Arbetslöshet påverkar många i samhället på olika sätt; du kanske känner någon som är arbetslös eller har varit det själv. Denna studie tar vara på hur arbetslösa kvinnor upplever sin arbetslöshet. Materialet består av svar i form av berättelser från en arbetslös vardagsliv, som människor skickat in på frågelistan Arbetslösa berättar vilken Nordiska museets arkiv gick ut med 1995 och som är lagrad i deras arkiv. Även om materialet är tjugofem år gammalt så kan det fortfarande säga mycket om hur arbetslösa upplever sin egen vardag. Uppsatsen har genus, klass och utanförskap som sin teoretiska utgångspunkt och visar på hur dessa tre perspektiv alltid samspelar och påverkar hur vardagslivet ser ut och vilka normer som genomsyrar berättelserna. Arbetslösheten påverkar vardagen för alla människor olika, men ändå finns ett par gemensamma teman och normer som en röd tråd igenom berättelserna. Mat, utseende, tid, familj och utanförskap är exempel på sådana uppsatsen tar upp.

In 2020, several Nordic archives and museums sent out ”question lists”, questionnaires, to collect the public’s experiences of the Covid-19 pandemic. The collections resulted in an incomparable collection of contemporary cultural history about the Covid-19 pandemic. The aim of this thesis is to follow the creation of this collection. The thesis is defined through three research questions: one asking about the initial creation of the collection projects, one about the implementation, and one about what will happen to the resulting collection as an archival material. The study is based on previous research about Nordic contemporary Mass-Observation projects and question lists, as well as health narrative studies and research about Covid-19 experiences. Aspects of the previous research are used to create a theoretical framework, based around the concept of actors in accordance with Giddens structural theory (Johansson 2003:422). The three primary terms that are used in the analysis are dialogue, (immaterial) monument, and post-custodial archives, all retrieved from previous research in the field. The empirical data is collected through semi-participatory observation and documentation of the question lists, as well as interviews with responsible personnel at the institutions. The analysis is divided into three chapters, based on the three research questions. The first chapter thus concerns the initial creation of the collection projects, with regards to the design of the question lists, and the institutions’ thoughts and aims with the projects. The term dialogue is used to analyse the interaction between and within the institutions during this process. The second chapter studies the implementation of the actual project and includes an analysis of the question lists themselves as well as the digital interface through which they are made accessible to the public. Here, too, the term dialogue is used, to analyse how the answers are made in the interaction between the institutions and the public. The third chapter studies the institutions’ plans and hopes for the collected experiences, with regards to future research projects and exhibitions as well as archiving. Here, the term monument is used to illustrate the value and usage of the overall collection. Post-custodial archives are also used to highlight discussions about how digital archival collections should be archived and made accessible. The thesis closes with a final discussion chapter, which expands on the questions about what the purposes of these kinds of collections are, as well as about what role and place archiving should have in the creation and implementation of these kinds of Mass-Observation projects. This is a two years master's thesis in Archival science.