Job Crafting – durch Beschäftigte initiierte Veränderungen des Jobs – hat in der Wissenschaft und Praxis in den letzten Jahren einen hohen Stellenwert eingenommen. Die Job Crafting Literatur hebt besonders die positive Seite des Job Craftings hervor – sowohl auf inter- als auch intraindividueller Ebene. Allerdings scheinen Job Crafting und seine Folgen komplexer zu sein und benötigen ein besseres Verständnis. Daher war das Ziel der Dissertation bisherige Job Crafting Theorien anhand von drei Ansätzen zu erweitern. Dafür habe ich vier Studien durchgeführt, aus denen drei Manuskripte hervorgingen. Erstens, in Studie 1 bezog ich mich auf die ressourcen-konsumierende Natur des Job Craftings und fand einen kurvilinearen Job Crafting-Effekt auf das Arbeitsengagement. Dies galt nur für erschöpfte Beschäftigte (d.h. Moderationseffekt). Zweitens, Studie 2 fokussierte sich auf den fluktuierenden Anteil des Job Craftings innerhalb von Beschäftigten (d.h. intraindividuelle Ebene) und untersuchte reziproke Beziehungen zwischen Job Crafting, Arbeitsengagement und Leistung von einer zur nächsten Woche. Daten aus einer wöchentlichen Tagebuchstudie wurden mit Hilfe eines Random-Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Modells (RI-CLPM) analysiert. Es gab keine reziproken Beziehungen zwischen Job Crafting, Arbeitsengagement und Leistung auf intraindividueller Ebene zwischen den Wochen, die Beziehungen waren sehr heterogen. Drittens, in Studien 3 und 4 haben wir die Approach-Avoidance Job Crafting Skala basierend auf dem Approach-Avoidance Crafting Model entwickelt und validiert. Die Skala bildet Approach und Avoidance Crafting als unabhängige Faktoren ab und misst 8 verschiedene Dimensionen resultierend aus einer hierarchischen Struktur, die frühere Job Crafting Konzepte integriert. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigten inkrementelle Validität von Approach und Avoidance Crafting bei der Vorhersage von arbeitsbezogenen Outcomes. / Job crafting – employee-initiated changes to the job – has received a high priority in science and practice in the recent years. Job crafting literature often emphasizes its positive effects – both at the between-person and within-person level. However, job crafting and its consequences seem to be more complex and, thus needs further understanding. Doing so, the aim of the dissertation was to expand current job crafting theories by using three approaches. Therefore, I conducted four studies resulting in three manuscripts. Firstly, in Study 1, I referred to the resource-consuming nature of job crafting and found a curvilinear effect (U-shaped curve) of the job crafting strategy crafting social resources (i.e., increasing social resources) on work engagement. This only applied to exhausted employees (i.e., a moderation effect). Secondly, in Study 2 focused on the fluctuating portion of job crafting within employees and investigated reciprocal relationships between job crafting, work engagement, and performance from one week to the next at the within-person level. Data from a weekly diary study were analyzed with a random-intercept cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM). There were no reciprocal relationships between job crafting, work engagement, and performance at the within-person level across weeks, rather the relations were more heterogeneous than anticipated. Thirdly, in Study 3 and 4, we developed and validated the Approach-Avoidance Job Crafting Scale based on my approach-avoidance crafting model. The scale depicts approach and avoidance crafting as two independent factors and assesses eight different job crafting dimensions. These result from a hierarchical structure in which previous job crafting concepts are integrated. Our results showed that approach and avoidance crafting have incremental validity in predicting work-related outcomes beyond previous job crafting scales.

