Individuals with physical impairments have been marginalized and discriminated against since the social identification of these individuals occurred as a sub-group within society. While much has been done to resolve prejudice against individuals with physical impairments, more needs to be done to decrease, or at least deter, discrimination and prejudice against individuals who have been marginalized. The purpose of this study is to give four individuals with physical impairments the opportunity to tell their stories. Through the telling of these stories, I believe others can identify with these individuals, and thereby, help decrease discrimination against individuals with physical impairments. Life history has been shown to be an effective method to study individuals with impairments. In order to facilitate understanding of what it is like to be an individual with a physical impairment, four individuals with physical impairments shared their life histories. Research questions include: How do these individuals with physical impairments understand and give meaning to their lived experiences? and How do participants in this study who have congenital disabilities differ from those who have acquired disabilities in the ways they understand and give meaning to their lives? The research questions and parameters of interest are intended to develop and share what it is like to be an individual with a physical impairment. The researcher has known each of the participants for at least ten years. The participants include a 33 year old male with a congenital disability who is white, a 32 year old female who acquired a disability 12 years ago and who is African American, and a married couple who are 62 and 63 years old, one with a congenital disability, the other acquired a disability when she was 14 years old. The researcher shares his responses and reflections, thereby becoming the fifth participant in the study. Because this type of research depends upon verisimilitude, the responses to the research questions are presented for each individual. Each participant defines areas of his or her life that best defines how that person constructs his or her identity and what part the physical impairment plays in that definition. The participants feel that there are some differences between individuals with congenital physical impairments and those with acquired physical impairments. The participants relate that individuals with acquired physical impairments have greater access to funds and equipment based on their perception of how funding agencies provide services and equipment to individuals with physical impairments. The participants also feel that there is a greater stigma associated with having a congenital physical impairment compared to having an acquired physical impairment. Recommendations for future research are offered.

This study explores the notion of contestation in environmental education. Contestation is a process in which self-interested individuals and groups in a social organisation cooperate, compete and negotiate in a complex interaction aimed at solving social problems. A "framework for critique" is developed, comprising technicist, liberal<interpretive and critical paradigms in each of scientific knowledge, educational innovation, educational research and education itself. This framework forms the basis from which a critique is mounted of contesting perspectives in environmental education at international, national and local levels. The thesis argues, firstly, that contestation takes place in the domains of (a) language or "policy in environmental education; (b) organisational strategies aimed at initiating or improving environmental education; (c) educational practices conducted in the name of environmental education; and (d) within perspectives between these domains. The thesis argues, secondly, that the presently dominant techniqist models of innovation expressed in the organisation of environmental education are part of an hegemonic relationship which acts to "technologise" the innovation: they provide an organisational strategy for establishing environmental and educational progress without offering a theory for self-reflection and ideology-critique. The incompatibility of certain contesting perspectives and practices is masked, thus contributing to continuity, rather than reform. The thesis characterises this "educational problem of environmental education" as a series of theory-practice gaps at all levels, where "theory" is the set of beliefs and assumptions held by individual practitioners, and in. terms of which they understand their educational practices. An educational problem exists because these theory-practice gaps exist; the educational problem continues because these theory-practice gaps exist unacknowledged within the infrastructure of environmental education due to the effects of false consciousness and hegemony. The thesis addresses the issue of which of several contesting forms of educational research offers the most coherent response to the educational problem of environmental education, and argues that, for the time being, approaches grounded in the critical social sciences are both the best justified and most promising approaches . to educational research for environmental education.

