Browsing by Title
Now showing items 526-545 of 5399
-
(2022)Corruption, which affects the development of human society nowadays, has been called the “cancer” of international politics. Currently, countries worldwide are faced with corruption to varying degrees, which diverts funds for development to private individuals or power groups, makes the poor poorer, affects the rule of law in the entire country and traps the country in an “inequality trap”. This dissertation attempts to interpret, through a comparative study, why corruption rates remain high in China. The starting point is examined in this dissertation is why the corruption rate in Finland is much lower than in China. This study compares and analyses the anti-corruption ecology and mechanisms of the two countries, including the definition of corruption, the current state of corruption, the causes of corruption, the legal framework, the institutional set-up of anti-corruption, and the set-up of prevention mechanisms and the differences in social supervision. The comparative approach allows for quick identification of institutional and legal differences between the two countries. The results show that there is rarely a motive for Finnish officials to be involved in corruption, that the Ministry of Justice has collaborated to build an anti-corruption network that allows all departments to participate, and that the existence of an Ombudsman and Chancellor of Justice system allows for oversight of government operations. The transparent and open government allows the public to participate in social supervision. China is more diverse in terms of the causes of corruption, with incomplete legal constructs and over-powered anti-corruption agencies, leading to the involvement of anti-corruption officials in corruption. Mechanisms to prevent corruption lack national-level guidance, and the government is not transparent enough, resulting in the public’s right to know not being guaranteed and making it difficult for social oversight to function. This is why the corruption rate in China is higher than that in Finland.
-
(2020)I study whether modest copayment increases affect the general practitioner (GP) use in Finland, a country with relatively low copayments, low inequality, and an extensive welfare state. I also examine whether the estimates are driven by certain low–income groups considered to be economically vulnerable. The Finnish Government allowed municipalities to increase copayments in 2015 and 2016 by 9.5% and 27.5% respectively. At maximum, this meant that the copayment for a GP visit was 20.90 euros at the beginning of 2016, approximately 40% higher than at the end of 2014. Almost all municipalities made the 9.5% increase at the start of 2015, but some of them decided not to make the 27.5% increase at all or made smaller increases. I exploit this variation by estimating two–way fixed effects regression models, and I use population–wide administrative data containing all primary healthcare visits in 2013–2018 and socioeconomic information on patients. In the models, copayment increases are negatively associated with both GP use and median waiting times. Based on the means of estimates from several specifications, the 27.5% increase alone is associated with a 2% decrease in visits per resident in the first four quarters after the change and a 6% decrease thereafter. The estimates are not statistically significant. The median waiting times decrease by two days in the first year after the change and five days thereafter, and these results are significant. When I estimate the effects of both increases, the means of estimates are now a 5% decrease in visits per resident in the first four quarters after the last increase and an 8% decrease thereafter. Some of the estimates are statistically significant. I find no evidence to support the hypothesis that the low–income groups were more sensitive to the increases. However, the confidence intervals are wide across the study, suggesting that the design may be underpowered to detect small effects from zero. Moreover, the point estimates are surprisingly far from zero, which is especially surprising when upper income quintiles are concerned. Therefore, more evidence is needed to be able to make firm conclusions about the causal effects of policy changes.
-
(2020)In recent years, a resurgent leftist faction has arisen in the Democratic Party of the United States, emerging first in Senator Bernie Sanders’ campaign to become the party’s nominee in the 2016 presidential election. Sanders’ campaign declared a ‘political revolution’, a left-wing project advocating socioeconomic and political transformation and problematizing inequality in American society. The primary election process drew deep factional lines in the party between Sanders’ and Hillary Clinton’s supporters, and ultimately resulted in Clinton’s candidacy and defeat in the general election. In the wake of Sanders’ campaign, multiple left-wing organisations emerged both within the Democratic Party and beyond it, adopting his policy goals and campaigning style. Among these was Justice Democrats, a factionally-oriented organization challenging Democratic incumbents and endeavouring to enact a political realignment towards the left on the intra-party level. The ongoing factional struggle is seen against the backdrop of a broader hegemonic crisis. The leftist faction of the party has produced a new populist discourse building a counter-hegemonic left-wing social imaginary. This thesis examines the discourse of the political revolution, and the discursive devices constituting its articulation of key dichotomies. The thesis applies a theoretical framework of Giovanni Sartori’s factionalism, Margaret Canovan’s populism, and Gramscian hegemony to conduct a discourse analysis of the resurgent leftist discourse on the meso and macro levels. This thesis asks: how does the discourse of the political revolution construct an adversarial dichotomy of an in-group and an out-group as part of its populist counter-hegemonic project? To answer its research question, the thesis develops its methodological approach by combining critical discourse analysis (CDA), discourse theory, and aspects of the complementary method of discourse tracing. This framework views discourses and social reality as mutually constitutive. The value of such analysis lies in practicing reflexivity and considering what kind of social reality the discourse strives to generate, reproducing and disrupting dominant ideas and structures. Examining a discourse yields insight into the possible real-world consequences of the adoption of the worldview it constitutes, and facilitates the tracing of shifts in political culture. The thesis finds that, on the meso level, the discourse constructs a logic of difference to dismantle the conception of the Democratic Party as monolithic, producing an ideologically-based factional challenge through the dichotomisation of two factional groups. The discourse articulates an ideologically committed left-wing factional in-group, and a clientelist party establishment out-group corrupted by established campaign finance practices. The adversarial in-group and out-group constitute factions of principle and interest (as per Sartori), drawing from the redemptive and pragmatic faces of democracy, respectively. On the macro level, the discourse constructs a logic of equivalence through articulating a populist people-elite binary. ‘The people’ are conceived of as a broad, diverse collective connected by class-based grievances and interests, sovereign but unrepresented. This is juxtaposed with the articulation of an out-of-touch, oligarchic elite configuration consisting of dominant economic forces, a political elite, and a discursive elite. The elite are likewise connected by class interests, exercising undue influence over the political system and reproducing a hegemony facilitating economic inequality. The elite is articulated as the common Other for ‘the people’ as the groups’ class interests conflict and systemic structures privilege the elite at the expense of the needs of the people. This people-vs-elite dichotomisation produces the articulation of ‘the people’ as a historical bloc, a class alliance with transformative capacity, whose political action is seen as necessary to usher in a democratic renewal at both the meso and macro levels. The discourse scandalizes the existing level of inequalities in American society and articulates campaign finance practices yielding wealthy elites influence over the political process as impermissible. These scandalisations challenge existing social structures and dominant ideas. The discourse seeks to thereby shift these ideas and practices beyond the hegemonic limits of intelligibility through the production of a left-wing social imaginary. Understanding the effects of discourses and discursive shifts on social reality, and vice versa, is useful for academics examining social reproduction and transformation. A discursive shift the like of which the political revolution seeks to achieve holds practical policy implications and has potentially wide-reaching consequences on U.S. political culture and social practices. Ramifications may be felt beyond borders in the political discourses of other nations due to the prominent position the U.S. holds in the international community. Should this counter-hegemonic discourse become more broadly adopted within the Democratic Party and beyond, it may provide a blueprint for similar movements in comparable contexts.
