bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pathology of CAG repeat diseases
Authors: Yamada Mitsunori , Tsuji Shoji , Takahashi Hitoshi
Published: September 2010

Neuronal intranuclear inclusions have become the neuropathological signature of the CAG repeat diseases, although their cytotoxicity is a matter of controversy. It has been demonstrated that the inclusions in dentatorubral–pallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) and Machado–Joseph disease (MJD) were immunopositive for several transcription factors such as TATA‐binding protein (TBP), TBP‐associated factor (TAFII130), Sp1, cAMP‐responsive element‐binding protein (CREB) and CREB‐binding protein, suggesting that neuronal degeneration in polyglutamine diseases may result from nuclear depletion of transcription factors containing the glutamine‐rich domain. It was also revealed that, in the DRPLA brain, expanded polyglutamine stretches were diffusely accumulated in neuronal nucleoplasm. This nuclear pathology involved many neurons in various nervous system regions, such as the cerebral cortex, thalamus, substantia nigra, pontine nuclei, reticular formation and inferior olive, in addition to the previously recognized affected regions. The diffuse nuclear labeling was also detected in MJD, Huntington's disease, and spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy, suggesting that this nuclear pathology may be a characteristic feature and may exert certain influence on certain nuclear functions of many neurons in the CAG repeat diseases.
An autopsy case of the schizophrenic 32 years after lobotomy
Authors: Arai Yoshifumi , Tsutsui Yoshihiro , Shinmura Yuichiro , Kosugi Tomoki , Nishikage Hirofumi , Yamamoto Junnosuke
Published: September 2010

An autopsy case is reported here of a 69‐year‐old patient with schizophrenia, who was known retrospectively to have had a prefrontal lobotomy 32 years previously. The patient was diagnosed as schizophrenic at the age of 24 and the lobotomy was undertaken 13 years later. The patient was recently found outside in a dehydrated condition and admitted to a general hospital, where he died of respiratory failure. Bilateral cystic lesions were found in the deep white matter of the frontal lobe. The cyst walls consisted of glial fibrous tissues, and severe demyelination with axonal destruction was diffusely observed in the white matter of the frontal lobe. In the thinner frontal cortex without arcuate fibers (U fibers) close to the cavities, cytoarchitectural abnormalities were observed. In the thalamic nuclei marked retrograde degeneration and astrocytic gliosis were observed. The detailed neuropathological findings of a lobotomized schizophrenic brain are reported here. It is proposed that one should be reminded of a lobotomized brain if bilateral cysts are found.
Spatial pattern of prion protein deposits in patients with sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease
Authors: Armstrong Richard A , Cairns Nigel J , Lantos Peter L
Published: September 2010

The spatial pattern of the prion protein (PrP) deposits was studied in the cerebral cortex and cerebellum in 10 patients with sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD). In all patients the PrP deposits were aggregated into clusters and, in 90% of cortical areas and in 50% of cerebellar sections, the clusters exhibited a regular periodicity parallel to the tissue boundary; a spatial pattern also exhibited by β‐amyloid (Aß) deposits in Alzheimer's disease (AD). In the cerebral cortex, the incidence of regular clustering of the PrP deposits was similar in the upper and lower cortical laminae. The sizes of the PrP clusters in the upper and lower cortex were uncorrelated. No significant differences in mean cluster size of the PrP deposits were observed between brain regions. The size, location and distribution of the PrP deposit clusters suggest that PrP deposition occurs in relation to specific anatomical pathways and supports the hypothesis that prion pathology spreads through the brain via such pathways. In addition, the data suggest that there are similarities in the pathogenesis of extracellular protein deposits in prion disease and in AD.
Alternative EWS‐FLI1 fusion gene and MIC2 expression in peripheral and central primitive neuroectodermal tumors
Authors: Ishii Nobuaki , Hiraga Hiroaki , Sawamura Yutaka , Shinohe Yumiko , Nagashima Kazuo
Published: September 2010

Primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNET) occur either in the central nervous system (CNS; central PNET, cPNET) or in the peripheral sites (peripheral PNET, pPNET). Recent molecular approaches have been defining a new concept of PNET, that is, the pPNET including Ewing's sarcoma (ES) which expresses MIC2 glycoprotein and shows the specific chimeric gene of EWS‐FLI1. The expression of MIC2 and the genetic rearrangement of EWS‐FLI1 are considered to be highly specific to the pPNET/ES. This study examined the expression of MIC2 and EWS‐FLI1 gene by means of immunohistochemistry and reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) on various small round cell tumors originating in the CNS or non‐CNS organs. All peripheral PNET tested expressed MIC2 and were positive for EWS‐FLI1 (11/11). In contrast, all cPNET and other blastic CNS tumors were negative for MIC2: medulloblastoma (0/3), cerebral PNET (0/2), spinal PNET (0/2), glioblastoma (0/2), retinoblastoma (0/3), and pineoblastoma (0/2). These MIC2‐negative tumors were also negative for the chimeric gene product of EWS‐FLI1. Interestingly, one PNET originating in the intracranial dura mater was positive for both MIC2 and EWS‐FLI1 fusion gene. The results indicate that cPNET lacks any genetic or protein markers, except for a meningeal PNET which falls into the same phenotypic spectrum of pPNET.
Unusual triplet expansion associated with neurogenic changes in a family with oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy
Authors: Schober Ralf , Kreß Wolfram , Grahmann Friedrich , Kellermann Steffen , Baum Petra , Günzel Steffen , Wagner Armin
Published: September 2010

