Showing papers by "Northumbria University published in 2004"

Strategies for ensuring trustworthiness in qualitative research projects

Abstract: Although many critics are reluctant to accept the trustworthiness of qualitative research, frameworks for ensuring rigour in this form of work have been in existence for many years. Guba’s constructs, in particular, have won considerable favour and form the focus of this paper. Here researchers seek to satisfy four criteria. In addressing credibility, investigators attempt to demonstrate that a true picture of the phenomenon under scrutiny is being presented. To allow transferability, they provide sufficient detail of the context of the fieldwork for a reader to be able to decide whether the prevailing environment is similar to another situation with which he or she is familiar and whether the findings can justifiably be applied to the other setting. The meeting of the dependability criterion is difficult in qualitative work, although researchers should at least strive to enable a future investigator to repeat the study. Finally, to achieve confirmability, researchers must take steps to demonstrate that findings emerge from the data and not their own predispositions. The paper concludes by suggesting that it is the responsibility of research methods teachers to ensure that this or a comparable model for ensuring trustworthiness is followed by students undertaking a qualitative inquiry.

'Just sustainability': the emerging discourse of environmental justice in Britain?

Abstract: Environmental justice is both a vocabulary for political opportunity, mobilization and action, and a policy principle to guide public decision making. It emerged initially in the US, and more recently in the UK, as a new vocabulary underpinning action by community organizations campaigning against environmental injustices. However, as the environmental justice discourse has matured, it has become increasingly evident that it should play a role in the wider agendas for sustainable development and social inclusion. The links between sustainability and environmental justice are becoming clearer and more widely understood in the UK by NGOs and government alike, and it is the potential synergy between these two discourses which is the focus of this paper. This paper argues that the concept of ‘just sustainability’ provides a discourse for policymakers and activists, which brings together the key dimensions of both environmental justice and sustainable development.

The Fair Trade Movement: Parameters, Issues and Future Research

Abstract: Although Fair Trade has been in existence for more than 40 years, discussion in the business and business ethics literature of this unique trading and campaigning movement between Southern producers and Northern buyers and consumers has been limited. This paper seeks to redress this deficit by providing a description of the characteristics of Fair Trade, including definitional issues, market size and segmentation and the key organizations. It discusses Fair Trade from Southern producer and Northern trader and consumer perspectives and highlights the key issues that currently face the Fair Trade movement. It then identifies an initial research agenda to be followed up in subsequent papers.

Saying, Seeing and Acting: The Psychological Semantics of Spatial Prepositions

Abstract: Our use of spatial prepositions carries an implicit understanding of the functional relationships both between objects themselves and human interaction with those objects. This is the thesis rigorously explicated in 'Saying, Seeing and Acting'. It aims to account not only for our theoretical comprehension of spatial relations but our ability to intercede with efficacy in the world of spatially related objects. Only the phenomenon of functionality can adequately account for what even the simplest of everyday experiences show to be the technically problematic, but still meaningful status of expressions of spatial location in contentious cases. The terms of the debate are established and contextualised in Part One. In the Second Section, systematic experimental evidence is drawn upon to demonstrate specific covariances between spatial world and spatial language. The authors go on to give an original account of the functional and geometric constraints on which comprehension and human action among spatially related objects is based. Part Three looks at the interaction of these constraints to create a truly dynamic functional geometric framework for the meaningful use of spatial prepositions. Fascinating to anyone whose work touches on psycholinguistics, this book represents a thorough and incisive contribution to debates in the cognitive psychology of language.

From catastrophe to complexity: a novel model of integrative central neural regulation of effort and fatigue during exercise in humans

Abstract: It is a popular belief that exercise performance is limited by metabolic changes in the exercising muscles, so called peripheral fatigue. Exercise terminates when there is a catastrophic failure of homoeostasis in the exercising muscles. A revolutionary theory is presented that proposes that exercise performance is regulated by the central nervous system specifically to ensure that catastrophic physiological failure does not occur during normal exercise in humans.

