The Open Archival Information System (OAIS) is an established reference model and an ISO standard for structuring reliable archive systems. The model does not, as models seldom do, take into account human ways of understanding and taking account of information. The current study aims to examine how such considerations affect compliance with the OAIS reference model in practical terms using electronic archives. The thesis is based on a case study of R7 e-arkiv, an e-archive collaboration between 13 Swedish countys. The mate- rial is sourced partly on internal documentation and partly on interviews with eight participants' with various roles within the R7 e-arkiv. The empirical mate- rial was analyzed using the Information Culture Framework, developed by Gil- lian Oliver and Fiorella Foscarini. Thus defining a number of cultural factors mirroring human traits in understanding and appreciating information. The study demonstrates that information culture has consequences in the practical duties with managing electronic archives. Cultural factors affect peop- le's attitudes towards information within the archive. As a consequence, these attitudes has a direct impact on the formation of the archive. The OAIS refe- rence model, with its main focus on longterm preservation, is challanged by other values and attitudes towards the archive holdings. This leads to negotia- tions on what the e-archive is and should be. The result shows that compliance with OAIS is a dynamic process, where the model is balanced agains other interests. / OAIS är en etablerad referensmodell och ISO-standard för hur ett trovärdigt arkivsystem ska vara uppbyggt. Modellen tar dock inte, som standarder sällan gör, någon hänsyn till de kulturella aspekterna av människors sätt att förstå och förhålla sig till information. Den här uppsatsen ämnar att undersöka huruvida sådana aspekter får effekter för efterlevnad av OAIS-modellen i det praktiska arbetet med ett e-arkiv. Uppsatsen baseras på en fallstudie av den regionge- mensamma e-arkivlösningen R7 e-arkiv. Materialet utgörs dels av R7s interna dokumentation, och dels av djupintervjuer med åtta informanter med olika rol- ler inom R7 e-arkiv. För att analysera det empiriska materialet används Oliver och Foscarinis informationskulturramverk, vilket definierar ett antal kulturella faktorer som återspeglas i människors sätt att förstå och förhålla sig till infor- mation. Studien visar att informationskultur får konsekvenser för det praktiska arbetet vid drift och förvaltning av ett e-arkiv. Kulturella faktorer påverkar människors attityder till den information som finns i e-arkivet, vilket i sin tur formar olika drivkrafter bakom e-arkivet. OAIS-modellen, som utgår från ett arkivperspek- tiv med fokus på bevarande, balanseras mot andra sätt att förstå och förhålla sig till information. En dynamik uppstår med förhandlingar om vad e-arkivet ska vara – där OAIS-modellen ibland måste vägas mot andra drivkrafter och intressen.

The purpose of this master’s thesis in archival science was to provide a picture of what archiving of mental health records looks like in Sweden, and what rights private individuals have to their own mental health records. It fills a void in archival science research, as there is very little written about this specific type of document from an archival science perspective, and with Swedish conditions as the main focus. Similar questions are touched upon in research on those who grew up in foster homes; and from in research on attitudes to reading ones own patient records, ethical issues of preservation and destruction of records, and the patient record's legal status.  As a theoretical background, three of Cook's four archival paradigms were used, based on Foscarini's interpretation of these in relation to appraisal. For this thesis they were analysed with the individual's perspective in mind. As the main method, two questionnaires were sent out: one to Swedish archival institutions and one to practising psychologists. In addition, the method consisted of analysing government policies on appraisal of mental health records, as well as a review of the information about patient records on the Swedish regional archives' websites. Qualitative questions about experiences and attitudes have been outside the scope of this work. The scope of the research was limited to Sweden, and by the number of responses to the questionnaires.  The study shows that mental health records are legally indistinguishable from other patient records, that mental health records are often part of other records, and that many mental health records are destroyed ten years after the last notation, excepting records concerning children. This is a two years master’s thesis in archival science.

Introduction. Previous research has shown that the increasing demands of research data management have proven to be challenging to both researchers and research support. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the process of managing, archiving, and sharing research data and what challenges it faces. Furthermore, it aims to investigate what the archivist’s role is and should be in this process and how archivists and researchers communicate and collaborate with each other.  Method. To pursue this aim, a qualitative method was used, consisting of semi-structured interviews with archivists from seven different public universities in Sweden, with three larger universities and four smaller ones. Analysis. For the analysis a thematic method was used, where similarities and differences, views and opinions were identified and categorized into different themes. Result. The result showed that a fundamental challenge is for the archivists to reach out to the researchers with the information and knowledge that they need and how to make that information comprehensible. The result further showed that several of the interviewed archivists believe that the current focus of resources and demands aimed at the development of open data is misdirected and contra productive because the researchers are more interested in and have a greater need of safe storing and proper archiving of their research data, rather than making it open. Conclusion. The investigation concludes that there is a great need for new ways for archives and other research support to reach out to researchers with information on research data management and that this requires more resources. It furthermore concludes that there is a need to further investigate what researchers truly need for them to properly manage and preserve their research data in the long term and what role the archivist will play in this development.  This is a two years master’s thesis in Archival science.