The occasional observation of neurogenic features in oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy (OPMD) is unclear both in nosological and in etiological respects. Studies are reported here of a family with autosomal‐dominant OPMD involving seven members over three generations. In three of them muscle biopsies were performed. Two of the patients (a 45‐year‐old sister and a 57‐year‐old brother of the third generation) were studied in more detail and, in addition to the typical changes of OPMD, showed a neurogenic component both by electrophysiology and morphology. Molecular genetic investigations revealed a repeat unit of (GCG/GCA)13 in the first exon of the poly(A)binding‐protein2 gene in both siblings. A possible association of this unusually long triplet repeat extension with the atypical phenotype is considered and has to be verified in other cases.
Transurethral resection of bladder tumour complicated by perforation requiring open surgical repair – clinical characteristics and oncological outcomes
Authors: Golan Shay , Baniel Jack , Lask Dov , Livne Pinhas M. , Yossepowitch Ofer
Published: September 2010

Study Type – Therapy (case series) Level of Evidence 4

What’s known on the subject? and What does the study add?

Evidence suggests that open repair of a bladder perforation during TURBT may increase the risk of pelvic or distant disease recurrence.

The study demonstrates that while bladder violation during TURBT may carry a potential for considerable morbidity, it does not seem to substantially increase the risk of extravesical tumour seeding and disease recurrence.

OBJECTIVE

• To examine the clinical characteristics and long‐term outcomes of patients with bladder perforation requiring open surgical repair as a complication of transurethral resection of bladder tumour (TURBT).

PATIENT AND METHODS

• A search of our institutional database yielded 4144 patients who underwent TURBT from 1996 to 2008, of whom 15 (0.36%) required open surgical intervention to repair a large bladder perforation.

• In all cases, a filling cystogram was performed before laparotomy. Clinical, pathological and follow‐up data were reviewed, and the incidence and time of extravesical tumour recurrence were recorded.

RESULTS

• Median patient age was 77 years. Intraperitoneal perforation was diagnosed in 12 patients, generally involving the posterior wall. Concomitant bowel injury was identified in two patients and managed by primary repair. Two patients in whom the diagnosis and intervention were delayed died within 1 week of surgery.

• Metastatic progression was observed in two patients shortly after the perforation (median interval, 4.8 months), and local pelvic recurrence was noted in one of them.

• None of the patients with stage Ta tumours had evidence of extravesical progression. Actuarial estimates of disease‐free survival at 1, 3 and 5 years after the perforation were 83%, 71% and 41%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

• A significant bladder perforation during TURBT requiring open surgical repair is more likely to occur in elderly patients with large posterior wall tumours and heavily pretreated bladders.

