For the Himba, deeply embedded cultural symbols—traditional daily way of life, traditional beliefs about the sacredness of cattle, and religious beliefs of ancestral worship—are of ancient origin and have been retained in their culture throughout all of recorded history. While they still exist in Himba society today, some scholars have observed a potential widespread generational shift in adherence to these core cultural values and beliefs. This study presents the findings of 41 in-depth interviews with members of the Himba tribe in northern Namibia—specifically Opuwo and Otutati—ages 18 to 65. It examines the degree to which cultural differences are emerging as a result of exposure to various influences including modern media. Special attention is given to differences among generational groups—young, middle-aged, and older Himba—that have occurred in the Himba daily way of life. Cultural differences are indicated by beliefs regarding dress and living style, cattle, and ancestral worship—the three major, deep-rooted Himba cultural symbols. Three theoretical explanations for culture change are discussed in order to explain observed differences among generational groups. Implications for culture change are provided as well as areas requiring future study. This study is unlike any other conducted among the Himba in that it formally addresses the degree to which cultural change of core cultural values exists. Himba culture has proven to be resilient to foreign influences, but some observers suggest that this is changing. Given the resources, times, and methodological restraints involved in this study, it was necessary to limit its scope to just an exploration of the existence of a potential widespread generational difference in Himba cultural values, and not an in-depth exploration of the reasons behind it. This research hopes to provide a foundation of research from which subsequent researchers can progress in our collective understanding of what Himba generational changes are occurring and how these potentially unprecedented changes have occurred.

Den här studien undersöker hur fritidshemspersonalen upplever att de påverkas av resurserna som de har att tillgå och hur de kompenserar för eventuella brister. Studien är kvalitativ och vi har använt oss av intervjuer som metod. Tre lärare mot fritidshem intervjuades och berättade om hur de arbetar för att skapa kvalitativ undervisning på fritidshemmet. Resultatet visade att man inte alls ser de materiella resurserna som de viktiga utan ser en större vikt i personalen och kollegorna i verksamheten. Kollegorna på fritidshemmet är även en stor motivationsfaktor. Fritidshemmen lägger enligt personalen som intervjuats stor vikt vid det sociala lärandet och lägger ner mycket tid på det. Utifrån studien som har gjorts får vi uppfattningen att de socioekonomiska skillnaderna mellan de olika områdena också speglar sig i undervisningen på fritidshemmet. Fritidshemmet som har ett välutvecklat utvecklingsarbete har också bättre förutsättningar att genomföra kvalitativ undervisning med kollegialt lärande som stor styrka i det arbetet. Att lärare mot fritidshem samarbetar för att skapa goda förutsättningar på skolan är också en framgångsnyckel för kvalitativ undervisning. / This study investigates how after-school staff feel they are affected by the resources available to them and how they compensate for any deficiencies. The study is qualitative and we have used interviews as a method. Three school-age educare teachers were interviewed and talked about how they work to create quality teaching at the school-age educare. The result showed that the material resources are not seen as important at all but see a greater importance in the staff and colleagues in the business. The colleagues at the leisure center are also a great motivational factor. According to the teachers, school-age educare attach great importance to social learning and spend a lot of time on it. Based on the study that has been conducted, we can see that the socio-economic differences between the different areas are also reflected in the school and the teaching at the school-age educare. The school-age educare that has a well-developed development work also has better conditions to conduct qualitative teaching with collegial learning as a major strength in that work. That teachers at school-age educare cooperate to create good conditions at the school is also a key to success for quality teaching.

Analyzing the relationship between the visual imagery used in music videos, and the sexual cognition of viewers. Sexual cognition is the awareness of one's own sexual behavior, and its implications. The visual content of music videos was analyzed focusing only on the imagery used. The Heterosexual Script (Jhally, 2007) in particular is observed in most music videos, highlighting the sexual objectification of women and the dominant role of males. The direction of causality between the visual imagery and sexual cognitions can only be speculated using a number of theories, namely cognitive dissonance (Festinger, 1957), cultivation theory (Gerbner et al., 1994), Objectification theory (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997), Social Learning theory (Bandura, 2001; 2002), and that of semantic constructs. Significant results would suggest that music videos have the potential to alter an individual's sexual cognitions, which may lead to riskier sexual behavior and negative views of women sexually.

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En förutsättning för lärande i förskolan är god kommunikation och att skapa trygghet för barnen. Syftet med studien är att bidra med kunskap om hur man kan minska/undvika språkbarriärer i förskolan genom att ge exempel på hur förskollärare uttrycker att de möter barn med annat modersmål. Studien är kvalitativ och jag har använt semistrukturerade intervjuer som metod för datainsamling. Studien har analyserats genom ett sociokulturellt perspektiv med hjälp av begrepp som proximal utvecklingszon, scaffolding och socialt lärande samt de språkliga begreppen indikativ-, semiotisk- och retorisk funktion. I resultatet framkommer det att de deltagande förskollärarna uppfattar sig själva ha en viktig roll i barnens lärande och kommunikation. Resultatet delas in i fyra kategorier utifrån deltagarnas svar: förskollärarens syn på språkbarriärer, förskollärarens roll, utmaningar och möjligheter i arbetet med språkbarriärer och förskollärarens stöd och hjälpmedel. Förskollärarna ger exempel på hur de stöttar barnens lärande genom verbal och icke-verbal kommunikation samt vilka utmaningar och möjligheter de ser i arbetet med språkbarriärer i förskolan. Det framkommer i resultatet att förskollärarens kompetenser och erfarenheter är av stor vikt för hur undervisningen bedrivs samt i hur barnens behov tillgodoses i förhållande till språkliga barriärer. / One condition for learning in preschool is good communication and to create security for the children. The purpose of this study is to elucidate how to reduce/avoid the occurrence of language barriers in preschool by giving examples of preschool teacher’s expression on work with them. The study is qualitative, and semi-structured interviews have been used as a method of collecting empirical data. The study has been analyzed through a sociocultural perspective using the concepts of the zone of proximal development, scaffolding, and social learning as well as the linguistic concepts of indicative-, semiotic-, and rhetorical functions. The results show that the participating preschool teachers perceive themselves as having an important role in the children’s learning and communication. The results are divided into four categories from the participants answers: preschool teachers view on language barriers, the role of preschool teachers, challenges and possibilities in working with language barriers and preschool teachers support and aids. The preschool teachers also provide examples of how they support children’s learning through verbal and nonverbal communication as well as which challenges and opportunities they encounter in the work of language barriers in a preschool setting. The results show that preschool teacher’s competence and experiences is of great importance for how the education is conducted and to make sure that children who experience language barriers are accommodated to.

