The aim of the thesis is to explore socially shared ideas about mental illness in everyday contexts. Drawing on social representation theory, organizations for users of mental health services and self-help groups are regarded as communities where social knowledge is constructed that makes intersubjective understanding of illness experiences possible. In order to investigate such knowledge as a resource in joint construction of meaning, a theoretical model is introduced where a distinction is made between a discursive level of situated ‘representational work’ and an underlying level of sociocultural resources. A focus group study was carried out with 27 participants who label their health problems as anxiety, depression or bipolar disorder, and were members of service user organizations. The focus group conversations were analysed with regard to thematic, interactional and discursive features to answer the questions: 1) how is mental illness represented, 2) how is the mentally ill person represented, and 3) how are others’ views on mental illness represented. The results show how mental illness is represented as a complex phenomenon that is contextualised to a number of frames of reference. Further, the analysis identified different types of resources that are utilized in representational work: local knowledge of the communities, medical concepts, different explanatory models, narrative structures, metaphors and conceptual dichotomies. It also revealed dialogical properties of the representational work that have rhetorical functions for self-presentation as a team performance. The discussion suggests that widely shared resources are put to use in group- and situation-specific representational projects, and that representations that are produced in group discourse can be characterised as ‘polemical social representations’ that respond to a double stigma of mental illness in everyday life where mental illness is regarded as a sign of ‘weakness’ as well as ‘otherness’.

H.P. Blavatsky’s (1831-1891) Theosophy has been defined as central to the history of modern Western spirituality and esotericism, yet to this date no major study has mapped and analysed the major themes of Blavatsky’s writings, how Blavatsky used the concept ‘Theosophy’ or to what extent she was engaged with the intellectual contexts of her time. Thus the purpose of this thesis is to fill this gap. The proposed theoretical framework is based on the centrality of language in the production of intellectual products, such as texts—but contrary to the dominant focus on strategies, rhetoric and power this thesis will focus on the construction of meaning coupled with a set of methodological tools based on contextual analysis, intellectual history and intertextuality. In addition to an overview of Blavatsky research this thesis will map and analyse Blavatsky’s use of the concept ‘Theosophy’ as well as Blavatsky’s primary discourses, identified as: (1) discourse for ancient knowledge, (2) discourse against Christian dogmatism, (3) discourse against the modern natural sciences and materialism, (4) discourse against modern spiritualism, (5) discourse for system and (7) discourse for universal brotherhood. In mapping and analysing Blavatsky’s discourses, it was found that her construction of meaning was significantly interconnected with broader intellectual contexts, such as ‘modern historical consciousness’, ‘critical enlightenment ideas’, studies in religion, studies in mythology, the modern sciences, spiritualism, systemic philosophy, reform movements and practical ethics. It, for example, becomes clear that Blavatsky’s search for an ancient ‘Wisdom Religion’ was actually a part of a common intellectual occupation during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and that her critique of the Christian dogmas was equally a common intellectual trend. To read Blavatsky’s discourses as the idiosyncratic strategies of an esotericist, isolated from their larger contexts or only engaged with them in order to legitimise minority views would therefore largely fail to account for the result of this thesis: that in historical actuality, they were a part of the larger cultural web of meaning.

Conspiracy theories are an old-new phenomenon which has gained its importance and specific character over the last three centuries. Unofficially, they have become an alternative tradition of the interpretation of historical events connected with an alternative form of spirituality, known as conspirituality. This manner of the interpretation usually holds the power when the consensually accepted worldview loses its plausibility for the concrete person or group. Conspiracy theories are the verbalization of a certain way of thinking and action which depends on it. Most often, they are manifested in the form of myths. That is understood as one of the dominant structures, commonly connected with traditionally perceived religion. From this point of view and in terms of the function associated with conspiracy narratives, conspiracy theories are examined as functional and structural equivalents of religion. These functions are especially the defense of the order (nomos), differentiation of the outer reality or the explanation of the presence of Evil in the world. In addition, they can also become a medium or tool of social actors in power relations. This thesis represents the complementary overview of the contemporary approaches in the study of religion discourse, which deals with unconventional religiosity...

