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Department of Social Sciences/The Institute for Civil Society Studies
Campus Ersta

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Position:	Researcher, Ph D in Political Science
Telephone:	+46 (0)8-555 050 64
Fax:	+46 (0)8-555 050 60
E-mail:	pelle.aberg(at)esh.se
Address:	Ersta Sköndal University College Department of Social Sciences Box 11189 SE-100 61 STOCKHOLM Sweden
Visiting address:	Stigbergsgatan 30

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Background:

Pelle Åberg is a political scientist and defended his Ph.D. at Stockholm University in 2008. During his time as a Ph.D. student he was employed at Södertörn University College. He has been active as a researcher at Ersta Sköndal University College since January 2008.

Research interests:

Pelle is primarily interested in issues concerning transnational civil society, democracy promotion, the relationship between civil society and democracy and questions and theories about the diffusion and translation of ideas in and between organizations.

His Ph.D. dissertation examined about twenty cooperation projects between the Swedish study association ABF (Arbetarnas bildningsförbund, or Workers’ Educational Association) and the Estonian popular education organization AHL (Avatud Hariduse Liit, or Open Study Association). The projects are cases of transnational civil society cooperation, also connected with democracy promoting efforts since the funding came from the Olof Palme International Center with money originally coming from SIDA (the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency). The main focus of the dissertation concerned questions of what was disseminated through the contacts between the organizations and not least how this was adjusted or "translated" by Estonian actors to fit the new context.

Since his Ph.D. Pelle has, among other things, been involved in projects investigating the Swedish study associations and how they can be understood in relation to the concept of civil society. He is currently working on a project studying Swedish folk high schools.

Teaching:

Pelle has taught and is teaching on subjects like public administration, civil society and social capital, transnational activism, democracy as well as the Swedish welfare state. He is currently active as a senior lecturer in political science.

Publications:

Åberg, P. (2012). Managing Expectations, Demands and Myths: Swedish Study Associations Caught Between Civil Society, the State and the Market, Voluntas [online first, DOI: 10.1007/s11266-012-9271-3].

Åberg, P. (2012). Den vilda jakten på legitimiteten, in: J. von Essen & G. Sundgren (eds) En mosaik av mening: Om studieförbund och civilsamhälle. Stockholm: Daidalos (105-136). 
 
von Essen, J., Larsson, T., Nordzell, A., Sundgren, G. & Åberg, P. (2012). En meningsfull mosaik eller skärvor av mening?, in: J. von Essen & G. Sundgren (eds) En mosaik av mening: Om studieförbund och civilsamhälle. Stockholm: Daidalos (279-298).

Åberg, P. (2011). Change in Motion or Processing Change, in: F. Wijkström & A. Zimmer (eds) Beyond Membership: Civil Society Organizations in Times of Change. Baden-Baden: Nomos (151-176).

Nordvall, H. & Åberg, P. (2011). Myten om folkhögskolan: Om global spridning och användning av nordiska folkbildningsidéer, Pedagogisk forskning i Sverige, 16 (1): 1-17.

Åberg, P. (2011). Svensk folkbildning i estnisk tappning?, in: Årsbok om folkbildning 2010. Stockholm: Föreningen för folkbildningsforskning (144-163).

Åberg, P. & von Essen, J. (2010). Isomorphic processes and discursive strategies: Swedish study associations caught between civil society, the state and the market, ISTR Working Paper Series.

von Essen, J. & Åberg, P. (2009). Folkrörelseanknytningar och marknadsrelationer. Studieförbunden och deras grundarorganisationer, medlemsorganisationer och samverkansorganisationer. ”Folkbildningsrådet utvärderar No 3 2009”. Stockholm: Folkbildningsrådet.

Åberg, P. (2009). Co-operating across borders. Adult education and transnational civil society co-operation, in: M. Bron Jr, P. Guimarães, R. Vieira de Castro (eds) The State, Civil Society and the Citizen. Exploring Relationships in the Field of Adult Education in Europe. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang Verlag (131-147).

Åberg, P. (2008). Translating Popular Education. Civil Society Cooperation between Sweden and Estonia. Stockholm: Department of Political Science, Stockholm University.

Åberg, P. (2007). (Re-)Building Adult Education through Transnational Cooperation, in: R. Vieira de Castro, P. Guimarães, M. Bron Jr, I. Martin, R. Oliveira (eds) Changing Relationships between the State, the Civil Society and the Citizen: Implications for Adult Education and Adult Learning. Braga: Unit for Adult Education, University of Minho (3-13).

Åberg, P. (2003). Begreppslig förvirring och ryskt civilt samhälle, Nordiskt Østforum 17 (4): 487-502.