Data-Based Choice of the Number of Pilot Stages for Plug-in Bandwidth Selection

The choice of the bandwidth is a crucial issue for kernel density estimation. Among all the data-dependent methods for choosing the bandwidth, the direct plug-in method has shown a particularly good performance in practice. This procedure is based on estimating an asymptotic approximation of the optimal bandwidth, using two “pilot” kernel estimation stages. Although two pilot stages seem to be enough for most densities, for a long time the problem of how to choose an appropriate number of stages has remained open. Here we propose an automatic (i.e., data-based) method for choosing the number of stages to be employed in the plug-in bandwidth selector. Asymptotic properties of the method are presented and an extensive simulation study is carried out to compare its small-sample performance with that of the most recommended bandwidth selectors in the literature.     

Does higher income equal higher levels of happiness in every society? The case of the Mayan people

Guardiola J, González‐Gómez F, García‐Rubio MA, Lendechy‐Grajales Á. Does higher income equal higher levels of happiness in every society? The case of the Mayan people This study analysed happiness and several domains of life of Mayan people in the poor rural areas of Yucatan, Mexico. Using a sample of 373 households, we examined the influence of income on happiness and its domains, obtaining results that lend support to the ‘paradox of happy peasants and miserable millionaires’. According to the results, income influences happiness among the Mayan people, as do material domains and health, but income does not influence the domains related to intangible feelings and public goods. A number of reasons, such as a lack of a means for comparison, close contact with nature, adaptation to deprivation, general material improvements compared with the past, low aspirations and a Mayan culture that is devoted to solidarity and enjoyment of social relationships, could explain why the sample population reported high levels of happiness. Although the Mayans' level of happiness is high, their situation nevertheless requires political attention.     

The Demands-Control-Support model,locus of control and job dissatisfaction: A longitudinal study

The Job-Demands-Control model (Karasek, 1979) has been widely studied in the job stress field, but the results obtained are frequently contradictory. Therefore, some investigations have expanded the model by including social support and personality characteristics such as locus of control. However, results obtained with these elaborated models have not been conclusive either. The present study sets out to integrate both types of expansions by simultaneously including social support at work and the employee's locus of control in a longitudinal multi-national study among 542 administrative personnel from Belgium, England, Spain, Italy and Israel. Hierarchical moderated multiple regression showed a significant 4-way interaction term (Demands 2 Control 2 Social support 2 Locus of control) on the change in job dissatisfaction. This effect is qualified by the interaction between job demands and control only for an internal locus of control with high social support. Contrary to the prediction of the JDC model, which posits that high control has a buffering effect on job dissatisfaction, the study result indicates a damaging effect of excess control (perceived job control and high internal locus of control), specifically in high social support situations.     

Selection of a Computerised Maintenance Management System: a case study in a regional health service

The selection of a Computerised Maintenance Management System (CMMS) is a strategic decision in any industry. In hospitals such systems are becoming increasingly necessary because of the high proportion of the budget allocated to the maintenance area and the increasing demand for quality from both health-care professionals and patients. The aim of this study is to propose a more satisfactory CMMS selection process. The process uses a decision-making model based on the use of the multicriteria technique ELECTRE II in two stages. First, the software suppliers that can guarantee a successful implementation of the CMMS are selected. Then, the CMMS that best meets the organisation's needs and requirements is selected. To demonstrate the process, the authors present a case study of the selection process in a Spanish regional health service. Finally, a discussion of the influence of the public health-care environment on the final decision is offered.     

