GUPEA

Recent Submissions

• Health Effects of Weight-Loading in Obesity

  (2026-09-16) Bellman, Jakob

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  Obesity is increasingly recognized as a disorder of body composition rather than of body weight alone. Modern sedentary living has reduced the habitual mechanical loading of the skeleton compared with the weight-bearing conditions under which human physiology evolved. This transition is thought to promote fat mass accumulation and reduced relative lean mass. Current pharmacological and surgical treatments effectively reduce adiposity but also reduce lean mass, highlighting the need for complementary strategies that improve body composition while preserving skeletal muscle. Increased mechanical weight-loading may influence body composition independently of conventional alterations in whole-body energy balance. The aim of this thesis was to determine whether increased weight-loading improves body composition in adults with obesity and to characterize the associated metabolic, autonomic, and physiological responses. Four complementary studies were performed. A randomized controlled trial evaluated five weeks of externally applied loading with weighted vests in adults with class I obesity (Paper I), with a pre-specified sub-study of cardiovascular and autonomic responses assessed by ambulatory heart rate variability (Paper II). A crossover study used quantitative positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) to investigate tissue-specific glucose uptake during acute loading (Paper III), and a controlled preclinical study in diet-induced obese rats examined whether loading-induced changes in body mass iv could be explained by alterations in sodium and water balance (Paper IV). Increased loading shifted body composition in a favorable direction, with lower fat mass and waist circumference and higher lean mass, thereby improving the balance between the two compartments without altering total body weight. Fat loss was concentrated in weight-bearing regions rather than uniformly distributed. The changes occurred despite increased sedentary time and without detectable changes in total energy expenditure or self-reported energy intake. During acute loading, glucose uptake increased selectively in skeletal muscle, cortical bone, and bone marrow of the weight-bearing lower extremities, consistent with localized metabolic activation in loaded tissues. Weight-loading imposed a greater cardiovascular demand during vest use and was accompanied by short-lived reductions in cardiac autonomic modulation, particularly among women, with no evidence of lasting changes in resting autonomic function. In rats, loading reduced body weight gain without affecting sodium or water balance, arguing against fluid redistribution as an explanation for the compositional changes. In conclusion, increased weight-loading improves body composition in adults with obesity by reducing fat mass while increasing lean mass. The effects were localized to loaded tissues, were not explained by measurable changes in whole-body energy expenditure or fluid balance and were accompanied only by transient autonomic responses during active loading. Weight-loading thus emerges as a biologically relevant physiological stimulus influencing body composition and a potential complement to current obesity therapies. How this mechanical signal is sensed and translated into changes in body composition remains an important question for future research.

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• Plants don’t grow simply if you tell them to: Investigating Emotional and Practical Care among Supervisors at Work Integration Social Enterprises

  (2026-09-16) Kajsa Moberg; University of Gothenburg/School of Global Studies; Göteborgs universitet/Institutionen för globala studier

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  This thesis investigates two Work Integration Social Enterprises (WISE) in Sweden, focusing on how employees perceive issues related to their profession, care and emotional labour. More specifically, it examines the supervisors’ experiences but also perceptions and understandings of what care their enterprise should provide, analysed through Annemarie Mol’s (2008) theory logic of care and Leslie K Wang’s (2013) development of her theory about logic of emotional and practical care. The performed care is also analysed through Sharma’s (2014) concept temporality, which affects the care practices. The thesis is grounded on ethnographic fieldwork, including interviews with staff members with an organizing role and participant observation with participants in work integration programmes. The thesis aims to shed light on a group of professionals who aims to reduce inequalities in society by (re)integrating people who, for various reasons, are far away from the job market, a relevant topic given the increasing number of people on sick leave in Sweden. The study shows that different care practices take place at the WISEs, including both emotional and practical, and how the supervisors aim reducing the emotional work for the participants, as well as care for plants and working together is viewed to increase well-being. Furthermore, the study shows how the supervisors and staff members support the participants in work training to seek further support from governmental institutions. Since the supervisors at the WISEs spend more time with the participants in work training compared to caseworkers, they often see and can deal with things that governmental institutions, caseworkers and bureaucracy miss and obstacles that may negatively affect and sometimes hinder participants in work training and from rehabilitating. Furthermore, the thesis shows that the WISEs often help the participants in work training beyond the contract with governmental institutions.