• Despite its potential for considerable morbidity, this adverse event does not seem to substantially increase the risk of extravesical tumour seeding. Prompt diagnosis, immediate intervention and meticulous bladder and bowel inspection during laparotomy are imperative.
Concern for Generativity and Its Relation to Implicit Pro‐Social Power Motivation, Generative Goals, and Satisfaction With Life: A Cross‐Cultural Investigation
Authors: Hofer Jan , Busch Holger , Chasiotis Athanasios , Kärtner Joscha , Campos Domingo
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACTSo far, cross‐cultural research on generativity has been lacking. The present study tests the cross‐cultural applicability of an integrative model of generativity proposed by McAdams and de St. Aubin. Measures of implicit pro‐social power motivation, a general disposition for generativity, generative goals, and life satisfaction were administered to adults in Cameroon, Costa Rica, and Germany. These measures cover the intrapersonal part of the generativity model. After examining the comparability of the measures across the three cultures, cultural differences in the level of each variable were inspected. Finally, the hypothesized model was tested via structural equation modeling. Results show that the model can be successfully applied in all three cultural samples. This finding has interesting implications for the further investigation of generativity, particularly its social antecedents and behavioral consequences.
Childhood Personality Predicts Long‐Term Trajectories of Shyness and Aggressiveness in the Context of Demographic Transitions in Emerging Adulthood
Authors: Dennissen Jaap J. A. , Asendorpf Jens B. , Van Aken Marcel A. G.
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT
In a 19‐year longitudinal study, childhood personality characteristics (assessed by teachers at ages 4 to 6) were significantly related to both initial levels and changes in parental judgments of shyness and aggressiveness. Long‐term stability was demonstrated by the fact that overcontrollers had consistently higher scores in shyness and undercontrollers in aggressiveness. However, undercontrollers' shyness and overcontrollers' aggressiveness changed over time from a low to a high level. Also, both types assumed adult social roles, such as leaving the parental home, establishing a first romantic relationship, and getting a part‐time job, at a later time than the resilient participants. A mediation analysis indicated that under‐ and overcontrollers' increasing aggressiveness between age 17 and 23 was due to their longer latency of getting a part‐time job. Together, results demonstrate the importance of considering person‐environment transactions in explaining both change and stability in personality between childhood and adulthood.
The Heritability of Personality Is Not Always 50%: Gene‐Environment Interactions and Correlations Between Personality and Parenting
Authors: Krueger Robert F. , South Susan , Johnson Wendy , Iacono William
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT
Twin studies of personality are consistent in attributing approximately half of the variance in personality to genetic effects, with the remaining variance attributed to environments that make people within the same families different. Such conclusions, however, are based on quantitative models of human individual differences that estimate genetic and environmental contributions as constants for entire populations. Recent advances in statistical modeling allow for the possibility of estimating genetic and environmental contributions contingent on other variables, allowing the quantification of phenomena that have traditionally been characterized as gene‐environment interaction and correlation. We applied these newer models to understand how adolescents' descriptions of their relationships with their parents might change or moderate the impact of genetic and environmental factors on personality. We documented notable moderation in the domains of positive and negative emotionality, with parental relationships acting both to enhance and diminish both genetic and environmental effects. We discuss how genetic and environmental contributions to personality might be more richly conceptualized as dynamic systems of gene‐environment interplay—systems that are not captured by classical concepts, such as the overall heritability of personality.
Regional Analysis of Self‐Reported Personality Disorder Criteria
Authors: Turkheimer Eric , Ford Derek C. , Oltmanns Thomas F.
Published: September 2010

ABSTRACT
Building on the theoretical work of Louis Guttman, we propose that the core problem facing research into the multidimensional structure of the personality disorders is not the identification of factorial simple structure but rather detailed characterization of the multivariate configuration of the diagnostic criteria. Dimensions rotated to orthogonal or oblique simple structure are but one way out of many to characterize a multivariate map, and their current near universal application represents a choice for a very particular set of interpretive advantages and disadvantages. We use multidimensional scaling and regional interpretation to investigate the structure of 78 self‐reported personality disorder criteria from a large sample of military recruits and college students. Results suggest that the criteria have a three‐dimensional radex structure that conforms only loosely to the 10 existing personality disorder (PD) categories. Regional interpretation in three dimensions elucidates several important aspects of PDs and their interrelationships.
Expression and plasma membrane localization of the mammalian B‐cell receptor complex in transgenic Nicotiana tabacum
Authors: Barbi Tommaso , Irons Sarah L. , Pepponi Ilaria , Hawes Chris , Ma Julian K‐C. , Drake Pascal M. W.
Published: September 2010

The B‐cell antigen receptor (BCR), displayed on the plasma membrane of mature B cells of the mammalian immune system, is a multimeric complex consisting of a membrane‐bound immunoglobulin (mIg) noncovalently associated with the Igα/Igβ heterodimer. In this study, we engineered transgenic tobacco plants expressing all four chains of the BCR. ELISA, Western blotting and confocal microscopy demonstrated that the BCR was correctly assembled in plants, predominantly in the plasma membrane, and that the noncovalent link was detergent sensitive. This is the first example of a noncovalently assembled plasma membrane‐retained heterologous receptor in plants. In B cells of the mammalian immune system, following antigen binding to mIg, BCR is internalized and tyrosine residues on Igα and Igβ are phosphorylated activating a signaling cascade through interaction with protein kinases that ultimately leads to the initiation of gene expression. Expression of the BCR may therefore be an important tool for the study of plant endocytosis and the identification of previously unknown plant tyrosine kinases. The specificity and diversity of the antibody repertoire, coupled to the signal transduction capability of the Igα/Igβ heterodimer, also indicates that plants expressing BCR may in future be developed as environmental biosensors.
Morphology analysis for technology roadmapping: application of text mining
Authors: Yoon Byungun , Phaal Rob , Probert David
Published: September 2010

