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Music therapy to address the emotional challenges of family caregivers of people with Huntington's disease: a mixed methods feasibility study
No full textDue to the combination of specific components of Huntington’s Disease (HD), it has been recognised that the family caregivers of this population face a uniquely challenging task. Whilst music therapy has become one of the established creative therapies for people with HD, little is known regarding how music therapy might support their family caregivers. Past studies have shown that music therapy can be beneficial for carers of people with other neurodegenerative conditions, but have not examined music therapy for the family caregivers of people with HD. This study aims to address the need for improved psychological care for this population, by developing a co-designed intervention to attend to the emotional challenges which HD family carers often face.The study is centred around collaboration between Anglia Ruskin University, the Independent Neurorehabilitation Providers Alliance and Chroma Therapies, with support from the Huntington’s Disease Association (UK). Three pieces of research have been completed: a rapid evidence review to assess the literature to date, a focus group of family caregivers of people with HD to develop an optimal music therapy treatment model and an eight week, online, therapist-led combined active and receptive music therapy programme to test the feasibility of the online treatment.The primary outcomes focused on the demand for, acceptability and implementation of the intervention; potentially leading the way for a larger future study. The secondary outcomes addressed impact; the participants’ satisfaction levels and feelings about their life before, during and after treatment. Outcomes were collected at baseline, mid-way, at the end of therapy and three weeks post-treatment. An initial single-session pilot test indicated certain positive benefits to participants and necessary refinements to the treatment protocol which were later made in consultation with the recruited specialist music therapist delivering the service.Data analysis of online questionnaires and semi-structured interviews revealed important recruitment information and helpful participants’ responses enabling refinements to the session protocol in relation to acceptability and implementation. Secondary outcomes regarding the treatment’s impact tentatively suggest overall positive effects of the treatment on caregivers’ emotional challenges.The study’s results indicated that the online music therapy programme was feasible; the intervention experienced sufficient demand and was considered acceptable, and could be implemented successfully. Overall, qualitative data showed that music therapy provided a powerful experience, benefitting the caregivers in relation to their emotional challenges. The quantitative results informed the secondary outcomes, showing that overall, the quality of life of the family caregivers of people with HD could be improved by attending online music therapy. The small sample size only allows for an indication of these results; thus the secondary findings are presented tentatively.</p
Empirical evidence of direct and indirect relations between environmental pressure and conflict
No full textAt a time of increased negative effects of environmental change on human systems such as extreme meteorological events, resource scarcity, and refugee crises, it is especially pressing to understand what role environmental pressure plays in increasing the likelihood of violent conflict. We use a comprehensive measure of environmental pressure – Population Biodensity, defined as the ratio of a country’s population to its biocapacity – to study the presence and intensity of conflict in a large dataset including 28 years of of observations for 181 countries, while controlling for the mediating effects of political regime and income. By means of Bayesian structural equation modelling, we found evidence of a significant relation between environmental pressure and both conflict presence and intensity. Moreover, environmental pressure was shown to be the most significant variable influencing the number of casualties in intrastate conflicts when compared to the level of democratisation and national income. These results highlight the importance of the natural environment for social sustainability, peace, and prosperity.</p
Innovation, development and growth strategies to deal with uncertainties within dynamic business environments: the case of the entertainment industry/gaming sector
No full textThis thesis examines how innovation, development and growth strategies can enable companies in the gaming and social gaming sectors to build and sustain competitive advantages, particularly by reducing the time required for products and services to reach consumers and customers. While traditional strategic frameworks - such as Porter’s Five Forces, Ansoff’s Matrix, and the Product Life Cycle - provide foundational insights into competitive positioning and market behavior, they pay limited attention to the increasingly social and participatory nature of contemporary digital gaming environments. This gap becomes particularly significant in the post–COVID-19 era, in which customer expectations of interactivity, live engagement and online socialization have grown substantially. To address this gap, the study integrates established strategic approaches with socially oriented models such as the Business Model Canvas (BMC) and the Social Enterprise Canvas Model (SECM), culminating in the development of a new conceptual model: the Social Value Business Model (SVBM). This model responds to the need for a strategic framework capable of capturing both economic and social value creation within social gaming organizations.The research is centered on a qualitative case study of “Games Ltd,” a gaming company that underwent a significant strategic shift following the appointment of a new CEO in 2021. Under his leadership, the company has adopted a social gaming orientation, aligning its operations, product development and customer engagement practices with social interaction and community-driven value creation. The CEO also serves as