The aim of this study is to explore how middle class residents construct narratives of belonging. The study was conducted in a suburban area in the southern part of Stockholm. This is a neighborhood that undergoes a renewal and status increase. I used a method consisting of auto-photography and subsequent interviews to explore resident’s narratives of belonging. The sampled group was residents with academic exams. Participants were instructed to take five photos of their everyday life in the area and reflect upon these in the interviews. The result was analyzed within a constructive grounded theory frame. The theoretical concepts used take inspiration from Bourdieu’s cultural capital, field and social class. The results are divided into three main cores. The results suggest that a core narrative of constructive affiliation was a useful tool to understand how residents construct a sense of belonging. Residents in this study affiliated with other groups and social classes in the area, through a heightened sense of reflection on their own social position. Residents subscribed to an inclusive version of elective belonging.  Second the construction of a sense of locally based authenticity was a narrative process were they deployed a sense of belonging to the “local” and the small scale community. Third, a sense of rootless territorialism was reflected on in their sense of belonging. This was a process were residents narrative mediated between a stable and a fluid place attachment.

Based on the narratives of young people this research explores the rise in youth violence in Kenya's secondary school system and wider society and the potential for peacebuilding to address youth violence. Of particular concern is the gradual change in the profiles, patterns and intensity of the conflict, as evidenced by the increase in the number of youth militias. This increase is often attributed to unemployment and poverty - yet, to date, no systematic research has been produced on the extent to which the youth participation in violence occurs through choice or coercion, or indeed both. Worryingly, a significant number of young people involved in this violence are secondary school students. The findings of this research indicate that despite responses to youth violence in the school and wider Kenyan society, the violence is unabated. Notably, approaches continue to be top-down, generic, superficial and ineffectual. By marginalising the narratives of the youth who participate in and/or observe the violence, current institutional policies and approaches are decontextualised - from both the particular and the wider Kenyan context. This leaves intact the root causes of the violence. This research raises important questions concerning generic, top-down, quick-fix, outmoded cultural paradigms, hierarchical and questionable homogeneous pedagogical approaches to peacebuilding in both the schools and wider Kenyan context. In attempt to address these deficiencies the research seeks to find out approaches to peacebuilding and the Kenyan education systems that can respond to youth violence. This research proffers three key dimensions that can be incorporated in order to ensure effective and sustainable peace: experiences, worldviews and attitudes of the actors. The research, which utilises a constructivist grounded theory approach (Charmaz, 2006), was conducted in fourteen secondary schools in Nairobi and the Rift Valley provinces - two provinces that have been at the centre of youth violence and militia activities. These provinces were also selected in order to reflect the multi-cultural and multi-ethnic character, and the different types of schools in Kenya.

Syftet med denna studie är att ge en insikt i hur elever med kombinerade läs- och skriv och matematiksvårigheter tänker och resonerar vid problemlösning. Tre elever i år 8, som alla ingår i samma specialundervisningsgrupp i matematik, har arbetat med olika typer av matematisk problemlösning, såväl individuellt som i grupp. Med utgångspunkt i deras arbete skapas början till en grundad teori. I forskningssammanhang behandlas ofta denna kategori elever (med kombinerade problem) som en enhetlig kategori som jämförs med t ex elever med enbart matematiksvårigheter, normalpresterande elever osv. Denna undersökning visar dock att de svårigheter eleverna uppvisar är av mycket olika karaktär. Studien omfattar tre delar: en presentation av fältstudien och resultaten från denna, en metoddel innefattande en pilotstudie som koncentreras på datainsamlingsmetoden samt en omfattande litteraturstudie som behandlar problemlösning och inlärningssvårigheter.

