Robust scale estimation in the error-components model using the empirical characteristic function

Robust estimators of the scale parameters in the error-components model are described. The new estimators are based on the empirical characteristic functions of appropriate sets of residuals and are affine equivariant, consistent and asymptotically normal. The robustness of the new estimators is investigated via influence-function calculations. The results of Monte Carlo experiments and an example based on real data illustrate the usefulness of the estimators.     

The Political Sociology of Counter-Revolution: The Case of Brazil

Books reviewed in this articles:
Politics in Brazil 1930–1964: An Experiment in Democracy. By T homas E. S kidmore .
Brazilian Planning: Development Politics and Administration. By R obert T. D aland .
Le Brésil. Special issue of Les Temps Modernes.     

An Adaptive,Rate‐Optimal Test of a Parametric Mean‐Regression Model Against a Nonparametric Alternative

We develop a new test of a parametric model of a conditional mean function against a nonparametric alternative. The test adapts to the unknown smoothness of the alternative model and is uniformly consistent against alternatives whose distance from the parametric model converges to zero at the fastest possible rate. This rate is slower than n^−1/2. Some existing tests have nontrivial power against restricted classes of alternatives whose distance from the parametric model decreases at the rate n^−1/2. There are, however, sequences of alternatives against which these tests are inconsistent and ours is consistent. As a consequence, there are alternative models for which the finite‐sample power of our test greatly exceeds that of existing tests. This conclusion is illustrated by the results of some Monte Carlo experiments.     

Estimating Consumer Exposure to PFOS and PFOA

Perfluorinated compounds have been used for more than 50 years as process aids, surfactants, and for surface protection. This study is a comprehensive assessment of consumer exposure to perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) from a variety of environmental and product-related sources. To identify relevant pathways leading to consumer exposure to PFOS and PFOA a scenario-based approach has been applied. Scenarios represent realistic situations where age- and gender-specific exposure occurs in the everyday life of consumers. We find that North American and European consumers are likely to experience ubiquitous and long-term uptake doses of PFOS and PFOA in the range of 3 to 220 ng per kg body weight per day (ng/kg_bw/day) and 1 to 130 ng/kg_bw/day, respectively. The greatest portion of the chronic exposure to PFOS and PFOA is likely to result from the intake of contaminated foods, including drinking water. Consumer products cause a minor portion of the consumer exposure to PFOS and PFOA. Of these, it is mainly impregnation sprays, treated carpets in homes, and coated food contact materials that may lead to consumer exposure to PFOS and PFOA. Children tend to experience higher total uptake doses (on a body weight basis) than teenagers and adults because of higher relative uptake via food consumption and hand-to-mouth transfer of chemical from treated carpets and ingestion of dust. The uptake estimates based on scenarios are within the range of values derived from blood serum data by applying a one-compartment pharmacokinetic model.     

Amerindian Livelihoods,Outside Interventions,and Poverty Traps in the Ecuadorian Amazon

Recent efforts to explain the persistence of rural poverty have made frequent use of the concept of poverty traps, understood as self‐reinforcing poverty. The dynamic dimension of the poverty trap concept makes it a potentially useful tool for understanding conditions of persistent poverty, especially in circumstances where outside interventions “shock” the system with the intention of ending poverty and disadvantage. This article describes one such effort among a populous group of lowland Amerindians, the Shuar of Ecuador's Amazon region. Three small household surveys conducted at different times during the last 25 years suggest that the Shuar, despite having obtained access to land through a combination of their own efforts and outside interventions, have become enmeshed in a natural‐resource‐degrading poverty trap. Mestizos with land in the same region avoided this trap only by emigrating in large numbers. Secure access to land did not prevent the emergence of a poverty trap among the Shuar in large part because smallholders in Latin America faced difficult macrosociological and ecological conditions during the last decades of the twentieth century.     

Whither the Blank Slate? A Report on the Reception of Evolutionary Biological Ideas among Sociological Theorists

Sociologists have drawn considerable criticism over the years for their failure to integrate evolutionary biological principles in their work. Critics such as Stephen Pinker (2002 Pinker , Steven. 2002 . The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature . New York : Penguin Books . [Google Scholar]) have popularized the notion that sociologists adhere dogmatically to a “blank slate” or cultural determinist view of the human mind and social behavior. This report assesses whether sociologists indeed ascribe to such a blank slate view. Drawing from a survey of 155 sociological theorists, we find the field about evenly divided over the applicability of evolutionary reasoning to a range of human tendencies. Although there are signs of a shift toward greater openness to evolutionary biological ideas, sociologists are least receptive to evolutionary accounts of human sex differences. Echoing earlier research, we find political identity to be a significant predictor of sociologists' receptiveness. We close by cautioning our colleagues against sociological reductionism and we speculate about the blank slate's political-psychological appeal to liberal-minded social scientists.     

Gino Germant, 1911–1979: Sociologist from the other America

This personal statement was prepared in response to a series of questions put forth to me by Ana Germani. She is the daughter of Gino and a good friend in her own right. However, she is not responsible for any part of this narrative. Ana is preparing a full-scale biography of Gino, in which I am sure the shortcomings in this brief memoir will be properly corrected. - ILH Irving Louis Horowitz is Hannah Arendt distinguished professor emeritus of sociology and political science at Rutgers University, where he also serves as chairman of the board of Transaction Publishers. His most recent work is Behemoth: The History and Theory of Political Sociology.     

“It's up to the clan to protect”: Cultural heritage and the micropolitical ecology of conservation in New Caledonia

This case study from New Caledonia explores the motivations of local people in initiating co-managed conservation projects on customary lands. Kanak villagers viewed “conservation” largely as a means of reinforcing their cultural identity through preservation of their cultural heritage, grounded in the landscape. However, at the same time, they hoped to promote economic development. Ironically, thus, they found it necessary to welcome outside influences—to seek visits from non-Kanak tourists and to request financial and technical support from the provincial government, which had been created by the colonial power. Meanwhile, although a desire to reinforce customary authority structures formed an important part of this search for a unifying cultural identity, the quest for a stable, traditional, shared “past” created new, micropolitical instabilities within the community, conditioned by expectations of financial gain and by sources of social status. A “micropolitical ecology” approach revealed that a conservation program grounded in customary authority would be the only acceptable solution, although it would be difficult for villagers to agree on who filled customary roles. This study indicates the importance of gaining a clear understanding of intra-community dynamics and of community members’ perceptions of external groups, in order to design appropriate strategies for co-management.