On generalizations of the classical method of confounding to asymmetric factorial experiments

A Kronecker product structure is identified for a particular class of asymmetric factorial designs in blocks, including the classes of designs generated by several of the generalizations of the classical method in the literature. The Kronecker product structure is utilized to establish orthogonal factorial structure for the class of designs and to identify a Principle of Generalized Interaction.     

Labor organization and class alliance

Conclusion The analysis reported here helps to clarify the dual role played by craft organization in labor movement development. In the United States, as in France, community rather than industry was the more promising ground on which to build an inclusive working-class organization. Craft organization in the community always helped mobilize less-skilled workers, and the effect was strongest during the period when the labor movement was growing most rapidly. In contrast, craft organizations within a local industry may have impeded less-skilled workers' organization during the Knights' early years. Only later, when the Knights found themselves on the defensive - attacked by employers, the press, and the craft unions affiliated with the rival American Federation of Labor - did craft locals provide unambiguous support for the organizational efforts of less-skilled workers in their own industries.This dual role must be reckoned with if we are to understand class formation. Because labor historians and others who study working-class movements often pursue research agendas dictated by the dominant tendencies of a single country, their studies tend to exaggerate each country's peculiarites. This study pursued a different line of inquiry by asking its questions from a comparative framework, and by seeking out local variation. The results suggest that craft workers in all countries probably harbored both exclusive and solidaristic tendencies. We need to undertake other studies that might illuminate the conditions that lead to solidarity or exclusivity. Such information will go a long way toward elucidating the dynamics of labor-movement development, thus explaning how oft-mentioned factors such as state action and the pace of capitalist development had the effects they did.Finally, these findings support recent arguments about American exceptionalism put forward by Ira Katznelson and his collaborators. In two influential books, Katznelson argues that America's unique pattern of working-class formation stems, in large part, from the radical division between the politics of work and the politics of community in the United States. Katznelson believes that the institutional set that supported the divorce of workplace and community system (that is, political parties organized around community concerns and trade unions organized around workplace issues) was largely in place by the 1860s. After that the die was cast, except perhaps in small communities where the two spheres were not yet so radically divided. Based on this study I would argue that community remained the most important arena for labor organization even in large urban areas until 1886. But periodization aside, both the quantitative findings and the Trenton case study suggest that the divorce of the community from the workplace must have had a profound effect not only on working-class politics, but on the growth of the union movement as well.

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Operations management – from Taylor to Toyota – and Beyond?

This paper sets out to review past and current research in operations management, and to explore current and future issues facing the area. It reviews the history of the area, and the patterns of research content and type. It reviews the evolution of lean production connecting the work of Taylor to its development at Toyota, and uses this to propose three key elements of operations management in the 1990s, namely, the core, interfaces and convergence. Current issues relating to research in operations management are explored and it is argued that there is a need for aggressive research agendas. Finally, possible future agendas for the area are explored.     

The American Community Survey in counties with “seasonal” populations

The U.S. Census Bureau designed the American Community Survey (ACS) to provide annual estimates of social and economic characteristics for states, counties, municipalities, census tracts, and block groups. Because of its April 1 reference date, in northern nonmetropolitan counties with substantial seasonal population fluctuations the decennial census provides a statistical representation of the demographic and social characteristics of the population at a time when the population is close to its annual minimum. The year-round monthly ACS sample survey has the potential to provide local communities with an unprecedented understanding of the average population characteristics over the course of a year. In the future, the ACS even has the potential for providing social and economic characteristics of the population by season. This paper examines four ACS pilot data collection counties, Oneida and Vilas Counties in northern Wisconsin, and Lake and Flathead Counties in northwest Montana. We hypothesize that the ACS will reflect a resident population over the course of the year that is different from the traditional April 1 decennial census population. While the ACS holds much promise, our research uncovered some sampling problems that are not yet fully resolved. In addition, our analysis was not able to examine ACS estimates for minor civil divisions (MCDs), which are functioning governmental units in many states. The fact that these MCDs often have very small populations, together with the fact that estimated standard errors at the much larger census tract level in these counties are disconcertingly large, raises (currently unanswerable) questions concerning the eventual statistical quality of ACS estimates for small MCDs. Consequently, the adequacy of the ACS as a replacement for the census long form may depend on the ability of the Census Bureau to effectively address the concerns presented in this analysis.     

On estimands and the analysis of adverse events in the presence of varying follow‐up times within the benefit assessment of therapies

The analysis of adverse events (AEs) is a key component in the assessment of a drug's safety profile. Inappropriate analysis methods may result in misleading conclusions about a therapy's safety and consequently its benefit‐risk ratio. The statistical analysis of AEs is complicated by the fact that the follow‐up times can vary between the patients included in a clinical trial. This paper takes as its focus the analysis of AE data in the presence of varying follow‐up times within the benefit assessment of therapeutic interventions. Instead of approaching this issue directly and solely from an analysis point of view, we first discuss what should be estimated in the context of safety data, leading to the concept of estimands. Although the current discussion on estimands is mainly related to efficacy evaluation, the concept is applicable to safety endpoints as well. Within the framework of estimands, we present statistical methods for analysing AEs with the focus being on the time to the occurrence of the first AE of a specific type. We give recommendations which estimators should be used for the estimands described. Furthermore, we state practical implications of the analysis of AEs in clinical trials and give an overview of examples across different indications. We also provide a review of current practices of health technology assessment (HTA) agencies with respect to the evaluation of safety data. Finally, we describe problems with meta‐analyses of AE data and sketch possible solutions.     

Construction and Initial Validation of the Career Maximizing Scale

Applying the concept of maximizing—careful evaluation of options in pursuit of optimal goals—to career decisions, the authors developed the Career Maximizing Scale (CMS). The measure was administered to samples of working adults and university students across 3 studies. Factor analysis indicated that the measure is unidimensional and has favorable psychometric properties. Career maximizing was related to but distinct from general maximizing. Career maximizing was positively related to indicators of decision confidence (e.g., career decision‐making self‐efficacy) and positively related to desirable career outcomes (e.g., career satisfaction). Career maximizing was also modestly related to certain desirable academic outcomes (e.g., commitment to university major). Use of the CMS may facilitate effective career counseling.     

INCLUDING ENGINEERING IN OPERATIONS STRATEGY

Today's markets are characterized by time and product quality-based competition. Companies must compete through their ability to manage the whole cycle of product realization and delivery, from the initial concept through to delivery and support at the customer. They must do this through managing an integrated company, not a set of separate functions. This paper addresses the issue of how companies should develop operations strategies for engineering and manufacturing combined. It uses field research into 15 engineering companies to develop the concept of the manufacturing system mission, and proposes strategic choices for manufacturing, engineering and linked functions.