Combining least-squares and quantile regressions

Least-squares and quantile regressions are method of moments techniques that are typically used in isolation. A leading example where efficiency may be gained by combining least-squares and quantile regressions is one where some information on the error quantiles is available but the error distribution cannot be fully specified. This estimation problem may be cast in terms of solving an over-determined estimating equation (EE) system for which the generalized method of moments (GMM) and empirical likelihood (EL) are approaches of recognized importance. The major difficulty with implementing these techniques here is that the EEs associated with the quantiles are non-differentiable. In this paper, we develop a kernel-based smoothing technique for non-smooth EEs, and derive the asymptotic properties of the GMM and maximum smoothed EL (MSEL) estimators based on the smoothed EEs. Via a simulation study, we investigate the finite sample properties of the GMM and MSEL estimators that combine least-squares and quantile moment relationships. Applications to real datasets are also considered.     

Penalized least-squares estimation for regression coefficients in high-dimensional partially linear models

We consider a partially linear model with diverging number of groups of parameters in the parametric component. The variable selection and estimation of regression coefficients are achieved simultaneously by using the suitable penalty function for covariates in the parametric component. An MM-type algorithm for estimating parameters without inverting a high-dimensional matrix is proposed. The consistency and sparsity of penalized least-squares estimators of regression coefficients are discussed under the setting of some nonzero regression coefficients with very small values. It is found that the root p_n/n-consistency and sparsity of the penalized least-squares estimators of regression coefficients cannot be given consideration simultaneously when the number of nonzero regression coefficients with very small values is unknown, where p_n and n, respectively, denote the number of regression coefficients and sample size. The finite sample behaviors of penalized least-squares estimators of regression coefficients and the performance of the proposed algorithm are studied by simulation studies and a real data example.     

Estimation of patterned covariance in the multivariate linear models: an outer product least-squares approach

In this article, we present a framework of estimating patterned covariance of interest in the multivariate linear models. The main idea in it is to estimate a patterned covariance by minimizing a trace distance function between outer product of residuals and its expected value. The proposed framework can provide us explicit estimators, called outer product least-squares estimators, for parameters in the patterned covariance of the multivariate linear model without or with restrictions on regression coefficients. The outer product least-squares estimators enjoy the desired properties in finite and large samples, including unbiasedness, invariance, consistency and asymptotic normality. We still apply the framework to three special situations where their patterned covariances are the uniform correlation, a generalized uniform correlation and a general q-dependence structure, respectively. Simulation studies for three special cases illustrate that the proposed method is a competent alternative of the maximum likelihood method in finite size samples.     

Robust second-order least-squares estimator for regression models

The second-order least-squares estimator (SLSE) was proposed by Wang (Statistica Sinica 13:1201–1210, 2003) for measurement error models. It was extended and applied to linear and nonlinear regression models by Abarin and Wang (Far East J Theor Stat 20:179–196, 2006) and Wang and Leblanc (Ann Inst Stat Math 60:883–900, 2008). The SLSE is asymptotically more efficient than the ordinary least-squares estimator if the error distribution has a nonzero third moment. However, it lacks robustness against outliers in the data. In this paper, we propose a robust second-order least squares estimator (RSLSE) against X-outliers. The RSLSE is highly efficient with high breakdown point and is asymptotically normally distributed. We compare the RSLSE with other estimators through a simulation study. Our results show that the RSLSE performs very well.     

Generalized least-squares estimators for the thickness of heavy tails

For a probability distribution with power law tails, a log–log transformation makes the tails of the empirical distribution function resemble a straight line, leading to a least-squares estimate of the tail thickness. Taking into account the mean and covariance structure of the extreme order statistics leads to improved tail estimators, and a surprising connection with Hill's estimator.     

Jackknife inference for heteroscedastic linear regression models

Inference on the regression parameters in a heteroscedastic linear regression model with replication is considered, using either the ordinary least-squares (OLS) or the weighted least-squares (WLS) estimator. A delete-group jackknife method is shown to produce consistent variance estimators irrespective of within-group correlations, unlike the delete-one jackknife variance estimators or those based on the customary δ-method assuming within-group independence. Finite-sample properties of the delete-group variance estimators and associated confidence intervals are also studied through simulation.     

