Määrittelyvaiheen vaatimusten vaikutukset käyttöliittymään

Tässä työssä tutkitaan, miten vaatimusmäärittelydokumenttiin kirjatut vaatimukset kiinnittävät myöhemmissä ohjelmistokehitysprosessin vaiheissa tehtäviä käyttöliittymäratkaisuja. Lisäksi tutkitaan, jääkö käyttöliittymästä puuttumaan todellisissa käyttötilanteissa tarvittavia toimintoja, kun vaatimusmäärittely toteutetaan perinteisen vesiputousmallin mukaisesti. Tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan kahden Helsingin yliopiston ohjelmistotuotantoprojekti-kurssilla toteutetun opiskelijaprojektin tuotoksia. Tutkimuksessa selvitetään oppilaiden tuottamien käyttöliittymien keskeisimmät käyttöliittymäongelmat simulointitestaamalla käyttöliittymät. Testauksessa simuloitiin ohjelmiston kolme keskeisintä käyttötilannetta, jotka selvitettiin tekemällä kontekstuaalinen käyttäjähaastattelu yhdelle opettajatuutorille. Tämän jälkeen etsittiin, löytyvätkö ongelmien syyt ryhmien vaatimusmäärittelydokumentteihin kirjatuista käyttötapauskuvauksista tai muista vaatimuksista. Tämän työn keskeisimpinä tuloksina selvisi, että käyttötapaukset sitoivat aina toiminnon ja sen toteutuksen käyttöliittymässä, mutta vain pieni osa niistä kiinnitti käyttöliittymäratkaisuja haitallisesti. Vakavien tehokkuusongelmien ja järjestelmästä puuttuvan toiminnallisuuden syyt kuitenkin olivat nimenomaan vaatimusmäärittelydokumentin käyttötapauksissa. Muut vaatimukset kiinnittivät toimintoja niin korkealla tasolla, ettei niistä muodostunut ongelmallisia käyttöliittymäratkaisuja. Lisäksi havaittiin, että molemmista vaatimusmäärittelyistä oli jäänyt pois sellaisia toimintoja, joita oltaisiin tarvittu käyttötilanteen suorittamiseen tehokkaasti. Vaikuttaisi siltä, että vaatimusmäärittelyvaiheessa ei ole saatu selville käyttäjän todellisia käyttötilanteita, minkä seurauksena vaatimuksista on jäänyt pois oleellisia toimintoja.

The Road to Hell Is Paved with Good Interventions : A Pragmatic Examination of Humanitarian Intervention with Special Reference to Kosovo

Kansainvälisen oikeuden alaan kuuluvassa tutkielmassa käsitellään humanitaarisen intervention oikeutusta ja laillisuutta. Tutkimuskysymyksenä on, missä määrin humanitaarisilla näkökohdilla perusteltuja sotilaallisia toimia tai niillä uhkaamista voi pitää kansainvälisoikeudellisesti hyväksyttävänä ja millainen painoarvo ennakkotapauksena olisi annettava NATO-maiden Kosovossa toteuttamalle väliintulolle. Tutkielmassa perehdytään ihmisoikeusajattelun tiettyjen taustaoletusten kritiikkiin. Tarkastelun kohteena ovat erityisesti kannanotot, joiden mukaan ihmisoikeuksia ei voi pitää luonteeltaan universaaleina, sekä kyseiseen kritiikkiin liittyvät väitteet siitä, että ns. hegemonisessa asemassa olevat valtiot hyödyntävät ihmisoikeusargumentteja oikeuttaakseen voimankäyttönsä. Universaalisuuskritiikkiä voidaan pitää pitkälti perusteltuna, mutta nykyinen kansainvälinen yhteisö tarvitsee kuitenkin tietynlaisia yleismaailmallisia normeja voidakseen toimia tehokkaasti. Kritiikin ei voikaan katsoa pätevän humanitaarisen intervention kannalta keskeisiin ihmisoikeusnormeihin kuten kansanmurhan kieltoon, sillä kyseiset velvoitteet suojaavat kansainvälisen yhteisön toimivuutta ja uskottavuutta. Humanitaarisiin argumentteihin liittyy kuitenkin muita ongelmia: niillä on esimerkiksi aika ajoin pyritty oikeuttamaan sotilaallisia toimia, joissa ihmisoikeusnäkökohdat eivät välttämättä ole olleet etusijalla. Ihmisoikeuksille ei ole syytä antaa kansainvälisessä oikeudessa asemaa universaaleina "superargumentteina", jotka eivät olisi kyseenalaistettavissa. YK:n peruskirjan ja kansainvälisen tapaoikeuden näkökulmasta humanitaarisen intervention kaltaiseen voimankäyttöön vaaditaan turvallisuusneuvoston hyväksyntä, jota ei Kosovo-operaatioon saatu. Interventiota voi tässä suhteessa pitää yksiselitteisesti laittomana, sillä sen tueksi esitetyt oikeudelliset argumentit eivät ole vakuuttavia. Tapaukseen liittyvät ihmisoikeusnäkökohdat ovat kuitenkin siinä määrin merkittäviä, että ongelmaan ei ole perusteltua suhtautua tiukan legalistisesti. Operaation hyväksyminen moraaliargumenttien nojalla voisi kuitenkin johtaa nykyisten voimankäyttörajoitusten marginalisoitumiseen, mikä olisi yllä käsitellyn kritiikin valossa ongelmallista. Tutkielmassa nostetaan suositeltavaksi ratkaisuksi lähestymistapa, jossa Kosovon tapaus ymmärretään yksittäisenä oikeudenvastaisena mutta samalla oikeudenulkoisena poikkeustapauksena. Tällöin peruskirjan mukainen voimankäytön sääntely säilyy entisellään ilman että humanitaariset näkökohdat jäisivät tyystin huomiotta. Ratkaisu ei sulje pois mahdollisuutta suhtautua positiivisesti Kosovo-operaation mahdollisesti luomaan "poliittiseen normiin": suuren mittakaavan ihmisoikeusloukkaukset eivät jää Euroopassa seurauksitta. Ilman turvallisuusneuvoston suostumusta toteutettaviin humanitaarisiin interventioihin liittyvien käytännöllisten ja kansainvälisoikeudellisten riskien vuoksi niihin on kuitenkin aihetta suhtautua suurella varauksella.

