Examining Mediator Role of the Social Safeness on the Relationship Between Vengeance and Life Satisfaction

The aim of the present study is to examine the mediating role of social safeness on the relationship between vengeance and life satisfaction. Participants were 305 university students who completed a questionnaire package which includes the Vengeance Scale, the Social Safeness and Pleasure Scale, and the Life Satisfaction Scale. According to the results, social safeness and life satisfaction were predicted negatively by vengeance. On the other hand, life satisfaction was predicted positively by social safeness. In addition, social safeness mediated the relationship between vengeance and life satisfaction. Together, the findings illuminate the social processes underlying the association of vengeance with life satisfaction.     

The Spatial Context of Social Integration

Social integration is the harmonious and coherent processing of the structures of a social system and refers to the degree to which people are integrated to the systems of a social structure. Although social integration issue is often considered on a regional scale and especially in association with the migration literature, it is also associated with urban dynamics. Especially in metropolitan cities, it is a process that shapes the opportunities and resources of urban life, such as socio-cultural life, the built environment and urban services. This paper aims to analyze the spatial differentiation of the interactive dimension of social integration in the case of Istanbul. It describes different forms and levels of social relations of the residents of Istanbul while also depicting the interaction between social integration and location, particularly in terms of residential area characteristics. With this aim, different types of social relations are analyzed using statistical and spatial analysis methods. The results of the study indicate that different social groups which are integrated into the macro structures of the society with different degrees produce different forms of social relations and they also live in residential areas which differ with their environmental quality.     

Determining Six Sigma success factors in Turkey by using structural equation modeling

Since it includes strong statistical and executive techniques, Six Sigma (SS) succeeded in many countries and different sectors. Especially successful SS applications of many international companies have increased the interest of other companies. As a result of this, the number of implemented SS projects in various countries has increased. Although successful SS projects are often in mind, the number of failed projects because of various reasons is not as low as to be ignored. As well as there are many factors that affect the success level of SS projects, and these factors vary according to countries. In this study, a survey was applied to 117 people who have 1 of SS belts in order to determine success levels of the SS projects in Turkey. By using explanatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling, critical success factors were determined. According to the results, project selection and its scope, quality culture and defining and measuring of metrics were determined as the top factors that are affecting success levels of SS projects applied in Turkey. The results of the study were also compared with the results of similar projects implemented in other countries.     

Evaluation of the relationship between microalbuminuria and 25-(OH) vitamin D levels in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Background: 25-(OH) vitamin D (VD) deficiency has been described as potential risk factor for the development of diabetes in many epidemiological studies. 25-(OH) VD deficiency and insulin resistance associated with this deficiency are common findings in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The objective of this study is to evaluate the relationship between 25-(OH) VD levels and microalbuminuria.

Methods: The patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus aged between 40 and 65 years, who were admitted to the diabetes outpatient clinics of our hospital, were evaluated in two different groups. The first group consisted of 119 patients with insufficient 25-(OH) VD levels (10–30?ng/mL) and the second group consisted of 121 patients with 25-(OH) VD deficiency (≤10?ng/mL). The relationship between 25-(OH) VD levels and the level of microalbuminuria was evaluated in the two groups.

Results: The mean 25-(OH) VD level was 11.5?ng/mL and the mean HbA1c level was 9.1%. When the patient groups were evaluated according to 25-(OH) VD levels, HbA1c values were significantly higher in patients with a 25-(OH) VD level of 10?ng/mL or lower (p?=?.039). 25-(OH) VD levels were not significantly different between patients with different stages of renal failure (p?=?.119), whereas the level of microalbuminuria was significantly different (p?=?.030).

Conclusions: This study found that the level of microalbuminuria was significantly higher in patients with 25-(OH) vitamin D deficiency compared to patients with 25-(OH) VD insufficiency.     

Inference about regression parameters using highly stratified survey count data with over-dispersion and repeated measurements

We study methods to estimate regression and variance parameters for over-dispersed and correlated count data from highly stratified surveys. Our application involves counts of fish catches from stratified research surveys and we propose a novel model in fisheries science to address changes in survey protocols. A challenge with this model is the large number of nuisance parameters which leads to computational issues and biased statistical inferences. We use a computationally efficient profile generalized estimating equation method and compare it to marginal maximum likelihood (MLE) and restricted MLE (REML) methods. We use REML to address bias and inaccurate confidence intervals because of many nuisance parameters. The marginal MLE and REML approaches involve intractable integrals and we used a new R package that is designed for estimating complex nonlinear models that may include random effects. We conclude from simulation analyses that the REML method provides more reliable statistical inferences among the three methods we investigated.     

Political Economy of Standing against a Stand-By

What explains the actual and rhetorical defections of political elites in developing countries from the IMF programs even at times of severe economic difficulties? Scholars have focused on “domestic audience costs” of participating in IMF programs. This paper, on the other hand, suggests that as commitments to IMF programs require governments to make changes generating institutional, social and political consequences, governments choose to delay an agreement with the Fund, whenever the program is likely to antagonize key business groups that support the government. In the light of the Malaysian and the recent Turkish experiences, the paper will demonstrate that defection from an IMF program is likely to occur when the new Stand-By Agreement can jeopardize particular business interests backing the ruling political elites either through institutional reforms or economic policies.     

Psychological Determinants of Reactions to Food Risk Messages

In recent years, European countries have witnessed a number of food crises such as dioxin-contaminated chicken, foot-and-mouth disease, and BSE. In such cases, food might be contaminated by microorganisms or chemicals that could pose a risk to the consumer. These cases attract media attention and might instigate the consumer to reduce the consumption of the allegedly contaminated products. Although a decline in consumption of (potentially) contaminated products has been observed, it is not yet clear what determines the individual's reaction to food risk messages. To study the psychological determinants of the reaction to food risk messages, a survey was conducted in the Netherlands (n= 280). Subjects had to imagine two situations involving chicken contamination and report how they would react behaviorally if this situation occurred. Risk perception, affective response, perceived susceptibility to foodborne disease, self-efficacy, outcome expectation, trust, experience with foodborne disease, and need for information were also assessed. It was found that 60% of the subjects would allegedly avoid the risks by not consuming chicken for a while and approximately 60% would seek additional information. Risk avoidance was significantly related to information seeking and the psychological determinants, especially risk perception, affective response, need for information, perceived susceptibility to foodborne disease, and trust. Seeking information was also significantly related to risk perception, affective response, need for information, susceptibility to foodborne disease, and trust, but to a lesser degree. A model describing the relationships between the variables was tested using AMOS. Results are presented and implications are discussed.     

Transition and Foreign Aid Policies in the Visegrád Countries: A Path Dependant Approach

The paper argues that the current emerging international development policies of the Visegrád (V4) countries are heavily influenced by the certain aspects of the Communist past and the transition process. Due to these influences, the V4 countries have difficulties in adapting the foreign aid practices of Western donors and this leads to the emergence of a unique Central and Eastern European development cooperation model. As an analytical background, the paper builds on the path dependency theory of transition. A certain degree of path dependence is clearly visible in V4 foreign aid policies, and the paper analyses some aspects of this phenomenon: how these new emerging foreign aid donors select their partner countries, how much they spend on aid, how they formulate their aid delivery policies and institutions and what role the non-state actors play. The main conclusions of the paper are that the legacies of the Communist past have a clear influence and the V4 countries still have a long way to go in adapting their aid policies to international requirements.