Noninformative priors for linear combinations of normal means with unequal variances

For normal populations with unequal variances, we develop matching priors and reference priors for a linear combination of the means. Here, we find three second-order matching priors: a highest posterior density (HPD) matching prior, a cumulative distribution function (CDF) matching prior, and a likelihood ratio (LR) matching prior. Furthermore, we show that the reference priors are all first-order matching priors, but that they do not satisfy the second-order matching criterion that establishes the symmetry and the unimodality of the posterior under the developed priors. The results of a simulation indicate that the second-order matching prior outperforms the reference priors in terms of matching the target coverage probabilities, in a frequentist sense. Finally, we compare the Bayesian credible intervals based on the developed priors with the confidence intervals derived from real data.     

Multivariate outliers and decompositions of mahalanobis distance

Two decompositions of the Mahalanobis distance are considered. These decompositions help to explain some reasons for the outlyingness of multivari- ate observations. They also provide a graphical tool for identifying outliers including those that have a large influence on the multiple correlation coefficient, Illustrative examples are given.     

Semiparametric transformation models for multivariate panel count data with dependent observation process

This article discusses regression analysis of multivariate panel count data in which the observation process may contain relevant information about or be related to the underlying recurrent event processes of interest. Such data occur if a recurrent event study involves several related types of recurrent events and the observation scheme or process may be subject-specific. For the problem, a class of semiparametric transformation models is presented, which provides a great flexibility for modelling the effects of covariates on the recurrent event processes. For estimation of regression parameters, an estimating equation-based inference procedure is developed and the asymptotic properties of the resulting estimates are established. Also the proposed approach is evaluated by simulation studies and applied to the data arising from a skin cancer chemoprevention trial.     

Solving the Labour Problem Among Professional Workers in the UK Public Sector: Organisation Change and Performance Management

This paper draws together evidence from across the UK public services to present an analysis of public sector organisational change that has been observed and experienced since the 1980s. The argument is that the pattern of persistent change, packaged as a myriad of reform measures, has been centrally concerned with solving the labour problem—low worker productivity and managers not being able to manage—in what are labour intensive services. The now familiar managerial discourse of empowerment and high commitment working practices is highlighted and express linkages are drawn between such themes and the day-to-day practices of performance and human resource management, seen here to be key levers in solving the same labour problem through a reduction in the quality of working lives of many public service workers.     

A family of estimators of population variance in two-occasion rotation patterns

Abstract

In this article, we have considered the problem of estimation of population variance on current (second) occasion in two occasion successive (rotation) sampling. A class of estimators of population variance has been proposed and its asymptotic properties have been discussed. The proposed class of estimators is compared with the sample variance estimator when there is no matching from the previous occasion and the Singh et al. (2013) estimator. Optimum replacement policy is discussed. It has been shown that the suggested estimator is more efficient than the Singh et al. (2013) estimator and a usual unbiased estimator when there is no matching. An empirical study is carried out in support of the present study.     

A counterexample to a conjecture of Schwartz

In 1990, motivated by applications in the social sciences, Thomas Schwartz made a conjecture about tournaments which would have had numerous attractive consequences. In particular, it implied that there is no tournament with a partition A, B of its vertex set, such that every transitive subset of A is in the out-neighbour set of some vertex in B, and vice versa. But in fact there is such a tournament, as we show in this article, and so Schwartz’ conjecture is false. Our proof is non-constructive and uses the probabilistic method.     

Employee perceptions of reputation: An ethnographic study

The ability of organizational members to identify and analyse stakeholder opinion is critical to the management of corporate reputation. In spite of the significance of these abilities to corporate reputation management, there has been little effort to document and describe internal organizational influences on such capacities. This ethnographic study conducted in Red Cross Queensland explores how cultural knowledge structures derived from shared values and assumptions among organizational members influence their conceptualisations of organizational reputation. Specifically, this study explores how a central attribute of organizational culture – the property of cultural selection – influences perceptions of organizational reputation held by organizational members. We argue that these perceptions are the result of collective processes that synthesise (with varying degrees of consensus) member conceptualisations, interpretations, and representations of environmental realities in which their organization operates. Findings and implications for organizational action suggest that while external indicators of organizational reputation are acknowledged by members as significant, the internal influence of organizational culture is a far stronger influence on organizational action.     

Bayesian principal component analysis with mixture priors

A central issue in principal component analysis (PCA) is that of choosing the appropriate number of principal components to be retained. Bishop (1999a) suggested a Bayesian approach for PCA for determining the effective dimensionality automatically on the basis of the probabilistic latent variable model. This paper extends this approach by using mixture priors, in that the choice dimensionality and estimation of principal components are done simultaneously via MCMC algorithm. Also, the proposed method provides a probabilistic measure of uncertainty on PCA, yielding posterior probabilities of all possible cases of principal components.     

使用汞分析器检测矿渣及水泥中的汞

以矿渣和水泥作为研究对象,采用汞分析器对其中的汞进行检测。水泥是一种建筑过程中广泛使用的高凝结材料。由于汞具有较大的毒性,因此必须严格检测建筑材料中汞的含量以降低其对人体的损害。作为水泥的替代物,矿渣具有许多的优点,例如价格低廉、毒性较小等。     

The ratification of ILO Conventions and the provision of unemployment benefits: An empirical analysis

This article tests the relationship between the ratification of International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions and the provision of unemployment benefits. Statistical tests focus on two related issues: why countries ratify ILO Conventions on unemployment benefits, and whether ratification influences government spending on unemployment benefits. The main findings are that democracy, region, income, and globalization are the main factors influencing why countries ratify ILO Conventions on unemployment benefits. In turn, the ratification of ILO Conventions is systematically associated with higher spending if countries have ratified more than two Conventions.