No description available.

Thesis (doctoral)--Helsinki University of Technology, 2003. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Jan. 9, 2007). Includes bibliographical references (p. 239-256). Also issued in print.

"Acoustic Ecology and Sound Mapping the University of Central Florida Main Campus" explores the intersection of place and space, sound studies and acoustic ecology, visualization, and archives. The end result consists of a collection of "soundwalk" and stationary recordings conducted from 2016-2019 at the University of Central Florida (UCF) main campus in Orlando presented as an online Sound Map. This archive previously did not exist and provides a snapshot of the various sounds heard throughout the campus as well as a starting point and context for future research into this still-emerging field of acoustic ecology and sound studies. While the individual recordings help to provide a sense of place at the university, they also represent a benchmark from a public history standpoint to interpret sonic change over time.

A common phenomenon is that larger cities have different place identities; therefore, this thesis is based on the case of Malmö since it is Sweden's third largest city. The purpose was to explore how Malmö’s place image coheres to its place identity, and how the duality of Malmö influences the place image.   The research was based on a qualitative case study with an abductive approach since the purpose was explorative. Furthermore, the developed conceptual framework of this thesis was based on previous research regarding place branding, more specifically, place image and place identity. The empirical material in this thesis was collected through a comprehensive user-generated content analysis of Instagram posts as well as through two semis-structured focus groups with people living outside of Malmö.   Findings revealed that the place image and place identity cohered in some aspects, while in other aspects the place image differs from the place identity. Furthermore, the findings revealed a complex duality within the city; thus, the place identity of Malmö sends out dual messages which influenced the place image that strengthened the duality of Malmö.   The findings of this thesis have contributed with insights to the field of place branding since the concept of place image has not been related to dualities within cities in previous research.The limitations of this thesis were that the participants in the focus groups were from the same university which might have influenced their perception. Another limitation was that only people aged 35 or younger participated. Due to Covid-19, it was hard to find people older than 35 to the focus groups and the result could receive a broader perspective if the participants were older. These limitations could be considered in future research to receive the place image of a broader age range. Furthermore, future research could consider complementing the method of this thesis with focus groups to expose both the positive and negative side of Malmö.

This paper discusses how a profit-pursuing economic man turning to a social man with the sense of ¡¥place¡¦. Using the case study of Taiwanese businessmen investing land in Vietnam, this thesis argues that such an imagined ¡¥mobile capital¡¦ might be turning to the capital embedded in the local place. Based on grounded theory, the author interviewed 20 persons in Vietnam to understand their life trajectories, and their current situations in Vietnam. The result shows that Taiwanese businesspeople in different industries, which locate their production in different locations, have different senses of place attachment. Language ability and the intimate life with local people will affect their attachment to the local place.

Forskningsproblem -  Hur kan kommunikationen av Luleås platsvarumärke utformas för att öka möjligheten att behålla flera studenter i kommunen efter avslutad examen för att öka kompetensförsörjningen? Metod - En litteratursammanställning genomfördes i syfte att undersöka tidigare skriven litteratur inom ämnet. Ett teoretiskt ramverk sammanställdes därefter och har fungerat som en grund för intervjuguiden men också för upplägget på empiri- och analyskapitlen. Datainsamlingen genomfördes i form av semistrukturerade intervjuer med studenter från två olika utbildningskategorier vid Luleå tekniska universitet, civilekonomer och civilingenjörer.   Resultat - Studenter från utbildningskategorierna civilekonom och civilingenjör har en relativt gemensam syn på Luleå som en plats att bo och jobba på. Majoriteten av respondenterna  kan inte tänka sig bo kvar i Luleå efter avslutad examen. För att förmedla Luleås platsvarumärke till studenter föredrar majoriteten av båda utbildningskategorierna, civilekonom och civilingenjör, Instagram som den huvudsakliga kommunikationskanalen men även Facebook. Teoretiska implikationer - Denna studie har bidragit till kunskap om hur invånare ur ett intressentperspektiv kan användas för att öka förståelsen mellan kopplingen platsimage och avsedda målgrupper. Studien bidrar även med kunskap inom place branding och miljömässig hållbarhet.  Praktiska implikationer - Studiens resultat är användbart vid utformningen och utvecklingen av kommunikationen för Luleås platsvarumärke i syfte att öka möjligheten att behålla fler studenter i kommunen efter avslutad examen för att öka kompetensförsörjningen. Mer specifikt ett utökat samarbete mellan Luleå tekniska universitet, Luleå kommun och Luleå näringsliv med fokus att skapa en gemensam, ärlig och kreativ platskommunikation av Luleå som stad. / Research problem - How can the communication of Luleå's place brand be designed to increase the possibility of retaining more students in the municipality after graduation in order to increase the supply of skills? Method - A literature review was carried out with the aim of examining previously written literature within the subject. A theoretical framework was then compiled and has served as a basis for the interview guide but also for the layout of the empirical and analysis chapters. The data collection was carried out in the form of semi-structured interviews with students from two different educational categories at Luleå University of Technology, students in business and economics and civil engineers. Results - Students from the education categories business and economics and engineering have a relatively common view of Luleå as a place to live and work. The majority of respondents cannot imagine staying in Luleå after completing their degree. To convey Luleå's place brand to students, the majority of both education categories, business and economics and civil engineers prefer Instagram as the main communication channel but also Facebook.  Theoretical implications - This study has contributed to knowledge about how residents from a stakeholder perspective can be used to increase understanding between the connection between place image and intended target groups. The study also contributes knowledge in place branding and environmental sustainability. Practical implications - The results of the study are useful in the design and development of the communication for Luleå's place brand in order to increase the possibility of retaining more students in the municipality after completing the degree in order to increase the supply of skills. More specifically, an expanded collaboration between Luleå University of Technology, Luleå municipality and Luleå business with a focus on creating a common, honest and creative place communication of Luleå as a city.

