Cognitive functioning, particularly executive functioning, is a strong predictor of everyday action impairments in schizophrenia. However, it is unclear if remediating cognitive deficits can lead to meaningful gains in adaptive functioning. Approaches that attempt to improve everyday action performance through bypassing or compensating for cognitive deficits are promising ways to address functional impairments. This study examined whether standardized environmental interventions can compensate for cognitive difficulties and improve action performance in schizophrenia. Forty two individuals were administered two versions of the Naturalistic Action Test (NAT)--a standard version (ST-NAT), and a user-centered version (UC-NAT) that incorporated interventions aimed at streamlining action performance. Individuals with schizophrenia demonstrated enhanced performance on the UC-NAT, demonstrating the beneficial effects of environmental interventions on everyday action. Results indicated that the interventions likely exerted their effect through compensating for global cognitive dysfunction. Additionally, the NAT's reliability and validity for schizophrenia populations, as well as the UC-NAT's utility for addressing the cognitive impairments of a variety of neurological populations were examined. / Psychology

How are we moving, or how much physical activities are present in societal settingssuch as eldercare units, schools, universities and offices? This general question was explored using different design-oriented approaches in four cases, with children,elderly, students and office workers. The results unveil a complexity of the problemarea that initially seemed quite straightforward. In many of the explored settings and situations, and for many of the participants, the activities they are engaged with do not include or encourage their abilities for physical movements to any great extent and this is not in line with the extent of movement that they actually desire. Physical activity can be defined as an activity performed through movement that expends energy. Research results from the public health domains and related areas show a major concern for the negative effects related to low levels of physical activity and prolonged sedentary postures found in many of the above-mentioned settings. In general, physical activities of today seem mainly related to sports, and specific activities designed for improving health and well-being. The participants in the four explorative case studies in this thesis demonstrated how they would like their physical activities to be integrated in the everyday activities of the different settings explored and not mainly as a separate activity specifically dedicated for health and well-being. How can knowledge of physical activity inform the design and development of interactive products and systems in these settings? New insights were gained through design-oriented explorations together with the participants inthe different field settings and through analysis of these observations. The results are not only the insights gained through the analysed empirical observations but also include a physical activity-oriented design method called Physical Movement Sketching as well as experiences from using Movement Probes. The experiences from using these two design methods led me to formulate a proposal for a new approach called Movement Acumen Design. This approach applies a socioecological perspective on physical activities. It provides methods and concepts to support the integration of physical activities into everyday activities performed with the support of interactive technology and it argues that physical activity should reclaim a more central role in these situations. Let us design for it to happen! / <p>QC 20150217</p>

This thesis focuses on literacy in children aged 11-12. The overriding purpose is to describe the specific competencies that children employ in their daily use of writing. What do they do with writing and how do they do it? The theoretical framework is primarily the strand of literacy research that belongs to the field of New Literacy Studies, where literacy is understood as socially and contextually related. The study also draws on ethnomethodology in the sense that the object of study is the daily actions through which we construct our lives and negotiate identities. Two children, a boy and a girl, with different socio-economic backgrounds and family situations were observed at home, in school and during freetime activities for more than a year through an ethnographic research approach. The thesis identifies the different competencies that the children activate. In one case competencies involving oral skills are primarily used as resources in problem solving, while writing and reading are used to solve similar problems as a matter of course in the other case. The thesis also shows that a common use of writing is to regulate and organise everyday and special activities such as planning Christmas gifts and to write reminders that school tasks need to be completed andreported. In terms of materiality, writing is available in more or less conventionalised formats. Common formats for everyday written products are sheets of paper in different sizes (A4 to post-it notes), or digital screens (computer, TV, mobile phone). The school whiteboard has a special materiality and is the material source of a great many of the everydaywritten products.