Nanophotonische Systeme sind eine leistungsfähige Plattform für die Untersuchung von Licht-Materie-Wechselwirkungen. In solchen Systemen bricht die übliche Beschreibung einer elektromagnetischen Welle als eine Welle, die in Bezug auf ihre Ausbreitungsrichtung transversal polarisiert ist, zusammen. Dies ist auf die Einengung der geführten Lichtfelder zurückzuführen, welche zu einer longitudinalen Komponente der elektromagnetischen Felder führt. In dieser Arbeit nutzen wir dies in Verbindung mit unterschiedlichen Kopplungsstärken von Cäsiumatomen an \sigma^- und \sigma^+ polarisiertes Licht, um das Prinzip neuartiger nicht-reziproker optischer Bauelemente zu demonstrieren. Im ersten Teil dieser Arbeit demonstrieren wir die nicht-reziproke Verstärkung von fasergeführtem Licht mit Hilfe von Raman-Verstärkung durch spinpolarisierte Cäsiumatome, die an die Nanofasertaille eines verjüngten Faserabschnitts gekoppelt sind. Wir zeigen, dass unser neuartiger Mechanismus kein externes Magnetfeld benötigt und dass wir die Richtung der Verstärkung vollständig über den atomaren Spinzustand kontrollieren können. Darüber hinaus nutzen wir die chirale Licht-Materie-Wechselwirkung in unserem System, um einen nicht-reziproken antisymmetrischen optischen Phasenschieber zu realisieren. Diese Ergebnisse tragen zur Etablierung einer neuen Klasse von spin-gesteuerten, nicht-reziproken integrierten optischen Bauelementen bei und können den Aufbau komplexer optischer Netzwerke vereinfachen. In einem weiteren Forschungsprojekt tragen wir zum grundlegenden Verständnis von Atomen bei, indem wir die Lebensdauer eines angeregten Cäsiumzustands präzise messen. Wir messen die Lebensdauer des Cäsium 5D_{5/2} Zustands im freien Raum. Wir finden eine Lebensdauer von 1353(5) ns, die mit einer aktuellen theoretischen Vorhersage übereinstimmt. Unsere Messung trägt dazu bei, eine seit langem bestehende Unstimmigkeit zwischen verschiedenen experimentellen und theoretischen Ergebnissen zu beseitigen. / Nanophotonic systems are a powerful platform for the study of light-matter interactions. In such systems, the common description of an electromagnetic wave as a wave that is transversely polarized with respect to its propagation direction breaks down. This is due to the tight confinement of the guided light fields, which leads to a longitudinal component of the electromagnetic fields. In this thesis, we use this in conjunction with different coupling strengths of cesium atoms to \sigma^- and \sigma^+ polarized light to provide proof-of-principle demonstrations of novel non-reciprocal optical devices. In the first part of this thesis, we demonstrate non-reciprocal amplification of fiber-guided light using Raman gain provided by spin-polarized cesium atoms that are coupled to the nanofiber waist of a tapered fiber section. We show that our novel mechanism does not require an external magnetic field and that it allows us to fully control the direction of amplification via the atomic spin state. Moreover, we use the chiral light-matter interaction in our system to implement a non-reciprocal antisymmetric optical phase shifter. These results contribute to establishing a new class of spin-controlled, non-reciprocal integrated optical devices and may simplify the construction of complex optical networks. In an additional research project, we also contribute to the fundamental understanding of atoms by precisely measuring the lifetime of an excited cesium state. We measure the lifetime of the cesium 5D_{5/2} state in free space. We find a lifetime of 1353(5) ns, in agreement with a recent theoretical prediction. Our measurement contributes to resolving a long-standing disagreement between several experimental and theoretical results.

