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During the 1980s, an acute and deadly epidemic appeared in the United States. AIDS, a disease that initially affected mainly gay men, required a rapid and effective treatment. Due to tough regulations form government agencies and the stigma surrounding the disease, it would take a long time for a treatment to be developed. To break the silence, demand action and push for changes to combat the AIDS epidemic, the activist group ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) was formed. A network formed around their actions that created an environment capable of developing new treatment methods. Using interviews, articles, and reports, this analysis will draw on Actor-Network Theory (ANT) to examine how ACT UP mobilizes lay expertise and navigates conflicts within its network to influence research processes and AIDS treatment. This analysis highlights the mobilization of lay expertise and shows how the constructive management of conflicts within networks can play a crucial role in challenging established research structures, influencing decision-making processes, and ultimately shaping the response to public health crises like the AIDS epidemic.

Det finns idag en rad exempel på branscher där ett nytt företag förändrat hur kärnverksamheten genomförs. Detta har skett genom implementation av teknologi i en traditionell bransch. Mycket har skrivits om hur disruptiva företag verkar, men det finns bristande kunskap kring hur etablerade företag påverkas, och anpassar sin verksamhet. En framträdande skillnad mellan disruptiva och etablerade företag är att det etablerade företaget har ett befintligt nätverk att stödja sig mot. Syftet med studien är att öka förståelsen för hur företags nätverk påverkas av digitalisering inom industrin till följd av en disruptiv innovatörs etablering i industrin. Studien applicerar ARA-modellen, ekosystem och konceptet tjänstefiering som teoretiskt ramverk. En abduktiv forskningsansats appliceras, med en kvalitativ metod och fallstudie som forskningsstrategi. Fordonsindustrin väljs ut som en lämplig bransch att genomföra studien i, och Volvo som fallföretag. Det empiriska materialet består av sexton semistrukturerade intervjuer och sekundärdata. Intervjuerna har genomförts dels hos fallföretaget, dels med informanter i fallföretagets nätverk, vilket analyseras med hjälp av tematisk analys. Studiens resultat identifierade tre teman: digitalisering, samarbete och en fysisk och digital syntes. Studiens slutsatser är att konkurrensfördelar erhålls genom samarbete, där gemensamma resurser leder till ökad effektivitet. Konfigureringen av nya aktörsroller inom företaget möjliggör denna process. Digitalisering och tjänstefiering har påvisats vara ömsesidigt förstärkande processer, som sammantaget främjar implementationen av ett ekosystem. Inom hela processen är den disruptiva innovatören en drivande part., There are several examples today of industries where a new company has changed how the core business is conducted. This has consistently occurred through implementation of technology in an otherwise traditional industry. Much has been written on how disruptive companies operate, but there is a lack of knowledge concerning how established companies are affected and adapt their operations. A prominent difference between the disruptive and the established companies is that the established companies have an existing network to rely on. The purpose of this study is to increase the understanding of how a company’s network is affected by digitalization within the industry as a result of a disruptive innovator’s establishment in the industry. The study applies the ARA-model, ecosystem and the concept of servitization as a theoretical framework. An abductive research approach is applied, with a qualitative method and case study as its research strategy. The automotive industry is chosen as a suitable industry for the study, and Volvo is chosen as the case company. The empirical material consists of sixteen semi-structured interviews and secondary data. The interviews were conducted both at the case company and with informants in the case company’s network, which is analyzed using thematic analysis. The study’s findings identified three themes: digitalization, collaboration, and a physical and digital synthesis. The conclusions of the study is that competitive advantages are acquired through collaboration, where shared resources lead to an increased efficiency. The configuration of new actor roles makes this process possible. Digitalization and servitization has shown to be mutually reinforcing processes that collectively promote the implementation of an ecosystem. Through the entire process, the disruptive innovator is a driving force.

Initially, civil society received other emphases since the 1990s, which were associated with cooperation, empirical solutions and community of interests. In Sweden, segregation has increased and the current government for 2022 in Sweden has mentioned this in its government declaration that segregation is due to socio-economic and social problems. With this starting point, the purpose of the essay was built. The purpose of the study is to investigate how civil society organizations work with integration projects to counteract segregation in the city of Växjö, as well as what the cooperation between civil society organizations and the state, the county board and the municipality looks like. The method for the master's thesis is a qualitative interview study. The interviews are the empirical materials for the essay, and the interviews were based on semi-structured interviews from three civil society organizations and an interview with business developer in Växjö municipality. The conclusion of the survey is that communication, cooperation, interactions, common goals etcetera are instruments that are needed for cooperation between civil society organizations and the municipality, the county board and the state to function. But what is needed to carry out integration projects to counteract segregation is funding. This is what civil society organizations are in need of, because they have opportunities, knowledge and are first in line in the fields of integration. KeywordsCivil society, civil society organizations, integration, segregation, network governance, interdependence, coordination, pluralism.NyckelordCivilsamhället, civilsamhälletsorganisationer, integration, segregation, nätverksteori, ömsesidigt beroende, samordning, pluralism.

Vikings and pirates have been studied through the years in both the archaeological and historical disciplines. Both have been compared with each other, especially if Vikings can be classified as pirates or if they practiced piracy. The stereotypical descriptions and definitions of both terms may have contributed to the above-mentioned comparisons between Vikings and pirates in search after similarities and/or differences. Vikings have and are still portrayed as savages ravaging along European coasts, robbing cities, burning churches, and violating innocents, whose actions left behind devastation and chaos. Pirates have also been classified as violent individuals, especially sea bandits or sailors who attacked both friend and foe, seizing property and/or people through violence at sea. This thesis will problematise, question, analyse and discuss if studies about pirates and pirate societies can contribute to today’s understanding of Vikings, namely to study and examine them through the perspective of pirate studies. Separate geographical areas with Viking and pirate presence have been selected in England, Ireland, the Baltic Sea region, and the Bahamas. The overwintering camps of Torksey and Repton in England, together with Dublin in Ireland concerns Viking activity. Meanwhile, Visby and Vivesholm in the Baltic Sea with piracy carried out by the Victual Brothers, together with Nassau in the Bahamas represents pirates and piracy. In addition, the above will also be analysed and discussed through an application of three selected theoretical frameworks: agency theory, actor-network theory, and the concept of utopias. The problematisation will also be examined through a determination of the terms Viking and pirate, an application of hydrarchy, and how the colonization of areas and establishment of smaller communities functioned for each actor.