Depression is a common mental health problem in primary health care. One third of the Swedish population is expected to experience depression at some point in their lives. The understanding of depression has expanded, both from a lay and primary health care perspective. The number of persons considering themselves as depressed, receiving the diagnosis, and getting treatment for it has increased steadily over the last decades. Unchanged, however, is that depression is diagnosed twice as often in women as in men, while twice as many men as women commit suicide. These gender differences appear in adolescence. In earlier research biomedical, psychological, and social-cultural explanations of gender differences have been discussed. Patient’s own perspectives have more seldom stood in focus, and men’s narratives in particular are still scarce. In this thesis, gender, i.e. how to be a woman or a man, is considered as a construct, formed and negotiated in social interaction. The aim of the study is to explore the gendered face of depression from a patient perspective: How is depression expressed and explained by patients in primary health care, by women and men, adults and adolescents? How are depressed women and men portrayed in the media? How do patient and media accounts of depression compare with the perspective offered in medical research articles? Method and material The analyses are based on data from three different sources: patient narratives, newspaper portrayals and scientific medical articles. – 37 in-depth interviews were undertaken with primary health care patients diagnosed with depression. Informants were chosen to include both men and women, grown-ups (Studies I + II) and young adults (Study V) of varying occupational and social class backgrounds. Data were analyzed according to grounded theory. – 26 articles portraying lay informants with depression (Study III) were drawn from three major Swedish daily newspapers by a search of database Mediearkivet 2002. The articles were analyzed by qualitative content analysis. –82 scientific articles concerning depression in relation to gender were identified in a PubMed search 2002. The understanding of depression in these articles was explored and compared with findings in the grown-up patient narratives and in the media portrayals by means of discourse analysis (Study IV). Findings Study I captured women’s and men’s formulations of their experiences of depression. To be marked with demands constituted a central experience for both women and men, but the outward manifestations differed in relation to gender as well as to class. Home and work had different priority. Men talked more about physical distress (often chest pain) than about emotions. Women readily verbalized emotional distress – shame and guilt – while physical symptoms were vague and secondary (often about the stomach). Men dealt with insecurity by aggrandizing their previous competence, women by self-effacement. Study II disclosed gendered trajectories into depression. Four symbolic illness narratives were identified: struck by lightning, nagging darkness, blackout and slowly suffocating. Most of the men considered their bodies suddenly “struck” by external circumstances beyond their control. The stories of women in the study were more diverse, reflecting all four illness narratives. However, the women had a tendency to blame their own personality and to describe depression as insidious and originating from the inside. The women expressed feelings of guilt and shame but also conveyed a personal responsibility and concern with relationships. Study III identified four themes in media portrayals of depression: displaying a successful facade, experiencing a cracking facade, losing and regaining control and explaining the illness. The mediated image of depression both upheld and challenged traditional gender stereotypes. The women’s stories were more detailed, relational, emotionally oriented and embodied. The portrayal of men was less emotional and expressive, and described a more dramatic onset of depression. Study IV revealed gaps in how depression in relation to gender is understood by the patients, the media, and the medical research establishment. There were differences in recognition, in understanding of the reasons, and in contextualization of depression. Although women and men described different symptoms and reasons for falling ill, in scientific articles these gendered differences were conceptualized mainly in terms of hormones and other biological markers. Study V elucidated the impact of gender on adolescent depression. The young women and men were all striving to be normal, influenced by demanding media images, confronted by identity trouble, and overwhelmed by feelings. They had dreams of an ordinary family and described normative expectations. Getting a safety net of friends and other adults was a way out. Both the young women and men were eager to communicate their distress when given the opportunity. This seemed especially important to some of the young men, who in talking about their emotional problems transgressed gender norms. Conclusions Patient perspectives enrich the understanding of gendered expressions of depression by making visible transgressions of and breaks with stereotype gender norms. Gender awareness is an important key in clinical consultation. To recognize gendered narratives of illness might have a salutary potential, making depression more visible among men, and relieving self-blame among women. By re-evaluating restrictive gender patterns, the clinician might encourage development of healthier practices of how to be a man or a woman, a development especially important for adolescents. An integrated model for understanding biological, gender and cultural aspects of depression has yet to be developed. As general practitioners we have a unique possibility to see and to study the whole individual in her social and cultural context.

Atsižvelgiant į Lietuvos gyventojų amžiaus struktūros pokyčius ir prognozuojamas tendencijas ateityje – vyriausiųjų gyventojų gausėjimą, vidurinės ir jauniausios dalies mažėjimą – Lietuvą galima priskirti prie labiausiai senėjančių šalių pasaulyje, taip pat galima prognozuoti vyresnio amžiaus asmenų ilgalaikės socialinės globos poreikio augimą. Tyrimas, analizuojantis socisaliai globojamų vyresnio amžiaus asmenų gyvenimo kokybę institucinės socialinės globos kontekste, atliktas laikantis konstruktyvistinės grindžiamosios teorijos nuostatų (Charmaz, 2006). Sukurta grindžiamoji teorija atskleidžia socialiai globojamų vyresnio amžiaus asmenų, gyvenančių ilgalaikės socialinė globos įstaigose, subjektyvios gyvenimo kokybės veiksnius. Siekiant suprasti lietuviškos ilgalaikės socialinės globos specifiką, buvo tiriama, kaip kinta gyvenimo kokybės vertinimas gyvenant ilgalaikės socialinės globos įstaigoje, kaip yra išgyvenama krizės patirtis, susijusi su gyvenimo vietos ir būdo pasikeitimu. Grindžiamojoje teorijoje atskleisti septyni gyvenimo kokybės veiksniai. „Galėjimas“ yra ašinė kategorija, suprantama kaip galėjimo atlikti svarbias veiklas, galėjimo palaikyti santykius su reikšmingais asmenimis reali išraiška ar pojūtis. Rezultatus lyginant su artimos metodologijos rėmuose atliktais tyrimais užsienio šalyse, nustatyta, kad kai kurie atskleisti gyvenimo kokybės veiksniai iš dalies sutampa, tačiau taip pat buvo atskleisti gyvenimo kokybės elementai, išskiriantys Lietuvos atvejį iš... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Lithuanian society is aging and need for social services is contsanly increasing. Therefore it is important to understand the increasing role of care services for elderly people, which allows living longer and enjoying better quality of life. Elderly people (+65) who become socially dependent have possibility to move to the residential care institution. The scenario of moving into long-term care institution has big impact on life quality of elderly person. Constructivist grounded theory methodology (Charmaz, 2006) allows to reach field of long-term residential care and analyse subjective quality of life, values and attitudes of elderly socially dependent residents. In the process of constructing grounded theory seven factors of life quality were identified. In the process of data analysis three models of adaptation to new status of socially dependent person and resident of residential home were identified. Research participants experience crisis while changing the living place and moving into residential care home. “Capability” is the main analytical category. Social care institutions and care professional should be aware of the need of methods and skills to effectively manage crises. Results show that such factors as are found in most foreign research areas despite of cultural and social contexts. In Lithuanian society specific factors of life quality is identified.

