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Interdisciplinary perspectives on generative artificial intelligence adoption in Higher Education:a theoretical framework review
No full textThe ongoing integration of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) within higher education (HE) signifies a pivotal shift in pedagogical paradigms, demanding comprehensive theoretical and practical considerations. This paper critically examines the multifaceted adoption of GenAI in HE by reviewing interdisciplinary theoretical frameworks from psychology, computer science, and pedagogy. It highlights the insufficiency of traditional technology acceptance models, which predominantly address cognitive and rational decision-making processes, and advocates for the inclusion of emotional and ethical dimensions often overlooked in existing frameworks. By synthesizing research across various disciplines, this review identifies significant gaps and proposes an integrated theoretical model to effectively understand and guide GenAI adoption. The proposed framework emphasizes the need for robust, empirically supported methodologies that accommodate the complex, dynamic nature of GenAI applications. This paper not only contributes to academic discourse by providing a comprehensive review of existing literature but also sets a foundation for future empirical studies aimed at refining GenAI integration strategies in HE, ensuring they are ethically aligned and educationally effective
Babylon's a Burning:an analysis of race-related rioting in the UK
No full textThis article provides a critical analysis of race-related urban rioting in the United Kingdom [UK], arguing that such disturbances are rarely spontaneous eruptions of violence but the outcome of enduring structural inequalities, institutional racism, and political and economic exclusion. Drawing on historical and sociological research, the paper traces a continuum of civil unrest from early twentieth-century port-town riots to the 2024 far-right disturbances and the 2011 England riots. It places the centrality of racially biased policing particularly through practices such as the 'sus law' and stop-and-search and of structural disadvantage in shaping community-police tensions. The article also explores the role of populist political discourse, youth criminalisation, educational exclusion, and the media in reproducing racialised narratives around disorder. Emphasising the intergenerational continuity of racialised marginalisation, it argues for a reconceptualisation of urban rioting as a form of resistance shaped by structural injustice and political disenfranchisement. The study concludes that without substantive reforms to education, policing, media representation, and socio-economic policy, the cycle of grievance and subsequent episodes of riotous assembly will likely continue at given points in time within the UK. This article contributes to scholarly debates on race, inequality, and the state, positioning British urban riots within broader global patterns of racialised conflict and resistance
“A Fear of the Unknown”:understanding the perceptions of transcranial Electrical Stimulation (tES)
No full textTranscranial electrical stimulation (tES) are popular techniques for modulating behaviour within research and clinical settings. However, individuals are apprehensive around undergoing tES, with clear misconceptions around safety and efficacy. This work aimed to capture perceptions of tES and identify drivers and barriers to undergoing stimulation through a mixed-methods approach. Participants completed an online survey (n = 145) and follow-up semi-structured interviews (n = 7) to explore knowledge of tES, perceptions of safety, expectations of effects, and willingness to undergo stimulation. Change in safety and comfort scores were measured following increasing levels of information (basic overview, safety standards, ethical practice, photos of tES testing). Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis and quantitative data through descriptive and logistic regression analyses. Participants were uncomfortable with the idea of “messing” with the brain and therefore reluctant to undergo procedures. Apprehension and fear around tES were evident, particularly were deemed to have low efficacy. tES was viewed as safer (χ 2 (3) = 40.842, p < 0.001, W = 0.094) and individuals were more comfortable with the prospect of receiving stimulation (χ 2 (3) = 49.587, p < 0.001, W = 0.114) as they were provided with more information. Participant misconceptions around tES must be addressed to support larger-scale and appropriate recruitment. Provision of clear, explicit, and independent information is important for building trust and demonstrating need of the techniques.</p
Juror characteristics and decision making in a developed coercive control case
No full textThe aim of this study was to investigate whether juror characteristics, namely, age, attitudes surrounding coercive control and psychopathic personality traits (PPT), can influence Guilty or Not Guilty verdicts in a developed coercive control trial. One hundred and thirty-five participants (N = 135) completed an online survey consisting of elements of a mock coercive control trial and three questionnaires: the Coercive Control subsection of the Modern Adolescent Dating Violence Attitudes (MADVA (CC)) Scale, the Psychopathic Personality Traits Scale—Revised (PPTS-R) and the Juror Decision Scale (JDS). The results of the analysis demonstrated significant positive correlations between MADVA (CC) scores and all four subscales of the PPTS-R, highlighting the relationship between psychopathy traits and coercive control attitudes. Binary logistic regression findings showed that higher scores on the MADVA (CC) Scale were the only significant predictor of returning a Not Guilty verdict. Those who also returned a Not Guilty verdict had more accepting controlling behaviour attitudes, scored higher for defendant believability and were less confident in their overall decision. Findings from the current study highlight the significance of attitudes in a juror decision-making context. The significance of attitudes may also be applicable to police officers and other agencies within the criminal justice system. Additional efforts need to be made regarding the identification of coercive control tactics, and training programmes should be implemented within the police to increase identification of these behaviours in order and to improve case progression. This may increase the likelihood of a jury being required in these cases. Furthermore, Not Guilty verdicts were given with significantly less confidence than Guilty verdicts, although they have the same influence at trial. More research needs to be carried out to explore the development and maintenance of accepting attitudes towards coercive control, and there is a need for better education regarding coercive control to attempt to tackle harmful attitudes towards it and aim for fairer trials
Circular procurement implementation barriers in the construction industry of developing economies:a quantitative analysis
