Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Asset Ownership And The Probability Of Repayment: An Examination Of Microcredit Data From Bangladesh, Roger White, Shamma Adeeb Alam

Economics

Employing data for 34,255 loans made by the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) to 12,455 repeat borrowers during the 2002-6 period, this article examines the relationship between borrowers’ asset holdings and microloan repayment. Estimating a series of binomial probit specifications, it finds a positive relationship between land ownership and loan repayment; however, taken collectively, ownership of non-land assets diminishes the likelihood of repayment. Influences of specific assets on repayment probabilities vary across asset types: ownership of land, corrugated tin houses, vans and rickshaws increases the likelihood of repayment, while ownership of sewing machines, televisions, radios and bicycles corresponds with a …

Archeological Investigations For The Levi Jordan Plantation House Stabilization, Brazoria County, Texas, Jennifer K. Mcwilliams, Douglas K. Boyd, Aaron Norment

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The Levi Jordan plantation house is one of the few antebellum plantation structures to have survived in Brazoria County. It is the only standing structure associated with the plantation, which began operating in 1848 and was occupied continually up through the 1990s. The original house, built in the early 1850s using slave labor, was a 20x60-ft two-story wooden frame structure. It was altered many times during its long occupation, often due to hurricane damage. A portion of the Levi Jordan Plantation was acquired by the State of Texas in 2002 and managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department until …

Parallels Between The U.S. And Asian Property Markets, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

U.S. home prices are on an upswing. What does this mean for the Asian property market?

Instruction @ The Uri Libraries - May 2013, Mary C. Macdonald, Amanda Izenstark

Instruction @ the URI Libraries

No abstract provided.

Cheaper By The Dozen: Communication In Large Families, Hayley R. Hutchins

Senior Honors Projects

Little research has been devoted to the examination of communicative patterns and behaviors within traditional large nuclear families. In fact, large families themselves have become quite rare in industrialized western society. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, total fertility rate in the United States is at 1.93, and the US Census Bureau reports that the average number of children in a family is less than two. Though the rarity of large families has made them difficult to study, large families are by no means extinct as a demographic.

The research herein seeks to expand current understanding of …

Rationalizing Creativity—Rationalizing Public Service: Is Scheduling Management Fit For The Digital Era?, Ann-Marie Murray

Articles

In public broadcast organizations across Europe, scheduling has been transformed from a marginal, administrative activity to a highly strategic management tool (Hellman, 1999; Hujanen, 2002; Meier, 2003;Ytreberg, 2000) Ellis (2000)described it as “the locus of power in television,” organizing production and managing budgets (p. 26). The role of scheduling in public broadcast organizations today reflects the demands of increasing competition and political pressure for efficiency and accountability. However, new challenges have emerged in the transition from public service broadcasting to public service media (PSM). PSM providers must redefine their mission for the digital era and find …

Explorations Into Continuity: An Heuristic, Artistic Inquiry Into The Interplay Between Work As A Dance/Movement Therapist And Service Within The Bahá’Í Community, Elena M. Rezai

Creative Arts Therapies Theses

The purpose of this thesis was to explore the concept of integration between two main aspects of my life: my professional career as a dance/movement therapist on an inpatient adolescent behavioral health unit, and service guided by Bahá’í teachings in a neighborhood-based setting. Literature reviewed encompassed instances of Rudolf von Laban’s Effort elements found in the Bahá’í Writings, as well as research on the integration between the mind, body and spirit, the history of religion and mental health, and the current relationship between religion and mental health. Both artistic inquiry and heuristic methodologies were used to guide my research. Through …

Essays On Agglomeration, Access To Medical Services, And The Real Estate Market, Jing Li

Economics - Dissertations

This dissertation comprises three papers that study how external economies of scale help to explain geographic variation in access to medical services as well as potential implications on the real estate market. Specifically, the first two papers examine whether an increased concentration of the hospital service industry promotes productivity in treating patients and if so, what are the specific channels through which agglomeration economies might take place in the health care industry. The third paper explores how the productivity variation is reflected in the real estate market.

