Subjective utility with upper and lower probabilities on finite states

This article is concerned with thresholds of discrimination of preference judgments under uncertainty. We establish an axiomatic characterization for a threshold representation, where thresholds are represented by inexact measurement of subjective probabilities, i.e., upper and lower probabilities. Since upper and lower probabilities need not be additive, the representational form adopts the Choquet integration.     

The econometrics of female labor supply and children

This is a survey of applied econometric research on the effects of children on female labor supply. Reasons for interest in the topic, and a basic model and terminology, are reviewed. Concerns are raised about the possible endogeneity of child status variables, and about the instrumental variables approach for dealing with this problem. Alternative ways of conceptualizing and estimating child status effects are considered, together with selected empirical evidence. Relevant developments from the household demand literature are summarized. Basic issues of model choice are also discussed.     

Sequential Hypothesis Tests for Identifying the Minimum Dose with a Threshold Effect

We propose a procedure to identify a lowest dose having greater effect than a threshold dose under the assumption of monotonicity of dose mean response in dose response test. So, we use statistics based on contrasts among sample means and apply a group sequential procedure to our procedure to identify effectively the dose. If we can identify the dose at an early step in the sequential test, since we can terminate the procedure with a few observations, the procedure is useful from an economical point of view. In a simulation studies, we compare the superiority among these procedures based on three contrasts.     

The COVID‐19 Pandemic and Families in Japan

This paper, which is authored by members of the Japanese Association of Family Therapy (JAFT), describes the COVID‐19 pandemic in Japan from a family systems perspective. The authors are active members of JAFT and include current and past presidents and officers. We describe the course of the pandemic and the ways in which government policies to mitigate the pandemic have affected Japanese families. Challenges that affect Japanese families include the inability to participate in family and social rituals, prescribed gender roles that specifically affect women, high suicide rates, and prejudice against those who are at risk of spreading the infection. The need to shelter in place has also forced family homes to function as a workplace for parents, classrooms for children, and day care services for frail elders, which has resulted in psychological distress among individuals and conflicts among families. We discuss ways that therapists have worked with Japanese families using online therapy.     

Urban shade as a cryptic habitat: fern distribution in building gaps in Sapporo,northern Japan

Urban Ecosystems - Biodiversity conservation and restoration in cities is a global challenge for the 21st century. Unlike other common ecosystems, urban landscapes are predominantly covered by...     

Influence in covariance structure analysis: with an application to confirmatory factor analysis

Influence functions are derived for the parameters in covariance structure analysis, where the parameters are estimated by minimizing a discrepancy function between the assumed covariance matrix and the sample covariance matrix. The case of confirmatory factor analysis is studied precisely with a numerical example. Comparing with a general procedure called one-step estimation, the proposed procedure has two advantages:1) computing cost is cheaper, 2) the property that arbitrary influence can be decomposed into a fi-nite number of components discussed by Tanaka and Castano-Tostado(1990) can be used for efficient computing and the characterization of a covariance structure model from the sensitivity perspective. A numerical comparison is made among the confirmatory factor analysis and some procedures of ex-ploratory factor analysis by using the decomposition mentioned above.     

Estimation of firm-specific technological bias,technical change and total factor productivity growth: a dual approach

This paper deals with modeling firm-specific technical change (TC), and technological biases (inputs and scale) in estimating total factor productivity (TFP) growth. Several dual parametric econometric models are used for this purpose. We examine robustness of TFP growth and TC among competing models. These models include the traditional time trend (TT) model and the general index (GI) model. The TT and the GI models are generalized to accommodate firm-specific TC and technological bias (in inputs and output). Both nested and non-nested tests are used to select the appropriate models. Firm-level panel data from the Japanese chemical industry during 1968- 1987 is used as an application.     

Constructing Co-governance between Government and Civil Society: An Institutional Approach to Collaboration

The aim of this paper is to analyze how civil society organizations (CSOs) collaborate with both developed and developing governments in Asia through institutional processes. It argues that in developed countries, institutional arrangements have a positive impact on collaboration. Favourable administrative governance can create collaboration between governments and CSOs. This paper reports on 3,944 studies of CSOs from 2004 to 2009 in Tokyo, Seoul, Manila, and Dhaka. CSOs in Tokyo have better combined collaborative and institutional processes than those in the other three cities. Governance in Seoul is more polarized than in the other cities, and in both Manila and Dhaka, despite there being a high degree of institutionalized relations between CSOs and the government, their collaboration is low. This research also finds that intermediary institutions between governments and CSOs play a role in co-governance.     

Fluctuations of grasshopper populations on aMiscanthus sinensis grassland

Summary Population densities of the three grasshopper species onMiscanthus sinensis grassland in the Kawatabi IBP Area, Japan,Parapleurus alliaceus, Mongolotettix japonicus andChorthippus latipennis, were estimated principally by the release-and-recapture method for five years from 1968 to 1972. The total number of individuals of all three grasshopper species was about 42 per 100m² in August. The number of individuals ofP. alliaceus adult, the dominant species on this grassland, showed a tendency to decline during the five years, though the amplitude was not so large. The number of eggs laid was, however, nearly constant and the mortality from the second nymphal instar to adult was relatively low and constant during the survey period. The weather conditions during the periods of egg and the first instar, such as snowfall and temperature decreasing, are suggested to be one of the factors causing variation in numbers. Contributions from JIBP-CT No. 145. A part of this study was supported by the special project, “Studies on the dynamic status of biosphere”, sponsored by the Ministry of Education.