In today´s society large quantities of goods are shipped both domestic in Sweden as well as across borders. The increasing flow of goods require higher demands on the capacity of the infrastructure and at the same time think and act for a sustainable environment. The overall aim of the study is to highlight development areas for cargo freight by railway. The more specific goals of the study is to identify what enablers that is needed when to establish an intermodal terminal that will handle break-bulk cargo directly from railway, and what barriers that might be. To achieve the aim and goal a qualitative study was conducted with interviews as primal data. Studying the market prerequisites and conducting a competitive intelligence and a benchmark conducted the result. In the result, the interviews and the examined documents has ben compiled, these data has been the basis for the analysis and conclusion. Large parts of the collected data indicated that break bulk cargo handling in intermodal terminals is currently something that is not offered and it is not considered to be economically viable. However, the study also revealed that break bulk cargo handling is a desired service from the business sector as it is regarded as an environmentally friendly mode of transportation, something that the business sector appreciate. To cope with this kind of cargo handling and transportation more research is needed, better cooperation between the private- and the public sector as well as infrastructure changes. / Idag fraktas stora mängder gods både inom Sverige och över landsgränserna. Det ökande godsflödet ställer högre krav på infrastrukturens kapacitet samtidigt som det blir allt viktigare med transporter som är hållbara ur miljösynpunkt. Studiens övergripande syfte är att belysa utvecklingsmöjligheter av godstransport på järnväg. Mer specifika mål för studien är att identifiera vilka förutsättningar som bör finnas vid etablering av kombiterminal med styckegodshantering direkt från räls samt vilka barriärer det finns mot det. För att uppnå undersökningens syfte och mål genomfördes en kvalitativ studie med intervjuer som primärdata. Genom att studera marknadsförutsättningar, genomföra en omvärldsbevakning och en benchmark utformades resultatet. I resultatet har intervjuerna tillsammans med den granskade dokumentationen sammanställts, dessa data har sedan legat som grund till analysen och slutsatsen. Stora delar av insamlade data pekade mot att styckegodshantering på kombiterminal i dagens läge inte är något som erbjuds samt att det inte anses vara ekonomiskt hållbart att hantera styckegods på kombiterminal. Dock visade undersökningen att styckegodshantering på kombiterminal är en önskad tjänst från näringslivet då det anses vara ett miljövänligt transportsätt för gods, något som näringslivet värdesätter. För att klara av denna typ av hantering och transport krävs mer forskning, bättre samarbete mellan den privata och offentliga sektorn samt infrastrukturella förändringar.

Motivée par la conviction que la science économique et la sociologie doivent se rencontrer, notre recherche a deux objectifs. Elle questionne les filiations théoriques (ou migrations conceptuelles) entre la science économique et la sociologie d’une part ; et à analyser les caractéristiques de ces filiations théoriques d’autre part. Alors que s’accroit le dialogue entre la science économique et la sociologie depuis les années 1960, des filiations théoriques entre les deux disciplines sont-elles possibles ? Et quelles en sont les caractéristiques ? Notre recherche repose sur l’étude d’un cas, celui de la théorie de l’action. Nous abordons plus précisément différents objets de cette vaste théorie : la théorie du choix rationnel, le champ de l’économie des conventions et le concept d’encastrement. L’étude révèle que les filiations théoriques entre la science économique et la sociologie sont possibles, ne sont pas systématiques et peuvent être « imparfaites ». / Motivated by the conviction that economics and sociology must combine, our research has two goals. It questions theoretical filiations (or conceptual migrations) between economics and sociology on the one hand ; and analyzes the characteristics of these theoretical filiations on the other hand. Even though the dialogue between economics and sociology has been improving since the1960s, we question whether theoretical filiations between both disciplines are possible ; as well as the nature of the characteristics ? Our research is based on a case study, the theory of action. More specifically, we discuss different objects of this vast theory: the rational choice theory, the field of économie des conventions and the concept of embeddedness. The study reveals that theoretical filiations between economics and sociology are possible, unsystematic and can be considered as « imperfect ».