Ordinary and weighted least-squares estimators

We propose a method of estimating the asymptotic relative efficiency (ARE) of the weighted least-squares estimator (WLSE) with respect to the ordinary least-squares estimator (OLSE) in a heteroscedastic linear regression model with a large number of observations but a small number of replicates at each value of the regressors. The weights used in the WLSE are the reciprocals of the (within-group) average of squared residuals. It is shown that the OLSE is more efficient than the WLSE if the maximum number of replicates is not larger than two. The proposed estimator of the ARE is consistent as the number of observations tends to infinity. Finite-sample performance of this estimator is examined in a simulation study. An adaptive estimator, which is asymptotically more efficient than the OLSE and the WLSE, is proposed.     

Design considerations for stratified finite populations using the linear least-squares prediction approach

This paper presents results concerning the implementation of two estimators for the total of a finite populations each of which is optimal under either and additive are purely interaction model. Assumptions under which the estimators are derived, some mathematical properties of the estimators, and tables which compare the estimators and give optimal allocation rules as a function of relevant parameters are given.     

Stochastic analysis of covariance when the error distribution is long-tailed symmetric

In this study, we consider stochastic one-way analysis of covariance model when the distribution of the error terms is long-tailed symmetric. Estimators of the unknown model parameters are obtained by using the maximum likelihood (ML) methodology. Iteratively reweighting algorithm is used to compute the ML estimates of the parameters. We also propose new test statistic based on ML estimators for testing the linear contrasts of the treatment effects. In the simulation study, we compare the efficiencies of the traditional least-squares (LS) estimators of the model parameters with the corresponding ML estimators. We also compare the power of the test statistics based on LS and ML estimators, respectively. A real-life example is given at the end of the study.     

Different estimation methods for the parameters of the extended Burr XII distribution

The extended three-parameter Burr XII (EBXII) distribution has recently attracted considerable attention for modeling data from various scientific fields since it yields a wide range of skewness and kurtosis values. However, it is well known that the parameter estimates have significant effects on the success of a distribution in real-life applications. In this study, modified moment estimators (MMEs) and modified probability-weighted moments estimators (MPWMEs) are used to estimate the parameters of the EBXII distribution. These two considered estimators are also compared with the commonly used maximum-likelihood, percentiles, least-squares and weighted least-squares estimators in terms of bias and efficiency via an extensive numerical simulation. The MMEs and MPWMEs are observed to perform well in varying sample cases, and the simulation results are supported with application through a real-life data set.     

A note on generalized ridge estimators

It is shown that a necessary and sufficient condition derived by Farebrother (1984)for a generalized ridge estimator to dominate the ordinary least-squares estimator with respect to the mean-square-error-matrix criterion in the linear regression model admits a similar interpretation as the well known criterion of Toro-Viz-carrondo and Wallace (1968)for the dominance of a restricted least-squares estimator over the ordinary least-squares estimator. Two other properties of the generalized ridge estimators, referring to the concept of admissibility, are also pointed out.     

On the least-squares model averaging interval estimator

In many applications of linear regression models, randomness due to model selection is commonly ignored in post-model selection inference. In order to account for the model selection uncertainty, least-squares frequentist model averaging has been proposed recently. We show that the confidence interval from model averaging is asymptotically equivalent to the confidence interval from the full model. The finite-sample confidence intervals based on approximations to the asymptotic distributions are also equivalent if the parameter of interest is a linear function of the regression coefficients. Furthermore, we demonstrate that this equivalence also holds for prediction intervals constructed in the same fashion.     

Estimation for aggregate models: The aggregate Markov chain

An argument in favour of projecting the score function for models involving incomplete data is presented. Projection is then applied to the aggregate Markov-chain model resulting in weighted least-squares estimators. The limit theory and efficiency of these estimators are studied using martingale limit theory.     

