Abstract Driven by shifting external environments, the fastener industry in Taiwan, the renowned ¡§Kingdom of Bolts and Nuts¡¨, has to move to the production of high value-added fasteners. Auto fastener, which comprises 40% of all fasteners used globally, is just one of the major high value-added products. As auto parts are highly related to human safety with most strict quality requirement, auto fastener usually belongs to the high price product. Taiwan¡¦s fastener industry, avoid being attacked front and rear, has started to transfer production from standard fastener to auto fastener four or five years ago, but fallen short of a successful across-the-board transition. A few successful fastener producers on an adequate scale include SANSHING FASTECH Corp., CHU HUA Industrial Co., YING MING Industrial Co., BOLTUN Corp. and etc. The subject of this paper is to identify the problems confronted by the industry in transition, whether upgrading needs to tackle very high threshold or the post-transition will lose competitiveness so how. The paper is to study the competing strategies of auto fastener industry in Taiwan through in-depth interview with professionals, academics, entrepreneurs and employees of the industrial to collect their viewpoints and experiences. Assisted by current competition theories, the paper also survey secondary information and relevant papers to analyze the following topics: 1. Current development of the auto fastener industry in Taiwan and its competing strength and weakness. 2. The predicaments confronted by Taiwan¡¦s auto fastener industry while going through upgrading and key factors for success 3. A trio support from industry, government, and academic to assist the collective development of auto fastener industry. The findings of the paper: 1. Through further study of relevant data and theory paper, it is surprising to find that the competitive analysis of fastener industry in Taiwan fits in with the Diamond System and Clustering Theory of Michael E. Porter, and it is of wide application. Also, it is mentioned in the Diamond theory that the influence of role play between industry and vi government is reciprocal. It is difficult to judge which side has more influence on the other. Different time and environment will stimulate and exercise various functions and growths for both sides. 2. The fastener industry in Taiwan has developed well in to a geographical cluster with firm base for development, but it must go on with industry upgrading and producing high value-added products. Although auto fastener is not the sole choice, it leaves a great deal of space for growth. The members in the industry should assess their capability and core competitiveness to choose among auto fastener, speciality fastener, 3C electronic, aerospace fastener,and etc. for a transitional development. 3. There is ample room for the development of the auto fastener industry in Taiwan. The surface coating treatment, production process certification, and sales channel connection are three major topics to discuss. However, being the upstream raw material supplier and the largest interrelated industry, China Steel Corporation assumes the most important role in material supply, R&D, and vertical industry integration. Therefore, it is firmly believed that CSC possesses the capability to supplement and prosper the fastener industry in Taiwan Keyword: Auto Fastener, Competing Strategy, Diamond Theory .

Most everybody is ambitious about their own careers. Most of us aspire to be promoted to positions with greater responsibilities and benefits and have a clear sense of what we mean by a "successful career." Politicians are no different, and there is no apparent reason why they should be. However, unlike what happens in other occupations, politicians are forced periodically---i.e., at the end of each term they serve---to make a decision about what to do with their careers. This decision is made under the uncertainty about their ability to continue their careers according to their plans. The possibility of electoral defeat spares no one in spite of all that politicians do to avoid being voted out of office. Thus, at the end of each term, politicians must ponder what they want to do with their careers or where they want to go next. Politicians inform their decisions with their beliefs about their performance in office---or their performance as challengers---and their assessments of the difficulty of winning office in the following election. This raises the question about why some politicians decide to stay in office. Concretely, why do some politicians decide to get reelected while others seek election in "higher" or even "lower" offices? And also, why are some politicians more successful in having lasting careers? I focus on the career decisions that politicians make routinely and in the duration of their careers by considering individual and district factors that explain why politicians decide to run for particular offices and the length of their tenures.

The essays in this dissertation explore issues related to health and retirement of older Americans, using longitudinal data on older Americans from ten waves of the Health and Retirement Study (1992-2010). The first essay explores the effect of both subjective and relatively more objective physical and mental health conditions on the probability of exit from full-time employment. Eight health indices (factors) are created from a wide range of health measures by principal component analysis. The effect of these health factors on the time until exit from full-time employment is empirically examined in a proportional hazard model. Single and competing risk specifications are estimated that allow for multiple spells of full-time employment and control for unobserved heterogeneity. The main results suggest that increase in functional limitation factor makes an individual more likely to exit via any route in general and the complete retirement route in particular. For mental health problems, increase in the depression factor increases the likelihood of exit from full-time employment via the complete retirement, part-time work and unemployment routes. While increase in cognitive disorders factor has no significant effect on the likelihood of exit via complete retirement, but increases the likelihood of exit via the disability route. These results have implications for public policies targeted towards retaining older workers within the labor market. The second essay examines the effect of retirement on post retirement physical and mental health and the extent to which the effects differ across these different health outcomes. The inherent issue of reverse causality between health and retirement that leads to endogeneity is addressed by using multiple sample stratification and instrumental variable estimation strategies. The stratified samples include individuals who are physically and mentally healthy prior to their retirement so that pure effect of retirement on post retirement health may be found. Five different instruments for complete retirement are also used to deal with endogeneity. The sample stratification results unanimously indicate that complete retirement has adverse effect on post retirement physical and mental health. While the instrumental variables approach results are mixed and are based on the choice of instrument for complete retirement.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 103-113) Also available in print.