Tila tilassa : Liturgian ja tilan dialogi alttarin äärellä

This study examines the organisation and transformation of altar space in the modern Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland in liturgical and architectural perspective. The research data consists of 65 altar spaces in The Finnish Evangelical Lutheran church buildings. All of these were characterised in Church Government records as churches , built 1962 1999 and had been consecrated. The main data was collected by means of observation, photographing, and drawing sketches of altar spaces. The focus of this study concerns the organisation of modern Finnish Evangelical Lutheran altar spaces and, in particular, their changes also in relation to the liturgical movement. The challenge of this approach was especially in discovering the spatial identity of an altar space in terms of unequivocal boundaries. The analysis was realised in three stages. Interiors, the organisation of altar space, as well as architectonic qualities of altar spaces in terms of floor elevations, shapes of ceilings, lighting, and openings in the altar space were analysed. Moreover, attention was focused on furnishing and fixed versus movable pieces of furniture (such as the altar, altar rail, the pulpit, the baptismal font, and lectern). Finally, the potential qualitative and quantitative changes in altar space were examined. All in all, the majority of churches in the data featured elongated church halls with an altar at the end of the nave. To look at the data in chronological perspective, increasingly wide church halls had been built since the 1980s (yet there was only one central hall in which the altar was placed at the middle point of the church). Every third church altar was movable. As for the focal point of this study and the altar in particular, it was my aim to pay attention to the versus populum altar and its development in relation to the (Lutheran) liturgy. Hence, it was meaningful to determine, in terms of interior design, whether liturgists were able to celebrate facing the people attending the service. In the 1960s and 70s, a versus orientem altar featured in more than half of all new Finnish Lutheran churches, yet in 2000 two out of three churches featured a versus populum altar. For architectural and esthetic reasons (and not primarily due to liturgical ideas), also altars standing freely off the walls had been constructed. In terms of the liturgy, versus populum altars had been realised in expectation of increased communication between liturgist and worshippers. However, the analysis indicated that the altar could also become a divider of space. This aspect is a novel finding in relation to earlier and concurrent discussions concerning the liturgical movement. This study concluded, all in all, that altars had been increasingly constructed closer and closer to the worshiping parish and, accordingly, used increasingly often in the versus populum manner. Lecterns were often movable until the millennium this was the case in most altar spaces. Baptismal fonts did not have a permanent place in this data, and the data even included altar spaces with no baptismal fonts in the choir, nor the church hall. The position and status of fonts was generally weakened even if baptism in the Lutheran Church was regarded as one of the two sacraments together with the eucharist. The study concluded that even if baptism is regarded as a sacrament in the church, the position and status of baptismal fonts had weakened overall in newer church architecture. In other words, the tendency of the liturgical movement to emphasise the service and its celebration had obviously had its effect on the placement of baptismal fonts in the church hall. This research indicated that the pieces of furniture that mostly involved (many kinds of) visual and spatial changes included the altar and the lectern. In certain instances, fixed furnishings had been substituted by movable pieces or, moreover, new pieces of furniture and paraphernalia such as music instruments, pieces of art, tables, chairs and plants were brought in. In the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, liturgical changes were principally inspired by the Catholic Church, in which liturgical changes are essentially based on Canon Law. Unlike Finnish Lutheranism, Catholicism provides detailed rules and principles even regarding the design of an altar space. According to this study, in the Finnish Lutheran Church, the primarily functional nature of given guidelines and instructions characterises several practical solutions in furnishing.

Hautamuistomerkki elämän ja kuoleman tulkitsijana : Heikki Häiväojan, Kain Tapperin ja Matti Peltokankaan tekemät hautamuistomerkit 1952-2002

Grave sculpture as interpreter of life and death. Grave sculptures done by Heikki Häiväoja, Kain Tapper and Matti Peltokangas 1952-2002. The thoughts of Philippe Ariès and Erwin Panofsky on western funeral art constitute the starting point of this study. These scholars speak about the 20th century as a period of decline regarding western funeral art. The reason for this situation lies, according to them, in the fact that death has been rejected and become a private affair in modern society. Especially Panofsky sees an important reason for the decay of funeral art also in the separation of death from religion. In this study, I approach the view of Ariès and Panofsky from the angle of Finnish funeral art. The subject of the study is grave sculptures of three Finnish sculptors: Heikki Häiväoja, Kain Tapper and Matti Peltokangas, from 1952 to 2002. (The analysis of the grave sculptures has been performed with the Iconology of Erwin Panofsky. The analysis has been deepened by the ideas of a graveyard as a semiotic text according to Werner Enninger and Christa Schwens. In order to confirm their argumentation, they analyse the graveyard text with the model of communicative functions of Roman Jakobson and verify that the graveyard is a cultural text according to Juri Lotman.) Results of the study In the grave sculptures of the sculptors, different worldviews appear alongside Christian thoughts indicating a new stage in the tradition of funeral art. In the grave sculptures characterised as Christian, the view of life after death is included. In these memorials the direction of life is prospective, pointing to the life beyond. Death is a border, beyond which one is unable to see. Nevertheless the border is open or marked by the cross. On this open border, death is absence of pain, glory and new unity. In memorials with different worldviews, the life beyond is a possibility which is not excluded. Memorials interpret life retrospectively; life is a precious memory which wakens grief and longing. Many memorials have metaphysical and mystic features. In spite of democratization the order and valuation of social classes appear in some memorials. The old order also materializes in the war memorials relating the same destiny of the deceased. Different burial places, nevertheless, do not indicate social inequality but are rather signs of diversity. The sculptors' abstract means of modern funeral art deepen the handling of the subject matter of death and reveal the mystery of it. Grave sculptures are a part of Finnish and sacral modern art, and there is an interaction between funeral art and modern art. Modern art acquires a new dimension, when grave sculptures become a part of its field. Grave sculptures offer an alternative to anonymous burying. The memorial is a sign of the end of life; it gives death significance and publicity and creates a relation to the past of the society. In this way, grave sculptures are a part of the chain of memory of the western funeral art, which extends throughout Antiquity until ancient Egypt. (In this study I have spoken of funeral art as a chain of memory using the thoughts of Danièle Hervieu-Léger.) There are no signs of decay in the grave sculptures, on the contrary the tradition of funeral art continues in them as a search for the meaning of life and death and as an intuitive interpretation of death. As such, grave sculptures are part of the Finnish discussion of death.

