Rethinking Print Periodicals Holdings Retention Policy in Small Academic Libraries

Abstract

Collection development policies in small academic libraries may lack a formal policy statement about print periodical holdings retention. However, there is a need for a distinct policy about print periodicals holdings and their retention. Periodicals collections at academic libraries have been greatly affected by publishers’ decisions to discontinue print journal formats and move to online-only electronic versions. The move from one format to another produces challenges to the retention of an effective print periodicals collection. Given these continuous changes in publication format, it is necessary for academic libraries to rethink their print periodicals holdings retention. This article will present a literature review on and case study of periodicals collection management and explore strategies for developing holdings policies and guidelines for retention. It will argue that collection development policies ought to include a separate policy for the print periodicals collection and that unlike their reputation for being time-consuming and inflexible, periodical retention policies can improve flexibility and guide in decision making, helping to preserve core titles and acquire new titles that support academic programs and the work of the college community.     

Time-varying clustering of multivariate longitudinal observations

Abstract

We propose a statistical method for clustering multivariate longitudinal data into homogeneous groups. This method relies on a time-varying extension of the classical K-means algorithm, where a multivariate vector autoregressive model is additionally assumed for modeling the evolution of clusters' centroids over time. Model inference is based on a least-squares method and on a coordinate descent algorithm. To illustrate our work, we consider a longitudinal dataset on human development. Three variables are modeled, namely life expectancy, education and gross domestic product.     

The effect of non-normality on estimating the variance of the combined ratio estimate in complex surveys

The performance of the balanced half-sample, jackknife and linearization methods for estimating the variance of the combined ratio estimate is studied by means of a computer simulation using artificially generated non-normally distributed populations.

The results of this investigation demonstrate that the variance estimates for the combined ratio estimate may be highly biased and unstable when the underlying distributions are non-normal. This is particularly true when the number of observations available from each stratum is small. The jack-     

Circular First- and Second-Order Balanced Repeated Measurements Designs

Sharma (1977 Sharma , V. K. ( 1977 ). Change-over designs with complete balance for first and second order residual effect . Canad. J. Statist. 5 : 121 – 132 .[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) and Aggarwal et al. (2006 Aggarwal , M. L. , Deng , L.-Y. , Jha , M. K. ( 2006 ). Balanced residual treatment effects designs of first and second order . Statist. Probab. Lett. 76 : 597 – 600 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) considered non circular construction of first- and second-order balanced repeated measurements designs. Sharma et al. (2002 Sharma , V. K. , Varghese , C. , Jaggi , S. ( 2002 ). On optimality of change-over designs balanced for first and second order residual effects . Metron 60 : 153 – 162 . [Google Scholar]) constructed circular first- and second-order balanced repeated measurements designs only for a class with parameters (v, p = 3n, n = v ²) and also showed its universal optimality. In this article, we consider circular construction of first- and second-order balanced repeated measurements designs and strongly balanced repeated measurements designs by using the method of cyclic shifts. Some new circular designs with parameters (v, p, n) for cases p = v, p < v and p > v are given.     

On the recovery of intra- and interblock information in n-ary designs

This note presents an extension of Q-method of analysis for binary designs given by Rao (1956) to n-ary balanced and partially balanced block designs. Here a linked n-ary block (LNB) design is defined as the dual of balanced n-ary (BN) design. Having a note on Yates’ (1939, 1940) method of P-analysis, we further extend the expressions for binary linked block (LB) designs given by Rao (1956) to linked n-ary block (LNB) designs which admit easy estimation of parameters for these type of all n-ary designs.     

Use of balanced bipartite weighing designs as chemical balance designs

This paper deals with the use of balanced bipartite weighing designs as chemical balance designs when there Is a restriction on the number of objects that can be placed on either pan..The variance of each estimated weight and the covarlance of each pair of estimated weights are worked out.The use of additional weighing when the design matrix is singular is discussed.     

Statistical methodology for binary data from a set of partially structured two-way random cross-classifications

A complete two-way cross-classification design is not practical in many settings. For example, in a toxicological study where 30 male rats are mated with 30 female rats and each mating outcome (successful or unsuccessful)is observed, time and resource considerations can make the use of the complete design prohibitively costly. Partially structured variations of this design are, therefore, of interest (e.g., the balanced disjoint rectangle design, the fully diagonal design, and the "S"-design). Methodology for analyzing binary data from such incomplete designs is illustrated with an example. This methodology, which is based on infinite population sampling arguments, allows the estimation of the mean response, among-row correlation coefficient, among-column correlation coefficient, and the within-cell correlation coefficient as well as their standard errors.     

On the maximum number of constraints for s-symbol balanced arrays of strength t

Several upper bounds on the maximum number of constraints for s-symbol balanced arrays of strength t are given. Some bounds derived here include the results obtained by Rafter and Seiden (1974), Chopra (1982, 1983) and Saha, Mukerjee and Kageyama (1983).     

Bivariate distributions of some ratios of independent noncentral chi-square random variables

The bivariate distributions of three pairs of ratios of in¬dependent noncentral chi-square random variables are considered. These ratios arise in the problem of computing the joint power function of simultaneous F-tests in balanced ANOVA and ANCOVA. The distributions obtained are generalizations to the noncentral case of existing results in the literature. Of particular note is the bivariate noncentral F distribution, which generalizes a special case of Krishnaiah*s (1964,1965) bivariate central F distribution. Explicit formulae for the cdf's of these distribu¬tions are given, along with computational procedures