Leaving university early: exploring the differences between continuing and non‐continuing students

Abstract: This article explores some of the issues surrounding student retention at two contrasting universities in Scotland. It is based on a relatively small‐scale quantitative survey of students who withdrew or continued, in order that direct comparisons may be made between the two groups. This comparison allows analysis of the constraints and opportunities that face all young people during their time in higher education, and the circumstances under which students decide to withdraw. This shows widespread and similar financial difficulties amongst students who continue and those who withdraw, suggesting that it is more useful to look at the points at which similar pressures seem bearable for one student but not for another. The research indicates that important factors in the decision to withdraw include: poor choice of course; limited social support networks; and lack of ‘fit’ between student and institution. While there is macro‐level evidence of a class gradient in withdrawal rates, the evidence unpacks more ...

Cognitive and physiological effects of an “energy drink”: an evaluation of the whole drink and of glucose, caffeine and herbal flavouring fractions

Abstract: Both glucose and caffeine can improve aspects of cognitive performance and, in the case of caffeine, mood. There are few studies investigating the effects of the two substances in combination. We assessed the mood, cognitive and physiological effects of a soft drink containing caffeine and glucose as well as flavouring levels of herbal extracts. The effects of different drink fractions were also evaluated. Using a randomised, double-blind, balanced, five-way crossover design, 20 participants who were overnight fasted and caffeine-deprived received 250 ml drinks containing 37.5 g glucose; 75 mg caffeine; ginseng and ginkgo biloba at flavouring levels; a whole drink (containing all these substances) or a placebo (vehicle). Participants were assessed in each drink condition, separated by a 7-day wash-out period. Cognitive, psychomotor and mood assessment took place immediately prior to the drink then 30 min thereafter. The primary outcome measures included five aspects of cognitive performance from the Cognitive Drug Research assessment battery. Mood, heart rate and blood glucose levels were also monitored. Compared with placebo, the whole drink resulted in significantly improved performance on “secondary memory” and “speed of attention” factors. There were no other cognitive or mood effects. This pattern of results would not be predicted from the effects of glucose and caffeine in isolation, either as seen here or from the literature addressing the effects of the substances in isolation. These data suggest that there is some degree of synergy between the cognition-modulating effects of glucose and caffeine which merits further investigation.

CULTURE‐LED URBAN REGENERATION AND THE REVITALIsATION OF IDENTITIES IN NEWCASTLE, GATESHEAD AND THE NORTH EAST OF ENGLAND

Abstract: The rhetoric of the cultural policy dimension of culture‐led regeneration makes a variety of assumptions concerned with the democratisation of culture and the empowerment of local communities In this article, we ask whether there are alternative paradigms that might offer different connections to other drivers of regeneration in the social and economic fields The article suggests that successful culture‐led regeneration is not about a trickle‐down effect at all, but rather represents a counter‐balance to broader processes of cultural globalisation We chart the emergence of cultural policy in the North East of England paying particular attention to the impact of Year of the Visual Arts 1996 and to data emerging out of a 10‐year longitudinal research project on the Gateshead Quayside It is suggested that only an in‐depth understanding of geographical and historical specificities will help us understand the way in which cultural regeneration potentially strengthens existing sources of identity rather tha

A longitudinal and cross-sectional analysis of environmental disclosure in UK companies—a research note

Abstract: The annual reports of 10 UK-based companies in five sectors were analysed between 1974 and 2000 and the volume of voluntary environmental disclosure was recorded from each. Findings show an overall increase in disclosure volume over the period but with a marked upturn in the late 1980s. This was regressed against the memberships, over the same period, of two UK-based environmental lobbying organisations and a strong correlation was found. The use of a ‘more’ and ‘less’ environmentally sensitive measure was used to test for cross-sectional effects and this yielded a positive association between environmental disclosure and the structural vulnerability of the five sectors to environmental liability and/or criticism. Conclusions allow for the possibility that differentials in the perceived need for social legitimacy may be one cause of both longitudinal and cross-sectional variability in disclosure volumes.

