diff --git a/controller/Controller.php b/controller/Controller.php
index 39a5c8f74..21992b952 100644
--- a/controller/Controller.php
+++ b/controller/Controller.php
@@ -78,8 +78,7 @@ protected function negotiateFormat($choices, $accept, $format)
         // if there was no proposed format, negotiate a suitable format
         header('Vary: Accept'); // inform caches that a decision was made based on Accept header
         $best = $this->negotiator->getBest($accept, $choices);
-        $format = ($best !== null) ? $best->getValue() : null;
-        return $format;
+        return ($best !== null) ? $best->getValue() : null;
     }
 
     private function isSecure()
@@ -106,8 +105,7 @@ private function guessBaseHref()
         $port = filter_input(INPUT_SERVER, 'SERVER_PORT', FILTER_SANITIZE_STRING);
         $disp_port = ($port == 80 || $port == 443) ? '' : ":$port";
         $domain = filter_input(INPUT_SERVER, 'SERVER_NAME', FILTER_SANITIZE_STRING);
-        $full_url = "$protocol://{$domain}{$disp_port}{$base_url}";
-        return $full_url;
+        return "$protocol://{$domain}{$disp_port}{$base_url}";
     }
 
     public function getBaseHref()
diff --git a/controller/Honeypot.php b/controller/Honeypot.php
index 509e66d2c..917fc9a95 100644
--- a/controller/Honeypot.php
+++ b/controller/Honeypot.php
@@ -32,11 +32,10 @@ public function generate($honey_name, $honey_time)
     {
         // Encrypt the current time
         $honey_time_encrypted = $this->getEncryptedTime();
-        $html = '<div id="' . $honey_name . '_wrap" style="display:none;">' . "\r\n" .
-                    '<input name="' . $honey_name . '" type="text" value="" id="' . $honey_name . '"/>' . "\r\n" .
-                    '<input name="' . $honey_time . '" type="text" value="' . $honey_time_encrypted . '"/>' . "\r\n" .
+        return '<div id="' . $honey_name . '_wrap" style="display:none;">' . "\r\n" .
+               '<input name="' . $honey_name . '" type="text" value="" id="' . $honey_name . '"/>' . "\r\n" .
+               '<input name="' . $honey_time . '" type="text" value="' . $honey_time_encrypted . '"/>' . "\r\n" .
                 '</div>';
-        return $html;
     }
     /**
     * Validate honeypot is empty
diff --git a/controller/RestController.php b/controller/RestController.php
index a0acb01c5..48f9c1b64 100644
--- a/controller/RestController.php
+++ b/controller/RestController.php
@@ -707,12 +707,11 @@ private function transformPropertyResults($uri, $lang, $objects, $propname, $pro
             $results[] = array('uri' => $objuri, 'prefLabel' => $vals['label']);
         }
 
-        $ret = array_merge_recursive($this->context, array(
+        return array_merge_recursive($this->context, array(
             '@context' => array('prefLabel' => 'skos:prefLabel', $propname => $propuri, '@language' => $lang),
             'uri' => $uri,
             $propname => $results)
         );
-        return $ret;
     }
 
     private function transformTransitivePropertyResults($uri, $lang, $objects, $tpropname, $tpropuri, $dpropname, $dpropuri)
@@ -726,12 +725,11 @@ private function transformTransitivePropertyResults($uri, $lang, $objects, $tpro
             $results[$objuri] = $result;
         }
 
-        $ret = array_merge_recursive($this->context, array(
+        return array_merge_recursive($this->context, array(
             '@context' => array('prefLabel' => 'skos:prefLabel', $dpropname => array('@id' => $dpropuri, '@type' => '@id'), $tpropname => array('@id' => $tpropuri, '@container' => '@index'), '@language' => $lang),
             'uri' => $uri,
             $tpropname => $results)
         );
-        return $ret;
     }
 
     /**
diff --git a/controller/WebController.php b/controller/WebController.php
index 15a577ef2..fb9430298 100644
--- a/controller/WebController.php
+++ b/controller/WebController.php
@@ -373,8 +373,7 @@ private function createFeedbackHeaders($fromName, $fromEmail, $toMail, $sender)
         }
 
         $service = $this->model->getConfig()->getServiceName();
-        $headers .= "From: $fromName via $service <$sender>";
-        return $headers;
+        return $headers . "From: $fromName via $service <$sender>";
     }
 
     /**
diff --git a/model/Concept.php b/model/Concept.php
index a961f97d2..3b2a4c732 100644
--- a/model/Concept.php
+++ b/model/Concept.php
@@ -451,9 +451,7 @@ public function getMappingProperties(array $whitelist = null)
         }
 
         // sorting the properties to a order preferred in the Skosmos concept page.
-        $ret = $this->arbitrarySort($ret);
-
-        return $ret;
+        return $this->arbitrarySort($ret);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -632,8 +630,7 @@ public function getProperties()
 
