This cross-sectional online survey investigated UK-practising small-animal and mixed-practice veterinary surgeons' (VS) recommendations, behaviours, and perceptions regarding veterinary physiotherapy (VPT) during canine cruciate ligament disease (CCLD) management. Secondary aims explored perceptions of the evidence base and outcome assessment methods both in-practice and in research. A pilot questionnaire followed by the final questionnaire was distributed using non-probability sampling through veterinary practices, professional organisations, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons' mailing list and personal contacts. Data were collected over a 10-week period from December 2024 to February 2025; 236 qualified VS at varying clinical levels, including general practitioners and specialists, completed the survey. Data were analysed descriptively and using Pearson's Chi-squared or Fisher's exact tests. Surgical management remained the preferred treatment approach. Most respondents (62.3%) always recommended formal physiotherapy post-CCLD-surgery, a higher proportion than reported in a previous international survey with different eligibility criteria. Respondents generally reported strongly positive perceptions of the potential effects of VPT, but only moderately positive perceptions of the supporting evidence-base, potentially reflecting variable evidence strength in CCLD-specific rehabilitation research. Significant associations with small to small-moderate effect sizes existed between always recommending VPT and rehabilitation-specific CPD, age range, years in-practice, and workplace business-structure. Most respondents used compliance-increasing and compliance-monitoring measures; however, follow-up assessments commonly declined beyond 8 weeks post-surgery. Respondents generally perceived biomechanical assessments as less useful in clinical practice than veterinary- or owner-reported measures. While VPT appeared increasingly integrated into respondents' CCLD management approaches, findings suggested clinician-specific contextual factors may influence rehabilitation integration and reinforced the need for clinically feasible, standardised post-operative rehabilitation and monitoring guidelines relevant to CCLD.
The study sheds light on the subtle interactions among financial development, foreign direct investment (FDI), and the quality of regulatory frameworks, with particular reference to their deep influence on renewable energy use and carbon emissions across 22 developed countries from 2002-2021. The results show an interesting tendency: Financial development and FDI will reduce reliance on renewable energy, whereas a significant increase in GDP per capita will increase reliance. Secondly, carbon emissions have a negative association with the adoption of renewable energy and financial development, though both reduce environmental quality; there is a positive relation between real gross domestic product (GDP) and energy depletion in terms of these toxic emissions. The significant role of regulatory quality as a moderator in this process is particularly striking. There is a direct correlation between financial stability and more robust regulation, resulting in reduced financial liquidity available for investing in renewable projects and restricting the free flow of clean FDI. Crucially, the paper argues that when combined with strong regulation, FDI is more likely to contribute to reductions in emissions, while FYGD, nevertheless regulated at a high level of quality, should raise emissions. Winding up, the result indicates that neither financial depth nor institutional quality, in isolation, is sufficient to deliver significant environmental improvement. Thus, it is urgent to adopt sound green finance policies and to formulate focused regulatory systems that integrate financial development and foreign direct investment with a broader sustainability agenda.
This paper describes the development and initial validation of the ambivalent prejudice towards gay men scale (APGS) - a multidimensional 19-item measure of hostile and benevolent prejudice towards gay men - in two British samples. In Study 1 (N = 801), exploratory factor analysis produced a four-factor (repellent, romanticised, paternalistic, and adversarial) scale, with men scoring higher in repellent and adversarial prejudice and women scoring higher on romanticised prejudice, supporting known-groups validity. The APGS further evidenced convergent and discriminant validity relative to hostile and benevolent prejudice measures and ideologies associated with prejudice, and good internal and test-retest reliability. Romanticised (benevolent) and adversarial (hostile) subscales were positively correlated, and used to create an individual differences index of ambivalent prejudice towards gay men associated with system justifying beliefs and insensitive to self-presentational concerns. In Study 2 (N = 300), confirmatory factor analysis showed that the four-factor model demonstrated superior fit compared to alternative one-factor (generalised ambivalence) and two-factor (hostility and benevolence) models after minor re-specifications to parameters. The four-factor model demonstrated full scalar invariance between men and women and between data collected in 2016 and 2023, suggesting superior psychometric properties compared to currently available alternatives. Implications and directions for prejudice, intergroup relations, and scale validation research are presented.
Poor employee mental health and well-being impose significant costs on employers, not only through lost productivity but also via broader organizational disruption. Drawing on the concept of the 'absence multiplier', we argue that the true economic burden of mental health-related absenteeism is often underestimated. This paper develops and tests a prevalence - cost framework in which firms' adoption of workplace well-being practices (WWPs) is modelled as a strategic investment decision influenced by both the prevalence of mental health-related absence and the marginal productivity costs it causes. Using longitudinal survey data from 5420 UK firms (2020-2024), we estimate random-effects Poisson models of WWP adoption across preventative, employee-centred, and treatment-focused categories. Results show that firms affected by mental health-related absenteeism adopt significantly more WWPs, and that higher productivity levels encourage the adoption of employee-centred and treatment-focused strategies. Firm size moderates both relationships, with larger firms exhibiting stronger responses than smaller ones. By framing WWPs within firms' cost - benefit decision-making, our study enhances the economics of workplace health by reinterpreting well-being investments as strategic responses to productivity risks, providing both theoretical and policy-relevant insights.
Evaluations in the field of police studies do not adequately address implementation fidelity, which impacts understanding of outcomes, how and why an intervention works in practice, what can be done to achieve improvements, and how to implement effective innovations in different contexts. Responding to calls for greater use of implementation science to improve innovations in policing, this article draws on the qualitative phase of a realist, quasi-experimental evaluation to examine implementation fidelity of police drug diversion (PDD) schemes in three police forces across England. The research principally involved interviews and focus groups with 221 people who were designers, deliverers, and recipients of PDD. Quantitative data on the recorded outcomes of those eligible for diversion was analysed to assess police use of PDD schemes. Findings on adherence indicate that PDD had lower than intended coverage owing to the exercise of discretion by frontline police officers. Moderators of fidelity are examined to further understanding of the realities of implementation processes, explain why officers were not diverting eligible offenders, and assess attempts by police managers to constrain discretion. The analysis demonstrates the complex interactions between moderators. It is structured around intervention complexity, facilitation strategies, and quality of delivery, but also covers participant responsiveness and capacity, organisational and cultural context, and time. The conclusion stresses the need for evaluations to consider implementation fidelity and makes recommendations for improving fidelity when implementing PDD schemes.
