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This paper evaluates a method of generating a unique dataset that has been underused—a Freedom of Information (FOI) request. The UK's FOI Act came into force in 2005, allowing the public to make requests of publicly held data. We set out to understand the determinants of the quality responses to FOI requests. We also explain how requests can be made and provide suggestions to construct effective data-driven requests. We applied for data on hate crime from all police forces and on uptake of maternity leave from all universities. We find that observable characteristics of the local area, police force and universities neither determine whether the request was fulfilled, nor the speed of response, suggesting that the data from these FOI requests are representative of the institutions from which they were requested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To develop and evaluate a low-cost computer-based tool to elicit dietary choices in an incentive compatible manner, which can be used on-line or as part of a laboratory study. Methods: The study was conducted with around 255 adults. Respondents were asked to allocate a fixed monetary budget across a choice of around a hundred grocery items with the prospect of receiving these items with some probability delivered to their home by a real supermarket. The tool covers a broad range of food items, allows inference of macro-nutrients and calories, and allows the researcher to fix the choice set participants can choose from. We compare the information derived from our incentivized tool, and compare it to alternative low-cost ways of measuring dietary intake, namely the food frequency questionnaire and a one-shot version of the 24-hour dietary recall, which are both based on self-reports. We compare the calorie intake indicators derived from each tool with a number of biometric measures for each subject, namely weight, body-mass-index (BMI) and waist size. Results: The results show that the dietary information collected is only weakly correlated across the three methods. We find that only the calorie intake measure from our incentivized tool is positively and significantly related to each of the biometric indicators. Specifically, a 10% increase in calorie intake is associated with a 1.5% increase in BMI. By contrast, we find no significant correlations for either of the two measures based on self-reports. Conclusion: The computer-based tool is a promising new, low-cost measure of dietary choices, particularly in one-shot situations where such behaviours are only observed once, whereas other tools like 24-hour dietary recalls and food frequency questionnaires may be more suited when they are administered repeatedly. The tool may be useful for research conducted with limited time and budget. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stressor experiences during the juvenile period may increase vulnerability to anxiety and depressive-like symptoms in adulthood. Stressors may also promote palatable feeding, possibly reflecting a form of self-medication. The current study investigated the short- and long-term consequences of a stressor applied during the juvenile period on anxiety- and depressive-like behavior measured by the elevated plus maze (EPM), social interaction and forced swim test (FST). Furthermore, the effects of stress on caloric intake, preference for a palatable food and indices of metabolic syndrome and obesity were assessed. Male Wistar rats exposed to 3 consecutive days of variable stressors on postnatal days (PD) 27–29, displayed elevated anxiety-like behaviors as adults, which could be attenuated by consumption of a palatable high-fat diet. However, consumption of a palatable food in response to a stressor appeared to contribute to increased adiposity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]