bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Jurors' Perception of Witnesses with Intellectual Disabilities and the Influence of Expert Evidence
Authors: Stobbs Georgina , Kebbell Mark Rhys
Published: May 2003

Purpose  The aim of this study was to assess mock‐jurors' perceptions of the evidence of witnesses with intellectual disabilities either with or without expert evidence and in comparison with witnesses from the general population.

Method  Sixty participants read transcripts of a mock trial focusing on the testimony of an eyewitness. Participants were assigned to one of three groups. The first was told that the witness was a person from the general population. The second was told that the witness had mild learning disabilities. The third group was told that the witness had mild learning disabilities and was given expert evidence concerning his abilities.

Results  While mock‐jurors perceive witnesses with learning disabilities to be fundamentally honest, they are reluctant to rely on the evidence provided by witnesses with learning disabilities. Expert evidence can go some way to ameliorating the negative perceptions of the reliability of witnesses with learning disabilities.

Conclusions  Expert evidence can provide jurors with a certain degree of insight and understanding of an individual witness with intellectual disabilities that potentially increases the likelihood of achieving justice.
Utility of the Brief Symptom Inventory in the Assessment of Psychological Distress
Authors: Kellett Stephen , Beail Nigel , Newman David W. , Frankish Pat
Published: May 2003

Introduction  People with intellectual disabilities are now acknowledged to be susceptible to the full range of mental health disorders. This acknowledgement has resulted in the need to develop and evaluate instruments for the assessment and detection of mental health problems. This research evaluates the use of the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) with 200 people with mild intellectual disabilities representing community, clinical and forensic populations.

Results and conclusions  Results illustrate the reliability of the BSI for each of the groups and demonstrates how the Positive Symptom Total (PST) index effectively discriminates between study groups. Case rates for each group are provided. The study illustrates that the BSI could be employed as a brief multitrait assessment instrument and as a treatment outcome measure with people with an intellectual disability.
The Intellectually Disabled Offender: Methodological Problems in Identification
Authors: McBrien Judith
Published: May 2003

Background  Reliable evidence concerning the prevalence of intellectually disabled offenders that would inform the clinician's approach to the assessment and management of risk is in short supply. This paper aims to assist the clinician in interpreting the available evidence.

Methods  A literature search was conducted for all years up to January 2003. Each study was first examined for the methods employed to define and measure intellectual disability. Then, the effect of this on prevalence estimates was considered.

Results  A wide range of methods has been used to ascertain the presence of intellectual disability – administrative definitions, psychiatric diagnosis, educational background, self‐report and direct measurement of IQ and adaptive behaviour.

Conclusions  Most studies reviewed used less than adequate ascertainment methods. Reliable answers to two key questions – which offenders have intellectual disabilities and which people with intellectual disabilities offend – therefore remain elusive.
Passive Activities: the Effectiveness of Multisensory Environments on the Level of Activity of Individuals with Profound Multiple Disabilities
Authors: Vlaskamp Carla , De Geeter Karin I. , Huijsmans Liselot M. , Smit Inge H.
Published: May 2003

Background  The use of multisensory environments (MSEs) is perceived to be important for individuals with profound and multiple disabilities, although there is limited research on the efficacy of the procedures. After a search of the literature, numerous positive outcomes of MSEs were described. Our research aimed to determine whether the use of an MSE, when applied to increase the level of alertness and interaction, actually leads to this effect.

Methods  A total of 15 facilities in the Netherlands and Belgium agreed to participate in the investigation. Information was gathered on the use of MSE by 177 individuals. For 62 persons, an increase of level of activity was the only stated goal. We randomly selected 20 persons out of this group for observation, using momentary time sampling as a means to relate multisensory experiences to the level of alertness and interaction.

Results  The results of our study show that in general there is little evidence for an increase in activity levels as a result of MSE. There is, however, a relation between the level of activity and contextual variables. In particular, people with profound multiple disabilities have strong responses towards stimuli provided by members of staff (touching, talking to the person).

Conclusions  In general, the living unit is as good a place as the MSE for promoting alertness and interactions. The influence of materials on the level of activity is limited.
Community Integration or Community Exposure? A Review and Discussion in Relation to People with an Intellectual Disability
Authors: Cummins Robert A. , Lau Anna L. D.
Published: May 2003

Background  This paper reviews the issue of integration as it applies to people with an intellectual disability. A compelling finding is the almost exclusive orientation of the literature to physical integration within the general community of non‐disabled people. Moreover, it seems to be generally assumed that the more frequently people experience such integration the better their lives will be.

