Nonparametric testing for no covariate effects in conditional copulas

In dependence modelling using conditional copulas, one often imposes the working assumption that the covariate influences the conditional copula solely through the marginal distributions. This so-called (pairwise) simplifying assumption is almost standardly made in vine copula constructions. However, in recent literature evidence was provided that such an assumption might not be justified. Among the first issues is thus to test for its appropriateness. In this paper nonparametric tests for the null hypothesis of the simplifying assumption are proposed, and their asymptotic behaviours, under the null hypothesis and under some local alternatives, are established. The tests are fully nonparametric in nature: not requiring choices of copula families nor knowledge of the marginals. In a simulation study, the finite-sample size and power performances of the tests are investigated, and compared with these of the few available tests. A real data application illustrates the use of the tests.     

Initiating a Caregiving Relationship: Pregnancy and Childbirth Factors as Predictors of Maternal Sensitivity

The aim of this study was to investigate the relations between pregnancy and childbirth factors and subsequent quality of maternal interactive behavior in a sample of 116 full‐term infants and their mothers. Mothers reported on the conditions of childbirth when infants were 6–8 months of age, and their interactive behavior was observed during a home visit at 12 months. Results showed that mothers who did not report health problems during pregnancy and who had longer pregnancies, shorter hospital stays, natural deliveries, and infants with greater birthweight were found to be more sensitive during interactions with infants at 12 months. All these relations held after accounting for socio‐economic factors and maternal psychological distress, except for the effect of type of delivery. This pattern of results, however, was almost exclusively due to mothers who already had at least one other child. Very few such relations were found among primiparous mothers.     

Impaired Self-Awareness in Pathological Gamblers

Lack of self-awareness of one’s decisions remains an understudied and elusive topic in the addiction literature. The present study aimed at taking a first step towards addressing this difficult subject through the use of a combination of behavioral procedures. Here, we explored the association between a metacognitive process (the ability to reflect and evaluate the awareness of one’s own decision) and poor performance on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) in a group of pathological gamblers (PG; n = 30), and in a comparison group (n = 35). This metacognitive process was assessed during the IGT with the post-decision wagering procedure, while a number of potential confounds (i.e., reward/loss sensitivity, dual-tasking) were controlled for. Results showed that: (1) Initial performance enhancement of the control group on IGT occurred without explicit knowledge of the task, thus confirming its implicit character; (2) compared to controls, performance of PG on the IGT failed to increase during the task; (3) taking into account increased reward sensitivity and decreased loss sensitivity as well as poorer dual-tasking in pathological gamblers, PG tended to exhibit a bias in evaluating their own performance on the IGT by maximizing their wagers independently of selecting advantageous decks. Our findings suggest that biased metacognition may affect pathological gamblers, leading to disadvantageous post-decision wagering, which is in turn linked to impaired decision making under ambiguity. Perhaps this deficit reflects the impaired insight and self-awareness that many addicts suffer from, thus providing a novel approach for capturing and measuring this impairment, and for investigating its possible causes.     

Reduced inhibitory control predicts persistence in laboratory slot machine gambling

Impairments in inhibitory control characterize a range of addictive behaviours including gambling disorder. This study investigated the relationship between a neuropsychological measure of inhibitory control and behaviour on a simulated slot machine that included a measure of gambling persistence, in a non-clinical sample of regular gamblers. Regular gamblers (n = 75) performed a laboratory slot machine task for 30 trials where they could win real money, followed by a persistence phase under extinction (i.e. without wins). Participants also completed a stop-signal task, along with measures of gambling-related cognitions, social desirability, and symptoms of disordered gambling. In hierarchical regression models, reduced inhibitory control was found to predict greater persistence and a higher subjective desire to play again after both wins and near-misses (i.e. unsuccessful outcomes close to the jackpot). These data illustrate the impact of low inhibitory control on relevant behavioural tendencies in a group of regular gamblers. Our results help elucidate a cognitive process that may contribute to problem gambling, with implications for screening and treatment.     

Multimedia Compact Disc: Play Therapy Counseling Skills

Multimedia compact discs have become an important part of counseling education. Many educators recognize the value of compact discs in training and methods of instruction. The purpose of this study was to develop an instructional compact disc and to survey counseling students' perceptions of the compact disc. Participants included 71 counseling graduate students from two universities in the southern part of the United States. Students viewed the compact disc and completed a survey to assess their perceptions of the compact disc. Overall students' perceptions were positive and they believed that the compact disc was a helpful tool in learning counseling skills.     

The relationship between HRM practices and organizational commitment of knowledge workers. Facts obtained from Swiss SMEs

This paper explores the effects of human resource management (HRM) practices in Swiss small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). More specifically, the main objective of this study is to assess the impacts of HRM practices developed in Swiss SMEs upon the commitment of knowledge workers. Using data from a survey of over 198 knowledge workers, this study shows the importance of looking closer at HRM practices and, furthermore, to really investigate the impacts of the different HRM practices on employees' commitment. Results show, for example, that organizational support, procedural justice and the reputation of the organization may clearly influence knowledge workers' commitment, whereas other HRM practices such as involvement in decision-making, skills management or even the degree of satisfaction with pay do not have any impact on knowledge workers' commitment.     

Evaluating Health Related Quality of Life in Older People at Risk of Osteoporotic Fracture: A Head-to-Head Comparison of the EQ-5D-5L and AQoL-6D

Social Indicators Research - We aimed to conduct a head-to-head comparison of the five-level version of the EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L) and the Assessment of Quality of...     

Determinants of the living arrangements of older people in Europe Déterminants des modes de vie des personnes âgées en Europe

This paper analyses the influence of relevant variables (age, sex, marital status, health, income, education and children) on the risk of belonging to one of the four main types of household in which old European people live nowadays: alone, with partner, with others, in a collective household. Nine countries with different social and political contexts are compared by using different data sources. These socio-demographic characteristics play the same role in all countries except for the influence of childlessness and of gender, but the geographical heterogeneity of the living arrangements remains partly unexplained due to currently inadequate comparative data sources for Europe.