<p><strong> </strong>Comparison of tissue-specific gene expression profiles between sibling species and their F1 interspecific hybrids are expected to reveal important information about the mechanisms involved in speciation and species divergence. In the present study, the expression of 40 candidate genes were analyzed using qRT-PCR in the testis, ovary and head tissues (both male and female) among the hybrids and their parental species. The expression patterns of these genes were profiled via quantification of misexpression (both over- and under-expression) relative to that of their parents as well as across tissues. We set out to answer several questions as well as test the following hypotheses: (1) Do <em>Drosophila</em> sibling species differ in tissue-specific distribution of gene expression? (2) Do males and females differ in tissue specific distribution of expression? (3) Do reciprocal crosses differ in patterns of gene misexpression suggesting X-effect? (4) Do sex and non-sex genes differ in extent of gene misexpression? The results of this study gave rise to two important findings. First, it was found that while the majority of genes showed head and testis expression in <em>Drosophila melanogaster</em>, more genes showed head and ovary expression in <em>D. sechellia</em>. Second, we observed differences in gene misexpression between reciprocal <em>D. simulans </em>and <em>D. sechellia</em> hybrid females, suggesting the role of maternal effect. Thus, these findings supply a wealth of data regarding tissue-specific expression in both fertile females and sterile male hybrids, the former of which have largely been ignored, as well as advance our understanding of the process of species divergence and speciation. Ultimately, this thesis will provide a contribution to the field of gene regulatory evolution.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

<p><strong>Background:</strong> Developmental neuroscience research suggests that relative differences in emerging social skills between very young children with ASD may influence the trajectories of multiple important developmental domains, such as language ability. Such “cascade” associations between developmental trajectories may contribute in important ways to the substantial heterogeneity in symptoms and functioning seen in children with ASD. However, longitudinal research has yet to test such “cascade” models of change in children diagnosed with ASD.</p> <p><strong>Objectives:</strong> In this dissertation I aimed to model cascade patterns of association between social competence and language ability pathways in the year after diagnosis of ASD in preschool-aged children. Data for 365 participants aged 2-4 years old who had been recently diagnosed with ASD and followed prospectively were obtained from the “Pathways To Better Outcomes in ASD Study”.</p> <p><strong>Methods:</strong> Study 1 aimed to determine whether social competence and structural language ability could be measured as distinct constructs that were invariant over time and between clinically relevant groups of young children with ASD. Study 2 modeled longitudinal reciprocal associations between these domains. Study 3 addressed the issue of variability and change within this sample, and tested whether baseline levels and rate of change in one domain were associated with subsequent growth in the other.</p> <p><strong>Results:</strong> Social competence and language ability constructs were measurably distinct and invariant in a young sample comprising verbal and non-verbal children with ASD. Only small reciprocal cascade effects were evident between social and language pathways. Levels of social competence at time of diagnosis were significantly associated with subsequent language growth.</p> <p><strong>Conclusions:</strong> In preschoolers with ASD, advantages in social competence as measured at time of diagnosis appear to “spill over” in a feed-forward cascade model to influence progress in language ability. Social competence and language ability then appear to develop along more specialized, less interrelated pathways.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Bakgrund: Psykisk ohälsa är ett omfattande begrepp som innefattar såväl diagnoser, tillstånd och symtom. Behandlingen är idag psykologisk samt farmakologisk men även fysisk aktivitet rekommenderas. Främst beskrivs betydelsen av fysisk aktivitet i grupp. Exempel på fysioterapeutiska behandlingar gentemot patientgruppen är anpassad fysisk aktivitet och olika former av kropps-och medvetandeträning. Vidare kan fysioterapeuter med ett beteendemedicinskt synsätt arbeta med att integrera biologiska, psykologiska och sociala faktorer.  Syfte: Syftet med studien var att beskriva fysioterapeuters erfarenheter av gruppträning för patienter med mild till måttlig psykisk ohälsa. Metod: Deskriptiv kvalitativ design. Med ett ändamålsenligt urval och snöbollsurval rekryterades sex fysioterapeuter inom mellersta Sverige. Vidare tillämpades en kvalitativ innehållsanalys med induktiv ansats. Resultat: Studien resulterade i fem kategorier: ”Viktiga faktorer för deltagande”, ”Barriärer för följsamhet”, ”Upplevda effekter av rörelse i grupp”, ”Flera träningsformer och strukturer kan fungera” och ”Ledarens personliga egenskaper och yrkesskicklighet gynnar medverkan”.  Slutsats: Studien bidrar till en ökad förståelse av faktorer som fysioterapeuten anser vara betydande för patienters deltagande, motivation och följsamhet till gruppträning. I resultatet framkommer också erfarenheter av att gruppträning är ett bra behandlingsalternativ och att den gruppdynamiska processen är fördelaktig för patientgruppen. / Background: Mental illness is a comprehensive concept that includes both diagnoses, conditions, and symptoms. Treatment is currently psychological and pharmacological, but physical activity is also recommended. Mainly the importance of physical activity in a group is described. Examples of physiotherapeutic treatments for the patient group are adapted physical activity and various forms of body and mind training. Furthermore, physiotherapists with a behavioral medicine approach can work to integrate biological, psychological, and social factors. Aim: The aim of the study was to describe physiotherapists experiences of group exercise for patients with mild to moderate mental illness. Method: Descriptive qualitative design. Based on a purposive sampling and snowball sampling were six physiotherapists recruited in central Sweden. Furthermore, a qualitative content analysis with an inductive approach was applied. Results: The study resulted in five categories: “Important factors for participation”,” Barriers to compliance”, “Perceived effects of movement in a group”, “Several training forms and structures can work”, and “The leader's personal characteristics and professional skills favor participation”. Conclusion: The study contributes to an increased understanding of factors that the physiotherapist considers to be significant for patients' participation, motivation, and adherence to group training. The results also reveal experiences that group training is a good treatment option and that the group dynamic process is beneficial for the patients rehabilitation.

