The aim of the study was to investigate how Swedish teachers and student teachers of Swedish vary in their assessment of a pupil’s text, in judging both the text as a whole and its parts. In the study the informants were asked to assess a pupil’s text (a text presenting an argument) from the national examination in Swedish 1 with the aid of an assessment matrix and then complete a questionnaire assessing the text as a whole and in its parts. The responses to the questionnaire were analysed statistically with a focus on how the assessments varied. A sociocultural and situated perspective was applied in the study, along with psychometry and the theory of discourses of writing, to give more perspectives on the results. The study found that the assessments varied between grades C and A for the text as a whole and between E and A for the aspects of argumentation, content and critical reading, contextual signals and reference connectors, introduction, conclusion, situational adaptation and self-sustaining. The study also found that the student teachers were generally stricter in their assessment. The greatest variations in the student teachers’ assessment were found to concern aspects of the communication discourse, while in the teachers’ assessment it was aspects of the construction discourse that revealed the greatest variation. The greatest difference between the two groups concerned aspects of the correction discourse.

This research aimed to investigate the desires of the users of the Greek public Library on Gender and Equality (LGE) about a future Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) containing Web2.0 functionalities. The concepts of participation, information pluralism and community building in relation with Web 2.0 tools in libraries’ catalogues were introduced under the theoretical approach provided by Social Critical Theory of Jürgen Habermas. Aqualitative research based on semi-structured interviews with users of the LGE wasconducted and the collected data that were analysed with the thematic analysis method,revealed positive users’ impressions regarding the introduction of Web 2.0 tools in theLGE’s OPAC. The research also disclosed users’ desires and suggestions regarding specific Web 2.0 features and their common motivation to participate and contribute to be the opportunity of communicating with like-minded people.

The purpose of this study is to examine the player’s experiences and perspective of the massively multiplayer online role playing game World of Warcraft. This study wants to find out the effects on the players psychological and social well-being through interviewing 10 World of Warcraft players between the ages of 18-32. This has been done through a thematic analysis. The reason behind this study is because a lot of scientific studies and the media has portrayed World of Warcraft players in a negative light where they are described as lone wolfs. This study wants to find out how the players themselves talk about the game and how it has affected their lives. The findings of this study have shown that players describe World of Warcraft as a meaningful occupation where it has given them better confidence, self-awareness, language skills, social skills but also build a social network inside the game. The social interactions that the players have with their friends have given them a platform to be open about their lives but also problems that affect them in the real world. The conclusion of this study is that the picture that a lot of the scientific studies and the media are portraying is a dishonest one. They judge players as single group where they do not look at the bigger picture or through the perspective of the World of Warcraft player.

