Malmö University
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Becoming Elsewhere : Latin American Migrants’ Narratives of Identityand Belonging in Europe
No full textThis thesis explores how Latin American migrants in Europe construct and express theiridentities while navigating emotional legitimacy, resilience, and pluralism withinpostcolonial power structures. Drawing on narrative identity theory, affect theory,existential phenomenology, and the concept of coloniality of power, I investigate howmigrants experience and negotiate belonging, recognition, and emotional expression incontexts shaped by racialized histories and structural inequalities.The research combines three methodological approaches: in-depth narrative interviewswith Latin American migrants across European countries; digital ethnography focused onmemes that reflect shared emotional experiences; and autoethnographic reflectioninformed by my migration journey. Together, these methods enable an analysis that isparticipatory and situated, aligned with the principles of Communication forDevelopment, which values lived experience, voice, and co-created knowledge. Thisperspective treats migrant narratives not as anecdotal but as meaningful contributions tounderstanding identity and belonging in motion.The findings reveal that migrants often perform emotional resilience to meet socialexpectations, while simultaneously carrying conflicting and often unspoken emotions,also defined as emotional pluralism. Expressions of discomfort are frequently withhelddue to perceived expectations of gratitude, raising questions about emotional legitimacyand the right to express complex and contradictory feelings.Rather than presenting a singular narrative of adaptation or success, this study highlightsthe ongoing emotional labor involved in migration and suggests that identity is not fixed,but continuously reconfigured through storytelling, silence, and embodied affect.Migrants are not merely adapting to new environments; they are also reshaping themthrough presence, humor, and everyday participation.Ultimately, I argue for communication and development frameworks that recognizeemotion not as peripheral, but as central to how migrants live, interpret, and transformtheir place in the world
Outdoor kitchens in turn-of-the-century environments: Design for sustainability and function in historic outdoor spaces : Circular Design for Turn-of-the-Century Houses and Red Cottages
No full textDenna kandidatuppsats undersöker hur ett utekök kan designas för att passa in i äldre husmiljöer och samtidigt uppfylla moderna krav på funktionalitet, hållbarhet och flexibilitet. Köket är tänkt att underlätta hanteringen av egenodlade grönsaker samt att uppmuntra till matlagning med växtbaserade råvaror. Målet har varit att kombinera cirkulära designprinciper med estetiska uttryck från sekelskiftesarkitektur, för att skapa en produkt som både harmonierar med sin omgivning och möter dagens behov. Genom intervjuer, enkäter och workshops identifierades användarnas önskemål – främst behovet av anpassningsbarhet, arbetsytor och vatten. Resultatet blev ett modulärt utekök där användaren kan välja mellan funktioner som diskho, förvaring och arbetsytor beroende på utrymme och behov. Materialvalet – bland annat furu, rostfritt stål och granit – har gjorts med fokus på hållbarhet, lokal tillgänglighet och återbruk. Konstruktionen är demonterbar för att förenkla underhåll och uppgradering. Estetiskt knyter designen an till traditionella förrådsbyggnader genom detaljer som panel och smidesinspirerade beslag, vilket gör att köket smälter in i miljöer med äldre bebyggelse, som den svenska röda stugan. En fysisk prototyp i skala 1:4 har tagits fram för att testa och visualisera designen. Studien visar att ett sådant utekök inte bara fungerar väl i äldre miljöer utan också kan stödja hållbara livsstilar, exempelvis genom att förenkla sköljning och beredning av grönsaker. Möjliga framtida förbättringar inkluderar integrering av solcellsbelysning och vattenåtervinning. Uppsatsen visar att det är möjligt att förena tradition och modern hållbarhet i ett konkret produktförslag som kan inspirera framtida hållbar design
Improving the Swedish Private Subletting Law: A Path to a More Functional Housing Market.