This thesis examined the impact of the U.S-China trade war on the global, U.S, and China?s agricultural exports while considering the competing suppliers? effect using a highly disaggregated HS 6-digit trade flow data in the structural gravity model. The empirical results indicate that the trade war caused about 8.6% and 17% reduction in U.S and China?s agricultural exports, respectively. However, global agricultural export was not negatively impacted during the trade war. Finally, the results also showed that tariff increases by U.S caused an increased in U.S competing suppliers? exports to China. Similarly, China?s retaliatory tariffs caused an increase in China?s competing suppliers? exports to the U.S.

This thesis is a methodological study of a technique of analysis known as simulation, with special reference to developing economic- cumhydrologic models of complex real world water resource systems. It is the eventual goal of this project to develop a complete economic and hydrologic computer model of Cache County, Utah, to further test the applicability of simulation to water resource problems. Although no modeling is carried out, Cache County is used as a foundation for judging the technique within this thesis. Of the several approaches to simulation which were reviewed, Forrester's (1961) methods, and the use of DYNAMO as a simulation compiler were selected as being the most applicable t o the Cache County project. Although simulation techniques and computer modeling are still in the developing s t age, they would seem to have considerable advantages, especially in tracing secondary benefits, over more conventional techniques of analysis. Certainly the potential advantages a r e great enough to make further development of this technique well justified.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Background: High blood pressure (HBP) is a common risk factor for dementia in elder population. Anti-hypertensive medications have been reported to associate with lower incidence rate of dementia in elder African Americans. The Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) epsilon 4 allele has been shown to be associated with both increased dementia and hypertension risk. However, previous studies had not examined the association between anti-hypertensive medications by ApoE status accounting for the competing risk from death. Methods: This is a prospective observational cohort study in 1236 community-dwelling hypertensive African Americans aged 65 years and older without dementia at baseline, with follow-up cognitive assessment and clinical evaluation for dementia diagnosis. Dementia-free mortality was considered as the competing risk. Of these, 707 participants were genotyped for ApoE status. Anti-hypertensive medication use was obtained from prescription records in the electronic medical records of the Indiana Network for Patient Care (INPC). Cox proportional cause-specific hazard (CSH) regression models were applied to assess the association between anti-hypertensive medication use and CSHs for dementia and death in ApoE epsilon 4 carriers and non-carriers separately. Key results: In ApoE epsilon 4 carriers, participants using anti-hypertensive medications had lower CSH of dementia compared to those not on anti-hypertensive medications before adjusting for blood pressure (BP) (hazard ratio (HR), 0.365; 95% CI, 0.170 – 0.785; p = 0.0099). The HR was no longer significant once BP control was adjusted (HR, 0.784; 95% CI, 0.197 – 3.123; p = 0.7303). Anti-hypertensive medications were not associated with dementia rate in non-carriers. In ApoE epsilon 4 non-carriers, participants on anti-hypertensive treatment showed significantly lower CSH of death compared to those not on mediations adjusting for covariates and BP control (HR, 0.237; 95% CI, 0.149 – 0.375; p < 0.0001). There was no significant association between anti-hypertensive medication use and death in ApoE epsilon 4 carriers. Conclusions: Anti-hypertensive medication was associated with lower dementia rate in ApoE epsilon 4 carriers and that rate was primarily mediated through BP control. In non-carriers, anti-hypertensive medication was significantly associated with lower mortality rate and this association appears to be independent of BP control.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Objectives: The aims of this study are to estimate the cumulative incidence of lower extremity amputation (LEA) revision and reamputation adjusting for a competing risk of death, estimate the one-year event-free mortality rates for patients with peripheral vascular disease undergoing LEA, and develop predictive models for LEA revision and reamputation adjusting for a competing risk of death. Methods: This was a retrospective review of the prospectively collected Vascular Quality Initiative (VQI) registry between 2013 and 2018. Adults undergoing unilateral LEA were included. Demographics, comorbidities, medications, smoking status, history of vascular procedures and revascularization attempts, and procedure urgency were considered. Models to predict LEA revision and reamputation were developed using multivariable regression on the interval-censored competing risks data using semiparametric regression on the cumulative incidence function. Results: The cumulative incidences of LEA revision and revision-free mortality within one year of index amputation are 14.9% and 15.5% respectively. Patient BMI, smoking status, aspirin use, history of revascularization, and level of planned LEA are significantly associated with the odds of LEA revision. Age, amputation urgency, dialysis, and level of planned LEA are associated with the one-year odds of revision-free mortality. A patient receiving an index above knee amputation (AKA) has 61% lower odds of LEA revision (p < 0.0001) but 51% higher odds of revision-free mortality following LEA (p < 0.0001). Previous revascularization procedures increase the odds of revision by 23% (p < 0.0001). The cumulative incidences of reamputation and one-year reamputation-free mortality following LEA are 11.5% and 16.9% respectively. Urgency of the procedure, history of revascularization procedures, and level of planned LEA are statistically associated with the odds of reamputation when adjusting for the competing risk of death. Patients receiving index AKA have 62% lower odds of reamputation (p < 0.0001) compared to BKA. Dialysis is the strongest predictor of one-year mortality (OR 2.576, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Patients with appropriately managed PVD, which still progresses to amputation have higher odds of LEA revision and reamputation. Revision risk can be predicted and compared on the basis of patient factors and the planned index amputation.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Context. Prediction models for dementia are crucial for informing clinical decision making in older adults. Previous models have used genotype and age to obtain risk scores to determine risk of Alzheimer’s Disease, one of the most common forms of dementia (Desikan et al., 2017). However, previous prediction models do not account for the fact that the time to dementia onset is unknown, lying between the last negative and the first positive dementia diagnosis time (interval censoring). Instead, these models use time to diagnosis, which is greater than or equal to the true dementia onset time. Furthermore, these models do not account for the competing risk of death which is quite frequent among elder adults. Objectives. To develop a prediction model for dementia that accounts for interval censoring and the competing risk of death. To compare the predictions from this model with the predictions from a naïve analysis that ignores interval censoring and the competing risk of death. Methods. We apply the semiparametric sieve maximum likelihood (SML) approach to simultaneously model the cumulative incidence function (CIF) of dementia and death while accounting for interval censoring (Bakoyannis, Yu, & Yiannoutsos, 2017). The SML is implemented using the R package intccr. The CIF curves of dementia are compared for the SML and the naïve approach using a dataset from the Indianapolis Ibadan Dementia Project. Results. The CIF from the SML and the naïve approach illustrated that for healthier individuals at baseline, the naïve approach underestimated the incidence of dementia compared to the SML, as a result of interval censoring. Individuals with a poorer health condition at baseline have a CIF that appears to be overestimated in the naïve approach. This is due to older individuals with poor health conditions having an elevated risk of death. Conclusions. The SML method that accounts for the competing risk of death along with interval censoring should be used for fitting prediction/prognostic models of dementia to inform clinical decision making in older adults. Without controlling for the competing risk of death and interval censoring, the current models can provide invalid predictions of the CIF of dementia.

