Researchers' Perspectives on Supply Chain Risk Management

Supply chain risk management (SCRM) is a nascent area emerging from a growing appreciation for supply chain risk by practitioners and by researchers. However, there is diverse perception of research in supply chain risk because these researchers have approached this area from different domains. This paper presents our study of this diversity from the perspectives of operations and supply chain management scholars: First, we reviewed the researchers' output, i.e., the recent research literature. Next, we surveyed two focus groups (members of Supply Chain Thought Leaders and International SCRM groups) with open‐ended questions. Finally, we surveyed operations and supply chain management researchers during the 2009 INFORMS meeting in San Diego. Our findings characterize the diversity in terms of three “gaps”: a definition gap in how researchers define SCRM, a process gap in terms of inadequate coverage of response to risk incidents, and a methodology gap in terms of inadequate use of empirical methods. We also list ways to close these gaps as suggested by the researchers.     

Two stage fixed width confidence intervals for the common location parameter of several exponential distributins

Two stage sampling schemes are introduced for use in estimating the common location parameter (guarantee time) of two or more exponential distributions with a confidence interval of prespecified width whose coverage probability is at least a given nominal value. Exact expressions for all moments of order r ≥ 1 of the associated two stage sample sizes and for the actual coverage probabilities are derived. The performance of the procedures in a variety of two population, moderate fixed sample size cases is examined via numerical studies involving both exact calculations and Monte Carlo simulations. No new tables are needed to implement any of the proposed methods. A modified two stage procedure is recommended for practical use     

Elicitation of health values from mortality risk reduction

There are concerns regarding uncertainty about the accuracy of applying available empirical willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates for reducing accidental deaths to value changes in risks of pollution-related deaths. In this study, we develop a theoretical model on defining WTP, and its determinants, and derive WTP estimates for changes in pollution-related mortality risks with varying morbidity and timing attributes. A survey is designed and conducted with 100 subjects. Each subject was to complete five choice sets and provided a range of implicit values of statistical life (VSL). The choices are estimated using the logit procedure. And, using the results of estimated multinomial logit model, the VSL is estimated to about $6.2 million.     

The Australian child support reforms: a critical evaluation

The Australian Child Support Scheme aims to ensure that children continue to be supported financially should their parents separate or never live together. Sweeping changes to the Australian Child Support Scheme were introduced between 2006 and 2008, featuring a dramatically different system for the calculation of child support and a more rigorous enforcement regime. The reforms were intended to respond to ongoing concerns about equity, and to changes in social expectations and practices in gender, work, and parenting. In this article we summarise key findings from a large cross‐sequential study of the child support reforms. Although the new formula initially led to lower child support payments, and an increase in the proportion of separated mothers experiencing income disadvantage, payments two years later had increased slightly. More broadly, the new scheme appears to have resulted in little change in separated parents' policy knowledge, parenting arrangements, perceptions of fairness, and child support compliance. Taken together, these findings suggest that Australia may not have made as much progress as it would have liked in this thorny area of social policy – especially in relation to compliance and perceptions of fairness.     

Bootstrapping a time series model: some empirical results

The bootstrap is a methodology for estimating standard errors. The idea is to use a Monte Carlo simulation experiment based on a nonparametric estimate of the error distribution. The main objective of this article is to demonstrate the use of the bootstrap to attach standard errors to coefficient estimates in a second-order autoregressive model fitted by least squares and maximum likelihood estimation. Additionally, a comparison of the bootstrap and the conventional methodology is made. As it turns out, the conventional asymptotic formulae (both the least squares and maximum likelihood estimates) for estimating standard errors appear to overestimate the true standard errors. But there are two problems:i. The first two observations y₁ and y₂ have been fixed, and ii. The residuals have not been inflated. After these two factors are considered in the trial and bootstrap experiment, both the conventional maximum likelihood and bootstrap estimates of the standard errors appear to be performing quite well.     

Parental knowledge trajectory and its relationships with parental warmth and adolescent disclosure for Korean adolescents

The purpose of this study was to expand the knowledge base on parental knowledge by assessing a developmental trajectory and factors that might predict parental knowledge among Korean adolescents. To address this purpose, the current study assessed changes in parental knowledge during the transition to adolescence using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM). In addition, parental warmth and adolescent disclosure were considered as time-variant predictors of knowledge. The data from Korea Youth Panel Survey (KYPS) of Grade 4 students who were followed for five years was analyzed. The results indicated that there was a significant average increase followed by a slight decrease in parental knowledge over time; that is, the data followed a quadratic trend. Controlling for gender and family structure, the study found that parental warmth and adolescent disclosure had significant effects on parental knowledge over time. The study's results suggest that parental warmth and adolescent disclosure are important elements to be emphasized in prevention and intervention programs that promote parental knowledge.     

The Psycho‐Social Processes Linking Income and Volunteering: Chronic Financial Strain and Well‐Being

The positive effect of income on volunteering found in many studies is conventionally explained in utilitarian terms: volunteer work is “costly” or demands “resources.” This explanation overlooks important sociopsychological processes. By situating the income‐volunteering relationship within the stress process framework, we develop a theory that traces the influence of income on chronic financial strain which in turn affects subjective well‐being, which functions as a psychological resource for volunteers. Data taken from two waves of the National Survey of Midlife in the United States confirm this theory: household income has no direct effect on volunteering once chronic financial strain and two measures of subjective well‐being—social and eudaimonic—are taken into account.     

Beyond leader–member exchange (LMX) differentiation: An indigenous approach to leader–member relationship differentiation

The existing literature has established that leaders differentiate among their followers; however, the focus has long been on the Western leader–member exchange (LMX) theory. This paper examines leader–member relationship differentiation from an indigenous, leader–member guanxi (LMG) perspective. Using a sample of 60 groups and 228 employees, we examined the dual effects of LMG differentiation on employee job satisfaction, organizational commitment, turnover intention, and co-worker helping behavior after controlling for LMX, LMX median, and LMX differentiation. The results of this study supported the proposed dual effects of LMG differentiation, demonstrating that LMG differentiation, in general, is detrimental to employees' work attitudes and their intentions to stay in an organization. On the contrary, interestingly enough, LMG differentiation can accentuate the positive relationship between LMG and job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and co-worker helping behaviors.     

Changing Conditions and Quality of Housing

Social Indicators Research - This article analyzes the major trends and features of the housing market. It also reviews governmental programs and policies in light of the critical issues facing...