The aim of this thesis was to study elderly people’s experiences of and approach to their usage of home care services with tax deduction. The aim was also to describe how elderly people reason about their underlying motives of using home care service with tax deduction. The study is based on six qualitative interviews with people between the ages of 65 and 80, living in Nacka, Sweden. This thesis is a collaboration with Stiftelsen Stockholms läns Äldrecentrum/ Stockholm Gerontology Center and part of their follow up study concerning simplified administration for elderly people applying for home care services in Nacka. The theory of rational choice was used in the analysis of the results. The primary results showed that elderly people’s usage of home care services with tax deduction was limited though regular and consist mainly of basic domestic work. The overall experiences of using home care services with tax deduction were positive and described in terms of satisfaction and as a possibility of independence and influence regarding their needs of services and how they were executed. The results indicate that the usage of home care services with tax deduction is partly based on elderly people’s lack of confidence in publicly-financed elderly care. Due to the distrust in elderly care and the self-determing factors home care services with tax deduction generated, their choice of using home care services with tax deduction seemed more appealing than publicly-financed home care services.

Submitted by Camila Yumy Saito (camilaysaito@gmail.com) on 2016-02-12T20:32:20Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_CamilaSaito_versao_final_20160212.pdf: 1501778 bytes, checksum: 00c4f71977ac99248a0431bbf9dc63d0 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Renata de Souza Nascimento (renata.souza@fgv.br) on 2016-02-15T15:49:25Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_CamilaSaito_versao_final_20160212.pdf: 1501778 bytes, checksum: 00c4f71977ac99248a0431bbf9dc63d0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-02-15T15:56:57Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação_CamilaSaito_versao_final_20160212.pdf: 1501778 bytes, checksum: 00c4f71977ac99248a0431bbf9dc63d0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-02-05 / O objetivo deste trabalho é abordar uma das linhas de investigação que tenta explicar o comportamento dos indivíduos no voto, a teoria da escolha racional ou teoria econômica do voto, a qual defende que os eleitores votam em governantes ou partidos potencialmente capazes de trazer-lhes algum benefício social ou econômico. No entanto, a relação entre desempenho de indicadores socioeconômicos e o resultado das urnas não se mostra tão evidente. A elevada assimetria de informação presente entre eleitores e formuladores de políticas públicas, além do problema conhecido como bounded memory, pode ajudar a explicar a não identificação ou a frágil evidência de racionalidade econômica no voto. Uma forma de tentar dirimir esses problemas, particularmente no caso de eleições estaduais, é através da divulgação de sistemas de rankings estaduais, que sejam de simples interpretação para o eleitorado. Assim, é feita uma proposta de elaboração de um ranking de desenvolvimento estadual que, por fim, é utilizado para testar a presença de racionalidade econômica nas eleições estaduais brasileiras. Os resultados não mostraram indicações de escolha racional nas eleições estaduais brasileiras e reforçam o argumento de que há elevada assimetria de informação e de bounded memory, o que poderia ser dirimido, ao menos em parte, com a maior propagação de sistemas de rankings estaduais. / The objective of this study is to make analysis of one of the lines of research that attempts to explain the behavior of individuals in voting, the rational choice theory or economic theory of voting, which argues that citizens vote for rulers potentially capable to bring them some social or economic benefit. However, the relationship between socio-economic indicators performance and the result of the ballot box does not appear so obvious. The high information asymmetry present among voters and policy makers, in addition to the problem known as bounded memory can help explain the failure to identify or flimsy evidence of economic rationality in the vote. One way to try to resolve these issues, particularly in the case of state elections is through the dissemination of state rankings systems which are simple to electorate interpretation. Thus a proposal to draw up a state development ranking is done, which is used to test the presence of economic rationality in the Brazilian state elections. The results showed no indications of rational choice in the Brazilian state elections and reinforce the argument that there is high information asymmetry and bounded memory, which could be settled, at least in part, to the further spread of state rankings systems.

The purpose of this study is to examine why the US is involved in Yemen’s civil war and what factors are contributing to its involvement, particularly if the US involvement in Yemen is based on self-interest or humanitarian motives. As a qualitive desk study, this research uses rational choice theory and the humanitarian intervention framework as its analytical framework.The research results highlight that the US objectives are first and foremost following an “America first” approach, with specific economic and political benefits, such as maintaining a good bilateral relationship with Saudi Arabia, arms sales and the purchase of oil which are clearly prioritized over humanitarian aspects to protect the civilians in Yemen.