Methods  We question the validity of this assumption on several grounds. It is social, not physical integration, that has a reliable positive influence on well‐being. This is an important conclusion as some disabled people find effective social integration with the general community extremely difficult to achieve. Because of this, the consequences of an overly enthusiastic program of integration for such people has more potential to be more stressful than beneficial.

Results  We further argue that, as integration is being pursued to benefit the individual, the essential goal of service provision should be to achieve a sense of community connectedness, rather than being concerned with physical integration within the general community.

Conclusion  It is proposed that such connectedness is more likely to be achieved within the community of people with an intellectual disability.
The Development of the Nutrition and Activity Knowledge Scale for Use with People with an Intellectual Disability
Authors: Illingworth Kaye , Moore Kathleen A. , McGillivray Jane
Published: May 2003

Background  Obesity is an increasing health problem for many Australians, no less so among people with an intellectual disability. Behaviour change aimed at improving nutritional intake and increasing levels of physical activity is a requirement for the reduction of obesity. An essential part of this process is to first ascertain the level of knowledge and beliefs people with an intellectual disability have about these behaviours.

Methods  The aim of this study was to develop and psychometrically evaluate a scale to assess levels of nutritional and physical activity knowledge among people with an intellectual disability.

Results  Seventy‐three people with an intellectual disability completed the interview‐rated scale at time 1 and 66 of them completed it again at a 3‐week re‐test.

Conclusions  The scale demonstrated strong factorial construct validity, high internal consistency and good temporal stability. The applications of this scale in future research and in intervention programmes are discussed.
Milk yields, physico‐chemical properties and composition of milk from indigenous Malawi goats and their Saanen half‐breds
Authors: Mumba P.P. , Banda J.W. , Nyoni C.C. , Kaliwo A.E. , Msowoya S.B.S.
Published: May 2003

A study to compare milk yield, some physico‐chemical properties and the chemical composition of milk from 23 indigenous Malawi goats and 10 Malawi local × Saanen crosses was carried out from January to March 2000. The results showed that the average milk yield from the crosses (102.0 ± 11.21 kg) was higher (P < 0.01) than that from the indigenous goats (37.1 ± 4.79 kg). However, the pH and specific gravity of both milk samples did not differ significantly from each other. The latter was attributed to the fat and total solids contents, which did not differ significantly in the two milk samples. Although the crude protein content was not significantly different, lactose and minerals, namely calcium, sodium, magnesium, potassium and chloride, were higher (P < 0.01) in milk from the crosses than in milk from the indigenous goat. The results have shown that the levels of nutrients in goat milk are high, and this is indicative of its potential to improve the diets of rural Malawians. Also, as smallholder farmers sell raw unheated milk to the processing plants, such milk should not be kept for> 33 h in the cool dry season and for not> 20 h in the hot dry season. Farmers can also adopt a charcoal cooler to save the milk for an even longer time than they can at room temperature. In this case, the raw milk can only be stored for not> 20 h in the cool dry season and not> 16 h in the hot dry season.
Consumer price knowledge before and after the euro changeover
Authors: Aalto‐Setälä Ville , Raijas Anu
Published: May 2003

This article examines how the price knowledge of Finnish consumers has changed since the adoption of the euro. Our study measures price knowledge by comparing consumers’ price estimations with actual market prices at two points in time: before (October 2001) and after (March 2002) the changeover to the euro. Furthermore, we study potential differences between three different age groups. We approach the issue using four determinants, namely (1) response percentage (the percentage of respondents who were able to give a price estimate); (2) the difference between the median of the market prices and the median of the price evaluations; (3) the difference between the average of the market prices and the average of the price evaluations; and (4) the average of the absolute deviations between the average of product prices and consumer price evaluations. Our results indicate that, on average, consumers know the prices of grocery products quite well despite the prevailing dispersion of actual prices in the market. Price knowledge was found to be rather good both before and after the introduction of the euro. Nevertheless, the good price knowledge after the changeover was probably because consumers remembered the prices asked in the old currency and converted them to euros. The majority of respondents were able to give price estimates that were within the range of actual price dispersion in stores. The results also show some deterioration in price knowledge after the advent of the euro. There was variation between different age groups, and it seems that the introduction of the euro has affected various groups differently. Consumers aged 30–50 years knew prices best both before and after the euro, whereas the ability to estimate prices had declined most among consumers above 50 years after the euro changeover.
Production and sensory characteristics of flavoured soymilk samples
Authors: Nti Christina Antwiwaa , Larweh Patience Mateko
Published: May 2003