Kehottomat sielut ja reinkarnaatio Filonin ajattelussa

Egyptin Aleksandriassa ajanlaskun taitteen molemmin puolin elänyt hellenistijuutalainen raamattufilosofi Filon korostaa laajassa tuotannossaan, että ihmisen on suuntauduttava pois kehon, aistinautintojen ja paheiden orjuudesta kohti hyveitä, oikeaa filosofiaa ja pelastusta: sielun transsendenttia päämäärää, Jumalaa. Filon selittää heprealaista Raamattua - lähinnä Tooraa - vertauskuvallisen menetelmän ja kreikkalaisen, etenkin Platonin, filosofian avulla. Filon samaistaa toisiinsa ihmisyksilön henkisen olemuspuolen eli sielun (????) tai mielen (????) ja alkuperäisen, Jumalan kuvan mukaan luodun ihmisen. Ihmisen sielu on Filoninin raamatunselityksessä olemassa ennen kuin se laskeutuu ihmiskehoon, ja sen on aktiivisesti pyrittävä vapautumaan tuosta "vankilastaan" tai "haudastaan" noustakseen jälleen taivaalliseen alkutilaansa. Tämä vastaa läheisesti Platonin etenkin dialogeissaan Faidros ja Timaios esittämää skeemaa, ja myös sanastolliset yhteydet Platoniin ovat merkittäviä. Filon on kuitenkin myös muokannut tämän suuresti arvostamansa filosofin ajatuksia esimerkiksi korostamalla Jumalan armon merkitystä ihmisen pelastumiselle. Ihmisen keho-vankeuden juuret juontavat Filon ajattelussa ensimmäisen maallisen ihmisen lankeemuksesta, jota - kuten paheellista elämää yleisemminkin - hän luonnehtii sielun kuolemaksi. Nautinto vietteli mielen aistien välityksellä, ja ihminen vaihtoi kuolemattomuutensa kuolevaiselämään kehossa. Vaihtokauppa on kuitenkin mahdollista purkaa ja kehosta vähittäin vapautua. Platonilla sielut reinkarnoituvat maan päälle, kunnes ne kykenevät lopullisesti jättämään kehon taakseen. Reinkarnoituminen johtuu yhtäältä sielujen maallista kohtaan tuntemasta vetovoimasta. Toisaalta on kyse paheellisen elämän pitkittämästä rangaistuksesta, jonka alkuperäinen syy Faidroksessa esitetyssä vertauksessa on taitamattomuus taivaallisessa, Zeuksen johtamassa valjakkoajelussa. Lopulta sielut kykenevät kasvattamaan siivet ja nousemaan takaisin taivaaseen. Ne voivat nopeuttaa prosessia suuntautumalla pois ruumiillisista asioista oikeanlaiseen filosofiaan. Filon mainitsee reinkarnaation suoraan vain muutaman kerran koko tuotannossaan. Unien selittämistä koskevan teoksensa De somniis kohdassa 1.138-1.139 hän tuo sen esiin kaikkein selvimmin: kehoista fyysisessä kuolemassa vapautuneista sieluista "yhdet kuolevaiselämän tavanomaisuuksia kaivaten palaavat takaisin". Exodusta selittävän Quaestiones in Exodum -teoksensa kohdassa 2.40 hän puolestaan kuvaa sieluja, joiden ei onnistu nousta taivaan tuolle puolen, Jumalaan: "siipien vähän matkaa niitä kannettua [ne] palaavat heti"; toisille se Jumalan armosta onnistuu: "Onnellisia ovat ne, jotka eivät palaa." Lisäksi teoksen De cherubim kohtaan 114 sisältyy mahdollinen viittaus reinkarnaatioon, maininta kuoleman jälkeen aineettomaan tilaan päätyneiden sielujen rientämisestä "uuteen syntymään". Tutkimuskirjallisuudessa ei reinkarnaatioteema ole saanut osakseen kovin suurta huomiota. Useat tutkijat sivuuttavat aiheen. Jotkut suhtautuvat Filonin reinkarnaatiouskoon epäillen ja jotkut jopa kiistävät sen, mutta näiden tutkijoiden perustelut joko puuttuvat kokonaan tai eivät kestä lähempää tarkastelua. Löytämistäni kannanotoista suuri enemmistö on sillä kannalla, että usko ihmissielun paluuseen maan päälle uuteen kehoon todellakin kuului Filonin ajatteluun. Sen lisäksi, että Filon mainitsee asian suoraan joitain kertoja, reinkarnaatio on myös loogisesti ottaen välttämätön osa hänen ajatteluaan: ihmisen tulee vapautua kehostaan, mutta Filon tekee selväksi, ettei kyse ole fyysisen kuoleman tavoittelusta.

