Cutting through complexity: Evaluating countering violent extremism (CVE)

Programmes and interventions to counter violent extremism (CVE) have become widespread across Europe. CVE is a relatively new and very complex phenomenon. The term itself has become a – contested – catch phrase for a broad array of interventions targeting different populations at different stages in the radicalization process. The complexity of CVE has resulted in a serious lack of evaluations in the field. Those few evaluations that we can draw upon are very heterogeneous, both in terms of evaluation method and the type of interventions that they address. It is therefore impossible to make any grounded statements on the effectiveness of CVE. Academia thus has little theoretical basis for adequately advising the policy and practitioner community on the best course of action. We are in need of an evaluation method that can accommodate the complexity of CVE, while providing an authoritative basis for new evaluations and at the same time exposing incorrect or too limited, normative assumptions in CVE policy. We also require a ‘meta-analysis’ method for synthesizing the variety of evaluations available to produce generic insights. This study applies and further develops realistic evaluation and realist review to provide an evaluation and synthesis method for complex social programmes such as CVE. The end result is heuristic development of the realistic evaluation method which provides a basis for future CVE evaluation studies. The dissertation also provides insights on relevant contexts and mechanisms in CVE, which will help policymakers further develop their CVE programmes

Cutting through complexity:Evaluating countering violent extremism (CVE)

Programmes and interventions to counter violent extremism (CVE) have become widespread across Europe. CVE is a relatively new and very complex phenomenon. The term itself has become a – contested – catch phrase for a broad array of interventions targeting different populations at different stages in the radicalization process. The complexity of CVE has resulted in a serious lack of evaluations in the field. Those few evaluations that we can draw upon are very heterogeneous, both in terms of evaluation method and the type of interventions that they address. It is therefore impossible to make any grounded statements on the effectiveness of CVE. Academia thus has little theoretical basis for adequately advising the policy and practitioner community on the best course of action. We are in need of an evaluation method that can accommodate the complexity of CVE, while providing an authoritative basis for new evaluations and at the same time exposing incorrect or too limited, normative assumptions in CVE policy. We also require a ‘meta-analysis’ method for synthesizing the variety of evaluations available to produce generic insights. This study applies and further develops realistic evaluation and realist review to provide an evaluation and synthesis method for complex social programmes such as CVE. The end result is heuristic development of the realistic evaluation method which provides a basis for future CVE evaluation studies. The dissertation also provides insights on relevant contexts and mechanisms in CVE, which will help policymakers further develop their CVE programmes

Influence of bone remodelling rate on quantitative ultrasound parameters at the calcaneus and DXA BMDa of the hip and spine in middle-aged and elderly European men: the European Male Ageing Study (EMAS)

Objective: To assess the influence of sex hormones on markers of bone turnover and to explore the association between these markers and bone health in middle-aged and elderly European men. Design: A cross-sectional population-based survey. Methods: Men aged 40-79 years were recruited from population registers in eight European centres. Subjects completed a postal questionnaire which included questions concerning lifestyle and were invited to undergo quantitative ultrasound (QUS) of the calcaneus and to provide a fasting blood sample from which the bone markers serum N-terminal propeptide of type 1 procollagen (P1NP) and crosslinks (beta C-terminal cross-linked telopeptide (beta-cTX)), total testosterone, total oestradiol (E(2)), sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) were measured. Dualenergy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) of the hip and lumbar spine was performed in two centres. Results: A total of 3120, mean age 59.9 years (S.D. = 11.0) were included. After adjustment for centre, age, height, weight, lifestyle factors, season and other hormones, total and free E(2) were negatively associated with beta-cTX but not P1NP while SHBG, IGF1 and parathyroid hormone (PTH) were positively associated with both beta-cTX and P1NP. Total or free testosterone was not independently associated with either bone marker. After the same adjustments, higher levels of both bone markers were significantly associated with lower QUS parameters and lower DXA-assessed bone density at the total hip and lumbar spine. Conclusions: E(2), SHBG, IGF1 and PTH contribute significantly to the regulation/rate of bone turnover in middle-aged and older European men. Higher rates of bone remodelling are negatively associated with male bone healt

Body mass index is negatively associated with telomere length: A collaborative cross-sectional meta-analysis of 87 observational studies

Stress-related psychiatric disorders across the life spa