Social media is an important channel for charitable organisations to reach potential donors and volunteers by communicating who and what requires their aid. This thesis aims to explain how a charitable organization can use these channels to its advantage through creating more reactions from their readers in the form of likes, comments and shares. This subject is explored under the following main research question:  Which aspects of a charity’s communication in social media creates the most and the least amount of reactions from those who receive the communication?  The research question is answered using an abductive approach in a netnographic observation of posts and comments on the Swedish Red Cross Facebook-wall during the months of September 2012 and September 2016. Data from two months with four years in between was observed in order to create further understanding of how this phenomenon has changed over time. Additionally, an interview was conducted with two employees at the Swedish Red Cross to supplement the netnographic observation.  The results of the study indicate that four overarching themes were essential in determining the reaction a post receives: Drama, a connection to news and sharing values led to more reactions, whilst urging the readers to take action led to fewer reactions. The results also show that whilst the Swedish Red Cross’ use of Facebook has become more professional since 2012, the themes determining how many reactions a post receives remain the same. The results were analysed using the theories of compassion fatigue, clicktivism and intertextuality.  Lastly, this thesis offers a discussion about how progressing towards increasingly striking messages in social media may result in people caring less. And furthermore, how the underlying mechanisms affecting people’s choices on social media may have consequences for society as a whole. / Sociala medier är viktiga kanaler för välgörenhetsorganisationer att nå ut till potentiella givare och volontärer med budskap om vem och vad som behöver deras hjälp. Den här uppsatsen syftar till att ta reda på hur en välgörenhetsorganisation kan nyttja dessa kanaler till sin fördel genom att framkalla fler reaktioner från sina läsare i form av gilla-markeringar, kommentarer och delningar. För att ta reda på detta har en övergripande forskningsfråga utformats:  Vilka aspekter av en välgörenhetsorganisations kommunikation i sociala medier leder till den största respektive minsta mängden reaktioner från dem som mottar kommunikationen?  Frågan besvaras med hjälp av en abduktiv studie som baseras på en netnografisk observation av inlägg och kommentarer i Svenska Röda Korsets Facebook-flöde under september 2012 och september 2016. Material från två månader med fyra års mellanrum har observerats för att skapa förståelse för hur fenomenet har ändrats över tid. Den netnografiska observationen kompletteras med en intervju med två anställda på Svenska Röda Korset.  Det sammantagna resultatet delas in i fyra övergripande teman som enligt studien varit avgörande för hur mycket reaktioner ett inlägg får, där dramatik, nyhetskoppling och värderingar leder till fler reaktioner medan uppmaningar leder till färre. Resultatet visade även att trots att Svenska Röda Korsets användning av Facebook har blivit mer professionell sedan år 2012, så var de teman som avgjorde antalet reaktioner desamma. Resultatet analyseras med hjälp av teorierna compassion fatigue, clicktivism och intertextualitet.  Slutligen diskuterar uppsatsen hur en utveckling mot alltmer slående budskap i sociala medier kan leda till att människor bryr sig mindre. Samt hur de underliggande mekanismerna som styr människors val på sociala medier kan innebära konsekvenser för samhället i stort.

