The aim for this study was to examine how social workers perceive the social network’s function and involvement in an adolescent’s process toward changing a substance use. The study is based on seven qualitative interviews with social workers in Mini-Maria facilities, working with youths/adolescents in psychosocial substance use treatment. The interviews were analysed with a brief inspiration from the approach of thematic analysis. The ecological systems theory as well as a perspective on the theory of social capital were used for interpretation of the result. The overall conclusion is that adolescents’ networks have a large impact on their substance use treatment, both in terms of the outcome as well as the meaning to the adolescent itself. Parents of youths are frequently involved in the practical treatment, while friends rarely are, but they both form a central part regarding the process of change. The social capital is also of great importance since it is constructed within the different parts of the social network where the youth experiences support. Social capital can therefore be both constructive and destructive depending on the structure of those relationships.

The human resources field has changed and the responsibility for employability has been transferred to the individual himself. In this study, we have been interested in the extent to which individuals with a HR-degree from Örebro University have an employment in the field of competence after graduation and if we could identify what have affected their employment. Previous research in the field of employment gives us various factors that have been reported to affect an individual's opportunity for employment. In our study, we have verified whether these factors remain for the HR-students with a degree from Örebro University or if they disappear. Through a survey, we found that two-thirds of the respondents had employment in the area of expertise. We also detected that part-time job in the area of expertise and gender had a positive impact on employment within the area of expertise. The remaining factors had a negative impact. / Personalvetaryrket har förändrats och ansvaret över anställningsbarheten har förflyttats till individen själv. I denna studie har vi intresserat oss för i vilken grad individer med en personalvetarutbildning från Örebro universitet har en anställning inom kompetensområdet efter examen samt vad som kan påverka dess anställning. Den tidigare forskningen inom ämnet anställning ger oss olika faktorer som har redovisats påverka en individs möjlighet till anställning. I vår studie har vi kontrollerat om dessa faktorers påverkan kvarstår för personalvetarstudenterna med en examen från Örebro universitet. Genom en enkätstudie fann vi att två tredjedelar av respondenterna hade en anställning inom kompetensområdet. Vi fann även att extraarbete inom kompetensområdet och kön har en positiv påverkan på anställningen inom kompetensområdet. Resterande faktorer hade en negativ påverkan.

Sammanfattning Huvudsyftet med denna studie var att undersöka nedstämdhet bland studenter som läser Samhällsvetenskapliga programmet och Ingenjörsprogrammet vid Karlstad Universitetet. Syftet var att undersöka studenternas psykiska hälsa/ohälsa, samt att få en ökad kunskap och förståelse för de orsakerna som skulle kunna bidra till att studenterna skulle kunna känna sig nedstämda. Vidare syftet var att undersöka om det finns någon skillnad och likhet mellan de orsakerna som skulle kunna bidra till nedstämdhet bland dessa studenter. Jag har genomför en enkätundersökning där jag delat ut enkäten till 60 respondenter varav 30 läser Samhällsvetenskapliga programmet och 30 Ingenjörsprogrammet. Det insamlade materialet som jag fick från undersökningen visar att respondenterna som läser de två programmen befinner sig i ett psykiskt tillstånd som inte är så positiv, det vill säga att det finns flera indikatorer som säger att studenterna har drabbats av nedstämdhet. Dessa indikatorer är att studenterna känner sig nervösa, ensamma, oroliga, uttråkade, missnöjda med sin ekonomi, ledsna och flera andra faktorer. Dessa indikatorer har starkt samband med andra faktorer såsom socialnätverk, utbildningens svårighetsgrad, ekonomi samt brist på kontakt med psykologer och kuratorer. Trots att respondenterna mår psykiska dåliga, resultatet visar att studenterna i stort skala har aldrig haft kontakt med kurator eller psykolog. Att prata med kurator eller psykolog är en viktig faktor som kunde förebygga studenternas dåliga psykiska tillstånd. Att inte ha kontakt med kurator eller psykolog kopplar jag med att det finns fortfarande tabu när det gäller psykisk ohälsa eller nedstämdhet. Jag associerar också detta med stämplingsteorin där respondenterna vill undvika att besöka kurator eller psykolog på grund av det finns risk att dem blir stämplat som psykisk sjuka. En annan jätteviktig faktor som kan orsaka nedstämdhet är att respondenterna håller problemen för sig själva och här inser jag att detta sker på grund av skamkänslor. Utifrån det resultatet som jag fick och utifrån socialkonstruktivismens synsätt ser vi att psykisk ohälsan är ett socialt problem som krävs mer insatser. Vidare behövs forskningar som belyser om faktorer som: kön, ålder, livhändelser och kulturell bakgrund, som kan påverka studenternas psykiska hälsa.

