Past research has found support for Equity Theory and Attachment Theory in predicting relationship satisfaction. According to Equity Theory, individuals feel satisfied when they are engaged in equitable relationships, where the ratio of benefits to costs is the same across partners. On the other hand, Attachment Theory postulates that a secure attachment style predicts high relationship satisfaction. Although an extensive number of studies have supported these predictions, the present study was the first to compare or integrate Equity Theory and Attachment Theory in predicting relationship satisfaction. A total of 384 introductory psychology students completed questionnaires. Simultaneous multiple regression indicated that partner’s input and the avoidance dimension of attachment were the two largest predictors of relationship satisfaction among overall sample. Hypotheses regarding the relation between equity level and attachment styles were only partially supported. In addition, three proposed models for predicting satisfaction were tested. The first model, based on Equity Theory, showed that underbenefiting exchange orientation, communal orientation, and closeness predicted the level of equity, which in turn led to relationship satisfaction. The second model, based on Attachment Theory, indicated that attachment styles affected the level of self-disclosure leading to intimacy and closeness, which predicted satisfaction. The third model integrated the two theories and showed that attachment styles predicted equity, which influenced the level of self-disclosure. Self-disclosure influenced intimacy and closeness, which led to relationship satisfaction. The integrated model best predicted relationship satisfaction among the three proposed models. Finally, sex differences and differences between friendships and dating relationships were also discussed. / October 2005

The aim of this study is to fill the gap in mathematics education research concerning the relationship between identity and positioning in mathematical collaboration in groups. This study elaborates on the relationship between how pupils see themselves as math students in sixth grade, how they show their identities as math students, in contrast to how they position themselves reflexively in group collaboration while engaging in mathematical problem solving. The theoretical concepts linked to this study are discourse, identity and positioning. Discourse is used to describe and form the setting and context of the study. Identity is seen as a transient and elusive concept formed by the students own perceptions of self through narratives. The reflexive form of positioning, where the students choose to position themselves in discourse, is derived from acts and speech in group collaboration. This form of positioning is then used as comparison to the narratives of identity to explore the relationship between these two concepts. Data has been collected through participative observation and dialogue, and discourse analysis is partially used to identify the relationship. The results may have implications for future structuring and planning of mathematics education in our classrooms, and the findings provide a narrowing of the gap in mathematics education research within this area. The findings also open up new questions concerning the social constructions of identity among children. Finally, the findings related to the need of reflexive positioning among children in their early teens, and how educators can benefit from this need, are other aspects worth further research.

Seminariedatum: 2013-05-30 Kurs: Mälardalens Högskola, FÖA300, Kandidatatuppsats i Företagsekonomi, 15hp. Författare: Sebastian Enlund & Daniel Kauppinen, Västerås. Titel: Hur används CRM i ishockeyklubben VIK Hockey vars organisation definieras som en hybridorganisation? Handledare: Angelina Sundström. Nyckelord: CRM, Customer Relationship Management, 7P, hybridorganisation . Syfte: Syftet med denna uppsats är att beskriva användandet av CRM i en hybridorganisation. Detta kommer göras genom att studera VIK Hockeys användande av CRM. Metod: En kvalitativ metod har använts för att erhålla empirisk data som sedan analyserats tillsammans med de teoretiska resonemang som legat till grund för denna uppsats. Studieobjektet i denna uppsats har varit elitishockeyklubben VIK Hockey. Slutsats: Den slutsats som togs fram i uppsatsen är den att elitishockeyklubben VIK Hockey inte använder sig utav CRMs fulla potential, det finns stora möjligheter för organisationen att förbättra sitt användande av CRM.

There has been scarce research into the topic of B2B in the context of social media. Due to this, the aim of this study was to explore how social media is used within B2B in the initial phase of building relationships. The research questions regarded; attracting new customers, which channels that were used and potential drawbacks of using social media. An analytical framework was presented with the factors reputation, familiarity, similarity and knowledge of alternatives from literature within attraction. In order to collect the empirical data, semi-structured interviews were conducted with consultancy agencies. The results showed that social media was used to increase familiarity through third party sources, which was enabled by companies networks. Channels used for this were LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. Regarding similarity, companies used social media to promote its personality that could attract customers both in a business and personal manner. The channels used for this were LinkedIn and Facebook. Furthermore, it was important that the type of information that was shared represented the company, and companies worked to improve this type of information. Further on, companies encouraged people in their network to share content in order to enhance reputation by third party sources. Channels used for this were LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Concerning knowledge of alternatives, social media were used as search-friendly channels, which enabled companies to remain on top in the search list, and make them a potential choice for customers. Channels used for this were LinkedIn and blogs. Furthermore, the major social media drawbacks for B2B companies were lack of resources in terms of time and lack of control over the information once it was posted online.

