Social anthropologist: marginal academic?

Il y a déjà plusieurs années, Radcliffe-Brown suggérait que l'on intègre anthropologie sociale et sociologie sous le titre "sociologie comparative." Au cours de ces derníères années, les divisions départementales traditionnelles ont subi de plus en plus d'attaques. Plusieurs éléments quí, paraît-il, séparent la sociologie de l'anthropologie sociale, après examen, s'avèrent périmés ou illogiques et l'on a en outre, décrit la remarquable similitude de leurs approches théoríques. En dépit d'une compatibilité logique plus nette entre ces disciplines aujourd'hui, il demeure improbable que l'espoir de Radcliffe-Brown vienne à se réaliser. Cet échec est dû essentíellement à des facteurs non-rationnels tels que la rigidité de la bureaucratie universitaire et l'opposition au changement dans les départements de sciences sociales.
Several years ago Radcliffe-Brown suggested that social anthropology and sociology should be combined under the term "comparative sociology." In recent years traditional departmental boundaries have come under increased attack. Several factors that supposedly separate social anthropology and sociology are examined and found to be out-dated or illogical, and their remarkable similar theoretical trends are described. Despite the greater logical compatability between these disciplines today, it is improbable that Radcliffe-Brown's vision will finally be realized. This is mainly because of nonrational factors such as the rigidity of university bureaucracy and the resistance of social scientists to change.     

THE ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY

Workers' incentives to seek employment and remain employed are affected by a number of government policies. The policies themselves are in turn influenced by the political beliefs of the electorate about what working conditions and incomes should be. Using a simultaneous equations model of political climate and labor market conditions, this study shows that political liberalism may lead to decreased labor force participation and higher unemployment, particularly for women.     

Setups and effective capacity: the impact of lot sizing techniques in an MRP environment

This study investigates how lot sizing techniques influence the profit performance, inventory level, and order lardiness of an assembly job shop controlled by MRP. Four single-level lot sizing techniques are compared by simulation analysis under two levels of master schedule instability and two levels of end item demand. A second analysis investigates the influence of a multilevel lot sizing technique, the generalized constrained-K (GCK) cost modification, on the four single-level techniques at low demand and low nervousness. The analyses reveal a previously unreported phenomenon. Given the same inventory costs, the single-level lot sizing techniques generate substantially different average batch sizes. The lot sizing techniques maintain the following order of increasing average batch size (and decreasing total setup time):

economic order quantity (EOQ)

period order quantity (POQ)

least total cost (LTC)

Silver-Meal heuristic (SML)

The causes for different average batch sizes among the lot sizing techniques are analysed and explained. Demand lumpiness, inherent in multilevel manufacturing systems controlled by MRP, is found to be a major factor. The number of setups each lot sizing technique generates is the primary determinant of profit performance, inventory level, and order tardiness. EOQ, a fixed order quantity technique, is less sensitive to nervousness than the discrete lot sizing techniques. EOQ_, however, generates the smallest average batch size, and, therefore, the most setups. Since setups consume capacity, EOQ, is more sensitive to higher demand. SML generates the largest average batch sizes, and is, therefore, less sensitive to increased demand. At low demand, the other lot sizing techniques perform better on all criteria. They generate smaller batches and, therefore, shorter actual lead times. The GCK cost modification increases the average batch size generated by each lot sizing technique. GCK improves the profit and customer service level of EOQ the lot sizing technique with the smallest batches. GCK causes the other lot sizing techniques to generate excessively large batches and, therefore, excessively long actual lead times.     

MEASURING PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR THE NEW CHRISTIAN RIGHT: THE PERILS OF POINT ESTIMATION

It has been reported that 30% of American adults support the"sociomoral platform of the Moral Majority" (Simpson, 1983).We lodge several criticisms of this estimate and/or the wayit has subsequently been interpreted, involving the treatmentof "don't know" responses, the selection of response categorycutting points, the passage of time, the effects of questionwording, and substance. We derive a much different estimateof public support for the Moral Majority platform in the sameyear, but our more basic conclusion is simply that public opinionon this issue, as on most complex issues, cannot be fairly reflectedby a single number.     

The Measurement of a Middle Position in Attitude Surveys

Five split-ballot experiments, plus replications, were carriedout in several national surveys to compare the effects of offeringor omitting a middle alternative in forced-choice attitude questions.Explicitly offering a middle position significantly increasesthe size of that category, but tends not to otherwise affectunivariate distributions. The relation of intensity to the middleposition is somewhat greater on Offered forms than on Omittedforms (less intense respondents being more affected by questionform than those who feel more strongly), but in general formdoes not alter the relationship between an item and a numberof other respondent characteristics. Finally, in one instancethere is evidence that form can change the conclusion aboutwhether two attitude items are related, but the results areof uncertain reliability.     

Attitude Measurement and the Gun Control Paradox

The discrepancy between public support for gun registrationas measured in national surveys and legislative inaction onthesame issue leads to questions about the adequacy of traditionalpoll measures of public opinion. Hypotheses about three kindsof shortcomings are tested: (1) gun registration sentiment tendsto vary appreciably with question wording, and therefore isless crystallized than survey data suggest; (2) anti-gun registrationopinions are held with greater intensitythan are pro-gun registrationopinions, and therefore have different consequences for politicalaction; (3) opposition to gun registration is located particularlyamong those with greater political knowledge and influence,and thus has a disproportionate impact on legislators. Althoughthere is some evidence in support of the first two hypotheses,it does not appear sufficient to explain the discrepancy. However,the study produces a valuable finding about the use of intensitymeasures in attitude surveys, particularly the importance ofdesigning such measures for maximum sensitivity to nonlinearrelations