Scottish Community Research Articles

‘The Image of Scotland which We Cherish in Our Hearts’: Burns Anniversary Celebrations in Colonial Otago

Scottish migrants fostered a range of cultural activities in the new worlds in which they settled, thereby identifying themselves as a distinct ethnic group. Celebrations of Scotland's national bard, Robert Burns, were the one recurring theme within all sites of settlement. The iconic figure of Burns is, in fact, central to the formulation, expression and commemoration of a Scottish cultural identity around the world. The present article explores the function of Burns celebrations in colonial Otago, the Scottish heartland of New Zealand. The celebrations were a key part of the Scots' associational culture in Otago, serving as an important social occasion within the Scottish community bounds and in wider Otago society. Moreover, the celebrations were effective sites of memory, employing familiar memory narratives and practices; these framed events and provided the initial common denominator that bound Scots and non-Scots together.

Learning environmental justice and adult education in a Scottish community campaign against fish farming

Community campaigns against local sources of pollution and environmental degradation form the building blocks of movements for environmental justice. They also constitute important locations for people to learn about the environment and obtain outlooks, knowledge and skills with which to tackle pollution and address sustainable alternatives. The learning which occurs is usually informal and involves collective learning for action. A challenge to formal educators is to be able to support such learning. This account is of the learning which has been achieved during a community campaign against fish farming in the community of Scoraig in Wester Ross, north-west Scotland. We identify a complex diversity of learning within the community, involving information-gathering and critical analysis, between those active in the campaign and those supportive but less active, and in interaction between formal and informal education.

Perceptions of problem drinkers attending a voluntary organization in a Scottish community

Twelve clients attending a voluntary agency, a local Council on Alcohol in a Scottish Community, were interviewed individually over a period of up to 1 year. The aims of this study were to explore clients’ perceptions of their experiences during the year and their perceptions of help received from the agency. A qualitative approach was used. Important themes that emerged were past drinking and ill-health, temptations to drink, family relationships, counselling, women's experiences of groups and social activities. The study indicated that urges to drink, lapses and relapse were common experiences and such urges needed to be worked with. While individual counselling was very important, gender sensitive services, a women's group and other social activities were also important and the contributions of a range of staff and service provision was valued by users. Changes and improvements in family relationships were perceived by users as valued developments, as a result of them abstaining from, or reducing, alcohol intake. The study indicated that these problem drinkers in a Scottish community perceived helping as going beyond therapeutic work with the individual and was part of a wider systems or network approach that involved the flexible use of a range of agency services.

Characterisation of farmers’ responses to policy reforms in Scottish hill farming areas

In North-western Europe, most of the land mass is classified as Less Favoured Area (LFA) under European designation and hill farms in these areas are a major contributor to the rural industry. Scotland alone is no different, as its rural land-based industry is fragile and has been dependent for many decades on high and continued levels of support payments. With recent agricultural policy reforms and changes in support for hill farmers, the future of these farming businesses is uncertain, and one purpose of this paper is to understand how they have already responded and might respond to further policy changes. This is not only important for the land use economy but also for the wider Scottish rural community and environment.Data from three regions, typical of hill farming areas in mainland Scotland, was collated in 2007; firstly from a postal survey with 47 respondents, followed by 30 face-to-face on-farm interviews. Farmers were asked to consider three time periods (2001–2005; 2005–2007; 2008–2013) and to detail any changes they had made, or planned to make, in their management and livestock numbers. During the interviews, additional questions regarding their motivations, drive and constraints were also asked.Fifty-three percent of the farmers surveyed had made major management changes in 2001–2005; 49% made changes in 2005–2007 and 53% projected to do so in 2008–2013. The main reported change was a decrease in animal numbers, due to economic factors, such as costs of labour and feed, and loss of subsidies. Multivariate analysis (Principal Coordinate and Cluster Analysis) of the results identified 3 clusters of farmers. Subsequent ANOVA and Chi-square analyses on the clusters showed that age, education, impact on farm labour, and impacts of neighbouring farms and their livestock reductions, were the most important factors that separated these clusters. Cluster 1 (adaptive farmers) broadly represented extensive sheep farms with farmers, who could and did diversify their income; they were also older and had the highest level of education. It was found that their animal management was greatly influenced by their neighbours’ decisions. Cluster 2 (focused farmers) was reflective of relatively more intensive sheep and beef farms, with no direct interest in farm diversification. Cluster 3 (resource constrained farmers) comprised very large extensive sheep and beef farms, which were also limited by their resources. Most ‘adaptive’ and ‘focused’ farmers planned to further modify their management in 2008–2013.Declining stock numbers in the study farms were consistent with trends in agricultural census data following the latest CAP reforms. However, the typology gave more insight of the differing farmers’ motivation and constraints when faced with reforms; this indicated that policy development should rely on multi-faceted data sources. The interdependency and fragility of these varied hill systems was highlighted by this study, pointing out the value of more targeted delivery of policy mechanisms to reflect such diversity. This is not unique to Scotland and reflects similar experiences elsewhere in Europe's marginal agricultural areas.

