Accounting for the environmental and social impacts produced by the business or Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), has arguably been one of the main topics and requisites within urban sustainability. Large companies having more impacts on the environment and the society due to amongst others the more diverse background of stakeholders and the more use of resources are more in the spotlight to implement CSR in their business. Companies which carelessly aim mainly for profitability and give less care to the environment are more and more proving to loose sustainability in their lifeline (Waldman, Kenett, & Zilberg, n.d.).This paper, using IKEA as a case study, has demonstrated the importance of CSR in larger firms. It has well demonstrated how and why large firms engage in CSR activities and how it could further enhance these activities in the upcoming demanding future. This has been done by presenting three theories, CSR communication, proactive and reactive CSR and motives for CSR. These theories principally show the effectiveness of CSR communication and a framework for successful internal and external communication; the difference and benefits of proactive and reactive CSR and which is more desirable; and finally the motives companies have to engage in both reactive and proactive CSR activities. With the help of these theories in the analysis section, this paper demonstrates how IKEA has used CSR in its framework to rebuild its reputation and how it has improved its sustainability by using proactive CSR strategies. The study further demonstrates how IKEA has proven that they are caring in gaining a sustainable future and presents some thoughts for further studies and practices.

Samhället utvecklas snabbt med avseende på teknik där patent utgör en viktig del. Att söka patent på en uppfinning eller inte, är ett strategiskt beslut. Det krävs ett omfattande analysarbete för att uppnå ett effektivt patent och för att undvika misstag. Idag är kunskapen om patent bland innovatörer inte tillräckligt hög och en högskoleutbildning för patentingenjörer saknas. I denna rapport undersöks produktframtagning med avseende på patent. Arbetet utgör en analys och jämförelse mellan litteratur och praktik där intervjustudie med intervjuguide och kodning tillämpats. Deltagare i studien har varit stora företag med omfattande och lång erfarenhet inom patent. De motiv och fördelar med att söka patent som framkom är följande: ● Uppnå ensamrätt till försäljning och tillverkning ● Förhindra kopiering och imitation ● Alstra kompetensutbyte med konkurrenter ● Öka inkomster genom monopol på marknaden samt licensiering eller försäljning av patentportföljer ● Möjliggöra samarbeten ● Uppmuntra intern utveckling genom målsättningar kring antal patent per år ● Uppnå förbättrad image och möjlighet att attrahera kompetent personal Till skillnad från dessa fördelar finns även två genomgående nackdelar: enkelhet att kringgå patent, liksom förändringar i vår omvärld, vilka kan vara svårt att förutse vid ansökningsdatumet och kan därmed påverka framtida inkomster. Ytterligare nackdelar finns och kan sammanfattas under rubriken kostnader. Dessa gäller både stora och små företag, men de mindre påverkas mer procentuellt sett och misstag kan resultera i mer allvarliga ekonomiska konsekvenser. Slutligen belyser rapporten ett antal aspekter som bör beaktas innan man ansöker om patent för att uppnå en hög effektivitet hos patentet som verktyg inom produktframtagning. / Society is developing rapidly in terms of technology, where patents are an important part. Applying for a patent on an invention or not, is a strategic decision. Extensive analytical work is required to achieve an effective patent and to avoid mistakes. Today knowledge about patents among innovators is not high enough and a university degree for patent engineers is lacking. This report examines product development regarding patents. The work is an analysis and comparison between literature and practice, where an interview study with an interview guide and coding has been applied. Participants in the study are large companies that have deep and long experience in patents. A number of motives and benefits of applying for a patent are to: ● Achieve exclusive sales and manufacturing rights ● Prevent copying and imitation ● Generate skills exchange with competitors ● Increase income through monopoly on the market as well as licensing or selling patent portfolios ● Enable collaborations ● Encourage internal development through targets for the number of patent applications per year ● Achieve an increased image and the opportunity to attract competent staff In contrast to these advantages, there are also two general disadvantages: simplicity in circumventing patents, as well as changes in our environment, which can be difficult to predict on the application date and can thus affect future income. Additional disadvantages exist and they can be gathered under the headline costs. These apply to both large and small companies, but for the smaller companies high costs have a greater impact and mistakes can lead to more severe financial consequences.