International reading comprehension studies, like PIRLS and PISA, state that the reading comprehension of Swedish students has decreased significantly since 2000. As a consequence, the National Agency of Education has made reading comprehension teaching a prioritised field in terms of further education for teachers. There has also been a change in Lgr 11, the national curriculum for compulsory school, where it is stated that teaching in reading strategies shall be a part of the central content throughout compulsory school. When the pupils reach upper secondary school level, reading comprehension education is no longer a part of the curriculum. Today, students at upper secondary school for individuals with learning disabilities currently share the same curriculum as the ordinary upper secondary school. As from July 1st 2013, the new upper secondary school for individuals with learning disabilities will start, and the new curricula for each subject for these school forms will be in use (National Agency of Education). The Swedish Schools Inspectorate and several reports indicate that there are deficiencies concerning too low challenges on individual level in the teaching of Swedish at upper secondary level for students with learning disabilities. The teaching is predominantly on individual level, causing lack of interaction between students. One main school objective is to prepare these students for an active participation in society. It is vital that students receive instructions when reading, in order to increase their reading comprehension. The basis of the study is a research based teaching program for reading comprehension teaching, called Reciprocal teaching (Palinscar and Brown 1984). The program has been modified and modernised with the aid of interactive media and the computer program Power Point. The aim of the study is to examine whether the reading comprehension and the motivation for reading are affected by the teaching program Reciprocal teaching. Method: Three 17-year-old students at upper secondary school for individuals with learning disabilities have participated in the study for four weeks. During the study, the students' participation and commitment were observed. The reading comprehension was tested before and after taking part of the program. Result: According to tests, the ability to decode a text has increased for all the students, which is an important factor for understanding a text. The commitment and motivation have increased and the students state that reading and talking about texts together was good. Interactive media with graphical support combined with structured questions from the teacher contributed to the students' increased commitment.

Economics as a subject is one of the sciences that is required for any nation's development, but its teaching and learning has not being easy, which has resulted in poor student achievement. In search of solutions, this study has considered the reflective-reciprocal teaching technique and investigates its effectiveness on student teachers' academic achievement and attitude in the subject. Four Null hypotheses were formulated to guide this study. The study adopted the quantitative method of inquiry, using specifically a pre-test, post-test quasi-experimental design. Three Colleges of Education out of 22 federal Colleges of Education in Nigeria were purposively selected based on certain criteria to be the sites for the study. The sample for the study consisted of 178 second year Economics student teachers; the participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group or a control group. The pre-test scores of the participants was obtained using achievement test, numerical ability test questionnaire. Participants in the experimental group were exposed to six weeks of teaching using the reflective-reciprocal teaching strategy while participants in the control group were exposed to the traditional method of teaching. The quantitative data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics in the form of proportions, frequencies, means and standard deviations, independent t- tests and paired t-tests to compare differences between two groups, Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and ANOVA for repeated measures. The Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) aspect of ANCOVA was used to determine the magnitude of the performance of the groups. The findings of the study show that there exists a significant difference in the achievement of student-teachers in Economics when taught using reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies compared to the conventional method. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that Economics student teachers should make effective use of reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies in the classroom in order to further enhance the achievement of their students in the subject. In addition, the Federal and States Ministries of Education should encourage the use of the reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies by organizing workshops for educational trainers and teachers to better equip them in the use of the reflective-reciprocal teaching strategy. The use of reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies should be encouraged in other teaching subjects as well. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / M. Ed. (Didactics)