the researcher for this study, offering unique insider access to organizational processes while simultaneously necessitating careful attention to issues of bias and reflexivity. Data was collected through purposive sampling, targeting participants capable of providing deep and informed insights into the gaming and social gaming sectors. The sample includes employees of Games Ltd, industry experts and participants from other entertainment-related organizations; given the strategic nature of the research topic, the sample size is small, with ten participants initially and eight eventually. Data collection involved structured and semi-structured interviews, designed to capture both descriptive accounts and exploratory reflections. Interview data were analyzed thematically, allowing key concepts and recurring patterns to emerge inductively from participant narratives.The findings reveal six dominant themes: time, socialization, communication, live communication, interaction and service; they collectively highlight the defining features of social gaming environments. These themes demonstrate that competitive advantage in the social gaming sector extends beyond technological capability and relies heavily on the capacity to cultivate meaningful online social experiences. They also show that time-to-market is influenced not only by internal organizational processes but by the firm’s ability to anticipate and respond to evolving player expectations, social behavior patterns, and community needs. Theoretically, the study contributes to strategic management literature by proposing the Social Value Business Model (SVBM), a framework that integrates traditional economic strategy with contemporary social value dimensions central to digital gaming ecosystems. Practically, the findings offer actionable insights for gaming and entertainment organizations seeking to leverage social interaction, live engagement and community-based value co-creation in shaping innovation, growth and development strategies. This research therefore provides both conceptual advancement and practical guidance for firms navigating a rapidly evolving digital and social gaming landscape.</p
National trends of unmet healthcare needs and risk factors by household income level, 2010-2022: a nationwide cross-sectional study in South Korea
No full textSocio-economic status plays a critical role in shaping unmet healthcare needs, and the COVID-19 pandemic has further intensified these disparities; however, research to date remains insufficient. Therefore, this study aims to analyze unmet healthcare needs by household income using large-scale longitudinal data (2010–2022) including pre- and post- pandemic differences. This large-scale study (n = 2,628,584) utilized nationwide data from the Korea Community Health Survey (KCHS) conducted between 2010 and 2022, administered by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency. The analysis employed complex, weighted sampling to examine trends in unmet healthcare needs, with a specific focus on changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Weighted logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios and β differences (βdiff) between the pre-pandemic (2010–2019) and pandemic (2020–2022) periods. In total, 2,628,584 individuals participated in the KCHS from 2010 to 2022, comprising 1,454,129 males (55.3%) and 1,174,455 females (44.7%). Before the pandemic, there was a consistent decline in the prevalence of unmet healthcare needs. However, following the onset of the pandemic, unmet healthcare needs increased (βdiff, low-level of household income: 1.66 [95% CI, 1.41–1.92]; mid-level of household income: 0.88 [95% CI, 0.77–0.99]; high-level of household income: 0.71 [95% CI, 0.57–0.85]). Overall, households with lower incomes exhibited higher levels of unmet healthcare needs compared to those with higher incomes (low household income: 14.8 [95% CI, 13.91–14.24]; high household income: 8.45 [95% CI, 8.34–8.55]). Additionally, the disparity in healthcare access due to income differences was more pronounced among older individuals, those with lower educational attainment, and those with lower subjective health status. Our analysis found that older adults in low-income households consistently faced higher rates of unmet healthcare needs. The reversal of a pre-pandemic trend toward reducing healthcare gaps highlights the urgent need for targeted interventions to address socio-economic disparities.</p
Boring Intimacies: #BoredVibes and the Affective Public-Private
No full textThis chapter reflects on boredom as a central and yet ambivalent structure of feeling that flows through the networked public-private of postdigital media. It focuses on the role that boredom plays in affectively modulating scenes of public identification and in the staging of intimacy on TikTok. It considers how the platform's prioritising of vibes, together with its sociotechnical affordances and distinctive ranking and recommendation algorithms, impact on the nature of the intimacies that are shaped in this space. I argue that on TikTok, boredom-themed content organises intimate publics, providing consolation for the feelings of lethargy and disaffect that might otherwise threaten to expose the promises of pleasure that are central to postdigital network cultures. By highlighting the processes of affective mediation and algorithmic subjectification that are central to TikTok, the chapter contributes to this collection’s wider efforts to theorise the postdigital intimacies and the affective public-private.</p
Psychometric Properties of an Arabic Translation of the Breast Appreciation Scale (BrAS) in Lebanese Women
