Thesis (doctoral)--Uppsala University, 1989. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 353-392).

Important to understanding bilingualism and second language (L2) learning are L2 morphological processing and acquisition of tense and aspect. This study used narrative elicitation to examine the expression of boundedness and definiteness in Finnish and English by first language (L1) Finnish speakers who speak English as an L2 and L1 English speakers who speak Finnish as an L2. In Finnish, boundedness and definiteness were largely portrayed by using partitive and accusative cases, though tense and aspect conjugation also played a role. In English, boundedness was largely conveyed through tense and aspect conjugation and definiteness through article usage. Both L1 speaker groups appeared to demonstrate first language transfer as well as form following meaning in acquisition, meaning that a given form will be acquired first in contexts where the meaning of the form is inherent. There was also evidence pointing to avoidance by L2 speakers. Notably, varying interpretations of what the images used portrayed also seemed to play a role in some of the differences in responses across groups. The narrative elicitation methodology was useful in producing meaningful and easily comparable results.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / The study examined ultimate attainment m postpuberty second language acquisition and the Critical Period Hypothesis as an explanation for non-nativeness. A grammaticality judgment task acted as an assessment instrument; a subject was considered to be native-like if the individual's subtest score was greater than or equal to the mean ratings of 90% of the control group members. The native-like subtests were totaled into a nativeness score. The study consisted of 6 research questions and followup interviews with the highest scoring and lowest scoring subjects. As a methodological innovation, the selection of Finnish-born spouses of native English speakers (N=104) as subjects controlled background variables (amount and quality ofL2 exposure, amount ofL2 and Ll use, education and language learning); 80% had studied EFL. 55 subjects had age on arrival of 2:16 years and had lived in USA/Canada for 20-60 years. 88% of the control group (N=40) obtained the nativeness score 6 or 5. The grammaticality judgments of 38% of Finnish-born subjects were indistinguishable from the judgments of the control group and contradicted the Critical Period Hypothesis as an only explanation for native-like ultimate attainment. The findings also indicate that Age on Arrival and Age English as a Foreign Language Began are separate age of exposure measures. The best logistic regression model with 11 binary variables predicted nativelikeness with 76.9% accuracy; the significant predictors were Age English as a Foreign Language Began, US Education, and Length of Exposure, but not Age on Arrival. However, the youngest age on arrival group (12-15 years) outperformed all other subject groupings. Their performance did not decline with aging; the nativeness scores of other subjects declined as Age at Testing increased after the peak performance age. ANOV As for Age English as a Foreign Language Began, Length of Exposure, Total Years of Education, and Age at Testing were significant for the 104 and 55 subject groupings. The n-shaped relationship between the nativeness score and Length of Exposure explains their low correlation. Age at Testing impacted on ultimate attainment by confounding with education and other background variables (prior foreign language study, second language proficiency on arrival, multilingualism, etc.). / 2999-01-01

<p>In my study I analyse Reijo Mäki’s four books Pimeyden tango (1997), Pahan suudelma (1998), Keltainen leski (1999) and Black Jack (2003).  I’m interested whether Mäki as a writer belongs to traditional Finnish prose which started from Aleksis Kivi than genre of crime literature.</p><p>After Kai Laitinen humour, nature and democracy are typical to Finnish literature tradition.  Mäki’s milieu descriptions are closer to the Finnish literary tradition. Through nature the characters mirror their emotions, feelings and events. The environment is not only seen, but it is also smelled, touched and heard. Through the marks of the nature characters give right as well as misleading clues. It is particularly characteristic to the Finnish literary tradition to describe division of life, social status and the freedom and lack of it through weather, which is not typical to the crime literature.  Also Mäki’s characters are democratic and everyday and strongly individualistic and anti-social despite of person’s social standing.  Laitinen’s point of view is that in the Finnish literary tradition equality is only between men. In Mäki’s fiction women characters are narrow and they are only seen how they look.</p><p>Mäki represents the modern criminal literature in which are characteristics of puzzle, hard-boiled and police novels. Unlike hardboiled detective stories his books are full of verbal descriptions. In conclusion Mäki’s books clearly represent the Finnish literary tradition.</p>