The aim of this investigation is to show the evolution of public discussions about archival classification in a Swedish context. The study covers the whole period from the introduction of the traditional Swedish classification system, det allmänna arkivschemat (AA), in 1903 until this day, when verksamhetsbaserad arkivredovisning (VBA) has replaced it as the standard model, starting in 2009. For this purpose, primarily journals and education books through the years have been used. Argumentation analysis is used as a method. The study is framed with theories about paradigm shifts by Terry Cook and theories of archival classification attitudes by Geoffrey Yeo among others. Results show that in the first directed wave of criticism against AA, the focus was mainly on its structural inconsistency. The criticism later developed to be more and more about that the classification scheme was outdated, hard to understand and clearly made for a reality of paper-based and not digital archives. AA was also accused of not reflecting the reality of business archives. This meant that when VBA was introduced, the model was heavily influenced by process models used in business life. The fact that VBA still is not so widely adopted as planned could be a proof that the new model is not much easier to understand. No views demanding that AA should be restored are however found in the sources. But the discussion will of course be a never ending story, and continue as long there are archives. This is a two years master ́s thesis in Archival Science.

The aim of this study is to investigate transmission of knowledge as critical archive practice within folk dance, and thereby contribute to updating the concept tradition bearer. The research questions are: What is done in the situation of knowledge transmission where different folk dance bodies understood as archives – both living dancers and bodies in text and image – meet over time and space? How can these situations be understood theoretically and thus contribute to a new, archive oriented, theoretical understanding of the transmission of knowledge and tradition within folk dance? The empirical material consists of phenomenological interviews with three folk dancers who each participated in two workshops created by the author: in one case, the participants encountered archival material such as text, film and photography, in the other a living dancer understood as an archive. Drawing on critical and pluralizing archive theory, the findings of the study show how both dancers and archive records are stakeholders and agents in creating the affective, dynamic and complex interchanges that take place in both situations. Pluralizing archive theory also proved useful in identifying values and hierarchies among the stakeholders in the folk dance archive. In the interchange between dancer and archive, negotiations between different approaches to tradition took place. Through pluralizing archive theory and the understanding of the body as archive, the concept of tradition bearer may be given a more dynamic and inclusive definition, shifting focus from what it is to what it does, and be considered a complex relational situation.

Filipstads Gille är en historisk förening som värnar om Filipstads historia. Gillet har genom sin samling och dokumentation, arbetat för att presentera stadens historia. Vilket bland annat sker via den egna tidskriften Vår Stad som ges ut årligen. Gillet är en av många enskilda arkivbildare i Sverige som inte inkluderas i arkivlagen, som bland annat skrevs för att skydda och bevara handlingar av kulturell eller historisk betydelse för landet. Trots detta finns ett glapp som gynnar den offentliga, gentemot den privata sektorns arkiv, och ett viktigt perspektiv i historieskrivningen riskerar att förloras innan man insett dess betydelse. Filipstads Gille är en ideell och allmännyttig förening vilken faller under den privata sektorn istället för den offentliga (statliga och kommunala). Enligt arkivlagen är den privata sektorn reglerad, men har inte samma skydd som den offentliga när det gäller arkivverksamheten. Därmed kommer frågeställningen; vilka skillnader som finns i lagen, vad innebär dessa skillnader för offentliga respektive enskilda arkiv, och hur hanterar Filipstads Gille sin arkivgenererande verksamhet och handlingar? Syftet med denna uppsats är att studera Filipstads Gille för att se hur deras verksamhet förhåller sig till lagstiftningen, med fokus på arkivverksamheten.

The purpose of this study is to examine the use of off-site storage in the archival sector and how it impacts the public institutions’ work towards making the archives accessible for their users. Despite the ever-present technological advances and presumed digital future of archives the dependence on analogue records is still strong, leading to a recurring problem regarding lack of space in the archival depositories. To solve the problem archival institutions often turn to off-site storage solutions, where the terms and conditions vary, and often demands creative solutions to everyday archival problems. To answer the purpose of this study two types of off-site storage have been examined, where in one the archives use a staffed location and one where they use an unmanned location. By conducting interviews with archivists employed in organizations using these solutions the study aims to answer questions about 1) the challenges faced, 2) the solutions to said challenges, and 3) if there are any similarities or differences between the two aforementioned types of off-site storage. Employing the archival reference knowledge model developed by Duff, Yakel and Tibbo as a theoretical framework the study takes special aim at what abilities the archivists need and use to face the challenges presented by using off-site storage and to satisfy the needs of their users. The results conclude that although the main consequences of using off-site storage are loss of efficiency and time delays due to separated archives and unsatisfactory resources the archivists manage to keep their service levels moderate. They use the same tactics for acquiring collection knowledge in all aspects of the organization, and otherwise use each other’s’ knowledge to bridge the gaps. They make do with the given resources while balancing political and organizational objectives and juridical demands. This is a two years master’s thesis in Archival Science.

