Welfare analysis of a tax reform for Germany: a comparison of the unitary and collective models of household labour supply

We compare results of a tax reform analysis obtained with the collective and unitary models of household behaviour. We simulate real world micro-data by means of a collective approach, using a compound procedure of estimation and calibration based on the 1998 wave of the German socio-economic panel. We estimate a unitary model on this ‘collective’ data set. Investigating a move from joint to individual taxation on the basis of both models, we obtain important discrepancies between predicted adjustments to labour supply and distortions in the welfare analysis of the reform on the basis of unitary estimates.      

Child custody issues and co‐occurrence of intimate partner violence and child maltreatment: controversies and points of agreement amongst practitioners

The situation of families undergoing separation in a context of co‐occurrence of intimate partner violence (IPV) and child maltreatment raises certain issues related to child custody. The results presented in this paper were collected and analysed within the framework of a qualitative study aiming to identify the principal points of agreement and the main controversies amongst practitioners in several different types of organizations. Focus groups were held with a total of 43 practitioners from six different settings concerned with child custody in cases of co‐occurrence of IPV and child maltreatment. Although they agreed on the importance of ensuring the safety of victims of violence, their views diverged on three points: (1) the importance of preserving the father–child relationship; (2) collaboration between voluntary organizations and semi‐voluntary or legal agencies; and (3) consideration of cultural differences.     

The Effects of Perceived Barriers,Role Models,and Acculturation on the Career Self‐Efficacy and Career Consideration of Hispanic Women

This study used path analysis to examine the relationship between perceived barriers, acculturation, and role model influence on the career self‐efficacy and career considerations of a sample of Hispanic women. Two path models were examined. The male‐dominated model accounted for 15% of the variance, and the female‐dominated model accounted for 26% of the variance. No relationship was found between the variables of interest and male‐dominated career self‐efficacy and consideration. However, perceived barriers were related to female‐dominated career consideration and Anglo acculturation significantly contributed to female‐dominated career self‐efficacy. Results are discussed with regard to career practice and research with Hispanic women.     

Annualized hours as a capacity planning tool in make-to-order or assemble-to-order environment: An agricultural implements company case

Capacity planning is one of the most important elements for an efficient production planning and control system. It is even more important when the main strategies to fulfil sales requirements are make-to-order (MTO) or assemble-to-order (ATO). Neither MTO or ATO companies keep finished products in stock which means that production level is driven by actual sales figures. Therefore, it is very important to have an available capacity as flexible as possible to meet sales requirements. Annualized hours (AH) is a work time control system that helps in increasing the flexibility of available capacity. The main rule of the AH system is to hire employees to work a certain number of hours on a yearly basis. Following some other pre-defined rules and limits, the AH system allows a company to adjust weekly available time in order to reduce idle capacity or to fulfil requirements that could mean overtime. This paper proposes a linear programming model to plan the operations using AH. This model has been implemented in a company that produces agricultural implements, showing that it is very simple to use. It is producing excellent practical results.     

Demand and supply network design scope for personalized manufacturing

This paper first presents personalizing and personalized manufacturing as a means for firms to meet the rising challenge, faced by a large variety of manufacturers, to offer innovative highly personalized products with short and reliable delivery delays in a digital and global economy that is highly turbulent and competitive. It positions personalizing versus the current trend of mass customising. It characterizes complementary types of personalizing and highlights the key elements for their successful implementation from a demand and supply network perspective. Finally, it illustrates the scope and addresses how personalizing affects the design of the demand and supply network, emphasizing the scope of this design influence, the variety of options for each element of the network, and the interrelationships between the design decisions.     

