Carbon taxes, consumer demand and carbon dioxide emissions: a simulation analysis for the UK

In this paper we examine the effects of a carbon tax, one of the possible instruments for reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Such taxes are currently being proposed as a means of reducing CO2 emissions, motivated by concerns about the global greenhouse effect and its potential impact on global climate and sea levels (Cline, 1991) and on global economies (Nordhaus, 1991). We therefore take as our problem the reduction of CO2 emissions by the UK economy by use of a carbon tax, and the corresponding effect of this tax on the purchasing power and economic behaviour of households. If they were introduced, carbon taxes would affect the price of fossil fuels in the UK, and thus UK consumer prices, both directly for fuels and indirectly for manufactured goods. These price changes would in turn affect the level and structure of UK final demand, and it is this post-tax UK final demand which will determine UK fossil fuel use, and thus CO2 emissions. In particular, we investigate the social effects of a carbon tax, by considering the distribution of the increased tax burden across consumers.

Teaching Community Service Providers to Support Caregiver PECS Use: An Evaluation of the PECSperts Facilitator Training Model

Research examining how to train facilitators to implement the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) with caregivers and children is scarce. This research gap presents a barrier to offering PECS as a community service. Currently, there is some empirical research supporting the effectiveness of behaviour skills training (BST) and pyramidal training to train facilitators to implement behavioural interventions. Building on this foundation, the present study used a quasi-experimental, non-randomized group design to explore the effectiveness of a manualized BST training model (i.e., the PECSperts Facilitator Training Package) within a pyramidal training approach. Sixteen community facilitators participated in the study. Participants who immediately received training demonstrated a significant increase in treatment integrity from pre- to post-training assessments. These results maintained during the five week follow up period and generalized to the participants’ clinical practice with families in the community. Participants who did not immediately receive training, did not demonstrate an increase in treatment integrity from pre- to post-training assessments. Later, the training procedures were replicated with the participants who did not initially receive training. After participation in the PECSperts Facilitator Training, these participants’ treatment integrity scores also significantly increased. Participants rated the training positively on a social validity questionnaire. The results provide preliminary evidence for the use of the PECSperts Facilitator Training as an effective training model for training facilitators to teach caregivers to implement PECS with their autistic children. Results of this study have implications for increasing community capacity and access to facilitator PECS training

Scrutiny of OSHA Regulations in the Courts: A Study of Judicial Activism

Little trace of the concept of judicial deference can be found in the Fifth Circuit\u27s recent ruling in American Petroleum Institute v. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Against the background of a slowly emerging body of law regarding the scope of judicial review of Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations, the Fifth Circuit\u27s decision represents a bold extension of the court\u27s authority to define the parameters of OSHA\u27s regulatory authority. Whether this case in fact signals a new wave of judicial activism will soon be determined by the United States Supreme Court. But regardless of the Supreme Court\u27s ultimate resolution of the issues presented, the API case invites analysis as a primary example of judicial involvement in an unsettled and controversial area of law

Different ways of seeing: the language games of mothering

My thesis is original in placing together Wittgenstein's ideas of how language works, and arguments for the philosophical significance of the embodied and relational figure of the mother. I both use and resist a Wittgensteinian therapy to overcome the problem of the forgetting of the mother in philosophy. I begin with the problem of essentialism, important to Wittgenstein and to feminist philosophy. My reading of Wittgenstein finds an ignored lacuna between language and (female) experience. I add in to the debate the type specimen approach from botany. Adopting this approach enables me to avoid a classification which requires a true inner essence to mothering, and provides a way for me to denote the significant place of the language games of mothering in language games about women. I argue for a different symbol of the mother. I agree with Wittgenstein's account of language, but add to it. I show the importance of Wittgenstein's insight that although meaning is not fixed independently of use, use does not fix meaning in that I create new meanings for the figure of the mother. I argue, through an exploration of Wittgenstein's concept of `übersichtlichen Darstellung ; that Wittgenstein can help us to see the phenomena of our life differently, in a way that makes space for understanding female difference. His concept of a form of life provides such openings. As the Wittgensteinian agent seems distinctly un-female, I bring in the philosophy of Kierkegaard in my argument for a different relational self as mother. I argue for a Kierkegaardian flexible maternal self with mobile edges. I insert the language games of the mother into Kierkegaard's writing on women. My aim is a more adequate representation of a (true) reality. I use the work of John Wisdom to make a bridge between Wittgenstein and the narrative form, which I use throughout. Wisdom's strategy is to engage in unconventional reflection in looking for new ways of telling philosophical stories, and in finding new patterns of meaning in the familiar. I claim that the narrative form enables me to express the shifting essence of the mother and the diversity of mothers; and to acknowledge the silences which are part of the mother's story. My aim in this thesis is creative. I use Wittgenstein to create a new kind of relation to philosophy. I do not offer a correct reading of Wittgenstein or Kierkegaard. Instead, aided by the insights provided by feminist philosophy, I write in the language games of the mother to their ideas. Thus, I bring into existence through utterance a different, feminist philosophical symbol of the mother

