Policies to Attract R&D-related FDI in Small Emerging Countries: Aligning Incentives With Local Linkages and Absorptive Capacities in Chile

Over the last decade we have witnessed an unprecedented growth in the number of cross-border R&D investments towards large emerging countries such as China and India. However, small middle-income countries have played a marginal role as recipients of R&D-related FDI despite increasing policy efforts. In particular, several Latin American countries have recently launched new policy programs with the aim of attracting this kind of investments, but it remains uncertain whether public incentives can be useful to compensate for other locational disadvantages. The case of Chile provides an interesting empirical setting to explore these issues because during the last decade its government has been actively promoting R&D-related FDI through a new policy mix. This article suggests that for national innovation systems to benefit from the attraction of internationally-mobile R&D it is critical for public policies to ensure that appropriate linkages are established with local actors that hold absorptive capacities. Equally important for a small emerging economy like Chile is to prioritize R&D-related FDI in strategic technology niches where the country can realistically attain critical mass.     

Intersecting generalized Lorenz curves and the Gini index

As is well known, the use of the Gini coefficient in comparisons is inconsistent with an utilitarian approach. This paper analyzes the Gini coefficient's normative significance in welfare comparisons evaluating income distributions according to Yaari dual social welfare function. When generalized Lorenz curves cross once, the Gini coefficient is decisive in determining welfare rankings if we strengthen the Principle of Transfers applying a Positional version of the Principle of Transfer Sensitivity. This result can also be extended to the case of multiple crossings. Received: 28 August 1996 / Accepted: 22 October 1997     

Geographically Weighted Negative Binomial Regression—incorporating overdispersion

Global regression assumes that a single model adequately describes all parts of a study region. However, the heterogeneity in the data may be sufficiently strong that relationships between variables can not be spatially constant. In addition, the factors involved are often sufficiently complex that it is difficult to identify them in the form of explanatory variables. As a result Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) was introduced as a tool for the modeling of non-stationary spatial data. Using kernel functions, the GWR methodology allows the model parameters to vary spatially and produces non-parametric surfaces of their estimates. To model count data with overdispersion, it is more appropriate to use a negative binomial distribution instead of a Poisson distribution. Therefore, we propose the Geographically Weighted Negative Binomial Regression (GWNBR) method for the modeling of data with overdispersion. The results obtained using simulated and real data show the superiority of this method for the modeling of non-stationary count data with overdispersion compared with competing models, such as global regressions, e.g., Poisson and negative binomial and Geographically Weighted Poisson Regression (GWPR). Moreover, we illustrate that these competing models are special cases of the more robust model GWNBR.     

The internal relocation premium: are migrants positively or negatively selected? Evidence from Italy

This paper analyzes the wage returns from internal migration for recent graduates in Italy. We employ a switching regression model that accounts for the endogeneity of the individual's choice to relocate to get a job after graduation: the omission of this selection decision can lead to biased estimates, as there is potential correlation between earnings and unobserved traits, exerting an influence on the decision to migrate. The empirical results sustain the appropriateness of the estimation technique and show that there is a significant pay gap between migrants and non-migrants; migrants seem to be positively selected and the migration premium is downward biased through OLS estimates. The endogeneity of migration shows up both as a negative intercept effect and as a positive slope effect, the second being larger than the first: bad knowledge of the local labor market and financial constraints lead migrants to accept a low basic wage but, due to relevant returns to their characteristics, they finally obtain a higher wage than the others.     

Effects of a multimodal exercise program in pedal dexterity and balance: study with Portuguese older adults of different contexts

This study investigated the effects of a multimodal exercise program (MEP) on pedal dexterity and balance in two groups of older adult participants (65–92 years of age) from a psychiatric hospital center (HC), a residential care home (RCH), and a daily living center (DLC). The experimental group (EG) trained three times per week for 12 months, and the control group (CG) maintained their normal activities. The Mini-Mental State Examination and the Modified Baecke Questionnaire, as well as the Pedal Dexterity and the Tinetti tests, were applied to all subjects before and after the experimental protocol. Furthermore, the foot preference was controlled using the Lateral Preference Questionnaire proposed by Coren [10]. In the EG, the results from the Pedal Dexterity test showed that both males and females from the RCH and DLC improved their performances after the MEP. In the HC, the males slightly decreased their performance with both feet, contrarily to females. Both males and females from the CG decreased their pedal dexterity performance, namely, with the non-preferred foot. Concerning the Tinetti test, the EG of both males and females from the HC, the RCH (males were better than females regarding the gender factor), and the DLC improved their balance after the MEP. In the CG, no significant effects or interactions were found for any of the context groups.     