Bakgrund: I ett globalt perspektiv är förvärvade hjärnskador en stor utmaning för samhället i form av kostnader för sjukvård och rehabilitering. Personer som drabbas av förvärvad hjärnskada behöver stöd för att själva ta ansvar för sin träning och hitta meningsfulla aktiviteter tillsammans med andra som en del av en hälsosam livsstil. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att beskriva erfarenheter av aktivitet och delaktighet hos personer som drabbats av förvärvad hjärnskada som skildras i en kollektivt skriven blogg. Metod: Materialet i den aktuella studien utgörs av bloggtexter som skrevs mellan åren 2017 och 2019 inom ramen för ett samarbetsprojekt och låg öppet publicerade på internet. Bloggen skrevs av en grupp personer med förvärvad hjärnskada. Texterna analyserades med Malteruds systematiska textkondensering. Resultat: Analysen resulterade i tre kategorier; Vikten av att hålla igång; som beskriver upplevelser och erfarenheter av fysisk aktivitet och träning efter hjärnskadan och hur aktiviteterna behövde anpassas efter de nya förutsättningarna. Att träna lite hela tiden i vardagen; som beskriver deltagarnas sätt att träna medvetet i alla aktiviteter som tillhör vardagslivet, att träna lite hela tiden. Hur man närmar sig samhället på nytt; som beskriver erfarenheter gällande delaktighet i samhällets olika delar och vikten av stöttning från människor i samma situation. Slutsats: Resultatet indikerar att fysisk aktivitet, träning och delaktighet i samhället kan vara viktigt efter en förvärvad hjärnskada. Vidare kan det vara betydelsefullt att dela erfarenheter med andra, få stöd av andra och lära sig av andras erfarenheter. Det är även viktigt att samhällsfunktioner och miljöer i det offentliga rummet är tillgängliga för alla. / Background: In a global perspective, acquired brain injury is a major challenge for society in the form of costs for healthcare and rehabilitation. People with acquired brain injury need support in order to take responsibility for their own health and incorporate exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle. Aim: The aim of the study was to describe the experiences of people with acquired brain injury, with regards to activity and participation, as depicted in a collectively written blog. Methods: The material in the current study consists of collectively written blog texts written between 2017 and 2019 by people with acquired brain injury. The material included 35 blog texts and was part of a larger research study. The texts were analyzed with Malterud's Systematic Text Condensation. Results: The analysis resulted in three categories; The importance of being physical active; describes experiences of physical activity and training after brain injury and how the activities needed to be adapted to the new conditions. To exercise a little all the time in everyday life; describes the participants' way of exercising consciously in all activities included in everyday life, to exercise a little all the time. How to re-approach society; describes experiences regarding participation in the various parts of society and the importance of support from people in the same situation. Conclusions: The results indicate that physical activity, training and participation in society are important after brain injury. Furthermore it is meaningful to share experiences with, get support from and learn from other people with acquired brain injury. It is also important that community functions and environments in public spaces are available for everyone.

This diploma thesis aims at the influence of social support of an elderly person on his everyday activities. Thesis consists of theoretical and practical parts. The theoretical part describes topics involving old age and social support of an elderly person. The practical part includes field research in form of interviews. The main goal of this thesis was to find out, what influence has the social support on everyday life of an home living elderly person.

The overarching aim of the present study is to elucidate how preschool teachers and children in their interaction accomplish institutional everyday activities in preschool. What is analyzed, more specifically, is how the preschool teachers and children use certain interactional phenomena as resources when they organize their social interaction. The study is a video-based study and ethnomethodological and conversation analytic perspectives are taken as theoretical and analytical points of departure. This means that parts of the video recorded material has been transcribed in detail and micro analyzed. The results of the study are presented in two empirical chapters where it is shown, in detail, how preschool teachers and children in their interaction accomplish everyday activities in preschool. In particular, it is illuminated how the interactional phenomenon question-answer-sequences can function as an important interactional and educational resource for the participants, when they organize their interaction. Further, the detailed analyses show that since the interaction is being organized through question-answer-sequences, it becomes possible for the teacher to capture and direct the children’s attention towards different mathematical, physical and linguistic contents, in line with the intentions of the curriculum, as well as create a shared experience of these curricula contents in practice. Altogether, the analyses of the study thus show how the educational practice of preschool is being accomplished locally – by preschool teachers and children in interaction. / <p>Licentiatuppsats inom den Nationella forskarskolan för ämnesdidaktik i mångfaldens förskola.</p>