INVESTIGATING THE CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN QUITS AND WAGES: AN EXERCISE IN COMPARATIVE DYNAMICS

This paper examines the causal relationship between wages and quits in U.S. manufacturing industries. Logit and regression models then relate causality test results to industrial characteristics. Once these relationships are identified, they can be used to predict the causality classification for each industry, based on the characteristics of that industry. This technique can help the researcher choose the appropriate theoretical model for analysis. One finding is that quits respond to wages in most industries, but not in industries with highly skilled workforces.     

Client Responses to Family Conciliation: Achieving Clarity in the Midst of Confusion

Correspondence to Dr. R. Simpson, Family and Community Dispute Research Centre, Claremont Bridge, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU. Summary The present paper deals with one particular issue raised inthe course of a major piece of evaluation research into theeffectiveness of family conciliation in England and Wales. Fromaccounts of clients it became apparent that many of them wereexperiencing some confusion and misunderstanding regarding theprocesses they were undergoing. These confusions are describedand their implications for conciliation and the divorce processin general are discussed. The paper concludes with some suggestionsas to how this confusion may be minimized through the developmentof a broad-based and independent agency offering a comprehensiverange of services for those experiencing difficulties arisingfrom the break-down of an established relationship.     

Professionalism and the Adoption of Black Children

Correspondence to Paul Stubbs, Visiting Research Fellow, University of Lancaster, Department of Social Administration, Fylde College, Lancaster LA1 4YF. Summary This article poses certain issues about the effects of professionalismin policy and practice in the adoption of black children. Bylocating the practice in its historical context, recent debatesabout ‘bans’ on the adoption of black children bywhite families can be discussed more clearly. This is followed by case studies based on original researchin two London boroughs, examining professionalism in child careand adoption practice, before certain conclusions and alternativesare addressed.     

Markov Chain Monte Carlo for Exact Inference for Diffusions

ABSTRACT. We develop exact Markov chain Monte Carlo methods for discretely sampled, directly and indirectly observed diffusions. The qualification ‘exact’ refers to the fact that the invariant and limiting distribution of the Markov chains is the posterior distribution of the parameters free of any discretization error. The class of processes to which our methods directly apply are those which can be simulated using the most general to date exact simulation algorithm. The article introduces various methods to boost the performance of the basic scheme, including reparametrizations and auxiliary Poisson sampling. We contrast both theoretically and empirically how this new approach compares to irreducible high frequency imputation, which is the state‐of‐the‐art alternative for the class of processes we consider, and we uncover intriguing connections. All methods discussed in the article are tested on typical examples.