Understanding the perception of biosecurity measures surrounding sheep scab disease and round worm control on the island of Lewis and Harris.

The phrase ‘biosecurity’ was not commonly recognised, but when talking, some participants described good biosecurity practices. “Best-fit” biosecurity practices are adopted on the island Awareness of the issues, available diagnostics and control options for sheep scab and roundworm vary considerably Few participants were familiar with the Sustainable Control of Parasites in Sheep recommendations (https://www.scops.org.uk/) Leisure users were identified as a risk to livestock Disease risks posed by wild geese and red deer are believed to be a threat to livestock (and human) health

Engaging the agricultural community in the development of mental health interventions: a qualitative research study

Background: Farmers and those involved in the wider agricultural industry have a high suicide rate. They are also a ‘hard to reach’ group who make less than average use of mental health services. There is therefore a need to understand how best to develop interventions that meet their needs. The aims of this study were to develop a deeper understanding of the farming context and target population and to engage farmers in the shaping of two potential mental health interventions that could be incorporated in a pilot RCT. Methods: The study was informed throughout by a reference group, who assisted in co-production of the research materials. A snowball approach was used to recruit interested individuals who had an association with farming. Twenty one telephone interviews were undertaken and analysed using the six phases of thematic analysis proposed by Braun and Clarke. Results: Key themes (and sub-themes shown in brackets) related to the study aims were: everyday life (work-life balance; isolation and loneliness); farm management (technology and social media; production, people management, learning and teaching; external pressures; livestock and farm production; financial aspects); demographics (effects of aging); engagement (appropriate wording when talking about mental health; recognising need for help; religion; normalising mental health issues; approaching the conversation); training (mental health training for supporters of the farming community; health & safety and the inclusion of mental health training); and personal stories and experiences, which was an emerging theme. Conclusions: Recruiting farmers into research studies is best done by meeting farmers where they are found, for example, farmers marts. Accessibility of content, tailoring to the farming community, and guided support are key to effective recruitment and retention

Firm-Level Evidence of Shifts in the Supply of Credit

Using panel data of 68,800 small and large firms, I examine whether firms are subject to shifts in the supply of credit over the business cycle. Shifts in the supply of credit are identified by exploring how firms substitute between commitment credit - lines of credit - and non-commitment credit. I find that firms on average rely more on commitment credits when monetary policy is tight and when the financial health of banks is weaker. The results are consistent with a bank lending channel of monetary policy and with shifts in the supply of credit following deteriorations in banks' balance sheets

Minimum-Variance Kernels, Economic Risk Premia, and Tests of Multi-Beta Models

This paper uses minimum-variance (MV) admissible kernels to estimate risk premia associated with economic risk variables and to test multi-beta models. Estimating risk premia using MV kernels is appealing because it avoids the need to 1) identify all relevant sources of risk and 2) assume a linear factor model for asset returns. Testing multi-beta models in terms of restricted MV kernels has the advantage that 1) the candidate kernel has the smallest volatility and 2) test statistics are easy to interpret in terms of Sharpe ratios. The authors find that several economic variables command significant risk premia and that the signs of the premia mostly correspond to the effect that these variables have on the risk-return trade-off, consistent with the implications of the intertemporal capital asset pricing model (I-CAPM). They also find that the MV kernel implied by the I-CAPM, while formally rejected by the data, consistently outperforms a pricing kernel based on the size and book-to-market factors of Fama and French (1993)