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This study aims to explore the factors perceived as central for individuals who have undergone retraining to be recruited into their new profession. Specifically, it explores the factors that contribute to securing employment in the new profession after retraining. This with a focus on identifying any factors that hold greater significance in the recruitment process. Recruiting based on potential involves looking beyond a candidate's current skills and assessing their ability to grow and exel in a specific role or organization. By evaluating their past experiences and comparing them to the desired qualifications, recruiters aim to identify individuals with capacity for learning and development. Data was collected through 16 semi-structured interviews, and a qualitative methodology was employed. The theoretical framework guiding this research incorporates Pierre Bourdieu's concepts of social and cultural capital, Mark Granovetter and Lin Bian's concepts of social networks, and Lin's concept of homophily whichresults in homosociality and homogeneity. The findings reveal that certain factors play a more prominent role in securing employment after retraining. These factors include the individual's social capital and social network, compatibility and consensus during the interview, charisma and social skills, as well as academic qualifications and previous work experience. Additionally, the study highlights the significant role of the social media platform LinkedIn, both as a means for candidates to expand their social network and also for showcasing their skills. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the factors influencing the recruitment of retrained individuals, emphasizing the importance of social and cultural capital, social networks, and social compatibility in securing employment opportunities. The implications of these findings are relevant to employers, retraining programs, and policymakers, offering guidance for the development of effective employment strategies for retrained workers.

The work opportunities of immigrants have been a significant topic in political and scientifical debate. Several studies argue that it is the lack of social network that negatively affects immigrants’ work opportunities. An immigrant group that differs from other immigrant groups in this respect is women having migrated to a partner in Sweden. Before moving to Sweden, they already have an established social network, containing their Swedish partner and his social contacts, to get support from. However, even this group experiences difficulties finding a job. The purpose of this study is to examine how women, migrated to a partner in Sweden, perceive the importance of social network for their work opportunities. A qualitative method was used, interviewing five women who have established themselves in the Swedish labor market. Empirical data has been analyzed based on a thematic analysis, against the background of three theoretical perspectives: Bourdieu’s understanding of social capital, Putnam’s understanding of bonding and bridging social capital and Granovetter’s theory focusing on strong and weak ties.  The results of the study show that women perceive certain contacts in their social network as more important for work opportunities than other contacts, and also in a more indirect way than shown in previous studies. As these women experience difficulties acquiring social contacts with natives, their social network consist largely of their partner, in-laws and some contacts with other immigrants. Partners and in-laws turn out to be important, especially during women’s first years in Sweden, for language development, cultural adapation and a first contact with the labor market. Other contacts, such as other immigrants, colleagues or acquaintances do not have much importance for these womens work opportunities. This depends on the quality of these contacts, but also on the fact that the women’s will to live a self-sufficient life, independent of their social contacts, has constituted a strong will-power for seeking and finding work on their own.