-
(2012)This thesis is about the construction of the countryside among recreational walkers of Sheffield, North England. The identity of the countryside is not fixed, but in a constant state of flux and differentiated along social lines. Recreational walkers, a peoples movement of outdoor enthusiasts, have participated in the process of its definition since late 19th century. Historically, walking has been restricted by the 18th and 19th century Enclosure Acts, which closed open fields and common land in England. The passing of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act in 2000 brought significant improvements in the right of public access; however, through their walking, the walkers continue to negotiate the identities of the land and England itself. This thesis focuses on the recreational walkers of Sheffield, a North English city known for its industrial history and leading role in the struggle for the right of public access during the 20th century. The data which it builds on consists of structured interviews as well as additional notes taken during a ten-week period in summer 2008. The informants are members of two local groups of the Ramblers, Britains largest walkers rights organization. The interviews deal with the walkers’ experiences of leisure, travel habitation in and beyond Sheffield. The additional notes, taken during participant observation out in the countryside, elucidate the walkers’ interactions with the landscape and each other. This thesis argues that recreational walking is a form of environmental engagement mediated not only by the challenges of the past, but, even more importantly, by contemporary social and environmental experiences. The Sheffield walkers use wilful movement to assert particular visions of the landscape and to effect social change. Open-ended and socially inclusive, these visions set them apart from traditionalist narratives of the countryside, which have historically been used by the landowning class and others to assert different social and legal goals. The laws, norms and customs of movement are at the heart of how the society works. Rejecting both cultural and material determinism, this thesis maintains that processes of place construction cannot be reduced to either human activity or material contexts. The relationship between the two is essentially interactive and subject to historical change. The unique quality of the Sheffield walkers’ senses of place, owing to culture and nature alike, demonstrates the inherent plurality of place identities.
-
(2021)Syftet med avhandlingen är att undersöka hur rederierna Viking Line och Tallink Siljas reaktioner på coronaviruspandemin tog sig i uttryck på Facebook på våren 2020. Forskningen tar både fasta på hur kommunikationen på Facebook har sett ut samt hur rederierna säger sig ha upplevt krisen. Avhandlingen svarar på frågan hur kommunikationen har sett ut och på vilket sätt den skiljer sig från tiden före pandemin. Dessutom ger analyserna svar på hur rederiernas kommunikation skiljer sig från varandra. Avhandlingen strävar efter att belysa de teman som rederierna har kommunicerat på Facebook under coronaviruspandemins första fas i Finland, samt vilka metoder som använts för att förstärka budskapen i inläggen. Detta analyseras ur mottagarens synvinkel, alltså på vilket sätt Facebookinläggen kan tolkas och vilka upplevelser de väcker. Studien grundar sig i teori om kriskommunikation och intryckshantering. Metoderna som används är kvalitativ forskningsintervju, tematisering och kvalitativ semiotisk innehållsanalys. Den sistnämnda är av störst relevans eftersom den möjliggör breda insikter i hur kommunikationen på Facebook har sett ut. Analyserna av inläggen fokuserar på inläggens bilder och texter, medan exempelvis kommentarer och reaktioner utesluts. Eftersom det inte är ändamålsenligt att analysera varje inlägg som publicerats, görs en innehållstematisering av inläggen. Tematiseringen bidrar med ett målstyrt urval bestående av totalt tio inlägg som analyseras noggrannare med hjälp av den semiotiska analysen. Forskningens resultat tyder på liknande upplevelser av pandemin hos både Tallink Silja och Viking Line. De teman som lyftes fram i kommunikationen var också i stort sett samma, men skillnader i kommunikationen noteras också. En signifikant skillnad är rederiernas förhållningssätt till social media som kriskommunikationskanal. Viking Line använder sig på ett bredare plan av social media i kriskommunikationen, medan Tallink Silja främst utnyttjar andra kanaler. Avhandlingen kan fungera som grund för vidare forskning i kriskommunikation på social media. Det som exempelvis inte tas upp i denna forskning är vilka reaktioner kommunikationen har väckt hos mottagarna. Avhandlingen riktar sig till kommunikatörer som med hjälp av social media vill utveckla sin kommunikation eller kriskommunikation, särskilt när krisen slår till mot organisationen utifrån.
