It has often been claimed that contemporary societies are shaped by globalization; the rapid interconnections of societies, economies, markets, flows and information potentially linking all places in the world to each other. In search for experiences, variation, escape or comfort, individuals are travelling, circulating, and migrating between places, challenging the notions of ‘home’ and ‘away’, ‘everyday’ and ‘extraordinary’. This thesis addresses the ways lifestyle-led mobilities are produced and performed, by studying the mobility trajectories and experiences of Swedes dividing their time seasonally between Sweden and Malta. It explores how movers are faced with a structural framework that both facilitates and directs their choices concerning mobility, and how they interpret and respond to these structures. It also explores the imaginaries, meanings, and feelings for place, identity, and lifestyle that the movers negotiate through their mobility practices and through the links they create and sustain in places. Thus, this thesis is situated in an evolving field of research on lifestyle mobilities. Lifestyle mobilities are here defined as those mobility practices undertaken by individuals based on their freedom of choice, of a temporal or more permanent duration, with or without any significant ‘home base(s)’, that are primarily driven by aspirations to increase ‘quality of life’, and that are primarily related to the individuals’ lifestyle values. The thesis is based on four individual papers exploring different aspects lifestyle mobility. The aim is to understand how production and performance aspects of lifestyle mobilities are related, and how notions of identity and belonging are negotiated in relation to lifestyle mobility practices. The production aspect relates to those structures and frameworks that create, facilitate, or sometimes delimit opportunities for lifestyle mobility while the performance aspect focuses on individual agency and meaning of lifestyle mobility practices. The studies are based on in-depth interviews with Swedish movers in Malta, and focus on how structural frameworks and mediations influence the ways that movers manoeuvre, manipulate or adapt to structures and influences in order to arrange their life context to achieve ‘quality of life’. A second aim focuses on the ways that movers reflect upon their identities and belongings as they travel routinely between two (or more) significant places, and how this may influence mobility practices. It is concluded that structures and mediations are both facilitating and delimiting movers’ space of choice regarding mobility decisions. Through their agency, movers negotiate their space of choice by allocating resources and experience, accessing supportive networks and tailoring their access to entitlements. The production and performance aspects of lifestyle mobility practices are interlinked in complex ways.

Den här studien avser att med en kvalitativ metod nå en ökad förståelse för vilken betydelse möten mellan hemlösa män och icke hemlösa personer har haft för männen under den tid då de fick ett hem. I vår teoretiska referensram har vi använt oss av Sterns beskrivning av ansikte mot ansikte-interaktion med särskilt fokus på intersubjektiva möten, och Scheffs teori om skam och stolthet. Vi har också Använt Collins teori om interationsrituella kedjor som betonar interpersonella- och grupprocesser samt Mays teori om tillhörighet. Genom tio semistrukturerade livsvärldsintervjuer med före detta hemlösa män har vi insamlat vårt empiriska material från tre olika länder. I resultatet framgick att möten hade en betydande roll under den tid då männen fick ett hem, och att de där fick möjlighet att omdefiniera bilden av sig själva, vilket underlättade för dem i att aktivt vilja arbeta mot en förändring av sina livssituationer. Sammantaget kan konstateras att möten med icke hemlösa tycktes vara startskottet för en rad positiva händelser där männen hamnade i nya situationer och sammanhang som bidrog till en mer stabil tillvaro och ett rikare socialt liv. / By qualitative methods of research the study aims to provide more information on the significance of the encounters between homeless men and non-homeless people during the period when they received an apartment. For our approach we have used Stern`s description about face-to-face interaction, focusing on intersubjective meetings and Scheff`s theory about shame and pride. We have also used Collins`theory about interaction ritual chains that emphasize interpersonal group processes. We have also used May`s theory about belonging. We have gathered our empirical data through ten semistructured life world interviews from three different countries. As result we found out that these meetings had had a significant role during the period where the respondents had received homes. Also, we noticed that they got a chance to redefine their self-image and that made it easier for them to work actively towards a change in their lives. Finally it can be said that the meetings with the non homeless seemed to be a start for series of positive events, where men got to new situations and contexts that contributed to a more stable being and richer social life.