Validation of the Flourishing Scale and Scale of Positive and Negative Experience in Portugal

The Flourishing Scale (FS) and the Scale of Positive and Negative Experience (SPANE) created by Diener et al. (Soc Indic Res 97:143–156, 2010) are instruments that assess psychological flourishing and feelings (positive and negative, and the difference between the two). In this study, the psychometric properties of both scales were explored by using two Portuguese samples (I: n = 734; II: n = 194). Reliability analysis and a multi-group confirmatory factorial analysis (MCFA) of both scales were performed. To examine the validity of FS and SPANE we analyzed their correlations with other well-being and happiness measures. Results showed that the Portuguese versions of both scales have good psychometric properties, and they also showed convergent validity. Results also demonstrated the unidimensional structure of the FS and a two-factor solution for the SPANE. The multi-group CFA of both scales evidenced an invariant structure. Both Portuguese versions of the scales behave consistently with the original and may be used in future studies of well-being.     

Problems with Traditional Science Publishing and Finding a Wider Niche for Post-Publication Peer Review

Science affects multiple basic sectors of society. Therefore, the findings made in science impact what takes place at a commercial level. More specifically, errors in the literature, incorrect findings, fraudulent data, poorly written scientific reports, or studies that cannot be reproduced not only serve as a burden on tax-payers’ money, but they also serve to diminish public trust in science and its findings. Therefore, there is every need to fortify the validity of data that exists in the science literature, not only to build trust among peers, and to sustain that trust, but to reestablish trust in the public and private academic sectors that are witnessing a veritable battle-ground in the world of science publishing, in some ways spurred by the rapid evolution of the open access (OA) movement. Even though many science journals, traditional and OA, claim to be peer reviewed, the truth is that different levels of peer review occur, and in some cases no, insufficient, or pseudo-peer review takes place. This ultimately leads to the erosion of quality and importance of science, allowing essentially anything to become published, provided that an outlet can be found. In some cases, predatory OA journals serve this purpose, allowing papers to be published, often without any peer review or quality control. In the light of an explosion of such cases in predatory OA publishing, and in severe inefficiencies and possible bias in the peer review of even respectable science journals, as evidenced by the increasing attention given to retractions, there is an urgent need to reform the way in which authors, editors, and publishers conduct the first line of quality control, the peer review. One way to address the problem is through post-publication peer review (PPPR), an efficient complement to traditional peer-review that allows for the continuous improvement and strengthening of the quality of science publishing. PPPR may also serve as a way to renew trust in scientific findings by correcting the literature. This article explores what is broadly being said about PPPR in the literature, so as to establish awareness and a possible first-tier prototype for the sciences for which such a system is undeveloped or weak.     

Depression during menopausal transition: a review of treatment strategies and pathophysiological correlates

It has long been recognized that women are at a higher risk than men to develop depression and that such risk is particularly associated with reproductive cycle events. Recent long-term, prospective studies have demonstrated that the transition to menopause is associated with higher risk for new onset and recurrent depression. A number of biological and environmental factors are independent predictors for depression in this population, including the presence of hot flushes, sleep disturbance, history of severe premenstrual syndrome or postpartum blues, ethnicity, history of stressful life events, past history of depression, body mass index, socioeconomic status and the use of hormones and antidepressants. Accumulated evidence suggests that ovarian hormones modulate serotonin and noradrenaline neurotransmission, a process that may be associated with underlying pathophysiological processes involved in the emergence of depressive symptoms during periods of hormonal fluctuation in biologically predisposed subpopulations. Transdermal estradiol and serotonergic and noradrenergic antidepressants are efficacious in the treatment of depression and vasomotor symptoms in symptomatic, midlife women. The identification of individuals whom might be at a higher risk for depression during menopausal transition could guide preventive strategies for this population.     

Reviews

Book reviewed in this article: Bidge's Mob: Written and illustrated by Gaye Dell Creative Family Therapy Techniques: Play, Art, and Expressive Activities to Engage Children in Family Sessions: Editor: Liana Lowenstein Essential Skills in Family Therapy, from the first interview to termination: JoEllen Patterson, Lee Williams, Todd M. Edwards, Larry Chamow, Claudia Grauf‐Grounds Multi‐Family Therapy: Concepts and Techniques: Eia Asen, Michael Scholz     

A new quantitative method for assessing sleepiness: The alpha attenuation test

Abstract

Sleepiness interferes with the ability of night-workers and shiftworkers to safely and effectively perform their jobs, and has been increasingly recognized as a major cause of industrial and transportation accidents. Current methods for the assessment of physiological sleepiness levels, such as the Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT) have several limitations and are particularly impractical in field or occupational studies. In this study, the effectiveness of the Alpha Attenuation Test (AAT) for the quantification of sleepiness has been evaluated and compared to the MSLT during a 40-h sleep deprivation protocol. The AAT, a 12-min eye closed/open protocol, is a quantitative method based on the fact that EEG alpha (8-12 Hz) activity tends to increase with eyes open as individuals get sleepier, while it decreases with eyes closed. In this validation study, the AAT proved to be a sensitive measure of sleepiness induced by sleep deprivation, and it also correlated well with the MSLT. Relative to the MSLT, the AAT has the advantages of being objective, minimally intrusive, and more practical especially in industrial or field studies.