A gestão da qualidade configura-se em um dos conceitos mais importantes da gestão moderna. Frequentemente, divide-se suas dimensões em dois grupos, o primeiro composto por aspectos objetivos, as dimensões hard, e o segundo, composto por aspectos subjetivos, as dimensões soft. Dentre as dimensões soft, a liderança é uma das apontadas como mais relevantes para o estabelecimento de um ambiente de qualidade nas organizações. No entanto, embora a relação entre gestão de qualidade e liderança seja clara, há ainda diversas lacunas de pesquisa a serem exploradas, especialmente sobre a relação entre estilos de liderança específicos e a gestão da qualidade. Deste modo, o objetivo do presente estudo foi de explorar esta relação, utilizando-se, para tanto, do modelo de liderança transformacional-transacional, e do modelo Competing Values Framework. Participaram do estudo 47 gestores de qualidade, em sua maioria (74%) da região Sudeste do país, que foram contatados através de e-mail e mensagem na rede social LinkedIn,. Para a análise dos dados, utilizou-se correlação de Pearson, com o uso do software SPSS. Os dados encontrados confirmam achados da literatura que apontam que tanto a liderança transformacional, quanto a transacional apresentam relação com elementos da gestão da qualidade, com vantagem do primeiro estilo de liderança. A respeito dos estilos de liderança do Competing Values Framework, observou-se que os perfis associados a um estilo diretivo e de curto prazo demonstraram tendência a apresentar coeficientes de correlação mais altos, em detrimento dos perfis de estilo colaborativo e longo prazo. Sugere-se, em estudos futuros, estabelecer as mesmas correlações para diferentes participantes, especialmente gestores da alta administração. / Quality management is one of the most popular concepts in modern magament. Often, the quality management dimensions are divided into two groups, one of objective aspects, or hard dimensions, and other of subjective aspects, or soft dimensions. Among soft dimensions, leadership is one of the most relevant for establishing a quality environment in organizations. However, although the relationship between quality management and leadership is clear, there are still several research gaps to be exploited, especially on the relationship between specific leadership styles and quality management. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore this relationship, using, therefore, the transformational-transactional leadership model, and the Competing Values Framework model. The study included 47 quality managers, mostly (74%) of the country\'s southeastern region, who were contacted through e-mail and message on the social network LinkedIn. For data analysis, it was used Pearson correlation, and software SPSS. It was confirmed that transformational and transactional leadership are related with quality management elements, but the transformational leadership has some advantage. About Competing Values Framework leadership styles, it was observed that the profiles associated with a directive style and short-term demonstrated tendency to have higher correlation coefficients, instead of long-term and collaborative style profiles. We suggest, in future studies, establishing the same correlations for different participants, especially managers of top management.