Matching Using Sufficient Dimension Reduction for Causal Inference

ABSTRACT

To estimate causal treatment effects, we propose a new matching approach based on the reduced covariates obtained from sufficient dimension reduction. Compared with the original covariates and the propensity score, which are commonly used for matching in the literature, the reduced covariates are nonparametrically estimable and are effective in imputing the missing potential outcomes, under a mild assumption on the low-dimensional structure of the data. Under the ignorability assumption, the consistency of the proposed approach requires a weaker common support condition. In addition, researchers are allowed to employ different reduced covariates to find matched subjects for different treatment groups. We develop relevant asymptotic results and conduct simulation studies as well as real data analysis to illustrate the usefulness of the proposed approach.     

Open Access Mandates and Policies: The Basics

Abstract

Universities can afford to subscribe to only a small percentage of available scholarly journals. Consequently, researchers do not have access to all articles in journals pertinent to their fields of study. The Open Access (OA) movement began in response to wanting to find a solution to this “serials crisis” and the availability of the Internet to disseminate scholarly research in new and innovative ways to a larger, worldwide audience. OA mandates are policies adopted by research institutions, universities, or funders that require researchers to provide free, unrestricted access to their published research by publishing in OA journals, depositing their articles in an OA repository or both. This edition of “In Lay Terms” provides basic information about OA mandates and policies, gives an overview of university and funder OA mandates, discusses geographic differences in policies and compliance rates, and reviews United States federal funding agencies’ OA policies and Plan S.     

Diffusion of Variegated Neoliberalization processes in Euro-Mediterranean policies: a strategic relational approach

ABSTRACT

Recent contributions to the study of neoliberalism have made considerable advances in transcending the dichotomy between understandings of the concept either as an ‘ideology’ or as a monolithic ‘structure’. In particular, the Variegated Neoliberalization (VNLT) approach has proposed an understanding of neoliberalism that relies on a path-dependent moment (i.e. the ‘uneven development of neoliberalization’) which is then followed by a path-shaping moment (i.e. the ‘neoliberalization of regulatory uneven development’). Such a perspective allows us to understand both systemic and contingent tendencies in neoliberalization processes across different geographies, transcending the socially constructed North–South divide. However, the VNLT approach has encountered a number of critiques, particularly in relation to its treatment of agency. In order to transcend these critiques and propose a more nuanced understanding of ways agents reflexively and recursively interpret and deepen – or refrain from deepening – neoliberal norms, I turn to the Strategic-Relational Approach (SRA) proposed by [Jessop, B. (2001). Institutional re(turns) and the strategic – relational approach. Environment and Planning A, 33(7), 1213–1235]. Through the SRA, it becomes possible to pinpoint both instances of ‘structured coherence’ and ‘patterned incoherence’ resulting from agential reflexivity in different contexts of neoliberalization. I will therefore turn to cases where these two patterns can be observed in the context of Euro-Mediterranean policies – that is, Morocco’s ‘structured coherence’ due to its internalized and deepening neoliberalization, and Egypt’s ‘patterned incoherence’ as a result of its still uneven development of neoliberalization.     

Toward universal,progressive, and lifelong asset building: introduction to the special issue on inclusive child development accounts

ABSTRACT

Child Development Accounts (CDAs) are subsidised savings or investment accounts that enable families to accumulate assets to invest in children’s long-term development. Ideally, CDAs are universal (everyone participates), progressive (greater subsidies for the poor) and lifelong (beginning at birth). This introduction provides a theoretical and policy background of CDAs in the global context, summarises seven papers in this volume and creates a vision for future CDA development.     

Study-work satisfaction and psychological distress in older university students

In order to study the relationships between work satisfaction and mental health in a group known to be at risk for psychological distress, university students who were somewhat older than usual (n=568, average age 24 years) provided infomiation by questionnaire about their satisfactions from study and paid work, and their level of psychological distress. The measure of study satisfaction was a modified form of Warr et al.'s (1979) Job Satisfaction Scale, and had good reliability. Study satisfaction waslower for undergraduate than for postgraduate students, due to lack of clearly defined identity, less supportive relations with fellow-students and teaching staff, and financial hardship. For all subjects the availability of teacher support predicted study satisfaction, and study satisfaction had a major influence on the students' psychologcal well-being.     

湖南省外经贸政策支持体系的建立及完善问题研究

对外经贸实行更积极的支持政策应作为发展我省经济的长期策略 ,在用好国家政策、部门协作机制、财政支持力度上尚需进一步完善加强。政策支持体系一般应包括体制创新、金融支持、财政资助、住处服务、法律援助和部门协作等几个方面。     

The economic fallout from divorce: Issues for the 1990s

Economic consequences of divorce, especially for women, are negative and persistent according to a range of research studies. The question is whether, given changing social circumstances, this negative economic fallout from divorce is likely to diminish in the 1990s and beyond. Dramatic changes suggest both reasons for optimism and pessimism. On the positive side are the trends toward more continuous labor force participation among women and smaller contemporary family sizes. Negative influences include changes in the labor market for women, continuing problems with child support compliance, the persistence of the wage gap, and the difficulties of combining parenting and employment.The writing of this paper was supported in part by National Institute on Aging grants AG04895 and AG06591. We are grateful to Marina Adler, Sharon Price, Mara Skruch and Lynn White for their helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper.(Ph.D., University of Southern California) conducts research on divorce, widowhood, older women's issues, and family support in later life families.(Ph.D., University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill) focuses her research on divorce, bereavement, and the impact of life events on adjustment.(Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University) studies economic trends in U.S. society.     

PTSD Symptoms in Abused Latino Children

This exploratory study looks at a sample of abused Latino children and evaluates the relationship of PTSD symptoms to other symptoms, characteristics of the abuse, and demographics. The results indicate that Latino children have a wide range of distress, with some children being highly symptomatic and others with few symptoms. The scores on the PTSD Inventory were related to scores on measures of anxiety, behavior problems, dissociation, and verbal IQ. They were not related to the scores on depression, performance or full scale IQ, gender, or age. The relationship of PTSD symptoms to language of the child and abuse type are equivocal. A discussion of the practice implications is included.     

两种社会主义建设方针之争：反冒进与反反冒进──周恩来对八大正确路线的一个贡献

５０年代中期，周恩来根据我国社会主义建设中出现的急躁冒进的倾向，果断地提出了反冒进的主张，并采取一系列措施，制止左倾冒险的错误，以保证建设事业的正确进行，并由此形成了八大既反保守又反冒进的社会主义建设的正确方针。八大后，由于左的错误的滋长与发展，毛泽东错误批判反冒进，并不断升级，使社会主义建设出现了严重曲折。回顾和总结这场争论的历史经验与教训，坚持实事求是的思想路线和政治路线，对于令天建设有中国特色社会主义现代化建设事业，具有重要的理论意义和现实意义。     

Explaining the Gender Gap in Help to Parents: The Importance of Employment

Although it is well established that adult daughters spend more time giving assistance to their parents than do sons, the sources of this gender gap are not well understood. This paper asks: To what extent can this gap be explained by structural variation, especially the different rates of employment and kinds of jobs that women and men tend to hold? Using data from the National Survey of Families and Households (N = 7,350), the paper shows that both employment status and job characteristics, especially wages and self‐employment, are important factors in explaining the gender gap in the help given to parents, and that these operate similarly for women and men.