Maximizing Probability Bounds Under Moment-Matching Restrictions

The problem of characterizing a distribution by its moments dates to work by Chebyshev in the mid-nineteenth century. There are clear (and close) connections with characteristic functions, moment spaces, quadrature, and other very classical mathematical pursuits. Lindsay and Basak posed the specific question of how far from normality could a distribution be if it matches k normal moments. They provided a bound on the maximal difference in cdfs, and implied that these bounds were attained. It will be shown here that in fact the bound is not attained if the number of even moments matched is odd. An explicit solution is developed as a symmetric distribution with a finite number of mass points when the number of even moments matched is even, and this bound for the even case is shown to hold as an explicit limit for the subsequent odd case. As Lindsay noted, the discrepancies can be sizable even for a moderate number of matched moments. Some comments on implications are proffered.     

Private Labels: Facilitators or Impediments to Supply Chain Coordination

We consider a retailer’s decision of whether to develop an internally produced, private label version of a national brand and the role that this decision plays in coordinating the supply chain. Our model assumes that the perceived quality of the private label is lower than that of the national brand, and we allow for the two products to have different marginal costs. We further allow for a fixed development cost that the retailer must incur to develop private label capability, and distinguish two types of private labels depending upon whether they would or would not be developed as product line extensions by a vertically integrated supply chain. We refer to these two types as first‐best (FB) and non‐first‐best (NFB) product line extensions, respectively. When the private label can be characterized as a NFB product line extension, its development creates adverse cannibalization effects, yet it also helps to mitigate the effects of double marginalization with respect to the national brand. We characterize the conditions under which the retailer will develop private label capability, and distinguish among the conditions under which this is either beneficial or detrimental to the overall performance of the supply chain.     

How much longer would men work if there were no employment dislocation? Estimates from cause-elimination work life tables

The impact of labor demand on the decline in labor force participation of older males too young to qualify for Social Security is often acknowledged but seldom measured or incorporated into models of retirement. Using data from Current Population Survey March Demographic files and the periodic employment dislocation supplements, a series of cause-eliminated increment–decrement work life tables captures the impact of employment dislocation and early (before age 65) pension receipt on the employment of older males in a simple overall summary measure: expected work life. Employment dislocation and being offered an early pension are two of the most obvious manifestations of shifts in labor demand that can affect the labor force withdrawal of older males. Consistent with earlier research, I find early pension receipt to be an important factor in early labor force withdrawal but, in addition, employment dislocation has a sizeable direct impact on labor force participation. The findings suggest that employment dislocation and other, yet unmeasured, labor demand factors need to be incorporated into models of retirement.     

The Saving for Every Child Program in Israel: an overview of a universal asset-building policy

ABSTRACT

In 2017, the Israeli government implemented a universal child development account programme – the Saving for Every Child Program (SECP) – which establishes a personal savings account for every Israeli child and provides monthly deposits until the child turns 18. The SECP has the potential to provide substantial assets when children reach adulthood, but the benefits depend on parents’ investment choices. The unique programme’s nature presents opportunities to learn from its implementation. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the SECP, its legislative history, early findings from its implementation, and recommendations that may improve programme participation and outcomes across population groups.     

Socioeconomic Status,Gender Inequality and Women's Mental Health: Some Findings from the Canberra Mental Health Survey

Data from the Canberra Mental Health Survey are utilized to answer questions concerning the mental health status of women (especially married women). Using the Langner Scale as the main index it is shown that there is a complex relationship between the socio-economic status of a married woman's occupation, and the status of her husband's job. It is also shown that there is an association between sex, marital status and mental health that runs in the direction of Jessie Bernard's summary ‘marriage is good for men, but not for women’.     

Did tax incentives play any part in increased giving?

Since 2000, increased taxation incentives along with other measures have been used by the government to encourage philanthropy in Australia. Since the new incentives were introduced, claimed gift tax deductions have increased. However, generally, donors are not aware of the new tax incentives for giving and in any case they report that their motivation for giving is not primarily, if at all, to obtain tax incentives. This article examines this paradox and seeks some possible explanations.     

Producing Contradictory Masculine Subject Positions: Narratives of Threat, Homophobia and Bullying in 11–14 Year Old Boys

This paper reports a qualitative analysis of data from a study of masculinity in 11–14 year old boys attending twelve London schools. Forty-five group discussions ( N = 245) and two individual interviews ( N = 78) were conducted. The findings indicate that boys' experiences of school led them to assume that interviews would expose them to ridicule and so threaten their masculinity. Boys were generally more serious and willing to reveal emotions in individual than in group interviews. A key theme in boys' accounts was the importance of being able to present themselves as properly masculine in order to avoid being bullied by other boys by being labeled "gay." The ways in which boys were racialized affected their experiences of school.     

Partnerships, Power and the "New" Politics of Community Participation in British Health Care

Multi–sectoral approaches to health improvement in its broadest sense have entailed an emphasis by the British government upon partnership working in and around community involvement in planning processes. New service planning and delivery organizations in the health service—primary care groups and primary care trusts—thus have to ensure that public and patient involvement strategies reflect a coordinated, if not integrated, multi–sectoral approach to such involvement. But how are these enforced partnership arrangements shaping the approach taken by primary care groups and trusts to the issue of public and patient involvement? More particularly, is the traditional dominance of health service managers and the medical profession in decision–making processes under challenge? This article draws on a study of primary care groups and trusts in three districts in order to gauge perceptions and calculations with regard to partnerships for involvement. Results appear to suggest that health service managers and practitioners continue to exercise considerable influence in comparison to that of patients and citizens. But, if the findings are viewed in the broader contexts of government managerialist strategies of surveillance and accountability and the growth of service–user and advocacy organizations, partnerships may offer significant scope for “lay” challenges to managerial and medical power.