The practice of technology roadmapping (TRM) has received much attention from researchers and practitioners, to support planning and forecasting in companies and sectors. However, little research has focused on the support of well‐organized information for more effective roadmapping and the presentation of in‐depth configurations of new products or technology. This paper proposes a roadmapping methodology to assist decision‐making by applying a systematic approach based on quantitative data. To this end, key information is extracted from documents such as product manuals and patent documents by text mining, which is then used to identify the morphology of existing products and technology. Morphology analysis (MA) also plays a crucial role in deriving promising opportunities for new development of product or technology by matching product and technology morphology. Therefore, MA‐based TRM can enable the effective exploitation of large quantities of significant information that might otherwise be left untapped, supporting innovation by generating a comprehensive set of detailed product and technology configurations. The proposed MA‐based TRM approach can be applied to both incremental and radical innovation, supporting both market pull and technology push. The method is illustrated with a detailed example for mobile phones to demonstrate its practical application.
Social capital and creativity in R&D project teams
Authors: Chen Ming‐Huei , Chang Yuan‐Chieh , Hung Shih‐Chang
Published: September 2010

The existing research contributes to our understanding about the value of social capital in a wide range of social science disciplines; however, it does not well address the role of social capital in creativity for research and development (R&D) project teams in a given context. Using a sample of 54 R&D project teams in high‐technology firms of Taiwan, we examined the impacts of social capital on creativity of R&D project teams from an intra‐team perspective. Results of factor analysis revealed four factors extracted from the concept of social capital, namely social interaction, network ties, mutual trust, and shared goals. Findings suggested that social interaction and network ties had significant and positive impacts on creativity of R&D project teams, but mutual trust and shared goals did not. Managerial implications for managing social capital in R&D project teams are discussed.
Managing functional diversity, risk taking and incentives for teams to achieve radical innovations
Authors: Cabrales Álvaro López , Medina Carmen Cabello , Lavado Antonio Carmona , Cabrera Ramón Valle
Published: September 2010

In this study we analyse the effect of team diversity, encouragement to take risks and team incentives on the degree of radicalness of innovation. Empirical research has been conducted with a sample of 95 companies from four innovative industries according to their high number of patents. The results indicate that team diversity and the combined use of long‐ and short‐term incentives are associated with incremental innovation, whereas the development of risk‐taking attitudes within the team is associated with radical innovation.
Appropriability regime for radical and incremental innovations
Authors: Hurmelinna‐Laukkanen Pia , Sainio Liisa‐Maija , Jauhiainen Tiina
Published: September 2010

In the present day markets, new product development and innovation are essential for value creation. Innovation, however, hardly provides benefits if rivals are able to copy it with little or no extra cost. Consequently, being able to build an appropriability regime that provides effective protection against imitation and enables getting returns on investments in innovation is necessary. The problem is that choosing the methods to protect different kinds of innovations is not straightforward. In this paper we study appropriating from radical and incremental innovations. It is widely known that many significant differences exist between the two innovation types, and the appropriability conditions are no exception. Empirical evidence on the topic is provided by analyzing survey data collected among 299 companies. As a result, the effects of environmental dynamism and research and development (R&D) intensity on radical and incremental innovation are illustrated, and knowledge is provided on the role of the appropriability regime in enhancing the potential to profit from radical and incremental innovations.
The impacts of academic patenting and licensing on knowledge production and diffusion: a test of the anti‐commons effect in Taiwan
Authors: Chang Yuan‐Chieh , Yang Phil Y.
Published: September 2010

This paper empirically examines the emerging anti‐commons effect of academic patenting and licensing on knowledge production and diffusion in Taiwan. Through a dataset of 229 Taiwanese academic patent inventors, the results reveal that the anti‐commons effect is not significant as expected. However, this effect has becomes more vivid in application‐oriented research and disclosure delay while academic patent inventors have involved more in licensing activities. Programs to encourage academic licensing should be aware of the side effects on academic knowledge production and diffusion.
Risk management in public sector research: approach and lessons learned at a national research organization
Authors: Leung Flavia , Isaacs Frances
Published: September 2010

As the Canadian federal government's main research body and a public sector agency, the National Research Council (NRC) must manage numerous strategic as well as operational risks, including those at the project, program and portfolio levels. Such risks might arise from political and other stakeholder interests, intellectual property ownership and policy, funding structures, public perceptions of science and technology, occupational health and safety, management of highly qualified personnel, availability of receptor capacity for research being undertaken, and unknown markets for very new research areas, to name a few. Varying risk management practices have existed across NRC institutes and programs in the past as a result of the relative autonomy afforded to these groups. In seeking a more systematic approach, driven by both external and internal interests, NRC researched best practices, models and frameworks for risk management. NRC needed an appropriate model and approach for managing risk that could be applied throughout different levels and within the various arenas of its activities. The approach selected is based on the concept of enterprise risk management, allowing NRC to look not only at specific areas of risk but the larger picture – effectively assessing, controlling, exploiting and monitoring risks from all sources that might threaten the achievement of its goals. At the same time, such an approach also ensures that potential opportunities that could facilitate achievement of its goals are not missed. This paper shares some of NRC's findings of its research (including best practices), describes its current framework and approach, as well as some of its challenges.
Planning and uncertainty in new product development
Authors: Stockstrom Christoph , Herstatt Cornelius
Published: September 2010