This qualitative study explored six post high school students' experiences within one high school Dance Academy program, over a four-year period, to learn if their dance experiences promoted student engagement. Student engagement occurs when students are invested in their learning, is the product of motivation and active learning, and is linked to student success. Semi-structured individual and group interviews were used as instruments of data collection and the data was transcribed and analyzed. Four main themes emerged from this study in relation to the students' experiences within the Dance Academy in relation to student engagement: 1) increased self-confidence, 2) healthy relationships amongst peers and with their teacher, 3) a sense of belonging, and 4) increased feelings if self-worth. The outcomes from this study indicate that dance, as part of a high school curriculum, was advantageous in providing these students with a unique learning experience that increased their relationship with the curriculum and fostered student engagement. Further research on the implications of teaching the arts, and in particular dance, in high school could benefit curricular programming and pedagogical practice.

Bakgrund: Valet av daglig verksamhet som undersökningsområde gjordes då vi ville undersöka hur personer med funktionsnedsättning upplever sin arbetssituation. Empowerment som perspektiv kändes passande i studien då många av de teoretiska begrepp vi ville använda oss av förekommer inom empowerment. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att utifrån ett empowermentperspektiv beskriva och analysera hur deltagare upplever och skapar mening inom daglig verksamhet. Metod: Studien är av kvalitativ karaktär med semistrukturerade intervjuer där empirin grundar sig på fem transkriberade intervjuer. De personer som intervjuats har valts ut utifrån två kriterier, att de kunde uttrycka sig muntligt samt beviljats och arbetar inom daglig verksamhet enligt LSS (1993:387). För att få svar på våra intervjufrågor utarbetades en intervjuguide. Empirin analyserades utifrån studiens tre teoretiska begrepp tillhörighet, meningsfullhet och makt. Intervjuanalys med fokus på meningen har används som omfattar meningskodning. Resultat: Resultatet visar att samtliga deltagare trivs med sin arbetssituation, genom att dem uttrycker att det är viktigt för dem att ha något att göra om dagarna samt att samspela med andra. Fortsättningsvis visar resultatet på att deltagarna upplever acceptans på sitt arbete, men de upplever inte att deras arbete är accepterat i samhället. Det framkommer i resultatet att maktrelationen mellan personalen och deltagarna är relativt likställd men att deltagarna är medvetna om att personalen har största ansvaret och har på så sätt makten. / Background: The choice of daily activities as a study area was made because we wanted to investigate how people with disabilities experience their work situation. An empowerment perspective seemed appropriate in this study because many of the theoretical concepts we wanted to use occurs within empowerment. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze how participants experience and create meaning in daily activities based on an empowerment perspective. Method: The study is of a qualitative nature with semi-structured interviews where the empiricism is based on five transcribed interviews. The persons interviewed have been selected on the basic of two criteria, that they could express themselves verbally and that they was granted and worked within daily activity according to LSS (1993:387). To get our interview questions answered an interview guide was composed. The empiricism was analyzed on the basis of the studies three theories belonging, meaningfulness and power. Interview analysis with focus on sentences has been used that includes sentence coding. Result: The result shows that all participants are content with their work situation, they express that it is important for them to have something to occupy their day and to interact with others, but they don't experience that their work is accepted in society. It is made clear from the result of the study that the power relation between the staff and participants are relatively equal but that the participants are conscious of the fact that the staff has the greater responsibility and in that way also the greater power.