ERP Systems and the University as a 'Unique' Organisation

Abstract: Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are widely used by large corporations around the world. Recently universities have turned to ERP as a means of replacing existing management and administration computer systems. In this article we provide analysis of the rollout of an ERP system in one particular institution in the UK, the particular focus being on how the development, implementation and use of both generic and university specific functionality is mediated and shaped by a fundamental and long standing tension within universities: this is the extent to which higher education institutions are organisations much like any other and the extent to which they are 'unique'. The aim of this article is not to attempt to settle this issue of similarity/difference in one way or another. Rather, it seeks to illustrate the value of taking discussions of similarity relationships surrounding the university and other organisations as the topic of analysis. One way of working with these kinds of issues without resolving them is to consider their 'distribution' (where ERP shifts the responsibility for their resolution) and where their resolution is finally located. This is a novel and insightful way of understanding how ERP systems are refashioning the identity of universities. We suggest, moreover, that ERP software is 'accompanied' by such tensions. The research presented here is based on a participant observation study carried over the period of three years.

Trust and mistrust of online health sites

Abstract: Do different design and information content factors influence trust and mistrust of online health sites? Fifteen women faced with a risky health decision were observed while searching the Internet for information and advice over four consecutive weeks. In some sessions their searches were unstructured, whilst in other sessions they were directed to review specific sites, chosen for their trust design elements. Content analysis of concurrent verbalisations and group discussion protocols provided support for a staged model wherein design appeal predicted rejection (mistrust) and credibility of information and personalisation of content predicted selection (trust) of advice sites.

Exploring consumer experiences with a service brand

Abstract: The commercial importance of services has been realised in recent times and the importance of research to understand service brands and their meaning for consumers is a growing priority. This study focuses on consumer based perceptions of brand associations of a service brand, attitudes toward and intention to use the branded service via qualitative and quantitative methods. The results indicate a number of key dimensions that are important for consumers of services such as core service, experience with brand, self‐image congruency, feelings, servicescape and interpersonal service, publicity, advertising, price and brand. However, in this study country of origin and word of mouth were not significant. Largely, the findings indicated that service brand associations influence brand attitude and attitude and associations influence intention to use a service brand.

Information overload within the health care system: a literature review.

Abstract: There is a widespread view held by health clinicians that their work effectiveness is impaired by ‘information overload.’ Building upon a previous work by Wilson, a review of the literature was undertaken to look for the evidence of this. It was found that the literature, particularly in the context of the clinical environment, was limited. This review explores the diverse overarching theories of information overload, effects of the phenomenon that are perceived to occur and proposed solutions to this problem. Many of the papers noted an information explosion but only three authors explicitly attempted to measure both the quantity and the complexity of this information. It was also found that the typology of the information studied was severely limited with most studies exploring information such as guidelines, access to journals, research findings and other knowledge intensive areas. Solutions proposed seem to concentrate on technological means rather than exploring the use of humans either in management of information or as a step in the filtering process.

Governing Sustainable Cities

Abstract: Based upon a 3 year research project funded by the European Commission’s FP5 programme (DISCUS EVK4-CT-2001-00065), this book reports on the results of a study of local sustainable development processes and outcomes in 40 cities across Europe. It has been widely quoted and has considerable significance for practice, policy and research. Evans has been invited to speak to its themes and conclusions in the USA, Japan, China. South Africa, and in many European countries.

Attenuation of laboratory-induced stress in humans after acute administration of Melissa officinalis (Lemon Balm).

