Spreading Like a Wildfire - Online and Offline: A qualitative analysis of Facebook as a crisis communication tool in Sweden

As the climate on our planet is changing, natural disasters are occurring increasingly often, and Sweden is not an exception. At the same time, Facebook and other social media are more frequently used as crisis communication tools among public organizations. Traditionally, research within the field of Crisis Communication is pursued from a management perspective, and therefore this thesis uses a recipient perspective. With a starting point in the 2014 wildfire in the County of Västmanland, the greatest fire in modern Swedish history, this thesis explores what kind of information the public wants from a public organization on Facebook during a disaster, and how they prefer it to be communicated. Using qualitative interviews a conclusion is reached, which suggests that the public wants correct and local information to be communicated in a quick and personal manner, and that trust is an essential factor in how the crisis communication on Facebook is perceived. This thesis was written by all three authors to an equal extent.I takt med att klimatet förändras ser vi allt oftare naturkatastrofer äga rum, och Sverige är inte undantaget från denna utveckling. Samtidigt blir Facebook och andra sociala medier ett allt vanligare verktyg för kriskommunikation i offentliga organisationer. Traditionellt har forskning inom kriskommunikation ett managementperspektiv och därför undersöker denna kandidatuppsats istället kriskommunikation från ett mottagarperspektiv. Genom kvalitativa intervjuer, och med utgångspunkt i den största branden i modern svensk historia, branden i Västmanland sommaren 2014, undersöks vilken information och hur människor vill att denna kommuniceras på Facebook under en katastrof. I slutsatsen föreslås det att allmänheten vill ha korrekt och lokal information kommunicerad på ett snabbt och personligt vis, samt att förtroende spelar en viktig roll i hur man uppfattar kriskommunikation på Facebook. Arbetet kring detta examensarbete har till lika stora delar utförts av samtliga tre författare

Detecting ditches using supervised learning on high-resolution digital elevation models

Drained wetlands can constitute a large source of greenhouse gas emissions, but the drainage networks in these wetlands are largely unmapped, and better maps are needed to aid in forest production and to better understand the climate consequences. We develop a method for detecting ditches in high resolution digital elevation models derived from LiDAR scans. Thresholding methods using digital terrain indices can be used to detect ditches. However, a single threshold generally does not capture the variability in the landscape, and generates many false positives and negatives. We hypothesise that, by combining the digital terrain indices using supervised learning, we can improve ditch detection at a landscape-scale. In addition to digital terrain indices, additional features are generated by transforming the data to include neighbouring cells for better ditch predictions. A Random Forests classifier is used to locate the ditches, and its probability output is processed to remove noise, and binarised to produce the final ditch prediction. The confidence interval for the Cohen’s Kappa index ranges [0.655 , 0.781] between the evaluation plots with a confidence level of 95%. The study demonstrates that combining information from a suite of digital terrain indices using machine learning provides an effective technique for automatic ditch detection at a landscape-scale, aiding in both practical forest management and in combatting climate change

Barnmorskans upplevelser och tankar efter mötet med gravida som lider av psykisk ohälsa.

Bakgrund: Psykisk ohälsa under graviditet innebär risker både för kvinnan och det väntade barnet. Barnmorskor inom mödrahälsovården träffar regelbundet den gravida kvinna och har därför möjlighet att uppmärksamma psykisk ohälsa. Syfte: Att belysa barnmorskans upplevelser och tankar efter möten med gravida kvinnor som lider av psykisk ohälsa Metod: Kvalitativ design med öppna intervjuer genomfördes. Elva barnmorskor intervjuades och en innehållsanalys utfördes. Resultat: Barnmorskorna kände en trygghet i sin kompetens. De uppgav vikten av att ge kvinnan stöd och att arbeta tillsammans med andra instanser för kvinnans bästa. Barnmorskorna lyfte också att de själva behövde stöd i att hantera de känslor som uppkom i mötet med gravida kvinnor som lider av psykisk ohälsa

Våld och vårdnadstvister - betydelsen av att barn bevittnar våld i nära relationer

The purpose of this study was to examine if and how children witnessing domestic violence affects the judgement a Swedish District Court delivers in cases of child-custody and parents’ right of access to their child. We also wanted to examine if a child’s right to State compensation for witnessing domestic violence affects said judgements in a District Court. This right to State compensation stems from a modification in the Law of Compensation for Crime Victims made in 2006 and is accorded by the Crime Victim Compensation and Support Authority. Using semi-structured qualitative interviews we talked to three judges, two lay assessors and an official at the Crime Victim Compensation and Support Authority. The informants were also asked to comment on a fictitious case. Only one of the judges was familiar with child compensation for witnessing domestic violence and none of the judges and lay assessors believed it to be an important factor when judging child-custody cases. They did think it vital to consider the consequences of witnessing domestic violence but not the compensation itself. The analysis was intersectional i.e. we examined how gender, ethnicity, age and class interact in sociocultural hierarchies and power-based relationships in our research material

Parity disparity: Educational differences in Nordic fertility across parities and number of reproductive partners.

