The Perceptions of Women’s Roles and Progress: A Study of Malay Women

This study examines the general perceptions of women towards their roles, their interpretation of progress, as well as the facilitating factors and barriers to their progress. Questionnaires were distributed to 1,000 Malay women in Malaysia from rural and urban areas, from various age and income groups. Interviews were also carried out on the selected sample. Using both quantitative and qualitative methods of analyses, the results showed that women were perceived to play a strong, influential, and supportive role in their families. The results also showed how women perceive progress. These findings are discussed in relation to culture, socialization, values and norms of the Malay society.     

Bayesian analysis of time series Poisson data

This paper provides a practical simulation-based Bayesian analysis of parameter-driven models for time series Poisson data with the AR(1) latent process. The posterior distribution is simulated by a Gibbs sampling algorithm. Full conditional posterior distributions of unknown variables in the model are given in convenient forms for the Gibbs sampling algorithm. The case with missing observations is also discussed. The methods are applied to real polio data from 1970 to 1983.     

On second-order improved estimation of a gamma scale parameter

This paper concludes our comprehensive study on point estimation of model parameters of a gamma distribution from a second-order decision theoretic point of view. It should be noted that efficient estimation of gamma model parameters for samples ‘not large’ is a challenging task since the exact sampling distributions of the maximum likelihood estimators and its variants are not known. Estimation of a gamma scale parameter has received less attention from the earlier researchers compared to shape parameter estimation. What we have observed here is that improved estimation of the shape parameter does not necessarily lead to improved scale estimation if a natural moment condition (which is also the maximum likelihood restriction) is satisfied. Therefore, this work deals with the gamma scale parameter estimation as a separate new problem, not as a by-product of the shape parameter estimation, and studies several estimators in terms of second-order risk.     

A New Approach for Testing Periodicity

This article describes testing for periodicity in the presence of FD processes. We propose two approaches for testing the periodicity based on Fisher's test. The first one is performed using the periodogram which has been divided into different parts. The second one is based on the discrete wavelet transform. Properties of the tests are illustrated by means of Monte Carlo simulations.     

Censored Kullback-Leibler Information and Goodness-of-Fit Test with Type II Censored Data

The Kulback-Leibler information has been considered for establishing goodness-of-fit test statistics, which have been shown to perform very well (Arizono & Ohta, 1989; Ebrahimi et al., 1992, etc). In this paper, we propose censored Kullback-Leibler information to generalize the discussion of the Kullback-Leibler information to the censored case. Then we establish a goodness-of-fit test statistic based on the censored Kullback-Leibler information with the type 2 censored data, and compare the test statistics with some existing test statistics for the exponential and normal distributions.     

A modified LGB method for detecting significant effects based on a half-normal probability plot

In analyzing data from unreplicated factorial designs, the half-normal probability plot is commonly used to screen for the ‘vital few’ effects. Recently, many formal methods have been proposed to overcome the subjectivity of this plot. Lawson (1998) (hereafter denoted as LGB) suggested a hybrid method based on the half-normal probability plot, which is a blend of Lenth (1989) and Loh (1992) method. The method consists of fitting a simple least squares line to the inliers, which are determined by the Lenth method. The effects exceeding the prediction limits based on the fitted line are candidates for the vital few effects. To improve the accuracy of partitioning the effects into inliers and outliers, we propose a modified LGB method (hereafter denoted as the Mod_LGB method), in which more outliers can be classified by using both the Carling’s modification of the box plot (Carling, 2000) and Lenth method. If no outlier exists or there is a wide range in the inliers as determined by the Lenth method, more outliers can be found by the Carling method. A simulation study is conducted in unreplicated $2^4$ designs with the number of active effects ranging from 1 to 6 to compare the efficiency of the Lenth method, original LGB methods, and the proposed modified version of the LGB method.     

How publics’ active and passive communicative behaviors affect their tornado responses: An integration of STOPS and SMCC

During imminent threat crises, such as natural disasters, publics have minutes to decide how to respond after receiving a warning. This study advances understanding of publics’ crisis communicative and noncommunicative behaviors in the context of tornadoes through combining and extending two theories: the social-mediated crisis communication (SMCC) model and the situational theory of problem solving (STOPS). Findings from a survey of Southeast U.S. residents (n = 1,585) indicate that STOPS is internally consistent and accurate at measuring its intended outcomes of communicative action in problem solving. However, the STOPS measures do not have a significant relationship with the desirable outcome for imminent threat crisis communication: individuals following government’s protective action guidance about tornadoes. In comparison, the expanded SMCC model predicts individuals’ self-reported compliance. Finally, variables from the SMCC model and tornado-specific variables were integrated into the STOPS model to explain individuals’ communicative engagement. Implications for theory and public relations practice are discussed.     

Spatio-temporal patterns of pre-eclampsia and eclampsia in relation to drinking water salinity at the district level in Bangladesh from 2016 to 2018

Population and Environment - This analysis examines whether salinity in drinking water is associated with pre-eclampsia and eclampsia (PE/E), a leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality....     

How the acculturation of Baba Nyonya community affects Malacca food identity?

ABSTRACT

The migration of the Chinese community to Malacca in the 16th century has enabled the process of cross culturing and culinary acculturation, producing a unique mixture of Baba Nyonya food. Even though Baba Nyonya food is pretty much has been localised (Malay), its Chinese representation cannot be denied. This study aims to assess how the acculturation of the Baba Nyonya community affects Malacca food identity. A quantitative methodology is employed in this study. This study classifies Baba Nyonya food acculturation through (1) types of food; (2) methods of cooking; (3) ingredients; and (4) eating decorum. From the regression analysis, this study found that Baba Nyonya cultural polarity explains significant variation in the formation of Malacca food identity. This study then elaborates on the importance of Baba Nyonya food in Malacca destination branding.     

A New Malaysian Quality of Life Index Based on Fuzzy Sets and Hierarchical Needs

The Malaysian Quality of Life Index (MQLI) released by the Economic Planning Unit (EPU), has led authors to search for alternative method of expressing this index. One of the limitations in MQLI computations is the failure to recognise unequal weights for each accounted component. This paper offers a new way of expressing the quality of life index using a mathematical modelling based on fuzzy sets theory and the proposed weights based on Maslow’s theory of hierarchical human needs. The indices of 11 components that were used to compute MQLI, again be gathered as a basis in expressing a new Malaysian Fuzzy Quality of Life Index (MFQLI). The new indices for each component yielded through a normalisation process prior weighting and aggregation to compose a new MFQLI. It was found that a fuzzy sets approach with the inclusion of weights based on human needs yielded a better index of quality of life than the MQLI.