As theories on the process of reading have advanced so definitional changes have resulted. This in turn has impacted on the teaching of reading. Comprehension is not the result of successful word recognition, rather, meaning is constructed by the reader using various sources as a frame of reference. Reading requires an interaction between the reader, the text read and the context in vvhich it is read. Reader factors involve language competencies, prior knowledge, vocabulary, the use of strategies and attitudes and motivation. The text may be narrative or expository and encompasses instructional materials. The tvvo broad categories in the context are the classroom setting and the instructional context. An 'interactive' or 'organisational' paradigm underlying inclusion recognises individual differences as being a probable cause of failure but postulates that the school and all that it encompasses, can be a barrier to learning and development. As such it is not deficit driven, attributing failure to learners alone. In the case of reading, this means not attributing reading failure to the reader alone but acknowledging the role of the text and the context. This point of departure is confirmed by an interactive model of disability, which, while still explaining reading deficits, advances that alternative areas also be investigated. Focusing on abilities is conducive to proactivity in the prevention of barriers to learning and development. To be inclusive therefore, mainstream schools generally and classrooms specifically, will need to be reformed and restructured to be more responsive to learners experiencing barriers to learning and development. This will require enhanced teaching methods and flexible support systems. Accommodating diversity presupposes the acknowledgement of each learner's uniqueness in order to meet individual needs. This will be facilitated when in the compilation of a reading programme to meet individual needs, the reader, the text and context are matched through assessment and instruction . A reading programme to enhance the teaching of reading and thereby meet individual needs has been compiled and implemented in a mainstream, intermediate phase class. From this practical experience and the literature studied, guidelines for the teaching of reading have been formulated for teachers in the intermediate phase to use within the context of inclusion. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Orthopedagogics)

A l’heure où la plupart des musées investissent dans des sites Internet qui rendent souvent une grande partie de leurs collections accessibles à distance, la mission du musée en tant que lieu physique d’accès aux œuvres est remise en question. Le rapport aux publics doit être repensé : la nature de sa relation aux œuvres est transformée, et l'émergence du concept de visite augmentée introduit des dispositifs renouvelés de médiation au sein même de l’espace muséal. Cette thèse rend compte d’une expérimentation de terrain autour de Muséo+, outil de médiation de contenus muséographiques au moyen de dispositifs techno-pragmatiques interactifs. L’ensemble des contenus numériques est accessible, via l’application, sur une tablette tactile. Le dispositif et l’application qu’il supporte ont été conçus pour accompagner et guider la découverte du Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille, in situ, au cours d’une expérience de visite physique dans les lieux. Ils s’adressent à tous les enfants de 6 à 12 ans, sans et avec handicap divers (surdité, autisme, déficience intellectuelle, précocité) : ce travail s’inscrit ainsi dans une réflexion sur le Design for all (aussi appelée conception universelle). La question de l'accessibilité intellectuelle et sensible est au cœur de ce travail, qui propose un retour d’expérience sur l’appropriation de contenus culturels. Le point de vue adopté consiste à observer et à qualifier une expérience de visite physique avec accompagnement numérique, et les mécanismes de construction de sens mobilisés. / At a time when most museums invest in websites that often make much of their collections accessible from a distance, the museum's mission as a physical place where people can access the works is in question. The relationship to the public must be reconsidered : the nature of the relationship to the works is thus transformed, and the emergence of the concept of enhanced tours has introduced devices which should renew mediation within the museum space. This thesis reports a field experiment around Muséo +, a mediation tool which makes museum content available through interactive techno-oriented devices. All the content is accessible via the application, on a digital tablet. The tablet and the application have been designed to support and guide the discovery of the Palais des Beaux-Arts of Lille, in situ, during a physical tour. It is available for all children from age 6 to 12, with and without disabilities (deafness, autism, developmental disabilities, Precocity) : this work is thus part of a reflection on the Design for All (also called Universal Design). The issue of intellectual and sensitive accessibility is central in this work, offering feedback on the appropriation of cultural content. The approach taken is to observe and describe a physical visit experience with digital assistance and the processus used for the construction of meaning.

As theories on the process of reading have advanced so definitional changes have resulted. This in turn has impacted on the teaching of reading. Comprehension is not the result of successful word recognition, rather, meaning is constructed by the reader using various sources as a frame of reference. Reading requires an interaction between the reader, the text read and the context in vvhich it is read. Reader factors involve language competencies, prior knowledge, vocabulary, the use of strategies and attitudes and motivation. The text may be narrative or expository and encompasses instructional materials. The tvvo broad categories in the context are the classroom setting and the instructional context. An 'interactive' or 'organisational' paradigm underlying inclusion recognises individual differences as being a probable cause of failure but postulates that the school and all that it encompasses, can be a barrier to learning and development. As such it is not deficit driven, attributing failure to learners alone. In the case of reading, this means not attributing reading failure to the reader alone but acknowledging the role of the text and the context. This point of departure is confirmed by an interactive model of disability, which, while still explaining reading deficits, advances that alternative areas also be investigated. Focusing on abilities is conducive to proactivity in the prevention of barriers to learning and development. To be inclusive therefore, mainstream schools generally and classrooms specifically, will need to be reformed and restructured to be more responsive to learners experiencing barriers to learning and development. This will require enhanced teaching methods and flexible support systems. Accommodating diversity presupposes the acknowledgement of each learner's uniqueness in order to meet individual needs. This will be facilitated when in the compilation of a reading programme to meet individual needs, the reader, the text and context are matched through assessment and instruction . A reading programme to enhance the teaching of reading and thereby meet individual needs has been compiled and implemented in a mainstream, intermediate phase class. From this practical experience and the literature studied, guidelines for the teaching of reading have been formulated for teachers in the intermediate phase to use within the context of inclusion. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Orthopedagogics)