房地产税的作用、机理及改革方向、路径、要领的探讨

针对中国税制中直接税比重过低、地方税体系不成型、国民经济结构中房地产调控需要体现治本水准及收入分配需要有效抑制差距扩大这四个突出问题,房地产税的改革将产生不可忽视的正面效应,其方向应当肯定。在房地产税改革大方向下的路径选择,应注重试点突破与渐进推动;改革要领上,则应更显开明和需要给社会公众吃"定心丸"。     

Tree-structured analysis of treatment effects with large observational data

Treatment effect in an observational study of relatively large scale can be described as a mixture of effects among subgroups. In particular, analysis for estimating the treatment effect at the level of an entire sample potentially involves not only differential effects across subgroups of the entire study cohort, but also differential propensities – probabilities of receiving treatment given study subjects’ pretreatment history. Such complex heterogeneity is of great research interest because the analysis of treatment effects can substantially depend on the hidden data structure for effect sizes and propensities. To uncover the unseen data structure, we propose a likelihood-based regression tree method which we call marginal tree (MT). The MT method is aimed at a simultaneous assessment of differential effects and propensity scores so that both become homogeneous within each terminal node of the resultant tree structure. We assess simulation performances of the MT method by comparing it with other existing tree methods and illustrate its use with a simulated data set, where the objective is to assess the effects of dieting behavior on its subsequent emotional distress among adolescent girls.     

Tests of independence in incomplete multi-way tables using likelihood functions

Kang (2006) and Kang and Larsen (in press) used the log likelihood function with Lagrangian multipliers for estimation of cell probabilities in two-way incomplete contingency tables. This paper extends results and simulations to three-way and multi-way tables. Numerous studies cross-classify subjects by three or more categorical factors. Constraints on cell probabilities are incorporated through Lagrangian multipliers. Variances of the MLEs are derived from the matrix of second derivatives of the log likelihood with respect to cell probabilities and the Lagrange multiplier. Wald and likelihood ratio tests of independence are derived using the estimates and estimated variances. In simulation results in Kang and Larsen (in press), for data missing at random, maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) produced more efficient estimates of population proportions than either multiple imputation (MI) based on data augmentation or complete case (CC) analysis. Neither MLE nor MI, however, lead to an improvement over CC analysis with respect to power of tests for independence in two-way tables. Results are extended to multidimensional tables with arbitrary patterns of missing data when the variables are recorded on individual subjects. In three-way and higher-way tables, however, there is information relevant for judging independence in partially classified information, as long as two or more variables are jointly observed. Simulations study three-dimensional tables with three patterns of association and two levels of missing information.     

Asymptotics for a class of generalized multicast autoregressive processes

We propose a new class of generalized multicast autoregressive (GMCAR, for short, hereafter) models indexed by a multi-casting tree where each individual produces exactly the same number of offspring. This class includes standard bifurcating autoregressive processes (BAR, cf. Cowan and Staudte (1986)) and multicast autoregressive (MCAR, cf. Hwang and Choi (2009)) models as special cases. Accommodating non-Gaussian, non-negative and count data, the class includes various models such as nonlinear autoregression, conditionally heteroscedastic process and conditional exponential family. The pathwise stationarity of the GMCAR model is discussed. A law of large numbers and a central limit theorem are established which are in turn used to derive asymptotic distributions associated with martingale estimating functions.     

Comparing income poverty gap and deprivation on social acceptance: A mediation model with interpersonal communication and social support

In many developed countries or regions, wide income disparities increase the difficulty in reducing poverty. In their day‐to‐day lives, poor people often feel less accepted by the society. The failures in communicating with social groups and receiving social support lead to negative consequences on individual well‐being and higher level of social exclusion. Based on the debate upon alternative approaches to conceptualizing and operationalizing poverty, this study attempts to verify a mediation model with data from a household survey (N = 1,202) in Hong Kong. The results of structural equation modelling reveal that deprivation is a more powerful indicator than income poverty for specifying the negative relations of poverty with interpersonal communication, social support, and social acceptance; the negative impact of deprivation on social acceptance can be reduced by two significant mediators of interpersonal communication and social support. The results are discussed in terms of directions for future research and policy and welfare intervention.     

The interactive effect of leader–member exchange and electronic communication on employee psychological empowerment and work outcomes

We advance understanding of the role that leaders play in promoting psychological empowerment and positive work outcomes (job satisfaction, organizational commitment and job performance) for employees who engage in a high degree of electronic communication in their job. By integrating leader–member exchange (LMX) theory and theories of electronic communication, we build and test a mediated moderation model in which employees’ degree of electronic communication in their job amplifies the positive relationship that LMX has to psychological empowerment and subsequent employee work outcomes. Based on a sample of 353 early-career professionals employed in a range of different types of organizations, we found general support for the hypothesized model. We discuss the study’s theoretical and practical implications for leading employees in electronically-enabled work environments.     

MEASURING EFFORT INCENTIVES IN A TOURNAMENT WITH MANY PARTICIPANTS: THEORY AND APPLICATION

This article provides an empirical measure to compare incentive effects of different tournament structures. Although there have been many theoretical attempts to analyze incentive effects of a tournament competition, empirical applications are limited as the provided conditions cannot easily be empirically observed. We show that the empirical density of the performance distribution can be used to measure effort incentives in a tournament with many participants. We apply this method to evaluate the grading policy change in the 2008 College Scholastic Ability Test in South Korea. (JEL C70, C51)     

频次效应和阅读理解关系研究

频次效应是二语习得领域近年来的研究热点。实验结果表明,输入频次可以促进阅读成绩的提高,但并不是直线上升;在3次这个最佳练习频次内,受试注意力从大意理解向细节、推理理解转移,受试对反复阅读的积极性和自我效能感逐渐减弱,阅读3次后成绩提高进入停止状态。该实验验证频次效应和阅读理解之间的正面影响,揭示了频次效应的极限所在。实验结果有助于丰富频次效应理论,对阅读教学及学生学业减负可提供参照依据。     

Fast accelerated failure time modeling for case-cohort data

Semiparametric accelerated failure time (AFT) models directly relate the expected failure times to covariates and are a useful alternative to models that work on the hazard function or the survival function. For case-cohort data, much less development has been done with AFT models. In addition to the missing covariates outside of the sub-cohort in controls, challenges from AFT model inferences with full cohort are retained. The regression parameter estimator is hard to compute because the most widely used rank-based estimating equations are not smooth. Further, its variance depends on the unspecified error distribution, and most methods rely on computationally intensive bootstrap to estimate it. We propose fast rank-based inference procedures for AFT models, applying recent methodological advances to the context of case-cohort data. Parameters are estimated with an induced smoothing approach that smooths the estimating functions and facilitates the numerical solution. Variance estimators are obtained through efficient resampling methods for nonsmooth estimating functions that avoids full blown bootstrap. Simulation studies suggest that the recommended procedure provides fast and valid inferences among several competing procedures. Application to a tumor study demonstrates the utility of the proposed method in routine data analysis.     

Between ‘homeland’ and ‘diaspora’: multicultural education in Israel and South Korea

The aim of this qualitative case study was to explore multicultural education for ‘newcomers’ in Israel and in South Korea. Despite their differences, the two countries face the same inflow of two types of newcomers – one group that is expected to fully integrate, and the other of newcomers considered temporary. The educational challenge that results is recognition of the cultural groups, and providing equal educational opportunities, for both. Four schools were compared, two in each country, measuring multicultural education according to Bank’s five dimensions. Findings show that the same dimensions could be identified in all schools. The differences were in the school’s interpretation of the cultural identity of the students, congruent with their legal status, and degree of acceptability by the host country. The groups that were expected to fully integrate into the host country (perceived as a ‘homeland’) were given a more assimilatory education, as manifested in the Content Integration dimension; whereas the groups that were considered foreign were given a more multicultural education, with the schools making more references to their national culture, thus enhancing an identity of a ‘diaspora.’