No full textSweden is facing a persistent housing shortage, particularly in major cities like Stockholm. In response, the Act on Letting of Private Residences (2012:978) was introduced to simplify rental processes for private homeowners. However, the law's practical impact has been limited. This study explores the law’s implementation and evaluates it against systems in London, Berlin, Oslo, and Copenhagen, using interviews, surveys, and policy analysis. Findings reveal legal ambiguity, weak financial incentives, and inconsistent local application, especially within housing cooperatives. In contrast, other countries have achieved greater success by combining tax benefits, regulatory clarity, and digital tools. The study proposes reforms such as clearer legal guidelines, limited tenant protection, targeted tax relief, and a centralized digital approval system. These changes could help the Swedish rental market better address the ongoing housing crisis
Center stage for interactive TV : A study on interactivity through the Melodifestivalen app
No full textSedan den första TV-sändningen år 1925 har TV genomgått en enorm utveckling. Under hundra år har tittarnas TV-konsumtion förändrats, där den passiva rollen har ersatts av en mer aktiv och deltagande roll för tittarna. Denna förändring har i sin tur fått TV-produktioner att anpassa sina metoder och strategier för att möta det nya engagemanget och förväntningarna från publiken. SVT producerar årligen TV-programmet Melodifestivalen som med åren blivit allt mer interaktivt. Genom att undersöka teknisk innovation, interaktivitet och publikdeltagande i en svensk kontext syftar denna studie till att undersöka hur Melodifestivalens app möjliggör interaktion mellan programmet och tittarna. För att förstå hur denna interaktion möjliggörs använder studien en kombination av kvalitativa metoder. Detta inkluderade semistrukturerade intervjuer med Melodifestivalens produktion och dess tittare, samt en digital teknografisk observation av appen. Genom att både undersöka produktionens interna processer för att förstå syftet och intentionerna bakom appen samt tittarnas perspektiv, för att förstå användningen och upplevelsen, har studien bidragit med ny kunskap om hur appen har möjliggjort interaktion mellan produktion och tittare i en svensk kontext. Det empiriska materialet har analyserats med en abduktiv ansats, vilket har möjliggjort att studien har kunnat växla mellan teori och empiri för att både pröva och identifiera nya insikter. Studiens resultat visar att sedan lanseringen av Melodifestivalens app har deltagandet fördjupats, särskilt genom funktionen att kunna rösta gratis via hjärtat. Andra funktioner, som Mello-flödet, har främjat en social interaktion medan funktioner som watch party bland annat visar på skillnaden mellan produktionens intentioner och publikens faktiska användning. Utvecklingen av det nya röstningssystemet har haft stor betydelse för hur tittarna engagerar sig och deltar, vilket illustrerar hur digitaliseringen har möjliggjort för nya former av delaktighet.Since the first television broadcast in 1925, TV has undergone a tremendous transformation. Over the past hundred years, viewers’ consumption habits have changed, shifting from a passive role to a more active and participatory one. This shift has, in turn, required TV productions to adapt their methods and strategies to meet the new levels of audience engagement and expectations. Every year, the Swedish public service broadcaster SVT produces Melodifestivalen. A TV-show that has become increasingly interactive over time. By examining technological innovation, interactivity and audience participation within a Swedish context, this study aims to explore how the Melodifestivalen app enables interaction between the program and its viewers.To understand how this interaction occurs, the study uses a combination of qualitative methods. These methods include semi-structured interviews with the Melodifestivalen production team and its viewers, as well as a digital technographic observation of the app's usage. This study provides new insights into how the app facilitates interaction between the production and the audience in a Swedish context. By examining the internal processes of the production, exploring the app's purpose and intentions, and considering viewers’ perspectives on its use and user experience, we can better understand its impact. The empirical material has been analyzed using an abductive approach, allowing the study to alternate between theory and empirical data to both test and generate new insights. The findings show that since the launch of the Melodifestivalen app, audience participation has deepened, especially through the feature that allows users to vote for free using the heart icon. Other features, such as the Mello feed, have promoted social interaction, while features like Watch Party highlight the gap between the production’s intentions and the audience’s actual usage. The development of the new voting system has played a significant role in how viewers engage and participate, illustrating how digitalization has enabled new forms of audience involvement
From Promotion to Perception : How Danish Media Frame Reality TV through Press and Coverage
No full texthow Paradise Hotel Season 21 is discursively constructed through both Viaplay’s promotional press material and Danish online news media coverage. The aim is to understand how institutional promotion and journalistic representation interact to frame the show’s participants, emotional dynamics, and ideological meanings. The study applies Fairclough’s (1995a) three-dimensional model of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to both the press release text and a sample of 25 news articles. Additionally, Gillian Rose’s (2016) visual discourse analysis is used to analyze the official promotional imagery released by Viaplay, including both the group photo and individual cast portraits. These combined methods allow for a multimodal and comparative perspective on how meaning is produced and circulated across media contexts. The analysis shows that the press release constructs a nostalgic and emotionally provocative framing of the show, emphasizing heteronormativity, romantic spectacle, and strategic gameplay. This framing is reinforced visually through gendered, idealized, and often sexualized portrayals of the cast, particularly in the individual portraits. In the news coverage, many of these discourses are echoed especially in tabloid-oriented outlets but more critical or analytical media also introduce alternative framings, invoking public service values or moral discourses. The study concludes that press releases play a central role in setting the interpretive agenda for media coverage. While journalistic texts display some variation across genres, the promotional discourse remains dominant. These findings illustrate how reality television becomes a cultural site where norms around gender, emotion, and authenticity are constructed, reinforced, and occasionally contested
Adaptive Reuse for Sustainable Urban Future: Balancing Environmental, Social, and Economic Goals in Real Estate Redevelopment
No full textCities today are under pressure from climate change, housing shortages, rising construction costs, and social inequality. Adaptive redevelopment of existing buildings for new purposes offers a sustainable alternative to demolition and new construction. This thesis explores how adaptive reuse can support environmental, social, and economic sustainability, and what factors influence its successful implementation across different organizational and stakeholder settings. Using a qualitative, multiple-case study approach, the research focuses on four adaptive reuse projects in Sweden: Röda Oasen (non-profit), Mobilia (commercial), Magazine M1 (public-private), and Södervärn’s Water Tower (municipal) based on public available resources. Röda Oasen and Mobilia were studied in more depth through semi-structured interviews. To complement the analysis and bring a corporate perspective, the study also includes insights from two interviews with INGKA Group, offering reflections on how adaptive reuse fits into commercial and multinational strategies. The findings show that all cases contributed to environmental sustainability by reducing material waste and emissions. Social benefits were most evident in projects with strong community involvement, while economic outcomes were closely tied to organizational resources and long-term planning. Projects with flexible governance, inclusive engagement, and clearly defined sustainability goals were more likely to succeed across all dimensions. The analysis is grounded in stakeholder theory, contingency theory, urban resilience, and the triple bottom line model. It reveals that adaptive reuse is not only a technical or design exercise: it is a strategic and collaborative process shaped by values, institutional structure and local conditions. When these elements are aligned, adaptive reuse can help cities preserve cultural heritage and while promoting more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable development.
