US mortality in an international context: age variations

Compared to other developed countries, the United States ranks poorly in terms of life expectancy at age 50. We seek to shed light on the US's low life expectancy ranking by comparing the age-specific death rates of 18 developed countries at older ages. A striking pattern emerges: between ages 40 and 75, US all-cause mortality rates are among the poorest in the set of comparison countries. The US position improves dramatically after age 75 for both males and females. We consider four possible explanations of the age patterns revealed by this analysis: (1) access to health insurance; (2) international differences in patterns of smoking; (3) age patterns of health care system performance; and (4) selection processes. We find that health insurance and smoking are not plausible sources of this age pattern. While we cannot rule out selection, we present suggestive evidence that an unusually vigorous deployment of life-saving technologies by the US health care system at very old ages is contributing to the age-pattern of US mortality rankings. Differences in obesity distributions are likely to be making a moderate contribution to the pattern but uncertainty about the risks associated with obesity prevents a precise assessment.     

Impact of Dysfunctional Career Thoughts on Career Decision Self‐Efficacy and Vocational Identity

This study examined the mediating role of dysfunctional career thoughts in the relationship between career decision self‐efficacy (CDSE) and vocational identity (VI). For this purpose, the data were collected from 446 Korean college students. The authors used the Hayes ( 2013 ) PROCESS tool to analyze the data. The results showed that CDSE positively correlated with VI, whereas all 3 types of dysfunctional career thoughts negatively correlated with CDSE and VI. The results also indicated that all 3 subscales of dysfunctional career thoughts partially mediate the association between CDSE and VI. We provide implications and limitations of the findings.     

Organising the business processes of a product servitised supply chain: a value perspective

This paper develops a structured method from the perspective of value to organise and optimise the business processes of a product servitised supply chain (PSSC). This method integrates the modelling tool of e³value with the associated value measurement, evaluation and analysis techniques. It enables visualisation, modelling and optimisation of the business processes of a PSSC. At the same time, the value co-creation and potential contribution to an organisation’s profitability can also be enhanced. The findings not only facilitate organisations that are attempting to adopt servitisation by helping avert any paradox, but also help a servitised organisation to identify the key business processes and clarify their influences to supply chain operations.     

Effects of Neighborhood Inequality on the Relative Distance between Objective Position and Subjective Identification

This article is an exploratory attempt to assess the relationship between an individual's objective class position and their subjective class identification and to understand the effects of neighborhood inequality on individual variations. It tests three theses that the relationship between objective class position and subjective identification: is based on reflection, middle-class consciousness or variation. The degree to which neighborhood-level variables impact on the relative distance between objective class position and subjective identification is examined in assessing the possible contextual effects of the spatial setting individuals in which individuals are located. It utilizes 2015 City Policy Index Survey data administered by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and goes through two steps in analysis. First, a correspondence analysis was performed to calculate the relative distance between individuals’ objective position and subjective identification. The relative distance calculated was used as a dependent variable in a multilevel linear model examining the possible cross-level interaction between neighborhood inequality and individual-level variables. The results indicate that the relationship between an individual's objective class position and subjective identification was captured in the variation thesis. Women, and people who are younger, college educated and who hold non-manual occupations are more likely to identify with a position that is lower than their actual position. Neighborhood inequality was found to exaggerate the gap in relative distance scores by gender and occupation.     

On the sampling distribution of clement's capability index

Most of the research effort concerning the development and statistical study of capability indices has been devoted to normal processes. In this paper a statistical study of a capability index for non-normal processes proposed by Clements (1989) is developed. An approximate distribution for the natural estimator of the index is obtained from a distribution free point of view and a simulation study is used to compare it with its empirical distribution. An approximate conservative lower confidence limit for the index is also constructed.     

Robustness of R-Chart to Non Normality

This study addresses the appropriate d ₃ values for constructing range control charts (R-charts) when the distributions of the processes are the uniform, triangular, exponential, and Erlang. Comparisons of the range charts are based on Type I error probabilities obtained using simulations. The results reveal that inappropriate use of the d ₃ values strongly affected the performance of the R-charts. Practitioners should be more careful in selecting suitable coefficients when using R-charts methods to process data. The distribution of the processes must be examined before the coefficients are chosen.     

So near and yet so far - socio-spatial factors affecting service accessibility

ABSTRACT

Conventionally, social service planners conduct statistical analyses on service data for future planning. However, the limitations are their neglect of the spatial characteristics of these social data and their effects. All human activities have social and spatial dimensions. Social service provision is no exception. In this study, the authors suggest a socio-spatial framework in term of understanding service accessibility. A questionnaire survey was conducted and 491 participants, users and non-users, were interviewed. The results show that both spatial and social capital factors affect service accessibility. The study can help better service planning in densely-populated Asian metropolis like Hong Kong.     

Affective Housing Ownership in China’s New Property Regime

This article investigates the ‘affective’ dimension of Chinese urbanites’ ubiquitous practices of real estate investment and hard bargaining against housing demolition. In their endeavours regarding the active or ‘passive’ possession of housing property, investors and evictees share an immense mania and anxiety over exploiting or missing out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to participate in the property pursuit. I depict how the notion of affect, as represented by anxiety and a vernacular moral expression, conjoined to reshape urban subjectivity. The present case of housing investment mania and counter-demolition acuity in a whole new private property regime represents a fluid context for exploring affect’s concrete penetrating power that allows us to go deeper toward revealing social phenomena and sociality.