Fit for Purpose? Post-Qualifying Social Work Education in Child Protection in Scotland

Recommendations for post-qualifying training and education in child protection social work consistently form part of the political response to child abuse scandals. The influence of child abuse politics upon the push towards post-qualifying training and education has been consistent across the United Kingdom. Within Scotland educators have been quick to respond to the market demand for programme provision and there is now a growing number of academic programmes being offered by higher education institutions. Yet despite post-qualifying training and education achieving the status of ‘panacea’ there is little in the way of a national dialogue about what post-qualifying training and education in social work child protection should look like. The parameters of this have not been subject to any kind of national debate and the Scottish academic community has not entered into a professional dialogue on these issues. More crucially, educators have not engaged in any level of identifiable evaluation of their provision and there is an absence of engagement with the scholarship of teaching child protection at the post-qualifying level. This paper connects with these issues to question whether the post-qualifying training and education delivered by Scotland's universities can be considered fit for purpose.

CONSULTATION AND CONSENT UNDER JAMES VI

ABSTRACTDivisions in the Scottish political community that were evident by the end of the reign of James VI have been posited as roots of the Scottish revolution of 1638 and the wars of the three kingdoms. This article argues that the disengagement of central government from the political nation at large was a key factor in this development. By demonstrating the frequency of conventions of the estates, it highlights the intensity of consultation in James's Scottish government before 1603. A sudden decline in their frequency thereafter was symptomatic of a wider failure of government to adapt to the absence of the king in the context of a composite monarchy. While correspondence between the king and the privy council was copious, communication between the council and the political elites of Scotland withered. Without conventions of the estates as a vital point of contact in which new policies could be tested and negotiated, parliaments became more disagreeable. The crown's reliance on unprecedented levels of management and increased central direction alienated a significant proportion of the political elite, driving them into the oppositional stance which endured through the reign of Charles I.

The Scottish Community and Scottish Organisations on Merseyside: Development and Decline of a Diaspora

The Scottish Community and Scottish Organisations on Merseyside: Development and Decline of a Diaspora

Co-researching the Cairngorms: Supporting the Aims of, not just Researching in, the Cairngorms NationalPark

Scotland's two national parks (Cairngorms and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs) represent a new institutional approach to the governance of protected areas, with a wider focus on sustainable development and working in partnership as well as protecting natural and cultural heritage. The stated purpose of the Cairngorms national park, as presented in its plan (CNPP), is to achieve its four aims in a collective and coordinated way. Our ongoing evaluation of the plan development and implementation found that stakeholder deliberations tended to focus on three broad objectives: to protect its special qualities, to deliver sustainable development and to integrate potentially competing interests. The paper reflects on the role the Scottish research community could play in supporting the delivery of the CNPP and therefore the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 using these three objectives to structure the analysis. The paper ends with five recommendations for how researchers can work ‘with’, not just ‘in’ or ‘on’ Scottish national parks. These suggestions have application beyond the specific context of the Cairngorms, as the paper speaks to researchers' social contract with society and the requirement to demonstrate the relevance and impact of research.

‘We Scotsmen by the Banks o’ the Lagan‘

The Belfast Benevolent Society of St Andrew, established in 1867, was the most important of a network of clubs and societies that catered for the Scottish population of Victorian and Edwardian Belfast. Its structure was that of a 'subscriber democracy' as defined by R.J. Morris. Membership was drawn primarily from first or second generation Scottish members of the city's middle and upper middle class. Its most important activity was in providing financial support to poorer members of the Scottish community. As with other charitable bodies of the period, its work combined philanthropic benevolence with a degree of moralistic social control. However a close analysis of individual cases suggests that charitable motives were consistently to the fore.

Manly Games, Athletic Sports and the Commodification of Scottish Identity: Caledonian Gatherings in New Zealand to 1915

This article explores the development of Caledonian Gatherings in New Zealand from their first emergence in the 1860s until 1915. As one of the defining features of Scottish immigrant community life in the Diaspora, the Gatherings are a global phenomenon. In New Zealand, their development is intrinsically bound to that of Scottish associations, with Caledonian Games being, in fact, the crucial motor for the associations’ rise. The assessment of Caledonian Gatherings hence provides the key to understandig the Scots’ associational culture in New Zealand. At the same time, however, the Gatherings were not an exclusive Scottish event, the article documenting their wider community relevance. Outside of the tighter circle of Scots intent on the promotion of Caledonian sports, the Gatherings soon became a favourite holiday pastime throughout New Zealand. From the late 1880s, greater emphasis was placed on the athletic components of the programme. This is suggestive of the the tensions between Scottish traditionalists keen on maintaining the Games’ authentic character, and those seeking to promote them as amateur or professional athletic gatherings. By scrutinising the ways in which ‘Caledonia’ was commodified, and developed as a successful brand, the article explores the Gatherings’ dual purpose. Though born out of an ethnic tradition – hence serving as a site of memory – the article argues that Caledonian Gatherings were a central means for the Scots involved in their organisation to claim respectability in civic life.

Making community safety work for Scotland

In 2007 the new nationalist Scottish Government delivered its first budget and 3-year spending plans and set out the terms of new relationship with local government. This ‘Concordat’ included a...

Cross-sectional survey of community pharmacists' views of the electronic Minor Ailment Service in Scotland

The aim was to investigate community pharmacists' views on the implementation of the electronic Minor Ailment Service (e-MAS) in Scottish community pharmacies and to quantify the barriers and facilitators to service provision. A postal cross-sectional survey of all community pharmacies in Scotland (n = 1138) was conducted. A combination of open, closed and Likert-type questions were used. A response rate of 49.5% was achieved. A majority of respondents (over 84%) ranked their level of implementation of e-MAS as 4 or 5 on the five-point scale where point 1 represented 'not at all' and 5 represented 'very high'. A majority also identified opportunities to extend professional roles (83.3%), opportunities for more effective patient treatment (78.5%), opportunities to better meet patient expectations (74.4%) and financial advantage to their pharmacy (52.6%) as benefits of e-MAS. Suspected misuse/overuse of the service by some customers (75.1%) and time required for recording each consultation or supply (61.3%) were two barriers agreed upon by the majority of the respondents. A majority of respondents had positive views towards e-MAS. The benefits agreed upon by the majority of the respondents relate to known facilitators of community pharmacy practice change. Major barriers, namely suspected misuse of the service by some customers and timely process for recording consultation or supply, could affect pharmacists' efficiency in service delivery and need to be addressed. These results could inform similar schemes that may be introduced locally in the UK or elsewhere.

Evidence of domoic acid exposure in harbour seals from Scotland: A potential factor in the decline in abundance?