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• Distribution as an Internationalization Strategy A case-study on a Swedish SME operating in the Nordic region

  (2026-09-16) Hansson, Stina; Jahanshahi Fard, Dara; University of Gothenburg/Department of Business Administration; Göteborgs universitet/Företagsekonomiska institutionen

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  This study examines which key factors influence the establishment of a cross-border distribution strategy for a Swedish small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) operating in the Nordic region, and how these factors can be prioritized in practice. The study is conducted as a qualitative single-case study of Ebeco AB, a Swedish supplier of electric heating solutions with subsidiaries in Norway, Denmark and Finland. The research is based on an abductive approach and empirical data was collected through five semi-structured interviews with senior managers from both the Swedish headquarter and the Nordic subsidiaries. The empirical material is analyzed using a thematic analysis and interpreted through theories related to supply chain strategy, distribution network design, trade-offs in logistics and internationalization strategies. The findings demonstrate that product availability, delivery time, wholesaler relationships, customer expectations, market-specific differences and organizational maturity are the most influential factors shaping the distribution strategy. The study further shows that distribution strategies cannot be fully standardized across the Nordic region despite the geographical and cultural proximity between the countries. Instead, firms need to adapt their strategies according to the market-specific context. In addition, the findings highlight that maintaining high product availability and responsiveness is perceived as critical for competitiveness. The study concludes that effective cross-border distribution strategies require a balance between centralized efficiency and local responsiveness. The findings contribute practical insights for a Swedish SME operating internationally and highlight the importance of aligning distribution decisions with both market-specific conditions and strategic priorities.

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• Transportflöden under osäkerhet En studie om hur svenska råvaruföretag påverkas och anpassar sig till osäkerhet

  (2026-09-16) Brånemark, Alicia; Lundgren, Annie; University of Gothenburg/Department of Business Administration; Göteborgs universitet/Företagsekonomiska institutionen

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  This study examines how Swedish raw material companies manage uncertainties in their daily operational activities. The study investigates how different types of raw material companies in Sweden handle events and changes that directly and indirectly affect their transport chains and operations. Through qualitative data collected via interviews, the companies’ working methods and processes for uncertainty management are compared, contributing to an increased understanding of how external uncertainties lead to adaptations within the transport chain. The results of the study indicate that uncertainty management constitutes an important part of logistics operations within Swedish raw material companies. Due to the companies’ dependence on transportation and their central role in several supply chains, maintaining operational continuity becomes essential even during disruptions within the transport chain. The findings also demonstrate how Swedish raw material companies work with flexibility, information management, and strategic adaptations in order to manage external uncertainties. 1

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• When Models Meet Judgement: Financial decision making under uncertainty and The Model-Judgement Contingency Framework

  (2026-09-16) Drougge, Isak; Lantz, Simon; Stefansson, Vidar; University of Gothenburg/Department of Business Administration; Göteborgs universitet/Företagsekonomiska institutionen

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  Management in the financial industry is traditionally understood as rational and model-based. However, research shows that decision-making in practice often involves judgement, intuition and experience; especially during periods of high market uncertainty. The study examines how financial decision-makers balance quantitative decision-support models and human judgement in practice, using a qualitative exploratory case study based on semi-structured interviews with decision-makers in the financial sector. Its scope is limited to financial firms in the greater Gothenburg metropolitan area in Sweden, and the underlying theoretical framework is based on classical financial theory, behavioural finance, and management under uncertainty. The study’s findings suggest that the relative importance of quantitative models and qualitative judgement does change under heightened market uncertainty. Uncertainty appears to increase the use of human interpretation, experience, and intuition in decision-making, especially within financial firms whose normal decision-making is only somewhat model-supported but not fully model-governed. Based on these findings, the study also proposes The Model-Judgement Contingency Framework: a framework in which financial firms can be placed on a scale from low to high baseline model reliance, and where uncertainty influences decision-making toward greater reliance on judgement. The theoretical contribution of the study is empirical findings and analysis of how financial decision making is affected by increased market uncertainty in the greater Gothenburg metropolitan area. Practically, the study contributes by providing financial firms with managerial insight into how uncertainty can influence human interpretation and model reliance in decision-making.

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