This thesis is an examination of the extent to which the work of Christa Wolf post-unification can be interpreted as Wolf's response to the attacks on her in the 'deutsch-deutscher Literaturstreit' of 1990 and to the negative publicity generated by her Stasi revelations in January 1993. This thesis will also consider Wolf's post-unification work in the context of her characteristic aesthetic of 'subjektive Authentizität'. Chapter One examines the nature of the accusations levelled against Wolf in both the 'Literaturstreit' and the media furore following her Stasi revelations, notably the allegations of complicity with the SED regime and prolonged allegiance to socialist ideals. The chapter also discusses criticism, expressed in these controversies, of Wolf’s writing as 'littérature engagée'. Chapter Two analyses the collection 'Auf dem Weg nach Tabou' (1994) which, with its emphasis on Wolf's own sense of changing status as a writer in post-unification Germany and her concern with 'Vergangenheitsbewältigung', can be read as Wolf's explicit response to issues raised in the controversies. Chapter Three considers the collection 'Hierzulande Andernorts' (1999), where Wolf's concern with 'Vergangenheitsbewältigung', in the sense of both personal and collective experience of the GDR, continues but where her responses to issues in the controversies are conveyed more subtly, whilst additionally providing insight into Wolf's reflections on 'littérature engagée' and its relevance to her own distinct narrative concept of 'subjektive Authentizität'. Chapter Four analyses the novel 'Medea. Stimmen' (1996) which, with its focus on the 'rehabilitation' of a mythical figure and the theme of victimisation, continues Wolf's preoccupation with the broader theme of going back to the past in order to confront unresolved issues in the present. Chapter Five examines the narrative 'Leibhaftig' (2002) which, with the reworking of Wolf's memories of the GDR as well as the Third Reich and the treatment of the theme of guilt for the failure of the utopian socialist project in the GDR, constitutes not only Wolf's continued concern with 'Vergangenheitsbewältigung' at a personal level but also a reassertion of Wolf's concept of 'subjektive Authentizität'. The conclusion will propose a detailed study of Wolf's final novel 'Stadt der Engel oder The Overcoat of Dr. Freud' (2010) as the natural progression for future research, and in the context of a contribution to the nascent field of memory studies.