Most research on trends in socioeconomic fertility differences focus on cohort total fertility. This study asks how cohort trends in parity-specific fertility differ across educational segments for men and women, and what role multi-partner fertility plays in these trends. The study used Finnish and Swedish register data on cohorts born in 1940–1973/1978. The main analyses use parity progression ratios. Ordinary ratios were contrasted with ratios on births to first reproductive partner. Among low- and medium-educated persons we observe parity polarization, where both childlessness and higher parity (3+) births increase, largely reflecting increases in multi-partner fertility. Highly educated men and women more often have exactly two children. We demonstrate that cohort total fertility can mask significant parity-specific trends across educational groups, and that changes in multi-partner fertility can be a part and parcel of cohort trends in socioeconomic fertility differentials.</div

Parity disparity: Educational differences in Nordic fertility across parities and number of reproductive partners

Most research on trends in socio-economic fertility differences has focused on cohort total fertility and on women. This study aimed to analyse how cohort trends in parity-specific fertility differ across educational segments for men and women and what role multi-partner fertility plays in these trends. We used Finnish and Swedish register data on cohorts born in 1940–73/78. The main analyses used parity progression ratios, comparing ordinary ratios with similar ratios using births to first reproductive partners only. Among the low and medium educated, we observe strengthening parity polarization across cohorts, with increases in both childlessness and births of order three or higher, the latter largely reflecting increases in multi-partner fertility. Highly educated men and women more often have exactly two children. We demonstrate that cohort total fertility can mask significant parity-specific trends across educational groups and that changes in multi-partner fertility can play a part in cohort trends in socio-economic fertility differentials.</p

Psychiatric diagnoses and criminal convictions in youth: a population-based study of comorbidities of diagnoses

Background: Psychiatric diagnoses are important risk factors for criminal convictions, but few longitudinal studies have examined comorbidity patterns in relation to youth criminal convictions. Aim: To explore associations between specific psychiatric diagnoses (substance use disorder (SUD), ADHD, depression, PTSD, intellectual disabilities (ID), and autism spectrum disorders (ASD)) and comorbidities of internalizing, externalizing, or neurodevelopmental diagnoses (NDD) in relation to risk of non-violent or violent criminal convictions in youth, including potential sex differences. Methods: Data on 1,411,538 individuals born in Sweden (1985–1998) were obtained from national population-based registers. Exposure was psychiatric diagnoses and outcome was criminal convictions between ages 15 and 20. Results: 17% of individuals had a psychiatric diagnosis, of whom 20% were convicted of a crime. All diagnoses, except ID and ASD, increased the risk of non-violent and violent crimes. Comorbidities of externalizing and internalizing diagnoses heightened the risk compared to single diagnoses. NDD increased the risk among SUD, depression, and PTSD, while NDD comorbid with another NDD decreased the risk for criminal convictions. Conclusion: Of the three comorbidity categories, externalizing disorders heightened risk the most, followed by internalizing disorders. This study highlights specific risk patterns for criminal convictions related to comorbidities, and to crime type and sex

Low autonomic arousal as a risk factor for reoffending : A population-based study

Background Low resting heart rate (RHR) and low systolic blood pressure (SBP) are associated with criminal behavior. However, knowledge is lacking about their predictive value for reoffending. Aim We aimed to examine associations of RHR and SBP with reoffending in a large population-based sample. Methods We conducted a cohort study of all convicted male conscripts born in Sweden 1958-1990 (N = 407,533). We obtained data by linking Swedish population-based registers. Predictor variables were RHR and SBP, measured at conscription which was mandatory until 2010 for men at age 18. The outcome variable was reoffending, defined as criminal convictions (any crime, violent crime and non-violent crime), obtained from the National Crime Register. We used survival analyses to test for associations of RHR and SBP with reoffending, adjusting for pertinent covariates such as socioeconomic status, height, weight and physical energy capacity. Results In fully adjusted Cox regression models, men with lower RHR (= 82 bpm). Men with lower SBP (= 138 mmHg). Conclusions Low autonomic arousal is associated with increased risk of reoffending. RHR and SBP should be investigated further as potential predictors for reoffending as they each may have predictive value in risk assessment protocols.Peer reviewe

Перспективы развития логистической деятельности мелких торговых организаций Беларуси

Дана оценка логистической деятельности мелких торговых организаций Беларуси и намечены пути ее совершенствования