Det övergripande syftet med avhandlingen är att beskriva långvarigt sjuka barns upplevelser av tröst samt vilka och vad som tröstar barn, föräldrar och en sjuksköterska. Avhandlingen omfattar fyra delstudier. Långvarigt sjuka barn, föräldrar och en sjuksköterska har intervjuats och barnen har ritat teckningar.I delstudie I var syftet att undersöka vad barn med långvariga sjukdomar berättar muntligt och i teckningar om sina upplevelser av att bli tröstade. Sju barn i åldern 4-10 år, med olika långvariga sjukdomar, beskrev under intervju sina upplevelser av tröst och ritade teckningar. Intervjuerna analyserades med innehållsanalys, vilket utmynnade i fyra teman: att vara fysiskt nära sin familj, att känna sig trygg och säker, att sjuksköterskor finns till hands för barnen och att barnen finns till hands för sina föräldrar och syskon. Resultatet visar att barnen litade på sjuksköterskors kunskap och yrkeskunnande, vilket var en förutsättning för att kunna känna sig trygg och hemma på sjukhus. Att vara nära sin familj upplevdes än mer betydelsefullt för att uppleva tröst. I delstudie II var syftet att beskriva föräldrars upplevelser av vad som tröstar dem när deras barn insjuknat i cancersjukdom. Nio föräldrar till barn i åldern 3-9 år, som var inlagda på vårdavdelning och hade genomgått sin första behandling, intervjuades. Innehållsanalys utmynnade i fem teman: att uppleva tröst genom att vara nära sitt barn, att uppleva tröst genom barnets styrka, att uppleva tröst genom att känna sig hemma på vårdavdelningen, att uppleva tröst genom att vara en familj och genom att vara hemma samt att uppleva tröst genom stöd från sociala nätverk. I kommunion, en djup känsla av gemenskap med barnet och personer i sociala nätverk, upplevde föräldrarna en ny vardag som kännetecknades av att känna sig trygg i livet trots alla svårigheter och de upplevde stunder av hopp. I delstudie III var syftet att beskriva upplevelser av vad som tröstar ett allvarligt sjukt och senare döende barn, berättat av barnet, hans mamma och hans sjuksköterska. Barnet ritade teckningar. Fältanteckningar, teckningar och intervjuer analyserades med innehållsanalys, vilket utmynnade i fyra teman: att uttrycka känslor och bli redo för tröst, att vara i kommunion, att skifta perspektiv och att finna tröst genom att vara hemma. Resultatet visar att tröst för det svårt sjuka, senare döende barnet, innebar att barnet kunde uttrycka sina känslor som barnet ville, att familjen fanns nära och var involverade i omvårdnaden av barnet, att barnet kunde vårdas hemma och att barnet upplevde en förtroendefull relation med sin sjuksköterska. I delstudie IV var syftet att beskriva vem och vad som tröstar föräldrar, syskon, sjuksköterska och andra personer som tröstade ett svårt sjukt och senare döende barn, beskrivet av mamman och barnets sjuksköterska. Intervjuer från delstudie II analyserades med innehållsanalys och utmynnade i tio teman. Resultatet visar en bild av samverkande nätverk som kan finnas runt ett svårt sjukt barn. Den svåra situationen innebar att barnets familj bar en tung börda, men omgivna av ett tröstande nätverk som de kunde luta sig mot och dela lidande och ansvar med, kunde de finna tröst och trösta varandra. Resultatet i avhandlingen visar att de långvarigt sjuka barnen och föräldrarna fann tröst i att kunna dela lidande med varandra. Föräldrar och sjuksköterska fann tröst i att kunna dela lidandet och ansvaret med personer i sina sociala nätverk. Modellen om tröst (Norberg m fl, 2001) kunde användas för att ge struktur till diskussionen. / The overall aim of the thesis was to describe experiences of comfort for children with chronic illnesses, and who and what comforted children, parents and one nurse. The thesis comprises four studies and is based on interviews with sick children, parents and one nurse. The children also made drawings. In study I the aim was to examine how children with chronic illnesses narrate their experiences of being comforted in the hospital. Seven children 4-10 years old described in interviews their experiences of comfort and made drawings. Thematic content analysis revealed four themes: being physically close to one’s family, feeling safe and secure, staff being there for the children, and children being there for parents and siblings. The findings suggest that trusting the staff’s knowledge and professional skills is a prerequisite for children to feel "at home", and safe in hospital. Being close to one’s family was essential for feeling comforted. In study II the aim was to describe what parents narrate as comforting them when their child was suffering from cancer. Interviews were performed with nine parents, eight mothers and one father, of children aged 3-9 years, who were admitted to a pediatric oncology ward and had undergone their first treatment. Content analysis revealed five themes: experiencing comfort from being close to the child, deriving comfort from the child’s strength, from feeling at home on the ward, from being a family and being at home, and deriving comfort from support of social networks. In communion with the child and others, the parents built a new normality perceived as being at home in life, despite all their difficulties. Within the frame of communion the parents experienced moments of hope. In study III the aim was to describe what comforted a seriously ill and finally dying child, as revealed by the child, his mother and his nurse. Field notes, drawings and interviews were analyzed using content analysis that revealed four themes: expressing feelings and becoming ready for comfort, being in communion, shifting perspective and finding comfort in feeling at home. Based on the findings, comfort for an ill and finally dying child was interpreted as being about having opportunities to express feelings in the way the child chooses, the family being close and involved in care, and achieving feelings of being at home and having a trustful relationship with a special nurse. In study IV the aim was to describe who and what comforted the comforters of a seriously ill and ultimately dying child as described by the child’s mother and nurse. Interviews with a mother and a nurse from study III were analyzed by content analysis and a sociogram was outlined. The findings provided a picture of interacting social networks that can exist around a seriously ill child. The difficult situation meant that the child’s family carried a heavy burden. However, surrounded by a comforting network with which they could share both suffering and responsibility, they were able to find comfort and comfort each other. The findings from this thesis show that chronically ill children and parents found comfort from sharing suffering with one another. The parents and the nurse found comfort in sharing suffering and responsibility with persons in their social networks. The model of consolation (Norberg et al, 2001) could be used to give structure to the discussion.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att beskriva hur styrkan i småföretags sociala och professionella nätverk påverkar valet av finansiell bootsrapping, med företagarens ursprung som betingad faktor. Målet med studien är att introducera och ge en generell översikt över orsakssambandet mellan de berörda koncepten. En undersökning genomfördes bland småföretag i Sverige för att identifiera det sociala och professionella nätverkets påverkan på finansiell bootstraping. I undersökningen antogs företagarens ursprung ha en modererande roll. Dessutom ingick en rad kontrollvariabler för att undersöka deras effekt på orsakssambandet. Sålunda ger det en djupare insikt om vilka underliggande individuella och organisatoriska attribut som påverkar företagares val av finansiell bootstrapping. En utökad kunskap för fenomenet finansiell bootstrapping kan ses som ett konkurrenskraftigt hjälpmedel vid egenföretagande. Framförallt blir det påtagligt för småföretagare som stöter på hinder i anskaffningen av externt finansiellt kapital. Denna uppsats baserades på 136 frågeformulär som returneras från småföretagare som är etablerade på den svenska marknaden. Medan resultatet bekräftar vikten av finansiell bootstrapping för småföretag, identifieras ursprungsskillnader i användningen av olika finansiella bootstrappingmetoder. Dessutom identifieras variationer i invandrare och inföddas användning av sociala och professionella nätverk. Vidare upptäcker vi att styrkan i småföretags nätverk har en positiv påverkan på finansiell bootstrapping. Däremot när ursprung antas ha en modererande effekt ges blandade resultat. Sålunda indikerar resultatet på att det finns vissa likheter i invandrare och infödda företagares finansieringsbeteende