AFRIKAANS: Die navorsingsdoel van hierdie studie is om insig te verkry in die rol van handboeke in die instandhouding en legitimering van etniese magsverhoudinge, in die besonder deur middel van die bevestiging van kulturele stereotipes onderliggend aan die nie-geformuleerde, maar effektiewe verspreiding van norme, waardes en houdings. Gegrond op die aanname dat handboeke sosiale en politieke werklikhede weerspieël, ondersoek hierdie kwalitatiewe studie die voorstellingspraktyke in Nederlandse, Vlaamse en Afrikaanse taalhandboeke. 'n Kritiese diskoersanaliseontwerp, ondersteun deur 'n tematiese analise en fokusgroepbesprekings, word aangewend om die visuele materiaal in een handboekreeks van elk van die drie gemeenskappe te ondersoek. Ter aanvang word die drie Dietse tale se moontlike invloed op mekaar, ook ten opsigte van diversiteit, bespreek. Die teoretiese begronding is geanker in die veld van houding-, kultuur- en visuele studies. Die kennisbasis aangaande handboekvoorstellings in die onderskeie gemeenskappe word ontgin. Die bevindinge word as indikators van die fokusgroepbesprekings in die drie tersaaklike gemeenskappe, sowel as 'n tematiese analise van die visuele voorstellings in die handboeke aangebied. Daar is in die Nederlandse en Vlaamse data stereotipering gevind. Die bevindinge toon dat die visuele materiaal in die Nederlandse data as ideologiese retoriek van die dominante wit groep dien, wat die 'ander' as problematies, arm en 'anders' voorstel. Die Vlaamse reeks toon enkele voorbeelde van kulturele uitsluiting, maar gebruik ook teensimbole om self-refleksiwiteit onder leerders aan te moedig – wat outomatiese stereotipering teenwerk. As gevolg van Afrikaans se politiese verlede oorbeklemtoon die Afrikaanse handboeke 'n utopiese ‘nuwe Suid-Afrika’ waar ras en verskil non-issues is. Geen tekens van apartheidmeestersimbole kon in die Afrikaanse handboeke gevind word nie en Afrikaans as witmanstaal is in 'n groot mate gedemitologiseer. As gevolg van die sterk hekwagtersrol wat handboekbelanghebbendes soos die onderwysdepartement en uitgewers in Suid-Afrika speel, kan die Afrikaanse handboekdata slegs in 'n geringe mate met die Nederlandse en Vlaamse data vergelyk word. Anders as wat aanvanklik vermoed is, toon hierdie studie dat taal die belangrikste, indien nie die enigste, gemene deler tussen die drie gemeenskappe is. ENGLISH: The research goal of this study was to provide insight into the role of textbooks in the maintenance and legitimization of ethnic power relations, specifically the reproduction of cultural stereotypes informing the unstated, but effective distribution of norms, values and attitudes. Based on the assumption that textbooks serve as a mirror of the social and political order, the purpose of this qualitative study is to determine the extent to which Dutch, Flemish and Afrikaans language textbook series foster cultural stereotyping of the 'other’. Data sources for the critical discourse analysis are constituted by the visual material of one textbook series from each of the three language communities. The contextualisation includes an explanation of how the three Pan Dutch languages might influence each other, and their perspectives on diversity. The conceptual framework comprises an explication of the concepts and theories on attitude, culture and visual studies. Influential issues in the literature on textbook representation, language and identity are described in the literature study. The findings are presented as indicators derived from focus group discussions in the three countries, as well as a thematic analysis of visual representation in the textbooks. Traces of stereotyping were found in the Dutch and Flemish data. The findings show that visual material in the Dutch data serves as ideological rhetoric of the dominant white group, projecting the 'other' as problematic, poor and different. The Flemish series shows indications of cultural exclusion, but incorporates counter-symbols to encourage self-reflectivity among Flemish learners, thus countering automatic stereotyping. The Afrikaans textbooks, because of their highly politicised past, over-emphasize a utopian ‘new South Africa’ where race and difference are non-issues. No signs of apartheid master symbols could be found in the Afrikaans textbooks and Afrikaans is demythologised as a 'white' language. As a result of the controlling nature of the gatekeeping function in South Africa of the education department and textbook publishers, the Afrikaans textbook-data can be compared to the Dutch and the Flemish textbook-data to a limited extent only. This study has shown that the major characteristic the three communities share is language. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Humanities Education / unrestricted

The orans, although a gesture with a long ‘pagan’ past, was easily adopted by Christians for its symbolic meanings of prayer and piety and quickly attained a number of other more nuanced meanings as it was refined and reused. By restricting the scope of this thesis to the orans in the Christian catacombs of Rome, it becomes possible to approach the figure from a multi-directional perspective, not merely concerned with what the gesture meant to the Christian, but with its literary and material pedigrees, its transition to Christian art, and its cultural significance. To this end, chapter one examines ‘pagan’ precursors of the Christian orans through an examination of coins, sculptures, inscriptions, and reliefs, as well as by looking at the two figures whose appearance most influences that of the orans – the goddess Pietas, and the Artemisia-Adorans funerary portrait type. Chapter two addresses the importance of the orans in the Christian literary community, and examines not only the actual usage of prayer with raised hands by the Christian faithful, but also examines the aesthetic and theological reasons for the popularity of the gesture – the parallel between the spread arms of the orans and the posture of the crucified Christ. Finally, chapter three presents a spatial-thematic analysis of the usage of the orans in the Roman Christian catacombs, using a corpus of 158 orantes. This chapter enables the reader to draw conclusions about the veracity of the academic theories presented in the previous chapters, as it compares the usage of the orans against its scholarly interpretation.

