Publikationer från Karlstads Universitet
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Fallville : A Perspective on an Interactive Pedagogical Tool to Enhance Understanding and Implementation of Fall-Compliant Flooring
No full text Fall-compliant flooring represents a passive fall preventative approach that has emerged as an effective intervention for reducing fall-related injuries, yet its adoption remains limited due to insufficient understanding among end-users and key stakeholders. To address this knowledge gap, this perspective article provides a proof-of-concept for an interactive pedagogical tool designed to use gamification principles to improve understanding of the mechanical behavior of fall-compliant flooring. This two-part perspective article first establishes the scientific foundation through controlled ball drop experiments comparing energy dissipation between fall-compliant and standard flooring. Through video-based tracking analysis, the experiments quantified kinetic energy and force dissipation across spatial and temporal dimensions. Results revealed that fall-compliant flooring exhibits significantly superior spatiotemporal energy dissipation capabilities compared to standard flooring across both force and kinetic energy metrics. Building on these findings, the second part proposes a conceptual framework for a pedagogical tool that translates these experimental insights into an interactive learning experience that could, in future implementations, allow users to conduct hands-on ball drop activities supported by real-time scientific explanations. This approach transforms complex biomechanical concepts into accessible, engaging learning experiences. By combining experiential learning with gamified elements, this tool, termed “Fallville”, has the potential to increase fall-injury prevention awareness, deepen understanding of fall-compliant flooring mechanisms, and ultimately accelerate adoption of this proven safety intervention in healthcare and residential settings
Public Procurement Review Procedures and the Validity of Contracts : A Study on the Impact of Public Procurement Law and Accounting Law in Public Procurement
No full textThis dissertation examines the assessment of harm in public procurement and how annual reports are utilised as proof in review procedures. Within the framework of a review, the court must determine whether a breach of public procurement legislation has negatively affected a supplier’s opportunity to compete. The dissertation shows that the financial statements used in procurement procedures are designed for purposes and users other than contracting authorities. Moreover, there are differences in the accounting standards which can entail competitive disadvantages for small and mid-sized companies participating in procurements. In order to adapt public procurement to also these companies, contracting authorities need to be aware of these legal differences and accept alternative means of proof. At the same time, suppliers must be diligent in assessing whether their financial reports need to be supplemented with other evidence. The dissertation also highlights the significance of the duty to object for the effectiveness of procurement rules, and comparisons are made with the duty to mitigate loss applicable in damages cases. Furthermore, the study addresses how courts assess harm in various situations, which is crucial if a court is to intervene against a contracting authority. Finally, fundamental issues such as effective application, the right to effective remedies, the concept of harm and damages, and the promotion of competition within procurement law are analysed.I denna avhandling undersöks skadeprövningens roll vid offentlig upphandling och hur årsredovisningar används som utredningsmaterial i överprövningsprocesser. Inom ramen för en överprövning ska förvaltningsdomstolen ta ställning till om en överträdelse av upphandlingsreglerna har påverkat leverantörers möjligheter att konkurrera på ett negativt sätt. Granskningen visar att de finansiella rapporter som används i upphandlingar ofta är utformade för andra syften och användare än upphandlande myndigheter. Vidare förekommer skillnader i redovisningsstandarderna som företagen tillämpar för att upprätta finansiella rapporter, vilket kan medföra konkurrensnackdelar för små och medelstora företag som deltar i upphandlingar. För att offentlig upphandling i högre grad ska anpassas till