Strategy-proof allocation mechanisms for economies with public goods

This paper provides a characterization of the class of incentive compatible (i.e., strategy-proof) allocation mechanisms for decision problems associated with classical economic environments. It is shown that when at least one public good is provided, then only dictatorial allocation mechanisms are incentive compatible. Dictatorial mechanisms are very unsatisfactory, as any conflict of interest is always resolved in favor of a single individual (the dictator). This result reveals a basic incompatibility between incentive compatibility and any other desirable property (e.g., any kind of efficiency, fairness, etc.) of an allocation mechanism. In particular, incentive compatible allocation mechanisms typically produce inefficient outcomes

Strategy-proof allocation mechanisms for pure public goods economies when preferences are monotonic

A fundamental problem in public finance is that of allocating a␣given budget to financing the provision of public goods (education, transportation, police, etc.). In this paper it is established that when␣admissible preferences are those representable by continuous and increasing utility functions, then strategy-proof allocation mechanisms whose (undominated) range contains three or more outcomes are dictatorial on the set of profiles of strictly increasing utility functions, a dense subset of the domain in the topologies commonly used in this context. If admissible utility functions are further restricted to be strictly increasing, or if mechanisms are required to be non-wasteful, then strategy-profness leads to (full) dictatorship.Publicad

Quantitative Analysis of the Italian National Scientific Qualification

The Italian National Scientific Qualification (ASN) was introduced in 2010 as part of a major reform of the national university system. Under the new regulation, the scientific qualification for a specific role (associate or full professor) and field of study is required to apply to a permanent professor position. The ASN is peculiar since it makes use of bibliometric indicators with associated thresholds as one of the parameters used to assess applicants. Overall, more than 59000 applications were submitted, and the results have been made publicly available for a short period of time, including the values of the quantitative indicators for each applicant. The availability of this wealth of information provides an opportunity to draw a fairly detailed picture of a nation-wide evaluation exercise, and to study the impact of the bibliometric indicators on the qualification results. In this paper we provide a first account of the Italian ASN from a quantitative point of view. We show that significant differences exist among scientific disciplines, in particular with respect to the fraction of qualified applicants, that can not be easily explained. Furthermore, we describe some issues related to the definition and use of the bibliometric indicators and thresholds. Our analysis aims at drawing attention to potential problems that should be addressed by decision-makers in future ASN rounds.Comment: ISSN 1751-157

Metabolic Syndrome Screening in Seriously Mentally Ill Patients: A Quality Improvement Project

A Project Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE in Nursing ScienceSeriously mentally ill patients who are taking second-generation antipsychotics have a high risk of metabolic complications, including obesity, diabetes mellitus type II, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. Guidelines to screen for metabolic syndrome were established by the American Diabetes Association, American Psychiatric Association, American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, and North American Association for the Study of Obesity (Clark, 2004). Compliance with implementing the guidelines to screen and monitor for metabolic syndrome vary from regular monitoring to little or none. This quality improvement project provided an educational intervention on screening and monitoring for metabolic syndrome in patients who were seriously mentally ill. The educational interventions were attended by 21 psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners. After the educational intervention was completed, there was significant improvement in provider knowledge as well as motivation to screen and monitor patients taking second-generation antipsychotic medications for metabolic syndrome. Education may motivate mental health providers to increase the use of metabolic screening guidelines for patients taking second-generation antipsychotic medications potentially improving long term outcomes for this patient population.Title Page / Abstract / Table of Contents / List of Appendices / Metabolic Syndrome in Seriously Mentally Ill Patients: A Quality Improvement Project / Background Significance / Literature Review / Purpose / Educational Intervention using an Evidence Based Practice Model / Methods / Dissemination / Significance to Nursing / Limitations / Summary and Conclusions / References / Appendice