This study explores how Swedish migrants on the Costa del Sol in Spain create belonging and how this is expressed in migration stories and practiced in the daily life. The migrants are part of a migration phenomenon that is conceptualized as lifestyle migration, often to destinations in association with tourism and leisure. Based on ethnographical fieldwork carried out among Swedish migrants within the Swedish infrastructure of institutions, organizations and private enterprises on the Costa del Sol, the thesis examines how belonging is created adopting a phenomenological and constructivist perspective on transnational and diasporic practices. This is accomplished through studying migration stories, where the migration experience is being told, structured and made meaningful for the migrants. In addition, it focuses on internal and external identification and positioning on location on the Costa del Sol. Another concern is the study of how the migrants relate to notions and practices of new home, and old home. The thesis presents how belonging is shaped on a collective basis within the Swedish infrastructure, despite the fact that the interviewees make up a diverse group in different ages, with different reasons for dwelling along the coast, with different migrant experiences, with different approaches to living a transnational migrant life in-between the old and the new country, and with different degrees and range of incorporation to the local society. The study shows how a transnational position is created with a plurilocal frame of reference. It is marked by simultaneously expressing attachments and affiliations to several localities and contexts across territorial borders, shaped by past and recurrent travels and communication, and connected to the Swedish diasporic collective that can function as a compensatory source of national affiliation for the Swedish migrants on the Costa del Sol.

Syftet med studien är att studera hur de historiska mönstren på en bruksort, i fråga om arbetsmarknad och genuskontrakt, kan tänkas påverka ungdomar i valet att flytta eller stanna. Med utgångspunkt i statistik presenteras studiens problemformulering vilken fokuserar på den negativa befolkningsutveckling som råder i Värmland i allmänhet och Hagfors i synnerhet. Merparten av dem som flyttar är ungdomar och framförallt är det flickor med tjänstemannabakgrund som väljer att lämna hemorten. Studier som verifierar utvecklingen tas upp och uppsatsens perspektiv etableras.   Genom kvalitativa intervjuer har vi samlat in data från åtta respondenter varav fyra är kvinnor och fyra är män. Samtliga är boende i Hagfors och samtliga går sista året på gymnasiet.    Resultatet visar ett mönster gällande faktorer som samspelar när det kommer till valet att flytta eller stanna. Av våra respondenter uppger samtliga kvinnor att de vill flytta från orten. De är också säkra på att de vill studera vidare. Bland männen säger tre av fyra att de kan tänka sig att stanna kvar. Samtliga betonar idrotten som ett fundament för gemenskap och identitet. I synnerhet hockey- och innebandykulturen framhålls av respondenterna och dess betydelse tycks också vara så pass central att den ses som mer än ett fritidsintresse. Sporten inte bara utövas, den ger också upphov till identiteten. Vidare poängteras det att fenomen som rivalitet är en generationsfråga. En skamsen hållning uttrycks också i förhållande till ”den typiska hagforsingen” som en manifestation av manlighetsnormen.    Slutsatser är att sporten utgör regionens varumärke – i fråga om att marknadsföra orten och som ett led i att stärka såväl social gemenskap som den lokala identiteten. Likväl handlar det om ekonomiska mål och ökad lönsamhet.    De teoretiska huvudmönster vi kan skönja handlar om hur identitetsbegreppet som del i kollektiva värderingar kring platsens förutsättningar kan ge perspektiv på den betydelsefulla roll som länken mellan individ och kultur spelar. Frågan om utbildning kan också förstås med fokus på såväl genusperspektivet som den sociala bakgrundens betydelse.    I diskussionsavsnittet fördjupar vi oss i några av studiens centrala teman vilka bland annat är bruksortens genus, brukets koppling till idrotten och den sociala bakgrundens roll. Därefter följer reflektioner kring resultatet. Avslutningsvis reflekterar vi kring studiens genomförande samt forskarrollens påverkan. / The objective of the study is to examine how historical patterns of employment and gender contract might affect local youth. Various sociological factors were considered including place belonging, higher education and migration propensity.    Statistics, focused on the declining population which greatly affects Hagfors, suggest a trend that is also prevalent in the wider Värmland region. Young females whose parents have an academic background are more likely to leave the community. Studies that validate this propensity are presented.    Through qualitative interviews, we collected data from eight study volunteers: four women and four men. They all reside in Hagfors and are completing their last year of high school.    Our results show a clear pattern of factors that indicate the motive to move or the desire to stay. The four females unanimously stated their intention to leave the community to pursue higher education. Among the men, three of the four declared their intent to remain in Hagfors. All emphasized sport as the foundation of the community and its identity. Hockey and floorball cultures were highlighted by the study group – their importance so central that they eclipse their hobby-status. It is also observed that the phenomenon of rivalry is a focus solely for older generations.    Volunteers expressed embarrassment and disapproval when describing a typical resident of Hagfors, and was generally characterized as male. We conclude that sport appears to represent the region's brand – in terms of marketing the community and as part of the strategy to strengthen local identity. It also fosters economic growth and profitability.    The study observes the significant relationship between the concept of identity and collective values. The link between the individual and culture is important. Attitudes toward education can also be understood by focusing on both gender perspectives and social background.    In the discussion section, we elaborate on some of the study's key themes which among others are the gender of the industrial town, the employers’ link to sport and the role of the social background. This is followed by reflections on the outcome.and reflect on its results.    To conclude we reflect on the study and the aspect of role influence.