Introduction: This thesis investigates how two regional museums, Tornedalens museum in Finland and Norrbottens museum in Sweden handles the cultural heritage of Tornedalen (Torne River Valley) and the tornedalian culture. The aim of the study is to understand how place, cultural heritage and nationality work together regarding visibility and dissemination of knowledge. The focus of this study surrounds the demarcations between the Finnish and Swedish side of Tornedalen, where the two regional museums with belonging archives are explored and compared.   Method: In this study, ten interviews with a total of 12 participants were conducted, five at Tornedalens museum and five att Norrbottens museum, as well as field studies at both museums. The participants hold positions as archivists, educators, antiquarians, archeologists and managers at the museums. The interviews were taped and transcribed, and notes were taken during the field studies.   Analysis: The theoretical and analytical framework consists of critical heritage discourse. Additional theoretical concepts are place, representation, identity, demarcations, narration and performativity.   Results: the two museums portrait and relate to the tornedalian region and culture in different ways. Tornedalens museum portrait the partition of Tornedalen into two separate nations, and how this affected the lives of people living in the region and does to this day. The museum also represents a narrative that does not divide Swedish tornedalians from Finnish tornedalians and uses Tornio River as a symbol of unity. At Norrbottens museum, this narrative is not represented. Here, the linguistic oppression that Swedish tornedalians, lantalaiset and kvens were subject to is highlighted, as well as questions concerning how people and cultures in Norrbotten are united and share a common history and cultural heritage.    This is a two-year master’s thesis in archival science and museology and cultural heritage science.

This study concerns the contracting of digital archives for Swedish municipalities and the needs and requirements that govern this. Since the early 2000s, the Swedish government has been interested in expanding the utilization of digital information management. In order to preserve “born digital” official documentation, digital archives are increasingly becoming a necessity for Swedish municipalities. This study considers what the requirements and requests are explicated in formal requirement specifications for such systems. Tobias Edvardssons framework from the book chapter “Kommersiella IT-avtal” (commercial IT-contracts)  in the book “Rättsinformatik” edited by Cecilia Magnusson Sjöberg, as well as grounded theory, is used to discern pertinent categories of requirements. The study finds that the main areas of interest while negotiating a new digital archive can be divided into functional-, qualitative-, governing-, and economic requirements (in accordance with Edvardsson). Archival specifications and technical considerations are also central, as per findings using grounded theory with the support of such models as OAIS and Records Continuum Model.  The study concludes that there still are considerable steps to take before reaching an e-archive solution that can be used on a broad scale to accommodate many different needs and restrictions. However, at the same time, the development of long-term preservation systems for digital records would benefit from more standardized guidelines on a national scale.

Introduction This thesis deals with the potential similarities between cemeteries and archives and the potential similarities between gravestones and documents. To give context, a background on the evolution of Swedish cemeteries is provided. The potential similarities are then explored from a practical and an operational perspective, respectively, based on, e.g., the historical development of archives as discussed in Terry Cook’s four paradigms. In addition, abstract and metaphorical perspectives are explored with respect to Michel Foucault’s and Jacques Derrida’s theories of the archive. Method The method consists of qualitative observations from selected cemeteries in Stockholm combined with image analyses of photographs of gravestones taken during the observations. The observations and image analyses are based on the search for possible denotations and connotations. The method section assumes a hermeneutic approach.  Analysis Four observations made at Katarina kyrkogård, Maria Magdalena kyrkogård, Skogskyrkogården and Norra begravningsplatsen are presented. Fourteen image analyses of photographs of gravestones taken at these cemeteries are reported. Results  The results show similarities between cemeteries and archives as well as similarities between gravestones and documents. Conclusion Several similarities can be established by applying different archive-theoretical perspectives to cemeteries and gravestones. On an operational plane, the evolution of cemeteries follows the historical development of archives in several aspects. Abstract and metaphorical similarities are presented, mainly from a power perspective. A discussion on how these similarities provide the possibility of using an archival approach, partly in future research and partly in the preserving work of cemeteries, gravestones and the ecclesiastical activities is provided. This is a two years master's thesis in Archival science.