Capitation funding in the public sector

A fundamental requirement of government at all levels—national and local—is to distribute the limited funds that it wishes to spend on particular public services between geographical areas or institutions, which are effectively competitors for such funds. Increasing use is now being made of capitation methods for such purposes, in which a standard estimate of expected expenditure is attached to a citizen with given characteristics. Statistical methods are playing an important role in determining such capitations, but they give rise to profound methodological problems. This paper examines the rationale for capitation and discusses the associated methodological issues. It illustrates the issues raised with two examples taken from the UK public sector: in personal social services and hospital care. Severe limitations of the data mean that small area data are used as the unit of observation, giving rise to considerable complexity in the model to be estimated. As a result, a range of methodologies including two-stage least squares and multilevel modelling methods are deployed. The paper concludes with a suggestion for an approach which would represent an improvement on current capitation methods, but which would require data on individuals rather than on small areas.     

The Selectionist Meaning of C. S. Peirce and B. F. Skinner

The Analysis of Verbal Behavior - The selectionist meaning of C. S. Peirce and B. F Skinner, which has an empirical existence, is advanced against essentialist meaning, which does not. Against a...     

Get the job： job interviews in China

China＇s economy is still growing and there are plenty of opportunities for the right person to move up from a basic English teaching job to something more professional and better paid. Many expats find they have trouble breaking through into the higher level positions. Most of the better teaching jobs or professional positions require a face-to-face or telephone interview.     

Estimating the Causal Effect of Low Tidal Volume Ventilation on Survival in Patients with Acute Lung Injury

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a condition characterized by acute onset of severe hypoxemia and bilateral pulmonary infiltrates. ALI patients typically require mechanical ventilation in an intensive care unit. Low tidal volume ventilation (LTVV), a time-varying dynamic treatment regime, has been recommended as an effective ventilation strategy. This recommendation was based on the results of the ARMA study, a randomized clinical trial designed to compare low vs. high tidal volume strategies (The Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Network, 2000) . After publication of the trial, some critics focused on the high non-adherence rates in the LTVV arm suggesting that non-adherence occurred because treating physicians felt that deviating from the prescribed regime would improve patient outcomes. In this paper, we seek to address this controversy by estimating the survival distribution in the counterfactual setting where all patients assigned to LTVV followed the regime. Inference is based on a fully Bayesian implementation of Robins' (1986) G-computation formula. In addition to re-analyzing data from the ARMA trial, we also apply our methodology to data from a subsequent trial (ALVEOLI), which implemented the LTVV regime in both of its study arms and also suffered from non-adherence.     

Managing Delphi Surveys Using Nonparametric Statistical Techniques*

Information systems researchers have often turned to a variant of the Delphi survey technique to support their research of key issues in their field. Two particular weaknesses of past studies using this approach have been a lack of a definitive method for conducting the research and a lack of statistical support for the conclusions drawn by the researchers. In this paper, the author presents a method, based on nonparametric statistical techniques, to conduct ranking-type Delphi surveys, perform analysis, and report results. The author takes this one step further by illustrating an actual analysis of a Delphi survey. The analysis is compared to results that were presented without the benefit of the author's approach. This paper shows that use of the advocated approach can streamline and strengthen studies, improve the validity of results, and thus better serve the consumers of the research findings. Since the ranking-type Delphi is so popular among information systems researchers, a consistent method is needed to apply to their data collection, analysis, and reporting of results. This paper provides such a method in concise form and illustrates the use of the method in a manner affording comparison between it and previous practice.     

