1,495 research outputs found
The evaluation of Education Maintenance Allowance Pilots: three years' evidence: a quantitative evaluation
This is the third report of the longitudinal quantitative evaluation of Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) pilots and the first since the government announced that EMA is to be rolled out nationally from 2004. The evaluation was commissioned in 1999, by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) from a consortium of research organisations, led by the Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) and including the National Centre for Social Research, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) and the National Institute for Careers Education and Counselling (NICEC).
The statistical evaluation design is a longitudinal cohort study involving large random sample surveys of young people (and their parents) in 10 EMA pilot areas and eleven control areas. Two cohorts of young people were selected from Child Benefit records. The first cohort of young people left compulsory schooling in the summer of 1999 and they, and their parents, were interviewed between October 1999 and April 2000 (Year 12 interview). A second interview was carried out with these young people between October 2000 and April 2001 (Year 13 interview). The second cohort left compulsory education the following summer of 2000 and young people, and their parents, were first interviewed between October 2000 and April 2001.
The report uses both propensity score matching (PSM) and descriptive techniques, each of which brings their own particular strengths to the analysis
Exploring experiences among people diagnosed with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative descriptive study.
The objective of the study is to describe the experiences of people diagnosed with cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic. Qualitative data were collected through semistructured interviews conducted with people affected by cancer in the Australian context. Following institutional ethical approval, interviews were conducted over Microsoft Teams and Zoom platforms and complied with confidentiality requirements. Data were transcribed verbatim and analyzed, and emergent themes were developed using thematic analysis to understand patient experiences of cancer care during the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic was disruptive to the daily experiences of supportive care. Four overarching themes were identified related to: 1) the impact on accessing healthcare services, 2) encounters with healthcare professionals, 3) the impact on daily living, and 4) the impact of COVID on psychological well-being. As the COVID-19 pandemic held global consequences on cancer practices, it is recommended that nursing and other multidisciplinary healthcare professionals reflect upon these findings, in the context of planning for future pandemics. We encourage further exploration into the sustainability of telehealth services universally, given the issues highlighted in this study
The dynamics of internalised and extrinsic motivation in the ethical decision making of small business owners
This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via the DOI in this record.We investigate the ethical behaviour of small business owners by focusing on individualsâ
motivations to comply with tax obligations. In a study of 330 small business owners, we
assess the role of internalised motivation to pay taxes versus extrinsic motivation in driving
tax compliance. First, we find that internalised and extrinsic motivation have distinct
predictors. Internalised motivation is related to strong personal moral norms to comply and a
sense that the fiscal system is fair. Extrinsic motivation is related to perceptions that penalties
are severe, that checks are likely, and is associated with a perceived lack of tax knowledge.
Second, we find that, when considered together, internalised motivation but not extrinsic
motivation predicts self-reported tax compliance. Third, we test the undermining hypothesis
by which the presence of extrinsic motivation may crowd out the positive effect of
internalised motivation. We find evidence of a motivation crowding effect only at very high
levels of extrinsic motivation. We discuss avenues for further integration of motivation
theory in research on tax compliance behaviour, and more generally the study of regulatory
compliance and ethical behaviour in business settings.This work was conducted in the Tax Administration Research Centre at the University of
Exeter, jointly funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, HM Revenue &
Customs and HM Treasury (grant no. ES/K005944/1); we are very grateful to our funders for
their support
Assessing the genetic and pathogenic variability of Pyrenophora teres f. maculata (spot form net blotch of barley) and its ability to overcome currently-used sources of resistance on the Canadian prairies