-
(2021)Tämän maisterintutkielman tavoitteena on tarkastella sitä, miten markkinakriisi vaikuttaa sijoittajien käyttäytymiseen ja dispositioefektin ilmenevyyteen ja sen muutoksiin. Aineisto on kerätty COVID-19-pandemian aikana ja koostuu suomalaisista sijoittajista. Tutkimuksessa pyritään lisäksi löytämään demografisia muuttujia, joilla dispositioefektin ilmenevyyttä voitaisiin selittää. Tutkimuksessa tuloksille luodaan viitekehys aiemmista empiirisistä tutkimuksista ja teorioista, joilla dispositioefektiä on havainnollistettu ja selitetty. Kirjallisuuskatsauksen jälkeen tutkimuksessa siirrytään empiiriseen osioon, jossa dispositioefektiä ja sen muutosta mitataan suomalaisista yksityissijoittajista koostuvan aineiston pohjalta. Aineisto koostuu kahdesta osasta, joista ensimmäinen pitää sisällään suomalaisten sijoittajien transaktioita ja toinen Helsingin pörssissä listattujen osakkeiden hintatietoja vuosilta 2017-2021. Dispositioefektin voimakkuuden laskemiseksi käytetään mallia, jossa verrataan sijoittajan realisoimattomien ja realisoitujen osakkeiden markkinahintojen suhdetta. Dispositioefektin muutosta COVID-19-kriisin aikana tutkitaan aikasarja-analyysilla, ja demografisten muuttujien yhteyttä dispositioefektin suuntaan ja voimakkuuteen puolestaan regressioanalyysilla. Tutkimuksen keskeiset tulokset osoittavat, että sijoittajat kärsivät dispositioefektistä. Tämä tutkimustulos tukee aiempia tutkimuksia. Aikasarja-analyysin tulokset indikoivat, että sijoittajien reaktio COVID-19-kriisiin vähentää dispositioefektin määrää ja että sijoittajat ovat halukkaampia realisoimaan myös tappioitaan COVID-19-kriisin alkamisen jälkeen. Tulokset tukevat aiempia tutkimuksia, joiden mukaan markkinan tilalla on vaikutusta sijoittajien dispositioefektin voimakkuuteen, ja teorioita, joiden mukaan sijoittajat ovat halukkaita realisoimaan tappioita, kun he olettavat markkinahintojen jatkavan laskuaan. Regressioanalyysin tulokset osoittavat naisten kärsivän miehiä voimakkaammasta dispositioefektistä, mikä on myös linjassa aiempien tutkimustulosten kanssa. Toisin kuin aiemmissa tutkimuksissa, tässä tutkimuksessa iällä ei havaittu olevan vaikutusta dispositioefektin ilmenevyyteen tai voimakkuuteen. Dispositioefekti on hyvin tunnettu ja empiirisesti koeteltu sijoittajilla havaittu käyttäytymisharha. Tämän tutkielman tulokset tukevat aiempaa tutkimusta ja antavat uutta tietoa siitä, kuinka sijoittajat reagoivat globaaliin markkinakriisiin ja siitä, miten dispositioefektin ilmenevyys ja voimakkuus muuttuvat sijoittajien kohdatessa markkinakriisin, jonka ominaispiirteitä ovat pelko ja epävarmuus.
-
(2023)Vuonna 2019 Kiinan Wuhanista löytyi ihmiselle uusi virus SARS-CoV-2. Viruksen aiheuttama tauti on nimeltään COVID-19 ja se aiheuttaa yleensä hengitystieinfektion, mutta joillekin henkilöille voi kehittyä jopa tehohoitoa vaativa taudin vakava muoto. Maaliskuussa 2020 Maailman terveysjärjestö WHO julisti COVID-19 pandemian alkaneeksi. Tartuntatautipandemioita voidaan yrittää hallita erilaisilla yhteiskunnan rajoittamistoimilla. Näitä toimia voivat olla esimerkiksi yleisötilaisuuksien rajoittaminen, ryhmäharrastusten keskeyttäminen, etäopetukseen siirtyminen ja asiakas- sekä osallistujatilojen sulkeminen. WHO määrittelee nämä rajoitustoimet sulkutiloiksi (englanniksi lockdown), joissa tavoitteena on isossa mittakaavassa tapahtuva fyysisen etäisyyden ja liikkumisen rajoittaminen. Näiden sulkutilojen aikana monet palvelut ovat poissa niitä tarvitsevilta. Mielenterveyspotilaat ovat erittäin haavoittuva ryhmä sulkutilojen seurauksille. He ovat usein sosioekonomisesti heikossa asemassa ja heidän hoidossaan on keskeistä psykososiaalinen kuntoutus. Tiedetään, että sulkutila aiheuttaa väestötasolla mielenterveyden haasteita kuten ahdistusta ja masennusta. Tässä maisterintutkielmassa tutkitaan sulkutilan vaikutuksia vakavasti sairastuneisiin mielenterveyspotilaisiin. Tutkimusmenetelmänä on integroiva kirjallisuuskatsaus, mikä on kuvailevan kirjallisuuskatsauksen yksi suuntaus. Integroivan kirjallisuuskatsauksen tavoitteena on kuvata tutkittavaa ilmiötä mahdollisimman laajasti ja monipuolisesti. Kirjallisuuskatsauksen aineiston analyysi toteutettiin aineistolähtöisellä sisällönanalyysillä. Aineisto koostui 13 alkuperäisartikkelista, joista 12 oli Euroopasta ja yksi Yhdysvalloista. Kirjallisuuskatsauksen mukaan vakavasti sairastuneiden mielenterveyspotilaiden psyykkinen vointi ja kognitiiviset kyvyt heikkenivät sulkutilan aikana. Heillä oli vaikeuksia saada tarvitsemaansa hoitoa ja se oli usein järjestetty etänä. Potilaiden toimettomuus ja liikkumattomuus lisääntyi ja heidän painonsa nousi. Lisäksi potilaat tupakoivat ja käyttivät päihteitä enemmän kuin ennen pandemiaa. Tämän kirjallisuuskatsauksen perusteella sulkutilan vaikutukset ovat moninaisia vakavasti sairastuneisiin mielenterveyspotilaisiin. Tutkimusta voidaan hyödyntää, kun arvioidaan potilaiden voinnin ja palvelutarpeen muutoksia sulkutilan aikana, sekä sen tuloksia voidaan käyttää erityisesti mielenterveyspotilaiden hoidon kehittämisessä mahdollisia tulevia pandemioita ja niiden sulkutiloja silmälläpitäen.