Title:                                  CRM – A case study of Nordea Private Banking Autors:                               David Johansson & Mikael Westin         Advisor:                             Ulf Aagerup Level:                                 Bachelor thesis in International marketing, (15 ECTS), Spring 2013. Keywords:                         CRM, Relationship marketing, Private Banking Question:                           How does Nordea Private Banking work with CRM to get high customer loyalty? Purpose:                            Study and to learn how Nordea Private Banking is working to bring in new customers and keep existing customers loyal. We also want to see if Nordea uses additional strategies that goes beyond the theory and what their customer relationship strategy is. Method:                             The study has a qualitative research method with an inductive approach. Interviews with leading and skilled profiles at Nordea Private Banking has been interviewed to provide answers to our research question. Theoretical framework: The chapter starts with theory about what relationship marketing is and what is driving customer loyalty. Thereafter theory that define CRM and its pros and cons are addressed, and finally the chapter describe the implementation phase. Empirical framework:     In the empirical framework we present the qualitative interviews that were done with employees at Nordea Private Banking. Conclusion:                       The result from this study shows that Nordea Private Banking uses strategies that are common in theory of CRM to gain high customer loyalty and the use of recommendations from satisfied customers is of a much higher significance in Nordea Private Banking’s case than of what the theory is implying. Nordea Private Banking uses a strategy with high focus on the customers and the importance is within relationship marketing and long lasting relations between the adviser and the customer.

More and more companies are faced with fierce competition; ergo, companies are consistently trying to build a long term relationships with their customer. In addition, a decade ago, relationship marketing gained more and more credibility among the companies and is still a topic of discussion today. Therefore, this study is aimed to describe how service firms can use relationship marketing as a strategy to develop customer satisfaction.   A theoretical framework has been developed derived from a review of the existing literature in order to describe how service firms can use relationship marketing as a strategy to develop customer satisfaction. Five different tactics have been empirically investigated, namely the service quality, brand image, price perception, value offers and communication. A qualitative method has been chosen for this study. Three different companies have been studied within the banking sector and have been led by an inductive and deductive approach which will aim to investigate the aforementioned theoretical framework.   The analysis of the empirical findings exposed and discovered some relevant findings. Indeed, empirical evidence suggests that four main customer relationship tactics have a role on customer satisfaction and trust; namely the service quality, the brand image, the price perception and the human capital. These tactics have been identified as having a crucial role on gaining customer satisfaction.

According to Bradbury and Fincham’s contextual model of relationship conflict, communication behaviour is likely influenced by relationship factors at both the distal and proximal level. The overall goal of the present study was thus to build on previous research on marital conflict by examining the relations between relevant distal (i.e. marital satisfaction and depressive symptomatology), and proximal relationship variables (i.e. event-dependent expectancies and appraisals), and communication behaviour. Our specific aims were threefold: a) to explore the impact of marital satisfaction and depression on couples’ expectancies for marital problem-solving discussions; b) to examine the effect of such expectancies on actual communication behaviour, after controlling for marital satisfaction and depressive symptoms; and c) to determine whether expectancies and actual communication behaviour influence couples’ post-discussion appraisals, even after controlling for levels of depression and marital satisfaction. A total of 76 married and cohabitating couples across varying levels of marital satisfaction and depression participated in this study. All couples engaged in two marital problem-solving discussions, one in which the husband wanted change and the second in which the wife wanted change. Before engaging in these problem-solving discussions, spouses’ expectancies for resolving the topic of conflict were assessed using both affective and cognitive items. After each discussion ended, participants also rated their cognitive and affective appraisals of the interaction. Results showed that higher levels of marital satisfaction predicted more positive expectancies (both affective and cognitive) for successful communication in the upcoming interactions. Depressive symptoms, however, were only found to impact couples’ feelings in anticipation of the discussions, and not their cognitive expectancies. With regards to actual communication behaviour, after controlling for the effects of marital satisfaction and depressive symptoms, more positive expectations for an upcoming conflict discussion were associated with less negative communication behaviours during the discussion. Spouses’ cognitive post-discussion appraisals of the conflict interactions were positively associated with individuals’ own expectancies going in to these discussions, as well as their partners’ expectancies over and above the effects of depression and marital satisfaction. Finally, actual communication behaviour also influenced appraisals, such that those who spent more time during the conflict discussions engaging in positive behaviours and less time engaging in negative communication behaviours reported greater satisfaction with the discussions. Implications of these results for couples’ therapy are briefly discussed.

