Can the minimum living standard guarantee scheme enable the poor to escape the poverty trap in rural China?

The rural Minimum Living Standard Guarantee (Dibao) Scheme is the most important social assistance programme in rural China. However, how the rural Dibao programme affects household expenditures and whether it can enable the poor to escape the poverty trap are questions that remain largely unexplored. This study used data from the 2012 Rural Household Survey in China to investigate the impact of the rural Dibao programme on household expenditures. We found that the programme significantly improved the well‐being of low‐income households. Particularly, the programme significantly increased household expenditures on housing, education and health; furthermore, the impact was greater for households with educated household heads. However, the programme did not significantly affect household expenditures on food, transportation or farming inputs. The results imply that participation in the rural Dibao programme induces household investment in human capital, which could help to break the inter‐generational transmission of poverty and raise long‐run welfare.     

Approximate Bayesianity of Frequentist Confidence Intervals for a Binomial Proportion

The well-known Wilson and Agresti–Coull confidence intervals for a binomial proportion p are centered around a Bayesian estimator. Using this as a starting point, similarities between frequentist confidence intervals for proportions and Bayesian credible intervals based on low-informative priors are studied using asymptotic expansions. A Bayesian motivation for a large class of frequentist confidence intervals is provided. It is shown that the likelihood ratio interval for p approximates a Bayesian credible interval based on Kerman’s neutral noninformative conjugate prior up to O(n^{? 1}) in the confidence bounds. For the significance level α ? 0.317, the Bayesian interval based on the Jeffreys’ prior is then shown to be a compromise between the likelihood ratio and Wilson intervals. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.     

Improved likelihood inferences for Weibull regression model

A general procedure is developed for bias-correcting the maximum likelihood estimators (MLEs) of the parameters of Weibull regression model with either complete or right-censored data. Following the bias correction, variance corrections and hence improved t-ratios for model parameters are presented. Potentially improved t-ratios for other reliability-related quantities are also discussed. Simulation results show that the proposed method is effective in correcting the bias of the MLEs, and the resulted t-ratios generally improve over the regular t-ratios.     

Testing equality of generalized variances of k multivariate normal populations

Generalized variance is a measure of dispersion of multivariate data. Comparison of dispersion of multivariate data is one of the favorite issues for multivariate quality control, generalized homogeneity of multidimensional scatter, etc. In this article, the problem of testing equality of generalized variances of k multivariate normal populations by using the Bartlett's modified likelihood ratio test (BMLRT) is proposed. Simulations to compare the Type I error rate and power of the BMLRT and the likelihood ratio test (LRT) methods are performed. These simulations show that the BMLRT method has a better chi-square approximation under the null hypothesis. Finally, a practical example is given.     

Asymptotic expansions of density of normalized extremes from logarithmic general error distribution

Logarithmic general error distribution is an extension of the log-normal distribution. In this paper, the asymptotic expansions of densities of normalized maximum from logarithmic general error distribution are derived under two different kinds of normalized constants. By applying the main results, the higher-order expansions of moments of maxima are established.     

Generalized minimum aberration mixed-level orthogonal arrays: A general approach based on sequential integer quadratically constrained quadratic programming

Orthogonal fractional factorial designs and in particular orthogonal arrays (OAs) are frequently used in many fields of application, including medicine, engineering, and agriculture. In this article, we present a methodology and an algorithm to find an OA, of given size and strength, which satisfies the generalized minimum aberration criterion. The methodology is based on the joint use of polynomial counting functions, complex coding of levels, and algorithms for quadratic optimization and puts no restriction on the number of levels of each factor.     

西方素质教育思想及其值得借鉴的教育模式

素质教育本质强调的是对人的思想品质和文化精神的培养。西方与素质教育思想最为接近的是19世纪以来倡导的"全人教育",即倡导以"育人"为本,强调以开发人的理智、情感、创造力和精神潜能为教育目的。西方教育实践中值得借鉴的教育模式,适合个性发展的教育观念,开放性的教育系统,灵活的评价体系,问题式、反思式、探讨式的教学方法等。我国素质教育应避免的误区:一是把素质教育与应试教育对立;二是认为西方教育尤其是美国教育强调"素质"。     

中国法学生产力分布格局检视——基于国家社科基金法学类立项课题的统计分析

近20年来,伴随法治中国进程的不断推进,法学学科的影响力总体呈现出平稳上升的趋势.就地域分布而言,北京、上海、武汉仍旧是法学研究的重镇;就学科分布而言,民商法、宪法与行政法以及诉讼法学均属热门学科;就制约因子而言,法学研究的繁荣程度与经济发展水平以及学术产出能力均存在相关关系.就法学研究的发展方向而言,“司法改革”“宪法实施”“立法评估”“知识产权保护”将是未来新的理论增长点;在学术梯队建设方面,60后与70后群体将逐渐成为引领未来研究方向的主力;在法学研究的总体布局方面,基于政治红利的地缘优势将逐步弱化.     

转轨时期企业家成长的基本模式及战略性定位

体制转轨是国企改革的现实要求和基本环境。转轨时期的双重体制一方面培育了类型众多的企业组织 ;另一方面也造就了不同模式的企业家。如果把企业组织分为国有和民营两大类型的话 ,则两类企业的企业家生成的环境与机制是大不相同的 ;若再把企业家成长所依附的资本分为政治资本和异质型人力资本 ,则不同资本类型与不同制度环境的耦合 ,决定着现实中企业家成长的基本模式。进一步研究可以探索出各种成长模式下的企业家的未来定位。     

浅谈创新农村土地流转模式与农民意愿问题——基于典型创新土地流转模式的实证考察

在我国土地公有制的背景下,通过在土地所有权的基础上设立(如土地承包经营权和宅基地使用权等的)用益物权,解决了土地的归属与利用的矛盾。在我国土地制度改革的进程中,农村土地承包经营权也在通过多种方式开放流转。关于土地流转方式的创新模式也在各地展开的探索。作者通过对三种典型的创新土地流转模式进行实证考察,结合基本理论研究,进而对创新土地流转模式展开讨论。以农民意愿作为基本价值判断,指出创新土地流转模式在制度设计上存在的问题。