Our increased knowledge and awareness of the environment and the finite capacity of the world‘s resources has seen increased regional tensions and conflicts over natural resource development and land use planning. This study uses two separate approaches to investigation, incorporating case study method and grounded theory analysis. The region of Clayoquot Sound has a history of land use controversy from which to index the nature and complexity of conflicting interests. In conducting a conflict assessment and thematic frame analysis this study explores the nature of conflicting perceptual frames and arrives at an explanatory theory about how those frames contribute to conflict situations and present barriers to effective communication and participation in collaborative management efforts. The final discussion highlights ways in which approaches to dealing with value diversity can help build shared understandings and reduce biases and mistrust, which tend to exacerbate conflict, and improve capacity for action.

Landfills in British Columbia are reaching capacity; this has sparked renewed efforts to curb the output of household waste. Extending previous quantitative studies, I use a qualitative grounded theory approach to explore what influences the perception of waste and activates the intention to recycle and compost. Participants from Ucluelet, British Columbia, accumulated their refuse, recyclables, and compost during a four week period; simultaneously, I interviewed them about the meanings and feelings they associated with the process. My results suggest that participants' attitudes about waste are strongly influenced by what they see. Because garbage is regularly hauled away and dumped out of sight, participants were relatively unaware of how much they produce and its environmental impact. Increasing awareness appears to be a key factor in changing waste diversion intentions; incorporating small pro-environmental changes may lead to further changes. This reaffirms previous findings that adopting one environmental behaviour can empower further change.

This research addresses the following questions: how do successful professionals cultivate boundary-spanning relationships to develop professional goods; and what lessons can be drawn from their successes? This study uses grounded theory to interpret qualitative interview data from four expert networkers to help demonstrate how successful people in various industries build relationships — and what characteristics these successful networkers have in common. Using grounded theory, five key themes emerged: uncertainty reduction, ingratiation, reciprocity, mentoring relationships and the importance of follow-up. The study of networks has a well-developed body of surrounding literature; however, the current research does little to address how individual actors successfully build the relationships upon which networks are based. Therefore, this qualitative research into the characteristics shared by successful networkers is a positive contribution to the body of knowledge concerning social network theory — and will serve as a guide for those wishing to expand their personal and business networks.

