Variance estimation of the Buckley–James estimator under discrete assumptions

The Buckley–James estimator (BJE) is a widely recognized approach in dealing with right-censored linear regression models. There have been a lot of discussions in the literature on the estimation of the BJE as well as its asymptotic distribution. So far, no simulation has been done to directly estimate the asymptotic variance of the BJE. Kong and Yu [Asymptotic distributions of the Buckley–James estimator under nonstandard conditions, Statist. Sinica 17 (2007), pp. 341–360] studied the asymptotic distribution under discontinuous assumptions. Based on their methodology, we recalculate and correct some missing terms in the expression of the asymptotic variance in Theorem 2 of their work. We propose an estimator of the standard deviation of the BJE by using plug-in estimators. The estimator is shown to be consistent. The performance of the estimator is accessed through simulation studies under discrete underline distributions. We further extend our studies to several continuous underline distributions through simulation. The estimator is also applied to a real medical data set. The simulation results suggest that our estimation is a good approximation to the true standard deviation with reference to the empirical standard deviation.     

A generalization of Turnbull’s estimator for nonparametric estimation of the conditional survival function with interval-censored data

Simple nonparametric estimates of the conditional distribution of a response variable given a covariate are often useful for data exploration purposes or to help with the specification or validation of a parametric or semi-parametric regression model. In this paper we propose such an estimator in the case where the response variable is interval-censored and the covariate is continuous. Our approach consists in adding weights that depend on the covariate value in the self-consistency equation proposed by Turnbull (J R Stat Soc Ser B 38:290–295, 1976), which results in an estimator that is no more difficult to implement than Turnbull’s estimator itself. We show the convergence of our algorithm and that our estimator reduces to the generalized Kaplan–Meier estimator (Beran, Nonparametric regression with randomly censored survival data, 1981) when the data are either complete or right-censored. We demonstrate by simulation that the estimator, bootstrap variance estimation and bandwidth selection (by rule of thumb or cross-validation) all perform well in finite samples. We illustrate the method by applying it to a dataset from a study on the incidence of HIV in a group of female sex workers from Kinshasa.     

Expectation–maximization algorithm for system-based lifetime data with unknown system structure

AStA Advances in Statistical Analysis - In science and engineering, we are often interested in learning about the lifetime characteristics of the system as well as those of the components that made...     

Confidence sets based on the positive part James–Stein estimator with the asymptotically constant coverage probability

The asymptotic expansions for the coverage probability of a confidence set centred at the James–Stein estimator presented in our previous publications show that this probability depends on the non-centrality parameter τ² (the sum of the squares of the means of normal distributions). In this paper we establish how these expansions can be used for a construction of confidence region with constant confidence level, which is asymptotically (the same formula for both case τ→0 and τ→∞) equal to some fixed value 1?α. We establish the shrinkage rate for the confidence region according to the growth of the dimension p and also the value of τ for which we observe quick decreasing of the coverage probability to the nominal level 1?α. When p→∞ this value of τ increases as O(p^1/4). The accuracy of the results obtained is shown by the Monte-Carlo statistical simulations.     

Buckley–James-type estimation of quantile regression with recurrent gap time data

In longitudinal studies, an individual may potentially undergo a series of repeated recurrence events. The gap times, which are referred to as the times between successive recurrent events, are typically the outcome variables of interest. Various regression models have been developed in order to evaluate covariate effects on gap times based on recurrence event data. The proportional hazards model, additive hazards model, and the accelerated failure time model are all notable examples. Quantile regression is a useful alternative to the aforementioned models for survival analysis since it can provide great flexibility to assess covariate effects on the entire distribution of the gap time. In order to analyze recurrence gap time data, we must overcome the problem of the last gap time subjected to induced dependent censoring, when numbers of recurrent events exceed one time. In this paper, we adopt the Buckley–James-type estimation method in order to construct a weighted estimation equation for regression coefficients under the quantile model, and develop an iterative procedure to obtain the estimates. We use extensive simulation studies to evaluate the finite-sample performance of the proposed estimator. Finally, analysis of bladder cancer data is presented as an illustration of our proposed methodology.     

On an exponential bound for the Kaplan–Meier estimator

We review limit theory and inequalities for the Kaplan–Meier Kaplan and Meier (J Am Stat Assoc 53:457–481, 1958) product limit estimator of a survival function on the whole line . Along the way we provide bounds for the constant in an interesting inequality due to Biotouzé et al. (Ann Inst H Poincaré Probab Stat 35:735–763, 1999), and provide some numerical evidence in support of one of their conjectures. Supported in part by NSF grant DMS-0503822 and by NI-AID grant 2R01 AI291968-04.     

