We are all aware of the environmental challenges we are facing. To achieve the environmental goals, we must adjust the way we plan cities for the future. Northern Sweden is a region with potential for sustainable development projects with a good supply of natural resources and the basis for sustainable power sources. The interest in northern Sweden has exploded in recent years and the region is one of the forefronts for the movement towards sustainable urban transformation. One of the towns that are undergoing this process as we speak is Skellefteå. Skellefteå is anindustrial town with strong connections to older types of industry such as the mining and lumber industry. The development of the town was stagnant for a long time with little development projects and a frozen population growth. The shift towards a greener industry and new type of innovation will affect the town significantly. To achieve the goal of a sustainable urban transformation the municipality have set multiple population growth goals and are keen to attract a new innovative and educated workforce suitable for the new types of industry that are establishing in the area. Skellefteå has for a long time had a problem of young emigration to other cities. The population today is rather old and that’s something they want to work towards changing. This study explores the migration motives of young people from the Skellefteå area that have moved to other locations to pursue a higher education. The study focuses on the reasons why they left Skellefteå, if they want to return after their graduation and how they perceive the urban transformation of their hometown. The study explores what factors are seen as attractive, pull factors and what factors are considered less attractive, push factors when it came to their decision to move from and potentially back to Skellefteå.

Some tourists travel for medical reasons, and this is known as medical tourism. The growth of medical tourism is mainly spurred by globalisation and the availability of quality healthcare services in receiving countries. Once a medical need arises, a prospective medical tourist would usually search and gather information about prospective medical tourism destinations. Various push and pull factors would determine whether a destination will be selected by tourists to satisfy their medical needs. The aim of this study was thus to identify the push and pull factors of a medical tourism destination, and based on these, to measure South Africa’s performance as a medical tourism destination. Making use of a qualitative research approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 13 medical tourism tour operators. Content analysis was used to analyse the data. Some of the push factors identified were the cost and lack of treatment/medical services in medical tourists’ home countries, the availability of expertise and medical facilities at the receiving destination, and the wish to avoid long waiting lists. The quality of hospitals, cost of surgery, expertise of the physicians, as well as the accessibility of destinations were indicated as the pull factors. The findings also show that medical tourists seem to be more interested in the reputation of the healthcare providers and hospitals than in typical tourist activities in medical tourism destinations. The findings of this study highlight the fact that South Africa is not known as a medical tourism destination. Hence there is a need for South Africa to be promoted by government and other stakeholders as a credible, affordable and accessible medical tourism destination. The study contributes to the available literature on medical tourism but from the perspective of medical tourism tour operators as major stakeholders in the medical tourism industry. / Dissertation (MPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Tourism Management / MPhil / Unrestricted

The predominance of International Higher Education has switched from the USA, Canada, England and Australia, the pioneers of internationalization of higher education, to Europe and other countries. European countries have become the higher study destination for many students from all over the world. Own strategies and policies for internationalization have developed by European countries, building on and seeing beyond the policies stipulated by the European Commission. As a member of European Union, Swedish Government and universities have developed strategies, measures and tools to attract international students. Scholarships and grants, different projects, extended visa, education quality, social security, ranking of institutions etc. play important role behind third country students choosing Sweden for higher studies. However, other features such as education cost, ideological affinity, language aptitude, job availability, easy visa process etc. can influence the choice of students. These features make Sweden attractive as higher education destination to Bangladeshi Students. This study tries to understand the factors behind decision of Bangladeshi students choosing Swedish University for tertiary education. The study also attempts to discuss the experience of Bangladeshi students during their study period in Sweden as well as after finishing study. The theory of “Push and Pull factors” is used as the main theoretical reference to discuss findings of the study. Social insecurity, political instability, education opportunity and quality of home country, personal choice, job opportunity etc. are recognized as major ‘push factors and education quality, world class institution, social security, standard of life, easy application process etc. are recognized as ‘pull factors’ behind the decision of Bangladeshi student choosing Sweden as higher education destination. The Study not only discusses the challenges and experiences of Bangladeshi students including covid-19 situation but also gives implications for future students.  The data was collected by taking interviews from the Bangladeshi students studying at masters’ level in Umea university, Sweden and used qualitative method for analysis.

CHARLES UNIVERSITY IN PRAGUE FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES Institute of Sociological Studies Department of Sociology Valeriia Galushkevych 'Czech people' coming from Ukraine, their understanding of national identity Thesis abstract Key words: Czech Republic, integration, migration, national identity, perception, push and pull factors, resettlement, Ukrainian migrants. In this thesis, I analyze various aspects of migration from Ukraine to the Czech Republic under the resettlement program of ethnic Czechs introduced by the Czech government in 2015. This program was initiated upon the request of the Czech society in Ukraine in response to steady economic decline and worsening living conditions in Ukraine. The population of my study is ethnic Czechs living in Ukraine and who moved to the Czech Republic within the resettlement program. I study the determinants of their move, speed of integration in the Czech Republic, progress on the Czech labor market, migrants' satisfaction with life in the destination country, discrimination and their plans for the future. I collect qualitative data from individual interviews mostly conducted in hotel rooms where the migrants temporarily reside. A significant distinguishing feature of this study is that I analyze migrants with Czech roots who moved to the Czech Republic under...

