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In a traditional sense, religion has been culturally, societally, and relationally influential on humankind in substantial ways. However, consumers are shifting towards a more modern expression of religion in which brands are seemingly equal alternatives. This shift is viable due to the concept of brand religiosity within community, defined as an intense devotion to a brand that is central in a consumer’s life, which is contingent upon identification with a brand community. Across four studies, I show that the concept of brand religiosity has overlooked the importance of the brand community. Although the brand is important, brand religiosity is rooted in the brand community, and the brand is the mechanism to which community members express religiosity. Specifically, I conduct 24 in-depth interviews using a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to uncover antecedents and outcomes of brand religiosity within community. I empirically test the antecedents and outcomes of brand religiosity within community using Social Identity Theory. From there, I conduct a textual content analysis to reveal the nuances of brand religiosity within community in a different context. I analyze the role appreciation of the brand community plays in strengthening the outcomes of brand religiosity within community. Studies 1, 2, and 3 examine the positive aspects of brand religiosity within community; however, it is important to understand the construct holistically, so Study 4 analyzes the dark side of brand religiosity within community. Study 4 examines the outcomes of brand religiosity within community that could lend themselves to perceptions of fanaticism, ultimately hurting the brand through brand avoidance and dislike of the brand community. Conducting these studies offers answers to the following research questions – What are the antecedents and outcomes of brand religiosity within community? How do the antecedents influence brand religiosity within community and, ultimately, the outcomes? What are the nuances of brand religiosity within community? How does the appreciation of a brand community impact the relationships from brand religiosity within community to the outcomes? Does brand religiosity within community have a dark side? How can outcomes of brand religiosity within community lead to negative outcomes for a brand? Implications are also discussed.

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Identity theory (IT) is a sociological theory that helps to explain how societal patterns and norms shape the ways in which people behave and make decisions. The current project presents a comprehensive exploration of IT in the context of academic conferences, shedding light on the multifaceted identities of sociologists as scholars, educators, activists, and beyond. It examines how these diverse roles intersect and influence behaviors within professional settings. The first article critiques traditional IT research's limitations and adopts a qualitative approach to more accurately capture how participants describe themselves, moving beyond the constraints of previous methodologies. The second piece investigates homophily–the tendency to associate with similar others. Focusing on minority identities in higher education, this study explores homophily across various demographics, such as race, gender, and academic rank, thus providing insights into the nuances of inequality within academic circles. The final article examines the impact of technology in academic conferences, particularly in the post-COVID-19 era. It analyzes how oppressed identities leverage a conference mobile app for networking, highlighting technology's role in creating inclusive environments and enhancing connections among marginalized groups. Collectively, this dissertation offers a nuanced view of identity within the academic sphere. By challenging existing IT research paradigms, introducing innovative survey techniques, linking IT with homophily, and assessing technology's influence on conference dynamics, this work enriches our understanding of sociologists' identities and interactions. It holds significant implications for future research and the development of more equitable and inclusive sociological communities, emphasizing the complex interplay of personal and professional identities in academic settings. / Doctor of Philosophy / This project looks at how sociologists, who are not just researchers but also teachers, activists, and more, understand and express their different roles, especially at academic conferences. It explores how these various roles affect the way they act in professional environments. The first part of the study questions the usual ways of studying this topic and tries a new method to get a deeper understanding of how people see themselves. The second part looks at how people often prefer to connect with others who are like them, focusing on how this plays out among different races, genders, and job levels in universities, shedding light on hidden inequalities. The last part examines how technology, especially after COVID-19, is used in academic conferences. It looks at how people who often face challenges or discrimination use a conference app to network, showing how technology can help make these events more welcoming and useful for everyone. Overall, this research gives us a richer picture of how sociologists balance their personal and professional lives. It challenges old ways of thinking, introduces new research methods, and shows how technology affects professional gatherings. This is important for making the field of sociology more inclusive and understanding the complex ways people interact in academic settings.

Scholars and political candidates have frequently viewed online political participation as a weaker and less meaningful form of political involvement than traditional, offline activities. This thesis presents an overview of the literature on political participation and the Internet in order to understand the origins of this view and why participation on social media may be uniquely meaningful in comparison with other Internet-based activities. Examination of social media using Resource Theory and Social Identity Theory justify this unique status by highlighting and rationalizing social media's exceptional capacity to build and maintain weak-tie networks while also generating an intimacy between constituents and candidates. Social Identity Theory also provides an argument for the potential of social media for reaching and mobilizing first-time participants through its capacity to passively reach and attract constituents for non-political, personal and identity-serving reasons. This thesis then shows how social media-enable first-time participants may be more inclined to continue and expanding their participation over time, thereby substantially affecting participation trends in the United States. Using case studies composed of qualitative data collected on candidate views of the Internet and social media in U.S. House campaigns, this thesis examines the state of Web campaigning in 2010 in comparison to the theoretically "archetypal" Web campaign in order to provide indications of whether the prescribed theoretical activities deliver meaningful citizen engagement and valuable returns to campaigns. / Master of Arts

Individer som befinner sig mellan olika kulturer upplever ofta utmaningar associerade med dubbelidentitet. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur andra generationens invandrare upplever sin identitet när de har föräldrar med annan etnisk bakgrund än svensk. Studiens två frågeställningar fokuserar på identiteten i sociala och kulturella kontexter. Urvalet gjordes genom ett målinriktat och snöbollsurval, och vidare genomfördes åtta semistrukturerade intervjuer där deltagarna berättade om sina upplevelser. Analysen utfördes utifrån en tematisk analysprocess i sex steg där sju teman identifierades: anpassning i dagliga interaktioner, intern självreflektion av social identitet, social tillhörighet och gemenskap, kulturell dualitet med balansering, fördomar och identitet, språkets roll, och upplevda kulturkrockar. Resultatet visade att deltagarna ständigt förhandlar sin identitet mellan två kulturer för att passa in. Några viktiga diskuterade ämnen var tillhörighet, bikulturell identitet och kulturkrock. Studien kan bidra till framtida forskning om mångkulturella situationer och till en fördjupad förståelse för individers upplevelser kring etniskt ursprung.

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During a short but intensive period stretching from late 2014 to early 2015 a mosque in Lund in southern Sweden was repeatedly vandalised with derogatory graffiti. This occurred simultaneously with many other attacks on Swedish mosques and highlighted an issue which is in need to be elaborated; islamophobic hate crimes. The purpose of this study is to describe how young male Muslims experience the violation of their mosque in Lund and what conclusions they draw from their experiences. This study aims therefore to contribute to a broader understanding of the potential consequences of islamophobic hate crimes. By reducing the empirical material into reoccurring themes and interpret these using social identity theories this study finds that the vandalism reinforces earlier feelings of not belonging. The vandalism is interwoven with earlier discriminatory experiences and further strengthens the feeling of disappointment and mistrust towards the majority society. It also, however, increases the willingness to work for a change by getting involved in youth associations which advocates increased communications with different groups in society to reduce islamophobia. The data in this qualitative study is collected using semi-structured interviews with five young men who regularly visit the mosque. The method of observation is also used to get a broader understanding of the interviewees’ experiences.