La Croix-Rouge française est une association (loi 1901) et une entreprise à but non lucratif, reconnue d’utilité publique, et auxiliaire des pouvoirs publics. Engagée dans une « lutte contre toutes les souffrances humaines », depuis plus de 150 ans, la Croix-Rouge française œuvre dans quatre domaines d’intervention nationaux : le secours, la santé, la formation et les actions sociales, ainsi que dans un domaine international. La Croix-Rouge française fait aussi partie d’un réseau, le Mouvement international Croix-Rouge et Croissant-Rouge, composé du CICR, de la Fédération internationale et de Sociétés nationales, la Croix-Rouge française étant l’une d’elles. Les actions sociales Croix-Rouge française dispensées par les organes de proximité, les délégations locales, doivent parvenir à relever le défi humanitaire dans une conception d’aide d’urgence. Basé sur l’engagement bénévole, tout le système d’aide humanitaire repose sur le don. Ce qui fait vivre chaque délégation c’est à la fois les dons matériels reçus, notamment des particuliers et de l’Etat, les dons immatériels perçus, de temps, de compétences, des bénévoles et des volontaires, et enfin des dons transmis de l’association aux bénéficiaires tels que nourriture, vêtements, adresse postale... Le travail ethnologique présenté ici sous forme d’une monographie s’attache à étudier le système d’aide philanthropique développé par la délégation locale d’Orange (Vaucluse) dans sa dimension matérielle et symbolique. Pour cela l’étude va se centrer sur deux thèmes en particulier : l’aide alimentaire et les bénévoles, et proposer ainsi une analyse ethnologique du don alimentaire et de la dynamique relationnelle du bénévolat. / The French Red Cross is an association (law 1901) and a non-profit organization, recognized as a public benefit and a wellness and auxiliary to the government. Engaged in a "fight against all human suffering," for over 150 years, the French Red Cross works in four areas of national intervention: relief, health, education and social action, and in an international field. The French Red Cross is also part of a network, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, consisting of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent and in National Societies including the French Red Cross. Social actions of the French Red Cross provided by local bodies, local delegations, must complete the challenge to design a humanitarian emergency assistance. Based on the volunteer, all the humanitarian aid system is based on gifts. What keeps alive every delegation is both material donations received, from individuals and the state, intangible donations received such as time, expertise, volunteers, and finally donations passed from the association to beneficiaries such as food, clothing, mailing address ... The ethnological study presented here as a monograph seeks to examine the system of philanthropy developed by the local delegation of Orange (Vaucluse) in its material and symbolic dimension. Thus, the study will focus on two particular themes : food aid and volunteers, and offer an ethnological analysis, of the gift of food and the relational dynamics of volunteerism.

Lors de la Première Guerre mondiale, les soins des malades et des blessés ainsi que la surveillance médicale des soldats et des civils sont indispensables pour la poursuite du conflit. L’étude de l’organisation hospitalière dans la 9e région militaire, dirigée par le Service de Santé aux Armées, lève le voile sur cette thématique loin du front. Elle permet de montrer toutes les adaptations de ce système hospitalier face aux réalités de la Grande Guerre où l’armée française compte environ 1 400 000 morts et des millions de malades et blessés. Elle montre toutes les interactions entre les acteurs de ce système hospitalier : le Service de Santé aux Armées, la Croix-Rouge, les autorités civiles et la population. Enfin, elle dévoile comment sont soignés les soldats dans une région éloignée du front qui devient peu à peu un front médical secondaire dans la chirurgie d’urgence mais indispensable pour la préservation des effectifs et pour la prise en charge des mutilés de cette guerre / During the World War I, health care and supervision of soldiers are essential for the continuation of the war. Indeed, the French Army has millions of seek and wounded people during the battles and 1,400,000 dead people. The study of the hospital’s organization in the 9th French Military District shows an unknown history: those of soldier’s care in areas far from the battlefront. This study demonstrates the adaptation of this hospital’s organization to the evolution of the conflict and the care. It shows the function of each person who participates in these care: Red Cross “Croix Rouge”, Army Health Service, inhabitants, and civilian authorities. This study is showing which care are given to seek and wounded soldiers in this area and who are the medical practitioners who are giving the care. During the World War I, the 9th French Military District steadily becomes a secondary area in the chirurgical emergencies, but an important area for the soldier’s medical supervision

<p>Abstract</p><p>Purpose/Aim: This essay deals with The Swedish Red Cross Society and their work concerning strategical information and communication about HIV and AIDS in the Swedish context. In a broader sense the relation between the global and the local will be investigated and a discussion about what it means to work in an organization operating on a global arena will be held.</p><p>Material/Method: This essay is based on relevant theories about culture and health communication which I have studied, selected and put together, with purpose to analyse The Swedish Red Cross Society and their informational work with HIV and AIDS- prevention. Furthermore I have interviewed four of the organizations co- workers to collect data about their experiences in working in the Red Cross organization with this specific mission. Moreover I and my colleague Hillevi Good attended at seminars and lectures to observe activities held by the organization and to get inside information about what people working with HIV and AIDS are discussing and considering as critical issues. The study holds a qualitative approach focusing on understanding this typical case rather then generalizing facts in a larger sense.</p><p>Main results: The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross has a difficult mission in their work to inform the public about HIV and AIDS, although it is the perfect organization when it comes to communication due to their well-known profile and a huge geographical spread. Foremost this is due to the fact that the problem in Sweden concerns attitudes rather than medical supplies, access to information and other more practical issues.</p><p>The Swedish citizen is individualistic and the HIV- problem does not exist in his/hers reality in the same way as in a high- endemic country, a fact that complicates information and communication. The organization is well aware of the situation and has a good informational approach with networking and education as examples among others, but this is not enough. Changing behaviour and attitudes takes a long time and a lot of resources that does not exist because of HIV and AIDS low priority in Sweden. Although we have an envied situation when it comes to the number of HIV- positive the situation is critical when it comes to knowledge and empathy among the population.</p><p>Keywords: HIV and AIDS, The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross, Stiftelsen Noaks Ark- Röda Korset, Culture, Structure of Society, Health communication, Behavioural Change, Knowledge and Information</p>

