On unification of the asymptotic theory of nonlinear econometric models

After reading a few articles in the nonlinear econonetric literature one begins to notice that each discussion follows roughly the same lines as the classical treatment of maximum likelihood estimation. There are some technical problems having to do with simultaneously conditioning on the exogenous variables and subjecting the true parameter to a Pittman drift which prevent the use of the classical methods of proof but the basic impression of similarity is correct . An estimator – be it nonlinear least squares, three – stage nonlinear least squares, or whatever – is the solution of an optimization problem. And the objective function of the optimization problem can be treated as if it were the likelihood to derive the Wald test statistic, the likelihood ratio test statistic , and Rao's efficient score statistic. Their asymptotic null and non – null distributions can be found using arguments fairly similar to the classical maximum likelihood arguments. In this article we exploit these observations and unify much of the nonlinear econometric literature. That which escapes this unificationis that which has an objective function which is not twice continuously differentiable with respect to the parameters – minimum absolute deviations regression for example.

The model which generates the data need not bethe same as the model which was presumed to define the optimization problem. Thus, these results can be used to obtain the asymptotic behavior of inference procedures under specification error We think that this will prove to be the nost useful feature of the paper. For example, it i s not necessary toresortto Monte Carlo simulat ionto determine i f a Translog estimate of an elasticity of sub stitution obtained by nonlinear three-stage least squares is robust against a CES truestate of nature. The asymptotic approximations we give here w ill provide an analytic answer to the question, sufficiently accurate for most purposes.     

Culture,the Public Sphere,and Media Sociology: A Search for a Classical Founder in the Work of Robert Park

This article examines the history of media sociology in the U.S., through a critical analysis of articles published in the major sociology journals during the twentieth century. I argue that media sociology has been at its most vibrant when its goal has been to understand the dominant cultural structures that shape the public sphere. Robert Park was the first sociologist to adopt this perspective, with his research on newspapers and the power of the press. This interest continued into the 1950s, with research on media and propaganda. By the 1960s, however, concern had shifted away from the public character of media, focusing instead on the ways in which social factors intervened between media messages and society. While important, this shift in analytical focus ultimately led to a more reductionist media sociology, which failed to explore how media provided a distinctive type of social output. There is evidence that a less reductionist media sociology has begun to emerge since the 1990s, with the rise of cultural sociology and theories of the public sphere. This new media sociology could increase its visibility within mainstream sociology by making more explicit connections to the Chicago School tradition, and by claiming Robert Park as its classical founder.     

A Review of Models for Measuring Organizational Effectiveness Among For‐Profit and Nonprofit Organizations

Induced by unprecedented growth, invasion of for‐profit organizations in the nonprofit domain, and high‐profile cases of mismanagement in the nonprofit sector, a recent surge in the literature suggests ample opportunities for research to compare the organizational effectiveness of for‐profit and nonprofit organizations. This article presents a literature review of nonprofit organizational effectiveness from which four models of organizational effectiveness are selected. These models are discussed and analyzed because they apply to both for‐profit and nonprofit organizations.     

Marriage Expectations Among African American Couples in Early Adulthood: A Dyadic Analysis

Using Family and Community Health Study data consisting of 168 unmarried, primarily African American couples, the current study sought to understand the dyadic interplay among school, work, and partner-specific marriage expectations in early adulthood. Drawing on the economic prospects, adult transitions, and work - family literatures, the authors hypothesized and found ample support that expectations to marry a romantic partner were linked not only to one's own school and work-related experiences but also to those of a partner. These associations held while controlling for relationship satisfaction, general views of marriage, and other covariates that have been posited to explain racial inequalities in relationship and marriage patterns. Furthermore, the authors found that actor covariates of marital expectations differed from partner covariates, a finding that highlights the advantages of dyadic analyses in helping researchers understand marriage as both a developmental and interpersonal process.     

Communicating Research to Policymakers

This piece offers suggestions based on some things we expected to learn and from some things we did not expect to learn about communicating research to congressional policymakers. Some of these are insider discoveries from working as a professional staff member for a joint committee of the US Senate and the US House of Representatives. Other things we learned came largely as surprises from attempts to provide basic information and issue awareness about socioeconomic conditions in the Southern Black Belt directly to the Congress as well as indirectly through public interest and grassroots groups. One of the surprising discoveries, working professionally both on the inside of Congress and on the outside as social scientists, is how well social interaction actually works. And there were other surprises as well. This article is based on an August 16 panel presentation by the first author at the 2003 meeting of the American Sociological Association in Atlanta. The panel was organized by Larry Burmeister of the University of Kentucky. Material written in the first person singular in the first section of this article, “From the Inside,” is from the first author’s experiences. Later, portions of the text beginning with the subhead, “On the Outside,” and stated in the first person plural are by both authors.     

Prostitution as a Form of Work

In recent years, prostitution increasingly has been recast as a form of 'sex work', which directs attention to both the work itself and the larger occupational milieu in which it takes place. This article examines several aspects of the work environment, including important variations between different types of workers (on the street and in indoor venues), relations between workers and customers, and what is known about the role of various managers involved in recruitment, socialization, and control over workers. The article highlights areas in which further research will provide a more complete picture of sex work in different kinds of contexts.     

苏轼早期至黄州时期的记体文研究

“记”是文体中很重要的一种,本来主要用以庆贺庙宇、书斋、亭台楼阁等建筑物的落成,或纪念作者生命中的某一件事.但在苏轼手中,“记”成了他思考的工具,包括自我认同、作者和外界的关系、佛教思想和实践的种种争议、对绘画的理解、收藏书画所遇到的问题、行政策略的选择、通往知识的途径等.苏轼早年灵活地应用记体,熙宁年间拓宽记体的内容,他的记体文在乌台诗案中被他的政敌曲解成为迫害他的证据之一;而苏轼被贬到黄州后,他又用记体文表达他对新环境和作为逐臣的认知.     

Followership theory: A review and research agenda

While theory and research on leaders and leadership abound, followers and followership theory have been given short shrift. It is accepted wisdom that there is no leadership without followers, yet followers are very often left out of the leadership research equation. Fortunately this problem is being addressed in recent research, with more attention being paid to the role of followership in the leadership process. The purpose of this article is to provide a systematic review of the followership literature, and from this review, introduce a broad theory of followership into leadership research. Based on our review, we identify two theoretical frameworks for the study of followership, one from a role-based approach (“reversing the lens”) and one from a constructionist approach (“the leadership process”). These frameworks are used to outline directions for future research. We conclude with a discussion of conceptual and methodological issues in the study of followership theory.