Smart homes are based on connecting different parts and components of the household through sensors and the use of the internet. The interconnection of the household enables control and remote control of the home. The factors behind consumer adoption of the smart home have been studied but there are still questions regarding the value propositions of smart homes. This study presents material that can provide insights into what value propositions young adults demand in smart home products. The methods used to produce the study results were, a survey and a questionnaire. The results from the survey showed that smart voice assistants were appreciated by the participants. However, all the participants believed the functional value of the smart voice assistants was limited. After participating in the survey, they felt no real need for the smart voice assistant in their home. The results from the questionnaire’s 112 answers showed that a large majority of the respondents did not own a smart voice assistant. Many did however, express a positive opinion towards voice assistants and were open to the purchase of a smart voice assistant in the future. The small number of respondents that did own a smart voice assistant were all satisfied with their purchase of a smart voice assistant

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This report is a survey study examining the educational practices of social sciences teachers,specifically addressing the phenomenon of social acceleration. Investigating teaching methods,challenges, and innovations, the study explores how educators adapt to the accelerated pace ofsocietal changes. Through a survey, the research provides valuable insights into the experiences ofsocial sciences teachers, offering a comprehensive understanding of the interplay between educationalpractices and the effects of social acceleration. The findings contribute to a nuanced perspective on theevolving landscape of social sciences education in response to rapid societal transformations. / <p>Godkänd 2024-01-19</p>

This study discusses how Swedish secondary school students believe that their Englishlanguage skills have been influenced by the social media platforms TikTok and Instagram.The chosen method for the collection of data is a quantitative survey. The survey consists of 8questions all regarding the usage of the platforms and the possible influence on therespondents’ English language skills. A total of 159 students responded to the survey. To beable to analyse and discuss the results the influence of social media on language learning andacquisition has been researched. Extramural learning and language acquisition in moregeneral terms have also been researched. The collected data has then first been displayed incharts to see the number of responses and distribution in percentage. Further, the results havebeen analysed and discussed in relation to theory and previous research. The results show thatthe majority of Swedish secondary school students believe that their English language skillsare influenced by the social media platforms TikTok and Instagram. The results also showthat the majority prefer the popular social media platform TikTok over Instagram. In theconclusion section of this project the results are further discussed, and the research questionsare answered. Further research on language learning and acquisition through social media isproposed. / Denna studie diskuterar om svenska högstadieelever uppfattar att deras språkfärdigheter iengelska kan påverkas av sociala medieplattformarna TikTok och Instagram. Den valdametoden för insamling av data är en kvantitativ enkätundersökning. Enkäten består av 8frågor som alla rör användandet av plattformarna samt deras möjliga påverkan påspråkinlärning. Totalt 159 elever svarade på enkäten. För att kunna analysera och diskuteraresultaten från enkäten har forskning om sociala mediers påverkan på språkinlärningredovisats. Även generell forskning om extramuralt lärande samt språkinlärning och lärandeav språk redovisas. Den insamlade datan har först presenterats i tabeller där antal svar samtfördelning i procent visas. Sedan har resultaten analyserats och diskuterats i förhållande tillteori och tidigare forskning. Resultaten visar att majoriteten av svenska högstadieelever troratt deras engelska språkkunskaper har påverkats av TikTok och Instagram. Resultaten visaräven att majoriteten föredrar den populära plattformen TikTok över Instagram. I slutsatsen avdenna studie diskuteras resultaten och analysen mera, och forskningsfrågorna besvaras.Slutligen presenteras förslag på vidare forskning om sociala medier och dess påverkan påspråkinlärning.

ChatGPT has become a popular technology among people and gained a considerable user base, because of its power to effectively generate responses to users requests. However, as ChatGPT’s popularity has grown and as other natural language processing systems (NLPs) are being developed and adopted, several concerns have been raised about the technology that could have implications on user trust. Because trust plays a central role in user willingness to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) systems and there is no consensus in research on what facilitates trust, it is important to conduct more research to identify the factors that affect user trust in artificial intelligence systems, especially modern technologies such as NLPs. The aim of the study was therefore to identify the factors that affect user trust in NLPs. The findings from the literature within trust and artificial intelligence indicated that there may exist a relationship between trust and transparency, explainability, accuracy, reliability, automation, augmentation, anthropomorphism and data privacy. These factors were quantitatively studied together in order to uncover what affects user trust in NLPs. The result from the study indicated that transparency, accuracy, reliability, automation, augmentation, anthropomorphism and data privacy all have a positive impact on user trust in NLPs, which both supported and opposed previous findings from literature.