Social anxiety disorder (SAD) and alcohol use disorders (AUDs; i.e., alcohol dependence, alcohol abuse) are highly prevalent and potentially debilitating. They also commonly co-occur, and when they do, their combined effect may be even more devastating. The onset of SAD most commonly precedes the onset of AUDs, suggesting that SAD may be a marker or risk factor for the onset of these other disorders. Previous research has not sufficiently examined the mechanisms involved in the development of AUDs, and longitudinal research is lacking. The current study examined mechanisms related to the development of AUDs among incoming college freshman students at two large universities in the United States. Incoming freshmen are at higher risk for developing symptoms consistent with SAD, particularly during their first semester, and they may be more likely to cope with their symptoms of anxiety by drinking alcohol. The current study aimed to explicate the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol consumption in college freshmen. Baseline data collection occurred late in the summer after registration for the Fall semester or early in the Fall semester. Follow-up data collection occurred later in the Fall semester. It was expected that social anxiety, the quantity and frequency of drinking alcohol (including frequency of intoxication), and alcohol-related problems would increase among the freshmen over the course of the fall semester. Additionally, several relationships among the variables being examined were hypothesized. Drinking motives, symptoms of depression, and quality of life were expected to mediate the relationship between social anxiety and the drinking outcome variables. In addition, expectancies about alcohol consumption were expected to moderate the mediated relationship. However, there were no increases in social anxiety, alcohol consumption, or alcohol-related problems between baseline and follow-up. There were few hypothesized relationships found, although there was a positive relationship between social anxiety and negative alcohol expectancies and a negative relationship between social anxiety and quality of life. Model testing generated one promising model in which the relationship of positive expectancies regarding alcohol use to alcohol use and problems was mediated by coping with anxiety drinking motives. In particular, the main effect of positive expectancies of alcohol and coping with anxiety drinking motives generated a medium effect whereas the other relationships generated small to medium effects. Clinical implications and limitations of the current study are discussed. / Psychology

Media theorists have identified five models explaining media content: reflection, media routines, personal characteristics, extrinsic forces and manipulation. This study looks at diversity and controversy in newspaper comic strips to test the models that 1) media content is determined by personal characteristics of the decision maker; and 2) media content is determined by forces extrinsic to the decision maker. It was found that in the majority of cases the personal characteristics of the newspaper editor were more important in determining which diverse and controversial comic strips he/she will publish. However, it was found that no single model completely explains how editors make decisions concerning controversial and diverse material, but instead a variety of decision making models, including reflection, media routines, personal characteristics, and extrinsic forces, influence editor’s decision making. / Master of Science

Esports is a growing cultural phenomenon with a large number of stakeholders such as professional players, audiences, sponsors, game developers, and competitive events like tournaments, championships and leagues. This thesis studies spectator experiences in e-sports; exploring the factors that make for an enjoyable spectatorship experience. The study takes a qualitative approach involving questionnaire and interviews. A total of 30 questionnaire responses and 4 interviews were used to identify 5 factors that make for a good viewing experience. They are moments of great skill, live commentary, favorite teams/players and social aspects, watching the game in person, and intense matches. The research findings provide insights that can inform the development of strategies to optimize and enrich the spectatorship experience, thus contributing to the continued growth and success of esports as a form of entertainment.

Elevated social anxiety is a well-documented risk factor for developing problematic alcohol use behaviors. Adolescents with high social anxiety often report drinking for coping-related reasons, and drinking to cope has been linked to both acute and chronic alcohol use problems. Research further suggests that parenting is a primary socialization domain in terms of adolescent alcohol use onset and trajectory; however, no work has yet examined the role of parenting factors in the relation between social anxiety and coping motives for drinking. The current study investigated the role of two parenting dimensions, rejection/warmth and psychological control, on the link between social anxiety and problematic drinking motives. Drawing from an ongoing assessment of an inpatient program, the sample consisted of 94 girls and boys (ages 11-17 years). Regression analyses evaluated main effects of social anxiety, rejection, psychological control, the interactive effects of the parenting dimensions, and the three-way interaction of both parenting dimensions with social anxiety on coping motives for alcohol use. As expected, social anxiety was positively and statistically significantly related to coping motives when examined via raw scores, proportional values, and in the final model. Further, zero-order correlations indicated a positive, statistically significant relation between proportional coping motives and both rejection and psychological control; however, no other hypothesis was supported. Collectively, this body of work underscores the potential benefit of integrating social stress and anxiety management in problematic alcohol use intervention efforts, as well as drinking motive education in efforts targeting social anxiety.

In this thesis, I demonstrate how I use leitmotif in a programmatic context in my original orchestral suite, The Legend of Two Rings.

