2,082 research outputs found
The public health benefits of smoking ban policies: epidemiologic analyses of mortality effects and differentials by socioeconomic status
No full textThis thesis was submited for the degree of Doctor of Public Health and awarded by Brunel UniversityBackground: The implementation of comprehensive smoking ban policies results in reduced population exposure to secondhand smoke, yielding health benefits such as improved respiratory function and decreased risk of cardiovascular events. However, smoking ban effects on respiratory and cerebrovascular mortality and effect differences by socioeconomic status (SES) are unknown. Methods: A literature review was conducted to understand the health benefits of smoking ban policies and to identify areas of research that needed to be addressed. Subsequently, an epidemiologic study employing an interrupted time-series approach was conducted with a national mortality dataset from the Republic of Ireland to determine effects following the implementation of the national workplace smoking ban. Irish census data were used to calculate frequencies of deprivation at the level of the local authority and principal component analysis was conducted to generate a composite SES index. To determine whether the smoking ban policy impacted inequalities, Poisson regression with interrupted time-series analysis was conducted to examine mortality rates, stratified by tertiles of discrete SES indicators and the composite index.
Results: The review identified strong evidence for post-ban reductions in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, and suggestive evidence of reductions in respiratory morbidity following smoking ban implementation. Few studies assessed ban effects by SES and findings were inconsistent; hence, insufficient evidence was available to determine smoking ban policy impacts on health inequalities. Epidemiologic analyses demonstrated that the national Irish smoking ban was associated with immediate reductions in early mortality for cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and respiratory causes. Further analyses by discrete socioeconomic indicators and a composite index indicated that the national Irish smoking ban was associated with decreased inequalities in smoking-related mortality. Conclusions: Smoking ban policies are effective public health interventions for the prevention of cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and respiratory mortality. Furthermore, findings indicate that smoking ban policies have the potential to reduce inequalities in mortality
Workplace smoking ban effects in an heterogeneous smoking population
No full textMany public policies, and especially health policies, are aimed at modifying individual behavior. This is particularly true of anti smoking policies. However, health behavior is highly heterogeneous, and so are individual responses to public policies such as taxes or restriction on use. We investigate the effect of a workplace smoking ban which took place in France in 2007. By its national aspect, the French reform offers a good case to study the effect of workplace smoking bans. Using original data on patients who consult tobacco cessation services, we show that the ban caused an increase in the demand for such services, and in the number of successful attempts to quit smoking. However, using survey data, we show that the ban had no measurable effect on overall prevalence in the general population. Models of quasi rational smoking behavior may offer an explanation for these two apparently contradictory findings.workplace smoking ban ; tobacco control ; smoking cessation ; impact evaluation
Beyond anti-hegemonism to security regime : China's perspectives, institutions and engagement in the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty
No full textThis research analyzes China's socialization in the international Arms Control
and Disarmament (ACD) field. Constructing the theoretical framework of "dynamic
interaction between state and institution" in order to reconcile the "problem of agend
and structure" debated in IR, the research identified the formative effects on China
during the last two decades in general and in the post-CTBT (Comprehensive Test
Ban Treaty) period in particular, which engaged China in the international ACD
institutions and regimes. The socialization effects on China are recognized at the
three levels: China's norm internalization (perspective), institutionalization (domestic
institutions) and comprehensive participation in the international ACD regimes and
institutions.
The evidence based on documentary works and a few interviews suggests that the
engagement in international institutions is promoting a Chinese nexus in these
institutions, creating new Chinese interests and socializing China into building
consensus to resolving international ACD issues. The evolution and differentiation of
Chinese perspectives on ACD issues resulted into the view that stresses China's role
and responsibility within the regimes. The "new security concept" based on mutual
security and restructuring of domestic ACD institutions in the late 1990s were the
products of the socialization that "dynamic interaction" fostered. During the CTBT
talks, China showed the norm-complying and establishing attitude. China also
committed to the nuclear test ban norm by sustaining the nuclear test moratorium
since 1996. The socialization process led China to more comprehensive and
constructive participation in the international ACD institutions and regimes as China
joined the Zangger Committee and supported the FMCT (Fissile Material Cutoff
Treaty) after its accession to the CTBT.
As constructivists argue that state can reshape structure by process. China
reconstituted its interests and identities throughout the interaction with the
international ACD institutions. China's more proactive role within ACD institutions
and regimes will give it more constitutive socialization influence, but the role is
basically entrenched in "state enhancement functionalism.
AN ECONOMETRIC ANALYSIS OF THE ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTION OF SUBTHERAPEUTIC ANTIBIOTIC USE IN PORK PRODUCTION
No full textThere is growing concern among public health experts regarding the diminishing efficacy of antimicrobial therapy in human and veterinary medicine, and some have called for a ban on subtherapeutic antibiotic use in pork production. This paper develops an econometric analysis to identify the economic contributions of subtherapeutic antibiotic use in swine production.Livestock Production/Industries,
Defying the law, negotiating change The Futanke’s opposition to the national ban on FGM in Senegal
No full textThis thesis is concerned with the politics of the preservation and ‘abandonment’ of female circumcision in Fouta Toro, Senegal. The focal point of analysis is the overt opposition to the law criminalising female genital cutting in 1999, and development projects raising awareness about excision in human rights and reproductive health education programmes. As an ethnography of the politics around bodily practices in the light of governmental and non-governmental intervention, the thesis looks at how different interest groups justify their position towards excision. This is a timely enquiry, given the Senegalese government’s ‘acceleration programme of the complete abandonment of excision by 2015’ and some Futanke leaders’ non-compliance with, and opposition to this intervention.
