This study aims to investigate how two forms of non-violent campaigns, one run by unionsand one without, have arisen. It is investigated by analyzing the mobilization processes of the two campaigns. The materials used in this study is the theoretical framework of Resource Mobilization Theory’s five resource mobilization categories. It was used as an alternative way to examine how and understand why the two movements turned out to be so different, where one was a labor movement and the other were not. The method used was a qualitative comparative case study. Through the comparison the study could identify some differences between the two movements campaigns. Through the comparison, the study was able to identify certain differences between the two movement campaigns. On the one hand, the scope and network of the campaigns were important for their emergence, and on the otherhand, the temporal context was important for the mobilizations of the cases.

This study explores the multiple ways in which Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) functioned through concrete biomedical institutions, namely, the Centres for Disease Control (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the World Health Organization (WHO). AIDS is viewed as a product of the full range of institutional practices in which it became embedded and in which it was set within the boundaries of Louis Pasteur's germ theory of disease (see the Preface section). This biomedical model of disease was materialized through journalistic practices and sold as news. Within these operative terms can be understood another analytical strategy that also designates the main domain of my study of this contemporary social form: I argue in this thesis that knowledge about AIDS was by no means dependent solely on the objective, scientifically determined, "received narrative" of biomedicine; what is today known as AIDS is also a product of a wide range of social practices produced and reproduced over time and space. AIDS is also an outcome of the resolutions, judgements and decisions that working journalists made over time in terms of what they generated or covered as news; the disease is also product of a large assortment of representational mirrors that I call `authentic voices', to take as good examples, the "narrative of moral protest", the narrative of a "homosexual disease", the narrative of a "heterosexual disease," and the narrative of a "modern-day Black Death" (plague). The story of AIDS in the media can also be seen to be defined by the proliferation of these authentic voices. From this reading, the distinctive trait of AIDS in the media lies in the fact that it is a constructed object, a disease framed through a specific structure of meanings. When we look at these structure of meanings we find that their moral and cultural assumptions and stereotypical connotations embody certain aspects of the organism of the society within which they were created and nourished over a much longer history. / Sociology / D.Litt. et Phil. (Sociology)

自1990年代中起國大陸經濟發展欣欣向榮之際，城市治理議題則圍繞在國家如何平抑發展中可能的基層動亂。本研究選取中國大陸經濟發展前沿城市的上海基層社區--居民委員會選舉作為觀察主題，直接選舉的推動是否會影響社區政治中黨國的單一獨斷？學習效果(learning effects)的理論預設是，隨著選舉演練次數和民眾政治參與的增加，會引發「批判公民」(critical citizens)意識的興起。這樣的理論預設是否能在上海基層選舉中看到？ 本研究觀察2003年到2012年的居委會換屆選舉。發現近年來，社區民眾對黨國的挑戰並未因為選舉限制的不斷增強而退卻，反之，民眾會利用選舉過程來挑戰官方威權或是作為社區事務發聲的管道。社區民眾如何在嚴酷的制度環境中發起對當權者的政治挑戰？本文將從居委會選舉中的選舉競爭，分析民眾挑戰執政當權所使用的資源稟賦。最後，通過基層競選觀察獲得的啟發是，民眾權利意識的提升，使得黨國忠誠不再凌駕一切。開放直接選舉的制度效果，如現代化理論所昭示的，存在學習效應並且在中產階級社區最為明顯。 / Undergoing the dramatic development of economic and social change in China, local governments pay great strength on the issue of governance for preventing any potential contentious activities. Facing the challenges of local governance, the Chinese governments adopt “Direct elections" for reducing the tension between state and society. In Urban city, direct elections as an important political reform, have been initiated in Residential Committee. Under the CCP party-state system, the local elections have been under severe surveillance. The negative result sharply deduces citizens’ political efficacy, especially on the manner of the participating in voting and political confidence towards local governments. However, in recent years, we observed that some Residential Committees in Shanghai experienced electoral competitions. In these cases, citizens organized the campaign to challenge the authority. The main questions are below: why Chinese people challenge the local authority? And how do they mobilize the campaign? Finally, how should we evaluate these political subjects? Based on these experiences, I conclude that the social-economical development may bring positive consequences on Chinese political reform.