A preliminary literature review indicated that not much research has been done on self-initiated expatriation (SIE), particularly in a South African context. The purpose of this study is twofold: Firstly, by reviewing previous research, this study aims to make a valuable contribution to the literature on SIE, particularly regarding the motivations behind SIE. Secondly, this study aims to explore and develop a deeper understanding of the push and pull factors experienced by South African self-initiated expatriates (SASIEs). An empirical, exploratory qualitative approach, through the utilisation of qualitative field research, was employed as a means of inquiry. Furthermore, interpretivism was used as a research paradigm. Purposive sampling was applied, and the sample used consisted of nine individual South African self-initiated expatriates who had been working in their host countries for a minimum of six months. Data were obtained through in-depth semi-structured interviews. By implication only a few research questions were generated to guide the interview; however, participants were not limited to certain responses. This allowed for rich data to be obtained that were systematically analysed using grounded theory analysis to steer the process in a practical manner through the transcription of data and the rigorous extraction of codes towards the results that could best answer the original set of research questions. Criteria for rigour, authenticity, trustworthiness and credibility were applied and demonstrated throughout. The conceptual framework of the study was kept in mind during the research, the themes that emerged were explored, and the findings that were reached were substantiated through an extensive literature review. The conclusion was reached that South African self-initiated expatriates experienced certain push factors from the home country (South Africa), and that there were equally strong or stronger pull factors to the host country. All these factors contributed to the participants’ decision to expatriate. Interestingly, there seemed to be no real push factors from the host country; these were rather perceived as challenges that had to be endured. Furthermore it seemed that, as far as the sample group in this study were concerned, South Africa did not offer strong pull factors, and that, if the participants were to repatriate to South Africa, it would be for sentimental reasons. This could hold some implications for South African organisations especially in terms of retaining skilled labour or attract the skilled labour who has already expatriated. Recommendations and opportunities regarding future research were also mentioned. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

Recent years’ terrorist attacks in Europe and the flow of foreign fighters joining the terrorist organisation Daesh, has made the understanding of radicalisation evermore crucial. This thesis investigates if push and pull factors leading into violent Islamic extremism differentiate between men and women. Furthermore, it assesses how preventive measures from The United Kingdom, Sweden and Denmark targets push and pull factors and if these are sensitive to sex. To fulfil this objective an exploratory thematic analysis was used to synthesise secondary qualitative research surrounding push and pull factors. The push and pull factor analysis revealed three trends: there were limited variation in the overall categories describing the push and pull factors present for men and women; what caused push and pull factors to manifest differed according to sex; and, there were differences in how much men and women were affected by these factors. The assessment of prevention measures showed that none of the measures explicitly mentioned push and pull factors, yet they all had the potential of targeting these. Sex was included in some aspects of the measures, but was not a consideration in relation to the targeting of push and pull factors. The thesis ends with a discussion of what implications the found results have for practice and offers suggestions to how prevention measures can be improved.

From 2015, a huge influx of refugees came from the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia and Africa to Europe. It is triggered by various persecutions, armed wars, economic impossibility. The majority of those arrived were refugees, those who had fled their country due to imminent threat or persecution and were even trying to reach the European continent at the risk of their lives. The others are economic immigrants who have migrated to the European Union in the hope of a better life - to work, study or reunite. The UK has been a major destination for both migrants and refugees for many decades. The dissertation draws attention to the complex effects of migration, with a particular focus on the host country, and highlights, especially in the UK, the need for migrants in an aging society in Europe, even if the public thinks otherwise. With the Brexit, the UK has exited the European Union, cut back on previous benefits for EU migrants and is opening up to former Commonwealth members as sending countries.

