On Christensen's conjecture

In this paper we give solution to a conjecture appearing in Christensen (1997, p. 360) in relation to the definitions of standardized residuals in loglinear models. Work done when he was visiting as the Distinguished Lukacs Professor on leave from the Complutense University of Madrid. An erratum to this article is available at .     

Perspectives on Regional and Enterprise Marginality: Dairying in Michigan's North Country1

Abstract Dairy farmers in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, an economically marginal rural region, are encumbered by contextual constraints that are not similarly faced by their downstate counterparts. However, this does not mean that they are any less ambitious or less efficient in dealing with the resources available to them. Indeed, dairying and similar small-scale economic enterprises in this and other marginal contexts may be quite competitive and sustainable if appropriate sociopolitical supports are instituted and, in the case of dairying, if marketing orders and regulatory policies are formulated and implemented in light of their impact upon the economic growth and viability of the wider region. To explore this issue, we consider the situations, basic characteristics, and restructuring trends over time of dairy farms in three upstate localities as compared with that of a downstate dairy farming community.     

Nonverbal expectancy violations and conversational involvement

A central feature of nonverbal expectancy violations theory is that unexpected behaviors trigger a cognitive-affective appraisal of such behavior, leading to a valencing of the behavior(s) as positive or negative. It has been proposed that communicator reward mediates the interpretation and evaluation of such violations but may be more important when the violative act is ambiguous in meaning than when it is not. Unclear is whether nonverbal behavioral composites introduce greater or less equivocality of interpretation. Two experiments employing multi-cue conversational involvement violations addressed this issue. In the first, dyads (N=51) engaged in a 10-minute baseline interview, after which participants rated each other on several measures of reward valence. One randomly selected member then served as a confederate interviewee during a second interview and either significantly increased or decreased involvement. In the second experiment, reward was manipulated as physical attractiveness, status, and task expertise. Dyads (N = 60) engaged in prolonged problem-solving discussions during which the confederates either committed an involvement violation or not. In both experiments, the involvement changes were sufficiently unexpected, arousing, and distracting to qualify as violations of expectations. Analysis of message interpretations indicated that (1) relative to normal involvement levels, increased nonverbal involvement was interpreted as most immediate/affectionate, receptive, similar, dominant, and composed, and decreased involvement as least so, and (2) reward mediated only the interpretation of formality. High involvement violations in turn produced greater attraction, credibility, and persuasiveness than low involvement violations for high as well as low-reward communicators, as predicted.where Joe Walther and Jim Baesler are doctoral students. An earlier version of this paper was presented to the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, New Orleans, May 1988.     

Invasion. A hospital in transition following the 1983 Grenadian intervention

Stress, confusion, and a sense of loss were inevitable during the hospital relocation, especially given the large number of clients, ward communities, and staff needed to move and adjust to change. Despite the fact that the change was perceived as a positive and progressive step in psychiatric-mental health care in Grenada, there were many obstacles and much resistance to overcome. As expected, staff's and clients' fears centered around themes of impending loss and abandonment. An understanding of the transition process, along with the availability of experienced hospital staff for support and guidance, greatly aided the relocation process. Relocation still presented problems and Mt. Gay Hospital continues to struggle to carry out the lasting and beneficial changes that will best promote a therapeutic and culturally sensitive client/staff environment. Despite the fact that the hospital relocation was not entirely self-determined, but partially imposed by political circumstances, a positive resolution of the crisis occurred. The crisis brought about the change that, in this circumstance, is seen as synonymous with growth. It acted as a catalyst to bring about help from unexpected and much needed sources (U.S.A.I.D./Project Hope), which may not have otherwise been available to facilitate such a change. Richmond Hill Mental Hospital took control and advantage of a crisis situation and made it serve its immediate and pressing need for a new psychiatric hospital.     

Towards a theoretical clarification of the ‘spillover’ and ‘compensatory’ work/leisure hypotheses

Two thorny problems have attracted the interest of work/leisure researchers in recent years: (1) the failure of previous research to clearly isolate the relationship between work and non-work from the effects of other confounding variables, and (2) a widespread failure to distinguish between the meanings that people attribute to work (and non-work) and the forms of work (and non-work) people perform. The argument for phenomenological research is made; in this way, empirically-grounded ‘common sense’ definitions of work and leisure could be created and these definitions could be used as a solid research base to test ‘spillover’ and ‘compensatory’ theories of the work/leisure relationship. The author then demonstrates, through the development of an analytic framework for viewing the work/leisure relationship, the fact that ‘compensatory’ and ‘spillover’ hypotheses are potential alternative modes of explanation. Unless the conditions under which each might apply can be specified, one or the other hypothesis can explain a given empirical relationship between the two variables. This further supports the need for solid phenomenological research.     

Implementing the birth policy to village as the grass-roots unit]

At the present time, the emphasis of the birth control program in China is in the rural areas where it is harder to implement a birth control policy. A new initiative taken in Liaoning Province to certify rural villages in family planning (FP) practice has proved to be successful. 6 criteria have to be met by a rural village to be qualified for certification: 1) an adequate FP organizational network, 2) comprehensive coverage of publicity and education program activities, 3) satisfactory FP program implementation, 4) extensive usage of contraceptive methods, 5) good quality service delivery, and 6) efficient program management. Specific regulations on organizational structure, educational activities, policy implementation, contraceptive supply, data collection and reporting, and management of finances have also been formulated to promote the certification process. Packages of incentives and disincentives have been established to integrate FP program implementation with the responsibilities, decision-making powers, and personal benefits of the leaders and the village community. The sense of birth control practice as a communal endeavor in villages has also been created under these regulations. Over 80% of villages in Liaoning province have now been certified. Various birth control model villages have been set up to promote the FP program elsewhere.     

Two-sided tests for change in level for correlated data

The classical problem of change point is considered when the data are assumed to be correlated. The nuisance parameters in the model are the initial level μ and the common variance σ². The four cases, based on none, one, and both of the parameters are known are considered. Likelihood ratio tests are obtained for testing hypotheses regarding the change in level, δ, in each case. Following Henderson (1986), a Bayesian test is obtained for the two sided alternative. Under the Bayesian set up, a locally most powerful unbiased test is derived for the case μ=0 and σ²=1. The exact null distribution function of the Bayesian test statistic is given an integral representation. Methods to obtain exact and approximate critical values are indicated.