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This largely conceptual study aims to draw from the author’s experience of conversations with Svalbard’s educators, lessons for international higher education institutions’ engagement with climate change education and thinking for non-specialists.

In situ discussions with Svalbard’s educators informed the theoretical work of the author towards the development of conceptual conclusions. The theoretical frame used – “Red Biocentrism” – draws on both radical left and green thought to posit an emplaced, materialist understanding of author’s, participants’ and place’s intra-related contributions.

That, insofar as universities represent nodes in an ethical ecology, they have a capacity to realise that which is obvious in Svalbard – their role as embassies for their learning places, generative of spokespeople or ambassadors.

There is sparse published research into the work of Svalbard’s climate educators, as a pedagogical project undertaken under such extreme and rapidly changing environmental conditions. This study represents the first to reflect on what can be learnt from the educators of Svalbard by Universities elsewhere.

The prevalence of exposure to adversity is elevated in autistic populations, compared to neurotypical peers. Despite this, the frequency and nature of early adverse experiences are not well understood in autistic adults, with several underlying methodological limitations in the available literature. The purpose of this study is to systematically synthesise and analyse the prevalence of childhood adversity in this marginalised population, in accordance with the adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) framework.

Peer-reviewed empirical research articles were systematically searched for from electronic databases and screened against established inclusion criteria. Pooled prevalence rates for individual ACE types were calculated.

Four papers were included (N = 732), all of which used a predominantly or exclusively female sample. Only sexual abuse was reported in all papers, with a pooled prevalence rate of 38%. Physical abuse and emotional abuse were less frequently explored, with two papers reporting on these ACEs, though obtained comparable and higher pooled prevalence rates (39% and 49%, respectively). Pooled prevalence rates could be calculated for neither neglect nor “household” ACEs because of insufficient data. The limited state of the evidence, in conjunction with high levels of heterogeneity and poor sample representativeness found, positions the ACEs of autistic adults as a critical research priority.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to systematically synthesise the prevalence of early childhood adversities, as conceptualised in accordance with the ACEs framework, in adults with autistic traits.

Considering rapid digitalization development, this study examines the impacts of digital technology innovation on social responsibility in platform enterprises.

The study applies the event study method and cross-sectional regression analysis, taking 168 digital technology innovations for social responsibility issued by 88 listed platform enterprises from 2011 to 2022 to study the impact of digital technology innovations for social responsibility announcements of different announcement content and platform attributes on the stock market value of platform enterprises.

The results show that, first, the positive stock market reaction is produced on the same day as the digital technology innovation announcement. Second, the announcement of the platform’s public social responsibility and the announcement of co-innovation and radical innovation bring more positive stock market reactions. In addition, the announcements mentioned above issued by trading platforms bring more positive stock market reactions. Finally, the social responsibility attribution characteristics of the announcement did not have a significant differentiated impact on the stock market reaction.

Most scholars have studied digital technology innovation for social responsibility through modeling rather than second-hand data to empirically examine. This study uses second-hand data with the instrumental stakeholder theory to provide a new research perspective on platform social responsibility. In addition, in order to explore the different impacts of digital technology innovation on social responsibility, this study has classified digital technology innovation for social responsibility according to its social responsibility and digital technology innovation characteristics.

This paper aims to explore how the competence-based vocational education and training (VET) curricula facilitate shaping of work values of VET students. It discusses methodological and ideological orientations of competence-based VET in teaching work values and discloses the typical characteristics of teaching work values in the VET system of Lithuania.

A quantitative research approach leading to a survey method is adopted to investigate how VET students acquire and apply work-related values and attitudes to work.

The survey of the VET students has disclosed that students are open to accepting different values of work, including cognitive values, social prestige and altruist values. However, orientation of the VET curricula to and provision of instrumental values lead to relatively weak internalization of the work values related to societal and spiritual dimensions.

The paper provides empirical evidence regarding the implications of the competence-based curricula for teaching students work values in the school-based VET.

Research highlights that residential care experienced children and young people in Scotland have poorer educational outcomes than their peers within the wider population. Despite this, poor educational attainment is not inevitable, and further research is needed to increase the understanding of long-term trajectories. This paper aims to address a gap in contemporary literature that is of benefit to practitioners, academics and policymakers. Despite experiencing adversity, attachment, separation and loss, school attainment data on leaving care only reflects part of the educational journey.

Using a mixed methodology and social constructionist theoretical framework, a practitioner-led PhD study gathered data from questionnaires and qualitative information from 13 semi-structured interviews with young people who had experienced residential care in Scotland. Recruitment was through a gatekeeper within a national third-sector organisation. The educational trajectories for young people with experience of residential care in Scotland are complex. A lived experience perspective from a PhD study illustrates that statistical data only captures part of the journey and the author needs to reconsider how success is measured.

Of the 13 participants in the study, 12 achieved success educationally, although for the majority of those interviewed, attainment continued after leaving compulsory education. Barriers to greater success included placement uncertainty and movement, stigma, low expectations, pressure to not become a statistic, procedural obstacles and inconsistency or poor relationships.

Supportive relationships and stable placements can create circumstances conducive to effective learning, but evidence reflects that support is necessary throughout the life course if children, young people and adults with care experience are to reach their full academic potential.