No full textThe 9-item Breast Appreciation Scale (BrAS) measures the construct of breast appreciation, posited as a facet of the broader positive body image construct. To date, there has been limited assessment of the psychometric properties of the BrAS across national and linguistic groups. To add to the literature on breast appreciation, we assessed the psychometric properties of an Arabic translation of the BrAS. An online convenience sample of 626 cisgender women (age range = 18-50 years) from Lebanon completed the Arabic BrAS along with additional measures of body image, disordered eating, and psychological well-being. Across two split-half subsamples (n = 312 and n = 314, respectively), exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis showed that it was possible to extract a unidimensional model of the BrAS with all nine items. This model of the BrAS had adequate composite reliability in both split-half subsamples. Additionally, the BrAS evidenced good patterns of convergent (positive associations with other indices of positive body image and breast awareness, and negative associations with body dissatisfaction and symptoms of disordered eating) and concurrent validity (positive relationships with gratitude and compassionate self-responding). These results suggest that the Arabic translation of the BrAS retains its robust psychometric properties in Lebanese women.</p
Heavy metal exposure and all health outcomes: an umbrella review of meta-analyses
No full textWe aimed to systematically evaluate the strength and credibility of evidence linking exposure to five major heavy metals, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, and chromium, with health outcomes (PROSPERO, CRD420251169899). Literature searches of PubMed/Embase, CINAHL, and Google Scholar up to April 20, 2025, identified meta-analyses of observational studies assessing these associations. Effect sizes were recalculated using random-effects models and expressed as equivalent odds ratios (eOR) with 95 % confidence intervals (CIs). The methodological quality of the included reviews was assessed using the AMSTAR2, and the credibility of associations was graded according to predefined criteria: Class I (convincing), Class II (highly suggestive), Class III (suggestive), Class IV (weak), and non-significant (NS). A total of 35 meta-analyses encompassing 103 health outcomes were included. Arsenic exposure was associated with melanoma (eOR 1.50 [95 % CI, 1.0–2.24], CE=IV), digestive cancers (1.23 [1.07–1.41], CE=III), gestational diabetes mellitus (1.47 [1.11–1.95], CE=III), hypertension (1.15 [1.06–1.24], CE=III), and preterm birth (1.12 [1.04–1.21], CE=III). Lead exposure showed significant associations with autistic disorder in children (12.70 [3.93–41.10], CE=IV), hearing loss (7.55 [6.69–8.53], CE=III), age-related eye disease (9.80 [1.72–55.85], CE=IV), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (1.46 [1.16–1.83], CE=III). Mercury exposure was linked to increased risk in membranous nephropathy (5.75 [1.54–21.44], CE=IV) and thyroid cancer (1.90 [1.55–2.33], CE=IV). Cadmium exposure was associated with renal cancer (1.47 [1.26–1.71], CE=II), cardiovascular disease (1.33 [1.05–1.69], CE=IV), stroke (1.36 [1.10–1.68], CE=III), diabetes mellitus (1.27 [1.07–1.52], CE=III), fracture risk (1.30 [1.13–1.49], CE=III), and age-related eye disease (113.26 [16.86–760.68], CE=III). Chromium exposure was associated with stomach cancer (1.28 [1.16–1.41], CE=I), supporting convincing evidence. Overall, exposures to these metals were consistently associated with diverse diseases across organ systems and life stages, suggesting proactive implications against heavy metal exposures.</p
Accounting for museum exhibits in private profit-oriented entities under IFRS
No full textPurpose: The objective of this paper is to propose an accounting methodology for accounting and reporting museum exhibits by private profit-oriented entities following IFRS that (1) reflects the economic substance of transactions, (2) maximises the information value for users and (3) reduces the variability of reporting methods across various entities.Design/methodology/approach: A combination of research methods has been employed: (1) a theoretical analysis of the IFRS Conceptual framework, measurement requirements and relevant IFRS standards, focusing on their application to museum exhibits in private profit-oriented entities and (2) empirical comparative studies of current reporting practices in selected museums and countries.Findings: The paper suggests a possible methodology for accounting and reporting museum exhibits in private profit-oriented entities that follow IFRS. Museum exhibits are divided into two groups: (1) unique and rare objects and (2) exhibits for which an active market exists. Separate accounting methods are suggested for each of these groups.Research limitations/implications: The paper exclusively addresses the issue of reporting museum exhibits and similar objects in private profit-oriented entities. It does not address other reasons why entities may hold heritage assets, such as investing in art or conducting business operations in premises with heritage status.Practical implications: The proposed solution can serve as guidance for the measurement and reporting of museum exhibits in existing private profit-oriented entities that follow IFRS. The paper can also help accounting students and accounting practitioners understand the mechanisms required by IFRS in situations where IFRS do not provide solutions for certain transactions.Originality/value: Most of the existing academic literature focuses solely on public or private not-for-profit entities, leaving private profit-oriented entities without adequate analysis.</p
What Makes Buyers Willing to Pay More? On the Role of Touch in the Endowment Effect
No full textTouch has been shown to increase product valuation. Yet, the role of touch in the endowment effect – the tendency for sellers to value a good they own more than buyers do – has received little empirical attention and has been confounded with ownership, as sellers are typically handed a good and told they own it, whereas neither applies to buyers. We report an experiment in which we isolated the effect of touch in the absence of ownership. Buyers’ valuations were compared across conditions with and without touch, including a novel ‘Touch only’ modality, and touch valence (pleasant vs. unpleasant to touch), considering also buyers’ need for touch characteristics. We found that touch increased buyers’ valuations for a pleasant-to-touch good, with stronger effects for individuals high in instrumental need for touch. In addition, we provide a conceptual contribution to understanding the endowment effect and outline policy implications of varying touch availability and valence.</p
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