-
(2016)The duties of the state are no longer merely the classical tasks of waging war and guaranteeing internal control, but increasingly the state is responsible in fostering economic growth as well. The developmental state theory is one the most prominent growth theories that examines the role of the state in economic development. It offers a strong case against neoclassical free-market economic theories. The aim of this study is to analyze how the United Nation’s Development Program frames developmental state in order to promote human development in its 2013 Human Development Report. A secondary goal of this research is to analyze the impact of the developmental state theory on the policy prescriptions of the aforementioned report. To achieve this aim the method of frame analysis was used, more specifically Robert Entman’s reasoning devices and frame elements approach. To reduce ambiguity in the coding process a Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDA) ATLAS.ti was utilized to code the material. The coding revealed which parts and themes of the material have high salience, or importance, and which parts are less emphasized. This process enabled to first articulate the frame and then analyze it as it is relevant to the research question. According to analysis the UN is eager to frame developmental state as a human development issue. It is important for states to get policy priorities right, rather than getting prices right. It repeatedly emphasizes that higher levels of human development are beneficial to economic growth. This is against the mainstream neoclassical economic theory. According to the UN, human development should be stressed already in the early stages of growth. To achieve human development, a state should focus on ample public spending, which is also the most salient topic in the material. However, the money is not enough by itself, the state also needs to have the means to enforce the goal-oriented public policies. Public spending and levels of human development have direct correlation. The analysis reveals that the UN wants to single out policies that are aimed to job creation and poverty reduction. Job creation, especially in the agriculture sector is beneficial to growth. The UN paints a progression of an ideal developmental state. First, the state needs to become development-friendly, rather than being merely market-friendly. When a developmental-friendly state introduces capable, innovative social programs it might become people-friendly. A people-friendly state provides equal and increasing opportunities to its people. When social exclusion is minimal and education and health care are inclusive the state becomes more competitive in the global market because of its strong human capital. The framing of a political issue is always meaningful. The fact that the UN has decided to frame the developmental state as a human development issue has its implications. The UN can be seen as an elite actor. The discourse of the elite has a notably strong effect. If developmental state and the UN gets associated in peoples’ thoughts, the developmental state might become more legitimate option to policy-makers. Reiteration of ideas becomes a self-reinforcing process. The UN has selected a small number of events from thousands of national, regional and international cases and built their arguments around them. This is what framing is about: frames have the power to stress some bits of information and disregard others.
-
(2019)This thesis combines anthropology and urban studies theories to discuss and analyse the ambivalent position of urban art in London. The thesis focuses especially on the social elements of street art and graffiti and the various relationships the artworks create and enable in the urban environment. It is also discussed how dominant cultural policies have affected urban art practises and how this all reflects the contemporary urban trends and issues in London. The questions asked in this thesis is what kind of social relationships do street art and graffiti create and how do these relationships connect to the increasingly privatised and controlled public space and place in urban environment? In relation to that, it is also asked whether the current cultural policies in the city are changing street art and graffiti practises from a free expression to the public to a tool that is used for economic profit? The data for the thesis was gathered during two months of ethnographic fieldwork in London. The main methods were semi-structured interviews and observation, and the fieldwork also included participation observation and walk and talk ethnography. The thesis focuses primarily on the views of people practising street art or graffiti, which is why majority of the interviewees were artists. The first analysis chapter of the thesis employs Alfred Gell’s anthropological theory of art and the focus is on specific urban street art and graffiti works and the relationships in their proximity. The second analysis chapter discusses the social relationships on a slightly broader scale while going deeper on the unique aspects of London street art and graffiti scene. The last analysis chapter discusses the topic on the widest scale and elucidates urban art’s position in relation to major urban trends in London, such as dominant cultural policies and the use and potential of public spaces in the city. The aim of this thesis is to present and analyse urban art as a social phenomenon and analyse the various social relationships street art and graffiti enable and create in the increasingly privatised urban environment. The other main point is to discuss the increasing popularity of urban art and concurrent cultural policies and whether it is changing the phenomenon in a way that the original rebellious nature of urban art would disappear and turn into a commercial practise. Based on the fieldwork and earlier research done on the subject, the concurrent cultural policies have not affected street art and graffiti in a way that they would be shifting into a realm of commercialism. The reason behind this is that the policies employed by actors that are using street art for economic benefits conflict with the major ideological aspects of the urban art practises. Rather, the urban art scene has both extended and divided in a way that different urban artworks can have contradictory motivations and agendas behind them.
