Finie mixures of canonical fundamenal skew $$$$-disribuions

This paper introduces a finite mixture of canonical fundamental skew \(t\) (CFUST) distributions for a model-based approach to clustering where the clusters are asymmetric and possibly long-tailed (in: Lee and McLachlan, arXiv:1401.8182 [statME], 2014b). The family of CFUST distributions includes the restricted multivariate skew \(t\) and unrestricted multivariate skew \(t\) distributions as special cases. In recent years, a few versions of the multivariate skew \(t\) (MST) mixture model have been put forward, together with various EM-type algorithms for parameter estimation. These formulations adopted either a restricted or unrestricted characterization for their MST densities. In this paper, we examine a natural generalization of these developments, employing the CFUST distribution as the parametric family for the component distributions, and point out that the restricted and unrestricted characterizations can be unified under this general formulation. We show that an exact implementation of the EM algorithm can be achieved for the CFUST distribution and mixtures of this distribution, and present some new analytical results for a conditional expectation involved in the E-step.     

Trustworthiness in evaluation practice: an emphasis on the relational

As canons for trustworthiness developed explicitly in the discourse of qualitative inquiry, the emphasis was on procedural matters rather than fundamentally relational ones. A nod was made to the relational in such strategies as “member checks” but the issues of how the evaluator actually relates to participants and to the larger communities of practice and discourse—matters subsumed under moral principles and ethical standards—were often marginalized. This chapter posits that the first consideration in designing and conducting rigorous evaluation inquiry, and in critiquing the results of any research, should be the study's trustworthiness. Judging a study's trustworthiness, however, should focus on much more than procedural matters; it should also rely on moral principles and ethical standards which specifically address how we relate to an evaluation's participants. Central to these considerations are cross-cultural sensibilities about the nuanced meanings associated with any principles and standards. The chapter provides a theoretical framework for this position and offers two illustrative examples in the form of dialogues.     

Characteristics of the female athlete triad in collegiate cross-country runners

The Female Athlete Triad is a life-threatening syndrome defined by disordered eating, amenorrhea, and osteoporosis. OBJECTIVE AND PARTICIPANTS: The author's purpose in this study was to examine female cross-country runners' (N=300) calcium consumption, along with the prevalence of 2 components of the triad: disordered eating and menstrual dysfunction. METHODS: The author used measures including the Orientation to Exercise Questionnaire, Calcium Rapid Assessment Method, and questions related to height, weight, exercise time, perceptions of eating disorders, and menstrual status. Previous or current eating disorders were reported by 19.4% of the women, 23.0% had irregular menstrual cycles, and 29.1% had inadequate calcium intake. RESULTS: Those athletes perceiving a previous/current eating disorder scored higher on the Orientation to Exercise questionnaire than did those who did not perceive such. CONCLUSION: The author recommends educational efforts for the prevention of components of the Female Athlete Triad.     

Pearls and pitfalls in evaluating a Student Assistance Program: a five-year case study

This article presents data from a five-year evaluation-research case study of a large urban schools district's internal Student Assistance Program (SAP). The district employed specially trained and licensed school-based counselors to implement an internal SAP expanded to include tertiary prevention, and modeled after an employee assistance program established for adults. From the population of more than 10,000 students who received some type of program assistance for at-risk behaviors, a stratified random sample of 2,238 cases, over a five year period, were reviewed. Results indicate a statistically significant decline (p < .05) in students' drug use and a significant improvement in internal locus of control occurred each year. While not statistically significant, the average number of student discipline referrals was less than the year prior to program admission; however, there was no significant change in academic performance. A significant correlation between students' drug use and the amount of time in program, the type of assistance received, and the student's custody status was also found.     

Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered (GLBT) experiences with Earth-spirited faith

Earth-spirited faiths (e.g., Pagan and Wiccan spiritualities) have been described as more affirmative toward gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) members than mainstream Judeo-Christian faiths, but no research has explored Earth-spirited faiths' GLBT-affirming behaviors. This study investigated those behaviors as well as the faith experiences of GLBT Earth-spirited individuals. At time of coming out, participants who were affiliated with mainstream Judeo-Christian faiths reported greater faith conflict than those affiliated with Earth-spirited faiths; however, there were no differences in resolution of the conflict between the two groups, internalized homonegativity, or self-acceptance. In addition, Earth-spirited faiths engaged in many GLBT-affirming behaviors.     

“Everything That We Can Do”: A Content Analysis of the Protective Strategies Used by GLBTQ Parents

Despite increased access to parenting rights through legal marriage and adoption, U.S. gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer (GLBTQ) parents continue to experience varying levels of support for their families. This study explored protective strategies, or actions taken to meet one's safety needs when vulnerable, that GLBTQ parents pursue. This study included 454 GLBTQ parents from a national survey. Participants' open-ended responses about protective strategies were extracted from the survey and analyzed using content analysis. Responses were coded into 10 categories capturing strategies GLBTQ parents used to protect their families. While strategies utilizing legal supports were common, the most cited strategies were symbolic strategies, including creating a family name and developing written statements of parent wishes. Exploratory analyses revealed no difference in mean number of strategies used between parents who reported having legal status as a parent through adoption or listing on the birth certificate and those without legal parenting status. These results suggest that GLBTQ parents, regardless of their legal parenting status, take intentional measures to achieve a sense of safety and increase social support. The findings reiterate the importance of both legal and social support of GLBTQ parents.     

The Progression of Sexual Relationships

The authors examine factors associated with the advancement or dissolution of newly formed sexual relationships. Data from the 2006–2010 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) was used to examine women and men aged 18–39 (n = 2,774) whose most recent sexual relationship began within the 12 months before their interview. Results indicate that newly formed sexual relationships are often transitory. By 12 months, only 23% of respondents remained in nonresidential sexual relationships, another 27% were cohabiting with that partner, and half had ended their relationships. Sexual relationships formed before age 25 are significantly more likely to break up than to transition into cohabitation. Indicators of social class disadvantage, such as living with a stepparent, expedited cohabitation, whereas measures of advantage, such as having a college‐educated mother, deterred transitions into shared living. Racial differences also emerge: Blacks were less likely than Whites to transition rapidly into shared living.     

Reconfigured Everyday Lives of Children from Divorced-Parent Families in Singapore

With the termination of a marriage, children involved inevitably experience dramatic changes in different facets of their lives. This article makes use of narrative accounts of divorced single parents to investigate how their marital dissolution has impacted and changed their children's lives. Empirical data was collected through semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 25 Singaporean divorced parents. Within the policy and social context of Singapore society, I highlight transformations in three specific aspects of the children's lives: one, the reconfigurations of familial relationships and formation of a new family unit; two, the creation of and adaptation to new family practices and routine; three, the adoption of new social identity following parental divorce. This article hopes to present a more nuanced understanding of the divorce experience by emphasizing both the precarious and productive aspects in the children's lives, contra to the existing divorce literature that typically focuses on the former.     

Women Elite Leaders Doing Respectable Business Femininity: How Privilege is Conferred,Contested and Defended through the Body

This paper offers a theory of respectable business femininity. Respectable business femininity is theorized as a discursive and relational process that explains tensions women elite leaders experience at the nexus of being both One and Other and sometimes privileged, embedded notions of leadership as masculine and wider expectations of acceptable embodied femininity. Such tensions manifest through a disciplining of women leaders’ bodies and appearance by self‐and‐others, as a means of appraising women as credible elite leaders and respectable women. Through a qualitative study we show how, within sites of ambiguity, embodied leadership and subjectivities are both enabled and constrained. Accounts highlight how privilege is fluid and (de)stabilized in that it is conferred, contested and defended through women's bodies and appearance. We advance understandings of contemporary respectable femininity, privilege at work, and body work, and consider practical implications for women leaders and management education.