No full textPurpose - The procurement phase of the construction project lifecycle remains critical for facilitating successful project outcomes, mainly as it concerns sustainability performance. Therefore, integrating circular economy principles into procurement functions (circular procurement-CP) has become imperative. However, the implementation of CP remains underresearched in the context of the construction industry. This study addresses this knowledge gap by identifying and assessing the inhibitors to optimal CP implementation in a developing economy context.Design/methodology/approach - The study adopted a survey strategy wherein quantitative data was collected from a population of a randomly selected sample of construction professionals using questionnaires. The responses were subsequently analysed using descriptive and multivariate statistics. These includes mean scores, Kruskal Wallis h-test (K-W), student newman kauls (SNK) post hoc technique, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The CFA was employed to affirm the derived constructs from the EFA. Findings - The study’s results indicate that lack of support from top management, lack of financial resources and perceived high implementation costs ranked as the top three barriers negating effective CP implementation in construction organisations. Furthermore, the barriers were classified into five clusters: inadequacy of government policies and initiatives, stakeholder-related challenges, procurement-related bottlenecks, organisational culture, and financial impediments categories, respectively. Originality/value - Besides enabling an elicitation of the critical barriers to CP implementation in the Nigerian construction industry, the study’s results are expected to contribute towards bridging the extant knowledge-practice gap.Practical implications - The study’s results will increase CP implementation awareness among relevant Nigerian construction industry stakeholders. Also, the study outlines best practice guides for stakeholders in the construction delivery value chain to drive sustainable procurement
Written evidence submitted to the UK Parliament:Clause 15 – Limited duty to impose a Criminal Behaviour Order for assaults on retail workers (CPB0004)
No full textThis submission argues that Clause 15, while well-intentioned in protecting retail workers, risks undermining judicial discretion, procedural fairness, and human rights obligations. The proposed duty to consider Criminal Behaviour Orders (CBOs) following conviction introduces a quasi-mandatory element that may lead to inconsistent and overly punitive applications, particularly in lower courts. It may also disproportionately affect vulnerable groups and lack embedded rehabilitative alternatives.Recommendations include amending Clause 15 to reinforce judicial independence, introducing statutory guidance and review mechanisms, and mandating equality impact assessments. Alternative strategies such as enhanced sentencing guidelines, restorative justice, and trauma-informedinterventions are also proposed as more proportionate means of achieving public safety and protection for retail workers
Unveiling the predictors and outcomes of TikTok addiction:the moderating role of parasocial relationships
No full textPurpose: Technology addiction is an increasingly severe problem. TikTok has become increasingly popular recently, and its addiction is also a major concern. This study aims to examine the antecedents and outcomes of TikTok addiction. Design/methodology/approach: The authors collect 579 data from Chinese users using an online survey. The authors use structural equation modeling with partial least squares (PLS-SEM) to analyze data and test hypotheses. Findings: The results illustrate that perceived enjoyment, social relationship, utilitarian need and social influence positively affect TikTok addiction. Both social anxiety and loneliness have positive effects on TikTok addiction. Moreover, parasocial relationships positively moderate the association between the antecedents of self-determination theory (SDT) (perceived enjoyment, social relationship, utilitarian needs, social influence, social anxiety and loneliness) and TikTok addiction. Meanwhile, TikTok addiction intensifies conflicts, including technology-family conflict, technology-person conflict and technology-work conflict. These conflicts reduce life satisfaction. Practical implications: It offers practical implications for preventing and avoiding TikTok addiction to create a healthy environment. Originality/value: This study is one of the few to provide a complete process of TikTok addiction. It systematically investigates the antecedents and outcomes of TikTok addiction.</p
Being an ethical practitioner researcher:conducting your own research and applying research ethically
No full textThis chapter introduces the reader to research ethics, both from a legal, formal perspective, and in terms of being mindful of how research is carried out ethically and importantly, used ethically in the classroom. From carrying out your first piece of research, to applying research literature to your own setting, ethics is central to your decision-making. The chapter will also cover self-care for researchers with a focus on practitioner research, with practical advice, guidance and sources of support for practitioner researchers on how to ensure their work is ethical. Case studies will be shared of practitioner experiences in both carrying out research in terms of ethics, and using research literature ethically, and some examples of where ethics can go wrong and how to tackle challenges before and when they arise
Problematising ‘vulnerability’ in women’s prisons
No full text‘Vulnerability’ is a commonly used but little understood term in the field of social policy and beyond. The refocusing of our criminal justice system around notions of ‘vulnerability’ has had wide-reaching consequences which often escape both academic and political attention. Seeking to advance analysis of the concept of ‘vulnerability’, we explore its operationalisation in women's prisons and argue that this is often in direct opposition to the way that the women themselves understand and experience the label of ‘vulnerable’. We draw upon notions of agency, risk, and resilience to re-examine how the ‘vulnerability zeitgeist’ may, in fact, be poorly serving those it aims to support and protect. Through utilising lived experience and empirical inquiry, this article problematises the term ‘vulnerability’, its operationalisation by prison staff, and suggests further work is needed in order to understand women's experiences of the term and its impact upon their time in prison
The role of metaphor and indexicality in the reinforcement of social meanings of disability
No full textThis chapter examines ideological meanings of words or phrases relating to physical disability within conversations from the Spoken British National Corpus 2014, and three months of articles from 2014 in the News on Web corpus. The chapter outlines campaigns and debates about language and disability and the influence of the media. Analysis and discussion take the concept of ableism and the sociolinguistic concept of indexicality or social meaning in language as underlying theories The project involves searching for the lemmas paralyse, cripple, and wheelchair considering words within context and metaphorical uses. Using a model of appraisal and attitude for categorization of social meanings the chapter finds that negative ideology in relation to cripple and paralyse is dominant in both corpora and in metaphorical and non-metaphorical uses but that attitudes expressed in conversation can be more extreme. The word wheelchair has negative associations but can offer more practical or positive connotations