After providing details about ‘the ban’ on ‘female genital mutilation’ in Senegal and a critical reflection on the events that are seen to have led to the call for this ban, I carefully disentangle what ‘the opposition to the law’ is and who disagrees with ‘the abandonment’ of the practice in Fouta Toro. The central part of the thesis is guided by an analysis of how excision is embedded in constructions of personhood, sociality and ethnic identity, and how the body is imagined and located in this process. I show how conceptions of ethnic purity and pride are formulated in terms of fear about a ‘loss of culture’ and ‘foreign invasion’ which nourishes discourses of opposition to the law and non-governmental intervention. Others use ‘human rights’ associated with non-governmental organisations and the state as a vehicle to express their views against excision and those who oppose its criminalisation. I examine how idioms like ‘the state’, ‘human rights’ and ‘Futanke way of life’ feature in discourses around the ban of excision in Fouta Toro, and how respectability and honour are maintained through competing representations of the female body as a site of morality. Some claim the female body – a reproducer of cultural identities – with reference to duties through kin obligations, others with reference to ‘human rights’ and ‘the state’.
Based on 15 months’ ethnographic fieldwork in Fouta Toro and nine years working in and researching the impact of development in Senegal, this dissertation contributes to scholarship on Fouta Toro and indicates how governmental and non-governmental intervention stirs up the caste-related power structures of a society led by the Tooroɓɓe since the Islamic revolution in the 18th century. It shows how the female body is located as a site of morality, key to the reproduction of cultural identities
Reasons to Ban? The Anti-Burqa Movement in Western Europe
No full textOriginally published at http://www.mmg.mpg.de/en/publications/working-papers/2012/
'Our Working Papers are refereed and may be downloaded from this site by individuals, for their own use, subject to the ordinary rules governing the fair use of professional scholarship. Working Papers may be cited without seeking prior permission from the author.
Political Precaution, Pandemics and Protectionism
No full textDespite strong scientific evidence and representations made by international scientific organizations, a considerable number of countries have imposed import bans on pork in response to the H1N1 pandemic. The imposition of these barriers is contrary to WTO rules. The motivation for the imposition of these barriers does not appear to have arisen from producers’ requests or consumer lobbying – political precaution provides the motivation. There appears to be little control over political precaution in the rules of international trade. Hence, the balance between the strong rules of trade desired by firms wishing to engage in international commerce and the need, at times, for politicians to respond to requests for protection may be changing in favour of more protection. Keywords: H1N1, import bans, pork, precaution, protection, swineH1N1, import bans, pork, precaution, protection, swine, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, International Relations/Trade, Livestock Production/Industries, Political Economy, Public Economics, Risk and Uncertainty,
When do special interests run rampant ? disentangling the role in banking crises of elections, incomplete information, and checks and balances
No full textThe author investigates the political determinants of government decisions that benefit special interest groups - especially government decisions to deal with banking crises. He finds that the better informed the voters, the more proximate elections, and the larger the number of political veto players ( conditional on the costs to voters of relevant policy decision), the smaller the government's fiscal transfer are to the financial sector and the less likely the government is to exercise forbearance in dealing with insolvent financial institutions. The results suggest that policies thatmight be appropriate for mitigating banking crises in the United States might be less effective in settings where voters are less informed, where elections are less competitive, and where there are fewer veto players, because in these settings checks and balances are missing. These policies include: a) Disseminating information about the costs of inefficient government decisions. b) Improving the structure of legislative regulatory oversight. c) Intervening early in insolvent banks. The author concludes that the more veto players there are, the less likely policies are to favor special interest groups (contrary to previous views). Moreover, the closer the elections, the less likely policies are to favor special interest groups.
The Economics of Smoking Bans
No full textWhile the empirical literature on smoking bans is extensive, little theory has been developed. This paper examines the welfare impact of smoking bans in an economy where smokers’ utility is reduced by a workplace/public place ban. The government has two instruments - increasing the price through taxation, or limiting when the product can be consumed through a ban. Its ability to reduce smoking through taxation is limited by a black market where cigarettes are not taxed. We show that the quantity instrument (ban) is always welfareenhancing. The model has application to other addictive activities.smoking, workplace ban, public place ban, government control, taxation
Public views on drought mitigation : evidence from the comments sections of online news articles
No full textDuring the spring of 2012 much of the south-east of England was under water use restrictions, as a result of two consecutive dry winters. The drought highlighted the region’s vulnerability to this natural hazard and emphasized the issues associated with water shortages and the need for drought mitigation measures. This research has sought to examine the public responses to interventions that help alleviate drought, and the drivers that influence those responses. Historically, public responses to such interventions have been complex, and acceptance has not been guaranteed. Drought events are likely to become more frequent in the future, therefore, understanding how and why the public responds to interventions is increasingly important. Such insights can help governments and other authorities in planning for future drought events. The study utilised qualitative content analysis of online news articles and their associated comments (opinions and perspectives) from readers. This method was selected to explore the meanings underlying the readers’ comments, thus enabling a better understanding of reader’s perspectives and how they viewed their social world. The key findings indicate that at this point in time, the reader’s emphasised supply side interventions over water conservation measures. Still, readers were not unwilling to conserve water; many were actively reducing their water consumption by engaging in water saving behaviours and installing water saving equipment. The findings indicate that lack of trust in the water companies was a major influence on responses to the drought and to potential interventions for easing the drought such as the hosepipe ban. Equally, the data showed that some readers lacked knowledge and understanding around what interventions entailed, for instance desalination. This study highlights the need for clear communications between authorities and the public. The water companies need to rebuild relationships and regain public trust by providing transparent, timely communications about their role and function as water suppliers, together with the provision of impartial, factual information on the variety of drought interventions available, so the public can make informed choices
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