dessa företag behöver myndigheter ha insikt om de rättsliga skillnaderna och tillåta att de mindre företagen får lämna alternativa bevis. Samtidigt bör leverantörer själva vara noggranna med att undersöka om de finansiella rapporterna behöver kompletteras med annan bevisning. I avhandlingen belyses även påtalandeskyldighetens betydelse för upphandlingsreglernas genomslag och jämförelser görs med skadebegränsningsskyldigheten som gäller i de upphandlingsrättsliga skadeståndsmålen. Vidare behandlas hur förvaltningsdomstolarna hanterar skadeprövningen i olika situationer. Avslutningsvis analyseras grundläggande frågor som effektiv tillämpning, rätten till effektiva rättsmedel, skadebegrepp och främjande av konkurrens i upphandlingsrätten
To meet the needs of many... : A qualitative study on how special educators perceive their professional role in preschool
No full textSyftet med denna studie är att bidra med kunskap om hur specialpedagoger beskriver sin yrkesroll i förskolan. Då det är specialpedagogernas olika uppfattningar som står i centrum, använder sig studien av en fenomenografisk metodansats. Som datainsamlingsmetod har semistrukturerade intervjuer genomförts med nio specialpedagoger. I resultatet identifieras fem kategorier, som belyser fenomenet specialpedagogers beskrivningar av sin yrkesroll i förskolan, i form av enskilda barns behov av stöd, stöd i barngruppen, stöd till arbetslagen, stöd till rektor samt stöd i samarbetet med externa aktörer. Kategorierna relaterar till varandra i en skala från individnivå till aktörsnivå. Det framkommer i resultatet att specialpedagoger arbetar förebyggande genom att skapa relationer till barnen, något som i sin tur bidrar till en ökad förståelse för barnens behov. Det framträder även att närvaro i verksamheten skapar förutsättningar för att kunna stötta barngruppen på ett övergripande sätt. I resultatet påvisas att handledning tillsammans med arbetslagen är centralt för att skapa samsyn. Specialpedagoger har även ett nära samarbete med rektor samt olika externa aktörer. I resultatet framträder möjligheter i form av att specialpedagogen kan bidra med fördjupad kunskap och nya perspektiv, samtidigt påvisas utmaningar i att inte räcka till samt att yrkesrollen kan upplevas som ensam. Studiens slutsatser är att specialpedagogens uppdrag i förskolan innefattar att utgöra olika former av stöd till flera parter. Beskrivningarna av yrkesrollen kan sammanfattningsvis bidra till fältet genom att skapa en samförståelse för det specialpedagogiska uppdraget, då det inte finns några tydliga beskrivningar om vad yrkesrollen faktiskt innebär.The purpose of this study is to contribute knowledge about how special education teachers describes their professional role in preschools. Since the focus is on the different perceptions of special education teachers, a phenomenographic approach was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine special education teachers as the data collection method. The results identify five categories, that illustrate the phenomenon special education teachers descriptions of their professional role in preschool, as support for individual children, support within the child group, support for teaching teams, support for the principal and support in collaboration with external actors. These categories relate to one another along a scale ranging from an individual level to an actor level. The results show that special education teachers work preventively by building relationships with children, which in turn contributes to an increased understanding of their needs. It also emerges that being present in the daily practice creates conditions for supporting the child group in an overall manner. The results demonstrate that guidance with the teaching team is central to create consensus. Special education teachers also have a close collaboration with the principal and external actors. The results show opportunities in terms of contributing specialised knowledge and offering new perspectives, while challenges include feelings of not being able to meet all expectations and experiencing the role as solitary. The study concludes that the special education teachers role includes various forms of support for several parties. Overall, the descriptions of the role may contribute to the field by creating a shared understanding of the special educational assignment, particularly given the lack of clear definitions of what the role entails.
