In a world increasingly influenced by interactive interfaces, devices and services both in the commercial and non-commercial spheres, understanding interactivity and its underpinnings is essential. We have moved into a state of flux in which both culture and technology are in constant interplay and the only constant is change itself. The only future-proof approach to designing for and dealing with an environment of constant change in these systems and forms is to look for a mechanism and theoretical framework that underpins them all. Drawing upon a range of disciplines – from design, art, cognitive science, linguistics and more – this thesis argues that play is such a fundamental building block of culture, society, technology and cognition that it is the ideal lens through which to examine the interactive experience. It is versatile enough to cross boundaries and fundamental enough to be understood intuitively. Through an understanding of the intersection between movement, embodied cognition, metaphor and play, a set of principles of interactivity are developed that are flexible enough to analyse and be applied to a broad spectrum of interactive experiences, from interactive artworks to services to individual user interface elements. Finally, it is proposed that these principles provide a way to examine the phenomenal growth of social networks and the fundamental cultural shifts we are experiencing today as a result of the friction generated between emerging networked technologies and the industrial age structures they are dismantling.

In a world increasingly influenced by interactive interfaces, devices and services both in the commercial and non-commercial spheres, understanding interactivity and its underpinnings is essential. We have moved into a state of flux in which both culture and technology are in constant interplay and the only constant is change itself. The only future-proof approach to designing for and dealing with an environment of constant change in these systems and forms is to look for a mechanism and theoretical framework that underpins them all. Drawing upon a range of disciplines – from design, art, cognitive science, linguistics and more – this thesis argues that play is such a fundamental building block of culture, society, technology and cognition that it is the ideal lens through which to examine the interactive experience. It is versatile enough to cross boundaries and fundamental enough to be understood intuitively. Through an understanding of the intersection between movement, embodied cognition, metaphor and play, a set of principles of interactivity are developed that are flexible enough to analyse and be applied to a broad spectrum of interactive experiences, from interactive artworks to services to individual user interface elements. Finally, it is proposed that these principles provide a way to examine the phenomenal growth of social networks and the fundamental cultural shifts we are experiencing today as a result of the friction generated between emerging networked technologies and the industrial age structures they are dismantling.

In a world increasingly influenced by interactive interfaces, devices and services both in the commercial and non-commercial spheres, understanding interactivity and its underpinnings is essential. We have moved into a state of flux in which both culture and technology are in constant interplay and the only constant is change itself. The only future-proof approach to designing for and dealing with an environment of constant change in these systems and forms is to look for a mechanism and theoretical framework that underpins them all. Drawing upon a range of disciplines – from design, art, cognitive science, linguistics and more – this thesis argues that play is such a fundamental building block of culture, society, technology and cognition that it is the ideal lens through which to examine the interactive experience. It is versatile enough to cross boundaries and fundamental enough to be understood intuitively. Through an understanding of the intersection between movement, embodied cognition, metaphor and play, a set of principles of interactivity are developed that are flexible enough to analyse and be applied to a broad spectrum of interactive experiences, from interactive artworks to services to individual user interface elements. Finally, it is proposed that these principles provide a way to examine the phenomenal growth of social networks and the fundamental cultural shifts we are experiencing today as a result of the friction generated between emerging networked technologies and the industrial age structures they are dismantling.

<p>Recruiting Through Networks - Wage Premiums and Rewards to Recommenders</p><p>This paper examines the firm's use of recommenders in its recruiting process. In the model, recommenders possess personal information about the worker's ability and about the workplace. In view of this private information, the firm may reward recommenders for good recruiting, thus using recommenders as a screening device. In equilibrium the expected skill of a worker is higher if recruitment has occurred through a recommender rather than through the market, but there is no wage premium. Swedish survey data supports the absence of a wage premium for recommended workers. It has not been possible to test the expected skill or the firm's reward policy vis-à-vis the recommender.</p><p>Job Search by Immigrants in Sweden</p><p>This paper analyses the job search strategies of immigrants born outside Europe and compares these with the search strategies of the native population. The analysis uses unique Swedish data gathered during 1998. Two clear patterns can be traced in the empirical analysis: immigrants search more intensively than natives; also, the greater search intensity is a requisite for getting a job. Specifically, the first analysis shows that immigrants who got jobs were likely to have used networks or direct contact with employers to a greater extent than natives. Immigrants who got jobs had submitted more applications and spent more time on job search than natives, while those who did not get jobs had not spent more time on job search than natives. The fourth and last analysis looks at the number of methods used in job search. Immigrants who left unemployment had not used more methods than natives. On the other hand, immigrants who remained unemployed had used significantly more methods than natives, indicating that it is not necessarily productive to use too many methods.</p><p>Wage Effects of Search Methods for Immigrants and Natives in Sweden</p><p>Using unique cross-section survey data collected in 1998, this study examines whether successful job-search method differ between natives and immigrants from outside Europe, and whether there is a wage difference between the two groups associated with the search method used.</p><p>It is found that those individuals from outside Europe who got jobs did relatively better when using formal methods than when using informal ones.</p><p>Next, a wage analysis has been performed, which shows that there is an overall wage discount for those born outside Europe. The discount is larger when using informal methods rather than formal.</p><p>To explore this further the informal method measure is divided in two parts, one part for contacts through friends and family and the second for contacts with the employer. The penalty for immigrants from outside Europe using an informal method as a successive job-search device is partly explained by contact with the employer, suggesting that the penalty for using informal methods has been underestimated in previous studies.An attempt has also been made to control for the effect of unobservable characteristics on wages, but this did not have any significant impact.</p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 163-178).