The domain of New Product Development (NPD) is subject to considerable uncertainties. Aside from market‐related sources of uncertainty, the degree of innovativeness of the underlying product concept is a significant source of uncertainty, as unclear goals and specifications like, e.g. product specifications may lead to substantial delays in the project. However, companies are required to manage the innovation process as efficiently as possible. The resulting conflicting demands often leave companies struggling to achieve both efficiency as well as flexibility due to their often opposing implications for organizing and managing NPD projects. In this context, planning plays a central role; however, its usefulness for NPD project success is perceived quite differently. While there are reports about a positive influence of initial planning on various success measures, others have questioned the effectiveness of elaborated initial planning and contend that the ability to rapidly react to changes later in the process and to improvise may lead to success in NPD. This study aims at achieving a better understanding of planning in NPD by investigating a sample of 475 Research & Development projects in Japanese electrical and mechanical engineering companies. Regression analysis is used to shed more light on the interplay of planning intensity, changes, and the degree of technological newness of the NPD project and their influence on project success. Our results indicate planning to be of value for different types of innovation projects. Furthermore, the influences of the variables in question vary with the success measures that are taken into account, indicating that a more detailed and contingent understanding of planning in NPD needs to be developed.
Constitutional Right to a Healthy Environment and Human Rights Approaches to Environmental Protection in Nigeria: Gbemre v. Shell Revisited
Authors: Ebeku Kaniye S.A.
Published: September 2010

In recent years, there has been an increasing practice of incorporating the right to a healthy/clean environment into national constitutions. This practice can be found in various parts of the world. Importantly, the judiciary in many countries has not only enforced such a right but has increasingly tended to interpret other constitutionally guaranteed human rights, especially the right to life, to include the right to a healthy/clean environment. In Nigeria, there are various environmental concerns which raise the question of environmental protection. This article seeks to consider recent developments in Nigeria in relation to the constitutional right to a healthy/clean environment – more specifically, the adoption of the human rights approaches to environmental protection by a Nigerian Federal High Court judge in deciding a case of alleged environmental damage.
More Twists, Turns and Stumbles in the Jungle: A Further Exploration of Land Use, Land‐Use Change and Forestry Decisions within the Kyoto Protocol
Authors: Fry Ian
Published: September 2010

This article traces the history of decisions relating to land use, land‐use change and forestry (LULUCF) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol, for the period from 2001 until the present. It follows from an earlier article written by the author. As times progress, matters relating to LULUCF become more convoluted and complex. The article explores such issues as the definition of a forest, what constitutes ‘Kyoto land’, modalities for afforestation and reforestation under the Clean Development Mechanism, greenhouse gas inventories, reporting and reviews, and possible actions to reduce emissions from deforestation. The article also looks at the role of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and its input into the science and policy‐making process relating to LULUCF.
Constitutional Right to a Healthy Environment in Belgium
Authors: Martens Marc
Published: September 2010

Since 1994, the right to a healthy environment has been recognized under Article 23 of the Belgian Constitution. It contains a standstill clause, which precludes the authorities from reducing substantially the level of environmental protection without reasons of public interest. The effectiveness of Article 23 of the Constitution has remained unclear for a long period. Therefore, the legal protection of the environment has more often been achieved through reliance on the right to respect for private and family life, guaranteed by Article 22 of the Belgian Constitution and by Article 8 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), both of which have provisions with direct effect. The scope of protection of Article 23 of the Constitution is broader than the one provided by Article 22 of the Constitution and Article 8 of the ECHR, which is limited to nuisances with an effect on the person's private or family sphere, excluding a more general protection of the environment. However, the standstill provision in Article 23 only precludes the State from decreasing the level of protection of a healthy environment where this protection is provided for by law. It does not preclude retrogressions regarding ‘factual’ situations. In this regard, claims founded on Article 8 of the ECHR and Article 22 of the Constitution still have their utility. As a result, Article 23 and Article 22 of the Constitution and Article 8 of the ECHR are complementary to a certain degree.
THE NUMBER OF FIRMS AND THE POLITICS OF STRATEGIC TRADE POLICY
Authors: Kagitani Koichi
Published: September 2010

