Search

This study explores the experiences of five distance learners at a UK university who needed support to resubmit their final assignment following a fail result. Having received written feedback on the submission, we asked how this could be best delivered to inform and motivate a successful resubmission. Written feedback alone was found to be insufficient for these students to feel supported. There is a need also for a human connection to provide 'emotional proximity' and make sense of the feedback received. In addition to this, students benefit from positive self-talk strategies to come to terms with the difficult emotions resulting from the high stakes of having to resubmit their assignment.

Cross-sectional studies have demonstrated strong associations between physical frailty and depression. However, the evidence from prospective studies is limited. Here, we analyze data of 352,277 participants from UK Biobank with 12.25-year follow-up. Compared with non-frail individuals, pre-frail and frail individuals have increased risk for incident depression independent of many putative confounds. Altogether, pre-frail and frail individuals account for 20.58% and 13.16% of depression cases by population attributable fraction analyses. Higher risks are observed in males and individuals younger than 65 years than their counterparts. Mendelian randomization analyses support a potential causal effect of frailty on depression. Associations are also observed between inflammatory markers, brain volumes, and incident depression. Moreover, these regional brain volumes and three inflammatory markers—C-reactive protein, neutrophils, and leukocytes—significantly mediate associations between frailty and depression. Given the scarcity of curative treatment for depression and the high disease burden, identifying potential modifiable risk factors of depression, such as frailty, is needed. Identifying modifiable risk factors that could prevent depression is important. Here, the authors show increased risks of incident depression in pre-frail and frail individuals and highlight the mediating role of brain structure and inflammation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to explain the authors' model of numeracy and outline how the project was conducted. The idea of numeracy is a relatively recent one. The term was first introduced in the UK by the "Crowther Report" (Ministry of Education, 1959) and was defined as the mirror image of literacy, but involving quantitative thinking. Another early definition proposed by the Cockcroft Report (Cockcroft, 1982) described being numerate as possessing an at-homeness with numbers and an ability to use mathematical skills to cope confidently with the practical demands of everyday life. Although numeracy is a term used in many English speaking countries, such as the UK, Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, in the USA and elsewhere it is more common to speak of quantitative literacy or mathematical literacy. The authors argue that a description of numeracy for new times needs to better acknowledge the rapidly evolving nature of knowledge, work, and technology. (Contains 1 figure.)

Aims Elevated blood pressure (BP) is a prevalent modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and contributes to cognitive decline in late life. Despite the fact that functional changes may precede irreversible structural damage and emerge in an ongoing manner, studies have been predominantly informed by brain structure and group-level inferences. Here, we aim to delineate neurobiological correlates of BP at an individual level using machine learning and functional connectivity. Methods and results Based on whole-brain functional connectivity from the UK Biobank, we built a machine learning model to identify neural representations for individuals' past (∼8.9 years before scanning, N = 35 882), current (N = 31 367), and future (∼2.4 years follow-up, N = 3 138) BP levels within a repeated cross-validation framework. We examined the impact of multiple potential covariates, as well as assessed these models' generalizability across various contexts. The predictive models achieved significant correlations between predicted and actual systolic/diastolic BP and pulse pressure while controlling for multiple confounders. Predictions for participants not on antihypertensive medication were more accurate than for currently medicated patients. Moreover, the models demonstrated robust generalizability across contexts in terms of ethnicities, imaging centres, medication status, participant visits, gender, age, and body mass index. The identified connectivity patterns primarily involved the cerebellum, prefrontal, anterior insula, anterior cingulate cortex, supramarginal gyrus, and precuneus, which are key regions of the central autonomic network, and involved in cognition processing and susceptible to neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease. Results also showed more involvement of default mode and frontoparietal networks in predicting future BP levels and in medicated participants. Conclusion This study, based on the largest neuroimaging sample currently available and using machine learning, identifies brain signatures underlying BP, providing evidence for meaningful BP-associated neural representations in connectivity profiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to improve our understanding of the emotional and political dynamics that are generated (and too often avoided) in action learning. The idea at the centre of the paper is a distinction between "learning-in-action" and "learning inaction". The phrase "learning-in-action" represents the value of action learning and much of what we know about the productive relationship between learning and practice. For example, we know that action learning can provide a generative learning model for improvements in practice. Membership of an action learning set can assist individuals in the development of strategic actions, which then can be tested and potentially transformed in practice. However, there is another dynamic that is having an effect on learning and the transformation of practice within action learning. This is called "learning inaction" because participants in learning sets also have (conscious and unconscious) knowledge, fantasies and perceptions about when it is emotionally and politically expedient to refrain from action, when to avoid collective action, and the organizational dynamics that underpin a failure to act. Organizational members are often aware of the political limits of learning within organizations without having to be told; we collude with others in order to create limitations on learning and we are often aware of what is and is not going to be seen as a legitimate result of our attempts to learn. We know these things "at the same time" as we are engaged in action learning. These developments in theory are related to practice through a focus on four action learning sets within the UK Health Service. (Contains 1 table.)