Growing issues such as climate crises, social injustice and neglection of basic human rights have created a new type of consumption, namely ethical consumption. Ethical consumption was initially mainly concerned for environmental issues but has in later years starting to include a variety of pressing issues. Ethical consumption was also initially mainly connected to groups of extremists, but with the increasing availability of ethical products in mainstream outlets, ethical consumption has shifted to be a mainstream consumer game. Mainstream ethical consumption has largely been neglected in previous research where the field is lacking knowledge in form of qualitative behavioral data. Departing from the gap, this study will mainly focus on exploring the motives for ethical consumption in the mainstream consumer segment. We will examine several driving forces in form of altruistic-based motives, egoistic-based motives, and non-value-based motives. However, in order to give this an additional dimension we also want to examine the level of morality of ethical consumption by using five ethical theories. This approach has been overlooked in previous ethical consumption research and it will question the basic assumption that ethical consumption is the morally correct thing to do. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore the motivational factors for ethical consumption and through the lens of ethical theories examine the level of morality of this behavior. In order to fulfill this purpose we have conducted a qualitative study within the context of organic groceries in the Swedish market. Organic groceries is a branch of ethical consumption that few studies has examined before, and that applies especially to the Swedish market. 14 mainstream consumers have been interviewed were all of these were frequent buyers of organic groceries. The interviews were conducted in a semi-structured fashion which was then analyzed by the use of thematic analysis. Furthermore, the study was guided by an exploratory inductive approach where subjectivity played a significant part. The results show that ethical consumption is driven by altruistic-based motives in form of social justice, where consumer want their consumption to benefit other. However, it is far from the only motive because ethical consumers are equally driven by egoistic motives. The result show that consumers are driven strongly by the sense of self- satisfaction created by the force of social norms, health and wellbeing, and product quality. This duality of motives creates a paradoxical tension in form of a win-win situation where the consumers strive for both the benefit of self as well as the benefit of others. Furthermore, ethical consumption is driven by habitual behavior where the consumers rely much on mental shortcuts in their purchases. Consumers are also not well- informed about ethical products and labels and therefore rely heavily on mythical benefits. In addition, when examining the level of morality of ethical consumption we can conclude that it is on level between mediocre to high. From a consequentialist and a non- consequentialist perspective the level of morality is fairly high, but from a character-based perspective the morality stumbles.

Breast-baring occurs in fifth century Attic tragedy in a variety of situations, but almost always within a mournful context. Many connotations of the naked breast—vulnerability, womanhood, motherhood, and voluntary humiliation—can be evoked. Breast-baring can be a precursor of the death of the woman who exposes herself or of the death of the person to whom she makes the gesture. The most commonly represented context is the supplication of a son by a mother, a topos which finds its origin in Hecuba’s supplication of Hector (Il. 22.79-89). As a consistent failure, breast-baring during supplication reinforces the idea, commonly held in the society of the time, that female power is inferior to male power. The motivations for the gesture will be examined both within the respective literary contexts and within the society of the period. / Classics and World Languages / MA (Classical Studies)

This Ph.D. thesis is aimed at inbound tourism in the Czech Republic, analysis of statistical data and their development in the period of years 2004 -- 2013, characteristics of the main source markets for the Czech Republic, and analysis of motives regarding participants of outbound tourism to the Czech Republic in the observed countries. The principal aim is to analyze and compare intensity of motives of the selected geographic, demographic, socio-economic, and behavioral segments for visits to the Czech Republic. An integral part of the aim is to suggest further possibilities of the motivation research and their exploitation in the marketing practice of the tourism industry. The author defines all theoretical terms closely connected with the tourism market segmentation, motives and motivations to travel including interesting view of them throughout history. It is evident that the travel motives influenced by various factors are differentiated parallely with the human society development. The author characterizes the Czech Republic destination offer and evaluates its inbound tourism in the period of years 2004 -- 2013 by means of 4 main indicators: number of guests, number of overnight stays, average length of stay, foreign currency incomes. The author also evaluates the researches focused on perception of the Czech Republic abroad that was carried out by the institutions representing the Czech Republic abroad. The detailed analysis of travel motivations was performed by the author herself in the form of questionnaires. Results of these analyses bring impulses to other possibilities of the research in the field of inbound tourism not only in the academic sphere but also in research work of state and public authorities, and in practice when creating tourism products and communications mix.