Yes / The paper explores the discrepancy between attitude and behavioural intention in ethical consumption, focusing on the role of techniques of neutralisation. Drawing on findings of 251 respondents in the UK, results suggest despite positive attitude towards ethical consumption, consumers are also susceptible to the techniques of neutralisation. Hierarchical and moderated regression analyses reveal that inclusion of the neutralisation construct moderates the influences of attitudes on behavioural intention, and advances the model’s predictive capacity. In spite of suggested positive attitude towards ethical consumption, real existing behaviour is frequently filtered through the techniques of neutralisation. The sample is restricted to in size and location, however the study clearly establishes techniques of neutralisation as a construct in the decision-making process, further warranting examination of each of the techniques. Summary statement of contribution: The study confirms validity of the addition of the neutralisation construct into the modified TPB model noted by Chatzidakis et al. (2007). It suggests improvement in predicting behavioural intention and shows the moderating effects the techniques of neutralisation have on constructs in the modified TPB model. The neutralisation construct is itself found to have a significant impact on moderating purchasing intention in ethical consumption.

Yes / This study examines the impact of internal corporate governance mechanisms on insurance companies’ risk-taking in the UK context. The study uses a panel data of all listed insurance companies on FTSE 350 over the 2005-2014 period. The results show that the board size and board meetings are significantly and negatively related to risk-taking. In contrast, the results show that board independence and audit committee size are statistically insignificant, but negatively related to risk-taking. The findings are robust to alternative measures and endogeneities. Our findings have important implications for investors, managers, regulators of financial institutions and effectiveness of corporate governance reforms that have been pursued.

No / According to Lowe and Phillipson (2006) the traditional binary division into `basic¿ and `applied¿ research, have recently been extended to a new category called `strategic¿ research, signifying research which is both inter-disciplinary and interacts with research users. Sharp and Dixon (2007) have argued that there are different level of strategic research, signifying different levels of interaction, resource sharing, and joint development of outputs. Drawing on this understanding, this paper considers two user-oriented `Integrated Urban Drainage¿ pilot projects conducted during 2006-7, in order to consider what insights these `not-quite¿ research projects can yield about the nature of strategic research. The paper finds that the pilots were similar to other inter-disciplinary research projects ¿ except that they were commissioned and partly managed by practitioners. Common dilemmas, for example about the inter-linkages between work packages and about the extent of stakeholder interaction, highlight the increasingly fluid boundaries between the categories of `policy evaluation¿, `policy pilot¿ and `research project¿. The paper concludes that the concepts of `researcher¿ and `research user¿ might be replaced with a more flexible idea about `research stakeholders¿ whose varied interests in projects require a flexible communication strategy to fulfil a range of needs.

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No / This paper presents new chronological data applied to the problem of providing a date for the construction of a prehistoric building, with a case study from the Old Scatness Broch, Shetland. The innovative methodology employed utilises the combination of radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dates with the archaeological information, which includes the stratigraphic relationships of sampled deposits, context information, and evidence relating to the formation of the deposit. This paper discusses the scientific validity of the dates produced, and the advantages that the methodology employed at this site offers for archaeological interpretation. The combined dating evidence suggests that the broch at Old Scatness is earlier than the conventionally accepted dates for broch construction. More broadly it shows the value of integration of the specialists at the planning stages of the excavation. The application of a Bayesian statistical model to the sequences of dates allowed investigation of the robustness of the dates within the stratigraphic sequences, as well as increasing the resolution of the resulting chronology. In addition, the value of utilising multiple dating techniques on the same deposit was demonstrated, as this allowed different dated events to be directly compared as well as issues relating to the formation of the sampled deposit. This in turn impacted on the chronological significance of the resulting dating evidence, and therefore the confidence that could be placed in the results.

No / This paper describes an institutional strategy (Ecoversity) to embed sustainable development across the full range of university activities and services and reflects on two different phases of Ecoversity providing illustrations and case examples of specific actions and changes that have occurred. The programme has begun to deliver tangible benefits to the institution and has begun to act as a catalyst for, and link up with other, internal initiatives that are seeking to reshape the university culture and core activities around sustainable development. The paper reflects on the process of change and describes a process model that captures many of the key elements that needed to be addressed to initiate change and scale up activities. The process model is helpful in analysing barriers to change and how change can be achieved. The project illustrates a conscious and deliberate process for embedding SD within a university culture and offers a coherent conceptual framework for describing change

No / Following legislative changes in 2004 and the establishment of the Human Tissue Authority, access to human tissues for biomedical research became a more onerous and tightly regulated process. Ethical Tissue was established to meet the growing demand for human tissues, using a process that provided ease of access by researchers whilst maintaining the highest ethical and regulatory standards. The establishment of a licensed research tissue bank entailed several key criteria covering ethical, legal, financial and logistical issues being met. A wide range of stakeholders, including the HTA, University of Bradford, flagged LREC, hospital trusts and clinical groups were also integral to the process.

No / This study aims to determine the concentration of 16 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in urban soils from Leeds in order to determine what the factors are controlling their distribution and abundances. Soil samples were collected across an area from Leeds. Gas chromatography with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) using selected ion monitoring (SIM) was used to identify and quantify PAHs in the soil samples with the aid of PAH external standards. The results showed the highest concentrations of total PAHs in sample L8 (1344 ng/g) taken from an area located near a parking site and road in Leeds and the lowest total concentration of the 16 PAHs in sample L16 (87 ng/g) taken from a private garden. The ratio of anthracene to anthracene plus phenanthrene AN/(AN + PH), fluoranthene to fluoranthene plus pyrene FLU/(PY+FLU) and benzo[a]anthracene to 228 (BaA/228) implied that the PAHs pollution originated from pyrogenic, biomass and petroleum combustion in the samples which were collected from Leeds city.