The sensory quality characteristics of four flavoured soymilk samples including vanilla, banana, coffee and chocolate were evaluated at varying concentrations of the flavour. This was done to establish the most acceptable flavour and desired concentration for commercial production of soymilk and also to facilitate increased consumption of soymilk for improved nutrition. Hot extraction of the milk from blanched soybeans was achieved by blending in hot water and sieving through muslin cloth. Different concentration levels of the flavours being assessed, namely chocolate, coffee, vanilla and banana, were added. Consumer preference for the various samples was assessed using a nine‐point hedonic scale. Addition of flavours was found to improve the sensory characteristics and consumer preference of soymilk. Colour, taste, aroma, mouthfeel and hence overall acceptability of the soymilk samples were improved significantly by the addition of vanilla, banana, coffee and chocolate flavours. The maximum concentrations of the individual flavours for optimal sensory impact were established. Based on the results, the following flavour concentrations are recommended per 100 ml of soymilk: 0.03% vanilla, 0.01% banana, 1.5% coffee and 4% chocolate.
Who speaks for the consumer?
Authors: Goldsmith Elizabeth
Published: May 2003

In 2002 and 2003, I was selected as a funded consumer representative and a member of the Board of Trustees of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). This abstract describes the experience and what it means to empower consumers. Although the example given is from the US, the principles are applicable to other countries.

NAIC is the association of the chief insurance regulators of the 50 states, four territories, and the District of Columbia. As a consumer representative I attend four national meetings each year to speak up on behalf of the fair and equitable treatment of consumers. The purpose of NAIC is to improve state insurance regulation by facilitating a degree of uniformity of regulation among the states (Cude, 1997). To ensure that consumers were heard, NAIC created its Consumer Participation Program in 1992 (Cude, 1995).

At a typical meeting, there are about 500 regulators, 1000 industry representatives, and 13 consumer representatives. Five of the 13 are selected to serve on the Board. The consumer representatives include professors, lawyers, economists, and community activists. Being so few in number, the question arises: How effective can we be? The fundamental responsibility is to represent consumers’ viewpoints, to give authority to or to voice their perspective that is the definition of empowerment. This quite literally means going to the microphones at NAIC meetings, but it also means working behind the scenes drafting policy and model laws.

According to A. Coskun Samli (2001), empowering the consumer will benefit society as a whole. It will expand the economy. Serving as a consumer representative is indeed a worthwhile challenge, a chance to change things for the better.
Money talks – a program to improve financial literacy of teens
Authors: Varcoe Karen P. , Fitch Paula Rene
Published: May 2003

Many researchers have studied and documented the financial literacy of youth. Even more have developed educational programs or curricula to teach financial and consumer issues to youth; however, few have actually evaluated the effectiveness of their programs. The Money Talks: Should I be Listening? curriculum, developed by a University of California Cooperative Extension team, was created to appeal to teenagers as it increased their financial literacy. In order to develop a program that young people would readily use, and from which they would learn, teenagers were surveyed prior to program development to determine the topics that were relevant to them, the educational format that appealed to them, and when and where they preferred to receive the information (Varcoe, Peterson, Garrett, Martin, Rene, & Costello, 2001).

This paper discusses the effectiveness of The Money Talks: Should I be Listening? curriculum on the financial knowledge and behaviour of participants using the series. The curriculum was designed for use as a part of school curriculum as well as for presentation in other venues.

The findings indicate that using the curriculum did improve the financial literacy of high school students with significant positive changes in both knowledge and behaviour. They have a better understanding of the value of savings and have changed behaviours. It is interesting to note that the males demonstrated a significantly greater increase in knowledge from pre‐test to post‐test than females. Perhaps the females have more interest in or knowledge of financial issues prior to participation in this project?

Overall the results of this study are consistent with the findings of others. Research based curricula in personal finance seem to yield results. This age group has specific requirements for method of delivery and location of the seminars suggesting that it is important to keep the materials interactive. To address this issue, a web‐site http:www.moneytalks.ucr.edu was added to the program. Included on the web‐site are interactive games and a video on the importance of saving. The teens are naturally more interested in learning about the consumer and financial issues they perceive as salient in their lives at that particular time. Educators should identify topics of interest to the teens and develop, or use existing, interactive methodology to present the information.
The way we live: understanding the acquisition of living skills to facilitate the consumer empowerment of young people in the 21st century
Authors: Horne Suzanne , Hewer Paul , Kerr Karen
Published: May 2003

