Euroopa õpingute õppekava magistritööd – Master´s theses

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Browsing Euroopa õpingute õppekava magistritööd – Master´s theses by Author "Braghiroli, Stefano, juhendaja"

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    Brain drain in an authoritarian regime on the example of Belarus
    (Tartu Ülikool, 2023) Tulf, Mariana; Braghiroli, Stefano, juhendaja; Hagelin, Sandra Charlota, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
    Brain drain and the competition to attract top talent have become increasingly relevant in recent years. However, there has been a lack of in-depth research on brain drain in authoritarian regimes. The political situation in Belarus has experienced significant turmoil, particularly after the falsified official presidential election results in 2020, which sparked widespread protests. As a result of the unstable political climate, many talented Belarusians have chosen to emigrate from the country. This thesis aims to identify the factors that influence highly skilled individuals' decision to emigrate from an authoritarian regime on the example of Belaurs. The hypothesis is that the decision-making process for highly skilled individuals in authoritarian countries, such as Belarus, is complex and influenced by a combination of push and pull factors. Process-tracing methodology is employed in this thesis to trace the relationship between the 2020 presidential election and the progressive process of autocratization and repression in Belarus. Ten in-depth expert interviews were conducted with both Estonian and Belarusian experts to gather data. The findings reveal that since 2020, the primary push and pull factors influencing the decision to emigrate have become more politically oriented, whereas prior to 2020, they were predominantly economic. The impact of intervening obstacles, such as COVID-19 restrictions and sanctions, remains uncertain due to varying expert opinions. In addition to presenting the results, this thesis also offers a brief overview of potential policy implications that could help address brain drain in an authoritarian context.
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    Countering Lukashenka’s authoritarian regime: the strategies of the Belarusian diaspora
    (Tartu Ülikool, 2023) Potsepp, Kristel Birgit; Makarychev, Andrey, juhendaja; Braghiroli, Stefano, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
    This Master’s thesis intends to research the ways in which the Belarusian diaspora is countering Lukashenka’s authoritarian regime. After the fraudulent presidential elections and protests in 2020, the majority of the country’s civil society has fled the country and the events of 2020 led to a new wave of politicised diaspora. To study the case, this research uses qualitative methods and process tracing. The sample consists of nine interviews: seven interviews with members of the Belarusian diaspora, one interview with a foreign affairs expert/diplomat and one interview with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. The analysis is based on five main themes that emerged from the theoretical framework and literature review. The results of this study show that the diaspora is using three main strategies in countering the authoritarian regime: a) raising awareness and bringing attention to the cause; b) policy-making and lobbying; and c) supporting the Belarusians and political prisoners. Furthermore, the role of utilising the ICTs is crucial in supporting the activities of the diaspora and they are used as a ‘liberation tool’. The main functions of the ICTs are a) communication tool amongst the diaspora and people living in Belarus; b) source of news and media awareness; and c) mobilisation tool. As a practical outcome, I have developed policy recommendations for Estonia and the EU based on the empirical findings of the thesis.
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    The factors that influence women to choose and pursue a career in the IT sector: the case of Estonia
    (Tartu Ülikool, 2019) Kaarma, Evelin; Braghiroli, Stefano, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
    Estonia as well as the rest of the EU is struggling to find enough IT specialists. It is estimated that by 2020, the EU will have 500,000 of vacant IT positions which has a hindering effect on the economy that is moving towards more digitalization. Women are under-represented in IT roles and the inclusion of more female IT specialists could offer a solution that is both contributing to the development of the IT sector and the economy as a whole. A larger participation of women in IT roles could also decrease the pay gap that Estonia has and support gender equality. This focus of this thesis was to find out which factors enable women to choose an IT-career. The research question was the following: what are the main influential factors that have encouraged women to choose a career in IT? In order to identify the enablers, eleven women were asked about their journey to IT including which aspects influenced their career choice and when the choice was made. The analysis of the responses was done by identifying the emerging narratives and themes as well as considering other research on the same subject. Gender and IT does not have a strong theorization as an academic discipline, however, some authors have used social constructivism to provide the frame in which to work in. Social constructivism was also used in this thesis and it was complemented with decision theory as well as gender-focused theories. The results of the analysis suggest that the choice that leads to an IT-career is often made young and that it is influenced by many social and internal factors. Practical tasks and positive feedback was mentioned several times by the interviewees as an enabling factor. Social relations were another influencing aspect in finding the way to IT. Curiosity and grit were also enablers that help women working in IT.
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    Lithuania's Taiwan policy: navigating the EU-China dynamic
    (Tartu Ülikool, 2024) Mumm, Desiree; Braghiroli, Stefano, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
    The author examines what values and messages appeared in the press releases of Lithuania and the European Union in the period from January 1, 2019 to January 1, 2024 related to the one-China policy which is a one of the frameworks under which the of the European Union's Common Security and Defence Policy operates. In order to research the topic, the following research questions were asked: 1. To what extent do Lithuania and the European Union present coherent or divergent statements on Taiwan? 2. How did the EU address Lithuania's move within the framework of its relations with China? In the empirical part of the work, qualitative content analysis was used and a coding table was created to sort the data. There were 103 press releases and official statements in the sample of this master thesis, of which 49 were press releases from Lithuanian and 54 from European Union agencies. As a result of the work, the tonality, main messages and values were dissected and analysed. The analysis also included the application of two small state theories (Long, 2005) (Nasra, 2011) and contexualising the statements through them.