Creating Successful Data Management Plans for your Grant Proposal

This presentation is part of a workshop about creating Data Management Plans (DMPs) using the DMPTool

The Double-edged Sword: A Mixed Methods Study of the Interplay between Bipolar Disorder and Technology Use

Human behavior is increasingly reflected or acted out through technology. This is of particular salience when it comes to changes in behavior associated with serious mental illnesses including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Early detection is crucial for these conditions but presently very challenging to achieve. Potentially, characteristics of these conditions\u27 traits and symptoms, at both idiosyncratic and collective levels, may be detectable through technology use patterns. In bipolar disorder specifically, initial evidence associates changes in mood with changes in technology-mediated communication patterns. However much less is known about how people with bipolar disorder use technology more generally in their lives, how they view their technology use in relation to their illness, and, perhaps most crucially, the causal relationship (if any exists) between their technology use and their disease. To address these uncertainties, we conducted a survey of people with bipolar disorder (N = 84). Our results indicate that technology use varies markedly with changes in mood and that technology use broadly may have potential as an early warning signal of mood episodes. We also find that technology for many of these participants is a double-edged sword: acting as both a culprit that can trigger or exacerbate symptoms as well as a support mechanism for recovery. These findings have implications for the design of both early warning systems and technology-mediated interventions

Self-monitoring Practices, Attitudes, and Needs of Individuals with Bipolar Disorder: Implications for the Design of Technologies to Manage Mental Health

Objective To understand self-monitoring strategies used independently of clinical treatment by individuals with bipolar disorder (BD), in order to recommend technology design principles to support mental health management. Materials and Methods Participants with BD (N = 552) were recruited through the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, the International Bipolar Foundation, and WeSearchTogether.org to complete a survey of closed- and open-ended questions. In this study, we focus on descriptive results and qualitative analyses. Results Individuals reported primarily self-monitoring items related to their bipolar disorder (mood, sleep, finances, exercise, and social interactions), with an increasing trend towards the use of digital tracking methods observed. Most participants reported having positive experiences with technology-based tracking because it enables self-reflection and agency regarding health management and also enhances lines of communication with treatment teams. Reported challenges stem from poor usability or difficulty interpreting self-tracked data. Discussion Two major implications for technology-based self-monitoring emerged from our results. First, technologies can be designed to be more condition-oriented, intuitive, and proactive. Second, more automated forms of digital symptom tracking and intervention are desired, and our results suggest the feasibility of detecting and predicting emotional states from patterns of technology usage. However, we also uncovered tension points, namely that technology designed to support mental health can also be a disruptor. Conclusion This study provides increased understanding of self-monitoring practices, attitudes, and needs of individuals with bipolar disorder. This knowledge bears implications for clinical researchers and practitioners seeking insight into how individuals independently self-manage their condition as well as for researchers designing monitoring technologies to support mental health management

Tensions and Possibilities: A qualitative study of the views of nurse faculty training medical students to be Health Care Assistants

In the majority of pre-registration training programmes early theory is supported by later clinical learning. Unlike nursing, midwifery and the allied health professions, medical training often offers relatively little early clinical patient contact, though this does vary by medical school. To overcome this, recently, some medical schools offer patient-facing nurse training for the Care Certificate (CC) in the first year, but as yet little is known about how this is being received by nurses. We report on the experiences and perceptions of nurse-led faculty who led a pilot for first year medical students to gain the CC in the academic year 2019-20, in one UK medical school.  The qualitative study involved one-to-one in-depth semi-structured interviews with the course educators. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.  Seven faculty participated, sharing their delight at students’ willingness to embrace the CC. Five main themes arose: i) perceptions of doctors and nurses in the healthcare system; ii) affinity with the medical students; iii) benefits of the CC for medical students working as Health Care Assistants; iv) anxiety about teaching the medical students; and, v) uncertainty about whether this training should be compulsory.  We discovered that, nurses yearn for greater appreciation for their work by the medical workforce. These teachers felt this could be realised through this change within first year medical training. Many benefits were perceived as an outcome of this training for medical students, all members of the clinical team and most importantly for patients