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"Vor gut fünf Jahren reformierte Norwegen sein System der Polizeikontrolle. Seitdem kann die Bevölkerung auf zwei Wegen Beschwerden einreichen: Eine formal unabhängige Spezialeinheit für Polizeiangelegenheiten ermittelt bei strafbaren Amtsdelikten; die lokalen Polizeibehörden sind für alle anderen Fälle zuständig. Auch wenn Norwegen damit wesentlich weiter ist als Deutschland, besteht Verbesserungsbedarf. Es gilt, die praktischen Abhängigkeiten und die kulturelle Nähe von Spezialeinheit und Polizei zu lösen sowie die Sichtung der Beschwerden zu harmonisieren." (Autorenreferat)

This study is a discussion of change strategies: the contextual aspects of change and the rhetoric of change. Change is analyzed along two dimensions: (1) the context of the change initiative in the organization, (2) the relations of the change project to the institutional environment. Four cases are used as examples of inducing change in municipal services. The four cases are part of a national reform project. In Norway, municipalities are important institutions both as arenas for political decisions but also as decentralized instruments for distributing local services. The main purpose of the reform project was to achieve better adjusted services through more interdisciplinary work and local responsibility. Change efforts may be forced on the organization, e.g., by laws, instructions, and frame budgets or they may be triggered by different voluntary mechanisms. The idea of "isomorphism" describes a passive or incremental adaptation to "signals" and from structure imposed by the environment. The idea of eruptive change implies enactment and entrepreneurship in relation to the environment based on signals from within. The contexts for change at different levels in the municipality are associated with different rhetorics. Context variables describe the situation or background on which the change initiatives are interpreted by the institutional actors. The rhetoric of change is the symbolic expression which defines the change process.

To this day, the alleged 'history problem'; the perception from other countries, mainly Asian neighbours, that Japan has not come to terms with its aggressive and militarist past, continues to weigh on the Land of the Rising Sun and shape its room for manoeuvre in foreign policy. Through an autoethnographic study of three Japanese war museums, this thesis argues for the importance of understanding the emotional roots of behaviour shaping both research in the field of International Relations, and developments in the international sphere. This study provides readers with a view into a deeply personal journey to three war museums in Japan, where such sites come to be understood as highly political and arguably influential in shaping the normative space within which legitimate foreign policy can be enacted. Through the emotional and affective sensibilities of the researcher, shaped by lived experience, this thesis presents an alternative to mainstream foreign policy analysis, as it highlights a bottom up approach exemplified by the analysis of Japans history problem. The thesis argues theoretically for understanding the foundational role of emotions in policy formulation through its role in the social construction of rationality and legitimacy. It concludes that although there are political reasons internationally for why the history problem persists, the main cause of its continuous relevance is based on the maintenance of post-war emotions domestically in Japan. ; Fritt Ord Foundation ; submittedVersion ; M-IR

This paper describes a study of how the phenomenon of reflection on experience contributes to development of practical knowledge. Reflection on experiences and reflective practice are frequent themes in research reports and within Health and Social Workers' practice, as well as in different post-educational programmes in mentoring. Data were collected through two focus-group discussions with twelve mid-level leaders in Norway. In addition, the analysis was inspired by an interpretation drawing on hermeneutic phenomenology. The results show what a leader can adapt and learn from mentoring in a practical training programme, and how to use this mentoring to develop practical knowledge within the organisation. The study concluded that there is a need for mentoring in practice, a room for critical reflection on experience and practice within a health organization. Practitioners have to be critical and reflective on their judgment in action, or ethical dilemmas of clinical experiences that filter and mirror their practice.