In this article, we considered women's experiences of undertaking Higher Education (HE) study (Foundation Degree in Early Years (EY)) drawing on research based in the North of England, UK. The study, informed by a social constructionist approach, explored 10 women's experiences of work–life balance (WLB) and well-being alongside HE study through semi-structured interviews. A focus group explored women's personal perceptions of WLB and well-being. The findings were analysed thematically and we argue that the formation of a third sphere of commitment (HE study) disrupted WLB and created some disequilibrium, which impacted upon the women's well-being. The women underwent a transformative process as initial academic inexperience and lack of belonging in University was replaced by confidence and student identity. This transformation was made possible through personal adaptations, diverse strategies and motivation that indicated individual and collective resilience. One noticeable strategy involved the overlapping of commitment spheres, including HE study taking place at home. While being challenging to manage, this contributed to an important cultural shift as study became normal for households, creating the 'learning family'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Describes an undergraduate course that aims at increasing student awareness of the workplace, developing understanding of how environmental policies interact with working practices, and equipping students with skills for investigating and reporting employment-related environmental issues. Students conduct an environmental assessment of a site-specific business and produce a case-study report. (MJP)

Background: Grip strength is a widely used and well-validated measure of overall health that is increasingly understood to index risk for psychiatric illness and neurodegeneration in older adults. However, existing work has not examined how grip strength relates to a comprehensive set of mental health outcomes, which can detect early signs of cognitive decline. Furthermore, whether brain structure mediates associations between grip strength and cognition remains unknown.Methods: Based on cross-sectional and longitudinal data from over 40,000 participants in the UK Biobank, this study investigated the behavioral and neural correlates of handgrip strength using a linear mixed effect model and mediation analysis.Results: In cross-sectional analysis, we found that greater grip strength was associated with better cognitive functioning, higher life satisfaction, greater subjective well-being, and reduced depression and anxiety symptoms while controlling for numerous demographic, anthropometric, and socioeconomic confounders. Further, grip strength of females showed stronger associations with most behavioral outcomes than males. In longitudinal analysis, baseline grip strength was related to cognitive performance at ~9 years follow-up, while the reverse effect was much weaker. Further, baseline neuroticism, health, and financial satisfaction were longitudinally associated with subsequent grip strength. The results revealed widespread associations between stronger grip strength and increased grey matter volume, especially in subcortical regions and temporal cortices. Moreover, grey matter volume of these regions also correlated with better mental health and considerably mediated their relationship with grip strength.Conclusions: Overall, using the largest population-scale neuroimaging dataset currently available, our findings provide the most well-powered characterization of interplay between grip strength, mental health, and brain structure, which may facilitate the discovery of possible interventions to mitigate cognitive decline during aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Argues that impending and inevitable changes to geography fieldwork can be better understood through an appreciation of the systemic nature of fieldwork. This appreciation can help in integrating changes into fieldwork. Discusses various management system models and approaches. (MJP)

Schizophrenia is a highly heritable psychiatric disorder characterized by widespread functional and structural brain abnormalities. However, previous association studies between MRI and polygenic risk were mostly ROI-based single modality analyses, rather than identifying brain-based multimodal predictive biomarkers. Based on schizophrenia polygenic risk scores (PRS) from healthy white people within the UK Biobank dataset (N = 22,459), we discovered a robust PRS-associated brain pattern with smaller gray matter volume and decreased functional activation in frontotemporal cortex, which distinguished schizophrenia from controls with >83% accuracy, and predicted cognition and symptoms across 4 independent schizophrenia cohorts. Further multi-disease comparisons demonstrated that these identified frontotemporal alterations were most severe in schizophrenia and schizo-affective patients, milder in bipolar disorder, and indistinguishable from controls in autism, depression and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. These findings indicate the potential of the identified PRS-associated multimodal frontotemporal network to serve as a trans-diagnostic gene intermediated brain biomarker specific to schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is