The concept of bibliotherapy is subject to different views of its meaning and potential place in the library. Through a critical discourse analytical approach, this thesis examines bibliotherapy in relation to a Swedish library context by analyzing Swedish articles from daily and monthly press, and relating the discourses identified in them to Zygmunt Bauman’s theory of late modernity. Using bibliotherapy and library as key concepts to analyze, seven different discourses are identified, the first four related to the concept of bibliotherapy and the three latter related to the norms, beliefs, and values of libraries: a curative discourse, a universal discourse, a discourse based on reading as a way of looking inward, one based on reading as a way of recognition, traditional library discourse, bibliotherapeutic library discourse, and crisis discourse. These discourses are related to each other as well as to the social structures of late modern society, and the role of bibliotherapy as a whole is examined in this context. Bibliotherapy emerges as a tendency in late modern society, interacting with aspects of it consisting of undermining of the welfare society, the construction of identity, and seeking of community and safety.

The aim of the study was to find in what way people who identify as LGBTQ find themselves viewed and represented in Swedish libraries. The purpose was to reach the experiences of these individuals, and through a series of questions to find out how they experienced the work libraries did in regards to LGBTQ books and activities. A survey was sent out to people connected in some way to LGBTQ in order to get answers. After that the analysis was largely based around Judith Butler’s theories on heteronormativity and the matrix she constructed from these theories. The result showed that the respondents often did not feel represented at the libraries, and activities together with social media posts towards LGBTQ were seen as limited.

The aim of this master’s thesis is to develop a deeper knowledge of a number of Storytel users’ experiences and use of the audiobook service. Furthermore, the study aims to analyze users' experiences and use of the audiobook service based on the concept of a digital library. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight Storytel users and the empirical material was analyzed using content analysis. The theoretical framework consists of the concept of a digital library based on the characterizing collaborative concepts “Community”, “Service”, “Collection” and “System”. The results show that the respondents’ motives for listening to audiobooks are technological or social. There are three types of audiobook listeners among the respondents regarding the situations in which they listen to audiobooks. Those who listen for large parts of the day, those who engage in other activities while listening, and one lone respondent who listens in the same way as reading printed books. The results also show that there is an interaction between the respondents' use of the audiobook service and the surrounding society, especially regarding audiobook selection. When searching for audiobooks the respondents search bibliographically based on various metadata, browse among the audiobook service's different categories or a combination of these. Also, being able to adjust the playback speed is an important function. The respondents’ descriptions can in several ways be related to the concept of a digital library. The applicability of the characteristic concepts Community, Service, Collection, and System works, though to various extent.

Syftet med den här uppsatsen var att undersöka hbtqi-arbete på gymnasiebibliotek, och hur faktorer som normer, fysisk yta och samarbeten med skolverksamheten kan påverkadetta arbete. För att uppnå vårt syfte har vi genomfört intervjuer av bibliotekspersonal, medfokus på bibliotekspersonalens egna upplevelser av och reflektioner över sitt arbete medhbtqi. Vi ställer frågorna hur bibliotekspersonalen arbetar normbrytande vidgymnasiebiblioteken, hur de arbetar med synliggörandet av hbtqi-medier, och hur deupplever samverkansarbetet med skolornas lärare gällande hbtqi. Resultaten visar att rådandenormer skiljer sig åt mellan olika skolor, vilket påverkar hbtqi-arbete i gymnasiebiblioteken. Dessa normer, samt fysisk yta, påverkar synliggörandet av hbtqi-medier och leder i sin tur tillatt även synliggörandet ser olika ut mellan de undersökta gymnasiebiblioteken. Presentationen av hbtqi-medier diskuteras utifrån begreppen inkludering och exkludering. Studien belyser även utmaningar med samverkansarbetet mellan yrkesgruppernabibliotekspersonal och lärare.