In recent years the notion of tourists visiting sites associated with death and destruction has started to receive much attention within the associated literature, with issues coupled with visitor motivations being key to this research. The genre that probably best describes the study of this subject matter (death and destruction) is ‘dark tourism’. Lennon & Foley (1996, p200) describe this as “the phenomenon which encompasses the presentation and consumption (by visitors) of real and commodified death and disaster sites”. The identification of those factors that guide the selection of such dark sites and a review of visitor’s on-site experiences and subsequent post visit behaviour is important and requires further attention. The main aim of this study is to better understand the motivations and on-site activities of visitors to contemporary dark tourism sites. In addition the methods associated with archiving the visit in terms of souvenir hunting, photography and other related actions will be investigated. From what is evidenced in the literature, it is clear to see that many of these dark locations can be broadly classified as ‘dark shrines’ (Stone, 2006); but there has been little empirical investigation relating to visitor motivations and behaviour of visitors whilst at these sites. The empirical data was collected using qualitative methods, primarily Means-End Chain (MEC) analysis was employed. This is a qualitative methodological tool, employing a semi-structured one on one interview style. Fourteen interviews in total were used from individuals who had visited dark sites and the data was analysed using the Rokeach Value Survey (RVS). The results suggest that the main motivations for visiting those sites that are deemed lighter on the dark spectrum were associated with entertainment, family fun and some learning, with much emphasis upon showcasing the experience to peers upon their return home. In contrast the motivations for visiting dark sites such as concentration camps and camps of mass genocide tended to be more empathetic with the victims, with issues associated with education and intellectual enquiry being fundamental to the visit. Issues associated with peer recognition as a result of the visit were not deemed as important for those visiting darker sites. In conclusion the research shows that visitors to the lighter sites tend to be informed by family and loved ones with emphasis upon enjoyment and family kinship. In contract those who visit the darker sites tended to be more interested in the educational and academic overtones associated with the site, with a keen interest in history further facilitating this need. The main contribution of this research relates to the differing needs as identified by light and dark visitors whist at site. Visitors at lighter sites tend to require more operational based information associated with facilities and merchandising provision, whereas visitors to darker sites require information that is geo-political and quasi academic in nature, so as to better understand the magnitude of the atrocities. In terms of the manner by which light and dark visitors go about collecting artefacts / souvenirs this also differs greatly with lighter visitors looking for commercially produced items to take home and take picture of family members in situ. In contrast visitors to darker sites choose to collect souvenirs at site which are often items of nature associated specifically with the sight. Picture taking is limited, but when used is associated with the site and the surroundings.

Evidence abounds that visitor attractions are the central element of tourism development. Academics and practitioners have therefore focused much attention on attraction service quality, customer satisfaction and subsequent behavioural intentions. However, there is a dearth of empirical investigations supporting most claims relating to quality and satisfaction in an attractions context. Furthermore, perceived value, which theoretically influences behavioural intentions regarding attractions, has been omitted from models investigating attraction service constructs. Thus, there is a need for empirical investigation of the relationship between the perceived quality of attractions, visitor satisfaction and other service constructs, particularly perceived value. This study explores these service quality issues within the UK visitor attractions industry with particular reference to Alton Towers and Blists Hill Victorian Town. The aim of the research was to gain an understanding of how attraction visitors evaluate quality and to explain the relationship between service quality, value, satisfaction and behavioural intentions. To this end, a sequential, exploratory mixed-methods approach was employed. This included unstructured interviews, content analysis of promotional materials, expert opinion and a questionnaire survey of visitors at the two attractions. The sample for the latter was drawn from individuals who had visited the two attractions within the last 12 months. To identify key quality dimensions in the attractions, principal components analysis (PCA) was employed; the results revealed six underlying factors: ‘activities’, ‘staff’, ‘operation and environment’, ‘retail’, ‘access’ and ‘ease of use’. Ordinary least squares (OLS) multiple regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between the constructs. The factors that most influence quality are ‘activities’ and ‘retail’, and value is primarily determined by ‘activities’, ‘staff’ attributes and ‘retail’. Satisfaction is most influenced by perceived value whereas visitor satisfaction explains most of the variance in behavioural intention. The findings also show that satisfaction partially mediates the relationship between value and behavioural intentions, and that between quality and behavioural intentions. Value was shown to partially mediate the relationship between attraction attributes and satisfaction and between quality and behavioural intentions. The research makes several significant theoretical and managerial contributions. The key finding is that attraction attributes exert more influence on perceived value than on perceived quality. This suggests that the conceptualisation and measurement of value in previous research were possibly inadequate in capturing the dimensions of this construct. The findings also confirm the cognitive-affective-conative order between the service constructs within the context of UK visitor attractions and the important role of perceived value in understanding quality, satisfaction and behavioural intentions. However, the relationship between these constructs cannot be generalised and further research is needed to examine the relevance of the findings to other sectors. The results also indicate that attraction managers need to review their promotional materials, particularly websites, and ensure that the most effective messages are communicated to both existing and potential visitors.

No description available.