Behaviour under the condition of anonymity: a visual analysis

Analysing photographs of abandoned hotel rooms, we forensically classify hotel guests who left their rooms into three ideal types. Goffman’s idea of impression management is central for indicating ideal-type specific behavioural motivations. Under the condition of relative anonymity provided in hotel rooms, the audience for which guests manage impressions is either absent or the guests themselves who construct it. In the case of an audience to be seen as relevant it is either an internalised audience, guiding one’s behaviour, or it is a real audience. We demonstrate that it is possible to classify guests according to forensic analysis of the clues that identify their behaviours as (1) authentic, that is independent from an audience; (2) guided internally by an imagined audience; or (3) influenced by the perception of a real audience. The sociological categories of power and status are used to systematically differentiate behaviours of our three ideal-typical classes of hotel guests.     

A Wald-type test statistic based on robust modified median estimator in logistic regression models

In this paper a new robust estimator, modified median estimator, is introduced and studied for the logistic regression model. This estimator is based on the median estimator considered in Hobza et al. [Robust median estimator in logistic regression. J Stat Plan Inference. 2008;138:3822–3840]. Its asymptotic distribution is obtained. Using the modified median estimator, we also consider a Wald-type test statistic for testing linear hypotheses in the logistic regression model and we obtain its asymptotic distribution under the assumption of random regressors. An extensive simulation study is presented in order to analyse the efficiency as well as the robustness of the modified median estimator and Wald-type test based on it.     

Is computer gaming a craft? Prehension,* practice,and puzzle-solving in gaming labour

ABSTRACT

This article applies sociological theories of ‘craft’ to computer gaming practices to conceptualise the relationship between play, games, and labour. Using the example of the game Dota 2, as both a competitive esport title and a complex game based around a shared practice, this article examines the conditions under which the play of a computer game can be considered a ‘craft’. In particular, through the concept of ‘prehension’, we dissect the gameplay activity of Dota 2, identifying similarities with how the hand practices craft labour. We identify these practices as ‘contact’, ‘apprehension’, ‘language acquisition’ and ‘reflection’. We argue that players develop these practices of the hand to make sense of the game’s rules and controls. From this perspective, it is the hand that initiates experiences of craft within computer gameplay, and we offer examples of player creativity and experimentation to evidence its labour. The article concludes with a discussion on the need for future research to examine the quality of gaming labour in the context of esports.     

Correction to: Analysis of environmental flow requirements for macroinvertebrates in a creek affected by urban drainage (Prague metropolitan area,Czech Republic)

Urban Ecosystems - The original version of this article unfortunately contained errors. The given name and family name of all the authors were interchanged. Dana, Jana and Tomá? are given...     

A curious trajectory of interrace relations: the transformation of cosmopolitan Malay port polities into the multiethnic divisions of modern Malaysia

This article aims to examine several interrelated issues pertaining to the historical development of pluralism in areas forming today´s Malaysia. Firstly, it intends to analyze the transformation of the formerly cosmopolitan populations of Malay port polities into the highly ‘racialized’ society of modern Malaysia. It also seeks to clarify the roots of ethnicity-based issues and relations in the country. Lastly, it attempts to challenge the very concept of Malaysia as a society primarily consisting of three ethnic pillars, dominated by the Malays, and ‘complemented’ by the Chinese and the Indians. I argue that the main driving force behind these tensions is the segregational colonial policies and the postcolonial arrangements of the Malay ethnocentrist governments, rather than ethnic and cultural factors as the ruling politicians tend to stress. I also contend that religious issues, especially those stemming from the dakwah movement, are gradually becoming an increasingly important factor in interrace strife.     

Quadriplegia,virtue theory,and flourishing: a qualitative study drawing on self-narratives

Grounded in the logic of the virtue tradition, the qualitative study “the good life and quadriplegia” collected the self-narratives of people that have lived with the impairment over the medium to long term. This article draws on those narratives to describe how people understood the good life in the context of the losses and hardship of their spinal-cord injury, and the virtues and attitudes that helped them to achieve it. While highlighting the importance of virtue, participant stories resisted the ideology of the positivity myth, recognising that flourishing includes hardships, limitation, and failure, as well as meaning, virtue, and accomplishment.     

Interventions for families with multiple problems: Similar contents but divergent formats

For families with multiple problems (FMP), knowledge is lacking on the practice elements of interventions (the distinct techniques practitioners use to promote positive outcomes) and their program elements (intervention design and delivery systems). The aim of this study is to identify both common and specific practice and program elements so as to determine contents and overlap between interventions. For FMP, we selected interventions that had at least moderate (>0.5) effect sizes in the Dutch context (N = 8). A deductive content analysis was used to assess the manuals of these interventions with the taxonomy of interventions for FMP. We defined as common those elements found in at least five of the eight interventions and as specific those found in fewer than five. Of the practice elements, 79% were common across the interventions, and 21% were intervention specific. Interventions with the highest percentages of intervention‐specific elements derived from the taxonomy were 10 for the Future (15%), Family Central (14%), Intensive Family Therapy (14%), and Multisystemic therapy (11%). Core program elements: duration, intensity, intervision, supervision, and consultation, varied greatly between interventions. Among interventions for FMP, we found practice elements to have considerable overlap. Among program elements, we found greater variety.     

Scheduling with Sequencing Flexibility*

This study examines the effects of sequencing flexibility on the performance of rules used to schedule operations in manufacturing systems. The findings show that taking advantage of even low levels of sequencing flexibility in the set of operations required to do a job results in substantial improvement in the performance of scheduling rules with respect to mean flowtime. Differences in the mean flowtime measure for various rules also diminish significantly with increasing sequencing flexibility. Performance improvements additionally result for such due-date related performance measures as mean tardiness and the proportion of jobs tardy. At high levels of sequencing flexibility, some nonparametric scheduling rules outperform the shortest processing time rule in terms of the mean flowtime criterion. Rules based on job due dates also outperform rules based on operation milestones in terms of tardiness related criteria at high levels of sequencing flexibility. The implications of these findings for the design of manufacturing systems and product design are noted.     

Union Wage Setting,Employment and Investment: a Survey of Theory and Empirical Evidence

Abstract. This paper provides a survey of recent theoretical and empirical research on union wage setting, employment and investment. The basic models of union wage setting and employment are presented in a unified framework. The distinction between insiders and outsiders is introduced as an extension of the basic models. Empirical evidence on union preferences and on the performance of the various models is accessibly ordered. Finally, attention is paid to the effects of strategic behaviour between union and firm on wages, employment and investment.     

Is diversity bad for economic growth?: Evidence from state-level data in the US

The paper examines the macroeconomic effects of social diversity in the United States. Employing a cross-sectional dataset for 48 states, we find mixed empirical evidence for the impact of diversity on Gross State Product (GSP) per capita growth: racial diversity reduces GSP growth, while linguistic diversity raises GSP growth. Our findings suggest that because English is used frequently by non-native speakers barriers to communications based on race are more pronounced and enduring than those based on linguistic differences. The results provide a justification for establishing ‘weak ties’ across diverse racial groups as a means to enhance economic performance.