Martta vai Maria? : Aktiivisen ja kontemplatiivisen välinen suhde Mestari Eckhartin mystiikanteologiassa.

Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoitus on selvittää millainen suhde käsitteiden ”aktiivinen” ja ”kontemplatiivinen” välillä vallitsee 1200- ja 1300-lukujen taitteessa eläneen saksalaisen teologin Mestari Eckhartin mystiikanteologiassa. Lisäksi on tarkoitus selvittää mitä tuon suhteen kautta on mahdollista paljastaa Eckhartin mystiikanteologiasta laajemmin. Tutkimuksen metodi on systemaattinen analyysi ja päälähteinä käytetään Eckhartin saksankielisiä saarnoja. Erityisesti analysoidaan Eckhartin Martta-Maria -perikooppia (Lk.10:38–42) käsitteleviä saarnoja Pr.86 ja Pr.2. Lisäksi lähteinä käytetään muita Eckhartin saksankielisiä saarnoja ja muuta tuotantoa siinä määrin kuin niiden mukaan ottaminen auttaa paremmin ymmärtämään saarnojen intentioita. Jo ensimmäisistä kristillisistä vuosisadoista lähtien Luukkaan evankeliumin kertomus Martasta ja Mariasta on ollut aktiivisen ja kontemplatiivisen elämän locus classicus. Siksi tutkimuskysymykseen vastaamiseksi on valittu juuri Eckhartin sitä käsittelevät saarnat. Itse tutkimuskysymyksen valintaan on vaikuttanut puolestaan se, että Eckhart tulkitsee perikooppia häntä edeltävästä tulkintatraditiosta selvästi poikkeavalla tavalla ja nostaa Martan sisaruksista edistyneemmäksi. Tutkimus etenee seuraavalla tavalla. Luvussa 2 avataan käsitteiden ”aktiivinen” ja ”kontemplatiivinen” sisältöä sekä käsitellään kysymystä siitä miten niiden välistä suhdetta on kirkon historiassa tulkittu. Se tapahtuu esittelemällä kolme keskeistä tulkintalinjaa: normaalikirkollinen, monastinen ja mendikanttisääntökuntien tulkinta. Luvussa 3 käydään läpi Eckhartin elämää, tuotantoa ja harhaoppisuustuomiota sekä hänen teologiansa keskeisiä jäsentäviä periaatteita. Koska Eckhart on suomalaiselle yleisölle verrattain tuntematon teologi, aihetta käsitellään hieman laajemmin kuin pro gradu -tukielmassa on yleensä tapana. Luvussa 4 perehdytään Martta-Maria -perikooppiin ja sen pitkään tulkintahistoriaan. Luvussa 5 analysoidaan Eckhartin saarna Pr.86, luvussa 6 Pr.2. Luvussa 7 tutkimuksen tulokset kootaan yhteen. Eckhartin saarnoja analysoimalla paljastuu, että hän tulkitsee aktiivisen ja kontemplatiivisen elämän suhteen häntä edeltävästä traditiosta poikkeavalla tavalla. Eckhartia edeltävänä aikana kontemplatiivisia pyrkimyksiä ja Mariaa oli pidetty kristillisessä kirkossa aktiivista elämää ihailtavampana ja ansiollisempana jo tuhat vuotta. Siihen oli vaikuttanut erityisesti se, että 400-luvulta lähtien aina 1200-luvulle asti luostarit olivat Länsi-Euroopan sivistyksen ja teologian keskuksia. Sen vuoksi juuri monastisia ihanteita – erityisesti kontemplatiivisia pyrkimyksiä Jumalan välittömään katselemiseen – pidettiin pitkään kristillisen elämän ihanteina. Eckhart on kuitenkin osa uutta tulkintatraditiota jossa perinteisen klausuurin rajat pyrittiin laajentamaan luostarin muureista koskemaan koko maailmaa. Tämä uusi tulkintatraditio oli ominaista erityisesti mendikanttisääntökunnille (fransiskaanit ja dominikaanit) sekä begiiniyhteisöille, joissa kontemplatiivinen ja aktiivinen elämä pyrittiin yhdistämään yhdeksi kristilliseksi elämäksi. Tutkimuksessa käy ilmi, että suhteessa laajempiin tulkintatradition linjoihin, Eckhart voidaan liittää luontevasti osaksi näiden sääntökuntien uusia orastavia tulkintoja. Niiden mukaan kristillistä täydellisyyttä ei tavoiteta kääntymällä pois päin maailmasta vaan sitä kohti. Sen on kuitenkin tarkoitus tapahtua niin, että aktiivisuus maailmassa nousee kontemplatiivisesta elämänmuodosta käsin. Toisaalta tutkimuksessa paljastuu myös, että Eckhart menee vielä edellä mainittuja uusia tulkintojakin pidemmälle. Mendikanttisääntökunnissa kontemplatiivisuus säilytti yleensä vielä jonkinlaisen ensisijaisuuden aktiivisuuteen nähden, siihen valmistavana ja sen mahdollistavana vaiheena. Eckhart saarnaa kuitenkin niiden täydellisen ykseyden ja samanaikaisuuden puolesta. Hänelle täydellisyyttä edustaa Betanian sisaruksista Martta joka on ”neitsyt-vaimo”, koskematon ja puhdas, mutta joka kuitenkin samalla synnyttää. Neitsyyden ja vaimouden täydellisen samanaikaisuuden korostaminen nousee puolestaan Eckhartin voimakkaasta sitoutumisesta uusplatoniseen metafysiikkaan. Eckhartin ontologia on ”dynaamista ontologiaa”, jossa kaikki ymmärretään Jumalan yliajalliseksi emanaatioksi. Tulkitsemalla mm. Proklosta, Eckhart esittää, että kaikki luotu on olemassa ensisijaisesti ja täydellisenä ikuisuudessa syntyvässä Pojassa ja vain formaalisesti ja vajavaisella tavalla havaittavassa todellisuudessa. Kristillinen täydellisyys on Eckhartille paluuta tuohon varsinaiseen olemiseen ikuisuudessa syntyvässä Pojassa. Paluu tapahtuu irrottautumalla (abegescheiden) kuvista (bilde) eli hyväksymällä, että Jumala ei ole missään käsitteissä, eikä häntä tavoiteta samoin kuin olemassa olevat asiat tavoitetaan. Sikäli kun ihminen riisutaan riippuvuudestaan kuvista, sikäli hän murtautuu (durchbrechen) takaisin siihen perustaan (grunt) jossa Poika ikuisesti syntyy. Perustasta käsin ihmisen on puolestaan mahdollista synnyttää sellaista aktiivisuutta ja toimintaa, joka ei ole itsekkyyden ja egon tahraamaa suorittamista ja kaupankäyntiä. Tutkimuksessa käy ilmi myös se, kuinka keskeinen rooli ymmärryksen (intellectus) kategorialla on kuvista luopumisen prosessissa ja Jumalan kaltaisuuden realisoitumisessa ihmisessä. Juuri ymmärtämisaktin (intelligere) puolesta ihminen on Eckhartin mukaan eniten Jumalan kaltainen ja osa Jumalan ikuisuudessa tapahtuvaa emanaatiota.

