Search

This paper has re-analysed and compared data between three studies conducted in the United Kingdom and in Sweden (the OPUS 'Older People's Use of Unfamiliar Space' study in the United Kingdom and the Swedish studies 'Let's Go for a Walk' and 'Walking in Old Age') to provide a comprehensive account of the issues facing older people in the outdoor environment. All three studies draw on the 'fit' between the person and their environment as a guiding conceptual base – capturing the dynamics of the relationship between older people's personal needs and their wider environmental context. This common conceptual base allowed us to test theory against practice, and to explore the utility of this concept across different geographical contexts. Participatory research was also applied, highlighting the importance of the voice of older people and involving older people in research. The studies also used a mixed-method approach involving both quantitative and qualitative methods. The paper highlights that although not generalisable, you can compare cross-locales and cross-nationally using different methodology; it investigates the challenges of cross-national comparative analysis and draws on findings from the three studies to illustrate the different challenges and solutions and finally looks at lessons that are transferable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the covid-induced lockdowns, many commented on the role the German model of Kurzarbeit could play in reducing unemployment. Other countries emulated the model. Looking at the experiences of Germany, the UK, Sweden and the USA, the article analyses the strengths and weaknesses of short-time working (STW) schemes. It asks whether STW has been well designed to have optimal short and longer run impact. It is quite effective as a short-term palliative, but in longer downturns, its weaknesses come to the fore. It is by no means clear that the UK needs a permanent replacement for the furlough. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines differences in work restrictions of midlife family carers of older people in terms of prevalence, gender and explanatory variables, in six European countries: Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. A sample of 2,897 carers aged 45–64 was extracted from the EUROFAMCARE (Services for Supporting Family Carers of Older People in Europe: Characteristics, Coverage and Usage) European project database, in order to analyse four possible work restrictions experienced in connection with the activity of care-giving: the reduction of working hours; giving up working; difficulties in career developments and forced occasional work. The results show that work restrictions are experienced differently between countries especially by women: they are reported to a higher degree in the United Kingdom, Germany and Greece, less so in Italy, and seldom in Poland and Sweden. Gender differences within countries are not so marked. Country differences are explained in the light of the different welfare regimes characterising the countries under investigation, in order to elucidate how policy makers may act to improve working carers' conditions through appropriate policies. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Global Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) for Stage 2 of the Ordovician System, now the Floian Stage and approximately equivalent to the lower and middle Arenig of England and Wales, is defined by the first appearance datum (FAD) of the graptolite Tetragraptus approximatus in the Diabasbrottet Quarry section at Mount Hunneberg, Sweden. One of the issues this raises is how to correlate the base of Stage 2 at the GSSP with areas and successions that do not contain a correlative graptolite fauna. The distinctive Cymatiogalea messaoudensis--Stelliferidium trifidum acritarch assemblage is present in the upper Tremadocian Araneograptus murrayi Graptolite Biozone of NW England and ranges across the Tremadocian--Stage 2 boundary there (the Tremadoc--Arenig boundary of Anglo-Welsh nomenclature). It also occurs widely at other high southern Ordovician palaeolatitudes around the margin of Gondwana, being reported from Ireland, Wales, the Isle of Man, Belgium, Germany, Spain and Turkey, and may also be present in Bohemia and Argentina (Eastern Cordillera). It therefore has the potential to contribute towards the recognition and correlation of the base of Stage 2 in those areas. Of particular interest are the First Appearance Datums of various taxa within the stratigraphical range of the messaoudensis--trifidum assemblage, notably that of Aureotesta clathrata simplex, which is considered to be close to the base of Stage 2 in NW England. Elements of the messaoudensis--trifidum assemblage also occur in Baltica, the palaeoplate on which the GSSP for the base of Stage 2 is located. However, many of the taxa used to subdivide the messaoudensis-trifidum assemblage around Gondwana have not been recorded from Baltica and may be restricted palaeobiogeographically to the Gondwanan margin. Furthermore, acritarch microfloras have not been reported from the Diabasbrottet Quarry section itself, and there are hiatuses across the base of Stage 2 in the two sections from Baltica considered in this paper. Hence, direct correlation of the base of Stage 2 between the GSSP and other sections using acritarchs is not yet possible. Nevertheless, some taxa, for example the genera Peteinosphaeridium and Rhopaliophora, are shown to have FADs at similar stratigraphical levels in the late Tremadocian Stage of both Baltica and Gondwana, and therefore have the potential to correlate time slices in the late Tremadocian Stage between palaeoplates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers two main issues: the definition of Henry's concept of natural fertility, and the use of standard age-specific marital fertility schedules to measure the extent of fertility control. It suggests that regional as well as temporal variations are to be expected in the pattern of marital fertility and in consequence argues the need for a variety of standard marital fertility schedules specific to the underlying fertility conditions of the particular population under investigation. A detailed example drawn from the fertility patterns of Britain, Denmark and Sweden is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