-
(2023)The so-called 2015 ‘European migrant crisis’ brought the systematic flaws of the Common European Asylum System to the forefront of public debate and the subject of sharing protection responsibilities has become one of the most divisive topics on the EU agenda in the past years. With prior attempts to allocate protection costs or asylum applications more fairly between the Member States, the lack of solidarity has previously dominated the debate around migration management. Announced in 2020, the European Commission’s New Pact on Migration and Asylum aims to reform the Union’s migration management by 2024. In this study, I analyze the Asylum and Migration Management Reform (AMMR), which is one of the New Pact’s legislative proposals. The significance of AMMR is in its attempt to replace the Dublin Regulation, which determines the Member State responsible for examining an asylum application. Based on this criteria of responsibility, certain Member States particularly on the Union’s borders became inundated with asylum claims as the first-entry countries back in 2015. Utilizing Ulrich Beck’s risk society theory as my framework, I examine the role of the ‘crisis’ in policymaking with an assumption that migration is constructed as a risk (policy problem) that requires measures of migration management (policy solution) in the examined proposal. By using Carol Bacchi’s What’s the Problem Represented to Be? (WPR) method, I analyze how migration and migration management are problematized in AMMR. This method is based on six interrelated questions that aim to answer: 1) what the ‘problem’ is represented to be, 2) what assumptions underlie this ‘problem’ representation, 3) how it came to be, 4) what is left unproblematic in it, 5) what effects are produced by it, and 6) where the ‘problem’ representation has been produced and how it could be challenged. Based on the analysis, I identify two ‘problem’ representations in the AMMR. There is a shift from the lack of solidarity to the lack of EU coordination ‘problem’ (1). With the assumption that there is political will to offer solidarity (Q2), the Commission’s role is to assess future situations of migratory pressure and coordinate support accordingly. With failed past attempts to re-define the criteria for determining responsibility, the move onto more choice-based solidarity measures is understandable (Q3). However, what is left unproblematic is whether the Member States will voluntarily provide a variety of solidarity measures, especially in the area of relocation of sharing costs (Q4). Because essential criteria for responsibility is preserved, we can expect future situations of migratory pressure in Member States on the Union’s borders and on popular migration routes (Q5). This dynamic will likely continue to polarize the subject of migration management. Without clear definitions for migratory pressure or expectations on sharing protection responsibilities, Member States are likely to disagree how to manage migration effectively (Q6). The lack of EU coordination ‘problem’ begins to widen the scope of migration management to external border protection, the fight against migrant smuggling, and forming partnerships with third countries for return and readmission of applicants. This in turn begins to shape migration as a risk (Q1), where irregular migration is presented to be an administrative burden to asylum systems. The focus on effective return procedure as a policy solution stems from the assumption that a significant number of applicants are not entitled to international protection (Q2), and insufficient return rates have been present in the Commission’s communications since the 2015 crisis (Q3). At the same time, there are varying recognition rates between Member States, appealed decisions, and a rise in more complex cases since 2015 (Q4). A general effect of this ‘problem’ representation is the growing suspicion towards applicants seeking international protection, particularly from countries of lower recognition rate (Q5). Unless protection standards are harmonized, an increase in the return of applicants could be called into question (Q6).
-
(2012)This graduate thesis studies the foreign- and security politics of the United States through the formation of national identity. It specifically investigates the country's foreign policy towards the United Nations, and changes in it, during two presidential terms. The thesis observes the second term of President George. W. Bush (from 2005 to 2008) and the first term of President Barack Obama (from 2009 to 2012). The subject matter is relevant in the field of world political studies for multiple reasons: The hegemonic status of the United States in an increasingly interconnected world, the unilateral tendency of the country tied to the attitude towards and the meaning of the UN, and the concepts of security and danger tied to the current discussion on the relevance of a nation-state as the main actor in responding to the common threats the world faces today. The method of critical identity and discourse analysis is used when approaching the subject. The basis for the US foreign policy formation is understood as coming from domestic structures and challenges instead of from outside threats, and for that reason the main empirical material for analysis is the State of the Union- speeches by the presidents. After analyzing the rhetoric of these speeches, the thesis indicates changes in concrete policy decisions by both presidents. The beginning hypothesis is that as the presidency shifts from the republican party to the democratic party, some changes in the foreign policy paradigm should occur. This is closely tied to the nature of the US political structure of Constitutional and Presidential democracy. The main discourses emerging from the analysis are danger and unilateralism for President Bush, and responsible leadership and multilateralism for President Obama. The strongest discourse, however, is determined as the discourse of American exceptionalism, and that serves both presidents. The presidential rhetoric shows a wide array of changes in the foreign and security- policy paradigms of the presidents, but the concrete decision-making indicates more continuity than change. The thesis concludes that even though President Bush was seen unfavorably by the international community at the end of his presidency, and much hope and expectations were placed on the shoulders of President Obama, have many at the end of Obama's first term expressed feelings of disappointment towards his achievements and indicated a lack of delivery. The results of the research show that the dominant backbone behind the US foreign policy, the identity of American exceptionalism, has not changed with the presidential shift. The foreign and security political paradigm still reflects domestic struggles with the national identity and aim towards the continuity of the country's hegemonic status in the world order. The research concludes that only through changes in the national political identity can the US reform its attitude towards the international community and act as a visionary in world politics.