I Sverige pågick under 2013 efterbehandlingsåtgärder på 1789 förorenade områden. Det nationella miljömålet ”giftfri miljö” har av regeringen angetts som det styrande miljö- målet vid efterbehandling. Efterbehandlingen syftar till att minska risken för förore- ningsspridning i mark från avslutade verksamheter som industrier, vägar med mera. Schaktning av massor utförs vid efterbehandling för att avlägsna förorenade massor från platsen men innebär samtidigt utsläpp av växthusgaser. Både vid schaktning och transport av förorenade massor samt framställande och transport av fyllnadsmaterial används fordon och maskiner som genererar växthusgasutsläpp. Efterbehandlingsarbetet riskerar alltså att ge en negativ påverkan på miljömålet ”begränsad klimatpåverkan”. I denna studie söks svar på frågorna: Kan efterbehandling av förorenade områden bedri- vas med simultan hänsyn till de båda miljömålen ”giftfri miljö” och ”begränsad klimat- påverkan”? och Hur ska ett sådant arbete bedrivas? För att besvara dessa frågor använ- des det webbaserade beräkningsverktyget Carbon footprint från efterbehandling och andra markarbeten från Svenska geotekniska föreningen, SGF, samt en enkätstudie riktad till tillsynsmyndigheter. Beräkningar med verktyget visade att det som främst påverkar växthusgasutsläppen vid efterbehandling är typ av fyllnadsmassor, sammanlagd transportsträcka samt lastkapa- citet hos fordon som transporterar massor. Ingen av de tillfrågade tillsynsmyndigheterna tar hänsyn till växthusgasutsläpp vid godkännande av efterbehandlingsåtgärd. Många ställer sig dock positiva till ett verktyg som ger möjlighet att göra en avvägning mellan miljömål och tror att det skulle underlätta deras arbete. Två strategier som tar större hänsyn till växthusgasutsläpp identifierades. Strategi 1 innebär att sanering sker enligt riktvärdena för känslig eller mindre känslig mark- användning (KM/MKM) och växthusgasutsläppen minimeras genom effektiviserings- åtgärder. Som effektiviseringsåtgärd identifierades bland annat användning av lastbilar med större lastkapacitet och användning av återvunna massor som fyllnadsmaterial. Strategi 2 innebär en avvägning mellan miljömålen ”giftfri miljö” och ”begränsad kli- matpåverkan”. Riktvärdena för KM och MKM kan i strategin överskridas för att mini- mera växthusgasutsläpp. Effektiviseringsåtgärderna från strategi 1 implementeras även i strategi 2. / In Sweden, 1789 contaminated sites were remediated during 2013. The government has stated the national environmental objective “A Non-Toxic Environment” as the gov- erning environmental objective in remediation. The aim of remediation is to reduce the risk of dispersion of contamination in soils from discontinued activities such as indus- tries, roads etc. Excavation of soils takes place to remove contaminated soil from the site. However, it leads to emissions of greenhouse gases. Machines that generate emis- sions of greenhouse gases are needed in excavation, transport of contaminated soils and the production and transport of filling materials. Thus, the environmental objective “Reduced Climate Impact” is likely to be adversely affected by soil remediation. This study was conducted to answer the questions: Can soil remediation be conducted with simultaneous regard to the environmental objectives “A Non-Toxic Environment” and “Reduced Climate Impact”? and How should such efforts be conducted? Two methods were used: the web based calculation tool Carbon footprint from remediation and other soil works from the Swedish Geotechnical Society, SGF, and a survey ad- dressed to regulatory authorities. Calculations with the tool showed that the main impacts on greenhouse gas emissions were choice of filling materials, total transportation distance and carrying load of the vehicles transporting soils. None of the respondent regulatory authorities take green- house gas emissions into account when approving remediation operations. However, many of them displayed positive attitude towards a tool that would make it possible to compare impacts on environmental objectives and stated that such a tool would facili- tate their work. Two strategies that give more consideration to greenhouse gas emissions were identi- fied. In strategy 1, remediation is conducted according to the guidelines of sensitive or less sensitive land use (KM/MKM). The greenhouse gas emissions are minimized through efficiency improvement measures. Use of vehicles with a greater carrying load and recovered soils as filling material are examples of identified efficiency improve- ment measures. Strategy 2 consists of achieving a balance between the environmental objectives “A Non-Toxic Environment” and “Reduced Climate Impact”. In this strat- egy, KM and MKM can be exceeded to minimize greenhouse gas emissions. The effi- ciency improvement measures from strategy 1 can be implemented in strategy 2.