Incorporating home firms' lobbying in a country into a third market model of oligopoly, this paper studies how such lobbying affects the government's strategic export policy scheme. We pay special attention to the home firms' lobby formation and its effect on domestic welfare. The home firms can organize a lobby more easily when the number of their rival foreign firms is larger than that of them, and/or when the government is overly concerned with political contribution relative to domestic welfare. The strategic export policy under lobbying cannot improve the domestic welfare, which depends on the number of firms, the government's concern about political donation and the level of socially wasted lobbying costs.
A RE‐EXAMINATION OF PRODUCTION FUNCTIONS AND EFFICIENCY ESTIMATES FOR THE NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Authors: Lee Young Hoon , Berri David
Published: September 2010

This paper seeks to re‐examine the issue of estimating team efficiency for sports teams via an application of data from the National Basketball Association. This paper argues that the inputs the coaches allocate are the players the team employs. Therefore, this paper employs a measure of playing talent in modeling team production. Unlike previous studies, which only employed one measure of playing talent, we employ measures of guards, small forwards and big men in a study of basketball. This paper also argues that the time‐varying stochastic frontier models with the identical temporal pattern assumption such as Lee and Schmidt and Battese and Coelli cannot be used in the analysis of team efficiency in sports. The evidence we present shows by hypothesis test that this argument holds.
THIRD PARTIES, INFORMATION DISCLOSURE AND MONITORING INCENTIVES
Authors: Menichini Anna Maria C.
Published: September 2010

Within an incomplete contract setting, the paper analyses the role of third parties in ameliorating incentive problems arising in the context of financial contracts with costly verification and lender's bargaining power. Contrary to the findings of the bilateral lender–borrower relationship, characterised by no information revelation and possibly a breakdown of the market, it is shown that, in the presence of third parties, an optimal contract exists featuring partial information revelation and random monitoring. The importance of third parties is therefore not limited to improving efficiency, as it is when the contract offer comes from the informed party, but to ensure project realisation, and thus to ensure that the surplus that can arise from the project does not get lost.
MONETARY POLICY WITH A WIDER INFORMATION SET: A BAYESIAN MODEL AVERAGING APPROACH
Authors: Milani Fabio
Published: September 2010

Monetary policy has been usually analyzed in the context of small macroeconomic models where central banks are allowed to exploit a limited amount of information. Under these frameworks, researchers typically derive the optimality of aggressive monetary rules, contrasting with the observed policy conservatism and interest rate smoothing. This paper allows the central bank to exploit a wider information set, while taking into account the associated model uncertainty, by employing Bayesian model averaging with Markov chain model composition. In this enriched environment, we derive the optimality of smoother and more cautious policy rates, together with clear gains in macroeconomic efficiency.
BAYESIAN ANALYSIS OF AGGREGATE LOSS MODELS
Authors: Ausín M. C. , Vilar J. M. , Cao R. , González‐Fragueiro C.
Published: September 2010

This paper describes a Bayesian approach to make inference for aggregate loss models in the insurance framework. A semiparametric model based on Coxian distributions is proposed for the approximation of both the interarrival time between claims and the claim size distributions. A Bayesian density estimation approach for the Coxian distribution is implemented using reversible jump Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods. The family of Coxian distributions is a very flexible mixture model that can capture the special features frequently observed in insurance claims. Furthermore, given the proposed Coxian approximation, it is possible to obtain closed expressions of the Laplace transforms of the total claim count and the total claim amount random variables. These properties allow us to obtain Bayesian estimations of the distributions of the number of claims and the total claim amount in a future time period, their main characteristics and credible intervals. The possibility of applying deductibles and maximum limits is also analyzed. The methodology is illustrated with a real data set provided by the insurance department of an international commercial company.
DOMAIN RESTRICTIONS ON INTEREST RATES IMPLIED BY NO ARBITRAGE
Authors: Gourieroux C. , Monfort A.
Published: September 2010

This paper derives domain restrictions on interest rates implied by no‐arbitrage. These restrictions are important for the study of arbitrage opportunities on bond markets, for regulation of these markets, and for econometric modelling.
The Emergence of Clinical Practice Guidelines
Authors: WEISZ GEORGE , CAMBROSIO ALBERTO , KEATING PETER , KNAAPEN LOES , SCHLICH THOMAS , TOURNAY VIRGINIE J.
Published: September 2010

Clinical practice guidelines are now ubiquitous. This article describes the emergence of such guidelines in a way that differs from the two dominant explanations, one focusing on administrative cost‐cutting and the other on the need to protect collective professional autonomy. Instead, this article argues that the spread of guidelines represents a new regulation of medical care resulting from a confluence of circumstances that mobilized many different groups. Although the regulation of quality has traditionally been based on the standardization of professional credentials, since the 1960s it has intensified and been supplemented by efforts to standardize the use of medical procedures. This shift is related to the spread of standardization within medicine and especially in research, public health, and large bureaucratic health care organizations.
Deposit Finance as a Commitment Device and the Optimal Debt Structure of Commercial Banks
Authors: Bank Matthias , Lawrenz Jochen
Published: September 2010