-
(2012)The thesis is a study of journalists ethics in health and beauty field. The research is aiming to answers questions as follows. Firstly, how do PR agencies get publicity for their clients and their products by using journalists as a tool? Secondly, how does it affect journalists ethics when a PR company wants to achieve the best results for their clients project? Thirdly, how do journalists experience objectivity towards readers when dealing with PR practitioners? Advertisers influence in the process is also taken into account. The starting point for the study is the hypothesis that British journalists are more biased than their Finnish colleagues because the industry is bigger in the UK and they get more gifts from public relations machinery. My view changed towards the end of the research; the study results indicate that both countries are in a similar situation. The readers are one of the main reasons why this study was conducted. They are the ones that suffer from unethical journalism. Journalism industry has its own code of conduct in both countries and the thesis examines the impact on journalists attitudes. The study is qualitative and the method used is thematic interviews. For this study seven journalists from Finnish and six from British monthly magazines were interviewed. The interview questions were designed to find out what is the public relations practitioners impact on journalists work. The theory of the thesis includes theories of ethics, journalism, journalism ethics and public relations. The concept of ethics used n this research is western. Thematic analysis is used in order to find out research results. Main result is that it is not the amount of gifts that affects journalists ethics but rather the relationship between the journalist and a public relations practitioner. Journalists get harassed by the public relations practitioners to the point that a journalist gives in just that she can have a peace of mind. The relationship between PR people and journalists can also be extremely friendly and as a result a journalist might feature their products. Advertisers play a key role on editorial content. They have power to tell what to feature and which launch event a journalist should attend. The results were similar in both Finland and in the UK other than one exception. A publisher in the UK has its own ethical rules that employees have to obey. The concept is more helpful when resolving ethical issues comparing to codes of conducts that are issued from an institution such as National Union of Journalists.
-
(2023)This thesis discusses the use of audiovisual media in film and television criticism, the video essay as a genre within which this may occur, and how artistic and critical elements may intersect in film and television criticism within this genre. The research questions of the thesis concern these topics. The topics discussed in the thesis relate to questions regarding the genre of the video essay, the role of artistic elements in criticism, the implications of criticism of works of art being made through forms of media similar or different to the work of art in question, the role of critics as amateurs or professionals and the concept of professionalism with regards to criticism, and the context of the platform of YouTube. The thesis provides a discussion of audiovisuality, the video essay genre and the use of artistic elements in criticism by analysing an example of criticism being made through the video essay genre. This is done in the form of a genre analysis conducted through a case study of the video series The Starship Troopers Trilogy by Kyle Kallgren, published on the YouTube channel KyleKallgrenBHH in 2021. This analysis involves examining this series of three videos through a discussion of seven key aspects related to genre: structure, style, content, audience, medium, author and communicative purpose. The examination of communicative purpose involves taking into consideration four different communicative purposes: criticism, artistry, autobiography and theorisation. The thesis suggests that there are benefits to the field of film and television criticism in the possibility of expressing criticism audiovisually. It also argues that the video essay is a genre with intriguing possibilities for film and television criticism. Furthermore, it indicates that the integration of artistic and critical elements in this genre may allow for these aspects of a film and television criticism video essay to enhance each other.
-
(2015)In this thesis I consider studying the determinants of international investments with the gravity model of international financial asset trade. I discuss the relevant literature and present a theoretical framework for gravity in cross-border investments. I compare three empirical approaches, the classic approach that studies the determinants of the observed levels of cross-border holdings by a fixed effects panel model, the dichotomous approach that studies the effects of determinants on the probability of there being a positive cross-border investment by a probit model and finally an approach which combines the two previous ones by a double-hurdle model. I propose that the double-hurdle model is the correct approach in the context of cross-border investments.
-
(2011)The focus of this study was to investigate to what degree two social psychological theories were capable to explain the experiences of well-being among Finnish and American students. The main interest of the study was, whether the intrinsic, psychological goal fulfillment predicts well-being better than the individuals' values' consistency with the prevailing environment. The study sample (N=229) consists of political science students collected from University of Helsinki and Utah State University. The study question was approached quantitatively via Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), Aspirations Index (AT), and Schwartz' Value Survey (SVS). Along with providing answers to the hypotheses derived from the main study interest, the construct validity and measurement equivalence of Aspirations Index were examined. The scales and hypotheses were investigated via explorative and confirmatory factor analyses, correlations, and multiple hierachical regression analyses. Based on the previous research, the intrinsic life-goal fulfillment derived from self-determination theory was expected to predict the well-being to greater degree than the value congruence. This prediction was also confirmed in this study. More specifically, the attainment of extrinsic (wealth, fame and image) lifegoals was negatively or not related to well-being, whereas the intrinsic goals (personal growth, social relatedness, and community contribution) were positively related to well-being, excluding the attainment of community contribution. Against the predictions, the value congruence of Finnish students was not positively related to well-being, whereas the positive relationship was found from the American sample. According to adjusted R2 statistics, the attainment of enduring, deep, social relationships was the best predictor for students' well-being in both investigated countries. When the cross-cultural applicability of Aspirations Index was examined, the construct validity as well as the measurement equivalence of the scale were confirmed in this study. The most relevant references concerning the theoretical and methodological frames of the study were Deci & Ryan (1985), Schwartz (1992), Diener, Emmons, Larsen & Griffin (1985), and Cohen, Cohen, West & Aiken (2003).
