The diploma thesis deals with Russian language periodic press in the Czech Republic from 1990 to 2016. Based on a quantitative document analysis, the thesis describes changes in number of periodicals, identifies three types of publishers and details the biggest publishing companies. Readers and functions of Russian language periodic press are defined with the help of in-depth interviews with media producers. The thesis is supplemented by a list of Russian language titles published in the Czech Republic in 2018. It also contains a description of producers of this minority language media and their working conditions. The thesis concludes that there is a declining tendency in number of Russian language titles published in the Czech Republic. The age of readers of this type of minority media varies. The audience speak and read in Russian and it is also comfortable for them to read in this language. These printed periodicals provide their readers with civic and cultural explanation and with apolitical information with so called Czech element. These functions enable their readers assimilation into the major society.

School evaluation has increased in importance in recent years, particularly at the level of the whole school. It is the process which assesses the worth and merits of the institution. Due to the fact that, in most cases, evaluation is judgemental, the notion of Whole School Evaluation (WSE) was introduced into the South African education system by the national Department of Education after the 1994 democratic election. WSE has since then became the official evaluation system in South Africa. In WSE schools undergo internal as well as external evaluation. The results of the evaluation are then used by schools to draw the School Improvement Plans which are aimed at school improvement. This study explores the implementation of WSE in rural primary schools in Limpopo Province. A literature study investigated school evaluation within the international and the South African context, the provision of education in Limpopo Province and existing models of WSE. Against the background of the conceptual framework provided by the literature, a qualitative investigation was done in four primary schools in the Vhembe district in Limpopo Province. Data were gathered by means of in-depth interviews with principals of schools and supervisors. The researcher also conducted focus group interviews with School Management Team (SMT) members from participating schools. Data was analysed, discussed and synthesized. Analysed data revealed the following findings: schools experience difficulties in conducting self-evaluation, educator development in rural primary schools in Limpopo is a problem and the district and the Department of Education do not assist schools concerning development after WSE has been conducted. As a result of these findings, there is a need to assist schools in their development endeavours after WSE. The district officials as well as supervisors should find ways and means of assisting schools in the route to development. Areas for further investigation that would enhance WSE in rural primary schools have been identified. Finally, the conclusion is drawn that schools need to be rehabilitated after WSE. This will assist in developing the whole institution and improving the level of education in South African schools. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Education Management)

An increasing number of reports indicate that managers are opposed to performance appraisal. It is important to understand why managers have favourable or unfavourable attitudes towards performance appraisal and it is necessary to investigate the causing factors of these attitudes. The aim of this research was therefore to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that influence managers’ attitudes towards performance appraisal. This study was conducted within the interpretive research paradigm and situated in a medium-sized organisation within the financial services industry. The sample was purposefully selected and the data were collected through in-depth interviews and naïve sketches. The data were analysed applying Tesch’s descriptive analysis method. The main findings indicated that managers who needed to conduct performance appraisals perceived and experienced performance appraisal as an uncomfortable and emotional process that might cause them to become defensive. Moreover, it was revealed that the managers experienced uncertainties about aspects of performance appraisal, such as the purpose of performance appraisal, what must be measured and frequency of performance appraisal. As a result of such uncertainties, managers might not always have the ability or readiness to conduct performance appraisals, especially when the performance appraisal contains negative performance feedback. Furthermore, the organisational context might put managers in an undesirable situation to distort performance ratings of employees in order to achieve organisational goals or the manager’s personal goals, which in turn influence the attitude of the manager. The findings of the study can assist organisations in influencing managers’ attitudes more positively and in enhancing the overall performance appraisal process. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M. Com. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)

The present paper represents an overview of the most popular Russian social networking site VKontakte and its role in the formation of modern music consumption pattern in post-Soviet countries. Until spring 2017, it was known as the biggest platform for free music consumption in the region. The main distinctive feature of VKontakte was that it was providing free music content for its members and, as a result, was known for problems with international copyright law.However, in 2017 drastic changes occurred in copyright policies of the network, which affected music content distribution in it. As a result, VKontakte users were experiencing new routines and rapid evolution of their daily consumption habits. This research provides extensive analysis of digital music listening practices, based on the in-depth interviews with the members of the network.

