Mid Sweden University
Not a member yet
15329 research outputs found
Sort by
"Är jag inte trygg, så kan jag heller inte lära” : En kvalitativ intervjustudie om förskollärares uppfattningar och beskrivningar av trygghet i förskolan
No full textSyftet med studien var att undersöka förskollärares förståelse av begreppet trygghet i förskolans verksamhet och hur förskollärare beskriver trygghet som faktor för lärande och utveckling. Det här är en kvalitativ studie med semistrukturerade intervjuer som metod. Det intervjuades sex förskollärare från fem olika förskolor i Sverige och det inspelade datamaterialet från intervjuerna transkriberades och analyserades induktivt. Den teoretiska utgångspunkten för föreliggande studie är ett sociokulturellt perspektiv som blev betydande i diskussionen där resultatet behandlats i förhållande till det teoretiska ramverket och den tidigare forskningen. Resultatet visade att intervjupersonerna värderade tryggheten högt och såg det som grunden för barns lärande och utveckling. Intervjupersonerna beskrev även att trygghetsarbetet arbetas med aktivt på olika sätt även om det inte fanns något specifikt trygghetsarbete uttalat på deras arbetsplatser. En del av intervjupersonerna framförde en önskan om att samtalen kring tryggheten skulle behöva ske på ett mer nyanserat sätt där hela personalstyrkan i förskoleverksamheten är deltagande för att tillsammans skapa en tydligare gemensam syn kring trygghetsarbetet. I resultatet framgår det även att planering av trygghetsarbetet många gånger hamnar i skuggan av planering av det akademiska lärandet. Vidare i resultatet framfördes det sociala samspelet och användandet av mindre gruppkonstellationer har betydelse för barns trygghet, utveckling och lärande samt för barnens trygghet till miljön och materialet. Vidare i diskussionen framkommer det att mycket hänger samman mellan tidigare forskning och vad resultatet visade. Något överraskande som diskuteras var att relationer och anknytning inte var lika framträdande i intervjuerna som förväntat utifrån den tidigare forskningen. Däremot framkommer det att socialt samspel som faktor för trygghet var mer framträdande vilket synliggjorde ett samband mellan trygghetsarbetet och det sociokulturella perspektivet.Betyg i Ladok 2025-01-15</p
Barns motstånd som möjlighet för demokrati : En intervjustudie med förskolepedagoger
No full textDenna studie syftar till att bidra till en vidgad syn på motstånd som något mer än problematiskt. Detta genom att kritiskt granska rådande normer kring pedagogers beskrivningar om barns motstånd utifrån ett demokratiskt perspektiv. Med detta önskar studien generera kunskap kring hur demokratisyn och syn på motstånd påverkar barns rättighet att göra sin röst hörd. Studien önskar därför inte bidra till en exakt definition av motstånd utan undersöker hur olika syn på motstånd får konsekvenser för barns handlingsmöjligheter i förskolan. Studien använder en kvalitativ metod och undersöker hur pedagoger samtalar om samt beskriver att de bemöter barn som uttrycker motstånd. Studien undersöker även vilka möjligheter och utmaningar som pedagogerna upplever finns kring barns motstånd i förskolan och demokrati. Data samlas in genom individuella berättelser, fokusgruppintervju samt telefonintervju. Det empiriska materialet analyseras sedan utifrån ett normkritiskt perspektiv, Mouffe demokratiska perspektiv samt Dolks tolkning av Foucault perspektiv på makt och motstånd. Utifrån studiens resultat får vi kunskap kring att det dels finns kvar begränsande föreställningar kring barns motstånd i förskolan, dels att demokratisyn och barnsyn blir avgörande för om motstånd ses som en möjlighet eller utmaning i förskolan. I studien blir det tydligt att det är pedagogerna som har makten att avgöra vad som anses normalt och därigenom norm i förskolan. Därigenom har pedagogerna makten att antingen välkomna och möta motstånd med dialog eller avvisa som något avvikande och problematiskt. I studien framkommer tre förhållningsätt till motstånd; som något problematiskt som bör korrigeras med pedagogernas överordnade makt, motstånd som kuvas genom konsensus samt motstånd som barnens rättighet och möjlighet för lärtillfällen för demokrati och socialt samspel. Studiens slutsats kommer fram till för att möta barns motstånd i enlighet med skollagen och barnkonventionen krävs ett skifte där barnses som likvärdiga vuxna samt en demokratisyn där motstånd värderas. Först då kan barnen bli kompetenta aktiva kunskapsskapare och inte enbart passiva följare, vilket är en grundförutsättning i ett demokratiskt samhälle.Betyg i Ladok 2025-01-15</p
A cluster-based opposition differential evolution algorithm boosted by a local search for ECG signal classification