<p>The researcher’s interest regarding criminality has increased and there were many studies focusing on what may influence an individual to commit crime. There were even articles stating that family bonds have the strongest impact in influencing a child when it comes to developing future criminal behavior.  In this qualitative study the stories are told by real individuals who have shared their experiences from childhood and adolescence to help identify the insecurities that made them commit a crime.  Setting existing theories aside, the study showed that it was not the structural background that mostly impacted future criminal behavior but the individual background factors weighted the most. Individuals seemed to be more impacted by factors such as thrill seeking or bad economy.  This study reflects the individual’s real stories and all included information is believed to be genuine.</p>

<p>The aim of this paper is to examine how mid-level executive officers within Swedish Police respond to subordinates autonomous behaviour, mainly according to Lipsky´s theory on street-level bureaucracy. Questions focused on are:</p><p>1. Which personnel related obstacles, are preventing the executive officers?</p><p>2. How do executive officers counter obstacles?</p><p>3. If possible, based on the result of the study, which are the conclusions about existing countermeasures?</p><p>The papers´ aim is not to suggest which obstacles should be removed, nor if countermeasures are good/bad. Main aim is to identify how obstacles are countered. Theory and method are built on framework of Case Study. The method is built on theoretic examination of obstacles to examine concepts´ size and then interviews to confirm the obstacles and identify countermeasures. Conclusion of the first question is that obstacles are omnipresent in the governmental and societal systems. Conclusion of the second question is that obstacles are countered by friendly approach and to ally oneself to staff and personnel. Conclusion of the last question is that a mid-level executive through his allying enhances some behaviour, as long as more-wanted behaviours are produced with quality. This has effect upon society when combating crime, but is probably not likely to measure effectively.</p>

The researcher’s interest regarding criminality has increased and there were many studies focusing on what may influence an individual to commit crime. There were even articles stating that family bonds have the strongest impact in influencing a child when it comes to developing future criminal behavior.  In this qualitative study the stories are told by real individuals who have shared their experiences from childhood and adolescence to help identify the insecurities that made them commit a crime.  Setting existing theories aside, the study showed that it was not the structural background that mostly impacted future criminal behavior but the individual background factors weighted the most. Individuals seemed to be more impacted by factors such as thrill seeking or bad economy.  This study reflects the individual’s real stories and all included information is believed to be genuine.

Bakgrund: Ungefär en miljon människor mister sitt liv av suicid årligen i hela världen. Det finns psykosociala, kliniska och biologiska faktorer bakom suicidala handlingar. Huruvida suicid utvecklas belyses i en suicidal process. Vården efter ett misslyckat suicidförsök upplevs oftast obehagligt och känsloladdat för suicidnära individen. Målen med vården är bland annat att främja patientsäkerheten. För att individen skall känna tillit för vården och vårdgivaren bör en trygg och förtroendefull vårdrelation skapas. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva sjuksköterskors upplevelser av att vårda suicidnära individer.   Metod: Författaren har arbetat fram en litteraturstudie i enlighet med Friberg (2006). Studien baseras på tio vetenskapliga artiklar ifrån databaserna CINAHL with full text, MEDLINE with full text och PubMed. Särskilda inklusions- och exklusionskriterier följdes. En innehållsanalys och kvalitetsgranskning gjordes på valda artiklar. Resultat: Resultaten från vetenskapliga artiklar sammanställdes i litteraturstudien i fem olika kategorier. Dessa kategorier lyder så här: Känna ansvar, Känsla av upptagenhet och tidsbrist, Känsla av bristande kompetens, Känsla av osäkerhet i kommunikationen med suicidnära individer och Förhållningsätt till suicidnära individer.  Diskussion: Författaren har dragit slutsatsen att sjuksköterskor upplever att det finns faktorer som hindrar möjligheten till god interaktion mellan de och suicidnära individer. Dessa faktorer indelas sammanfattningsvis som brist på olika resurser och kompetens inklusive kommunikation. Det framkallar i sin tur känslor av frustration i samband med att inte kunna vara till hjälp tillräckligt för dessa individer. / Background: About one million people lose their lives by suicide each year worldwide. There are psychosocial, clinical and biological factors in suicidal acts. Whether suicide developed illustrated in a suicidal process. Care after a failed suicide attempt is experienced mostly uncomfortable and emotional of suicide close to the individual. The goal of treatment is to promote patient safety. For individuals have to feel confidence in the care and caregiver should be a safe and trustful care relationship is created. Aim: The aim was to describe nurses' experiences of caring for suicidal individuals. Methods: The author has worked out a study of literature in accordance with Friberg (2006). The study is based on ten scientific articles from databases CINAHL with Full Text, MEDLINE with Full Text and PubMed. Specific inclusion- and exclusion criteria were followed. A content analysis and quality assessment was done on selected articles. Results: The results of scientific articles compiled in the study of literature in five different categories. These categories are as follows: Feeling of responsibility, Feeling of occupied and lack of time, Feeling of lack of competence, Feeling of insecurity in communication with suicidal individuals and Approach to suicidal individuals. Discussions: The author concludes that nurses feel that there are factors that prevent the possibility of good interaction between the suicide and suicidal individuals. These factors are divided summarized as deficient of resources and attainment including communication. It induces in turn feelings of frustration associated with not being able to be helpful enough for these individuals.