Registered nurse’s leadership close to older adults in municipal home healthcare
No full textBackground The number of older adults in need of care is expected to increase, as is the care provided in older adults’ homes. This highlights the need to strengthen nursing leadership. In municipal home healthcare, registered nurses (RNs) lead nursing care and there is a need for increased knowledge about RNs’ leadership. Aims The overall aim was to explore RNs’ leadership close to older adults in municipal home healthcare. Specific aims were to: explore and compare RNs’ perceptions of their leadership close to older adults, as well as to correlate their perceptions with age and work experience (I); explore RNs’ perceptions of challenges and suggestions for improvements in their leadership close to older adults (II); explore RNs’ experiences of their leadership close to older adults (III); and explore care staff’s experiences of RNs’ leadership close to older adults (IV). Methods A web-based questionnaire and descriptive and analytical statistics were used (I). Open-ended questions were analysed using descriptive statistics and qualitative content analysis (II). Focus groups were analysed with qualitative content analysis (III). Individual interviews were analysed with reflexive thematic analysis (IV). Results RNs as leaders close to older adults strived to lead with the older adult in focus, strived to build relationships as a basis for leadership and bridge organizational gaps to promote good and safe home healthcare. Conclusions RNs’ leadership in home healthcare is essential for the care of older adults. RNs build their leadership on relationships. RNs’ leadership close to older adults implies striving to bridge organizational gaps. These gaps need to be addressed, which go beyond the individual RNs. Municipal governance and healthcare organizations must promote preconditions for good and safe home healthcare. Municipalities, healthcare organizations and nursing education must be prepared to develop and support strong leadership. Registered nurses in home healthcare are responsible for and lead nursing care. This thesis explored registered nurses’ leadership close to older adults, next of kin, and care staff in municipal home healthcare. The results showed that registered nurses as leaders close to the older adults in municipal home healthcare strived to lead with the older adult in focus and strived to build relationships as the basis for leadership. The registered nurses’ leadership implied striving to bridge organizational gaps to promote good and safe home healthcare for older adults. The organizational gaps need to be addressed, which goes beyond the individual registered nurse. Municipal governance and healthcare organizations must promote preconditions for facilitating registered nurses’ leadership and ensuring good and safe home healthcare. Communication and collaboration between registered nurses and care staff in social service need to be improved for the benefit of older adults’ care. This thesis highlights registered nurses’ leadership and promotes strengthened nursing leaders
"The golden middle path" : A qualitative study on preschool teachers’ perceptions of children’s influence in the physical indoor environment
No full textDenna studie syftar till att bidra med kunskap om förskollärares uppfattningar av barns inflytande i den fysiska inomhusmiljön. Datainsamlingen genomfördes med kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer tillsammans med åtta förskollärare som är verksamma i fyra olika kommuner. Resultatet har analyserats fram med en fenomenografisk metodansats som belyser en skala bestående av fem kategorier: styrt inflytande, riktat inflytande, delat inflytande, självständigt inflytande och fritt inflytande. Skalan beskriver i vilken grad barnen får inflytande i den fysiska inomhusmiljön utifrån förskollärarnas uppfattningar. Resultatet belyser även tre faktorer som påverkar huruvida barnen ges inflytande i den fysiska miljön. Faktorerna är barnens olika åsikter, barnens ålder och risker som begränsar barns inflytande i miljön. Dessa faktorer begränsar barnens inflytande i den fysiska inomhusmiljön.This study aims to contribute knowledge about preschool teachers’ perceptions of children’s influence in the physical indoor environment. Data were collected through qualitative semi-structured interviews with eight preschool teachers working in four different municipalities. The results have been analyzed using a phenomenographic method approach, which highlights a scale consisting of five categories: controlled influence, directed influence, shared influence, independent influence and free influence. The scale describes the degree to which children are given influence in the physical indoor environment, based on the preschool teachers’ perceptions. The results also identify three factors that affect whether children are given influence in the physical environment. The identified factors are children’s different opinions, children’s age and risks that limit children’s influence in the environment. These factors limit children’s influence in the physical indoor environment
