56 research outputs found
Fast Simulation of Multifactor Portfolio Credit Risk
No full textThis paper develops rare-event simulation methods for the estimation of portfolio credit risk-the risk of losses to a portfolio resulting from defaults of assets in the portfolio. Portfolio credit risk is measured through probabilities of large losses, which are typically due to defaults of many obligors (sources of credit risk) to which a portfolio is exposed. An essential element of a portfolio view of credit risk is a model of dependence between these sources of credit risk: large losses occur rarely and are most likely to result from systematic risk factors that affect multiple obligors. As a consequence, estimating portfolio credit risk poses a challenge both because of the rare-event property of large losses and the dependence between defaults. To address this problem, we develop an importance sampling technique within the widely used Gaussian copula model of dependence. We focus on difficulties arising in multifactor models-that is, models in which multiple factors may be common to multiple obligors, resulting in complex dependence between defaults. Our importance sampling procedure shifts the mean of the common factor to increase the frequency of large losses. In multifactor models, different combinations of factor outcomes and defaults can produce large losses, so our method combines multiple importance sampling distributions, each associated with a shift in the mean of common factors. We characterize "optimal" mean shifts. Finding these points is both a combinatorial problem and a convex optimization problem, so we address computational aspects of this step as well. We establish asymptotic optimality results for our method, showing that-unlike standard simulation-it remains efficient as the event of interest becomes rarer.The ¯rst two authors dedicate this work to the memory of Perwez Shahabuddin, who died after
the original submission of the paper. They thank the reviewers for their careful reading of the
paper and many constructive comments. The second author thanks Dr. Kyungsik Lee for a
discussion on the subset sum problem. This research was partially supported by National Science
Foundation grant DMI 03-00044.
Rough time in paradise: Claims, blames and memory making around some protected areas in Kenya
No full textThe author uses historical examples of forced relocation, or alleged relocation, from protected areas in Kenya to challenge some of the points made by Rangarajan and Shahabuddin in their 2006 Conservation and Society article
A Resilience Training Module for Caregivers of Dementia Patients
No full textAs life span increases, society is facing an aging population and one of the major aging problems is dementia. Caregivers of dementia patients are usually family members who juggle work, family commitments and caring for the patients. The caregivers are at risk of depression, suicide and abusing their patients. As resilience has a positive relationship with surviving life crises, enhancing resilience will provide them with skills to cope and decrease depression. The purpose of this article is to perform a systematic narrative reviews of four resilience training modules.
This analysis searched Medline via Pub Med, EBSCO host and USM library for feasible training modalities, screening over 6640000 articles for relevance regarding caregiver resilience. The training modules were screened for suitability for adult population. Studies that identified core characteristics of resilience, sample description and ways of strengthening resilience.
Theory of resiliency and Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) are the theoretical framework found in these researches. These studies included antecedent-behavior-consequence chain of ABA and construct resilience: spirituality, leadership, problem solving, networking and self-efficacy. Items for example recognizing thinking traps, cultivating gratitude, critical thinking, conflict resolution, and creative problem solving skills are some of the review results. The findings were implemented in a training module to promote caregivers comprehension about resilience concept, and to enhance their resiliency and mental health.
In conclusion, a training module is built on these core characteristics of resilience. It hopes to improve caregivers’ adaptation to adversity and quality of life for a sustainable future
Summary of research results, management recommendations and farmer workshops from cacao agroforestry landscapes in Indonesia
No full textSoftcover, 17,6x25Cacao agroforestry systems are common in Indonesia, but differences in local management affect
biodiversity and related ecosystem services. Importantly, birds and bats alike strongly contribute
to biological pest control in cacao, thereby promoting yields and sustainable farming. Our findings
from many years of ecological field research, in close collaboration with Indonesian cacao farmers,
are summarized and discussed in this bilingual book, written in both English and Indonesian. It is
designed to communicate scientific information as well as to facilitate transdisciplinary discussions
and more biodiversity-friendly management in tropical agroforestry systems.
We consider this book as a tool to improve the collaboration of local communities, farmers and
scientists, as well as to improve the application of scientific knowledge in agricultural practice -
particularly in tropical land use areas.