We consider a regulated bank with access to bond and insured deposit financing. Bank manager‐owners have specific abilities, which allows them to extract rents. We show that deposit finance acts as a commitment device that has the potential to raise the overall debt capacity of the bank and increases pledgeable assets. Our focus is on the optimal mix of bond and deposit financing. We find that in the optimum, the bank chooses a debt structure so as to align internal incentives with external constraints. The model predicts that banks with more risky assets or with more specialised human capital use deposit financing to a lesser extent.
LIVING RATIONALLY UNDER THE VOLCANO? AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF HEAVY DRINKING AND SMOKING*
Authors: Arcidiacono Peter , Sieg Holger , Sloan Frank
Published: September 2010

This study investigates whether models of forward‐looking behavior explain the observed patterns of heavy drinking and smoking of men in late middle age in the Health and Retirement Study better than myopic models. We develop and estimate a sequence of nested models that differ by their degree of forward‐looking behavior. Our empirical findings suggest that forward looking models fit the data better than myopic models. These models also dominate other behavioral models based on out‐of‐sample predictions using data of men aged 70 and over. Myopic models predict rates of smoking for old individuals, which are significantly larger than those found in the data on elderly men.
THE IDENTIFICATION AND ECONOMIC CONTENT OF ORDERED CHOICE MODELS WITH STOCHASTIC THRESHOLDS*
Authors: Cunha Flavio , Heckman James J. , Navarro Salvador
Published: September 2010

This article extends the widely used ordered choice model by introducing stochastic thresholds and interval‐specific outcomes. The model can be interpreted as a generalization of the GAFT (MPH) framework for discrete duration data that jointly models durations and outcomes associated with different stopping times. We establish conditions for nonparametric identification. We interpret the ordered choice model as a special case of a general discrete choice model and as a special case of a dynamic discrete choice model.
USING A LAPLACE APPROXIMATION TO ESTIMATE THE RANDOM COEFFICIENTS LOGIT MODEL BY NONLINEAR LEAST SQUARES*
Authors: Harding Matthew C. , Hausman Jerry
Published: September 2010

Current methods of estimating the random coefficients logit model employ simulations of the distribution of the taste parameters through pseudo‐random sequences. These methods suffer from difficulties in estimating correlations between parameters and computational limitations such as the curse of dimensionality. This article provides a solution to these problems by approximating the integral expression of the expected choice probability using a multivariate extension of the Laplace approximation. Simulation results reveal that our method performs very well, in terms of both accuracy and computational time.
EXPLORING THE USEFULNESS OF A NONRANDOM HOLDOUT SAMPLE FOR MODEL VALIDATION: WELFARE EFFECTS ON FEMALE BEHAVIOR*
Authors: Keane Michael P. , Wolpin Kenneth I.
Published: September 2010

A particularly challenging use of decision‐theoretic models in economics is to forecast the impact of large changes in the environment. The problem we explore in this article is how to gain confidence in a model's ability to predict the impact of such large changes. We show that an approach to validation and model selection that includes the choice of a “nonrandom holdout sample,” a sample that differs significantly from the estimation sample along the policy dimension that the model is meant to forecast, can be fruitful.
PARTIAL IDENTIFICATION OF COUNTERFACTUAL CHOICE PROBABILITIES*
Authors: Manski Charles F.
Published: September 2010

This article shows how to predict counterfactual discrete choice behavior when the presumed behavioral model partially identifies choice probabilities. The simple, general approach uses observable choice probabilities to partially infer the distribution of types in the population and then applies the results to predict behavior in unrealized choice settings. Two illustrative applications are given. One assumes only that persons have strict preferences. The other assumes strict preferences and utility functions that are linear in attribute bundles, with no restrictions on the shape of the distribution of preference parameters.
NONPARAMETRIC SURVEY RESPONSE ERRORS*
Authors: Matzkin Rosa L.
Published: September 2010

I present nonparametric methods to identify and estimate the biases associated with response errors. When applied to survey data, these methods can be used to analyze how observable and unobservable characteristics of the respondent, and characteristics of the design of the survey, affect errors in the responses. This provides a method to correct the biases that those errors generate, by using the estimated response errors to “undo” those biases. The results are useful also to design better surveys, since they point at characteristics of the design and of subpopulations of respondents that can provide identification of response errors. Several models are considered.
NONPARAMETRIC CONTINUOUS/DISCRETE CHOICE MODELS*
Authors: Newey Whitney K.
Published: September 2010