Siblings can serve as significant companions and caregivers for individuals with ID throughout the lifespan. Yet, the developmental course of sibling relationships for siblings of individuals with ID has not been well addressed in the current literature. Thus, the current study examined change over time in four dimensions of relationship quality (power, intimacy, conflict, and rivalry) as well as how the constellation variables of sex, birth order, and age differences affected the development of relationship quality. Sibling relationships were found to have a stable power structure, with the nondisabled sibling reporting higher levels of power in the relationship. Developmental trajectories indicated that these relationships grew in positive regard while levels of conflict decreased over time. Yet, behaviors characterizing intimate relationships did not show similar increases. Constellation variables were found to have effects on specific relationship dimensions, including conflict and intimate behaviors.

Bakgrund och problemdiskussion: Lyxvarumärkesföretag har börjat undersöka implementering av en strategi som erbjuder livslångt kundvärde. De har även visat intresse som tyder på att de vill tillämpa CRM-policys men är osäkra till hur stor del den går att tillämpa inom lyxindustrin. Vi har med inspiration från artikeln ”Is CRM for Luxury brands?” Cailleux, Mignot & Kapferer (2009) konstaterat att det existerar ett problem med den traditionella CRM som inte förstår ”luxury management” och de exakta implikationerna. Då begreppet CRM anses vara otillräcklig samt bristande vid tillämpning på lyxvarumärken anser vi att CRM inte är en optimal affärsstrategi för den sortens företag. Syfte: Vårt syfte med studien är att förstärka och komplettera CRM ur ett lyxperspektiv. Ambitionen är att utveckla existerande teori samt skapa en modell som är anpassad för lyxvarumärkesföretag. Vidare vill vi även tydliggöra de skillnader som existerar mellan klassisk CRM och LCRM. Metod: Uppsatsen har en teoretisk utgångspunkt och behandlas ur en kvalitativ metod tillsammans med respondenter från fallföretaget som besitter gedigen erfarenhet och ansvarspositioner inom lyxindustrin. Slutsats: CRM är inte en tillräcklig strategi att applicera mot lyxvarumärkesföretag då den inte är justerad för att tillgodose lyxvarumärkesföretagens plattform. Den utvecklade teorin LCRM har testats genom en empirisk studie och verifierats till att vara en lämplig strategi för lyxvarumärkesföretag. Genom en tillämpning av LCRM kan lyxvarumärkesföretag nå en ökad kundlojalitet ur ett långsiktigt  perspektiv. / Background and problem discussion: Luxury brands have begun to explore the benefits of an approach to create lifelong customer value. They have also shown interest in implementing CRM policies but are unsure how suitable it is for their market. The article “Is CRM for luxury brands?” Cailleux, Mignot & Kapferer (2009) has been used as an inspiration in this study as the article has found that the existing traditional CRM does not understand "luxury management" and the precise implications, i.e., how luxury brands want to expand while maintaining their prestige. Since the concept of CRM is considered to be insufficient and inadequate for the purposes of luxury brands, we believe that CRM is not an optimal business strategy for the type of business. Purpose: The purpose with this study is to enhance and supplement the strategy CRM to meet the luxury industry needs. The ambition is to develop existing theory and create a model that is suitable for luxury brands. Further, the purpose is to clarify the differences between CRM and LCRM. Method: The paper is theoretically based with a qualitative approach with respondents in leader positions and extensive experience within the luxury industry. Conclusion: CRM is an insufficient strategy to apply for businesses within the luxury industry because it does not understand the platform of a luxury brand. The developed theory LCRM has been tested through an empiric study and has been verified as a suitable strategy to apply for luxury brands. Through an implementation of LCRM luxury brands can achieve a higher customer loyalty in the long run.

The purpose of this study was to examine how various universities address E-marketing activities as a help for attracting more students. The key issue was to add knowledge by investigating and understanding E-marketing activities in combination with parts of Promotion Mix, and Relationship Marketing. Three universities in the south of Sweden were interviewed. A qualitative research method was applied, in combination with an deductive approach. Theories regarding the above mentioned elements were investigated and compared with data from semi-structured interviews of universities’ communication departments. Findings showed that in general universities are taking E-marketing into consideration, and understand the importance of its implementation. Yet, they have not applied all the activities which could have been to their advantage. Findings also showed that the universities’ most efficient E-marketing tool was their websites, as it could be appreciated by both current and potential students. In addition, Relationship Marketing and Promotion Mix seemed, in all universities, as a proper complement for E-marketing. However, it appeared that both elements were not implemented to their fullest either. This study could be of use to both practitioners and academics. The study shares information and knowledge of marketing channels which can be useful, yet, have not been used to their full capacity. Practitioners may benefit from the theory and findings, which show how higher education is adjusting to the technological revolution.