Studiens syfte var att undersöka den psykosociala arbetsmiljöns betydelse när anställda bestämmer sig för att säga upp sina arbeten i en industriell organisation. Samt att undersöka om anställningstid inom organisationen och ålder hade betydelse för avsikt att lämna. En kvantitativ forskningsstrategi användes för studien, där en webbaserad enkätundersökning genomfördes hos en organisation inom den industriella sektorn. Ett representativt urval genererade 138 svar, vilket resulterade i en svarsfrekvens på 57%. Mätinstrument för studien bestod av verktyget Intention to Leave Scale (Kelloway, Gottlieb &amp; Barham, 1999) samt delar av Copenhagen Psychological Questionnaire(Kristensen, Hannerz, Høgh &amp; Borg, 2005). För denna studie uppnåddes en Cronbach’salfa reliabilitetskoefficient för Intention to Leave Scale på α = .86 samt α = .89 för dimensionen samarbete och ledning, α = .82 för dimensionen arbetstillfredsställelse samtα = .90 för dimensionen värderingar på arbetsplatsen från Copenhagen Psychological Questionnaire. Pearson’s korrelationsanalys samt envägs-ANOVA användes för att analysera insamlad data. Analysresultaten påvisade signifikanta samband mellan avsikt att lämna och psykosocial arbetsmiljö. Det visades inga signifikanta skillnader avseende avsikt att lämna sett till anställningstid och ålder. Utifrån presenterade resultat drogs slutsatsen att det i linje med tidigare studier även fanns samband inom den industriella sektorn. För framtida forskning ansågs det finnas behov av kausalitetsstudier av ämnet. / The purpose of this study was to investigate the importance of the psychosocial work environment when employees decide to terminate their employment within an industrial organization. The purpose was also to investigate whether or not tenure and age was of importance for intentions to leave. A quantitative design was used for the study, where a web-based survey was conducted at an organization within the industrial sector. A representative selection generated 138 responses, resulting in a response rate of 57%. The instruments used were the Intention to Leave Scale (Kelloway, Gottlieb &amp; Barham, 1999) and parts of the Copenhagen Psychological Questionnaire (Kristensen, Hannerz, Høgh &amp; Borg, 2005). For this study, Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient for the Intention to Leave Scale was α = .86 and for the Copenhagen Psychological Questionnairedimensions; α = .89 for Interpersonal relations and leadership, α = .82 for Job satisfaction, and α = .90 for Values at the workplace. Pearson's correlation analysis and One-Way ANOVA were used to analyze collected data. The results show significant relationships between intention to leave and psychosocial work environment. There were no significant differences regarding the intention to leave based on age or tenure. The findings of the study were in line with previous research, therefore it was concluded that a correlation existed within the industrial sector as well. For future research, it was implied that a need for causality studies of the subject was apparent.