Der Beitrag erinnert an das wechselvolle Leben des Friedensnobelpreisträgers Henry Dunant, sucht nach biografischen Wurzeln seines von Menschlichkeit und Würde getragenen Verhaltens und macht auf seine Leistungen aufmerksam. Er will aber auch die Frage nach der Bedeutung des humanitären Völkerrechts im Verhältnis von Krieg und Frieden nicht außer Acht lassen. / The article recalls the eventful life of the Nobel Peace Prize winner Henry Dunant, looking for biographical roots of his humanity and dignity and points to his achievements. It will also indicate the question of the importance of international humanitarian law in the relationship between war and peace.

Abstract Purpose/Aim: This essay deals with The Swedish Red Cross Society and their work concerning strategical information and communication about HIV and AIDS in the Swedish context. In a broader sense the relation between the global and the local will be investigated and a discussion about what it means to work in an organization operating on a global arena will be held. Material/Method: This essay is based on relevant theories about culture and health communication which I have studied, selected and put together, with purpose to analyse The Swedish Red Cross Society and their informational work with HIV and AIDS- prevention. Furthermore I have interviewed four of the organizations co- workers to collect data about their experiences in working in the Red Cross organization with this specific mission. Moreover I and my colleague Hillevi Good attended at seminars and lectures to observe activities held by the organization and to get inside information about what people working with HIV and AIDS are discussing and considering as critical issues. The study holds a qualitative approach focusing on understanding this typical case rather then generalizing facts in a larger sense. Main results: The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross has a difficult mission in their work to inform the public about HIV and AIDS, although it is the perfect organization when it comes to communication due to their well-known profile and a huge geographical spread. Foremost this is due to the fact that the problem in Sweden concerns attitudes rather than medical supplies, access to information and other more practical issues. The Swedish citizen is individualistic and the HIV- problem does not exist in his/hers reality in the same way as in a high- endemic country, a fact that complicates information and communication. The organization is well aware of the situation and has a good informational approach with networking and education as examples among others, but this is not enough. Changing behaviour and attitudes takes a long time and a lot of resources that does not exist because of HIV and AIDS low priority in Sweden. Although we have an envied situation when it comes to the number of HIV- positive the situation is critical when it comes to knowledge and empathy among the population. Keywords: HIV and AIDS, The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross, Stiftelsen Noaks Ark- Röda Korset, Culture, Structure of Society, Health communication, Behavioural Change, Knowledge and Information

This thesis focuses on the Blood Drive which takes place during the spring Greek Week event at Western Kentucky University. I primarily investigate the varying methods of negotiating issues of altruism and egoism in terms of the Blood Drive as well as way that the Blood Drive fits into the WKU Greek yearly cycle. I focus on issues of the process of identity in social Greek-letter organizations and how the process of this identity is renegotiated during the Blood Drive and other Greek events. I interviewed people from several groups for this paper. Initially, I interviewed Blood Donor Recruitment Representatives from the American Red Cross, WKU students associated with the social Greek-letter system and the Blood Drive of Greek Week, and employees of WKU associated with the social Greek-letter system and the Blood Drive of Greek Week. At the event itself I widened my scope to include information provided by Mobile Unit Assistants (MUAs) and other employees of the American Red Cross. Key conclusions of this paper include that while people may all participate or be involved in the same event, their methods of understanding concepts of altruism and egoism vary with their kinds of association. In turn, their conceptualizations mirror those developed by social scientists in the last two hundred years. Also, the issues of separation and integration, processes to do with identity, are central to the events of the Greek calendar year and the Blood Drive event in particular.