Non-Peer ReviewedEighty two isolates of the fungus Pyrenophora teres f. maculata, causal agent of spot form net blotch (SFNB) of barley, were collected across the Canadian prairies. Following genetic analysis using 13 microsatellite DNA markers, 27 isolates were selected to assess the degree of pathogenic variation in the fungus. Pathogenic variability was evaluated by inoculating isolates onto 11 barley genotypes as differential hosts at the seedling stage. One week following inoculation, the second and third leaves of each plant were rated on to a 1â9 disease severity scale, and plants with scores of 1â3 and >3 were scored as resistant and susceptible, respectively. The entire experiment was repeated. Cluster analysis revealed 13 distinct pathotype groups (virulence patterns) among the 27 representative isolates. Disease severity ratings ranged from 2.2 to 6.1 with a mean of 4.6. To assess the risk of resistance breakdown, the resistance of four barley cultivars (âAAC Synergyâ, âCDC Meredithâ, âCervezaâ and âMajorâ), which had been previously identified as resistant to SFNB on the Canadian prairies, was evaluated at the seedling stage against six isolates of P. teres f. maculata representing four different pathotypes. The resistance in âCDC Meredithâ was clearly overcome by all isolates tested, while âAAC Synergyâ, âCervezaâ and âMajorâ still exhibited resistance against all of the pathotypes. The identification of fungal isolates virulent on âCDC Meredithâ suggests that producers should avoid growing the same resistant barley variety in short rotation, and avoid relying on resistance as the sole approach to disease management. Judicious use of fungicides, coupled with rotations of at least two years between barley crops and diversity in the barley varieties grown, will promote effective and sustainable management of spot form net blotch
On the Role of Dendritic Cells in Peripheral T Cell Tolerance and Modulation of Autoimmunity
Recently, it has become clear that dendritic cells (DCs) are essential for the priming of T cell responses. However, their role in the maintenance of peripheral T cell tolerance remains largely undefined. Herein, an antigen-presenting cell (APC) transfer system was devised and applied to experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE), to evaluate the contribution that DCs play in peripheral T cell tolerance. The CD8αâCD4+ subset, a minor population among splenic DCs, was found to mediate both tolerance and bystander suppression against diverse T cell specificities. Aggregated (agg) Ig-myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG), an Ig chimera carrying the MOG 35â55 peptide, binds and cross-links FcÎłR on APC leading to efficient peptide presentation and interleukin (IL)-10 production. Furthermore, administration of agg Ig-MOG into diseased mice induces relief from clinical EAE involving multiple epitopes. Such recovery could not occur in FcÎłR-deficient mice where both uptake of Ig-MOG and IL-10 production are compromised. However, reconstitution of these mice with DC populations incorporating the CD8αâCD4+ subset restored Ig-MOGâmediated reversal of EAE. Transfer of CD8α+ or even CD8αâCD4â DCs had no effect on the disease. These findings strongly implicate DCs in peripheral tolerance and emphasize their functional potency, as a small population of DCs was able to support effective suppression of autoimmunity
Innerbetriebliche Prozesse der Stellenbeschreibung und Bewerberauswahl â eine empirische Studie zur Auswahlpraxis in Wirtschaftsunternehmen
Measuring pH variability using an experimental sensor on an underwater glider
Autonomous underwater gliders offer the capability of measuring oceanic parameters continuously at high resolution in both vertical and horizontal planes, with timescales that can extend to many months. An experimental ion sensitive field effect transistor (ISFET) sensor measuring pH on the total scale was attached to a glider during the REP14 â MED experiment in June 2014 in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea. During the deployment, pH was sampled at depths of up to 1000âm, along an 80âkm transect over a period of 12 days. Water samples were collected from a nearby ship and analysed for dissolved inorganic carbon concentration and total alkalinity to derive pH for validating the ISFET measurements. The vertical resolution of the pH sensor was good (1 to 2âm), but stability was poor, and the sensor drifted in a non-monotonous fashion. In order to remove the sensor drift, a time-dependent, depth-invariant offset was applied throughout the water column for each dive, reducing the spread of the data by approximately two thirds. Furthermore, the ISFET sensor required temperature and pressure-based corrections, which were achieved using linear regression. Correcting for this decreased the apparent sensor pH variability by a further 13 to 31â%. Sunlight caused an apparent sensor pH decrease of up to 0.1 in surface waters around local noon, highlighting the importance of shielding the sensor away from light in future deployments. The corrected pH from the ISFET sensor is presented along with potential temperature, salinity, potential density anomalies (ÏΞ), and dissolved oxygen concentrations (c(O2)) measured by the glider, providing insights into physical and biogeochemical variability in this region. pH maxima were identified at the depth of the summer chlorophyll maximum, where high c(O2) values were also found. Longitudinal pH variations at depth (ÏΞâ>â28.8âkgâmâ3) highlighted variability of water masses in this region. Higher pH was observed where salinity was >â38.65, and lower pH was found where salinity ranged between 38.3 and 38.65. It seemed that the higher pH was associated with saltier Levantine Intermediate Water. Furthermore, shoaling isopycnals closer to shore coinciding with low pH, high salinity, low c(O2) waters may be indicative of upwelling
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