The exposure of marine mammals to the toxins associated with harmful algae can be lethal. Domoic acid (DA) is a biotoxin produced by the Pseudo-nitzschia group of diatoms many of which are now a common component of the Scottish phytoplankton community ( Stobo et al., 2008). DA is a potent excitatory neurotoxin that has caused large-scale mortality of marine mammals. We found harbour seals ( Phoca vitulina) in Scotland are exposed to DA. Low levels, likely from recent exposure, were measured in the faeces and urine of live captured adult animals (using a direct competitive enzyme linked immunosorbent assay) and exposure was highest during August–September 2008 (7/32 of the faecal (22%) and 11/29 (38%) of the urine samples were positive). Median concentrations in positive faeces and urine were 25 ng/g and 6 ng/ml respectively. One positive pregnant female was subsequently found dead with 10 ng/ml DA in her amniotic fluid but the contribution of DA exposure to the cause of death could not be established. However, the highest levels in the study were found in anonymous faecal samples collected in September 2009 on the east coast of Scotland (up to 397 ng/g). Further studies are urgently needed to determine the importance of DA exposure to the population dynamics of Scottish harbour seals in light of the recently reported major population declines.

Scottish community pharmacists' current involvement in and attitudes towards ‘extended service’ provision: a national survey

Abstract Objective To determine Scottish community pharmacists' present involvement with ‘extended’ service provision, as outlined in ‘The right medicine’ policy document, as well as an insight into the attitudes of pharmacists in delivering such services. Setting All community pharmacists working in Scotland. Method A questionnaire was developed, piloted and refined before mailing to all community pharmacists working in Scotland (n = 1621). Two reminders were sent to non-responders. Data on current service provision was analysed using SPSS version 11 for windows. Key findings An overall response rate of 56.4% (914/1621) was achieved for pharmacists. The survey revealed that the majority of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed with the ‘key service areas’ being provided from community pharmacies. Some services were obviously agreed with more than others. In particular repeat dispensing and emergency hormonal contraception (EHC) were rated highly. Least agreement was provided for needle exchange and schemes for supporting carers. Conclusion There appears to be wide variation in current service provision in the ‘key service areas’ considered. The highest involvement included EHC and methadone supervision. The lowest involvement was for needle exchange and schemes for supporting carers. Community pharmacist's attitudinal ratings were generally positive towards the ‘key service areas’ suggested.

A consensus model for delivery of structured pharmaceutical care for the patient with type 2 diabetes mellitus by Scottish community pharmacists

AbstractObjectiveTo generate a model of pharmaceutical care for the patient with type 2 diabetes mellitus in primary care, from a consensus determined among community pharmacists in Scotland. Setting Community pharmacists within Scotland already involved in providing structured pharmaceutical care.MethodThe Delphi questionnaire was based on a validated multidisciplinary model of care for the patient with type 2 diabetes mellitus in primary care comprising 47 items under five themes: assessment, treatment plan, treatment administration, patient monitoring, confirmation/review. Seventy participants already participating in a pharmaceutical care model schemes initiative to encourage pharmaceutical care from community pharmacies and with an interest in diabetes mellitus were sent an initial questionnaire. Thirty-seven participants agreed to enter two further rounds; response rates were 22/37 (59%) and 18/22 (82%). Final round cut-off defining consensus was 80% scoring 6–7 from a seven-point Likert scale.Key findingsA model emerged from the achieved consensus. There was an early consensus achieved on the core functions that participants were already delivering to the patient with diabetes mellitus. These are functions that have been highlighted and delivered in previous studies within this disease state: receiving and sharing patient information, individualising treatment, identifying unsatisfactory treatment and monitoring and prescribing analgesia.ConclusionsFor service development and linked continued professional development a well-defined service model for delivering pharmaceutical care to patients is required. This study proposes such a model based on consensus among a self-selected group of community pharmacists leading diabetes pharmacy practice in Scotland.