A stable estimator of the information matrix under EM for dependent data

This article develops a new and stable estimator for information matrix when the EM algorithm is used in maximum likelihood estimation. This estimator is constructed using the smoothed individual complete-data scores that are readily available from running the EM algorithm. The method works for dependent data sets and when the expectation step is an irregular function of the conditioning parameters. In comparison to the approach of Louis (J. R. Stat. Soc., Ser. B 44:226–233, 1982), this new estimator is more stable and easier to implement. Both real and simulated data are used to demonstrate the use of this new estimator.     

On the Breslow–Holubkov estimator

Breslow and Holubkov (J Roy Stat Soc B 59:447–461 1997a) developed semiparametric maximum likelihood estimation for two-phase studies with a case–control first phase under a logistic regression model and noted that, apart for the overall intercept term, it was the same as the semiparametric estimator for two-phase studies with a prospective first phase developed in Scott and Wild (Biometrica 84:57–71 1997). In this paper we extend the Breslow–Holubkov result to general binary regression models and show that it has a very simple relationship with its prospective first-phase counterpart. We also explore why the design of the first phase only affects the intercept of a logistic model, simplify the calculation of standard errors, establish the semiparametric efficiency of the Breslow–Holubkov estimator and derive its asymptotic distribution in the general case.     

An algorithm for estimating Box–Cox transformation parameter in ANOVA

In this study, we construct a feasible region, in which we maximize the likelihood function, by using Shapiro–Wilk and Bartlett's test statistics to obtain Box–Cox power transformation parameter for solving the issues of non-normality and/or heterogeneity of variances in analysis of variance (ANOVA). Simulation studies illustrate that the proposed approach is more successful in attaining normality and variance stabilization, and is at least as good as the usual maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) in estimating the transformation parameter for different conditions. Our proposed method is illustrated on two real-life datasets. Moreover, the proposed algorithm is released under R package AID under the name of “boxcoxfr” for implementation.     

Rate of convergence for asymptotic variance of the Horvitz–Thompson estimator

Drawing distinct units without replacement and with unequal probabilities from a population is a problem often considered in the literature (e.g. Hanif and Brewer, 1980, Int. Statist. Rev. 48, 317–355). In such a case, the sample mean is a biased estimator of the population mean. For this reason, we use the unbiased Horvitz–Thompson estimator (1951). In this work, we focus our interest on the variance of this estimator. The variance is cumbersome to compute because it requires the calculation of a large number of second-order inclusion probabilities. It would be helpful to use an approximation that does not need heavy calculations. The Hájek (1964) variance approximation provides this advantage as it is free of second-order inclusion probabilities. Hájek (1964) proved that this approximation is valid under restrictive conditions that are usually not fulfilled in practice. In this paper, we give more general conditions and we show that this approximation remains acceptable for most practical problems.     

An exact Kolmogorov–Smirnov test for the Poisson distribution with unknown mean

We develop an exact Kolmogorov–Smirnov goodness-of-fit test for the Poisson distribution with an unknown mean. This test is conditional, with the test statistic being the maximum absolute difference between the empirical distribution function and its conditional expectation given the sample total. Exact critical values are obtained using a new algorithm. We explore properties of the test, and we illustrate it with three examples. The new test seems to be the first exact Poisson goodness-of-fit test for which critical values are available without simulation or exhaustive enumeration.     

Gamma lifetimes and associated inference for interval-censored cure rate model with COM–Poisson competing cause

In this article, we consider a competing cause scenario and assume the wider family of Conway–Maxwell–Poisson (COM–Poisson) distribution to model the number of competing causes. Assuming the type of the data to be interval censored, the main contribution is in developing the steps of the expectation maximization (EM) algorithm to determine the maximum likelihood estimates (MLEs) of the model parameters. A profile likelihood approach within the EM framework is proposed to estimate the COM–Poisson shape parameter. An extensive simulation study is conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed EM algorithm. Model selection within the wider class of COM–Poisson distribution is carried out using likelihood ratio test and information-based criteria. A study to demonstrate the effect of model mis-specification is also carried out. Finally, the proposed estimation method is applied to a data on smoking cessation and a detailed analysis of the obtained results is presented.     