Modeling choices that are both discrete and continuous is important in several settings. The purpose of this article is to explore formulation and identification of such models when indirect utility functions are specified nonparametrically. Here we consider general nonseparable disturbances. We give identification results for nonseparable sample selection models and use these to analyze identification of discrete/continuous choice models.
KNOWLEDGE CREATION AS A SQUARE DANCE ON THE HILBERT CUBE*
Authors: Berliant Marcus , Fujita Masahisa
Published: September 2010

This article presents a micromodel of knowledge creation through the interactions among a group of people. The model features myopic agents in a pure externality model of interaction. Surprisingly, for a large set of initial conditions we find that the equilibrium process of knowledge creation converges to the most productive state, where the population splits into smaller groups of optimal size; close interaction takes place within each group only. This optimal size is larger as heterogeneity of knowledge is more important in the knowledge production process. Equilibrium paths are found analytically; they are a discontinuous function of initial heterogeneity.
IS IT IS OR IS IT AIN'T MY OBLIGATION? REGIONAL DEBT IN A FISCAL FEDERATION*
Authors: Cooper Russell , Kempf Hubert , Peled Dan
Published: September 2010

This article studies the repayment of regional debt in a multiregion economy with a central authority: Who pays the obligation issued by a region? With commitment, the central government will use its economy‐wide taxation power in support of its objective to smooth distortionary taxes and consumption across regions. Absent commitment, this tool of the central government may be exploited to induce it to bail out regional government deficits. We characterize the conditions under which bailouts occur and their welfare implications. In particular, we show when the gains from a federation may outweigh the welfare costs of a bailout. We use these insights to comment on actual fiscal relations in three quite different federations: the United States, the European Union, and Argentina.
Social service professionals in Finland under the pressures of a depressed economy and European integration
Authors: Satka M.
Published: September 2010

The Nordic welfare states are known as women‐friendly. However, during the last years their policies have been to turn the back on women. At least in Finland there seem to exist two powerful forces that have advanced the non‐egalitarian development: the economic recession of the 1990s and the integration of Europe. The decline of the Nordic welfare states is going to have considerable consequences for social service professionals, the great majority of whom are women. Therefore, they should create new strategies and find new allies in order to defend their own as well their clients rights.
Social sciences, globalisation and regionalism. Reflections on Alain Touraine's keynote speech
Authors: Dani Anis Ahmad
Published: September 2010

In his keynote address to the International Forum on the Social Science – Policy Nexus held in Argentina and in Uruguay in February 2006, Alain Touraine stressed the dominance of capitalism within contemporary processes of global change. He argued that, as a result, the distance between the forces of global economy and the social and political universe has grown to such an extent that major social institutions have fragmented and splintered. Anis A. Dani's reply to Touraine expresses a more positive view of globalisation which, when account is taken of the diversity of regional impacts and perspectives, offers opportunities as well as challenges. In particular, the need for states to work together on issues of common concern may offer answers to many of the concerns raised by those sceptical of market‐led globalisation.
Paths to reconversion taken by Northern Irish paramilitaries
Authors: Féron Elise
Published: September 2010

Although the Good Friday Agreement signed in 1998 by the main actors of the Northern Ireland conflict clearly mentioned the issue of the reintegration of members of armed groups who were imprisoned, the problems generated by this reconversion remain unresolved and are still a taboo subject. In the eyes of much of the population, these (former) members of armed groups can be placed in the same category as common criminals, and many of them have indeed turned to criminal activities such as racketeering and drug trafficking. The media attention that these activities attract nevertheless overshadows the considerable investment they make in other sectors so as to make the best of their integration into the political, economic, and social fabric. Many of them work in peace‐building programmes funded by the UK or the European Union, while others are especially active in political, voluntary or cultural fields. While these various itineraries of reconversion seem insufficient for perpetuating or even renewing their collective identity, they nevertheless allow them to put their own war into words and into perspective, as well as to re‐examine the meaning of a combat that they sometimes waged over several decades.
The figure of the righteous individual in Rwanda
Authors: Rosoux Valérie
Published: September 2010

This article examines the scope and limits of the figure of the righteous individual in Rwanda. To what extent does reference to such a figure promote national reconstruction? My reflections on this question are divided into three parts. The first examines the role played by the international community (non‐governmental organisations, journalists, overseas academics) in the emergence of this figure. The second section attempts to delineate the figure's social depth, in its contradictory representations. What is the relationship between the public representation and living memory of the phenomenon? How do survivors, in particular, perceive this “figure of reconciliation”? The third and final section identifies a number of political uses for this figure. How do Rwanda's official representatives refer to those who perhaps personified Rwanda at the moment of its conflagration? My analysis shows that, far from eliciting even the slightest consensus from the population, this type of commemoration reveals the enduring rifts. Twelve years after the genocide, references to the past, whatever their nature, continue to cause divisions.