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Reports on a study designed to analyse the effectiveness of real and created spokespersons in advertisements. Compares male and female spokespersons′ effectiveness by audience gender. Concludes that celebrities can be used to gain attention and maintain sales, while created spokespersons′ effectiveness is in establishing a lifelong link with the product.

Rates of co-morbid substance misuse are high within forensic populations. Addressing these problems should be a priority as mental disorder with co-morbid substance misuse is associated with worse outcomes, including rates of re-offending and violence recidivism. A study undertaken in 2006 by the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Research and Training Unit concluded that the provision of substance misuse treatments in medium-secure units (MSUs) at that time was inadequate. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how services may have developed since then to inform discussion over future development and best practice.

A postal survey, supported by the Quality Network for Forensic Mental Health Services, was sent to 62 MSUs across the UK and Ireland. This questioned prevalence, interventions and staff training in substance misuse.

In total, 41 units responded (66 per cent). The data suggest rates of substance misuse within MSUs have reduced and provision of treatment has increased in recent years. The majority of MSUs provide a variety of interventions to address substance misuse and are internally resourced, in tune with current national guidance. However, the data suggest many MSU staff are not receiving adequate training in substance misuse treatments and some MSUs do not appear to have a cohesive strategy that would be consistent with best practice.

This study provides an up-to-date overview of the provision of treatment for substance misuse within MSUs.

There is no other source for this information, which will provide an invaluable reference point for services seeking to develop or improve their clinical services.

An association between problematic substance use and severe mental illness has been demonstrated in various settings, but not among community forensic psychiatric patients. This paper aims to investigate the prevalence and correlates of problematic substance use among the community patients of one regional forensic psychiatric service.

Historical data on diagnosis, offending and problematic substance use were gathered by reviewing case notes. Current substance use and psychosocial functioning were ascertained from structured interviews with community psychiatric nurses. Outcome measures included HoNOS ratings, the Global Assessment of Functioning, and the Clinical Rating Scale for substance use.

Of 92 patients, 91.2 per cent had a history of problematic substance use and 31.5 per cent of them were currently using substances problematically, most commonly cannabis and alcohol. Current problematic substance use was associated with a range of negative outcomes, in terms of illness severity, compliance with treatment, and psychosocial functioning.

The results may not be generalizable to services in different areas or those with different models of service provision. Causality should not be assumed from a cross sectional study.

Inpatient psychiatric treatment in secure services appears to be associated with a large reduction in the level of problematic substance use, but a large residual need remains among community patients. Services which provide community care for forensic patients must seek to integrate treatment for problematic substance use with treatment for mental illness.

This is the first description of the substance use related needs among community forensic psychiatric patients.

This chapter discusses the evolvement of the sustainability concept and its importance in the strategic management context. First, the authors review the development of the concept over the last century and presents the most commonly used sustainability definitions. Then, the three pillars of sustainability (economic, natural and social) are reviewed, highlighting the sustainability aspect of each pillar individually and the problems of their non-substitutability, irreversibility and non-linearity. Based on the literature review, this chapter discusses the main motives for integration of sustainability concept into the overall strategy of the company, namely compliance with regulation, response to public concern, expected competitive advantage and top management commitment. Furthermore, important distinctions between reactive and proactive approaches are presented, and the results and benefits (such as cost reductions, differentiation and added value) of proactive approaches to corporate sustainability are analyzed. Nevertheless, such benefits can only be achieved if corporate sustainability is understood and treated as a holistic concept, which is deeply embedded in the company’s strategy and is approached proactively from the interdisciplinary viewpoint, looking at all three dimensions simultaneously.

The ultimate goal of competitiveness is the well being of the citizens of a country. From this perspective, this study investigates the contribution of international competitiveness on per capita income, human development, and inequality in 45 countries of the world. Correlation and regression analysis were conducted to determine the relationships. The results indicate that international competitiveness positively influences per capita income and human development. Competitiveness also influences the reduction of inequality in a country. Longitudinal studies with more country data needs to be conducted to further the relationships established through cross‐sectional research.

I recently visited the 1994 Poetry Publication Showcase at Poets House in New York City. This is a wonderful annual exhibit of new poetry including both volumes by individual poets and anthologies. This year I was particularly struck by some excellent poetry anthologies. All these anthologies present contemporary poets which should be represented in library collections. Since many libraries do not own individual volumes by all of these writers, the anthologies described in this column will enable libraries to enrich their poetry collection and to introduce new exciting writers to their users.

The theme of this issue of Managerial Finance is managing corporate tax. Accompanying contributions address capital budgeting, financing, dividends, and financial reporting.

Endorsement of a brand or sports team by a sports celebrity has been thoroughly researched within the context of sports marketing. However, the recent phenomenon of non-sports celebrities owning sports teams has received little research attention. This study uses a survey of Indian respondents in the context of a major sport (cricket) in India to explore the impact of a non-sports celebrity owning and endorsing a sports team on consumer attitudes towards the team and their sponsors. Findings indicate that the level of credibility assigned to the celebrity significantly affects consumer attitudes towards the team and its sponsors. The results suggest that managers of sports teams and their sponsors should consider a celebrity owner as an endorser, as long as that celebrity has high credibility.