Inledning: Andelen äldre personer i Sverige ökar och beräkningar visar att det kommer finnas över en miljon personer i Sverige som är över 80 år 2045. Det är fler och fler äldre personer som väljer att bo i ordinärt boende vilket betyder att det kommer att behövas fler resurser för att bemöta deras behov. Att undersöka vårdtagarnas upplevda matsituation är viktigt för att förstå de hälsomässiga, sociala och samhällsekonomiska risker en bristfällig matförsörjning kan resultera i. Syfte: Syftet är att undersöka och beskriva den upplevda matsituationen bland äldre ensamstående vårdtagare som bor i ordinärt boende med hemtjänst för att få en förståelse för vilka förbättrande åtgärder som behövs. Fokus läggs på måltidsordning, känslorna kring matsituationen och måltidsmiljön. Material och metod: En kvalitativ studie gjordes i form av djupintervjuer med enskilda individer samt observationer av serverad mat och befintlig mat i hemmet. Intervjuerna spelades in samt transkriberades. Informanterna bestod av sex vårdtagare mellan 77 och 96 år från Höör och Simrishamn. Resultat: Resultatet visar att informanterna är nöjda med maten de får av hemtjänsten. Det finns dock ett underliggande missnöje med hur maten serveras, anpassning till hemtjänstens scheman samt brist på sällskap under måltiderna. Slutsats: Utifrån studien har det visats att vårdtagarna är tacksamma för den hjälp de får av hemtjänsten men det finns tecken på att det behövs förbättringar gällande hemtjänstens kunskap och planeringen av måltiderna. Det är inte möjligt att generalisera resultaten på grund av den begränsade omfattningen dock finns det möjligheter för framtida insatser och forskning kring exempelvis äldres speciella behov när det gäller matens innehåll, konsistens och måltidsordning. / Introduction: The number of elderly in Sweden is increasing and calculations show that there will be over one million people in Sweden over 80 years of age year 2045. There are more and more elderly people who choose to live in their own homes which means that more resources are required to meet their needs. Studying the experienced food situation of care recipients is important in understanding the health, social and socio-economic risks that a lack of food intake can result in. Aim: The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the experiences of elderly care recipient’s food situation, whom are living alone with home care in order to gain insight into which improvement actions are needed. The focus was on meal arrangements, the feelings about their food situation and their meal environment. Materials and methods: A qualitative study was implemented in the form of in-depth interviews with individuals as well as observations of served food and existing food in the informant's home. The interviews were recorded and transcribed. The informants consisted of six care recipients between the ages of 77 and 96 from municipalities Höör and Simrishamn. Results: The result shows that the informants are satisfied with the food they receive from the home service. There is an underlying dissatisfaction with how the food is served, adaptation to the home service schedules and company during meals. Conclusion: Based on the study, it has been shown that care recipients are grateful for the help they receive from home care services, but there are indications that improvements are needed regarding home care’s knowledge and planning of meals. It is not possible to generalize the results because of the limited extent, however, there are opportunities for future actions and research on, for example, special needs regarding food content, consistency and meal arrangements for the elderly.

Plant-based food has recently been a frequently addressed topic for scientific research, mainly because of its benefits for the environmental sustainability, human health and animal welfare. Nonetheless, there is limited research on how people maintain a plant-based diet, as well as research gaps on the topic in relation to media and communication studies. The purpose of this research is to provide new empirical data on how social media can inspire and/or influence a person to maintain a plant-based lifestyle. Using a qualitative method of in-depth interviews, the aim is to understand how content on social media motivates people to make sustainable movements in their real life. In other words, the research will provide insights on how a lifestyle can be upheld with the help of social media. As a theoretical basis for the study, the following theories have been applied: The uses and gratification theory, cultivation analysis theory and social cognitive theory. The findings suggest that social media is a useful tool for a person that wants to maintain a plant-based diet. Facebook, YouTube and Instagram are preferred online platforms for seeking and sharing information about the lifestyle and the most interesting contents for upholding a plant-based diet are food pictures, personal blogs and vlogs, documentaries about the environment and animal welfare, as well as product news and different discussions in virtual groups. The result also shows that people are most likely to change a behaviour after seeing content on social media that makes them emotional, in a positive or negative way.

