Development issues are often described as important but dull, and ongoing stereotypical representations of a ‘distant other’ perpetuated by NGO’s and mainstream media create an increasingly disengaged public. In response to this, more creative means of communication are needed to increase engagement and counter dominant stereotypical narratives within the development sector. Humour is rarely considered as a communication strategy for development, but it has the potential to be an influential tool to lower societal barriers and challenge existing power relations. This explorative research aims to examine how humour could be potentially used to disrupt stereotypical narratives and form a site of resistance against concepts such as the White Saviour Complex. It aims to explore the ways humour can engage a broader audience and challenge stereotypical representations of aid, especially within the western media. Considering two primary case studies; online campaign RadiAid and tv mockumentary series the Samaritans, it will explore the ways humour can be used to persuade, raise awareness and increase likability, while also being used as a form of critique. Through the lens of social semiotics, it considers commonalities in how humour can be utilised and how audiences react to it. This research also aims to find the advantages and limitations of using humorous techniques in such contexts.

Cette thèse rapporte les résultats de la lecture approfondie de dix-neuf romans américains de la première moitié du 19e siècle, à la recherche des divers modes de représentations des Indiens qu'ils proposaient. Les onze oeuvres de Cooper couvrent tous ces types de représentations. Des investigations croisées ont montré que les auteurs, bien informés sur le passé violent et les anciens habitants de leurs territoires, présentaient les Indiens surtout dans des romans à caractère historique..Là, les Indiens, nobles ou ignobles, sont relégués dans le passé, et ne se voient donner aucune place dans la nouvelle nation : pourtant l'ironique Paulding, le chrétien Cooper ou l'humaniste Strange les dépeignent en personnes semblables aux envahisseurs. Dans la mouvance gothique et romantique, C.B. Brown, Neal et Bird, pourtant plus réaliste, les montrent incarner le moi négatif et les rejettent, tandis que les voix féminines de Child et de Sedgwick projettent sur eux un idéal de valeureux chevaliers. Quant à Simms et Cooper, ils les campent tantôt dans la violence d'une épopée d'où surgira le nouvel Adam, tantôt dans la beauté sublime des primitifs paysages américains. Ainsi, dans la nation comme dans la fiction, la seule place accordée aux Indiens ne relève que de l'imaginaire / This work results from the close reading of nineteen American novels written in the first half of the 19th century, in a search of the various representations of the Indian they might display. Crossed investigations proved that the authors, well-informed about the violent past of their familiar areas and about their former inhabitants, mostly chose the forms of the historical romance and tale : either noble or ignoble, Indians were rejected out of the new nation. Yet, the ironical Paulding, the Christian Cooper and the humanist Strange styled their Indian characters in an open and human way. Following the gothic and romantic influences, C.B. Brown, Neal, Bird despite a more realistic tone, pictured Indians as the negative part of the self which is to be repelled. On the contrary, the woman's voices of Child and Sedgwick sketched them as ideal knights. Simms and Cooper sometimes set them in the violence of an epic drama out of which the new Adam will arise, sometimes in the sublime beauty of pristine American wilderness. So, no national destiny is left for the Indian but one buried in fancy

This paper examined the effects of distance priming on test anxiety and judgment. Research suggests that individuals’ perceived distance can impact their affect and judgments, which sheds light on the principle of “distance equals safety” (Williams & Bargh, 2008). Taking an exam invokes both cognitive and emotional anxiety, such as worry, panic, and tension. It is hypothesized that the distance priming may reduce test anxiety—particularly, the emotionality aspect—as well as perceived test difficulty. The results showed that, counter to the hypotheses, there was no significant difference among the three priming groups in their emotional test anxiety or perceived test difficulty. There is a significant correlation between ACT score and cognitive test anxiety, supporting past literature that as one’s intellectual ability increases, their cognitive test anxiety decreases. Further research needs to be conducted to replicate the efficacy of the priming method by Williams and Bargh (2008) and to use more effective ways of provoking performance anxiety.

The thesis represents image of female characters and their development in the popular TV series Game of Thrones. Based on qualitative analysis in this thesis it is being examined how visual image, personal characteristics and interaction within society are presented and developed on example of several female characters in these TV series. Seven women were observed in all already aired episodes of seasons 1 to 7. As a strategy of qualitative analysis grounded theory method was chosen, which helped to produce generalized categories and sub-categories of phenomena which characters have in common. In further chapters of this thesis interpretation of categories could be found with illustrations from analyzed episodes. Other important part of this thesis is the chapter, in which trends in characters' transformation and development in frames of mentioned categories are being identified.