The term Community of Practice (CoP) is often used rather loosely to describe many types of instructional settings that support more constructivist or social learning settings. This study differentiates CoP from other learning communities with greater discipline in defining CoP, as characterized by sustained self-organization for example. Such a CoP sits quite apart from the typical intent of instructional settings. The literature on intentional CoP suggests that the greatest challenges are a sense of interdependence among CoP members, the authenticity of the practice or purpose, and a trajectory for the CoP's future. The purpose of this case study was to attend to these issues with an online initiative to nurture CoP among practicing teachers in a reading-specialist, graduate program. For the course under study, learners engaged only in cooperative projects with the support of a community worksite (Sakai). Throughout the term, the worksite was promoted as a community place independent of the course and program, a place where they could continue to share indefinitely; and they were encouraged to think of what formal and informal activities the system could support, and how. The study explored how participants responded verbally and behaviorally to the community worksite and the other technologies employed to better support their group work and sharing of knowledge in general. The group's technical skills, competing cultures and practices, and the level of authenticity were all significant challenges. The study's findings challenge the application of this learning theory at the course level of academics, and they inform future design of online support for intentional CoP. / Ph. D.

This study develops and evaluates a theoretical model based on social learning, conflict, and feminist perspectives to explain teenage sibling physical violence and psychological abuse. Using regression analysis and data from 796 young adults, considerable support is found for all three theoretical approaches and suggests an integrated model best predicts acts of violence and abuse among siblings. For physical violence, males and brothers had significantly higher rates. Spousal verbal conflict, patriarchal attitudes towards the distribution of chores among siblings, attitudes approving of the use of physical force during an argument, and sibling verbal conflict were strongly related to sibling violence. For psychological abuse, neither gender nor sibling pair was significant. The most important predictors for abuse were a close maternal relationship, favoritism, parents yelling, sharing property I psychological stress, patriarchal attitudes towards chores, approval of violence, and sibling verbal conflict. The model explains considerably more of the variance in teenage sibling psychological abuse than physical violence, 42 percent and 32 percent respectively. Finally, the study provides directions for future research on sibling violence and abuse. / Ph. D.

This thesis demonstrates that participants in Political Blogging Communities increase their deliberative capacity over time, potentially enabling them to participate in democratic societies. The study unifies perspectives on the meaning of blogs in American politics. It presents a unique theoretical framework that incorporates community and social learning literatures. The Internet is thought to potentially enable a revitalization of democracy because of its political and communicative properties. While studies have looked to deliberation in online forums, this study specifically targets Political Blogging Communities. Blogs have been targeted by a diverse range of scholars and methods that raise questions of their role in emphasizing the constitutional ideal of deliberation. Daily Kos and Red State are among the most popular political discussion sites, but are generally under-investigated in the literature. The theoretical framework and results presented here suggest that they are places where democratic capacity increases. A pilot study provided encouraging results. Because Political Blogging Communities talk about public issues, have several aspects of a supportive community, and feature contributions from ordinary people, they foster an adherence to deliberative norms. The sampling frame sought dedicated participants in an effort to approach the question of social learning over time. To address these questions, the deliberative content of 373 diaries from 20 authors at Daily Kos and Red State was hand coded. This Thesis makes two principal contributions: (1) it introduces a new measure that assesses deliberative quality is introduced, and (2) finds that the diversity of deliberative content in political blogs increases over time. / Master of Arts

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / W. Richard Goe / This study examined three of the prominent theories of juvenile delinquency to determine principle juvenile firearm carrying behaviors. The theories investigated were Differential Association/Social Learning, Social Control, and Anomie/Strain. The data set used for this research was the “National Survey of Weapons-Related Experiences, Behaviors, and Concerns of High School Youth in the United States, 1996” from the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research at the University of Michigan. This national-level survey of youth was conducted by Joseph F. Sheley and James D. Wright to assemble detailed behavioral and attitudinal data concerning weapons and violence, and was completed by 733 10th and 11th grade male high school students. Comparison logistic regression model analyses were utilized to examine the study’s hypotheses. Findings indicated that juvenile firearms carrying is most influenced by delinquent peers, delinquent friends, and gang membership within the theoretical framework of Differential Association/Social Learning. Social Control Theory has the least explanatory power, while the analysis of Anomie/Strain suggests that vicarious strains (those strains experienced by people close to the juvenile) have even more influence on juvenile firearms carrying than experienced strain. Theoretical integration is recommended for future research attempting to provide greater explanatory and predictive power for serious forms of delinquency like juvenile firearms carrying.