Evaluation of a family-based substance abuse prevention program targeted for the middle school years

A family-based substance abuse prevention program was evaluated which emphasizes family cohesion, school and peer attachment, self-esteem, and attitudes about adolescent use of alcohol and tobacco. The program was implemented in rural communities and targeted families with students entering middle or junior high school. Baseline surveys were conducted with students and parents in four schools and were readministered one year later. Because the program was voluntary, a quasi-experimental design was used to compare participants (29 students and 28 parents) and nonparticipants (268 students and 134 parents). Analyses of covariance indicated that student participants, as compared to nonparticipants, had higher family cohesion, less family fighting, greater school attachment, higher self-esteem, and believed that alcohol should be consumed at an older age at the one year follow-up. There were fewer significant results for parent participants. Strategies for involving parents in prevention programs are discussed.     

Social remittances: migration driven local-level forms of cultural diffusion

"Many studies highlight the macro-level dissemination of global culture and institutions. This article focuses on social remittances--a local-level, migration-driven form of cultural diffusion. Social remittances are the ideas, behaviors, identities, and social capital that flow from receiving- to sending-country communities. The role that these resources play in promoting immigrant entrepreneurship, community and family formation, and political integration is widely acknowledged. This article specifies how these same ideas and practices are remolded in receiving countries, the mechanisms by which they are sent back to sending communities, and the role they play in transforming sending-country social and political life." The data concern migrants from the Dominican Republic to the Boston area of the United States.     

The determinants of modern Maltese emigration

The author evaluates studies by Huw R. Jones and Russell King concerning the determinants of emigration from Malta and tests a new set of migration functions using cross-sectional and time-series data for the inter-censal years 1957 to 1967. Jones and King concluded that emigration was influenced more by socio-demographic factors than by economic forces. In the present article, the author concludes that economic factors did influence the decision to migrate from Malta. The policy implications of these findings are also considered. (summary in FRE, SPA)     

Politics and Scientific Expertise: Scientists, Risk Perception, and Nuclear Waste Policy

To study the homogeneity and influences on scientists'perspectives of environmental risks, we have examined similarities and differences in risk perceptions, particularly regarding nuclear wastes, and policy preferences among 1011 scientists and engineers. We found significant differences ( p 0.05)in the patterns of beliefs among scientists from different fields of research. In contrast to physicists, chemists, and engineers, life scientists tend to: (a)perceive the greatest risks from nuclear energy and nuclear waste management; (b)perceive higher levels of overall environmental risk; (c)strongly oppose imposing risks on unconsenting individuals; and (d)prefer stronger requirements for environmental management. On some issues related to priorities among public problems and calls for government action, there are significant variations among life scientists or physical scientists. We also found that–independently of field of research–perceptions of risk and its correlates are significantly associated with the type of institution in which the scientist is employed. Scientists in universities or state and local governments tend to see the risks of nuclear energy and wastes as greater than scientists who work as business consultants, for federal organizations, or for private research laboratories. Significant differences also are found in priority given to environmental risks, the perceived proximity of environmental disaster, willingness to impose risks on an unconsenting population, and the necessity of accepting risks and sacrifices.     

Codes of ethics and firm size: A stakeholder approach to strategic planning

A firm's capital budgeting and strategic planning decisions have the potential to affect many groups of people called stakeholders. A stakeholder is any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the firm's objectives. This study examines whether the presence of a code of ethics that specifically addresses capital budgeting/strategic planning decisions will significantly raise the awareness of social responsibility during the long-run planning process. This study also examines whether firm size is associated with the awareness of social responsibility during the long-run planning process. Support was found that a code of ethics that addresses long-range planning is associated with higher awareness during the planning process. Firm size was not found to be statistically different.     

PARAMETER ESTIMATION AND APPLICATIONS FOR A GENERALISATION OF THE BETA-BINOMIAL DISTRIBUTION

A three-parameter generalisation of the beta-binomial distribution (BBD) derived by Chandon (1976) is examined. We obtain the maximum likelihood estimates of the parameters and give the elements of the information matrix. To exhibit the applicability of the generalised distribution we show how it gives an improved fit over the BBD for magazine exposure and consumer purchasing data. Finally we derive an empirical Bayes estimate of a binomial proportion based on the generalised beta distribution used in this study.     

Bayesian sequential methods for choosing the best multinomial cell: some simulation results

Suboptimal Bayesian sequential methods for choosing the best (i.e. largest probability) multinomial cell are considered and their performance is studied using Monte Carlo simulation. Performance characteristics, such as the probability of correct selection and some other associated with the sample size distribution, are evaluated assuming a maximum sample size. Single observation sequential rules as well as rules, where groups of observations are taken, and fixed sample size rules are discussed.     

Influential observations in principal component analysis:a case study

A number of results have been derived recently concerning the influence of individual observations in a principal component analysis. Some of these results, particularly those based on the correlation matrix, are applied to data consisting of seven anatomical measurements on students. The data have a correlation structure which is fairly typical of many found in allometry. This case study shows that theoretical influence functions often provide good estimates of the actual changes observed when individual observations are deleted from a principal component analysis. Different observations may be influential for different aspects of the principal component analysis (coefficients, variances and scores of principal components); these differences, and the distinction between outlying and influential observations are discussed in the context of the case study. A number of other complications, such as switching and rotation of principal components when an observation is deleted, are also illustrated.     

Residuals for directional data *

Various types of residual are proposed for use with directional data. Asymptotic distributions are given for large sample sizes and for concentrated error distributions. A form of residual plot is suggested and is illustrated with some practical examples.