highly heritable and characterized by widespread brain abnormalities. Here, the authors identify schizophrenia polygenic risk associated multimodal frontotemporal network that can serve as a transdiagnostic brain signature specific to schizophrenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brain morphology varies across the ageing trajectory and the prediction of a person's age using brain features can aid the detection of abnormalities in the ageing process. Existing studies on such "brain age prediction" vary widely in terms of their methods and type of data, so at present the most accurate and generalisable methodological approach is unclear. Therefore, we used the UK Biobank data set (N = 10,824, age range 47–73) to compare the performance of the machine learning models support vector regression, relevance vector regression and Gaussian process regression on whole‐brain region‐based or voxel‐based structural magnetic resonance imaging data with or without dimensionality reduction through principal component analysis. Performance was assessed in the validation set through cross‐validation as well as an independent test set. The models achieved mean absolute errors between 3.7 and 4.7 years, with those trained on voxel‐level data with principal component analysis performing best. Overall, we observed little difference in performance between models trained on the same data type, indicating that the type of input data had greater impact on performance than model choice. All code is provided online in the hope that this will aid future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the case for, and plausibility of, eradicating American mink Neovison vison from mainland Great Britain and its associated offshore islands. This invasive species causes extensive damage to native fauna throughout Europe, and the UK Government is obliged to eradicate it, if feasible, under the Bern Convention. Current mink control buys time, but is patchy and dependent on substantial funding in perpetuity. If enacted, eradication would be cheaper in the long term and much more effective in preserving native wildlife. The methodology of an eradication campaign is explored, together with risks, challenges, and a tentative timeline and cost. We judge that mink eradication is now logistically feasible, due to technological developments and experience gained from landscape‐scale control. Using live traps fitted with electronic sensors – 'smart' traps – as the primary means of catching mink would render the campaign efficient, humane and free of non‐target mortality and negative environmental impacts. The ecological benefits of mink eradication would be profound, including greatly improving prospects for water vole Arvicola amphibius populations. Reinvasion is highly unlikely. The greatest logistical challenge is probably removing mink from Scottish west coast islands. Eradication might take around a decade and be dependent on co‐ordination between many conservation, fishing, farming, and water‐related organisations, together with the consent of landowners. By adding alarms to existing mink traps, land and water managers can pave the way to eradication now. A mink‐free Great Britain would plausibly cost tens of millions of pounds, against which could be set the limitless future costs of mink control. Such a campaign would be by far the world's largest invasive predator eradication project by geographical area and would set a precedent for citizen‐led conservation action globally. Regional trials would be extremely valuable in determining the costs and practicality of a GB‐wide campaign. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Importance: Recurrent microdeletions and duplications in the genomic region 15q11.2 between breakpoints 1 (BP1) and 2 (BP2) are associated with neurodevelopmental disorders. These structural variants are present in 0.5% to 1.0% of the population, making 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 the site of the most prevalent known pathogenic copy number variation (CNV). It is unknown to what extent this CNV influences brain structure and affects cognitive abilities.Objective: To determine the association of the 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 deletion and duplication CNVs with cortical and subcortical brain morphology and cognitive task performance.Design, Setting, and Participants: In this genetic association study, T1-weighted brain magnetic resonance imaging were combined with genetic data from the ENIGMA-CNV consortium and the UK Biobank, with a replication cohort from Iceland. In total, 203 deletion carriers, 45 247 noncarriers, and 306 duplication carriers were included. Data were collected from August 2015 to April 2019, and data were analyzed from September 2018 to September 2019.Main Outcomes and Measures: The associations of the CNV with global and regional measures of surface area and cortical thickness as well as subcortical volumes were investigated, correcting for age, age2, sex, scanner, and intracranial volume. Additionally, measures of cognitive ability were analyzed in the full UK Biobank cohort.Results: Of 45 756 included individuals, the mean (SD) age was 55.8 (18.3) years, and 23 754 (51.9%) were female. Compared with noncarriers, deletion carriers had a lower surface area (Cohen d = -0.41; SE, 0.08; P = 4.9 × 