Abstract: The perennial lemon scented herb Melissa officinalis (lemon balm) has been in use as a pancultural medicinal treatment for more than 2 millennia. Its traditional indications have included administration for its general beneficial effects on the brain, as a treatment for memory disorders (1), and for “all complaints supposed to proceed from a disordered state of the nervous system’’ (2). Contemporary reports emphasize the sedative, spasmolytic, and antibacterial effects of M. officinalis, with indications encompassing nervous disorders, gastrointestinal disorders, and sleep disturbance (3–5). Melissa is most commonly sold over the counter in combination with other herbs, most notably Valeriana officinalis (valerian) (6,7). This combination has been shown to improve the sleep quality of healthy normal sleepers (8), and to have an effect on sleep parameters in poor sleepers similar to that of 0.125 mg of triazolam (9). Several studies in rodents have also suggested a mildly sedative effect of M. officinalis alone, with observations of a reduction in spontaneous movement in mice after administration of both the volatile oil of M. officinalis as well as the isolated terpenes (10) and a reduction in behavioral parameters in mice after the administration of a hydroalcoholic extract of M. officinalis (11). A single, double-blind, placebo-controlled study also assessed the behavioral effects of M. officinalis aromatherapy in a group of patients suffering from severe dementia. In comparison to placebo a significant reduction in agitation and social withdrawal, and an increase in constructive activities resulted from the 4-week treatment with essential oil (12). Although the mechanisms of action of Melissa are poorly understood, it has been suggested that the active components of extracts made from the leaves include monoterpenoid aldehydes, flavonoids, polyphenolic compounds including rosmarinic acid (13), and monoterpene glycosides (14). These components may well underlie a number of effects seen in vitro, which include potent antioxidant properties (15,16) and an affinity for binding to both nicotinic and muscarinic receptors in human brain cortex tissue (17). The latter mechanism is of specific interest as modulation of the cholinergic system may well be beneficial to cognitive function, most particularly in conditions, such as Alzheimer’s disease, that feature cholinergic dysregulation. Given the potential for extracts of M. officinalis to interact with the cholinergic system, two recent studies from our own laboratories have assessed both cholinergic receptor binding and the cognitive and mood effects of single doses of M. officinalis in healthy humans. In the first of these doubleblind, placebo-controlled, balanced-crossover studies (18), three separate single doses of a concentrated commercial M. officinalis extract (300 mg, 600 mg, 900 mg; Pharmaton S.A., Lugano, Switzerland) plus a placebo were administered in a counterbalanced manner to 20 participants, with a 7-day washout period between testing days. The most notable result of this experiment was a striking dose-dependent impairment in accuracy across a number of timed, computerized memory tasks. Mood was also modulated, with participants’ self-ratings of calmness, as assessed with Bond-Lader mood scales, increasing for the lowest dose (300 mg), whereas “alertness” was decreased for the highest, and cognitively most deleterious, dose (900 mg). Although this pattern of results is broadly in line with the contemporary role of M. officinalis as a mild sedative, it is not in keeping with beneficial modulation of cholinergic activity. Indeed, the subsequent in vitro analysis of the extract showed that it did not exhibit the expected cholinergic receptor binding properties, with negligible displacement of [ 3 H]-(N)-nicotine from nicotinic receptors, and comparatively low displacement of [ 3 H]-(N)-scopolamine from muscarinic receptors in human brain tissue. The second investigation (19), therefore, extended this line of research by initially screening a number of dried leaf samples for cholinergic binding, with a dried leaf with both substantial nicotinic and muscarinic binding properties being taken forward into

Lipoproteins of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: an abundant and functionally diverse class of cell envelope components

Abstract: Mycobacterium tuberculosis remains the predominant bacterial scourge of mankind. Understanding of its biology and pathogenicity has been greatly advanced by the determination of whole genome sequences for this organism. Bacterial lipoproteins are a functionally diverse class of membrane-anchored proteins. The signal peptides of these proteins direct their export and post-translational lipid modification. These signal peptides are amenable to bioinformatic analysis, allowing the lipoproteins encoded in whole genomes to be catalogued. This review applies bioinformatic methods to the identification and functional characterisation of the lipoproteins encoded in the M. tuberculosis genomes. Ninety nine putative lipoproteins were identified and so this family of proteins represents ca. 2.5% of the M. tuberculosis predicted proteome. Thus, lipoproteins represent an important class of cell envelope proteins that may contribute to the virulence of this major pathogen.

