Diversity and Determinants of Corporate Financing Decisions: Survey Evidence

Despite theoretical developments in recent years, our understanding of corporate capital structure remains incomplete. Prior empirical research has been dominated by archival regression studies which are limited in their ability to fully reflect the diversity found in practice. The present paper reports on a comprehensive survey of corporate financing decision-making in 192 UK listed companies. A key finding is that firms are heterogeneous in their capital structure policies. About half of the firms seek to maintain a target debt level, consistent with trade-off theory, but 60% claim to follow a financing hierarchy, consistent with pecking order theory. These two theories are not viewed by respondents as either mutually exclusive or exhaustive, since some firms adopt (at least partially) both strategies, while a significant number of firms do not appear to follow either of these strategies. Such observations raise concerns about the usefulness of large-scale regression modelling of capital structure determinants. In normal usage, these models can only describe whether a particular theory is consistent with the observed capital structure of the 'average firm' in the population. They are not typically used to model the diversity of capital structure practice. As found in many regression-based determinant studies, there is clear evidence here that company size affects corporate financing decisions. For example, large companies are more likely to adopt a target debt level and to maintain financial slack (though not more likely to follow a hierarchy of finance). Similarly, current high levels of gearing encourage a greater focus on particular issues, such as projected cash flows, loan covenants and non-interest tax shields. This contingency on debt levels suggests that empirical studies of capital structure dynamics may be particularly fruitful. Investigation of debt level determinants shows that many of the theoretical arguments are widely accepted by respondents, in particular the importance of interest tax shield, financial distress, agency costs and also, at least implicitly, information asymmetry

Public involvement in health research: a case study of one NHS project over 5 years

Background: Public involvement, both in the National Health Service (NHS) and in clinical research, is promoted as an important democratic principle. The declared aims are to reduce professional autocracy and allow a broader ownership of the research agenda; also to improve the design of, and recruitment and retention of patients to, clinical studies. There have been a number of national initiatives in the UK to improve public input to clinical research activities, but very few reports of effective and sustainable partnerships over time. This study reports the evaluation of one example, which is embedded in the NHS and university partnerships in the Norfolk area of England. Objectives Evaluate: • Putting principles into practice of public involvement in research over a 5 year period for one specific project (Patient and Public Involvement in Research). • How the model contributes to, and impacts upon, all stages of the research process. • Attitudes of the research community and lay volunteers to their mutual experiences of public involvement. • Key factors and strengths of this project, and areas for improvement. Methods: A mixed methods approach related to the 5 years from start of 2003 to end of 2007. This used descriptive statistics of volunteer activity, interviews with key stakeholders (13), questionnaires (53% response rate), and focus group with 10 volunteers to explore emergent themes. We analysed findings using a policy framework approach. Results: About 47 of the original 55 volunteers remained on the panel after 5 years. All have undertaken training, 38% have been involved in the full range of research activities offered, and 75% have attended at least one research project meeting. Some are active in governance, ethics, and advisory committees. Both the research community and the volunteers are very positive about the project. The researchers find it provides well prepared personnel, and gives a speedy and efficient way of fulfilling the expectations of funders for lay input. The volunteers find it gives them important opportunities to influence the quality of research and thus support improvements in patient care. Areas for improvement include increasing social diversity among the volunteers, and improving feedback on input from volunteers, without which volunteers tend to lose confidence and motivation. Conclusion: Long-term sustainable and valuable public input to research is possible. Key factors are committing resources, embedding the service in the infrastructure of a research consortium, and ongoing responsiveness by NHS staff and researchers. Additional activity to recruit and support access may be needed to attract people from a broad range of sociodemographic backgrounds. Some volunteers want more involvement than this model currently offers

Can long-range PCR be used to amplify genetically divergent mitochondrial genomes for comparative phylogenetics?: a case study within spiders (Arthropoda: Araneae)

The development of second generation sequencing technology has resulted in the rapid production of large volumes of sequence data for relatively little cost, thereby substantially increasing the quantity of data available for phylogenetic studies. Despite these technological advances, assembling longer sequences, such as that of entire mitochondrial genomes, has not been straightforward. Existing studies have been limited to using only incomplete or nominally intra-specific datasets resulting in a bottleneck between mitogenome amplification and downstream high-throughput sequencing. Here we assess the effectiveness of a wide range of targeted long-range PCR strategies, encapsulating single and dual fragment primer design approaches to provide full mitogenomic coverage within the Araneae (Spiders). Despite extensive rounds of optimisation, full mitochondrial genome PCR amplifications were stochastic in most taxa, although 454 Roche sequencing confirmed the successful amplification of 10 mitochondrial genomes out of the 33 trialled species. The low success rates of amplification using long-Range PCR highlights the difficulties in consistently obtaining genomic amplifications using currently available DNA polymerases optimised for large genomic amplifications and suggests that there may be opportunities for the use of alternative amplification methods

Maternal gaze to the infant face: effects of infant age and facial configuration during mother-infant engagement in the first nine weeks

