Are Mothers and Fathers Interchangeable Caregivers?

Abstract

Recent debates about same-sex marriage have raised questions concerning the interchangeability of mothers and fathers. This paper provides three pieces of empirical evidence that highlight the distinct role that fathers and mothers play in the home. First, we use time-use data to show that fathers and mothers provide different amounts of time to their children regardless of who is the breadwinner in the household. Second, we show that men and women choose different occupations, with men more likely to choose occupations that have a protective role and mothers more likely to choose an occupation with a nurturing role. Third, we find that children are much less likely to experience domestic violence and neighborhood violence when there is a father in the home.     

Centralized resource allocation BCC models

In two recent papers, Lozano and Villa [Centralized resource allocation using data envelopment analysis. Journal of Productivity Analysis 2004;22:143–61. [1]] and Lozano et al. [Centralized target setting for regional recycling operations using DEA. OMEGA 2004;32:101–10. [2]] introduce the concept of “centralized” data envelopment analysis (DEA) models, which aim at optimizing the combined resource consumption by all units in an organization rather than considering the consumption by each unit separately. This is particularly relevant for situations where some variables are controlled by a central authority (e.g. Head Office) rather than individual unit managers. In this paper we reconsider one of the centralized models proposed by the above-mentioned authors and suggest modifying it to only consider adjustments of previously inefficient units. We show how this new model formulation relate to a standard DEA model, namely as the analysis of the mean inefficient point. We also provide a procedure that can be used to generate alternative optimal solutions, enabling a decision maker to search through alternate solution possibilities in order to select the preferred one. We then extend the model to incorporate non-transferable as well as strictly non-discretionary variables and illustrate the models using an empirical example of a public service organization.     

Bayesian sample size determination for estimating binomial parameters from data subject to misclassification

We investigate the sample size problem when a binomial parameter is to be estimated, but some degree of misclassification is possible. The problem is especially challenging when the degree to which misclassification occurs is not exactly known. Motivated by a Canadian survey of the prevalence of toxoplasmosis infection in pregnant women, we examine the situation where it is desired that a marginal posterior credible interval for the prevalence of width w has coverage 1−α, using a Bayesian sample size criterion. The degree to which the misclassification probabilities are known a priori can have a very large effect on sample size requirements, and in some cases achieving a coverage of 1−α is impossible, even with an infinite sample size. Therefore, investigators must carefully evaluate the degree to which misclassification can occur when estimating sample size requirements.     

The Teaching of Hypnosis: Outline and Method

Abstract

In the past several years there has been a significant increase in the number of training programs in clinical hypnosis. There appears to be little information available regarding the actual method and content of such coursework. The authors gave a number of professionals and paraprofessionals a training program that included lectures, clinical inductions, and an opportunity for limited use of these methods in a supervised setting. The methods used were presented in a step-by-step fashion, drawing upon not only the authors' experience and expertise, but also requiring the active participation of those learning these clinical methods. In all, there were ten sessions with some required reading outside of the class time. Typical problems of resistance, problem solving, and various perspectives were discussed and employed.     

Theory and Formalization: Some Reflections on Experience

I describe in this paper some of my efforts in developing formal theories of social processes. These include work on models of occupational mobility, on models to describe the emergence of expectations out of performance evaluations, and on the graph theory formulation of the Status Characteristics theory. Not all models have been equally significant in developing theory. However, the graph theory formulation has played a central role in the growth of the Expectation States program. It has been involved in the generalization of theories, the integration of theories, and in the construction of highly sensitive tests of theories that would be impossible without the inferential capacities of formalization.     

Explaining Family Change and Variation: Challenges for Family Demographers

Twenty years ago, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) issued a request for proposals that resulted in the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH), a unique survey valuable to a wide range of family scholars. This paper describes the efforts of an interdisciplinary group of family demographers to build on the progress enabled by the NSFH and many other theoretical and methodological innovations. Our work, also supported by NICHD, will develop plans for research and data collection to address the central question of what causes family change and variation. We outline the group's initial assessments of orienting frameworks, key aspects of family life to study, and theoretical and methodological challenges for research on family change. Finally, we invite family scholars to follow our progress and to help develop this shared public good.     

Hybrid test for the hypothesis of symmetry

In recent years, McWilliams and Tajuddin have proposed new and more powerful non-parametric tests of symmetry for continuous distributions about a known center. In this paper, we propose a simple non-parametric two-stage procedure based on the sign test and a percentile-modified two-sample Wilcoxon test. The small-sample properties of this test, Tajuddin's test, McWilliams' test and a modified runs test of Modarres and Gastwirth are investigated in a Monte Carlo simulation study. The simulations indicate that, for a wide variety of asymmetric alternatives in the lambda family, the hybrid test is more powerful than are existing tests in the literature.