Interim report on Media Analysis

PACHELBEL WP4 “Stimulus Materials” uses findings from WP3 (Policy Assumptions) and from additional sources to prepare stimulus materials for the group-based process to be implemented in WP5. The output, informed by the present report, will be a set of materials to inform and stimulate the group-based process. These will take the form of real or simulated media coverage and/or documentary materials produced by various sources, scenarios, vignettes, and dramatised accounts. Another output, also informed by this report, will be an individual questionnaire for use in the group-based process. The present deliverable is centred on one of the data-gathering and analytic activities set up by WP4 to identify pertinent representational elements that should be included in the future stimulus materials, country by country. “Representational elements” have been defined in WP4 as typical images, anecdotes, examples, and references which are used by policy actors to explain and justify policy choices within the policy domains pertinent to PACHELBEL. Particular attention is given to references made to citizens, their perceptions and behaviours. In Task 4.2, PACHELBEL partners gathered representational elements in their respective contexts. To support this task, a “media analysis” template was developed by WPL SYMLOG for discussion at the second Consortium project meeting (Dorking, Mo. 6). Criteria were agreed for the analysis of a selection of actual publications in a range of media (print periodicals, public information materials disseminated by authorities, etc.). In Summer 2010, partners in each country used the template to analyze and report a sample of several dozen articles in selected policy areas. This interim report (D4.2) recalls methodology (Part 1), presents representational elements country by country (Part 2) and provides a summary overview of similarities and contrasts across country samples (Part 3). Conclusions and next steps are presented in Part 4. Also provided are a simplified media analysis template (Annex 1) and the compiled basic frequency analysis (Annex 2)

Worst Case Scenario and Stakeholder Group Decision: A 5-6 Meter Sea Level Rise in the Rhone Delta, France

Risk policy and public attitudes appear disconnected from research predicting warmer climate partially due to human activity. To step out of this stalled situation, a worst case scenario of a 5-6m sea level rise (SLR) induced by the collapse of the WAIS and occurring during the period 2030-2130 is constructed and applied to the Rhone delta. Physical and socio-economic scenarios developed with data from the Rhone delta context are developed and submitted to stakeholders for a day-long workshop. Group process analysis shows a high level of trust and cooperation mobilized to face the 5-6m SLR issue, despite potentially diverging interests. Two sets of recommendations stem from the scenario workshop. A conservative "wait and see" option is decided when the risk of the WAIS collapse is announced in 2030. After WAIS collapse generates an effective 1m SLR rise by 2050, decisions are taken for total retreat and rendering of the Rhone delta to its hydrological function. The transposition of these results into present times policy decisions could be considered. The methodology developed here could be applied to other risk objects and situations, and serve for policy exercises and crisis prevention.Sea level rise, France, Camargue, scenario, extreme climate, stakeholder workshop

Guidance on Stimulus Materials

PACHELBEL WP4 “Stimulus Materials” uses findings from WP3 (Policy Assumptions) and from additional sources to prepare stimulus materials for the group-based process “STAVE” implemented in WP5. The output was material to inform and stimulate the group-based process. The material was of two types: a set of questionnaires common to all partners (EVOC/CAPA/SIMI questionnaires), and material that is issue-specific and individually produced for each country. EVOC/CAPA/SIMI short questionnaires serve as a comparative tool between countries, giving insight on the social construction of “sustainable consumption” across the PACHELBEL population. Partners asked participants to fill out the set individually at the first meeting of the STAVE group, results were then analyzed and data were fed back for discussion by group participants at their second meeting. A “re-test” was then conducted at the third of three group meetings. The present report details the representations revealed through this methodology – but moreover the impact of applying such a technique in STAVE groups in France, Germany, Romania, Spain, Sweden and the UK (where the methodology was slightly altered). The issue-and-country-specific material consists of an informative simulated newspaper article on the particular issue addressed in a given STAVE process, and/or other materials (for example, humorous drawings). The report details how this material was developed, and the experience of applying these stimulus materials in each country. On this basis, guidance for future STAVE processes is offered. Foremost among observations is that PACHELBEL stimulus materials serve a purpose that is distinct from that of “group exercises” as developed in WP5. The materials contributing to the formation of a group identity, a reflexive group norm, and a shared information basis. As such, stimulus materials prepare the group for a cooperative investigative process

Faint Infrared Flares from the Microquasar GRS 1915+105

We present simultaneous infrared and X-ray observations of the Galactic microquasar GRS 1915+105 using the Palomar 5-m telescope and Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer on July 10, 1998 UT. Over the course of 5 hours, we observed 6 faint infrared (IR) flares with peak amplitudes of $\sim 0.3-0.6$ mJy and durations of $\sim 500-600$ seconds. These flares are associated with X-ray soft-dip/soft-flare cycles, as opposed to the brighter IR flares associated with X-ray hard-dip/soft-flare cycles seen in August 1997 by Eikenberry et al. (1998). Interestingly, the IR flares begin {\it before} the X-ray oscillations, implying an ``outside-in'' origin of the IR/X-ray cycle. We also show that the quasi-steady IR excess in August 1997 is due to the pile-up of similar faint flares. We discuss the implications of this flaring behavior for understanding jet formation in microquasars.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter

The “New” Student-Athlete: An Exploratory Examination of Scholarship eSports Players

The growth and popularity of eSports cannot be understated. The domain has become so mainstream that colleges and universities are rapidly beginning to launch eSports programs within their athletics departments. In this study, the authors interviewed 33 student-athletes receiving scholarships for participating in eSports at one institution. In all, the identity and social capital of athletes in this “new” athletic arena were explored and compared with previous studies examining “traditional” athletes. The implications of the similarities and differences are discussed and ideas for future research into this emerging field are presented

How pharmaceutical and diagnostic stakeholders construct policy solutions to a public health ‘crisis’: an analysis of submissions to a United Kingdom House of Commons inquiry into antimicrobial resistance

© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives License (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is often characterised as a ‘crisis’, requiring action by public, private, and third-sector stakeholders to achieve strategic change. Crisis narratives are powerful and may be co-opted to privilege solutions promoted by influential groups. In relation to AMR, this applies particularly to the pharmaceutical and medical diagnostics industries. Given the associated risk of inefficient use of public funds, critical attention must be paid to how the promoted ‘solutions’ to the AMR crisis are constructed, and their symbolic and material effects on health policy. We conducted a critical discourse analysis (CDA) of the seventy-one written submissions to the UK House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee’s 2018 inquiry into AMR. Two researchers collaboratively coded the findings and categorised the submissions. We applied the Policy Dystopia Model to further analyse the proposed solutions and ascertain the discursive and instrumental arguments in the industry submissions to the Committee. We found that industry submissions deployed economic and governance discursive strategies, articulating three main ‘market paradoxical’ arguments: (i) interference but non-interference; (ii) power but powerlessness; and (iii) for-profit but not-for-profit. The industry submissions also drew upon instrumental strategies including: coalition management, information management, and direct involvement and influence in policymaking. Our analysis suggests that commercial interests deploy crisis narratives to advocate for solutions involving market deregulation and industry subsidies. Thus, the solutions presented to the Committee were heavily shaped by a technocratic-industrial complex. This contributes to influencing what is seen as possible and acceptable in the global AMR policy landscape.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Great deeds or great risks? Scientists’ social representations of nanotechnology

Nanotechnologies are becoming a larger presence in everyday life and are viewed by governments and economic actors as a key area for development. The theory of social representations suggests that specialist views eventually disseminate to shape representations among the public. Yet nanotechnologies remain relatively little known to the general public. The media emphasize potential benefits, while potential risks get less attention. The literature has not yet addressed whether representations by a well-informed population (scientists) are indeed structured in terms of the risk–benefit polarity that dominates research framing to date. We attempted a systematic assessment of how background knowledge about nanotechnology may influence experts’ perception. Study 1 delivered the first demonstration derived from a qualitative analysis confirming the existence of a polarized representation of nanotechnologies, contrasting opportunity (medical, economic, and technological) and risk. Interestingly, risk was distinguished at two levels: that associated with nanomaterial characteristics (toxicity, reactivity) and at the larger scale of impact (health, environment, legislation). Does this polarity indicate a ‘yes, but’ logic (nanotechnology carries opportunity but also risk), or two clusters of specialists (sensitive, respectively, to opportunity or to risk)? Study 2 surveyed a larger sample of experts who self-described their scientific background and role viz. nanotechnology. Role had no influence. Specialists consensually viewed that nanotechnology represents opportunity, but depending on scientific background they did not agree to the same extent that nanotechnology also constitutes a risk. Participants with a physics and chemistry background tended to represent nanotechnologies predominantly in terms of opportunities and not in terms of inherent risks or impacts. In contrast, toxicologists, life and social scientists appeared to explicitly incorporate both benefits and risks in their representation of this new technology. Environmental scientists were a more diverse group, divided between the two patterns of representation

Extent, Awareness and Perception of Dissemination Bias in Qualitative Research: An Explorative Survey

BACKGROUND: Qualitative research findings are increasingly used to inform decision-making. Research has indicated that not all quantitative research on the effects of interventions is disseminated or published. The extent to which qualitative researchers also systematically underreport or fail to publish certain types of research findings, and the impact this may have, has received little attention. METHODS: A survey was delivered online to gather data regarding non-dissemination and dissemination bias in qualitative research. We invited relevant stakeholders through our professional networks, authors of qualitative research identified through a systematic literature search, and further via snowball sampling. RESULTS: 1032 people took part in the survey of whom 859 participants identified as researchers, 133 as editors and 682 as peer reviewers. 68.1% of the researchers said that they had conducted at least one qualitative study that they had not published in a peer-reviewed journal. The main reasons for non-dissemination were that a publication was still intended (35.7%), resource constraints (35.4%), and that the authors gave up after the paper was rejected by one or more journals (32.5%). A majority of the editors and peer reviewers "(strongly) agreed" that the main reasons for rejecting a manuscript of a qualitative study were inadequate study quality (59.5%; 68.5%) and inadequate reporting quality (59.1%; 57.5%). Of 800 respondents, 83.1% "(strongly) agreed" that non-dissemination and possible resulting dissemination bias might undermine the willingness of funders to support qualitative research. 72.6% and 71.2%, respectively, "(strongly) agreed" that non-dissemination might lead to inappropriate health policy and health care. CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of non-dissemination in qualitative research is substantial. Researchers, editors and peer reviewers play an important role in this. Non-dissemination and resulting dissemination bias may impact on health care research, practice and policy. More detailed investigations on patterns and causes of the non-dissemination of qualitative research are needed