Eine neuer Weg zur Beschreibung beruflicher Leistung: Eigenverantwortung

Self-responsible behavior is introduced as a new part of work performance. It is defined as an organizational behavior, which should be well adapted to a difficult and extra-ordinary situation lacking a well-defined task. A decreasing frequency of clearly defined tasks and roles is observable because of changes due to general restructuring, cutting off hierarchy levels and out-sourcing of major organizational functions. Employees acting in a self-responsible manner face these situations by defining their tasks on their own risk. Other new theories of extra-role behavior (e.g. organizational citizenship behavior, contextual performance or whistle blowing) are classified as either self-responsible or as “carrying out one′s duty” regarding the criteria ‘usefulness for the organization’ and ‘gratuitousness of acts’.     

The iterative proportional fitting algorithm for adjusted agreement in a non‐inferiority diagnostic clinical trial

In this paper, we describe a method of comparing agreement between two diagnostic contingency tables after adjustment to more clinically relevant marginal distributions using the iterative proportional fitting algorithm. When the categories of a contingency table represent mild, moderate, and severe outcomes, the majority of patients often are in the mild category. Because it is often of more interest to evaluate agreement when patients are uniformly distributed among categories, we present the primary results of two clinical trials with adjustment to this structure. We also describe the relationship between the sponsor's pre‐specified agreement measure for the observed contingency table and kappa for the adjusted table; and by either criterion, we then show that the agreement of the new diagnostic tool with the standard diagnostic tool is comparably non‐inferior to the agreement of the standard diagnostic tool with itself. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The protestant ethic and the religious tattoo

This research illustrates how basic ideas from Weber's Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism are reflected in religious individuals’ choices in obtaining tattoos. Qualitative responses to survey questions show that, among 60 university students who indicated they have one, religious tattoos reflect asceticism in their lives, point them to service (calling) in the name of God, or provide a level of assurance (or anxiety) regarding life after death. We offer this work as an illustration of how the essence of Weber's work persists in the popular culture of the 21st century.     

Make Schools,Not War? Donors' Rewriting of the Social Contract in the DRC

The school being one of the most important ‘faces’ of the state at the local level in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, investment in education can play an important role in reconstructing the social contract between the population and the state after violent conflict. However, this is particularly difficult since the state has largely retreated from the education sector since the 1980s, and education is now organised through public‐private partnerships with religious networks. Moreover, schools have been turned into tax units, in response to the retreat of the state and the declining wages of school administrators. This has had a clear effect on donor interventions, which, instead of changing the current system, have become part of existing configurations and led to an expansion of the current system.     

The Equivalence of Parameter Estimates from Growth Curve Models and Seemingly Unrelated Regression Models

Seemingly unrelated regression models and growth curve models are examples of multivariate models that require special estimation techniques. Parameters in seemingly unrelated regression models can be estimated by using two-stage Aitken estimation based on unrestricted residuals; parameters in growth curve models can be estimated by using a Potthoff-Roy (1964) transformation based on an estimate of the dispersion. With proper choice of the seemingly unrelated regression model, the two multivariate models and corresponding parameter estimates are shown to be equivalent. Recognition of the equivalence simplifies the presentation of these more complicated multivariate models. The connection is also of interest for more flexible growth curve models.     

Change and stability in commensality patterns: a comparative analysis of Belgian time-use data from 1966, 1999 and 2004

The decline of the family meal is a popular concern in contemporary Western society. This article assesses how commensality patterns have evolved in Belgium over the last four decades and which factors have an impact on commensality. The study uses Belgian time-budget data from 1966 and 1999 to obtain an insight into the evolution of commensality patterns. Flemish time-use data from 2004 are used to determine the factors that affect commensality patterns. It is concluded that there has been a significant decrease in family commensality between 1966 and 1999, while eating has become more individualized during the same period. This holds for all days of the week and for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The data also revealed that a number of factors that are often assumed to entail the individualization of eating practices, such as the increased availability of products for self-catering, have little impact on commensality patterns in practice. The factor with the strongest impact on commensality patterns is living arrangements. People who live alone generally do not have anyone with whom to share their meals. Married and cohabiting couples, on the other hand, tend to eat together on a regular basis, while parents still share the majority of meal-times with their co-resident children.     

Romantic Relationship Commitment and Its Linkages with Commitment to Parents and Friends during Adolescence

This five‐wave longitudinal study examines linkages between adolescents' perceptions of romantic relationship commitment and the development of adolescents' perceptions of commitment to parents and friends. A total of 218 early‐to‐middle adolescents (39.0 percent boys) and 185 middle‐to‐late adolescents (30.8 percent boys) participated. Multivariate growth curves showed that higher base levels of commitment and a stronger positive development of commitment to parents and friends were associated with higher levels of later commitment to romantic partners. The effects were equally strong in early‐to‐middle adolescence and middle‐to‐late adolescence. Also, commitment to parents and commitment to friends were associated equally strong to romantic relationship commitment. No gender differences were found regarding these linkages. Overall, this study shows the importance of parents and friends for boys and girls regarding committed romantic relationships. The results support the idea of one stable and general working model used in different types of relationships.     

Coping with missing data in phase III pivotal registration trials: Tolvaptan in subjects with kidney disease,a case study

Missing data cause challenging issues, particularly in phase III registration trials, as highlighted by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the US National Research Council. We explore, as a case study, how the issues from missing data were tackled in a double‐blind phase III trial in subjects with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. A total of 1445 subjects were randomized in a 2:1 ratio to receive active treatment (tolvaptan), or placebo. The primary outcome, the rate of change in total kidney volume, favored tolvaptan (P < .0001). The key secondary efficacy endpoints of clinical progression of disease and rate of decline in kidney function also favored tolvaptan. However, as highlighted by Food and Drug Administration and EMA, the interpretation of results was hampered by a high number of unevenly distributed dropouts, particularly early dropouts. In this paper, we outline the analyses undertaken to address the issue of missing data thoroughly. “Tipping point analyses” were performed to explore how extreme and detrimental outcomes among subjects with missing data must be to overturn the positive treatment effect attained in those subjects who had complete data. Nonparametric rank‐based analyses were also performed accounting for missing data. In conclusion, straightforward and transparent analyses directly taking into account missing data convincingly support the robustness of the preplanned analyses on the primary and secondary endpoints. Tolvaptan was confirmed to be effective in slowing total kidney volume growth, which is considered an efficacy endpoint by EMA, and in lessening the decline in renal function in patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease.