<p>För att undersöka vad barn tror händer med ett äpple som fallit till marken har jag gjort kvalitativa intervjuer på två förskolor med sexton barn födda 2003. Jag genomförde även skriftliga och muntliga intervjuer med några pedagoger på förskolorna. Mitt syfte var att undersöka barns föreställningar om nedbrytningsprocessen och jämföra dessa mellan avdelningarna för att se om pedagogerna har påverkat barnens föreställningar genom sin inställning till att arbeta med nedbrytningsprocessen.</p><p> </p><p>Intervjuerna visade att barnen inte har så utvecklade föreställningar om nedbrytning. De flesta tror att äpplet ruttnar och/eller blir helt uppätet av djur. Längre än så har de inte kommit i sitt tänkande. De vet inte hur äpplet ruttnar och det minsta djur de nämnde som äter äpplen var myror. Pedagogerna hade olika inställningar till att arbeta med nedbrytning i förskolorna men jag kan inte se att det har påverkat barnens svar. Inte heller kan jag se någon större skillnad på barnens föreställningar mellan de två förskolorna och dess avdelningar.</p><p> </p> / <p>In order to find out what children believe happens to an apple that has fallen to the ground I have interviewed fifteen children born 2003 in two pre-schools. I have also interviewed some of the pedagogues in both pre-schools. My purpose was to find out the children’s conceptions about the decomposition process and compare them between the departments to see if the pedagogue’s had affected the children’s conceptions by their attitudes towards working with the decomposition process.</p><p> </p><p>The interviews showed that the children don’t have such developed conceptions about the decomposition process. Most of them knows that the apple gets rotten or eaten up by animals. This is how far they have thought. They don’t know how apples get rotten and the smallest animal eating apples they mention were ants. The pedagogues had different concepts about working with the decomposition process in pre-schools but I can’t see that it has affected the children’s answers. Neither can I see any bigger different in the children’s ideas between the two pre-schools and their departments.</p>

This research project is an investigation into the wellness levels of victims of domestic violence. Wellness was measured using the Five Factor Wellness Assessment by Meyers and Sweeney (2005). The research is grounded in a theoretical trifecta comprised of the works of Alfred Adler, Hiram Maslow and the global concept of wellness as defined by Jane Meyers and Thomas Sweeney. An exploratory factor analysis was run on the Five Factor Wellness Assessment to assess the goodness of fit for the population being studied. Wellness levels were assessed upon intake into a domestic violence shelter and compared with the national normative wellness scores using a series of one way two-tailed T-tests. Additionally, the national normative wellness scores were compared with the wellness scores of a local population using the same analysis method. The wellness scores of the victims of domestic violence were compared with the local population using a MANOVA. Statistical significance levels were established at .003 using a Bonferroni adjustment to accommodate the number of variables that comprise the assessment. Results indicated that there are statistically significant differences between the victims of domestic violence and the national normative population in a negative direction. There are also statistically significant differences between the scores of the local population and the national normative population in a positive direction. Finally, the wellness scores of the victims of domestic violence when compared with the local population are also statistically significantly different with the victims scores being much lower than the scores of the local population. These findings create a wealth of information for practitioners and researchers in the domestic violence field and a plethora of new avenues for research.

In the past, cities and their food system were spatially interwoven. However, rapid urbanization and the creation of industrialized agriculture have physically isolated and psychologically disconnected urban residents from the landscape that sustains them. Cities can no longer feed themselves and must rely on a global hinterland. Vital growing, preserving, and cooking knowledge has been lost, while negative health, economic, and environmental effects continue to develop from this separation. Low-income neighborhoods have significantly been affected where a lack of income and mobility pose barriers to adequate food access. Architects have addressed food issues individually, but have yet to take an integrative approach that meaningfully engages urban citizens with all processes of the food system. Urban planners have recently taken a holistic design approach to food issues through the development of the community food system concept. By applying this idea to an architectural program I have designed a Community Food Center for the Five Points Neighborhood in East Knoxville, TN. Spatially compressing and layering food activity spaces preserves the majority of the landscape on site for food production. The kitchen, dining room, market, and garden increase access to healthy food while serving as community gathering spaces, and the business incubator kitchens provide economic opportunities. The whole facility acts to educate and engage people in the growing, harvesting, preserving, cooking, sharing, and composting of food. Cities cannot sustain themselves by only providing spaces for consumption. Architects must challenge the accepted relationships between food system spaces and strive to reincorporate productive landscapes and spaces dedicated to transforming raw ingredients into a variety of architectural programs. Although the Five Points Community Food Center is site specific, the concept of integrating multiple food activities into a single architectural entity can be used as a tool for place making by expressing a local identity through food culture while improving the social and economic fabric.