Social support is important for health and well-being and has been associated with reduced isolation in rural communities. Support from family and friends may become increasingly important as one ages, and may enable some seniors to remain living in their communities. The purpose of this project was to understand variation in the social support resources of older adults in rural Canada. This included variation in seniors social networks, support networks, tasks and services received, and exchange patterns. Methods included secondary analysis of a national telephone survey of adults aged 65 and older residing in rural Canada. Four key findings emerged. First, there was variation in the connections seniors had to family and friends. While some seniors had social networks averaging two people, others had social networks averaging 17. Who is present in social networks sets limits on who can be recruited into the support network. Second, who gets recruited from social networks into support networks varies. On average, social networks comprised 10 people, but support networks averaged three people. Spouses, children, middle-aged and local social network members were most likely to be recruited into support networks. However, recruitment depended on who was available to provide support. Third, not everyone receives support. Findings revealed that 15 percent of seniors who had a social network reported receiving no support, while nine percent who received support had few people who provided help with tasks like housework and shopping. While some of that group may not need support and/or are providing help to others, some seniors may have only one or two people to rely on. Fourth, rural older adults are not passive receivers of support. Many provide a high number of tasks to family and friends, helping build social ties and maintain supportive relationships. These findings point to the need for rural communities to be vigilant about evolving support needs of older residents. If seniors have few people who provide them with support, or if they rely on non-kin, who will provide care if needed? Services will be needed to fill the gap, and these services are not always available in rural areas.

Exponential Random Graph Models (ERGMs) have been developed for fitting social network data on both static and dynamic levels. However, the lack of large sample asymptotic properties makes it inadequate in assessing the goodness-of-fit of these ERGMs. Simulation-based goodness-of-fit plots were proposed by Hunter et al (2006), comparing the structured statistics of observed network with those of corresponding simulated networks. In this research, we propose an improved approach to assess the goodness of fit of ERGMs. Our method is shown to improve the existing graphical techniques. We also propose a simulation based test statistic with which the model comparison can be easily achieved. / Biostatistics

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-87).

Thesis (M.A. in Art Education) -- School of the Art Institute of Chicago, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves: 78-86)

Why are so many persons with an immigrant background self-employed in Sweden? To just say that it is discrimination in the labor market or that some immigrant groups have a “cultural inclination” that makes them fit to run a business does not provide for a full explanation. I first give an overview of the research of immigrant- and minority business in sociology. I present those factors which place an emphasis on the characteristics and resources among ethnic groups. Thereafter I focus on the structural factors, which can encourage persons from a minority background to become self-employed. My own perspective places an emphasis on social relations when trying to understand the mechanisms which influences a person with an immigrant background to become self-employed. In relation to this, ethnicity defined in a relational context is particularly emphasized. I also examine if self-employment is a solution to the problems of segregation among the foreign born in Sweden. I have chosen to study persons with an Iranian, Kurdish and Chilean background who start and run their own businesses. One important result in this investigation is that many of the persons from all three groups have a common experience of discrimination and exclusion in the Swedish labor market and in society at large. There are some individuals who became self-employed to bring a business concept into reality, i.e. in this sense they are entrepreneurs. But even in these cases there were elements of features of discrimination that motivated them to become self-employed. Another finding is that especially persons with a Kurdish background often make use of their ethnic or social network when they start and run their own businesses. Many of the self-employed in this study are well educated, but often participate in business activities that do not require so many qualifications. They are in some respects economically integrated, but the question remains whether or not the ethnic segregation still exists.