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    Normative or pragmatic? The Estonian perspective on European Union foreign policy - cases of conflict in North Macedonia, Ukraine and Nagorno-Karabakh
    (Tartu Ülikool, 2022) Pechter, Karl Johan; Braghiroli, Stefano, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
    The European Union’s (EU) foreign policymaking has been known as value-based and therefore normative but in the document of European Union Global Strategy introduced 2016, the EU proposed a new way of dealing with foreign policy issues that put the emphasis on being pragmatic, interest-based and dealing with foreign policy crises with a more principled case-by-case method. This thesis aims to describe through a qualitative study how this proposed shift in the EU’s foreign policy is perceived from the viewpoint of the EU's smaller Member States, in this case focusing on Estonia. As smaller Member States are usually considered more as “policy-takers'' than “policy-makers'' and the EU foreign policy decisions are predominantly made with a unanimous decision, the discourse of smaller Member States of the EU could actually be contrasting from the official foreign policy positions of the EU. To understand the Smaller Member State's discourse regarding conflicts in Europe and in the proximity of Europe, the Estonian viewpoint is described through Estonian foreign policy experts' opinions on the crises. The crises in North Macedonia in 2001, Ukraine in 2014 and Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020 are therefore analysed in-depth to understand the EU’s evolution of foreign policymaking. The thesis uses Manner's (2002) Normative Power Europe and Ladrech's (1994) theoretical literature on Europeanization to understand the EU’s foreign policy and Estonian positions regarding crises of conflict are analysed through Regional Security Complex Theory by Buzan and Wæver (2003). The qualitative study conducted using comparative analysis, document analysis and semi-structured expert interviews shed light on the Estonian perspective, which was found to be more value-based than the EU’s official position on foreign policy crises in Ukraine and Nagorno-Karabakh, with similar perspectives towards North Macedonian crisis in 2001. Contrasting most with the EU’s perspectives was the case of Ukraine, where Estonia’s perceived threat to national security was identified as one of the main factors of the illustrated difference. The EU’s discourse shift is mapped and in the cases of conflict chosen for this thesis the study identifies a steady shift from more value-based to more interests-based foreign policy making.
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    Roheliste investeeringute edendamine: nudge-teooria ja Euroopa roheline kokkulepe Eesti varahaldusettevõtetes
    (Tartu Ülikool, 2024) Kadajane, Linda; Eamets, Raul, juhendaja; Braghiroli, Stefano, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
    Kliimamuutused ja keskkonnaseisu halvenemine on globaalsele majandusele ja ühiskonnale suured väljakutsed. Euroopa Liit (EL) on seadnud eesmärgiks 2050. aastaks saavutada kliimaneutraalsus Euroopa rohelise kokkuleppe raames, edendades keskkonnasõbralikku tehnoloogiat, kestlikku tööstust ja transporti ning saaste vähendamist. Peamine fookus rohepöörde elluviimisel on pandud finantssektorile, nõudes investeeringute suunamist keskkonnahoidlikesse projektidesse ja ettevõtetesse. EL on kehtestanud põhjaliku regulatiivse raamistiku roheliste majandustegevuste klassifitseerimise, kestlikkuse aruandluse ja erinevate investeerimisvahendite näol, et edendada kestlike investeerimispraktikaid ja ettevõtete vastutust. Käesoleva magistritöö eesmärk oli uurida, kuidas Eesti varahaldurid defineerivad rohelist investeeringut ning selgitada välja nügimise teooria rakendamise võimalikkust roheinvesteeringute mahu suurendamiseks. Uurimistöö käigus viidi läbi kvalitatiivsed poolstruktureeritud intervjuud 20 Eesti varahaldusettevõtte võtmeisikuga. Intervjuude tulemuste põhjal selgus, et Eesti varahaldurite lähenemised roheliste investeeringute defineerimisel varieeruvad oluliselt, sõltuvalt nende regulatiivsetest nõuetest ja kapitali mandaadist. Eesti varahaldurid juba kasutavad nügimise teooria praktikaid rohkem või vähem teadlikult ja usuvad, et kombinatsioon regulatsioonide ja nügimise teooria kasutamisest oleks tõhusaim viis kapitali rohelisemaks suunamisel. Intervjuude tulemused näitasid, et tasakaalustatud lähenemine, kus regulatsioonid määravad suuna ja teadlik nügimine, sihtgruppide spetsiifikat arvesse võttes, võimaldaks efektiivsemalt suunata investeeringuid keskkonnasõbralikumaks. Peamine rohelise rahanduse praktiseerimise kitsaskoht Eesti varahaldurite seas on tasakaalu leidmine tootluse, keskkonnamõju ja regulatiivsete nõuete vahel. Edasine uurimistöö võiks keskenduda konkreetselt nügimise praktilisele rakendamisele ja mõju analüüsile, et leida parimad viisid investeerimisotsuste suunamiseks keskkonnasõbralikumaks Eestis. Uuringu tulemuste põhjal saab anda poliitikasoovitustena regulatiivsete nõuete lihtsustamist, stabiilse investeerimiskeskkonna loomist, stiimulite väljaarendamist ja riigi ja erasektori koostöö suurendamist, et toetada Euroopa rohelise kokkuleppe eesmärkide täitmist.