Practice and Drop-Out Effects During a 17-Year Longitudinal Study of Cognitive Aging

Abstract: Interpretations of longitudinal studies of cognitive aging are misleading unless effects of practice and selective drop-out are considered. A random effects model taking practice and drop-out into account analyzed data from four successive presentations of each of two intelligence tests, two vocabulary tests, and two verbal memory tests during a 17-year longitudinal study of 5,899 community residents whose ages ranged from 49 to 92 years. On intelligence tests, substantial practice effects counteracted true declines observed over 3 to 5 years of aging and remained significant even with intervals of 7 years between successive assessments. Adjustment for practice and drop-out revealed accelerating declines in fluid intelligence and cumulative learning, linear declines in verbal free recall, and no substantial change in vocabulary. Socioeconomic status and basal levels of general fluid ability did not affect rates of decline. After further adjustment for demographics, variability between individuals was seen to increase as the sample aged.

Assessment of anger and aggression in male offenders with developmental disabilities.

Abstract: Systematic assessment of anger among people with developmental disabilities has been lacking, especially for hospital inpatients. Reliability and validity of anger self-report psychometric scales were investigated with 129 male patients, mostly forensic. Anger prevalence and its relationship to demographic, cognitive, and personality variables and to hospital assaultive behavior were examined. High internal and intermeasure consistency, and some concurrent validity with staff ratings, were found. Retrospective validity regarding physically assaultive behavior in the hospital was obtained. Hierarchical regressions revealed that patient-reported anger was a significant predictor of assaults postadmission, controlling for age, length of stay, IQ, violence offense history, and personality variables.

Improved cognitive performance in human volunteers following administration of guarana (Paullinia cupana) extract: comparison and interaction with Panax ginseng

Abstract: Extracts from the plant guarana (Paullinia cupana) feature as putatively stimulating ingredients in a number of foods, drinks and dietary/herbal supplements. To date, little research in humans has examined the potential psychoactive effects of these extracts. Extracts of Panax ginseng, which are often sold in combination with guarana, contain similar potentially active components, and have been shown to modulate cognitive performance. In this double-blind, counterbalanced, placebo-controlled study, the cognitive and mood effects of separate single doses of: 75 mg of a dried ethanolic extract of guarana (approx 12% caffeine), 200 mg of Panax ginseng (G115), and their combination (75 mg/200 mg), were assessed in 28 healthy young (18–24) participants. On each day of the study (separated by a 7-day washout), cognitive performance and subjective mood were assessed pre-dose and at 1, 2.5, 4 and 6 h post-dose using the Cognitive Drug Research computerised assessment battery, Serial subtraction tasks and Bond–Lader mood scales. In comparison to placebo, all three treatments resulted in improved task performance throughout the day. In the case of guarana, improvements were seen across ‘attention’ tasks (but with some evidence of reduced accuracy), and on a sentence verification task. While also increasing the speed of attention task performance, both ginseng and the ginseng/guarana combination also enhanced the speed of memory task performance, with little evidence of modulated accuracy. Guarana and the combination, and to a lesser extent ginseng, also led to significant improvements in serial subtraction task performance. These results provide the first demonstration in humans of the psychoactive effects of guarana, and confirmation of the psychoactive properties of ginseng. Given the low caffeine content (9 mg) of this dose of guarana extract, the effects are unlikely to be attributable to its caffeine content.

Autism and Learning Disability

Abstract: In this article a short overview is given of the relationship between autism and learning disability. Autism exists with any level of intelligence, but many individuals with autism suffer also from learning disability. Although both disorders show overlap in some behaviours they are different in many aspects. Are they distinct syndromes which influence each other, or do they belong to a broad spectrum of a condition?

The University of Manchester Longitudinal Study of Cognition in Normal Healthy Old Age, 1983 through 2003

Abstract: This paper describes the participants, design, method and tests used during a 20-year longitudinal study of cognitive changes in increasing age experienced by 6542 healthy residents of Greater Manchester and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, then aged from 42 to 92 years. Information collected and updated includes demographics and health, scores on two, biennially alternated batteries of cognitive tests, repeated administrations of the Beck and Yesavage depression inventories and of self-reports of stressful life events, self-evaluation and locus of control questionnaires and detailed information on lifestyle, hobbies and occupations, physical and social activities, family circumstances and health history. Records have allowed investigation of rates of cognitive changes from 36 months to 20 years preceding death from a variety of causes. Collection of blood and saliva provide, blood chemistry and cortisol levels to analyse associations of rates of cognitive change to genetic factors, blood chemistry and cortisol level...