Syftet med uppsatsen är att undersöka internationella studenters motivationsfaktorer för att studera utomlands och deras val av Malmö högskola, Sverige. Uppsatsen undersöker kulturella skillnader som de internationella studenterna upplever när de studerar i Sverige och om de upplever att deras kulturella identitet förstärks eller försvagas. Uppsatsen baseras på en induktiv, kvalitativ metod. För att få en djupare förståelse av de internationella studenternas situation och erfarenheter utfördes både individuella intervjuer och gruppintervjuer. I teoriavsnittet definieras begreppen kultur, kulturell identitet och interkulturell kommunikation samt begreppen asserted respektive assigned identitet och thick respektive thin identitet. Studiens resultat visade hur olika motivationsfaktorer påverkade de internationella studenternas val att studera utomlands, att kulturella skillnader blev tydliga genom vardagliga möten i det svenska samhället och på högskolan, och att studenternas kulturella identiteter visade sig vara mer markerade under studenternas vistelse i Sverige. Jag menar att en ny omgivning påverkar de internationella studenterna, och att deras kultur och kulturella identiteter blir mer påtagliga. / The research study aims at exploring the relationship between international students’ motivational factors to study abroad and the choice of Malmö University, Sweden, considering each student’s main “push” and “pull” factors. The research study seeks to examine the international students’ experiences of cultural differences while studying in Sweden. Furthermore, the study investigates whether the international students cultural identity are being reinforced or weakened. Not much previous research on international students´ motivations, cultural differences and cultural identity has been done; however, some related researches provided me with knowledge and acted as guidelines for the research study. The research study is based on an inductive, qualitative research method, and the data was collected through semi-structured and focus group interviews. In respect of the implications to define culture and cultural identity the data will be explored through a theoretical framework of intercultural communication and the theory of asserted and assigned identity and thick and thin identity, respectively. The findings of the research study showed different motivational factors affecting the international students’ reason to choose study outside their origin country. The cultural differences experienced were explained as being caused by everyday encounters in the Swedish society and educational system. The students studied experienced that their cultural belonging became more evident as they were living in Sweden. I believe that an unfamiliar social surrounding, along with the circumstance of being international students in a society that is different from the one at home, make culture and cultural identity more important and evident to the people living there.

Under de senaste åren har flyktingströmmarna till Sverige nått historiska nivåer. Många av de som kommer flyr krigets Syrien. Gruppen av syrier som fått permanenta uppehållstillstånd och nu ska skapa sig ett nytt liv i Sverige är stor. Hur ska Sverige utnyttja denna grupps kompetens och hur ska flyktingarna själva ta plats i samhället på såväl arbetsmarknad men även få social tillhörighet. Detta kan antas bli en återkommande fråga i den offentliga debatten. Vi upplever att det finns kunskapsluckor om dessa människor och deras tankar om Sverige, hur de trodde att det skulle bli och hur det blev. Detta är en intervjustudie där sex syrier har tillfrågats om sina förväntningar på och upplevelser av Sverige. Resultatet visar att intervjupersonerna hört om Sverige som ett fritt, demokratiskt, jämställt land med generös flyktingpolitik och permanenta uppehållstillstånd. Ett land där man kan bli vad man vill bara man kämpar. När de summerar hur det blivit efter de första åren konstaterar de att mycket stämmer men att det är lång väntan på uppehållstillstånd och yrkesvalideringar, att det dröjer innan de får sitt första arbete och att det är svårt att hitta forum där de kan prata svenska. Studien kan i framtiden utvecklas till att undersöka hur samma grupp som varit i Sverige ytterligare en tid uppfattar sin situation. / In recent years, the flow of refugees to Sweden reached historic levels. Many of those who will flee Syria war. The group of Syrians who have permanent residence and is now going to create a new life in Sweden is great. How should Sweden take advantage of this group's expertise and how the refugees themselves will have a place in society in both the labor market but also socially. This is likely to be a recurring issue in the public debate. We feel that there are gaps in knowledge about these people and their ideas about Sweden, the way they thought it would be and how it turned out. This is an interview where six Syrians were asked about their expectations and experiences of Sweden. The results show that the respondents heard about Sweden as a free, democratic, egalitarian country with generous refugee policy and permanent residence permits. A country where you can be what you want only one struggling. When they add up how it has been for the first few years, they acknowledge that this is true but it is a long wait for a residence permit and yrkesvalideringar, it will take time before they get their first job and that it is difficult to find a forum where they can speak Swedish. The study can be developed in the future to investigate how the same group that has been in Sweden for some more time then understand their situation and if it changed.

High teacher turnover has become a serious problem globally, in many international schools, and is a growing concern in segments of the East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS). This persistent problem has a detrimental effect on student learning and upsets the culture of school communities. Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory served as the framework for this qualitative case study research that examined the perceptions of EARCOS international overseas-hire teachers, to determine their beliefs regarding high teacher turnover in international schools. These questions gave direction to this study: What factors do international teachers in EARCOS member schools believe contribute to high teacher turnover in international schools? What do international teachers in EARCOS member schools believe is the result of high teacher turnover in international schools? What steps do international teachers in EARCOS member schools believe should be taken to reduce high turnover in international schools? Purposeful homogenous sampling was used to identify 8 focus group interview participants from the entire pre-K-12 international overseas-hire teacher population from the 149 EARCOS member schools. Coded data were examined, analyzed, and categorized into themes related to Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory. Member checking, peer debriefing, and external auditing were used to add validity to the research study. The analysis of the data and findings revealed that lack of effective mentorship, lack of administrative leadership support, and ineffective systems are the major contributors to international teacher turnover in international schools. A white paper was developed and constructed from the themes that emerged from this study and presented to EARCOS member school administrators, to potentially use to address the issue of increasing international overseas-hire teacher turnover rates in international schools. This acquired knowledge could lead to positive social change that can influence the practices, structural procedures, and policies of EARCOS and other international school systems related to teacher turnover.