Focusing the mediating role of institutional trust: How does interpersonal trust promote organizational commitment?

Numerous organization scholars point out that trust is crucial for well-functioning organizations. However, trust in organizational settings could differ according to the objects of trust. This study compares two conceptually different models: main-effect model and mediation-effect model. The main-effect model assumes that both interpersonal trust and institutional trust promote organizational commitment independently, but the mediation-effect model assumes that institutional trust is cultivated by interpersonal trust and increases organizational commitment. The results of structural equation modeling (SEM) show that the mediation-effect model fits better than the main-effect model and that the structural coefficients of the mediation-effect model are neatly interpreted by social scientific studies of trust. This study's findings have two important implications: First, there seems to be sequential order between different types of trust in organizational settings. Second, interpersonal trust promotes organizational commitment only if it facilitates institutional trust, providing an explanation for the inconsistent findings of previous studies.     

A Mediational Model Explaining the Connection Between Religiosity and Anti-Homosexual Attitudes in Italy: The Effects of Male Role Endorsement and Homosexual Stereotyping

This study aimed to better understand the relationship between religiosity and anti-homosexual attitudes in Italy by examining the mediation effects of male role endorsement and homosexual stereotyping. A sample of 5,522 Italian residents (age range = 18–74) was drawn from a cross-sectional national representative survey carried out in 2011. Measures included general religiosity, male role endorsement, homosexual stereotyping, social acceptance of homosexuality, and homosexual rights endorsement. Structural equation modeling was used to test the mediational effects of male role endorsement and homosexual stereotyping on the relationship between general religiosity and attitudes toward lesbians and gay men. Results showed that both male role endorsement and homosexual stereotyping partially mediated the relationship. In a model where religiosity and both mediators positively explained anti-homosexual attitudes, male role endorsement was the strongest mediator. Endorsement of gender role beliefs and homosexual stereotyping may thus exacerbate the connection between religiosity and anti-homosexual attitudes among Italians.     

Analysis of transformation models with right-truncated data

In many applications, statistical data are frequently observed subject to a retrospective sampling criterion resulting in right-truncated data. In this article, a general class of semiparametric transformation models that include proportional hazards model and proportional odds model as special cases is studied for the analysis of right-truncated data. We proposed two estimators for regression coefficients. The first estimator is based on martingale estimating equations. The second estimator is based on the conditional likelihood function given the truncation times. The asymptotic properties of both estimators are derived. The finite sample performance is examined through a simulation study.     

Parenting in Relation to School Dropout Through Student Engagement: A Longitudinal Study

Dropping out of school generally has negative consequences for both individuals and society, and the decision to do so has been described as a crucial developmental task of adolescence. This longitudinal study examined the contribution of parenting practices to students' completion of upper secondary school through their school engagement. Icelandic youth (N = 835, 54% female) were followed from age 14 to 22. Analyses using structural equation modeling revealed that adolescents (age 14) with more authoritative parents (high acceptance, supervision, and psychological autonomy granting) were more likely to have graduated at age 22 compared to adolescents with less authoritative parents. Moreover, the level of student engagement at age 15 partly mediated the relationship between authoritative parenting and educational status. These findings emphasize the importance of quality parent–child relationships to enhance adolescents' school engagement, which in turn reduces the risk of school dropout.     

Buckley–James-type estimation of quantile regression with recurrent gap time data

In longitudinal studies, an individual may potentially undergo a series of repeated recurrence events. The gap times, which are referred to as the times between successive recurrent events, are typically the outcome variables of interest. Various regression models have been developed in order to evaluate covariate effects on gap times based on recurrence event data. The proportional hazards model, additive hazards model, and the accelerated failure time model are all notable examples. Quantile regression is a useful alternative to the aforementioned models for survival analysis since it can provide great flexibility to assess covariate effects on the entire distribution of the gap time. In order to analyze recurrence gap time data, we must overcome the problem of the last gap time subjected to induced dependent censoring, when numbers of recurrent events exceed one time. In this paper, we adopt the Buckley–James-type estimation method in order to construct a weighted estimation equation for regression coefficients under the quantile model, and develop an iterative procedure to obtain the estimates. We use extensive simulation studies to evaluate the finite-sample performance of the proposed estimator. Finally, analysis of bladder cancer data is presented as an illustration of our proposed methodology.     

Some strange properties of the logistic equation defined withr andK: Inherent defects or artifacts?

Summary In some situations the logistic equation in the usual expression, dN/dt=r(1−N/K)N, exhibits properties that are biologically unrealistic. For example, whenr≦0 the population can no longer show any normal, negative response in per-capita growth rate to increasing density. Also, when the equation is employed in the Volterra's competition model, a familiar but incredible conclusion is derived which says that the outcome of competition is entirely independent of the reproductive potentialr of each species. It is shown that all such strange properties are mere artifacts arising peculiarly in thisr-K model from its misleading implicit supposition thatK could be independent ofr, and they can be readily removed by alternative use of a plainer, classical form of the model, dN/dt=(r−hN)N.     

一种计算电磁波在对流层传播的新方法

用箱式格式的有限差分法求解了电磁波在对流层中传播时所满足的抛物化波动方程。尤其利用该方法可以较为准确地计算出大气折射指数沿高度和距离方向变化时的电磁波衰落情况。文中也给出了该隐式格式的相容性、稳定性和收敛性的证明。     

胎次递进人口半群的性质

利用积分方程理论,对已有结果“胎次递进人口算子A生成的半群T(t)在t≥M时是紧半群”,在不对λ_0(s)加限制条件的情况下,简化了其证明过程,并对上述结果有所改进。     

流体容积三次型状态方程一般形式的探讨

本文回顾了流体容积三次型状态方程发展的历史,分析了发展趋势,并以统计力学为基础从微观理论提出了流体容积三次型状态方程的一般形式,与实用的容积三次型方程及由微扰理论所得到的状态方程相比,其形式更为合理。     

A variant on the argument for the invariance of estimators in a singular system of equations

Allecation models, such as consumer demand systems, typically imply a degenerate error structure. The usual approach in estimation is to delete one equation, and to appeal to the results of Barten (1969), for example, that parameter estimates are invariant to the equation deleted. However such proofs of invariance are not straightforward. This paper demonstrates that such systems are observationally equivalent to structures common in the simultaneous equations literature, for which invariance is obvious, and hence provides a more transparent demonstration of conditions for invariance.