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Environmental degradation is threatening the provision of ecosystem services (IPBES, 2019). In an attempt to reverse this degradation trend, the use of economic incentives has increasingly gained prominence in environmental policy. In particular, payments for ecosystem services (PES), a type of economic incentive in which ecosystem services providers voluntarily receive a payment in exchange for the provision of ecosystem services, has increasingly gained relevance worldwide (Salzman et al., 2018). PES aim to enhance environmental conservation by altering the economic costs or benefits associated with targeted pro-environmental actions. However, a large amount of empirical evidence shows that PES, like other economic incentives, could potentially crowd out (or crowd in) intrinsic motivations for environmental conservation, which may sometimes translate into unexpected undesirable overall effects (for reviews, see Bowles and Polania-Reyes, 2012; Rode et al., 2015). Up to date, the conditions under which PES, and economic incentives in general, induce such motivational crowding effects are still not fully understood. In analyzing these effects, economic theory has often taken for granted non-monetary factors of economic incentives because they do not involve changes in prices or incomes. However, experimental evidence show that such factors could be relevant to preventing crowding-out effects or even creating crowding-in effects (e.g., see Ariely et al., 2009; Heyman and Ariely, 2004). In the context of PES, a large proportion of the experimental literature has focused on studying the effect of design features related to the monetary elements of these programs (e.g., Kerr et al., 2012; Kolinjivadi et al., 2019; Midler et al., 2015; Moros et al., 2019; Narloch et al., 2012), while fewer experimental studies have focused on non-monetary factors such as the degree of participation in the design or implementation process (e.g., Jack, 2009; Moros et al., 2019; Vollan, 2008). The present thesis contributes to this line of literature by examining whether PES could be more or less effective when specific non-monetary factors are adjusted in PES design or implementation. This thesis comprises an introductory chapter (Chapter 1) and a concluding chapter (Chapter 5) that serve as an overview of the thesis, together with three research articles (Chapters 2, 3 and 4). In each of the research articles belonging to this thesis, a specific non-monetary factor in the design or implementation context of PES is analyzed. Prior versions of the research articles in chapters 2-4 have been published as working papers on SSRN. Their content is briefly summarized below. Chapter 2 is entitled “Beyond a Market Discourse: Is Framing a Solution to Avoid Motivational Crowding-Out in Payments for Ecosystem Services?” and is co-authored by S. Engel and E. Midler. The goal of this article is to examine the role of the framing of a PES policy in preventing motivational crowding effects. In particular, it focusses on the short- and long-term effects of two dimensions of framing on: 1) using different terms to denote the payment, and 2) emphasizing different types of ecosystem services obtained from nature to motivate its conservation. This article analyses this topic with a lab-in-the-field experiment conducted with 157 farmers from a Colombian municipality. The findings of this article suggest that the framing of a policy could be a rather inexpensive tool to mitigate motivational crowding effects. In particular, a framing that acknowledges forest conservation as an achievement and a framing that emphasizes the cultural ecosystem services obtained from forest results in better conservation outcomes relative to a control framing. Chapter 3 is entitled “Who is Benefiting Downstream? Experimental Evidence on the Relevance of Upstream-Downstream Geographic Distance for Water Provision.” and is co-authored by S. Engel, E. Midler and T. Vorlaufer. The goal of this article is to study the relevance of the social distance between ecosystem service providers and beneficiaries for the short- and long-term motivational crowding effects of a PES policy. This article analyses this topic with a lab-in-the-field experiment in which the salience of social identity is defined by the real geographical distance between ecosystem service providers and beneficiaries, rather than being artificially induced. In particular, the experiment involves 60 rural farmers from a Colombian municipality, whose water provision decisions affected passive downstream beneficiaries in either the same municipality or the capital city of Bogotá. The findings suggest that although sharing a closer place identity with downstream beneficiaries is relevant to determine baseline water provision, it does not affect average motivational crowding effects in the short and long term. Nonetheless, predictions from the econometric analysis of the heterogeneous treatment effects suggest that emphasizing the benefits provided to people with whom upstream providers feel more socially identified could mitigate long-term crowding-out effects on providers with weak levels of place identification, without compromising the short-term effectiveness on farmers with a strong place identity and already high provisioning levels. Therefore, in the absence of a well-defined group of downstream beneficiaries financing a PES program, it could be more effective to emphasize local benefits, rather than the general benefits to society. Chapter 4 is entitled “Behavioral Spillovers from Mixing Conservation Policies in Neighboring Areas: An Experimental Analysis on Fairness Perceptions toward Unequal Policies.” and is co-authored by S. Engel and E. Midler. The goal of this article is to analyze the impact of fairness concerns on the effectiveness of a policy that is implemented in an unequal institutional context. In particular, it compares the effectiveness of implementing a specific economic incentive when a monetary reward is being implemented in a neighboring area, to the effectiveness of implementing the same economic incentive over the entire area. This article analyses this topic with a lab-in-the-field experiment conducted with 276 farmers from a Colombian municipality. In particular, the treatment recreated three institutional contexts: 1) a high priority area where PES are implemented next to a low priority area that is excluded from PES, 2) a protected area with land-use restrictions surrounded by a buffer area where PES are implemented, and 3) a protected area where PES are implemented on top of land-use restrictions, surrounded by a buffer area with only PES. Surprisingly, the findings show that fairness concerns do not increase with the level of inequality between neighbors. Although PES exclusion and simultaneously implementing PES inside and outside a protected area tend to increase fairness concerns and reduce forest conservation relative to the control groups, implementing PES only in the buffer area of a protected area decreases fairness concerns and increases forest conservation by those within the protected area, even after the policies are removed. Overall, this article stresses the relevance of considering the institutional context and context-specific fairness perceptions as a relevant factor when defining the targeting criteria for the implementation of environmental policies.

