Restorative Justice and Recidivism: Investigating the impact of victim-preference for level of engagement.

The aim of this study was to assess the impact ofoffering victims choice in their level of engagement with restorative justice interventions. Consequently, this study compared the expected risk for reconviction, calculated using the Offender Group Reconviction Scale and actual reconviction rates for completers and non-completers of three different restorative justice (RJ) initiatives: conference, letter of apology and victim-empathy work. Where reconvictions were evident the comparative level of harm between the initial and subsequent offences was examined. This was a risk-band analysis of 253 offenders who had received an RJ sentence between September 2007 and September 2011. Data analysis began after September 2012, to allow at least a one-year follow-up. The analyses revealed statistically significant differences between expected and actual reconviction rates for all three interventions. The choice offered to victims regarding their degree of involvement in the RJ sentence appears to do no harm; indeed it is still associated with lower rates of reconviction and a relatively high likelihood of a reduction in harm where reoffending occurs

Motives and Correlates of Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Use With Stimulant Polypharmacy

Individuals who use anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) may engage in concurrent psychoactive drug use recreationally and/or as an additional training aid. Aside from cannabis, individuals who use AAS most commonly report concurrent use of stimulants such as amphetamines and cocaine. In this study, we examine demographic characteristics, frequency of heavy drinking, and nightclubbing in a sample of 993 men from the Global Drug Survey 2015 who reported both AAS and psychoactive drug use before exploring the relationship between motivation for AAS use and the propensity to concurrently engage with stimulant-type substances. Results of a logistic regression analysis suggest that the propensity for concurrent use of AAS and stimulants is greater when AAS use is motivated by weight loss goals, while performance goals are associated with reduced odds of concurrent stimulant use. Identifying individuals who are at risk of polydrug use and associated harms can inform targeted harm reduction strategies

The use of anabolic androgenic steroids as a public health issue

In recent years there have been increasing calls for the use of anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) and associated drugs to be recognized as a public health issue. In the domain of the competitive athlete and professional bodybuilder, recent decades have seen the diffusion of AAS from the hardcore gyms of the 1980s and 1990s to the mainstream exercise and fitness environments of the twenty-first century. Alongside the apparent increases in the use of these drugs, there is a growing evidence base in relation to harms – physical, psychological and (to some extent) social. But is this form of drug use a public health issue? What criteria should we use to make this judgement? What is the available evidence and has our understanding of the issue improved? By drawing on the authors' research in the United Kingdom and the wider international literature this chapter will explore these issues and attempt to answer the fundamental question – is the use of anabolic steroids a public health issue

Parameters for composting tannery hair waste

Solid hair waste is generated by the leather industry as a by-product of the leather manufacturing process. Keratin, the main structural constituent of hair proteins, is highly resistant to degradation and their disposal is of environmental concern. The aim of this study was to develop conditions favorable for the degradation of bovine hair in a composting environment as an environmentally friendly option for the management of solid tannery hair waste. The thermophilic optimum temperature, 40 – 50C, moisture content 55%, pH 7.0 and a carbon to nitrogen ratio of 35:1 were found to be favorable to sustain metabolic functions of thermophilic microbial flora, responsible for degrading keratins. The biodegradation and structural transformation of the substrate was assessed using scanning electron microscopy. The results show that under these conditions the bovine hair lost most of its integral structural stability and that the cuticular components were more resistant to degradation. The compost stability as evaluated by monitoring the degree of humification and carbon to nitrogen ratio indicated that the final product achieved reasonable stability by attaining 73% degree of humification, 26% humification rate and carbon to nitrogen ratio of 29:1. Hence the composting technology used in this study has potential application in the leather industry for the production of an economically viable produc

Developing shared understanding through online interdisciplinary collaboration: Reflections from a research project on better integration of health outcomes in future urban development practice

Collaborative working has gained widespread recognition in policy and practice. However, there is less research on the process of doing collaborative research in practice than there is on the epistemological, theoretical, and methodological aspects of such work. In this paper, we address this gap by offering reflections on our practical experience of online interdisciplinary collaboration as part of a wider research project on future urban development practice. We sought to develop a shared understanding of the systems of urban development decision-making. We utilise two established frameworks of interdisciplinarity to reflect on our experience and offer practical recommendations that can help facilitate such work carried out remotely by early career researchers from diverse academic backgrounds. In so doing, our paper offers fresh insights on some of the common issues in interdisciplinary collaboration and on developing shared understanding and intellectual coherence through productive online interactions. As research is evolving to tackle complex problems that require a holistic understanding, our paper contributes to developing replicable methods for remotely conducted interdisciplinary work in the early phases of large-scale collaborative projects

Urban policies and the creation of healthy urban environments: A review of government housing and transport policy documents in the United Kingdom

Urban environments are key health determinants and play a critical role in improving health outcomes and equity. However, urban policies in the United Kingdom (UK) and globally frequently fail to produce healthy towns and cities. Given the highly centralized nature of UK policy, we analyzed national UK policy documents published since 2010 in two key areas of urban policy: housing supply and transport. We found that health is largely absent in narratives shaping urban development and, where health is included, it is as an assumed indirect outcome of delivering other policy agendas. Thus, we recommend that explicit direct and measurable health objectives must be integrated front and center in urban policies, and cross-sector collaboration across national government on health prevention to manage the complex linkages across policy areas. Evidencing the interactive effects between improving health outcomes and dominant urban policy agendas can incentivize shared accountability for health outcomes

More Symmetrical Children Have Faster and More Consistent Choice Reaction Times

Greater cognitive ability in childhood is associated with increased longevity, and speedier reaction time (RT) might account for much of this linkage. Greater bodily symmetry is linked to both higher cognitive test scores and faster RTs. It is possible, then, that differences in bodily system integrity indexed by symmetry may underlie the associations of RT and intelligence with increased longevity. However, RT and symmetry have seldom been examined in the same study, and never in children. Here, in 2 large samples aged 4 to 15 (combined n = 856), we found that more symmetrical children had significantly faster mean choice RT and less variability in RT. These associations of faster and less variable RT with greater symmetry early in life raise the possibility that the determinants of longevity in part originate in processes influencing bodily system integrity early in the life-course