How I got here : A biographical identity study on Indonesian digital creators’ participation in sustainable advocacy online
No full textSocial media, such as Instagram, has become a visible space for environmental advocacy, where digital creators, including influencers and content creators, engage in sustainability efforts. This study explores how Indonesian digital creators engage with such topics, enquiring whether their content stems from personal experience, prior knowledge, or as a form of strategic affiliation. Using a mixed-methods approach that combines qualitative interviews with the scroll-back method, the research focuses on two female digital creators. It examines how they construct their identities, integrate personal histories and skills into sustainable narratives, and how they perceive their audience. The study also draws on various theories of identity and labour to understand how content creation intersects with personal storytelling and professional aspirations. This thesis found that the Indonesian digital creators adopted shifting, fluid identity personas informed by past experiences and current motivations, in both personal and professional contexts. Their participation in sustainability messaging is predominantly informed and inspired by the geographical locations where they are based, combined with the knowledge and expertise they gathered from their prior professional endeavours (e.g., fashion, fitness, business, etc.). They also perceive their audience strategically, and the true intentions behind their content considerations may not always resonate with the broader sentiments of their audience. Finally, this study contributes to media and communication studies by shedding light on digital creators beyond the hegemonic view of them as mere economic actors, which primarily emerges from business and mass communication angles. Methodologically, it makes a significant contribution to the development of the scroll-back method by adapting it to Instagram. Future research could explore other digital platforms, transnational networks, and creative digital ethnography to deepen comprehension of digital identity and persona creation.
Rollbaserad tillverkning i överlevnadsspel
No full textThis thesis investigates how role-based crafting systems affect cooperation in multiplayer survival games. Using design science methodology a prototype game, Back To The Stone Age, was developed where each player takes on a unique role (cook, blacksmith, builder) with exclusive crafting abilities. The prototype was evaluated through playtesting and a survey. Results show that specialization encourages communication and interdependence among players, which strengthens collaboration. However, it can also lead to frustration if progression critical items are overly restricted. The study presents design principles for crafting systems that support meaningful cooperation and recommend balancing autonomy with dependency in future game design
Examining Linguistic Dynamics and Inclusion inText-to-Image Generative AI for Participatory Architecture
No full textThis study addresses two interrelated objectives: to evaluate how text-to-image generative artificial intelligence reduces technical, engagement, and visual barriers in participatory architecture, and to investigate how this technology influences participants’ narratives when envisioning urban spaces.One-on-one, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 participants. These interviews aimed to obtain spatial narratives related to a proposed public park with an integrated Community hub. Following each interview, participants independently translated their narratives into text prompts and generated corresponding visualizations using the text-to-image generator Adobe Firefly. A convergent mixed-methods analysis was applied to the interview transcripts and prompt texts, measuring lexical diversity, Jaccard Index similarity, and the levels of emotional and spatial engagement reported by participants when describing the urban space. This analysis was complemented by a review of the generated images and participant feedback on their experience using the text-to-image generator.Data gathered from the feedback interviews revealed that a majority of participants expressed positive attitudes toward using the text-to-image generator. They perceived it as a valuable tool that significantly enhanced their ability to visualize and refine design and visual concepts. However, content analysis revealed a shift in narrative style. Ideas expressed in prompts tended to become more object-oriented and less socially or emotionally grounded than the interview narratives. This shift suggests that in prompting their ideas, participants reduced emotional, cultural, and social nuance, inadvertently transforming their urban visions. Additionally, despite the diversity of prompts, the images generated frequently converged on Westernized aesthetics. This outcome aligns with concerns raised in prior literature about aesthetic and cultural bias in text-to-image generative artificial intelligence, and it underscores the risk of narrowing the expressive and inclusive potential of participatory architecture.If architects, designers, and planners wish to effectively leverage this technology in participatory architecture processes, it is essential to understand both its limitations and potential. Thoughtful and aware application is crucial to ensure that text-to-image generators support, rather than constrain, diverse and meaningful participations