<p>The Stereotype Content Model was used to challenge the untested assertion of the social identity/self-categorization perspective that different others will be seen as untrustworthy. Results from a sample of 29 student teams showed that trustworthiness perceptions were positively related to cognitive and bio-demographic diversity. Member satisfaction was also positively related to cognitive diversity. Trustworthiness perceptions mediated the relationship between team diversity and members’ satisfaction. First round satisfaction predicted second round team performance. The results suggest that outgroup bias is not automatic; teams can be successful if members see each other as trustworthy, regardless of cognitive or bio-demographic diversity.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Do external factors, such as war, affect rhetoric used by presidents during speeches, and do they affect what journalists write about said speeches? These are questions raised and answered in this paper. The research material consists of three speeches by Vladimir Putin, three speeches by Volodymyr Zelenskyj, and seven articles discussing these speeches during Russia's invasion of Ukraine 2022. We also analyze factors within Social identity theory (Dashtipour, 2012), such as how the creation of an identity is portrayed in both speeches and articles. Summatively, we found that both analyses deemed different external factors to be influencing, and both results confirmed that external factors contribute to change.

Inledning: Felrekrytering med stora omkostnader är vanligt förekommande, vilket gör rekrytering av rätt medarbetare viktigt. Utifrån matchande av identiteten mellan arbetssökande och arbetsplats så kan retentionen i organisationer med hög personalomsättning öka, och identitetsfaktorn kan vara en viktig aspekt att ha med i utvärderingar. Problemformulering: Hur ser rekryterare på identitetsmatchning? Syfte: Studien undersöker vilken betydelse identitetsmatchning har i rekryteringssammanhang. Metod: Metoden vald för att besvara problemformuleringen var kvalitativ, med användandet av ett abduktivt angreppssätt och utförandet av fem semi-strukturerade djupintervjuer. Slutsats: Identitetsmatchning har väsentligt betydelse under rekryteringssammanhang, dock inte lika framstående mellan arbetssökande och den övergripande organisationen som mellan arbetssökande och arbetsgrupp.

Media plays a significant role in people’s daily life, as it is the first lens through which people see events and phenomena happening worldwide. This research aims to investigate how Al-Jazeera (AJ) and Le Monde (LM) portray and frame the victims and perpetrators of the Charlie Hebdo attack on the 7th of January 2015. The process of framing and representation are investigated as to whether there are similarities and/or differences in the identities of victims and perpetrators between AJ and LM. Adopting a social constructivist perspective and by using Entman’s framing theory, along with both social representation theory and social identity theory. A qualitative content analysis is conducted. The findings indicate certain similarities in how these two media outlets frame the victims and the perpetrators of the terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo such as arguing that the perpetrators’ action does not represent Islam. Both medias also try to create a certain level of proximity with the victims. When it comes to the framing of the perpetrators, more differences appear: while AJ frames them as heroes avenging the prophet, LM framed them as stupid people making unprofessional mistakes.

Although advertising featuring gay male and lesbian models can be an effective means of targeting the significant gay and lesbian market, few empirical studies examine how consumers respond to gay-themed advertisements. To address the absence of message-processing research dealing with heterosexual responses to gay-themed advertising, this thesis examines how sexual orientation of model couples featured in magazine advertisements affects heterosexual viewers' responses using the elaboration-likelihood model as a guiding framework. A 3x2x2x3 experiment tested the effects of model couples' sexual orientation (heterosexual, gay male, or lesbian), argument strength (strong or weak), involvement (high or low), and participants' attitudes towards homosexuality (high, medium, or low) on White heterosexual participants' attitudes toward the couple, attitudes toward the advertisement, attitudes toward the brand, attitudes toward the product, purchase intentions, and recall. Results indicate that heterosexual consumers were accepting of ads with lesbian portrayals.  Participants showed more negative attitudes toward gay male portrayals, but attitudes towards heterosexual and lesbian ads were similar. This effect was moderated by participants attitudes toward homosexuals. Regarding message processing, low involvement consumers showed more negative attitudes toward homosexual portrayals than toward heterosexual portrayals, providing some indication that models' sexual orientation in ads may have served as a peripheral cue negatively impacting attitudes toward the couple and ad in situations where elaboration is low. However, such effects on attitudes toward couples and ads did not appear to carry over to attitudes toward the brand and product, purchase intentions, or recall. Implications, limitations, and areas for future research are also discussed. / Master of Arts

