The ability related differences and the role of peer interaction in preschool children's planning skill on a sociocultural task was investigated. Shopping routes through a model grocery store were planned by 50 children ranging in age from 3 years, 2 months to 5 years, 11 months. There were 30 children with average ability (Differential Ability Scales GCA score 85-115) and 20 children with high ability (DAS scores above 120). All subjects planned a total of five shopping trips. The first and last trips were completed alone, while the three middle trips were either completed alone, with a same-ability peer, or with a mixed-ability peer.Data were analyzed with a series of multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA) with a within-subjects factor representing the measures of planning skill across Lists 2, 3, and 4. Preschool-aged children did not differ in planning skill on the basis of cognitive ability at the onset of the task. Dyads planned more efficient routes than individuals and also employed a more mature item location strategy. Children of average ability improved in planning performance from List One to List Five regardless of the ability level of their partner during Lists 2, 3, and 4. High ability preschoolers performed equally well when working alone, with a peer of same ability, or with a peer of less ability.Dyads of average children working together engaged in arguments and disagreements concerning the task but planned less efficient routes than did dyads of high-ability children. Mixed-ability dyads and those of high ability peers planned more efficient routes but engaged in little discussion. Thus, average children working together may have experienced growth in social competence as a result of social conflict concerning the social problem solving task. Such advances were most likely minimal for children in mixed-ability and high ability dyads. Advances in social competence may be of primary importance for preschool aged children. Future research should seek to clarify the relationship between ability and peer interaction in an effort to identify the features of social interaction which are necessary for cognitive growth. / Department of Educational Psychology

Denna uppsats syfte har varit att undersöka vilken roll mobilen spelar i en grupp ungdomars liv och då framförallt i skolan. Vi har intervjuat åtta elever på en högstadieskola samt utfört observationer för att få en så klar bild som möjligt av deras förhållande till mobilanvändning. Tidigare forskning har visat att mobilens roll har kommit att bli större och viktigare och den sociala interaktionen som tidigare i större utsträckning skett ansikte mot ansikte är nu mer benägen att ske genom mobilen. Mobilens inverkan på individ och samhället har både positiva och negativa effekter, vilket undersöks i uppsatsen. De frågeställningar som behandlas rör hur eleverna upplever dagens mobilanvändning, hur de använder sina mobiler och hur detta påverkar den sociala interaktionen. Även huruvida eleverna har ett behov av att vara anträffbara samt hur de känner av mobilens påverkan? Uppsatsens sociologiska analys görs med hjälp av teman som behandlar konsumtion, modernitet, tid och rum, social interaktion genom mobilen och nätverkssamhället. Resultatet visar att mobilen spelar en stor roll i ungdomarnas liv och att den sociala interaktionen till viss del begränsas av mobilen. Eleverna upplever att de ständigt måste kunna vara anträffbara och uppdaterade och kan känna sig illa till mods när mobilen inte finns tillgänglig. / This paper has aimed to explore the role that mobile phone plays in a group of young people's lives in school. We interviewed eight students at a secondary school and performed observations to get as clear a picture as possible of their mobile phone use. Previous research has shown that mobile's role has become more and more important and the social interaction that were previously more widely been face to face is now more likely to be through mobile phone. The mobile's impact on the individual and society has both positive and negative effects. The issues addressed concerns how students experience today's smartphone use, how they use their phones and how this affects social interaction. Even whether students have a need to be reachable and how they feel of the phone's impact? The sociological analysis of this paper is done using themes that deal with consumption, modernity, time and space, social interaction through the smartphone and the network society. The result shows that mobile phone plays a big role in young people's lives and social interactions to some extent limited by the mobile phone. Students feel that they must constantly be reachable and updated and may feel uneasy when the phone is not available.