Halvennettu työ : Pätkätyö ja sukupuoli sopimusyhteiskuntaa edeltävissä työmarkkinakäytännöissä

Unvalued Work. Gender and fragmented labour before national collective bargaining Systematically irregular work creates economic and social insecurity. A novelty? To think that globalisation results in unprecedented labour conditions turns out to be questionable when the idea is put in perspective. In the light of history there is nothing new in the frequency of today s short-term employment, for instance, ranking genders in labour relations in an old custom. Unvalued Work (Halvennettu työ) examines the regulation and management of labour before the time of collective bargaining. In the study present trends engage in a dialogue with empirical findings from the past. Preventing trade unions to take the initiative has been and remains an employer interest. The analysis focuses on female employment in the 1920s and 1930s. The inferences challenge to ask on what conditions the history of Finnish labour relations warrants on the whole speaking of contractual security, stable earnings and regular waged work that provides livelihood. Success in selling one s labour is not synonymous with good employment that yields decent income. Juxtaposing labour relations between the world wars and the 21st century helps us to understand the currently transforming labour market. Present policies are informed by past choices and patterns of thought. Unvalued Work (Halvennettu työ) offers instruments for making sense of today s labour relations.

Venäjän politiikka ja perustuslaki : Tutkimus Venäjän perustuslakikäsitteistön kehityksestä 1900-luvulla

Constitutional politics in Russia, a conceptual history study of the constitutional rhetoric in the 20th century In April 2006 the Russian Constitution had its 100th anniversary. Following its late start, five constitutions have been adopted. The great number of constitutions is partly explained in my work by the fact that Russia s political system has changed many times, from one state system to another. From a monarchical state power, it changed first, with the October revolution, into the Russian Socialist Federal Soviet Republic, and after that, in 1924, into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In 1991, the Russian Federation was established. The great number of constitutions can also be explained by the fact that in a one-party system, constitutional concepts became one of the most important instruments for introducing political programmes. When the political unity of the state was not only restricted by the Constitution, but also by the party ideology, the political debates concerning constitutional concepts were the key discussions for all the reformative pursuits of Soviet politics. It can be said that, in the Soviet Union, almost all political discourses dealt with constitutional concepts. In the context of restricted unity, the constitutional concepts were the most important tools to argue and create a basis for a new presentation and new political programmes. Thus, the basic feature of the Soviet political discourses has been a continuous competition regarding the constitutional concepts. By defining the constitutional concepts, a new, the political elites wanted especially to redefine, their own way, the traditional meanings of the October 1917 Revolution, and to differentiate them from those of the preceding period of power. From a methodological point of view, I argue that the Russian constitutional concepts make a conceptual historical approach very suitable, and change the focus on history. This approach studies history in contemporary contexts which follow after each other, and whose texts are the main research target. The picture of history is created through the interpretation of the original sources of contemporary contexts. Focusing on the dynamic and traditional characteristic of Russian constitutional concepts, I refer to a certain kind of value and the task of these concepts to justify and define the political and societal unity in every situation. This is done by combining the pursued future orientation of constitutional unity with the new acts of preservation of the traditional principles of the revolution. The different time layers of the constitutional concepts, the past, the present and the future, are the key aspects of storytelling in justifying the continuity and redefining the constitutional unity for the sake of reform. These aspects of constitutional concepts, in addition to all the other functions, have been the main elements of the argumentative structure of acting against opponents.

Towards a Critique of the Concept of the Right to Self-Determination in Africa : A Conceptual Examination and the Cases of Western Sahara, Southern Sudan and Eritrea