Entrepreneurship and the Swedish start-up community have been on an upswing in recent years. There are more incubators and accelerators for growing businesses than ever before. With a growing start-up community there is usually risk capital and finance solutions behind these companies. The climate for risk capital and other financial solutions for ventures to fund their businesses is heavily skewed towards male entrepreneurs, i.e., companies founded by men tend to receive the lion share of the capital invested, which leaves women-led ventures underinvested. The experiences female entrepreneurs have in acquiring financial capital and the effects these encounters have on their entrepreneurial endeavours is something this study aims to investigate. Studies have been made on investor behaviour towards female entrepreneurs. These studies argue that the behaviours from investors are different in nature depending on the gender of the entrepreneur, and that this can be a possible explanation for why the risk capital allocation is skewed. In order to research this in further detail, a qualitative research study was developed where Swedish female entrepreneurs were interviewed. The entrepreneurs in the study were asked to explain in a general way their experiences dealing with investors, if they have ever experienced discriminatory behaviour from investors, and if this had any effects on their entrepreneurial ambitions. The majority of entrepreneurs in the study had not succumbed to discriminatory behaviour from investors. There was, however, a perception that female investors understood the entrepreneurs' businesses in a more prominent way than male investors. The entrepreneurs that had experienced discrimination during the investor meetings all consequently made sure to be accompanied by male partners in a chaperon manner, in order to validate their presence in the investor meeting room.

According to § 4 in the Swedish Library Act, public libraries are required to pay special attention to persons with disabilities. The purpose of this thesis is to analyse how this prioritized group is addressed in municipal library plans. The research questions focus on how the library plans interpret the Library Act paragraph, what strategies are used to accommodate the group, as well as which disabilities are represented. 30 library plans are analysed using thematic analysis, seen through a theoretical framework inspired by intersectionality with a focus on categorisation, as well as an inclusive library model. The results show a strong focus on making reading accessible through adapted forms of media and outreach services through partnerships. There is also a tendency to focus on accessibility of literature rather than retrieval of information. Beyond accessible literature the library plans also display strategies to make the library room physically accessible för persons with disabilities. The disabilities mostly represented are reading and writing disabilities and mobility impairment, while cognitive disabilities are underrepresented.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka hur ett antal bibliotekarier ser på sitt läsfrämjande arbete i förhållande till nya medier. Dessa medier utgörs av tv spel, rollspel, science fiction och andra populär kulturella uttryck samt tillgång till digital media via internet. Studien har visat på hur nya medier är beroende av ett personligt intresse hos den enskilde bibliotekarien för att komma till sin rätt. Vidare har även en konkurrenssituation börjat framträda mellan nya medier och digital teknik i förhållande till läsning och den tryckta boken. Dessutom har även nya medier bidragit till att förändra innebörden av litteracitet. Nya mediers framväxt vittnar också om ett ökat behov av källkritik och undervisning inom biblioteken. Samtidigt har nya medier etablerat olika populärkulturella uttryck och dessa bör lyftas fram inom biblioteken. Yrkesverksamma bibliotekarier behöver vidare uppdatera och utveckla en kompetens kring populärkultur i arbetet med målgruppen barn och ungdomar.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka ett biblioteks hantering och placering av nya medier i biblioteksmiljön, hur biblioteksanvändare uppfattar detta och hur det i sin tur påverkar deras lån och val. Detta ska göras genom en fallstudie på Umeå stadsbibliotek med fokus på deras placering av manga. Uppsatsen genomfördes med hjälp av observationer på biblioteket, en webenkät och intervjuer med biblioteksanvändare, samt intervjuer med ansvariga bibliotekarier. Med frågeställningarna Hur finner biblioteket information om ny manga och vad påverkar inköpen? Hur ser placeringen av manga ut på biblioteket? Hur uppfattar biblioteksanvändarna placeringen och hur påverkar detta deras val och lån av manga? Slutsatserna i denna uppsats var kommunikation mellan bibliotekarie och biblioteksanvändare för att skapa en så bra och intressant miljö som möjligt. Om miljön inte är intressant tappar användaren intresset för mediet och lånstatestiken sjunker. I detta fall påverkade flytten till väven vilket resulterade till att mangan placerades i fasadhyllor under fönstren tillsammans med en icke genrer indelad samling. Detta, tillsammans med att biblioteksanvändarens egna vanor påverkar och skapar attityden till att bibliotekarierna inte känns insatta. Även om så är fallet.

