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Item Best practices for the naming of species(Oxford University Press, 2024-11-14)The process of describing a species has evolved considerably since the modern age of taxonomy was initiated with the publication of the 10th edition of Linnaeus’ Systema Naturæ in 1758. Nevertheless, the basic unit of the taxonomic framework remains the species group (species and subspecies). As a result, it is incumbent upon individuals undertaking species-group descriptions to strive for the highest standards, just as it is for reviewers and editors to hold authors to those same standards. The clear and mounting biodiversity crisis, the increasing proliferation of journals, the multiplication of journals publishing only in electronic format, the decline in the number of trained taxonomists, and the complex and at times misinterpreted wording of the rules governing taxonomy have resulted in a growing number of species names that are unavailable because one or more aspects required of a species-level taxonomic description are lacking. Here, we present best practices for the required elements of a taxonomic description and identify some of the common pitfalls leading to an inadequate description resulting in an unavailable name. We also suggest best practices that would enhance taxonomic descriptions and make them more informative. Resumen El proceso de descripción de una especie ha evolucionado considerablemente desde que se inició la era moderna de la taxonomía con la publicación de la 10ª edición del Systema Naturæ de Linneo en 1758. No obstante, la unidad básica del marco taxonómico sigue siendo el grupo de la especie, es decir: las especies y subespecies. Por ello, aquellos quienes realizan descripciones de entes en estas categorías taxonómicas deben esforzarse por alcanzar los más altos niveles de calidad, al igual que los revisores y editores, quienes deben exigir a los autores que se atengan a esos mismos niveles. La evidente y creciente crisis de la biodiversidad, la creciente proliferación de revistas, la multiplicación de revistas que publican sólo en formato electrónico, la disminución del número de taxónomos formados y la compleja y a veces malinterpretada redacción de las normas que rigen la taxonomía, conjuntamente han dado lugar a un número cada vez mayor de nombres de especies que no son disponibles desde el punto de vista taxonómico porque faltan uno o más aspectos requeridos por las reglas de nomenclatura taxonómica para una descripción taxonómica a nivel de especie. A continuación, presentamos las mejores prácticas para los elementos requeridos de una descripción taxonómica e identificamos algunos de los escollos comunes que conducen a una descripción inadecuada que resulta en un nombre no disponible, es decir, no válido taxonómicamente. También sugerimos buenas prácticas para mejorar las descripciones taxonómicas y hacerlas más informativas.Publication The Information Effects of Financial Leverage: A Dynamic Approach(University of Kansas, 1991-06-30)This dissertation is about capital structure theory under asymmetric information. In particular, I examine the relationship between cash flow and financial leverage over time. This relationship is important because signalling theory and pecking order behavior in financing seem to have opposite implications for the relationship. Further, two sets of empirical results-leverage-changing event studies and cross-sectional regression studies-also have seemingly conflicting results. I show that the apparent contradictions can be resolved be considering the dynamic aspects of the cash flow/leverage relationship. Both signalling theory and the pecking order behavior describe the relationship between cash flow and leverage. In signalling theory, cash flow and leverage must have a monotonic relationship, and most theories predict that this relationship is positive. The relationship between cash flow and financial leverage is also important in a pecking order of financing. Pecking order behavior suggests that holding investment constant, higher cash flows are associated with lower leverage. Cross-sectional leverage studies generally support the pecking order view, while leverage-changing event studies generally support the signalling view. I propose a model that takes into account both the simultaneous and intertemporal relationship between cash flow and leverage. Because cash flow and leverage are determined simultaneously, cross-sectional studies that ignore the simultaneity may be biased and inconsistent Lagged cash flow is also a determinant of leverage. A pecking order suggests that firms with more slack will use less leverage, thus excess cash flow in the past may affect current decisions about how much debt to issue. Similarly, cash flow is also affected by current and lagged values of leverage. Under the signalling hypothesis, lagged values of leverage provide information about current cash flow. Risk is also an important element in the relationship between cash flow and leverage. It is simultaneously determined with cash flow and leverage. Thus an appropriate model to capture the simultaneous nature of risk, cash flow, and leverage is a system of pooled time series equations. These results show that lagged values of leverage tend to have more significant positive coefficients, but the contemporaneous coefficients are negative. The across-time results support the signalling hypothesis, since a signal should give information about future cash flows. The contemporaneous lag coefficients are negative. This supports the notion that pecking order behavior is a description of contemporaneous behavior.Publication Out of Many, One?: The Heterogeneity of the Asian American Experience(University of Kansas, 2025-02-21)The present research is the first to examine how various Asian American groups identify with the nation. Past intergroup relations research on how U.S. minorities identify with the nation have included black, white, and Latinx participants while the inclusion of Asian Americans has often been homogenized without distinction (Sidanius et al.,1997; Molina et al.,2015). This project addresses the gap by highlighting the distinctions between the subgroups which compose the Asian American category (Lee, 2015). We perform secondary data analyses on the 2016 National Asian American Survey Pre-Election Survey to examine if national identification varies across Asian American subgroups. Results demonstrate significant differences on levels of national identification between Asian American subgroups whether analyses focus on between region group differences (e.g., South Asian v. Southeast Asian) or within region group differences (e.g., Japanese v. Chinese). Our findings suggest heterogeneity is the norm regarding the Asian American experience and questions of national identity. We explore the implications for national identity and the drawbacks to homogenizing the Asian American experience.Publication Meaning of Life Events and Person Characteristics Interactions Predicting Changes in Attachment(University of Kansas, 2025-02-22)One of the core themes in Bowlby (1973)’s attachment theory is the extent to which people’s attachment (in) security exhibits stability and change over time. Previous research has identified life events that may predict such changes but focused on the objective occurrence of events, often overlooking individual subjective experiences. To address this gap, the study explored how people’s subjective interpretations of 7 life events and the interaction between 10 personal characteristics and these experiences (P x sE) relate to changes in their attachment (in)security over time. We analyzed data from 6566 adults who completed between 1 and 24 monthly survey assessments. Our results suggested that the frequency and nature of person-by-subjective experience (P x sE) interactions differed in meaningful ways across specific life events and person characteristics. Additionally, it highlighted that individuals’ subjective interpretations of life events may be a stronger predictor of change in state attachment (in) security than the objective occurrence of events, and offered new insights into why individuals’ sense of security may change in different ways over time.