This thesis examines the right to self-determination which is a norm used for numerous purposes by multiple actors in the field of international relations, with relatively little clarity or agreement on the actual and potential meaning of the right. In international practice, however, the main focus in applying the right has been in the context of decolonization as set by the United Nations in its early decades. Thus, in Africa the right to self-determination has traditionally implied that the colonial territories, and particularly the populations within these territories, were to constitute the people who were entitled to the right. That is, self-determination by decolonization provided a framework for the construction of independent nation-states in Africa whilst other dimensions of the right remained largely or totally neglected. With the objective of assessing the scope, content, developments and interpretations of the right to self-determination in Africa, particularly with regard to the relevance of the right today, the thesis proceeds on two fundamental hypotheses. The first is that Mervyn Frost s theory of settled norms, among which he lists the right to self-determination, assumes too much. Even if the right to self-determination is a human right belonging to all peoples stipulated, inter alia, in the first Article of the 1966 International Human Rights Covenants, it is a highly politicized and context-bound right instead of being settled and observed in a way that its denial would need special justification. Still, the suggested inconsistency or non-compliance with the norm of self-determination is not intended to prove the uselessness or inappropriateness of the norm, but, on the contrary, to invite and encourage debate on the potential use and coverage of the right to self-determination. The second hypothesis is that within the concept of self-determination there are two normative dimensions. One is to do with the idea and practice of statehood, the nation and collectivity that may decide to conduct itself as an independent state. The other one is to do with self-determination as a human right, as a normative condition, to be enjoyed by people and peoples within states that supersedes state authority. These external and internal dimensions need to be seen as complementary and co-terminous, not as mutually exclusive alternatives. The thesis proceeds on the assumption that the internal dimension of the right, with human rights and democracy at its core, has not been considered as important as the external. In turn, this unbalanced and selective interpretation has managed to put the true normative purpose of the right making the world better and bringing more just polity models into a somewhat peculiar light. The right to self-determination in the African context is assessed through case studies of Western Sahara, Southern Sudan and Eritrea. The study asks what these cases say about the right to self-determination in Africa and what their lessons learnt could contribute to the understanding and relevance of the right in today s Africa. The study demonstrates that even in the context of decolonization, the application of the right to self-determination has been far from the consistent approach supposedly followed by the international community: in many respects similar colonial histories have easily led to rather different destinies. While Eritrea secured internationally recognized right to self-determination in the form of retroactive independence in 1993, international recognition of distinct Western Sahara and Southern Sudan entities is contingent on complex and problematic conditions being satisfied. Overall, it is a considerable challenge for international legality to meet empirical political reality in a meaningful way, so that the universal values attached to the norm of self-determination are not overlooked or compromised but rather reinforced in the process of implementing the right. Consequently, this thesis seeks a more comprehensive understanding of the right to self-determination with particular reference to post-colonial Africa and with an emphasis on the internal, human rights and democracy dimensions of the norm. It is considered that the right to self-determination cannot be perceived only as an inter-state issue as it is also very much an intra-state issue, including the possibility of different sub-state arrangements exercised under the right, for example, in the form of autonomy. At the same time, the option of independent statehood achieved through secession remains a mode of exercising and part of the right to self-determination. But in whatever form or way applied, the right to self-determination, as a normative instrument, should constitute and work as a norm that comprehensively brings more added value in terms of the objectives of human rights and democracy. From a normative perspective, a peoples right should not be allowed to transform and convert itself into a right of states. Finally, in light of the case studies of Western Sahara, Southern Sudan and Eritrea, the thesis suggests that our understanding of the right to self-determination should now reach beyond the post-colonial context in Africa. It appears that both the questions and answers to the most pertinent issues of self-determination in the cases studied must be increasingly sought within the postcolonial African state rather than solely in colonial history. In this vein, the right to self-determination can be seen not only as a tool for creating states but also as a way to transform the state itself from within. Any such genuinely post-colonial approach may imply a judicious reconsideration, adaptation or up-dating of the right and our understanding of it in order to render it meaningful in Africa today.

Studies on the international effects of real shocks

This doctoral thesis addresses the macroeconomic effects of real shocks in open economies in flexible exchange rate regimes. The first study of this thesis analyses the welfare effects of fiscal policy in a small open economy, where private and government consumption are substitutes in terms of private utility. The main findings are as follows: fiscal policy raises output, bringing it closer to its efficient level, but is not welfare-improving even though government spending directly affects private utility. The main reason for this is that the introduction of useful government spending implies a larger crowding-out effect on private consumption, when compared with the `pure waste' case. Utility decreases since one unit of government consumption yields less utility than one unit of private consumption. The second study of this thesis analyses the question of how the macroeconomic effects of fiscal policy in a small open economy depend on optimal intertemporal behaviour. The key result is that the effects of fiscal policy depend on the size of the elasticity of substitution between traded and nontraded goods. In particular, the sign of the current account response to fiscal policy depends on the interplay between the intertemporal elasticity of aggregate consumption and the elasticity of substitution between traded and nontraded goods. The third study analyses the consequences of productive government spending on the international transmission of fiscal policy. A standard result in the New Open Economy Macroeconomics literature is that a fiscal shock depreciates the exchange rate. I demonstrate that the response of the exchange rate depends on the productivity of government spending. If productivity is sufficiently high, a fiscal shock appreciates the exchange rate. It is also shown that the introduction of productive government spending increases both domestic and foreign welfare, when compared with the case where government spending is wasted. The fourth study analyses the question of how the international transmission of technology shocks depends on the specification of nominal rigidities. A growing body of empirical evidence suggests that a positive technology shock leads to a temporary decline in employment. In this study, I demonstrate that the open economy dimension can enhance the ability of sticky price models to account for the evidence. The reasoning is as follows. An improvement in technology appreciates the nominal exchange rate. Under producer-currency pricing, the exchange rate appreciation shifts global demand toward foreign goods away from domestic goods. This causes a temporary decline in domestic employment.