<p>The purpose of this study was to increase knowledge about what the lives of the unemployed youth of immigrant background looks like, and what the views of the unemployed young people are about work and employment. The study is a qualitative study where the empirical material is based on interviews with seven unemployed immigrant youth between the ages of 19 and 25 years. A study where the central questions was to explore how the informants' living conditions and identity are affected by being unemployed. The other issues aimed at how informants background affected their ability to enter the labour market, and the job expectations the informants had about the future and the Swedish labour market. Empirin have been analyzed with regard to methodology tool based theory, as well as theoretical starting points, such as social capital, formal and informal channels, ethnicity and stigma theory. The result is shown in five different disciplines on the basis of informants experiences of the situation they are in. These topics are <em>The unemployment and welfare</em>, <em>The social network's importance</em>, <em>The foreign name the obstacles</em>, <em>The road to the labour market</em> and finally, <em>The social environment</em>. The results show that informants welfare was affected in a destructive way when informants experienced a lack of employment. Informants perceived that the social network's importance was very prominent in the labour market, which proved, however, that informants social networks were very limited and without a resource for them. The result also shows that the majority of informants had been discriminated against by employers. A crucial factor for this form of discrimination were informants background and the foreign name. Road to the labour market was perceived stressful when the economic situation in the country was unstable and in decline. The results suggest that the informants had to lower their job expectations when they could not change the situation. Moreover, it appeared to indicate that ambient performances that immigrant segregated areas are perceived as socially vulnerable, both as a social problem for society. Informants self-image was negatively affected by the social environment perceptions of immigrants segregated neighbourhoods, which were seen by informants as a contributing factor that made their job opportunities more difficult.</p>

The purpose of this study was to increase knowledge about what the lives of the unemployed youth of immigrant background looks like, and what the views of the unemployed young people are about work and employment. The study is a qualitative study where the empirical material is based on interviews with seven unemployed immigrant youth between the ages of 19 and 25 years. A study where the central questions was to explore how the informants' living conditions and identity are affected by being unemployed. The other issues aimed at how informants background affected their ability to enter the labour market, and the job expectations the informants had about the future and the Swedish labour market. Empirin have been analyzed with regard to methodology tool based theory, as well as theoretical starting points, such as social capital, formal and informal channels, ethnicity and stigma theory. The result is shown in five different disciplines on the basis of informants experiences of the situation they are in. These topics are The unemployment and welfare, The social network's importance, The foreign name the obstacles, The road to the labour market and finally, The social environment. The results show that informants welfare was affected in a destructive way when informants experienced a lack of employment. Informants perceived that the social network's importance was very prominent in the labour market, which proved, however, that informants social networks were very limited and without a resource for them. The result also shows that the majority of informants had been discriminated against by employers. A crucial factor for this form of discrimination were informants background and the foreign name. Road to the labour market was perceived stressful when the economic situation in the country was unstable and in decline. The results suggest that the informants had to lower their job expectations when they could not change the situation. Moreover, it appeared to indicate that ambient performances that immigrant segregated areas are perceived as socially vulnerable, both as a social problem for society. Informants self-image was negatively affected by the social environment perceptions of immigrants segregated neighbourhoods, which were seen by informants as a contributing factor that made their job opportunities more difficult.