The present study focuses on the relationship between personality and Life Satisfaction. I analyzed the Big Five traits, six Narrow personality traits, and levels of Life Satisfaction in a sample of 5,932 individuals. A review of existing literature on other variables that contribute to Life Satisfaction was also conducted and used to measure against personality traits. The narrow traits added variance above and beyond the Big Five personality traits. All the Big Five traits and Optimism, Assertiveness, Intrinsic Motivation, and Tough-Mindedness were significantly and positively correlated with Life Satisfaction. Image Management was significantly and negatively correlated with Life Satisfaction. Results were discussed in terms of the relation of personality traits to Life Satisfaction and the amount narrow personality traits related to Life Satisfaction after controlling for the Big Five. Explanations were offered as to how these traits might have value in relation to Life Satisfaction.

Vissa människor har mer bestämda åsikter eller radikala övertygelser än andra. Den här studien belyser om fenomenet skiljer sig mellan olika grupper och om det har att göra med personlighet. Totalt 90 personer ur grupperna kristna, kriminella och en kontrollgrupp undersöktes avseende dogmatism och Big Five teorins personlighetsfaktorer. En one-way ANOVA visade att gruppen kriminella var signifikant mer dogmatiska än kontrollgruppen och tenderade att vara mer dogmatiska än kristna personer. En regressionsanalys visade att Big Five teorins personlighetsfaktorer predicerar dogmatism och att känslomässig instabilitet (N) är den enda signifikanta prediktorn med störst vikt. Utbildningsnivå kombinerat med känslomässig instabilitet (N) visades öka prediktionen av dogmatism och utbildningsnivå hade den största prediktionsbetydelsen. En one-way ANOVA relaterade låg utbildningsnivå till dogmatism. Motsatt tidigare forskning hittades även höga värden av vänlighet för gruppen kriminella.

Date: 2008-06-08 Program: International Marketing Course: Master thesis in International Marketing (EF0705) Author: Xiongyu Zeng (780925) Yang Du (820830) Tutor: Jan Löwstedt Title: A Study of Marketing Strategy in Chinese Software Market – A Case Study of UFIDA Software Co., Ltd Strategic Question : What should be an Effective Marketing Strategy for UFIDA in order to Increase its Market Shares and Support its Market Leadership Position? Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate and analyze the current Chinese financial management software market conditions as well as competitors and to utilize the knowledge from the investigation to consider a better application of marketing mix for UFIDA. Theory and Method: Two theories, five forces and marketing mix, were applied in this thesis. The authors collected primary data by interview and questionnaire to learn company’s marketing operation and feedback of customers on the marketing mix. The authors also collected reliable secondary data with the guideline of five forces framework to learn the marketing situation. The analysis was conducted according to the selected theories and the collected data. Based on the analysis, the authors presented a relevant conclusion. Target Audience: The target audience is the market managers of UFIDA. The researchers wish the result of the paper could bring some benefits for them in the market performance. UFIDA can make use of the research result to design an effective strategy. The authors believe that the research could provide a general guidance and bring benefit to marketers in similar fields and help them to learn competitive situation. Conclusion: From the result of analysis, the authors think the market situation is good for UFIDA. UFIDA has competitive advantages to defend itself against the forces and influence them in its favor. As a consequence, in order to increase market share as well as support its leading position, UFIDA should maintain the existing competitive advantages and improve the disadvantages of marketing operation about marketing mix found from the feedbacks of customer. Through the analysis and recommendation, the authors wish that the investigation result could benefit to UFIDA and bring them some cues for designing an effective marketing strategy.

Tidigare forskning har visat att individers omgivning (klimat, natur) har relativt stor inverkan för hur pass stor vemodet blir vid byte till en ny omgivning. Omgivningen anses även påverka och forma individens personlighetsdrag. Studiens syfte var att undersöka vilka individtyper som är mest villiga till att byta ort för ett lämpligt arbete, i relation till deras huvudsakliga uppväxtort. Undersökningen bestod av 250 deltagare. Resultatet redovisade signifikanta samband mellan både uppväxtort och attityd till att arbeta i stora och mindre städer. Inget signifikant samband erhölls mellan de olika personlighetsdragen i relation till flyttbenägenhet. Det personlighetsdrag som starkast påverkar individens flyttbenägenhet var öppenhet. Män rapporterades vara mer flyttbenägna än kvinnor, och generellt tenderar de att vara uppvuxna i glesbygd.

