This text has been translated from Norwegian with the assistance of GPT UiO.
We are immensely proud of our eight candidates who are here today to receive their doctoral degrees from the Faculty of Social Sciences.
Social science research provides us with theoretical, methodological, and empirical tools to understand ourselves and the society around us. Knowledge derived from the social sciences enables us to make informed decisions for the future and to shape a more sustainable world.
The Faculty of Social Sciences is Norway's leading and largest research and educational institution within the field of social science.
The candidates receiving their diplomas today represent the disciplines of sociology and human geography, political science, psychology, and social anthropology.
Today, you stand here after completing a significant and monumental effort. You will receive the visible proof of your perseverance, as you are now on the verge of being conferred as doctors, holding the highest academic degree attainable in Norway. I hope you are truly proud of yourselves.
Armine Bagiyan
Bagiyan's research reveals a close connection between urban and political change. Drawing on studies of so-called critical events in Kyiv and Yerevan, Bagiyan demonstrates that public spaces reflect the transformations brought about by revolutions or other critical events.
Kathryn Christine Beck
Schools shape our lives. Beck's research explores how school experiences can influence us throughout our lifetimes and deepens our understanding of how the education system contributes to social inequalities.
Lotte Danielsen
Danielsen's dissertation focuses on man's best friend. In her thesis, she argues that human-dog relationships reflect and perpetuate apartheid structures in contemporary South Africa.
Ingrid Nesdal Fossum
Fossum's study finds that executive function difficulties in children and adolescents with autism can have lasting consequences for their mental health and functioning as young adults.
Liridona Gashi
Effective preventative police work against youth crime demands high relational competence. Gashi's dissertation emphasises that it is not only important what the police do, but also how they interact—with each other, with the youths, and with their parents.
Even Peder Hellan Larsen
Hellan Larsen's dissertation investigates the driving forces behind nuclear threats and the risks of nuclear war in today's geopolitical landscape.
Kirsten Milo Tromborg Nielsen
Electrification in sub-Saharan Africa aims to reduce poverty and improve lives but struggles with instability. Tromborg Nielsen's dissertation shows that unreliable electricity undermines trust in the Ugandan state and fosters improvisation, which, in turn, shapes social relationships and inequalities.
Anne-Marthe Olsen Sanders
Sanders' research found that everyday activities, such as walking and socialising, enhance brain health in the elderly, whereas stroke patients' cognitive training was not influenced by their level of physical activity.
On the basis of recommendations from the appointed experts and the faculty, the Rector has decided to confer the degrees of doctores upon you. I invite the Rector to present the diplomas.