Smallholder farmers in developing economies are key suppliers in agri-food value chains, yet often lack capabilities to meet quality, reliability, and sustainability expectations. This paper presents a systematic literature review of empirical studies on farmer development, conceptualised as supplier development at the farm gate to examine who builds farmers’ capabilities, which initiatives are implemented, and with what sustainability outcomes. Searches of a multidisciplinary library discovery service and Scopus identified 15 studies reporting implemented farmer development initiatives and farmer-level outcomes in developing economies. The synthesis shows that capability building is dominated by government and non-governmental organisation-led programmes, typically bundling training, extension, input provision, and financial support, while buyer-led initiatives are rare and performance is measured mainly in economic terms, with social and environmental dimensions under-specified. The review positions smallholder capability building within supply chain management and argues that building smallholder capabilities is both a development imperative and a strategic supply chain task.

The aim of this review is to quantify the strength of evidence for the efficacy of exogenous enzymes (EE) in dairy calf rearing, by systematically identifying, consolidating and discussing existing research on the subject. This review identified 17 articles that measured the effect of EE alone or in combination with another treatment on indicator variables for calf performance, behaviour, health or environmental output; 15 studies realised a positive effect of enzyme supplementation on at least one variable, and one study realised a negative effect of treatment on body parameters. Inconsistent results were noted for effects of EE on growth and feed efficiency. Studies that combined EE with another treatment, did not tend to find performance improvements compared to stand-alone treatments. However, several studies were underpowered which could have limited their ability to detect effects on primary response variables. All papers that measured digestibility found an increase in fibre digestibility from enzyme treatment; however, this did not always result in improved feed efficiency or growth. Reductions in non-nutritive oral behaviour, increased resting time and rumination, were observed in studies measuring calf behaviour, as were enhanced rumen development and reduced cost of calf rearing; suggesting that EE could enhance calf health and welfare, whilst having additional advantages for rearing economics. Future research into the efficacy of EE in dairy calves is worth pursuing. However, a targeted and evidence-based approach to experimental design is required, with due consideration given to enzyme actions and interactions, as well as robust power analysis for sample size.

Neurocognitive patterns in leadership shape employee behavior and organizational outcomes, offering important insights for advancing human resource management (HRM) theory and practice. Using a focused, theory-driven journal-based content analysis of ten high-ranked HRM and organizational journals, this review synthesizes neuroleadership research published between 2005 and 2025. The analysis is guided by six integrated neuroleadership themes (decision-making, emotional regulation, motivation and reward processing, social cognition, stress resilience, and attentional control) across six core HRM domains and interpreted through performance-oriented and sustainability-oriented HRM perspectives. The findings suggest that neuroleadership research predominantly emphasizes sustainability-oriented HRM, with decision-making and emotional–cognitive themes most frequently examined within learning and development, followed by employee engagement and well-being and organizational development. In contrast, performance-oriented HRM emphases, such as performance control and transactional management, receive comparatively less attention. The review highlights the need to expand research on motivation, stress resilience, and attentional control to address the demands of an increasingly digitalized workforce.

This systematic review and meta-analyses provide the first synthesis of the literature on trait mindfulness and psychotic-like experiences (PLEs). Theoretical models suggest a protective function of mindfulness and it is important to understand any potential role of mindfulness in the prevention and treatment of PLEs. We examined the following: (1) What is the relationship between trait mindfulness and PLEs in nonclinical populations?; and (2) What is the effect of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) on PLEs in nonclinical populations? Five databases were searched, and effect sizes were extracted for each study. Seventeen papers were included in the review. Eleven papers explored the relationship between mindfulness and PLEs, and the meta-regression found a small negative association between PLEs and mindfulness (k = 8; pooled correlation r = −0.25; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −0.37, −0.13, p < .001). Eight studies investigated the effect of MBIs on PLEs and the summary effect was not significant in the meta-analysis (k = 5; pooled standard mean difference = .09; 95% CI: −0.61, 0.79, p = 0.80). Overall, the findings suggest that higher levels of mindfulness are associated with reduced PLEs, with no evidence for the effectiveness of MBIs in reducing PLEs. Findings should be interpreted cautiously given the small number of studies and high heterogeneity in the meta-analyses. Future studies are needed to determine whether MBIs might prevent the transition to psychosis or an at-risk mental state and might usefully measure a broader range of clinically relevant outcomes.