It has long been discussed how to use music in a new way in the field of food and elderly, and in this study, the authors wanted to test this. Music is the language of emotions. It’s a powerful tool, but its effects are difficult to predict (Theorell, 2009). Malnutrition in the elderly is a serious condition that often gets overlooked (Edfors & Westergren, 2012). According to the Swedish National Food Administration food and meals are important, not only to meet our needs for energy and nutrients, but also our quality of life, and that applies especially to food in eldercare (Svenska Livsmedelsverket, 2013). The purpose of this study was to investigate whether music can be used as a tool to increase appetite in the elderly and was clearly delineated against a quantitative and qualitative approach to cover the entire spectrum. The study was carried out at a retirement home in Kävlinge municipality, including a total of six informants (5 men and 1 woman). The results of the study show that participants in the study on elderly housing ate 19 % more during the lunch meal if music is played during the meal, and on average weight was increased by 1.2 kg by participants during the study. The main difference which the authors noticed was the change of the social interaction between health care consumers, from not having spoken to each other around the table during lunch meals, to engage in conversations on their own. The authors hope that the material developed during the study will be implemented by Kävlinge municipality in their daily activities. The music can be simple means to be a help to the staff in everyday life (Andersen et al., 2001). / Det har länge diskuterats hur man kan använda musik på nya sätt inom området mat och äldre och i denna studie vill författarna testa denna tes. Musik är känslornas språk. Det är ett kraftfullt medel, men effekterna kan vara svåra att förutsäga (Theorell, 2009). Undernäring hos äldre är ett allvarligt tillstånd som ofta blir förbisett (Edfors & Westergren, 2012). Enligt Livsmedelsverket är maten och måltiden viktig, inte bara för att tillgodose våra behov av energi och näringsämnen, utan även för vår livskvalitet, och det gäller framförallt maten inom äldreomsorgen (Svenska Livsmedelsverket, 2013). Syftet med studien var att undersöka om musik kan användas som ett hjälpmedel för att öka aptiten hos äldre och var tydligt avgränsad mot en kvantitativ och kvalitativ metod för täcka hela spektrumet. Studien utfördes på ett särskilt boende i Kävlinge kommun, totalt ingick sex informanter (5 män och 1 kvinna). Resultatet av studien visar att studiens deltagare på det särskilda boendet äter 19 % mer under lunchmåltiden om det spelas musik under måltiden och i genomsnitt gick deltagarna upp 1,2 kg under vår intervention. Den största skillnaden som författarna noterade var ökningen av den sociala interaktionen mellan vårdtagarna, från att inte ha samtalat med varandra kring bordet under lunchmåltiderna, till att föra konversationer på egen hand. Det material som tagits fram under studien hoppas författarna att Kävlinge kommun kommer att implementera i sin dagliga verksamhet. Musiken kan med enkla medel bli en hjälp för personalen i vardagen (Andersen et al., 2001).

The purpose of this study has been to describe and analyze how seven Swedish preschool teachers and two special education teachers think and work with children who show a lack of social skills. The study method has been semi-structured interviews with the educators which have been analyzed and sorted under different themes/categories. The theoretical framework used in this study is sociocultural, relational and categorical perspectives. These perspectives have been chosen in order to better understand how teachers see their role in supporting children in need of special support. The environment in the preschool is found to be of great help and the teachers’ approach is of great importance.The research emphasizes the importance of integrating thinking, feeling and behavior. Social skills are an important part of the pre-school assignment. The children have to learn how to¨cooperate and empathize with others. The result of the study shows that children’s skills in playing and taking turns are the biggest issues in the daily activities. The teachers see an important task in helping children achieve social competence and helping children translate their emotions. The special education team assists greatly in the preschool teachers’ work with children in need of special support.

This is qualitative study of, four teacher´s views on the use of iPad in teaching and learning. In addition, I will examine the disadvantages and advantages of iPad use as a teaching tool in preschools. My questions are: What is the practical use of tablets in preschools today? Are preschool teachers using the tablet as a teaching tool? If so, how? Is the use of tablets in preschools contributing to children´s social interaction, as well as between children and teachers` social interaction? The purpose of this study was to find out how the four teachers uses the iPad as a teaching tool in the interaction between children in preschool. I have chosen to use Vygotsky’s and John Dewey´s theories. Both mention the importance of social interaction in learning processes. Interaction is a large part in socio-cultural theory, which makes the theory useful. I made qualitative interviews with four preschool teachers. I also made observations. My interviews and observations were made in two different preschools. The results showed that the iPad is a complementary educational tool. The teachers also thought that an iPad is an educational tool that can be used for different activities. The tool is used in social interaction where children expand their social development as they learn to interact, communicate and respect each other. The children communicate while talking about how to use the iPad. All teachers` attitudes were positive when it came to using the tablet in preschool. However, the teachers felt that there may be some drawbacks. Among other things, teachers must introduce the iPad properly. The iPad should be an educational tool, not a toy. Educators should therefore be present when children use the tablets.

