Constrained mixture distributions

The problem of estimating the weights associated with mixture distributions subject to several constraints, such as the percentile and/or moment constraints, is analyzed using the general theory of polyhedral convex cones and systems of inequalities. We address three problems associated with constrained mixture distributions: (a) Compatibility: a set of inequalities is obtained to check whether or not any given set of constraints lead to a feasible solution for the weights, (b) Feasible solutions: a general expression for building feasible solutions for the weights associated with the given constraints is obtained, and (c) Equivalence: the set of all feasible weights is obtained. In addition, the problem is shown to lead to a new mixture distribution, without extra constraints. This new mixture distribution can then be easily used for the statistical analysis (e.g. estimation and hypotheses testing) instead of the original mixture distribution with extra constraints. The proposed methods are illustrated by numerical examples.     

The Effects of Team Flexibility and Emotional Intelligence on Software Development Performance

As both business and technological environments change at an increasing rate, flexibility and emotional intelligence have become critical issues for project management. Even though previous research has examined the relationship between team flexibility and team performance and that between the emotional intelligence of teams and team outputs, there remains a gap in literature in respect to a holistic model. Accordingly in this paper, we examine the relationships among software team flexibility, emotional intelligence, and software project outputs (market success, speed to market, and the functionality of the new software product) using survey data from 86 software development projects. The results reveal positive a relationship between the diversity dimension of software project team flexibility and emotional intelligence. The first dimension of software team flexibility, team autonomy, positively affected market success, speed to market, and software functionality, whereas the second dimension, team diversity, positively affected only speed to market and software functionality. The emotional recognition of team members for both themselves and their teammates appears to be another important factor affecting the speed to market and functionality of the new software products. Managerial and theoretical implications of the study are discussed.     

Traffic risk perception,road safety attitudes,and behaviors among road users: a comparison of Turkey and Norway

The present study aims to investigate differences in road safety attitudes, driver behavior, and traffic risk perception between Turkey and Norway. A questionnaire survey was conducted among a sample of Norwegian (n?=?247) and Turkish (n?=?213) road users. The results show that Turkish respondents perceived traffic risk to be higher than Norwegian respondents. Turkish respondents reported safer attitudes towards drinking and driving than Norwegian respondents, while Norwegians reported safer attitudes towards speeding. Turkish respondents reported a lower frequency of speeding behaviors than Norwegian respondents, whereas Norwegian respondents reported a lower frequency of drinking and driving. Traffic risk perception was related to road safety attitudes and behaviors among Norwegian respondents but not among Turkish respondents. The results were discussed with respect to differences in traffic safety, traffic culture, and the development levels in Turkey and Norway.     

Factors related with unintentional injuries in children with newly diagnosed attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

The aim of the present study was to investigate the factors associated with unintentional injury in children newly diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). One thousand four hundred and thirty children between the ages of 6 and 18 who were diagnosed with ADHD for the first time in child psychiatry outpatient clinics were included in the present study. The socio-demographic information of the children, their developmental histories, chronic physical health conditions, comorbid psychiatric disorders, and information obtained via the Turgay DSM-IV-based Child and Adolescent Disorders Screening and Rating Scale were examined retrospectively. It was determined that 12.8% of the children (n = 183) experienced unintentional injury. It was established that age, male gender, disruptive behavioural problems, and low education levels among mothers were predictive of unintentional injuries. The results of the present study suggest that behavioural problems accompanying ADHD and comorbid psychiatric disorders are important in terms of unintentional injuries.     

Industrial design students’ perceptions towards a career in user experience field in Turkey

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - The rapid growth of the user experience (UX) field has brought efforts to meet the increasing demand for specialists by welcoming...     

Regional inequalities and the West–East divide in Turkey since 1913

This paper examines the evolution of regional disparities within the present-day borders of Turkey since 1913. Based on our estimates for 58 provinces, we find β-convergence, an inverse U, and more recently, the beginnings of an N-shaped pattern for value added per capita. We also find that regional disparities in Turkey exhibit a number of special features that do not easily fit the well-studied pattern of the early industrializers. First, while per capita value added in other regions moved towards country averages, the differences between the East and the rest of the country persisted and even increased until recently. Second, spatial distribution of economic activity became more concentrated over time due to continued migration to the megacity of Istanbul. Third, we find that regional disparities in per capita value added in Turkey and other developing countries have been higher than those experienced by the early industrializers. These findings raise questions about the extent to which the regional disparities experiences of Turkey and other developing countries have been different than those of the early industrializers.     

The contribution of 3D computer modeling education to twenty-first century skills: self-assessment of secondary school students

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - In this study, the contribution of the 3D computer modeling to the twenty-first century’s common competencies was evaluated from the...     

Crisis of capitalism and cycles of right-wing populism in contemporary Turkey: The making and unmaking of Erdoğanist hegemony

This paper analyses the right-wing populist rule of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi (AKP) in Turkey, focusing on the crisis of capitalism, emerging discontent in the rural populations, and opportunities for and obstacles to a successful left-wing populist mobilisation. We put forward three arguments. First, through an examination of the historical evolution, class-based and social-demographic foundations of the ruling right-wing populist alliance between the AKP and the Milliyetçi Hareket Partisi (MHP), we argue that the MHP is a more classical case of far-right populism, whereas the AKP is a “heterodox” case that borrows several elements from the left. These “heterodox” features of the AKP, together with the interlinked crisis of the 1990s, played a significant part in the support the AKP received from the subordinate majority. Second, we argue that the success of the AKP's hegemonic right-wing populism from 2002 to 2013 was linked to an unusually favourable macro-political-economic climate that helped the AKP counterbalance its neoliberal policies with pragmatic social assistance programmes. However, together with the disappearance of this macro-political-economic climate in the second decade of its rule (2013-present), the disastrous consequences of the AKP's neoliberal policies became more explicit, and the AKP's populism moved from a hegemonic to an authoritarian right-wing populist type. Third, we claim that today, due to the deepening of the current economic crisis (further exacerbated by the Covid19 pandemic), the AKP's cross-class alliance began to break down, and the rural movements in the Turkish countryside have been playing a major role in unmaking the AKP's hegemony. However, in the absence of a strong left-wing populist movement with a stronghold in the Turkish countryside, emergent possibilities for a radical progressive transformation are not utilised. Instead, the groundwork is being laid for another wave of right-wing populism.     

Institutional investors and cross-border mergers and acquisitions: The 2000–2018 period

Using a sample of mergers and acquisitions (M&As) from 26 countries over 2000–2018, we find that domestic institutional investors facilitate both domestic and cross-border M&As. The facilitation effect is more pronounced for domestic than cross-border M&As. When the acquirer country has greater financial freedom or better investor protection than the target country, domestic institutional investors facilitate cross-border M&As more effectively. As Ordinary Least Squares regressions are not the best approach regarding cross-border M&As, we confirm that the main results are robust to Zero-inflated Poisson regressions. Foreign institutional investors' influence on cross-border M&As is stronger when the sample excludes the United States.