10-8), thicker cortex (Cohen d = 0.36; SE, 0.07; P = 1.3 × 10-7), and a smaller nucleus accumbens (Cohen d = -0.27; SE, 0.07; P = 7.3 × 10-5). There was also a significant negative dose response on cortical thickness (β = -0.24; SE, 0.05; P = 6.8 × 10-7). Regional cortical analyses showed a localization of the effects to the frontal, cingulate, and parietal lobes. Further, cognitive ability was lower for deletion carriers compared with noncarriers on 5 of 7 tasks.Conclusions and Relevance: These findings, from the largest CNV neuroimaging study to date, provide evidence that 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 structural variation is associated with brain morphology and cognition, with deletion carriers being particularly affected. The pattern of results fits with known molecular functions of genes in the 15q11.2 BP1-BP2 region and suggests involvement of these genes in neuronal plasticity. These neurobiological effects likely contribute to the association of this CNV with neurodevelopmental disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Women with pre-eclampsia have elevated circulating levels of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1). Statins can reduce sFlt-1 from cultured cells and improve pregnancy outcome in animals with a pre-eclampsia-like syndrome. We investigated the effect of pravastatin on plasma sFlt-1 levels during pre-eclampsia.Design: Blinded (clinician and participant), proof of principle, placebo-controlled trial.Setting: Fifteen UK maternity units.Population: We used a minimisation algorithm to assign 62 women with early-onset pre-eclampsia (24+0 -31+6  weeks of gestation) to receive pravastatin 40 mg daily (n = 30) or matched placebo (n = 32), from randomisation to childbirth.Primary Outcome: Difference in mean plasma sFlt-1 levels over the first 3 days following randomisation.Results: The difference in the mean maternal plasma sFlt-1 levels over the first 3 days after randomisation between the pravastatin (n = 27) and placebo (n = 29) groups was 292 pg/ml (95% CI -1175 to 592; P = 0.5), and over days 1-14 was 48 pg/ml (95% CI -1009 to 913; P = 0.9). Women who received pravastatin had a similar length of pregnancy following randomisation compared with those who received placebo (hazard ratio 0.84; 95% CI 0.50-1.40; P = 0.6). The median time from randomisation to childbirth was 9 days (interquartile range [IQR] 5-14 days) for the pravastatin group and 7 days (IQR 4-11 days) for the placebo group. There were three perinatal deaths in the placebo-treated group and no deaths or serious adverse events attributable to pravastatin.Conclusions: We found no evidence that pravastatin lowered maternal plasma sFlt-1 levels once early-onset pre-eclampsia had developed. Pravastatin appears to have no adverse perinatal effects.Tweetable Abstract: Pravastatin does not improve maternal plasma sFlt-1 or placental growth factor levels following a diagnosis of early preterm pre-eclampsia #clinicaltrial finds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has shown that British public perception of veterans can be negative and erroneous. Surveys, for example, indicate that veterans are characterized as skilled and valorous individuals but also as suffering from ill-health, unemployment, and homelessness. To investigate how these beliefs may form, the present study examines the public dimension of knowledge by analyzing depictions of veterans in the media. A total of 335 newspaper articles that represent British veterans were downloaded from Google News and UKPressonline. After the articles were classified with a content analysis, chi-square tests were conducted to understand how the representation of veterans may be related to the political affiliations of news agencies and by newspaper format. The results suggest that British veterans are predominantly represented in both heroic and victimizing contexts. While political affiliation did not affect the representation of veterans significantly, newspaper format did, with broadsheet (quality) newspapers emphasizing victimized contexts and local and international newspapers focusing on heroic contexts, with tabloids occupying a middle ground. In conclusion, broadsheet newspapers may express sociocultural scrutiny toward the ways in which veterans are treated, while local and international newspapers may focus on stereotypical representations of heroic British military actions that veterans may symbolize. Implications and conclusions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the political crisis faced by the centre-left, not just in the UK but throughout the Western world, with few exceptions (Canada). The Liberal Democrat party has been a victim of that crisis, though there are encouraging signs of recovery and there is scope for a wider realignment on the centre-left. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the basic concepts of equivocation and ambiguity in late sixteenth-century education in England. Topics covered include the ancient and Renaissance texts used in universities at the time, the possible shaping of attitudes towards ambiguity by university education, and the ways of disagreement from varied interpretations of the same text. Also noted is the moralistic approach to the use of ambiguity in such Renaissance treatments as Melanchthon's "Elementorum rhetorices."