Bakgrund och problem  Det har blivit mer vanligt att räkna på de mänskliga resurserna i organisationer, vilket har lett till att HR-avdelningen har fått en mer strategisk roll och tagit avstånd från att bara varit en administrativ stödfunktion. Människor är de som organiserar beslutsfattning och agerar utefter beslutsproblem varav det behövs kompetent personal, regler och struktur. Beslutsprocesserna genomgås ofta med en vision av vad önskat resultat ska bli vilket ofta går i enlighet med organisationens mål. Personalnyckeltal används av alla organisationer i någon mening. Vanligtvis i ett jämförande syfte från tidigare år, till andra konkurrenter eller för att se trender. De bidrar till att föra organisationen framåt mot de uppsatta målen. Det mänskliga kapitalet är svårare att räkna på än andra immateriella tillgångar, men att ändå kunna använda sig av personalnyckeltalen i beslutsprocesser bör därför kunna resultera i en mer tydlig process. Syfte och metod  Syftet med studien var att utöka den teoretiska och praktiska kunskapen om betydelsen personalnyckeltal har i organisationers beslutsprocesser. För att undersöka detta tillämpades därför en kvalitativ metod där fem semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes med intervjupersoner från både privat och offentlig sektor.  Resultat och slutsats Studien resulterade i en ökad teoretisk och praktisk kunskap då personalnyckeltal har en betydelse för organisationers beslutsprocesser i de faser där de agerar som underlag. Det är ytterst viktigt att använda sig av siffror som personalnyckeltal när en organisation identifierar ett problem, samlar in information till beslut och sedan utvärderar den process som genomförts och det beslut som implementerats. / Background and problem Accounting for the human resources within organizations have become more common which have led to a more strategic role for the HR-department and a departure from its original role as a supportive administrative part of the organization. Humans are the ones who organize decision making and therefore act along the problems of the decision where competent personnel, rules and structure are needed. The decision-making processes are often undergoing with a vision of what the wanted result is which often is in conjunction with the goal of the organization. All organizations have use of key performance indicators in some capacity. It´s commonly used with a comparative purpose in contrast of previous years, comparing key performance indictors to other competitors or to spot trends. They contribute to bring the organization towards its goals. The human capital is harder to account for than other intangible assets, but to be able to use key performance indicators in decision-making processes should therefore result in a more distinct process.  Purpose and method  The purpose of this study was to expand the theoretical and practical knowledge of the significance that key performance indicators have in organizational decision-making processes. A qualitative method was therefore used where five semi structured interviews were conducted with interviewing persons from both the private and public sector. Results and conclusion  This study resulted in an increased theoretical and practical knowledge in that key performance indicators have a significant matter in organizational decision-making processes in those phases where they act as a groundwork. It is of utmost importance to use digits like key performance indicators when an organization identifies a problem, collects information to be used for the decision and later evaluates the previous process and the decision that has been implemented.

With a growing risk of food insecurity in the face of extreme population growth, the world is in need of hands-on solutions that could combine a significant increase in food production while decreasing the effects of agriculture on the environment. Such a solution could be provided through cultivating staple crops in Indoor Vertical Farming facilities, however, due to its high expenses, these developments have stagnated, lacking financial support. As this financial support could be provided by Impact Investors, this thesis explores the relevance of non-financial factors and how they relate to the financial returns as well as how much it influences an Impact Investors decision to invest. The primary data was collected through a quantitative survey, including a fictional scenario based upon the cultivation of wheat in an Indoor Vertical Farming. The results were analyzed and interpreted through the lens of the Willingness to Pay concept and the Rational Choice Theory.The results showed that in the case of this study, the respondents were most willing to pay for the factors water, yield, and emissions. However, regardless of the positive impact of these factors, they lacked the influence to get them to commit to the presented scenario as they still prioritized financial returns as the base of decision. Lastly, another prominent driver behind the investors likelihood to invest was found to be age, where younger investors were much more likely to invest than the older respondents. / Med en ökande risk för livsmedelsosäkerhet parallellt med extrem befolkningstillväxt behöver världen praktiska lösningar som kan kombinera en betydande ökning av livsmedelsproduktionen utan ökad belastning på miljön från intensifierat jordbruk. En sådan lösning kan tillhandahållas genom odling av stapelgrödor i vertikala jordbruksanläggningar inomhus, men på grund av dess höga kostnader blir denna utveckling stagnerad på grund av saknat ekonomiskt stöd. I och med att en möjlig väg att säkra ekonomiska stöd kan tillhandahållas av Impact Investors undersöker denna avhandling relevansen av icke-finansiella faktorer och hur de relaterar till den finansiella avkastningen samt hur mycket det påverkar ett Impact Investors beslut att investera. De primära uppgifterna samlades in genom en kvantitativ enkätundersökning, baserat på ett fiktivt scenario om odling av vete i ett vertikalt jordbruk inomhus. Resultaten analyserades och tolkades genom perspektiven 'Willingness to Pay' och 'Rational Choice Theory'. Resultaten visade att respondenterna i den här studien var mest villiga att betala för faktorerna vatten, avkastning och utsläpp. Oavsett de positiva effekterna av dessa faktorer saknade de dock tillräckligt inflytande för att få investerarna att helt engagera sig i det presenterade scenariot eftersom de fortfarande prioriterade ekonomisk avkastning som främsta beslutsunderlag. Slutligen visade sig att en annan framstående drivkraft bakom investerarnas sannolikhet att investera var ålder, där yngre investerare var mycket mer benägna att investera än de äldre respondenterna.