Studien är en begreppsvalidering av personlighetsformuläret Pers Q som utgår från ”Big Five”-teorin. Pers Q relaterades till ett etablerat personlighetsinstrument, CTI, som utgår från Jungs personlighetstypologi. Vidare undersöktes om det i Pers Q dimensionerna fanns förväntade könsskillnader samt förväntade samband med generell intelligens. Data samlades in från sökande till officersutbildning (N=552 varav 58 kvinnor) och analyserades genom korrelationer, regressionsanalyser samt t-test. Resultatet indikerade att Pers Q mäter delar av CTI vilket delvis kan förklaras av testens teoretiska perspektiv. Vidare visar studien att de skillnader och samband som undersöktes inte fullständigt överensstämmer med de förväntade. För att säkerställa Pers Q dimensionernas egenskaper behöver fler studier utföras enär begreppsvaliditet bör uppfyllas i en serie av prövningar.

Emotional suffering in old age is largely caused by various psychiatric conditions, of which depression is the most common. Depression is associated with a decline in both well-being and daily functioning and reduces both morale and social capacity among the very old, which may produce high health and social costs for society. The overall aim of the thesis was to study the prevalence of depression among the very old, to identify factors associated with depression and to evaluate the prognosis of depression among the very old. In total, 363 people were evaluated for depression, 242 from an urban municipality in the year 2000 and 121 from five rural municipalities in 2002. In 2005, those still alive in the urban municipality were asked to participate again, and were therefore re-evaluated. The prevalence of depression was 27% in the urban municipality, 34% in the rural municipalities and 29% in the total sample. Of those depressed, about 67% were receiving antidepressive treatment, and of those, approximately 50% had responded to treatment. In the rural municipality, the depressed were less often treated with Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitor medications, receiving instead Tri-Cyclic Antidepressants. In the rural municipalities, only 38% of the depressed had responded to treatment. A higher proportion of women were diagnosed as depressed, 33% vs. 19%, p=0.006, although the response rate was the same for men and women. Depression was twice as common among those with dementia, 44% vs. 23%. There were discrepancies concerning associated factors between the depressed participants with dementia and those without. Experiencing the death of a child during the preceding ten years was associated with depression and independently associated with depression among men and participants with dementia. In all the studies, the depressed were less often able to go outside independently and to visit others. They also received fewer visits from others and often experienced loneliness. The great majority of those who were depressed in 2000 died during the subsequent five years, only 13 out of 65, 22%, were still alive in 2005, compared to 41% of those who were not depressed, p=0.003. Of 13 who survived, only two had recovered. Twenty-four out of 70 non-depressed people, 34%, had developed depression during the five years (2000-2005), and the total prevalence in year 2005 was 42% (35 out of 83 participants). Ten out of the 24 who had developed depression were prescribed antidepressants. Of those ten, four were regarded as responders. In the group with persistent depression, nine out of eleven were receiving antidepressants and 67% were responders. In conclusion, a large proportion of the very old suffer from under-diagnosed and undertreated depression. The response rate to treatment seems to be low, and the quality of treatment and follow-up also seems to be poor. The mortality rate among the depressed was high. The spectrum of factors associated with depression in people with dementia is different from that associated with depression among non-demented. Depression among the very old clearly emerges as a common and serious public health problem, with probably the most serious impact on quality of life. More efforts have to be made to improve the quality of assessments, treatment and research regarding depression among the very old.

Syftet med studien är att undersöka om det nya personlighetsformuläret Pers Q fungerar på ungdomar samt studera eventuella könsskillnader i personlighet. Vidare undersöks om bakgrundsvariablerna årskurs, syskonplacering, sociokulturell bakgrund samt självuppskattad skolprestation har samband med personligheten. Studien är ett led i utprövningen av Pers Q som mäter verifierade personlighetsfaktorer med validitet för arbetskriterier. Respondenterna består av 138 killar och 233 tjejer från gymnasiet (n=371). En explorativ principalkomponentanalys verifierade en tidigare faktorstruktur med sju personlighetsfaktorer: Omtanke om andra (alfa ,87), Noggrannhet (,84), Social förmåga (,84), Kreativitet (,82), Humörinstabilitet (,77), Stresstålighet (,76) samt Självförtroende (,72). Resultatet visar signifikanta könsskillnader i fem av sju faktorindex. Slutresultatet visar att Pers Q är ett snabbt och lätthanterligt personlighetsformulär som fungerar väl på ungdomar.