This study explores the multiple ways in which Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) functioned through concrete biomedical institutions, namely, the Centres for Disease Control (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the World Health Organization (WHO). AIDS is viewed as a product of the full range of institutional practices in which it became embedded and in which it was set within the boundaries of Louis Pasteur's germ theory of disease (see the Preface section). This biomedical model of disease was materialized through journalistic practices and sold as news. Within these operative terms can be understood another analytical strategy that also designates the main domain of my study of this contemporary social form: I argue in this thesis that knowledge about AIDS was by no means dependent solely on the objective, scientifically determined, "received narrative" of biomedicine; what is today known as AIDS is also a product of a wide range of social practices produced and reproduced over time and space. AIDS is also an outcome of the resolutions, judgements and decisions that working journalists made over time in terms of what they generated or covered as news; the disease is also product of a large assortment of representational mirrors that I call `authentic voices', to take as good examples, the "narrative of moral protest", the narrative of a "homosexual disease", the narrative of a "heterosexual disease," and the narrative of a "modern-day Black Death" (plague). The story of AIDS in the media can also be seen to be defined by the proliferation of these authentic voices. From this reading, the distinctive trait of AIDS in the media lies in the fact that it is a constructed object, a disease framed through a specific structure of meanings. When we look at these structure of meanings we find that their moral and cultural assumptions and stereotypical connotations embody certain aspects of the organism of the society within which they were created and nourished over a much longer history. / Sociology / D.Litt. et Phil. (Sociology)

This Diploma Thesis focuses on the issue of reproduction of animals and the non- profit organisations and subjects working in this field. The cat and dog reproduction is a primary cause of their overpopulation in the Czech Republic which becomes an ever- increasing issue as the abandoned animal shelter network fails to provide enough capacity for local demand. The thesis is focused on the activities of such organisations and tools they use for mobilising the necessary resources as well as the issue of animal reproduction itself. The theory basis is in the general theory of resource mobilisation supported with the explanation of the civil initiatives dedicated to this phenomenon as well as the overview of the phenomenon of the animal reproduction as well. The thesis is composed of five qualitative interviews with organisations or movements that are dedicated to effective reduction of animal reproduction. The empiric part of the thesis presents selected organisations and then analyses the collected data. The financial and human resources are mostly utilised by organisations which physically treat animals and the majority of the funds is consumed by providing care for them. On the other hand, organisations dedicated to enlightenment and education are able to function as self-funded and self-organised...

This study investigates Hizb'allah's successful but competing dual development as an extra-institutional Shi'a social movement and an institutional political party. Hizb'allah has traditionally been studied from the perspective of one of its many natures, such as a social movement, Islamic movement, resistance, or political party, each perspective bringing with it limitations and differing interpretations of its identity, motivations, and success. The motivation behind this research was to seek an interpretation of the movement's development and success that would encompass these multiple natures. Through an interpretation of social movement ‘life-cycles', a social movement ‘development model' is proposed that accounts for contradicting theories on the ‘success' of social movements, interpreting success instead as an ability to exhibit simultaneous institutional and extra-institutional natures. The hypothesis provided in this work is that it is an ability to simultaneously exhibit institutional and extra-institutional natures that can be a source of strength and success for a movement, drawing capital from both while avoiding accountability that typically accompanies institutional politics. This challenges traditional theoretical approaches in terms of linear life-cycles with few paths for the social movement to choose from. In turn, questions arise regarding notions of social movement life-cycles being uni-directional, continuously progressing towards ‘institutionalization' or demise. Ideas of an ‘end-date' or ‘inevitable outcome' of social movements are also confronted. This interdisciplinary study is conducted by means of media, archival, and empirical research (participant observation, interviews, and surveys), focusing on changing constituent perceptions of the movement between 1985 and 2013. It is also argued that Hizb'allah's strength is its ability to draw from both extra-institutional and institutional resources while simultaneously avoiding accountability. However, it was also found that, by forming the 2011 governing coalition, the movement upset this balance by subjecting itself to accountability inherent in governance, in turn leading to ‘schizophrenic behaviour' as Hizb'allah sought to serve conflicting constituent and state interests. The significance of this research is that it not only provides an explanation for Hizb'allah's success, but also provides an interpretation of social movement development that accounts for multi-natured movements.