Managing testing activities in telecommunications: A case study

This paper examines ways of managing testing more efficiently and effectively. The importance and the workload of testing have been growing constantly in the telecommunication industry, as a result of shorter product lifecycles and decreased time-to-market. At the same time, the complexity of products has increased with a decrease in physical dimensions. Managers face enormous challenges in developing knowledge and effective testing processes. This case study proposes the application of two models, a testing optimization model and an extended V2M2 (Verification Validation Maturity Model) model, for managing the value of testing. In the empirical part of the study, the present state of testing management is examined.     

MEANINGFUL REGRESSION AND ASSOCIATION MODELS FOR CLUSTERED ORDINAL DATA

Many proposed methods for analyzing clustered ordinal data focus on the regression model and consider the association structure within a cluster as a nuisance. However, the association structure is often of equal interest—for example, temporal association in longitudinal studies and association between responses to similar questions in a survey. We discuss the use, appropriateness, and interpretability of various latent variable and Markov models for the association structure and propose a new structure that exploits the ordinality of the response. The models are illustrated with a study concerning opinions regarding government spending and an analysis of stability and change in teenage marijuana use over time, where we reveal different behavioral patterns for boys and girls through a comprehensive investigation of individual response profiles.     

Stability and Change of the Quality of Working Life in Restructuring Municipalities

Social Indicators Research - Local government in Finland has undergone considerable restructuring since 2005 as a number of new larger municipalities (mergers) and partnership areas between social...     

Promotions and Earnings – Gender or Merit? Evidence from Longitudinal Personnel Data

This study examines the determinants of promotions, performance evaluations and earnings using unique longitudinal data from the personnel records of a large university. The study focuses on the role of gender in remuneration using, first, information on the complexity ratings of job tasks to define promotions on job ladders and, second, information on objective individual productivity. The study finds that individual research productivity was an important determinant of promotions and earnings. The results indicate that gender has no effect on the probability of being promoted, conditional on productivity, nor does it play a role in the performance evaluation of employees. Furthermore, the results suggest that contemporaneous productivity measures provide a usable proxy for the past productivity of a worker.     

Which probes are most useful when undertaking cognitive interviews?

This paper reports the use of verbal probes in cognitive interviews (CIs) undertaken to test the usefulness, validity and reliability of survey questions. Through examining the use of probes by three interviewers undertaking interviews as part the piloting of a cross-national crime survey, we examine which of the various types of probes used in CIs produce the most useful information. Other influences on interview quality are examined, including differences between interviewers and respondents themselves. The analyses rely on multi-level modelling and suggest that anticipated, emergent and conditional probes provide the most useful data. Furthermore, age, gender and educational levels appear to have no bearing on the quality of the data generated.     

Migration-related land use dynamics in increasingly hybrid peri-urban space: insights from two agricultural communities in Bolivia

This article investigates the impact of transnational labor migration on agriculture in urbanizing communities in Bolivia. Previous research shows that the characteristics of rural out-migration communities affect whether agricultural practices are intensified and improved. Using a mixed methods approach, two closely located peri-urban communities with distinct prerequisites for agricultural development are analyzed. This study shows weak migration-induced changes in agriculture and concludes that transnational migration does not necessarily accelerate an ongoing urbanization process. It shows that remittances function to maintain farming for subsistence and as a secondary livelihood activity. However, major investments in agricultural intensification are not attractive due to the communities’ proximity to the main cities. This article highlights the need for nuanced conceptualization when studying migration-driven agricultural change in hybrid peri-urban spaces.     

Perspectives on family caregiving of people aging with intellectual disability affected by dementia: Commentary from the International Summit on Intellectual Disability and Dementia

ABSTRACT

This article, an output of the 2016 International Summit on Intellectual Disability and Dementia, examines familial caregiving situations within the context of a support-staging model for adults with intellectual disability (ID) affected by dementia. Seven narratives offer context to this support-staging model to interpret situations experienced by caregivers. The multidimensional model has two fundamental aspects: identifying the role and nature of caregiving as either primary (direct) or secondary (supportive); and defining how caregiving is influenced by stage of dementia. We propose staging can affect caregiving via different expressions: (1) the “diagnostic phase,” (2) the “explorative phase,” (3) the “adaptive phase,” and (4) the “closure phase.” The international narratives illustrate direct and indirect caregiving with commonality being extent of caregiver involvement and attention to the needs of an adult with ID. We conclude that the model is the first to empirically formalize the variability of caregiving within families of people with ID that is distinct from other caregiving groups, and that many of these caregivers have idiosyncratic needs. A support-staging model that recognizes the changing roles and demands of carers of people with ID and dementia can be useful in constructing research, defining family-based support services, and setting public policy.     

Using cognitive interviews to refine translated survey questions: an example from a cross-national crime survey

Lately, social researchers have become increasingly interested and involved in comparative and cross-national research. In part this reflects a growing realisation that key social, economic and political processes are not merely ‘domestic’ but are common across countries and cultures. Although numerous good quality data sets now exist (e.g. the European Social Survey or International Social Survey Programme), in many instances researchers need to design their own bespoke comparative surveys. Such surveys require careful design if they are to produce meaningful data. Herein we introduce, outline and report on one technique which may usefully be employed in order to design better survey items for use in cross-national surveys.