Language Development in Multilingual Preschool Groups : A Qualitative Study on Teachers' Strategies for Linguistic Inclusion in Early Childhood Education
No full textSyftet med studien var att undersöka hur förskollärare arbetar med att stödjabarns språkutveckling i flerspråkiga barngrupper samt vilka strategier somanvänds för att skapa språkliga inkludering av barns modersmål. Studien targrund i ett sociokulturellt perspektiv på lärande, där språk ses som något somutvecklas i det sociala med andra och med hjälp av olika kommunikativaredskap.Studien genomfördes med en kvalitativ metod med hjälp av semistruktureradeintervjuer med fem verksamma förskollärare med erfarenhet av flerspråkigabarn. Empirin analyserades med hjälp av en tematiskt analys, vilket gav flerateman kopplat till förskollärarnas språkfrämjande arbete.Resultatet visar att förskollärare i hög grad använder multimodala strategierför att stödja barns språkutveckling, där gester, kroppsspråk, bilder, materialfungerar som kompletterande verktyg till det verbala språket. Språkutvecklingframkom som något som sker kontinuerligt i förskolans vardag genom lek,rutinsituationer och samtal. Vidare uppmärksammades barns ickeverbalakommunikation som en central del av deras språkliga delaktighet. När detgäller modersmål visar resultatet att detta främst synliggörs genombegreppsarbete och samverkan med vårdnadshavare, medan förskolläraresmöjligheter till att själva använda barns modersmål ofta begränsas avorganisatoriska och språkliga förutsättningar.Studiens slutsats är att språklig inkludering i flerspråkiga barngrupper i höggrad är beroende av förskollärarnas inställning gentemot arbetet samt derasförhållningsätt och användning av multimodala strategier, snarare än kunskapi barns olika språk. The aim of this study was to examine how preschool teachers work to supportchildren’s language development in multilingual preschool groups and whichstrategies are used to promote linguistic inclusion of children’s mothertongues. The study is grounded in a sociocultural perspective on learning, inwhich language is viewed as developing through social interaction and the useof various communicative tools.The study employed a qualitative approach using semi-structured interviewswith five preschool teachers who have experience working with multilingualchildren. The empirical data were analyzed using thematic analysis, whichresulted in several themes related to preschool teachers’ language-supportingpractices.The results show that preschool teachers frequently use multimodal strategiesto support children’s language development, where gestures, body language,images, and materials function as complementary tools to spoken language.Language development was described as a continuous process embedded ineveryday preschool activities such as play, routines, and conversations. Inaddition, children’s non-verbal communication was highlighted as an aspect oflinguistic participation. Regarding the use of mother tongues, the resultsindicate that these are mainly made visible through concept development andcollaboration with guardians, while preschool teachers’ opportunities toactively use children’s mother tongues are often limited by organizational andlinguistic constraints.The conclusion of the study is that linguistic inclusion in multilingualpreschool groups depends on preschool teachers’ attitudes towards the workand their pedagogical approach, particularly the use of multimodal strategies,rather than on their knowledge of children’s different languages
Selling Local – Scrubbing Global : Introducing Placewashing as a Concept in Media, Communication, and Geomedia Research
No full textThis thesis introduces placewashing as a critical yet underdeveloped concept in media, communication, and geomedia research. Despite the extensive scholarly and regulatory attention directed toward established “-washing” practices such as greenwashing, the strategic manipulation of place identities for commercial or political advantage remains conceptually marginal. To address this gap, the study investigates why placewashing lacks discursive traction and proposes an analytical framework for understanding its dynamics. Guided by a constructivist, geomedia-informed approach, the research employs a sequential mixed-methods design consisting of (1) a systematic literature review mapping existing “-washing” research; (2) a qualitative case study of five Swedish companies who use place-names in their brand-names (Göteborgs Kex, Hernö Gin, Järnaglass, Skeppshult and Västerbottens- såpa); and (3) an integrative synthesis using the proposed -Washing Traction Model to explain disparities in academic and institutional attention. Empirical material includes corporate self-presentations and responses from relevant municipalities as well as the Swedish Consumer Agency (Konsumentverket). Findings reveal a pronounced imbalance between discourses, where greenwashing dominates both research and regulation, while placewashing receives little recognition. The