Capturing doping attitudes by self-report declarations and implicit assessment: a methodology study

BACKGROUND: Understanding athletes' attitudes and behavioural intentions towards performance enhancement is critical to informing anti-doping intervention strategies. Capturing the complexity of these attitudes beyond verbal declarations requires indirect methods. This pilot study was aimed at developing and validating a method to assess implicit doping attitudes using an Implicit Associations Test (IAT) approach. METHODS: The conventional IAT evaluation task (categorising 'good' and 'bad' words) was combined with a novel 'doping' versus 'nutrition supplements' category pair to create a performance-enhancement related IAT protocol (PE-IAT). The difference between average response times to 'good-doping' and 'bad-doping' combinations represents an estimate of implicit attitude towards doping in relation to nutritional supplements. 111 sports and exercise science undergraduates completed the PE-IAT, the Performance Enhancement Attitude Scale (PEAS) and answered questions regarding their beliefs about doping. RESULTS: Longer response times were observed in the mixed category discrimination trials where categories 'good' and 'doping' shared the same response key (compared to 'bad-doping' combination on the same key) indicating a less favourable evaluation of doping substances. The PE-IAT measure did not correlate significantly with the declared doping attitudes (r = .181, p = .142), indicating a predictable partial dissociation. Action-oriented self-report expressed stronger associations with PE-IAT: participants who declared they would consider using doping showed significantly less implicit negativity towards banned substances (U = 109.00, p = .047). Similarly, those who reported more lenient explicit attitudes towards doping or expressly supported legalizing it, showed less implicit negativity towards doping in the sample, although neither observed differences reached statistical significance (t = 1.300, p = .198, and U = 231.00, p = .319, respectively). Known-group validation strategy yielded mixed results: while competitive sport participants scored significantly lower than non-competitive ones on the PEAS (t = -2.71, p = .008), the two groups did not differ on PE-IAT (t = -.093, p = .926). CONCLUSION: The results suggest a potential of the PE-IAT method to capture undeclared attitudes to doping and predict behaviour, which can support targeted anti-doping intervention and related research. The initial evidence of validity is promising but also indicates a need for improvement to the protocol and stimulus material

Topology of Hitchin systems and Hodge theory of character varieties: the case A_1

For G = GL_2, PGL_2 and SL_2 we prove that the perverse filtration associated to the Hitchin map on the cohomology of the moduli space of twisted G-Higgs bundles on a Riemann surface C agrees with the weight filtration on the cohomology of the twisted G character variety of C, when the cohomologies are identified via non-Abelian Hodge theory. The proof is accomplished by means of a study of the topology of the Hitchin map over the locus of integral spectral curves.Comment: 67 pages, arguments streamlined, to appear in Annals of Mathematic

Drivers of sustainable use of solar water disinfection in Bolivia

The current study investigates 12 former projects promoting Household Water Treatment and Safe storage (HWTS) in Bolivia with the aim to define the sustainable impact on people's level of HWTS use and factors influencing its long-term application. Data were collected from 785 households using structured interviews. According to the results obtained, 43–83% of the population use solar water disinfection (SODIS) and 16–79% use boiling as a water treatment option 1–4 years after project completion. However, since 25–86% of the people still consume untreated water, follow-up campaigns should be conducted in some areas. Based on the individual factors influencing SODIS use, future campaigns in mainly rural areas should team up with government institutions, target people's emotions and intentions to treat water, support habit development, and make use of social norms

University Students' Democratic Values and Attitudes toward Democracy in Hungary

In December 2012 Hungarian students rallied to protest against cutbacks in scholarships and to the introduction of tuition fees. Two years later, in October 2014, thousands of (mostly young) people gathered at anti-government demonstrations against a proposal to include the taxation of Internet usage in the Taxation Law. The article brings results on changes in patterns of democratic citizenship among Hungarian students and demonstrates that despite their issue related ‘rational rebellion’ democratic transition resulted in a low-level of political participation and commitment to democratic values among them. We describe democratic attitudes of Hungarian college and university students by using both qualitative and quantitative data asking if they have developed a commitment to democracy as a system of rule

Újabb feszültség a láthatáron az élelmiszer- és bioüzemanyag-ipar között?