Approaches to regression analysis with multiple measurements from individual sampling units

Application of ordinary least-squares regression to data sets which contain multiple measurements from individual sampling units produces an unbiased estimator of the parameters but a biased estimator of the covariance matrix of the parameter estimates. The present work considers a random coefficient, linear model to deal with such data sets: this model permits many senses in which multiple measurements are taken from a sampling unit, not just when it is measured at several times. Three procedures to estimate the covariance matrix of the error term of the model are considered. Given these, three procedures to estimate the parameters of the model and their covariance matrix are considered; these are ordinary least-squares, generalized least-squares, and an adjusted ordinary least-squares procedure which produces an unbiased estimator of the covariance matrix of the parameters with small samples. These various procedures are compared in simulation studies using three examples from the biological literature. The possibility of testing hypotheses about the vector of parameters is also considered. It is found that all three procedures for regression estimation produce estimators of the parameters with bias of no practical consequence, Both generalized least-squares and adjusted ordinary least-squares generally produce estimators of the covariance matrix of the parameter estimates with bias of no practical consequence, while ordinary least-squares produces a negatively biased estimator. Neither ordinary nor generalized least-squares provide satisfactory hypothesis tests of the vector of parameter estimates. It is concluded that adjusted ordinary least-squares, when applied with either of two of the procedures used to estimate the error coveriance matrix, shows promise for practical application with data sets of the nature considered here.     

Parameter estimation for generalized random coefficient autoregressive processes

A generalized random coefficient autoregressive (GRCA) process is introduced in which the random coefficients are permitted to be correlated with the error process. The ordinary random coefficient autoregressive process, the Markovian bilinear model and its generalization, and the random coefficient exponential autoregressive process, among others, are seen to be special cases of the GRCA process. Conditional least squares, and weighted least-squares estimators of the mean of the random coefficient vector are derived and their limit distributions are studied. Estimators of the variance-covariance parameters are also discussed. A simulation study is presented which shows that the weighted least-squares estimator dominates the unweighted least-squares estimator.     

Consistency of least-squares estimator and its jackknife variance estimator in nonlinear models

The purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) We establish the consistency of the least-squares estimator in a nonlinear modely_i = f(x_i,θ) +σ_ie_i where the range of the parameter θ is noncompact, the regression function is unbounded, and the σ_i,'s are not necessarily equal. This extends the results in Jennrich (1969) and Wu (1981). (2) Under the same model, the jackknife estimator of the asymptotic covariance matrix of the least-squares estimator is shown to be consistent, which provides a theoretical justification of the empirical results in Duncan (1978) and the use of the jackknife method in large-sample inferences.     

On additive and block decompositions of WLSEs under a multiple partitioned regression model

While considering the mechanism of weighted least-squares estimators (WLSEs) of regression coefficients in a partitioned linear model, Tian and Takane [On sum decompositions of weighted least-squares estimators under the partitioned linear model, Comm. Statist. Theory Methods 37 (2008), pp. 55–69] gave some identifying conditions for the WLSEs to be the sum of WLSEs under its two small models based on orthogonality of regressors with respect to the given weight matrix. The purpose of this paper is to show how to establish additive and block decompositions of WLSEs under a multiple partitioned linear model and its k small models based on orthogonality of regressors with respect to a given weight matrix.     

Multiple-response repeated measurement or multivariate growth curve model with distribution-free errors

In this article, we propose a new modeling approach for the multivariate growth curve model with distribution-free errors, which is a useful tool for analyzing multiple-response repeated measurements. We first use the outer product least-squares technique to directly estimate covariance and then explore the feasible generalized least-squares technique to derive the estimator of regression coefficients. Large-sample properties are investigated for these estimators. Moreover, the above estimations for covariance and regression coefficients are extended to the situation under certain null hypothesis tests and the best subset BIC is used for variable selection. A real dataset is analyzed to demonstrate the usefulness and competency of the proposed methodology for model specification (identification) and model fitting (parameter estimation) in multiple-response repeated measurements.     

Estimating the parameters of the linear compartment model

In this paper we consider the linear compartment model and consider the estimation procedures of the different parameters. We discuss a method to obtain the initial estimators, which can be used for any iterative procedures to obtain the least-squares estimators. Four different types of confidence intervals have been discussed and they have been compared by computer simulations. We propose different methods to estimate the number of components of the linear compartment model. One data set has been used to see how the different methods work in practice.     

Ridge regression methodology in partial linear models with correlated errors

In this article, a generalized restricted difference-based ridge estimator is defined for the vector parameter in a partial linear model when the errors are dependent. It is suspected that some additional linear constraints may hold on to the whole parameter space. The estimator is a generalization of the well-known restricted least-squares estimator and is confined to the (affine) subspace which is generated by the restrictions. The risk functions of the proposed estimators are derived under balanced loss function. Finally, the performance of the new estimators is evaluated by a simulated data set.