This research seeks to understand the perceived sources of acquisition of living skills by young people and to examine the formal and informal channels of acquisition. The study focuses particularly on the concept of living skills. These are the skills of transition, of growing up, and independence. For the purpose of the research the skills investigated are those associated (or formerly associated) with the school subject of Home Economics and were distilled from past curricula and documentation (DES, 1985; SCP, 1971). They cover three types of skill: social/interpersonal, cognitive and manual. Social skills include awareness of others, and a sense of responsibility, which is the basis of child‐care and showing tolerance of and concern and consideration for others. Cognitive skills are those associated with decision‐making and management, they involve thinking, reasoning and the use of knowledge. Manual skills are concerned with the use of the hands, with dexterity and with the achievement of specific goals, for example the ability to use tools and appliances with emphasis on the safe handling of them. They can also be linked to knowledge in terms of, for example aspects of food safety and hygiene.

Research to date has failed to tackle the concept of acquisition of the skills of transition from home to independent living. Most research is focused on skills pertaining to a particular occupation role (Newman and Newman, 1988; Blustein et al., 1989; Nurmi et al., 1994) rather than those of living skills.

Respondents were asked where they had learnt most about manual, cognitive and social skills. To facilitate analysis the channels were condensed to family (mother, father, other family members), community (friends, voluntary organisations), self (trial and error, television, books and magazines), taught (at school, university and work), with a final category of ‘never learnt’ (categories adapted from Macbeth, 1989).

The findings revealed that the perceived acquisition of these living skills was through informal channels. From this research it can be argued that the family, being the main perceived source of acquisition of living skills creates the right time, the right place and facilitates exchange efficiencies. However, in this over‐dependence on an informal framework it is unlikely that discrepancies of skill provision can be alleviated. Additionally, standardisation may be difficult if not impossible to achieve. Compounding this is the tendency of young people to have to resort to self‐learning, which it could be argued is acceptable for some skills but not for those reliant on correct information input (such as food hygiene and nutrition).
Expenditure patterns on food and non food items of Khayelitsha households, Western Cape, South Africa
Authors: Maliwichi L.L. , Bourne L. , Mokoena L.
Published: May 2003

Food insecurity or lack of access to adequate and nutritious food is a major determinant of under‐nutrition. Expenditure patterns accompanied by unemployment, low level of education, inflation and high food prices have a direct negative impact on food availability within households (Moller, 1997). Ghany and Schwenk (1993) found that as household income increases, the proportion of expenditures on food decreases, the proportion of expenditures on clothing, rent, fuel, and light stayed the same and that of sundries increased.

The aim of this study was to investigate household expenditure patterns on food and non‐food items in Khayelitsha. A total of 20 households (10 from the formal and 10 from the informal settlements) were randomly selected from those willing to participate in the study. A questionnaire with open ended and closed questions was used to collect data. The questionnaire comprised four sections namely: biographical information, socio‐economic information which used wealth quintiles to assess households’ social economic status, total expenditure information and a food/hunger scale was used to assess households’ food availability.

The findings revealed that households from informal settlements spent more money (62.2%) as a proportion of their income on food compared to households from the formal settlement (39%). There was higher unemployment rate (100%) at the informal settlement compared to the formal settlement (40%). Wealth quintiles scales did not reflect the social status of the households as equipment and assets owned by households were only used as fallback position during times of economic hardships.

Households used different purchasing strategies; food and non‐food items were mainly purchased from outside the township (60%). Forty percent of the households bought their items from local shops and spazas because they allowed them to buy items whenever little money was available or to take items on credit. All the respondents preferred to buy bread and small items from spazas and local shops. Prices of items in the spazas and local shops were higher compared to prices of items in bigger shops outside the townships.

The food/hunger scale and wealth quintiles showed that informal settlement households were more food insecure (as they were all unemployed and about 50% of the households ran out of food always) and had fewer assets compared to the formal settlement households.

The implications of these findings underscore the need to improve socio‐economic conditions of low resource households through empowerment programs. These programs can be in the form of training in management/decision making, work related skills/literacy (to help them access formal employment), business management/income generation skills (to help them to be self‐employed), budgeting, and food gardening. This approach can help to increase the resource base and alleviate food insecurity in low resource households.
Participation of working women in decision‐making process as consumer
Authors: Bhatti S. , Srivastava R.
Published: May 2003

In a world where the role of women in decision‐making is seldom adequately appreciated, they make a remarkable contribution due to their hard work and sense of confidence. It is observed that women are mostly involved in repetitive and monotonous household work irrespective of the fact that they share most of family responsibilities and perform a wide range of duties in and outside home. On the other hand men perform activities, which require skills, but there is sufficient evidence, which show a clear, although slow shift of stereotype sex roles.

