A dual problem of calibration of design weights

In this note, a dual problem to the calibration of design weights of the Deville and Särndal [Calibration estimators in survey sampling, J. Amer. Statist. Assoc. 87 (1992), pp. 376–382] method has been considered. We conclude that the chi-squared distance between the design weights and the calibrated weights equals the square of the standardized Z-score obtained by the difference between the known population total of the auxiliary variable and its corresponding Horvitz and Thompson [A generalization of sampling without replacement from a finite universe, J. Amer. Statist. Assoc. 47 (1952), pp. 663–685] estimator divided by the sample standard deviation of the auxiliary variable to obtain the linear regression estimator in survey sampling.     

Marcinkiewicz–Zygmund and ordinary strong laws for empirical distribution functions and plug-in estimators

Both Marcinkiewicz–Zygmund strong laws of large numbers (MZ-SLLNs) and ordinary strong laws of large numbers (SLLNs) for plug-in estimators of general statistical functionals are derived. It is used that if a statistical functional is ‘sufficiently regular’, then an (MZ-)SLLN for the estimator of the unknown distribution function yields an (MZ-)SLLN for the corresponding plug-in estimator. It is in particular shown that many L-, V- and risk functionals are ‘sufficiently regular’ and that known results on the strong convergence of the empirical process of α-mixing random variables can be improved. The presented approach does not only cover some known results but also provides some new strong laws for plug-in estimators of particular statistical functionals.     

抽样调查中的校准估计法

本文梳理总结了校准估计法自首次提出以来的研究成果。理论方法的发展集中在最短距离法、工具向量法和模型校准法三种校准方法的研究上;方法应用的发展体现在对简单参数和复杂参数的校准估计上。对小域估计、无回答、二重抽样等特定抽样问题和总体分位数、总体方差估计中校准估计法的具体应用作了重点梳理介绍。对校准估计法的理论和应用研究前景作了展望。     

Nonparametric testing for long-horizon predictability with persistent covariates

We propose a testing procedure for long-horizon predictability via kernel-based nonparametric estimators of long-run covariances between multiperiod returns and persistent covariates. Asymptotic properties of the proposed tests are studied. As for implementation of the test, sieve bootstrap methods are employed to obtain reasonable approximation to the sample distribution of the test statistics. Monte Carlo simulations are conducted to verify the theoretical conjecture. Empirical analysis, using US monthly data from 1929 to 2011, are presented for testing stock return predictability of some forecasting financial variables. Long-term interest rates, unlike default spreads or price-earning ration, are found to show some forecasting power.     

Estimation for an inverted exponentiated Rayleigh distribution under type II progressive censoring

In this paper, we consider estimation of unknown parameters of an inverted exponentiated Rayleigh distribution under type II progressive censored samples. Estimation of reliability and hazard functions is also considered. Maximum likelihood estimators are obtained using the Expectation–Maximization (EM) algorithm. Further, we obtain expected Fisher information matrix using the missing value principle. Bayes estimators are derived under squared error and linex loss functions. We have used Lindley, and Tiernery and Kadane methods to compute these estimates. In addition, Bayes estimators are computed using importance sampling scheme as well. Samples generated from this scheme are further utilized for constructing highest posterior density intervals for unknown parameters. For comparison purposes asymptotic intervals are also obtained. A numerical comparison is made between proposed estimators using simulations and observations are given. A real-life data set is analyzed for illustrative purposes.     

Estimation of the Intensity Parameter of the Germ‐Grain Quermass‐Interaction Model when the Number of Germs is not Observed

The Quermass‐interaction model allows to generalize the classical germ‐grain Boolean model in adding a morphological interaction between the grains. It enables to model random structures with specific morphologies, which are unlikely to be generated from a Boolean model. The Quermass‐interaction model depends in particular on an intensity parameter, which is impossible to estimate from classical likelihood or pseudo‐likelihood approaches because the number of points is not observable from a germ‐grain set. In this paper, we present a procedure based on the Takacs–Fiksel method, which is able to estimate all parameters of the Quermass‐interaction model, including the intensity. An intensive simulation study is conducted to assess the efficiency of the procedure and to provide practical recommendations. It also illustrates that the estimation of the intensity parameter is crucial in order to identify the model. The Quermass‐interaction model is finally fitted by our method to P. Diggle's heather data set.     

A Generalized Stochastic Restricted Ridge Regression Estimator

In this article, we introduce a new stochastic restricted estimator for the unknown vector parameter in the linear regression model when stochastic linear restrictions on the parameters hold. We show that the new estimator is a generalization of the ordinary mixed estimator (OME), Liu estimator (LE), ordinary ridge estimator (ORR), (k-d) class estimator, stochastic restricted Liu estimator (SRLE), and stochastic restricted ridge estimator (SRRE). Performance of the new estimator in comparison to other estimators in terms of the mean squares error matrix (MMSE) is examined. Numerical example from literature have been given to illustrate the results.     

Estimation of Parameters of a Mixed Failure Time Distribution Which is a Mixture of Degenerate (Degenerate at Zero) and I. G. Distribution

The problem of estimation of parameters of a mixture of degenerate (at zero) and exponential distribution is considered by Jayade and Prasad (1990). The sampling scheme proposed in it is extended in this paper to a mixture of degenerate and Inverse Gaussian distribution. The Inverse Gaussian distribution is very relevant for studying reliability and life-testing problems. The inverse Gaussian being the first passage time distribution for Wiener process makes it particularly appropriate for failure or reaction time data analysis.     

Estimators for the Drift of Subfractional Brownian Motion

In this paper, we consider, using technique based on Girsanov theorem, the problem of efficient estimation for the drift of subfractional Brownian motion S^H ? (S^H_t)_{t ∈ [0, T]}. We also construct a class of biased estimators of James-Stein type which dominate, under the usual quadratic risk, the natural maximum likelihood estimator.