The majority of children with ASC are educated within a mainstream secondary setting. The challenges within the new environment may lead to some children experiencing a breakdown in provision resulting in temporary or permanent exclusions. A gap in the literature highlights a need for research which seeks to understand the views and experiences of year 7 children with ASCs about theirtransition to mainstream secondary school. The research involved four year 7 children with ASC, from across three settings, who had recently transitioned from a mainstream primary school to a mainstream secondary school (without resource based provision). The views of their parents and teachers were also sought. A multiple-embedded case study design was employed involving four cases from across three school settings. This involved utilising a transition Q-sort and a semi-structured interview with four children and semi-structured interviews with six parents and three teachers. The data was analysed using content analysis and thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The findings highlight a need for individualised transition planning for the child with ASC; consideration of co-occurring difficulties and the importance of including the views of the child and parents in transition planning. The findings are discussed in relation to psychological theories and existing literature. The implications for future research, local authority policy, school staff, parents and educational psychologists are considered.

Syftet med studien var att undersöka behandlares upplevelser av sexualbrottsprogrammet Sexualbrottsbehandling med individuellt fokus [Seif] på anstalt inom svensk Kriminalvård. Åtta semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes och analyserades med tematisk analys. Tre huvudteman identifierades: Behandlares tillvaro, Behandlingsprocessen samt Klienternas särskilda omständigheter. Studiens resultat visar att deltagarna upplevde att arbetet kunde vara förhållandevis påfrestande men överlag meningsfullt och roligt. Stöd och handledning var centralt för att handskas med påfrestande element. Deltagarna beskrev de sätt de arbetade på med metoden och lyfte fram individuella anpassningar och den terapeutiska relationen som framträdande faktorer för behandlingsresultatet. Deltagarna beskrev även att klienternas liv på anstalt fick en särskild påverkan på behandlingen och att den skam som är associerad med sexualbrott kunde skapa hinder för klienter att gå i behandlingen. / The purpose of this study was to examine treaters experiences of the sex offence treatment programme Sex offence treatment with individualized focus [Seif] in correctional facilities in the Swedish Prison and Probation Service. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted and analysed using thematic analysis. Three main themes were identified: Treaters’ conditions, The treatment process and The clients’ special conditions. The result of the study showed that the participants experienced their work as relatively demanding but overall meaningful and enjoyable. Support and supervision were deemed central to coping with demanding elements. The participants described the way they worked with the method and conveyed the individualized adjustments and the therapeutic relationship as prominent factors for treatment results. The participants further described that the clients’ life in a correctional facility had a special effect on the treatment and that the shame associated with sex offences could hinder clients to participate in the treatment.

Syftet med uppföljningsstudien var att undersöka deltagares upplevelser av verksamma/hindrande komponenter i behandlingen Hästunderstödd Kognitiv Beteendeterapi (HU-KBT) 12-18 månader efter avslutad behandling. Syftet var också att undersöka vad deltagarna upplever att de uppnått genom att delta i behandlingen HU-KBT. Semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes med fem deltagare. Intervjumaterialet analyserades med hjälp av kvalitativ tematisk analys. Ett flertal komponenter i behandlingen beskrevs som hjälpsamma; gruppen, terapeuten, hästen, miljön och olika specifika psykoterapeutiska komponenter. Hindrande behandlingskomponenter som framkom var negativa aspekter av att behandlas i grupp samt för lite tid. Effekter av behandlingen som beskrevs av deltagarna var förbättrad ångesthanteringsförmåga, förhöjd energinivå, förbättrad gränssättningsförmåga, minskat behov av att ha kontroll och ta ansvar för andra, ökad självinsikt, en ökad medvetenhet om och förståelse för känslor och hur dessa kan hanteras samt en förbättrad arbetsförmåga. Övrigt som framkom i intervjuerna var att förväntningarna var blandade, att det kunde finnas övriga livsomständigheter som kan ha påverkat utfallet av behandlingen, att effekten av behandlingen ofta var fördröjd, att behandlingen upplevdes som effektiv, att det förekom olika sätt som användes för att förhindra återfall samt att det fanns önskemål om att få ta del av ytterligare behandling och att behandlingen ska rikta sig till fler grupper av människor och även kunna erbjudas i förebyggande syfte. Resultaten ser lovande ut men det behövs ytterligare forskning för att vidare undersöka behandlingens effektivitet och verksamma komponenter. / The purpose of the follow-up study was to examine the participants' experiences of active/inhibitory components in the treatment Equine Assisted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (HU-KBT) 12-18 months after treatment completion. The purpose was also to investigate the participant´s self-perceptions of achievement by participating in the HU-KBT treatment. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five participants. The interview material was analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis. Several components of the treatment were described as helpful; the group, the therapist, the horse, the environment and several specific psychotherapeutic components. Obstructive treatment components that emerged were negative aspects of being treated in group and shortage of time. Effects of the treatment described by the participants were improved anxiety management, increased energy levels, improved ability to set boundaries, reductions in need to control others or to take responsibility for them, increased self-awareness, increased awareness and understanding of emotions and how they can be managed and an improved ability to work. Other things that emerged in the interviews were expectations were mixed; other life circumstances may have affected the outcome of the treatment; the effect of the treatment was often delayed; the treatment was perceived as effective; various ways were used to prevent relapse; there was a desire to gain access to further treatment and that the treatment should be aimed at more groups of people and also be offered for preventive purposes. The results look promising, but further research is needed to further investigate the efficacy and the operating components of the treatment.