“Facebook has become as natural as having a phone” The use of social media in three libraries in the Umeå region – an evaluation Social media has come to be an integral part of people’s everyday life, as well as the business world in terms of communication and marketing. More and more libraries also embark in the use of social media, and the purpose of this study is to evaluate the use of social media in three libraries in the Umeå region. The libraries all use Facebook as their current, primary social media. Thus this study focuses partly on the analysis of the content on each library’s Facebook page, and partly on the experiences of the responsible librarians.  The evaluation is based on a mix of existing tools in evaluating social media that are relevant in a library context. The posts on the Facebook pages are analyzed in three levels: activity, type of content and themes. This result is complemented with qualitative interviews with librarians who are working with social media at each library.  One thing that is made clear in the study is the importance of having a plan for your use of social media as a library. The study also shows that posts that contain pictures are more likely to be “liked” or commented on than posts that consist of exclusively text or links to the library website. The most popular content, in regards to activity on the Facebook page, can also be categorized as “behind the scenes” material, such as posts about weather conditions.

I projektet VATTENTRATTEN undersöks möjligheten att kombinera pumpvattenkraftverkets princip för energilagring med offentliga funktioner vilka möter miljonprogramsområdet Nickstahöjdens behov - allt inom samma byggnad.  Mot bakgrund av förestående klimatkris är omställningen till en hållbar energiproduktion nödvändig. Därigenom har energilagring framträtt som en knäckfråga för att stabilisera elnätet mot förnybara energikällors väderfluktuationer. En av de mest välbeprövade metoderna för storskalig energilagring är pumpvattenkraftverk. I vattentornet på Nickstahöjden utforskas principens potential tillämpad i mikroformat och urban miljö, med lagringskapacitet motsvarande 40 hushålls dygnsförbrukning av el.  Till lika delar är VATTENTRATTEN en mötesplats och ett landmärke för Nickstahöjden, området med lägst socioekonomisk status i Nynäshamn. För en utveckling bortom utanförskap och segregation är områdets unga en nyckelfaktor. Den tidigare fritidsgården på Nickstahöjden är nedlagd och inom lokalpolitiken höjs röster för behovet av en ny. Därför inkorporeras en fritidsgård i byggnaden, som tillsammans med bibliotek, scen, café, kontor och konferens skapar en livlig mötesplats för alla åldrar.   Helheten sammanhålls av en genomgående strukturlogik: Uppbrutna våningsplan i lättkonstruktion av trä och stål hängs på betongvattentornet med stålvajrar likt en gigantisk tårpil. Således tillåts potentiellt konflikterande funktioner samexistera inom samma socio-maskinella entitet, simultant hanterande globala och lokala utmaningar. Men VATTENTRATTEN blir, med sitt säregna uttryck och synliga läge från pendeltåget, också en kollektiv referenspunkt - en symbol utstrålande tillhörighet och prioritet i ett område som alltför länge förbisetts. / The project VATTENTRATTEN examines the possibility of combining the pumped hydropower plant´s principle of energy storage with public functions meeting the demand of million programme area Nickstahöjden - all within a single building.  In the light of the impending climate crisis, the transition to sustainable energy production is essential. Thereby, energy storage has emerged as a critical issue in order to stabilize the electricity grid against the weather fluctuations of renewable energy sources. One of the most tried and tested methods of large-scale energy storage is pumped hydro power. In the water tower at Nickstahöjden, the applicability of the principle in micro-scale and urban context is investigated, offering a storage capacity equivalent to the daily electricity consumption of 40 households. Equally as important, VATTENTRATTEN is a social venue and a landmark representing Nickstahöjden; the area with the lowest socioeconomic status in Nynäshamn. In favor of a development beyond exclusion and segregation, reaching the young population of the area is to be regarded as a key factor. The former youth recreation center at Nickstahöjden is now disused and, within the local policy, there are calls for the need of a new one. Thus, a youth recreation center is incorporated into the building, which, together with a library, a stage, a café, offices and a conference area, produces a lively meeting point for all ages. The whole is kept together by a consistent structural logic: Broken-up floors, consisting of a lightweight wood-and steel construction, are suspended from the concrete water tower through steel wires like a giant weeping willow. Accordingly, potentially conflicting functions are allowed to coexist within the same socio-mechanical entity, simultaneously addressing global and local challenges. Thanks to its distinctive appearance and visible location from the commuter train, VATTENTRATTEN also becomes a collective point of reference - a symbol, radiating a sense of belonging and priority in an area which for way too long has been overlooked.