Chapter 2 examines two factors that help to explain geographic variation in health …

Experiencing Citizenship In A Globalizing World: The Impact Of Off-Campus Programs, Ryan Owen Williams

Political Science - Dissertations

College serves as a critical time in the lives of young adults in the formulation of their identification with citizenship, of their sense of belonging or affiliation. In an era of increasing globalization, this psychological dimension of citizenship requires further research and elaboration. This project seeks to determine if and how the academic and off-campus choices students make in college impact their worldview, their loyalties and sense of responsibility toward others. How far do students' allegiances extend and what experiences in college help to create these bonds and commitments? This study asks whether international experience via study abroad is a …

The Impact Of Schadenfreude As An Emotional Frame In Crisis Communications On Perception Of Corporate Reputation, Kristi Gilmore

Mass Communications - Dissertations

This dissertation expands on the recent research focus on the role of stakeholder emotions in crisis communications. Using a 2x2 experimental design, this study explores the emotions of sadness and anger, as well as the concept of schadenfreude in relationship to stakeholders' perceptions of corporate reputation. In addition to using the previously tested emotions of sadness and anger in this context, the concept of schadenfreude (the feeling of pleasure one experiences when a person or organization suffers a misfortune or set back) was re-introduced to the field to better assess its potential role in the crisis communication process, specifically its …

Habilitative Services Coverage For Children Under The Essential Health Benefit Provisions Of The Affordable Care Act, Sara J. Rosenbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

No abstract provided.

Une Library Services Quarterly Report May 2013, Une Library Services

Quarterly Reports

Highlights of accomplishments of the University of New England's Library Services department.

“St. Louis Through The Camera”, Miranda Rectenwald

The Confluence (2009-2020)

In 1892, St. Louis Autumnal Festivities Association published a booklet to promote the assets and amenities of St. Louis. Its photographs showed the city not as a grimy industrial metropolis, but in the most flattering light. They may say “the camera never lies,” but does it?

The Thinker 1.05, Amy Thompson

Library Newsletters

The Thinker newsletter for May 2013.

Effect Of Religiosity And Combat Exposure On Combat Veteran Posttraumatic Growth, Kurt C. Webb, William Buhrow, Rodger K. Bufford, Mark R. Mcminn

Faculty Publications - Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) Program

Investigates two research questions:

Activism, Deliberation, And Networked Public Screens: Rhetorical Scenes From The Occupy Moment In Lincoln, Nebraska (Part 1 & 2), Joshua P. Ewalt, Jessy J. Ohl, Damien S. Pfister

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

Part 1 of this manuscript is a dramatization of five rhetorical scenes that take the Occupy phenomenon as a moment to explore features of contemporary social protest and change. Drawing on rhetorical field notes collected over the first two weeks of Occupy Lincoln in Nebraska, we identify how historical tensions between activism and deliberation were both complicated and reasserted as the Occupy moment became a movement. The rhetorical scenes partially replicate actual conversations, though they are remediated through three composite figures: Anda, a longtime social activist; John, an advocate of democratic deliberation; and Dajuan, an undergraduate organizer of the local …

Community Partners’ Assessment Of Service Learning In An Interpersonal And Small Group Communication Course, Sarah Steimel

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

This assessment explored community partners’ perceptions of service learning in a required communication course. Semi-structured interviews revealed that community partners believed that students were providing needed and valuable service, students were learning about the community and students were learning through their application of course skills in an applied context. However, community partners also felt that students were unaware of or did not care what they should be learning, that faculty contact was rare or nonexistent and that community feedback opportunities were rare and undervalued by faculty. Results suggest specific improvements necessary in service learning assignment design.

Review: The Mormon Rebellion: America’S First Civil War 1857–1858 By David L. Bigler And Will Bagley, Gene Deerman

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

No abstract provided.

Understanding Sexual Diversity, Nate Maeys

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

This research assessed comfort levels toward sexual diversity. Sexual diversity encompasses anyone who identifies with a gender or sexual orientation other than one that is socially accepted for his or her gender. This research followed Ceglian and Lyons’ (2004) study which assessed people’s comfort levels towards cross-dressing men. They showed that comfort levels towards cross-dressing men could be altered. They explained their findings using the mere exposure effect which refers to the tendency that over time, people will develop a preference for something or someone they are repeatedly exposed to (Zajonc, 2001). Participants in the study filled out two surveys …

Is Marriage Still Relevant In Today’S Society?, Stacey Harris

Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal

The original idea of marriage is different from today’s current idea of marriage. Although the idea of marriage is different all over the world, the idea of a marriage based on love is an ever- growing trend throughout the world. This idea of marriage for love is no longer secluded to the western cultures. In this paper there is a critique of different literatures on what marriage means and the idea of cohabitation as well as a study conducted to review how undergraduate college students feel about the relevancy of marriage in today’s society. The study was conducted to test …

Reinhart-Rogoff Economic Study Got It Wrong, And So Did The Political Reaction, Louis D. Johnston

Economics Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

An Alternative Approach To Reduce Dimensionality In Data Envelopment Analysis, Grace Lee Ching Yap, Wan Rosmanira Ismail, Zaidi Isa

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

Principal component analysis reduces dimensionality; however, uncorrelated components imply the existence of variables with weights of opposite signs. This complicates the application in data envelopment analysis. To overcome problems due to signs, a modification to the component axes is proposed and was verified using Monte Carlo simulations.