Essays on Microcredit in Rural Bangladesh

This thesis is a collection of three essays on Bangladeshi microcredit. One of the essays examines the effect of microcredit on the cost of crime. The other two analyze the functioning mechanism of microcredit programs, i.e. credit allocation rules and credit recovery policy. In Essay 1, the demand for microcredit and its allocation rules is studied. Microcredit is claimed to be the most effective means of supplying credit to the poorest of the poor in rural Bangladesh. This fact has not yet been examined among households who demand microcredit. The results of this essay show that educated households are more likely to demand microcredit and its demand does not differ by sex. The results also show that microcredit programs follow different credit allocation rules for male and female applicants. Education is an essential characteristic for both sexes that credit programs consider in allocating credit. In Essay 2, the focus is to establish a link between microcredit and the incidence of rural crime in Bangladesh. The basic hypothesis is that microcredit programs jointly hold the group responsibility which provides an incentive for group members to protect each other from criminal gang in order to safeguard their own economic interests. The key finding of this essay is that the average cost of crime for non-borrowers is higher than that for borrowers. In particular, 10% increase in the credit reduces the costs of crime by 4.2%. The third essay analyzes the reasons of high repayment rate amid Bangladeshi microcredit programs. The existing literature argues that credit applicants are able to screen out the high risk applicants in the group formulation stage using their superior local information. In addition, due to the joint liability mechanism of the programs, group members monitor each others economic activities to ensure the minimal misuse of credit. The arguments in the literature are based on the assumption that once the credit is provided, credit programs have no further role in ensuring that repayments are honored by the group. In contrast, using survey data this essay documents that credit programs use in addition organizational pressures such as humiliation and harassment the non-payer to recover the unpaid installments. The results also show that the group mechanisms do not have a significant effect in recovering default dues.

Tiedon jakaminen tiimityössä

Knowledge-sharing in a teamwork The study examines the link between knowledge-sharing that takes place in a team and the dimensions and objectives of the team s activities. The question the study poses is: How does knowledge-sharing in a team relate to the team s activities? The exchange of knowledge is examined using knowledge-sharing networks and the conversion model, which describes the process of knowledge formation. The answer to the question is sought through four empirical articles describing the activities of a team from the viewpoint of quality, fairness, power related to knowledge management, and performance. One of the articles used in the study describes the role of networks in work life more generally. It attempts to shed light on the manner in which team-related networks operate as part of a more extensive structure of organizational networks. Finland is one of the most eager users of teamwork, if numbers are used as a yardstick. About half of all Finnish wage earners worked in teams in 2009, and comparisons show that the use of teams in Finland is above the EU average. This study focuses on so-called semi-autonomous teams, which carry out permanent work tasks. In such teams, tasks are interdependent, and teams are jointly responsible for ensuring that the work is done. Team members may also, at least to some extent, agree between themselves on how the tasks are carried out and are able to take part in the decision-making process. Such teamwork makes knowledge-sharing an important element for the team s activities. Knowledge and knowledge-sharing have become a major resource, allowing organizations to operate and even compete in today s increasingly competitive markets. A single team or a single organization cannot, however, possess all the knowledge required for carrying out the tasks assigned to it. Although it is difficult to copy the knowledge generated in an organization, it is important to share the knowledge within and between organizations. External links supply teams and organizations with important knowledge that allows them to keep their operations up-to-date and their structures well-functioning. In fact, knowledge provides teams and organizations with an intangible resource that improves their capacity to interact with their environment and to adjust to it. For this reason, it is important to examine both the internal and external knowledge-sharing taking place in a team. The findings of the study show that in terms of quality, fairness, performance and the knowledge management issues concerning a team, its social network structure is both internally and externally connected with its activities. A team structure that is internally coherent and at the same time open to external contacts, is, with certain restrictions, connected with the quality, fairness, and performance of the team. The restrictions concern differences between procedural and interactional justice, public and private sectors, and the team leaders and ordinary team members. The role of the team leader is closely connected with the management of networks that are considered valuable. The results of the study indicate that teamwork is supervisor-dominated. Thus, teamwork does not substantially strengthen the influence of individual employees as players in knowledge-transfer networks. However, ordinary team members possess important peer contacts inside the organization. Teamwork clearly allows employees to interact in a democratic manner, and here the transfer of tacit knowledge plays an important role. Keywords: teamwork, knowledge-sharing, social networks, organization

Sustainable forest management : ecologically sound and socially accepted

This dissertation explored the ecological dimension of ecologically sustainable forest management in boreal forests, and factors of the socio-cultural dimension that affect how the concept of ecologically sustainable forest management is defined. My approach was problem-oriented and generalistic-holistic. I examined associations between the abundances of wildlife groups (grouse, large predators, small predators, ungulates) and Siberian flying squirrels, and their co-occurrence with tree structural characteristics at the regional level. The trade-offs between ecological, social and economic sustainability in forestry were explored at the regional scale. I identified a potential 'shopping basket' of regional indicators for ecologically sustainable forest management, combining the relative abundance of Siberian flying squirrels, a wildlife richness index (WRI) for grouse, diversity indices of saw-timber trees, tree age classes and the proportion of old-growth (> 120 yr) forests. I suggest that the close association between forestry activity, the proportion of young forests (< 40 yr) and a WRI for small predators can be considered as potential 'alarm bells' for regions in which the creation of trade-offs (negative relationships) between economic and ecological components of sustainable forestry is ongoing. Explorative analyses revealed negative relationships between forestry activity and a WRI of 16 game species, the WRI for grouse and tree age diversity. Socially sustainable communities compete less intensively with ecological components of forests than communities where forestry is important. Interestingly, forest ownership types (farmers, other private forest owners, the forestry industry, the State) correlated significantly with the co-occurrence of flying squirrels, grouse and diverse forest structural characteristics rather than, for instance, with the total number of protection areas, suggesting that private forest ownership can lead to increased ecological sustainability. I examined forest actors’ argumentation to identify characteristics that affect the interpretation of ecologically sustainable forest management. Four argumentation frame types were constructed: information, work, experience and own position based. These differed in terms of their emphasis on external experts or own experiences. The closer ecologically sustainable forest management is to the forest actor’s daily life, the more profiled policy tools (counselling, learning through experiences) are needed to guide management behaviour to become more ecologically sound. I illustrated that forest actors interpret, use and understand information through meaningful framing. I analysed the extent to which ecological research information has been perceived in the Forestry Development Centre TAPIO’s recommendations and revised PEFC Finland criteria. We noticed that the political value for decaying wood was much lower in PEFC Finland critera (4 m3) than could be expected as a socially acceptable level (9 m3) or ecologically sound (10-20 m3). I consider it important for scientists to join political discourses and become involved in policy making concerning sustainable forest management to learn to present their results in a way that is reasonable from the user’s perspective.

