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The purpose of this paper is to examine university applicants' choice processes using Kotler's five stage consumer buying process with a particular emphasis on the final stage of the process namely that of the purchase decision.

Based on four focus groups with 22 students at one university in North‐west England, post‐enrolment.

Applicants' choice processes are complex and not evenly supported by university departments. Using concepts from the field of services marketing, the student choice process as candidates progress through the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service system is critically interrogated. “Moments of truth” are seen to be critical in many students' decision to choose a specific university course. University personnel need to be mindful that the decision process is two way and takes place over an extended period of time.

This research has been conducted with respondents drawn from just one university and at one point in time.

It is suggested that universities should refine and target their communications efforts, and pay close attention to the quality of the interactions with potential students throughout their relationship. In order to do this it is suggested that universities adopt a services marketing framework.

Key themes from services marketing concepts are suggested to inform the analysis of what is and what could be done to maintain and enhance the university‐applicant relationship as it progresses.

The purpose of this paper is threefold; to investigate the potential impact of energy conservation policies and legislation on building design; examine energy conservation practices in the building industry; and identify associated barriers to an integrated low energy architectural design process.

A survey of UK architectural design practices was conducted to assess the impact of current energy conservation policies and legislation on current building design, and ascertain architects' views on the associated barriers and incentives to implementing and sustaining energy conservation strategies in their projects.

Results reveal that building design is affected by existing legislation but often not by policies. Additionally, there is a lack of incentives for the building industry to adopt and implement low energy design strategies that are outlined in existing policies and guidance. Furthermore, results identify a need for increased awareness of the available energy saving technologies.

Architects are the first point of contact for driving more energy efficient design and conservation strategies. Therefore, this study was confined to a cross section of their opinions of energy conservation within the UK building industry.

The study is useful for those interested in the current levels of implementation of low energy design strategies and the recommendations for the future of the energy conservation and building design in the UK.

The study of energy conservation and building design provides insights into current environmental design practices; and identifies problems for the implementation of effective and integrated low energy building design process. The content should be of interest to architects, as it highlights the current level of implementation of energy conservation measures in building design.

This paper presents a co-authorship study of authors who published in Digital Humanities journals and examines the apparent influence of gender, or more specifically, the quantitatively detectable influence of gender in the networks they form.

This study applied co-authorship network analysis. Data has been collected from three canonical Digital Humanities journals over 52 years (1966–2017) and analysed.

The results are presented as visualised networks and suggest that female scholars in Digital Humanities play more central roles and act as the main bridges of collaborative networks even though overall female authors are fewer in number than male authors in the network.

This is the first co-authorship network study in Digital Humanities to examine the role that gender appears to play in these co-authorship networks using statistical analysis and visualisation.

This paper aims to understand the experiences of disabled doctoral students at one Aotearoa New Zealand University, identifying barriers to accessibility and meaningful participation, and enabling practices.

This research was underpinned by the social model of disability and used an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach. A survey comprising closed and freeform questions was distributed to all doctoral students. From the 64 respondents, 12 also took part in an unstructured, narrative interview. Data were analysed using a combination of methods: descriptive statistics, thematic analysis and poetic inquiry.

Findings are presented mainly as data poetry. The poems centre on complexities faced by disabled doctoral students, and articulate challenges, enabling practices and possibilities for the future encountered by students in this study. Findings are additionally supported with quotes from narrative interviews, open-ended survey questions and descriptive data analysis.

The poetic inquiry approach gives voice to the collective experiences of disabled students. The poetic texts bear witness to the intersections of disability, impairment, chronic illness, neurodiversity and doctoral study, and the lives of students who navigate these intersections. These poems voice and seek to be lightning-rods for social change.

PhD graduates are entering an increasing range of careers, but past research has highlighted a lack of preparation for these careers. This study aims to explore the reflections of PhD graduates from science and humanities and social science disciplines regarding support for career development (CD) during their study.

The authors used an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design and collected 136 survey responses and interviewed 21 PhD graduates from two US and one New Zealand universities to investigate their career readiness. Using the lens of Cognitive Information Processing theory, the authors explored the development of self-knowledge and career options-knowledge, and how support at the macro (institutional), meso (departmental) and micro (supervisors) levels influenced CD.