Forgiving Perpetrators of Violence: Colombian People’s Positions

Colombian people’s positions regarding the granting of forgiveness to persons who have been more or less actively involved in the violence that ravaged the country during the past 60 years were examined. Four hundred lay people living in Bogota were presented with 48 concrete cases in which a former perpetrator of violence (a member of the guerillas, the paramilitary, the military or a drug cartel) asked for forgiveness from a victim’s family. These cases were constructed using a three-factor orthogonal design: Degree of Responsibility × Severity of the Negative Acts Committed × Apologies. Four basic positions were found. The most common one, which was shared by nearly 40 % of the sample, mostly people from the wealthier segments of society, was “no forgiveness under any condition”. Eighteen percent of the participants, mostly from the poorest segments of society, considered that forgiveness could be granted each time the former perpetrators expressed true repentance (and, in the case of former organizers, if they have offered adequate compensation and had not committed very severe crimes). This was the most frequently observed attitude when perpetrators were former members of the paramilitary. Fifteen percent of the participants considered that forgiveness should be systematically granted. Finally, 28 % of the participants were undecided about the issue.     

A Cross‐Cultural Study of Perceived Benefit Versus Risk as Mediators in the Trust‐Acceptance Relationship

Several recent studies have identified the significant role social trust in regulatory organizations plays in the public acceptance of various technologies and activities. In a cross‐cultural investigation, the current work explores empirically the relationship between social trust in management authorities and the degree of public acceptability of hazards for individuals residing in either developed or emerging Latin American economies using confirmatory rather than exploratory techniques. Undergraduates in Mexico, Brazil, and Chile and the United States and Spain assessed trust in regulatory authorities, public acceptance, personal knowledge, and the risks and benefits for 23 activities and technological hazards. Four findings were encountered. (i) In Latin American nations trust in regulatory entities was strongly and significantly (directly as well as indirectly) linked with the public's acceptance of any activity or technology. In developed countries trust and acceptability are essentially linked indirectly (through perceived risk and perceived benefit). (ii) Lack of knowledge strengthened the magnitude and statistical significance of the trust‐acceptability relationship in both developed and developing countries. (iii) For high levels of claimed knowledge, the impact on the trust‐acceptability relationship varied depending upon the origin of the sample. (iv) Confirmatory analysis revealed the relative importance of perceived benefit over perceived risk in meditating the trust‐acceptability causal chain.     

Power indices expressed in terms of minimal winning coalitions

A voting situation is given by a set of voters and the rules of legislation that determine minimal requirements for a group of voters to pass a motion. A priori measures of voting power, such as the Shapley–Shubik index and the Banzhaf value, show the influence of the individual players in a voting situation and are calculated by looking at marginal contributions in a simple game consisting of winning and losing coalitions derived from the legislative rules. We introduce a new way to calculate these measures directly from the set of minimal winning coalitions and derive explicit formulae for the Shapley–Shubik and Banzhaf values. This new approach logically appealing as it writes measures as functions of the rules of the legislation. For certain classes of games that arise naturally in applications the logical shortcut drastically simplifies the numerical calculations to obtain the indices. The technique generalises directly to all semivalues.     

Sintomatología depresiva en la mujer: influencia del rol sexual y del estatus laboral

Resumen

Estudios epidemiológicos recientes han señalado la relación ente síntomas depresivos y variables tales como el rol sexual y el estatus socioeconómico. El objetivo de esta investigación fue confirmar la aosiciación positiva entre el rol femenino y la depresión. Se estudiaron diversos aspectos del rol femenino en una muestra de 110 mujeres y tres variables parecen desempeñar un papel importante en la sintomatología depresiva de este grupo: la clase social, el empleo de la evitación como estrategia para evitar la tensión y la sobrecarga de roles.     

A TEMPLE FOR THE NATION: REDESIGNING A COMMON SYMBOLIC SPACE OF CENTRAL EUROPEAN CONSERVATISM

In the wake of ‘1989», the redefinition of a common European identity and national identities turned the symbolic representation of these identities into a major issue of political debates. Especially the construction of conservative and right-wing-populist politics in a redefined central European region relies on a symbolic redefinition of national identities in the frame of and in conflict with the design of a common European political culture. Examples are based on an analysis of the symbolic representation of politics, as the image design of the Austrian ‘Wende»-government (2000-2002), the symbolic representation of Forza Italia and the image-construction of Berlusconi, as well as the cultural representation of the former Hungarian government (1998-2002). The contribution proposes a reconstruction of a common right-wing conservative (political) culture and its representation in the region under the notion of ‘neo-patriotism».