This article seeks to address the theoretical foundations of subjectivity as co-constituted by discursive and material/technological forces. Our ambition is to develop a conceptual framework that draws from Science and Technology Studies and related "new materialist" frameworks and poststructuralist analyses in order to develop analytics that embrace the complexities we face in our empirical work. We discuss the potentialities and weaknesses of the two theoretical frameworks at a conceptual level as well as through an empirical case on peer bullying in schools. The discussion leads us to a redefinition of the concept of subjectivity that emphasizes the multiplicity of enacting forces including human as well as non-human, material/technological actors; and that underlines the importance of a conceptualization of all actors as simultaneously enacting and enacted forces.Keywords materiality, post-structural theory, processes of becoming, subjectivity How can we qualify a concept of subjectivity by means of a new-materialist framework? Or, how can we qualify a new-materialist framework by bringing in subjectivity as one of the many enacting forces to be considered?Our ambition in this article is to discuss a conceptual framework that draws from Science and Technology Studies (STS), Agential Realism, and poststructuralist analysis that may help us work the complexities we meet in our empirical work 1 . Faced with a

The Scandinavian countries are currently experiencing a change in the social construction of fatherhood. This article explores the character of the change within the domain of the relationship between fatherhood and work. Against the backdrop of a theoretical understanding of gender as a cultural dynamic that is formed by the constant interplay between institutional and interactional processes and the symbolic universe of masculine and feminine, the construction of fatherhood is discussed on three levels: in the institutional context of welfare state policies, in the interactional processes of the work place and on the individual level. The analysis reveals the precarious situation that working fathers are currently facing, where state policies challenge, albeit ambiguously, the symbolic order of masculinity and the work cultures support a strengthening of the masculine work ethic with the effect that the choice of being an active father is jeopardized by evoking a very basic conflict in the symbolic universe of masculinity.

Aims The aim of the SCIENCE trial was to investigate whether a single treatment with direct intramyocardial injections of adipose tissue‐derived mesenchymal stromal cells (CSCC_ASCs) was safe and improved cardiac function in patients with chronic ischaemic heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). Methods and results The study was a European multicentre, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled phase II trial using allogeneic CSCC_ASCs from healthy donors or placebo (2:1 randomization). Main inclusion criteria were New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II–III, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) <45%, and N‐terminal pro‐B‐type natriuretic peptide (NT‐proBNP) levels >300 pg/ml. CSCC_ASCs or placebo (isotonic saline) were injected directly into viable myocardium. The primary endpoint was change in left ventricular end‐systolic volume (LVESV) at 6‐month follow‐up measured by echocardiography. A total of 133 symptomatic HFrEF patients were included. The treatment was safe without any drug‐related severe adverse events or difference in cardiac‐related adverse events during a 3‐year follow‐up period. There were no significant differences between groups during follow‐up in LVESV (0.3 ± 5.0 ml, p = 0.945), nor in secondary endpoints of left ventricular end‐diastolic volume (−2.0 ± 6.0 ml, p = 0.736) and LVEF (−1.6 ± 1.0%, p = 0.119). The NYHA class improved slightly within the first year in both groups without any difference between groups. There were no changes in 6‐min walk test, NT‐proBNP, C‐reactive protein or quality of life the first year in any groups. Conclusion The SCIENCE trial demonstrated safety of intramyocardial allogeneic CSCC_ASC therapy in patients with chronic HFrEF. However, it was not possible to improve the pre‐defined endpoints and induce restoration of cardiac function or clinical symptoms.

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