En sökning på ledarskapsutveckling via Google och databasen APA PsycInfo renderar sammanlagt drygt 200 000 träffar. Detta tyder på ett stort intresse för ledarskapsutveckling. Syftet med uppsatsen är att studera hur deltagare tar sig an uppgiften att bearbeta samt eventuellt vidareutveckla upplevelser samt förändringar som tar plats under och efter en UGL kurs. Frågeställningarna berör ämnen runt hur de i sin ledarroll arbetat med inhämtade kunskaper och hur de som individer upplever att de har påverkats. Vi intervjuade sex ledare från mellersta och södra Sverige som deltagit på en UGL kurs under 2019. Vi använde oss av en semistrukturerad intervju där valet föll på att bearbeta insamlad empiri med hjälp av en tematisk analys. Det som framkom när det gällde ledarrollen var utveckling av tydlighet, trygghet samt effekter av det egna ledarskapet och behovet av användbara verktyg. Det mest utmärkande på det individuella planet var att deltagarna upplevde att de fick kunskaper om sig själv. Grupputvecklingens betydelse var ett ämne som de flesta frekvent återkom till under intervjuerna. Trots det ringa, men ändå väl geografiskt spridda respondentdeltagandet, har vi fått ett relativt fylligt resultat. Detta gav insyn i deras upplevelser av hur kursen har påverkat dem, kunskaper de förvärvat som ledare och inverkan det haft på dem som individer. / When searching for leadership development at Google and the database APA PsycInfo you get a about 200,000 hits. This indicates interest for the subject. The purpose of this essay is to study how the participants handle the processing and possible further develop experiences and changes that takes place during and after a course in UGL. The issues concern topics about how they, in their role as a leader, have worked with obtained knowledge. The issues concern topics about how they, in their role as a leader, have worked with acquired knowledge and the effect on them as an individual. We interviewed six leaders from central and south part of Sweden who, during 2019, has participated in a UGL course. We used semistructured interviews and choose to process the collected data using a thematic analysis. The most important thing that emerged about the role of the leader were the development of clarity, security and the effects of the individual leadership and the need for useful tools. The most characteristic on an individual level was gaining good knowledge about yourself. Group development was the topic that most frequently were mentioned during the interviews. Despite the small but well geographically dispersed participation of respondents, we provide insight into their experiences of how they got affected by the course, knowledge they acquired as leaders and the influence it had on them as individuals.

The field of equine therapy (ET) in Canada and the USA encompasses a range of distinct approaches, such as equine-facilitated therapy, equine-assisted therapy, therapeutic riding, and hippotherapy. Due to issues like inconsistent terminology and lack of standardized practice manuals, there are gaps in the ET knowledge about how these approaches relate or differ from each other. This research reviewed 47 scholarly, peer-reviewed articles about ET approaches and applied thematic analysis to determine key themes that clarify key traits of each approach. Recognizing that children and youth are common participants in equine therapy, this research was motivated by the questions: What type of relational dynamics are modelled for children and youth in ET? How are these horse-human relationships portrayed? Which participants possess their own agency? Findings of this research provide insights about each approach of ET and highlight the therapeutic affects of interspecies relationships between humans and horses. Contradictory viewpoints about mutual agency between species are identified in language that described horses are active, intelligent subjects and/or passive, inanimate objects. This research provides insights about the different forms of ET, highlights important benefits and gaps, and invites the fields of Child and Youth Care and Animal-Assisted Therapy to critically reflect on the relational tensions of employing non-human animals in human therapy. / Graduate