Survey design for detecting patches

In this paper, we are concerned with designing surveys for detecting patches of some exploitable resource, such as a shellfish stock. We take as our objective that, if there is one or more circular patches above some specified size, then the probability of detecting at least one patch should be high. We show how the required sampling intensity can be modified in the light of information about the likely number and size of patches. The results are applied to two surveys for detecting exploitable patches of cockles ( Cerastoderma edule ).     

ESTIMATING EQUATIONS AND NON-LINEAR FUNCTIONAL RELATIONSHIPS

A nonlinear functional relationship is defined as an R-dimensional manifold in P-dimensional space. The formulation of the model may be explicitly in terms of R-dimensional vectors of incidental parameters or implicitly by a (P-R)-dimensional vector function of constraints. The objective is to estimate and make inference about a K-vector of parameters θ which defines the manifold. Each observed P-vector has its expectation lying on the manifold, and the error vector has a variance matrix defined in terms of a further vector of parameters The theory of estimating equations in the presence of incidental parameters is extended and applied to the explicit formulation, to give equations suitable for estimating θ given knowledge of only the first two moments. The method has a geometrical interpretation. Estimating equations for are chosen to be those which would be optimal if the normality assumption were true. First order corrections to the biases of these estimates are included. An example where the manifold is a circle centred on the origin is used to illustrate the theory. Further examples incorporate more general features, including the estimation of two variance parameters and estimation in higher dimensions.     

Disseminating science-based prevention: lessons learned from CSAP's CAPTs

A wide variety of prevention approaches that reduce substance use and associated problems have been developed and tested. But successes have been limited in promoting the use of these scientific advances by the policy makers, practitioners, and concerned citizens. The Center for Substance Abuse Prevention's six regional Centers for the Application of Prevention Technologies (CSAP's CAPTs) are a major mechanism by which CSAP brings research to practice. This article synthesizes the issues that the CAPTs have faced, the solutions they have developed, and conclusions concerning the work that still needs to be done to increase the application of science-based approaches to prevention. These discussions highlight the particular importance of addressing issues related to the larger systems in which prevention programs and strategies operate.     

Equivariant estimation of a normal mean using a normal concomitant variable for covariance adjustment

Equivariant point estimators of one component of a bivariate normal mean vector are considered when the second component is known. Equivariant point estimators are characterized and compared in terms of their risk functions with respect to a normalized squared-error loss function. Specific point estimators that dominate the usual estimator when the squared correlation coefficient is sufficiently large are provided.     

Family treatment of a borderline personality

This article discusses family therapy as a complementary treatment modality with the adult borderline patient. According to theory, the separation-individuation process is the underlying conflict of the pathological adaptation of the adult borderline patient and the goal of therapy is often considered to be separation of the patient from the family. Family treatment can facilitate the process of separation-individuation as it allows for the concomitant enhancement of the separateness of the parents. Family treatment can also reduce anxiety about separation, minimize the development of a premature intense transference, and prevent the battle for control between the therapist and the parents. Moreover, the process of the family treatment itself, described in this article, reflects the developmental phase of symbiosis, followed by the subphases of the separation-individuation process, i.e., differentiation, practicing and rapprochement, with the groundwork being laid for moving into object constancy. The ego functioning of all family members has the potential of being enhanced and strengthened through this process.     

Probation Partnerships, Voluntary Action and Community Justice

Having been offered — and prepared to accept — a “centre-stage”role in the operation of the criminal justice system as recently as 1991, the Probation Service in England and Wales seems increasingly to be marginalized by politicians who, in a more punitive climate, have changed their minds about what is expected of it. As a probation spokesperson has recently said: “the big vision has gone”. One strand of policy which the Probation Service was expected to develop in 1991 was increased partnership with voluntary organizations, but, although progress has been made, it is a policy about which the Service has been very ambivalent, fearing that it may lead in the longer term to privatization of their work. This paper will outline the origins and implications of the policy, note how some local Services have so far responded to it, and suggest that, if pursued in certain fields of activity, partnership could contain an alternative vision to the one that has been lost.     

Management control for effective corporate planning

The authors' object is to provide a practical technique to help senior management put long range plans into operation. A model framework is used to identify the objective requirements and principal elements of control within the firm. A procedure is then outlined to identify the weaknesses which may erode the effectiveness of the system, thus providing the basis for system design and adaptation. The use of the method is illustrated in four case studies from actual companies.     

Measuring the probability of patch detection for four spatial sampling designs

In this paper, we derive the probabilities that four chosen sampling schemes will detect a circular patch of organisms whose location is at some random location in the study area. We also describe simulations which indicate the variation of patch detection probabilities for different realizations of the sampling design. We comment briefly on how probabilities would be affected by multiple and different shaped patches. Our results are a useful guide for practitioners when choosing a design and an appropriate sampling intensity.