Research into the educational outcomes for those with experience of residential care in Scotland is limited. This paper, from a PhD, provides lived experience accounts from a practitioner-led study.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the current state of the literature on the variables associated with self-harm and aggression in women who committed a criminal offence.

Studies were identified through online databases, namely, PsycINFO, PubMed, ERIC and EBSCOhost, as well as manual searches of reference lists of the selected studies. The target population included women who committed a criminal offence and have engaged in self-harm and aggressive behaviors during their incarceration, either in correctional institutions or in forensic psychiatric settings.

Of the 1,178 studies identified, nine met inclusion criteria. The studies were conducted in six different countries and included data from 6360 female participants. Few studies examine self-harm and aggression in women who committed a criminal offence which speaks to the still sparse literature on this topic. This review of the association between self-harm and aggression in women offenders highlights the finding that a small group of women is often involved in both self-harm and aggression. The authors have identified possible psychological factors associated with women engaging in both self-harm and aggression. The findings also reveal a possible connection between types of aggressive behaviors and specific time periods during sentences or stays in forensic psychiatry.

The findings of this scoping review have clinical implications which may be considered by both researchers and the case management teams of women involved in both self-harm and aggression.

Despite the limited number of studies examining self-harm and aggression in women, this scoping review highlights gaps in the literature as well as notable psychological correlates of women who engage in self-harm and aggression.

This study aims to develop and validate a multidimensional scale to measure the motivating factors that lead to opportunity recognition in social entrepreneurship among higher education institute (HEI) students.

The scale was developed through two phases; in phase 1, semi-structured interviews with social entrepreneurs and aspiring students were conducted to explore themes for item generation. Phase 2 included developing and validating the scale using exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The sample included HEI students (n = 300 for EFA, n = 300 for CFA) with either academic background or volunteering experiences in social entrepreneurship.

A 24-item scale is developed in the study, with six factors measuring the motivating factors influencing opportunity recognition in social entrepreneurship: life experiences, social awareness, social inclination, community development, institutional voids and natural option for a meaningful career.

The scale facilitates the development of theories and models in social entrepreneurship. The scale also enables policymakers and social entrepreneurship educators to understand the motivating factors that lead to opportunity recognition among students. It would help them to provide target-specific support to students.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first attempt to develop a scale that measures opportunity recognition in social entrepreneurship based on specific motivating factors. The study used the model by Yitshaki and Kropp (2016) as the conceptual framework. This study is the first attempt to triangulate the model’s findings using a quantitative methodology and through the development of a measurement scale. Besides, the scale adds value to social entrepreneurship research, which lacks empirical research on HEI students.

This study aimed to examine the financial risk-taking behaviors of adult individuals diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

The study was conducted with adults (n = 80) diagnosed with ADHD and healthy controls (n = 80). In order to measure risk-taking in the financial domain, the items in the investment and gambling sub-dimensions of the Domain-Specific Risk-Taking Scale (DOSPERT) were applied.

Adults with ADHD had higher investment and gambling risk-taking and expected benefits scores than the control group, and there was no difference between the two groups in terms of risk perceptions. In the regression analysis, there was a positive linear relationship between the investment and gambling risk-taking scores and the expected benefits scores in both groups. There was a negative linear relationship between investment risk-taking and risk perceptions scores only in the control group.

In terms of investment and gambling, both risk-taking and expected benefits are greater in individuals with ADHD. It has been observed that while healthy individuals take investment risks, they evaluate according to the expected benefits and risk perceptions, while individuals with ADHD make evaluations only according to the expected benefits, risk perceptions do not predict financial risk-taking in individuals with ADHD. When it comes to risk-taking related to gambling, both groups take risks only according to their expectations of benefits, not their perceptions of risk. The study provides outputs that can contribute to the literature in terms of the effects of ADHD diagnosis on financial decision-making processes in the context of risk-taking.

Considering that knowledge, skills and behavior can influence sustainability efforts, this study aims to assess which personality traits influence one’s sense of feeling connected to nature and presumably make more sustainable choices. The study also explores the situational factors that might pose barriers, despite an individual's preference for a sustainable lifestyle.

In total, 54 faculty members from six Higher Education Institutions in Bangladesh were interviewed based on a semi-structured questionnaire on the barriers to a sustainable lifestyle in Dhaka city, while their personality traits were assessed using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index, the Big Five Factors and the Connectedness to Nature Scale through a survey.

The results state that Empathic Concern and Fantasy, as dimensions of empathy, have strong positive correlations with feeling connected to nature. The physical, social and psychological challenges also cause fewer people to lead a sustainable lifestyle, despite feeling highly connected to nature.

Sustainability efforts need to be context-specific due to localized challenges the people face. While educators play a key role in mainstreaming sustainability, generalizing the findings of the study to the wider population is limited. Further investigation to explore demographic and socioeconomic factors will provide key insights to the determinants of sustainable behavior.

The findings highlight that educational institutions can play a key role in the development of empathy and sustainability education, while addressing the need for good governance and policies in mainstreaming sustainability for attaining the Sustainable Development Goals Agenda 2030.

Few studies have been conducted to understand sustainable behavior in Bangladesh and identify effective methods to promote sustainability. This study provides insights to sustainable behavior in the context of a least-developed country. Additionally, it will support educational institutions to work toward sustainable development by enabling empathic skills development in curricula, leading to more concrete sustainability efforts.