The purpose of the study was to investigate the work of the temperance board in Karlstad during the interwar period and the crisis years when the economic depression affected Sweden, specifically around the year 1930. The focus was on the years 1927–1932, aiming to demonstrate a change in temperance efforts in the city of Karlstad. The study is qualitative with quantitative elements, and data were collected in numerical form to present the statistical findings. The examination involved a careful review of the minutes of the Karlstad City Council found in the annual report of the temperance board. Content analysis was employed to process the material, and the study aimed to answer the following questions: How did public sobriety vary in Karlstad from 1927 to 1932, and to what extent did documented alcohol offenses occur among individuals under 25 during the study period? The source material was analyzed using Anthony Giddens' structuration theory, based on the perspective of change presented by Helena Eriksson in her thesis "Population, Society, and Change." In the analysis section of this study, it is evident how alcohol-related offenses changed, with a noticeable shift from 1927 to 1932, showing a clear decrease in the number of arrests for such offenses during these years. It is also observed that the number of cases processed by the temperance board significantly decreased in 1930, 1931, and 1932. This, in turn, contributed to a noticeable decrease in individuals under 25 years old being apprehended for drunkenness. / Studiens syfte var att undersöka nykterhetsnämndens arbete i Karlstad vid mellankrigstiden och krisåren då den ekonomiska depressionen drabbade Sverige. Närmare bestämt åren omkring 1930. Fokuset låg därför på åren 1927–1932, detta för att kunna påvisa att en förändring skett i nykterhetsarbetet i Karlstads stad. Studien är kvalitativ med kvantitativa inslag och därför samlades data in i numerisk form för att sedan presentera det statistiska som framkommit. Undersökningen bygger på att noggrant granska Karlstads stadsfullmäktiges protokoll som återfinns i nykterhetsnämndens årsredovisning. En innehållsanalys användes för att behandla materialet och de frågeställningar som studien skulle besvara var följande: Hur varierade folknykterheten i Karlstad 1927–1932 samt vilken omfattning hade den dokumenterade dryckenskapen bland individer under 25 år under undersökningsperioden? Källmaterialet har analyserats med hjälp Anthony Giddens struktureringsteori utifrån det förändringsperspektiv som presenterades av Helena Eriksson i hennes avhandling Befolkning, samhälle och förändring.   I analysdelen av denna studie framgår det hur fylleriförseelserna förändras och att en märkbar förändring skett från 1927 och fram till 1932 och att man tydligt kan se en minskning på antalet anhållna för fylleriförseelser mellan nämnda år. Man ser också att antalet ärenden som nykterhetsnämnden behandlat minskar avsevärt år 1930, 1931 och 1932. Detta bidrog i sin tur också till att en märkbar minskning skedde bland individer under 25 år anhållna för dryckenskap.

This thesis explores ancient ideas regarding the constructive properties of intoxicating drinks, as presented in Greco-Roman sources from the first to third centuries AD. In doing so, it responds to Mary Douglas' Constructive Drinking (1987), which emphasised that, contrary to anthropological findings, many societies' authorities tend to focus upon, and overemphasise, the destructive aspects of alcohol consumption. This pattern is particularly prevalent in modern Western scholarship. The same trend can be detected within both Greco-Roman society and classical scholarship. Although many Greeks and Romans undoubtedly consumed quantities of wine, on a regular basis, in a manner which was widely considered 'moderate', the literary evidence from this period tends to focus most heavily upon excessive and/or destructive drinking. Similarly, much of the modern scholarship which addresses drinking in the Roman Empire focuses upon drunkenness and the destructive aspects of drinking. Yet it is clear that Greco-Roman society considered wine consumption to be significantly beneficial, in a wide variety of ways, provided that moderation was employed. The destructive consequences of drinking were almost exclusively associated with excessive and inappropriate consumption. In reaction to this bias in the sources and scholarship, this thesis undertakes a re-reading of the ancient evidence through the 'Constructive Drinking' lens. It identifies and explores the ways in which the Greeks and Romans of this period considered drinking to be important, useful, or otherwise 'constructive' to the individual and society. Where possible, this thesis attempts to identify how important and widespread such beliefs were. This thesis has two main areas of focus. First, the ways in which intoxicating drink was considered to be constructive for an individual's health and wellbeing. Second, the ways in which intoxicating drink was considered to be of social benefit to both individuals and groups. This thesis accordingly provides a fresh perspective on drinking in antiquity, and illustrates the methodological significance of the Constructive Drinking lens for future research.

Ireland is a country with a rich and unique cultural heritage. It is difficult to imagine that certain facets of Irish culture (e.g. Saint Patrick's Day, the Blarney Stone, or the Ring of Kerry) can ever be taken for granted since they are so widely recognized internationally. One common feature of Irish life that possibly warrants more scholarly attention is the public house or pub. Much has been written about pubs as quaint institutions in popular literature and fiction. Curiously, they remain largely overlooked as vital aspects of Irish culture by anthropologists and others in the social sciences. In many ways, socio-cultural research on pub life in Ireland is woefully under examined. In an effort to better evaluate the significance of traditional pub life to Irish culture, my thesis seeks to integrate and critically assess the existing socio-cultural literature on Irish pub life. Such work will not only help highlight both the commonalities and discrepancies within this area of study, it will more significantly identify those areas of Irish pub life that can benefit from further academic investigation. Two recent trips to Ireland in September 2004 and May 2006, allowed me to observe important aspects of pub life first hand. It became apparent from these encounters that, like the history of Ireland itself, local pubs have a rich historical foundation. Many of the pubs that I visited have been in existence or operational since the Middle Ages. Based on this longevity, one can reasonably argue that pubs in Ireland function largely as locales of social significance and cultural reproduction, not just centers of recreational drinking. Using my travel experience as a starting point for the critical analysis phase of this thesis project, I have developed three general research questions that I will explore to varying degrees in the context of this work. These are: (1) what are the origins of pubs in Ireland?; (2) what explicit and implicit functions do pubs serve in Irish communities?; and (3) what possible developments are likely to affect Irish pubs in the near and distant future?