Retirement Planning Among Hispanics: In God’s Hands?

We conducted a qualitative study on retirement preparedness among middle-aged and older low-income Hispanics in Los Angeles. Data were derived from four focus groups conducted in the greater Los Angeles area. Findings demonstrate how behavioral and cultural factors—family experiences, religiosity, and denial of retirement—explain the lack of savings and preparedness for retirement. Findings also indicate that the majority of participants want to be economically independent and to keep working until they are unable to do so. Participants helped their parents financially but did not feel comfortable asking their own children for help. Instead, participants placed their survival in retirement “in God’s hands.”     

Weibull inference using trimmed samples and prior information

Trimmed samples are commonly used in several branches of statistical methodology, especially when the presence of contaminated data is suspected. Assuming that certain proportions of the smallest and largest observations from a Weibull sample are unknown or have been eliminated, a Bayesian approach to point and interval estimation of the scale parameter, as well as hypothesis testing and prediction, is presented. In many cases, the use of substantial prior information can significantly increase the quality of the inferences and reduce the amount of testing required. Some Bayes estimators and predictors are derived in closed-forms. Highest posterior density estimators and credibility intervals can be computed using iterative methods. Bayes rules for testing one- and two-sided hypotheses are also provided. An illustrative numerical example is included.     

Territoriality,map-mindedness,and the politics of place

Theory and Society - Political sociologists have paid closer attention of late to the territoriality of political communities, and have even begun theorizing the theme of territoriality’s...     

Navigating Americanized Identities: Bicultural Ethnicity,Race, and the Incorporation Experience

This paper reports on the complex ways in which immigrant young adults make sense of their Americanized ethnic and racial identities. The analysis draws on a large set of in-depth interviews (N?=?233) collected with immigrants between the ages of 18 and 29 across three regions in the US (California, New York, and Minnesota) in the early 2000s and is in dialogue with emerging new theories of immigrant incorporation which combine the insights of traditional assimilation and racialization frameworks. The identity narratives that emerge from these interviews demonstrate the overarching significance of racial and ethnic identification for young adults across various immigrant communities. The narratives also highlight some of the contextual factors involved in the construction of an ethnic identity in the US such as experiences with discrimination; or the presence of co-ethnic communities. The final substantive section explores how young American immigrants in the transition to adulthood attempt to cultivate hybrid, bicultural identities that balance their American-ness with the ongoing experience of living in a deeply racialized society. The paper concludes by discussing implications for the literature on identity formation and the transition to adulthood as well as on the immigrant incorporation experience.     

发展的历史, 现代性的困境 ———以批判性的发展研究视角审视全球化

文章旨在通过回顾批判性发展研究以及有关现代性的争论中历史的和现今的主要趋势，借以构想对中国农村发展研究有所启迪的相关问题。同时，本文简要地呈现了一个哥伦比亚地区雨林保护的案例研究。文章第一部分从话语与社会实践的维度对发展进行了历史回顾，指出发展不仅是近代以来（二战以后）的产物，且具有更深远的历史渊源（植根于欧洲现代性），并以探讨后发展、另类现代性、非现代性等概念作为小结。文章第二部分关于哥伦比亚的案例研究，介绍了该地区某社会运动如何构建自身的政治生态，并一度对该地区的发展方向产生重大影响。文章第三部分提出了一个大纲式框架，旨在从生态、文化和经济差异的角度思辨发展。作为结论，本文提出了一些可能与中国农村发展具有相关性的问题。     

Lifetime estimation from doubly censored data and dirichlet process prior knowledge on the observable random vector

The purpose of this paper is to present a nonparametric Bayesian procedure for estimating a survival curve in a double censoring situation. Assuming a proportional hazard rates model, we propose a consistent estimation of lifetime, based on a Dirichlet process prior knowledge on the observable random vector. Some large sample properties of this estimator are also derived, We prove strong consistency and asymptotic weak convergence to a Gaussian pro cess. Finally, a simulation study is presented in order to analyze the behavior of the proposed estimator, and establish some comparisons to other estimators.     

Organizational Wellbeing in CSOs in Morelos (Mexico): Findings from a Qualitative Study

In recent years, civil society organizations (CSOs) have become a significant aspect of Mexican reality given the number of people involved in them and their contribution to the services sector. These entities are organizations where voluntary and paid workers may experience wellbeing conditions that are inherent in empowerment processes, feelings of usefulness, and the satisfaction associated with participating in decision-making. At the same time, contradictory dynamics related to governance, power relations, leadership, and decision-making may be activated in CSOs and create uncertainty and psychosocial malaise. In this research, based on a grounded theory approach, 11 interviews and 89 questionnaires were realized in 14 service-providing CSOs in the Mexican State of Morelos, highlighting the wellbeing/malaise dimensions and psychosocial factors that are relevant for their members.