Minimizing makespan in an ordered flow shop with?machine-dependent processing times

We consider a generalization of the proportionate flow shop problem with the makespan objective. Each job has a processing requirement and each machine has a characteristic value. In our case, we assume that the time a job occupies a machine is equal to the processing requirement of the job plus a setup time that is equal to the characteristic value of that machine. In this paper, we consider permutation schedules and show that the problem is solvable in polynomial time when the number of machines is fixed.     

The consequences of unobserved heterogeneity in a sequential logit model

Cameron and Heckman (1998) established that a sequential logit model is more sensitive than many other models to the possible biasing influence of unobserved heterogeneity. This article proposes a method which allows researchers to find out how large this potential problem is for their data, their model, and their hypothesis of interest. This is done by proposing a set of scenarios for this unobserved heterogeneity, and showing how to estimate the effects of interest given these scenarios. The set of results from these scenarios give an indication of how sensitive the results are to assumptions regarding unobserved heterogeneity. This sensitivity analysis has been applied to a study of educational attainment in the Netherlands, and it showed that that the finding that the effect of father's education declined over transitions is quite sensitive to the assumptions made about unobserved heterogeneity, but that the finding that the effect of father's education declined over birth cohorts is more robust than is often feared.     

On estimating the distribution of data envelopment analysis efficiency scores: an application to nursing homes’ care planning process

Data envelopment analysis (DEA) is a deterministic econometric model for calculating efficiency by using data from an observed set of decision-making units (DMUs). We propose a method for calculating the distribution of efficiency scores. Our framework relies on estimating data from an unobserved set of DMUs. The model provides posterior predictive data for the unobserved DMUs to augment the frontier in the DEA that provides a posterior predictive distribution for the efficiency scores. We explore the method on a multiple-input and multiple-output DEA model. The data for the example are from a comprehensive examination of how nursing homes complete a standardized mandatory assessment of residents.     

Die Einstellung zur Einführung des „Doppelpasses“

In this study the attitude towards the new nationality law in Germany is explained by a value/expectancy theory of attitude. 215 standardized face-to-face-interviews were performed with a quota sample. The results of this survey show that the value and expectancy theory of attitude is extremely successful in explaining the attitude towards the new nationality law. Models explaining the predictor variable of the attitude theory and a feedback-model were tested.     

Inflated beta distributions

This paper considers the issue of modeling fractional data observed on [0,1), (0,1] or [0,1]. Mixed continuous-discrete distributions are proposed. The beta distribution is used to describe the continuous component of the model since its density can have quite different shapes depending on the values of the two parameters that index the distribution. Properties of the proposed distributions are examined. Also, estimation based on maximum likelihood and conditional moments is discussed. Finally, practical applications that employ real data are presented.     

Approaches used by employee assistance programs to address perpetration of intimate partner violence

Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) are workplace resources available to employees with problems impacting work performance. EAPs are well-positioned to address intimate partner violence (IPV), a major public health problem with workplace impacts. A purposeful sample of 28 EAPs across the United States was surveyed to identify policies and programs to address IPV, including perpetration. Most EAPs did not report having standardized approaches for addressing IPV perpetration. EAPs also described significant barriers to identifying IPV perpetrators, with the majority relying on self-disclosure on the part of the perpetrator when contacting the EAP. These results suggest that many EAPs--even when interacting with employees who present with issues known to correlate with IPV--are missing a potential opportunity to assess and intervene with IPV perpetrators.     

Rural ageing in the United States: Trends and contexts

This paper examines rural population ageing in the United States with a particular focus on the contrasting contexts in which older rural residents live. We compare the characteristics of the older population by rural versus urban residence, and explore challenges and opportunities associated with the ageing of rural baby boomers. The United States is a vast territory, and rural areas in the US are diverse regionally, in poverty and income, principal forms of employment, proximity to metropolitan areas, population size, density and composition, the history of change in these parameters, and a number of other factors that affect the ageing process. Hence, the diversity across rural areas is an important consideration in what affects the well being of rural elderly individuals, as well as the community-level impacts of rural ageing. Further, the characteristics of the older rural population help shape community and rural development outcomes for diverse rural communities. We use data from various US Census Bureau sources, and cite other studies to provide a demographic overview of ageing in the rural United States, and to analyze how this situation differs in varying socio-demographic and regional contexts. In the concluding section, we focus on policy implications associated with rural ageing.     

When the Time Comes: Families with Aging Parents Share Their Struggles and Solutions,by Paula Span

No abstract available for this article.     

Religion as a Determinant of Educational Attainment: An Economic Perspective

This paper uses data from the 1987–88 National Survey of Families and Households to study how the religion in which individuals are brought up influences the number of years of schooling that they complete. In multivariate analyses where a large number of other family background factors are held constant, significant differences by religion are uncovered: educational attainment is highest among Jews and lowest among fundamentalist Protestants, with Catholics and mainline Protestants at the center of the distribution. Various channels through which religion may influence the level of schooling are considered, within the framework of a human capital model that distinguishes between supply and demand factors. The empirical findings suggest that while demand influences are most important in explaining the high education of Jews, the relatively low schooling level of fundamentalist Protestants reflects supply and demand forces of similar strength. Analyses of schooling transitions shed light on the stages of the process at which the divergences occur.