-
(2019)This study is a cross-validation of a hierarchical theory-based model of personality trait factors that comprises hypotheses regarding which personality constructs predict specific job performance criteria. The personality measures include the Big Five dimensions together with the Need for Achievement factor. The predictor variables have been conceptually aligned with specific criterion variables that are clusters of competencies. The model consists of six one-to-one predictor-criterion relationships that are paired up into three higher-order relationships which in turn are aggregated into a single score of General Factor of Personality (GFP) on the predictor side and overall work performance on the criterion side. The original study conducted in 2015 (N=929) was based on an international sample of participants from various organisations, whereas this sample consists of employees from a single global company (N=109). The aim was to explore the similarities and differences in the results in comparison to the original data. All the participants completed the same online personality self-assessment with 31 psychometric scales and a 360-feedback tool measuring 22 competencies. At least one external reviewer nominated by the participant completed a review rating on those competencies. Principal Components were extracted to investigate how well the model fits this data and the results compared to the results from the original study. Correlations between the first-order and second-order (composite) variables were also checked. Finally, regression analyses were conducted to test nine hypotheses derived from the theoretical model. The results of this study show that there is a clear relationship between the GFP and the overall performance as the observed validity is r = .39 which is even higher than in the original study were this value was r = .23. Out of the six personality factors, Extraversion and Conscientiousness are the only significant predictors of various job performance outcome in this data and, all in all, three hypotheses out of nine are fully confirmed and a fourth one partially. The results are also discussed with view to what kind of a role a specific company culture or expected behaviours of people working in certain job roles might play on the results.
-
(2018)With ongoing war in Eastern Ukraine and previously perceived collective norms of post-Cold War Europe damaged, questions of cooperation continually plague stability. With the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE– Conference of Security and Cooperation in Europe or CSCE prior to 1994) being one of the only actors able to facilitate minimal conflict mediation, a research focus on the institution raises questions of historical reconciliation and subsequently, interpretation of European security. This thesis adds to the existing body of knowledge by looking at implications of CSCE/OSCE institutionalization in relation to the Nagorno-Karabakh (NK) conflict, the possible application of a peacekeeping operation (PKO) in the region, and the subsequent narratives actors attempted to write through this process. As shown by recent OSCE Network Projects, contemplating narrative is critical when placing the CSCE/OSCE within a larger post-Cold War debate on historiography (Nünlist 2014; Nünlist, Aunesluoma, Zogg 2017; Zellner 2017). This study then tracks various actors’ interests in constructing new European conflict management structures and hence, a new meaning of European security after the Cold War. Politics in various participating states changed during the 1990’s and their new commitments to a common CSCE/OSCE narrative became complicated. Within this volatile period, former N+N (Neutral and Non-Allied) states, and momentarily former Warsaw Pact (WP) states, were the most noticeable supporters of new collective European security ideas through their advocacy for CSCE/OSCE institutional evolution. Though Russian and America also supported these visions, their interest in an institutionalized OSCE needed to be encouraged by numerous small states’ stalwart commitments to the ideas and norms of the early 1990’s. This helped institutionally solidify what are today critical aspects of the European security order. However, as none of these actors are monoliths and can be neatly grouped into strict analytical containers for long periods of time, institutionalization and norms became points of contention as political winds continued to shift. This story will be viewed from three different perspectives: sub-regional (South Caucasus), regional (greater European), and institutional (CSCE/OSCE). This research stems from an interdisciplinary background in political history, using archival materials, informal interviews, accounts of practitioners associated with the conflict, as well as an array of secondary sources. Constructivist theory on structural security from the Copenhagen School, Regional Security Complex Theory (RSCT) (Buzan and Waever 2003), will be applied. In regards to narrative, strategic culture, salience of norms (Hecht 2016), and memory will be briefly employed to discuss how ideas may have influenced actors’ perception of a new ‘Europe’ in relation to security. This allows for an additional lens when attempting to represent small states’ perspectives and hence, narrative construction, of security providers in the post-Soviet space.
-
(2015)The European Union’s common security and defence policy (CSDP) has been under development since the Maastricht Treaty (1993). Regardless of the favourable public opinion the policy has not proceeded further than crisis management. The progress has been hindered also by the member states’ prioritisation of national sovereignty. This thesis examines the public debate and public opinion on the EU’s common security and defence policy during the period of 1995–2009. The Netherlands and Finland are the subjects of this study. These countries are suitable subjects because both of them are small EU member states with different security political emphases. The public opinion has not been a central topic in the research of CSDP. Therefore, this thesis approaches the matter from the perspective of public opinion. The thesis asks if it is possible to detect tensions between the official stances of these states and the public opinion. The basic assumption is that if nation-states do not take the favourable public opinion into account in policy-making, it implies that democratic deficit does not only concern the EU but also its member states on national level. The thesis is based on two types of sources. Eurobarometer studies are used in order to examine the development and changes in the public opinion. Eurobarometers are especially suitable sources because they are similar in all EU-member states. In addition, the public debate taking place in the opinion sections of newspapers is analysed. Two national newspapers were chosen from both countries, from Finland Helsingin Sanomat and Turun Sanomat, and from the Netherlands NRC Handelsblad and De Volkskrant. Qualitative and quantitative methods supplement each other. The newspaper material is analysed with the help of Grounded Theory, which belongs to the qualitative methods. In this kind of data-driven analysis the categories/themes of the study surface from the empirical material. The thesis utilises also quantitative material and analysis, especially in the context of Eurobarometers and newspaper material. In addition, the thesis utilises the practices of comparative research in order to contrast the cases. In this way it is possible to examine the parallels and differences between the case countries. The thesis observes that the public opinion on CSDP in the Netherlands has been extremely positive during the period of 1995–2009. In Finland the support for CSDP has been among the lowest in the EU, but it has become more favourable during the period under study. The public debate has been more extensive in Finland than in the Netherlands. In both countries three central themes surfaced: national interests, EU aspects and security strategies. In the Netherlands CSDP is supported especially because it is seen to be beneficial to the EU’s identity, integration and international role. CSDP is most often opposed because of the prioritisation of NATO as the European security actor. In Finland CSDP is most often supported and opposed in the context of security political reasons. According to supporters, CSDP would increase security of the country and it is not regarded that CSDP would require the abandonment of non-alignment. The opponents are of the opinion that CSDP endangers non-alignment policy. The thesis has detected parallels and differences between the case countries. The similarities relate especially to the identity of both countries as a small state. This identity manifests in different ways: in Finland it relates to increasing national security. In the Netherlands it relates to the EU-aspects and to the desire to keep NATO involved in European security policy. The differences relate especially to the Dutch NATO membership and to the Finnish non-alignment. The Finnish non-alignment policy has clearly caused a more reserved stance of the Finns towards CSDP. In the Netherlands the reservations relate to the primacy of NATO in the national security policy. In terms of alleged democratic deficit the results of this thesis are not unequivocal. The thesis shows that the public opinion is positive but also reserved. A referendum is probably the only reliable way to measure the public opinion on CSDP. It would be in place to evoke increasing debate on citizens’ wishes about CSDP and about the EU in general in the case countries and in other EU-member states.
