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We illustrate the R package cquad for conditional maximum likelihood estimation of the quadratic exponential (QE) model proposed by Bartolucci and Nigro (2010) for the analysis of binary panel data. The package also allows us to estimate certain modified versions of the QE model, which are based on alternative parametrizations, and it includes a function for the pseudo-conditional likelihood estimation of the dynamic logit model, as proposed by Bartolucci and Nigro (2012). We also illustrate a reduced version of this package that is available in Stata. The use of the main functions of this package is based on examples using labor market data.

We investigate the semiparametric smooth coefficient stochastic frontier model for panel data in which the distribution of the composite error term is assumed to be of known form but depends on some environmental variables. We propose multi-step estimators for the smooth coefficient functions as well as the parameters of the distribution of the composite error term and obtain their asymptotic properties. The Monte Carlo study demonstrates that the proposed estimators perform well in finite samples. We also consider an application and perform model specification test, construct confidence intervals, and estimate efficiency scores that depend on some environmental variables. The application uses a panel data on 451 large U.S. firms to explore the effects of computerization on productivity. Results show that two popular parametric models used in the stochastic frontier literature are likely to be misspecified. Compared with the parametric estimates, our semiparametric model shows a positive and larger overall effect of computer capital on the productivity. The efficiency levels, however, were not much different among the models. Supplementary materials for this article are available online. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When a sample is obtained from a two-stage cluster sampling scheme with unequal selection probabilities the sample distribution can differ from that of the population and the sampling design can be informative. In this case making valid inference under generalized linear mixed models can be quite challenging. We propose a novel approach for parameter estimation using an EM algorithm based on the approximate predictive distribution of the random effect. In the approximate predictive distribution instead of using the intractable sample likelihood function we use a normal approximation of the sampling distribution of the profile pseudo maximum likelihood estimator of the random effects in the level-one model. Two limited simulation studies show that the proposed method using the normal approximation performs well for modest cluster sizes. The proposed method is applied to the real data arising from 2011 Private Education Expenditures Survey (PEES) in Korea. The Canadian Journal of Statistics 45: 479-497; 2017 © 2017 Statistical Society of Canada [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sampling related to the outcome variable of a regression analysis conditional on covariates is called informative sampling and may lead to bias in ordinary least squares estimation. Weighting by the reciprocal of the inclusion probability approximately removes such bias but may inflate variance. This paper investigates two ways of modifying such weights to improve efficiency while retaining consistency. One approach is to multiply the inverse probability weights by functions of the covariates. The second is to smooth the weights given values of the outcome variable and covariates. Optimal ways of constructing weights by these two approaches are explored. Both approaches require the fitting of auxiliary weight models. The asymptotic properties of the resulting estimators are investigated and linearization variance estimators are obtained. The approach is extended to pseudo maximum likelihood estimation for generalized linear models. The properties of the different weighted estimators are compared in a limited simulation study. The robustness of the estimators to misspecification of the auxiliary weight model or of the regression model of interest is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The likelihood for generalized linear models with covariate measurement error cannot in general be expressed in closed form, which makes maximum likelihood estimation taxing. A popular alternative is regression calibration which is computationally efficient at the cost of inconsistent estimation. We propose an improved regression calibration approach, a general pseudo maximum likelihood estimation method based on a conveniently decomposed form of the likelihood. It is both consistent and computationally efficient, and produces point estimates and estimated standard errors which are practically identical to those obtained by maximum likelihood. Simulations suggest that improved regression calibration, which is easy to implement in standard software, works well in a range of situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents and exemplifies results developed for cointegration analysis with state space models by Bauer and Wagner in a series of papers. Unit root processes, cointegration, and polynomial cointegration are defined. Based upon these definitions, the major part of the paper discusses how state space models, which are equivalent to VARMA models, can be fruitfully employed for cointegration analysis. By detailing the cases most relevant for empirical applications, the I(1), multiple frequency I(1), and I(2) cases, a canonical representation is developed and thereafter some available statistical results are briefly discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recursive procedures which are based on iterating on the best response mapping have difficulties converging to all equilibria in multi-player games. We illustrate these difficulties by revisiting the asymptotic properties of the iterative nested pseudo maximum likelihood method for estimating dynamic games introduced by Aguirregabiria and Mira (2007). An example shows that the iterative method may not be consistent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the estimation of dynamic discrete games of incomplete information. Two main econometric issues appear in the estimation of these models: the indeterminacy problem associated with the existence of multiple equilibria and the computational burden in the solution of the game. We propose a class of pseudo maximum likelihood (PML) estimators that deals with these problems, and we study the asymptotic and finite sample properties of several estimators in this class. We first focus on two-step PML estimators, which, although they are attractive for their computational simplicity, have some important limitations: they are seriously biased in small samples; they require consistent nonparametric estimators of players' choice probabilities in the first step, which are not always available; and they are asymptotically inefficient. Second, we show that a recursive extension of the two-step PML, which we call nested pseudo likelihood (NPL), addresses those drawbacks at a relatively small additional computational cost. The NPL estimator is particularly useful in applications where consistent nonparametric estimates of choice probabilities either are not available or are very imprecise, e.g., models with permanent unobserved heterogeneity. Finally, we illustrate these methods in Monte Carlo experiments and in an empirical application to a model of firm entry and exit in oligopoly markets using Chilean data from several retail industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]