Inflated Beta Distributions

This paper considers the issue of modeling fractional data observed in the interval [0,1), (0,1] or [0,1]. Mixed continuous-discrete distributions are proposed. The beta distribution is used to describe the continuous component of the model since its density can have quite diferent shapes depending on the values of the two parameters that index the distribution. Properties of the proposed distributions are examined. Also, maximum likelihood and method of moments estimation is discussed. Finally, practical applications that employ real data are presented.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures. Submitted to Statistical Paper

The Productivity Effect of Non-Union Representation

Declining union density in many industrialized countries directs attention to alter- native ways of labor relations and worker representation as, e.g., works councils. German works councils belong to the most powerful worker representations in de- veloped countries but little is known of their causal effect on productivity. A large linked employer-employee panel is used to examine this issue. Comparing firms with and without a works council I find that firms with a works council are on average 6.5 percent more productive. I present evidence that this estimate is the lower bound to the causal productivity effect of works councils.worker participation, works council, productivity

Parallelism in declarative languages

Imperative programming languages were initially built for uniprocessor systems that evolved out of the Von Neumann machine model. This model of storage oriented computation blocks parallelism and increases the cost of parallel program development and porting. Declarative languages based on mathematical models of computation, seem more suitable for the development of parallel programs. In the first part of this thesis we examine different language families under the declarative paradigm: functional, logic, and constraint languages. Functional languages are based on the abstract model of functions and (lamda)-calculus. They were initially developed for symbolic computation, but today they are commonly used in numerical analysis and many other application areas. Pure lisp is a widely known member of this class. Logic languages are based on first order predicate calculus. Although they were initially developed for theorem proving, fifth generation operating systems are written in them. Most logic languages are descendants or distant relatives of Prolog. Constraint languages are related to logic languages. In a constraint language you define a program object by placing constraints on its structure and its behavior. They were initially used in graphics applications, but today researchers work on using them in parallel computation. Here we will compare and contrast the language classes above, locate advantages and deficiencies, and explain different choices made by language implementors. In the second part of thesis we describe a front end for the CONSUL, a prototype constraint language for programming multiprocessors. The most important features of the front end are compact representation of constraints, type definitions, functional use of relations, and the ability to split programs into multiple files

A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO EXPERT SYSTEMS

Information Systems Working Papers Serie

Identifying context factors explaining physician's low performance in communication assessment: an explorative study in general practice

BACKGROUND Communication is a key competence for health care professionals. Analysis of registrar and GP communication performance in daily practice, however, suggests a suboptimal application of communication skills. The influence of context factors could reveal why communication performance levels, on average, do not appear adequate. The context of daily practice may require different skills or specific ways of handling these skills, whereas communication skills are mostly treated as generic. So far no empirical analysis of the context has been made. Our aim was to identify context factors that could be related to GP communication. METHODS A purposive sample of real-life videotaped GP consultations was analyzed (N = 17). As a frame of reference we chose the MAAS-Global, a widely used assessment instrument for medical communication. By inductive reasoning, we analyzed the GP behaviour in the consultation leading to poor item scores on the MAAS-Global. In these cases we looked for the presence of an intervening context factor, and how this might explain the actual GP communication behaviour. RESULTS We reached saturation after having viewed 17 consultations. We identified 19 context factors that could potentially explain the deviation from generic recommendations on communication skills. These context factors can be categorized into doctor-related, patient-related, and consultation-related factors. CONCLUSIONS Several context factors seem to influence doctor-patient communication, requiring the GP to apply communication skills differently from recommendations on communication. From this study we conclude that there is a need to explicitly account for context factors in the assessment of GP (and GP registrar) communication performance. The next step is to validate our findings.We also thank the Dutch Ministry of Health for funding the collection and videotaping of routine GP consultations