Uniform asymptotic linearity of a process based on a signed rank statistic

Consider the process with, cf. (1.2) on page 265 in B1, X₁, …, X_N a sample from a distribution F and, for i = 1, …, N, R${}_{\text{|x}{}_{\text{1}}\text{, - q}{}_{\text{1}}\text{ø|}}$ , the rank of |X₁ - q₁ø| among |X₁ - q₁ø|, …, |X_N - q_Nø|. It is shown that, under certain regularity conditions on F and on the constants p_i and q_i, T^ø_N(t) is asymptotically approximately a linear function of ø uniformly in t and in ø for |ø| ≤ C. The special case where the p_i and the q_i, are independent of i is considered.     

CEO Reciprocal Interlocks in French Corporations

In France the chairperson of the board is mostoften the firm's CEO. This position strengthensthe insiders' hold on the board of directors.Moreover, a large fraction of outside directorsis composed of CEOs of other firms. Thereciprocal interlocking of CEOs creates the possibility of mutual interdependence of CEOs.We investigate factors explaining reciprocalinterlocking directorates of CEOs in Frenchcorporations. Our results indicate that CEOs oflarger firms hold more reciprocal CEOinterlocks and when CEOs have more outsidedirectorships, CEOs hold more reciprocalrelationships. We also find a positiverelationship between the number of CEOsreciprocal interlocks and their firms'performance measured by ROA. We find evidencethat CEOs hold more reciprocal interlocks whena blockholder is present on the CEO's board.     

Les tâches de l'OIT à l'heure de son centenaire

Les principes – énoncés dans sa Constitution et dans la Déclaration de Philadelphie – qui définissent les missions de l'OIT n'ont rien perdu de leur valeur ni de leur actualité. En revanche, les conditions dans lesquelles ces missions s'exercent ont profondément changé. Le monde du travail est aujourd'hui le théâtre de bouleversements écologiques, technologiques et institutionnels, qui sont autant de défis à relever. La contribution de l'OIT à cette tâche devrait s'ordonner autour de trois principes, dont la mise en œuvre correspond à ses missions constitutionnelles: les principes de solidarité, de démocratie économique et de responsabilité socio-écologique.     

Urbanization impacts the taxonomic and functional structure of aquatic macroinvertebrate communities in a small Neotropical city

Due to habitat fragmentation, resource disruption and pollution, urbanization is one of the most destructive forms of anthropization affecting ecosystems worldwide. Generally, human-mediated perturbations dramatically alter species diversity in urban sites compared to the surroundings, thus influencing the functioning of the entire ecosystem. We investigated the taxonomic and functional diversity patterns of the aquatic macroinvertebrate communities in tank bromeliads by comparing those found in a small Neotropical city with those from an adjacent rural site. Changes in the quality of detrital inputs in relation to lower tree diversity and the presence of synanthropic species are likely important driving forces behind the observed structural changes in the urban site. Leaf-litter processors (i.e., shredders, scrapers) were positively affected in the urban site, while filter-feeders that process smaller particles produced by the activity of the shredders were negatively affected. Because we cannot ascertain whether the decline in filter-feeders is related to food web-mediated effects or to competitive exclusion (Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were present in urban bromeliads only), further studies are necessary to account for the effects of intra-guild competition or inter-guild facilitation.     

Lorenz non-consistent welfare and inequality measurement

Typical welfare and inequality measures are required to be Lorenz consistent which guarantees that inequality decreases and welfare increases as a result of a progressive transfer. We explore the implications for welfare and inequality measurement of substituting the weaker absolute differentials and deprivation quasi-orderings for the Lorenz quasi-ordering. Restricting attention to distributions of equal means, we show that the utilitarian model – the so-called expected utility model in the theory of risk – does not permit one to make a distinction between the views embedded in the differentials, deprivation and Lorenz quasi-orderings. In contrast it is possible within the dual model of M. Yaari (Econometrica 55 (1987), 99–115) to derive the restrictions to be placed on the weighting function which guarantee that the corresponding welfare orderings are consistent with the differentials and deprivation quasi-orderings respectively. Finally we drop the equal mean condition and indicate the implications of our approach for the absolute ethical inequality indices.     

On edge orienting methods for graph coloring

We consider the problem of orienting the edges of a graph so that the length of a longest path in the resulting digraph is minimum. As shown by Gallai, Roy and Vitaver, this edge orienting problem is equivalent to finding the chromatic number of a graph. We study various properties of edge orienting methods in the context of local search for graph coloring. We then exploit these properties to derive four tabu search algorithms, each based on a different neighborhood. We compare these algorithms numerically to determine which are the most promising and to give potential research directions.     

A regional solution to the strategy and structure of multinationals

The transnational solution developed by Bartlett and Ghoshal is shown to be suitable for only a few special cases of multinational enterprise (MNE) strategy and structure. As MNEs have most of their assets and sales within their home region, they are in need of regional, not transnational strategy and structure. Here we provide data on the regional dimension of assets and sales of the world’s largest 500 multinationals. We explore how the empirical reality of a regional concentration of assets and sales imposes a regional solution, rather than the transnational solution.     

Multistate life table with duration dependence: An application to Hungarian female marital history

Multistate life table methods have been recognized as an excellent tool in the analysis of many types of transitions. Yet demographers have never been completely satisfied with the Markovian assumption and have stressed the importance of population heterogeneity. In marital status analysis, for example, the time spent in the current status is thought to be of first importance in determining transitions, but computational problems linked to the introduction of duration prevented any estimation of the bias in life table calculations arising from its omission. Building on recent developments in multistate demography, and using data from the 1984 Hungarian microcensus, this paper analyzes the impact that the introduction of duration-specific transitions has on the results of a multistate life table analysis of marital dissolution. The results show that the inclusion of duration has its greatest impact on the distribution of the stationary population between ages 25 and 35.Les tables de survie multi-états ont été reconnues comme un très bon instrument pour l'analyse de nombreux types de transitions. Cependant les démographes n'ont jamais été complètement satisfaits des hypothèses markoviennes et ont insisté sur l'importance de l'hétérogénéité des populations étudiées. Dans l'analyse par état matrimonial, par exemple, le temps passé dans l'état étudié est considéré comme de première importance dans la détermination des transitions. Cependant des problèmes de calcul liés à l'introduction de cette durée avaient empêché toute estimation des biais venant de son omission dans le calcul des tables de survie. Utilisant des développements récents en démographie multi-état et utilisant des données du micro-recensement hongrois de 1984, cet article analyse l'impact que l'introduction de transitions dépendant de la durée, a sur une analyse multi-état des dissolutions de mariages. Les résultats montrent que l'inclusion de la durée a un effet maximum sur la distribution de la population stationnaire, entre les âges de 25 at 35 ans.     

Sharing beliefs and the absence of betting in the Choquet expected utility model

Choquet expected utility maximizers tend to behave in a more “cautious” way than Bayesian agents, i. e. expected utility maximizers. We illustrate this phenomenon in the particular case of betting behavior. Specifically, consider agents who are Choquet expected utility maximizers. Then, if the economy is large, Pareto optimal allocations provide full insurance if and only if the agents share at least on prior, i. e., if the intersection of the core of the capacities representing their beliefs is non empty. In the expected utility case, this is true only if they have a common prior. Received: July 2000; revised version: May 2001