The encounter with death and death anxiety are quite popular themes, which have been researched in the science of psychology for a long time. On the other hand, the research is criticized for frequent simplification of this phenomenon, lack of deeper analysis and understanding, while the concepts are not always used in an accurate manner. After operationalizing the definition of death anxiety, the concept of finality of life is used in research, which is grounded on unique philosophical position and enables to explore the interested phenomenon in a new way, as well as to look at its experiences in a different manner. The method of grounded theory (GT) was selected for research, which allows exploring the interested phenomenon in a comprehensive manner, identifying its essential points and features, and presenting a theoretical model that explains it. 17 healthy subjects of both genders of 22 – 45 year old and four additional subjects, who expanded the research field, participated in research. 2 in-depth interviews were conducted with each of them, they wrote a diary on the researched theme. The collected data were analyzed, according to the principles of classic GT, and the central component of theory – the core category – striving to live more valuably – was distinguished. It is revealed how this theory solves and explains the main concern – inevitability of death. Substantive categories were also revealed, for example: negotiating reality of life and negotiating changes in... [to full text] / Sandūra su mirtimi bei mirties nerimas psichologijos moksle yra pakankamai populiarios ir seniai tyrinėjamos temos. Kita vertus, tyrinėjimai susilaukia kritikos dėl to, kad dažnai šį reiškinį supaprastina, tyrimams trūksta gilesnės analizės bei supratimo, o sąvokos ne visuomet tiksliai vartojamos. Operacionalizavus mirties nerimo apibrėžimą, šiame tyrime naudojamas gyvenimo baigtinumo terminas, kuris grindžiamas savita filosofine pozicija ir leidžia naujai įvertinti dominantį fenomeną bei kitu kampu pažvelgti į jo patyrimą. Tyrinėjimui pasirinktas grindžiamosios teorijos (GT) metodas, kuris leidžia įvairiapusiškai ištirti dominantį reiškinį, išskirti jo esmines vietas ir savybes bei pateikti jį aiškinantį teorinį konstruktą. Tyrime dalyvavo 17 jaunų ir sveikų 22-45 metų abiejų lyčių tiriamųjų bei keturi papildomi tiriamieji, kurie praplėtė tyrimo lauką. Su kiekvienu jų buvo atlikti 2 giluminiai interviu, jie rašė dienoraštį tyrinėjama tema. Surinkti duomenys buvo analizuojamai pagal klasikinės GT principus ir išskirtas centrinis teorijos komponentas - esminė kategorija – siekis gyventi vertingiau. Atskleidžiama, kiek ši sukurta teorija išsprendžia ir paaiškina pagrindinį rūpestį - mirties neišvengiamumą. Atskleistos ir papildomos kategorijos, kaip: derėjimasis su mirties realybe ir derėjimasis su gyvenimo pokyčiais. Sukurta teorija, pristatoma tiek naratyvų, tiek grafinio paveikslėlio pavidalu, suteikia galimybę geriau suprasti, ką išgyvena jauni suaugusieji, patirdami... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

Sandūra su mirtimi bei mirties nerimas psichologijos moksle yra pakankamai populiarios ir seniai tyrinėjamos temos. Kita vertus, tyrinėjimai susilaukia kritikos dėl to, kad dažnai šį reiškinį supaprastina, tyrimams trūksta gilesnės analizės bei supratimo, o sąvokos ne visuomet tiksliai vartojamos. Operacionalizavus mirties nerimo apibrėžimą, šiame tyrime naudojamas gyvenimo baigtinumo terminas, kuris grindžiamas savita filosofine pozicija ir leidžia naujai įvertinti dominantį fenomeną bei kitu kampu pažvelgti į jo patyrimą. Tyrinėjimui pasirinktas grindžiamosios teorijos (GT) metodas, kuris leidžia įvairiapusiškai ištirti dominantį reiškinį, išskirti jo esmines vietas ir savybes bei pateikti jį aiškinantį teorinį konstruktą. Tyrime dalyvavo 17 jaunų ir sveikų 22-45 metų abiejų lyčių tiriamųjų bei keturi papildomi tiriamieji, kurie praplėtė tyrimo lauką. Su kiekvienu jų buvo atlikti 2 giluminiai interviu, jie rašė dienoraštį tyrinėjama tema. Surinkti duomenys buvo analizuojamai pagal klasikinės GT principus ir išskirtas centrinis teorijos komponentas - esminė kategorija – siekis gyventi vertingiau. Atskleidžiama, kiek ši sukurta teorija išsprendžia ir paaiškina pagrindinį rūpestį - mirties neišvengiamumą. Atskleistos ir papildomos kategorijos, kaip: derėjimasis su mirties realybe ir derėjimasis su gyvenimo pokyčiais. Sukurta teorija, pristatoma tiek naratyvų, tiek grafinio paveikslėlio pavidalu, suteikia galimybę geriau suprasti, ką išgyvena jauni suaugusieji, patirdami... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The encounter with death and death anxiety are quite popular themes, which have been researched in the science of psychology for a long time. On the other hand, the research is criticized for frequent simplification of this phenomenon, lack of deeper analysis and understanding, while the concepts are not always used in an accurate manner. After operationalizing the definition of death anxiety, the concept of finality of life is used in research, which is grounded on unique philosophical position and enables to explore the interested phenomenon in a new way, as well as to look at its experiences in a different manner. The method of grounded theory (GT) was selected for research, which allows exploring the interested phenomenon in a comprehensive manner, identifying its essential points and features, and presenting a theoretical model that explains it. 17 healthy subjects of both genders of 22 – 45 year old and four additional subjects, who expanded the research field, participated in research. 2 in-depth interviews were conducted with each of them, they wrote a diary on the researched theme. The collected data were analyzed, according to the principles of classic GT, and the central component of theory – the core category – striving to live more valuably – was distinguished. It is revealed how this theory solves and explains the main concern – inevitability of death. Substantive categories were also revealed, for example: negotiating reality of life and negotiating changes in... [to full text]