Economics as a subject is one of the sciences that is required for any nation's development, but its teaching and learning has not being easy, which has resulted in poor student achievement. In search of solutions, this study has considered the reflective-reciprocal teaching technique and investigates its effectiveness on student teachers' academic achievement and attitude in the subject. Four Null hypotheses were formulated to guide this study. The study adopted the quantitative method of inquiry, using specifically a pre-test, post-test quasi-experimental design. Three Colleges of Education out of 22 federal Colleges of Education in Nigeria were purposively selected based on certain criteria to be the sites for the study. The sample for the study consisted of 178 second year Economics student teachers; the participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group or a control group. The pre-test scores of the participants was obtained using achievement test, numerical ability test questionnaire. Participants in the experimental group were exposed to six weeks of teaching using the reflective-reciprocal teaching strategy while participants in the control group were exposed to the traditional method of teaching. The quantitative data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics in the form of proportions, frequencies, means and standard deviations, independent t- tests and paired t-tests to compare differences between two groups, Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and ANOVA for repeated measures. The Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA) aspect of ANCOVA was used to determine the magnitude of the performance of the groups. The findings of the study show that there exists a significant difference in the achievement of student-teachers in Economics when taught using reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies compared to the conventional method. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that Economics student teachers should make effective use of reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies in the classroom in order to further enhance the achievement of their students in the subject. In addition, the Federal and States Ministries of Education should encourage the use of the reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies by organizing workshops for educational trainers and teachers to better equip them in the use of the reflective-reciprocal teaching strategy. The use of reflective-reciprocal teaching strategies should be encouraged in other teaching subjects as well. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / M. Ed. (Didactics)

Published works cite that 70-80% of the total cost of a product is established during conceptual design, and that improvements in time-to-market, quality, affordability, and global competitiveness require the development of better approaches to assist decision-making during the early stages of product design, as well as facilitate enterprise knowledge management and reuse. For many years, concurrent engineering and teaming have been viewed as “the answer” to product development woes, but studies reveal teaming is not sufficient to handle the task complexities of product development and the long-term goal of enterprise learning. The work of Roberto Verganti provides new insights with regard to reciprocal interdependencies (RIs), feedforward planning, selective anticipation in the context of improving teaming and concurrent engineering, as well as enterprise learning, knowledge management, reuse. In this research, reciprocal interdependencies management (RIM) is offered as a means of addressing product development and concurrent engineering issues occurring in the early stages of design. RIM is combination of Verganti’s concepts, a conceptual RIs structure, new RIM-application strategies, RIM-diagramming, and a conceptual RIM-based decisions support system, which come together to form a vision of a RIM-based enterprise knowledge management system. The conceptual RIM-based DSS is presented using the specific case of supporting a working-level integrated product team (IPT) engaged in the design of an aircraft bulkhead. A qualitative assessment tool is used to compare RIM to other approaches in the literature, and initial results are very favorable.

This thesis explores the implications of René Girard’s mimetic theory on Genesis 1 and 2 in the Old Testament. It tests the extent to which Genesis 1 and 2 are structured sacrificially or mythically as outlined by Girard. René Girard’s theory is summarized and clarified as to how the theory can be applied to biblical texts. In addition, Girard’s theory is explained in the context of theory-making in late modernity, and critiques of Girard from biblical, anthropological, sociological, and theological perspectives are addressed. A sacrificial structure is explored in Genesis and Exodus that informs the exegesis of Genesis 1 and 2. The critical elements in Girard’s scapegoat mechanism—acquisitive desire leading to rivalry, crisis, and ultimately to an expulsion—are examined in the expulsion of the Hebrews from Egypt (Exodus 1) and the expulsions of Abraham and Isaac in Genesis (Gen 12-21). A particular pattern takes shape that structures the narratives in the Pentateuch. An exegesis of Israel’s narrative of origins in Genesis 1 and 2 follows, incorporating Girard’s theoretical insights with higher critical methods conventionally employed to the Old Testament. The thesis discovers striking parallels with Israel’s narrative of origins. They are indeed sacrificially structured, but they also interrogate that structure and describe an alternative sacrificial response. The sacrifice that Yahweh instigates dismantles the mythical structure even as it moves through the sequence. The thesis concludes with a validation of Girard’s theory and explains how Girard’s theory can be useful to the current exegetical tasks. / Biblical and Ancient studies / D. Th. (Old Testament)