This dissertation is the result of studies concerning the prerequisites for Finnish to survive in contemporary Sweden. When the Sweden Finnish parents want instruction in Finnish for their children the only choice available in Swedish municipal schools is between two language programs: one giving instruction in Swedish classes with 1-2 hours of home language training in Finnish per week, and the other giving instruction in and of Finnish in Finnish classes. In a four part study I investigate whether Sweden Finnish pupils who take part in these programs use and have a command of both languages. The focus of the dissertation is nonetheless on Finnish and the possibilities for Sweden Finns to preserve and develop their language and culture. A total of 560 second generation Sweden Finns from Botkyrka participated in the studies and are divided by language programs into Finnish classes (273) and Swedish classes (287). The introduction of the dissertation gives a picture of the composition of the Sweden Finnish group, cultural aspirations and education possibilities. It also discusses the official position of the Swedish authorities as well as their efforts in relation to the Sweden Finnish aspirations. For comparison 411 Finland Swedish pupils from Turku as well as monolingual control groups in Finland and Sweden are also investigated. Questionnaires, tests, and essays were collected on two occasions, in 1980 and 1995. Command of reading and writing skills in Finnish and Swedish are compared among the Sweden Finnish, the Finland Swedish, and the monolingual pupils. The most bilingual were the Finland Swedish pupils. This group achieved better results on the Swedish tests than the other groups. On the Finnish tests they were better than the Sweden Finnish pupils in the Swedish classes. Compared to the Sweden Finnish pupils in Finnish classes, the Finland Swedish pupils read just as well or better but wrote less well. In the studies the Sweden Finnish pupils' language use in school and at home and the changes which had taken place during the fifteen years which had passed between the times of data collection were scrutinized. Compared to the Sweden Finnish pupils in Swedish classes in 1980 the Sweden Finnish pupils use much more Swedish today (1995) while the Sweden Finnish pupils in Finnish classes nowadays use both languages more often than those who took part in the same language program in 1980. In one study 41 former Sweden Finnish informants with an average age of 27 were re-visited. Those who had been in the Swedish classes tended to let Swedish take over at home while those who had been in the Finnish classes used both languages. Sixteen of the former informants had children of their own. The language chosen to use when speaking to their children correlated with their own language skills and the language of their partner. None of those who had been in the Swedish classes spoke Finnish with their children. Among those who were in Finnish classes various combinations of languages were applied: 40% spoke Finnish, 25% spoke both languages and 33% spoke Swedish. Nearly 90% of those who had been in Finnish classes wanted their children to learn Finnish in school while not quite 60% of those who took part in home language training wanted their children to learn Finnish in school. Judging from the results of the study, attendance in Finnish classes was of great significance for the preservation of Finnish in Sweden because only this program seemed to guarantee many-sided language skills in Finnish. The number of pupils in Finnish classes has decreased sharply since 1980, and nowadays such classes exist only in a few places in Sweden. Swedish school political practices have contributed strongly to the difficulties Finnish is having and will have surviving beyond the coming two or three generations.

Abstract of Thesis (Ph. D.)--(University of Oulu, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 421-486).

Thesis--Berlin. / Lebenslauf.

Thesis (doctoral)--Turun yliopisto, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 262-277) and indexes.

The importance of actions towards sustainable operations and corporate social responsibility has increased over the years, and the awareness of the phenomenon has increased. Good environmental-, economic- and social actions are all essential in order to achieve sustainable development. Social sustainability as a part of sustainable development seems to be overlooked or underrepresented area in the field of sport and exercise research, especially in Finland. In this research gender equality is seen as an aspect within social sustainability, and the deeper focus is in it. In Finland, gender equality has gone far, but issues have also raised and for instance women are minority when it comes to decision-making regarding sport and physical activity. This research aims to examine and problematize how and if social sustainability, with a focus on gender equality is perceived and experienced in Finnish sport organisations and their practices. Furthermore, this study examines the role and possible potential of Finnish Olympic Committee’s guidelines regarding equality and equal opportunity in sport. The research follows a qualitative case study approach. Five people working in different Finnish sport organizations participated in the research. Semi structured written interviews were conducted to obtain data, and thematic analysis was used to interpret the data from the interviews. The concepts of social sustainability, gender equality and gender theory by Meyerson and Kolb was applied as a theoretical framework. In the Finnish sport field, social sustainability and its aspects are acknowledged and perceived important regarding responsible actions in and towards communities and society. Organizational practices are perceived equal, but issues are recognized in sport practices and sports themselves. The direction seems to be towards neutralizing gender and seeing and treating everyone as individuals over genders. Guidance is perceived important and useful, but more different level cooperation is hoped, especially when considering larger issues like gendered sports. The imbalanced numbers in representation of genders does not seem to impact on how the practices within the sport organizations are perceived. The main gender issues are caused by gender norms in sport, and in order to shape those, it requires larger push from more powerful operators.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Helsinki, 2008. / Includes bibliographies of Finnish, German, and bilingual dictionaries of ecology and environmental protection. Includes bibliographical references (p. [345]-396).