This diploma thesis is a single-case study analyzing promotion of the concept of Flexicurity principle in the CR through the Open Method of Coordination (OMC). The concept of flexicurity began raising European integration actors' awareness since early 2000s. That was due to considerations how to strenghten competitiveness of the EU Member States' economies during growing expansion of more liberal markets such as China, and in the same time to maintain the European social model based on the concept of welfare state. In 2007, there was adopted EU's definition of Flexicurity. Flexicurity began to be promoted by the OMC. This thesis responds to the lack of studies analyzing the influence of the OMC in specific policy areas. The author analyzes literature, relevant legislation as well as their explanatory reports, National Reform Programmes, Czech government's policy statements, and interviews with representatives of tripartite actors who take part in social dialogue. The study explores how does the OMC work in the case of Flexicurity promotion. The aim is to find out which of the selected theories is more suitable for describing the way Flexicurity is anchored in the CR. Selected theories are the Rational Choice Theory (RCT) and the theory of Sociological Institutionalism (SI). The author concludes...

Washington State and Colorado were the first states to legalize recreational marijuana. According to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, the number of drivers who tested positive for marijuana in traffic fatalities increased 48% from 2013 to 2014, and marijuana legalization may have influenced this increase. Since marijuana legalization is new to the United States, the effects of this change in policy are untested in the literature. The purpose of this quantitative study using a regression point displacement design was to examine the relationship between traffic fatalities involving cannabinoids in Washington State before and after marijuana legalization. Rational choice theory and perceptual deterrence theory provided the framework for the study. Existing state level data of traffic fatalities from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System were analyzed using regression point displacement. Pre and post legalization Washington state fatalities were compared against 43 control groups where marijuana has not been legalized for recreational use. Results from ANCOVA analysis indicated no statistical difference between Washington State and other nonlegalized states in traffic fatalities involving cannabinoids. This is one of the first studies exploring the effects of marijuana legalization on public safety. These results suggest marijuana legalization may not contribute to the increase in traffic fatalities. Findings may provide legislators and traffic safety stakeholders with information in creating legislation legalizing marijuana as well as strategy and a research agenda to address traffic fatalities.

Informal and formal caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) encounter a more difficult and unique set of challenges than do caregivers of individuals with general disabilities. If adequate caregiver supports are not provided, caregivers may experience increased strain as the disease progresses, increasing the likelihood of unnecessary institutionalization of their care recipients and increasing the cost to the public. Using rational choice theory and political systems theory, the purpose of this study was to differentiate between the phenomenological experiences of formal and informal caregivers of ADRD patients. The overall research was a qualitative design that used semi-structured interviews to collect data from 5 formal and 5 informal caregivers who were recommended by the local Alzheimer's association chapter. Data were analyzed using direct content analysis of recurrent themes including how policymakers might respond to needs for respite, support, and more resources. Research findings suggested more education is needed about the disease and how best to give care for both formal and informal ADRD caregivers. Furthermore, distinctions between formal caregivers and informal family caregivers and their care recipients were identified, and these details should be noted by policymakers. Informal ADRD caregivers would benefit more from the research findings. Particular benefits would include financial supports, additional funding for caregiver respites, more education, and better care methods for ADRD care recipients. These recipients are rapidly growing in numbers and pose unique 21st century socioeconomic challenges to informal caregivers.