In early societies, decision‐making was predominantly done by menfolk being the breadwinner of the family. With modernization and education women have been empowered to make the best use of human and non‐human resources in management of the family with respect to efficient use of time and energy. So, a study was undertaken to know how far the working women of Faridkot district participate in the decision‐making process with the following objectives:

 to find out the level of participation of working women in the decision‐making process as consumer.

(b) to find out the level of difficulty among working women at different steps of the decision‐making process.

The present investigation pertaining to Faridkot district of Punjab state of India was exploratory in nature. A sample of 100 working women was selected by simple random sampling procedure. The responses were recorded through a well structured and pretested questionnaire including an index developed to measure level of participation and difficulty as realized by working women in the decision‐making process. After collecting the data, it was analysed by employing simple statistical tests like frequency percentages

The important findings emanated out of the present investigation are as follows:

Most of the respondents were middle aged, educated up to graduation level, having nuclear family, small size of family with monthly income more than Rs.5000.00. It was also observed that majority of the respondents were in the teaching and medical professions.

Working women were found to be involved more in the case of food items (79.0–93.0%) as compared to non‐food items (6.0–46.0%) with an exception of their major participation (78.0%) at the stage of identifying the problem in case of non‐food items.

The study revealed that the time consumed at various steps of consumer decision‐making process is minimum for most of the steps in case of food items but moderate to maximum in case of non‐food items. But for analysing the alternatives the time consumed was moderate to maximum for both the categories.

Findings also revealed that difficulty level was from moderate to high (32.0–98.0%) in most of the steps in case of food items whereas, in case of non‐food items it was from low to high (11.0–78.0%)
Consumer Network Wales
Authors: Kurowska Sheila
Published: May 2003

The Welsh Consumer Council launched its online interactive consumer network in July 2001 with the aim of linking up individual consumers across the country, stimulating discussion and debate on consumer issues and strengthening the voice of consumers in Wales.

By October 2002, the network had recruited 300 members. The Council aims to reach a membership of 1000 by 2004. As well as individual consumers, the network has recruited 34 voluntary and community organisations that are committed to working with the Council to ensure that disadvantaged consumers without home Internet access can participate in the network

At the heart of the network is a bilingual discussion area within the Council's one‐stop consumer information website where members can post their views, comments and observations on any consumer issue that concerns them. Over the past year, lively discussions have developed on subjects as diverse as IT and electronic communications, customer call centres, recycling, money‐making schemes and energy saving in the home. Early in 2002, the network began to run regular online surveys on topical consumer issues. The first survey asked about members’ experiences of returning goods and their knowledge of consumer rights. The second asked about members’ attitudes to recycling and reducing waste. Both surveys received a high level of response and provided valuable and up to date information on the experiences and views of consumers from all parts of Wales on these important issues.

The continuing expansion of the consumer network is central to the Council work in helping to foster a consumer movement in Wales which is informed, responsible, demanding and assertive.
Food deserts – an example of social exclusion?
Authors: Strugnell Chris , Furey Sinead , Farley Heather
Published: May 2003

The   ‘food   desert’  is   a   fairly   recent   phenomenon   with   emotive and  political  overtones.  It  has  been  described  as  an  area  of social deprivation where people do not have easy access to healthy   and   affordable   food.   Northern   Ireland   has   undergone a retail revolution with the arrival of the UK mainland multiples, the   spatial   restructuring   of   the   retailing   industry   to   edge‐of‐town   sites   and   the   associated   effects   on   town   centre   food stores. The research initiative has been considerable in Britain but deficient in Northern Ireland; hence the urgent need for this study

This study investigated the food accessibility and ultimate potential existence of food deserts in both rural and urban areas of Northern Ireland using microstudies of four provincial towns. The research methodology was both intensive and extensive using perceptual and experiential evidence of principal shoppers from 1094 Northern Ireland households. The study allowed for the validation of results via a varied range of research tools, e.g. case studies, focus groups, interviews, observations and an extensive questionnaire.

