Special Needs Children and Sibling Spillover Effects: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth

This paper investigates the spillover effects of siblings growing up with a brother or sister diagnosed with a chronic disease. I focus on the effect of having a sibling diagnosed with low birth weight on outcomes measuring educational attainment and achievement. The empirical analysis draws on data from the ’NLSY79 Child and Youth Survey’ and I find evidence of a significant negative effect on the likelihood of attending college at a magnitude of around 12 percentage points. The estimated effects on educational achievement are more ambiguous and non-robust. However, the lions’ share of the point estimates is in line with what is found in previous com- parable research

On the Motivation to Help: Victim Information, Proportion Dominance and Group Affiliation Systematically Explored

There are 3 factors that have a large impact on the motivation to help a victim. 1.) A higher willingness to help an identified, than a non-identified victim. 2.) A preference for saving a large percentage of a group at risk in comparison to only considering the total number of saved victims. 3.) A victim closer to the helpers in-group elicits a higher motivation to help. In previous studies only 2 of the factors has been investigated simultaneously. For the first time, this study examines the 3 factors together, replicating the main effects, exploring interaction effects, and comparing between- and within-subject measures. 312 Swedish students participated in an experiment that systematically manipulated all 3 factors using both within- and between-subject measures. There were significant main effects on all three factors when evaluated jointly, in accordance with prior research. There was a within-subject interaction between the proportions of victims being helped, and if the victim was identified or not. There was a between-subject effect, where the identified victim elicited a higher motivation to help than the non-identified victim. A lack of additional interactions between the three effects indicated a certain rigidness of the three effects

Psychometric testing of a Swedish version of the Apathy Evaluation Scale

Background: Apathy, a prevalent and clinically relevant symptom in neurodegenerative disease, is often evaluated by the instrument Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES). However, this instrument has not been translated into Swedish, halting clinical and research efforts. Furthermore, previous studies lack analyses of some basic properties, such as the legitimacy of a total score, or have analysed dimensionality by questionable methods.Aim: To translate and psychometrically evaluate a Swedish version of the AES.Method: The AES was translated, and its psychometric properties were tested in the Swedish BioFINDER study, including cognitively well elderly, and subjects with mild cognitive or parkinsonian symptoms. Psychometric analyses were conducted according to classical test theory (CTT) and aimed to resemble those performed in the English original study by Marin et al. in 1991. Dimensionality was additionally analysed on a matrix of polychoric correlations and parallel analyses.Results: Data indicate that the Swedish AES performs satisfactorily regarding data completeness, scaling assumptions, targeting, and reliability. Principal component analyses (with parallel analysis) of polychoric correlation matrices identified a single component. Convergent and discriminative validity correlations accorded with a priori expectations.Conclusions: The study provides initial support that this Swedish AES performs similarly to the English original, and exhibits acceptable psychometric properties according to CTT, including supported unidimensionality, and may be adopted for use in clinical and research settings.Keywords: Apathy, Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES), neurodegenerative disease, neuropsychiatric assessment, psychometric

Med ansvarstagandet som mål : en kvalitativ innehållsanalys utav UEFA Euro 2012: Social Re-sponsibility Report i kontexten utav traffickingsituationen i Ukraina

I det här arbetet så studerar och analyserar jag en stor internationell idrottsorganisations ansvar i relation till samhällsproblem. Genom att genomföra en kvalitativ innehållsana-lys på UEFA och deras egen rapport om sitt sociala ansvar i samband med EM 2012 i Polen och Ukraina så studerar jag deras egen syn på sitt samhälleliga ansvar. Med ett teoretiskt perspektiv i formen av intressentmodellen så försöker jag komma fram till hur de förhåller sig till sitt eget ansvar mot det ukrainska och polska samhället som intres-senter. Jag studerar även den uppmärksammade relationen turneringen hade till traffick-ingsituationen i Ukraina. Detta för att ytterligare belysa hur UEFA ställer sig i sitt an-svarstagande till samhällsproblem. I svar till det här syftet så lyckas jag få fram hur UEFA, trots att de har tagit ut stora medel från det ukrainska och polska samhället, inte själva tar något ansvar i relation till samhällsproblemen. Detta uppmärksammas i syn-nerhet i hur de totalt ignorerar traffickingproblemet, trots att det är ett stort människo-rättsproblem.In this work I study and analyse a major international sports organisations responsibility in relation to societal problems. By performing a qualitative content analysis on UEFA and their own report regarding their social responsibility in connection with the 2012 European Championship in Poland and Ukraine I study their own perspective on their societal responsibility. With a theoretical perspective in the form of the Stakeholder Theory I try to get a grip on how they regard their responsibility towards the Ukrainian and Polish societies as stakeholders. I also study the medially remarked relationship the tournament had towards the situation of trafficking in Ukraine. This is done in order to shed further light on how UEFA regard their responsibilities towards societal problems. In response to this end I manage to extract how UEFA, even though they have obtained great gains from the Ukrainian and Polish societies, don’t take any kind of responsibil-ity regarding the societal problems. This is especially observed as they totally ignore the issue of trafficking, even though it is a very significant human rights problem