Golgi proteomics : Identification of a novel cartilage-specific Golgi protein GoPro49

The Golgi complex is a central organelle of the secretory pathway, responsible for a range of post-translational modifications, as well as for membrane traffic to the plasma membrane and to the endosomal-lysosomal pathway. In addition, this organelle has roles in cell migration, in the regulation of traffic, and as a mitotic check point. The structure of the Golgi complex is highly dynamic and able to respond to the amount of cargo being transported and the stage of the cell cycle. The Golgi proteome reflects the functions and structure of this organelle, and can be divided into three major groups: the Golgi resident proteins (e.g. modification enzymes), the Golgi matrix proteins (involved in structure and tethering events), and trafficking proteins (e.g. vesicle coat proteins and Rabs). The Golgi proteome has been studied on several occasions, from both rat liver and mammary gland Golgi membranes using proteomic approaches, but still little more than half of the estimated Golgi proteome is known. Nevertheless, methodological improvements and introduction of shotgun proteomics have increased the number of identified proteins, and especially the number of identified transmembrane proteins. Cartilage, even though not a typical tissue in which to study membrane traffic, secretes large amounts of extracellular matrix proteins that are extensively modified, especially by amino acid hydroxylation, glycosylation and sulfation. Furthermore, the cartilage ECM contains several, large oligomeric proteins (such as collagen II) that are difficult to assemble and transport. Indeed, cartilage has been shown to be susceptible to changes both in secretory pathway (e.g. the COPII coat assembly) and in post-translational modifications (e.g. heparan sulfate formation). Dental follicle, and the periodontal ligament (PDL) that it forms, are another type of connective tissue, and they have a role in anchoring teeth to bone. This anchorage is achieved by numerous matrix fibres that connect the bone matrix with the cementum. These tissues have in common the secretion of large matrix molecules. In this study the Golgi proteome was analysed from purified, stacked Golgi membranes isolated from rat liver. The identified, extensive proteome included a protein similar to Ab2-095, or Golgi protein 49kDa (GoPro49), which was shown to localise to the Golgi complex as an EGFP fusion protein. Surprisingly, in situ hybridisation showed the GoPro49 expression to be highly restricted to different mesenchymal tissues, especially in cartilage, and this expression pattern was clearly developmentally regulated. In addition to cartilage, GoPro49 was also expressed in the dental follicle, but was not observed in the mature PDL. Importantly, GoPro49 is the first specific marker for the dental follicle. Endogenous GoPro49 protein co-localised with β-COP in both chondrosarcoma and primary dental follicle cell lines. The COPI staining in these cells was highly dynamic, showing a number of tubules. This may reflect the type of secretory cargo they secrete. Currently GoPro49 is the only Golgi protein with such a restricted expression pattern.

ORP2 is a sterol receptor that regulates cellular lipid metabolism

ORP2 is a member of mammalian oxysterol binding protein (OSBP)-related protein/gene family (ORPs), which is found in almost every eukaryotic organism. ORPs have been suggested to participate in the regulation of cellular lipid metabolism, vesicle trafficking and cellular signaling. ORP2 is a cytosolic protein that is ubiquitously expressed and most abundant in the brain. In previous studies employing stable cell lines with constitutive ORP2 overexpression ORP2 was shown to affect cellular cholesterol metabolism. The aim of this study was to characterize the properties and function of ORP2 further. ORP2 ligands were searched for among sterols and phosphoinositides using purified ORP2 and in vitro binding assays. As expected, ORP2 bound several oxysterols and cholesterol, the highest affinity ligand being 22(R)hydroxycholesterol. In addition, affinity for anionic membrane phospholipids, phosphoinositides was observed, which may assist in the membrane targeting of ORP2. Intracellular localization of ORP2 was also investigated. ORP2 was observed on the surface of cytoplasmic lipid droplets, which are storage organelles for neutral lipids. Lipid droplet targeting of ORP2 was inhibited when 22(R)hydroxycholesterol was added to the cells or when the N-terminal FFAT-motif of ORP2 was mutated, suggesting that oxysterols and the N-terminus of ORP2 regulate the localization and the function of ORP2. The role of ORP2 in cellular lipid metabolism was studied using HeLa cell lines that can be induced to overexpress ORP2. Overexpression of ORP2 was shown to enhance cholesterol efflux from the cells resulting in a decreased amount of cellular free cholesterol. ORP2 overexpressing cells responded to the loss of cholesterol by upregulating cholesterol synthesis and uptake. Intriguingly, also cholesterol esterification was increased in ORP2 overexpressing cells. These results may be explained by the ability of ORP2 to bind and thus transport cholesterol, which most likely leads to changes in cholesterol metabolism when ORP2 is overexpressed. ORP2 function was further investigated by silencing the endogenous ORP2 expression with short interfering RNAs (siRNA) in A431 cells. Silencing of ORP2 led to a delayed break-down of triglycerides under lipolytic conditions and an increased amount of cholesteryl esters in the presence of excess triglycerides. Together these results suggest that ORP2 is a sterol-regulated protein that functions on the surface of cytoplasmic lipid droplets to regulate the metabolism of triglycerides and cholesteryl esters. Although the exact mode of ORP2 action still remains unclear, this study serves as a good basis to investigate the molecular mechanisms and possible cell type specific functions of ORP2.