Robustness Of Dewma Versus Ewma Control Charts To Non-Normal Processes, Saad Saeed Alkahtani

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

Exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) and double EWMA (DEWMA) control charts were designed under the normality assumption. This study considers various skewed (Gamma) and symmetric non-normal (t) distributions to examine the effect of non-normality on the average run length (ARL) performance of EWMA and DEWMA. ARL performances were investigated and compared using Monte Carlo simulations. Results show that DEWMA charts can be designed to be robust to non-normality, that the ARL performances of EWMA and DEWMA charts were more robust to t distributions and DEWMA was more robust to non-normality for larger values of the smoothing parameter.

An Approximate Approach To The Economic Design Of X̅ Charts By Considering The Cost Of Quality, M. A. A. Cox

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

The selection of three parameters {h,k,n} is necessary to design a x̅ control chart. A cost model employing a Burr distribution is examined. Previously employed methods are refined and extended. A series of approximations are proposed that enable a rapid parameter selection. It is hoped that reducing the computational complexity of previous approaches will lead to wider utilization of x̅ control charts.

Modeling And Handling Overdispersion Health Science Data With Zero-Inflated Poisson Model, Nur Syabiha Binti Zafakali, Wan Muhamad Amir Bin W Ahmad

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

Health sciences research often involves analyses of repeated measurement or longitudinal count data analyses that exhibit excess zeros. Overdispersion occurs when count data measurements have greater variability than allowed. This phenomenon can be carried over to zero-inflated count data modeling. Referred to as zero-inflation, the Zero-Inflated Poisson (ZIP) model can be used to model such data. The Zero-Inflated Negative Binomial (ZINB) model is used to account for overdispersion detected in count data. The ZINB model is considered as an alternative for the Zero-Inflated Generalized Poisson (ZIGP) model for zero-inflated overdispersed count data. Consequently, zero-inflated models have been proposed for the …

A Note On Α-Curvature Of The Manifolds Of The Length-Biased Lognormal And Gamma Distributions In View Of Related Applications In Data Analysis, Makarand V. Ratnaparkhi, Uttara V. Naik-Nimbalkar

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

The α-curvature tensors of the statistical manifolds of the length-biased versions of the log-normal and gamma distributions are derived and discussed. This study was designed to investigate observations related to the parameter estimation for the length-biased lognormal distribution as a model for the lengthbiased data from oil field exploration.

The Probit Link Function In Generalized Linear Models For Data Mining Applications, Mehdi Razzaghi

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

The use of logistic regression for outcome classification of dichotomous variables is well known in data mining applications. The estimated probability of the logit transformation belongs to the class of canonical link functions that follow from particular probability distribution functions. A closely related model is the probit link which can be used for binary responses. Although the probit link is not canonical, in some cases the overall fit of the model can be improved by using non-canonical link functions. This article reviews the properties of the probit link function and discusses its applications in data mining problems. Contrasts and comparisons …

Parameter Estimation Of A Class Of Hidden Markov Model With Diagnostics, E. B. Nkemnole, O. Abass, R. A. Kasumu

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

A stochastic volatility (SV) problem is formulated as a state space form of a Hidden Markov model (HMM). The SV model assumes that the distribution of asset returns conditional on the latent volatility is normal. This article analyzes the SV model with the student-t distribution and the generalized error distribution (GED) and compares these distributions with a mixture of normal distributions from Kim and Stoffer (2008). A Sequential Monte Carlo with Expectation Maximization (SMCEM) algorithm technique was used to estimate parameters for the extended volatility model; the Akaike Information Criteria (AIC) and forecast statistics were calculated to compare distribution fit. …

Estimation And Testing In Type I Generalized Half Logistic Distribution, R. R. L. Kantam, V. Ramakrishna, M. S. Ravikumar

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

A generalization of the half logistic distribution is developed through exponentiation of its cumulative distribution function and termed the Type I Generalized Half Logistic Distribution (GHLD). GHLD’s distributional characteristics and parameter estimation using maximum likelihood and modified maximum likelihood methods are presented with comparisons. Comparison of Type I GHLD and the exponential distribution is conducted via likelihood ratio criterion.

P-Values Versus Significance Levels, Phillip I. Good

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

In this article Phillip Good responds to Richard Anderson's article Conceptual Distinction between the Critical p Value and the Type I Error Rate in Permutation Testing.