During doctoral study, there was very poor engagement with CD activities. Graduates displayed limited self-knowledge and poor knowledge about career options. Graduates reported drawing mainly on their departments and supervisors for career guidance. Although there were pockets of good practice, some departments were perceived as promoting academia as the only successful outcome, neglecting to support other possible pathways. Some graduates reported excellent supervisor support for CD, but others described disinterest or a damaging response if students said they were not wanting to pursue academia.

The enabling aspects for developing self- and options-knowledge are collated into a conceptual model, which identifies key factors at institutional, departmental and supervisor levels, as well as for PhD students themselves.

This paper examines how a beginning teacher in Virginia and a beginning teacher in Florida make sense of the high-stakes tests in their state. By examining beginning teachers in two states where the tests are so very different, we gain important insight into whether there are similarities and differences across states and how the nature of the test affects the teaching and learning of history. We first offer insight into the context of accountability in Virginia and Florida and then discuss what ambitious teaching and learning look like in these states as informed by the literature. Then, we turn to our research methods, findings, and implications for the field of social studies.

Mental health champions (MHCs) and young health ambassadors (YHAs) are two innovative public health interventions. MHCs are practitioners who work in schools and other youth settings and aim to be the “go to” person for mental health in these settings. YHAs are a linked parallel network of young people, who champion mental health and advocate for youth involvement, which was co-produced with young people across all stages of development implementation. This paper aims to identify the potential benefits, barriers and facilitators of these interventions.

Semi-structured qualitative interviews (n = 19) were undertaken with a purposive sample of n = 13 MHCs, and n = 6 YHAs, between June 2021 and March 2022. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, anonymised and then analysed following a thematic approach. Ethical approval was granted by Newcastle University’s Faculty of Medical Sciences Ethics Committee.

The findings are organised under five key themes: motivating factors and rewards for MHCs and YHAs; outcomes for children and young people (CYP) and others; impact on youth settings and culture; facilitators of successful implementation; and implementation challenges and opportunities.

These findings are intended to be of relevance to practice and policy, particularly to those exploring the design, commissioning or implementation of similar novel and low-cost interventions, which aim to improve mental health outcomes for CYP, within the context of youth settings.

The interventions reported on in the present paper are novel and innovative. Little research has previously been undertaken to explore similar approaches, and the individual experiences of those involved in the delivery of these types of interventions.

This article features four disabled artists who are parents and center on their balance of artistic practice and family. As a disabled artist considering starting a family and becoming a parent, the question of balancing artistry with a child has been a consistent thought and inquiry. Especially as a disabled artist wrestling with the realities of managing one's bodily needs with a career and personal life, I realize it will be a challenging yet rewarding adjustment. Furthermore, artists often lead atypical work lives with atypical working hours, which can sometimes lend itself to parenting and take away from it in other ways. With the resultant interviews and article, I aim to provide critical insights into practicing disabled artists' viewpoints on parenting, ranging from the challenges to the dividends. I hope these insights will support a singular view of disability parenting and artistry, as well as the Journal's goal of a new paradigm in disability scholarship overall.

This paper aims to analyze and compare consumers’ acceptance and valuation of brown, colored and low glycemic index rice and identify the factors that influence their willingness to pay (WTP).

A stated-preference survey was conducted among 600 middle-class urban consumers in the Philippines, using a contingent valuation approach with a between-subjects design. The data were analyzed using hierarchical multiple linear regression.

Consumers accepted healthier rice types, but they discounted them relative to premium white rice, despite receiving product-specific information on health benefits. Consumers’ household income, attitude toward healthy eating and their diet quality had significant effects on WTP. Snack occasions could serve as entry points for healthier rice rather than targeting the substitution of white rice during main eating occasions. Generic information on nutritional benefits of healthier rice products was insufficient to nudge consumers’ intentions toward integrating these products into their diets.

The empirical contribution provides insights for breeding programs on the design of rice target product profiles that incorporate nutritional attributes.

The current study addresses the gap in consumer preference studies by evaluating nutrition-related attributes of rice. Measures of attitude toward food-based dietary guidelines and indicators of diet quality were included in the set of predictors that may influence WTP. The results provide insights for designing nutrition education programs to promote healthier rice in the context of healthy eating habits and to enhance the health benefits of consumers’ current diets. Future studies should further explore different types of nutrition nudges that encourage consumers to eat healthier rice-based dishes and test nutrition communication strategies that move from a narrow product focus to a broader emphasis on dietary diversity by promoting healthier dishes based on healthier rice products.