Systematic reviews are often characterized as being inherently replicable, but several studies have challenged this claim. The objective of the study was to investigate the variation in results following independent replication of literature searches and meta-analyses of systematic reviews. We included 10 systematic reviews of the effects of health interventions published in November 2020. Two information specialists repeated the original database search strategies. Two experienced review authors screened full-text articles, extracted data, and calculated the results for the first reported meta-analysis. All replicators were initially blinded to the results of the original review. A meta-analysis was considered not ‘fully replicable’ if the original and replicated summary estimate or confidence interval width differed by more than 10%, and meaningfully different if there was a difference in the direction or statistical significance. The difference between the number of records retrieved by the original reviewers and the information specialists exceeded 10% in 25/43 (58%) searches for the first replicator and 21/43 (49%) searches for the second. Eight meta-analyses (80%, 95% CI: 49–96) were initially classified as not fully replicable. After screening and data discrepancies were addressed, the number of meta-analyses classified as not fully replicable decreased to five (50%, 95% CI: 24–76). Differences were classified as meaningful in one blinded replication (10%, 95% CI: 1–40) and none of the unblinded replications (0%, 95% CI: 0–28). The results of systematic review processes were not always consistent when their reported methods were repeated. However, these inconsistencies seldom affected summary estimates from meta-analyses in a meaningful way.

Growing demand for social care and resource constraints compel decision-makers to decide how to allocate public resources to social care. Such decisions may result in differences in access to social care between groups in society. In this study we conducted a secondary analysis of articles included in a systematic review on the underpinnings of resource allocation decisions in social care, extending that work to examine the potential consequences of such decisions. We conducted the review in accordance with the PRISMA framework. Through a thematic framework analysis of 37 of the 42 articles included in the parent review, we identified five groups in society that may be disproportionately affected by the consequences of resource allocation decisions on social care: (1) individuals with long-term social care needs (2) informal caregivers, (3) lower socio-economic groups, (4) individuals with limited health literacy skills, and (5) individuals living across different regions. Our findings highlight that allocation decisions in social care particularly affect women and individuals facing language barriers and may create local variation in provision of social care. These findings suggest potential for inequitable access to social care in society and underscore the need for decision-makers to consider the consequences of their allocation decisions.

Over the last 20 years, the political dynamics in EU legislative policy-making have fundamentally changed as trilogues have become the major forum for legislative negotiations. From this perspective, this article represents a first systematic review of the literature on trilogues by using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. In doing so, it demonstrates the impact of trilogues on EU legislative politics, both intra- and inter-institutionally, as well as the normative concerns they have raised. It also shows that trilogues do not yet constitute uniform practices. Further, this article identifies the limits of our knowledge and therefore avenues for future research to improve our understanding of EU legislative politics.

This article presents a new strategy for reviewing large, multidisciplinary academic literatures: a multi-method comprehensive review (MCR). We present this approach and demonstrate its use by the NGO Knowledge Collective, which aims to aggregate knowledge on NGOs in international development. We explain the process by which scholars can identify, analyze, and synthesize a population of hundreds or thousands of articles. MCRs facilitate cross-disciplinary synthesis, systematically identify gaps in a literature, and can create data for further scholarly use. The main drawback is the significant resources needed to manage the volume of text to review, although such obstacles may be mitigated through advances in “big data” methodologies over time.

Although episodic volunteers are a critical resource for many organisations, their motives for volunteering are poorly understood. A systematic review was conducted to describe empirical evidence about motives for episodic volunteering (EV) across sectors (sport, tourism, events, health and social welfare). Identified EV motives were then categorised using core functions from the Volunteer Functions Inventory (VFI) for comparison across studies. Twelve databases (1990–December 2014) were searched. Thirty-three English language studies included results describing EV motives. Studies were predominantly cross-sectional, quantitative, event-based and originating in North America. Measurement of motives was also inconsistent. Common motives were helping others and socialising. Physical challenge and healing motives were specific to sport-based events and charity sport events, respectively. Over 80 % of motives were classified using VFI functions, particularly enhancement, values and social functions. The VFI supplemented by qualitative work may be efficacious to further identify EV motives and retention strategies.