Rural tourism in Spain.

Abstract: The paper describes the rapid recent growth in rural tourism facilities in Spain and attempts to account for the regional variations that exist. The range of activities involved in rural tourism is described and a significant trend towards the development of ‘active’ leisure pursuits in rural areas is identified. This clearly implies a major change in the use of the countryside, albeit in specific locations, but therefore calls into question the assertion of some scholars that rural restructuring is not a feature of contemporary Spain. In assessing the wider impact of rural tourism policies as part of overall rural development, however, it is clear that the main beneficiaries are not necessarily local residents. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

In the eye of the ‘perfect storm’: the final salary pensions crisis and financialisation of Anglo‐American capitalism

Abstract: This article considers the crisis of UK and US final salary pension schemes. Contrary to current analysis that the crisis is the outcome of a 'perfect storm' - the unlikely coincidence of falling stock prices and bond rates - the paper argues that the crisis is constituted through several contradictory dynamics in the processes of financialisation, including the rise of theories/models of asset management which transform the investment strategies of pension funds, and, pressures to deliver shareholder value which erode the commitment of employers to occupational welfare. The article will be reprinted in the forthcoming Financialisation Reader (Routledge).

Life events and psychiatric symptoms in adults with intellectual disabilities.

Abstract: Background Previous research has indicated that children and adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) may respond to traumatic and other life events in a similar way to the general population. However, few studies have charted the extent of exposure to recent life events in samples of adults with ID and the association of such exposure with general psychiatric problems. Methods Adults with ID (n = 1155) in community and residential services in a county district in North-east England were assessed using the Psychiatric Assessment for Adults with Developmental Disabilities Checklist (PAS-ADD Checklist), which includes a checklist of recent life events. Data were provided by informants who knew the index client well. Results Within the 12 months before data collection, the five most frequently experienced life events were: moving residence (15.5% of sample), serious illness of close relative or friend (9.0%), serious problem with close friend, neighbour or relative (8.8%), serious illness or injury to self (8.5%), and death of close family friend or other relative (8.3%). Overall, 46.3% had experienced one or more significant life events in the previous 12 months and 17.4% had experienced two or more. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the presence of one or more life events in the previous 12 months added significantly to the classification of psychiatric caseness predicted by demographic variables (age, sex, residence in community or hospital) on the PAS-ADD Affective Disorder scale. Overall, the odds ratio for affective disorder given exposure to one or more life events was 2.23 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.56, 3.18]. Conclusions Small, but potentially significant relationships were found between life events exposure and psychiatric problems in adults with ID. Further research is needed to explore the causal direction of this relationship and also to develop more sensitive measures of life events relevant to the situation of adults in residential and community service environments.

Ambiguities of global civil society

Abstract: The concept of an emergent global civil society (GCS), an identifiable public sphere of voluntary association distinct from the architecture of states and markets, has become voguish in some approaches to international relations and international political economy, and in the practices of global governance. This article seeks to reveal the limitations of the prevailing commonsense framing of GCS. Challenging the idea that we can isolate an unambiguous GCS sphere, we focus instead on the particular uses of GCS – on the practices that are shaped in its name. We make a number of interventions to emphasise the conceptual and political ambiguity of GCS. First, we shift the emphasis from GCS as a bounded ‘non-governmental’; space to GCS as precisely a means of making global politics governable in particular ways. Second, we question the assumption of GCS as ‘voluntary association’, asking what it means for GCS to embody or represent the interests of social groups. Finally, we raise questions of the image of empowerment through GCS, highlighting the power relations, tensions and contradictions at the heart of a transformative politics.