On a class exhibiting trend change in average failure rate

Abstract

Weak convergence and moment convergence issues are investigated for the New Better than Average Failure Rate (NBAFR) family (introduced by Loh (1984 Loh, W. Y. 1984. A new generalization of the class of NBU distributions. IEEE Transactions on Reliability R-33 :97–113[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar])). We explore the validity of these results in the context of a more general ageing class that we introduce. We prove some new properties of this class and derive its interrelationships with other non-monotonic ageing families. Reliability and moment bounds are obtained and an interesting characterization of exponentiality is proved. Special cases of our results lead to new theorems for the NBAFR class. Finally weak convergence and related issues are established for this class.     

The status of women among the scheduled tribes in India

The scheduled tribes constitute about 8.2% of the total population in India. Although there is a large volume of anthropological literature describing the characteristics of and differences among the various tribes in India, little inter-disciplinary research has been done to uncover the status of women among the tribal population in India. This paper will analyze the status of women among the scheduled tribes in India. Frequent comparisons will be made to the social and cultural practices of the scheduled tribes, mainstream Hindus, as well as the scheduled caste population. Through this analysis, we will show the distinctiveness of the tribal cultures and the fact that many women from the scheduled tribes face less discrimination than Hindu women and those from scheduled castes.     

Long term demographic effect of a constant stream of immigration when the population is not reproducing itself

The author describes the use of a model to investigate "the age composition of the stationary population resulting from a condition of below replacement fertility and a continuous stream of immigrants, the size of which for any age remain invariant over time.... We have shown that the number dying among [migrants] is the same as the number of them entering over any time interval, and that is precisely how their stationarity is maintained." The geographical focus is on developed countries that are experiencing below-replacement fertility levels. (SUMMARY IN FRE AND SPA)     

Do the Privileged Always Win? Economic Consequences of Divorce by Income and Gender Groups

Social Indicators Research - The heterogeneous economic results of divorce have received limited attention. The current study analyzes such consequences from an intersectionality perspective, where...     

Lagrange multiplier unit root test in the presence of a break in the innovation variance

We show that the Lagrange multiplier (LM) unit root test exhibits size distortions when a break in the innovation variance exists but is ignored. We develop a modified LM unit root test that is based on a generalized least-squares transformation of the original series. The asymptotic null distribution of the new modified LM unit root test is derived. Finite-sample simulation evidence shows that the modified LM unit root test maintains its size and has reasonable power against the trend stationary alternative.     

BERTRAND COMPETITION WITH ASYMMETRIC MARGINAL COSTS

This article tests the prediction of three discrete asymmetric duopoly price competition games in the laboratory. The games differ from each other in terms of the size of the cost asymmetry that induces a systematic variation in the difference between the firms' marginal costs. While the standard theory requires the low‐cost firm to set a price just equal to the high‐cost firm's marginal cost, which is identical across all three games, and win the entire market, intuition suggests that market price may increase with a decrease in the absolute difference between the two marginal costs. We develop a quantal response equilibrium model to test our competing conjecture. (JEL L11, L12, C91, D43)     

Israeli and Polish Policies toward Returning Residents as a Reflection of Nationhood

This study focuses on Poland and Israel, both commonly classified as ethnic nation-states, and aims to question the expression of ethnic–civic dichotomy in return-migration policies. Policy documents in each country were analysed and complemented by interviews with policymakers and representatives from relevant organizations. Our analysis reveals that, although there are differences in their policies toward returning residents and in the related programmes in both countries, Israeli and Polish policies include both ethnic and civic components. Therefore, our study supports Joppke's (2005) argument that there is no purely civic or ethnic nationalism and there can be no purely civic or ethnic nation. We show that the proportion of ethnic and civic elements may change over time; thus, our findings contribute to the growing literature pointing to the dynamic nature of nationalism.     

Social Capital Investment and Immigrant Economic Trajectories: A Case Study of Punjabi American Taxi Drivers in New York City

Although the scholarship on social capital and immigrant economic incorporation has sufficiently documented how immigrants mobilize social capital in their search for employment which often leads to the formation of immigrant niches, how social capital is processed after immigrants acquire employment and its significance for the preservation of immigrant employment niches is less well explored. This paper addresses this gap in the literature with a case study of immigrant Punjabi taxi drivers in the New York metropolitan area. In particular, this study shows how a group of immigrant Punjabi taxi drivers mobilized social capital via embeddedness in co‐ethnic social networks and improved their working conditions – a process that must be considered in explanations of the Punjabi niche in the taxi industry for more than two decades. The study has implications for the relationship between social capital and the structure of the workplace or industry where immigrants are incorporated and its subsequent impact on immigrant economic trajectories. Further, this study contributes to the debate on the usefulness of ethnic communities for the adaptation of immigrant groups. Additionally, this research is relevant to the scholarship on the economic adaptation of South Asian (a subset of Asian Americans) immigrants, an understudied immigrant group in the United States.