Parental alienation is when one parent denigrates the other to turn their children against that parent, often after a separation or divorce. It is well-documented but poorly understood as a form of domestic abuse. This study explores how one Austrian and one Swedish father experience parental alienation in the wake of false allegations of sex abuse, how they perceive their emotional situation after the separation, how their interactions with their children have been affected and what economic impact this has had on their lives.  The study concentrates on white, heterosexual, agnostic men. It is based upon in-depth interviews, and analytically framed within the parental alienation theory. The analysis identified several core themes suggesting the need for better education and training on parental alienation, and strategies to enable effective change to public policies and family law.

According to DSM-IV criteria a child has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) if the child consistently shows one or more of the following characteristics over a period of time, and to a degree that is maladaptive and inconsistent with the child's developmental level: (1) inattention, (2) hyperactivity, and (3) impulsivity (Santrock, 2002). Despite the years of research and the advances in understanding and treating children with ADHD, the disorder continues to be a serious educational and social impairment (Weiss & Hechtman, 1993). When examining the literature on ADHD, what is very clear is the scarcity of published literature that draws from parental perceptions on the disorder. If we are to fully understand ADHD and the effect that it has upon our society it is vital that a candid examination of parents' perceptions occur. This qualitative, phenomenological study used in-depth interviews to explore parents' perceptions of raising a child with ADHD. The present study focused on parents' perceptions regarding five aspects of raising children with ADHD, namely: 1) parents' perceptions regarding their interaction with health professionals and the child's use of medication, 2) parents' perceptions regarding the effects of ADHD on family life, 3) parents' perceptions about their ADHD child and the school experience, 4) parents' concerns and hopes for their ADHD child, and 5) getting through the day and advice for other parents of ADHD children. A number of implications for health and educational professionals arose from the current study's examination of parents' experiences, insights, and strategies for dealing with the ADHD child. Parents also discussed their concerns for the future for their ADHD child and offered valuable advice for other parents whose child has just been diagnosed with ADHD. How parents view the experience of raising a child with ADHD, their feelings about the experience, the actions that they take, and the strategies that they use to cope is important information that will assist in understanding and interacting with families who have a child with ADHD. / Psychology / D.Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)

This study aims to investigate young boys’ construction of gender with particular focus on their expression of empathy, caring and vulnerability. Four focus groups and four in-depth interviews were carried out with a total of 12 senior high school students aged 16-18. Using thematic analysis, five themes were identified: boys care about and comfort each other; physical contact as an expression of friendship and caring; homophobia is the problem - not sexuality; crying and managing vulnerability; and gender fluidity. This analysis makes the complexity of gender construction visible: how boys, to greater or lesser extents, express both traditionally feminine- and masculine-coded expressions. All of the boys described situations where they felt empathy and expressed caring and vulnerability. Based on these results, a critique is developed: partly against a gender-binary understanding of gender construction, and partly against the categorisation of different (masculine) identities. To facilitate a better understanding of boys’ gender construction; in relation to feeling/expressing empathy, caring and vulnerability; a model was created to show the complexity of the relationship between traditionally feminine- and masculine-coded expressions in boys’ gender construction.

This thesis presents a complex view of the specifics of the media titles designed for college students in the Czech market, their historical development and current situation. It focuses closer on analysis of commercial media targeting university students. Titles named EuroCampus and Studenta (formerly Stip) were used in comprehensive analysis. The combination of suitably selected quantitative and qualitative methods of research of media content and opinions of audience provides important answers to questions such as: if students have knowledge of this kind of media titles, how the titles are perceived by this audience or if the editorial and advertising content brings original topics and interesting information which may be helpful after graduation. The theory of this thesis is defined by the current situation in the media market in the Czech Republic. Another important theoretical point is creating the typology of student media titles and analyze the history of publishing magazines EuroCampus and Studenta. The practical part is based on theoretical background of methodology explored by thematic agenda, content analysis of selected titles and in-depth interviews with the audience. Keywords Media for College Students, Media Market, Studenta, EuroCampus, Content Analysis, Thematic Agenda, Monitoring...