Fate or fight: Exploring the hedonic costs of competition

As a resource-allocation method, free competition is generally considered more efficient and fairer than binding assignment, yet individuals’ hedonic experiences in these different resource-allocation conditions are largely ignored. Using a minimalistic experimental simulation procedure, we compared participants’ hedonic experiences between a free-competition condition (in which participants could equally and freely compete for the superior resource) and a binding-assignment condition (in which the superior and inferior resources were unequally and irreversibly assigned to different participants). We found that individuals in the binding-assignment condition – even the disadvantaged ones – were happier than those in the free-competition condition. We attributed the effect to individuals’ peace of mind, and supported the peace-of-mind notion by identifying two moderators: ease of social comparison and enjoyability of the inferior resource. In sum, this research highlighted the hedonic aspects of resource allocation methods and identified when accepting one’s fate is hedonically better than fighting for the best.     

Multiobjective Optimization for the Asset Allocation of European Nonlife Insurance Companies

An optimal asset allocation is crucial for nonlife insurance companies. The most previous studies focused on this topic use a mono‐objective technique optimization. This technique usually allows the maximization of shareholders' expected utility. As nonlife insurance company is a complex system, it has many stakeholders other than shareholders. So, the satisfaction of the shareholders' expected utility cannot lead usually to the satisfaction of other stakeholders' objectives. Therefore, the focus on utility maximization can be a destruction source of other objectives such as productivity, competitiveness and solvency. Our developed model integrates simulation approach with a multiobjective particle swarm optimization algorithm. This model insures an optimal asset allocation that maximizes, simultaneously, shareholders expected utility and technical efficiency of European nonlife insurance companies. The empirical application conducts a comparison between the attained results with multiobjective optimization technique and mono‐objective technique to search the optimal asset allocation for nonlife insurance companies. Our results show that the investment portfolio will be more diversified between most available investment assets. In addition, any decision maker should take account of different stakeholders' objectives. Accordingly, multiobjective optimization allows us to find the best asset allocation that maximizes simultaneously expected utility and technical efficiency of nonlife insurance companies. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Repetition Errors in Habitual Prospective Memory: Elimination of Age Differences via Complex Actions or Appropriate Resource Allocation

ABSTRACT

A challenge in habitual prospective memory tasks (e.g., taking medication) is remembering whether or not one has already performed the action. Einstein, McDaniel, Smith, and Shaw (1998 Einstein, G. O., McDaniel, M. A., Smith, R. E. and Shaw, P. 1998. Habitual prospective memory and aging: Remembering intentions and forgetting actions. Psychological Science, 9: 284–288. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar], Psychological Science, 9, 284) showed that older adults were more likely to incorrectly repeat an action on habitual prospective memory tasks. Extending this research, we (a) biased participants either toward repetition or omission errors, (b) investigated whether performing a more complicated motor action can reduce repetition errors for older adults, and (c) examined participants' resource allocation to the prospective memory task. Older adults committed more repetition errors than younger adults regardless of biasing instructions when ongoing task demands were challenging (Experiment 1). Performing the more complex motor action, however, reduced repetition errors for older adults. Further, when the ongoing task was less demanding, older adults' repetition errors declined to levels of younger adults (Experiment 2). Consistent with this finding, the resource allocation profiles suggested that older participants were monitoring their output (prospective memory execution) in each trial block.     

议程与习惯性反应对学习时间分配的影响：来自眼动的证据

采用眼动记录技术,操作三种词对位置,探讨议程与习惯性反应对学习时间分配的影响。实验一设置无时间限制条件,结果发现,20名大学生被试均优先选择左边的项目,项目的自定步调学习时间不存在词对位置效应。结果表明,被试的习惯性反应影响项目选择,不影响自定步调学习时间。实验二设置有时间限制条件,结果发现,20名大学生被试均优先选择容易项目并分配更多的时间学习容易项目,且容易项目的选择存在词对位置效应。结果表明,议程驱动主导被试的项目选择和自定步调学习时间,但不能完全消除习惯性反应对项目选择的影响。     

Ethical Guidance for Selecting Clinical Trials to Receive Limited Space in an Immunotherapy Production Facility

Our aims are to (1) set forth a multiprinciple system for selecting among clinical trials competing for limited space in an immunotherapy production facility that supplies products under investigation by scientific investigators; (2) defend this system by appealing to justice principles; and (3) illustrate our proposal by showing how it might be implemented. Our overarching aim is to assist manufacturers of immunotherapeutic products and other potentially breakthrough experimental therapies with the ethical task of prioritizing requests from scientific investigators when production capacity is limited.     

Power of being present: the role of mindfulness on the relation between men's alcohol use and sexual aggression toward intimate partners

The primary aim of this investigation was to examine the association between men's level of mindfulness and histories of alcohol consumption and sexual aggression toward intimate partners. Participants were 167 heterosexual drinking males who completed self‐report measures of mindfulness, frequency and quantity of alcohol consumption during the past 12 months and sexual aggression against intimate partners during the past 12 months. Results indicated that a history of consuming larger amounts when drinking was associated with more frequent sexual coercion/aggression among men who reported low, but not high, levels of mindfulness. However, drinking more frequently by itself was not associated with more frequent sexual coercion/aggression. These results support the attention‐allocation model and suggest implications for future intervention research aimed at reducing alcohol‐related aggression. Aggr. Behav. 36:405–413, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

浅析农村卫生保健改革的若干难点与起点

农村医疗单靠政府行政预算拨付进行运作管理,只能起到临时输血的功能.卫生健康水平的提高,一方面取决于经济收入水平的增长,另一方面则取决于政府公共财政支持力度和行政管理的有效性.资金是基础,制度是保证,政府需通过工具性的制度创新,减少国家对农民的制度排挤,充分发挥政府调控和监管作用,改善农村医疗面临的财政、技术、人员严重不足的问题.     

农村健康保障制度与反贫困

从我国农村健康保障现实出发,认为建立农村健康保障制度是反贫困的迫切要求和重要组成部分,并提出了一些政策建议,如树立公共健康投资理念、政府职能转变与市场机制结合等.