Background Adult gaze plays an important role in early infant development, and infants are highly sensitive to its presence and direction. Little is known, however, about how adults look at infants while interacting with them. Using eye-tracking technology, this study investigated maternal gaze during naturalistic interactions, and how it was influenced by infant age, focusing on the transition from the first to the second month when social expressiveness emerges, and by infant facial configuration, focusing on the effect of cleft lip. Methods Thirty infants (10 with a cleft lip), and their mothers, were seen at 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 weeks. Mothers were asked to interact with their infants while wearing eye-tracking glasses. Fixation duration and count were calculated for general (infant face, body, and surrounding environment), and infant facial (eyes, mouth, other) areas. Results At all ages, mothers gazed almost exclusively towards their infant’s face, but this was reduced in the presence of a cleft lip. Within the infant’s face, the eyes attracted the greatest attention, for all mothers, at all ages. From the first to the second month, all mothers increased their visual attention towards their infant’s mouth. Regardless of infant age, the presence of a cleft lip was associated with decreased maternal gaze to the infant’s mouth. Conclusions This study provides novel findings concerning maternal gaze to infant faces during naturalistic interactions. Maternal gaze changes with infant age, in line with established shifts in social development, and according to infant facial configuration. Decreased gaze to the mouth area associated with infant cleft lip might affect maternal responsiveness, and suggests new dimensions to target in supporting these mothers

The effects of maternal mirroring on the development of infant social expressiveness: the case of infant cleft lip

Parent-infant social interactions start early in development, with infants showing active communicative expressions by just two months. A key question is how this social capacity develops. Maternal mirroring of infant expressions is considered an important, intuitive, parenting response, but evidence is sparse in the first two months concerning the conditions under which mirroring occurs and its developmental sequelae, including in clinical samples where the infant’s social expressiveness may be affected. We investigated these questions by comparing the development of mother-infant interactions between a sample where the infant had cleft lip and a normal, unaffected, comparison sample. We videotaped dyads in their homes five times from one to ten weeks and used a microanalytic coding scheme for maternal and infant behaviours, including infant social expressions, and maternal mirroring and marking responses. We also recorded maternal gaze to the infant, using eye-tracking glasses. Although infants with cleft lip did show communicative behaviours, the rate of their development was slower than in comparison infants. This group difference was mediated by a lower rate of mirroring of infant expressions by mothers of infants with cleft lip; this effect was, in turn, partly accounted for by reduced gaze to the infant’s mouth, although the clarity of infant social expressions (indexed by cleft severity) and maternal self-blame regarding the cleft were also influential. Results indicate the robustness of parent-infant interactions but also their sensitivity to specific variations in interactants’ appearance and behaviour. Parental mirroring appears critical in infant social development, likely supported by the mirror neuron system and underlying clinical and, possibly, cultural differences in infant behaviour. These findings suggest new avenues for clinical intervention

International lease accounting reform and economic consequences: the views of UK users and preparers

In response to perceived difficulties with extant lease-accounting standards in operation worldwide, the G4+1 issued a discussion paper which proposes that all leases should be recognized on the balance sheet [ASB (1999). Leases: Implementation of a new approach, discussion paper. London: Accounting Standards Board]. Leasing is now on the active agenda of the IASB. A major difficulty faced by standard setters lies in overcoming the preparer/user lobbying imbalance and obtaining ex ante evidence on the likely impact of regulatory reform. This paper contributes to the ongoing international debate by conducting a questionnaire survey of U.K. users and preparers to assess their views on proposals for lease-accounting reform and on the potential economic consequences of their adoption. The results, based on 132 responses, indicate that both groups accept that there are deficiencies in the current rules, but they do not agree on the way forward and believe that the proposals would lead to significant economic consequences for key parties. The impact on respondents' views of familiarity with the proposals, level of lease usage, and company size, is also examined

Assessing the impact of nitrogen supplementation in oats across multiple growth locations and years with targeted phenotyping and high-resolution metabolite profiling approaches

Oats (Avena sativa L.) are a healthy food, being high in dietary fibre (e.g. β-glucans), antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins. Understanding the effect of variety and crop management on nutritional quality is important. The response of four oat varieties to increased nitrogen levels was investigated across multiple locations and years with respect to yield, grain quality and metabolites (assessed via GC- and LC- MS). A novel high-resolution UHPLC-PDA-MS/MS method was developed, providing improved metabolite enrichment, resolution, and identification. The combined phenotyping approach revealed that, amino acid levels were increased by nitrogen supplementation, as were total protein and nitrogen containing lipid levels, whereas health-beneficial avenanthramides were decreased. Although nitrogen addition significantly increased grain yield and β-glucan content, supporting increasing the total nitrogen levels recommended within agricultural guidelines, oat varietal choice as well as negative impacts upon health beneficial secondary metabolites and the environmental burdens associated with nitrogen fertilisation, require further consideration

Raman spectroscopy in head and neck cancer

In recent years there has been much interest in the use of optical diagnostics in cancer detection. Early diagnosis of cancer affords early intervention and greatest chance of cure. Raman spectroscopy is based on the interaction of photons with the target material producing a highly detailed biochemical 'fingerprint' of the sample. It can be appreciated that such a sensitive biochemical detection system could confer diagnostic benefit in a clinical setting. Raman has been used successfully in key health areas such as cardiovascular diseases, and dental care but there is a paucity of literature on Raman spectroscopy in Head and Neck cancer. Following the introduction of health care targets for cancer, and with an ever-aging population the need for rapid cancer detection has never been greater. Raman spectroscopy could confer great patient benefit with early, rapid and accurate diagnosis. This technique is almost labour free without the need for sample preparation. It could reduce the need for whole pathological specimen examination, in theatre it could help to determine margin status, and finally peripheral blood diagnosis may be an achievable target