Why do ordinary individuals participate in mass violence perpetrated against civilians? That is the question I will attempt to answer in the following paper. I consider these men ordinary to the extent that the majority was not socially deviant. Looking at the case of Nazi Germany, two groups stand out as good case studies: the SS Einsatzgruppen and the SS cadres in the Death camps. The following analysis will focus on the motivations of these men to commit mass murder. I argue for a causal sequence of action, beginning with the onset of Nazi ideology, further followed by the dehumanization of the victim and the brutalization of the perpetrator. I will demonstrate how the ideology present during German interwar society influenced these men into participation. Dehumanization and brutalization are complimentary factors that push these men into action.

Arctic ecosystems are vulnerable to human-induced changes such as increases in contaminant levels and climatic warming. To predict effects of these changes, it is important to understand trophic relationships among Arctic organisms and how they change in response to time and environmental perturbations. Seabird diet can reflect relative availability and abundance of planktivorous fish and zooplankton in remote areas. The measurement of naturally occurring stable isotopes presents an alternative approach to evaluating dietary patterns of seabirds at both an individual level and at a larger, ecosystem level. Relative changes in δ13C values provided an indication of changes in consumption of benthic vs. pelagic prey and changes in δ15N values provided an indication of changes in trophic level.<p>I investigated trophic positions of four seabirds (Thick-billed Murres (<i>Uria lomvia</i>); Northern Fulmars (<i>Fulmarus glacialis</i>); Black-legged Kittiwakes (<i>Rissa tridactyla</i>); and Glaucous Gulls (<i>Larus hyperboreus</i>)) at Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut, 1988 2003, using my own and previously measured stable isotope measurements in blood samples. Trophic level and space use among years differed within and among species and may be related to ice conditions and species-specific foraging strategies. The species with the most flexible foraging methods, Thick-billed Murres, varied their foraging location and trophic level the most. In 2002, fewer chicks than average for all species were fledged and Thick-billed Murre chicks were lighter than in other years; however, only murres showed a concurrent decrease in the proportion of fish in their diet. Adult body condition of murres in 2002 was positively correlated with trophic level. Breeding season dietary patterns of Thick-billed Murre adults and chicks were examined on Coats Island, Nunavut, Canada, in 2004. Adult trophic level increased slightly through the breeding season and δ13C values indicated a switch from benthic to pelagic foraging locations. Chick and adult murres did not differ in either δ15N or δ13C values; however, within a family (two parents, one chick), chicks were fed at or slightly below adult trophic level. I found little variation in stable isotope values which suggests adult murres did not preferentially select prey for either themselves or their chicks. <p>Finally, stable isotope analysis was used to investigate winter foraging ecology of three species of alcids (Thick-billed Murres; Common Murres (<i>U. aalge</i>) and Razorbills (<i>Alca torda</i>)), off Newfoundland, Canada, 1996 2004. Thick-billed Murres fed at a higher trophic level than Common Murres. Razorbill δ15N values were highly variable and overlapped those of both murre species. I found no significant differences in δ13C values among the three species confirming a common spatial feeding pattern. Both murre species became depleted in 13C during winter suggesting foraging location or prey species shifted from nearshore to offshore. For Common Murres, hatching-year individuals fed at a higher trophic level and foraged farther offshore than after-hatch year birds. For Thick-billed Murres, I contrasted trophic level determined for the breeding colony at Prince Leopold Island with those determined for winter over four years and found considerable inter-annual variation in patterns of seasonal difference in trophic level. However, the proportion of lower trophic level (amphipod) vs. higher trophic level (fish) prey was generally greater in the winter than the summer.

