Testing and Confidence estimation of the Mean of a multidimensional Gaussian Process

From the sequential observation of a multidimensional continuous time Gaussian process, whose mean vector depends linearly of a multidimensional parameter, we consider the confidential estimation of the parameter value and the testing problem of a simple hypothesis about the parameter, in presence of a nuisance variance parameter. The method is based on a previously obtained [cf. 4] point estimate for the case of a known covariance structure. We first see that this estimate is, in fact, independent of the variance parameter. For the hypotheses testing problem, the invariance under certain groups of transformations and the partial sufficiency allows to construct optimal terminal tests. Furthermore we determine the observation time necessary to control its power function. These testing results may be translated in terms of most accurate confidence sets. If the observation is stopped according to the diameter of the confidence set, under some condition, the confidence level is preserved.     

Influential Observations in the Functional Measurement Error Model

In this work we propose Bayesian measures to quantify the influence of observations on the structural parameters of the simple measurement error model (MEM). Different influence measures, like those based on q-divergence between posterior distributions and Bayes risk, are studied to evaluate the influence. A strategy based on the perturbation function and MCMC samples is used to compute these measures. The samples from the posterior distributions are obtained by using the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm and assuming specific proper prior distributions. The results are illustrated with an application to a real example modeled with MEM in the literature.     

Inter‐organizational Cooperation and Environmental Change: Moderating Effects between Flexibility and Innovation Performance

The paper investigates the moderator effect of inter‐organizational cooperation in the relationship between workplace flexibility and innovation performance. This research question is important because innovation is dependent on the strategic integration of technological knowledge, requiring organizations to acquire new capabilities rapidly or to ensure the presence of knowledge that may be beyond existing internal capabilities. Inter‐organizational cooperation constitutes a relevant mechanism for a firm to increase its knowledge base concerning new products and processes. High‐cooperation firms may have more opportunities to take advantage of flexibility for innovation performance because it facilitates the access and dispersion of knowledge within the firm. We test the research hypotheses in a sample of manufacturing and service firms. The results contribute to the literature on flexibility and innovation because they demonstrate that inter‐organizational cooperation moderates the relationship between flexibility and innovation performance. We discuss the implications of these results for future research and managerial practice.     

Relational safety and liberating training spaces: an application with a focus on sexual orientation issues

This article describes and discusses a teaching case of a clinical training situation involving a gay marriage and family therapy student working with a same-sex affectional couple. The conceptual pillars of this teaching case, relational safety and liberating spaces, are advanced as illustrations of how the student developed his voice in the training process. Pivotal moments in this process are discussed, as are implications for training and personal and professional growth.     

Gender Pay Differentials in Portugal: Contributions to the Employment Policy Debate in the European Union

Since the implementation of the European Employment Strategy in the 1990s, the issue of gender gaps in the European Union labour markets has been granted a high profile. The Portuguese labour market has performed well on various indicators relating to gender equality, namely, participation and employment rates. Nevertheless, a persistent pay gap remains despite the recent evolution of the labour market, especially concerning the average education level of workers. This article investigates the main factors explaining the gender pay gap across two decades and the way those factors perform along time. We also discuss the means of closing the gap in the context of the European Employment Strategy, considering the lessons from other member states. We used wage decomposition techniques to analyse the relative importance of differences in the productive characteristics of workers, differences in the way men and women are distributed among jobs and the relative importance of discrimination practices. Our findings suggest that most of the pay gap is due to discrimination practices. Individual action by economic agents is insufficient to solve the persistent pay gap. Social partners must incorporate this issue within collective bargaining in order to construct an adequate strategy for reducing the gap, which can only be done by engaging men and women, employees and employers.     

Raising Children Amid the Threat of Deportation: Perspectives from Undocumented Latina Mothers

Despite the large number of families with at least one undocumented parent, little research has investigated mothering amid the threat of immigration enforcement. We present results of a community-based participatory study with 7 Latina mothers who describe their experiences of parenting while navigating the possibility of deportation. Undocumented mothers found meaning in caring for their children. Yet due to restrictions related to immigration status, mothers were unable to support their children as they intended and feared their deportations would leave children without care, contributing to psychological duress. We provide recommendations for practitioners working with mixed-status families.     

Sample size increase during a survival trial when interim results are promising

This paper is to extend Mehta and Pocock (2011 Mehta, C.R., Pocock, S.J. (2011). Adaptive increase in sample size when interim results are promising: a practical guide with examples. Stat Med. 00(00):00–00. [Google Scholar]) to provide a way in doing sample size increase in survival trials. Sample space is divided by observed test statistic at interim into three zones: unfavorable, promising, and favorable, within which sample size (required number of events) has a proper increase if falling into the promising zone and otherwise remains unchanged. Simulations with scenarios in the presence/absence of censoring, with/without adaptation, and allowing fourfolds versus twofolds of increase in sample size are compared.     

Nonparametric Bayesian modelling using skewed Dirichlet processes

We introduce a new class of discrete random probability measures that extend the definition of Dirichlet process (DP) by explicitly incorporating skewness. The asymmetry is controlled by a single parameter in such a way that symmetric DPs are obtained as a special case of the general construction. We review the main properties of skewed DPs and develop appropriate Polya urn schemes. We illustrate the modelling in the context of linear regression models of the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) type, where assessing symmetry for the error distribution is important to check validity of the model.