, compte tenu de la précarité de leur situation économique et sociale, ont en effet été longtemps exclus du secteur bancaire traditionnel. Pour pallier ces imperfections de marché, différents modes organisationnels ont vu le jour (Organisations Non Gouvernementales, coopératives d'épargne et de crédit, banques, etc.). Habituellement, les auteurs intéressés par cette problématique recourent aux théories contractualistes pour expliquer le phénomène d'exclusion des micro-entrepreneurs du marché du crédit traditionnel et l'émergence de ces modes organisationnels spécifiques. Quoique ce cadre théorique offre des éléments d'explication intéressants pour notre problématique, notre thèse doctorale montre également ses limites. Afin de rendre compte de la multiplicité des objectifs qui peuvent être poursuivis par les membres des institutions de micro-financement (aides aux plus démunis, rentabilité des capitaux, etc.) ainsi que des mobiles qui peuvent animer ceux-ci (intérêts personnels, collectifs, etc.), nous montrons tout l'intérêt d'adopter une perspective conventionnaliste. A la suite de trois études de cas menées en profondeur au Chili, selon les principes méthodologiques de la ‘Grounded Theory', nous proposons un modèle d'évaluation de la performance des institutions de micro-financement qui présente la particularité de tenir compte du registre conventionnel adopté par les membres de ces institutions. Outre les aspects théoriques explicités plus haut, cette thèse prétend également à avoir une portée prescriptive pour les acteurs intéressés par la problématique de l'aide aux populations défavorisées.

Thesis (Ph.D. (English)--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 210-229).

The overall aim of this thesis is to gain a better understanding how people with dementia and their spouses experience dementia over time, especially the impact it has on their inter-personal relationships and patterns of everyday life. Data were collected using separate semi-structured interviews with 20 persons with dementia and their spouses of 6 monthly intervals over an 18-months period (132 interviews in total), and analysed using constructivist grounded theory. Analysis suggested that whilst spouses are aware of and acknowledge the diagnosis of dementia, they do not routinely talk about it but rather the focus of their combined efforts is on making life as meaningful as possible. To do this couples, rather than individuals, actively ‘work together’ to create a ‘nurturative relational context’ in order to sustain the quality of their relationship, and maintain the self-image and sense of agency of the person with dementia. In order to create a ‘nurturative relational context’ couples continued to ‘do things together’ for as long as possible by understanding complementary roles underpinned by a mutual appreciation of each others contribution in a way that builds upon the remaining strengths of the person with dementia. Their focus is therefore on ‘couplehood’ as much as ‘personhood’. An analysis of the complete data set identified three temporally sequenced but overlapping phases of the experience of couplehood termed ‘sustaining couplehood’, ‘maintaining involvement’, and ‘becoming alone’. ‘Sustaining couplehood’ had the primary goal of ensuring that the spuses’ ‘work’. This involved four interrelated sets of activities: talking things through, in order to ensure good communication and acknowledge and value differences; being affectionate and appreciative by demonstrating continued attractiveness to their spouse; making the most of things by enjoying everyday pleasures, looking for positive interpretations of events and focussing on the present (living for today); and finally, keeping the peace by being aware of potential points of friction and not responding to difficult behaviour. Both the person with dementia and the non-affected spouse were active strategies in the above process. In addition both spouses worked to ‘maintain the involvement’ of the person with dementia by ensuring that they had an active role to play. However, despite their efforts, eventually the non-affected spouse took on an increasing role and this occurred in a number of ways, either by the person with dementia consciously ‘handing over’ responsibility or more passively ‘letting go’, or by the non-affected spouse ‘taking over’. ‘Sustaining couplehood’ and ‘maintaining involvement’ often occurred simultaneously but the relative emphasis changed over time as ‘sustaining couplehood’ became more difficult and increasing effort was expended in ‘maintaining involvement’. As this occurred the data suggested that the non-affected spouse became increasingly ‘alone’ as the dementia progressed. This process has yet to be fully explored, however, it is clear that for spouses a complete understanding of the dementia experience is not possible without consideration of ‘couplehood’.

