On estimation of covariate-specific residual time quantiles under the proportional hazards model

Estimation and inference in time-to-event analysis typically focus on hazard functions and their ratios under the Cox proportional hazards model. These hazard functions, while popular in the statistical literature, are not always easily or intuitively communicated in clinical practice, such as in the settings of patient counseling or resource planning. Expressing and comparing quantiles of event times may allow for easier understanding. In this article we focus on residual time, i.e., the remaining time-to-event at an arbitrary time t given that the event has yet to occur by t. In particular, we develop estimation and inference procedures for covariate-specific quantiles of the residual time under the Cox model. Our methods and theory are assessed by simulations, and demonstrated in analysis of two real data sets.     

French cultural wars: public discourses on multiculturalism in France (1995–2013)

ABSTRACT

Current literature on multiculturalism is often based on the analysis of national legislation and institutions. But to understand the evolution of multiculturalism, we also have to take into account the various public debates over it. In this article, I analyse how the term ‘multiculturalism’ was used in four French national newspapers from 1995 to 2013. I use critical discourse analysis, which, through the study of vocabulary and the discursive process, allows us to chart the underlying ideologies of the texts. This research modifies the widespread perception that France is an ‘assimilationist’ country. In fact, the philosophical principles of recognition and non-discrimination have grown widespread in intellectual circles: the term ‘multiculturalism’ is used in largely positive fashion in three of the four national newspapers analysed. Criticism of ‘multiculturalism’ must be interpreted as apprehension over the potential consequences of the demographic evolution triggered by post-colonial immigration. The theme of multiculturalism is increasingly present in public debates in France, and has become an entrenched element of the left–right ideological divide. The ideological stances of all the newspapers remained constant over time: we see a sharp dichotomy between two opposing philosophies that reflect different visions of the individual and the larger community.     

When Getting Something Good is Bad: Even Three‐year‐olds React to Inequality

Fairness is central to morality. Previous research has shown that children begin to understand fairness between the ages of four and six, depending on the context and method used. Within distributive contexts, there is little clear evidence that children have a concept of fairness before the age of five. This research, however, has mostly examined children's explicit verbal responses to questions about unequal distributions—a method that often underestimates children's knowledge. In the current study, we instead examined emotional and behavioral signs that children notice and dislike inequality. We distributed an unequal number of rewards (stickers) among pairs of children (the ages of three to five years) and probed their responses to the inequality. Both implicit and explicit measures revealed that children as young as three years old notice and react negatively to an unfair distribution, particularly when they receive less than their partner. The few age trends that were found involved verbal (explicit) responses, providing evidence that although children do not explicitly talk about fairness until the age of five or six, this talk is an effort to explain emotional reactions that emerged earlier in development.     

Adoption Preparedness,Cultural Engagement,and Parental Satisfaction in Intercountry Adoption

We explored factors that influence parental involvement in adoption dialogues in 66 internationally adoptive, heterosexual couples with 4- to 7-year old children. Correlates of adoption involvement varied by parent sex. Mothers were more involved in talking about adoption than fathers, but adoption involvement was also correlated within couples. Emphasis on the difference between biological versus adoptive parenting, quality of the marital relationship, and child characteristics were differentially associated with maternal and paternal involvement. Findings suggest an intricate interplay between the marital and co-parental dynamics that shape the early communication process within adoptive families.     

Lone motherhood as a category of practice

This paper offers a critical examination of the category ‘lone mother’, which tends to be viewed as an identity category by both ‘lay’ people and social scientists. This in turn leads to the category ‘lone mother’ becoming reified, while the socially constructed nature of it remains hidden. The aim of this paper is to find a way of analyzing the lives of lone mothers without making totalizing claims about these women as individuals, but at the same time without depoliticizing the category ‘lone mother’. I argue that adopting Young's (1995 ), concept of ‘serial collectivity’ in the study of lone motherhood would enable social scientists to avoid positing that ‘lone motherhood’ is a unified category or the basis of self‐understanding, while at the same time being able to make pragmatic political claims regarding the inequalities that lone mothers face. Furthermore, this paper argues for studying ‘lone motherhood’ as a category of practice, focusing on how the category is defined, by whom, and to what ends, and the effects this has on the lives of ‘lone mothers’.     

The time use of teenagers

This paper uses American Time Use Survey (ATUS) data to describe the time use of teenagers ages 15–17, with a focus on activities that may affect teenagers’ well-being such as sleep, eating, schoolwork, and selected leisure activities. We find that teenagers with an employed mother spend less time on homework and computers, are less likely to eat with parents, but spend more time in supervised activities. Teenagers with a single mother spend more time in paid work, are less likely to eat dinner with their parent, and spend more time in unsupervised activities, but they also get more sleep. Adolescents with more educated mothers spend more time studying and on the computer, less time watching television, and are more likely to eat dinner with parents. Family income correlates positively with teenagers’ paid work, homework, computer use, and the likelihood of eating with parents, but is negatively associated with sleep. Family size is positively related to time spent in caregiving activities, sleep, and eating with parents, but is associated with less computer use.     