Empowerment has been a popular concept in management and leadership practice and research for more than forty years. The intentions behind empowerment at the workplace are positive: empowered employees should experience a greater degree of influence, decision-making latitude, and meaningfulness. This is achieved through transfers of power, such as increases in autonomy and responsibility. Although empowerment efforts have often been shown to successfully result in empowered and highly involved employees, there has also been research that shows the opposite: the so-called paradox of empowerment is a well-known problem that refers to failed empowerment efforts through which beneficiaries feel disempowered rather than empowered. This thesis comprises three papers intended to contribute to empowerment research and practice within a sociological framework that offers a better understanding of implicit assumptions between employer and employee and the unintended consequences these can have on the outcome of empowerment change efforts. The analyses utilize a communicative approach in line with sociological and social-psychological theories of communication and interaction. The first two papers are theoretical analyses, one examining the general concept of empowerment (Paper I), the other focusing more specifically on empowerment in workplace contexts (Paper II). Paper III is an empirical analysis that investigates some of the theoretical assumptions made in Papers I and II. The first paper analyzes empowerment from a sociological point of view and identifies possible mechanisms behind the paradox of empowerment. It is argued that such paradoxes may evolve from discrepancies between approaching empowerment from a purely economic and structural perspective versus a communicative and relational one. It concludes with the observation that, although their agency may be increased on a structural level, empowerees may experience a parallel decrease of agential options on a communicative level. The second paper deals with empowerment at the workplace as a management or leadership technique. Focusing on relational aspects, a “basic communicative structure” is identified. This is analyzed as comprising a contractual and a communicative context that should be taken into consideration by empowerers in order to avoid misunderstandings in the recipients’ sensemaking processes. Paper II concludes by arguing that the way recipients make sense of their roles and situations as defined by employment and/or psychological contracts might not necessarily be in line with the communicative meanings they ascribe to the change agents’ actions, and vice versa. The third paper analyzes employees’ orientations and attitudes toward empowerment and the relevance of their attitudes for the success of empowerment efforts. These issues are explored by means of survey data from 268 employees in the Swedish retail sector. Results indicate that age and work intensity (part-time vs. full-time), as well as cohabitation status may have significant impacts on how empowerment efforts are approached and received by employees. The thesis as a whole provides insights into sociological issues of empowerment, both generally and particularly in management and leadership contexts and concludes that the communicative context of empowerment interactions plays a significant role in employees’ empowerment orientations. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 2: Manuscript. Paper 3: Manuscript.</p>

This thesis studies teachers’ and students’ conceptions of history and history teaching and aims to explain the importance of an interest in history among teachers and students of the subject. Research on teachers’ conceptions (e.g. Martin 2005) shows that the didactical question “Why?” influences the “How?” and “Why?” questions and that teachers’ thinking about their own practice is mainly influenced by their background and their experiences from teaching. Research on students’ opinions (e.g. Youth and History, 1997) shows that they enjoy history shown in films, that they appreciate museums, and that the preferred topic is 20th century history. In this thesis learning is envisaged as something individual but it is the learners’ social context that defines what is important, meaningful and interesting to learn. The research methods consist of a survey study concerning the pupils’ attitudes towards history and history education, and an interview study with their teachers about their teaching and their opinions about history in general. Nine teachers and their 217 pupils participated. It is mainly topics from 20th century that are described as interesting by both students and teachers. The teachers had different views on the didactical whyquestion, which they described either as student oriented or subject oriented. Their views on why history is important influenced their teaching methods. The student oriented teachers stated that their pupils’ needs and wishes affect their methods while the subject oriented teachers said that they give varying lessons, and have a more student active teaching, but decide for themselves what teaching methods are to be used. The subject matter is influenced by the teachers’ personal interest in history, in most cases a Eurocentric political history. This choice of content, and the teachers own interest, are explained by the historical culture of Swedish society rather than the curriculum. The teachers state that exciting stories and dramatic events related in books or films were, and still are, important to their interest in history. Their individual interpretation of what is important and meaningful in their historical culture influences teachers’ personal interest, their knowledge, and the content of their history teaching. The students’ attitudes to history are also influenced by various factors, of which history education at school is merely one.

Virtual reality tech is new, exciting and full of opportunities.Despite this the gaming section of virtual reality does not grow asfast as it was predicted it would be. Headsets and games areexpensive and perhaps a market model similar to the mobile gamingmarket would do the new tech good. A model that is heavily reliant onadvertisements and low prices.The purpose of this thesis is to show that virtual reality games areas viable an advertising target as mobile games that are a popularadvertisement medium. The study uses 2D billboard advertisements asthey are a non-intrusive advertisement format that can be implementedin a similar fashion on a mobile game and VR game.For this study two games were developed, one that runs on a OculusQuest VR headset and one for mobile Android devices. The games are asclose to each other as possible in terms of objective and settingwith the same advertisements implemented in them, each game featurestwo levels, one level contains advertisements and one does not.Surveys are used to find data regarding how the advertisementsaffected the game experience on both platforms. Interviews were thenconducted to find more qualitative information and to explain theresults as well as to find out what makes an advertisement good ortolerable.