On the rate of convergence of the Robbins–Monro's algorithm in a linear stochastic ill-posed problem with α-mixing data

In this paper we consider a recursive method of Robbins–Monro type to estimate the solution of the linear problem Ax = u, in which the second member is measured with α-mixing errors. We also show the almost complete convergence (a.co) of this algorithm specifying its convergence rate.     

On the restricted r–k class estimator and the restricted r–d class estimator in linear regression

In this article, the restricted r–k class estimator and restricted r–d class estimator are introduced, which are general estimators of the r–k class estimator by Baye and Parker [Combining ridge and principal component regression: A money demand illustration, Commun. Stat. Theory Methods 13(2) (1984), pp. 197–205] and the r–d class estimator by Kaç?ranlar and Sakall?o?lu [Combining the Liu estimator and the principal component regression estimator, Commun. Stat. Theory Methods 30(12) (2001), pp. 2699–2705], respectively. For the two cases when the restrictions are true and not true, the superiority of the restricted r–k class estimator and r–d class estimator over the restricted ridge regression estimator by Sarkar [A new estimator combining the ridge regression and the restricted least squares methods of estimation, Commun. Stat. Theory Methods 21 (1992), pp. 1987–2000] and the restricted Liu estimator by Kaç?ranlar et al. [A new biased estimator in linear regression and a detailed analysis of the widely analysed dataset on Portland cement, Sankhya - Indian J. Stat. 61B(3) (1999), pp. 443–459] are discussed with respect to the mean squared error matrix criterion. Furthermore, a Monte Carlo evaluation of the estimators is given to illustrate some of the theoretical results.     

Kolmogorov–Smirnov test for life test data with hybrid censoring

This work considers goodness-of-fit for the life test data with hybrid censoring. An alternative representation of the Kolmogorov–Smirnov (KS) statistics is provided under Type-I censoring. The alternative representation leads us to approximate the limiting distributions of the KS statistic as a functional of the Brownian bridge for Type-II, Type-I hybrid, and Type-II hybrid censored data. The approximated distributions are used to obtain the critical values of the tests in this context. We found that the proposed KS test procedure for Type-II censoring has more power than the available one(s) in literature.     

An efficient approximate algorithm for the Kolmogorov—Smirnov and Lilliefors tests †

In an earlier paper we presented a linear time algorithm for computing the Kolmogorov–Smirnov and Lilliefors test statistics. In this paper we present a linear time approximate algorithm which requires less memory than the previous algorithm.     

An alpha-power extension for the Birnbaum–Saunders distribution

Data on fatigue to exceed a critical value (or to grow to a critical level at which failure is likely to occur) is typically adjusted using the Birnbaum–Saunders (BS) distribution [see Birnbaum ZW, Saunders SC. A new family of life distributions. J Appl Probab. 1969a;6:319–327]. Although this type of distribution is asymmetric, in some cases the degree of skewness and/or kurtosis are outside the distributional range allowed by the BS distribution. Thus, a more adequate distribution model for better adjusting such unexpected deviations is called for. With this in mind, the main object of this paper is to propose an extension of the BS distribution based on the asymmetric alpha-power family of distributions [see Pewsey A, Gómez HW, Bolfarine H. Likelihood-based inference for power distributions. Test. 2012;21(4):775–789]. This extension is called the exponentiated BS distribution. We expect that by replacing the normal distribution by such more general family, a more flexible BS family is obtained. Asymmetry in the alpha-power family is controlled by a shape parameter, which also presents a similar performance in the extended BS family. The paper presents the density function for the extended BS and derives closed-form expressions for moments. Estimation is dealt with by using maximum likelihood estimators. Large sample inference can be conducted by using the Fisher information matrix derived in the paper. Estimation performance is studied by using a small scale simulation study. Results of a real application illustrates the good performance of the proposed approach.     

An economical acceptance–rejection algorithm for uniform random variate generation over constrained simplexes

This paper develops an algorithm for uniform random generation over a constrained simplex, which is the intersection of a standard simplex and a given set. Uniform sampling from constrained simplexes has numerous applications in different fields, such as portfolio optimization, stochastic multi-criteria decision analysis, experimental design with mixtures and decision problems involving discrete joint distributions with imprecise probabilities. The proposed algorithm is developed by combining the acceptance–rejection and conditional methods along with the use of optimization tools. The acceptance rate of the algorithm is analytically compared to that of a crude acceptance–rejection algorithm, which generates points over the simplex and then rejects any points falling outside the intersecting set. Finally, using convex optimization, the setup phase of the algorithm is detailed for the special cases where the intersecting set is a general convex set, a convex set defined by a finite number of convex constraints or a polyhedron.