The measurement of diversity: Ethnic and socioeconomic mixing in residential areas

Units of observation such as census tracts continue to be analyzed according to various modal characteristics while the variation or diversity existent in such units is often ignored. The qualitative or nominal-level indicators of diversity are examined which (1) are operative in the polytomous situation, and (2) measure within-unit diversity rather than divergences among units. Six qualitative indicators are explained and compared both theoretically and by example, with the Index of Qualitative Variation suggested as the most appropriate measure of diversity when variables representing a nominal scale are used. Quantitative or interval-level diversity also was examined with six measures analyzed, representing three operational situations. Because of the susceptibilities of five of the quantitative measures to skewness and variable sample sizes, the coefficient of variation was recommended for interval-level variables to evaluate within-unit diversity.     

Civil Commitment for Drug Dependency

In recent proposals for new legislation in New South Wales for dealing with drug-dependent persons, opinion has been sharply divided over the issues for and against civil commitment for drug abuse per se. This paper examines the situation as seen from a legal point of view.     

Hybridization and speciation in the carabid beetles of the subgenusOhomopterus (Coleoptera, Carabidae, genusCarabus)

Natural hybridization among wingless carabid beetles of the subgenusOhomopterus (Carabidae, genusCarabus) is reviewed, and its significance in the evolution of this subgenus discussed. Natural hybridization occurs between parapatric species of similar size. Two case studies of natural hybridization suggest that natural hybridization could have affected the evolution of this subgenus in different ways. When there is a large difference in genital morphology between hybridizing species, interspecific copulation often results in genital injuries that causes mortality of copulating individuals, and hence reduces the fitness of hybridizing individuals greatly. In such a case, hybridization may be effective in maintaining the parapatric distribution of the two species, and in the long term, may promote reinforcement selection for traits which are effective in prezygotic reproductive isolation. When the morphological difference in genitalia is not so large as to cause genital injury, a hybrid population may be established at the intermediate zone between two parental species, provided that the immigration rates of the two species into the intermediate zone are small. Thus, natural hybridization may have contributed to both divergence and reticulate evolution in this subgenus.     

Gender roles,HIV risk behaviors,and perceptions of using female condoms among college students

The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between gender roles and HIV risk behavior, and perceptions and acceptance of the female condom among college students (n = 410). It was hypothesized that high hyperfeminine females and high hypermasculine males – those adhering to traditional gender roles – would engage in more HIV risk behaviors, including alcohol and drug use and various sexual practices, than those with lower hyperfemininity and hypermasculinity. It was also hypothesized that higher hyperfeminine females as well as higher hypermasculine males would perceive the female condom more negatively and would be less likely to view the female condom as a viable form of protection in the future. It was also hypothesized that high hyperfeminine females and high hypermasculine males would not accept the female condom as an alternative form of protection. Implications for prevention interventions are discussed.     

The demographic impact of Partition in the Punjab in 1947

We use data from the 1931, 1941, and 1951 censuses of India and the 1951 census of Pakistan to examine the demographic consequences of Partition in the Punjab in 1947. Had growth rates for the period 1931-41 for the Punjab as a whole continued to 1951, the population of the Punjab would have been 2.9 million larger than that recorded in 1951. Population losses from migration and mortality above age 20 were approximately 2.7 million greater between 1941 and 1951 than would have been predicted by loss rates between 1931 and 1941. We estimate a net Partition-related population movement out of the combined Punjab of about 400,000. We conclude from several lines of analysis that Partition-related population losses in the Punjab, either from deaths or unrecorded migration, were in the range 2.3-3.2 million. Partition was also marked by a dramatic religious homogenization at the district level.     

A STRATEGY FOR RISK REDUCTION IN INCENTIVE CONTRACTING*

An important question with respect to government incentive contracts that has received little attention is: What alternatives to the current practice of making single-stage choices of incentive sharing rates can lead to situations in which these sharing rates can be chosen under reduced risk or cost uncertainty? This paper provides a decision-theoretic framework that illustrates a possibility of reducing risk, from the viewpoints of both the contracting parties, given some negotiated estimate of costs to be incurred. It is shown that such a possibility can arise in a situation in which it is technically feasible to separate or partition the contractual work into closely related tasks or units. Specifically, it is demonstrated that for a given cost estimate (target cost) and target profit, a set of optimal sharing rates (one for each unit) yields a higher risk-adjusted value of the contract than the single-stage sharing rate for the entire contract.     

SPECTRAL ANALYSIS IN BUSINESS FORECASTING: THE WIENER-KOLMOGOROV METHOD *

The objective of this paper is to introduce the Wiener-Kolmogorov (WK) method to business researchers and to applied workers who have an interest in spectral techniques. It is seen that the advantage of the WK method is that it provides better forecasts than autoregressive regression analysis when the order of the true autoregressive process is large. The paper outlines the steps involved in the WK method. Also discussed is a labor-saving feature to guide one at the outset as to whether the WK algorithm should be used. A numerical example is given to illustrate the application of the method in time-series forecasting.