No full textElectrocardiogram (ECG) signals, which capturethe heart's electrical activity, are used to diagnose and monitor cardiac problems. The accurate classification of ECG signals, particularly for distinguishing among various types of arrhythmias and myocardial infarctions, is crucial for the early detection and treatment of heart-related diseases. This paper proposes a novel approach based on an improved differential evolution (DE) algorithm for ECG signal classification for enhancing the performance. In the initial stages of our approach, the preprocessing step is followed by the extraction of several significant features from the ECG signals. These extracted features are then provided as inputs to an enhanced multi-layer perceptron (MLP). While MLPs are still widely used for ECG signal classification, using gradient-based training methods, the most widely used algorithm for the training process, has significant disadvantages, such as the possibility of being stuck in local optimums. This paper employs an enhanced differential evolution (DE) algorithm for the training process as one of the most effective population-based algorithms. To this end, we improved DE based on a clustering-based strategy, opposition-based learning, and a local search. Clustering-based strategies can act as crossover operators, while the goal of the opposition operator is to improve the exploration of the DE algorithm. The weights and biases found by the improved DE algorithm are then fed into six gradient-based local search algorithms. In other words, the weights found by the DE are employed as an initialization point. Therefore, we introduced six different algorithms for the training process (in terms of different local search algorithms). In an extensive set of experiments, we showed that our proposed training algorithm could provide better results than the conventional training algorithms.
The contribution to forest conservation and restoration in Sweden of small, protected patches on private forest land
No full textIn forest regions worldwide, the extent of industrial forestry footprint challenges biodiversity conservation and calls for advanced protection and ecological restoration. The conservation efficiency of protected areas needs to be improved, and forest ecosystems need to be set in a state that favors biodiversity, resilience, and provisioning of ecosystem services. Sweden hosts a large share of the European forests, with dominance of non-industrial forest ownership and extensive forestry footprint, hence with a strong need for expanded conservation, restoration, and multiple-use targets. Protection through voluntary Nature Conservation Agreements and regulated Biotope Protection Areas exists since the 1990s, supported by economic compensation to landowners. Across entire Sweden and all ecoregions, we assessed their abundance over a 30-year period, including forest types, restoration practices, rotation intervals, and selection of tree species. These nearly 14,000 patches covering over 70,000 ha are small with a median area of 3-4 ha and rarely larger than 20 ha. Their contribution is important, particularly in southern Sweden with low and fragmented forest cover distributed among many different owners. A decreasing trend in protection is alarming since these contribute to representative forest type across the forest landscape of Sweden. Active restoration dominates over passive set-asides; coniferous forest types are less represented than more rare forest types, many different tree species are favored, and different restoration practices occur, but with few dominating. While recognizing the important contribution, we find that the restoration practices are narrow and repetitive and that a greater diversification is needed to improve conservation and multiple-use targets of forests
Narratives of change in sexuality education : an analysis of Swedish lower secondary level textbooks
No full textSexuality is a key aspect of life and health, and representations of historical change are a central part of sexuality education. This article examines how narratives of change are constructed in textbook content on sexuality. Its aim is to analyse narratives of change as portrayed in Swedish textbooks for early teenagers. Data were collected from Swedish textbooks and analysed using thematic analysis. Key findings included a tendency towards the use of teleological narratives of change alongside 'non-controversial' utopian goals. Change regarding sex and sexuality was commonly constructed as moving from discrimination to tolerance, and from beliefs to knowledge. The textbooks seldom discussed the political dimensions of change and were frequently marked by a consensus-orientation, obscuring underlying conflicts. These factors limit the abilities of textbooks to support the development of action competence among young people regarding sex and sexuality
The Action of Language : An Analysis of The Handmaid’s Tale
No full textThis essay explores the interplay between language and authority in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, underlining its double function as an instrument of subjugation and a form of defiance. Set in the dystopian society of Gilead, the narrative focuses on Offred, a Handmaid whose identity is reduced to her capacity to bear children. This paper applies feminist and post-structuralist lenses to argue that Gilead's manipulative use of language serves to maintain patriarchal power structures, denying women their humanity and erasing personhood and selfdetermination. Creating a systematic regulation of discourse, the regime establishes a rigid linguistic structure that inhibits articulation, further reinforcing gender roles. In direct contrast, Offred's narrations and acts of linguistic subversion contest this oppressive system and recover agency and a sense of identity for herself. Through an examination of linguistic dynamics in Gilead, this essay highlights narrative's capacity to operate as a means of resistance against totalitarian oppression by demonstrating that language functions not only as a tool but also as a necessary agent in the process of reality and identity construction. In the final analysis, Atwood's work offers a deep critique of patriarchal structures while at the same time celebrating the subversive abilities of language in the reclamation of voice and autonomy