case analysis shows that corporate engagements with place range from symbiotic (e.g., Västerbottenssåpa, Skeppshult) to parasitic (e.g., Järnaglass, Göteborgskex), depending on whether production practices sustain or disconnect from the places invoked. Institutional stakeholders likewise overlook placewashing as a regulatory concern, underscoring its conceptual invisibility. The thesis argues that placewashing offers a more comprehensive analytic lens than the narrower notion of localwashing, capturing how place identities are strategically misrepresented, erased, or selectively reconfigured through media and communication. A working definition is proposed to support future research and policy development. By foregrounding the tension between visibility and erasure in the mediated production of place, the study demonstrates the need for placewashing to achieve discursive legitimacy comparable to greenwashing in order to ensure accountability for the use – and misuse – of place
Parent-Reported Child Physical Abuse in Bangladesh : A Cross-Sectional Study
No full textBackground Self-reported child abuse is highly prevalent in rural Bangladesh, but caregiver-reported rates have not yet been explored. Purpose To investigate caregiver’s self-reported child physical abuse (PA) practices and estimate the prevalence of gender-specific PA among children in rural Bangladesh. Methods A total of 1418 caregivers were randomly recruited from a population-based surveillance area in a northwestern district of Bangladesh. Data was collected from April 1 to May 31, 2017, using the ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tool-Parent (ICAST-P) to collect data. Past-year (PY) prevalence was calculated by categorizing all forms of PA into any versus no exposure in the past year. For lifetime prevalence, different forms of PA were categorized based on any versus no exposure either in the past year or at any point in time. Multiple logistic regression was employed to estimate the risk factors of physical abuse among children. Ethical approval was obtained from Bangladesh and Sweden. Results Moderate physical abuse (PA) was reported in 92% and 94% of cases in PY and LT, respectively, with severe forms reported in 15% and 18%. Male children were more likely to be subjected to hitting with objects, ear twisting, and beating (P < .05), while females were more likely to experience burning (P < .05). Risk factors for PA included male gender (OR = 1.36, 95% CI = 1.08–1.71), older age (OR = 1.06, 95% CI = 1.03–1.09) and developmental delays (OR = 3.02, 95% CI = 1.87–4.88), living with biological parents (OR = 3.82; 95% CI: 2.24–6.52), caregivers’ financial problems (OR = 2.70, CI = 1.72 to 4.23), childhood victimization of caregivers, male parents with lower education, low socioeconomic status, perceived poor health, and belief in corporal punishment. Conclusions PA is a common form of harsh parental disciplinary action in Bangladesh. Both boys and girls are victims of PA
From flannel board stories to Polyglutt : A survey study of preschool teachers’ views on reading aloud in preschool
No full textThe aim of this study is to contribute knowledge about how preschool teachers perceive their work with reading aloud activities in preschool. The research questions address which didactic choices preschool teachers make when conducting reading aloud sessions, to what extent reading aloud activities take place, and which challenges preschool teachers experience in relation to reading aloud practices. The study is grounded in sociocultural theory and draws on the concepts of mediation, scaffolding, and artefacts. Data was collected through a survey created in Survey&Report and answered by 47 preschool teachers. The survey consisted of six closed-ended questions and five open-ended questions, enabling a combination of quantitative and qualitative data. The closed-ended questions were analyzed using frequency tables and bar charts, while the open-ended questions were used to deepen and elaborate on the results. The results were analyzed based on three main themes that highlight preschool teachers’ didactic choices, preschool teachers’ views on reading aloud activities and challenges related to reading aloud practices. The findings show that physical books are the most commonly used tool, while digital tools are used to a more limited extent following the revision of the preschool curriculum (Skolverket, 2025). Preschool teachers’ didactic choices emerge as a crucial aspect of interactive reading aloud activities, where multiple tools are used to increase children’s participation. Furthermore, the results indicate that reading aloud activities are perceived to have a positive impact on children’s language development, particularly in terms of vocabulary, imagination and communicative abilities. At the same time, challenges related to reading aloud activities are identified including staff shortages, lack of time, large child groups, and disruptive elements. These factors affect the conditions for implementing read-aloud activities to the desired extent