Results indicated that certain consumer cohorts (particularly the car‐less and lower income consumers) were excluded from equitable shopping provision. Evidence suggested that urban consumers might exist in somewhat self‐imposed food deserts, exacerbated by the fact that consumers on lower incomes shopped locally and more frequently than their higher income counterparts. Low‐income family units also exhibited lower levels of cooking skills, and therefore tended to purchase convenience foods from higher priced local retail outlets. Shopping basket analyses revealed the price disparities that existed within store types and between towns while consumer focus groups qualified the extent of consumer disadvantage experienced by vulnerable consumer groups. While no town or area was assigned the label ‘food desert’ areas of low provision could be identified with worrying signs that food access was ultimately disparate and inequitable. This situation is likely to worsen as the full effects of the retail revolution are realised. Recommendations suggest incremental changes to effect long‐term change and an interdisciplinary approach is foreseen as the optimal way to address the problem. Control of retail developments is seen as essential in town planning together with the control of retail monopolies in such areas.
Lone parents, food choice and empowerment
Authors: Meadows Mark
Published: May 2003

An extensive body of evidence exists linking low income, poor diet and poor health (Graham, 1993; Dowler and Calvert, 1995; Parker, 1998). In response to this the UK government has long claimed the reason for such inequalities is not because of income per se, but is underpinned by lack of knowledge and skills and as such has focused much attention on the role of small scale community based educational initiatives. These initiatives however, can only be successful if those whom they are targeted at are motivated to become involved. To achieve change it has to be recognised that change is possible, but perhaps more importantly, that change is needed.

Previous research has produced quantifiable evidence as to the quality of diet and it has also produced qualitative support of the difficulties faced by low income groups in attaining diet quality, but in many cases has not necessarily described the perception of diet quality amongst low income groups, and the influences upon such perceptions. If diet is not perceived to be nutritionally inadequate it may be the case that those whom initiatives would hope to influence do not feel the need to become involved.

Using a mixed methodology, evidence is provided from a cohort of lone parents that suggests a confusion may exist between what constitutes a balanced diet as opposed to a healthy diet, or indeed a good diet as opposed to a bad diet. Evidence further demonstrates that many of the food choice decisions made by lone parents are linked to evaluations of the quality of parenting they provide. As such, choices are made subject to social norms yet lack of self‐efficacy prevents many lone parents from challenging societal prescriptions. The paper concludes that knowledge alone may not be enough to facilitate an improvement in diet quality for this group and that this may only be achieved if knowledge and empowerment are addressed simultaneously.
Value conflicts in food ethics – causes and possible resolutions
Authors: Schröder M.J.A. , McEachern M.G.
Published: May 2003

Ethical attitudes in relation to meat purchases were studied among urban and rural consumers in Scotland. All subjects perceived at least some ethical issues in relation to animal production systems, in particular, systems keeping animals in close confinement. Welfare friendly production systems were viewed as adding value to a food, but this value was not necessarily realisable to producers if purchases occurred only when foods were on special offer. Statements made by a particular individual were often contradictory, revealing ambivalence, unresolved value conflicts and a general lack of involvement in the nature of meat production. A number of barriers to the establishment of stable attitudes and behaviours in relation to the ethical treatment of food animals were identified, including a lack of transparency of competing production systems, problems with product availability and a general aversion to confront animal production. Whilst adequate labelling implies that labels are transparent and revealing all the essential features of a food, this is not the case with most farm assurance quality marks. Free‐range chicken may be widely available as a complete carcass, but portions often are not. Attitude‐inconsistent purchasing behaviours were thereby related to a lack of perceived control on the part of the purchaser in certain food choice scenarios.

A key finding of the study is that individuals can hold two views on animal welfare. On the one hand, they may think as citizens influencing societal standards, and on the other, as consumers at the point of purchase. As citizens, they support the notion of animals being entitled to a good life, as meat consumers, they avoid the mental connection with the live animal. The paper explores this citizen/consumer relationship and strategies used by consumers to resolve any resultant value conflicts. Lessons for public and commercial policy are highlighted in the context of the Curry Report (2002), which advocates more effective market segmentation where markets are finely attuned to their customers, with the development of higher‐level assurance schemes based on the existing ‘Little Red Tractor’ standard.
Risk management behaviour by the Northern Ireland food consumer
Authors: Nelson Roy
Published: May 2003

The   main   criteria   that   consumers   use   during   the   decision making process when purchasing food has traditionally been a combination of prices, incomes, taste and social attitudes, with price being seen as the main determinant. However in the past 10 years risk has become a ‘new’ criterion that can affect the consumer's decision whether or not to purchase a particular food item. The effect of the increased awareness of risk has been observed during the numerous food scares in the last decade and in trends for the demand for foods that connote a healthy image.

This research, carried out in Northern Ireland, looked at how consumers quantified and managed risk. The research involved 202 primary food consumers and identified the factors that were perceived to be important from both a societal and a personal perspective.