Religious rhetoric in Trump’s presidential campaigns : A Critical Discourse Analysis of key Trump speeches
No full textAm I safe around you? : Attachment figure activation increases perceived security but does not reduce negative interpretations of neutral expressions
No full textChild maltreatment (CM) is associated with social problems, such as loneliness and isolation. One factor that might contribute to these problems is the tendency for individuals who have experienced CM to interpret neutral facial expressions as negative (i.e., negativity bias). Previous research has shown that mental representations of an attachment figure (AF) can lead to positive evaluations of neutral stimuli. We assessed whether such representations can also counteract negativity bias among individuals who experienced CM. Adults (N = 159) with and without a CM history completed a facial emotion recognition task. Prior to that, 53 participants with a CM history imagined an AF, and the rest (n = 49), as well as controls with no CM history (n = 57), imagined a neutral person. Participants in the AF group, d = 0.36, p <.001, but not the two other groups, demonstrated increased self-reported security in response to the imagination task. However, imagining an AF did not lead to stronger vagal responses to the imagination task than imagining a neutral person nor did it counteract negativity bias; compared to controls, individuals who experienced CM interpreted neutral expressions more often as contempt, βs.46–.48; ps =.016–.019, regardless of whether they imagined an AF or a neutral person. Thus, imagining an AF may be a helpful intervention to increase momentary feelings of security in individuals with a CM history. However, alternative—possibly body-oriented—interventions and their potential to reduce socially relevant alterations (e.g., negativity bias) on a behavioral level should be explored.
Managers’ Use of Organizational Resources when Supporting Employees with Common Mental Disorders : A Swedish Qualitative Study
No full textPurpose: Among the diverse tasks of managers, handling employees with common mental disorders (CMDs) is perceived as particularly challenging. Little is known about the organizational resources that managers use in these situations. The aim of this study was to explore the organizational resources that managers use when handling employees with CMDs and how they experience their use. Methods: An interview study inspired by the critical incident technique was designed. Swedish managers (n = 35) were recruited if they were managers in a private company with at least 50 employees and had experience supporting one or more employees with a CMD in the last 2 years. An incident was defined as a situation when a manager needed to support an employee with a CMD. Results: The analysis revealed managers’ use of seven kinds of resources, and how the resource helped or hindered support to employees: (1) routines and structures; (2) frames for action; (3) training and education; (4) expert functions; (5) safety representatives from worker unions; (6) social support from colleagues and management; (7) interaction with employees. Secondary findings were personal and external resources, widening the study’s organizational focus. Conclusions: This study is one of the first to explore managers’ real-life experiences of the support available in their organization when managing employees with CMDs. Managers’ experiences may help organizations provide structures for the management of individual cases of CMD at work. Resources flexible to the needs of managers in specific situations were experienced as supportive by participants in this study.
Accessibility, usability and universal design - still confusing? : Harmonisation of key concepts describing person-environment interaction to create conditions for participation
No full textPurposeTo contribute to an in-depth understanding of how the concepts accessibility, usability, and universal design interact and can be harmonised to create conditions for participation in the 21st century.Material and MethodsIdeas, empirical research, and selected literature from health science, engineering, and design constituted the material for a scientifically grounded analysis.ResultsWe describe recent developments, how the concepts relate to and complement each other, and the synergies they create. Reflecting on the lack of clarity in their application, we argue that definitions are crucial and that the concepts can be combined and harmonised in a synergistic entity: The participation of all is the ultimate goal of society. Universal Design is the value-based vision and approach to design grounded in human rights that, through intersectionality and involvement, should permeate all aspects of society to create the best possible conditions for participation for all citizens. Accessibility and usability are tools for operationalising and translating universal design into practice, applicable at the individual, group, and societal levels.ConclusionIntended for implementation at all these levels, we propose a harmonised model where the concepts are explicitly defined and closely connected, with each other and the conditions to reach participation at scale