This study examined the perceptions of non-native English speaking immigrant students at a small Canadian university relating to their transition to university, their experiences within the social and academic contexts of the campus, and their sense of belonging on their campus. This study used a phenomenological approach, and was supported by a conceptual framework of minority student persistence and belonging within postsecondary education. The findings of this study suggest that these students’ positive social experiences and perception of the campus as being diverse and open to diversity were connected to students’ sense of belonging. The findings also suggest that increased availability of customized support is needed for non-native English speaking students on this Canadian campus, and that greater awareness among university faculty and administration needs to be paid to students’ integration in classroom and campus practices. This thesis concludes with recommendations for practice and future research.

A study was conducted among a sample of Korean American students to investigate the potential moderation of the risks related to English proficiency by the protection of school belonging. Perceived scholastic competence, self-reported school grades, and academic expectancies were used for dependent variables. It was hypothesized that students with higher sense of belonging would be less affected by English proficiency than their peers with lower sense of belonging. The risk of English proficiency was confirmed. However, school belonging did not have as much of an effect as expected and students with higher English proficiency seemed to gain more benefit from increased school belonging. This finding reminds educators of the pressing importance of English proficiency, and future research is suggested to investigate the unique effects of belonging among students of Korean, and perhaps other Asian, backgrounds.

This thesis explores negotiations of belonging among unaccompanied young refugees in Sweden. The thesis further aims to shed light on methodological aspects of bringing out their voices. The analysis draws on postcolonial and poststructuralist approaches to belonging and relates belonging to the concepts of home, place, racialization and notions of “Swedishness”. The thesis analyses qualitative interviews with 17 young people, who arrived in Sweden as unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors and have been granted permanent residency. The interviews are complemented with walk-alongs and photography-based interviews. Paper 1 gives an overview and discussion of research on unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors. I argue that there is a lack of their voices in the research, and that their own agency and perspectives are not addressed due to a focus on vulnerability and emotional health (or lack thereof). Paper II, which is delimited to participants in a rural village, shows that they negotiate belonging and a sense of home related to places but that othering is constraining. In paper II and III I suggest that the participants’ belongings and position in Sweden can be understood as conditional due to othering and racialization. In paper III, I argue that expressing gratitude can be understood as a form of impression management and, thus be a strategy to negotiate their position in the interview setting as in the host country. I finally argue that in order to understand the participants’ negotiations of belonging attention has to be paid to their agency as well as the conditioning of belonging in discourses and in interactions on the local level.

The discourse on education for Aboriginal people has long been limited to a curriculum of cultural assimilation often resulting in an erosion of self-esteem and disengagement. Consequently, this research puts forth narratives of how fiddle programs in northern Manitoba work as a culturally responsive curriculum that in turn address such curricular erosions. As a research methodology, Metissage afforded me pedagogical opportunities to weave the various perspectives of community members, parents, instructors, and former students into an intricate story that attempts to represent some of their social, cultural and historical experiences within the north. Braiding stories of the historical and present impacts of fiddle playing reveals the generative possibilities of school fiddle programs in Canadian Indigenous communities. In addition to building intergenerational bridges, the stories put forth in this thesis demonstrate how the fiddle has become a contemporary instrument of social change for many communities across northern Manitoba.