Why do ordinary individuals participate in mass violence perpetrated against civilians? That is the question I will attempt to answer in the following paper. I consider these men ordinary to the extent that the majority was not socially deviant. Looking at the case of Nazi Germany, two groups stand out as good case studies: the SS Einsatzgruppen and the SS cadres in the Death camps. The following analysis will focus on the motivations of these men to commit mass murder. I argue for a causal sequence of action, beginning with the onset of Nazi ideology, further followed by the dehumanization of the victim and the brutalization of the perpetrator. I will demonstrate how the ideology present during German interwar society influenced these men into participation. Dehumanization and brutalization are complimentary factors that push these men into action.

Arctic ecosystems are vulnerable to human-induced changes such as increases in contaminant levels and climatic warming. To predict effects of these changes, it is important to understand trophic relationships among Arctic organisms and how they change in response to time and environmental perturbations. Seabird diet can reflect relative availability and abundance of planktivorous fish and zooplankton in remote areas. The measurement of naturally occurring stable isotopes presents an alternative approach to evaluating dietary patterns of seabirds at both an individual level and at a larger, ecosystem level. Relative changes in δ13C values provided an indication of changes in consumption of benthic vs. pelagic prey and changes in δ15N values provided an indication of changes in trophic level.<p>I investigated trophic positions of four seabirds (Thick-billed Murres (<i>Uria lomvia</i>); Northern Fulmars (<i>Fulmarus glacialis</i>); Black-legged Kittiwakes (<i>Rissa tridactyla</i>); and Glaucous Gulls (<i>Larus hyperboreus</i>)) at Prince Leopold Island, Nunavut, 1988 2003, using my own and previously measured stable isotope measurements in blood samples. Trophic level and space use among years differed within and among species and may be related to ice conditions and species-specific foraging strategies. The species with the most flexible foraging methods, Thick-billed Murres, varied their foraging location and trophic level the most. In 2002, fewer chicks than average for all species were fledged and Thick-billed Murre chicks were lighter than in other years; however, only murres showed a concurrent decrease in the proportion of fish in their diet. Adult body condition of murres in 2002 was positively correlated with trophic level. Breeding season dietary patterns of Thick-billed Murre adults and chicks were examined on Coats Island, Nunavut, Canada, in 2004. Adult trophic level increased slightly through the breeding season and δ13C values indicated a switch from benthic to pelagic foraging locations. Chick and adult murres did not differ in either δ15N or δ13C values; however, within a family (two parents, one chick), chicks were fed at or slightly below adult trophic level. I found little variation in stable isotope values which suggests adult murres did not preferentially select prey for either themselves or their chicks. <p>Finally, stable isotope analysis was used to investigate winter foraging ecology of three species of alcids (Thick-billed Murres; Common Murres (<i>U. aalge</i>) and Razorbills (<i>Alca torda</i>)), off Newfoundland, Canada, 1996 2004. Thick-billed Murres fed at a higher trophic level than Common Murres. Razorbill δ15N values were highly variable and overlapped those of both murre species. I found no significant differences in δ13C values among the three species confirming a common spatial feeding pattern. Both murre species became depleted in 13C during winter suggesting foraging location or prey species shifted from nearshore to offshore. For Common Murres, hatching-year individuals fed at a higher trophic level and foraged farther offshore than after-hatch year birds. For Thick-billed Murres, I contrasted trophic level determined for the breeding colony at Prince Leopold Island with those determined for winter over four years and found considerable inter-annual variation in patterns of seasonal difference in trophic level. However, the proportion of lower trophic level (amphipod) vs. higher trophic level (fish) prey was generally greater in the winter than the summer.