The aim of this study is to look at the environmental effect on toddlers’ social interactions during free play in two older and two newer preschools. Furthermore, we would like to investigate four preschool teachers’ thoughts about the indoor environment when it comes to toddlers’ interaction during free play. Qualitative methods containing interviews of the preschool teachers and observations of the children during their free playtime have been used to help us reach our conclusions. In addition, our theoretical conclusions have been derived from both the sociocultural perspective and the environmental psychology perspective. Our results have shown that variations in the preschool environment are of importance in the outcome of toddlers’ different social interactions. Teachers find the indoor environment of great importance and are working with it either with the preschool establishment or independently where time allows. The attitude and approach of preschool teachers on the indoor environment is also of great importance in encouraging positive social interaction in toddlers during free play.

The essay examines Robert E. Park's theory of the role news and newspapers have in processes of social interaction, and of the role they consequently play in the constitution of society. Park's theoretical work is often cited for its appreciation of the dynamic aspects of social interaction. This perspective is evident in his analysis of news and newspapers. / In The Immigrant Press and its Control (1922), Park examined how immigrant groups responded to the experience of immigration and how their newspapers contributed to that response. / Park adopted from American pragmatism a definition of pragmatic or 'rational' social interaction and applied it to interaction over news. For Park, attention to newspapers and discussion of news tended not to favour adherence to tradition, but encouraged a pragmatic or rational attitude. In articles on news and public opinion written in the 1940's, Park saw attention to news as a potential threat to belief systems and as a source of social conflict. Challenges ta fundamental values lead to blind, defensive reactions and the behavior proper to a 'crowd'. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Online social interactions differ from face to face interactions and lack the non-verbal cues leading a learner to procrastinate, decreased motivation, feelings of isolation and high drop out rates. Existing research illustrates a need for social awareness information in online education, and this research studied the impact of the visual presence of social information on a learner's sense of connectedness and learning using Rovai's (2002) classroom community scale (CCS). Specifically, the study examined if a learners' sense of connectedness is improved with the exposure to others' social awareness information; and if and to what degree learning advanced due to the improved sense of connectedness. <br>Two, 5 X 1 between-subjects one-way analyses of covariances compared connectedness and learning scores of five social awareness information disclosure groups (appearance, educational, contact and personal information disclosure groups and control group). Although the study did not find evidence of exposure to social awareness information having an impact on learning, the findings confirm the claim that social awareness provides a sense of connectedness. The type of social information presented in the educational category (last degree earned, major and educational year) provided a strong relationship compared to other categories studied. <br>Educators, course designers and content management companies will benefit in recognizing that social awareness information positively impacts online educational participants by providing a sense of connectedness when presented with educational related materials. The development of social awareness support within a learning management system can improve an online learner's experience and enhance the quality of online education. This social awareness support in a learning management systems infrastructure is thus recommended. / School of Education / Instructional Technology (EdDIT) / EdD / Dissertation

Typescript. / Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1973. / Bibliography: leaves [252]-260. / viii, 260 l illus., maps, tables

The investigation of the influence of emotions on human cognition and behavior challenges scientist since a long time. So far the most popular approach to investigate this phenomenon was to observe brain processes and behavior. In the recent decade the field of computational neuroscience proposed a new methodology: the construction of embodied models of emotions and their verification in real world environments. In this thesis we present different studies that use computational models of emotions to control the behavior and the expressions of situated agents. Using different methodologies we evaluate both, the performance of the models and the behavioral responses of humans interacting with them. Our results add to a deeper understanding of the multidimensional phenomena of emotions on three levels: Perception, interaction and how the processing of emotional cues influences learning and behavior / La investigació/recerca sobre la influència de les emocions en la cognició i el comportament humà constitueix un repte científic des de fa molt temps. Fins ara el mètode més popular per a investigar aquest fenòmen ha estat el d'observar els processos cerebrals i el comportament. En l'última dècada el camp de la neurociència computacional ha proposat una nova metodologia: la construcció dels models incorporats d’emocions i la seva verificació en entorns del món real. En aquesta tesi presentem diferents estudis que han utilitzat models computacionals de les emocions per controlar el comportament i les expressions d’agents localitzats. Utilitzant diferents metodologies, hem avaluat tant el rendiment d’aquests models així com les respostes conductuals dels éssers humans que han interactuen amb ells.Els nostres resultats se sumen a una comprensió més profunda dels fenòmens multidimensionals de les emocions en tres nivells: la percepció, la interacció i com el processament dels senyals emocionals influeixen en l'aprenentatge i el comportament