This study aims to understand the relationship between masculinity and the endorsement of attitudes towards guns and violence and aggressive fantasies. I examine threatened masculinity and masculine gender role stress in addition to a newly developed measure, which assesses traits associated with incels, who believe that social liberalism, feminism, and more sexually active men (“Chads”) are to blame for their lack of sex with women. Incels are largely a disorganized group of men interacting online, but a few self-identifying members have been associated with a number of mass violence events in recent years. The data were constructed from an original self-report survey distributed to men aged 18 to 30 years old, the group most responsible for violence against women and mass violence. I hypothesize that men who perceive that men are losing status as a group (status threat) (1), who feel less acceptance as members of that category (acceptance threat) (2), or who exhibit incel traits (3) are more likely to (a) approve of guns, violence, and aggression, and (b) exhibit aggressive fantasies. This study’s findings support three hypotheses: status threat is positively associated with an approval of guns and violence; acceptance threat is positively associated with approval of guns, violence, and aggressive fantasies; and incel traits are positively associated with aggressive fantasies. Men who experience status or acceptance threat or share incel traits exemplify issues of toxicity present in masculinity today. Their support for gun use, violence and aggressive fantasies further show the connection between male insecurity, aggressive attitudes, and fantasizing about violence. / M.S. / This study aims to understand the relationship between masculinity and the endorsement of attitudes towards guns and violence and aggressive fantasies. I examine masculinity and feelings of threat in addition to a newly developed measure, which assesses traits associated with incels (“involuntary celibates”), who believe that social liberalism, feminism, and more sexually active men are to blame for their lack of sex with women. Incels are largely a disorganized group of men interacting online, but a few self-identifying members have been associated with a number of mass violence events in recent years. The data were constructed from a survey distributed to men aged 18 to 30 years old, the group most responsible for violence against women and mass violence. I hypothesize that men who perceive that men are losing status as a group (1), who feel less acceptance as members of that category (2), or who exhibit incel traits (3) are more likely to (a) approve of guns, violence, and aggression, and (b) exhibit aggressive fantasies. This study’s findings support three hypotheses: feelings of group status loss are positively associated with an approval of guns and violence; stress in one’s masculine gender role is positively associated with approval of guns, violence, and aggressive fantasies; and incel traits are positively associated with aggressive fantasies. Their support for gun use, violence and aggressive fantasies further show the connection between male insecurity, aggressive attitudes, and fantasizing about violence.

The steady increase in social media use, combined with a new opportunity for individuals to express and/or redefine their social identity, has created many new platforms and forums. The global pandemic and the further digitization of communication and self-expression amplified the trend. As individuals shape their online identities, they receive feedback from their online networks (likes, comments, shares, etc.). The feedback can reinforce or challenge their identities, leading them to adapt their self-presentation accordingly. This research investigated the under-explored interplay between Social Identity (SI) formation and Social Media (SM) adoption. While the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model has been practical, it has become crucial to enhance it based on the relationship/intersection of SI expression and SM use and its implications for social media companies, policymakers, individuals, businesses, and society, as a whole. The research employed inductive qualitative analysis on “public-primary posts of personal narratives from X platform and subreddit communities while preserving participant anonymity. Study 2 data corpus was 62,429 posts. There is a bi-directional influence on social identity formation and social media adoption. The limitations of this study include the subjective nature of qualitative research and the fact that the posts were not intended for academic study. Further, there were no follow-ups and member checking; thus, I could not validate the findings with participants. I also note that many people came to the subreddit platform with their problems, and the entries did not include the resolution of their issues. Only an interview would reveal the outcome, which was not carried out in this study. One recommendation is that social media providers install AI chatbots that scour their platforms for people needing help and render support to people who are vulnerable, especially those seeking mental health resources. Finally, this study’s proposition that when people are lonely, they seek support and comfort on social media needs more research. Further, in the advent of mainstream adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in 2023, research will need to be conducted to ensure the safe and viable long-term use of social platforms for good, as opposed to evil. / Business Administration/Interdisciplinary

In 2007, Robin Stern published The gaslight effect: How to spot and survive the hidden manipulation others use to control your life, highlighting gaslighting as a form of psychological abuse that makes victims question the validity of their perceptions. Since then, gaslighting has primarily been tackled from a psychological perspective. Some sociologists, however, theorize that gaslighting is not simply a psychological issue but a sociological one as well. They argue that gaslighting may take place unintentionally when a perpetrator acts on their biases towards members of other social groups, a concept known as epistemic gaslighting. As a form of intentional abuse, gaslighting has been established to have profoundly negative effects on its victims. However, there is a significant gap in research pertaining to the sociological aspects of gaslighting. This study therefore aims to establish the connections between power, social identity, and gaslighting susceptibility. Given the assumption that gaslighting relies on a power differential, this study uses an online, survey-based format to produce data which preliminarily supports the existence of epistemic gaslighting, and aims to be useful in ultimately linking psychological and sociological views of gaslighting behaviors.