Internet Technology in Service of Personal Health Care Management: Patient Perspective

Internet technology has become an informational resource for most health care consumers. Online information, discussion, and support groups, in the form of message boards, listservs, and chat rooms are emerging as parts of virtual self-health-care network. This paper examines the extent to which participation in online health discussion groups was reported to be helpful in increasing medical knowledge and in enhancing the participatory patient role of health care consumers in interaction with health care service professionals. Data for this study was collected from 350 patients who participated in Internet discussion groups for cancer patients. The findings of the study indicated the important impact of Internet health discussion groups on health care management practices as perceived by health care consumers, including empowerment through knowledge and proactive participation in cancer care management. This research contributes to understanding the patient perspective and assesses the perceived importance of Internet groups by health care consumers.     

Children In Poverty: The Fundamental Issue

According to the Census Bureau, 21.9 percent of children in the United States in 1992 were poor (25 percent if one considers only those under six). Those 14.6 million children comprise 40 percent of the total population living below the poverty line. This essay documents their plight, examines the secondary effects of poverty upon the person and community, analyzes why the current “subsidy” approach has been ineffective, seeks a holistic explanation for poverty, and proposes a universal approach based on “supplementation” and “empowerment.” Due to the present budget deficit, the program is designed to be revenue neutral; it should not require any additional taxes.     

A multistate approach for estimating the incidence of human immunodeficiency virus by using data from a prevalent cohort study

Summary.  Cohort studies of individuals infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) provide useful information on the past pattern of HIV diagnoses, progression of the disease and use of antiretroviral therapy. We propose a new method for using individual data from an open prevalent cohort study to estimate the incidence of HIV, by jointly modelling the HIV diagnosis, the inclusion in the cohort and the progression of the disease in a Markov model framework. The estimation procedure involves the construction of a likelihood function which takes into account the probability of observing the total number of subjects who are enrolled in the cohort and the probabilities of passage through the stages of disease for each observed subject conditionally on being included in the cohort. The estimator of the HIV infection rate is defined as the function which maximizes a penalized likelihood, and the solution of this maximization problem is approximated on a basis of cubic M -splines. The method is illustrated by using cohort data from a hospital-based surveillance system of HIV infection in Aquitaine, a region of south-western France. A simulation study is performed to study the ability of the model to reconstruct the incidence of HIV from prevalent cohort data.     

The family and adults 65 years of age and over

The policy makers usually assume that the nuclear family model is almost universally favoured in our industrial and urban society. Governmental agencies are thus left with the responsibility taken over in the past by the extended family. Gerontological literature studied the family support available to the elderly. In general, research results have supported the modified extended family model. Here, the multigenerational household is defined as a living arrangement in contradiction with the nuclear family model, but able to provide support to the disabled elderly. With three random samples of non-institutionalized francophone elderly, it was possible to estimate the number of elderly people living in multigenerational households. It was observed that the elderly in such households are older and more functionally impaired than the elderly living in other kinds of households. Thus, the multigenerational household offers a potential for support neglected by policy makers. Governmental agencies should see themselves as supporters of family involvement with elderly members rather than as surrogates for the family. Les planificateurs assument que la famille nucléaire est le modèle presqu'unique adopte par les families de sociétés industrielles et urbaines. Les agences gouvernementales doivent done prendre la reléve de la famille ètendue. Les recherches en gérontologie ont pourtant démontrv que l'aide familiale est disponible aux personnes âgées. En fait, la famille contemporaine assure la plus grande part de l'aide aux personnes âgées. Le ménage multi-générationel se pose en source importante de support pour la personne âgée qui en est membre. L'observation de trois échantillons aléatoires de personnes âgées urbaines et francophones permet une estimation du nombre de personnes âgées habitant dans un ménage multigénérationel. En plus, ces personnes sont plus âgées et ont plus d'incapacités fonctionnelles que les personnes âgées seules ou vivant avec leur conjoint seulement. En conséquence, la famille nucléaire n'est pas un modèle empiriquement adéquat. Les recherches ont plutôt proposé le modèle de la famille étendue modifiée. Les agences gouvernementales devraient concevoir leur rôle en fonction du support qu'offre la famille â ses membres âgés plutôt que de se définir comme substituts familiaux.