Objective: The main aim of the survey was to explore current practices with regards to cervical cerclage procedures amongst UK consultants with particular emphasis on the type of suture material used. Methods: An electronic survey of UK consultant members and fellows of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and who previously agreed to be contacted for survey purposes. Results: There were 261 respondents to the survey and 88% routinely performed cerclage. The majority performed the procedure between 12 and 16 weeks' gestation (88.7%; n = 180/203), following the McDonald technique (83.4%; n = 166/199) and using a braided suture material (86.6%; n = 175/202). Although only 27 of the 202 responders (13.4%) used a monofilament suture for cerclage (75%; n = 149/201) of clinicians stated that they were not sure what is the best suture material to be used. Conclusion: There is considerable variation in practice amongst Consultant obstetricians with regards to cervical cerclage. Although most respondents use the traditional braided suture material, a significant proportion of them were not sure what is the best suture material to use. The 'gestation at delivery' rate was judged to be the most important outcome for a future study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many older women reduce the amount of cooking and food preparation they do in later life. While cooking may be seen as traditionally associated with women's family roles, little is known about the impact of such reduced engagement with food on their lives. This paper presents the findings from a one-year qualitative study (Changes Around Food Experience, CAFE) of the impact of reduced contact with preparing and cooking meals from scratch for 40 women, aged 65–95 years, living in Norfolk, United Kingdom. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, focus groups and observations. Women's reasons for reducing food-related activities included changes in health, loss of a partner or a caring role, and new patterns of socialising. Disengagement from cooking and shopping was not found to entail predominantly negative feelings, passive acceptance or searching for forms of support to re-enable more cooking from scratch. Accounts evidenced the dynamic adaptability of older women in actively managing changed relationships with food. In exploring new meal options, older women were not simply disengaging from their environments. CAFE findings linked women's engagement with their environments to how they were using formal services and, even more, to the value they placed on social engagement and being out and about. Through the connections they fostered with friends, family and community, older women actively enabled their continued involvement in their social, public and family spheres. Reduced contact with preparing and cooking meals from scratch, therefore, did not induce or imply passivity or debility in the CAFE cohort. By contrast, it involved their exploring new means of retaining what was important to them about food in the context of their lived situation and social connections with friends, family, the community and public spheres. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses a study of 40-kilometer cycling time trial performance which indicates that lactate and sodium bicarbonate supplementation do not appear to improve cycling performance but may impact perceived exertion. Topics include heart rates and the extracellular blood buffering of some ergogenic acids.

In the UK, debate about the appropriate balance between publicly and privately driven forms of collective consumer redress has favoured a regulatory solution exemplified by the FSA's new rule-making powers mandating the establishment of consumer redress schemes. This article examines another solution--a co-regulatory scheme involving Australia's Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The article compares the costs and benefits of FOS intervention apropos systemic breach with other forms of collective consumer redress, including class actions and public regulator action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Oxyfuel combustion in a pulverised fuel coal-fired power station produces a raw CO2 product containing contaminants such as water vapour plus oxygen, nitrogen and argon derived from the excess oxygen for combustion, impurities in the oxygen used, and any air leakage into the system. There are also acid gases present, such as SO3, SO2, HCl and NO x produced as byproducts of combustion. At GHGT8 (White and Allam, 2006) we presented reactions that gave a path-way for SO2 to be removed as H2SO4 and NO and NO2 to be removed as HNO3. In this paper we present initial results from the OxyCoal-UK project in which these reactions are being studied experimentally to provide the important reaction kinetic information that is so far missing from the literature. This experimental work is being carried out at Imperial College London with synthetic flue gas and then using actual flue gas via a sidestream at Doosan Babcock''s 160kW coal-fired oxyfuel rig. The results produced support the theory that SO x and NO x components can be removed during compression of raw oxyfuel-derived CO2 and therefore, for emissions control and CO2 product purity, traditional FGD and deNO x systems should not be required in an oxyfuel-fired coal power plant. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper seeks to improve our understanding of the emotional and political dynamics that are generated (and too often avoided) in action learning. The idea at the centre of the paper is a distinction between 'learning-in-action' and 'learning inaction'. The phrase 'learning-in-action' represents the value of action learning and much of what we know about the productive relationship between learning and practice. For example, we know that action learning can provide a generative learning model for improvements in practice. Membership of an action learning set can assist individuals in the development of strategic actions, which then can be tested and potentially transformed in practice. However, there is another dynamic that is having an effect on learning and the transformation of practice within action learning. This is called 'learning inaction' because participants in learning sets also have (conscious and unconscious) knowledge, fantasies and perceptions about when it is emotionally and politically expedient to refrain from action, when to avoid collective action, and the organizational dynamics that underpin a failure to act. Organizational members are often aware of the political limits of learning within organizations without having to be told; we collude with others in order to create limitations on learning and we are often aware of what is and is not going to be seen as a legitimate result of our attempts to learn. We know these things at the same time as we are engaged in action learning. These developments in theory are related to practice through a focus on four action learning sets within the UK Health Service. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- This paper aims to contribute to the tactical and operational decision making of manufacturing and logistics operations by providing novel insights into modelling and simulation, based on complex adaptive systems (CAS). Design/methodology/approach -- The research approach is theoretically based on CAS with agent-based modelling (ABM) as the implementation method. A case study is presented where an agent-based model has contributed to increased understanding and precision in decision making at a packaging company in the UK. Findings -- The results suggest that ABM provides decision-makers with robust and accurate "what-if scenarios of the dynamic interplay among several business functions. These scenarios can guide managers in the process of moving from policy space to performance space, i.e. concerning priorities of improvement efforts and choices of production/manufacturing policies, warehouse policies, customer service policies and logistics policies. Furthermore, it is found that ABM can include and pay attention to several aspects of CAS and thus provide understanding of, and explanation for, the patterns and effects which emerge in manufacturing and logistics settings. Practical implications -- Aided by agent-based models and simulations, practitioners' levels of intuition can be enhanced since patterns on the macro level emerge from agents' interactive behaviour. Together with insights from CAS these emergent patterns can be explained and understood, and are thus beneficial for the improvement of decision making in companies. Originality/value -- The case presented distinguishes this paper from what has been written in previous articles on the application of ABM, since such articles have not produced any empirically verified results after implementation of ABM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Educational leadership has been seen by many as one of the most important factors in school improvement and effectiveness and is about providing a culture within which teaching and learning will prosper. The training of leaders has therefore become of paramount importance. There is a wealth of training in the UK for teachers in leadership roles, and particularly for those aspiring to become headteachers, and those newly appointed. This article is derived, however, from research indicating the needs of headteachers who have been in post for some years and are looking for ways to continue with their own professional development. There is a real danger that these experienced headteachers will become disenchanted, and their performance will decline during their middle years of headship, and that coaching, focus groups and a rich selection of professional development opportunities could make the difference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - Previous studies have looked at how socio-economic and political factors play a role in consumers' ethical positions, but few have considered the role of religion which is a major driver of ethics. This paper seeks to address this. Design/methodology/approach - From a survey of over 700 consumers this paper explores the similarities and differences between consumers' ethical positions in three different religions namely; Christian (from three countries), Islam, and Buddhism. Findings - It was found that a reduced item scale measuring the two factors of Forsyth's idealism and relativism was applicable in all five religions, but variations were seen because of religious teachings. In particular, Austrian Christians were significantly less idealistic and relativistic than all other religions, even other Christians from the United States and Britain. Research limitations/implications - The results have implications for measuring ethical positions internationally and for developing ethically based marketing messages and products. Originality/value - The paper shows for the first time how ethical positions are affected by religions and should be of interest to marketers involved in ethics research and ethical marketing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A SURVEY of archaeological ceramic thin sections held by institutions and individuals in the United Kingdom was undertaken in the early 1990s by the City of Lincoln Archaeology Unit and funded by English Heritage. Over 6,000 thin sections of Anglo-Saxon or medieval date (or reports on their analysis) were located. For the Middle to Late Anglo-Saxon and the post-Conquest Periods, these studies have confirmed that pottery production was carried out in a limited number of centres and that most pottery, including handmade coarsewares, was therefore produced for trade. The distances over which pottery was carried vary from period to period but were actually as high or higher in the Middle to Late Anglo-Saxon Period as in the 13th to 14h centuries. However, for the Early Anglo-Saxon Period (and the Middle Anglo-Saxon Period outside of eastern England) the evidence of ceramic petrology is equivocal and requires more study. These 6,000–odd thin sections represent a resource which could be used for various future studies, some of which are discussed here, and as an aid to their