Bea Maas, the first author of this book, is postdoctoral researcher at the University of Vienna
(Austria), working in the fields of biology, ecology and conservation. She conducted the research and
workshops presented here in close collaboration and with support from the University of Göttingen
(Germany) and the University of Tadulako (Indonesia).Sistem agroforestri kakao adalah hal umum di Indonesia, tetapi perbedaan pengelolaan setempat
akan mempengaruhi keanekaragaman hayati dan layanan ekosistem. Terutama, burung dan kelelawar
sama-sama memberikan kontribusi tinggi pada pengendalian hama biologis di kakao, sehingga
dapat meningkatkan hasil panen dan pertanian yang berkelanjutan. Temuan kami dari penelitian
lapangan ekologi bertahun-tahun, yang bekerjasama erat dengan petani kakao Indonesia, dirangkum
dan dibahas dalam buku bilingual ini, tertulis dalam bahasa Inggris dan bahasa Indonesia. Buku
ini dirancang untuk mengkomunikasikan informasi ilmiah dan juga untuk memfasilitasi diskusi
transdisipliner dan pengelolaan keanekaragaman hayati yang ramah pada sistem agroforestri tropis.
Kami menganggap buku ini sebagai alat untuk meningkatkan kolaborasi masyarakat lokal, petani
dan ilmuwan, serta untuk meningkatkan penerapan pengetahuan ilmiah dalam praktik pertanian -
terutama di wilayah penggunaan lahan tropis.
Bea Maas, penulis pertama buku ini, adalah peneliti postdoctoral di Universitas Wina (Austria),
bekerja di bidang biologi, ekologi dan konservasi. Dia melakukan penelitian dan lokakarya yang
disampaikan dalam buku ini dengan kerjasama yang erat dan dukungan dari Universitas Göttingen
(Jerman) dan Universitas Tadulako (Indonesia)
Sikap Guru Sejarah Terhadap Kemahiran Pemikiran Sejarah (KPS)
No full textKemahiran Pemikiran Sejarah (KPS) merupakan salah satu disiplin sejarah yang perlu dilaksanakan oleh guru Sejarah dalam pengajaran dan pembelajaran (PdP) Sejarah. Seseorang guru Sejarah perlu melengkapkan diri dengan pengetahuan supaya objektif pengajaran dapat disampaikan dengan baik. Selain itu, sikap guru sangat penting dalam memastikan guru konsisten dan sentiasa positif untuk melaksanakan pengajaran terutamanya dalam menyampaikan kelima-lima elemen KPS kepada murid-murid. Walau bagaimanapun, menurut Nur Hawa Hanis dan Ghazali (2018) guru yang bersikap negatif menyebabkan mereka gagal mencerna minda murid supaya lebih berfikir secara kritis dan boleh menghasilkan idea-idea baru. Kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji sikap guru terhadap KPS dalam kalangan guru Sejarah Tingkatan 2. Kajian ini menggunakan kaedah kualitatif yang melibatkan empat orang guru Sejarah sekolah menengah. Hasil kajian ini menunjukkan bahawa guru Sejarah mempunyai sikap yang positif yang terdiri daripada konstruk kognitif, afektif dan tingkah laku. Persepsi guru Sejarah menunjukkan sikap positif dan konsisten terhadap pelaksanaan KPS. Oleh itu, implikasi kajian ini mencadangkan kepada semua guru Sejarah untuk mengambil langkah-langkah yang strategik bagi memastikan sikap yang lebih positif terhadap KPS terutama dalam proses PdP Sejarah. Dapatan ini diharap dapat dijadikan panduan terutamanya kepada guru Sejarah, pihak sekolah, penggubal dasar, Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia (KPM), Jabatan Pendidikan Negeri (JPN), Institusi Pendidikan Guru (IPG) dan pihak universiti
How can allocative inefficiency reveal risk preference? An empirical investigation on French wheat farms
No full textWe focus on a simple framework on wheat producer behaviour in a context of price output uncertainty. More precisely, we establish a relationship between ex post output price level and allocative inefficiency that allows to characterize farmers’ risk preferences. Given this analysis, the connection between risk aversion and other socioeconomic variables (such as degree of output specialisation, total asset, debts, farmer’s age…) can furthermore empirically be explored. This relationship is empirically tested on an unbalanced panel including about 650 wheat producers located in the French Department of Meuse over 1992- 2003.Producer behaviour, allocative inefficiency, risk aversion, Crop Production/Industries, Risk and Uncertainty,
How Do Students Shift from Task-Related to Task-Unrelated Thoughts?