Relation of urbanization to stream fish assemblages and species traits in nine metropolitan areas of the United States

We examined associations of fish assemblages and fish traits with urbanization and selected environmental variables in nine major United States metropolitan areas. The strongest relations between fishes and urbanization occurred in the metropolitan areas of Atlanta, Georgia; Birmingham, Alabama; Boston, Massachusetts; and Portland, Oregon. In these areas, environmental variables with strong associations (r_s ≥ 0.70) with fish assemblages and fish traits tended to have strong associations with urbanization. Relations of urbanization with fish assemblages and fish traits were weaker in Denver, Colorado; Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas; Milwaukee-Green Bay, Wisconsin; and Raleigh, North Carolina. Environmental variables associated with fishes varied among the metropolitan areas. The metropolitan areas with poor relations may have had a limited range of possible response because of previous landscape disturbances. Given the complexities of urban landscapes in different metropolitan areas, our results indicate that caution is warranted when generalizing about biological responses to urbanization.     

Infant Neurodevelopment is Affected by Prenatal Maternal Stress: The QF2011 Queensland Flood Study

Research shows that prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) negatively affects a range of infant outcomes; yet no single study has explored the effects of stress in pregnancy from a natural disaster on multiple aspects of infant neurodevelopment. This study examined the effects of flood‐related stress in pregnancy on 6‐month‐olds' neurodevelopment and examined the moderating effects of timing of the stressor in gestation and infant sex on these outcomes. Women exposed to the 2011 Queensland (Australia) floods in pregnancy completed surveys on their flood‐related objective and subjective experiences at recruitment and reported on their infants' neurodevelopment on the problem solving, communication, and personal–social scales of the Ages and Stages‐III at 6 months postpartum (N = 115). Interaction results showed that subjective flood stress in pregnancy had significantly different effects in boys and girls, and that at high levels of stress girls had significantly lower problem solving scores than boys. Timing of the flood later in pregnancy predicted lower personal–social scores in the sample, and there was a trend (p < .10) for greater objective flood exposure to predict lower scores. PNMS had no effect on infants' communication skills. In conclusion, differential aspects of maternal flood‐related stress in pregnancy influenced aspects of 6‐month‐olds' neurodevelopment.     

The Use of Common Area <Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis>-Sample Test in Evaluating Targeting Methodologies: An Application to the Case of Egypt

The quality of life (QOL) is a measure of social wellbeing and life satisfaction of individuals in an area. Measuring its spatial dynamics is of great significance as it can assist the policy makers and practitioners in improving the balance between urbanization and living environment. This study proposes an approach to spatially map and examine the relationships between QOL, land use/land cover (LULC) and population density in an urban environment. The city of Lahore, Pakistan was selected as the case study area. The QOL was evaluated through the data related to physical health, psychological, social relationships, environment (natural and built), economic condition and development, and access to facilities and services. The weights/relative importance of each QOL domain was determined through the analytic hierarchy process by processing the data collected from local field experts. Overall QOL was computed by applying the domain weights to the data; spatial mapping of QOL domains and overall QOL was conducted afterwards. The spatial dynamics of QOL were examined, and its interrelationships with LULC and population density were analyzed. The relationship between these three variables turned out to be spatially dynamic. The proposed approach assists the spatial mapping and analyses of QOL, LULC and population, and by examining the spatial dynamics of these variables, contributes to devising appropriate land management and QOL improvement strategies and policies in the metropolitan regions.     

Does Frequency of Interruptions Amplify the Effect of Various Types of Interruptions? Experimental Evidence

The aim of this experiment was to determine if the frequency of interruptions during an interaction amplifies the effect of the type of the interruptions on the interruptee (the amplification hypothesis). While interviewing 90 participants, two confederates manipulated four different kinds of interruptions (change-subject, same-subject, disagreement, and supportive interruptions) at two different frequencies (mean rates, 1.58 and 2.94 per minute), in addition to a no-interruption control condition. At the end of the interview, the participants were asked to answer questions about themselves, the interlocutor, and the situation. The results showed that the negative effects of change- and same-subject interruptions were amplified when they were more frequent, as were the positive effects of supportive interruptions. Contrary to expectations, disagreement interruptions were regarded as positive. All the results provide support for the amplification hypothesis.