further use a database containing information on the sampled ceramics, their location and publications of their analyses will be published online through Internet Archaeology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excavation on the site of a late 17th-century and early 18th-century clay tobacco pipe kiln and workshop at Roy's Orchard, Pipe Aston, in north-east Herefordshire has revealed that the site was probably used concurrently by a number of pipemakers, from c. 1680 to c. 1720 or slightly later. In addition to marked and unmarked pipes, the waste from the site includes unmarked wig curlers of two types. Chemical analysis of a sample of pipes and wig curlers and of pipeclays which might have been the source of the clay reveals that the wig curlers are probably products of the Pipe Aston pipemakers and that they were made in two batches, corresponding to their typological classification. The source of the clay used has been shown conclusively not to have been the locally available Silurian clays but a Coal Measures seatearth, comparable with the outcropping at Ironbridge Gorge. Samples of Devon Ball clay and Coal Measures clay from Clun, a closer outcrop than Ironbridge, have been analysed and can be discounted as potential sources of the Pipe Aston pipeclay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is likely that in the near future sequence information from sequencing programmes and EST libraries will generate an abundance of genic microsatellite markers. This study is focused on the assessment of their likely impact and performance vis-à-vis their genomic counterparts. Microsatellites from two sources were used to assess the genetic diversity in 56 old and new varieties of bread wheat on the UK Recommended List. A set of 12 microsatellite markers generated from genomic libraries and 20 expressed sequence tag (EST)-derived microsatellites were used in the study, and the performance of both marker sets assessed. The EST-derived or genic microsatellites delivered fingerprints of superior quality, amplifying clear products with few stutter bands. Diversity levels as revealed by genic microsatellites are similar to the few published results. The PIC values for the genic markers were generally lower than those calculated for the genomic microsatellites, though advantages of both marker classes for variety identification applications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The NHS Plan (DoH, 2000), consistent with earlier policy documents, emphasises the need for integrated working between health and social care. However, the path to achieving integration appears to be littered with as many failures of teamworking as successes. This paper reports on an evaluation of the development of a team of practitioners working with clients with severe enduring mental health problems. Soft systems methodology enabled the researchers to inform service development rather than merely describing its process and outcomes. Care management was proactive rather than crisis orientated, with prompt response to subtle changes in clients' needs, facilitated by the employment of Community Support Workers. New care processes and structures enabled client and professional knowledge to be used as a resource to inform decisions about care. The practitioners managed this knowledge through informal trans-disciplinary exchange, promoting access to the fine detail of the relationship between user need and service provision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the constituents of an ethical defense for research and contract in Great Britain. British Educational Research Guidelines for educational research; Ethical considerations; Ethical critique of a commissioned research; Publication of social research.

Discusses the management of change in fieldwork in the United Kingdom. Effects of external and internal pressures on higher education; Complexity of fieldwork; Advantages of regarding fieldwork within a systems framework.

Presents how teaching, learning and research are all essential and indivisible parts of the highest quality of higher education. Empirical evidence that teaching, learning and research are essential parts of higher education; Impact of research on teaching and learning and vice-versa; Model of relationships between teaching, learning and research.

Examines the stochastic implications of the life cycle-permanent income hypothesis for the economy in Great Britain. Measurement on the consumption of expenditure using quarterly data; Validity of the hypothesis; Factors affecting life cycle-permanent income.

Our intention in this article is to add to the different ways of looking at and working with change in organizations. We suggest a set of working propositions that move away from problem-solving or planning-based approaches to change, towards a method which focuses primarily on organizational members' emotions and relations, and on forces of uncertainty and defensiveness. We attempt both to highlight the dynamic nature of change, and to point towards some key issues, often avoided, for engaging with aspects of change. We then describe a participative research process we have employed to access and act on organizational members' emotional responses to change. In this instance, drawings were used with managers in six public service organizations as the catalyst to enable managers to bring out often paradoxical emotions, and to work with these as part of the process of the management of change. While our research is set in the context of enormous changes in Great Britain public services, we feel that our methodology is applicable to any organizational setting which is characterized by uncertainty and defensiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author describes the use of a group-analytic approach within a local government management development programme, in particular during the 'large-group' sessions. Large-group sessions seem particularly effective in demonstrating the extent to which a manager is both committed to and able to understand and work with change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]