         $ret = $this->removeDuplicatePropertyValues($ret, $duplicates);
         // sorting the properties to the order preferred in the Skosmos concept page.
-        $ret = $this->arbitrarySort($ret);
-        return $ret;
+        return $this->arbitrarySort($ret);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -904,8 +901,6 @@ public function dumpJsonLd() {
             }
         }
         $compactJsonLD = \ML\JsonLD\JsonLD::compact($this->graph->serialise('jsonld'), json_encode($context));
-        $results = \ML\JsonLD\JsonLD::toString($compactJsonLD);
-
-        return $results;
+        return \ML\JsonLD\JsonLD::toString($compactJsonLD);
     }
 }
diff --git a/model/ConceptMappingPropertyValue.php b/model/ConceptMappingPropertyValue.php
index c46777629..2b6fa6f4e 100644
--- a/model/ConceptMappingPropertyValue.php
+++ b/model/ConceptMappingPropertyValue.php
@@ -79,8 +79,7 @@ private function queryLabel($lang = '', $queryExVocabs = true)
         }
 
         // using URI as label if nothing else has been found.
-        $label = $this->resource->shorten() ? $this->resource->shorten() : $this->resource->getUri();
-        return $label;
+        return $this->resource->shorten() ? $this->resource->shorten() : $this->resource->getUri();
     }
 
     private function getResourceLabel($res, $lang = '') {
@@ -108,8 +107,7 @@ public function getUri()
 
     public function getExVocab()
     {
-        $exvocab = $this->model->guessVocabularyFromURI($this->getUri(), $this->vocab->getId());
-        return $exvocab;
+        return $this->model->guessVocabularyFromURI($this->getUri(), $this->vocab->getId());
     }
 
     public function getVocab()
diff --git a/model/ConceptPropertyValue.php b/model/ConceptPropertyValue.php
index ff5c804ed..bfec6bcae 100644
--- a/model/ConceptPropertyValue.php
+++ b/model/ConceptPropertyValue.php
@@ -80,8 +80,7 @@ public function getLabel($lang = '', $fallbackToUri = 'uri')
 
         if ($fallbackToUri == 'uri') {
             // return uri if no label is found
-            $label = $this->resource->shorten() ? $this->resource->shorten() : $this->getUri();
-            return $label;
+            return $this->resource->shorten() ? $this->resource->shorten() : $this->getUri();
         }
         return null;
     }
diff --git a/model/ConceptSearchParameters.php b/model/ConceptSearchParameters.php
index 46213d39e..e710f43be 100644
--- a/model/ConceptSearchParameters.php
+++ b/model/ConceptSearchParameters.php
@@ -48,8 +48,7 @@ public function getVocabIds()
             return ($vocabs !== null && $vocabs !== '') ? explode(' ', $vocabs) : null;
         }
         $vocabs = $this->getVocabs();
-        $ret = isset($vocabs[0]) ? array($vocabs[0]->getId()) : null;
-        return $ret;
+        return isset($vocabs[0]) ? array($vocabs[0]->getId()) : null;
     }
 
     public function setVocabularies($vocabs)
diff --git a/model/Model.php b/model/Model.php
index 35bc770bf..0bbf73cd3 100644
--- a/model/Model.php
+++ b/model/Model.php
@@ -401,9 +401,7 @@ public function getVocabularyCategories()
     public function getClassificationLabel($lang)
     {
         $cats = $this->globalConfig->getGraph()->allOfType('skos:ConceptScheme');
-        $label = $cats ? $cats[0]->label($lang) : null;
-
-        return $label;
+        return $cats ? $cats[0]->label($lang) : null;
     }
 
     /**
diff --git a/resource/js/docready.js b/resource/js/docready.js
index 5fa660ef3..b451e8fff 100644
--- a/resource/js/docready.js
+++ b/resource/js/docready.js
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ $(function() { // DOCUMENT READY
         });
         return removeThese.join(' ');
       });
-      if (settings.url.indexOf('index/' !== -1)) {
+      if (settings.url.indexOf('index/') !== -1) {
         $(".sidebar-grey").mCustomScrollbar({
           alwaysShowScrollbar: 1,
           scrollInertia: 0,
@@ -247,8 +247,8 @@ $(function() { // DOCUMENT READY
   var $delayedSpinner = $("<p class='concept-spinner center-block'>" + loading_text + "&hellip;</p>");
 
