Using choice experiments to value the social benefits from reduced pesticide usage in the United Kingdom

In this thesis, a Choice Experiment (CE) approach was used to estimate public 'willingness-to-pay' (WTR) for pesticide reduction in the UK. The need to determine WTP for pesticide reductions is driven by policy pressures to reduce the associated negative externalities of pesticide use. Two surveys were undertaken 19 examine different aspects ofthis policy concern. The first survey used a CE to value the public's WTP fot,pesticide- free food. This survey was large in scale but relatively simple in design. The second sun\ey employed two related but separate CEs to value WTP for reductions in insecticides, herbicides and 'fungicides in the UK. In particular, it was designed to examine WTP with respect to 'environmental s~:ty' ..', . and 'food safety'issues.' ,; The first survey was part ofa large survey conducted 'in-home' byMORl for DEFRA. Though access too8 MaRl survey yielded a large number of respondents, the simplicity of the CE is a reflection of the space constraint faced. WTP for pesticide reduction was estimated by employing a 'standard; conditional logit (CL) model. An important component ofthis research is the use ofa novel statistical approach to generaqse the CL to allow and measure respondents' tendency to mis-report their 'true' preferences. To facilitatp estimation, Bayesian methods were used. The motivation for employing the generalised CL lies iR.. ~re considerable concern expressed in the WTP literature regarding upwardly biased WTP estimates. Bayefi Factors were used to assess model specification and indicate a strong preference for the generalised CL. AS anticipated, many respondents (41%) reported 'false' preferences, most of which (79%) reported in favo~r of 'No Pesticides; food. By accounting for bias in responses, WTP estimates were downwardly revised by 35% relative to the standard CL. However, adjusting for mis-reporting reduced WTP from 149010 to only 97% for 'No Pesticides' food. The second survey was mail-delivered and included two CEs. Though a smaller sample than the first survey was obtained, both of these CEs were much more sophisticated. These CEs differentiate~ environmental and health concerns, by associating each with a particular commodity: bread, and a basket of .fruit and vegetables, respectively. Both CEs were designed to estimate marginal WTP for insecticide, herbicide and fungicide reductions. Using Classical statistical methods, the CL specifications revealed that being female, environment- or food safety-sensitive, living as a couple, caring for dependents, and regularly purchasing organic food are factors that increase WTP for reduced-pesticide food. Howevh, 'higherincome, age and education seem to reduce WTP. In ordertoa~ountfor heterogeneity,a latent:cl~ model (LCM) was. estimated. Segments with positive payment parameters were initially observed. 111(& instance of yea-saying was resolved by discarding respondents who only chose 'No Pesticides'. The LCM revealed a significant segmentation of the population in both CEs. Moreover, the LCMs yielded higher WTP estimates than CLs..WTP, expressed as percentage or the baseline price, was higher in the 'environmental safety' CE (102% and 83% for LCM and CL respectively) than in the 'food safety' ~E (69% and 40% for LCM and CL respectively). ! . Overall, the results pr~sentedin this thesis indicate that the public is willing to pay a considerable'prem.i~m for food produ~ed usmg less or no pesticides. Our results are .reasonably similar for the two survey.s con~uc~ed and the variation in econometric methods employed. Furthermore, the results are in keeping with the lImited results- avaHable in the literature todate.Imperial Users onl

The impact of food price increases on nutrient intake in Lebanon

We evaluate the impact of the recent increases in major food prices on the intake of essential nutrients in Lebanon, a small heavily import-dependent economy. Using nationally representative households' expenditure micro data, we derive food demand elasticities by estimating an Almost Ideal Demand System (AIDS) model, and then use these elasticities to evaluate the impact of rising prices on the intake of major macro/micronutrients among Lebanese households. Our results show that the intake of nutrients such as calcium, zinc, iron, and folate decreased significantly following the recent food price shocks, especially in central urban areas. Our results highlight the pressing need for public interventions to fight and prevent nutrients' deficiencies, especially in small import dependent economies

The impact of food price increases on nutrient intake in Lebanon

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur en förskoleverksamhet utformas och uppfattas av såväl genuspedagogen som barn i en så kallad könsneutral förskola. Studien utgick ifrån följande frågeställningar: Hur beskrivs och utformas den könsneutrala förskolan? Hur interagerar och förhåller sig barnen ur ett genusperspektiv? Tidigare forskning visar att genusprojekt och jämställdhetsarbeten har sitt ursprung sedan några decennier tillbaka, men under olika omständigheter varit svårt att bedriva arbeten i förskolans och skolans värld. Inte förrän de sista åren har genus och jämställdhetsarbeten fått starka reaktioner och projekten har förstärks och drivs igenom.Studien är genomfört på en så kallad könsneutral förskola där intervjuer och observationer har använts som kvalitativa metod. Samtliga intervjuer och observationer har transkriberats och senare analyserats utifrån de frågeställningarna studien bygger på. I mitt resultat framkom det att utformningen av en könsneutral förskola bygger på alla pedagogernas förhållningsätt, deras engagemang och arbetssätt med barnen. Genuspedagogens vision var att belysa ett jämställdtagande arbetet i verksamheten där genus synsättet i förskolan kunde drivas fram, men på grund av olika anledningar som det hade uppstått i förskolan det genus arbetet på den könsneutrala förskolan upphördes efter en tid