Att kalla ett folkmord för ett folkmord

I mars år 2010 så valde den svenska riksdagen, efter en lång debatt, att erkänna de illdåd som det armeniska folket utsattes för under början av 1900-talet som ett folkmord. Det var ett beslut som både uppskattades såg som kontroversiellt. Det som jag ämnar göra med det här arbetet är att studera hur historieskrivning, likt den som tog plats år 2010, fungerar på ett politiskt plan. Med en grund i en teori av Hannah Arendt om hur sanning och politik samspelar så studeras kritiskt den diskurs som pro-duceras av diskussion i riksdagen som föranledde beslutet. För att sätta dessa i kontext så kommer folkmordets sanningsstatus och moderna politiska påverkan studeras. Upp-satsen huvudsakliga uppgift ligger i att undersöka, analysera och diskutera hur svenska politiker ser på historieskrivning och erkännande. Vilka perspektiv de väljer att ha på historieskrivningens roll som ett politiskt medel och hur de ser på att folkmordets histo-rieskrivning bör författas. Avslutningsvis så diskuteras även de problem som kan följa av hur svenska politiker förhåller sig till historieskrivning, i förhållande till det arme-niska folkmordet

Authenticity work in higher education learning environments: a double-edged sword?

Educational authenticity occupies a strong position in higher education research and reform, building on the assumption that correspondence between higher education learning environments and professional settings is a driver of student engagement and transfer of knowledge beyond academia. In this paper, we draw attention to an overlooked aspect of authenticity, namely the rhetorical work teachers engage in to establish their learning environments as authentic and pedagogically appropriate. We use the term “authenticity work” to denote such rhetorical work. Drawing on ethnography and critical discourse analysis, we describe how two teachers engaged in authenticity work through renegotiating professional and educational discourse in their project-based engineering course. This ideological project was facilitated by three discursive strategies: (1) deficitization of students and academia, (2) naturalization of industry practices, and (3) polarization of the state of affairs in academia and in industry. Our findings suggest that authenticity work is a double-edged sword: While authenticity work may serve to bolster the legitimacy that is ascribed to learning environments, it may also close down opportunities for students to develop critical thinking about their profession and their education. Based on these findings, we discuss implications for teaching and propose a nascent research agenda for authenticity work in higher education learning environments

Air pollution episodes in Stockholm regional background air due to sources in Europe and their effects on human population

Using air quality measurements, we categorized air pollution according to source sectors in a rural background environment in southern Sweden based on hourly air-mass backward trajectories during 1997-2010. Concentrations of fine (PM2.5) and sum of fine and coarse particulate matter (PM10), accumulation mode particle number, black carbon and surface ozone were 4.0, 3.9, 4.5, 6.8 and 1.3 times higher, respectively, in air masses from the southeast as compared with those in air masses from the cleanest sector in the northwest, consistent with air-mass transport over areas with relatively high emissions of primary particulate matter (PM) and secondary PM precursors. The highest ultrafine particle numbers were associated with clean air from the northwest. We estimate that almost 7.8% and 0.6% higher premature human mortality is caused by PM2.5 and ozone exposure, respectively, when air originates from the southeast as compared with that when air originates from the northwest. Reductions of emissions in eastern Europe would reduce the highest air pollution concentrations and associated health risks. However, since air masses from the southwest are more frequent, emissions in the western part of Europe are more important for annual mean premature mortality