How does the framing of immigration influence support for the welfare state? Drawing on research from psychology, specifically the notion of negativity bias and the sequencing of negative and positive information, this article argues that negative immigration frames undermine welfare support, while positive frames have little or no effect. Individuals take less notice of positive frames, and the effect of such frames is further undermined by the previous exposure to negative frames, which tend to stick longer in people's minds. The findings, based on survey experiments on over 9,000 individuals in Germany, Sweden and the UK, show that negative framing of immigration has a strong and pervasive effect on support for welfare. The article also finds some evidence that this effect is further amplified for people who hold anti-immigrant and anti-welfare attitudes or feel economically insecure. The effect of positive framing is considerably weaker and does not strengthen welfare support in any of the three countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different lifestyle patterns across Europe may influence plasma concentrations of B-vitamins and one-carbon metabolites and their relation to chronic disease. Comparison of published data on one-carbon metabolites in Western European regions is difficult due to differences in sampling procedures and analytical methods between studies. The present study aimed, to compare plasma concentrations of one-carbon metabolites in Western European regions with one laboratory performing all biochemical analyses. We performed the present study in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort among 5446 presumptively healthy individuals. Quantile regression was used to compare sex-specific median concentrations between Northern (Denmark and Sweden), Central (France, Germany, The Netherlands and United Kingdom) and Southern (Greece, Spain and Italy) European regions. The lowest folate concentrations were observed in Northern Europe (men, 10·4 nmol/l; women, 10·7 nmol/l) and highest concentrations in Central Europe. Cobalamin concentrations were slightly higher in Northern Europe (men, 330 pmol/l; women, 352 pmol/l) compared with Central and Southern Europe, but did not show a clear north–south gradient. Vitamin B2 concentrations were highest in Northern Europe (men, 22·2 nmol/l; women, 26·0 nmol/l) and decreased towards Southern Europe (Ptrend< 0·001). Vitamin B6 concentrations were highest in Central Europe in men (77·3 nmol/l) and highest in the North among women (70·4 nmol/l), with decreasing concentrations towards Southern Europe in women (Ptrend< 0·001). In men, concentrations of serine, glycine and sarcosine increased from the north to south. In women, sarcosine increased from Northern to Southern Europe. These findings may provide relevant information for the study of regional differences of chronic disease incidence in association with lifestyle. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

BackgroundEmployers such as the Armed Forces (AF) and emergency services, who predictably expose their staff to potentially traumatic events (PTEs), often provide psycho-educational briefings in an attempt to mitigate possible adverse psychological sequelae. Within the military, psycho-educational briefings are widely used, particularly following exposure to PTEs on operations. The aim of this review was to evaluate the efficacy of these interventions and make appropriate recommendations.MethodA search of Medline, PsycINFO and EMBASE was conducted, bibliographies of retrieved articles were searched and experts in the field were consulted.ResultsTwo surveys and seven intervention studies were identified for inclusion in the review. Only three studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Overall, the review found some evidence of benefit of psycho-educational interventions but it was not consistent across studies or outcomes and effects were small. However, there was also little evidence to suggest that they caused harm. There was some evidence that the beneficial effects may be greater for those who have been exposed to a higher number of PTEs.ConclusionsGiven the high operational tempo currently faced by coalition forces personnel, there remains a pressing need to identify the most effective way of minimizing the impact of exposure to potentially traumatic deployment incidents. To date, few psycho-educational interventions designed to prevent deployment-related psychological ill-health have been evaluated systematically in methodologically robust studies. The review recommends that future interventions are theoretically based and evaluated in cluster RCTs that examine both process and outcome variables. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Using fieldwork data collected in Eritrea, Rome, Milan and Stockholm, and supplemented by human rights organisation reports and discussions with key informants in four cities in the UK, this article examines the extent to which the Eritrean national service and its concomitant Warsai-Yikaalo Development Campaign qualify as forced or compulsory labour as defined by the relevant international conventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study provides a sociological commentary on the current debates within health technology assessment (HTA), specifically in response to the approaches taken in France, The Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. It argues that HTA is part of a wider reflexive innovation system that seeks to order current and prospective technologies. The study discusses the socio-political process of HTA priority setting, the rhetorical role of HTA, the localised and contingent use of HTA, and the policy gap between guidelines and practice. It argues for the development of new types of methodologies for assessment and for a stronger social embedding of HTA practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article compares insurance and means-tested income maintenance programs in Great Britain, the United States, the Netherlands and Sweden to determine patterns of segregation between men and women in access to types of benefits. In examining the sex of beneficiaries of income maintenance programmes. Several country-specific studies suggest a pattern of segregation between women and men in access to types of benefit. Men are more likely to be recipients of social insurance benefits, whilst women often must rely on means-tested programmes, and frequently their claims to insurance benefits are via their husband. This conclusion is re-examined through a comparison of insurance and means-tested programmes in Great Britain, the U.S., the Netherlands, and Sweden. The purpose is to determine, first, to what extent such a pattern of segregation emerges in the four countries and, second, what mechanisms operate to exclude or include women. The comparison reveals that the Swedish case deviates from the other three countries, and policy constructions inhibiting and promoting greater equality between women and men in access to social benefits are discussed. The results also have theoretical implications for dual welfare as an analytical framework and feminist thinking about the welfare state.