An Alternate Method of Deriving Priorities and Related Inferences for Group Decision Making in Analytic Hierarchy Process

Some work has been carried out in the past on statistically deriving priorities in Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). In AHP, the aggregated worths of the alternatives, when compared with respect to several criteria, are estimated in a hierarchical comparisons model introduced by Saaty. In this setup, statistical models are used for Saaty's method of scaling in paired comparisons experiments in any level of the hierarchy. At the end, the final priority weights of the alternatives and related inferences are developed with appropriate statistical methods. Existing statistical methods in the literature assume independence of the entries of the paired comparison matrix. However, these entries are highly dependent among themselves. In this article, we propose a statistical method that allows for the dependence among the entries of the pairwise comparisons matrix. The proposed method is then illustrated with a numerical example. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Assessment of Nicotine Dependence Among Substance Abusing Adolescent Smokers: A Comparison of the DSM-IV Criteria and the Modified Fagerström Tolerance Questionnaire

Nicotine dependence has been found to be a significant factor in adolescent smoking persistence. However, measures of this construct are primarily adult-derived, limiting their utility as bases for characterizing nicotine dependence and formulating youth intervention strategies. This issue is of particular importance among substance abusing youth who have substantially higher rates of cigarette smoking than do adolescents in the general population. The objectives of this preliminary study were to examine the construct validity of the DSM-IV nicotine dependence criteria and the modified Fagerström Tolerance Questionnaire (mFTQ) and to compare the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for nicotine dependence with the mFTQ in a sample of 67 adolescent smokers in treatment for substance abuse. Results revealed that more participants were classified as nicotine dependent using DSM-IV criteria than by mFTQ scores. Little evidence was found for construct validity of these measures and convergence between the two measures was low. Findings also suggested that the present measures do not capture optimally broad dimensions of adolescent nicotine dependence.     

The Relationship between Local Identification,Urban Disorder Sensitivity,and Prejudice Toward Immigrants: The Role of Autochthony

Autochthony is the belief that a place belongs to those who were born there and that they are more entitled. Autochthony and local identification can foster sensitivity to any source of disorder that threatens local stability. The aims of this study were to determine whether: (a) local identification is associated with a higher level of sensitivity to urban disorder and a higher level of prejudice toward immigrants; (b) higher city identifiers use autochthony (entitlement for first comers) as a justification for both of these attitudes. A self‐report questionnaire was administered to 254 adult residents of Turin, Italy. Local identification was found related to autochthony and to urban disorder sensitivity, autochthony was positively associated with both urban disorder sensitivity and prejudice toward immigrants and it mediated the relationship between local identification and prejudice.     

Combining two separate series into a single ordering: Testing the local and global distinctiveness theories with absolute and relative judgments

This study examined the differential effects of an absolute versus a relative judgment task on the retrieval of the border-position items after the combining of two separate serial lists. Under the absolute judgment condition (Experiment 1), the border-position items showed a local distinctiveness effect (faster judgment on these items than on the neighboring items), consistent with the prediction of the local distinctiveness theory of order memory, but not under the relative judgment condition (Experiment 2). The absence of the local distinctiveness effect under the relative judgment condition was consistent with the prediction of the global distinctiveness theory that a midseries item cannot be remembered better than its neighbors. The causes of the differential effects of the two judgment tasks were discussed.     

What Truth Depends on

What kinds of sentences with truth predicate may be inserted plausibly and consistently into the T-scheme? We state an answer in terms of dependence: those sentences which depend directly or indirectly on non-semantic states of affairs (only). In order to make this precise we introduce a theory of dependence according to which a sentence φ is said to depend on a set Φ of sentences iff the truth value of φ supervenes on the presence or absence of the sentences of Φ in/from the extension of the truth predicate. Both φ and the members of Φ are allowed to contain the truth predicate. On that basis we are able define notions such as ungroundedness or self-referentiality within a classical semantics, and we can show that there is an adequate definition of truth for the class of sentences which depend on non-semantic states of affairs.     

初中生羞怯与手机依赖的关系:一个有调节的中介模型

为探讨初中生羞怯、疏离感、班级心理环境和手机依赖的关系,采用羞怯量表、青少年疏离感量表、班级心理环境量表和手机依赖指数量表对山东省两所学校的1077名初一至初三年级的学生进行调查。结果显示：（1）羞怯显著正向预测初中生手机依赖;（2）疏离感在初中生羞怯与手机依赖之间起完全中介作用;（3）班级心理环境对中介效应的后半段路径起调节作用,高班级心理环境会缓解疏离感对手机依赖的影响,但在极高疏离感水平下,高班级心理环境反而会加剧个体的手机依赖水平。研究有助于了解羞怯对手机依赖的复杂影响机制,对预防以及减少初中生手机依赖具有一定的现实意义。     

行为公共管理学视角下公共决策的社会许可机制：“一提两抑”

公共管理的本质是公共决策。“公共决策的社会许可”指当地民众对于公共决策的持续接受和支持程度, 是公共决策合法性的基石。本研究借助“行为公共管理学”的理论视角, 通过两个调查实验(N = 354 + 354), 一个现场调查(N = 520), 全面考察公共决策透明(过程透明和内容透明)与社会许可之间的因果关系, 进而明确这一关系的作用边界。结果发现：1) 决策过程透明与内容透明正向影响社会许可; 2) 政府信任调节决策内容透明与社会许可的关系; 3) 结果依赖调节两类透明与社会许可的关系。基于这些结果, 作者总结出正性的“决策透明效应”以及“谨慎的不介意”和“有选择的忽视”之双缓冲作用, 即“一提两抑”, 以更好地理解公共决策的社会许可机制。     

Direction of dependence in measurement error models

Methods to determine the direction of a regression line, that is, to determine the direction of dependence in reversible linear regression models (e.g., x→y vs. y→x), have experienced rapid development within the last decade. However, previous research largely rested on the assumption that the true predictor is measured without measurement error. The present paper extends the direction dependence principle to measurement error models. First, we discuss asymmetric representations of the reliability coefficient in terms of higher moments of variables and the attenuation of skewness and excess kurtosis due to measurement error. Second, we identify conditions where direction dependence decisions are biased due to measurement error and suggest method of moments (MOM) estimation as a remedy. Third, we address data situations in which the true outcome exhibits both regression and measurement error, and propose a sensitivity analysis approach to determining the robustness of direction dependence decisions against unreliably measured outcomes. Monte Carlo simulations were performed to assess the performance of MOM-based direction dependence measures and their robustness to violated measurement error assumptions (i.e., non-independence and non-normality). An empirical example from subjective well-being research is presented. The plausibility of model assumptions and links to modern causal inference methods for observational data are discussed.     

Measurement Equivalence of the Trauma Symptom Checklist-40 for Chemically Dependent African American and Caucasian Women: A Preliminary Study

The Trauma Symptom Checklist-40 (TSC-40) is a brief self-report measure of trauma-related symptoms. Using a confirmatory factor analysis framework, this preliminary study examined whether the TSC-40 provided a good fit for 50 African American and 52 Caucasian economically and educationally disadvantaged women enrolled in a residential treatment program. A 5-factor structure of the TSC-40 appeared to be more applicable for our sample than the original 6-factor model. This 5-factor model includes negative mood, interpersonal problems, sleep disturbance, dissociative-like symptoms, and sexual problems. Equivalent factor structure and factor loadings emerged for the two ethnic and racial groups. Implications pertaining to trauma assessment are discussed.