Analysis of a continuous-time proportional hazard model using discrete duration data

Many economic duration variables are often available only up to intervals, and not up to exact points. However, continuous time duration models are conceptually superior to discrete ones. Hence, in duration analyses, one faces a situation with discrete data and a continuous model. This paper discusses (i) the asymptotic bias of a conventional approximation procedure in which a discrete duration is treated as an exact observation; and (ii) the efficiency of a correct maximum likelihood estimator which appropriately accounts for the discrete nature of the data.     

What makes hybrid insourcing successful: A new public–private partnership model for social welfare services

Outsourcing has been a key policy tool for delivering a range of social services, and regarded as more effective than insourcing or direct government provision. At the same time, it has also caused many delivery issues such as principal‐agent problems, a lack of policy coordination, and poor‐quality welfare services. While the pendulum continues to swing between insourcing and outsourcing, we aim to propose a new public–private partnership model called the “hybrid insourcing model” and examine which factors influence the performance of the model. In South Korea, around 2010, the local government in Namyangju City was the first to implement the “Hope Care Center model,” a kind of hybrid insourcing model, which has been praised for its innovation and widely emulated by central and local governments. Our analysis utilizes data collected between December 2017 and January 2018 from public sector employees and civilian staff in Namyangju and a comparable city, A. From this, we draw a number of implications, both for theory and for policy. We argue that, for public–private partnerships, active cooperation and equality are the biggest factors in contributing to positive performance. These work alongside leaders with a clear vision and with employees' positive attitude.     

Analysis of a continuous-time proportional hazard model using discrete duration data

Many economic duration variables are often available only up to intervals, and not up to exact points. However, continuous time duration models are conceptually superior to discrete ones. Hence, in duration analyses, one faces a situation with discrete data and a continuous model. This paper discusses (i) the asymptotic bias of a conventional approximation procedure in which a discrete duration is treated as an exact observation; and (ii) the efficiency of a correct maximum likelihood estimator which appropriately accounts for the discrete nature of the data.     

Strategic public management for financial condition: Focus on fund balances of school districts

Scholars have emphasized the roles of strategic public management and the financial condition but little is known about the link between the two. Finding the missing link is the purpose of this study. By analyzing data from K-12 Texas school districts, this study investigates how top managers’ strategic efforts toward their superiors, subordinates, and external stakeholders affect the financial condition of school districts. The findings suggest that superintendents’ managing upward toward school boards increases fund balances, whereas managing downward toward school principals decreases fund balances. Apparently, the relationships between school boards, superintendents, and school principals contain different priorities and incentives that influence their behaviors in managing school district budgets.     

红外吸收峰的位置波动:归因于单一谱带的频移还是重叠谱带相对强度的变化?

红外吸收峰的位置波动可能由单一谱带的实际频移或是邻近重叠谱带相对强度的变化而产生。本文通过主成分分析法(PCA)有力地证明了光谱位置波动的根源往往归因于后一种机理。PCA能灵敏有效地区分单一谱带的实际频移与由重叠谱带相对强度变化所产生的最大峰移。对于由分子相互作用强度变化所诱导,并在振动光谱领域较为常见的所谓带移的概念,往往由于其隐含了谱带的固有频移而有些概念误导。在许多红外光谱中,峰极大值表面的位移,一般产生于两条重叠谱带相对贡献的变化,而不是分子相互作用强度变化所诱导的单一谱带的缓慢频移。这个观点可以帮助我们解释振动光谱所探测到的分子相互作用。     

Changing risk preferences in supply chain inventory decisions

The risk preferences of managers may cause their inventory ordering decisions to deviate from the optimal policy. Past studies in operations management have produced mixed results. This study examines this proposition using decision data collected from a supply chain experiment. This article finds that changing the risk preferences of managers with respect to demand changes and supplier failures is a significant behavioural factor in explaining deviations in ordering decisions. This result provides an additional behavioural cause in explaining the bullwhip effect in supply chains. It also provides insights on the challenges for reducing the bullwhip effect in supply chains.     

Accountability,Political Views,and Bureaucratic Behavior: A Theoretical Approach

This study has developed a theoretical framework to predict bureaucratic behaviors with career public officials’ political views (whether career public officials agree or disagree with their overhead political principals’ ideology) and bureaucratic accountability (accountability either to the overhead political principals or to the public sentiment) by adopting and extending Hirschman’s (1970) exit, voice, and loyalty model. Given the two conditions, this study has drawn four propositions of possible bureaucratic responses: loyalty; voice; exit; and silence. In addition, the stay scenario is discussed for passive bureaucrats regardless of the two dimensions. By incorporating relevant examples with the propositions, this study expects to contribute to a better understanding of bureaucratic behavior.     

Family and child characteristics linking neighborhood context and child externalizing behavior

Neighborhood conditions are related to children's externalizing behavior, although few processes that help explain this association have been identified. With data from 189 primarily low‐income Anglo and Mexican American families, we tested a stress process model that included 3 potential mediators of this relationship. The results showed that child stressful life events, association with deviant peers, and parent‐child conflict mediated the relationship between neighborhood context and child externalizing behavior when household income and maternal depression were controlled. The model explained more than 25% of the variance in externalizing behavior. Furthermore, differences in results for families with a U.S.‐born versus Mexico‐born mother showed that neighborhood influences on families and children may be quite complex.     

Do Public-Sector Employees Have More Psychological Wellness than Private-Sector Counterparts?

Public Organization Review - This study addressed the following research question: Do public-sector employees have higher levels of well-being than their counterparts in the private sector? For...