Using principal component and cluster analysis societal food risks were seen as either processing or dietary and personal food risks were seen as either extrinsic or intrinsic. Further investigation into the attributes of the personal risk revealed a three‐factor solution described as fear, involvement and newness.

Although these factors cannot be used as predictors of the risk associated with a particular food, they help to describe and explain how the risk may be managed. The relationship between two of the factors, involvement and fear, provides a framework for understanding the way consumers manage their perception of the risk, particularly of high‐risk items. Consumer and scientific knowledge of the risk in question, and the degree of control over the risk were seen as important. The conceptualisation of the mechanism by which risks are processed and acted upon provides information regarding risk management and communication strategies that should be employed by educators, food retailers and government policy makers.
Development of a food and health strategy for Cardiff
Authors: Whitear Bruce , Morgan Maria Z. , Fairchild Ruth M.
Published: May 2003

This keynote address will cover the background to, research involved in and presentation of a Food and Health Strategy for Cardiff.

The work involved:

A rapid appraisal of over 20 initiatives, which promote the availability and consumption of safe, healthy and sustainable food within Cardiff.

Recommendations for membership of a food and health strategy working party.

The preparation of a framework document as a starting point for the working party.

The meeting of the working party and key‐stakeholders to produce a final strategy for Cardiff incorporating sustainable development, food quality, safety and hygiene, food availability, education and nutrition.

Ensuring that the Cardiff strategy reflected the broad aims and objectives of already existing pertinent documents, e.g. National Service Framework for Coronary Heart Disease, National Service Framework for Diabetes, Nutrition Strategy for Wales, Cardiff Strategy for a Healthy City, A Community Strategy for Cardiff, Local Sustainability Strategy for Cardiff.

The presentation will consist of key findings in terms of best practice, evaluation of successful initiatives and intercollaborative working.
Social marketing and consumers’ experience of lipophobia
Authors: Askegaard Søren
Published: May 2003

Modern societies are lipophobic: they express a deep anxiety about fat and fatness. On the other hand, the public discourses about health and well being, though biased towards lipophobia, are far from unanimous. The general question is how consumers experience and negotiate contradictory messages of hedonism and ascetics from commercial and governmental agents? This study more specifically examines the hypothesis that the governmental campaigns and official messages mediated through TV, newspapers and other media are largely failing their target, since they tend to have the biggest impact on people, that do not have a serious weight problem, but who nevertheless perceive themselves to be overweight. This is investigated through an adapted use of the Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique approach with 20 younger female informants as well as a set of interviews with selected medical and political experts and representatives of consumer groups.

The results provide a culturally rooted image of consumers’ fat intake and dietary practices as well as an attempt to de‐stigmatise consumers’ body imagery, informing future food policies and the food industry's satisfaction of public and private interests in consumers’ dietary patterns. This ends up in a critique of a certain approach to social marketing in the food domain. Rather than focusing on informational campaigns spreading messages that are already known to most people, more efforts should be put into the basic build‐up of a better general food culture – one that stresses quality over quantity and which is lipo‐conscious rather than lipophobic.
Involving consumers in peer‐facilitated home‐based food hygiene training
Authors: Stevenson L. , Duval M.
Published: May 2003

A community‐based food hygiene initiative was piloted in the Toxteth–Granby area of Liverpool between December 2001 and March 2002. The project aimed to increase awareness and behaviour, related to poor food purchase, storage and handling practices,     by     actively     involving     members of the local community in home‐based peer‐facilitated training.

Facilitators (23) were actively recruited from within the Toxteth–Granby community, and undertook a 4‐day induction and training programme, which included successful completion of the CIEH Basic Food Hygiene course. Facilitators subsequently recruited and visited nearly 1000 households (992) within the Toxteth–Granby electoral ward, undertook an observation sheet, a detailed questionnaire, and spent approximately 1 hour delivering food hygiene training. Facilitators returned to all households within an 8‐week period, and completed further observation sheets and questionnaires, for use in a comparative analysis. Facilitators and householders received incentives for their involvement in the project.

Analysis of the data collected showed that general awareness of a range of food hygiene issues was high (such as hand washing before handling food), and most participants (73.8%) were able to recognise the main symptoms of food borne disease. As a result of the home‐based hygiene training there were significant changes in knowledge, attitudes, and food handling practices, including the use of refrigerators, purchase of chilled and frozen foods, washing or peeling of fruits and vegetables, and the cooking of meat‐based products.