On the eve of World War II, the American Red Cross (ARC) excluded African-American blood donors. The instructions from the Army and the Navy implied that the armed forces did not want the allegedly "inferior" blood of Blacks in the veins of "superior" White soldiers. The ARC's exclusionary policy, as mandated by defense officials in the War Department, continued the tradition of relegating African-Americans to second-class citizenship.Black newspaper editors and individual protest leaders on the national and local levels pressured the armed forces to change its blood donor policy. On January 29, 1942, the ARC started to accept blood donations from Blacks but followed a national policy of segregation. The ARC labeled and stored African-American blood donations apart from those of Whites and maintained Jim Crow blood banks throughout the war even though medical experts found no factual basis to differentiate blood by race.This paper examines how Black newspapers and individuals such as Asa Philip Randolph, Walter Francis White, William Henry Hastie, Mabel Keaton Staupers, and the Black community of Indianapolis responded to the ARC's initial policy of exclusion and then segregating AfricanAmerican blood donations. The paper attempts to modify the popular interpretation that the war constituted a watershed for African-Americans. My research indicates that while many Black leaders and protest organizations on the national and local levels challenged the ARC's blood donor policies, African-Americans did not win a fundamental change in military policy. Thus, while the fight against blood donor discrimination was a manifestation of the wartime "Double V" campaign it also represented its limitations.The paper draws on secondary sources, African-American newspapers, and the manuscript collections of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses, Claude A. Barnett, William Henry Hastie, Asa Philip Randolph, and the Indianapolis Area Chapter of the ARC as well as the papers of African-American physicians in Indianapolis, Walter H. Maddux and Harvey N. Middleton of the Flanner House and the Morgan Health Center. / Department of History

This dissertation is about American Red Cross and YMCA work in revolutionary and civil war Russia. It focuses on the most significant phases of these organizations’ efforts in terms of the numbers of personnel involved and the funds expended: Moscow and Petrograd, 1917–18; northern Russia during the Allied military intervention, 1918–19; and Siberia and the Russian Far East, from 1918 through the early 1920s. By drawing on dozens of often underused archival collections this study is able to discuss these “constructive efforts” in much fuller detail than have existing works. The activities of the Americans who worked in Russia, rather than those who made policy from afar, are of primary interest. The concern here, beyond the what, where, and who, is why: Why did American relief or social service work occur? The answers, of which there are several, include a desire to provide assistance to suffering populations. But the humanitarian impulse was often not the one that carried the day when decisions about policy and practice were taken. Military concerns were important, especially while the Great War still raged on the western front, and while Allied and American soldiers fought Russian Bolsheviks. American relief workers also saw themselves as contributing directly to relations between Russia and Russians on the one hand, and the United States, the Allies, and the American people on the other. They were moved to carry out their work because they saw the importance of it for the present and future of relations between the two countries. Americans in Russia also took advantage of the presence of soldiers, civilian refugees, and former prisoners of war from a variety of European countries to spread the good word about all things American. Ultimately, Americans viewed revolutionary Russia through the lens of modernization. With American help, the future could be bright. With the right leadership in place to oversee their education, honest, hardworking, and intellectually curious peasants (as they were described by contemporary observers) could be turned into modern citizens. The Russian project failed to achieve its promise, but for a time Americans retained their optimism about Russia’s future.

This dissertation is about American Red Cross and YMCA work in revolutionary and civil war Russia. It focuses on the most significant phases of these organizations’ efforts in terms of the numbers of personnel involved and the funds expended: Moscow and Petrograd, 1917–18; northern Russia during the Allied military intervention, 1918–19; and Siberia and the Russian Far East, from 1918 through the early 1920s. By drawing on dozens of often underused archival collections this study is able to discuss these “constructive efforts” in much fuller detail than have existing works. The activities of the Americans who worked in Russia, rather than those who made policy from afar, are of primary interest. The concern here, beyond the what, where, and who, is why: Why did American relief or social service work occur? The answers, of which there are several, include a desire to provide assistance to suffering populations. But the humanitarian impulse was often not the one that carried the day when decisions about policy and practice were taken. Military concerns were important, especially while the Great War still raged on the western front, and while Allied and American soldiers fought Russian Bolsheviks. American relief workers also saw themselves as contributing directly to relations between Russia and Russians on the one hand, and the United States, the Allies, and the American people on the other. They were moved to carry out their work because they saw the importance of it for the present and future of relations between the two countries. Americans in Russia also took advantage of the presence of soldiers, civilian refugees, and former prisoners of war from a variety of European countries to spread the good word about all things American. Ultimately, Americans viewed revolutionary Russia through the lens of modernization. With American help, the future could be bright. With the right leadership in place to oversee their education, honest, hardworking, and intellectually curious peasants (as they were described by contemporary observers) could be turned into modern citizens. The Russian project failed to achieve its promise, but for a time Americans retained their optimism about Russia’s future.