-
(2017)Promotion of cultural relations with foreign countries was instrumental for implementing Soviet foreign and domestic policy during the Cold War era. In the Latvian SSR, cultural relations with foreign countries were organized in accordance with aims and the institutional system of the Soviet Union. This study provides an insight into the Soviet policies of cultural cooperation through a pinhole – following the development of the Latvian SSR Department “Soviet Union – Finland” from the incentives for its establishment in the mid-1950’s to its reorganization in 1989. This research analyses the correlation of the work of the Department with the ideological and political context of the Cold War era, describes the aims, tasks, and the membership policy of the Department, as well as the various activities organized by the Department for strengthening the cultural ties between the Latvian SSR and Finland. The research is based on qualitative, descriptive and comparative research methods and focuses mainly on source analysis of Collections of the Latvian State Archive, particularly the Collection No.338 of the Latvian SSR Society for Friendship and Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries that includes conference documents, reports on presidium sessions, work reports, documents concerning different friendship organizations, accounting documents, photographs from foreign tourism trips and visits by foreigners, originals and copies of publications by the press. Interviews of the members of the department have been collected thus providing a valuable insight into the work of this institution. The research shows that the work of the Department showcases the developments in Soviet Union’s political and ideological setting through its official meetings, conferences, annual plans and reports. At the same time, an official framework for cultural cooperation was filled with creative content that could be seen in the activities of the Department and connected people with interest in Finnish culture and way of life thus creating and promoting cultural ties and the exchange of albeit limited information.
-
(2020)Previous research has shown that colonization had profound impacts on precolonial Indigenous communities in North America. From the first contact, the explorers’ perception was colored by Eurocentric ideas rooted in European social systems, religion, cultures, and values, which called into question the moral worth and very humanity of Indigenous peoples. In Canada, colonialism introduced Indigenous peoples with a new social order, including new political, social, cultural, and economic structures, as well as a new stigmatized Indigenous identity, which became foundational for subsequent laws, policies, and institutional practices that aimed to erase those very elements deemed problematic. In Canada, Indigenous people have since colonization persistently suffered from poorer health compared to settler and more recent immigrant populations. Research points to both proximal and distal determinants behind the disparities documented in Indigenous health, and suggests that along with contemporary socioeconomic conditions, the distal factors of colonialism, virgin soil epidemics, and policies of subjugation and assimilation have been traumatic and have contributed negatively to the contemporary Indigenous population’s health. This research thesis is located in the field of medical anthropology and examines health, illness, and healing as culturally shaped, personal, embodied, and shared experiences, meanings, and illness realities. The theory used this thesis rests on an embodied meaning-centered approach of illness, which suggests that elements from the psychobiological, sociocultural, symbolic, political, and historical experiential realms blend to form a network of meanings for a sufferer, an embodied experience of an illness world that is shared as part of a community. Situated in the context of colonial history and present health disparities, the research questions of this thesis center on discovering major themes of embodied experiences and meanings of health, illness, and healing in an urban Indigenous community. Altogether eight weeks of daily ethnographic fieldwork was conducted in an Indigenous urban community in Vancouver, Canada, in the spring of 2017. The data for this thesis consisted of fieldnotes, ten individual interviews and one group interview, taped public speeches, photographs, and videos. A thematic analysis identified six significant categories of embodied meanings and experiences of health, illness, and healing in community narratives: colonization and colonialisms, colonization traumas, structural violence, survivance and resilience, reconciliation, and healing with culture. This thesis establishes that colonization and various colonialisms with policies of subjugation and assimilation are seen by community members as profoundly traumatic events with negative impacts on health that persist intergenerationally to this day. Collective memories of colonization and colonialisms inform what it once meant to be healthy, how communities became sick, and how they can become healthy again. Due to contemporary experiences of structural violence and racism, Indigenous community members continue to experience Canada as an enduring colonial space. Healing for community members is achieved by decolonizing minds from the once stigmatized identities introduced by colonization and by reindigenizing their world through reintroducing the original cultures and cultural identities back into their daily practices and healing their perceptions of the self.
Now showing items 526-545 of 5399