The project demonstrates that it is possible for communities to improve their food hygiene awareness and food handling behaviours through home‐based peer‐facilitated training programmes, with minimal input from professionals.
Consumers’ attitudes, knowledge, self‐reported and actual hand washing behaviour: a challenge for designers of intervention materials
Authors: Clayton D.A. , Griffith C.J. , Price P.
Published: May 2003

Cross contamination by microbial pathogens in the kitchen environment may play an important role in many cases of food borne illnesses. Hand washing has been shown to be one of the most important factors in controlling the spread of microorganisms and in preventing the spread of disease. However, educational campaigns such as distribution of information leaflets, workshops, performance feedback and lectures have been, at best, associated with a transient improvement in compliance rates. In addition, the majority of research investigating UK consumers’ food safety behaviour has examined self‐reported as opposed to actual hand washing behaviour.

This research utilises psychological theory in an attempt to understand how one might design a more effective hand washing campaign. Social cognition models were utilised to explore the relationship between consumers’ knowledge, attitudes, self‐reported and actual hand washing behaviour. The research was conducted in two stages. Firstly, salient beliefs of 100 consumers towards food safety were obtained using open‐ended questions. Secondly, the food handling practices of 40 consumers were observed and their food safety attitudes and knowledge determined using structured questionnaires.

All the participants were knowledgeable about hand washing techniques, intended to wash their hands and generally had positive attitudes towards the importance of washing their hands. However, none of the participants adequately washed their hands on all appropriate occasions. The attitude statement results suggest measures of perceived behavioural control, perceived barriers and perceived risk may provide developers of food safety intervention materials with more useful information compared with measures of consumers’ knowledge or intention. Issues of habit and optimistic bias also need to be given consideration when designing intervention materials to change hand washing behaviour of consumers.
Combating deceptive advertisements and labelling on food products – an exploratory study on the perceptions of teachers
Authors: Lai Yeung Wai‐ling Theresa
Published: May 2003

People are becoming more health conscious nowadays, but most of them are not able to adopt a lifestyle with adequate physical exercise and a healthier eating pattern. Many attempt to compensate by taking ‘health foods’. Despite the recent economic recession, the functional food market expands rapidly in Asian countries. Recent statistics indicate a huge increase in weight loss and functional food product advertising expenditure in Hong Kong and other Asian countries. In a massive survey conducted by the Hong Kong Consumer Council, it was found that 85% of the medicines, health food and therapies sampled contain questionable claims and misleading messages (Consumer Council, 1999). In fact, young people do not understand much about modern food processing, in particular those present in low energy and functional foods, and they know very little about the modern food marketing strategies. The situation is detrimental to consumer welfare especially to the younger generation.

This study attempts to reflect critically on the implications of these issues for the health and well‐being of young people in Hong Kong. It explores directions for designing relevant and effective education programmes to empower young people in understanding food advertising strategies and making informed decisions on food choice. The paper will begin with a critical review on the current situation in Hong Kong. An interview survey on preservice and in‐service teachers’ perception towards misleading food advertising and labelling will then be reported. The situations at schools will be defined and problems faced by teachers in providing relevant consumer education programmes to students will be identified. Finally, the study will look to the future, with a view to developing students’ critical skills in evaluating claims offered in food advertisements.
Can we learn to live differently? Lessons from ‘Going for Green’
Authors: Collins Andrea J.
Published: May 2003

Participation at the local level is an important factor in determining the success of programmes developed to achieve sustainable development. This paper is concerned with debates over the role of the individual citizen in relation to that participatory process. In particular, it focuses on the UK government's citizens’ environmental initiative ‘Going for Green’. Through this initiative a five‐point   Green   Code   was   developed   to   assist   in   the   delivering of its sustainable development message. The initiative's overall approach to participation was based on an assumption that the primary barrier to translating environmental concern into local action was a lack of information, and individuals would respond to messages in a similar way.

As a research strategy, the case study was used to evaluate methods and processes used to implement the initiative's pilot Sustainable Communities Project in two comparative geographical communities in Merthyr Tydfil (South Wales). Research findings from this study have demonstrated that the case study was invaluable in terms of understanding the participatory process and experiences of a broad range of community stakeholders. Promoting a single model of participation was found to restrict the participatory process in terms of who was encouraged to participate, the scope of their participation, and those outcomes that could be achieved. This paper concludes that if significant progress is to be made in relation to achieving sustainable development, the role of individual citizens needs to be extended beyond that of a consumer of the environment, and also include active participation in a process that is based on collective action.