Testing non-nested structural equation models

In this paper, we apply Vuong's (1989) likelihood ratio tests of non-nested models to the comparison of non-nested structural equation models. Similar tests have been previously applied in SEM contexts (especially to mixture models), though the non-standard output required to conduct the tests has limited their previous use and study. We review the theory underlying the tests and show how they can be used to construct interval estimates for differences in non-nested information criteria. Through both simulation and application, we then study the tests' performance in non-mixture SEMs and describe their general implementation via free R packages. The tests offer researchers a useful tool for non-nested SEM comparison, with barriers to test implementation now removed.Comment: 24 pages, 6 figure

Virtue, Vice, and the Globalization of World Economies

This study postulates that the recent world financial crisis, symptomatically manifested in the financial markets, is more fundamentally the result of a systemic disregard for moral constraints. This has occurred at macroeconomic levels within the industrialized nations and has pervaded the global economy. Moral relativism has become the dominant ethical system in society and government, and has undermined the virtuous ideals and self-restraint that foster the benefits of capitalism. Coupled with advances in technology and globalization, the effect of vices such as avarice, irresponsibility, excessive risk tolerance and criminal activities have been exacerbated. Government manipulation and intervention has further served to distort the market mechanism and increase the moral hazard. The crisis has created a vital juncture for the future of capitalism. If the lessons of discipline, restraint and moral responsibility can be partially re-learned, the long-term future looks bright. But if the crisis results in more government regulation and intervention, over time, the markets will be distorted further. Distortion may cause additional shocks to the world economy and pressure for more centralized control of international market integration

Implicature and argumentation

This thesis explores the role, if any, that implicature plays as a strategy in informal debate. Transcripts of spontaneous debates from television and radio public affairs talk shows were analyzed with a focus on the use of implicature as a strategic rhetorical tool employed to gain advantage in an argument

Gospel Preacher, Volume 1, Number 3 (1971)

PDF of volume 1, number 3 of Gospel Preacher published in Mlang, Cotabato, February, 1971.https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/gospelpreacher/1000/thumbnail.jp

Gospel Preacher, Volume 1, Number 7 (1971)

PDF of volume 1, number 7 of Gospel Preacher published in M\u27lang, Cotabato, August-September, 1971.https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/gospelpreacher/1002/thumbnail.jp

Gospel Preacher, Volume 1, Number 8 (1971)

PDF of volume 1, number 8 of Gospel Preacher published in M\u27lang, Cotabato, October-November, 1971.https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/gospelpreacher/1003/thumbnail.jp

Gospel Preacher, Volume 1, Number 4 (1971)

PDF of volume 1, number 4 of Gospel Preacher published in M\u27lang, Cotabato, March, 1971.https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/gospelpreacher/1001/thumbnail.jp

Population response of triploid grass carp to declining levels of hydrilla in the Santee Cooper Reservoirs, South Carolina

Approximately 768,500 triploid grass carp ( Ctenopharyngodon idella Valenciennes) were stocked into the Santee Cooper reservoirs, South Carolina between 1989 and 1996 to control hydrilla ( Hydrilla verticillata (L.f.) Royle). Hydrilla coverage was reduced from a high of 17,272 ha during 1994 to a few ha by 1998. During 1997, 1998 and 1999, at least 98 triploid grass carp were collected yearly for population monitoring. Estimates of age, growth, and mortality, as well as population models, were used in the study to monitor triploid grass carp and predict population trends. Condition declined from that measured during a previous study in 1994. The annual mortality rate was estimated at 28% in 1997, 32% in 1998 and 39% in 1999; however, only the 1999 mortality rate was significantly different. Few (2 out of 98) of the triploid grass carp collected during 1999 were older than age 9. We expect increased mortality due to an aging population and sparse hydrilla coverage. During 1999, we estimated about 63,000 triploid grass carp system wide and project less than 3,000 fish by 2004, assuming no future stocking. management, population size Ctenopharyngodon idella, Hydrill