The Paradoxes of Recovery Policy: Exploring the Impact of Austerity and Responsibilisation for the Citizenship Claims of People with Drug Problems

This article critically examines the implications accompanying the introduction and implementation of recovery‐based policy. The article draws upon research conducted in Lancashire, England, where commissioners have been at the forefront of recent developments in ‘whole system’ models of commissioning. Empirical data are drawn on to make a series of new arguments about the tensions and practice implications of the new recovery agenda. The article has three main objectives. First, it explores current shifts in England, in which drug service commissioning has moved from being centrally funded and directed, to locally determined. Second, it references the rise of the well‐informed user in the reconfigured landscape of recovery and the ways in which commissioning models may enhance or negate the contribution of user activists to local cultures of recovery. Third, it references the changing political context, in which austerity is being used to increase the pressure on provider services to demonstrate social value, utility and effectiveness. The article argues that there is a palpable need to re‐politicize drug debates and recognize the structural and demographic factors which frame problem drug use, as well as the social and cultural factors which support or negate their opportunities for recovery.     

Testing of mean interval for interval-valued data

Abstract

A new parametric hypothesis test of mean interval for interval-valued data set, which can deal with massive information contained in nowadays massive data “Big data” sets, is proposed. An approach using an orthogonal transformation is introduced to obtain an equivalent hypothesis test of mean interval in terms of the mid-point and mid-range of the interval-valued variable. The new test is very efficient in small interval-valued sample scenarios. Some simulation studies are conducted for the investigation of the sample size and the power of test. The performance of the proposed test is illustrated with two real-life examples.     

Emergence of a ‘new public sphere’ in Bangladesh: the interactive dynamics between news television,citizens and the state

The consideration of media as the watchdog of democracy is prolific in the context of Bangladesh. The emergence of private satellite television with its potential to broadcast news enables discursive space within the contested politico-social setup. The visibility aspect, variations and liveliness of news bulletins brought by the private television channels created an appeal among the viewers signifying the mediated culture. An attempt to examine the interactive dynamic between the media, public and politics offers new ground for exploring the communication and culture. This paper examines the control and contestation of domestic private televisions by unravelling the interface with audiences and the state. It shows an enmeshed trajectory of politics and rise of television news-making culture that provides new aspects to understand the relation between media and democracy. Further, it argues for an emergence of localised public sphere by underscoring the engagement of audiences with television news. It locates the new, mediated public sphere beyond the television set, in the locations where multiple actions of viewing, interacting and interpreting enable a discursive space which is politically active and meaningful.     

The effect of experience on faculty attitudes toward collective bargaining: A cross-temporal analysis

We used multivariate analysis to investigate the change in the attitudes and expectations of AAUP members in a Midwestern university. Two models were developed to measure faculty attitudes toward the union, at the time of the election and four years after the election. The effect of experience on faculty attitudes toward the union is captured by comparing the results of the two models. Our findings suggest major differences in faculty attitudes and expectations prior to and after the union’s arrival. The results of our study have essential policy implications for unions in formulating successful strategies and for faculty in developing realistic expectations of collective bargaining.     

An Exploratory Investigation of Treatment Strategies for Black,Gay, Bisexual,and Heterosexual Men-Who-Have-Sex- With-Men Who Use Methamphetamine

Research has repeatedly indicated a strong relation between methamphetamine use and risky sex leading to HIV-seroconversion. Despite the high prevalence of HIV among Black gay, bisexual, and other men-who-have-sex-with-men (BMSM) and the strong association between methamphetamine use and HIV-seroconversion, treatment research on methamphetamine use and HIV-risk behaviors among BMSM is limited. The goal of this exploratory study was to investigate treatment strategies for BMSM that may be used to inform methamphetamine treatment programs tailored for BMSM. Data was collected on a sample of HIV-negative and HIV-positive gay, bisexual, and heterosexual BMSM (N = 52) in New York City. Participants were asked to discuss methamphetamine treatment strategies they believed would be successful in treating their own methamphetamine abuse and that of other BMSM who use methamphetamine. Results indicated four treatment areas salient for BMSM seeking treatment for methamphetamine used disorders: (a) outreach/recruitment strategies, (b) therapist qualities, (c) group characteristics, and (d) intervention elements themselves. Findings gathered here and through literature review underscore the importance of adapting evidence-based methamphetamine treatment strategies to include culturally-relevant treatment strategies that address the specific needs of BMSM who use methamphetamine.