Az élelmiszerárak növekedése 2006–2008 között a világ egyes térségeiben zavargásokhoz és a politikai stabilitás megrendüléséhez vezetett. Különösen fejlÅ‘dÅ‘ országokban súlyos a helyzet, ahol a legszegényebb rétegek jövedelmük döntÅ‘ hányadát élelmiszerekre költik. Az agrárpiacokon a kereslet vált meghatározóvá, mennyiségi (humáncélú és ipari felhasználás rohamos növekedése) és minÅ‘ségi értelemben (élelmiszer-fogyasztás szerkezetének változása). Ãrkilengések persze korábban is elÅ‘fordultak, de a 2007/2008-as gazdasági évben tapasztalt ársokkot számos tényezÅ‘ együttesen idézte elÅ‘, elsÅ‘ helyen a világ gabona- és olajosmag-készleteinek megcsappanása. Az élelmezésbiztonságban fontos a fizikai kínálat, mert az emberek rettegnek attól, hogy nem jutnak élelemhez, még akkor sem, ha van elegendÅ‘ pénzük az élelmiszerek vásárlásához, vagyis az élelmiszerhez való hozzájutás kockázatáról van szó. A várható újabb élelmiszerválság elsÅ‘dleges oka a kereslet növekedése és a kínálat fluktuációja lesz, mivel az élelmiszer iránti kereslet jövedelemrugalmassága cse¬kély. Az élelmiszer-kínálat változását elsÅ‘sorban a vízhiány határozza meg. A spekuláció fontos szerepet tölt be a piaci likviditásban, ugyanakkor növelheti az árak volatilitását is. A növekvÅ‘ olajárak miatt egyre inkább elÅ‘térbe kerül az energiabiztonság kérdése, ami a bioüzemanyag-gyártás további növeléséhez vezet. A bioüzemanyag-gyártás egyelÅ‘re elsÅ‘sorban a belsÅ‘ piac igényeit elégíti ki. A világ két legnagyobb bioüzemanyag-piaca az USA és Brazília, a nemzetközi beruházások fÅ‘ kedvezményezettjei pedig Brazília és Európa. Brazília azért vonzó befektetÅ‘i célpont, mert bÅ‘séges nyersanyaggal és feldolgozói kapacitással, valamint potenciális exportpiaccal rendelkezik. Az USA és Brazília komoly nettó exportÅ‘r a bioüzemanyag-gyártásban felhasznált nyersanyagokból, ezzel szemben az EU, a világ elsÅ‘ számú biodízel-gyártója pedig nettó importÅ‘r olajnövényekbÅ‘l és növényolajból. Az összes üzemanyag-fogyasztáson belül tovább nÅ‘ a gázolaj már amúgy is magas, közel 65%-os aránya. EbbÅ‘l következik, hogy az EU dízelolajból is egyre nagyobb importra szorul, benzinbÅ‘l viszont egyre nagyobb exportra kényszerül. A paradox helyzetet mutatja, hogy a nettó gabonaexportÅ‘ri pozíció az etanoltermelésnek kedvezne, de az üzemanyag-fogyasztáson belül a benzin csökkenÅ‘ aránya a biodízelhez képest relatíve kevesebb etanol bekeverését jelenti. Az USA-ban a gabona 30%-a, az EU-ban 3%-a és Kínában 1,5%-a szolgálta az üzem-anyagcélú etanoltermelést. Az etanolgyártásban felhasznált nádcukor és cukorrépa aránya meghaladja az éves globális termelés 10%-át. Ennek ellenére az etanolgyártás szerény mértékben befolyásolja a cukor világkereskedelmét, ugyanis Brazíliában a kombinált cukor- és etanolgyártással foglalkozó üzemek arányától és termelési döntésétÅ‘l függ, hogy éppen mennyi cukrot, illetve etanolt állítanak elÅ‘. Mivel az etanol- és cukortermelésre egyaránt alkalmas feldolgozók aránya viszonylag kicsi, ezért csak néhány százalékban változhat a cukornád felhasználása etanol- és cukorgyártásra. A biodízel-gyártás hatása a globális növényolajpiacra már sokkal jelentÅ‘sebb, mert 2009-ben a világszerte előállított növényolaj 11%-ából készült biodízel. Az EU-27-ben az összes növényolaj-termelés kétharmadát teszi ki a biodízel nyersanyag¬szükséglete. Észak- és Dél-Amerikában az elmúlt években többszörösére nÅ‘tt a növényolaj biodízelcélú felhasználása, ami az összes termelés már több mint 10%-át jelenti. Összességében aligha lehet szó komoly konfliktusról az élelmiszer- és energiatermelés között. A második generációs bioüzemanyagok kiterjedt piaci bevezetése még várat magára. EgyelÅ‘re még csak korlátozott mértékben használnak fel cellulózalapú nyersanyagokat a bioetanol-gyártásban, illetve állati zsírokat és használt sütÅ‘olajat a biodízel-gyártásban. A 2007/2008-as gazdasági évben kialakult feszültség az élelmiszer- és bioüzemanyag-előállítás között újra napirendre kerül(het), amikor a globális gabona- és olajosmag-készletek csökkenésével párhuzamosan újra emelkednek az árak. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ Between 2006 and 2008 the apparently endless increase of food prices led to unrest and political instability in some parts of the world. The situation is especially grave in the developing countries, where the poorer groups of society spend the majority of their income on food. Agricultural markets have become demand-led markets, not only in terms of quantity (quick increase in demand for both human consumption and industrial processing) but also in terms of quality (the structure of food consumption is changing). There had of course been extreme low and high prices before, but the price shock experienced in the 2007/2008 business year was the combined result of several factors. The primary factor was a reduction in the global stocks of cereals and oilseeds. From the aspect of food security, physical supply is important. People are terrified that they cannot obtain food even if they have sufficient money to buy it, i.e. it is about the risk of access to food. The primary cause of the expected new food crisis is the increase in demand and the fluctuation of supply, as demand for food does not readily adapt to peoples’ income levels. Changes in food supply are primarily determined by trends in water insufficiency. Speculation has an important role in sustaining market liquidity, but may contribute to the volatility of prices. Increasing oil prices are putting the issue of energy security in the limelight, which further boosts biofuel production. In line with the country’s national energy policy, biofuel production so far addresses the demands in the domestic market. In recent years, however, an increase in foreign investments could also be seen. The USA and Brazil are the two largest biofuel markets in the world, while the main recipients of international investments are Brazil and Europe. The attractiveness of Brazil lies in the fact that it has plenty of raw materials and processing capacity, as well as export potential. The US and Brazil are serious net exporters of raw materials used in biofuel production. The EU – the world’s number one biodiesel producer –, on the other hand, is a net importer of oil crops and vegetable oil. The ratio of diesel oil to all fuels consumed is already high at nearly 65% and continues to increase. Consequently, the EU needs to import increasing quantities of diesel oil and is forced to increase its gasoline export. Paradoxically, the region’s position as a net exporter of cereals would be conducive to ethanol production, but the decreasing ratio of gasoline to all fuels consumed means that compared to biodiesel, less ethanol can be mixed. The corresponding figure is 30% in the US, 3% in Europe and 1.5% in China. The amount of cane sugar and sugar beet used for ethanol production exceeds 10% of the annual global production. Still, ethanol production influences the world trade of sugar only mildly, as the ratio and production decisions of combined sugar-and-ethanol plants in Brazil determine how much sugar and ethanol they produce at any given time. As the ratio of processing plants capable of producing both ethanol and sugar is relatively low, the ratio of sugar cane quantities used for ethanol production and for sugar production varies only be a few per cents. The effect of biodiesel production on the global market of vegetable oils is much more significant, as 11% of all vegetable oil produced worldwide was turned into biodiesel in 2009. In the EU-27, two thirds of all vegetable oil produced are used as raw material for biodiesel production. In North and South America, the volume of vegetable oils used for biodiesel production has multiplied over the recent years, now exceeding 10% of the total production. Extensive introduction of second generation biofuels to the market is delayed. The processing of cellulose-based raw materials in bioethanol production, as well as the processing of animal fats and used frying oil for biodiesel production, remains limited. The tension between food and biofuel production, which emerged in the 2007/2008 business year, could resurface when prices begin to rise again in parallel with the reduction in global cereal and oilseed stocks.élelmezésbiztonság, energiabiztonság, bioüzemanyag-gyártás, második generációs bioüzemanyag, food security, energy security, biofuel production, second generation biofuel., Agricultural and Food Policy, Environmental Economics and Policy, Land Economics/Use,