A Novel Approach Based on DEMATEL Method for Causal Modeling an Effective Factors in Falling from Height Accidents in Construction Projects

Falling from height known as one of the most important factors that leads to fatal accidents in the construction industry. The purpose of this study was to investigate and identify the effective factors in the occurrence of falling from height accidents in the construction projects and determine the causal relationships between organizational, individual and environmental factors. In this research, the surveyed population was the workers of five construction projects of a gas refinery in south of Iran from 2011 to 2015. Using the Integrated Management System (IMS) information, factors and sub-factors affecting the occurrence of falling from height accidents in the construction projects were determined. Then, a semi-comparative questionnaire based on the DEMATEL technique was designed and distributed among 10 experts at two different periods. Based on the expert's opinions, the identified factors and sub-factors were classified into three main factors and fourteen sub-factors, respectively. Then, the causal relationships between each the effective factor were identified, using DEMATEL technique. The results of DEMATEL technique revealed that the individual factors were considered to be the most important criteria, as it has acquired the maximum (D+R) value, i.e., 36.689 whereas, organizational factors had scored the least, i.e., 35.180. Accordingly, organizational factors and their sub-factors had a substantial effect on the falling from height accidents and were considered as causal variables (D-R>0), while, the indices of individual and environmental factors were the effect variables (D-

A Systematic Review of Compliments among Iranian Persian Speakers: Past, Present, and Future Directions

Compliments (Cs) and compliment responses have been a prevailing topic of study in pragmatics due to their pivotal role in effective intercultural and transcultural interactions. This paper provides a comprehensive survey of research on compliments in the Persian language conducted over almost about the past four decades. It summarizes key findings of compliments in the Persian language used by Iranian speakers of Persian, discusses the significance of these findings, and speculates the future directions of research on complimenting studies on Persian language. An extensive bibliographical search on studies on this particular area yielded a database of nine studies on Persian Cs for this systematic review. After a brief exploration of the background of compliment studies done by prominent scholars in other languages, we provide a working definition of compliments. We then examine studies to date of complimenting behavior in Persian, highlighting similarities and differences, and any emerging trends. We provide a synthesis of the research conducted in this area, the theoretical frameworks, and the methodologies used in different studies, including data collection and data analysis. Based on the review of previous studies, we speculate on some possible directions for future research in this area

Investigating Iranian EFL Instructor Evaluation Scheme from End-Users’ Perspective: Self-Evaluation vs. Students’ Ratings

Abstract This study investigated Iranian EFL instructor evaluation scheme from end-users’ perspective: self-evaluation vs. students’ ratings. To do so, in the second semester of 2015-2016, 60 instructors and 1000 students of English Department of Islamic Azad University Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, )IAUIB(, were selected as those from whom the corpus of the study was extracted. The corpus was provided by administrating two rating scales online via the university website on each person’s profile. Then the results of their completed evaluation rating scales were compared. The study was accomplished through a non-experimental descriptive correlational design. The results revealed that almost no relationship was found between Iranian EFL instructors’ self-evaluation and those done by their students at IAUIB. This study could benefit Iranian educationalists, policy makers, and evaluators in making informed pedagogical decisions and conducting more efficient teacher evaluation in English education of Iran

Serum troponin, D‐dimer, and CRP level in severe coronavirus (COVID‐19) patients

BackgroundAbnormal inflammation coagulation biomarker levels of troponin, C-reactive protein (CRP), and D-dimer levels in serum have been demonstrated to be associated and involved in the disease progression of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).MethodsFirst: the study aimed to investigate the correlation of troponin, CRP, d-dimer, white blood cell (WBC) and polymerase chain reaction–cycle threshold (PCR-Ct) within COVID-19 survivors (143 patients; 79 males, 64 females) and in deceased (30 patients; 12 males, 18 females) group. Also, assessing any differences between both groups in studied parameters. Second: a correlation study of studied parameters' level has been conducted within families (41 patients; 23 males [seven deaths] and 18 females [eight deaths]) that lost more than one member due to the severity of the disease. Also, differences between these family and control group (132 patients; 69 males and 63 females) group in studied parameters have been assessed.ResultsIn the first week of hospitalization, there were significant differences in D-dimer, CRP and troponin level between survived and deceased patient groups. In the second week of the admission, both groups had significant differences in the level of all studied parameters; troponin I, D-dimer, CRP, and WBCs. WBC levels positively correlated to CRP in male survivors (r = 0.75, p < 0.0001), and to troponin in deceased male patients (r = 0.74, p = 0.007). The second week of patient admission was critical in the group of families who lost more than one person, when troponin was correlated positively with D-dimer, CRP, and WBCs.ConclusionTroponin, D-dimer, CRP, and WBCs level were significantly higher in COVID-19 patients who died than in COVID-19 survivors. High troponin and WBC levels, were considerably associated with families that lost more than one member, when compared with the unrelated COVID-19 patient control