Some models of response uncertainty for panel analysis

Data of L. M. Wiggins from three-wave panels, each with a single dichotomous response, illustrate the use of models with response probabilities that vary over occasions or over individuals, or neither, or both, with a “no interaction” combination of the two being specified for the last case, which can also be derived from the Rasch measurement model. Models more complicated than these, allowing for changes in individual parameters (interaction of occasions and persons) or serial dependence of responses are considered when the Rasch-type model does not adequately describe the data.     

Models of economic planning under uncertainty: A selective survey and appraisal

Uncertainty and risk have played significant roles in policy making, at the micro and macro levels, from formulation of policy models to their actual implementation in several countries. The impact of risk aversion on policy making has differedm however, both in magnitude and intensity. Thus, for less developed countries with large commodity exports, stabilization policies have played a role as important as those for income growth and employment; for centrally planned economies, the investment cycles leading to large-scale divergences of actual from planned targets in strategic sectors have led policy makers to consider the need for building adequate safety margins in the planning process. Finally, for developed economies, the applied theory of indicative planning and decentralization has stressed the various informational gaps and competing risks that may impede an efficient and cooperative solution between private and public sectors. A selective survey and appraisal of the planning methods as they relate to risk and uncertainty is attempted here for less developed, centrally planned, and developed market economies.     

Dual-language characteristics and earnings: Male Mexican workers in the United States

This paper examines income differentials between native-born white males of non-Hispanic origins and Mexican American males of varying linguistic statuses. The analysis relies on conventional modeling techniques of the earnings process and the selected use of mother tongue, English fluency, and primary language usage to categorize the Mexican American population. The findings differ among the derived groups. Among Mexican immigrants, there does not appear to be any direct economic reward for speaking English. For the U.S.-born Chicanos, there is only a small economic advantage associated with being reared as an English monolingual, and there appears to be a clear disadvantage directly associated with being a Spanish-dominant bilingual.     

What Changes MSW Students' View on the Mission of Social Work?

Little is known about how professional social work education affects students' view on the social work mission. Using a secondary analysis of larger longitudinal data collected from masters in social work (MSW) students in California, USA, this study sought to explore the relationship among the students' demographic characteristics, their primary reasons for pursuing an MSW degree, and their view on the mission of social work at the time of entering an MSW program, whether the students' view on the mission of social work changed in the course of an MSW education, and factors contributing to a change of MSW students' view on the social work mission—individual adaptation vs societal change—between the beginning and the end of the MSW program. The results showed that students' degree of social action involvement, type of field practicum, and ideological variables predicted students' view changes or adherence between entering the MSW program and graduating.     

Happiness and marginalization rates for internal Mexican migrants and the native-born population in Baja California,Mexico

More than 3.3 million people were internal migrants in Mexico in 2010 (INEGI, 2011a). This internal migration has played an important role in the growth and expansion of cities in Mexico, particularly in the country's northern border region. Growth in the municipalities has been driven by neoliberal economic policies and factors of globalization. This paper considers the level of happiness and marginalization for those who were born in and those who migrated to the two largest municipalities in Baja California, Mexicali and Tijuana. This study finds that there are not many differences between the native-born and migrants’ expressed level of happiness and marginalization level but there are differences in the municipalities. From these findings, the importance of place, its nature as well as manmade characteristics, and people are more important factors than marginalization or place of birth to finding happiness.     

约翰·斯坦贝克小说创作与30年代加州腹地的斗争

美国20世纪30年代的经济萧条和社会冲突成就了当时的文学艺术创作,发生在加州腹地的斗争则为那一时代的文学巨匠约翰.斯坦贝克提供了创作的灵感和动力。作家对这片土地如此地熟识并真正地理解,意识到了加州农业规模的与众不同之处,亲历了发生在加州腹地的斗争,并为他的创作选择了一个合理而又不同的视角:移民工人和种植企业之间的冲突。斯坦贝克以他自有的方式叙述着,他所描述的加州农业社会现实丝毫未经打磨,其农业生产的林林种种也以最质朴的方式得以表述。     

Lesbian landscape

ABSTRACT

In this article about first love, the author discusses her coming of age as a lesbian who is also tribally affiliated.     

加利福尼亚州温室气体排放权交易项目简介

美国《加利福尼亚州全球变暖应对法案》是地方应对气候变化措施的典型代表,其最引人注目之处在于创立了世界上最广泛且最复杂的温室气体排放权交易体系。该法案的碳减排目标设定及其对温室气体排放权交易体系的碳排放总量、覆盖范围、碳配额抵消与存储机制、报告与履行程序、与其他排放权交易体系对接等问题的制度安排,对应对气候变化法律的构建与完善具有先锋榜样意义,同时也彰显出在应对气候变化问题上地方措施的重要作用。