The effect of restorations for insects in the riparian habitat

Flottningen har varit en dominerande del av transporten för skogsråvara sedan skogsindustrierna började växa fram under mitten av 1800-talet. Trots att flottningen idag har upphört är effekterna fortfarande kvarvarande efter den flottledsrensning som utfördes i vattendragen. Dessa effekter påverkar de organismer som lever i och kring de påverkade vattendragen och idag genomförs alltfler restaureringsprojekt i dessa berörda vattendrag. Restaureringarna har som mål att återställa vattendragen till ett mer ursprungsliknande skick. Restaureringsarbetet utförs oftast med målen att stärka framförallt öring- och laxpopulationer. Däremot är kunskapen liten om hur insekter påverkas av restaureringen och denna fråga blir särskilt intressant med tanke på att insekterna utgör en stor del av födan för dessa fiskarter. Med hjälp av data som samlades in i fönsterfällor efter olika biflöden till Vindelälven under säsongen år 2011 analyserades sju olika insektsgrupperingar. De valdes ut med kriteriet att de var ekologisk intressanta. Resultatet visade att ingen skillnad gick att påvisa mellan insekternas numerär knutet till restaurering. Detta resultat är dock inte ovanligt i detta sammanhang där flertalet studier har kommit fram till liknande slutsatser. Däremot visade analyserna att akvatiska insekter ökade i numerär närmast vattendraget. Slutsatsen från studien visar på insekters krav på god tillgång till varierade mikrohabitat. Således blir skapandet av mikrohabitat en viktig del att inkludera vid restaureringsarbetet, om målet är att även främja insekternas numerär och artsammansättning.Timber floating has been an important part of the transport of forest resources since the birth of forest industries during the middle of the nineteenth century. Despite the timber floating has ceased, the effects from the construction of floatways still remains. These effects impacts the organisms that lives in or in relation to the water, and today several restoration projects are in progress in affected rivers. The aim for these projects is to restore the rivers back to its primordial state. The restoration projects are performed mainly with the salmonid populations in mind. However, the knowledge of how the restorations impacts the insects is scarce. This is especially an interesting question when taken into consideration that the insects constitutes a large part of the diet for these fish species. Insects data collected in window traps after different tributaries to Vindelälven during the season 2011, was analyzed with the aim to try to answer this question. Seven different insects categories was selected on the criteria that they were ecological interesting. The results showed no significant difference between the quantity of insects depending on restoration. The following results is under no means abnormal and several other studies have concluded the same result. On the contrary, the result showed that aquatic insects increased with closer distance to the river. Something that is explained by the fact that the rivers is their reproduction area. The study makes the conclusion that the access of different micro habitats is important for insects living demands. Therefore the importance to include the making of these micro habitats when restoring rivers, if the aim is to also increase the numbers and species composition of insects

Energieffektivisering av Malmö Studenthus - En fallstudie av Taxeringsintendenten 3

This thesis has been carried out in cooperation with Malmö Studenthus via Miljöbron whom requested suggestions on how they can improve their energy usage in their property Taxeringsintendenten 3 which is located in Rosengård, Malmö. The building was built in the 70s and is currently being used as a student residence with 665 newly renovated apartments. The thesis is topical as in recent years more resources are focused on how to overhaul the existing housing stock relating to energy use in Sweden. New targets are set at both national and global level, which requires greater demands on reduced energy consumption in society. A large proportion of the targets can be achieved through the rehabilitation of buildings from the so called Million Homes Programme. The goal of this thesis was to investigate what energy saving potential four different measures would have on the building. The four different proposals for action that have been investigated are the following: • Insulation of double-glazed windows • New windows and balcony doors • New curtain walls • New insulation and surface facade The results are based on literature studies, field studies in the form of pressure and air leakage testing, and thermography. Calculations and simulations were conducted in the computer programs U-norm and Isover Energi 3, in order to compare specific energy consumption before and after the completion of the four measures. All calculations and simulations were based on two reference apartments. The conclusions to be drawn from the work carried out are that there is much to do to improve the energy performance of the building. A great improvement can be achieved through the retrofitting of the facades on the balcony side, as they are leaky and poorly insulated. After completion of the thesis it can be stated that the renovation of the ventilation system was only completed to a certain extent, which means that it is very difficult to get an overall picture of how the ventilation works in the current situation. The ventilation system should be thoroughly surveyed to provide a clear picture of what needs to be done to complete the reconstruction of the ventilation system to a dual-flow ventilation with heat recovery. Keywords: energy efficiency measures, the million homes programme, energy, apartment buildings, pressure and air leakage testin

Ger räntepolitiken upphov till skevheter i den svenska utrikeshandeln?

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the Swedish Riksbank's repo rate has any asymmetric effects on Swedish exports and imports. This question becomes especially interesting when considered within the context of today’s unprecedented monetary policy measures. The relationship between real interest rates, real exchange rates and the current account has been exposed to extensive research. However, the common aggregation of export- and import flows into a current account variable has left no room for investigating whether the current account effects stem from changes to export or import flows, or both. In this paper, a vector autoregression (VAR) model framework is used to conduct a multivariate time series regression including data of Sweden’s relative GDP, relative interest rate, real effective exchange rate of the Swedish Krona, oil price and Swedish export and import during the time period of 1993-2014. By decomposing the current account into its two components, we find that the effect of the real interest rate is indeed asymmetric. There is evidence on a real exchange rate effect, biased towards the import side. However, the overall result suggests that there are other more important forces in play affecting the relationship between the repo rate and trade flows. Ultimately, this leaves the Riksbank with little power to affect Sweden's imports and exports