Interactive network analytical tool for instantaneous bespoke interrogation of food safety notifications

Background The globalization of food supply necessitates continued advances in regulatory control measures to ensure that citizens enjoy safe and adequate nutrition. The aim of this study was to extend previous reports on network analysis relating to food notifications by including an optional filter by type of notification and in cases of contamination, by type of contaminant in the notified foodstuff. Methodology/Principal Findings A filter function has been applied to enable processing of selected notifications by contaminant or type of notification to i) capture complexity, ii) analyze trends, and iii) identify patterns of reporting activities between countries. The program rapidly assesses nations' roles as transgressor and/or detector for each category of contaminant and for the key class of border rejection. In the open access demonstration version, the majority of notifications in the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed were categorized by contaminant type as mycotoxin (50.4%), heavy metals (10.9%) or bacteria (20.3%). Examples are given demonstrating how network analytical approaches complement, and in some cases supersede, descriptive statistics such as frequency counts, which may give limited or potentially misleading information. One key feature is that network analysis takes the relationship between transgressor and detector countries, along with number of reports and impact simultaneously into consideration. Furhermore, the indices that compliment the network maps and reflect each country's transgressor and detector activities allow comparisons to be made between (transgressing vs. detecting) as well as within (e.g. transgressing) activities. Conclusions/significance This further development of the network analysis approach to food safety contributes to a better understanding of the complexity of the effort ensuring food is safe for consumption in the European Union. The unique patterns of the interplay between detectors and transgressors, instantly revealed by our approach, could supplement the intelligence gathered by regulatory authorities and inform risk based sampling protocols