No full text<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;">Although a growing body of psychological research shows that students’ unconscious thought<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> processes can be task-related, educational research has yet to provide empirical evidence for<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> this relation in a classroom learning context. Educational literature is also inconclusive as to<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> whether students consciously or unconsciously engage in task-unrelated thoughts. A key issue<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> arising from this indistinctness is whether task-unrelated thoughts facilitate or inhibit learning<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> and task performance when students consciously and when unconsciously shift their attention<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> away from task-related thoughts. This review aims to enhance understanding of how students<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> shift from task-related to task-unrelated thoughts. The review presents a wide range of<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> evidence for how the shift happens unconsciously rather than consciously. The unconscious<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> shift as a result of students’ negative emotions can inhibit rather than facilitate learning<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> processes. Further evidence is necessary for the required educational research on how the shift<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"> in students’ thoughts happens within the classroom.<br style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></jats:p
A Review of Literature on At-Risk Adolescent Students in Malaysia: Needing an Academic Resilience Model
No full textThis review article synthesises evidence for a growing concern over delinquency and crimes, such as alcohol, drug, and sexual abuse, among adolescent students in Malaysia. Some of the students can be academically successful despite risk factors that prevent the majority of others with the same background from succeeding. This exceptional academic achievement raises the question of what and how resilience assets enable some students to perform the same task better than others who have the same background. How Malaysian adolescent students develop academic resilience against risk factors is unclear. The review argues that this issue should be brought to light, so that an academic resilience model is developed for non-resilient students. Such a model would allow teachers to establish a caregiving relationship with their non-resilient students, help them counteract risk factors, and, thus, make a positive difference in their lives
A Review of Literature on At-Risk Adolescent Students in Malaysia: Needing an Academic Resilience Model
No full textThis review article synthesises evidence for a growing concern over delinquency and crimes, such as alcohol, drug, and sexual abuse, among adolescent students in Malaysia. Some of the students can be academically successful despite risk factors that prevent the majority of others with the same background from succeeding. This exceptional academic achievement raises the question of what and how resilience assets enable some students to perform the same task better than others who have the same background. How Malaysian adolescent students develop academic resilience against risk factors is unclear. The review argues that this issue should be brought to light, so that an academic resilience model is developed for non-resilient students. Such a model would allow teachers to establish a caregiving relationship with their non-resilient students, help them counteract risk factors, and, thus, make a positive difference in their lives
¿Cómo cambian los estudiantes de pensamientos relacionados con la tarea a pensamientos no relacionados?
No full textAlthough a growing body of psychological research shows that students’ unconscious thought processes can be task-related, educational research has yet to provide empirical evidence for this relation in a classroom learning context. Educational literature is also inconclusive as to whether students consciously or unconsciously engage in task-unrelated thoughts. A key issue arising from this indistinctness is whether task-unrelated thoughts facilitate or inhibit learning and task performance when students consciously and when unconsciously shift their attention away from task-related thoughts. This review aims to enhance understanding of how students shift from task-related to task-unrelated thoughts. The review presents a wide range of evidence for how the shift happens unconsciously rather than consciously. The unconscious shift as a result of students’ negative emotions can inhibit rather than facilitate learning processes. Further evidence is necessary for the required educational research on how the shift in students’ thoughts happens within the classroom.Aunque un creciente número de investigaciones psicológicas demuestran que los procesos de pensamiento inconsciente de los estudiantes pueden estar relacionados con las tareas, la investigación educativa todavía tiene que proporcionar evidencia empírica para esta relación en un contexto de aprendizaje en el aula. La literatura educativa también es poco concluyente en cuanto a si los estudiantes consciente o inconscientemente se involucran en pensamientos que no tienen relación con la tarea. Una cuestión clave que surge de esta indiferencia es si los pensamientos no relacionados con la tarea facilitan o inhiben el aprendizaje y el desempeño de las tareas cuando los estudiantes consciente e inconscientemente cambian su atención fuera de los pensamientos relacionados con la tarea. Esta revisión tiene como objetivo mejorar la comprensión de cómo los estudiantes cambian de pensamientos relacionados y no relacionados con la tarea. La revisión presenta una amplia gama de pruebas de cómo el cambio ocurre inconscientemente en lugar de conscientemente. El cambio inconsciente como resultado de las emociones negativas de los estudiantes puede inhibir en lugar de facilitar los procesos de aprendizaje. Se necesita más evidencia en la investigación educativa acerca de cómo ocurre el cambio en los pensamientos de los estudiantes dentro del aula
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