Uppsatsen syftar till att skapa en större förståelse för hur omorganisationer påverkar de anställdas inställning och engagemang till sitt arbete. Studien utfördes inom en del av industrin som hade varit inbegripna i ett projekt vars övergripande syfte var att höja de anställdas arbetsengagemang för att på det sättet uppnå en högre produktivitet. Studien utfördes genom kvalitativa intervjuer vilka analyserades och tolkades genom en metodik som inledningsvis var inspirerad av Grounded Theory. Studien har också kompletterats med en teoretisk referensram utifrån det empiriska materialet. Den bärande teoretiska ramen utgår ifrån Max Webers rationalitet som till viss del kompletteras med Karl Marx`alienationsteori. Resultatet från studien visar att det undersökta ALF- projektet inte upplevdes ha påverkat de anställdas arbetssituation i någon högre grad. Studien belyser olika faktorer som bidragit till den upplevelsen. Studien påvisar att företagets och de anställdas skilda målsättningar tillsammans med ett likartat rationellt handlande bidrar till att engagemanget och inställningen till förändringsarbetet varierar hos de anställda.

The aim of this study was to investigate how a workplace should be formed to promote health according to the employees. The study was made in IKEA handla hemma in Älmhult, Sweden. The aim of the study was to find out why people experience health at their workplace environment, from a salutogenetic point of view. The study is based on 12 strategically selected interviews and where analysed according to Grounded Theory. This resulted in a model where the core category was “The prevailing spirit of the organisation” and the five main categories was “That the organisation creates favourable conditions to promote health”, “That there is a god atmosphere amongst the colleagues and the bosses”, “The personal point of view about health”, “The relationship to goals and responsibility” and “The personal point of view about their surroundings”. The result shows that it’s important to look upon health in its entirety. Health isn’t stronger than its weakest point. The findings should work as a guide in the on going work with the employees at IKEA handla hemma. For the future it would be interesting to do a study in a workplace with worse health and then compare them with each other.

Background: An emergency department (ED) should offer timely care for acutely ill or injured persons that require the attention of specialized nurses and physicians. This study was aimed at exploring what is actually going on at an ED. Methods: Qualitative data was collected 2009 to 2011 at one Swedish ED (ED1) with 53.000 yearly visits serving a population of 251.000. Constant comparative analysis according to classic grounded theory was applied to both focus group interviews with ED1 staff, participant observation data, and literature data. Quantitative data from ED1 and two other Swedish EDs were later analyzed and compared with the qualitative data. Results: The main driver of the ED staff in this study was to reduce non-acceptable waiting. Signs of non-acceptable waiting are physical densification, contact seeking, and the emergence of critical situations. The staff reacts with frustration, shame, and eventually resignation when they cannot reduce non-acceptable waiting. Waiting management resolves the problems and is done either by reducing actual waiting time by increasing throughput of patient flow through structure pushing and shuffling around patients, or by changing the experience of waiting by calming patients and feinting maneuvers to cover up. Conclusion: To manage non-acceptable waiting is a driving force behind much of the staff behavior at an ED. Waiting management is done either by increasing throughput of patient flow or by changing the waiting experience.

Food distribution (FD) is a part of the public social and care service in Sweden aiming to prevent improper food intake for persons that they are unable to do their own shopping, and prepare their own meals, and in that way ensure reasonable standard of living. Before a person can be granted the FD service, from any municipality, an assessment of their individual requirements has to be made by a public home care officer. The aim of this study was to explore how public home care officers reason when they make a needs assessment for homebound elderly people. The data was collected through individual interviews (n=18). The transcribed interview material was analysed by means of the grounded theory method. The findings showed that the public home care officers were confronted with many challenges when making an assessment of a person’s individual needs. They are influenced by their subjective feelings related to their personal views as to what should be the right solution for the individual. However, they remained aware that they needed to be guided by the legal requirements.  Further, they described that the level of an individual’s living standard is a leading concept in the governing laws that they need to interpret. Interpretation of this concept is very subjective with the possible consequence that an assessment result may lead to inefficient support. In conclusion, the concept of a reasonable standard of living needs to be clearly defined, decision regarding FD should not take long time, need assessment and decision should be based on the whole picture behind each individual case and there are needs to develop general guidelines for making needs assessment. The findings in this study have implications for public administration, nursing and gerontology.