   // adds a delay before showing the spinner configured above
-  function delaySpinner(loading) {
-    loading = setTimeout(function() { $('.concept-spinner').show() }, 500);
+  function delaySpinner() {
+    return setTimeout(function() { $('.concept-spinner').show() }, 500);
   }
 
   function ajaxConceptMapping(data) {
@@ -276,11 +276,10 @@ $(function() { // DOCUMENT READY
         var historyUrl = (clang !== lang) ? targetUrl + '?' + parameters : targetUrl;
         $('#hier-trigger').attr('href', targetUrl);
         var $content = $('.content').empty().append($delayedSpinner.hide());
-        var loading;
+        var loading = delaySpinner();
         $.ajax({
             url : targetUrl,
             data: parameters,
-            beforeSend: delaySpinner(loading),
             complete: clearTimeout(loading),
             success : function(data) {
               $content.empty();
@@ -307,10 +306,9 @@ $(function() { // DOCUMENT READY
         $('.activated-concept').removeClass('activated-concept');
         $(this).addClass('activated-concept');
         var $content = $('.content').empty().append($delayedSpinner.hide());
-        var loading;
+        var loading = delaySpinner();
         $.ajax({
             url : event.target.href,
-            beforeSend: delaySpinner(loading),
             complete: clearTimeout(loading),
             success : function(data) {
               if (window.history.pushState) { window.history.pushState({}, null, event.target.href); }
@@ -433,12 +431,10 @@ $(function() { // DOCUMENT READY
   $(document).on('click','div.group-hierarchy a',
       function(event) {
         var $content = $('.content').empty().append($delayedSpinner.hide());
-        var loading;
+        var loading = delaySpinner();
         // ajaxing the sidebar content
         $.ajax({
             url : event.target.href,
-            beforeSend: delaySpinner(loading),
-            complete: clearTimeout(loading),
             success : function(data) {
               initHierarchyQtip();
               $('#hier-trigger').attr('href', event.target.href);
@@ -663,7 +659,6 @@ $(function() { // DOCUMENT READY
       },
       ajax: {
         beforeSend: function(jqXHR, settings) {
-          wildcard = ($('#search-field').val().indexOf('*') === -1) ? '*' : '';
           var vocabString = $('.frontpage').length ? vocabSelectionString : vocab;
           var parameters = $.param({'vocab' : vocabString, 'lang' : qlang, 'labellang' : qlang});
           // if the search has been targeted at all languages by clicking the checkbox
diff --git a/tests/DataObjectTest.php b/tests/DataObjectTest.php
index 339042b81..d98010371 100644
--- a/tests/DataObjectTest.php
+++ b/tests/DataObjectTest.php
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@ class DataObjectTest extends PHPUnit\Framework\TestCase
    */
   public function testConstructorNoArguments()
   {
-    new DataObject(null, null);
+    $obj = new DataObject(null, null);
+    $this->assertNotNull($obj);
   }
 
 }
diff --git a/tests/GlobalConfigTest.php b/tests/GlobalConfigTest.php
index e394c59bd..86598e4a4 100644
--- a/tests/GlobalConfigTest.php
+++ b/tests/GlobalConfigTest.php
@@ -138,7 +138,8 @@ public function testGetGlobalPlugins()
      */
     public function testInitializeConfigWithoutGraph()
     {
-        new GlobalConfig('/../tests/testconfig-nograph.ttl');
+        $conf = new GlobalConfig('/../tests/testconfig-nograph.ttl');
+        $this->assertNotNull($conf);
     }
 
     /**
@@ -146,7 +147,8 @@ public function testInitializeConfigWithoutGraph()
      */
     public function testInexistentFile()
     {
-        new GlobalConfig('/../tests/testconfig-idonotexist.ttl');
+        $conf = new GlobalConfig('/../tests/testconfig-idonotexist.ttl');
+        $this->assertNotNull($conf);
     }
 
     // --- tests for some default values
diff --git a/tests/ModelTest.php b/tests/ModelTest.php
index 402adea2a..2f6be1970 100644
--- a/tests/ModelTest.php
+++ b/tests/ModelTest.php
@@ -24,7 +24,8 @@ protected function tearDown() {
    */
   public function testConstructorWithConfig()
   {
-    new Model(new GlobalConfig('/../tests/testconfig.ttl'));
+    $model = new Model(new GlobalConfig('/../tests/testconfig.ttl'));
+    $this->assertNotNull($model);
   }
 
   /**
diff --git a/tests/VocabularyCategoryTest.php b/tests/VocabularyCategoryTest.php
index 10ac7cdb2..0aaae94fd 100644
--- a/tests/VocabularyCategoryTest.php
+++ b/tests/VocabularyCategoryTest.php
@@ -20,7 +20,8 @@ protected function setUp() {
    * @expectedExceptionMessage Invalid constructor parameter given to DataObject.
    */
   public function testConstructorWithInvalidParameters() {
-    new VocabularyCategory('invalid', 'invalid');
+    $vcat = new VocabularyCategory('invalid', 'invalid');
+    $this->assertNotNull($vcat);
   }
 
   /**