The nature and extent of illegal drug and alcohol-related litter in Scottish social housing community: A photographic investigation

This article investigates the nature and extent of alcohol and other drug-related litter in a residential community. This was done by means of a survey of such litter conducted in the social housing ‘schemes’ of a Scottish town, piloting the use of interpretive photography to assess the threat that these pose in the community (n = 1239 pictures of such items). The survey found little evidence of hazardous illegal drug-related litter (number of sets of needles/syringes) in comparison to alcohol litter such as broken bottles. The photographs taken also illustrated the ways in which the risks posed by such litter could vary, according to the type of items concerned (e.g. plastic vs. glass, especially screw-cap, bottles) and their locations. It is also suggested that brand identifiable alcohol litter may act as form of free advertising. These findings are discussed in terms of community safety, and the need to raise awareness of the issues surrounding alcohol-related glass in a community setting as has already been done with illegal drug litter. It is also recommended that certain off-trade alcohol distributers switch from glass to plastic bottles.

The effect of a pedometer-based community walking intervention "Walking for Wellbeing in the West" on physical activity levels and health outcomes: a 12-week randomized controlled trial

Background: Recent systematic reviews have suggested that pedometers may be effective motivational tools to promote walking. However, studies tend to be of a relatively short duration, with small clinical based samples. Further research is required to demonstrate their effectiveness in adequately powered, community based studies. Objective: Using a randomized controlled trial design, this study assessed the impact of a 12-week graduated pedometer-based walking intervention on daily step-counts, self-reported physical activity and health outcomes in a Scottish community sample not meeting current physical activity recommendations. Method: Sixty-three women and 16 men (49.2 years ± 8.8) were randomly assigned to either an intervention (physical activity consultation and 12-week pedometer-based walking program) or control (no action) group. Measures for step-counts, 7-day physical activity recall, affect, quality of life (n = 79), body mass, BMI, % body fat, waist and hip circumference (n = 76), systolic/diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol (n = 66) were taken at baseline and week 12. Analyses were performed on an intention to treat basis using 2-way mixed factorial analyses of variance for parametric data and Mann Whitney and Wilcoxon tests for non-parametric data. Results: Significant increases were found in the intervention group for step-counts (p < .001), time spent in leisure walking (p = .02) and positive affect (p = .027). Significant decreases were found in this group for time spent in weekday (p = .003), weekend (p = .001) and total sitting (p = .001) with no corresponding changes in the control group. No significant changes in any other health outcomes were found in either group. In comparison with the control group at week 12, the intervention group reported a significantly greater number of minutes spent in leisure time (p =

An application of the variable-r method to subpopulation growth rates in a 19th century agricultural population

This paper presents an analysis of the differential growth rates of the farming and non-farming segments of a rural Scottish community during the 19th and early 20th centuries using the variable-r method allowing for net migration. Using this method, I

Prevalence and seasonality of Hematodinium (Alveolata: Syndinea) in a Scottish crustacean community

Abstract Hamilton, K. M., Shaw, P. W., and Morritt, D. 2009. Prevalence and seasonality of Hematodinium (Alveolata: Syndinea) in a Scottish crustacean community. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 1837–1845. Protist parasites of the genus Hematodinium were detected in seven crustacean species (Cancer pagurus, Carcinus maenas, Liocarcinus depurator, Munida rugosa, Necora puber, Pagurus bernhardus, and Pagurus prideaux) from the Clyde Sea in Scotland. Seasonal screening of different tissues with sensitive molecular probes showed average infection of 3–23%, with prevalence reaching almost 60% in hermit crabs (P. bernhardus) and brachyuran hosts in spring and &gt;30% in C. pagurus and N. puber in autumn. During summer, Hematodinium infections were rare. Hematodinium seemed to be present in all host sizes sampled. The infection was equally distributed between males and females in most host species, except C. maenas, where males seemed to be more susceptible to infection. PCR amplification of the Hematodinium ribosomal RNA gene in crustacean tissue detected the parasite most frequently in muscle, gills, and heart throughout the 2-year sampling period.

Molecular epidemiology of syphilis in Scotland

Objective:To examine the molecular epidemiology of syphilis in Scotland.Methods:Ulcer specimens were collected from 85 patients with infectious syphilis. Typing of Treponema pallidum was performed using a method that examines variation...