Telomere length is a biomarker of ageing, with shorter lengths associated with a higher risk of age-related diseases and mortality. Oxidative stress and inflammation predominantly contribute to telomere shortening. Diets rich in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties may help preserve telomere length. Nuts and seeds contain antioxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrients and bioactive compounds. Their consumption is recognised as protective against age-related conditions. The objective of this review is to evaluate the role of nut and seed intake on telomere length in humans. A systematic search was conducted in four databases from inception to 12 March 2024 to identify observational and interventional studies assessing nut and seed intake and measuring telomere length as an outcome in adults (aged ≥ 18 years). Data from the included articles were extracted by one reviewer and verified by another reviewer. Out of the nine observational studies included, three reported positive associations between nut and seed intake and telomere length. None of the four interventional studies included reported a significant positive effect. Meta-analysis was not performed due to high variability in reporting telomere length measurements. The evidence is insufficient to confirm a beneficial role of nut and seed intake on telomere length. Adequately powered long-term intervention studies are needed.

Several studies have been published studying association between parental low birth weight (BW) and neonatal outcomes of their children. To date no systematic review and meta-analysis (SRM) has been published to quantify the impact of maternal and paternal BW on outcomes in the next generation. The aim of this SRM was to analyse the association between parental BW and anthropometric and metabolic outcomes in their children.

Electronic databases were searched for studies documenting BW of parents and children with neonatal outcomes. Primary outcome was to evaluate impact of parental BW on occurrence of LBW in children. Secondary outcomes were to assess impact of parental BW on occurrence of macrosomia, small for gestational age (SGA), preterm labour/delivery, and burden of non-communicable disease in later life.

We screened 54,961 articles, data from 14 studies (320,515 parent–child pairs), which fulfilled all criteria, were analysed. Maternal LBW was associated with higher chances of neonatal LBW [odds ratio (OR)1.95 (95% CI:1.56–2.46); P < 0.01; I2 = 91%], neonatal SGA [OR 2.29(95% CI:1.72–3.05); P < 0.01; I2 = 37%], lower chances of neonatal macrosomia [OR 0.50 (95% CI:0.39–0.65); P < 0.01; I2 = 35%] and had no impact on preterm labour/delivery [OR1.20(95% CI:0.67–2.16); P = 0.53; I2 = 88%]. Maternal macrosomia was associated with higher neonatal macrosomia [OR 2.66 (95% CI:2.44–3.16); P < 0.01; I2 = 48%], lower SGA [OR 0.40(95% CI:0.29–0.53); P < 0.01; I2 = 0%] and preterm labour/delivery [OR 0.77 (95% CI:0.63–0.94); P < 0.01; I2 = 4%]. Paternal but not maternal LBW was predictor of metabolic syndrome and diabetes in adulthood.

Maternal LBW is an important predictor of LBW and SGA in neonates. Maternal macrosomia is an important predictor of neonatal macrosomia; is protective against SGA and preterm labour/childbirth. Neonatal size of parents is reflected in neonatal size of their children.

Cash transfer programmes have achieved widespread adoption across developing countries, yet evidence on their effectiveness in the Middle East and North Africa remains comparatively limited. This systematic review examines four central questions: whether transfer effectiveness shows threshold effects whereby modest amounts alter behaviour while substantial poverty reduction requires larger transfers; how supply-side service capacity constraints mediate the effectiveness of demand-side incentives; how conflict and displacement influence programme sustainability; and how programme design features interact with patriarchal structures to shape women’s empowerment. Database searches spanning 2000–2024 identified 270 experimental or quasi-experimental studies with quantitative outcomes. Narrative synthesis examined heterogeneity across transfer amounts, programme design, and contexts. Results indicate non-linear threshold effects: modest transfers (5–10 per cent of household income) alter behaviour through framing mechanisms, whereas meaningful poverty reduction requires transfers of 15–20 per cent or more. Demand-side incentives produce counterproductive outcomes when supply-side capacity binds. Humanitarian assistance improves consumption temporarily but effects dissipate within —four to ten months absent sustainable livelihood pathways. Financial resources alone do not guarantee women’s empowerment; complementary interventions addressing social norms and legal frameworks appear necessary. These findings suggest the imperative of calibrating transfer magnitudes to programme objectives while recognising empowerment requires interventions transcending monetary provision.